Handmade Monday - Crosses

I love crosses and what they stand for. Click on any picture to be taken to the shop that is selling them.

Friday Finds!!

This could be someones father-in-law

Thurday Thoughts!!

I know this one is late too!! Last night was a thriller! I watched the season finale of Grey's Anatomy..... HOLY MOLY!!! Is all I have to say about that! I was every which way but upside down in my chair and my heart felt like it was going to pop out of my chest!!! The suspense was unreal!!!!

Phew!! okay deep breath.......
Well, Wednesday was the last day of school for my oldest. She is now officially a first grader, and my youngest will be starting Pre-K this next school year. Man, oh man, where has the time gone?!?! I don't know if I am ready for my baby to be starting school yet. =(

I have started a list of things to do this summer before school starts in August. I am hoping that I can accomplish at least 80% of it. I will get started on it next week and we will start with the youngest's bedroom. We will go through the closet, toys and anything else that is in her room. I am hoping that I can convince the girls to give away most of their toys that they don't play with. I will be giving clothes to a friend that has a little girl a few years younger than my youngest.

Recipe Wednesday!

I know, I know!!! I missed yesterday. I am sorry for that. I was at my daughters school all day watching her have fun at "Super Kids Day". They got to go to the football field and play games all day. I am fried to a crisp. I think I am also a little wind burnt too.

Anyway..... On to recipe Wednesday.

I kinda made this one up as I went. I still change it a bit every time I make it too. =)

Chicken and rice casserole (feeds my family of 4)

Ingredients
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cans of Cheddar cheese soup
chicken broth (will explain how much later)
salt and pepper to taste
2 bags of minute rice family size (the kind you can boil in a bag) It probably equals out to 2 cups
Lemon juice (concentrated)

1. Cut all excess fat off chicken breasts.
2. Put the 2 cans of cheese soup in a large mixing bowl. Then measure out 2 cans of chicken broth in the soup cans. Slowly mix together until well blended. Then add rice and stir.
3. add salt and pepper to taste to soup mixture
4. add lemon juice to taste (I use about a tablespoon)
5. pour about 1/2 of soup mixture to a greased 9x13 pan.
6. add chicken breasts on top
7. pour on the rest of soup mixture
8. cover with foil and bake at 350 until chicken is done.

I take off the foil and let it dry out some because I don't like it soupy. Sometimes I add about a cup of frozen mixed veggies to it.

I hope you enjoy and if there are any questions don't be afraid to ask!

Tip Tuesday =)

Today's tip I love! Having 2 small children that love to write on, with or about anything this tip has came in handy too many times to count. My oldest will grab a pen or pencil to write with and usually ends up making small marks on her shirt accidentally. So I read somewhere to spray it with hairspray before you wash it. Yeah right! I didn't think this would work at all. But what the heck! I tried it and low and behold......... the pen mark came out!!!!

So far I have only found this to work with pen marks and not markers. I hope this helps you out as much as it did for me!!

Have a happy Tuesday!

Handmade Monday!!!!

I went surfing the net and found these that I thought was pretty, interesting and weird.

Hair pin made out of beads
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=1199905

Oreo pops!!!
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=1113643

A quilt that reminds me of my Grama! =)
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=89476

A purse made out of neck ties
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=778997

Okay, so this one is from me. I made this receiving blanket in hopes that I might could sell it. I have others that I have made but can't get a good pic of them. =(


Well I hope you have enjoyed Handmade Monday!!

So I think I have it figured out......

No I am not meaning life either! LOL

I am talking about the themes for the days of the week. I try to do them like this...

Handmade Monday......I will find things that I love that are handmade on websites like Etsy.com, Artfire.com and others.

Tip Tuesday.... It could be a laundry, money, or any other kind of tip

Recipe Wednesday... We will try a to have a new recipe each week at my house and I will post it and a review from the family. Or it could be an old favorite!

Thursday Thoughts... will be any thing on my mind at the time, so look out! LOL

Friday Finds.... could be just a picture of something or a cool website, something crafty, tutorial to make something, another wonderful blog, or anything else.

I hope you will join me each day to find out what is going on in my world and I hope you enjoy following me in my journey!!

Rainy dreary day.....

Well, today is one of those days. The weather is crappy, rainy, dreary, cool and I don't want to do a thing. Blah!!! I don't know what has gotten into me hear lately. I just don't even want to get out of bed. I get mad at myself when I look around my house and see the mess that I have let it become. I get mad at myself when I go to weigh and find out that I haven't lost anything, mainly because I can't find the motivation to get up off my tush and do something about it. UGH!!!!

I am so tired of not having any motivation to do anything. I need to clean house. I do what absolutely needs done and that is it. I need to lose weight but can't get off the computer. I have an addiction to Facebook.

But I am going to gradually try to change my attitude and get something done each day and start routines for each day. I have so much that needs to be done so I am going to make me a list and just check them off as I get them done.

I have also thought about blogging more often and seeing if that helps too. I will try to have a theme for each day of the week. Like Monday could be handmade monday, tuesday could be tip tuesday, wednesday recipe wedensday, and so on. What do you think?

I have been working on some crocheted blankets. I have actually had 2 people want me to make some blankets for them. One has decided that they don't like the material that they told me I had free reign to pick out. But the other one has let me pick out any pink material that I like in flannel. YAY!!! I can't wait to get to town to pick out some and get started.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. We are probably going to be spending the weekend inside because it is supposed to rain all weekend. =( But we will make the best of it too!! =)

Life Legacies

I got this poem on a card that my Grama sent me for my birthday in December. Every time I read it I get tears in my eyes...

Enjoy!!

