Thanksgiving at school

Yes, the food was as bad as I remember, LOL. Actually, the cranberry sauce was good, LOL, and the dressing wasn't half bad.

Anywho...I had to make Gabriel a costume. You see, the boys dressed up like indians, and the girls like pilgrims...LOL.

I had planned on making a paper bag vest (Lee said his was made out of a pillowcase), but couldn't find one, so I had to "whip up" (HA!) a pair of fringed pants, a fringed vest (complete with beads) and the headband with feathers.

Yes, I did it. And yes, I did it with under 2 yards of fabric, I was so proud!

But it took stinkin FOR-EV-ER! Oh, and the beads? Yea, over an hour there JUST ON THE VEST ALONE! and that doesn't include cutting out and sewing the vest together! And the headband...well, let's just say I don't want to make another any time soon.

But it was cute! And the kiddos all looked neat in all of their different costumes! (and yes, I could see that I really am an over-achiever, LOL, those other indians looked so cute in their painted t-shirts!)

Pics to come, later, LOL

Oh, and for those that coupon, I was so proud of myself today....my grocery budget was $100 this week (mind you it's 3rd weekend, and I got laundry stuff and other items etc), and I spent $99.99. Yes, I recieved a penny back! LOL

So excited!

Ok, so I'm a bit behind, but I just got a new phone (droid 2) and had to test out posting a blog from it!

I may actually get back into posting if I can do it on the go!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Santa came early!

Well, ok, he didn't come bearing gifts yet, but he did visit our church (see my previous post) this last weekend, so I snapped a few shots, and thankfully got one that was "ok".

Gabriel has been ok with Santa from the get-go, but Asher has always been a bit leary of him, so though he was a bit skeptical at first, he seemed to hit it off with him, and even told him "I want a DWAGON!" (translation, if you don't speak 3 year old, dragon).

So, drumroll please....this is our official Christmas picture, LOL. I'm too cheap to do pro pics this year.....we've got too many things we are doing! It's a bit smaller than I wanted, but hey, I hate uploading to blogger, LOL. And yes, my toddler has holy jeans.....that happens with little boys, LOL, and no, I didn't realize it showed until after I got home, and Santa had left so no re-shoots.

Enjoy!

Church Christmas yardsale!

Hey everyone! Long time since I posted, but been super busy!

Just wanted to let everyone know that our church (Hytop) is having a Christmas yardsale tomorrow, Sat Nov 6th, and it starts at 8 AM CST.

We also will have donuts and other baked goodies for sale! If it's your regular weekend, come buy your desserts from us! Save you the dirty dishes and help our church out!

Santa will be available for pictures from 10 AM to 2 PM. Bring your own cameras and donations will be accepted!

Hope to see you there!

How long has it been since...

...you cleaned out your pantry?

I'm embarressed to tell you how long it's been for me. *insert bag over head smiley face*

I did clean my pantry and fridge out this weekend...and threw away 2 bags of expired or yucky-opened-but-not-eaten-and-now-stale-foods...and gave away a box of things that we will most likely not use before it expired. Some things had expired in 2007. Yes, I said it right...2007.

Sooooo....now you can see INTO my pantry, and I had a good bit of things in there that I could use! I'm trying to really cut back on extra expenses right now, and so that helps a lot!

Sooo...quick (or not so quick, in my house, LOL) challenge...go clean yours out and see what you can make for dinner this week JUST with stuff in your pantry, fridge, and freezer!

Drea.....

I'm gonna kill ya hon! I hate doing the tagging stuff...yet feel oddly compelled to complete it! HA!

Fall Questions...




1. Do you like Starbucks? Meh, we have an expresso machine, so Lee makes me my Caramel Machiattos! YUM


2. How do you decorate and prepare for Fall? Put up random decor, fall candles, and pumpkins, of course! But we wait until about a week before Halloween to carve, or else they rot!

3. Will you participate in your college's homecoming activities? Nope, I don't like football, LOL


4. What is your favorite Fall clothing item or accessory? Urm, no new things, kinda broke, LOL. Things I already have? My Bass clogs(shoes), SOO comfy, but time for a new pair, the insole is wearing out! Knee High Boots, and fun socks!


