AND TWO WEEKS AFTER MY LAST POST......THERE WAS UNCLE SAM AND SAVANNAH!!

Time sure goes by quickly. I had to stop and think, what the french toast I had done over the past two weeks. (My mama had to call and ask me what did I mean when I said "What the French Toast". You know, it's an expression I got off of the Orbitz gum commercial....made me laugh!) Doctors appointments...we cant seem to go to terribly long without having to hit one up. I counted two in the past 2 weeks.

Then my husband had to threaten me within an inch of my life to get our taxes done. It took me a day and a half.....like 12 hours of Uncle Sam junk! I hate it!

My Mama came this past week and we had a good time. Spring had hit here in full bloom! Dogwoods an Azaleas galore.

We loaded up the Little Package and went to Savannah for a tour of the Historic District. The weather was perfect! Mama snapped a picture of Little Package and me on River Street.











All the old Squares and Parks were so beautiful with Spring flowers. Here is a picture taken in one of the many beautiful squares of Old Savannah.












If you've never been to Savannah....go in the Spring, do a Trolley tour ($10-$20, depending on the tour group you pick and the package you select). The tour is way worth the money. They give some really good history lessons! Or you could just call me & I'll meet you there! We'll go eat!!!

So that is what's been going on here. I'll be catching up with all of you this week!

HAPPY ST. PATTY'S DAY!!






Not much going on here today. I've been watching the St. Patrick's Day festivities in Savannah since 5:00 this morning. All kinds of good things going on there....but I have the best seat in the house....on my couch! I watched Mass held at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. It was a very nice ceremony. The parade is on now. The weather is cool right now & it is still overcast here & in Savannah. Luckily (the luck of the Irish you know) it is not raining.

So how are you celebrating St. Patty's Day?

TRUTH



"You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."

Dr. Adrian Rogers, 1931-2005

I published my last post without my picture and some errors in my links....sorry! Debbi, I'm an RN at our hospital where I live.

ON MY BEDSIDE TABLE:
The Message (a fresh way to read Scripture), Theadora's Diary. By:Penny Culliford. This is an easy read but I have not had the opportunity to finish it yet.

ON MY TV:
Not a whole lot of anything. There wasn't much on last week to catch on DVR.


ON THE MENU TONIGHT:
Shrimp and baked potatoes.....not sure if the shrimp will be fried or grilled. Danny cooks the shrimp in this house!

ON MY TO DO LIST:
1.My father-n-law's birthday is today. Danny, Little Package & I are delivering him his favorite breakfast this morning along with a goody bag of oatmeal cookies I baked.
2. Got a couple doctors appointments this week.
3. Plant a few flower seeds.

NEW RECIPE I TRIED LAST WEEK:
Grilled Steak Kabobs
I cut two nice size steaks into chunks. Marinated the meat in Italian & Parmesan dressing for 1 1/2 hours.
Alternated on the skewer: meat, sliced bell pepper, red onion, and cherry tomatoes. Grilled for about 10 minutes (we like the meat cooked medium). Served with yellow rice. We really enjoyed these. It was easy & tasty!

IN THE CRAFT BASKET:
Same thing as last week....nothing!

LOOKING FORWARD TO: Spring!!!! I think it has arrived here! Also looking forward to computerized charting at work. I think it will make things a lot easier in the nursing world.

HOMEMAKING TIP FOR THIS WEEK: Get out of DEBT! Get on a budget! Crown Financial has a wonderful Christian based guide to money management. I went through this class years ago at my church. It was awesome. They also have a website & host a radio show with really sound advice about everything to do with your money. DO IT!! It's the best thing you can do as a homemaker!

FAVORITE BLOG POST OF THE WEEK:
Sandra's last post, her vigilance in encouraging us all to be praying women, to be good wives, supporters of our husbands at THE MERCY SEAT. Thanks Sandra for the 31 days of prayer for our husbands!

FAVORITE PHOTO FROM LAST WEEK:
My Mama takes some really good pictures & she has a good sense of humor to add along with it. I liked this post she did last week. It made me laugh.











LESSON LEARNED THE PAST FEW DAYS:
There is no correct "Stimulus Package"! When money gets tight in this house, we don't go spend more & we sure as heck don't go and charge more. We buckle down! It is amazing to see how much "LESS" you can live with.

ON MY PRAYER LIST:
My Family.
A request from a friend at work.
Our Country.

DEVOTIONALS, SCRIPTURE READING, KEY VERSES:
"Dont run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code--dont sleep with another person's spouse, dont take someone's life, dont take what isn't yours, dont always be wanting what you dont have, and any other "dont" you can think of---finally adds up to this:Love other people as well as you do yourself. You cant go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is LOVE." Romans 13:8-10 The Message

For more Happy Homemaker Monday.....go to Sandra's.

