A Sailing Journey

2011-06-14T20:46:00.000-07:00

Hello dear blog and friends. This is just a quick post for my brother that I have been meaning to get up! I have not forgotten my blog or all my dear friends who's blogs I have been missing so much. This last month will be filled with last enjoyments of having Benjamin here. I was planning on posting before he left, and I have started a post on three separate occasions but wasn't able to get one up lol! I will be back sometime in July though :P

Now about my brother and his film project he has going. It is very exciting and we are all so proud of him and his future. Check out his trailer below!

Much love!

TSOL (pronounced "soul"): is the name of his film
Shot in the scenic Sangre De Cristo Mountains, this movie is a psychological thriller that tells the story of a young man fighting for his life-- and his mind. After awakening from a horrific airplane crash, Chuck finds himself stranded and alone in the mountains. His friends are dead and he has no food or water in which to sustain himself. Chuck begins a journey to find not only civilization but also himself. He battles multiple demons of thepast-- the death of his mother, the unforgiveness of his father, and his own dying faith.
Through encounters with wild beasts to hallucinations of his dead friends, Chuck struggles, eventually discovering the meaning of life.

Please visit his Kickstarter site by clicking on the image below, so as to get an idea of what this film is about, as well as seriously thinking about backing this film, we would so appreciate your help, to become a backer it would only cost $10.00 to get a signed DVD. Those of you who would post the video on your blog and facebook we would appreciate it SOOO much!
You can watch his trailer just visit his site by clicking on the image below.

Blogging Break and Some Pictures...

2011-03-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

These two little cuties kept us quite busy on this trip :P

Sharing and letting go of toys was a new learning experience for Winston! Zane tried to be the gentleman, but Winston loved to test his patience :P

Marie's display of our teatime is always so pretty. A short moment of peace and refreshment!

Our good friend Julie was able to come over for a quick visit. She told me at my baby shower last year right after Winston had been born that she and her husband were expecting. And now a little over a year later here is her precious baby boy Andrew in the above left picture.

We tried to capture some nice ones with all the boys, but it was pretty difficult! Andrew and Ezra were hungry, Zane teething and Winston shy.

Winston enjoyed looking at Jon while we tried to capture his cute chubby face. I loved these pictures Marie thank you!

It was so nice to visit Marie, Jon, Zane and meet precious little Ezra! It did my heart well! Ezra is a prize and treasure! Marie and Jon are so abundantly blessed!

They were so so good to us, made their home feel like it was ours. We also got to be there for the boy's baby dedication at church. I am so glad they waited for us to be there with them!

So yes, we are home and back to routine. Benjamin back to work and myself catching up on laundry! Its so refreshing to go away and then come back! And when we came back Florida's Spring showed up! Beautiful flowers welcomed us when we returned ;)

Yes, I have decided to take a short blogging break. I say short and I hope it will be. Benjamin will be leaving for a deployment in June and I am beginning to realize the reality of it! He will be gone at least six months but most likely longer. The blessing to us is that he wont be on a ship! (Praise the Lord!) I will be looking after and managing his website business and I have a lot more to learn, so with that, I need to focus my priorities for the next couple of months.

I know I haven't blogged that much anyway lately, but I would rather give a notice then just disappear for a long period of time. I will miss posting and you all who visit, read and comment! Thank you all so much for your dear friendships!

I will be back, but for now God's blessing to you all!

Love

Elizabeth

An Exciting Jaunt!

2011-02-28T20:12:00.000-08:00

Pslam 27:13-14

I remain confident of this
   I will see the goodness of the LORD
   in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD;
   be strong and take heart
   and wait for the LORD.

Off for a sorta surprise get-away!

Jon, Marie and the boys were going to meet Benjamin, Winston and I in Tennessee this coming weekend, but then Benjamin was able to get more time off then we realized and so we went ahead and checked airline tickets and it turns out that flying would be much more affordable then driving!

Tomorrow I will be making a mad dash to pack, put ALL the fresh fruit we bought into the freezer since we can't take it along for the ride (bummer), then clean up the house so its nice and cozy for our return and then we will be off the following morning.

So I, we plan on taking lots of pictures the next week and half!

And I get to hold my two precious nephews in my arms!

It has been over a year now since I spent time with them in Ohio and my goodness have I missed them!

We are so blessed to be able to go and not just me, but Benjamin and baby too!

I hope to post while I am away, not that I have been doing well keeping up with my posting lately, but I will try.

A very blessed week to all!

"With All I Am"

2011-02-22T10:04:00.000-08:00

I fell in love with this song a few years back while I was working as a Nanny.

It was stressful for me, mainly because the family were Muslims.

I feel in love with their kids and I am happy and comforted to know that through the Lord's help I was able to plant some seeds of Christ into their hearts and I know one day I will see the fruit of those seeds :)

Anyways, during that time I found this song and use to play it over and over again. I have rediscovered it and I find myself playing it again and again.

I hope you all will be blessed like I have been.

Don't forget to scroll down and pause the music player.

Into Your hands
I commit again
With all I am, for You, Lord
You hold my world
In the palm of Your hand
And I am Yours forever

Jesus I believe in You
Jesus I belong to You
You’re the reason that I live
The reason that I sing
With all I am
I’ll walk with You
Wherever You go
Through tears and joy
I’ll trust in You
And I will live
In all of Your ways
And Your promises, forever

Jesus I believe in You
Jesus I belong to You
You’re the reason that I live
The reason that I sing
With all I am

I will worship
I will worship You

"Hillsong, With all I am"

A Pizza Date

2011-02-16T05:56:00.000-08:00

Well, it was not a planned pizza date!

Benjamin wanted to take baby and I out. A cozy bookstore was the plan.

I packed a little snack and boiled some water for the thermos so we could have a bit of tea while we enjoyed books.

Well, the bookstore didn't happen, but I am looking forward to enjoying doing that maybe this weekend ;P

Benjamin saw this cute little pizza place as we were out and about.

The temptation was too great ;)

It is refreshing getting out once in awhile like this.

And so fun with Winston being able to eat with us.

The pizza was divine!

One of my favorite meals is pizza!

Winston enjoyed it too.

Maybe this weekend we can still have our bookstore date :P

Valentine Instant Chocolate Mousse

2011-02-14T09:10:00.000-08:00

I was inspired by my friend Kirsteen when she mentioned last week that she had made Nigella's Chocolate Mousse. I found the recipe on youtube and had to share!

This was so tasty and easy!!

Here is her video so you can watch and be inspired as well!

Half a bag of mini marshmallows, half a stick of butter, half a bag of chocolate chips preferably dark chocolate. I only had semi-sweet on hand.

4 tablespoons of hot water.

Stir until chocolate chips and marshmallows are melted down.

Using a mixer mix 1 3/4 cup of heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla

And mix the cream until the cream has formed firm peaks.

Fold the cooled chocolate mixture into the cream.

Pour into bowls or cups and place into the fridge until cooled.

This was SUCH a tasty recipe and so easy and quick!
A perfect Valentine treat for my love!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Presents From Grandpa and Grammy

2011-02-10T12:40:00.000-08:00

I have enjoyed getting to know our mail lady this past year. Every time she comes to the door to deliver something for us, she asks after Winston. She loves to deliver packages from my parents because my mom always addresses Winston's package as "Master Winston". The mail lady will say "a package for Master Winston today!"

Today is also my Mom's birthday! I wish so bad we could be there to celebrate with you all Mom! Happy Birthday and we love you!

He loved his little card :)

"Thank you Grammy and Grandpa!"

A sailor Mr. Potato Head for the bathtub! The sailor in honor of Benjamin :P

Such beautiful fun gifts to receive in the mail last week! Winston especially enjoyed the opening the paper part! I loved the cute cute clothes and Benjamin loved the Mr. Potato Head!

Thank you so much Mom and Dad! We love you!!

Birthdaying

2011-02-07T21:22:00.000-08:00

We have enjoyed rain this whole week and it was still coming down the night of Winnie's birthday. Which is funny because the last time our friends came over it was raining that night too! :)

Winston had been teething all day that day and so we went ahead and gave him his teddy bear before his party hoping to put a smile on his face. He didn't really smile but he enjoyed pulling at the eyes of his bear.

After teething most of the day and I was worried that he wouldn't have any fun that evening with his party. I was able to get him to fall asleep for a short nap about an hour before our company arrived. It was just enough,

although in all these pictures he looks pretty serious.

He was very serious right before our company arrived, but once they walked in the door he was all smiles! I was so relieved, the last time he was teething and we had company over, he cried for most of the night!

Benjamin made some delicious pinto beans that cooked and simmered all day. I think it was my favorite out of everything else. Below is some Brisket. We had cooked it up a week ago and I just pulled it out of the freezer the day before the party. Then Benjamin rewarmed it slowly in the oven until it was nice and hot. We thought of doing it that way because of how long it takes to cook.

There is whipped cream in the middle of the cake too, but I forgot to press the cake down in all the excitement. So you can't really see it in the pictures.

I am glad I used whipped cream as the frosting. I didn't put a ton of sugar in it when I whipped it up and he seemed to really enjoy the feel of it!

Paul encouraging Winston to taste his cake.......

He ended up feeding Winston quite a bit of whipped cream. If it hadn't been for us requesting him to not feed him any more I think he would have kept up the feeding and Winston the eating! :P

He's got a little mustache and beard going on here!

Such a cutie patootie! He really enjoyed his cake! If I had let him, he would have played with his cake for hours!

Winston loves to study and examine everything. He will grab little crumbs or pieces of paper and hold onto to it for a long time. It was the same with his cake. A little crumb here and a little crumb there. I did prevent him from shoving his cake off his highchair though, so maybe he wouldn't have played for hours after all :P

I greatly enjoyed cleaning his face by kissing off the whipped cream.

He is just so tasty and sweet!

He stayed up until 10 that night and was happy as a little lark.

A little while after he had fallen asleep I checked on him and found him asleep face down with his arms stretched out on each side and his face smack down into his mattress! He he he, a little exhausted I think!

It was such a fun party and I wouldn't mind giving him another birthday cake to demolish!

We missed Grammy and Grandpa so much! Love you Mom and Dad!

Thank you all for the sweet happy wishes!

Much love :)

One Year Old Today

2011-02-06T13:10:00.000-08:00

Today is the day that Benjamin and I got to look into the eyes of our beautiful little blessing for the first itme. Every month has flown by and I cannot believe that I have forgotten the feel of that day already! I thought I would never forget the pains of childbirth! Its the joy of the prize that erases the memory of the struggle and pain. What a joy! Our lives are forever the better because of our little Winston.

Today is also President Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday! We were so delighted to find out that Winston and President Reagan were born on the same day!