5. What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid? Gonna have to go with punk rocker too...one year Mom let me use her leather jacket, and we teased my hair and spray-dyed it orange, green and purple..OH MY GOSH the amount of times I washed my hair to get all the glitter and color out! But fun! (Stunk when people asked me if I was a Spice Girl though...GRR)



6. Do you like Halloween/Horror movies? not really, I am *terrified* of zombie movies, but did enjoy the Saw movies!


7. What is your favorite Fall activity? going to the pumpkin patch or carving apples, or drinking hot apple cider....I could keep going...



8. What is your favorite Fall recipe? Hot apple cider!



Quick questions...



1. What movie coming out soon are you looking forward to seeing? Ummm? I have no idea! LOL

2. What will you miss most about Summer? Revivals...yep, I love 'em!

3. When do you start your holiday shopping? December 26th...LOL...no really, all year long, but most of it in November.
4. Favorite exercise/activity? (First, can I say Drea, you can come vaccuum any time here!) I guess swinging on the swings at the park? I love to do that, LOL

5. Best book you've read lately? The Time Travelers Wife

6. Do you make your bed every day? sometimes, LOL

7. If you could choose a personal chef or a personal shopper, which would you choose? Hmmm...neither...but a full time dish washer? YEP!

8. Which TV show are you most excited for this Fall? My faves: Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy, NCIS and NCIS LA, and Bones!

So, how have you been?

Me? Oh, just tired. I've went to bed early (think a little after 8!) for the past few nights, and then today after I dropped Asher off at Preschool, I went back to bed, LOL. Maybe one of these days my house will get cleaned!

No, really, I'm gonna get started on that in a bit, right now I'm tracing out patterns for some more stuff to list in my shop!

Just wanted to check in, tell me if you checked out my shop, I'm wondering what if I'm really just talking to myself here!

Finally listed some things!

Hop on over to my Etsy Shop (Link button over there on the right side bar!) and see my new samples! I hope to be listing a few more things in the next few days, so check back, and please pass the word around for me! I NEED some business, I have to pay for my car to get fixed!

(In case you don't hear or Lee kills me tonight when he gets home....I backed into a tree today in my NEW van! *sigh*....and Drea thinks SHE lost her mind!)

Another first day of school post!

My BABY started preschool today! My precious (ok, not always) little (but chubby and pinch-able) baby ("I NOT a baby mommy, I a big-a boy!") boy left me for 3 hours today!

And you know what.....?

It was GLORIOUS! Ha! Betcha didn't think I'd say that, huh?

I did miss him, and it was odd that it was so quiet at my house, but I did get to do some things (crafts) that I don't usually get to, since it involved a hot glue gun! LOL. And this time I actually didn't burn my fingers to pieces!

I did take pictures, but incase you haven't heard, Scottsboro became a river today, we got over 6 inches of rain in about 2 hours, so I didn't get great pics! :( Maybe thursday I'll get some more. I did take a couple snapshots in the house before we left, but at the moment I'm too lazy to get up and go find the camera, LOL.

--------

Church was really good this weekend. I sorta felt sorry for the church Sunday morning, I felt like the whole church had to sit there and listen to the ministers preach just to me! I'm sure others have felt the same at times.

By the time the brothers had all finished, I felt like I had been trimmed and cut down to the bare essentials of life. Which is a good thing, by the way. I'm always glad to hear the Word of God, and when it comes and makes you feel new and clean again like it did to me this Sunday, it's wonderful! I'm not saying I feel wonderful, LOL, I feel like hiding under a bush, all the things I've picked up and dropped off lately have made me feel so ashamed!

Probably the best (natural) part of the weekend though was Sunday in between church, I had to apologize to Lee for somethings I've done (not bad, for my favorite aunts that read this, LOL, just some things I need to work on!), and he asked me what made me say that? I told him that I realized some things I needed to work on when the ministers were preaching that morning, and he replied "Well, if it makes you feel any better, I didn't think of you at all when anything was said this morning!" LOL. Well, it did, for a bit, but then it made me wonder if he thinks of me during preaching often? Haha!

Oh well, glad the rain is gone, but the heat is back and I'm pooped, so off to watch TV and snuggle with the kids for a bit before getting supper started. Then it's off to bed, and then to Murfreesboro tomorrow to eat lunch with my sis for her 21st birthday!

The bus

So my little man decided he wanted to ride the bus. Since I know the bus driver very well (my whole life, really, LOL), and he is one of the first ones off of the bus, I'm ok with that.

