Isaiah is a SNORTER of sorts

Growing up I don't recall ever putting something up my nose.  I don't remember my sister or brother doing it either. I have now raised 3 boys and in that time none have ever put anything up their noses.  Now Logan did swallow a penny once, but other than that nada!  Well until Isaiah!  I was sitting at the computer doing my e mails and he came to me opening his mouth.  I asked what was wrong?  He said, "Nose."  Okay so I look and see a rabbit food pellet.  So I told him to hold still and as I almost had it, he snorts.  Bye, Bye pellet!    So, I am thinking what to do now.  I called three mothers for advice.  My mother told me to call 911 and take him to the hospital. I did not have a vehicle to take him myself.  I did not want to have to go to the hospital if it was not necessary.  I called my sister.  She said "well, he could have ended up swallowing it, and if not it will eventually dissolve."  Knowing that it would dissolve kinda grossed me out!  Then I called my Aunt Teresa and she said, "that when she was little she put things up her nose.  She especially loved cheerios."  The last time she put something up her nose, my grandmother had to take her to the hospital, where they put her into a straight jacket.  That was her last time snorting cheerios.  So, here I had all the facts.  I ended up staying at home and waiting on Brian to help hold Isaiah down and take a good gander up his nose.  There was nothing, except a few boogers.  So what happened to the rabbit food pellet?  He is not fussing with his nose, so I am guessing he swallowed it, if not Isaiah may have invented the first human chia pet.

 I can see it now alfalfa growing like grass out of one nostril.  Kids do the craziest things!  Below is a cute video of a nose snorter.  ***My mother called and said that the cartoon below goes into something bad after the nose snorter part.  Actually it DOES NOT.  If you scan down the page it will, so do not go to the next cartoon.  Just view the nose hobby animation one.  The one in which I intended for my viewers.***

The NOSE hobby animation 1

I think kids needed to come with instructions!  An if in case this happens, you should do this.  Of course mine would do something no there kid has ever done and I would have to be the one to add to the in case list!

News Flash

It has been some time since I last posted.  I never even told you that I was going to be a Grand-fur-mother.  Yes Annie and Snowbelle decided to elope and they now how three beautiful kittens.  Mother and babies are doing great.  She had two grey with some white stripes on the legs, and an all white kitten.  They weighed in at a few ounces each and have all their claws.  Annie is a great mother and the babies are growing rapidly.  In two more days their eyes should open.  I am wondering what color their eyes will be?  As you can see in the picture below, Annie has green/yellow eyes and Snowbelle has baby blue eyes.  I would love to see a blue eyed gray kitten!!!

Annie does not know this yet, so please do not tell her.  In 8 weeks she will be going to the vet and getting neutered.  I am sure she would not take the news lightly and well Snowbelle will be getting neutered as well after Annie.  So being a man he is liable to to run off!  So keep this our little secret!

As you all know Brian has been fighting a kidney stone since December.  Yesterday at around 11:00 am he finally passed it!  His doctor had already set him up for a surgery to remove the stone and place a stint in the ureter tube.  Now that he has passed it he does not have to go through all that anguish.  We would love to give thanks to all who prayed for him and also thank God once again for all he does!  Below is a video about Kidney stones.



I was having some trouble with my left knee and it finally eased up for me.  Now I am having trouble with my toe on my right foot.  I have what they call a ganglion cyst on it and this is by far the worst it has hurt me.  As soon as the weather breaks I need to get my butt to the foot doctor and see what they can do for it.  I am hoping the cyst has not grown into the bone.  I can't move my toe without excruciating pain.  Ganglion cysts are normally found along joints like your wrist, finger, or toes.  Here is a video on how they remove one.

-Ganglion-Cyst-Removal

We got some snow once again last night.  We woke up to a soft blanket of white stuff all over the ground, but it was not enough for the schools to close or be on delay.  This was upsetting news for the boys, but wonderful news for me!  The way it was coming down I honestly thought we were in for it, but it stopped and that made my day!  Now it is just small flurries coming down.  

Last night I made some homemade tartar sauce to go with our fish sticks.  The family loved it and Brian said it was creamy good!

Tartar Sauce

2 cups of Mayo

1 large sweet pickle

1/4 cup onion

1/3 tsp cream of tartar

1 tblsp vinegar

1/3 tsp salt

1/3 tsp worchestershire sauce

Place all ingredients into blender.  Blend until smooth.  Pour into a sealable container.