This last picture Winston looks so much like Zane!

Winston loved his birthday cake and I can't wait to post pictures of his party.
Hope everyone is having a happy Sunday! Many many blessings!
:)

2011-02-02T11:31:00.000-08:00

Today I got down and dirty with the house cleaning.

I sure needed this, whew!

My goodness does it feel wonderful to have the floors shining and everything (almost everything) organized!

Its like the fresh new feeling you get after you have moved into a new house!

I saw these rubber gloves while I was searching for a picture and thought they were so cute! I have to mention that my rubber gloves and I have developed a great relationship. I am thankful for them because I didn't waste my time yesterday painting my nails. My nails still look pretty and glossy even after all that elbow work :P

I typically deep clean on the weekends while Benjamin is home so he can watch Winnie. I am still learning how to manage the baby, house, cooking, working, blogging and keeping myself looking decent lol!

But there isn't anything else I would like to be doing that's for sure! I love being a wife and mom and I am so thankful to the Lord for all that He has blessed me with!

I can't wait to post more about my Bible study. We met again last night and it was just wonderful. There are about 16 of us. We spend our first hour all cooking together, the second hour is spent going through our study and third is spent eating and visiting. Its so much fun.

The verse our study is founded on is in Titus 2:3-5 Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God.

I have enjoyed these women so much already and have been greatly encouraged and inspired by them. The cooking part is really fun and entertaining. With sixteen women in the kitchen you can imagine! :P

I'll post all the recipes we have been cooking sometime soon.

Okay, I better get back to cleaning out the cabinets and pantry now that Winnie is taking his nap!

All of you who are dealing with the cold weather,

may the Lord bless you and keep you!

Birthday Cake Update

2011-01-28T20:30:00.000-08:00

After going to Publix today to see if they did have a free one-year-old cake I wasn't too surprised that I need to purchase a full size cake first.

So, scratch that idea!

I am now excited over the thought of making a cake for Winston. I not going to do some serious decorating. I just want to do a little mini chocolate cake with fresh whip cream that is slightly sweetened. I'm sorta glad that the Publix cake didn't work out ;P

We are still contemplating what to buy Winnie for a present. And I think we have decided on getting him a Teddy Bear. I am hoping to find one that is Winston's size. Something for him to squeeze and hold. He loves, loves, LOVES to squeeze the cat. Hopefully this will help!

I am sure the cat will be thankful!

Our close friend Roxy told me the other day that she had found out what the name Winnie means. We often call Winston Winnie and she happened to hear the meaning of it. She told me it means peace maker and bringer of peace.

He is my little peace! His gentle spirit and nature has filled me till my heart is bursting with love.

Thank your Roxy, we love you!

Glorious Rain and God's Glory

2011-01-25T06:47:00.000-08:00

~Picture google images~

The sound of steady rain falling in the morning when I woke up was wonderful! When I was little, it was my dream to see the rain fall all day instead of for just a few minutes. It looks like my dream came true so far! Its still coming down!

I am excited about Winston's birthday coming up. We invited our friends the Porters to come over and celebrate with us. Benjamin is going to cook his famous Brisket. I had dreamed of making the perfect birthday cake, but I decided to go along with my friends suggestion of going to Publix and getting a free one year old birthday cake that they decorate personally for you! I am not even sure Winston will eat from it! I am hoping for him to sink his chubby little hands in it though!

I started a new Bible study last week with our church. Its called Apples of Gold. I am so excited about it!

It is really nice to go away meet new ladies and fellowship. And then share in our Bible study of His goodness.
Then to come home and walk through our door and see Winston's face light up when he sees me, squealing loudly! Now I know how Benjamin feels when he gets home from work!

I wish you could here the sound of the rain falling right now! I think a cup of tea is now in order to celebrate the rain and the day! :)

Here is a short worship song that I heard off of Benjamin's Pandora worship station the other day. I heard it playing and loved it! So I searched for it on Youtube and here it is! I love it because I have been reading and dwelling on God's glory. The brightness and peace of His glory is so beautiful and peaceful.

Make sure you scroll to the bottom to turn off the music.

Happy Tuesday!

2011-01-18T09:58:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of our relaxed evening together the other night. I enjoy it so much when Benjamin cooks! While he was busy cooking, I got to play with the camera!

I am still trying to figure this camera out. At night pictures tend to be more fuzzy. I am forcing myself to learn how to use it without using the automatic setting as well as the flash.

So here are some of the good photos that I got! Some are better then others ;P

He wanted to be out there helping and watching!

It was hard for him to take his eyes off of daddy.

Look at those delightful chunky legs!

This is a normal pose of Winston. He is always hanging out with the cats and playing with the blanket.

A simple meal of asparagus, steak and potatoes.

My picture of the potatoes was pretty fuzzy, so that is why you don't see them, but they were so yummy!

Winston playing with celery for the first time.

He loved it, but I had to take it away from him after he started taking bites out of it. He is still figuring out solids and can't get passed the swallowing part. I hope he will be ready to dig into his birthday cake in few weeks!

A happy and blessed Monday to all of you!

Psalm 23

1 The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters,

He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Catching Up

2011-01-11T09:44:00.000-08:00

Happy Tuesday!

I have fallen way behind on my blogging lately.

I had made two attempts to post, but my plans were thwarted because my computer has had something against my camera :P

The computer decided to leave his personal opinion in the past and now I am uploading around 700 pictures lol! Thanks to Benjamin my camera has a huge memory card!

January has been refreshing and accomplishing so far. Cars and computers are 90% working again and just waiting on our registration from Arizona so we can drive our new (older) car! We are so thankful that we could still register our vehicles in Arizona (due to the military) because Florida is pretty pricey!

Winston is over eleven months now. Only a few more weeks and we will be celebrating his one year birthday!

I am excited to pose Winston for his one year pictures. I need a little of my sister's creativity :)

Last week I checked the Goodwill and I am so glad I did! I found a nice wooden high chair for the little guy. He is so cute sitting in it and playing with whatever we put on the tray for him.

I have nursed him constant this whole year and we are just now giving him little things to taste and try. It is so much fun feeding him and watching his expressions.

We bought a juicer this month as well and I am in LOVE! I have been juicing up everything! Maybe I'll post some recipes of what we have been juicing. I'm loving carrots and apples right now.

My second favorite holiday is just around the corner! Valentines Day!!

I need to begin thinking of how to celebrate it. With Valentines, our anniversary my Mom's birthday and now Winston's birthday, its a lot of celebrating!

Since our anniversary is so close to Valentines we may just combine them :)

Here are a few pictures from the 700 that uploaded successfully on my computer :)

His new highchair!

Its a little beat up and scratched on the front, but nothing a little scratch free dusting spray can't take care of, thanks Mom for the suggestion!

Mounds of fruit! I didn't even capture all the carrots, celery and beats in the fridge!

Dressed up in daddy's uniform ;D A present from Grammy and Grandpa.

I made some Vanilla Bean Sugar as little gifts for many of our local friends here.

I ordered some vanilla beans online (which was much cheaper) and had fun putting these little presents together.

They can use the sugar for tea or coffee, the sugar will have a nice aroma of vanilla in it.

This idea was from Nigella's Chirstmas book

;)

You cut open the vanilla bean to expose the meat inside and then cut

the bean into smaller portions.

Then place a stick or two in the jar and cover with sugar.

The sugar needs to sit in with the vanilla bean for at least a week.

Winston's first Christmas.

Here he is on Christmas Eve.

Right before we opened up a package from Grandpa and Grammy.

Which were some homemade jammies for baby. They are so cute!

I also had some yummy homemade Creme Brulee waiting to be devoured. I used some of the leftover vanilla bean and oh my was it amazing!

The most recent shot of Winnie.

In his Sunday clothes right after church.

Happy January everyone and many blessings for this New Year!

Ezra Wyatt Marius

2011-01-03T08:59:00.000-08:00

Sorry for keeping everyone hanging!

Little Ezra was born on December 31st weighing 8 lb 11 oz 21 1/2 inches long.

Marie had a long labor, but is recovering well. We were all hoping this one would be short and easy.

Ha!

Next time around I am going to tell myself that it is going to be a VERY LONG labor so if its short and sweet I'll be delightedly surprised and if not, I will have been prepared :D

No pictures yet, hopefully soon! I did get to see him on skype and boy is he a CUTIE!

Thanks Lisa for your sweet comments :)

One Last Post Before the New Year

2010-12-30T09:24:00.000-08:00

Christmas is over and New Years is almost here. I love the week between Christmas and New Years. Its almost like an extra week. After Christmas I always feel that it should be the new year as well, but there is still one more week left before the new year begins. Its so nice.

We had a beautiful Christmas. Winston enjoyed unwrapping his presents. It was a lot for him to take in. His personality likes to study every little object, so he seemed to enjoy every part of Christmas!

I made salmon for Christmas dinner and boy was it delicious! I think I want to do that every year. Benjamin helped me cook it. He seems to be an expert at cooking fish! Thank you baby!

Well, it looks like Marie and Jon are about to have a new little bundle in their arms some time today! She had contractions throughout the night last night and Patty (our Midwife) said she is dilated at 5 cm. The baby was posterior and that may have slowed things down, but Patty was able to turn him and we shall see what happens next! I'll keep you posted :)

"Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it?

I will even make a way in the wilderness,

and rivers in the desert."

Isaiah 43:19

Christmas is almost here......

2010-12-21T11:31:00.000-08:00

Its already Tuesday!! Christmas is almost here yay!!!

This is the last week that we'll play Christmas music, how sad! Then I'll have to wait until next year! It feels like we just started listening. I am so glad we got an early start on our Christmas tree ;)

I had an extra box of lights so I went ahead and strung them up outside. I haven't seen what they look like at night from the outside yet, but they look sooooo cozy shining from the inside!

Our weekend was full and busy. We finally got the car to the mechanic and we are so excited to have two cars again. Benjamin had to work the whole weekend, boo for him and for me. It always seems so quiet when he is gone those extra hours. When he works his regular schedule, the time usually flies by and I can't believe he is on his way home already, but those unexpected long hours really get to me and Winston.

So I finally played with our camera. I did figure out how to take pictures at night without the flash, but I couldn't quite get the focus right. And with this little cutie always on the move its a little difficult.

Not only was the car sick, but I accidently placed my laptop down on my hope chest one night in the dark and thinking that the surface was flat, (there were folded clothes that I hadn't put away yet) it fell down on the ground and lost the function of the screen.

So I have been without my laptop for the last month and half or so. And it looks like today we can go and pick it up from Apple!

No more laying things down in the dark :(

You can see Benjamin working in the back ground and his toes too he he :D

I made some rice crispy treats last night. As I was searching for a pan I found these cute little Christmas tree pans that I had bought two years ago after Christmas for like $1.00 each.

