An Unlikely Friendship

Fep likes birds. I'm not sure if it's normal for a 10 year old, almost 11, to like birds as much as she does. The Bob calls her our Jane Hathaway.

There is a man who The Bob met through work that is a serious bird watcher. He goes out every weekend and has for years and years and years. He is 70 years old, and Mr. Jeff is his name. Fep and The Bob have gotten to go on a couple of bird excursions with Mr. Jeff, and he has been able to show her birds that we'd never find in our back yard. Can we say Painted Bunting?

Over the past month, Fep has taken to the computer. Not to play games on the computer...okay well maybe she does do that, too...she is still a normal 11 year old even though her passion for birds isn't normal for an 11 year old...she gets on the computer to email, Mr. Jeff. Not her best little girlfriends. Not her family. She emails back and forth with a 70 year old man. They talk about all their bird finds and stories, and she asks him questions. Lots of questions. And Mr. Jeff is so kind that he takes the time to correspond back and forth with her. I was thinking the other day what a lovely and unexpected friendship. Not many children today gives a hoot (get it? Hoot...Owl....Bird. hee hee) about our elders and the wisdom they hold. And there are those elders who are just annoyed by youth. But Fep and Mr. Jeff, I think, have found something special....an unlikely friendship.

"When you're smiling..."

"When you're smiling, when you're smiling, the whole world smiles with you." Do you know that song? We sing it all the time. Anyway, these are just a couple of the many things in my home that makes me smile. First I give you...

This was the first Christmas present Fep ever bought me herself. She was around 5 years old at the time. In additon to Heather, I have another best buddy, Lisa, who took her to Dollar Tree so she could have something to give her Mamma that she picked out and that she paid for herself. I remember that Fep even wrapped it. You can imagine what 5 year old wrapping looks like. This little angel only cost a dollar, but I wouldn't take a hundred for it. It warms my heart every time I think about the thought that went into it.

Then another smile maker is....

Heather gave me this this past Christmas. I love it. I absolutely love it. It sets of the china cabinet beeeeyouteeefully. Real nice, it does. Oh, and if you love it, too, she makes them and sells them in her Etsy Shop. And I'm sure yours would make you smile, too. And really, this is not just a Heather promo because we are best buds. I love that tassel, and I've gotten compliments on it. It's a real smile maker.

And finally....

I made this blueberry jam this morning. It will make me smile when it's in my belly ;)

For more smiles....

Make Her Smile

Heathahlee is having a linky party Monday. You can see her posts here and also here for the scoop. Check out her posts, and then link up on Monday. Monday is the day. It's Monday. Not Tuesday. Not Wednesday. Monday. Butterfly Genes. Be there or be square ;)

Hawaiian Wishes

In this post, I talked about all that Hawaiian decor Heather and I put out. So, who is going to Hawaii? Me? Noooooo. Not me. Better than that. What could possibly be better than ME going to Hawaii? It's that this young lady is going....







In December our company raised money for charity to sponsor a terminally ill child's wish. With the help of our customers and employees and a local retailer in our area, we were able to raise enough money to grant a wish. The approximate cost of one wish is $7000. And that's what was raised. Even at Christmas when people may already be a bit stressed about money, and even in the down economic times, people gave. And they gave. And they gave. We raised almost $5K of that $7K in a period of just 2 days.

This young lady's wish was to go to Hawaii. She was diagnosed with cancer last year and was given a 35% chance of beating it. With a lot of help from St. Jude Children's Hospital and healing from the Lord, our true Healer, she is now in remission....

Her story is not complete without her Mom. Her Mom has literally battled cancer right along with her child. Two months ago, she underwent a double mastectomy for breast cancer. She came, and I thought she looked lovely. This would be Mom with another one of her children, her son....

I was grateful to be a part of this event. Grateful for our employees who sacrificed a lot of their time to help with the fund raiser. Grateful for people who gave even in tough economic times. Grateful for volunteers who work selflessly behind the scenes....