However, I am NOT ok with the fact that he forgets all about me as soon as he sees it. While waiting for the bus to come (and YES, I do wait with him, we live on a highway people!), he was hugging me and talking to me, and all that gooey mama loves it stuff, and then the bus came.

And here I am, standing with my camera, ready to get that great shot of him loading the bus for the first time (well, in our driveway, he rode it home yesterday afternoon).....and nope. Forget about looking back at mom the way we talked about. Gotta see all of my friends and talk to the driver.

Ok, sorry, just had to get all that out.

My baby is growing up. All thanks to The Bus.

First day of school!

So, just to add to all of the blogs out there today, my little man started school today. This is his second round of Kindergarten (his birthday falls after the cut-off, so they made him repeat!), so it wasn't as hard as the first go around, but it was definatly heart-wrenching to leave your baby in the hands of a stranger!

I won't bore you with all of the details, but today was also picture day (feel sorry for the teacher!) and a full day to boot! I was surprised that it wasn't half a day a first! To beat it all...I thought Gabriel would cry because he had to stay, but it was Asher that threw a fit, screaming and crying, because he had to leave! LOL!

So....wanna see pictures??

Really? And some news for me!

So, I'm really surprised that no one entered in the drawing yesterday. So I'm extending it all weekend...just post a comment today or tomorrow (Cutting off comments at midnight on Sunday) and you'll be entered. Maybe everyone was just busy since it was Friday. I'd really hate to think I am talking to myself.

I'm making progress on my first advent calender, down to appliquing the numbers on the squares, and then making the pockets. It's more work than I thought.

Oh, my news!!!

I got a minivan! FINALLY! I've been NEEDING something bigger for a while, and WANTING a minivan, but we couldn't afford another vehicle, and Lee was set against a van, LOL. He thinks he's too young. (He'll be 30 in a couple of months!)

I'll try to post pictures sometime...soon. If I remember to charge the camera batteries, that is!

Talk to ya soon! I'm beginning to wish it WERE Christmas, and not July...it's just too hot here in North Alabama!

Giveaway Friday!

Ok! So what have you been up to this week?

Leave a comment and let me know, and you'll be entered for the random drawing later this evening!

Prize:

Colorful Christmas by Riley Blake Designs, bought from the Fat Quarter Shop!

I've already cut these into the 4.5" squares needed for the Advent calender. You will recive 12 different prints, 4 - 4.5" squares of each print, for a total of 48 squares. You will still need sashing, binding, backing, and batting to make the advent calender, but this is a GREAT start to your little mini quilt!

Fine Print....

1 comment per person.

If you are not already following, Follow me and then leave another comment telling me that you have for another entry.

Blog about Christmas in July with Our Mama Sews and link back to me, then comment again with a link to your blog for another entry.

Blog or e-mail your pictures of your Christmas in July projects and earn another entry!

So...you can earn up to 5 entries to win these precut squares! Prizes get better each week, and you are not forbidden to enter again later if you win this week! I will use a random generator to pick the winner, so it will be fair!

Open until 8PM CST.

Kicking off!

Ok Ladies (and Gents!), it's time to kick off Christmas In July with Our Mama Sews!

We skipped the first few days to allow everyone to enjoy the Independence Day weekend with your family! Hope you had a blast! We sure did!
There will be prizes awared for participation, so those of you that have been e-mailing me instead of posting comments, or who have been hiding in the woodwork, it's time to come out and play! There will be a prize given here every Friday in July; some of them are smaller, and some are really nice!

I had planned on making this a sew along with prizes only awarded for making the featured project, but then decided that you may or may not need to make an advent calender for each of your kiddos! LOL!

So....you are free to make ANYTHING Christmas related (even Christmas gifts!). You MUST, however, e-mail, blog, or link in comments about your project, and give me permission to share with everyone else to qualify for the big prize given at the end of the month!

To qualify for the smaller prizes (which are surprises in themselves!), just make a comment under any post this week, and I will draw at the end of the week.

RULES:
1. 1 entry per person in comments, per day
2. Earn an extra entry by blogging/e-mailing/sharing photos of your project and posting another comment that day telling me this and make yourself eligible for the main prize at the end of the month.

So to re-cap....

If you are just following along and want to wish us good luck and Christmas Cheer....just comment with us to earn a chance to win.

