Baby Cuteness

Share A Little

Just a quick shout out to you. I promise I have regular posts coming. Been crazy and busy for me lately. I want to let you know that I now have 4 blogs. (Hmm... why am I so busy? heehee) The newest one, "Girls With Goodies" is one I share with my niece, Tabitha. It is a work in progress but will have:

* Recipes of all kinds: ours and some borrowed
* Uniques recipes that will teach you how to make products at home: body scrubs, cleaners, garden    products... you name it
* Guest bloggers
* Seasonal recipes and ideas
* Reviews and Giveaways
... and much more.

Currently, we have a remarkable recipe for Blackberry Cobbler. It is a very unique recipe passed on from Grandma Bonnie. She was such a fabulous woman and an unbelievable cook.

We also have a Giveaway. Yes, already. This is a giveaway to accumulate some followers so entry is very simple.

We are giving away this cookbook:

Here is a list of all my other blogs and Tabitha's, if you'd like to follow them:

Yummy! Yummy! Yummy!

Visions of Life: A Journey Towards Health and Wealth

Girls With Goodies 

All Things Tabitha

Cabin in the Snow

I know, I know........ I have been neglectful. Sorry! I will try to do better.

I do want to share: I won 250 Custom Greeting Cards from UPrinting and I used it for Christmas cards. Tell me what you think of this design:

Start your Weekend with a Laugh!

A LITTLE THREE YEAR OLD BOY IS SITTING ON THE TOILET. HIS MOTHER THINKS HE HAS BEEN IN THERE TOO LONG, SO SHE GOES IN TO SEE WHAT'S UP.

THE LITTLE BOY IS SITTING ON THE TOILET READING A BOOK. BUT ABOUT EVERY 10 SECONDS OR SO HE PUTS THE BOOK DOWN, GRIPS ONTO TO THE TOILET SEAT WITH HIS LEFT HAND AND HITS HIMSELF ON TOP OF THE HEAD WITH HIS RIGHT HAND.

HIS MOTHER SAYS: "BILLY, ARE YOU ALL RIGHT? YOU'VE BEEN IN HERE FOR A WHILE."

BILLY SAYS: "I'M FINE, MOMMY.. I JUST HAVEN'T GONE 'DOODY' YET."

MOTHER SAYS: "OK, YOU CAN STAY HERE A FEW MORE MINUTES. BUT, BILLY, WHY ARE YOU HITTING YOURSELF ON THE HEAD?"

BILLY SAYS:

"WORKS FOR KETCHUP."



HeeHeeHee! Now you know you loved that one! Have a FUN weekend!

I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends

Yep, it's true! My friends are always a HUGE help to me. You pick me up when I'm down, you share your life with me, we laugh together, feel each others pain, anger, excitement, fear and a whole string of other emotions.

Today, I need your help. I am trying to "collect" comments for a chance to Win a Samsung Washer and Dryer over at my Yummy! Yummy! Yummy! blog. If you have a minute, could you go THERE and leave me a comment.

While you're THERE, take a look at the information on how YOU can post and win a washer and dryer, too. If you decide to enter, let me know and I will comment for you, too.

Thanks my Virtual Friends Forever.

Beautiful Landscape

A few months ago, when Ollie and I were returning from visiting his Grandchildren and his eldest daughter, we drove past a beautiful home with this gorgeous landscaping.

We both loved it!


We've been planning on doing some landscaping at his home. We have to battle lots of rocks and clay every time we work in the yard and it gets to be a pain.

Erosion is a really big problem for us, too. Ollie's house is in the middle of a big hill.

My idea is to do something similar to the photo, but a larger scale. At the top would be a "natural looking" waterfall, leading into the "fake" creek bed. At the base, would be a small "pool" with a seating area.

I hope you like it!

Durham County

Durham County- Meet The Characters
Uploaded by IonTelevision2009. - Classic TV and last night's shows, online.

ION television has launched “ Durham County,” the new original scripted prime time series premiering this fall. What you don’t know about your neighbors could kill you. That’s just everyday reality in “ Durham County,” an eerie combination of suspense and family drama.

“Durham County” follows the troubled world of Homicide Detective Mike Sweeney who moves his family to quiet suburbia for a fresh start after his partner is killed and his wife Audrey is diagnosed with breast cancer. While Durham County seems like the perfect place to begin again, Sweeney soon discovers that his neighbor Ray Prager may be a serial killer.

"Durham County" will premiere on ION Television Monday, September 7 at 10:00p.m.

