I've been lost in Etsy Ecstasy again....

I love the Etsy shops. I could spend hours and hours just looking at things on there. I was browsing around this week and here were some things I thought were so adorable. Check out the link under each picture to see some of the neat things in their shops.

2Kute

Tiny Token Designs

Macho Machismo

Cardinal Hill

Cinsational Baubles

Dirdy Birdy

What's for dessert?

Now isn't this just a pickle. I, the baking queen of Mamaw's Place, am stumped on what to fix for dessert for my 31 Party on Saturday. I could use some ideas. Here is the menu....

Homemade Barbecue Chicken Sliders

Homemade Cole Slaw

Homemade Baked Beans

Potato Chips & Dip

Lemonade and Ice Tea

I was going to cheat and get a Lemon Pudding Pound Cake from Kroger's, but that just doesn't sound like me. I have cookbooks from Betty Crocker, Pillsbury,  churches, fire department, Home Interior, Pampered Chef, Hershey's, Crisco, Eagle Brand and tons of miscellaneous one accumulated over the years. I have a recipe book full of dessert recipes passed down from generation to generation. I have five new aprons to choose from when I begin to bake .... and I'm drawing a blank. I think I'm just overwhelmed. I am the one who thinks a really good dessert is one you make yourself....even if it is semi-homemade with part of it being boxed. But I normally would never consider serving guests a store bought cake...unless it's a birthday.

I'm just at a loss of what dessert would go good with our menu. I might add the party is at 11:00 so it will be a luncheon menu. My lovely ladies, I would appreciate your opinions on what would go good with this.

On another note......

On Tuesday, I held a little giveaway of homemade apple butter. The plan was to draw 3 winners and each would receive a jar of apple butter. We only had 5 ask to enter so the lucky winners were....

ALL 5 OF YOU! I decided there was no way I could giveaway 3 jars and let 2 people "go home" empty handed. I will email you or if you see this, I need your shipping address so I can send you your jar! Congratulations to:

Lucky Wife/Bookaholic

Norma

Debbie

Jen Greyson

Rachel

Thank you all for being faithful followers!

Thank you Lord, for your blessings on me....

Why do so many people wait until Thanksgiving to thank the Lord for all the blessings He bestows on us daily. It's as if we do not see the work He does in our lives as blessings. We just take them for granted. This past week, I have received many blessings in small ways. Yet each one was a shot in the arm that filled me up and made me thankful for what the Lord has done for me.

I thank Him daily for so many things we take for granted. 

• A loving family to support us when so many in the world are all alone with no one to care
• A comfortable home with a bed to lay our head down at night when many will be laying on the cold ground with a piece of clothing wadded up for a pillow
• We whine when we can't decide what's for dinner because there are SO MANY choices in our pantry while an old man stands alone in an old alley digging through rubbish for some scrap of food to appease the gnawing hunger he lives with every day
• We fuss at our kids for being so rowdy when a little girl is huddled in a corner trying to be quiet while her mommy drowns her sorrow in a bottle
• We give a quick hug or kiss to a love one without even thinking about it while there are those who haven't felt a kind touch in years.

Do we really realize how blessed we are? Do we reach out to others to ease their pain or share their load? Or do we simply put a few pennies in a donation plate somewhere and assume somebody else will take care of them. If I could, I would gather all the lonely, the brokenhearted, the homeless, the unloved and gather them in my arms and tell them I care.

Wednesday Hodge Podge

I've got a busy day planned and to be honest, didn't have time last night to think about a blog topic for today. So I decided to join up over at From This Side of the Pond to participate in her Wednesday Hodge Podge. She always asks the neatest questions. I'll have to schedule some time today to work on the rest of the weeks blog topics.

1. If you could work for any one government agency which would you choose and why?

 

If I'm going to dream, I'm going to dream big. I would want to work at the White House. I would want to be a secretary. My all time favorite movie is The American President. I would want the job of "Janie", the Presidents secretary. Of course, I would also want the President to be Michael Douglas so I guess I'll just keep working where I am.