If you are excited about getting a head start on Christmas this year with decor, gifts and more, leave a comment, go do your craft, and share it with us! You'll be qualified for the big giveaway at then end of the month!

Sew Along Time!

Ok, so I need to get back to sewing, I am so behind! I am *finally* finishing up that big upholstery job, should be done in the next couple of days, there are a couple of things that I'm waiting on to finish.

So I decided to get to a project I've been wanting to do since LAST summer!

I'm giving you a few days to get your stuff together! Let's make this a "Christmas in July" sew along!

The pattern I'm planning on using is Elizabeth Fransson's Christmas Advent Calender, posted on the SewMamaSew blog here:

http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/?p=863

Please join me! I'll be using Riley Blake Designs' new line, Colorful Christmas, I think my boys will love it!

Join me and comment to let me know you're in for it, I will try to have a giveaway for those that join in and post on their blogs or send me pictures to show their progress!

Flashback!

So, this morning I had a flashback to the late 90's/early 2000.

The Backstreet Boys were what I lived for! Ok, maybe not really, but it sure felt like it, LOL. I actually got to go to one of thier concerts! And Howie walked right by me!

I know some of you right now are going "Who is Howie? And the Backstreet Boys?" LOL

So just for your viewing pleasure.... You can thank me later....now I gotta figure out where my CDs are!

What a wonderful day!

Thursday evening, my MIL called and asked if she could come and get the kids Friday after she got off from work, take them to McDonalds, and then spend the night with her, so that she could play with them on Saturday. She barely got through speaking when I told her "absolutely!" (actually, I may have interjected a bit, not even waiting for her to finish speaking!)

So last night, she came by and picked them up, and quickly got ready for church (William's Cove) and left. When I got home, Lee was playing a video game, so I joined him in the TV room to relax. We woke up this morning (at, um, about 11ish?) and it was heavenly! No little monkeys yelling at us to get up, telling us to fix breakfast, etc. We got to wake up slowly, and then my dear sweet hubby got up and fixed ME breakfast, nevermind that it was lunch time, LOL. (for the record, scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast!)

She still has them and we are working around the house (I just sat down to eat a bite and thought I would blog!)

Oh, and scroll down to the bottom of my page, and look at the SwagBucks icon, it's pretty cool!

So we had our first oopsie with the birdy..

....Let's just say I'm glad I have a smallish child who is eager to touch the bird! LOL.

The bird (which still remains nameless!) flew from my lap to the floor, and crawled under the already reclined couch, and back behind it. Thankfully, since it IS a reclining couch, there is a little over a foot between the back of it and the wall. So Gabriel carefully scooped him up for me, while I watched from the front of the couch.

He still has yet to eat, that we've seen, anyways, but the pet store said that he should within the next 2 days. Seems to me that he might starve by then, but she seemed really informed on them and owns several herself.

He is, however, walking a bit around his cage, kind of exploring carefully.

See my sweet birdie!

That's right! I've lost my mind! (and please forgive the non-attractive photo, I'm not that good looking as it is, but something about the webcam did me bad! LOL)

I now have 2 little boys, 2 doggies, 1 fish, and 1 bird, and let's not forget my husband, LOL!

Just wanted to share! Any ideas on a name? He's a male Budgie (American Parakeet) by the way! So as my little sister told me, "It has to have a boy name!"

11 years

11 years ago today (well, tonight, really!), the Good Lord filled me with the Holy Ghost!

I've been through many trials, and some where I couldn't see the way out, but He had great mercy, and He carried me through them to the other side.

In the past 2 years, I've been through the greatest trial I could ever imagine, but the strength that I have recieved through it has been amazing in itself. If you were at Skyline this last Thursday morning, you have already heard this, but oh well!

You know, the night I got the HolyGhost, I was begging Him to save me from torment. I never even imagined there was so much more to it than that! Through these last 11 years, the Lord has been my friend when I had no others, my Doctor when I have been sick, not to mention the times that He has healed my kids and helped my husband and I, and all He has ever asked in return is praise. I know I will never be able to thank Him enough for all that He has done for me, but I hope to see him again someday.

I tell my husband sometimes, when I get to heaven, the first thing I want to do, if I am able to, is to wash Jesus' feet and then dry them with my hair. He has blessed me with VERY long hair, that I prayed for Him to give me, and I feel that He blessed me through that. I had thought that I would wash them with my tears, but then I remembered that He will wipe all the tears from my eyes, and I will have no more sorrow! Praise the Lord!