NEED A GOOD READ......


OK...you have heard me talk about Beth Moore's blog. Well she posted this week asking everyone to list their most favorite book ever with a short description. Well there are over a thousand comments of favorite books. I was tickled to find that the very first post listed was one of the two of my favorite books ever...that is Lonesome Dove. So if your looking for something good to read check out this post at Beth Moore's Blog

HAPPY HOMEMAKER MONDAY WITH SANDRA





On my bedside table:
THEODORA'S DIARY. BY:PENNY CULLIFORD

On my TV:
CATCHING UP ON PAST EPISODES OF "HOUSE".


On the menu for tonight:
BLACK EYE PEAS, SWEET POTATOES, FRIED FRESH BACON, AND CORNBREAD MUFFINS.

On my To Do List:
PUT OUT STRAW ON THE FLOWERBEDS THIS WEEK.
HAIRCUT AND HIGHLIGHTS.
GOING TO VISIT MY BRAND NEW NEPHEW, JAXON!



New Recipe I tried last week:
PENNE PASTA CASSEROLE

1 POUND LEAN GROUND BEEF
1 LG. ONION CHOPPED
1 CAN DICED TOMATOES WITH BASIL, GARLIC, & OREGANO
1 CAN (6 oz) TOMATO PASTE
12 oz COOKED PENNE PASTA
3 CUPS SHREDDED MOZZARELLA CHEESE, DIVIDED

COOK CRUMBLED BEEF & ONIONS IN A SKILLET UNTIL DONE. DRAIN. STIR IN DICED TOMATOES, PASTE, AND 1/2 CUP PF WATER. MIX IN COOKED PASTA & 2 CUPS OF CHEESE. POUR INTO A SPRAYED 13X9X2 BAKING DISH. SPRINKLE REMAINING CHEESE ON TOP. BAKE @ 350 FOR 20 MINUTES OR UNTIL HEATED THROUGH & CHEESE IS MELTED.


In the craft basket:
CANT SAY I HAVE ANYTHING THERE! SAD BUT TRUE!


Looking forward to:
HOLDING A NEW BABY! WARMER WEATHER.


Homemaking Tip for this week:
NOT SURE WHAT YALL USE IN THE WAY OF CLEANING SUPPLIES BUT I LOVE "TILEX MOLD & MILDEW" FOR CLEANING MY TOILETS & MY PORCELAIN SINK! ITS BLEACHY...KILLS EVERYTHING & WHITENS WITH MINIMAL SCRUBBING! I SPRAY MY TOILETS...LEAVE THEM & COME BACK LATER...THEY ARE WHITE & CLEAN.


Favorite Blog Post of the week:
BETH MOORE'S BLOG FROM LIVING PROOF MINISTRIES ALWAYS HAS SOMETHING GOOD. IF SHE ISN'T WRITING IT, ONE OF HER DAUGHTER'S TAKES A TURN. THIS ONE I LIKED ESPECIALLY. LPM BLOG

Favorite photo from last week:








Lesson learned the past few days:
THE CRUMBLING ECONOMY IS CATCHING UP WITH US HERE & NO ONE WILL BE LEFT UNAFFECTED BY IT.

On my Prayer List:
MY HUSBAND OF COURSE.
MY BOYS.
MY LITTLE PACKAGE & HER MAMA.
MANY UNSPOKENS!


Devotionals, Scripture Reading, Key Verses:
STREAMS IN THE DESERT.
"MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR THEE." 2 CORINTHIANS 12:9

For more Happy Homemakers Monday's, go to Sandra's blog at Diary of a Stay At Home Mom.

TROUBLE......

Have you ever just felt you were in a tight spot?



















No animals were hurt in the making of this blog post! LOL

IT'S A FINE DAY HERE!

Thought I would first share with you a new author and one of her books I just read.
Denise Hildreth. A good Southern book with humor and good morals. It made me laugh and it made me cry. It has some very profound statements in it. I cant wait to read some more of her books!




















There is a bluebird sky here today! Not too cold and no wind yet. I think I'm going to venture out and paint a few tree trunks. Gotta protect those young trees from the bugs you know!




Oh my friend Jen has a really nice post today....it's worth reading.

CAYLEE ANTHONY'S GRANDPARENTS



I know you all are familiar with the Caylee Anthony missing/murder story.

Last night on Nancy Grace, she aired the recorded visit of George & Cindy Anthony with their daughter Casey, a visit at the jail. This story hits a nerve with me. I think it is because of us having Little Package in our lives.

Danny & I have watched this story together & we both get very emotional about it. Folks, you never know what is gonna happen in your life! This could be one of us going through this.