Oh how my knee hurts

About 6 yrs ago I was cleaning and one of the boys was hollering for me and not thinking I went to go to them, and sorta of tripped over my vacuum cord.  I landed on my left knee solid!  It did a popping sound and hurt like the dickens.  I guess walking up and down my hill in the snow has really aggravated it and it is killing me.  I have propped it up on and off today, and I need to put some ice on it, but haven't yet.  I hate sitting still, and well with kids it is hard to sit still.  On top of it all the house has needed some cleaning.  I did not clean it much yesterday, cause I had to get some things for the "Jesus loves me" party for the youth.

The "Jesus loves me" party was a hit.  Brian taught on the greatest love that God gave man.  We ate some pizza, bq wieners, doritos, cake, cupcakes, and pop.  They played some games, won prizes, and each child was sent home with a bag of candy.  I had a craft for them to do but we ran out of time.  I told Annette to just do it with the kids in Sunday School.  Below was the craft they were going to do.

I got my House Party package today.  It is a big box of goodies.  I can't wait for the youth to have some fun again in March.  I will have to take some pictures since I have to post them on House Party.  I am thinking they will make individual pizzas.  I will have each child or family bring an ingredient. That should be fun and again we will have games and prizes.  The kids have a lot of fun!

Let's talk the "D" word

I had a blog solely for the "D" word.  It is a four letter bad word to me!  I will start but then end up quiting.  Well I weighed in on Sunday and since then I have lost 6.5 lbs.  I am giving myself a prize....

I know that is not much, but hey it is a start.  I still want to meet a 15 lb loss goal by the end of March, so I am halfway there.

Starting a diet is easy, but sticking to it is hard.  Today I was looking up some tips and I found some different sites with some tips.  You may find them interesting to read as well.

Calories per hour

Diet tips on how to eat less

1 is 2 fat

I have been making sure to take my vitamins, chromium picolinate, and I am also take a fiber pill.  What does chromium picolinate do for you? Chromium picolinate works together with insulin produced by the pancreas to metabolize carbohydrates.  Why am I taking a fiber pill?  I am taking a metamucil pill every morning and it helps me stay fuller for longer.  It is natural and is good for you.  It is also known to help lower cholesterol which is good for me since I have high cholesterol as well.  Of course I am taking a multi-vitamin too.  This will help me if I lack in eating something I should have.   Everyone should take vitamins.  Here is an article on metamucil.

Metamucil and weight loss

I have also increased my water intake.  For my weight I need to consume 

135 ounces of water today, or 4.1 liters.

To see how much water you need to intake use the calculator below.

Water calculator

Sleds can be used for much more than riding

If you have been to my house then you know we live on a cliff!  People hate to drive up my driveway.  They think it is like the road leading to heaven!  It is quite steep, but I guess I am used to it.  Once  you get to the top it flattens out, but it is quite a walk.  In the winter it is no fun.  You slip and slide your way down the hill and then on the return you face the slipping once again.  I try to stock up on non-perishable items in the Spring and Summer so we do not have to carry so much up the hill, but yet we always end up having to carry something.  Now that we have goats and chickens we have that food to carry.  I buy groceries every 2 weeks, so my journey to the store was on Wednesday and I bought all we needed and then had to face how we were going to get it all up the hill without falling.  Can you guess what we did?

We had the boys go get their sleds and we put all the groceries on one and the feed on the other.  We took turns pulling the sleds and made it up here.  Zack had a few falls as well as me.  We laughed at each other and through some snowballs.  Nothing like some family time, huh?  At least we can laugh at ourselves when the going gets rough.  I am so looking forward to some warmer temperatures, but I have heard there is yet another snow storm coming our way.  I say blah!  I know tis' the season, and I think snow is beautiful, but I am so ready for Spring or at least a break in the snow.  It would not be so bad if I lived on flatter ground!  Oh well, at least we don't have to deal with solicitation!!

