Thursday, June 7, 2012

A Break




Geez.... time passes by fast when you're having fun!!

This is post number 851 for me....
can you believe that I have found that many topics to write about??

and....believe me, I have a whole lot more to write about.....

For the next week....

I am going to be taking a break....not  a long, just one week!  

This will be my first break since starting my post in January of 2010...January 24th to be exact!  
I have missed some weekends, and a few days here and there, but never have I taken a vacation from blogging...


Sam and I are going to the FALLS!!
As in Niagara Falls...


I am very excited about our mini vacation....On June 16th, we will have been married  

40 years....

This is a very Long time!


I am carrying my iPad, so hopefully I'll be able to find a little time to catch up on some reading....

Our bags are packed...my new camera is packed, and I'm ready to go...

I am a wee bit afraid of flying, but hopefully I'll be able to relax and enjoy the flight!

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead....

Many Hugs...See ya soon!
Shug


Happy Birthday Gaitorbait

Well Friends....Yesterday was a very exciting day around here....


Our youngest daughter turned 35!  We had a Happy Birthday party for  our Beautiful
                       "Gaitorbait."
Isn't this a lovely nickname?  One that her dad gave her, many years ago!! 
Happy Birthday, Shanda Kay!!




Shoes from Mylee.......



Clothes from Carson....


Necklace from Trey........

a couple of gift cards from her husband 
(one being a nice trip for the two of them)

and 

some "CASH" from mom and dad....

this is what I call a FANTASTIC 
birthday!!


The "Olive Garden"  was the choice restaurant for the evening....just as we got there, huge 
rain drops started falling from the sky....


Sam was drenched......Bless His Heart!


Such a sweetheart!!

Blessings y'all

shug


Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Black and Blue

Let me tell you Girls......I just might have me a chance at being the"Canning Queen Of The South."






Aren't they Beautiful?


and the Blackberries are just as gorgeous.......


This is a first for me.....I have NEVER canned any kind of fruit!  I spent my afternoon, washing and cleaning two flats of berries. One flat of Blue and one flat of Black----BERRIES.


The funny thing is that I did 't even have the equipment to do something like this.....SO, I drove myself right down to the local "Dollar Store" and bought what I needed to get the job done!




Water bath.....




Didn't do the cream peas tonight...already had them canned....


I am very proud of the way the Blackberries turned out!
The color is so rich and yummy looking..


Now to Finish the Blueberries......Tomorrow!!


Is it ok to give myself a pat on the back??  Think I'll do just that....Oh WAIT....perhaps I should wait to see how they turn out before patting too fast!


have a great evening....


shug







Choices...the Bad, the Good, the BEST.


This is Carson...He was certainly enjoying the fact that I was trying out my new camera, with him as my subject!!

Life is a series of choices between the bad, the good, and the Best.  Everything depends on how we choose...
              
                        Vance Havner



The choices that we make each day, are what creates our character.  In any given day, we all make many choices.  Some are good, some are great, and some are just down right wrong.

One thing that we must consider is that the daily decisions that we do make....not only determines our character, but these same decisions can also effect the lives of those we are close to.

God loves it when we make good choices!  
What we have to understand is that when
we do things that are unpleasing to God, we are actually robbing ourselves of the wonderful Blessings that our Heavenly Father, so desires to be ours.  

 Another thought to think about is this......our bad choices,  usually  results in our own self destruction, resulting from our selfish attitudes......

Not only do I want to make good choices for myself, but I want to make good choices for my family and for those I love.  I also want my choices to bring glory to God.

~ ~ ~

It's gonna be a hot day here!

Blessings...
shug







Monday, June 4, 2012

My New Gift

Woo Hoo Y'all......I'm as excited as a monkey on banana-zac!!


Sam bought me a NEW camera!!

He sure did.....It's a canon Rebel T3i
with an extra lens....

I have no clue what I'm doing....(too many gadgets).....  It could happen though!  There is still hope!!   Hope that I will become the avid photographer that I have always wanted to be..?????

I can't wait to get started and hear the sounds of click, click, click...

**

Fear of the unknown can really hold us back.
Take this camera as an example....I have a fear of pressing a wrong button, and messing the whole thing up....All these gadgets make me a wee bit nervous.

Should I let this fear hold me back?  Should I not try to figure it out?  If my desire is to be a good photographer...then, I must give it my all....

I may make a mistake....but I will never learn if I don't try...

In this same way....I believe that Ruth had no idea what it was, that she was going to be up against when she decided to go to Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, with Naomi......She did not allow fear to hold her back....She made a plan and moved forward...