These grandparents are mourning the loss of their granddaughter & dealing with the fact that their own child may have murdered their grand baby! Things like this happens all the time. Your kids screw up...even murder!

What I am trying to say is......my heart is broken for the Anthony's. You can see they are descent folks and are completely broken! I am broken for them.

I woke up this morning with them on my mind. Every time I hear anything about this story I find myself praying for them but since last night...after watching them visit their daughter....I just feel more of a burden to pray for them.

Will yall do the same, when ever you think of it, if you see something on TV about them, will you pray for those folks. I feel there is nothing more anyone else could do that would help them more than to lift them up to God.

Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but THE SPIRIT HIMSELF MAKES INTERCESSION FOR US WITH GROANINGS WHICH CAN NOT BE UTTERED. Romans 8:26

picture copyright from OrlandoSentinel.com

VALENTINE'S DAY 2009








Our Strawberry Valentine's Day cake



M&M cookies for my son's birthday and to share with my neighbor.





A sweet Valentine Card to go with the cookies for my neighbor.






And last but not least...The Little Package holding her box of chocolates & bear from Pop-pa & Meme.

Hope you all had a good day!

SIGNS OF LOVE............








I've had a good week! Little Package has been here & we have had a great time! The weather(which is sooo crazy here) has been nice enough to go outside & enjoy. Package & I went to the park & had a picnic. I think Spring Fever has attacked because there were piles of women & children at the park!

Valentine's Day is this weekend and my oldest son's birthday. I am making him some cookies. I am making Danny & I a strawberry cake. Nothing fancy...just a box recipe (but we love it!). Package gets a little box of candy & a small Teddy Bear.

Have any of you looked at the Victoria Magazine? I really like it and have decided to subscribe to it.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!

WEIRD WEATHER!!







It has already rained this morning. The sun is out now & the temperature is suppose to get in the 70's today....and then more rain.
















The wind is blowing like crazy! I am thankful for any rain or sunshine. Tomorrow it is suppose to be cold again. Hummmm.....if Mother Nature was a real woman...I would say she is having hot flashes....no, no,....I would say she was Bi-polar! Can you see how hard it is for the ducks to swim against the wind this morning.












Here are the beginning shoots of my Daffodils! I cant wait...I love them!













I had to share this picture of Package with you....you think she likes a Little Debbie cake? I wonder who bought those for her?!!











So what's going on with your weather right now?

BUSY-I-NESS!!!









OK I am tired of having too much to do.
Monday...Danny had more tests at the hospital.

Tuesday...Package & I went to visit my parents-n-law because they haven't seen Package in a few weeks.

Wednesday...I had to take Package to the doctor...she had a ruptured ear drum. An all day thing!

TODAY...I AM TRYING TO GET CAUGHT UP ON THE MESS AROUND HERE...plus I have to go back to town to pick up the rest of Package's medicine (It took me 3&1/2 hours to get SOME of her medicine yesterday.)

I have to work tomorrow, Saturday, & Sunday, of course. THEN...
Monday... Danny has another doctors appointment.
And that is all on the agenda for next week...except to get this stinking house cleaned. Danny's oldest granddaughter has 3 days worth of doctors appointments the 1st week of February so there it goes again.

AND THE TREES NEED PRUNING...500 of them!!
Does anybody want to give a friend a hand?!!!
Hope all is well with yall!!

THE STOMACH FLU!!





With no warning I awoke at 12:45 Friday night (Saturday morning) with some type of stomach bug. No nausea & vomiting just the...well you know...don't even want to write the word! Saturday afternoon the fever & body-aches-like-you-wouldn't-believe came on. This is some bad stuff....I haven't been this sick since July 4th, 2004! Yes I remember the date...I still have my prescriptions for Phenergan & Imodium from then! Hello!

But I am much better...I am hoping to have a really good day so that I can go back to work tomorrow. We will see.

Say a prayer for Danny & Little Package that this mess will skip them. Danny's immune system is very weak & Package IS JUST A BABY!

I leave you with a picture of Little Package fast asleep on the Rhino. Pop-pa & her were out pruning trees Saturday. I guess she was all tuckered out. Danny drove her back to the house & told me I needed to see the poor little thing. That is a hard working-future pecan farming-Pop-pa-loving little girl!

NEW YEAR'S, BIRTHDAY'S & ANNIVERSARY'S...OH MY!



I'm glad it is all over & behind me. Now I can get back to a routine. Danny has been terribly sick since right before Christmas. He was prescribed a very strong antibiotic & it is finally working. Sickness can make you become very thankful. Thankful for insurance, doctors you can call your friends, friends of all kinds that are employed at the hospital, good medicine, a job you can leave if you need to (that goes for me & Danny). The list goes on & on. So during this I had a birthday & Danny & I celebrated 19 years together! Two more things to be thankful for. We didn't celebrate as in going out or anything (Danny is still under the weather) but we were able to reminisce & talk about how blessed we are to have each other. I am so BLESSED!!

