Tuesday, July 24, 2007

 

This week I'm playing my Monday Madness, since I can SO relate to it! =)

1. Are there any weird "food rules" you have? Feel free to list as many as you like. Well, let's see...
~no sweet food can touch anything NOT sweet on my plate.
~no juice from my veggies can touch anything like mashed potatoes or bread/buns. ick.
~no bread crumbs allowed in the margarine tub!
That's all I can think of for now...
2. When you were growing up, what ONE thing did your parents always remind you of, when it came to meal time (or cooking)? Hmmm..... So many things, and good things at that!
~wash your hands!
~no licking of fingers!
~no double-dipping into things!
~only touch the one you're going to take!
...just to name a few. But like I said, those are just good food etiquette things to remember, ALWAYS! =)
3. Is there anyone you know whose food you won't eat (for one reason or another)? Yes, and not to sound mean, but have you seen some of these kitchens this food comes out of??? I have a good friend whose sink is always filled with dirty dishes, and usually cold, nasty, greasy water in it too, and it makes me wonder how much I want to eat her food. (I hate to say it, but that's the way it is.) No, my kitchen is not spotless always, but I do have clean countertops and sinks and you won't find anything growing in my refrigerator! =) Oh, and then there's those wonderful church potlucks; if I don't know who made it, I generally don't want to eat it. (I know, snotty, huh?) Oh yeah, and there's this one person that we often see (no, not any of MY family) that licks her fingers while serving cake or ice cream. yuk, yuk, yuk!!!
4. Is there anything you "specialize" in cooking, that people actually ask for? I'm not known for my cooking skills, but I can make a mean pan of enchiladas. I've actually had people ask for them.
5. When you were growing up, what one meal do you remember as being your favorite? I LOVED the pizzas we'd make. Always from that frozen bread dough and always a bunch of them, and my mom would pile the goodies on top! YUM! (I remember once my dad put corn flakes on top of his.) Good memories...
6. Today, what is your IDEAL meal? Not to sound overly health-conscious or anything, but I really DO like chicken breast on top of rice pilaf, and brocolli on the side (or shall I say in a separate bowl).

Saturday, March 31, 2007

 

Almost 2 months since my last post. I REALLY need to get back to the swing of things! Just when I think things are going to slow down and I'll be able to spend more time doing what I really like to do, I realize that my daughter is going to graduate in 2 months and life before that is busy, and life after that and in between sending her off to college is going to be busy. We're currently in the process of preparing our yard for summer. We've spent just about the whole day outside burning wood and cleaning up around the former piles. Last weekend we spent all of Sunday afternoon cutting (trimming) our lilac bushes and apple tree, and cleaning THAT up. You got to remember, we have to work when we can, since the weather can really rule what you DO and what you DON'T do around this part of the country. =)

Well, off to take the kid somewhere. I'll be back before you know it!

Saturday, February 03, 2007

 

I hate winter. Yesterday we had white-out conditions on my way home and the road I live on was ice-covered. Here's what happened at around 5:30 p.m. We were just walking out the door when we heard a loud bam! My husband saw this guy in an SUV slam his vehicle into a pole right across the street from us. At that very moment, our house went dark and as you can probably guess, we lost all power. This guy drove his vehicle around the pole that he just broke in half and was going to drive off. I asked my husband, "Can he just do that?? He just slammed into that pole and that pole is broken in half! And he's just going to drive off???" My husband put his "people skills" into gear and began screaming at this guy. The guy comes to our porch and, trying to defend himself, says, "I was only going 60." I'm thinking; 60 mph???? On ice??? First of all, 60 mph is speeding on GOOD roads, you dumb ***!!!! When will people learn? Meanwhile, there's a woman in a van, sitting in our driveway and we can't figure out why she's there. It turns out that she's a paramedic and she is required to stay at the scene of an accident until an emergency vehicle shows up. She called 911 and told them to send the fire department out here and to call the electric company as well, because there's a chance the wires could fall, since the pole is broken in half. To make a long story short, the cops come out, the fire dept. comes out, the electric company comes out and four and a half hours later, our power is back on. It kind of screwed up my evening. Here's a picture of the workers putting up a new pole and transformer last night:



Slow down on the roads, people!! Nothing is that important that you have to risk your life to get there. =)

Monday, January 15, 2007

 

I just updated to the NEW blogger. I don't know why... Is it that much different? We'll see. I've been coming up with all kinds of excuses to justify my absence from here but I don't believe any of them. I know since I moved back here it seems I have been negligent on all of my computer stuff I used to do. Is it because husbands require that much attention?? I can't imagine that's the case. Yes, we've done some major remodeling and no, it's not done yet, but honestly, it's not a project that goes on 24 hours a day 7 days a week, you know? There IS more house to keep up (that's a good thing) and I do have more to do around here but still. Why can't I motivate myself??? I even started a new look by drawing and designing some new buttons and such for this place. That's as far as I got. My mom usually motivates me by keeping her blog updated and in joining the photo challenges and stuff. I decided to join in on this newest one for 2007. If you're interested, go 26 Things. Plus, she's updated here homepage and working on updating more of it. I'll see how far I get. Wish me luck. I started making Thank You cards the other day with some new, fun gadgets I got for Christmas and it took me 3 days to get 11 cards done. I think I put too much thought into things then lose my focus. Anyway, look for some new things on here and some old things taken off. My calendars; maybe I'll try a new style. My other stuff? Maybe I'll add to that soon. Time will tell. I hope you're all doing well and this new year brings good things your way!! =)

Monday, October 16, 2006

 

From this week's Monday Madness...

Name 10 things you'd do if you had more time.
~Scrapbook MORE!
~Update my blog and other websites more often.
~Finish my cross stitch projects that I started years ago.
~Visit my family MORE!!! (should be #1, eh?)
~Take more mini-trips to get the 'perfect' photo!
~Visit more blogs.
~Print out pictures to put in the frames we hung in our hobby room 2 weeks ago.
~Clean my refrigerator out! (Not because I want to, either.)
~Organize my photos and put them on dvd's.
~Walk every day, 4 times around the land we own behind our house (aka back yard) so I know I've walked a mile a day, at least.

SO, do you have a spare moment? Go visit Monday Madness (link above) and give it a try! Meanwhile, have yourself a great Monday and a fabulous week!! =)

feeling...

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

 

Woo Hoo!! I got my dress for the wedding; and all the accessories too! I bought the first dress I tried on. Can you believe it??? I really thought I was in for an evening of trying on a million dresses and not liking the way any of them fit, but I really got lucky. The dress itself is pretty plain, but it's got a jacket-type thing with it and the jacket has sparkly thingies on it. So it really looks elegant. It's floor-length and I don't even have to hem it up!! I'm very excited. I bought shoes to go with it, a necklace, bracelet and earrings. I'm all set. Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to do with my hair.

Anyway, I was so excited, I just had to share. Have a wonderful day and a wonderful week ahead!! =)

feeling...

Monday, October 09, 2006

 

We finally had nice weather over the weekend; so the yard sale went ahead as scheduled. And it was a big success! I live out in the country, on a road where people drive anywhere from 55 to 70 mph and they're not looking for yard sales! BUT, we put signs on either side of our driveway, far enough away for people to slow down and pull in, and we had a decent number of visitors. AND, I've got almost enough money saved up now, to buy the thing I was saving my change for. =) My mom came over yesterday and helped out, and we had a nice time visiting while making money! Thanks, Mom!

