wouldn't it be funny if i forgot to blog today? as today is the last, yes the final day of nablopomo, i think it would be just my luck for me to forget. but of course i didn't. so here is my last post for november. it has been stressful to remember to blog everyday but i also think it has shown me that i can anything if i put my mind to it. and that i am capable of stringing words together that others may enjoy reading. (or not!)

some randomness...

last night big c asked me what he should do if the girl he is interested in told him they would not make a good couple. i was heartbroken. he never asked her to "go" with him but i know he wanted to. now he is confused. i told him to just continue to be himself and be her friend. i asked him if she liked someone else. he looked at me and said "who else is there?" ah the confidence!!

we got audited yesterday for my DH business insurance. because he is self employed he has to have coverage for any employees he may have. we pay $850 a year for him to have it. but he doesn't have any employees. so i was not sure what she was going to audit us on. anyway she came yesterday. and after about 5 minutes of looking at tax returns and bank statements she told me we were going to get a percentage back. i was so happy. then she told me it was going to be $559.00!!! i about came out of my skin. i was crying and praising the Lord and yelling and laughing. and i know she thought i was a nut but when you live paycheck to paycheck like we do, that is huge!! and it will be here in 2 weeks in time for Christmas!!! you just don't know how thrilled i am. i got on the phone and called everyone i knew. (because i'm like that! i like to share stuff!) i would have called all my blogger friends but i don't have your number!!

i found out today that monkey's pre-school teacher is leaving in 2 weeks. her husband is in landscaping and because of the drought her in NC he has no work. so she has to go get a full time job. i was so sad. monkey just loves her. i'm sure the new teacher will be fine but change in the middle of the year just stinks when you are 4 years old. (or 38 like me!)

we are going to put up our tree tomorrow. this will be the earliest we have ever put it up and we have been married almost 17 years. it's really because of big c. he is determined to get it up. he even said he would put the lights on. which my DH hates to do. wish me luck!! hopefully i'll have pictures to post next week.

that's all folks. thanks for putting up with my daily postings. hope they have brought you a small measure of joy at some point or another!!

my baby is growing up

this morning in the car on the way to school big c asked me how old i was when someone asked me out. strange thing for this for this kid to say. i told him 16. (i know) he said what about if i want to ask someone out. (now he is almost 12. it's not like he is going to be able to take a girl anywhere!) i said what do you mean ask someone out? do you like a girl at school? he said YES!! i can not believe it. this is his very first crush. he likes girls as friends and has lots of close ones but never this!! i told him that he could just tell her he liked her and would she be his girlfriend. or he could send her a note that said do you like me yes or no. he laughed at that. i asked him if he got a weird-going-to-be-sick-but-in-a-good-way feeling in his stomach when he saw her? he said YEAH!! that's what it's like. (i'm thinking oh great!) i told him that kissing may be involved at some point. and monkey piped up and said why would a boy want to kiss a girl? big c said you will understand one day when you grow up!! i just laughed and laughed. i was so excited that he actually talked to me about this. don't you think that means he respects me and my opinion? then i gave him some advice on how to treat a girl. carry her books, open doors for her (which he is really good at already but reminders never hurt!) tell her she looks nice and send her nice notes. i can't wait to see him this afternoon and find out how it went. i'm nervous for him!!!
of course as soon as he got out the car i called my DH and told him all about it. he said we could all go to the movies together and he could sit with her and not with us. so i will mention that to big c.

i am welling up just thinking about this. i want my kids to grow up but not yet!! what a special kid he is