So here is a picture of my mother-n-law & aunt. They came to see me on my birthday at work. They delivered a cream cake that my aunt made JUST FOR ME (of course I shared). That is the best darn cake & has now become my f-a-v-o-r-i-t-e! Now how blessed is that?!!!!

WANNA-BE-WINE-DRINKER




So I had this idea to try drinking wine. Danny & I don't drink at all & this was not something he was endorsing for me to try. Soooo... my Mama was here visiting for Thanksgiving. We went shopping at Wal-mart and went by the wine racks. As I was standing there in front of that huge display of every-wine-known-to-man, one of the pharmacist I work with happened by.....So she recommend some wine & I bought it.

The next morning as Mama & I were cooking some things we decided to open some wine & try it. Now my Mama doesn't drink either but who safer to drink with then your Mama! So I take out bottle number one (of two bottles). I remove the paper from the top & find a cotton-picking-cork! Hey it was an $8.00 bottle, I didn't think there would be a cork! I DON'T HAVE A CORK REMOVER EITHER, but hey, I'm resourceful....how hard can it be to remove a cork! Hummmmm.

So I start with the big fork thingy you use to turn your pot roast with. After working the prongs in I attempt to twist & pull at the cork to no avail. Hummm. So me & this bottle of wine go down to the shop with Danny's tools. I put a drill bit on the drill & drill......right through the cork....Making plenty of cork shavings to litter my bottle of wine! The cork is still tight & I cant get whats left of the cork out. So I took a big Flathead screw driver and hammered the cork INTO THE DARN BOTTLE! Free at last! So I go back to the house with the cork tainted wine ready to drink. My Mama says...."You have to strain it now". Hummm. "Cheese cloth" my Mama says! I have some...so we proceed in the straining of the wine....get our wine glasses out...pour it up...& smell & taste & pour the rest of it DOWN THE SINK!! It was horrible!

But this redneck is determined to be a wine drinker. So I go get the other bottle. I still don't have a cork remover but I am much wiser this go around! I take that bottle of wine right back down to the shop. I placed the correct size screw into the drill....drill it in halfway into the cork. I place the bottle of wine in Danny's vice on his work bench & tighten it up. I then use the claw hammer to remove the cork. "POP" goes the cork! I go back to the house....pour up Mama & I a nice clean glass of wine....we smell....we taste...and we POUR THE REST DOWN THE SINK! Wine looks, smells, and tastes a lot like Robitussin to me! So I'll just wait till I'm sick again & pour me up a good shot of Robitussin in my wine glass & call it a day!

Cheers to you wine drinkers our there!! LOL!

2009!!!!



I hope everyone is having a safe and happy New Year!

NEW DRIVER'S LICENSE = NEW PHOTO....ARGHH!!

So I have a birthday coming up this week...I'm not scared to admit I will be 38! Proud of it! However....I have to renew my drivers license. The NOW photo is way over 10 years old. So I am going to buck up & go get a new one today! BUT first things first....I'm going to get my hair done...then I will go get a new picture ID. I will wear a white t-shirt (it makes for a good non-fat back ground) and I will make sure my make-up is just so. I will leave with the best darn picture ID in America! Every cop that pulls me over will wonder "Who is this girl trying to fool?"....every time I am carded for NOT buying an alcoholic drink (this is another story I will tell later), the sales person will think I had a model pose for my photo ID! Yes sir! I am going with determination today to get a GREAT PICTURE ON MY DRIVERS LICENSE!!!
TO BE CONTINUED.......

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...The trees in the pecan orchard are bare. You can now see my home from the road. I don't like that!

I am thinking..."How could I have ate soooo much in such a short time!".

I am thankful for...extra time off with my husband!

From the learning rooms...I am starting a Bible study called "A Woman of Moderation".

From the kitchen...just a few more Christmas dinner left overs.

I am wearing...a white t-shirt and pink jogging pants.

I am creating...entries in my 2009 agenda.

I am going...to my sister-n-law's for New Year's day..black eye peas & mustard greens=lots of good luck and money for the new year!

I am reading...Nothing....going to the library this week.

I am hoping...for a healthy-uneventful new year for my family and I.

I am hearing...Danny coughing more. I don't like it. A call to the doctor is looming.

Around the house...getting the Christmas decor put away.

One of my favorite things...the laptop my Mama gave me!

A few plans for the rest of the week:An appointment with the beautician, drivers license renewal (that means a new Cotton-pickin-picture!),and errands in town.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...


To see more Day Books go to The Simple Woman's Daybook.