Shoes Shoes Shoes!

Well....I really needed some shoes to wear for our trip. I have seriously bad feet these days, not sure why, but it has got to the point where I can't even walk around the mall without having throbbing, hurting, feet at the end of the day. I got a pair of shoes when I started my running venture. They were Avias. The most comfortable pair of shoes I have ever had. They are supportive in areas where I needed support and have this cantilever heel that is just amazing. During all my running/walking/training my feet did not hurt. Well, the problem with those shoes is that I wore them out between my training and coaching soccer. AND they were just really really ugly! Mostly white with a little pink on them.
It has gotten to the point where I think I am going to have to wear these kind of shoes all the time because ANY other shoes just KILL my feet, even sometimes when I don't even do a lot of walking. So, in the course of searching for good Disney walking shoes, I was hoping to find some nice "cool" looking Avias. After lots of searching I did find THESE shoes, and even ordered them. WELL, when they came in, they did NOT have the insole as advertised, they were just flat uncomfortable shoes. I returned them, and after two intense afternoons of scouring every shoe store and department store around, I settled on these:
I really really really wanted brown shoes that I could wear with my every day outfits, but push came to shove and I had to have some asap for our trip. So, the black and gray ones will have to do. I am looking at them in this picture and they look a little "retro" to me.....
It's not that they are that bad, it's just that I tend to buy a lot of brown and tan-ish hued clothes so brown would have really been ideal, but, the price was right and I will just keep my eyes open since this may have to be my one and only shoe brand from now on. Seriously, it is more comfortable than being barefoot!

Who Knew?!

Katie recently read this book. She pretty much just picks out what she wants to read and we do "stuff" with it for her lessons. She amazes me with her reading ability!

So, ever since we read it, Katie has been bugging asking me to make lemon meringue pie. Apparently the only thing Amelia Bedelia can do correctly is make a Lemon Meringue Pie. I had picked up the ingredients I thought I needed, only to find out that I did not have one of the things I thought I already had, so I found an easier recipe online tonight. I have never EVER baked anything with meringue topping and after reading some of the reviews of the recipes and hearing horror stories I was honestly quite nervous about it. I read all kinds of tips about making sure there were no yolks in the eggs whites, having them at room temperature. etc,.... Well, I failed at all of those and just decided to go with it and see what happened.
WHO KNEW!?
I was kind of a success with meringue on my first attempt! It could just be beginner's luck, but hey, I was pretty proud and Katie LOVED the pie. The filling hadn't really set up well enough yet when we ate a piece it was still really runny, but I think it will be better tomorrow. I took a photo before I put it under the broiler just in case something catastrophic happened in there...but it browned nicely and was quite tasty! (The "after" picture is not very good at all, not sure what was up with that.)

Rock Stars!

We got a new toy in the mail today. Corey found an awesome deal on Rock Band II. It is originally priced out at about $160-$180 for the set he got which includes the game, drums, microphone, and 2 guitars. Because of a pricing mistake and a bonus he had for a particular retailer, he ended up getting the entire set for about $60. (If Bethany is reading this, do you remember the conversation we had about this, kind of unreal, huh?)
So, anyway, it came today and we checked it out for a little bit with the kids after dinner. The premise is you are a band and you have to play along with the music on your instrument (or sing) and get a good score for accuracy. They had fun. Fortunately, there is a "no fail" mode where the kids can just play whatever they want and it doesn't affect the score of the game! ha ha!
Corey now has his brother over for a "real" trial run with the game.

RIP West Bend

Not the Coupon Queen......

Well, I started a serious campaign to start using coupons and being a smarter grocery shopper this week. I did okay, but I am far from great at it. The problem for this week was we needed everything. And, we could not feasibly buy everything, of course! AND that meant we didn't shop as "healthily" as I like to or stock up on anything because none of the things we truly needed to stock up on were on sale (chicken, other meat, veggies, cereal)
BUT, I did save a lot of money and we do have plenty to eat for the week, though we do not have chicken because it was not on sale and I cannot abide by paying $6.99/lb for boneless skinless chicken. I think we are going to try to start buying meat in bulk and some other items through a wholesale club so maybe that will help. Also, we have had such a busy week that I just didn't have the time to go shopping around to different stores to get the very best deal I could get on every single thing.