She and her family will leave for Hawaii on Sunday. ALOHA!!

This post is linked at Emily's Tuesdays Unwrapped

Blogs I Love...

I really, really don't think I've been in the blogging world long enough to do this, but I'm doing it anyway. I don't think I formed those deep relationships in my little blog life...yet. And that is what Bloggy Friendship Days is about. However, in my short stint with this blog there are a few ladies that I already adore.

Dawn at Beyond Grace. I believe she stumbled upon me at Emily's Tuesdays Unwrapped. But unlike some people who visit during a linky session and then never come back, Dawn came back. And she came back again. And she came back again. And then she started "Following Me". And as you know in this blogging life, if you find someone who really cares enough about your posts to leave consistent comments, it means the world. She's also a really good writer. She's deep and reflective. She's a grateful lady. So, check her blog out.

Jen at Unglazed She's a recent find who I found through Dawn. She does A to Z Mondays. I think it's Mondays? Anyway, she does A to Z posts where you have a letter of the alphabet...like say "C". Your post for that day will have to be about a "C" word like cat, coffee, Cuba...whatever :) Anyway, not only that be she takes AMAZING animal pictures. Lots of bird pictures. And I love me some birds. And she can tell cute, funny, little stories with her pictures. Even my children like to look at her blog...and that says A LOT. What blog is interesting enough to please a child? They usually look at a blog, and are like "Eh. Whatever." But they love Jen's animal pictures. And like Dawn, she's been coming to see me just because I left her a little comment about her pictures.

And finally, the one, the only Susie Harris This lady is one of the sweetest, kindest, most genuine people that I have gotten to meet. I've actually MET The Susie Harris! It was at Blissdom in February when I was tagging long with my IRL best buddy Heathahlee. And I do mean tagging along, because I didn't even have a blog at the time. I only went to get some girl bonding time with Heather. Anyway, as big as Susie's blog is, and as much as she has going on, she also takes time to visit my little corner of the world. I'm just a blip in this blog life, and Susie is huge in Blogland, but she remembers me from Blissdom and probably how I followed Heather around like a puppy. She treats me like I'm her friend. Her blog slogan is "Where Friends Become Family". How sweet is that!? I heart her. She simply has the sweetest spirit about her.

My next post will fill you in on WHO is going to Hawaii and why Heather and I did all that decorating! :)

A Servant's Heart

I'm quite convinced that the picture which should go along with the word "servant" in the dictionary should have HeathahLee's picture by it.

Our company had a function at a restaurant tonight in which we needed to have a Hawaiian theme. When I hit Heather up for a favor, I like to give her advance notice. So, I gave her a whole 2 hour notice this morning to get herself ready, and then drag her and her Kiddo around in the heat (it's 100 degrees here) with me to get together what we needed for said company function. The thing is that I do this to her all the time. And she loves me anyway. She has come to my rescue more times than I can count. Like when I needed a singer for a wedding that was at my house for people she didn't even know. Like when she spent the entire day of that wedding running around with me getting stuff and coming back to my house and helping me decorate. And then she sang. And then she helped clean up after the wedding. I could go on and on. Stuff she probably wouldn't even think of or remember. Why? Because not only is she a servant, she's a humble servant.

Oh, how I heart this woman.


If you don't have a friend like this, you seriously need to get one! And if your dictionary doesn't have her picture by the word servant, you probably need a new one ;)

And just why did we need to decorate with a Hawaiian theme?

Well, somebody's going to Hawaii. Stay tuned and see :)

Oh, and finally, this post is linked at Emily's Tuesday's Unwrapped. This day would have been just rush, rush, hurry, hurry without Heather in the mix. She made my super busy day fun and light hearted. We ate lunch. We laughed. We giggled. And we put out cheesy Hawaiian decor. Well, we hoped it didn't look cheesy. Or not too cheesy.

And may we all have a servant's heart...