Dance in the Rain

by Angela Dockter-Harris



I think that most people, at some point in their life, have suffered a huge loss of someone they love so dearly. I know I have. I still mourn for my Grandma Bonnie. She died in 2002 after a long battle with cancer. She was such a wonderful, kind giving person. She touched the lives of so many. My entire family mourns her and cannot speak of her without tears.

When I came across a request for reviewers of Dance in the Rain by Angela Dockter-Harris, on The Product Review Place, and I read the description about her book, I contacted her immediately.

It is the most beneficial "tool" for dealing with grief that I have ever come across.

Dance in the Rain is a combination between a journal and a bible study.

The journal section can be personalized for anyone and any situation. I was really surprised at how in-depth the journal is. It covers:

"Remembering the Person I Love" - For the loss of a child, spouse, parent, grandparent, sibling, or friend. It includes special topics for the loss of an unborn child, infant, toddler, or young child. It also has a special tribute to the person who has passed away.

"This Gift I Leave You" - For the individual who is either facing death or who may be preparing for the future. In this section, they can dedicate the journal to a loved one(s). It could be very beneficial in helping talk about what is happening with your loved ones, your thoughts and feelings and help prepare them for what is to come. You can also share memories of days past, happy times, your wishes for their future, as well as, your final wishes.

"The Loss" - For the healing process, once your loved one is gone.

The Bible Study User's Guide is in two sections. The sections teach you to deal with loss through scripture. It leads you through the stages of death: grieving: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Each is from a biblical perspective.


"The bible study looks in-depth at sorrow and suffering, anger, acceptance, making amends, letting go, finding purpose, discovering a personal story from the pain and moving forward. Discusses how to find God in the midst of such pain.

The bible study also addresses concerns for people who believe in heaven and the concern of dealing with uncertainity of a loved ones eternal decision.

This book focuses on making amends, so it can be used in the loss of strained or broken relationships, not just death."

I think Dance in the Rain would be ideal for grief counseling. It touched my heart. Upon my completion of the book, I donated it to a family that just lost their child and I hope it brings them comfort.

Don't suffer alone or go through this time with fear and a heavy heart. Dance in the Rain can help you and your loved ones with this process. GOD is with you and HE does not want you to suffer nor does HE want you to be alone through tough times.

Dance in the Rain is available for purchase at:

Amazon.com
Tate Publishing
Barnes and Noble

If you would like to see/hear more about Angela Dockter-Harris, you can find her:

Twitter: @ADockterHarris
Wordpress: Angela A Dockter-Harris
Facebook: Dance in the Rain: His Joy Comes in the Mourning



***A special thanks to The Product Review Place for allowing me the opportunity to work with Angela and Dance in the Rain.***

Fearless by Max Lucado

Each sunrise seems to bring fresh reasons for fear.

They're talking layoffs at work, slowdowns in the economy, flare-ups in the Middle East, turnovers at headquarters, downturns in the housing market, upswings in global warming. The plague of our day, terrorism, begins with the word terror. Fear, it seems, has taken up a hundred-year lease on the building next door and set up shop. Oversized and rude, fear herds us into a prison of unlocked doors. Wouldn't it be great to walk out?

Imagine your life, wholly untouched by angst. What if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats? If you could hover a fear magnet over your heart and extract every last shaving of dread, insecurity, or doubt, what would remain? Envision a day, just one day, where you could trust more and fear less.

Can you imagine your life without fear?

My Review

Fear can be our most crippling emotion. If you think about it, we are raised to fear: disobeying our parents, change, trying new things........

In the book, Fearless by Max Lucado, he addresses fear from a biblical stand point. He reminds us that GOD and our faith in God will remove any and all our fears. It teaches through scripture, kindness and understanding. He speaks in a manner which anyone can understand and connect with.

Why are we in fear if we are believers in GOD? I found it to be most interesting when Max pointed out that Jesus tells us "do not be afraid" more than he tells us any other one thing.

I am a believer and am full of faith, but I fear. I am encouraged by Fearless. I hope to learn and grow in my faith so as to learn to let go of my fears. I want to "turn it over" to GOD and trust that I will be taken care of. It's hard to do. I hate to even say that but, if I'm being honest, I must. This world we live in seems to teach us to fear and pushes us away from faith.

As I read and reread the chapters of Fearless, I feel a renewal coming upon me. A new found strength. At points within the book, I feel ridiculous for my fears. I am ashamed of letting them empower me and, at times, control me.

I love reading books such as Fearless. I want to grow in my faith and I want to reach out to YOU.

Fearless is a wonderful read. Max addresses our fears and separates them into chapters, addressing not only why we are afraid, but individual fears such as:

Fear of Disappointing GOD
Fear of Not Protecting My Kids
Fear of Death
Fear of the After Life
Fear of where the World is Headed
...and several others.