So, without further postponing, here are my measly results:

Before any discounts/sales: $168.19
After Kroger sales (38.82): $129.37
Bonus coupon (?) (.90): $128.47
After coupons (17.65): $110.82
Total Savings: $57.37

It seems a lot for a family of four for one week, huh? *sigh* I feel like such a failure. But, I did have to buy some bigger ticket things like pull-ups (which were on sale and a $2 coupon) and paper towels (multipack for over 50% off with sale and coupon). I am looking at my receipt and it seems the bulk of the money that was spent on stuff not on sale was spent on meat (hamburger meat, hot dogs, smoked turkey deli meat). Oh, also on dairy (yogurt and eggs because I like fancy eggs :)

I do love that I got an awesome deal on some makeup. I got a great Revlon lipstick, regular $9.99, sale 50% off, then a coupon for $2 off, so I got it for 2.99! I also got some Covergirl eye shadow, regular $5.50, sale 50% off, and a $1 coupon, so I got it for $1.75! I am so happy about those things because I really don't like buying makeup it just seems so expensive.

I guess I will try again next week :) Then, it's off to Disney for a week to not think about groceries or coupons or buying ANYTHING cheap!!! ha ha!

In the Arctic

During our recent "arctic blast" I decided to have the kids learn about polar animals.
We started with penguins, then last week learned about polar bears.
Here they are with their polar bear faces they made.
Of course, this activity, was more about motor skills than polar bears! ha ha!
On a side note: don't you love the coordinating shirts Katie and Noah are wearing?
Part of their Disney wardrobe!

Adopted.....

I have three blogger friends who are currently pursuing the route of adopting a baby into their families. I don't know if they have found each other through my blogroll, but I just wanted to say that I am so excited for them in their journeys. I found THIS link that talks about the Biblical significance of adoption. It is a beautiful and wonderful thing that only special mothers are called to do I am sure of that. I hope you will pray for them as they complete their process. If you are reading this and have been through the process before, I hope you will stop by and leave them an encouraging word. They each have totally different backgrounds and reasons and routes they are taking to find their babies, so it is interesting to see all the different ways God has for building families.

Bethany (pursuing international adoption, has two boys now) a great friend of mine

Alicia (pursuing private or agency adoption, no children yet) a friend since 1st grade!

Nikowa (not too familiar with her route, but has two boys now) a very new blogger friend

I hope they will visit each other as well!!!

Two Things...

ONE: I don't really approve of a store calling their sale "Dollar Days" unless the prices are, in fact, ONE dollar. Otherwise, it should be called "Dollars Days." It's not a "sale" to get paper towels for $11 TARGET! Good grief!
Unless you mean that during this sale you will be taking "dollars" for payment? Hmph.

TWO: Who in the WORLD would want to get either of these things for a gift for someone?! These are both available at Walgreens with your own personlized image. I will save you the agonizing decision though, I would rather have a mousepad! The boxers are $19.99 by the way. I apologize for my lack of tact if you have actually ordered either of these items. I just can't imagine sporting my camisole with pics of my kids on it
"Hey, look at this from Katie's recital, isn't that cute?" "It's not enough for me to remember the sunset from our cruise with my memories
or with our awesome digital photos,
I want to be able to think about it all the time, even when I hit up the public restroom."
I am glad they offer that satisfaction guarantee...because I just really thought this would look BETTER than it does on a pair of white boxers!
I am definitely going to need my money back!

I don't think it is a good thing for me to read the sales circulars!

Happy 50th Birthday Mom!

A Lesson in faith...second year in a row!

It started snowing a bit here at our house around 6:00 or so. It was coming down pretty good but not sticking, so I didn't even tell the kids (they were distracted by a movie and I was making dinner). So later, they discovered this fact on their own. By this time the snow was just truly a "flurry" and it just looked like it had rained. They quickly got out a blue plastic bowl...."Mommy!!! Mommy!!! It's snowing! We have to put the bowl out there to catch some snow!!!!!"
Really?! "Well," I said, "it isn't sticking to the ground, I don't want to go out in the wet."
"Come on, we ALWAYS put a bowl out to catch the snow!!!" (always meaning we did that last year)

And, I remembered what happened last year. So...I reluctantly went out on the back deck and put their bowl out in the middle where it *might* catch some snow.