I have been trying to save money where it can be saved.  Pinching already pinched pennies is hard.  Anyway my water bill was running me around $50.00 a month and this past bill was $28.00.  I have not been allowing the kids to just run water when brushing their teeth or whatnot.  I keep having to get onto them, but I guess it is paying off.  I also no longer let the water run while doing to dishes to rinse.  I fill the sink with water and rinse them that way.  Anything to save money.  Now if I could just get my electric bill down.  I am constantly turning off the lights and such, but with that said my bill is still going up.  I realize they got another price hike, but man this is crazy.  My bill this past month was $227.00.  I know others pay way more than we do, but this is a lot more than normal for us.  Last year at this time we paid $113.00.  I guess everything is just going up!  My Aunt Teresa sends me coupons which I am thankful for and so I use them when I can.  On my last grocery bill I saved $30.00 with coupons and using the Kroger card.  I have also been going to to Dollar General and Dollar Tree and buying my cleaning products.  This has saved me over $20.00 as well.  Dollar General will take coupons as well, so this is nice.  We buy meat when it is on sale and Brian is the shopper for that.  He finds great deals.  He got some pork ribs for .99 per lb, chicken thighs for .89 per lb, and some pork sirloin chops for $1.79 per lb the other day at Foodland.   We still have a lot of venison aka deer burger and steaks so I have not bought much beef.  When I catch fish on sale I buy that.  Last grocery trip I got cod for $2.49 a bag.@ Kroger, so I bought 2 bags.

Some other ways I save money is using a sponge to put my dish liquid on.  It makes it sudsy and then you can use your dish rag to do the dishes.  It seems to make the soap suds last longer in the water and in turn helps to save on soap.  I also use an old cloth diaper to clean my windows and mirrors. I then dry it with another cloth diaper.  This saves on paper towel, which also saves on filling my garbage bag.  I have to clean the inside of my windows daily due to a 2 yr old who likes to make a mess.  I know paper towels our cheap, but again pinching a penny here and there adds up. I make my own air freshener/re-fresher.  I used to make candles, so I have some oils.  All you have to do is get a 32 ounce plastic spray bottle.  K mart has them for $1.89 and you put 2 tsp of oil and fill it the rest with hot water.  Shake and spray.  You will have to shake it every time you use it, but the smell stays unlike other sprays.  I posted about the oils on Feb 2nd .  The oils do not cost a lot and they last a long time.  The smell is wonderful and will last for a few days.  I gave some oil to my Aunt and she said she had turned off her burner and 3 days later her house still had smell!  Another way to safe money is to stretch your fabric softener.  I posted a recipe on Feb 11th.  I made the recipe and my clothes came out very soft and smelled really good.  There are lots of ways to save money.  I am always looking for new ways so if you have ideas let me know!

Wrestle Mania

Have you ever wrestled down a vacuum cleaner?I can honestly say I have!  That evil monster tried to get the best of me today.  It had burned yet another belt, so instead of waiting on Brian to change it out for me I decided to do it myself.  I got all the screws taken out and took the broken belt out then put the new belt back in, but when I tried to bring the long stick thingy up so that the belt was fastened it bucked me!  That dirt DEVIL and yes it is named correctly, did not want to cooperate!  Whomever engineered the vacuum the way they did I would like to lasso them to the ground!  It had to be a man!   If it were a woman, you would not have to struggle with all your might to get the DEVIL back together!  I am thinking that the man needed to keep his mother in mind when engineering the make up of the vacuum cleaner, so she could put a simple belt on without breaking a sweat!  Think about it, who does most of the cleaning in the house anyway.  Is it a man or a woman?  Well, in my house it is me!  So I am thinking in most cases it is a woman!  There is not always a man around to fix simple problems, so why not make it easy for us women.  The bible even states "the woman is the weaker vessel".    I am sure if someone were looking through my living room window today they would have thought I was trying to kill the vacuum.  I had the thing between my legs and pulling as hard as I could to get the stick thingy in place.  When I did, it was not fitting correctly so I had to start all over again.  Next I tried to sit on it and then pull.  Again it did not fit correctly.  This went on and on.  Finally after 20 minutes I got it done!  I won, but my fingers are sore and red!  I was out of breath and sweat pellets was on my forehead!  I am sure if I had been videoed taped, I would have won on the show "America's Funniest Videos".  

I think for my next vacuum I want a robot vacuum!

Make ahead meals for busy moms contest

I know if you are like me, you are a busy mom.  It would be nice to find something to cook within minutes or to make a day or so ahead and just pop into the oven and it is all over.  Well Jane Doiron has wrote a cookbook that just might help us all.  Make ahead meals website tells about the cookbook and lists all the foods that can be made ahead.  It looks and sounds good to me.  If you would like to enter this contest go to "My Organized Chaos".  Good luck!

Fiber One Yogurt and $50.00 Safeway give away

I have tried the strawberry yogurt and it is so yummy even the baby likes it. I would like to try the key lime pie and see if it as good as the strawberry.I have entered a contest on Mommy Enterprises to win a $50.00 gift card to Safeway.  Has any of my readers tried Fiber One?  If so what did you think?