holiday questionnaire

20 holiday questions from crazy mama
what is your...
1. Favorite winter beverage? egg nog!! or mulled wine...
2. Fave Christmas candy? chocolate covered cherries
3. Fave candy cane flavor? peppermint color? red and white
4. Favorite Christmas cookie? wedding cookies or ambrosia!!
5. Favorite Christmas song? Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt to sing? THE GRINCH! to listen to? see my playlist!! THOSE ARE ALL MY FAVS!
6. Fave Christmas movie? A Christmas Story
7. Fave Christmas story? The Tale of Three Trees
8. Fave Christmas colors? red and green
9. actual color scheme for your decor? HA HA THAT’S FUNNY!! I have never had a color scheme for anything except my wedding and only then because my mom insisted!
10. Fave Christmas tradition? as a kid? Sneaking open the wrapped presents with my sister. Decorating the tree. with your own family? Driving around looking at Christmas lights, baking cookies and putting cookies out Christmas eve for Santa.
11. Tree topper? star? Angel? other? do tell! we have a tacky light up star that my mom bought us. it's way too heavy for the tree and my husband is always trying ways to rig it to stay up.
12. Christmas lights display?your house? to drive by? small bulbs? large bulbs? white? multi colored? simple? Griswald? I LOVE lots of lights. But since my hubby is a humbug we never have them on our house. I do like to put them on the hand rails on the front porch but I can never convince him to get up and do a Griswald. I like big, small, tacky, with lots of stand up stuff in the yard. The more the merrier I say!
13. Fave holiday icon collection?? Santa? nativity? snowmen? I like snowglobes and penguins and monkey loves nutcrackers
14. Christmas card? picture? letter? I don’t have time for a letter but it would be nice. I love getting holiday letter from people that make them rhyme!! That’s RAD! We do picture cards. So the family can see the cute kids. and I let the boys decide what they want to do for the picture. Wait till you see this years!!
15. what is more fun for you White Elephant? or Draw secret Santa names? I like secret Santa. But we buy a gift and make it a toy that reminds you of that person then give it to toys for tots.
16. Holiday budget? extravagant or low budget? what do you wish it was? Always low budget but I wish one year we never had to worry about money and could get whatever we wanted for everyone!! and i love to give to charities and i want to be able to give more but never can. This year hubby and I are not exchanging gifts because we are soooo broke!!
17. Tree? real or fake? prelit ? Green or flocked? I prefer a real one but we have a fake.
18. best gifts are? homemade? or store bought? Either. As long as they are given with love and not re-gifted like my sister-in-law does.
19. which is better in your opinion? surprises galore? or being sneaky and peeking? I used to be a peeker but now I like to be surprised.
20. do you do thank you cards for Christmas gifts? I do the cards but rarely do they make it to the mail box. Stamps are so expensive! Hopefully this year I can do that part right!

hair cut

FINALLY!! sorry it has taken me sooo long to post these pictures. i know you have all been anxiously awaiting them! this is a before picture. it was so long i could hold it out and keep my arms straight. now that's a LOT of hair!
ok here is the new me!






actually when i cut it it was very blond. so the before picture does not do justice to the radical change in color. from very long to very short and very light to very dark (for me!). it's much easier to take care of and i don't have to plan on getting up an hour earlier when i want to go anywhere!!

thanks for your patience!

i'm it

10 things I did this week:
1. learned to play and sing silent night on my guitar
2. Shopped at Target
3. decided to homeschool again
4. went pine cone picking
5. had Chinese food
6. bought a Christmas gift
7. made pig rolls (pigs in blankets)
8. went to church
9. watched bad football
10. cleaned out my magazine pile

9 things STILL on my agenda this week:
1. work!
2. mail will and jessie's birthday package
3. fold laundry
4. make lasagna
5. sweep leaves off of porch
6. do my bible study
7. finish david copperfield
8. read homeschooling books
9. finish thanksgiving leftovers!

8 shows I watched this week:
1. ugly betty
2. rudolph the red nosed reindeer
3. GMA
4. america next top model (marathon)
5. hairspray (twice!)
6. arthur
7. iron chef
8. iron chef (different shows)

7 things I cooked this week:
1. Oatmeal
2. pig rolls
3. a ham
4. mac and cheese
5. ramen noodles (is that cooking?)
6. mexican bean soup
7. pumpkin pie cake (helped big c)

6 things I read this week:
1. david copperfield
2. bible
3. yankee magazine
4. o magazine
5. what your 6th grader needs to know
6. various and assorted books to a 4 year old

5 Reasons to be happy today:
1. it's raining!!!
2. i got started on my Christmas shopping
3. the bathrooms are clean!
4. i don't have to cook dinner tonight
5. My kids are precious!