Low and behold if the snow doesn't pick up....here is a picture after about an hour. Nothing huge, but hey, it's something. I thought it was over...but after it was dark a couple of hours it started sticking. Here is what they were excited to see after we finished eating:
The snow has stopped at the moment, but it calls for a low of 26 degrees tonight and scattered flurries, so they may end up with a bit more by morning.

After seeing their bowl, this verse jumped in my mind:

"Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you" -Matthew 9:29

There's a lesson in there somewhere. It kind of goes along with my Bible memory verse for the second part of this month also......"whatever you ask for in prayer, BELIEVE."

The bowl was set out BEFORE it started snowing hard and sticking.
What bowl has God asked you to put out there?
"According to (our) faith" will God do great things for us.

This brings it all around to my verse for the month:

Mark 11:24
"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer,
believe that you have received it and it will be yours."

"According to your faith........"

200th Post and 100 Things About Me....

You are reading my 200th post since starting this blog in 2007!!!!! I can't believe what a journey it has been to start a blog. I have found it to be therapeutic as well as a place to keep memories. I keep saying I am going to print out all my posts and put them in a book of some sort so I can browse the pages and see all those everyday moments I recorded. I have been able to keep up with some "real-life" friends and have also made many "online" friends and have found that to be so much fun and a great source of support!
Most people do something neat or fun to commemorate their milestone posts, and I had thought about having a giveaway since I have never done that...but I plan on doing a giveaway on our Disney blog right before we leave (stay tuned in for that!) So, here we go...100 things about me...(this started out as 200 things about me, but I really ran out of ideas and was starting to feel pretty boastful and/or self-condemning throughout, lol)

1. I am turning 28 this year.
2. I love to watch old movies.
3. I was in the band in high school (played the flute).
4. I have never flown in an airplane.
5. Having kids completely changed my life!
6. I just dyed my hair for the first time with the reason being to cover gray!
7. I love to read and re-read Anne of Green Gables.
8. I spell words over and over in my head sometimes. (yeah, I'm nuts)
9. I am a total slob and I fight everyday against my natural tendencies.
10. I drive a Chrysler 300 and it is my most favorite car I have ever owned!
11. I heart karaoke
12. I am a Cake Mania expert.
13. I have super smelling powers. (seriously, I can smell anything a mile away!)
14. I love grocery shopping.
15. I really do not enjoy doing laundry.
16. I do not like animals.
17. I love spaghetti.
18. My first favorite music star was Randy Travis (ugh!)
19. I have never been further north than washington, dc, or further west than louisiana.
20. I can't swim.
21. I am a super fast reader.
22. I can't visit my local library 11 months out of the year due to library fines.
23. I love Beth Moore studies.
24. I have more friends now than I did in high school or college.
25. I have a degree in Early Childhood Education.
26. 18 days from now I will be on my way to Disney World!
27. I am almost an expert in planning Disney vacations!
28. I just learned to love baking a couple of years ago.
29. I am the current reigning Cookie Queen at our church for 2008!
30. I won several creative writing awards in college for poetry and short stories.
31. I have been married for 7 1/2 years.
32. My husband and I got engaged after dating for 4 months.
33. I really miss the chocolate lasagna at Olive Garden.
34. My imagination runs wild and drives me crazy most days!
35. I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. Phil 4:13 (hey not being funny, it's true!)
36. My name is the only one in our little family that does not have the same number of letters in their full names.
37. I would not like to go on a cruise to Jamaica, the idea sounds very UNfun to me.
38. I heart game shows!
39. I feel sentimental toward Kelly Clarkson because I watched her on American Idol when I was pregnant with Katie.
40. I have never seen Goonies.
41. I have never seen the movie, Carrie, and people ask me that a lot.
42. I do not snap correctly.
43. Fruity Pebbles is my favorite cereal.
44. One time I went to The Varsity and ate a slaw dog, a burger, an order of fries, an order of onion rings, and a frosted orange. The next day we found out I was pregnant!
45. I don't like cashews.
46. I slide on our wood floors in my socks.
47. I am 5 feet 4 inches, 14 inches shorter than my husband.
48. I love Christian fiction books.
49. I lost 30 pounds last year, and found 7 of them!
50. I love traveling.
51. I don't snore.
52. I grind my teeth.
53. I love fall.
54. I planned our wedding in a week.
55. I can't imagine many things more boring than fishing or bird-watching.
56. I love "crooner" music.
57. I have been in two roll-over car accidents, came out with scratches both times.
58. I had a pet cat when I was younger, named "Taco."
59. One time, I ate an ENTIRE box of Lucky Charms in one night. (preggo)
60. I love blogging.
61. I love Sweet Tomatoes.
62. I would rather be really cold than sweat a drop.
63. I used to ride with my windows down and the air conditioner on.
64. I can't properly fold sheets.
65. I can write backwards.
66. I painted our kitchen all by myself and I was really proud!
67. I despise cigarette smoke and really despise when it is forced upon me.
68. I have never mowed grass.
69. I love Christmastime.
70. I love dancing...I wish I had trained in it.
71. I love playing online "time-waster" games like TextTwist.
72. I am a dedicated rule-reader and rule-follower when playing board games.
73. I have only had one traffic ticket in my life (camera at a red light got me)
74. I have never been to a jail or prison, not even in the parking lot.
74. I worked for two years as a first grade teacher.
75. I love to check the mail.
76. I wish that I was a coupon queen.
77. I hate to pay for drinks in a restaurant.
78. I LOVE breakfast food for dinner.
79. I have been stuck in an elevator twice.
80. I have been to New Orleans.
81. I can't stand to know that someone is mad at me.
82. I did the SAT with a basic function calculator because I left mine at home. Skimmed through the math :)
83. I take my own snacks into the movie theater.
84. I do not watch The Olympics when it is on.
85. I DO watch The Office...hilarious!
86. I am so happy in my life!
87. I have never had a grandparent die.
88. I broke my elbow a few years ago by falling down our front steps.
89. My knee pops every time I bend it.
90. I paid a $60 library fine last year, to avoid being arrested!
91. I love homeschooling!
92. I wear my sunglasses at night (sorry, this is getting hard!)
93. I throw things away and am not sentimental about most things.
94. I love hotel freebies (soaps and shampoo)
95. If I don't have a response to what you say, I don't say anything...sorry.
96. My new favorite game of all time is Quelf.
97. The first time I visited the Waffle House, I was 13 or 14. It is one of my kids' favorite places!
98. I can count on one hand the number of times I have been to the beach. (5 times)
99. I can't seem to figure out how to make good homemade biscuits.
100. I am proud of myself as a mother.