They were perfect for my crispy treats! The treats molded right into it. And then I pulled the two trees out and smacked them together :D

After I took the picture I decided to un-smack them so we could could eat them easily.

We ate one tree last night and the other one probably wont last much longer!

I got all our presents wrapped today. I even got the cats a can of canned food. They are not accustomed to eating canned cat foot. They eat the hard dry stuff. So I bought them a can each lol. They were sniffing their wrapped presents after I placed them under the tree. That stuff is pretty strong smelling I guess!

We were so blessed to receive a very nice car seat from Benjamin's work last week. It was donated from several families that want to bless military families. Its a super car seat because we can use it for infant, toddler and then booster. We both are so overwhelmed with the generosity of these families.

So we have a big box sitting next to the tree waiting for us to unwrap it and put it in the car for Winston :) He is just now ready for it too. He has outgrown his infant seat, so this was just perfect for us.

The Lord is so good!

I hope everyone is blessed this week as we celebrate the joy of the season which is

Christ our Lord.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Happenings

2010-12-16T09:07:00.000-08:00

Winston is now over ten months old. I am glad I have tried to record each month of his growth.

Otherwise the feeling of him growing so fast would be worse.

He says ddddd and bbbbbb and mmmmmm and almost bubble :)

dada and mama have been said on numerous occasions as well.

He has been pulling himself up now and wanting to get up on those little chubby legs.

Our little peaceful time has gone by. No more staying put when placed somewhere ;) He has my full attention lol!

He has six teeth at present so there's no asking Santa for his two front ones :)

I think we would ask Santa for a little break of teeth making!

Here is Bay who always wants to be near his Winnie even though he is missing chunks of hair all over his body and a few whiskers. This cat is pretty determined to hang out with his little companion.

This duck was given to us as a present, it has come in so handy! He loves sitting and relaxing in it. And of course bathing and splashing in it!

He is my delight that the Lord has blessed me beyond my wildest dreams. After looking after other children for a long time and loving them so much, I knew the feeling would be even better when I had my own. And boy was I right!

Getting excited for Christmas over here. We had some really cold weather blow in and our temps reached the low 20's which is pretty low for us. The cats are pretty grouchy and we have had to dress and act like Coloradoans! I am so glad, it really helped set the Christmas mood!

I still have a lot of shopping to do and I still have to visit the post office. I don't think there has been a Christmas when I was ahead or on top of things!

I am excited to do a post for CSN this month. They have graceously asked me to do a review for them and I cant wait to show what I picked out for Benjamin. I will do a post on it so keep on the lookout for that!

It was hard to decide what to pick because of the endless supply of house decor, home bar furniture, kitchen tools! It was so much fun!

Benjamin has duty this weekend so I am planning on getting all of our little Christmas plans in order. I have selected our menu and still need to shop for it. Its been a little difficult lately because we are sharing one car, so its not as easy to get some of these things done like I would like to.

And boy was Wal-mart packed to the hilt last night! Whew! I always tell myself to get everything done right before the month of December and then enjoy the month with the festive things. Maybe next year! ;P

I hope everyone is having a happy month of December!

Christmas Tree Decorating

2010-12-12T21:40:00.000-08:00

A few weeks back when my Mom was visiting we were at Hobby Lobby, she and I were looking for some inexpensive ideas for decorating the tree and she suggested this fun idea.

I am so pleased with my little decorations and how easy this was!

Here are a few pictures showing how and what I did.

I just bought some plain white bulbs from Hobby Lobby that happened to be half off.

I picked out some pretty tissue paper. I was looking for a pretty red but couldn't find a patterned I liked so I went with this brownish pattern.

Some Mod Podge gloss finish glue.

Then I cut out a pattern from the tissue paper and placed it on the bulb and painted the glue over the tissue paper as well as the rest of the bulb.

And voila!

They came out looking so pretty!

I am so pleased with my Mom's fun idea!

I have all these ideas now of how to make gorgeous looking bulbs with a bunch of pretty tissue paper patterns. It would look so nice to do a red and black pattern or a silver and white pattern.

The most difficult part would have been cutting out the patterns. It was a little time consuming, but in the end very much worth it!

Seasonal Enjoyment

2010-12-06T09:37:00.000-08:00

Right now I bundled warmly in a nice robe trying to keep warm.

We were blessed to have some cold weather blow in the last couple of days. I am sure that everyone who is living in a colder climate would think this coolness that we are enjoying would be Springtime for them!

Its just really nice to snuggle in my blankets at bedtime and not want to get up because its cold.

The normal occurrence is that I am throwing the blankets off of me because I am so hot!

;)

The Christmas tree lights are extra special this year.

I think I say that every year ;)

The one thing I greatly dislike doing before bedtime is turning off the Christmas tree lights.

They fill the house with such a beautiful light. When I was little my sister and I always asked if we could sleep in the living room with the Christmas tree lights on the night the Christmas tree went up.

My sis-in-law Himilce helped me make this a year and half ago. If I remember right, I spent $2.50 to make this! What a happy memory making this with her. Its a little travel beaten, but a few more tugs on the ribbon and it will put you right in the Christmas spirit!

My little Winston who I can't get enough of!

My mom gave me this delightful book for my birthday this year.

I want to cook everything in it!

Especially this cheese cake!

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

Luke 2:14

O little town of Bethlehem

How still we see thee lie

Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting Light

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee tonight

O little town For Christ is born of Mary

And gathered all above While mortals sleep,

the angels keep Their watch of wondering love

O morning stars together

Proclaim the holy birth And praises

sing to God the King And Peace

to men on earthof Bethlehem

How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep

The silent stars go by

Yet in thy dark streets shineth

The everlasting Light

The hopes and fears of all the years

Are met in thee tonight

Happy Christmas Season to all!

An Apron Swap

2010-11-29T10:01:00.000-08:00

My friend Missy and I decided to join in on the fun with the big apron swap. Missy doesn't have a blog (I have been encouraging her to get one, and I really hope she does!). She has the sweetest spirit and is so beautiful inside and out. We have known each other since we were both very young. We were acquaintances, she was about to be a new bride and I was a young teanager. She was someone I wanted to be just like and still do. I am so blessed by our friendship that has sprouted and grown through facebook. I can't wait for the day when we can actually see each other in person!

She sent me the loveliest apron for our apron swap. Its double sided, so it has a pattern on one side and then a sightly different pattern on the other side.

She also included in her box some homemade foot lotion that smells heavenly! I put it on my feet before I go to bed and it has really been nourishing my feet.

I didn't take a picture of the apron I sent to her, which I hope is as nice as the one she gave me! Hopefully one day soon I can let you all know that Missy has started a blog ;)

Thank you again Missy!!!

A very blessed Monday to all

A Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T21:37:00.000-08:00

Some pretty Thanksgiving napkins my Mom brought for me.

Such a nice treat and touch to our table!

Benjamin decided to start a new tradition by having BBQ brisket with our Thanksgiving meal. Not exactly sure that Turkey and BBQ go together. Turkey is a must in my opinion ;) So we both decided that I would cook my turkey and him his brisket. And it turned out really well.

We had his brisket in the morning (he had it cooking all night last night) with breakfast and then again for lunch and then when it was time for our main meal we had Mr. Turkey!

Yes, I am very full ;D!!!

He is so pleased with the way it turned out and me too!

It looks like we will be having brisket for many future Thanksgivings to come lol.

I made my favorite Frog Eyed Salad yesterday. I posted a little about it last year here. I couldn't find the Acini Di Pepe macaroni though. These ones are a little too big, but they were better then nothing! It came out pretty tasty, not as tasty as my mom's, but still very yummy!

Perfect with a cup of coffee in the morning!

Okay, my first attempt at baking a pie and crust. I have never made a pie-crust before. My sister Marie and my Mom make such perfect pie-crusts, melt in your mouth pie-crusts that I have felt a little scared to attempt it lol! This year I was forced to. It came out pretty well, but I need some major practice! Not as light and flakey as I would have liked.

I gave away the prettier one of the two to our sweet Jewish neighbor Theresa and her son Joshua. I didn't want to be eating two whole pies between Benjamin and me!

This morning I made us some special coffee that Jon had sent us a couple of months back. Its so special it only comes out on extra special occasions like today!

;)

Thank you so much Jon!!

Winston waiting for his dad to come back from the garage where he was busy cooking his brisket.

I just sat down with a piece of pumpkin pie and a cup of tea and how lovely it is to leisurely post about our Happy Thanksgiving. Since this was Winston's first, he didn't want to miss much of it and only took one nap today and joyfully enjoyed the rest of the day lol. He went to bed not too long ago and I hope that will mean he will sleep in tomorrow morning ;P

Shhhhh, yes we did sneak our Christmas tree in our door a few days before we were supposed to. But I don't think any of the neighbors spotted us and we just turned on the lights tonight so technically its okay, right?

Lol!

~Thank you Lord for your goodness in our lives as well as the beautiful country that we are so blessed to live in.

To enjoy the bounty that was served at our table tonight

and every night is solely from you alone~

A very Happy Thanksgiving to ALL!

Blessed

2010-11-23T11:36:00.000-08:00

My Mom's visit came and went and was so refreshing and uplifting. The six days we had felt like two days. As soon as she hopped into the car from the airport we didn't stop talking. The few hours of sleep we got were enough to recharge our batteries for the next day of delights.

That first morning waking up and jumping into her bed with Winston in tow, was one of the brightest of my memories. We had coffee in the mornings on the back porch feeling the cool breeze and looking at the lake water. I don't want to forget it!

On a walk to a little lake close to the house where there is baby ducks.
Winston was pretty delighted!

I took her to the base and showed her all the different special things and then we had a picnic lunch by the water in this cozy private area. The weather was perfect.

Since Benjamin isn't a fan of brownies, I took advantage of my Mom's love for them lol!

Mom served us non-stop while she was here. I would go upstairs to put the baby down for his nap and come back down and the dishwasher would be unloaded and loaded again, our lunch would be cooking and the laundry started. She did this throughout the whole of her visit.

In the evenings Benjamin and baby would go to bed, and I would sneak off to her room where we enjoyed tea and some form of a yummy sweet. We were pretty tired by the end of her visit lol!

This little cutie enjoyed Grammy so much! Her laughter was contagious and he couldn't resist it!

Our day at the beach went by too fast. I can still smell the ocean. We spent several hours there, but it felt like a few minuets. Benjamin had to work the whole week and weekend, so he missed out on a lot of our fun. The last day she was here, he took us to one of his favorite restaurants.

It was soooo nice!

It was a little difficult getting myself back into the routine again. Today I think my spirits are up and I am ready to get to cooking our yummy Thanksgiving menu!