I had woken up with a bad attitude this morning, but then I remembered what Brother Totchie says, about whether or not you have a good day is up to you and your attitude, and I tried to change my outlook. It's worked. I have felt the presence of the Lord while typing this out, and I hope you did while reading it. He's so good to me, and I know I'll never feel worthy of His love, patience and mercy, but He will love me anyways.

I'm off to Huntsville to church, hope to see you there!

OUCH!

Well, we finally went swimming today. I say finally, because Gabriel has been asking since, oh, January?, if we can go!

I got burned, of course, and the kids were exhausted (aka cranky!) when it was all over with.

I'm doing good with my couponing, and was SO excited today to get a $5 off of $15 purchase at CVS, going to go and get me some Frizz Ease hairspray, LOL.

I have so much more to post, but I'm burned and tired, and ready for bed, so I'll have to get back with ya on that!

Thank you Lord!

The Lord has potty trained my baby. Laugh if you must, but I am totally serious! I have tried absolutley everything that I knew to do, and anything anyone sugguested, and it did not work. I was very discouraged, as it took FOR-EV-ER to train Gabriel, he was ALMOST 4 years old before he was trained, and so I was NOT looking forward to it again, to say the least.

After trying everything that I knew to do, and all the sugguestions, to no avail, I finally asked the Lord to help me. And.....He did, of course! Within a couple of days, he was trained, with little help from me! (someone has to button jeans, of course!)

So thank you Lord!

Oh, and I do have pictures from the zoo, but I have my 4 year old little sister (who spent the night last night) here and have been working like crazy. So they will have to wait until a later post! Just wanted to share my good news!

Argh! It's one of THOSE days!

Yea, you've had one. Where NOTHING seems to go just right, but just about anything else goes wrong? Yea. One of THOSE days!

It actually started last night....after I got home from a bridal shower, Lee was already ready to go to bed. So since I'm still afraid to be up alone, LOL, I took my laptop to bed to be with him. (By the way, have you seen the Bones season finale???) He was sooo grumpy, evidently it was a bit too loud, but the Fox website does something to freeze my computer up, so I couldn't turn it down too much or I couldn't hear it! And then after it went off, I could NOT go to sleep! I was up until after 2AM, just tossing and turning and trying to keep Lee's legs on his side of the bed, LOL.

So when he woke me up this morning at just a little after 5AM, let's just say I wasn't ready to get up. So I didn't. Evidently someone can't fix their own lunch without making a loud racket in the kitchen, but I digress.

Sooo....he's probably going to be in a foul mood when he gets home....but that's still several hours from now, LOL.

Then, when I did wake up when the kiddos got up, everything was fine. The kids were great (Asher has been accident free so far!! Wooo WHOOO!!), they ate, and I got to work on a MASSIVE sewing project for a client that I've been working on for a good bit. Then, after about 2 hours of sewing, I took a short break to come and iron something, then went back to sew, and.....did you guess? My sewing machine STOPPED!.

Just STOPPED. And then when I finally got it going again, it was looping big time. That's ok, I know what to do. Adjusted the tension, changed the bobbin, changed the needle, and re-threaded. Maybe not in that order, but you get the drift.

Nothing worked.

That's ok, I just went to my other workhorse machine, one of those old black Singer machines that was handed down to me. Beautiful stitches. Guess what happened? You beginning to see a story line here?

Yep, it did something similar, it won't lock the stitches, so the thread just pops right up!

Called Brother about my new machine, and they told me to call the place I bought it from, I had already done everything they sugguested.
Called S&R. They are backed up with repairs. Oh, and it's probably going to cost $70 to fix. And not before I need it back.

*sigh*

I've already called my client to let her know that her project won't be ready when I promised it to her (tomorrow) and then let 2 others know that their's will not be done either. This is really messing me up business wise, not to mention that I needed to finish making Asher's church outfits since Winchester's revival starts Sunday.

Guess this means that at least I can go to piano lessons today and my house will possibly be clean when Lee gets home, LOL.

It's a zoo around here!

.....and we're going to a real one tomorrow! LOL.

Asher's 3rd birthday was last Saturday, but it was 3rd weekend too! We don't do birthday parties for the kids but every 5 years, but we do a cake and of course gifts! We try to do something with them to celebrate, but a party every year is just too much, I think.