One Lovely Blog Award

Today I was given my first blog award thanks to my new online friend and "real life" twin:
Carrie, from "The Story of My World."


I humbly and graciously accept my first award with many thanks to her...
I am greatly flattered!

AND, as doth suit a blog award winner, I will pass this "One Lovely Blog Award" along to five of my most favorite blogging friends. I visit them all frequently and think they are just wonderfully dedicated bloggers with lovely thoughts to share with the world.
I am passing this award along to:

Bethany, from Living, Learning, Laughing, Loving

Amy, from The Sullins' Spot

Nikowa, from Knowledge House Academy

Marcy, from Marcy and Scott

and last but in no particular order:

Karen, from Hallelujah Anyhow!

Pass it on friends!

20 Things to Do in Your Twenties...

I found this list on my cousin's blog..she found it in a magazine or something...Anyway, here goes. I will be turning 28 this year, so I have a couple of years to pick up the slack!

1. Surround yourself with wise mentors:
I believe I have some pretty wise people to go to when I need it...
2. Become a lifelong learner
I don't think I have totally closed myself off to learning...you learn something new every day when you have kids!
3. Travel
I LOVE to travel, but I haven't been very far away. It would be nice to go somewhere really cool like Niagara Falls or something before I'm 30.
4. Learn to listen and handle criticism well
Oh...well....not so much, it depends on if I asked for your opinion or not ha ha!
5. Develop an active, healthy lifestyle
Yes, I try, try, and trying again!
6. Read a classic
Oh I have definitely done this! Should do it more often!
7. Go on an overseas missions trip
I have not done this. Not sure it will get done before I am 30 (terrified of flying!)
8. Create a monthly budget
We have done this before, we should do it again and STICK with it!
9. Start a Roth IRA
Have not.
10. Buy a used car
We currently have a used car.
11. Understand basic investment principles
I learned a lot in our Dave Ramsey class...not sure if it stuck but I know more than I did!
12.Go to a concert
I have not done this since I was in high school, so I think it is time to do it again before 30 hits!
13. Learn a foreign language
Probably not gonna happen, I am starting to get depressed about this list! I know ( a very little!) conversational spanish and can read it okay...
14. Start a blog
I think I got that one down!!!!! :)
15. Get your college degree
Done.
16. Pay off credit cards
Oh how we need to do this!!!
17. Stay in a hotel that costs over $200 a night
Yes...in Nashville for our 5th anniversary and recently on my free Disney trip. COMFY beds!!! Ah!
18. Read the Bible cover to cover
Probably have not...especially not in that order.
19. Explore your family of origin issues (positive and negative) and pursue growth
I have kind of done that. I know the things I don't want to continue as a family tradition! ha ha!
20. Figure out the type of person you want to marry ......
I better have done that one, since I have been married for 7 years I guess I did! ha!