Max also includes a discussion guide at the back of the book which has a "lesson" for each chapter, split into three groups: Examining, Exposing and Battling Fear

My life has been truly touched by Fearless. I plan to keep it by my side and refer to it often for guidance.

I encourage you to read it for yourself. I would love to know your response to it. It will change your life. I'm sure of it.



Max Lucado has numerous other books available as well.

Find Max:

www.maxlucado.com

www.TheFearlessBook.com

www.twitter.com/MaxLucado

Birthday Bash? Hand over them Gifts!

WooHoo! Sandy over at Tales From A Shopaholic Mommy is having a Birthday Bash to honor her little girl's 2nd Birthday!

The Birthday Bash will run September 5th thru 12th and will include giveaways for shoes, clothes, watches, an Amazon gift card and more!

You don't want to miss it!

Simply Salads

I was really excited to receive a copy of "Simply Salads" by Jennifer Chandler to review for my blog. I just love salads and I am always "game" to try new ones.

"Simply Salads" has over 100 salad recipes, sure to fit anyone's taste. Such a huge selection of recipes from simple to extravagant and each has a fabulous picture that will leave your mouth watering and your tummy grumbling.

Jennifer does an excellent job of explaining the "Salad Blends" so you know exactly what is in your salad. She also gives you a complete list of "must have" kitchen utensils and ingredients to make your salad preparation simple.

"Simply Salads" is broken down into these categories:
*Greens
*Poultry
*Meat
*Seafood
*Vegetables
*Fruit
*Beans, Grains, Rice and Pasta
*Slaws
*Vinaigrettes and Dressings

Take a look at this Taco Salad (page 65):




BLT Salad (page 62):



A couple of my favorites were the Shrimp Tossed with Herb Salad, Greek Salad and the Old-Fashioned Cole Slaw. There are still so many I want to try. Plus, the vinaigrettes and dressings are so tasty. I've used some of them for other recipes.

I am going to strongly recommend that you go out today and buy "Simply Salads" by Jennifer Chandler. It is a perfect addition to my collection of recipe books and I know it would be for yours, too.

Simply Salads is now available nationwide in fine book stores and at Amazon.com.

PRESS RELEASE: SIMPLY SALADS

More than 100 creative bagged salad recipes you can make in minutes

(Nashville, Tenn.) With the popularity of gourmet salads on the rise, from five-star restaurants to fast food chains, salads are becoming much more than boring, diet food or the preview to a meal. Salads are a delectable, healthy and quick alternative, as well as, a meal’s main event.

A recent study done by the UCLA School of Public Health and Louisiana State University Health Services Center found that eating just one salad a day may have more health benefits than originally thought. People who consume at least one salad a day have a higher level of nutrients responsible for a healthy immune system, and reducing the risk of heart disease and obesity. Eating a salad a day could quite possibly be the easiest way to improve your overall health and with all of the variety of fresh packaged salad blends in local stores it has never been easier to make a deliciously simple salad for any meal.

Simply Salads (April, $24.99, Rutledge Hill Press, ISBN 1-4016-0320-3) by Author and Chef Jennifer Chandler, delivers over 100 creative recipes you can make in minutes—showing that anyone can create a gourmet salad by simply picking up salad mix and adding your favorite ingredients. Chandler’s salad masterpieces also include dressing recommendations, recipes, menu ideas and nutritional information. All the recipes are accompanied by stunning photos of each salad. From the Classic Caesar Salad with Herb Croutons to the Mandarin Chicken Salad with Toasted Sesame Vinaigrette, these recipes are guidelines to getting you started on creating your own satisfying salads with your favorite ingredients.

About the Author: Jennifer Chandler graduated at the top of her class with Le Grand Diplome and a Mention Tres Bien in Pastry from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. She moved back to her hometown of Memphis and in 1999 opened Cheffie's Market and More, a prepared foods market and bakery. Voted best new restaurant in Memphis, Cheffie's received much acclaim and many awards. Jennifer is a full-time mom of two little girls, a freelance magazine writer and a professional salad eater.



Thomas Nelson, Inc. is a leading publisher and distributor of books emphasizing Christian, inspirational and family value themes, and believes it is the largest publisher of Bibles and inspirational books in the English language. For more information, visit our website www.thomasnelson.com.


This opportunity was provided to me through TheProductReviewPlace

Custom Greeting Card Winners

Congratulations to the winners of the UPrinting 250 Custom Greeting Cards: Kimberly Delatorre from Shop With Me Mama and Martha Kasper from The Daily Grind.

Wow! What a great giveaway to win so close to the HOLIDAYS!

