are you kidding me?

These yummy little nuggets, my friends, (well, SHAWNA :)...) are DEEP FRIED PEPSI. You heard right. At the Indiana state fair, someone had a booth where they mixed up a dough using Pepsi instead of water. Then, just before cooking, they dip the little balls into a Pepsi-based funnel cake batter and throw them in the fryer oil. People say they have the consistency of a doughnut, but taste just like Pepsi. So... dough, Pepsi, and oil, topped with powdered sugar...? Ew.

FOR TODAY ...
Outside My Window...it looks alot warmer than it is...I am NOT ready for winter!

I am thinking...Charlie's going to lose his job.
I am thankful for...pepsi.

From the kitchen...graham crackers now, stir fry tonight.
I am wearing...scrubs...didn't sleep well.

I am creating...a homemade wreath for my front door for Christmas.
I am going...to apply at John Deere online for Charlie today.

I am reading...scripture online.

I am hoping...Charlie doesn't lose his job.

I am hearing...the cleaning ladies talking.
Around the house...warm blankets and good food.
One of my favorite things...the pictures of the boys and Charlie and I at the pumpkin patch.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: pay bills, set a budget, clean, rest....we've all been sick.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

a euphoric, faith-inspired, simplistic state of mind, Thank God

blessings, happiness, simplicity, non-materialism, the little things, hanging out, taking things for what they are, giving thanks to God, less is more, just being happy, choosing to be positive, choosing to be good, choosing to chill out, choosing to let go, learning, sharing, taking the opportunities that come along, living life for your God, your family, and yourself, finding out who you are, choosing what to believe, choosing every second to live by faith and by the commandments and by God's word, taking stock every second of what you have and cherishing it, pushing away the rain cloud, just being calm, getting rid of clutter and things you don't need...in your home, your heart, your mind, your life, walking away from people who aren't following God's path, whether it be in a simple conversation or in life in general, striving for every moment to "count"...we are making the memories and the HOME that our children will remember for the rest of their lives, it's time for mothers to shower their families with what they know best, appreciation for every single thing...every moment and every breath, every situation is an opportunity, show your children the world, don't be afraid of anything!!! tell the people around you exactly what you feel, before they are gone, never waste a chance to show love, appreciation, concern, the word of God. it is so amazing when you feel it! don't worry about anything. be who you are, emphatically! and find peace in knowing that your marriage isn't perfect...it bends and bows like a tree branch when the wind wails, but the more you nourish it on the sunny days, the better it will weather the storm.

FOR TODAY ...

Outside My Window...a bright blue sky and a mama birdy stuffing a piece of cotton into the birdhouse hole. It is so sweet! She is keeping her babies warm.

I am thinking...It's nice to feel the sunshine in my soul again.

I am thankful for...life!

From the kitchen...tonight it's homemade beef stew. My babies love it.

I am wearing...black suit pants, a white lacy tank top, and a grey sweater and black heels.

I am creating...a budget. And I'm planning my "office" in the basement so we can get organized.

I am going...to work out after work today.

I am reading...I have a new James Patterson book at home to start tonight, snuggled in close to my warm husband. (charlie took it!!) so, going to the library to find another one.

I am hoping...for a mild winter.

I am hearing...the song in my head..."Be Not Afraiiiiiiid, I go before you always...."

Around the house...lovingly messy...toys, papers, cookies, laundry in a basket.

One of my favorite things...when charlie and i put a good movie in, turn it down low, turn the lights off, and snuggle as close as possible and end up falling asleep.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: organization! cook some good food to freeze and re-heat for the next 3 weeks that daddy's gone, tying up loose ends at work, taking the boys outside and taking pictures of them, decorating for fall and thanksgiving. Gonna put candy corn lights up and make some turkeys and trees and leaves for the window out of the boys' hands, and lots more.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

"Tough", Craig Morgan

(What I aspire to be!)