Benjamin and I went shopping last night and it was so delightful. Its really fun to be with him when grocery shopping. He takes his time and gets way more then I would have, I love him! ;)

This time last year we were in two different states, wishing we could share this holiday together and now here we are a year later enjoying the joys around us and especially each other.

I am trying to cherish every second of these holidays, cause it looks as though we may not get to share them together again next year.

I received my apron from my sweet friend Missy. I can't wait to post it!

Happy cooking! :P

Meringue Cookies

2010-11-13T08:49:00.000-08:00

I had a lot of leftover egg whites from cooking Creme Brulee not to long ago and decided to put them to tasty use! ;)

Meringue is so much fun to make. I love the fluffy silky white texture. I want to experiment further with these little cookies and use them for some yummy Christmas dishes.

Egg whites

Cream of Tartar that I bought at the local health food store. It is so much cheaper then buying from the regular grocery store. This was like thirty cents!

Mmmm so pretty!

I piped the meringue onto parchment paper.

I am so out of practice!

While they were baking in the oven,

I watched this little cutie ride around in his car.

I put them in a nice air tight bucket that had once been used for coconut oil. It came in very handy. Now I'll just save these little beauties for some yummy deserts to come!

Meringue Cookies

*This recipe originally called for lemon zest, but I left it out since I didn't have any lemons.*

4 Egg Whites

1 Pinch of Salt

1/4 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar

1 1/3 Sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a large clean glass or metal bowl, whip the egg whites with salt and cream of tartar until they can hold a soft peak. Gradually sprinkle in the sugar while continuing to whip to stiff peaks. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets.

3. Bake for 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until they peel off the sheet without resistance. Cool on wire racks, then store in an airtight container at room temperature.

~I need to practice with them a little more. I wanted them to be white once baked, so i'll have to work on that.

My Mom is coming in on Monday! She is in Ohio right now visiting with Marie, Jon and Zane.

Benjamin helped me get her room all ready the other night. Our second bedroom is an office/library/guest bedroom and not very inviting. We moved around furniture and reorganized and today it is so cozy and warm! We both want to just hang out in it lol :)

My heart is bursting with excitement!

Just two more days and she'll be here!

I hope everyone has a nice weekend!

Nine Months Already!

2010-11-08T19:25:00.000-08:00

My baby is nine months! Eeek! Just a few months left and he will be 1!

We have loved every stage he has grown into. I thought I would be so sad, when he didn't have a gummy mouth anymore, but now when I see those gappy teeth, my heart melts.

Here are a few pictures I captured of him this last month ;)

We had some gorgeous weather and baby and I had some fun outside.

The cats too! Bay loves eating all my dead plants.

Winston fell asleep holding his bird. He often does this :)

Tonia enjoying the open window :)

He's starting to get around!

And muscling up on his arms lol!

Look at those teeth!

I received the beautiful tea cozy in the mail a few weeks ago from my Mom and I am in love ;) It keeps my tea piping hot and extends my tea time much longer ;)

And my beloved Mom is coming next week!!!

I can't wait to post about our visit and all the things we do!

Like a picnik at the sea! A walk to the bakery, cuddling with Winnie, cooking and of course talking!

I cant wait!

Beautiful Fall Morning

2010-11-04T09:14:00.000-07:00

"Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of."
-Benjamin Franklin

Today it is beautiful and cloudy out. A nice breeze in the air, almost cool enough to feel cold.

Yay!

We have had the windows open the last couple of days even throughout the night.

The cat's are loving it and we are too!

Winston is getting his fifth tooth in and will be turning nine months soon! The businesses are doing really well, praise the Lord! And most of the car troubles have been resolved ;) We have an older couple coming over for dinner tomorrow night. The gentleman is an usher and always greets us with a huge smile, especially for Winston. I am so excited about them coming over. I still haven't figured out what I am cooking though lol! I'm about to go to the store, so I really need to decide!

Winston and I went for a nice walk this morning. We ended up at a little bakery that is real close to the house.

I had my heart set on coffee ;P

We leisurely sat outside and enjoyed the breeze.

I loved the little box that they packaged my pastry in. I am one who loves packaging.

Something about beautiful wrapped items makes it so much more special.

Four people stopped and admired Winston. If they only knew how that makes my heart feel!

Two of the four commented on how BIG he is and asked if Benjamin was a big guy. I laughed and said "no not really" :) One of the gentlemen said, "thats not a baby! He needs to sign up for the pro football team!" Lol!

I got some fresh Italian bread as well. They bake it fresh everyday and I can't wait to make some delicious sandwhiches with it!

A cloudy morning walk with Winston and a cup of coffee was divine!

I hope you all have a blessed Thursday!

Yum!

2010-11-02T11:32:00.000-07:00

A week or so ago, Benjamin had to work the weekend plus throughout the night, with a couple hours break in-between, so while he was at home trying to catch some quick winks before he started his next shift, I wanted to make him something special.

I have only made Creme Brulee homemade once before and it turned out really yummy.

I only had a cup of heavy whipping cream so I decided to just cut the recipe in half. I had set my heart on surprising him with it so I gave it a go and I think he was pretty delighted! It came out just right. I barely had enough time for it to set in the fridge and wished so bad that I could have baked the pretty sugar on top before he had to go. It still looked delicious.

I told him to save me a bite, so I knew if it was good or not :P

I cut this recipe in half when I used it, but here is the full recipe.

Classic Creme Brulee Recipe

8 egg yolks (I used four)

1/3 cup granulated white sugar (I halfed that as well)

2 Cups of heavy cream (I used one cup)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup granulated white sugar for caramelizing

Preheat oven 300 degrees.

In a large bowl whisk together the egg yolks and sugar. Add cream and vanilla and continue to whisk until well blended.

Strain into a bowl, skimming off any foam or bubbles.

Dived mixture among six ramekins.

Prepare an oven-going water bath by placing a paper towel in the bottom of a pan. The towel keeps the ramekins from sliding.

Put the pan on the center rack of the oven, then carefully fill the pan with warm water until the level reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins. (I forgot to do that. I poured the water before I put it in the oven, woops! I didn't burn myself :P)

Close the door and begin timing. Bake until set around the edge but still loose in the center, about 40 to 50 minutes. Remove from oven and leave in the water bath until cooled. Remove the ramekins from the water bath and chill for at least 2 hours.

When ready to serve, sprinkle about 2 teaspoons of sugar over each custard. Carmelize the sugar with a small hand-held torch or place the ramekins under the broiler until the sugar melts.

He did save me a bite and it was pretty nice ;)

Next time I will have all the ingredients so I can make enough for me too ;D

Blue Angels

2010-10-27T20:13:00.000-07:00

Catching up! The week flew by and its Wednesday again ;) I had started to write out a post on Monday, but got interrupted and I am literally just now sitting down to finish it! We had some car issues yesterday and spent the last two days searching for a second car. We may have to drive up to Georgia Friday afternoon to finish our car shopping. Praise the Lord though! He is so faithful and good!

Last weekend we had a delightful time watching the annual air-show with the Blue Angels. Winston and I spent Friday grocery shopping at the Navy base and then sat and watched the air-show until Benjamin was finished with work. It was so fun!

Then on Saturday we were invited by our sweet sweet friends to go out with them on their boat to watch the Blue Angels again. The view was amazing! Much better then at the base! Feeling the breeze of the air and watching the Angels above us was glorious! :D

Winston fell asleep again by the rocking of the boat on the way to the show and on the way back. Then because of the many boats that had gathered to watch the show, the water was really rough due to everyone leaving at once. By the time we were back at the house, baby and I were quite soaked lol! It must have been the spot where we were sitting. Winston didn't seem to mind :D It was so much fun! I posted a ton of pictures, first of the ones from Friday and then out on the boat!

~ I bought myself a yummy-mini-picnic after grocery shopping ;) It was so nice while Winston and I waited for the planes to take off.

~He couldn't wait. Nap time was calling.

~There was a lovely breeze outside and it was so pleasant.

~There they go!

~He didn't sleep long! After the planes took off, I checked on him because of the noise. He was wide awake!

Finally a special picture of baby and I!

*The pictures below are from our fun day of boating on Saturday.

~Winston dozing to the rhythm of the boat

~ Hershey, she is always looking for something to snack on.

She is quite a character :D

~Our sweet sweet friends!

~On our way back to the house, we spotted these birds and I snapped a picture, but I have no idea what kind they are ;) I don't know if anyone can spot them and tell me what they are?

I told you there would be a lot of pictures!

Happy Wednesday to all and I do hope I post again before next wednesday!

Benjamin's Birthday

2010-10-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

I did say that I hadn't taken any pictures of Benjamin on his birthday a few weeks back, but I did take a few random ones throughout the day of his birthday.

I am so glad I found these! Yay for me! I am not as scattered brained as I thought!

Benjamin awoke to this very happy face!

I think Winnie knew it was his daddy's birthday!

Below Winston is wearing one of Benjamin's birthday presents. Clearly he is tuckered out after all the celebrating lol :)

And the only picture of the food that I had taken that day.

I made him a Tres Leche cake as his birthday cake. Look at all the yummy sweetened cream pooling onto the cake dish! You can't have just one slice of this cake!

It was a lovely day and I think we are still fat from all the meat and steak we cooked up on his grill. I had to freeze some of it so that it didn't go bad lol!

Experimenting

2010-10-18T12:21:00.000-07:00

I have mentioned that part of my work at home is building and writing a website online, with Benjamin's help of course ;)

Most of the subject is on eye-makeup. I have learned so much! One of the more difficult skills is learning how to use false eyelashes and then write about it! I am also having to learn to take pictures as well. So far we have been relying solely on Marie for all of our picture needs, but I do need to learn how to take pictures of myself for future tutorial eye-makeup ideas. Last week had fun playing with individual eyelashes. I really like the individual ones, because they are so natural looking. In the pictures below you can kinda tell that the end of my lashes sort of flare out. It was so fun wearing the lashes that day. After putting them on once I got the hang of it and it wasn't so awkward.

~You can kind of see the flare out of the eyelashes at the ends ;)

~It was so hard taking clear nice pictures of myself! I really need to practice!

I do plan on sharing our website in the near future. I know its terrible of me to talk about it and then not share it, but I want it to look really nice before all of you take a peak!

October Fun

2010-10-13T13:07:00.000-07:00

On Saturday Benjamin and I were invited to go to the circus with our friends from church. They called us up explaining that they had some extra tickets to the circus and wanted us to go! I was so excited! The first and last time I went to the circus was when I was pretty little. But I never forgot it! The little dog that did back flips. The beautiful tigers! The smell of popcorn and cotton candy! And all the kids everywhere!