4 things I need to buy:
1. milk
2. jelly
3. trashbags
4. tape

3 people I saw this weekend:
1. cathy
2. deborah
3. stephanie

2 things I am thankful for right now:
1. music
2. melissa

1 Final Thought:
it's nice to be important but it's important to be nice

TAG - you're it!
Gimme a plug in return! :)

thanks to michelle for the laughs!

a lot of nothing

oh my gosh i am so tired of posting every day!! i can't wait for november to be over so i don't feel like i'm failing on NaBloPoMo. i am just not a writer. i can not think of new things to put in my blog every day. thank goodness i can steal stuff from other people.

random thanksgiving stuff...

ate lunch at the in-laws. paul is not looking very good. but he just had a chemo treatment 2 days before so all in all he was ok. he did talk some but didn't each much and had to go lay down during the meal.

went to the trews friday for the LSU game. they lost. big time. and tim lost it too. wow! i thought i had a bad temper. glad the kids were playing outside. cathy made an awesome gumbo!

had caden and blake spend the night friday. caden is just like big c. laid back and easy going. but blake is much more excitable. and he needs to be able to go outside. and it was cold!! i was glad when they both left.

church was great today. we ended up raising $162,000.00 last week for the parking lot!! so exciting! then we came home and watched the panthers game. boy do they suck!

Christmas recipes

every Christmas i make a few recipes that i save specifically for the holiday. it makes them more special that way don't you think? not to mention they are usually much more complicated than something i would normally make. and more expensive!! These are two of my favorites that i wanted to share with you. the cookie recipe i normally double because if i'm going to spend lots of time on them then i should get lots to eat later!


Apricot Crescents
1 c cold butter
1/2 c apricot preserves
2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c flaked coconut
1 egg yolk
1/4 c finely chopped pecans
1/2 c sour cream
sugar for sprinkling

In a bowl, cut butter into flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat egg yolk and sour cream; add to crumb mixture and mix well. Cover and chill several hours or over night. Divide dough into four parts. On a sugar-coated surface, roll each portion into a 10-in. circle. Turn dough over to sugar top side. Combine preserves, coconut and pecans; spread over circles. Cut each circle into 12 wedges and roll each wedge into a crescent shape, starting at the wide end. Sprinkle with sugar. Place points down 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 15 to 17 minutes or until set and very lightly browned. Immediately remove to wire racks to cool. Makes 4 dozen


Upside-Down Sausage-Apple Corn Bread

1/2 lb pork sausage links
4 T butter
1/2 c light brown sugar, packed
4 sm apples, peeled and cut into eighths
1 c all-purpose flour
3/4 c yellow cornmeal
3 T light brown sugar, packed
1 T baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 egg lightly beated
4 T butter, melted
1 cup milk
maple syrup for serving

Grease the bottom and sides of an 8X8 or 9X9 square pan. Brown the sausages in a medium skillet until cooked through. Remove the sausages and discard all but 2 tablespoons drippings. Add the butter and 1/2 cup brown sugar to the skillet. Heat, stirring, until the sugar is melted. Add the apples and saute them over moderate heat, turning occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes. Arrange the sausages in rows across the bottom of the prepared pan. Insert the apple slices, rounded-sides down, between the rows of sausages, wedging them in tightly. Pour pan juices over sausages. *The pan may be covered and refrigerated overnight at this point.* Preheat the oven to 400. To make the cornbread, stir the flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Add the egg, melted butter and milk and stir until combined. Pour the batter over the apples and sausages, smoothing the top to cover well. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the bread comes out clean. Remove from oven and immediately invert onto a platter. Serve in squares with maple syrup.

*****************************************************************************************

of course i sometimes take the easy way out and use refrigerated crescent rolls for the cookies and jiffy mix for the corn bread. but these are recipes well worth the effort!

i ♥ black friday!

woo-hoo!! i worked my plan and my plan worked out for me!! i got up at 4:45, dressed, grabbed some coffee and i was out the door before 5am!! my first stop was Sports Authority. in the newspaper ads yesterday, big c saw the skateboard he wanted. it was only $24.99!!! way better than the $75 i would have paid somewhere else. and for the first 100 people they were giving discount cards from $10-$100! i was the first person in line. really there were only 8 people in line when they opened the door. still, good for me! the bad news was they didn't have the one he wanted. BUT i got a better one for the same price! plus with the 10 bucks off it was only $14.99!!!!