Expected.

Well, today is the day. That day I'm supposed to weigh in. For some reason I thought this would be a great thing to do? Oh yeah. Accountability. And my results are not what I wanted, but what I expected. Actually I expected less, so I guess I should be glad for a 1.6 lb. weight loss. This week I lost 1.6 lbs. I have to explain here that I don't feel like I've really done well unless I lose at least 2 to 3 lbs a week. A minimum of 2. I know that to do well I'm going to have to face my nemesis.......

I have a real love/hate relationship with that thing. And please do notice that I have no curtains or window treatments other than the blinds. I am decor challenged that way. Anyway, I'm off to walk a mile or two. No pain, no gain. Or loss. Whatever.

Oh, and I'm changing my day to weigh to Friday. When I was officially doing Weight Watchers and facing the lady at the scale, I weighed on Fridays. That worked really well for me. So, you won't have to endure another weigh in post for about a week and a half :)

I am what?!

When I saw this on another blog, they were The Kitchen. I thought, "Oh, I bet I'm the kitchen", and I took the test. Then I got THIS result.....

You Are the Bathroom

Overall, you are a healthy person. You enjoy taking care of yourself. You are also quite attractive. Looking your best makes you feel your best. You are conscientious and detailed oriented. You stay on top of things. You are very honest and open. Privacy is not something you need a lot of.

What Room of the House Are You?

Oh. my. goodness. I laughed out loud when I saw my answer. THE BATHROOM?! The one thing that it says that I know does not fit me is, "Privacy is not something you need a lot of." Ummmm. I just don't think that fits. I love me some alone time. Love it. Crave it. Need it. Anyway, if you're up for some fun, find out your room :)

Father's Day Shopping...

So, I went Father's Day shopping today. This year The Bob will receive the usual shirt and socks. We also got him some cologne as he was completely out. I'm struggling with giving him the usual this year, because THIS is what he gave me for Mother's Day....

So, do you see my dilemma? I know it's not just about the gift, but about the heart in it. The problem with that is that he gave up something he treasured to buy me the car. I asked, begged him not to, but he did. And so I know, it's not about the gift, but this year Father's Day has me feeling a bit out of sorts. Last year with the usual shirt and socks, I wrote him a little poem kind of thing and framed it to give to him. So, I'm going to post that now. If fits him just as much today as it did when I wrote it a year ago...

This Man

This man serves others and not himself

This man sees the best in people and not the worst

This man delights in reading the Word of God to his children

This man sacrifices his wants for the needs of others

This man has strength of character and gentleness of spirit

This man makes the most of any situation, good or bad

This man works hard for his family

This man is the father of my children, my richest blessings

This man completes me

Happy Father's Day

June 15, 2008

~Kat

Yep, all those words still fit him completely, and I am blessed....

My Struggle...

I think I might be a tad bit crazy for putting this out there for everyone to see. But I've decided I've got to get some accountability or I'm never going to get what I struggle with under control. I struggle with..........food. My struggles with food come. And they go. I thought when I joined Weight Watchers last fall that the struggle would be gone for good. Wrong. Once I reached goal, I made the mistake of stopping my weekly weigh-in. And slowly over the last 3 months, I have gained back (gulp!) 10 lbs. Oh. my. goodness. How did I let this happen? So, I don't want to pay all the fees to sign back up with Weight Watchers. And I know how to do it. And I subscribe to their Online stuff and am already paying for that service. All I need is the lady at the scale. The lady at the scale who would weekly look at me, look at the scale, look at me on the scale, and write down my weight. Every single week. That motivated me more than the meetings. Way more than the meetings. The meeting was pretty much just a pep talk. For me, it was all about being accountable to the lady at the scale. The few people reading this blog will now become the lady at the scale. Didn't you always want to be the lady at the scale? I'm weighing on Tuesday's and on my Weight Watcher's Online Profile I had to record the ugly weight of.......oh, this is painful.....157.7. There. There it is. I had lost down to 147 way back in February. So, now I'm 10 lbs up...almost 11! Ugh. So, if you look to the right just under my family photos, I'm tracking my weight. I'll put down my weigh-in every Tuesday. Thanks for being the lady at the scale.