So we told the kids we would take them to the Nashville Zoo this Saturday since his birthday fell on 3rd weekend.

On top of that....Asher had his well check up and is now at 34 lbs and exactly 3 ft tall! He's a chunk of lead! All is well with him, he had a shot, which he tolerated a WHOLE lot better than the silly little bandaid! I don't know why, but both of my kids are somewhat terrified by bandaids, and even their favorite characters do not make it better!

We are also potty training. Yay me. Can you feel the enthusiasm? LOL. Let's just say after cleaning poop out of my beige carpets 3x this week, I am less than thrilled with it. Underwear (or "wun a wear" as Asher calls it!) seems to help more so than pull ups. Pray for us tomorrow, we are going to try undies all day tomorrow! He only had 2 accidents today, so we'll see how that goes! I am taking extra clothes though, just in case!

Is anyone out there reading? I never get comments, so I'm just wondering if this is just a public journal or if I actually have readers, LOL.

Mother's Day

So, how was yours?

I got to sleep in late (aka 8:00 at my house) and then was showered with gifts and cards with handprints and cute handwriting by my children and husband.

I recieved 2 willowtree figurines (my favorite!), the "inquisitive child" (that was from Gabriel, incase you don't know my children well, LOL) and the "imagnative child" (Asher, of course), and a sleep-shirt (aka pajamas).

Then we went to church and then out to eat with my in-laws, where we waited absolutley FOR-EV-ER to eat, but in the end it was worth it, because Top of the River has THE best greens in the world!

Sometimes I hate being a girl

Don't you?

Like today...it started out ok, but then after I was up for a bit, I could tell it was all going down hill.

Ever have one of those days where you just want to be alone, to be quiet and maybe even cry, although the whole time you're crying, you can't really understand why you are?

Yea, today was one of those days.

Except I didn't get a whole lot of quiet (ever meet my youngest son?!) OR alone time. I did get to sit and read a really good book, but even then that made me sad because the ending was very sad. :(

And then church tonight...well, that made me feel even worse, as I pretty well was told to just grow up (by the Word of God, not anyone picking on me, just so you know)....and you know what? It was right (of course it was, LOL).

So....tomorrow will be a better day...I will be a better mommy and a better wife....and have a GOOD day!

How about you?

Procrastination

On my studying, that is.

I *really* dislike this Psychology class that I'm taking, and since my final is on MONDAY and I'm STILL not done with like...ummmm...9 chapters....ugh....reviewing stinks, to say the least.

On the flip side....our singing last night at Hytop was WONDERFUL! The Lord really blessed us and the groups that we had singing did wonderfully.

SO......since you took the time to read my blog today....have you prayed for me to pass my test yet?? 'Cause I'm waiting for you to! LOL

Spring Finals and Summer Semester

AKA....I need some prayers! LOL.

But seriously, I have my final exam on Monday and to say I am NOT prepared is a HUGE understatement! I need you all (that's right, all 10 of you, my followers!) to pray that I will pass! With a GOOD grade...I desperately NEED to get an A in this class, to bump my GPA up, otherwise I'm stuck.

This is what happens when you marry young and have children immediatly. I stay home with my boys (well, I stay WITH my boys, home is a relative term there, HAHA), so since I've been out of school for, oh, 6 years in June now, it's hard to find any scholarships! Most are for seniors in HighSchool still, others for children of employees (Lee's company offers scholarships to employees and their children, so at least Gabriel and Asher should benefit, LOL), and then there are grants and loans.

I've had a pell grant a few times, but since the good Lord has blessed Lee with a better (paying) job, we no longer qualify or the grants. A loan is out of the question....if we can't afford to get a loan for a newer car (and ours are all falling apart here!But that's another post...), we DEFINATLY can't do a student loan! That, and well, we just don't want the debt!

Soooo....if anyone out there wants to sponser a young mama to go back to school (I know, fat chance!) or know of a scholarship that is still recieving applicants (that I can actually APPLY for, LOL)...PLEASE let me know! I'd like to actually be able to continue my degree!

Oh, and don't forget to pray about my final!

Harley

Nope, I didn't get a new motorcycle (much to Lee's chagrin!)!

A new puppy! He's a Doxle, that is, half Dotson, half Beagle. Kayla, my sister, had gotten him at 5 weeks old, but with here working and gone most of the time, she didn't have time for a puppy, so we took him.