Winston must have understood we had somewhere fun to go that night, because he didn't fall asleep for his afternoon nap. He stayed awake and then once we had arrived and got ourselves seated he looked around at all the noise and excitement and fell asleep lol! :) He did wake up about forty-five minuets later and got to enjoy some of the excitement.

Being at the circus with many other families and smelling all those yummy aromas including the animals, ushered in the fall season for me. Being in sunny Florida I am a little confused with the seasons, except for summer of course! I want to wear a jacket and scarf and see the leaves fall from the trees. The leaves are beginning to fall a tad and that helps, but the circus that night gave me a wonderful memory of this season and it was delightful.

~Here he is above after we had found our seats. He fell asleep not too long after this picture. He looks so tired.

~My sweet and I

~Below are some pictures I took of little Winnie while out for a walk. We had a bit of coolness in the weather last week and it was so nice to get out in it! Winston is looking so big in these pictures! Where did the little tiny baby go?

~Benjamin laughs so hard because Winston's feet are identical to mine.

Flat with long toes! :)

~You can see his two bottom teeth in this one!

~Such kissable cheeks!

Tonight I am going to a women's Bible study at our church and I can't wait! And Benjamin will be attending the Royal Rangers class because he is taking them on a tour of his helicopter hanger at the base in a few weeks. They are really excited!

Yesterday I got a package from my mom in the mail. It was filled with delights and aromas that filled our house with love and joy! Its as if my Mom and Dad were here in our home. I am so thankful for such wonderful parents.

Happy midweek to all!

O LORD, you are my God;
       I will exalt you and praise your name,
       for in perfect faithfulness
       you have done marvelous things,
       things planned long ago.

Isaiah 25

Happenings

2010-10-08T20:46:00.000-07:00

~Winston loves to drive his car over to the table where his Daddy's uniform is laying and kiss and tug on it :)

Happy weekend to all! I am glad I was able to keep my promise about updating again before the week was over! I am keeping that promise by about thirty minuets lol!

We have begun our weekend with another cookout! Now that Benjamin has his nice grill, he has been enthusiastically cooking on the weekends! I don't mind! He has always been a great cook.

And our meal tonight was just amazing.

I picked up some flank steak and then he cooked it on the grill as well as some yummy pitas. I cut up an avacado some fresh basil, melted some butter and added lime juice to it, sliced some goat cheese and then we combined it all.

It was oh-so-good! I wish I had come up with it myself! :D

I took a walk today with the baby and the weather was sooo nice! I made myself a cup of coffee and baby and I strolled around our wee little neighborhood enjoying the breeze and the change of the season.

I plopped Winston and I on the grass with our beautiful little scenic lake background and went to snap a picture, but found that the battery had died lol! :)

Winston is now eight months old! He has two bottom teeth and is working on his two upper ones. He has been a pretty nice teether so far. The biggest issue with the teething is sensitivity when he sleeps. His naps have been very short.

One of the things he loves to do lately is eat through the night! Last night I fed him four times lol!

Chasing the cats with his car has become great fun for him. The cats think its pretty fun too ;) Bay will lay in the middle of the room and Winston will push his car against him. Bay will just remain where he is while Winston keeps pushing. Eventually Bay will get up and sit in the windowsill and Winston will sit in his car and watch him. Winston has become the cat and Bay the mouse!

I am glad I am finally updating my little space here! Where did September go? I can't believe it is already almost the middle of October!
It is almost midnight and I could easily just keep prattling on, but I know I will be up frequently the next coming hours ;)

I hope you all have a very blessed and peaceful weekend!

Much love!

I Can!

2010-10-04T20:42:00.000-07:00

This weekend flew by for us and I have just now been able to take a nice deep breath.

We celebrated Benjamin's 30'th birthday and I am very bummed because I failed to take one picture of him! So I planned on taking one of him on Sunday before or after church, looking so hansom in one of his new shirts, but I forgot and spaced it again! Sorry for the lack of pictures :)

We had a wonderful time celebrating in spite of the fact that he wasn't too thrilled about this birthday. I know I probably will feel the same way when it will be my turn in a few short years to turn 30 but I have decided to look on it with excitement and joy knowing that all my days are planned by my Lord ;)

Since we were unable to celebrate each other's birthdays together due to the Military last year, this year was extra special. I cooked all day, breakfast, lunch, dinner and ended it with two delicious desserts! Pictures would have helped portray the delicious aromas and delightful tastes.

We had some yummy Ribeye steaks, Rhodes rolls, asparagus and sweet potatoes. I cooked two different desserts lol ;)
Crème brûlée and a Tres Leche cake. They were so yummy!

I had several presents that I gave to him throughout the day and ended with a really nice charcoal grill that we cooked our steaks on. It was all delicious!

I hope to post at least once more before the week is over. I don't know why I have fallen out of the habit lately!

I found the poem below from a blogger that I love and found it fitting for the beginning of a new week and a new day, I hope you can enjoy it too :)

CAN'T
by Edgar Guest

Can't is the worst word that's written or

spoken;

Doing more harm here than slander and lies;

On it is many a strong spirit broken,

And with it many a good purpose dies.

It springs from the lips of the thoughtless each

morning

And robs us of courage we need through the

day:

It rings in our ears like a timely-sent warning

And laughs when we falter and fall by the

way.

Can't is the father of feeble endeavor,

The parent of terror and half-hearted work;

It weakens the efforts of artisans clever,

And makes of the toiler an indolent shirk.

It poisons the soul of the man with a vision,

It stifles in infancy many a plan;

It greets honest toiling with open derision

And mocks at the hopes and the dreams of a

man.
Can't is a word none should speak without

blushing;

To utter it should be a symbol of shame;

Ambition and courage it daily is crushing;

It blights a man's purpose and shortens his

aim.

Despise it with all of your hatred of error;

Refuse it the lodgement it seeks in your brain;

Arm against it as a creature of terror,

And all that you dreams of you some day shall

gain.
Can't is the word that is foe to ambition,

An enemy ambushed to shatter your will;

Its prey is forever the man with a mission

And bows but to courage and patience and

skill.

Hate it, with hatred that's deep and undying,

For once it is welcomed 'twill break any

man;

Whatever the goal you are seeking, keep trying

And answer this demon by saying: "I can."

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Phillipians 4:13

Happy Monday and remember "we can in Christ Jesus" :)

Baby Shoes

2010-09-27T05:49:00.000-07:00

Benjamin had to work this last weekend and so one of the things baby and I did to get us out of the house was of course shop ;) I have been on the hunt for a nice pair of shoes that Winston can use while in his car (the wheels tend to roll over his toes now) and his other shoes take a lot of time tying laces and are getting too tight.

I haven't been able to find him a cute enough pair to buy and at the price I need. I did find a really cute pair when I was at Target the other day, but it was just too pricey for baby shoes.

I am so glad I saved my money! On Saturday we went to

Once Upon a Child and found the exact pair that I had been admiring a few days earlier! I was very cheeky of course ;). I also found an adorable pair of Indian styled booties from Baby Gap. Both pairs were in excellent condition.

Total for both pairs $4.00!

Yay for bargains and chubby baby legs!

When Benjamin returned home late in the wee hours of the night, the first thing I wanted to do was show him how I spent his hard earned money!

Luckily for me he was very enthusiastic ;)

Napoleon Hill

2010-09-25T11:59:00.000-07:00

~Napoleon Hill

~"Don't wait the time will never be just right"

Benjamin found Napoleon Hill on Youtube last week and we have really been enjoying these videos. His topics in this series is on how we think and our attitudes.

Worry and fear tend to be the areas that I find easy for my thoughts to dwell and rest. After listening for a few weeks, I have noticed a freedom that is refreshing and beautiful.
Worry and fear can be very heavy! Praise the Lord for his freedom and love!

I'll post one of these a week until I have posted the whole series.

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."

Luke 10:41-42

A very happy Saturday to all!

A beautiful passage......

2010-09-22T08:36:00.000-07:00

~Picture courtesy of google images

Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel!

Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem!

The LORD has taken away your punishment,

he has turned back your enemy.

The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you;
never again will you fear any harm.

On that day they will say to Jerusalem,

"Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp.

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save.

He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love,

he will rejoice over you with singing."

"The sorrows for the appointed feasts I will remove from you;

they are a burden and a reproach to you.

At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you;

I will rescue the lame and gather those who have been scattered.

I will give them praise and honor in every land where they were put to shame.

At that time I will gather you;

at that time I will bring you home.

I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth

when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,"

Says the Lord.

~Zephaniah 3:14-20

A beautiful passage I came across in my reading today.

~A very blessed Wednesday to all~

An Evening of Boating

2010-09-19T19:31:00.000-07:00

On Saturday afternoon our new friends invited us over to their house for an evening of boating. We had them over the previous week and it was like visiting with family. I feel so close to them and enjoy their whole outlook on life. I think another reason why I love being with them so much is that they remind me of my parents.

We were plesently surprised that our Pastor and his wife were invited as well. This was the first time we had spent anytme with them. I was a little shy with them due to the fact that I think that he is one of the best Pastor's in the world! :) They both were so kind and easy to talk to.

We left on the boat from their house and spent our evening eating dinner, talking and enjoying the gorgeous breeze. Mr. Porter our host, explained all the sights and took us downtown Jacksonville.

I am so glad Benjamin reminded me to bring my camera. I was hoping we would get to see a Gator, that didn't happen, but we did get to see a Manatee!

~About 30 minuets from their house. You can see the Henry Buckman Birdge in the distance.

~Our Pastor holding Winston who fell asleep in his arms. The water was a little choppy and I think it lulled him right to sleep!

~Our Pastor's wife on the right and our hostess on the left. The two boys were fun to watch. I forgot to take a picture of their little Chihuahua named Hershey. She was quite fearless, she would jump in the water, swim and keep an eye on her boy Paul never letting him out of her sight!

~Here is our host and tour guide :)

~A clearer picture of the bridge.

~Look at Winston holding on to Pastor's thumb! So sweet!

~Downtown Jacksonville

As we neared I could smell freshly brewed coffee and the aroma about knocked me out!

~Another massive bridge.

We could hear the cars driving over us!

~Here a dolphin was spotted and we all were trying to get a look.
Winston slept through most of the evening. He slept on the way back as well. I layed him down on the soft seat, the ryhthm of the boat and us girls chatting put him right out!

~On our way back above.

We were able to park the boat, park isn't right, maybe make anchor? Well, anyways, we got out of the boat and walked around a beautiful area of Jacksonville and had some ice cream. When the evening came, it was just so so peaceful. The moon was bright and it felt like a dream.

The only good picture of us. Several were taken and this one was the clearest. You can see the lights of the city behind us.