got out of there and headed to target. while i was driving i was chatting with my friend jennifer. she was standing in line at circuit city to get a video recorder for her daughter. poor thing. she waited in line for over an hour and they were gone when she got in the store. that stinks. so i get to target and the line is around the building. but there are only 3 minutes until 6:00. by the time i got to the end of the line it was moving and the people who were not standing in line had to wait until the line got into the building!! haha on them! i grabbed a cart and headed to electronics! (with everyone else!) i was hoping to get the digital camera i had my eye on. and some of those people were making me nuts. i mean come on if you are going to get up at 5am, you need to be prepared to move your butt!! they were walking soooo sloooowww. it was a mad house over there. i asked an employee if there was a line or should i take a number or what. he said he had no idea what was going on. i asked a lady in front of me if she was in line. she was hoping to get a gameboy ds. when the clerk handed her the gameboy i asked her if she would ask him for a camera. she was not happy about it but she did get one for me! so yipee! i have a camera again!! that was what i wanted most but i thought i would check out what was going on in the toy dept. on the way over i saw 1000 count sheets for $19.99!! picked up some of those. and all the new release DVD's were on for $14. i got ratatouille. such a cute movie. and they had a sweeper, the pick up stick, for $10. i got that for me!
i was not impressed with the toy dept. all of the games they had on sale, i already have. and they only had one lego set on sale. i didn't see the batter-batter baseball that monkey wanted. i actually walked away with NO TOYS!! i'll be shopping on amazon today! i got to the register and there were 4 or 5 with no one in line!! i checked right out! i was home at 6:25. but both of the boys were up watching tv. so i will have to be sneaky about the skateboard.

all in all i am very pleased. it was very well worth it to me to get up and go shopping. hope everyone was a successful as i was!

now it's time to talk CHRISTMAS!!! yipee!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

1. The things I give thanks for this Thanksgiving: my Savior! my husband who works sooo hard and loves me soo much. 2 beautiful, healthy, loving boys! great mom and great in-laws. my bff sister. angela, cathy, jennnifer and deborah! my home, my new car, our great dog zoe, our psycho cat cassidy, our health, DH's job, our church, my 2 bible studies, my gift of singing, my ability to learn new things, my new haircut!

2. My Thanksgiving traditions include:
after we put the pies in the oven (that big c makes!) we go for a walk.
watching the parade (usually by myself!)

3. The best part about Thanksgiving is: the enjoyment of the food and the family and sitting around after the food is gone and just talking

4. My favorite Thanksgiving food is: sweet potatoes

5. After the meal: we get lots of leftovers!!

6. To get ready I need to: make sure big c does not burn down the house while making his desserts!

i cut my hair

as you can see by my new meez, i got my hair cut last week. i have not posted or put up an pictures because my durn camera is broken! it's making my sister nuts to not be able to see it. so wish me luck on black friday cause i'm headed out for a new camera. (among other things!)

my hair has been soo long for soo long it was just time to cut it all off. and boy is it short. and i dyed it red. so it's a really big change for me. i cried. but i figure someone else will enjoy it more than i will and it's just hair right? it will grow back. (i gave it to Locks of Love)

and to tell you the truth i was getting very vain about it. everywhere i went people would stop me and tell me how beautiful my hair was. and some people were really weird about it. but i loved the attention. and i started thinking about how sinful that was. (pride and all that!) so it was time to cut that sin out of my life!! but now everyone is commenting on how much they like the new cut. hopefully that will be over soon!! i want me to shine thru not my hair. (even tho it is very nice! :))

too much turkey...

already with the turkey people!! yesterday was monkey's turkey fest at school. they were sooo cute! little pilgrims and indians. (my camera is still broken or i would post pix) then a whole turkey feast. yum!

today was big c's turkey fest. not so cute middle schoolers running around and being insane because a long holiday is coming. still had to eat turkey. thank goodness my mother in law makes a ham for thanksgiving!! but we had the most AWESOME dessert ever. it's pumpkin pie cake. try it. i guarantee you will love it. and if not, i will come and finish it for you!

did i mention that big c makes all the desserts for the holidays? he makes pumpkin pie, pecan pie and this year he is attempting a cheesecake.