Stop by and congratulate these ladies and take a look around their blogs. Both are fabulous reads.

Motherland - A Time For Healing

Not long ago, I embarked on a challenge. I was to review an upcoming documentary, "Motherland", that features the lives of six women who were grieving the loss of a child. In the documentary, these women, in the deepest of mourning, were asked to participate in a journey to South Africa for 17 days and meet people of the country who experience losses on a daily basis to AIDS. The documentary was to look at the effects of the lives of the South Africans on these American women and to explore whether their grief could be "eased" by being in the presence of the South Africans.

Their Information

"Motherland"

An honest and intimate look at the complexities of grief and healing, “Motherland” is about resilience, triumph of the human spirit and the power of unconditional love. It also reminds us of the vastly different ways in which disparate cultures confront deeply felt personal challenges. Each year over eight million families around the world suffer the loss of a child. In Steinman’s moving and inspiring first feature, a 17-day trip to South Africa transforms the lives of six grieving women from across the US. Unexpectedly and eight thousand miles from home, each finds comfort and healing in a landscape that appears, at first, to offer little more than melancholy. Prior to their journey, the six intrepid women of “Motherland” have each suffered the death of a child but otherwise have little in common. And although the anticipation of a long, emotional journey with a group of strangers evokes anxiety, the women all share a desire to make sense of their tragedies and to move forward with their lives. They travel half way around the world where they live with local families and work with African organizations dedicated to improving the lives of children. As they come to know each other, they assist teachers in over-crowded day care centers, lead activities with abused and at-risk teens and help care for physically-challenged youth. The work is meaningful and rewarding and a welcome reprieve from the depression, isolation and stagnation of life at home. In the end, the women share not just their stories and their pain but themselves – with and for each other and even more profoundly, with the children who touch their hearts at every turn.

"Motherland" was the winner of this year's Emerging Visions Audience Award at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival. Its other awards include the Jury Prize for Best Feature at the 2009 Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival and Best Documentary at the 2009 California Independent Film Festival.

My Review

I am going to admit that I hesitated about viewing this documentary. I was afraid that, with all the grief portrayed in the documentary, I would not be able to watch it, much less give a review. I was very surprised.

I connected with these six women and felt their pain throughout the documentary but you could see the healing that was coming from it. One even commented about how much it helped that she did not have to go through the days "pretending" that everything was okay and that she was moving on. With this group of women who shared the same grief, she was able to receive an understanding that most did not have. She could cry or talk about her child, knowing that everyone there knew what she meant and how she felt.

I think that is so important for the healing process.

The ladies connected through their grief and the grief of those they met in South Africa. They visited the schools and the children and interacted in the lives of these people who suffer such great loss of life DAILY.

What I liked best about "Motherland" was watching the progress and "break thrus" of these women. They were healing themselves and the others just by sharing the most horrendous of tragedies: the death of a child.

I strongly suggest to you, my reader, that you view this documentary. Particularly if you are going through a tragedy such as this. You may not be able to run off to South Africa, but knowing that there are others like you and that you can join together to grieve and heal, well, that's very important.

I thank GOD that I have my child and he is well. I cannot imagine the pain and grief that these women suffered but I do know that somehow life must go on. I think "Motherland" can help to show you how.

"Motherland" opened nationally, today, August 26th. Please, take the time to view the trailer to this documentary HERE.

For an online screening of this digital film release, go HERE.

Thank you for stopping by, my friend. God Bless You!

Get in The Zone

If you have a teen at home, this scene is probably what you see every time you enter their room. Can they really live like this? Argh!

Never fear, Wal-Mart is here with their "teen" line called "Your Zone". It contains all you need to get your teen's room together and in the latest style.

For more information about "Your Zone" just click. You also may want to head over to Suzanne Calling and enter to win a $500.00 Wal-Mart gift card, perfect for a room makeover.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetie!

Yep, 4 years ago today, Ollie and I went out for the first time. We have been together ever since.

Not to be sappy, but, honestly, I never knew "this" existed. I had thought I was in love before, but it was nothing like it is with Ollie. He's my best friend.

It's really nice to be able to experience HAPPY. Outside of my son, Cody, I didn't know what happy was.

This is not the best of photos, but we haven't had any taken together. This picture is from our vacation two years ago. It was the week of the 4th of July. Super hot and then, we got rained on. Oh, and I whacked all my hair off. heehee

Anyway, Ollie is still away in Nebraska, working on that job that will last until April or longer, but he does get to come home next weekend so we can celebrate US then.

Today I celebrate Ollie, our life together now and in the future.

Happy Anniversary, sweetie!

I LOVE YOU!