Busy, Busy, Busy Part ONE

I have been a busy little(beaver).  I have worked on the house since 10 am and it is now 4 pm.  I cleaned my bathroom and cleaned the cabinets out.  Brian built me a deep in wall cabinet for all my cleaning products and let's just say it was out of hand with clutter.  I took two 13 gallon bags out of there.  I also scrubbed my bathtub shower.  It had some grime that needed some TLC and  BLEACH!  I then cleaned Brian's study.  It was not that bad, just lots of stuff in places it should not have been, and I also took a 13 gallon bag of trash and junk from that room.  I cleaned out my linen closet and re-folded all the sheets and stuff.  I thought my arm was going to fall off!  It looks great!  I found a roll of trash bags in the bottom behind my ice cream maker.  I have no clue how they got in there!  Now I am sitting in Zack's bedroom and resting a bit.  I have most of his room done.  I just need to dust and make his bed.  I then have to do my room and straighten the kitchen and living room before Brian gets home.  I have taken my swiffer to all corners of the aboved mentioned rooms and got those nasty cob webs down.  I have no idea where they come from, but they sure can make themselves at home!  Tomorrow I am going to deep clean my bedroom which is a chore.  I have to go through my closet and get rid of stuff.  It is just cluttered!  I have lots of other stuff to do as well and will post as I get it done. 

 Stick a fork in me, I am done for the day with the SPRING cleaning! 

Brian is supposed to bring ribeye's home for dinner.  They are on sale at Foodland for $3.99 per pound.   I am going to make some homemade scalloped potatoes, and peas to go with it.

Here is my recipe:

Scalloped Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 cups sliced raw potatoes

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

8 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1 tsp garlic

1 cups milk

1 can of chicken broth

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

Preparation:

Place the potatoes in a greased baking dish. Mix milk and soups in a bowl then add in onion, salt, pepper, garlic, flour, onion and cheese. Pour over potatoes.Dot with bits of butter.   Cover with foil or lid and bake at 350° for 30 to 40 minutes, or until tender. Take the lid off near the end of cooking to brown, or put under broiler for a few minutes.

Serves 4 to 6.

Here we go again!

On Wednesday night Brian was up all night in pain from his kidney stone that he has not yet passed.  He took a bunch of pain pills and yet went to work on Thursday.  On Friday he had a class in Flattwoods and was there for 3 out of the 6 hours but had to rush back to Charleston due to the pain.  He took himself to CAMC Memorial where he waited for 5 hours before they took him back.  They gave him morphine and toradol and then they did a CAT scan to find the stone was 7mm which is equal to a 1/4 inch. The urethra tube is 9mm so it is possible he may pass it on his own, but that is kinda slim.  He is supposed to make an appointment with a urologist on Monday.  I want the pain to stop for him.  I hate it!  So please keep him in your prayers that he can pass this on his own so he does not have to endure surgery.  Brian was able to rest on Saturday thanks to his co-worker Mike Bragg for coming in for him.  The Lord knew he needed the rest!

Today we were unable to have church due to the snow on our church lot, so we loaded up and headed to Ravenswood.  Bro. Roger brought a very good message on "What is true love"?  There are so many that say they love God, but do not show it.  Do they truly love God then?  The answer is No.  That was the basis of the lesson and he used a married couples relationship as well.  A true LOVE marriage gives all year long, not just on holidays like Valentine's day.  So if we truly love our spouse then we will do everything in our power to show our love for them all year round.  I can honestly say my husband shows me LOVE all year round.  He buys me things, just out of the blue.  I try to do the same for him.  It is a give and take relationship!

Hundreds and thousands of people will go out and buy flowers, candy, and cards on this day we call Valentine's Day.  I had to stop at Kroger on our way home to pick a few things up and as I looked around there were lots of men with rose bouquets.  I saw some women with wine and the makings of a nice candle lit dinner.  Do you know the history behind Valentine's Day?  Here is a link that you might find interesting.

History of Valentine's Day

Whatever your plans, be safe!