Pumpkin Pie Cake

3 eggs
1 (15oz) can solid pumpkin
1 cup evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 box yellow cake mix
2 sticks of butter melted

stir first 5 ingredients together. pour into lightly greased 13X9 pan. sprinkle cake mix evenly over pumpkin mixture. drizzle butter evenly on top.
bake at 350 for 1 hour or until golden brown. remove and let stand 10 minutes.
whipped topping optional

100th post!!

i can't believe i have actually posted 100 times!! some were short and sweet. some were long and bitchy. but either way i did it!! now i can be finished right?

things i have learned from blogging.

10. your sister it going to be your best commenter.
9. sometimes people will visit and not say anything.
8. i will have to get over the fact that people may not say anything.
7. i have learned a lot about html's, templates, finding weird pictures on the internet, how to put said pictures on my blog, how to come up with code names for my family, and how to find lots of cool recipes.
6. how to correspond with really great people from all over the world!! and i never have to leave my house.
5. to reach into the corners of my mind for odd and unusual facts about myself for my 100 things.
4. you can become obsessed if you are not careful!
3. the more i blog the more blogs i will find of others to read.
2. that i am a really bad speller and that i am thankful for spell check

and the #1 thing i have learned from blogging is...

1. bloggers ROCK!!

thanks to my blogging pals for helping me reach my 100th post!

my God is SOOO GREAT!!

i just have to share this story about my God. this week at church we are trying to raise as much money as possible to build a new parking lot. we are a small church with lots of land but not a lot of parking. so for weeks we have been talking about sacrificing. not just money but ourselves and our stuff. so today was the big day. we made a decision to give more than we usually do and we told the boys that we were going to sacrifice at the grocery store this week to be able to give more to church. we were planning on eating lots of beans and rice and mac and cheese. well we go to the store and we wander by the meat department on the way to the eggs. i just happened to look as we are passing the hams and they had a 10lb ham priced at $4.28! we could not figure out if there was something wrong with it or if it had the wrong price on it. after debating, we picked it up. and it checked out at that price! i was so excited. now we can have some meat this week. it helped me to remember that God is going to give us what we need when we are faithful to Him. :)

trewth

last night was sooo much fun!! the coffee house where we played is super small but we all crowded up on the stage and just played and played. the sound was awful but i still had fun. i think i should have been born with a microphone in my hand!! lots of our friends were there. kim did tape some of it so hopefully i will be able to post a video soon. tim was not happy. but if it's not perfect, he's never happy! now we get to start Christmas music!

i knew i'd get back to it one day!

#39. i love pens. i have tons and tons. and the stranger they are the more i like them. i used to work in a pharmacy and the reps would bring us awesome pens. one had an actually capsule in it. cool!

#38. i have attached ears. (you know - not dangly)

#37. my favorite football team has always been the Cincinnati Bengals. they have the best helmets.

#36. i have been to every state on the east coast.

#35. my favorite poem is by Robert Frost. Nature's First Green Is Gold. ponyboy quotes it in the Outsiders.

#34. my best friend in high school was a guy. his name was bill campbell. now he lives in seattle. (do you know him drew?)

#33. i never wear shoes in my house. or anyone else's for that matter. i don't wear them when i sing either! i love barefeet!

#32. i love it when people comment on my blog. it makes my day. so just do it!

#31. i sleep with 3 pillows. my DH sleeps with one. we look weird.

#30. i was voted most unique girl in high school. my friend bill was the guy. everyone knew us. we rocked!

#29. my hair has been every color except black. it's been red, green, orange, purple, white, pink, etc. i used to dye it with RIT dye. yeah i don't recommend that. not good for your hair.

due to popular demand...

do you ever sit down to write something and you have all these things to say and nothing comes out. you have a way you want to put it down on paper (or your blog) and the words just won't do what you want them to. what is up with that? i love fall leaves. the colors just blow me away. i can sit and watch them forever. but if i try to describe the colors, i just can't get it right. there is one tree that i love the most. the leaves are almost a pink color. but there is underlying yellow. and some orange. i can picture it in my head but don't have the words to make others see it. i love the trees that look like they are gold on top then become variegated on the way down. just chokes me up!! i love people that can write and make me see pictures. guess that is not my gift.

but singing is!! and i am starting my Christmas playlist today. sorry it if offends. it's for me more than anyone else anyway.

if you want to hear me sing, we are going to be at Freshly Brewed Coffeehouse tomorrow night at 8:00. $5 cover charge.

this is a great idea!!
When you are making out your Christmas card list this year, include the following:

A Recovering American soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue,NW
Washington,D.C. 20307-5001

you can send out your normal Christmas card and you can get your kids involved and have them make cards to send to the soldiers.

i love Christmas!!

do you love getting ready for Christmas? i love the music, the decorations, the shopping, the food, the parties and making lists for all of that stuff. do you think it's too early to shop and listen to Christmas music? i already have my Christmas playlist ready to post on my blog but i didn't want anyone to think i was a freak for having it up yet! :) i do some shopping through out the year but save most of it for day after thanksgiving (holla crazymomma!) and December. i love the hustle and bustle.

i always wrap all of my gifts in front of my favorite Christmas movies. i have tons of them! charlie brown, rudolph, santa clause is coming to town, heide (yes that's a Christmas movie!), home alone, little drummer boy, a Christmas story etc.

and we get out the Jesse tree. It is a vehicle to tell the Story of God in the Old Testament, and to connect the Advent Season with the faithfulness of God across 4,000 years of history.

so what about you? do you love the holidays? do you dread them? what about the music? are you ready to hear it on my blog yet? well hold on because it's coming later this week!!!

an alexander day

terrible horrible no good very bad day.

i'm sick
one kid had school. one didn't. guess which one got to stay home with me. the 4 year old.
my house is a mess.
i told everyone i would make a cake for book club tomorrow night. we are reading light in the window by jan karon. i made esther's orange marmalade cake. it has taken me 6 hours to make this *$@*&^ cake. i ran out of flour AND sugar. then my mixer broke. then the cakes stuck to the pan.
my DH is having his work insurance audited this week. and i have to get everything together. and it's not.
i have a 30 hour contract to work on to be finished by the end of the month. don't think i'm going to get it done.
had to finish my bible study for tomorrow morning. (did get that done!)
i have to make dinner.
and then i have to take big c to family night at the skating rink.
i haven't even gotten to read my favorite blogs today!
and did i mention that i'm sick?

tomorrow has to be better right?

right?

RIGHT!!??!!

laundry

i am convinced that there are certain shows on tv that are made for folding laundry. i don't watch day time tv on a regular basis. (i would rather read blogs!) but when i fold laundry i turn it on. my favorite time to fold it is 3:00 when ellen is on. she cracks me up! and if i'm doing it early i try for 9:00 to see regis and kelly. sometimes i will even leave it to do later if there is not something on that i can handle watching (like jerry springer).

just a little look into my daily life...

my 5 senses

i love the sight of: multi-colored sunsets

i love the sound of: a belly-laugh from my husband

i love the taste of: a just ripe strawberry

i love the touch of: my 11 year old son holding my hand

i love the smell of: sauteed green peppers and onions

thanks wendi for this great idea! and thank you Lord God for giving me the great gift of my senses to enjoy the world you created for me!

cookbooks

my friend angela and i always give each other cookbooks for Christmas. we have grateful dead ones, wizard of oz, and every rachel ray cookbook there is. i'm looking for something unusual. any ideas? i thought maybe i would just go to amazon and look but there are 63,724 results and really i just don't have time to look at them all. so i'm hoping one of my blogger friends can help me out. even though i would love a light or healthy cookbook, she is not into that. can you help a sista out?!

NaBloPoMo

did i mention that i am part of NaBloPoMo? the object is to post something every day for a month. and so far so good. but today i'm going to be posting stuff that i didn't actually write. just "borrowed"! (see i am invisible)

this month in school big c is working on poetry. you remember...haiku, limericks, acrostics etc. last night was a shape poem. you write a poem and it has to fit into a shape. he did one on his guitar. and i wanted to share it, cause it's great!! anyway imagine it's in the shape of a guitar.

a long time ago when i had just started playing my guitar everyone i met said i could go really really far. i didn't believe them i said they were crazy, i said they were off the hook. but one day a talent scout saw me and wrote my name down in his book. got a call a couple weeks later, asking if i could play, and go on tour with these people who had quite a lot to say. now these people mind you were quite famous, they tour all over the world. i owe it all to my guitar, the one that i call pearl.

cute huh?

and here is another and i won't share anymore after that! :)

The fog is clouding out in the field
Our flashlights can not break through
We’re trying to get to the haunted house
But no one knows what to do

We searched and searched out in the field
But we couldn’t find anything there
There was no large house out in the big field
The fog gave us quite a scare

As we tried to find our way home that night
Us kids got lost in the field
It took our parents forever to find us
For they had no flashlights to wield

Once we got back to our houses
Our parents had found us you see
For the moonlight has shone oh so brightly
That foggy night of Halloween.

and off the subject... do you think i need to change the link color? i just don't think the red looks good. any ideas?

i am invisible

i did not write this but wanted to share with any one who is a mom. it really helped me put my life in perspective.