I awoke this morning thinking that I head dreamt the whole thing up. I am so glad I have these pictures to prove that I hadnt!

A very happy Sunday evening to all :)

Fresh Shrimp

2010-09-12T20:46:00.000-07:00

I meant to post this meal last week, but the week flew by as did the weekend!

A friend that works with Benjamin loves to spend his weekends fishing at the seaside and does well with his catches. Benjamin asked him if he ever fished for shrimp, he said he hadn't, but if we bought the shrimp net he would gladly fish for us! I found a nice shrimp size net at the store and Benjamin got it to him before his next fishing adventure.

The following monday we had five glorious bags of fresh shrimp! We ate shrimp almost every night for dinner last week! And I still have a bag in the freezer.

We put together beautiful Shrimp Kabobs.
I was disappointed that I didn't take a picture of the food displayed on a plate. After Benjamin came home with all the shrimp I hurried off to the store for some essential vegetables and then after all the peeling and cleaning of the shrimp, we were quite starved and Winnie was ready for bed. Lets just say the food was eaten rather quickly ;)

~Beautiful fresh shrimpies being cooked over our little camping grill.

~ I was glad that I had least captured two pictures!

~Shrimp Veggie Pittas

Shrimp

Green Peppers

Red Onions

Garlic

Fresh Guacamole

Pitta Bread

Cook vegetables and shrimp anyway you like. On the grill as a kabob really brought out the flavor of the veggies. We just slipped everything off the kabobs and into the open pita-bread. Put a spoonful of Guacamole into the pita and if you want some spice, add some green chili sauce ;)

Bon appetit!

7 Months

2010-09-08T10:57:00.000-07:00

Be prepared for many pictures! And who else but baby Pookie! ;) These are over the last few weeks, they have been sitting in my camera and I didn't realize how many I had! Sorry for the bad quality on a few of them. A few pictures were not great because of the poor exposure. But who cares, its the little guy in them that I focus on ;)

Look at the little rolls in his knees!

~Sleeping in our bed. Look at that cute chubby little belly button.

~This was such a cozy day. Baby and I had just returned from Sam's Club and it was pouring buckets outside. Baby was delighted to be at home back in his car.

~Hugging his little giraffe that he doesn't really take too much interest to. He prefers plastic cups to hold and staring at his hands. He still loves to smile at the fans. And lately he has discovered how to scream and does it regularly!

~A cute little outfit that his Aunty Ruthie gave him.

~Here is a fist! I need to capture him holding and staring at both his fists, squeezing tightly and then shaking and grunting! Such a boy! :)

~He finally captured the cat! He has lately been screaming at the cats he he he :)

~Another favorite pastime.

Well, that covered the last few weeks! I had felt like I had been slacking in my picture taking, but after seeing all of these, I now don't think so!

A Day of Dickens

2010-09-07T10:32:00.000-07:00

~ Our Mutual Friend above

Labor Day is usually in our case, spent working on some sort of project that needs to be finished, but after spending most of the weekend working and working, I reached a point yesterday that I couldn't work anymore. Well, mentally that is. No inspiration, no humming in my heart as I worked, just plodding drudgery. So I told Benjamin that I needed to have me a day of Dickens and only Dickens. He smiled and said that I could indulge :) And I did! And Oh how delightful it was! I first watched Martin Chuzzlewit and then Our Mutual Friend. I really want to read the books now. It had been so long since I had sat down to watch a movie and it was delightful. Today I feel refreshed and inspired to pick up my work again with a song in my heart and continue my tasks set before me.

I hope everyone had a lovely Labor Day weekend.

Much love to all :)

Little Women

2010-08-29T15:35:00.000-07:00

~A new book to add to my very favorite list!

After a productively busy week there is nothing better then coming home from such a wonderful church service, having lunch and enjoy the stormy weather outside. And to top that off to sit and read to my hearts content! Well, just about! :)

This has been has been my feelings the last couple of weeks over this book; having the greatest desire to stop and sit and read this wonderful book, but then telling myself not to read to fast because there will be no more! And that is a very sad thought!

One of the reasons I had not read it before was that I was lazy and thought the movie was good enough! What was I thinking? And I also think I was afraid to read it in the past because of the sad part in the story. And yes, indeed it is sad, but all of the joys and sweets mixed with the sorrow reminds me of life and how beautiful and precious it is. How precious family is. I don't think I have laughed out-loud so much from a book. The creativity of Louisa May Alcot is so inspiring and enjoyable. She has encouraged me in so many areas. First of all in being a women, wife, daughter, sister and friend. If you have not read this book give it a try and be delighted.

Here is a litte a little insert to wet your tongue :D

One of these was the "P.C.," for as secret societies were the fashion, it was thought proper to have one; and as all the girls admired Dickens, they called themselves the Pickwick Club.

With a few interruptions, they had kept this up for a year and met every Saturday evening in the garret, on which occasion the ceremonies were as follows:

Three chairs were arranged in a row before a table on which was a lamp, also four white badges, with a big "P.C." in different colors on each, and the weekly newspaper called The Pickwick Portfolio, to which all contributed something while Jo, who reveled in pens and ink, was the editor. As seven o'clock, the four members ascended to the clubroom, tied their badges round their heads, and took their seats with great solemnity.

Meg, as the eldest, was Samuel Pickwick; Jo, being of a literary turn, Augustus Snodgrass; Beth, because she was round and rosy, Tracy Tupman; Amy, who was always trying to do what she couldn't was Nathaniel Winkle. Pickwick, the president read the paper, which was filled with original tales, poetry, local news, funny advertisements and hints, in which they good-naturdley reminded each other of their faults and shortcomings. On one occasion, Mr. Pickwick put on a pair of spectacles without any glasses, rapped upon the table, hemmed and having stared hard and Mr. Snodgrass, who was tilting back his chair, till he arranged himself properly, began to read.

"The Pickwick Portfolio"
May 20 18-
Poet's Corner

Again we meet to celebrate
With badge and solemn rite,
Our fifty-second anniversary,
In Pickwick Hall, tonight.

We all are here in perfect health,
None gone from our small band;

Again we see each well known face,
And press each friendly hand.
Our Pickwick, always at his post,
with reverence we greet,
As spectacles on nose, he reads
Our well-filled weekly sheet.

Although he suffers from a cold,
We joy to hear him speak,
For words of wisdom him fall,
In spite of croak or squeak.
Old six-foot Snodgrass looms on high,
With elephantine grace,
And beams upon the company,
With brown and jovial face.
Poetic fire lights up his eye,
He struggles gainst his lot.
Behold ambition on his brow,
And on his nose, a blot.
Next our peaceful Tupman comes,
So rosy, plump and sweet,
Who chokes with laughter at the puns,
And tumbles off his seat.
Prim little Winkle too is here,
With every hair in place,
A model of propriety,
Though he hates to wash his face.

The year is gone, we still unite
To joke and laugh and read,
And tread the path of literature
That doth to glory lead.

Long may our paper prosper well,
Our club unbroken be,
And coming years their blessings pour
On the useful, gay
'P.C.'.

A. SNODGRASS

A Sympathizing friend sends the following gem:

A LAMENT For
S.B. PAT PAW

We mourn the loss of our little pet,
And sigh o'er her hapless fate,
For never more by the fire she'll sit,

Nor play by the old green gate.

The little grave where her infant sleeps
Is neath the chestnut tree;
But o'er her grave we may not weep,
We know not where it may be.

Her empty bed, her idle ball,
will never see her more;
No gentle tap, no loving purr
Is heard at the parlor door.

Another cat comes after her mice,
A cat with a dirty face;
But she does not hunt as our darling did,
Nor play with her airy grace.

Her stealthy paws tread the very hall
Where Snowball used to play.
But she only spits at the dog our pet.
She is useful and mild, and does her best,
But she is not fair to see,
And we cannot giver her your place dear,
Nor worship her as we worship thee.

~A.S.

Ha, wow, I didn't intend to put so much in! I couldn't resist!
~A very blessed Sunday to all my dear friends!~

Foundation Making

2010-08-26T10:57:00.000-07:00

~ Mixing before we poured it into our bottle. Its so so pretty!

Marie and I were able to finally make each other's foundation while they were out here a few weeks ago. I had been out of my foundation for a couple of weeks and had waited because we both knew we would be out in the sun a ton while they were visiting and didn't want to get tan and then have to cover it up!

Anyways, it was so fun matching the makeup to our exact color. I am sure I will have to make another foundation in the middle of winter seeing how dark I am right now :) Mixing my color was so fun, I can't wait! :)

I think pictures of makeup are really pretty. I don't know why!
;D

~My Summer Liquid Foundation Recipe~
(For my records)

5 pumps of Pearl
25 pumps Porcelain
5 pumps Ivory
2 pumps Yellow Toner
0.5 Hydrator

~In the future add 3 more pumps of the Pearl~

Our Little Pooky

2010-08-24T06:47:00.000-07:00

Here are a bunch of pictures of Winston laughing with his Daddy. I wish you could hear the sounds too. He makes this deep exclamation of sound and then laughs so hard that I am afraid he won't catch his breath to breathe! Then he holds the same tone for five seconds until he breaks out laughing again. So cute! I will have to capture it on a video. The only problem with videos, is that I can't keep it short enough to upload to blogger! But I'll do my best :)

Remembering......

2010-08-21T12:08:00.000-07:00

Out little get-away last weekend was so refreshing and I am refreshed all over again looking at these pictures! Benjamin was able to get a really really nice deal at one of the nicest resorts in Orlando. I took a bunch of pictures of the beauty of our surroundings. And I am so thankful I did!

I have been devouring Little Women. I have never read it before, I don't know why! I will write a review about this book and share what I LOVED about it.

The shower head and sink faucet were so nice!

This is the view from floor eleven. It was pretty frightening to look down! I was too scared to take a picture.

Going down the elevator.

The lady is not sitting on the piano lol, it just looks like that.

~A friendly parrot~

A beautiful view from our floor.......

A little paradise!

We stayed in one of the little caves out of the sun. It was so cozy!

Look at those two cuties!!

What a little joy!

Orlando, you were gorgeous! I hope to see you again!!

A very blessed weekend to all.....

Tea Cake

2010-08-17T06:34:00.000-07:00

I have been craving a tea cake for quite awhile and with the excuse have having company and finding this recipe I baked it up for a fun teatime.

I found this cake in a Victoria tea book that my Mom had gotten me for my birthday last year.

When I saw this recipe it stood out because it calls for a 1 1/4 cup of heavy cream! A cake with heavy cream, I knew would be divine! And it was!