Did you know?

Did you know that yesterday was Flag Day? I didn't until I read Dawn's Blog this morning. Thanks, Dawn :) Even though we didn't know yesterday was Flag Day, it just so happens that we did put up a new American Flag yesterday. What a wonderful coincidence!

Other activities for our Sunday....

Rupert does The Dog...

Granny comes for a visit...

And we take in the Lord's beautiful creation...

Fire & Ice...How to turn Store Bought Pickles into Homemade!

The Bob and I like to try and have a weekend getaway once a year. Our spot choice for the getaway, or Minimoon (as in short honeymoon), is Natchez, Mississippi. We love it. I love the old antebellum houses. They have something like 25 that you can tour, and there are more than that on the historic register. I love the old civil war history of the town. Example: The reason Natchez still has so many old, antebellum homes is because the Union Army thought the town was so pretty that they did not want to burn it when they took control of the town during the war. Anyway, we looooove our yearly voyage to Natchez. I also love their local cuisine. They have some dang good eatin' there! Pearl Street Pasta, King's Tavern, The Carriage House, Magnolia Grill. Yuuuuummmmy! On our last trip, we tried a new place called Fat Mama's Tamales. I don't normally like tamales. When I think tamales, I think about those nasty ones that come in a jar from the store. My Daddy used to eat those. Bleck. Well, Fat Mama makes homemade tamales. There is a world of difference, and I really, really liked them. But what I liked even more was Fat Mama's Fire & Ice pickles. Sweet pickles with a bit of a kick, a little spice. They were the best I had ever eaten. When we left Fat Mama's, I bought several jars of pickles to bring home like any good tourist would do. As I was paying for them, the cashier said, "You know you can make these. They start from store bought dill pickles." I'm sure Fat Mama would not appreciate that cashier letting customers know that. Although they did not give me the exact recipe, however. My Mom ran down a recipe online, and they are sooooo good. Just like Fat Mama's. Fat Mama would be so proud. I made them from our online recipe, but changed them just a tad, so here you go:

Fire & Ice Pickles
1 quart of whole dill pickles
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 HEAPING tsp. red pepper flakes
2 cups sugar

Empty jar of pickles draining off all juice. Cut into slices that are not too thick and not too thin. Mix in garlic, red pepper flakes, and sugar. Stir all ingredients and let them set on the counter for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally. Over time the sugar will bring out more juice from the pickles and turn your dill pickles into sweet pickles. After several hours put back into the jar and chill. I think they are the absolute best when they've had a chance to get their chill on.

Also, I heap my tsp. of red pepper flakes, because I like the extra, little kick the red pepper gives. Sweet yet a hint of spicy. Yum.

Learning to be grateful...

I hope we are teaching our children to be grateful. We are trying. Last week Moose had a birthday party, and we are having him send Thank You notes to those who brought him a gift. It's something The Bob and I are serious about. Thank You notes, that is. We are serious about sending Thank You notes. Moose feels like it's torture. He hates to write. He is thankful for his gifts, but he does not see a need to hand write everyone a note. He'd rather give thanks in person. But in the day of high technology, there is something wonderful about a handwritten note. It says you took time. It says you were mindful and thoughtful. Really, don't you just love to get a handwritten note or letter from someone in the mail? I do.

I don't think I've always had an attitude that was as grateful as it should have been. No, I know I didn't. Especially in my teens and twenties. I think those are days that many young adults are completely absorbed with self. At least I was. Since then and over time, I have learned to be thankful and grateful for what others do. I have even gone back and written a couple of people who I never properly thanked or told them how much their love and support meant. People need to hear that...even if it's years later than it should have been.