Life is precious

 I was reminiscing yesterday on what a miracle it is to become a mother. From a little girl I always wanted to be a mother. I would envision twins. Normally twin girls. Their names were going to be Amber and Tymber. My mom said look out “Tymber” as if a tree were falling in the woods. As I grew older I still thought how awesome it would be to be a mother, but no longer did I dream of twins. Highschool came and went and then I entered college. I dated very few guys and was always searching for someone to love me and want to eventually marry me. I did not want to date someone if they did not seem interested in marriage. What was the point of wasting time on someone if they did not want marriage or children for that matter. I had entered my third year of college and went home on a break. During the break I had a terrible accident which killed my step sister and almost killed me too. I went through several surgeries and had to learn to walk all over again. The doctor’s did not think I would be able to have children let alone walk. My dreams of becoming a mother was being taken away from me or so I thought. I was in a wheel chair for 5 months and I pushed myself hard because I did not want to be seen in the chair. I did not want people to stare at me and feel sorry for me. In pushing myself I made the bars in my back move into my muscle. I had to endure yet another surgery to remove the bars. I began to heal once again and I was able to walk on crutches. This got quite old so me being stubborn decided to get rid of the crutches and just walk. I caused myself a lot grief and pain, but I was determined to walk. In February 6 months after my accident I met Brian. We hit it off from the start. He had the most dreamy blue eyes and was just so handsome. The biggest thing is that he went to church. I always wanted someone who was a Christian and nothing like my dad. I did not want someone who drank or smoked. Well, God knew exactly what I needed when he sent me into Brian’s path. We had a whirlwind of a romance.  We dated 6 weeks and got married.  We did not have a fancy wedding.  I wore my Aunt Teresa's gown and he wore a gray suit.  We went to Greenup, Ky and got married.  My mother in law did not want us to get married in front of the justice of the peace so we found where the nearest preacher was and he owned a funeral home.  Yes I got married in a funeral parlor.  You know the saying "unto death do us part."  We took it literally!  Ha!  We were married 4 years before we decided to have children.  My first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage.  I was about 10 weeks along when I started having problems.  The doctor did a D & C and told me to wait 6 months before we tried again.  This emotionally drained me.  I had been through so much and the thought of not having children came to mind.  God had helped me to be able to walk again.  Would he help me to have children?  In March exactly 6 months later I got pregnant once again.  As I progressed in the pregnancy they thought I was having twins.  They did an ultrasound to find I was having a boy.  ONE boy!  I knew his name would be "Zachary" which means "God hath remembered".  God certainly had remember us!   Two and a half years after Zack, along came Logan.  We were not sure what to name Logan.  I liked Andrew, but knew people would call him Andy and I just did not like that at the time.  We took a picnic lunch down to Chief Logan state park and Brian saw a statue of Chief Logan.  The Chief was standing tall and proud and he said "Tina what about Logan, Logan Andrew?"  I liked the sound of that and the baby kicked within me.  I guess Logan liked the sound of his name as well!  I thought we were done having children.  I have to have c-sections, so I was happy with  2 healthy boys.  Then in 2006 we decided to try for yet another baby.  Isaiah was born in May of 2007.  I had, had some problems during the pregnancy with major fluid retention and pre-eclampsia.  When Isaiah was born he had problems breathing and had to be taken to ICU.  I never got to hold my baby for 2 days.  He was hooked to all kinds of wires.  I cried and cried.  The staff did not know if Isaiah was going to make it or not.  We had different church congregations praying for him and on the 4th day around 4 am all his vitals went to perfect.  That evening they brought my baby to me to hold without any wires.  The first time in my room and alone at last!  He was so beautiful!  All my boys were beautiful babies!  Zack weighed 8 lbs 1ounce, Logan weighed 8 lbs 5 ounces (3 weeks early), and Isaiah weighed 8 lbs 12 ounces ( 3 weeks early).  The joy of pregnancy no man will ever understand.  Sure as the baby gets bigger they can feel it kick, but it is nothing compared to what goes on in the inside of us.  The changes we go through are just magical!

 I loved every minute of being pregnant even if the tidy bowl man became my best friend!

An actor he is not

Yesterday Logan had a stomach virus, but thankfully it left as fast as it came.  So far none of the rest of us has got it.  We sure have had our fair share of sickness!

This morning the school was on a 2 hour delay which surprised me.  I honestly thought they would have no school.  The weather was terrible last night and this morning it was lightly snowing.  Anyway Logan comes to my room and states "He was still sick"  sorta moaning a bit.  It was more whinny than anything.  I knew right then and there his acting career would never get off the ground.  If I had some FAKE medicine I would have gave it to him to see how fast he got well.  He ended up getting dressed and went off to school thinking he would get out early cause the weather did not look good.  Moral of the story don't count your snowflakes before the sun comes out.  He had a full day of school minus 2 hours!  I bet he won't be a happy camper when he gets home!