Looking back over the list, I still have many things I "should" do in the next few years. We'll see! I just thought it was a fun list! What about you? Is 30 swiftly approaching? :) If it has passed, did you do everything on this list?

Memory Verse Day

It is time for the second verse of the month for January 2009 in the Bible Verse Memory initiative. As part of the process there was a video posted on the Living Proof Ministries blog with some tips of how to memorize verses. I really enjoyed the tips, which are remembered with the acrostic: RENEW. It stands for:

R: READ IT:
obvious...read it over and over and over.
E: EXAMINE IT:
look for language (first person, etc) patterns in the words,
etc that might help with remembering it.
N: NEED IT:
This was a very big one.
She advised to not memorize scripture that your husband (ha ha!) or friend needs...or a "lofty" verse that will "sound good to memorize"
choose one that YOU PERSONALLY NEED
so your motivations are true and it will be easier to memorize.
E: ECHO IT:
Use echoing to memorize...
say bits and parts of it over and over as an echo to help you memorize.
W: WIELD IT:
Use the sword of the spirit...you have it now, so use it to build
your faith and in your day to day life.

I have successfully memorized my verse for the 1-15th, but not so good on the reference. I have to keep working on that one for now. My next verse for the 15th-30th is:

Mark 11:24

Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer,

believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Winter School....

Here are some photos of our winter school program. Ha!

(click to view larger)
In the top photo they are using pattern blocks to design a picture then draw it.
In the bottom photos they are writing/drawing in their journal.

Our classroom is in the basement. We have a vent run to the room, but it really is not very affective. Most of the year, especially in Georgia, it isn't that big of a deal. The summer and fall and spring are comfortable and the most we ever need is a fan in the corner. As it gets cold, however, it becomes very difficult. We have a space heater that we have been turning on about an hour before we head down in the mornings, but today I didn't even try! It was down in the teens last night and our high tomorrow will be 32 degrees, so we will just move school upstairs for the time being. I love our classroom...moving things upstairs isn't a HUGE deal, it just strews things out more....I now have a living room covered with workbooks, crayons, markers, notebooks, etc. I know that 32 degree weather doesn't sound bad compared to some of the frigid below zero temps in other areas, but if we had that kind of weather here, then we would definitely have that room hooked up with some HEAT! ha. As it is, here, we only have this cold of weather for a couple of weeks, then it will be back to using the heater, and then, by April, I bet we will have the fan on already!! Ah, the joys of living in GA with totally crazy weather year round! (last year we actually had snow during this time....hoping!!!!) (click for a trip down memory lane)

Me Too!

Today Noah was in his room "cleaning" and I was in our room...cleaning (no quotes there!). He started calling me to come in his room and I said "Hold on I can't come in there right now I am right in the middle of something."

I was, in fact, trying to prevent an avalanche that was trying to happen in our closet. Some stuff from the top shelf was falling on my head...so..yeah, I was tied up.

He responded with, "I wish you had two more arms!"

Ha ha!!!!! I said, "you wish I had two more arms?!" and he said, "yeah, two more streeeetchy arms so you can reach a long way in here too"

ME TOO NOAH!!!!!! ha.

My Friend

Bethany and me at Downtown Disney, Nov 08

Let me tell you about my friend, Bethany. She is linked on my blog roll over there under "Living Learning Laughing Loving.