So, I hope I teach my children to be grateful and thankful along the way. In doing so, they will not only find an attitude of gratitude, but also an attitude of humility.

Blueberries & Cream

We have a very large blueberry bush in our backyard which yields more berries than we can eat. I don't have a picture to go with this recipe, but trust me, it's super yummy. And it won this:


Pardon the cheap, yet sentimental jewelry hanging with it. And yes, I'm tooting my own horn. So without further adieu, the blue ribbon winning (just a bit more horn tooting) Blueberries & Cream:

Blueberries & Cream

First Layer:

1 cup of flour

2 sticks of butter (yes, I said 2)

1 cup chopped Walnuts.

Mix the following and cook on 375 deg. until golden brown and crust-like. Cool completely before adding second layer. If you don't it will melt your second layer.

Second Layer:

8 oz. cream cheese (slightly softened)

8 oz. cool whip

1 cup powdered sugar

Mix the following with electric mixer and spread over cooled first layer.

Third Layer:

3 cups blueberries

1 1/2 cup water

1 1/2 cup sugar

5 T. corn starch

Place this in a sauce pan and cook until thick (like a pie filling). Cool completely and spread over second layer. If you don't cool this completely, it will melt the second layer. That second layer is a bit on the sensitive side.

Fourth Layer:

8 oz. Cool whip

Chopped nuts to garnish

Good Blogging Finds #2

The second great blogging find this past week was from Pretty Organized Palace. She did a post a few days ago about managing and scheduling her children's time over the summer so that they are not in from of a TV or video screen all summer long. I needed this post. Just two weeks into summer break and my children have lost all sense of responsibility. And so have I. So, after reading her schedule, I developed one for me and the children that will fit the summer weeks and months. I hope Fep and Moose will come to appreciate it. Right now, not so much :)

***The day after I wrote this post, we made an unexpected trip to the doctor with Moose. He's fine, but was having severe ear pain and jaw pain due to....swimmer's ear. Again, he's fine now. With a simple trip to the doctor taking 3.5 hours out of my day, we had to rearrange the schedule a bit ;) But once we got home, we kicked into gear, got productive, and the kids and I cleaned the whole house. All this to say sometimes you gotta' roll with the flow, and sometimes the best made plans will be broken. Oh, and you can find Pretty Organized's post about summer scheduling here.

Good Blogging Finds #1

I'm just putting out here some new blogging finds (because I need to spend more time in the blogging world!) and how they relate to me.

First up is Amy at Momadvice.com/blog in which she did this:

In February (I know that's 3 months ago...I just found it this week), she posted her adventures in spending absolutely nothing except what it took to live. Food (not fast food - that is a luxury) and gas for the car. That's it. No trip through McDonald's or Starbucks. No materials and items for craft projects. No movies, CDs, or books. Food and gas, People. Why does this speak to me? One, we eat out waaaaaay too much. My children and I hit a fast food restaurant at least once a week. I figure that averages out to about $75 per month....on a stinkin' Big Mac! Or in my case a Fresco Bean Burrito from Taco Bell. And the second way it spoke to me was that we don't need nearly what we think we do and impulse purchases are a downfall for me! There, I said it. I cave to the occasional kitchen or house item, the pack of gum for my children (sugar free mind you), or an item of clothing even though my laundry tells me that we all have plenty of clothes. One clothing item in particular....flip flops. I adore flip flops. Cute, little Yellow Box flip flops are my favorite. But I'll take Target, Payless, and Walmart, too. This year The Bob put us on a "No Flip Flop Purchase Summer". Why? One, he can't stand them, and thinks one pair is plenty. Two, shouldn't one pair be plenty? I still have flip flops in really good shape from last year, so I absolutely don't need any. At all. Nope, I don't. But oh, I waaaaaant some. I torture myself by looking at them in stores any chance I get. I have to tell you it's killing me. So, if I end up missing or dead, it's from flip flop deprivation.

