speaking of trees.................

We watched the lighting of the giant Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center on TV last night and once again I was amazed at the magic and beauty of it all.I've seen this the last 3 years and it's one of those things that I look forward to every year now.
My 2 youngest daughters watched it with me and they were so excited as they counted down to the big lighting,I still get excited myself.I have this mental list of a few places that I would love to go someday and that is one of them.While we were watching my middle daughter says"we HAVE to go see that someday".
Yep,someday.....................................

So worth it

For reasons that I won't get into I've been having fits with my Christmas tree this year.It's been crooked and broken and smelly,etc etc etc I was aggravated and almost ready to throw in the towel(and throw the tree in the creek)but I managed to get it somewhat presentable and the little ones started putting the decorations on this morning.All my kids so look forward to our tree every year and I think this picture says it all.No matter how frustrated and stressed I get at Christmas time,seeing this makes it all worth it to me.It doesn't get any better.

I know this one is a bit fuzzy,I think I had my camera on the wrong setting.I think it even makes it look a bit more "magical"

What kind of tree are you?

I always wondered........lol

You Are a Traditional Christmas Tree

For a good Christmas, you don't have to re-invent the wheel. You already have traditions, foods, and special things you bring out every year.

What Christmas Tree Are You?

A cold weekend!

Well,talk about hot soup weather,this sure is it!It's cold,dark,and raining.Our propane went out 2 days ago and if you can believe it they wanted 200.00 to come out for an emergency re-fill on top of the insane cost of the propane itself.(being aholiday weekend didn't help either,the driver was out of town)We've been bundling up and covering up and using space heaters till today and hopefully they'll get out here soon!No propane also means no hot water,yep it's been fun.I've had more house trouble in the last week,geesh!
I've got a pot of chicken soup on the stove as we speak and it smells soooo good.I use this mix and add 6 cups hot water and 2 cups chicken broth,also some frozen mixed veggies,and a dash of ground sage and thyme.YUM!I've had homemade before and this really comes pretty darn close.



The kids and I watched "Hairspray" yesterday and oh my gosh what a hoot that movie is!!!! If you haven't seen it you should!I love John Travolta anyway,I think I've had a tiny crush on him since Saturday Night Fever.Something about him when he gets out there on the dance floor!WOW!I love to watch him.It isn't quite the same when he's dressed up as a woman but still very entertaining! The movie really is cute and so funny,I laughed through the whole thing.The whole cast did a great job and I can see why all the young girls like that cutie Zac Efron. I'll be watching this one again.


Well,off to my soup and to wait for the magic propane truck.Please let him get here soon!My toes are going numb.lol
I'm also going into battle with my artificial disagreeable christmas tree today,long story but wish me luck.

Still Recovering

I know I'm comin in a couple days late here but it took me all of yesterday to recover from the turkey day festivities.(and feeling like an overstuffed turkey myself)
I had some issues pop up that I sure wasn't expecting,like my dishwasher going kaput,my garbage disposal went the same route,and to top it off my oven was acting up.I didn't think I was going to pull off dinner for 16 people but with the help of hubby and my always handy father-in-law I DID it!(dishwasher is still dead but hey I've done dishes by hand all my life so no biggie)
We got the house cleaned up,I prepared and cooked for 2 days and it was wonderful if I do say so myself.(trust me it hasn't always turned out that great!)I tried a new sweet potato casserole recipe that got raves,(even from my 4 yr old which SHOCKED me)I also strayed from my tried and true stuffing recipe this year and I made Paula Deens recipe.YUM! It has cornbread in it which I normally don't care much for but it was a winner.I must say I'm still partial to the old bread stuffing tho.
My parents came which was wonderful due to the fact that my mom fell and broke 3 ribs less than a week ago and boy oh boy they've had a rough year.So many things to be thankful for this year.
All in all the day was good,no one got food poisoning,my kids didn't throw food while the guests were here,no arguments amongst family members,and nothing burned so I'm happy.
It got me thinking about the very 1st Thanksgiving that I ever had on my own.It was the 1st after hubby and I were married,my oldest was less than a year old and we lived in a tiny (but very nice)condo.I SO wanted to impress everyone on his side of the family and prove that I could do it but I had no CLUE how to even begin to make that bird.
I called my sister and she told me to use the big cooking bags and I knew her turkeys were always good so I went with that. I recall that YES,I DID leave the neck and giblets inside when I cooked it.Hey,no one ever mentioned that!!! We found it after the bird was cooked and hubby and I had an hour long discussion on how in the world they could have made a mistake like that and left the HEAD in!!! I swear it looked like the head to me!Anyway I cooked the bird like my cookbook said which ended up being 6-7 hours.Well,no one ever told me that cooking bags take less than HALF the time to cook the bird in.Yep,you can imagine how dried up and fried that thing was.I remember seeing hubby trying to lift it out of the pan and it literally fell apart! Oh gosh,they ate it tho but I recall having alot of leftovers that year!
This was my 13th year doing it now and I've learned along the way,I still screw up but I've always enjoyed doing it and I hope to able to do it for a long time to come.
I hope you all had a wonderful time with your family and friends and made some new memories to treasure,I know that I did.
Here are a few pics.
The dining room table,I ususally use a gold tablecloth for Thanksgiving but couldn't find it this year