Brian was one sick puppy last night.  He has been suffering with kidney stones since December.  He has yet to pass it.  Last night was the worst night yet.  He should not have went to work today but did. He called a co-worker to pick him up cause he was too drugged to drive.  We are about 500 feet from Rt 60, so he told his co-worker he would meet him.  In doing so, he lost his prescription bottle.  After he left the snow plow went up our road so I am sure bottle is now burried.  I hate that cause if he gets in any pain at work, he is in trouble.  All I can say is that I have a terrific husband that goes to work even when he is deathly sick.  I love you sweetheart!

Are you into saving money?  I sure am.  I have joined several sites that give away free samples or if you do a survey you win points to get prizes and such.  I also like to cut corners when I can.  The other day I was running low on fabric softner and with the snow and all I had to make do.  I had a cheap bottle of conditioner and poured it into my fabric softner bottle and added some water.  The stuff is great!  It smells good too!  I also found this recipe that sounds good as well.  I think I will try it next time!

Ingredients

• 2 cups fabric softener
• 2 cups white vinegar
• 2 cups water

Directions

1. 1

   Put all above ingredients in an empty fabric softener bottle.

2. 2

   Shake well before use.

3. 3

   Use it just as you would the full strength softener.

I WON

Congratulations... You are a Sandwich Revolution House Party host!!

I have never won anything that I signed up for.  I entered a contest to host a sandwich party and I won!!  I am going to have the party for the youth at our church in March.  It will be fun and a healthy treat!  

There are lots of recipes to use with the thins.  It is NOT just for sandwiches!

Mushroom & Spinach Pizza Ingredients 4 Arnold®/Oroweat® 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Thins® Rolls, separated 4 sundried tomatoes packed in oil; 1 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. of the oil 1 c. fresh ricotta cheese 8 oz. mushrooms, chopped (use any kind you like) 1 c. fresh baby spinach leaves, washed and dried Kosher salt, to taste Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions Preheat oven to 350o F. Toast Sandwich Thins® halves just to light golden. In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil from the marinated sundried tomatoes over medium heat. Add mushrooms; cook until soft and moisture is released, about 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Meanwhile, pulse 5 sundried tomatoes with 2 teaspoons of their oil in food processor until smooth and add ricotta. Pulse to incorporate and season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread approximately 2 tablespoons of the sundried tomato and ricotta mixture on top of each toasted thin half. Top each half with a few baby spinach leaves and divide mushrooms between each pizza. Place pizzas on a baking sheet and bake for 3 to 5 minutes to heat and infuse all the flavors.  Grape Tomato Bruschetta Ingredients 4 Arnold®/Oroweat® Honey Wheat Sandwich Thins® Rolls, separated 2 pints grape tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise 1 tbsp. aged balsamic vinegar 2 tbsp. garlic infused extra virgin olive oil 12 fresh basil leaves Kosher salt, to taste Freshly ground black pepper, to taste Directions Toast Sandwich Thins® halves to a light golden brown. In a bowl, mix tomatoes with balsamic, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Stack basil leaves and roll them in the shape of a log. Slice the rolled basil, making ribbons. Toss most of the cut basil with the tomatoes, reserving a bit of fresh basil to garnish. Spoon dressed tomatoes on top of each toasted Sandwich Thins® half and garnish with a few fresh basil ribbons.  If you have never tried them, do so!  I am sure they are really good!  Or you can wait and I will let you know myself!

I LOVE the MEN in my life

Yes you read that correctly, men!  I have four men in my life and I love them dearly.  They are ever so special to me.

They complete my life, they make my day, they cheer me up, they love me even when I am crabby, they are just absolutely wonderful!  Tonight I made fried herbal chicken and Isaiah said "so ummy"!  Zack said "KFC can't top this mom"!  And then Brian said, "I have to say I think this is the best chicken I have ever had"!  Logan was not with us tonight, he was with my in laws.  I guess my chicken made up for that bad batch of gravy I made the other day!  Yay me!  Gotta love my MEN!

Here is the recipe:

Herbal Fried Chicken

1 Package of Chicken legs

1 canister of Italian bread crumbs

1 Large egg

1/4 cup milk

1  Large ziplock bag

oil

Take egg and beat it with the milk.  Pour 1/2 the canister into the ziplock baggie. Take the chicken  and roll it in the egg mixture and then place chicken into the baggie and shake.  Place the chicken into a pan with oil and fry until no more blood can be seen.  Enjoy!

Today there was no school due to the weather.  Logan went with my in laws to work, so Zack, Isaiah, and I hung out.  I was not feeling my best today.  A bit under the weather with a cold, so good ole' Zack watched the baby for a couple hours for me to get some rest.  I was up most of the night sneezing and coughing my head off.  Thanks Zack!  Your the man!