Bethany gets to come "live with me" for 6 months at the end of February!!!! I am SO excited. Well, she isn't literally going to live WITH me, but she will be living in Adairsville (about 3 miles away maybe?) while her husband, Andy, is deployed with the Air Force. The last time she lived here full time was the first time we really got to know each other and become close as friends. She had lived here once before during a deployment but I was working full-time and she was pregnant, and without having hung out a lot at that time we just missed each other that time.

BUT, God had predestined us to become friends, so it eventually had to happen!!! Andy (her husband) and Corey (my husband) met in kindergarten. They are so much alike! No matter how much time goes by in between their "hang out" times, they always seem to pick right up where they left off (much to our chagrin most of the time this puts them in about the 6th grade! ha ha, well they have wives now, so let's say high school freshman boys, if you know what I mean! ha ha! I know Bethany does!) So, God, in His divine wisdom, knew these boys needed proper and wise helpmeets, so that's where Bethany and I come in. AND God in his divine wisdom knew that whoever He matched up with those two were going to HAVE to be able to love each other and understand and support each other as well, so that is why I am SO happy that Bethany is the one for Andy and I am the one for Corey because it just works out so well for everyone! (now we just have to get that little girl in the picture and life will be complete huh?)

I started writing all this to say, that I am blessed to have Bethany as my friend. She has three sisters and I have none, so God, again, saw the need and met it abundantly. If you are blessed to be one of Bethany's friends you know what I mean...she is so great to confide in, always willing to give out not hasty but well thought out advice, and I just love her so much. She gave me the boost I needed to go out on a limb and try homeschooling (she was here at the decision making time, so I know it was a God thing), and she was raised very similarly to me, so we usually have lots to talk about why the boys reminisce about their own upbringings together.

I guess I am feeling thankful tonight. And, I wanted to share.....I hope it doesn't sound too gushy and silly, but I am just being thankful for friends and with Bethany getting ready to move (she blogged about her moving sale today) I was thinking about the next few months...and how grateful I am every time Andy is deployed! (HA, JK I would never choose that, of course) I guess what I mean is that I am thankful that all things work out in such a perfect way. The fact that we live here in Adairsville, and Bethany's parents live here in Adairsville, and that we get to hang out...it will just be FUN!

Workout '09

I have been a complete slacker about working out. I had huge intentions of training for the 5K then....life happened. I had a few issues with personal health, then winter came with early darkness and COLD. So, needless to say I totally gave up on my training. I did not continue anything at home either.
Well, I am motivated once again.
I decided I needed to get back in shape before I go and walk 5 miles a day or more on our vacation. I was feeling SO good before, when I was doing regular walking/running. When I coached soccer, that sort of kept me a little in shape for those months, running after 4 year olds for an hour twice a week!
Yesterday I started back on my video: (click photo for link)
I wrote about how great it was last year when I first got it.(read about that HERE) I am relieved to be back at it! The great thing about this video is, since it has 10 minute segments, you can start back in and not feel like a TOTAL failure. Nevermind that I got to where I could do all of the sessions in one workout without dying! ha ha. For now, I started back on the first 10 minutes (cardio) and have done that yesterday and today. The good news is: I did not ALMOST DIE like I did the VERY first time I did it!!!!!! YAY!!!! Tomorrow I will add in the next 10 minutes. It is such a great and forgiving workout video for people like me who will give it up for a few months, then pick it back up. 10 minutes isn't THAT long. I can do it!! And, I won't be in such bad shape while we traipse around the theme parks for 7 days!

Not a coffee cake....

The other night I really really really wanted something sweet, you know, one of those times (girls) when if you don't eat something sweet within the next hour you may just literally DIE!!!!!???
Well, I had some yellow cake mix in the cabinet, but I didn't want cake cookies. I know, for someone so desperate to be so picky...well...anyway. I got out my cake mix doctor cook book and started browsing. I thought the only thing I might have the "extra" ingredients for was a simple coffee cake. No such luck. It called for buttermilk and other random things like pudding mix. I got online, the only recipes still called for pudding mix. I finally found one that I had the ingredients for....but then I started making it and I was STILL missing one thing...I can't remember what it was.
SO, I just improvised and make something up, which I find now is a pretty common "recipe" for a coffee cake, but it really wasn't a coffee cake in my opinion. I just used one recipe of yellow cake mix, mixed up like the box said....then mixed up some chopped pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon. I layered these in the pan before I baked it. It smelled SO good while it was baking and tasted SO good! I considered making a glaze for it, but after eating a *couple* of pieces of it I decided it wasn't necessary (so you KNOW it had to be good!)
Here is a picture of the "not" a coffee cake. I didn't know it was going to be so good when it first came out and it basically just looks like a plain yellow cake, but believe me there is some YUMMY cinnamon sugar and pecans in that cake and it is DE-LI-CIOUS! (I didn't put any of the mixture on top because I was afraid it would burn before the cake was done)So, unlike recipes where they "say" you should "have all these ingredients on hand" (who already has stuff like almond paste on hand? Sometimes I wonder which pantry they are talking about here, a regular one or a "chef's" pantry?!) I can GUARANTEE that as long as you have the cake mix, you WILL have all these ingredients on hand!!!!