She’s in the kitchen at the crack of dawn
Bacon’s on, coffee’s strong
Kids running wild, taking off their clothes
If she’s a nervous wreck, well it never shows
Takes one to football and one to dance
Hits the Y for aerobics class
Drops by the bank, stops at the store
Has on a smile when I walk through the door
The last to go to bed, she’ll be the first one up
And I thought I was tough

She’s strong, pushes on, can’t slow her down
She can take anything life dishes out
There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough

We sat there five years ago
The doctors let us know, the test showed
She’d have to fight to live, I broke down and cried
She held me and said it’s gonna be alright
She wore that wig to church
Pink ribbon pinned there on her shirt
No room for fear, full of faith
Hands held high singing Amazing Grace
Never once complained, refusing to give up
And I thought I was tough

She’s strong, pushes on, can’t slow her down
She can take anything life dishes out
There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough

She’s a gentle word, the sweetest kiss
A velvet touch against my skin
I’ve seen her cry, I’ve seen her break
But in my eyes, she’ll always be strong

There was a time
Back before she was mine
When I thought I was tough

FOR TODAY ...

Outside My Window...looking out over the field at the trees that are losing their leaves.

I am thinking...I wish I was in the kitchen at Shawna's on a big farm, looking at my house across the land, making something yummy with kids running everywhere.

I am thankful for...God's loving, patient hand guiding my marriage through the tough times.

From the kitchen...tonight I'm making homemade chicken and dumplings.

I am wearing...scrubs...woke up late!

I am creating...a folder of new recipes to try for winter.

I am going...to sew myself to my husband when I get home today.

I am reading...I have a new James Patterson book at home to start tonight, snuggled in close to my warm husband.

I am hoping...the dentist can fix my tooth....Qbug swung his head back and made my bottom jaw slam into my top jaw and my teeth mashed together. Now I have a hairline crack in my front top tooth and it hurts!

I am hearing...my breathing. Quiet in my office today.

Around the house...my best efforts at getting tidy. It's going well. But Charlie's home with Quincy today....I may eat those words later.

One of my favorite things...fresh clean white sockies on fat baby feets.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: oh, be with my husband!!! get the boys' Halloween costumes, pay bills, make a budget, no cleaning...it's family time, I'll clean when Daddy leaves. Here is picture thought I am sharing... ***oh my...what's with the lipstick?? :)

They say each child chooses their parents before they are conceived.

God gave me lists of mothers' names
and pictures of them, too...

I looked and looked and they all looked the same
until I saw you.

"Who is this woman?"
I asked the Lord,
"She looks quite nice to me."

He said, "You have chosen well, my child."
And he spoke these words to me:

"She is kind and gentle
and very wise,
and she will hold you close to her when you cry."

"Her eyes will shine
when you take your first step,
and she'll smile at your delight..."

"She will show her pride
when you succeed
and pick you up
when you fail."

"She will work hard
to give you the best she can
and she will rock you to sleep
with weary, time-worn hands."

"She will shelter you on stormy days
and dry your fears away,
she will bask with you in the sunshine
on sunny summer days.

"And when you are grown,
as you soon will be,
she'll still be there
to comfort thee."

"I choose her,"
I told the Lord,
for none like her
I've seen before."

Then the day came
when I was born
and I'd chosen well,
of this I'm sure.

I picked my mommy
above the rest,
and within her heart
my life is blessed.

Travis Tritt-A Great Day to be Alive

I got rice cooking in the microwave
Got a three day beard I don't plan to shave
And it's a goofy thing but I just gotta say
Hey, I'm doing alright
Yeah I think I'll make me some homemade soup
Feelin' pretty good and that's the truth
It's neither drink nor drug induced
No, I'm just doin alright

And it's a great day to be alive
I know the sun's still shinin' when I close my eyes
There's some hard times in the neighborhood
But why can't every day be just this good?

It's been fifteen years since I left home
Said good luck to every seed I'd sown
Gave it my best and then I left it alone
Oh...I hope their doin' alright
Now I look in the mirror and what do I see?
A lone wolf there starin' back at me
Long in the tooth but harmless as can be
Lord, I guess he's doin alright

And it's a great day to be alive
I know the sun's still shinin' when I close my eyes
There's some hard times in the neighborhood
But why can't every day be just this good?