I am unsure if the boys will have school tomorrow or not.  They are calling for more snow.  We got 2 1/2 inches then it rained so now we have ICE.  The roads are bad.  The garbage truck never even ran today.  I sure hope they pick it up tomorrow cause living in the country, raccoons, possums, and strays  love to tear into it.  And believe me I hate having to go and pick it up all over again!  Oh wow I just looked out the window and the snow is coming down like big balls of cotton.  If it keeps this up we will be getting inches of the white fluff!  I am sure my boys are going to be excited if they don't have school.  It is weird how much they get out.  I remember we went no matter what. The buses just put their chains on and off we went!  I guess it is because of all the lawsuits.

Today  I was looking out my living room window at my bird feeders and I saw a red headed woodpecker.  He was absolutely gorgeous!  There were little chickadees, pee wee's, and  some cardinals as well.  We  love feeding and watching the birds.  This is the first time I have seen the woodpecker at the feeder.  Usually it is just smaller birds.  It seems they come to the feeder even more when a bad storm is going to approach.  I suppose stocking up on the food to get through the cold.

Just a little something FUNNY

While we were eating dinner tonight, Isaiah said he was done, and I told him he hadn't touched his mashed potatoes.  Guess what he did?  He touched them with his finger!  I had to laugh then told him what I meant!  He is such a funny little guy!

Animal LOVER

I have always loved animals.  When I was a little girl I would cry over a dead squirrel in the road!  As I got older and began driving I hit a possum and yes I cried.  I hate to see or hear about an animal being abused.  It makes me so mad!  I think my home has a neon flashing sign that says "We take in strays".  Over the years we have had our fair share of strays to come to our house.  We bring them in, try to find an owner, or find them home.  If someone finds a stray they seem to call my house to see if I want it.  It is funny how animals sense to know where to go and get some love.  No I am not a vegetarian, I do eat meat, I just don't kill it myself.  I honestly don't think I could kill an animal.  I would be the one to scare the deer away so it would not get shot.  I suppose that is why I don't go hunting with my hubby!

Today I wanted to share some pictures with you.  I  don't have a picture of our fish tank, my goats, nor my chickens.  I will have to get a cord for my camera and then take some to share.  Anyway enjoy!

This is Lilly.  Brian got her me last Mother's Day.  She was so tiny when he brought her home in a Pepsi box. He bought her to replace my toy pomeranian that got run over.

This is Luigi or Lou.  He talks a little.  "Louie Bird", whistles, clicks his tongue, and he bobs head up and down to music.

Marley was rescued from the pound last April.  He is a Collie mix and is so sweet.  He loves his belly rubbed and will shake your hand.  He comes on command and is such a good boy.

Miss orphan Annie was found in a truck tire well by Brian's cousin.  She called to see if I would take her and as you can see I did.  She is a lap cat and I love it!

Mr. Snowbelle was dropped off at my friends house and she did not want her husband to kill him so she called me.  He is a beautiful cat!  His eyes are just amazing!  He loves the farm life and spends  a lot of his time outside with the goats.

Yes I have pet rats.  They are very smart animals.  I have had them since they were babies.  I just could not imagine them becoming snake food so I had to get them.  The top two are what you call Dumbo Rats.  Their ears are set to the side of their heads like Dumbo.  The bottom one is a fancy rat.  They are sweet and love attention.  

BLESSINGS is God's LOVE

There is a song titled "Count your blessings", that I really can relate to.  The chorus goes like this:

Count your blessings, name them one by one.

Count your blessings see what God hath done.

Count your blessings, name them one by one

Count your many blessings see what God hath done.

So often I tend to forget to thank God for all he has done or given to me.  I know I have been blessed beyond what I deserve.  The blessings God has given to me is his way of showing he loves me.  I don't think I could sit down and begin to count all the blessings.  I sit and wonder why he keeps on blessing me.  I mean, to have a God who cares for little ole' me.  I am nothing!  I am no bigger than a grain of sand to him, yet he chooses to love me.  He loves me when I can't even love myself.  He loves me even when others turn their backs on me.  He loves me even when I am crabby.  He loves me UNCONDITIONALLY!  That is one awesome LOVE!  No one can out love or out give God. (Not even a mother's love for her chidren.)  I love my children so much that I would die for them, but God loves me and them more.  Much more!!  It is so hard to imagine that kind of love isn't it?  It is too much for my pea brain to take in.  The book Lamentations chapter 3 versus 22-23 states:

"The stead fast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning; great is they faithfulnes."