hubby and the pies

my 4 yr old at the "kids table"

all my little turkeys together



When we all got up yesterday morning there was light dusting of snow on the ground,woo-hoo!
Now lets get that Christmas tree up folks!!!!

Happy Birthday to my pre-teen!

My oldest daughter turned 12 this past Wednesday.I can't believe it,she's officially a "pre-teen".Yep, next year she'll be (GASP)a teenager.She didn't want much really,some chinese food (her fave)a chocolate cake and well.....she did make it very clear for the last year that she would LOVE a cell phone.I wavered back and forth on it for months but she's so responsible and truly she never asks for much so we did get her one.To be honest she's the last one in her group of friends to have one.I know I swore I'd never give in to the "give the kids cell phones" craze but it does make me feel a bit more secure that they have one when they leave the house.I guess it's not as bad as I once thought and there is some good in it.Here are a few pics of her big day,as you can see she was very suprised when she opened the phone and she was THRILLED!
She's just growing up so fast.Happy Birthday sweetie!


the phone,I swear she's barely put it down since she opened it.It's like her pet.:o)

My new look

Well,I've been playing around with my blog again and finally figured out how to change up a few things.
I've started decorating my house for Christmas so I just had to do a little here too. I like how it turned out!
It's been a nutty around here lately,alot going on with the kids and getting ready for the holidays,family stress,financial stress,too much heaviness to ever get into here.I only try to write "pleasant" posts right??!!!
We all must have an escape or an outlet, and I guesss this "blogging" thing has turned out to be one for me.I can float around some of my fave blogs and be very inspired,amused,get a new recipe,decorating ideas,etc etc There are so many creative ladies out there blogging and I adore reading them when I can.I only get a few minutes here and there but I love it.
I like being able to come here and write about...well,whatever strikes me at that moment! I get a kick out of going back and reading some of my older posts too,it makes me think of things that otherwise I might have forgotten.

Have a great Thursday evening,off to watch "Greys Anatomy".

To My Children~

*Just for this morning, I am going to step over
the laundry,
and pick you up and take you to the park to
play.

*Just for this morning, I will leave the dishes
in the sink,
and let you teach me how to put that puzzle of
yours together.

*Just for this afternoon, I will unplug the
telephone and
keep the computer off, and sit with you in the
backyard and
blow bubbles.

*Just for this afternoon, I will not yell once,
not even a
tiny grumble when you scream and whine for the
ice cream truck
and I will buy you one if he comes by.

*Just for this afternoon, I won't worry about
what you are
going to be when you grow up, or second guess
every decision
I have made where you are concerned.

*Just for this afternoon, I will let you help me
bake cookies,
and I won't stand over you trying to fix them.

*Just for this afternoon, I will take us to
McDonald's and buy
us both a Happy Meal so you can have both toys.

*Just for this evening, I will
hold you in my
arms and tell you
a story about how you were born and how much I
love you.

*Just for this evening, I will let you splash in
the tub and
not get angry.

*Just for this evening, I will let y ou stay up
late while we sit
on the porch and count all the stars.

*Just for this evening, I will snuggle beside
you for hours,
and miss my favorite TV shows.

*Just for this evening when I run my finger
through your hair
as you pray, I will simply be grateful that God
has given me the
greatest gift ever given.

*I will think about the mothers And fathers who
are searching
for their missing children, the mothers and
fathers who are
visiting their children's graves instead of
their bedrooms, and
mothers and fathers who are in hospital rooms
watching their children suffer senselessly, and screaming
inside that they can't handle it anymore.

*And when I kiss you good night I will hold you
a little tighter,
a ittle longer. It is then, that I will thank
God for you, and
ask Him for nothing, except one more
day.............

old picture

I was going through some of my old pics that I have on my computer and wow,I could not believe how many I've accumulated! I believe it's over 2,000.This coming from the girl who fought digital cameras to the end!
I came across this pic of hubby and my 3rd son,it was always one of my faves and it just made me all teary when I saw it.It was taken in 2005,he couldn't have been more than 6-7 mos old.He was such a sweet baby and still is to this day.I just think it's such a cute pic,I might print it out and frame it now that I've found it again.