He's 13 weeks old, and just got his shots yesterday. He's SOOO sweet, and very smart, he's already learning tricks! Hopefully pics will follow soon!

Whew!

Wow, I have been super busy this week!

I planted all that I planted the other day, and yesterday I got my ferns for my front porch urns, and 12 more tulips!

I really need to get the rest of my veggie garden done as well, but we'll see how that goes, LOL. I have to get the money for the boards for that first, and money's been a bit tighter lately. I've been able to get all these other plants SUPER cheap! (like $2, some FREE!)

On a sader note, my Grandma's sister passed away to cancer on Monday evening, and her viewing is tonight and funeral is tomorrow. Please pray for my family, especially my grandma, this was her baby sister (I think she was only 56!) and she had lost her son on Christmas Eve (he was just 20). Thankfully she went peacefully, but it's still very hard for her, I'm sure. I would be a wreck if it was my sister, I know.

A quick thank you out to Bro. Dwight and Sis. Julie Parker, they helped me (aka let me borrow a CD) LATE last night, we needed a song that Bro. Rob Buckner wrote on CD to play during her funeral and they were happy to help! Thanks so much!

Have a great day today and enjoy that sunshine out there! Hopefully that yellow cloud of pollen will leave us soon too!

Oh, and a sewing post should be coming up soon, I've been commissioned to recover some patio furniture, so I'll try to start posting some pictures soon!

It's that time again!

Gardening time, that is!

Only this year I am already encountering problems!

We don't have a tractor, nor a tiller, so we have depended on family with those things to help us out previously. Since we're saving up for a "new" car, and our current ones both need tires, we didn't have the money to soak into a tiller this year ($600+ for a good one!).

Luckily, my PawPaw Edd came and turned my garden plot with a borrowed tractor, but then I was stuck....no way to disc the plot after turning, since Lee's grandpa's tractors are pretty well out of commission, and I don't know anyone else that has one (locally, that is, pretty sure my other grandfather has one, but who wants to drive a tractor for 2 hours from TN to AL just to disc a small garden?).

Thankfully, my uncle borrowed his father's lawn tractor and disker and came to do my plot after he did his and my grandparent's gardens.

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Now for the kicker....rather than worry about this year after year, Lee and I decided (well, I did, and he kinda sorta agreed, LOL) to do raised beds instead of a traditional ground bed. We have already built the Herb bed, and today I will be planting it, hopefully. Filling it with dirt is the hardest (and most expensive) part. Thankfully I have a lot of loose dirt in the garden bed, and can get free compost from my grandpa's horse ranch! I'll get back to you with pictures!

Sorry for the delay!

I had planned on getting my shop up and running by this last weekend, but since it was so sunny, we spent the weekend outdoors! Then I had to work on Monday, and yesterday ran around Huntsville doing some errands!

A New Beginning

I'm ready to give this blog a new go!

I've started my Etsy Shoppe up, please come visit me this weekend, I should have several listings up by Saturday at the latest. (I'm hoping to have it up tomorrow!)

It's been a very eventful month for us here at the Petty household!

We all had the stomache bug to varying degrees, and I'm SO glad to have it over with! A friend made the comment on her blog about how when you become a mother, take the number of sheets and other various linens that you think you might need and multiply it by 3! You MIGHT have enough to get you through a night of sickness!

We are supposed to be getting some warmer weather this weekend and I am SO happy about that! The snow that we got finally melted today, so I'm a bit skeptical about us actually reaching the 60's, but we'll see!

Please hop over to my shoppe this weekend and then leave me a comment here on the blog, I'd love to hear what you think about my items!

The stomache flu sucks!

In the infamous words of Forrest Gump, "That is all I want to say about that."

When it rains...

...evidently it pours!



I spent the better part of the long weekend caring for a sick toddler. After he finally was getting better, I had to work a long day, then come home, finish a study guide, and take an exam for my Psychology class....I got an 84 on the test, a "B" grade. Good, but I wish it had been better.



So...after the little monster, er, monkey got better, we had one day of wellness....and then the bigger lil guy was sick. And much worse that his little brother! A fever that will NOT break, and a tummy ache :( Hopefully soon we will all be well again!