Special Delivery...

Don't you love delivery day??? When you order something and wait and wait and then it finally arrives? We got back from an early morning errand to see a box on our porch! It was my order from Bath and Body Works that I got with a gift card I had received for Christmas. They were having an AWESOME sale, so this is the stash I got with my $25 gift card. I think I did pretty good!!! (the picture isn't great...I didn't want to take forever doing it and the textures on the cello wrap and the mesh bags were kind of difficult to photo)A set of red mesh travel toiletry bags, the green "spring" tote, a travel size Warm Vanilla Sugar lotion, some kind of a sample packet of hair product they threw in, and a stainless steel caddy with Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin lotion and soap. The travel size lotion was free ( I found a promo code online). I just love my new goodies and can't wait to use my travel stuff for our trip! Woo hoo for delivery day!!!!

Quelf....again!

Corey performs an "Irish Jig" while singing "The Wheels on the Bus..."

We played our new game, Quelf, with some different friends on Friday night. The game did not disappoint! We had everything from "adding -izzle to the end of all sentences" to "perform a magic trick to dazzle your friends, if you get applause, move ahead" to "sing an annoying song with your tongue touching your upper lip and your eyes blinking wildly the entire time." It was hilarious and fun, yet again! We even had some repeats, and we thought it might get old if you did repeats, but it really did not. A different person was doing the card, so it was different than the first time completely!
I can't say enough how hilarious this game is and if you love games, order it today!!!! You will make some awesome memories and have lots of laughs...I PROMISE! But, beware....this will not be a game for you if acting silly or ridiculous is embarrassing to you....just consider yourself warned!

Fasting in the New Year...

So, do you people ever do a fast to start out the new year? I never really had until last year, and at that time when I started it, I found out that many churches do a "corporate" fast to begin a new year. We were going on a vacation last year so we waited until after our trip, but this year we are going to be doing it along with everyone else. It was really a great way to get your mind focused on God and drawing closer.

I know that many people don't discuss their fasting, and sometimes it is something to just "do" without talking about it, but I just felt like opening a discussion in case anyone has a comment. I really am feeling the "health" need to fast right now...really and truly, especially after the holidays!!! It can also be a great time to remind yourself throughout the day to pray, about life in general or for a specific request or need from God. There are many examples and reasons for fasting shown in the Bible. Here is a verse that really speaks to me, from Isaiah 58, when the people are asking why God has not answered them after their "fasting." God gives them true reasons.

1 'Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.
3 'Why have we fasted,' they say,
'and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?'
'Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.

Is that what you call a fast,

a day acceptable to the LORD ?
'Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness [a] will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

I am still praying about what God wants me to do this year......I don't want to just do what everyone else is doing. I did that last year (A Daniel Fast) , and while it was still a great time and God honored my attempt, I feel like there is something different in store for me this year.....we'll see.

Happy New Year !

My first resolution! Memorize 2 verses per month in 2009! The Living Proof Ministries blog is hosting a Bible verse memorization "initiative." You can click the link HERE to read about it and sign up if you want to participate. Everyone gets to pick their own verses, you just check in twice a month to be "accountable."

So, here is my first verse of the year...one to help with my goal of not obsessing and worrying so much. In the recent book that I read, I have learned the importance of meeting with God daily and that he wants to be close to you and "meet" with you every day, so this also emphasizes that kind of intimate relationship with God....here you go, my first verse of the year.

Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)

The goal is to meditate on and memorize this verse by the 15th of the month, when I will pick a new one. I need to go write this on an index card so it will be handy to look over often! Happy New Year!