Merry Christmas to all...

Today was filled with finishing up last minute to-dos, wrapping, and baking cookies for Santa. Allyson wanted to bake something we could "roll out". She was dying to use a cookie cutter! So... we pulled out an old "butter cookie" recipe from long ago. We all made cookies; icing and decorated. We made a HUGE mess; but it was great fun. After that the kids opened one gift (new pajamas for Christmas day!)

It's almost time for Santa to come; so I must get to bed! :o) Merry Christmas to ALL, and to all a good night!

Keeping Traditions

Since the kids were small; we have made Gingerbread Houses. We never do it from scratch... a kit is ENOUGH for me! Things have changed over the years... Cameron isn't as interested in them; but Nick and Allyson still love a Gingerbread House Day! I decided to make it a Contest this time. Each child had a construction partner; and Steve would be the judge.

Cameron had his girlfriend Jordan over to help him, Nick had his friend Paul; and Allyson had ME! I thought for SURE we would win. I know every gingerbread technique in the book... all the way down to the icicles hanging off the front of the house!

When the Ginger-Judge arrived; he had several different grading categories. Best use of Color; Best in Architecture; and all over BEST house. Paul and Nick won Best in Architecture; Allyson and I got best in Color; and Cameron and Jordan WON!

I love being the Room Mom!!

Friday was a day spent in the 3rd grade classroom. As the room mom; I supplied the kids with a Christmas craft and snack. We made Gingerbread houses. It was fun to see them put together these cute houses. They had Andes mints for doors; coconut snow; trees made from upside down sugar cones; and much more. They loved it! I loved being there... and I loved leaving too!

Below is a pic of Allyson and her teacher; Mrs. Hensen. They are a perfect match for the 3rd Grade. Ally just adores her; and she likes Ally alot too!

The kids put on a little play/skit Friday from the "Reader Theater". The name of the skit was "Mrs. Add Bad". Allyson played Mrs. Add Bad. She was the little old woman that walked into a shop, trying to purchase things and always adding them up wrong in her head. She had 3 apples for .02 cents each, and was demanding to get them for 4 cents total. She was adorable; she knew her lines (with her paper in her hand) and did a good job! She practiced for days; and brought in all of her own props. I died when I saw her up there with Vera Bradley!

Our dog has Expensive Taste!

Well... Well... Well.. What do we have here? Just as I thought I could trust the little mutt; look what she has done. I ran upstairs and left Autumn unattended for 4 minutes today. Below is just a peek as to what she decided to get into. Thank God I have good "paper piecing" skills... I was able to tape it all back up and pass it off as I shopped the mall! I did think I was going to kill her though. Oh... Puppy days....

Ahhhh... How easy Life has become!!

Thanks to a friend of Jenny's... we now have a very obedient Christmas Tree Dog. Jenny called last week to remind me that Invisible Fence makes "indoor solutions" for things that dogs just can't resist. All it took was a few beeps, ... one little "correction" .. and Autumn only stares at the tree. PERFECT! Now... if I could only attach this to the Yorkies neck; and Autumn would leave her alone. :o)

The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

If you have wondered why I haven't blogged in a few days... I have been a bit busy. I must tell you that it took alot longer to decorate the tree than it has for Autumn to undecorate it. Each and every day is filled with, no, stop, don't do that, get away, and QUIT. Below is just a sneak peak of what I have been dealing with.

Ahh... so sweet... with her Gingerbread man!

BUT... Things are getting better.... we have installed an invisible fence! It only took about 3 days of training and 3 times getting zapped for her to quickly realize "Stay Away from the flags". Now... if I could imbed those flags in my Christmas tree. Autumn now can run free on about 1 1/2 acres of the land and exercise off some of her extra energy. Yippy!

Allyson turned 9 this past weekend! WOW! I can't believe she is growing up so fast. She had a blast with her friends at her High School Musical themed Party. They played games, ate cake, opened gifts, played Bingo, musical chairs and much more! She received some great gifts. A few favorites were the doll house, the Barbie Jet and Spirograph (yes... just like from back in the day... but re-vamped).

My Sick Little Art Princess

Allyson was anxious to get her face on this blog, so... in an attempt to do so .. she colored a nice picture and asked me to take a photo of it to post on the blog. She is so sweet, isn't she! Today was a sick day for her, she has had a cough for 10 days. The Dr. re-opened today.. and our little artist has bronchitis. Yikes! An antibiotic and a new coloring book... we will be all better soon!

A blog about Hunting???

That is what I said. Steve has decided that he too needs to have a blog. I guess we both feel that someone is reading these blogs out there. I have added his blog to my favorites over on the right so that you can visit his blog too. If you are like me... you will be very very interested in all of the hunting stories found on this blog!

Deck the Halls

with boughs of holly! Today was a wet and nasty day outside so... I decided it was "Decorate mi casa" day. The day started off with our pre-lit tree only lighting half the way up. After a few choice words and a couple plug switcharoos... Steve was able to get the tree lit and bright! Next came the decorating phase. The kids all helped while Autumn grabbed and went with various items. She was last seen with a Santa Claus ornament in her mouth around the kitchen. I love to decorate, this year we are only decorating the top 2/3rd's of the tree. We are afraid that the pup (beast) might grab and go... taking the whole tree across the floor. Have I mentioned she is rambunctious?