Here is the recipe. I made a few changes because I didn't have Blackberry Jam so I used Lemon Curd. And instead of Lemonade I used Frozen Orange Juice. And the Lime garnish was the only thing I had on hand to garnish the top with. The cake was so moist and just heavy enough for a tea cake. It was exactly what I had been craving. And I was really pleased with the orange juice concentrate in the cake and frosting instead of the lemonade. :D

Blackberry Jam Cake

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/4 cups granulated suger

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

1 /14 cup heavy cream, chilled

3 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream, chilled

2 tablespoons confectioners sugar

2 tablespoons frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

Filling and Garnish:

3/4 cup blackberry jam or preserves

Purple pansies and fresh blackberries

To Make The Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350 *F. Butter and flour two 8 inch round cake pans. Shake out any excess flour.

2. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3. In a chilled small mixing bowl of an electric mixer, gradually beat the lemonade concentrate into the cream at low speed. Increase the speed to medium and beat until the mixture holds its shape. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and set aside.

4. In another small bowl of an electric mixer beat the eggs and vanilla with clean beaters set at high speed until the mixture is thick and lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Fold the egg mixture into the cream mixture. Then gently fold in the dry ingredients. When evenly mixed, divide the batter equally between the prepared pans.

5. Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

6. Cool the cakes in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; then remove the layers and let them cool completely on the racks.

To Make The Frosting:

In a chilled bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream and confectioners sugar. With the mixer set at low speed, gradually beat in the lemonade concentrate. Increase the speed to medium and beat until stiff peaks form.

To Assemble The Cake:

Arrange one cake layer on a serving plate and spread it with jam or preserves. Place the other layer on top. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the frosting and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Decorate with pansies and blackberries.

Cousin Time

2010-08-16T10:43:00.000-07:00

It was so nice to have the cousins together again. Here are the two boys in the same pose that we had them in the last time we were all together. Both are much bigger :)

These pictures were rushed and Zane hadn't had his nap. It was the last day we were all together before Marie and Jon headed to the airport. You can see Zane's sleepy eyes :( so cute!

~I think Winston wants to help Zane feel better :D

~And he hopes putting his hand on his face will help him to stop crying and keep the noise down!

~Zane 13 months and Winston 6 Months

Take a look at their last visit together and how much younger they both were.

Benjamin and I were away this last weekend. It was so nice especially since we had to say goodbye to our company last week. The trip to Orlando helped sooth away my sorrow after our family returned to Ohio.

Benjamin had bought us tickets in January to the Freedom Concerts put on by Colonel Oliver North and Sean Hannity. The concert was so nice and it was especially nice to see Sean Hannity! Michael W. Smith was one of the performers. He was the best out of everyone and I'll never forget the beautiful songs.

We stayed in such a nice hotel. Benjamin bid on Priceline for one of the nicest resorts in the area and we got a smoking deal! I have some fun pictures to post soon of our little getaway.

A very happy Monday to all!

Visiting Fun!!

2010-08-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

Well, our delightful visit with our delightful family came to an end last night. It was wonderful! I'll let the pics tell all :)

~I can't get enough of my sister and time flies to fast when we are together!

~Yummy cranberry scones for breakfast

~The picture below is Zane eyeing Winston in his car, clearly on a mission and Winston posing for the camera not knowing what's coming next

~Zane making life so much fun for baby!

~"And now its time to go backwards Winston"

~Zane and kitty enthralled with Benjamin's music making :) I thought this picture was adorable!

~Aunty snuggling with Winston when trying to do laundry. Winston was perfectly cozy and didn't want anything else but to stare at his sweet aunty!

And yes, there was much tea drinking going on! ;)

I have bundles of pictures to post still. Marie already beet me to the beach ones.

But I'll post those too :D

Summer

2010-07-29T11:52:00.000-07:00

The fun excitement when expecting guests is in the preparation. The cleaning and organizing. The grocery shopping and cooking. And then to enjoy it all with those you love is the icing on the cake!

I remember growing up and the fun it was to help my mom with the cleaning and the cooking when we were expecting company. The house was a fun bustle, there was something cooking on the stove or in the oven and its aroma was dancing throughout the house.

These fond memories have floated through my head this week as I prepare our home for my sister and brother's visit. Writing down recipes and making lists for the grocery store. Dusting and cleaning, organizing and shopping. And the accumulation is the arrival of those happy faces!

Here are some of the savory plans for the upcoming week. A delightful day at the seaside, eating and swimming to our hearts content. Barbecue eating, tea drinking and a trip to NC!

I hope to take many pictures! And be sure to share when its all over!

Much love to all and happy Summer!

Come let us bow down in worship. Let us get down on our knees before the Lord who made us. For He is our God. And we are the people of his field, and the sheep of His hand.

Psalm 95: 6-7

Guests

2010-07-26T19:39:00.000-07:00

Delightedly anticipating friday! We are expecting some beloved guests!

An uncle, an aunt and a little delicious cousin to kiss on our wee one!

I can't wait!

Little House Series

2010-07-21T06:35:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been hungry for a cozy-different-era-country-book! I went looking through my book shelf and stopped at my Laura Ingalls Wilder series. My friend Danielle has been reading these to her kids lately and probably the one who inspired me to read them again! Thanks Danielle! :)

I haven't read these since I was very little. My Mom read the whole series to us kids. It was a very happy time when we had reading time with my Mom. So they hold a fondness just because of those times!

I have devoured and soaked up these books!

And after I had read how they had salted pork and corn bread I had to go make me some! All the food mentioned was making my mouth water!

One thing that I was inspired by was the hearts of the family, especially when calamities would strike, which were often. And they would say "all's well that ends well". There were many hard circumstances, but the outcome was always the same, as long as they were all together life was perfect. Such a sweet family unity.

I was so blessed by these books! I am going to be sad when I have finished reading the rest of the series!

I know most of my friends have read the series, but here is a little snippet out of Little House On The Prairie to rewet your pallet!

"Play, Ingalls!" he said. "Play me down the road"! So while he went down the creak road and out of sight, Pa played, and Pa and Mr. Edwards and Laura sang with all their might.

"Old Dan Tucker was a fine old man;

He washed his face in the frying-pan,

He combed his hair with a wagon wheel,

And died of the toothache in his heel.

"Git out of the way for old Dan Tucker!

He's too late to get his supper!

Supper's over and the dishes washed,

Nothing left but a piece of squash!

"Old Dan Tucker went to town,

Riding a mule, leading a houn'...."

Far over the prairie rang Pa's big voice and Laura's little one, and faintly from the creek bottoms came a last whoop from Mr. Edwards.

"Git out of the way for old Dan Tucker!

He's too late to get his supper!"

When Pa's fiddle stopped, they could not hear Mr. Edwards any more. Only the wind rustled in the prairie grasses. The big, yellow moon was sailing high overhead. The sky was so full of light that not one star twinkled in it, and all the prairie was a shadowy mellowness. Then from the woods by the creek a nightingale began to sing.

Everything was silent, listening to the nightingale's song. The bird sang on and on. The cool wind moved over the prairie and the song was round and clear above the grasses' whispering. The sky was like a bowl of light overturned on the flat black land.

The song ended. No one moved or spoke. Laura and Mary were quiet, Pa and Ma sat motionless. Only the wind stirred and the grasses sighed. Then Pa lifted the fiddle to his shoulder and softly touched the bow to the strings. A few notes fell like clear drops of water into the stillness. A pause, and Pa began to play the nightingale's song. The nightingale answered him. The nightingale began to sing again. It was singing with Pa's fiddle.

When the strings were silent, the nightingale went on singing. When it paused, the fiddle called to it and it sang again. The bird and the fiddle were talking to each other in the cool night under the moon.

~Little House On The Prairie

Early Morning at the Seaside

2010-07-18T19:26:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we arose bright and early for a fun morning at the beach. I had set out most of everything we needed the night before. So once we awoke we jumped into the car and made it to the beach by around 7:30. It was the nicest time yet. The only people there were a few fishermen! The morning hadn't gotten too hot yet and the water was perfectly fresh. I couldn't get out of the water! The waves were just right. Baby was a little frightened by the noise of the water and preferred to lay on his towel and enjoy the fresh breeze :) I couldn't help taking pictures that morning! And I am so glad I did! I had to post bunches! :D

~He loves sucking on his fingers :D

~Early morning fishermen

~He's getting so big and chunky :D

Happy Monday!

Makeup, Friends, and Tea

2010-07-15T08:19:00.000-07:00

Well, my exciting fun packages that I was waiting so anxiously for, did arrive last week. When I saw them sitting outside our door, (the UPS man didn't even ring the doorbell) I wondered how long they had been sitting outside without me knowing it! I pounced and opened one and seeing some of the continents inside, I had to wait for Benjamin. I did open the other box as well and peeked inside to satisfy my longing for a few more hours :D

Once Benjamin got home, it was like Christmas Day! Even the cats enjoyed themselves like it was Christmas. These boxes/present/work related items will greatly help me in what I am doing online ;) isn't it wonderful to love what you do??!!

Yesterday I had a friend over for tea and also to practice mixing customizable liquid foundation to her darker skin tone. She ended up bringing her sister along as well, I haven't had so much fun playing with makeup like that since I was a little girl when my sister and I got plastic lipsticks for a present.

We all could have spent the whole day dabbling in this and experimenting with that! I wish I taken pictures of our playtime!

A Happy Birthday

2010-07-11T18:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was spent joyously enjoying my Birthday! Last year Benjamin was gone during my day and I am so glad this year was different! It was a pretty crazy year last year!
I awoke to beautiful roses and breakfast in bed which was a British breakfast. British as in baked beans with my eggs! When we were in England for our Honeymoon we were charmed to have baked beans with our breakfast! Happy memories!

And he gave me roses which are sitting beautifully in an antique vase. I was saddened to see that Bay (the cat) had decided to have a rose for breakfast! I thought he had learned his lesson, but I found him tonight again munching on my beautiful roses! He went to bed early tonight!

I had a lovely lovely day and couldn't believe it was over so quickly lol! We ended our day watching the new movie 'The Young Victoria'. It was so nice...... :)

~My little munchkin!

~Having a little photo shoot for his Mommy's B-day :)

~Benjamin took this of us, but we had a hard time getting it focused!

This was the best one :)

My twin Marie and I, can you tell which one is which?

I stole this picture from my Mom's page :) she wrote the nicest birthday post for my sister and I. Really this day should be her day, since she spent the day laboring for me and my sister! I can't even imagine having two babies to deliver! I love you so much Mom! :)

Happy Birthday Marie, I miss you especially today!