2. How difficult is it for you to forgive someone who refuses to apologize?

It depends on the situation. I'll be angry or hurt for a short time, then I'll make excuses for why the person acted the way they did. Over time, I'll forgive them but I won't forget the incident. But I also would never bring it back up to them. On the other hand, if I know 100% that they were in the wrong for what they said or did and it is not someone that I am super close to, I just cut them out of my life. Not always easy, but I have had to do that a couple of times over my lifetime. I would rather not deal with them at all than to get angry all over again every time I see them. When one of my grandchildren was little and got upset with his mom, she told him she was sorry and he came back with "Sometimes sorry just don't get it."

3. What is your favorite meatless supper?

I had to really think about this one because we are a beef, pork, and chicken family. Supper doesn't feel like supper without meat. But if it is potluck night, I love Hungry Jack Flaky Buttermilk biscuits with peanut butter on them, homemade apple butter on the side and an ice cold glass of chocolate milk. It might not sound good, but I've been eating that since I was a young girl so it must be good.

4. Wednesday, August 10th is National Lazy Day...will you be celebrating? If so tell us how so we can be lazy too.

Well, since I have way too much to do today to celebrate being lazy, I guess the answer is no, unfortuneately, I won't be celebrating. But if I were, I know what I would do. I would eat a leisurely breakfast. Then I would go out on my patio and set on the swing with a tall glass of lemonade and read all day long while I enjoyed watching the river. I just started the book so I could read until I finish it. I would have hubby bring me lunch outside at the patio table and we would have a nice lunch together. Then I would come in and take about a 3 hour nap. After that, I would eat a good supper prepared by hubby and then take a good long bubble bath and read some more. I'd end up the day by turning the air low and laying on the couch snuggled with a blankie and watch a good movie.

5. As a child did you have any special back to school traditions and if so, what were they? If you're a parent have you continued those traditions with your own children?

One of my fondest memories was when Mom would take us to Sears & Penny's to get new shoes to start to school. We would usually get them a week or two before school started and we weren't allowed to wear them until the first day of school. When my kids started kindergarten, I continued the same tradition every year until they graduated (in high school, I did break down and let them shop alone for their shoes if they wanted to). Now, I have grandchildren and every year before school starts I take them out for a day of fun and take them shoe shopping for some new shoes for school.

 6. Write a summer tongue twister.

Well, that's a tough one. I'm not good at tongue twisters. How about "Summer sun sets so soon." So lame I'm almost embarrassed to write it.

7. Would you be interested in observing a surgery or do you turn away when the nurse pulls out the needle?

I get queasy when I see a freshly skinned knee or a new knot pops up on a banged head. When I have blood taken, I don't even LOOK at the needle. I have to turn to the other side of the room so I won't know what's going on. I'm a wimp. So watching surgery, no way Jose. I really admire those who can.

8. Insert your own random thought here. 

We don't quit playing because we grow old....we grow old because we quit playing. Make sure and schedule a little play time into your life.

Tea & Talk Tuesday

To coin a phrase from Joan Rivers, "Can we talk?"

I'm hopping on the Tuesday Train. Every Tuesday, I try to pick a topic and list my top 10 things for that topic. This week, my list will be

Top 10 Exciting Things Going On

1. Mr. Mailman came to the door today with a package from Book Sneeze. It was my first book from them for me to review and write about on my blog. I can't wait to start it tonight. It's Fresh Brewed Life by Nicole Johnson.

2. Mr. Mailman also left a bigger box with SIX books by Franklin Graham that I received for free from Samaritan's Purse. Lots of great reading in the days ahead.

3. Saturday is my Thirty One party and I am so excited. I love when the girls come over. I'm looking forward to earning some great benefits for hosting the party. If everything works out right, I'll be able to purchase their $32.00 Brown Parisian Pop 5 Pocket Clutch for just $5.00. Talk about a bargain.