It's now less than two weeks before my stepson gets married. I have to buy a dress. My husband and I will be going out this afternoon to see what I can find. I'll really be glad when the wedding's over. The bride-to-be called last night and wondered if the courthouse would be open today, since it's Columbus Day, a national holiday here in the U.S., and I told her to go online and check. They still need to get their marriage license, and they have to obtain it in the county they're being married in. They live in Chicago, and getting married here in mid-Michigan. They're supposed to be going back to Chicago this morning but I guess they'll wait and find out if the courthouse is open first. If not, they don't plan on coming back to Michigan until next Wednesday. And since there's a 3-day waiting period from the day you apply for your marriage license and the day it will actually be valid (or whatever), next Wednesday will be too late. They may have to come to town a day earlier. As it is, they'll be here most of the week before their wedding. But I'm sure they'll be busy enough that we won't even realize they're here. =) Anyway, I think everything else is going as planned and I'm sure the wedding and reception will go smoothly.

Ok, gotta get to work (since I'm here already). I just wanted to write a few words. Have an awesome week, everyone! =)

feeling...

Sunday, September 24, 2006

 

I write this special message for my Mom today. Her and my dad would have celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary. God had a different plan; one we may not understand or agree with, but one we cannot control. I know my Dad is with my Mom today and every day; just in a different way. So, this one's for you, Mom:

Nothing can make up for the absence of someone whom we love and it would be wrong to try to find a substitute... That sounds very hard at first, but at the same time it is a great consolation, for the gap, as long as it remains unfilled, preserves the bond between us.

It is nonsense to say that God fills the gap; he doesn't fill it, but on the contrary, he keeps it empty and so helps us keep alive our former communion with each other, even at the cost of pain.

The dearer and richer our memories, the more difficult the separation. But gratitude changes the pangs of memory into a tranquil joy.

We must take care not to wallow in our memories or hand ourselves over to them, just as we do not gaze all the time at a valuable present, but only at special times, and apart from these keep it simply as hidden treasure that is ours for certain.

~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

(I struggled as to whether to keep the last paragraph in or not, but that's how it is written, and I understand what it's saying; I just thought it sounded a bit harsh at first.)

Have a blessed day, all.

Friday, September 15, 2006

 

We were on our way to the store last night and I was sitting at a stop sign waiting for the traffic to clear so I could turn left, there was a truck behind me, and all of the sudden we got rear-ended. Needless to say, I was startled. I couldn't figure out what the driver behind me was thinking. There was clearly traffic coming from both directions on the road I was planning to turn on... Turns out his foot slipped off the clutch and his truck rammed into the back of my car. He was very apologetic and called the police right away. We stood out on the side of the road waiting, for about 20 minutes or so. (It seemed like a long time.) The officer asked each of us (drivers), separately, what happened. He gave me a report number and told me I could go. I know the guy who hit me was very sorry and he kept telling us that he didn't mean to hit me. He said he was grateful that he didn't push me into the traffic. Obviously, no one was happier than us! No one was hurt, and today I called the insurance company, and thankfully, we have broad coverage on our insurance so it will cost me nothing. Since this no-fault thing, if you're involved in an accident, even though it's not your fault, you still have to pay your deductible. Unbelievable... Anyway, we're taking the car in on Monday, I get to drive one of those really "cool" loaner cars (for free!) and I'll get my car back by the end of the week.

Other than that, not much news to report. I made an appointment for my daughter to get her senior pictures taken. The earliest we can get in is the third week in October. It happens to be the same week of the wedding. But it all has to happen, so one day is just as good as the next.

I'll be around more, I think, I hope! I really must update my stuff. It's just been so nice today that I had to get some outside work done. Tomorrow morning we'll be setting up for the shower, and Sunday is the shower. I'll be glad when it's over.

You all take care. Have a fabulous weekend! =)

feeling...

Saturday, September 09, 2006

 

It's drizzling. Since we can't do any outside work, I've convinced my husband that today would be a good day to do all the finishing touches in the kitchen. I'm going to shower and run to the store soon, to look for a few odds and ends we need.

I have some serious updating to do on this site; I noticed a lot of people on my blogroll are no longer blogging. =(

Don't forget to fly your American flag on Monday; 9/11. Have a blessed weekend!

feeling...