Sometimes it's lonely
Sometimes it's only me
And the shadows that fill this room
Sometimes I'm fallin
Desperately callin'
Howlin' at the moon...
Ahwooooooo!

Well, I might go get me a new tattoo
Or take my old Harley for a three day cruise
Might even grow me a Fu Man Chu...

Oh, it's a great day to be alive
I know the sun's still shinin'
when I close my eyes
There's some hard times in the neighborhood
But why can't every day be just this good?

Montgomery Gentry...Roll With Me

Wake up in the morning
Get to living my life
Making sure that Im all that I can be
Went to church on Sunday
There was a moment that came
I swear it was like the Lord spoke right to me
So now I'm slowing it down and I'm looking around
And I'm lovin' this town and I'm doing alright
Aint' worried 'bout nothing except the man I wanna be
I'm thinking it's time to be livin' the rhyme
When I'm singing a song about nothing but right
And it'd sure be nice if you would roll with me

Saw a kid last winter only twenty years old
Being laid to rest while his mom stood by his side
Sure was hard to watch those tears roll down her face
Made me think how we all just have our time

So now I'm slowing it down and I'm looking around
And I'm lovin this town and I'm doing alright
Aint' worried 'bout nothing except the man I wanna be
I'm thinking it's time to be livin' the rhyme
When I'm singing a song about nothing but right
And it's sure be nice if you would roll with me

My first time swimmin!

I looked up the world's healthiest foods...my boys eat like crazy, so i'm excited to pack them full of stuff that's good FOR them, and not just tasty.

Here's what i found...(not in order of health value)

Fruits: raisins, lemons and limes, figs, tomatoes, cranberry juice (real, not juice cocktail), cantaloupe, raspberries, avocado, apricots.

Veggies: onion, artichoke, ginger, broccoli, spinach, bok choy, squash, watercress, arugula, garlic.

Grains, Beans and Nuts: quinoa, wheat germ, lentils, peanuts, pinto beans

Also: yogurt, skim milk, shellfish, salmon and crab.

I'm gona re-vamp our food choices...i'm starting the "baby snack bar" with Q tonight...hope it goes well. (and doesn't go all over the floor.) hayden started his at 9 months, but Q is WAAAY advanced and i think he'll do great.

xoxo

"An angel in the book of life

wrote down our baby's birth

and whispered as she closed the book

'too beautiful for earth.'"



-unknown

"We are preparing our children for LIFE, not simply raising them for now."
-Nanny Deb, "Nanny 911"

"Edward Perman Cole died in May, it was a Sunday afternoon and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It's difficult to understand the sum of a persons life, some people would tell you it's measured by the ones left behind, some believe it can be measured in faith, some say by love, other folks say life has no meaning at all......Me, I believe you measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you. What I can tell you for sure is that by any measure, Edward Cole lived more in his last days on earth than most people manage to wring out of a lifetime. I know that when he died his eyes were closed and his heart was opened......"
Opening paragraph, "The Bucket List"

ha!

Got a picture of you
I carry in my heart
Close my eyes to see it when the world gets dark
Got a memory of you
I carry in my soul
I wrap it close around me when the nights get cold
If you asked me how Im doin Id say just fine
But the truth is baby, if you could read my mind
Not a day goes by that I dont think of you
After all this time youre still with me its true
Somehow you remain locked so deep inside
Baby, baby, oh baby, not a day goes by