I have acquired so many decorations over the years, I don't have enough space to put everything out... this year I decided to put out my Dicken's Village Houses. I didn't have room to fit them all... there are still several in the basement. One day I will have a cabinet/curio large enough to hold them all.

Below are a few of my 2 favorite ornaments ever! My sisters and I received these ornaments as kids; I don't have many ornaments from my childhood, but... these are two that I have had on my tree since I was married. The kids know they can NOT hang, touch, or even breathe near them. They mean so much to me. The funny thing is... I am not a PEANUTS collector... you would think I would be after seeing these. Who would have thought to make a "Snoopy in a turban" ornament?? Cameron calls him Osama Bin Snoopy.

As you see ...... it wasn't only the house that got decorated in the end... Fa la la la la, la la la la. 'Tis the season to be jolly!

Black Friday

Yesterday was Black Friday. One day that I prepare for. I look over my store ads and map out where I want to go, and what I need at each stop. This year was like most others... we started out at Target at the 6:00 opening. (Thank you Target for not opening at 4am). I had a list... I was on a mission... I went... I scurried... and I gathered. Sharon, Lynn and I made it through Target in about 1 1/2 hours. I was able to get all of the things on my list, and that made me a happy girl. After Target, we moved on to Walmart - a little busier.. a little crazier. (Can't beat movies for $2.00, even if it is at 7 in the morning). Walmart had a few of the things I had purchased at Target for about 1/2 the price. So, now it was the ol' re-purchase and RE-turn. I played the game... I saved the $$$ and with the economy we are in now... I made the best choices! Now it was time for a lunch break. We met up with Brenda, shopped a bit; and re-fueled ourselves. (It was only about 9am when we started making lunch plans). After it was all said and done, I think I spent about $350.00. Not tooooo bad.. .I got LOTS of presents! (It takes alot of $2 movies to add up to $350)

After a long day of shopping at Target, Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Macy's, Belk, Bath & Body, Hallmark, Guitar Center, Chili's, Kohl's and many more I have forgotten.. we headed over to see a movie. I was afraid I might snooze, but ... I was able to stay awake. We saw 4 Christmases and it was a very cute funny funny movie. I love Reese Witherspoon; we laughed the entire time.

I love Black Friday, I look forward to it every year. I am not sure if it is because of the great bargains.. or just a really long shopping day with my friends.

Our Wonderful Day

The boys - playin cards

Steve and Ally - Go Fish!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. I haven't blogged in weeks, and now... twice in a day. I always talk about my family to all of you, I thought I would share a recipe and a few pix of everyone. I look at the pictures and laugh. Katie had us wear name tags because she invited her couisin who keeps forgetting Brads name, it was a joke. The funny part was... the couisin didn't show up! I think it is funny that we are immediate family and wearing name tags.

Sally & Mom

Katie - (mommy2be)

Toni - my oldest sissy

KenCanCarve (YanCanCook) - my brother in law

I thought I would share the Almond Cheesecake recipe with you. I got it from my Mother in law, and it is my absolute favorite NO fail cheesecake. It is an easy one to make! Every time I make it, someone asks for the recipe... so... here ya go Katie!

Almond Cheesecake

Crust

1 1/4 cups crushed vanilla wafers

3/4 cups finely chopped almonds

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter or margarine - melted

Filling

4 pks (8oz) cream cheese - softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 1/2 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Topping

2 cups (16 oz) sour cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/8 cup toasted sliced almonds

In a bowl, combine wafers, almonds and sugar. Add the butter, mix well. Press into the bottom of an ungreased 10 inch springform pan; set aside. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add extracts; beat until blended. Pour into crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 minutes or until center is almost set. Remove from oven, let stand 5 minutes. Combine sour cream, sugar and vanilla; spread on cheesecake. Return to oven for 5 minutes. Cool on a wire rack; chill overnight. Just before serving; sprinkle with almonds and remove sides of pan. Store in refrigerator. Yields 14 servings

I am Thankful for.... a wood duck???

I am Thankful for..... My wonderful family and terrific friends! With the exception of a few colds... we are all healthy and Thankful for that! Thanksgiving day will be spent at my nieces house. Katie & Brad just got married in August and are hosting all of us for Thanksgiving. I am bringing the Almond Cheesecake, Green Bean casserole, and Veggie Squares as an appetizer. I will have to take pictures and post those later.

Katie and Brad are expecting my first "grand" niece/nephew in 178 days... I am thankful for that! I will see 2 of my 4 sisters and their families today. I will miss Barb; she is in Florida, and Mary is in South Carolina for Thanksgiving. I will spend the day with my parents... and that is always a treat.