  God asks for NOTHING in exchange for his love except for us to serve him.  To serve him with gladness and thanksgiving, yet so many find it too hard to even do that.  He gives a gift and we open it and are thankful for a period of time then we seem to toss that gift aside and forget all about it.  Sad, isn't it?  Have you ever just sat down and wrote on a piece of paper what all God has done for you?  Try it, you will be amazed at what all comes out. 

 If you have not gave your life over to God why not do it?  The LOVE of God is much greater than what the world has to offer and it cost NOTHING.  Ask him in to your HEART today

I'm a SCENT-uous woman

I love to have my house smelling good.  I had got into a hobby of making candles for awhile, but then the hobby died down. I made a bunch of candles and I guess you could say I got tired of it.  I still have all my candle making stuff and maybe one day I will get back into it.  Right now I am using my oils in my tart burners and potpouri crocks.  I like for my home to smell good for when Brian walks through the door.  I need to get some other oil scents to my liking.  Right now I have lemongrass, snuggles, and christmas tree.  The lemongrass has a lemon wax smell (sort of the smell you get when you are at the car wash and it goes through the wax rinse).  The snuggles is like it's name.  Snuggles fabric softner.  The smell is fresh and clean. And christmas tree is non other than a pine scent.  It is a fresh, crisp scent. Love them all!!
I need to get some more oils.  I love lavendar, pumpkin, and cinnamon.  I have been known to put some orange rind, cinnamon, and cloves into a pot water and heat it on my stove.  The smell is so devine!! 

All scents have an effect on a person, whether it makes them hungry, sleepy, or irritated.  Yes scents can irritate a person.  Rose is a scent that irritates me.  It makes my eyes water, and I get a violent headache.  My mother in law had a rose scented candle burning at her house one day and I could not take it.  Needless to say my visit was not long at all. Good way to get rid of unwanted company... LOL! One time I had a chocolate brownie tart burning and Brian was so excited cause he thought I had made a dessert, needless to say it made him hungry for chocolate.  And then there have been times I put lavender oil into my bath water and it just seems to calm me, making for a nice good nights sleep.
I found a site that lists essential oils and guides you through what scents can help with what.  Here is the link to it Aromatherapy  It has links within the site to help learn what oils to use for different conditions or ailments.
Above I listed what scents I have, here I will list what they are good for.

Lemongrass: refreshing, toning, good for relaxation

Clove: warming

Lavender: calming, therapeutic

Orange: relaxing, refreshing

Pine: refreshing, stimulating

Cinnamon: warming, sexual stimulant

Pumpkin: natural aphrodisiac

So you can see what scents you may run into if you come visit my house.  If you like for your house to smell good try these sites to order you some SCENT-uous oils....

Natures Garden

Tri State Candle Supply (I have ordered from here)

Therapy Garden

At Wix End

Wholesale Supplies Plus

Make Scents Candles

You will find that most suppliers have around the same pricing.  I am close to Tri-state so I can just drop in and not have to worry about shipping, but if you live away then ordering online would be an option for you.  And sometimes you can get a good deal ordering online, I have found that to be true.  Whatever you chose, I am sure your house will smell great! 

I never said I was Betty Crocker

When Brian and I first got married, I did not know how to cook a whole lot of foods.  I bought every cook book I saw.  Through trial and error (lots of error's) I became a pretty good cook.  I always envied my sister who could make up a batch of mean buttermilk biscuits.  Mine came from a can!  We called them hockey pucks!  It has now been 15 yrs of marriage and I have finally got the buttermilk biscuit underwraps.  I finally can have some mouth watering, butter lathered good stuff and oh throw in some strawberry jam for good measure.  Yum! Yum! 
Sunday morning we did not have church so we slept in a bit.  I got up around 10:30 or so and started breakfast.  Fresh eggs, bacon, buttermilk biscuits, strawberry jam, and then I  thought, you know some gravy on those biscuits sounds mighty fine too!  So I prepared my skillett for the gravy, stirred in some flour, then added some milk.  Everything as going good or so I thought.  I added some more milk, um maybe too much.  So I then added some more flour.  By this time it is a cross between milky yet chunky.  Not sure what to do,so I added a tad more milk.  Forget it, the gravy just did not do well.  At least the fire alarm did not go off for the dinner bell.  Anywho they ate breakfast and did not touch the gravy!  Come to thank of it I am not sure the dog touched the gravy either.  Better luck next time!