I can be invisible …

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, “Can't you see I'm on the phone?” Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, “What time is it?” I'm a satellite guide to answer, “What number is the Disney Channel?” I'm a car to order, “Pick me up right around 5:30, please.”

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude ---but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.

She's going ... she's going ... she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean.

My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, “I brought you this.”

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: “To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.”

In the days ahead I would read -- no, devour -- the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals -- we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, “Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.”

And the workman replied, “Because God sees.”

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, “I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.”

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.
I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, “My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand-bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.”

That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, “You're gonna love it there.”

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women

i'm famous!!!

i was interview by manic yesterday! she is working on her NaBloPoMoFo. which means she had to post something daily for the month of November. she is interviewing the people that comment on her blog. it's a great idea and the questions are hysterical. so if you want a great laugh, head on over to manic mommy's site. and do it quick so you can see ME as the page opens up!!

i'm hoping to get a lot of traffic from this interview. so if you are visiting from manic's site, please feel free to comment and come back again!

thanks manic!! i had a great time!

crazy 8's

Crazy 8's
I got tagged to do the Crazy 8's meme today, so here goes:

8 things I'm passionate about:

1. my family
2. my friends
3. Jesus
4. reading
5. singing
6. food (unfortunately!)
7. my hair
8. blogging


8 things I say often:

1. i'm on the phone
2. pick up your mess
3. i love you
4. would you rub my feet
5. stop it!
6. let the dog out
7. we're out of milk again?!
8. what do you want for dinner?


8 books I've read recently (and would highly recommend):

1. the mammoth hunters jean auel
2. the bible God
3. harry potter and the deathly hallows jk rowling
4. 40 weeks manic mommy
5. uncharted angela hunt
6. world without end ken follett
7. light in the window jan karon
8. when crickets cry charles martin


8 things I want to do before I die:

1. play the guitar
2. pay off my bills
3. go to greece
4. be able to afford to buy really nice stuff
5. run a marathon (a small one!)
6. write a book
7. take a cruise
8. shave my head


8 songs I can listen to over and over again:

1. music by madonna
2. dancing queen abba
3. ripple grateful dead
4. these are the days 10,000 maniacs
5. rio duran duran
6. me and bobby mcgee janis joplin
7. my dog matt the electrician
8. the wind cries mary jimi hendrix

8 things that attract me to my friends

1. they can put up with me
2. they like to talk as well as listen
3. Good sense of humor
4. they like to read
5. Brains
6. they love music
7. they let me drive
8. they smile

8 things I learned in the last year:

1. how to blog
2. how to play chords on my guitar
3. childhood goes by really, really fast
4. i win a lot
5. i don't need all the stuff i have
6. i read a lot
7. i'm not going to be liked by everyone
8. i have great friends



Tag! You are it for the "Crazy 8's" meme:

1. crystal
2. crazymomma
3. cecily
4. Wanda Petronski :)
5. betty
6. dancin' queen
7. tracy
8. rob

classic

every year i try to read a few classic books. i am out of ideas. could you please let me know what your favorite classic is and i'll put it on my list to check out. thanks!

the real me!

yesterday on manic's blog she interviewed tracy from the whitney gang. and she had an interesting personality test posted. so i took it. and WOW! it was right on about me.
i am a Supporter.