If you have a chance, check out her posts on this. It will open your eyes, too, I'm sure to areas of your spending that could be improved.

The Woobie Revisited

I had a blog a year ago that I deleted, and on that blog, I had a post about The Woobie. See The Woobie pictured above. Before I deleted the other blog, I printed off two posts that were meaningful to me. The Woobie was one of those posts. I am going to repost that old post and then share my thoughts on The Woobie one year later...

The Woobie

Sitting on my couch is a piled up crocheted blanket called "The Woobie". It belongs to Moose, and he has carried it since he was a little baby. The Woobie is multi-purpose really. It's his trusty blanket, or its Spiderman's web when all stretched out and thrown across the room. When he was a baby, he would pick at the yarn and eat it. Odd, I know. Moose will turn 7 in just a few days. He's really getting too old for The Woobie. But I know soon enough, he'll sleep with his Woobie one last time. And gone will be the last visible, tangible reminder of him being a baby. The pacifier is gone, the bottles are gone, and thank goodness, the diapers are gone. But I must say, I will be sad to see The Woobie go.

So, that's it. Just as it was written one year ago with the same picture at the top of the post. Moose turned 8 this past Friday, and he still has The Woobie. When I posted that a year ago, I just knew somewhere between 7 and 8 that he'd give up The Woobie. Nope. He doesn't even act interested. Fep is starting to get almost repulsed by the fact he's a blanket toting 8 year old. She's telling him that kids are going to start making fun of him. Fep, she's so tenderhearted toward Moose. A year ago, I was going to be sad to see The Woobie go. Now, I just think it's time. My 8 year old is obviously not a baby anymore, and try as I might, I can't keep them babies forever...except in my heart. And I do think it's time for The Woobie to go, but I'm not forcing it either. I'm not going to be the one who strips him of it. Fep, maybe. Sooner or later, The Woobie will be gone (at this point it's looking like later), and sooner or later my babies, my children will be grown up and gone, too. I know it's going to be sooner than later. And those are the thoughts that makes a mamma's heart ache.

Cartoon Classic

I saw this cartoon at HSingmama's blog. I just thought it was a classic. When I showed it to The Bob, he said, "You know there's a lot of truth in that." And he thought it was funny, too. I have to admit, I've had a conversation or two somewhat similar to this. I don't bake my own bread, we've seen our fair share of Disney movies, and instead of Batman or Power Rangers, you can insert Spiderman and Star Wars. I don't know why we try to measure ourselves up against other people's standards and convictions instead of just following our own? Why don't we just pursue what the Lord has for us and not what the Lord has for our neighbor? Anyway, I do love this little cartoon.

Finding the good...

The past week was pretty crummy to say the least. I won't even bore you with all the details. Really, why bother? Shouldn't our focus be on finding the good? Yes, in the midst of a not so great week, each day had a treasure of it's own.

Monday - Memorial Day. Remembering self-less sacrifices of others. Time spent with The Bob and the kids.

Tuesday - a quiet day at home. Just me and the kids. Front porch swinging. A special young lady comes over to announce she's engaged, and asks Fep to be a bridesmaid! Awesome.

Wednesday - A rainbow. A reminder of God's unfailing love and always kept promises.

Thursday - a loved dog that likes to lay with her rear end sticking out from under the bed. I'm not sure if she thinks she hiding or what?

Friday - Moose turns 8!! Swimming with friends. Opening some birthday presents. What gets better than that?
Saturday - Missing dogs give us a scare, but return safely home.

Sunday - Moose's official birthday bash. Swimming. Hot dogs. Hamburgers. And lots and lots of friends. He got to spend time with his friends, and I got to spend time with mine...

Might I mention that the lovely blonde haired lady on the left is 50 years old and has 9 children. Yes, I said nine. She is amazing! I heart these ladies.

And I heart Heathahlee. Oh, I do.

Yep, it was a good week after all. There's just no telling what treasures I'll find hidden in this week....