I still wait for the phone in the middle of the night
Thinkin you might call me if your dreams dont turn out right
And it still amazes me that I lie here in the dark
Wishin you were next to me, your head against my heart
If you asked me how Im doing Id say just fine
But the truth is baby, if you could read my mind
Not a day goes by that I dont think of you
After all this time youre still with me its true
Somehow you remain locked so deep inside
Baby, baby, oh baby, not a day goes by
Minutes turn to hours, and the hours to days
Seems its been forever that Ive felt this way
Not a day goes by that I dont think of you
After all this time youre still with me its true
Somehow you remain locked so deep inside
Baby, baby, oh baby, not a day goes by

for you

Every night in my dreams
I see you, I feel you,
That is how I know you go on
Far across the distance
And spaces between us
You have come to show you go on
Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
Love can touch us one time
And last for a lifetime
And never let go till we're gone
Love was when I loved you
One true time I hold to
In my life we'll always go on
Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
You're here, there's nothing I fear,
And I know that my heart will go on
We'll stay forever this way
You are safe in my heart
And my heart will go on and on

If I Could Take.....

If I could take a minute out of each and every day.

To hold my child close to my heart and kiss her fears away.

If I could take a minute out of each and every week.

To play with blocks and peek-a-boo, tag or hide and seek.

If I could take a minute of any span of time.

I'd never waste a second of the pleasures that were mine.

If she could crawl upon my knee and lay her sleepy head,

upon my shoulder tenderly and dream of gingerbread.

I'd spend my time in total bliss and watch my small daughter grow,

from babyhood to childhood, knowing all there is to know.

If I could stop my aching heart and put my mind asleep,

If I could stop the flow of tears that are always on my cheek.

I only need a minute, Lord, I know she's safe with you.

But there's something real important that I had no time to do.

If you could do it for me, Lord here's a message she should know,

Tell her that I Love her, then I'll let her go.

Author: Debbie Szaroleta

yum yum

God bless the woman who invented heels.

Too bad these are six hundred bucks.

FOR TODAY ...
Outside My Window...it is rainy, dark, and beautiful and the birds are all asleep.
I am thinking...how dare you call yourself a Christian.
I am thankful for...the little snowsuit i put on quincy this morning with the pointy ears...we laughed and laughed at him, it was so cute.
From the kitchen...wheat toast with vegetable cream cheese.
I am wearing...tight black sweater, pants that are way too big (yes!) and black heels.
I am creating...dessert with my ladies, in a bit.
I am going...crazy without charlie.
I am reading...365 Day Brighteners...The Gifts of a Grandmother (for my ladies)
I am hoping...all goes smoothly thursday.
I am hearing...nothing. it is so nice.
Around the house...clothes, dishes, toys, papers...
One of my favorite things...rocking my babies together. when quincy lays on my belly and i know he is close to his brother or sister, just for a little while.
A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: clean, rest, clean, rest, eat.
Here is picture thought I am sharing...

Mr. & Mrs. Lupton, 2058

God's blessings, just for me

Psalm 139

I heard this song on the way to WORK. I almost turned around.

Something More
by Sugarland

Monday, hard to wake up
Fill my coffee cup, I'm out the door
Yeah, the freeway's standing still today
It's gonna make me late, and thats for sure
I'm running out of gas and out of time
Never gonna make it there by nine

There's gotta be something more
Gotta be more than this
I need a little less hard time
I need a little more bliss
I'm gonna take my chances
Taking a chance I might
Find what I'm looking for
There's gotta be something more

Five years and there's no doubt
That I'm burned out, I've had enough
now boss man, here's my two weeks
I'll make it short and sweet, so listen up
I could work my life away, but why?
I got things to do before die

Some believe in destiny, and some believe in fate
I believe that happiness is something we create
You best belive that I'm not gonna wait
'Cause there's gotta be something more

I get home, 7:30
the house is dirty, but it can wait
Yeah, 'cause right now I need some downtime
To drink some red wine and celebrate
Armageddon could be knocking at my door
but I ain't gonna answer thats for sure.
There's gotta be something more!

God, make me brave for life:
oh, braver than this.
Let me straighten after pain,
as a tree straightens after the rain,
Shining and lovely again.
God, make me brave for life;
much braver than this.
As the blown grass lifts,
let me rise from sorrow with quiet eyes,
Knowing Thy way is wise.
God, make me brave,
life brings such blinding things.
Help me to keep my sight;
Help me to see that out of dark comes light.
Author Unknown

Ha!