And now on to the materialistic side of thankfulness..... I am thankful for the Cricut Expression! This is a scrapbooking cutting tool. Ahhhh.. the grandaddy of all Cricuts, I received this Cricut in a "deal" with my husband. You see.... he went hunting in November, and upon his return he asked if he could get this duck (a wood duck to be specific) that he shot and flew back home (in a cooler, lol) with him stuffed and mounted (YUCK). After a bit of convincing... and a little "deal"... he would get the duck mounted and I would get THE Cricut Expression. (I don't think he realized quite what he was making a deal on... he had visions of that duck in his "manly" basement and that was all he could see. Now... I think I will love this wood duck.

Happy Halloween!!!

Finally, the day is here to dress up our little goblins and send them door to door to collect candy from people we don't even know! As many of you know, I signed on to be the "room mother" in Allyson's class. Allyson has convinced the classroom that I will be the best room mother ever, and that I have been working VERY hard on their Halloween party. My friend Jenny and I spent 1/2 a day yesterday making chocolate covered pretzel rods for all of the kids. It looked like an easy task... but Oh... what a chore! We made mummys, green witch fingers, pumpkins, bats, spiders... the kids LOVED them, it was worth it.

Tonight was a fun night. We went out trick-or-treating with Monica and Nick. Allyson was a "Candy Corn Witch". Looking at the pictures, she looks a bit like a traffic cone. Monica dressed up as a "Sassy little Devil". Nick just went as himself. Somehow... people give candy to you when you aren't even dressed up... go figure!! Here are some pix of Monica and Ally before they headed out to collect candy. Monica looks 21.

Autumn spent the day romping with Jen's pup Sonic, she was WIPED out. This hat fits her personality well!

Pilates for the Puppy

When this small bundle of joy arrived just 36 days ago... she weighed in at 9 lbs. For the past week or so, I have been having trouble picking her up when I need to remove her from the bathroom after she has wrapped herself in toilet paper (I should dress her up as a Mummy for Halloween, she likes t.p. so much). Anyway.... tonight... we decided to weigh her. She weighs 22 lbs. OMG. She is growing so fast! Soon, I won't be able to remove her from any "bad girl situations" she has gotten into. We love her to death, but this little poem comes to mind when I think of our little Autumn.

There was a little "puppy" who had a little fur

Right in the middle of her forehead

And when she was good she was very very good

And when she was bad she was horrid

A Campin' we will go???

This weekend was a fun filled weekend of camping with the Girls Scouts :o) For some reason, when I purchased camping scrapbook paper and embellishments a few weeks ago... I had visions of toastie marshmallows, s'mores, campfires, and singing camp songs. Never in my mind were my thoughts of poncho's, squeaky wet shoes, uncomfortable beds, brushing my teeth in a trough, and jumpin' puddles in the night going to the bath house (with tiny stalls with doors that go up to your chest). Ahhh... the fun of camping.... that I had forgotten about.

Our cabin was a bit musty and wet, but we made it through two nights. If you asked the girls, they had the "time of their lives". They loved every minute of the archery, canoeing, fishing, hiking, pumpkin decorating, trick-or-treating, and s'more making. We tromped through the rain in soaking wet clothes and shoes, but every girl had a smile on her face! Many of the girls tried things they had never done before. Meanwhile, the parents were the only ones complaining about the rain (including myself, lol). I thought I would share a few pictures with you!

Someone once told me... if you want to have a close knit family... go camping. Somehow, I think that if I had been with MY family, we would have left when I saw the mattress on the bed, and never looked back (lol). I persevered and did this for all of those little Girl Scouts that smiled ear to ear... even when they were drenched! When it was all said and done... "A great time was had by all".

Bad to the Bone

Oh.... the dog days of Fall. This is how my days have been spent lately. "No! Autumn!", "Stop that", "Down Girl", "Leave it", "We don't eat family members!!", "Ouch", "Stop", "Bad girl business", "Off", "Uh-oh... who did this??"

Yesterday, instead of crying... I decided to just grab my camera. This is what a Bad Puppy does when you leave the bathroom door open.

I have decided that the appropriate punishment to fit this crime would be to dress up the dog. Oh... yes ... I did ... I put a sweater on the Pup. She was NOT happy. She walked around like she had a saddle on her back. She quickly got back in line. There was no toilet paper hunting, there was no biting family members, nothing. Her goal was to figure out how this thing could come off. As time went on... her Master arrived home to say "Get that Circus sweater off of my Hunting dog"..... So much for punishment..... until next time.

One Fall Day

What a beautiful day it was today! Having grown up in Virginia, I don't think that I appreciate the beauty of the trees as they change as much as people who haven't lived here all of their life. We headed out to Graves Mountain Lodge today for their Annual Apple Festival. Our close friends, Dave & Jenny and their kids Monica and Sonic (the pup) met us for a day of fall fun. I thought I would share some of the pictures I snapped. Monica & Allyson played in the maze, made sand art and had candy apples and funnel cake!

This was Autumn's (our pup) first trip out in public to "socialize". According to the many dog training books we have read "a well socialized dog makes a great pet", so... we will give it a shot. She loved the sights, sounds, and smells of the Festival. Autumn and Sonic played, went to the creek, socialized and had an exhausting day. Sonic jumped RIGHT in the water, as Autumn just checked it out with her paws. The dogs were crowd stoppers, everyone wanting to pet them and know a little bit about them.