I've been on a sewing kick! I've made 2 NCBE outfits for my friend that's expecting another baby boy in March, and I've got the fabric to make her a recieving blanket and a nursing cover too. AND I think I may make her a Mama Pampering kit as well...a lot more than I usually give, but she's a very good friend to me, and she's had a rough time lately, so it will be nice to see her smile (I hope!) at her new gifts! I'm supposed to be throwing her a shower, but so far I've been unable to get her to commit to a date! Call me back girl!

Along with the NCBE outfits, I've gotten a new pattern for undies for the boys. I'm going to make some regular undies for Gabriel, but for Asher I've modified it to make some trainers, I'll put a layer of microfiber between the cod pieces to make them a bit more absorbant...here's to hoping for potty training this spring/summer! He'll be 3 in May, but Gabriel wasn't fully trained until he was almost 4, so who knows?

What a deal!

So today I had to take the boys to get their hair cut (joy!) and while I was out, I stopped by a local shop that I knew was having a great sale on interlock knit......drumroll please......it was 50 CENTS a YARD! Now, most of this was 60" wide, but one was I think close to 108"! I got about 30 yards of various colors/some rib knit for around $16, tax and all! I would have gotten more, but it was only solid colors, and I mean, after a couple shades of each color, you can't really get more, LOL.

I did get a cute red/cream stripe that will look really cute as Christmas Jammies for this next Christmas, now let's see if I actually make them! Ha!

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On the upside too, I turned in my first 2 assignments in English and I 100% on both! So far, so good! Now if I can only get my 3 chapters in Psychology done before this weekend!

And......I'm overwhelmed!

Yep, that's right!

Today I took down my 5 Christmas trees (hey, I've been sick and working a LOT), and cleaned almost my entire house.

Then, after getting the kids in bed, completed 2 of my English assignments. Let me just say, this is much more work than I thought it would be, and oh-my-goodness, I have forgotten a TON of stuff from school! Thank goodness for Google! Hahaha!

So, tonight when I finally curl up in bed, I will read the first chapter in my Psycology book, highlighter at hand, and tomorrow I have a full day!

Wake up early to help Lee get off to work, and then get dressed myself and finish cleaning up my room and the kitchen (hey, I said I cleaned ALMOST my entire house!) and then wake up the kids for breakfast. After that is done, get Gabriel to sit down and do his school work, then off to work myself! I have 3 cabins to clean, plus one to mop and clean the toilet and counters, since the pipes were frozen up last week. Hopefully everything will go well. I may only get 2 of them done tomorrow though, and go back on Tuesday to finish the other.

Oh, and on the note of sewing, since this is Our Mama SEWS *wink*, I have, in the last 2 days, made a tote/purse, zippered pouch and wallet (all matching), plus another wallet, which I like better, and am half way done with a quilted binder covering. I am planning on doing coverings for my books as well, with pockets to keep highlighters in on the front covers. Am I the only one that can never find one when I need it? Pics to come, I hope.

Well, off to bed!

New Year, New Beginnings

Yet another year has come and gone....
....and all that jazz, LOL.

In an update to my last post....the singer 66 electric that I got STILL needs a ton of work, and unfortunatly re-wiring, I believe. I am not up to that sort of work, and do not have the money to have it serviced as of yet, so it sits upstairs.

The Shark that my grandfather bought me at an auction was a fluke, it is locked up somewhere in the motor, and is not worth the money to have fix, so I'm going to collect the extra feet to keep handy and the other accessories, but probably chunk the machine itself.

The Singer 15 is still lovely! But it has yet to make it to my house! We are getting the edges of all of these wonderful winter storms, which, for us, has involved a lot of rainy weather. We currently have snow, but the rain is what has prevented us from getting the 15 to our house. My car is way too small to haul it in (including the cabinet, that is) and Lee works through the week, so we can only use the truck on the weekends, which of course have been full of rain and sleet and snow. Maybe it will make it to my house before summer, it tends to rain a LOT during Spring here in N. Alabama.

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On another front, I have some new and exciting news!

I'm going back to college! Granted it's just 2 classes this semester, and I'm doing distance (aka Online) classes, but hey, it's a start, right?

With Gabriel being homeschool now, and me working part time (Cleaning for my Grandpa, the cabins at his horse ranch/campground), online was all I could manage this semester. It's possible that this summer or fall that I will take a class or two on campus, but that depends on how things go with the boys.

Sorry for the lack of pictures, hopefully soon I will have some uploaded!