ESFJs are social butterflies that value relationships, supporting and nurturing others. Never one to shy away from social events, they are often the host. They are great encouragers of teamwork. ESFJs are responsible, dutiful, observe traditions and follow rules. ESFJs have a deep concern for others and often end up as caretakers. They are sensitive to criticism and have a need to be appreciated for the good they do for others. ESFJs are understanding, generous, have a quick wit and a knack for composition and beautification.

famous people like me are

* Danny Glover - actor
* Desi Arnaz - actor, comedian, musician
* Dixie Carter - actress
* Don Knotts - comedian
* Elvis Stojko - Canadian figure skater
* Jack Benny - comedian, actor
* John Connally - politician
* Mary Tyler Moore - actress, comedian
* Nancy Kerrigan - Olympic figure skater
* Sally Field - actress
* Sally Struthers - actress
* Steve Spurrier - football player
* Terry Bradshaw - football player
* William McKinley - American President

and fictional people like me are

* Donald Duck - Disney cartoon character
* George Babbitt - Babbit (Sinclair Lewis)
* Hoss Cartwright - Bonanza
* Leonard "Bones" McCoy - Star Trek
* Monica Gellar - Friends
* Nurse Haleh Adams - ER
* Rabbit - Winnie the Pooh

so i guess i am a cross between monica, donald duck and sally fields! very interesting!

today is my mom's birthday. she came over and i made yummy mexican chili. we watched football and racing. and of course there was cake.

it was a nice relaxing day.

she makes me nuts sometimes but i love her lots.

Happy Birthday Mommy!

i let big c babysit for the first time today! every time i get a sitter for monkey big c always says that he can do it. well he is almost 12 and monkey is 4 but they are brothers. i have been thinking about it and today was the perfect opportunity. i had band practice so i decided it would be a perfect time to do a test run. i would not be too far from home, it was day time and my neighbors would be home.

and they both did great!! i got home and monkey said "that wasn't very long". so i guess he had a good time. i am going to pay him but not as much as i would pay my regular sitter. yipee!! a babysitter i don't have to go pick up!!

aw shucks!

last night the middle schoolers at big c's school had a field trip to the corn maze. in the dark! yikes. have i told you that i am kinda, sorta afraid of the dark? in the woods? with me being the responsible adult? right.

only about 19 kids showed up so we were kinda bummed about that but a fun time was still had by all. i got to hang out with the boys thinking that they would protect me if something happened. yeah like that was going to happen. they were going through the maze so fast i could hardly catch my breath. their main goal was to beat the girls. which they didn't by the way. i think the girls cheated.

this place is pretty cool because there are 2 mazes and to get from one to the other you have to walk thru the woods. that is where they have the haunted walk. thank goodness that was over or i would not have been able to do it. but while we were walking through the woods there was a shed of some sort and as we passed someone inside started beating on the walls. scared the pee out of me. turns out it was the owners little boys (about 3 and 4). they wanted to scare someone because they were not involved in the haunted walk. uh thanks for that.

but i did get them to all turn of their flashlights and look at the stars. that was so cool. we were way out in the country so you could see them really well.

once we got all the way through the maze the kids were just playing around on these really big bales of hay. one boy (who i don't know) kicked big c in the back. and boy was he mad. he yelled at him. then started crying. it really hurt poor thing.
then this same kid grabbed the ankles of another boy who was on a hay bale and jerked him off. and he was about 3 feet in the air. he hit his head and messed up his neck. why do kids have to be so mean to each other? what would you have done? since this was a school outing should i talk to the principal about it?

i took my camera but it decided it didn't want to work so i got no pix. sorry.

happy halloween part 2

let the candy frenzy begin!!!
we went to the new neighborhood that has opened at the end of our street. usually we have to walk 1/2 mile to get to any houses so we were hoping this way would be more lucrative, sugar wise. it was about the same. because the time has not changed yet it was very light when we started out at 6:00. people weren't really handing out candy. kinda strange. we ended up walking about 2 miles and were home right at 8:00 so mommy could watch ANTM. the kids both got 2 pumpkins full of candy and they both looked soooo cute!!




my theory about halloween candy is to let them eat all they can for a certain amount of days. since big c is out of school until monday, they have until then to eat it all. (except suckers. they can stick around) i just can't take having candy at home all the time b/c i end up eating it. they will have to brush more often but they don't mind. i didn't get up until after 9:00 this morning and they were both sitting in front of the tv watching scooby doo and stuffing their faces. but they did have cereal before candy!

all in all it was a very good halloween. today i can take down all the decorations and wait until it's time for the next big holiday. which brings me to this. as we were watching ANTM last night, at exactly 8:30 we saw our first CHRISTMAS COMMERCIAL!!! i had to make a note of that b/c some kids were still out trick or treating and they were already pushing Christmas on us!!