Wednesday Happenings and Ramblings

2010-07-07T09:50:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the lovely summer day today. We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend and I am just now getting back into the groove of things lol! Benjamin didn't have to work on monday so we just continued celebrating into the week :D

I think baby may be teething. He has been sleeping little in the daytime and fussing a little more then normal. He was crying real hard yesterday, since he wasn't easily soothed I just did a real quick "peak a boo" and from crying so hard he instantly began laughing so hard! he he! He was much more agreeable when his daddy got home. But after fighting sleep so hard in the day he gave up the fight and reluctantly fell asleep :)

I can't stop exclaiming over the weather! Big dark billowy clouds always seem to fill the afternoon sky. Its so fun to look out the window and see the trees blowing and yummy dark rain clouds moving in. :)

Today I am expecting a very exciting package from UPS for our business and I can't help myself from looking out the window for the truck every twenty minuets :P I have run to the front door twice already thinking it was here!

We met a very nice couple at church a few months ago and just recently finally were able to get together. How refreshing it was to visit and get to know each other. They have a little girl just a month older then Winston. We all couldn't believe how much we had in common! They are true kindred spirits :)

I have been playing the Psalms all morning listening as I clean and work. I am just loving this audio Bible!

I hope everyone had a lovely 4th and week! God bless :)

How happy are the people who know the sound of joy! They walk in the light of Your face, O Lord. They are full of joy in Your name all day long. And by being right with You, they are honored.

Psalm 89: 15-16

Vaccinating.....

2010-07-01T19:04:00.000-07:00

My friend Sharon who I grew up with wrote this over on her blog yesterday. I liked it so much that I asked her if I could share it here too! She said yes and here we are! Sharon is a Midwife and frequently will write about anything and everything related to birth or children's health. :)

Short and sweet.. why I chose NOT to vaccinate my children

During my midwifery studies years ago before I got pregnant with my first son, I balked at the idea of not vaccinating. I thought really, that is so dangerous and ridiculous!! Of course like the average American I wasn't going on any real information, research or education... I just knew that doctors knew best and wouldn't do something that would harm people. But then I got pregnant, and suddenly this decision took on extreme importance for me. Suddenly it was my job, to protect my child, to make these important decisions for MY child, to really make sure I was doing my BEST to take care of this precious, pure, straight from God baby of mine. So with pregnancies hormones and all I began my research. Of course there are blogs and blogs of opinions out there with scare tactics from both sides. How frightening it would be for your child to get autism from these vaccines that were meant to protect your child, but just as frightening is the possibility for your child to get some disease you could potentially have protected them from. So with all this crazy info out there I decided to get away from opinions and get to the facts. So what is in vaccines that could be so harmul and scary? I decided to look for an ingredient list, and was surprised to find out just how easy that was to find!

Here is a link to the CDC website that has a list of ingredients by vaccine CDC ingredient list for vaccines

I hope you go look for yourself to see just what is in them, but I'm going to list a few here that were so alarming to me, along with a definition for each.

Formaldehyde:

a colorless poisonous gas; made by the oxidation of methanol

wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

A chemical used in manufacturing and chemical industries, and as a preservative by anatomists, embalmers and pathologists. Being exposed to formaldehyde may increase the risk of developing leukemia and brain cancer.

www.mdanderson.org/patient-and-cancer-information/cancer-information/glossary-of-cancer-terms/f.html

MRC-5 DNA

The MRC-5 cell line was developed in September 1966 from lung tissue taken from a 14 week fetus aborted for psychiatric reason from a 27 year old physically healthy woman. The cell morphology is fibroblast-like. The karyotype is 46,XY; normal diploid male. Cumulative population doublings to senescence is 42-48. G6PD isoenzyme is type B. (simple terms: tissue from an aborted/murdered baby!)

Thimerosal

... look this one up for yourself! Oh and the recent study that claimed to prove that mercury/thimerosal doesn't cause Autism... full of holes, I was thrilled to hear about it, until the real truth about it all came out!!

Alright I said short and sweet, so I'm going to stop there! There are so many other ingredients I could go over but I'm going to leave it up to you to do that research so you can make these decisions for yourself.

So ultimatley what led me to not vaccinate was that I started the research because of a VERY strong instintint/still small voice inside me telling me NOT to put this in my child's body, then the research confirmend it all to me. So my kids are two super healthy, super happy, UN-VACCINATED kids!

The Marvelous Health of Unvaccinated Children

There is much I would like to add, but for the time being this is all from me! Have a good night all... of course after you begin your own research!

~The article above in green was excellent as well! Thank you Sharon :)

Phone Pics

2010-06-30T18:29:00.000-07:00

I finally uploaded all the pictures off of my phone that I taken while out and about :) Notice the one with him sucking on his thumb. He has become quite attached :)

~The above ones were today he he :)

~"You just enjoy your shopping mom, I am very content right here with my yummy thumb!"

~Being goofy at Sam's Club a couple of weeks back.

I had some all the way back to when he was just a newborn. If I didn't have my camera around I would whip out my phone! Came in quite handy! :)

The Word of Promise

2010-06-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

~Jim Caviezel as Jesus

We just recently purchased this new Word of Promise audio bible. Its not just read, its acted out. It has surrounding sounds, music, famous voices perfectly selected. We already listen to the Bible on audio, which is very good, but this is so realistic! The four gospels are acted out separately by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John which is really cool! I love the voice of Paul. And to have Jim Caviezel as the voice of Jesus! Its as if I am really there in the moment of the story. I love it! I now look for opportunities to put it on. Doing the dishes, cleaning up our room. We are delighted! I am not sure what the price is in CD format, we bought it through itunes. It was very affordable :)

~Here is the making

Happy Monday

2010-06-28T10:25:00.000-07:00

~My little five month cutie

~ He is still not quite big enough to sit in his car without a blanky stuffed in between :)

Happy Monday!

I needed a cup of tea to wake me up today. Its now lunch time and I still don't have any enthusiasm for my day. But looking at these pictures gave me a fun boost. I was up late last night waiting for Benjamin's uniform to finish washing. There was a terrific thunder storm and it was raining down buckets which we could easily hear from the skylight. The thunder got so loud it woke up baby and Benjamin. It actually frightened me this time. Its nice to be reminded of God majesty and greatness.

Winston turned five months this week. He is so precious to me. His temperament and personality is very calm and easy going. He has become a cozy thumb sucker. Even choosing to suck when we are shopping. So cute :) He is my Mr. Cozy. We recently bought some new sheets that have a high thread count and when I laid Winston on them for the first time, he smiled and squealed rolling his body and kicking up his legs. He of course loved feeling the sheets on his face and fell asleep not to long after. Lol :)

Working on websites have been taking up most of our time lately. But it is exciting and fun work. I am so thankful for Benjamin and his expertise.

Its nice to just write a bit of our lives. I know its just a few pieces, but it soothes me.

Happy monday to all :)

To Him alone who does great wonders, His love endures forever.

Who by His understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.

Who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.

Who made the great lights, His love endures forever.

the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.

The moon and stars to govern the night, His love endures forever.

Psalms 136: 4-9

Baby Boy Clothes

2010-06-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

I have been checking our Goodwill every other week and finding steal deals on their baby boy clothes. Everything under two years is $1!! Most of what I find has hardly been worn.

So much fun!

His Day

2010-06-21T12:33:00.000-07:00

Our Father's Day was spent enjoying the St. Augustine beach. A little sun and fresh cool water did my heart well. I think Benjamin enjoyed his day too :P

He works so hard at home and of course at work that it was nice to let his brain just have a break. It was a perfect day to be at the beach. Hot, humid and just a bit of a breeze in the air.

I am so thankful for Benjamin and the father he is. Its been wonderful to see him as a dad. He has always had to be responsible. I should say I have always seen him responsible. He looked after his younger siblings for many years when their mom passed away. And he was the big brother in their life. But this is so different. This is a blessing to him. And in all the good ways. It is also making him a better man.

The Lord's blessing him with a child is a gift and a joy.

I praise the Lord for my Benjamin and who he is and what he means to us. He is our hero.....

Children's children are the crown of old men;

and the glory of children are their fathers."

-Proverbs 17:6

Dad

2010-06-20T18:55:00.000-07:00

~My dad meeting Winston for the first time :)

A special Happy Father's Day to my Dad. What a blessed girl I am to have such a father.

There is so much for me to say about him and our lives growing up. His nature and love of our Lord has reared me up and taught me about life and life through Christ. He has never been preachy. He just lives it. How he makes the best biscuits in the world and loves to treat us to ice cream, take us out to lunch, bring home a new dog, make dinner or clean up the kitchen after a big celebration. Help move every one of us kids wherever we happen to be living. He has showed us how to be by being that person. He has given us all the ability to dream and hope. And to also enjoy life and everything we have and do. He has treated all us kids as his friend. Some of the happiest memories are sitting in his truck driving with him and talking about life. He is such a hard worker. And will do anything for us kids even when we don't ask. That old saying has always rung true in my life. "Ask Dad he knows". And I always do and he always does!

I am beyond blessed to be his daughter.

Dad I love you so much!

Children's children are the crown of old men;

and the glory of children are their fathers."

-Proverbs 17:6

Pictures and our celebration of Father's Day coming tomorrow :)

I Can't Help Myself :)

2010-06-17T18:10:00.000-07:00

I had to post more pictures of Winston ;)

Winston is just now big enough to drive his little car. Well, he isn't really driving it yet, he just leans back and sits. He sat looking around chewing on his tongue and observing his new perspective :) We were up stairs so he couldn't really drive around because of the carpet, but I am sure he will be quite fascinated when he realizes that his car moves!

Outside it is thundering and the lightning is lighting up the sky. I can hear the rain falling on the sky light window and its just so peaceful. It has been raining almost every evening this last week. I am loving it!

I think a cup of tea would be just right to end the evening!

Much love and goodnight :)

Mmmm Just a Cup

2010-06-16T13:14:00.000-07:00

I am not in the habit of drinking coffee on a regular basis. I am heavy tea drinker :)

The times I like to drink coffee are usually at restaurants. Its my dessert when eating out! I love enjoying my steaming cup and conversing with Benjamin. Enjoying the moment.

And O the smell is heavenly!

I love walking down isle at the grocery store where the fresh coffee beans are. When I was little, my sister and I would race to that part of the store to smell those freshly ground coffee beans. Its a very happy aroma a safe aroma. It reminds me of my dad. Waking up and knowing that dad was in the kitchen, because I could smell the delicious coffee brewing.

Well, today I don't know why, but I just had to have me a cup. I pulled out our little French Coffee Press and made myself some. My brother Nathan has a very happy ritual of 3 O clock coffee. If its the weekend he makes himself some very special expresso or grand authentic coffee, locks himself in his study and pulls out some history books or his Bible. He did it as a teenager and still keeps up the practice. It makes me homesick thinking about it all! :)

All that to say I love my coffee! LOL ;)

Cheers!