Live deep
Never stop learning, playing, or finding wonder in the world around you.
Live the length of your life, but live the depth of it as well.

Travel Light
There is no use in carrying around the worry and the regret.
They only weigh you down. Always keep yourself open to hope and to love.
They give us wings.

Forgive imperfections
in yourself and others.
Imperfections keep things interesting.
They're the cracks where the light shines through.

Own beautiful things
and not just to keep in the drawer, tucked away for a perfect day.
Surround yourself with things to make you happy,
that remind you of the beauty all around us
if we only keep our eyes open to it.

Make mistakes
Follow detours. Sometimes it takes an unexpected turn
to help us find the life that is waiting for us around the bend.
Trust yourself and the path that is meant for you.

Take care of yourself
and sometimes that mean you need ice cream.
Be good to your body, but also to your mind and spirit.
You're the only one who can.

And Always, Always know you are loved.
You are a gift to this world and a blessing to me.
And that will never change.

You know it's bad when........

I done something yesterday that I thought I would never have to do. To some it may not sound like something so bad but to me it was a low point(that later turned into a somewhat high point).

I had to take our money jar(change) to the bank to get cash because were are literally broke. We have less than $20 in the bank. DH gets paid this friday and already that money is gone before it even gets here. But after I turned in all my change I got back $124!!!!!!!!!!!! I was only expecting like maybe $50 at the most. Holy cow I was suprised!!!!!!

So anyway, we will take some of that money and buy some much needed groceries, some of it and hide it, and the rest we will use for spending cash.


Something has been weighing heavy on my mind alot here the last few days. I have been thinking about if only I had a job. Why don't I just go get one you ask? Well, I have no babysitter for my 4 yr old. I can't find a job around here that would pay for daycare plus put money in the bank for groceries. So I guess I am just screwed!!! Ugh!!!!

Lazy Saturday morning......

Well, this is going to be a lazy dreary saturday. It is misting rain outside, DH is working, I am not in the mood to do much of anything today. I will probably do a few loads of laundry, read some more on my book, upload more songs to my iphone and that just might be it today.

Things have gotten better around here. Dh's side work is starting to pick up(praise GOD!!!). Some of the work will pay him pretty quick but some of it is going to take anywhere from 30 -90 days because it is oil field work. We both have been in a better mood, but not like we used to be. But who is anymore? Especially with the economy the way it is.

Oh well, I just am thankful that we are in better shape than others. I think we have both learned our lessons about spending money and having credit cards.

Now off to do a little bit of nothing today!!! LOL ;)

Having a bad day.......

I honestly don't know where to start. Things around here have been getting worse and worse. Financially(the major thing), fighting with the DH(as a result of the financial part), extended family fighting, I could go on forever. I just don't feel like dealing with any of it. Financially we are about to go under and DH wants me to go get a job but honestly I think it is too late for that. I would have to work after 5 pm because he doesn't get home from work until around 4:15-4:30 and then that would mean I would have to high-tail it to the nearest town to be able to make it there by 5. I am excited about the fact that I need to go get a job. Sounds weird huh? well I am ready to get out of the house for a purpose other than grocery shopping. But the thing is where to find a job that I can work nights at? Wal-Mart, the hospital, or a gas station is about my only choices. I have been looking for over 5 yrs now (off and on) to find a job that I can do at home. Most of them want a fee to get started and I have heard that I shouldn't have to pay to get a job. So I don't know what is legit and what isn't. I have thought about going back to school but guess what that costs money! We can barely buy groceries much less pay for me to go to school.

The fighting with DH has been getting worse. I have been feeling the tension getting worse and then Sunday night it all just fell apart. We had our youngest's birthday party Sunday afternoon and I had done some laundry earlier that afternoon and just piled it on the bed. Well, the bedroom is DH's throne. He lays/sits in bed and watches his tv shows. I didn't have time to fold and put up the clothes when everyone started showing up for the party so I just threw them on the bed and closed the door. Well, after everyone left, he went in to his "throne" and started throwing a fit because there were clothes on the bed and he couldn't even lay down. I told him(nicely), why couldn't he just scoot them over to the other side of the bed and I would put them up after I got the cake and ice cream put up from the party. He told me that I was one lazy woman and that I never finish anything I start and that I needed to get my act together. Which is partially true. I have been pretty lazy here lately and not been keeping the house clean, laundry done up and a hot meal everynight. I am going to be working on this. My attitude here lately hasn't been the greatest either so I am working on it too. So anyway, that ended up being a huge fight. We kinda got it straightened out but not all the way.

You know the old saying....... God never gives you more than you can handle? Well, I think I am about to my breaking point. I have been praying, probably not as much as I should, but at least I am doing it. It just seems like it is falling on deaf ears. I am going to try to start reading and studying my Bible more and trying to have more faith.

Been a while......

Howdy! I know it has been a while since I have posted. I got out of the habit and haven't gotten back in yet. I have made it a resolution to try to blog more and maybe this will help me get some things off my chest that I can't talk to anyone else about it. Here I can type anything that is on my mind and no one really cares. This will be just a place for me to get things out there. No one in my family that I know of reads this so this blog is my only haven to which I can lay my heart out on my sleeve.

I said the word resolution above and I don't usually do resolutions because they are just like everyone elses. Lose weight and get debt under control. But this year is different. I am going to state a few and then try my hardest to stick to them.

Here goes...........

• try to lose 5 pounds a month
  
• try to save money up for an emergency (or vacation, which to me is one in the same)
• read and study the Bible everyday
• not be infront of the computer so much
• try to blog atleast every other day
  

So there it is. What do you think is it do-able?