This is exactly what we must do!   In life, we may find ourselves  launching out into the darkness, heading in an unfamiliar direction...

Pressing Forward....Trusting God....this is what we must do.


Here's Hoping you all have a wonderful day...

as for me....I'm heading out to take some pictures...

shug



Sunday, June 3, 2012

I vote NO!

Happy Sunday Everyone!!


Do you remember the days, when at night, the family could go to bed with the doors open, and only the screen doors shut? Sometimes they were no even latched!


Yes...we had screen doors and we even had screens on the windows.  NO AIR CONDITIONING though!  We would sometimes, stick our pillows up on the window ledge and lay there and gaze at the stars for hours....Oh, how I loved this!


We could hear the crickets singing and occasionally, we would hear a noise that would scare us half to death. We would pull the sheets up over our heads...in fear that it was a boogie man...


Living in a small town was awesome!!  Everyone knew EVERYONE.
There seemed to be NO worries at all and neighbors were good neighbors.  Heck...you could borrow eggs, flour, or milk and no one expected you to pull out dollars to pay for it....


               ***


We still live in a small town...the same town where my husband grew up.  Chandler, Texas to be exact!!  "The City With A Heart."


I love this little town, and I honestly wouldn't want to live anywhere else....BUT...my how things have changed!!  Don't get me wrong...I'm all for change and we all know that change is just a way of life..Change is good, SOMETIMES.


And now...it seems that some  folks are ready for another change in our small, sweet town!  There is a petition going around, asking people to vote yes for the sale of  alcohol. If enough votes are yes, then it will be added to the ballot at election time....My vote is No!


I know that this particular subject can be argued in many ways.  Some would love to see it passed because of the tax revenues. I have heard it discussed, that if enough money is brought in, then perhaps property taxes would be dropped. 


Some say it doesn't matter.... if people want to buy alcohol, they are going to get it wherever and it might as well be convenient for them... 


For me...it's a simple NO...


I'm thinking....WOW...how I miss those 60's and 70's years!!


 Oh MY....this is life.


Shug






Saturday, June 2, 2012

Is this Sweet or What?



This was how I started my day......reading a beautiful art journal that our grandson made for his girlfriend...


Today was their one year {dating} anniversary!  Tyler has been working on this journal for about 5 months now....I truly wish that I could show you every page!  He did a fabulous job putting this thing together...




Check out the secret box.....Tyler sealed about 75 pages together, and then he cut out, about a  1 x 2 square and then made a drawer that slides into the book....Inside the  drawer is a beautiful "James Avery" ring that he bought for Kelsey....



a side view of the book and the slide-in drawer....

Tyler packed a wonderful basket full of yummy food, and then he took her to the farm for a picnic....


The two of them, carved their initials in this big....old tree!!  

He even took his lawnmower out to the farm yesterday and mowed out a section for their picnic!!

Is this sweet or what?

I love this (kid)

Shug.....


Friday, June 1, 2012

Plans for Healthier Eating....

I think I depressed my hubby just a bit this morning....He saw my new header picture, and he could not believe how much weight he has gained since this picture was taken just about two years ago....(maybe 30 pounds) Sam is the one wearing the red shirt!


Hey...it happens!!  I'm not saying that carrying all those extra pounds is a good thing, but sometimes.... food is just down right GOOD!!


I promised him that I would try to manage our meals to include healthier foods...(I'm guessing this means I will have to cut out ALL THE SWEETS)   This stinks!!


I sure wish I had that particular gene that doesn't give a hoot about sugary desserts....
Instead, I have the gene that doesn't care for meats, potatoes, salads or breads.....IT'S SUGARS THAT I CRAVE!!


I BELIEVE THAT I'M A SUGAR ADDICT....


While watching Dr. Oz yesterday....I heard them say that belly fat is believed to contribute to shrinkage of the brain.  Lands alive, I've for sure gotta get busy working on belly fat!!


How many of you have ever lost 10 pounds, only to gain back 15 or 20?  This is kinda discouraging...when it reaches that point, not only do you have to lose the original 10 pounds, but you also have to lose the additional 5,10,15 or 20 pounds that you just packed on....


I'm gonna try my best to get us back in line with our eating habits....Right after our trip to Canada (I don't know what the specialty food is up there, but you know we have to try it.) And then we have a trip to Louisiana scheduled....got to have some Cajun Food!


Let's see...we have the 4th of July coming up...there is always good food for this holiday.  Then we have a trip to San Marcos..gotta eat at the Grist Mill.  


Yep...I can see the plans for healthier meals coming soon.... I have 09/01/2012 marked on my calendar!!


hugs to you all....
shug











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