4. The Fed Ex Guy is expected today to bring a box of goodies from Pampered Chef. I love seeing the different items everyone purchases, not to mention my freebies for taking up the order. I am collecting their bamboo serving series and my sister loves wooden spoons so I got us each a set of the Petite Bamboo spoons.

5. I love storms. Not the bad kind that cause lots of damage or harm. Just the ones with some minor wind, a little thunder and a good rain. We had one rumble through yesterday and it cooled the temperature down a little. There were some pretty good winds with it. These are some of the trees out front during the storm.

6. I'm looking forward to October. My sister and I are going to meet up in Jonesborough (Tennessee's oldest city) for a day of antique shopping. They have the best antique stores and the prices are reasonable. Their cobblestone streets and horse & buggy rides make you feel like you are back in time. And the buildings have all been either kept up or restored so they have the old plank or brick floors. This will be Sis's first time there and I'm looking forward to spending the time together.

7. When we go to Jonesborough, we are going to the Cranberry Thistle to eat. I love that place. Hubby always gets the beans and cornbread. It's hard to tell what I'll eat this time. I change it up every time we go.

8. Fall is just around the corner. I love this time of year. Football time; the changing leaves; Halloween is just around the corner. And our exciting Trunk or Treat at church. I am itching to drag out my fall decor; but, alas, I must wait a few more weeks.

9. With the onset of September, I get to look forward to my annual trip to Carver's apple orchard. We'll be heading over there to get some new Rome apples for our annual apple butter making.  I'm getting low on what we made last year so I'm having to cut back on it and make it stretch out.

10. I'm looking forward to supper tonight. I always love when we have breakfast for supper. Tonight's breakfast will be scrambled eggs, bacon, biscuits, breakfast fried potatoes and a side dish of apple butter. Yum. Doesn't that make your mouth just water? As a matter of fact, leave me a comment if you would like to win a jar of our homemade apple butter. It is made with lots of sugar and cinnamon from a recipe that has been in Hubby's family for generations. I'll give 3 jars away to 3 different winners on Friday. Just leave a comment asking to be entered in the drawing.

I'm riding the Tuesday Train.

A piece of parchment, a picture frame and a promise...

I found this little beaded wreath Saturday and this little cardinal at a Primitive store in Gatlinburg. I had no clue what to do with it, but I love cardinals and just had to have it.

Sunday morning, I got a call with some bad news about the health of a dear friend of mine. I couldn't seem to put her situation out of my mind. So I decided to look around the house for a place to put my little cardinal before I went to church.

My favorite verse came into my mind..."Be still and know that I am God." - Psalm 46:10. So I gathered up some parchment paper and headed to my printer. I typed up the verse and added a couple little dogwood flowers. I printed it and cut it up for the frame and rearranged some things on the bookshelf by my reading chair. Here is the finished product.



My friend is not doing well and I ask that you say a little prayer for her. The Lord knows the situation and knows who she is. She is a good Christian woman and needs are prayers.

Isaiah 30:15
.....In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.....



Where have the years gone....

Today is a bittersweet day for my family. My nephew, Jake, leaves for Parris Island. He is becoming one of the few, the proud...a United States Marine. As we proudly let him go, there is a part of us that wants to cling to him and keep him safely home. But we must let him grow up and lead his own life. I can't help but reflect over the years to the little boy he was and the wonderful young man he has become.

He was an adorable baby and very much loved by his big sissy, Tara. He was always laughing and happy.

He loved his Papaw Luke and was always tagging along with him. I remember in his pre-school days, he was always cutting up and you never knew when he opened his mouth what was going to come out. When I would go in for a visit, I would go out to my brother's house and take the kids and go pick up Gino's Pizza. One time when Jake was about four years old, we ran into the local pharmacy that was beside Gino's to pick up some Pepsi and M & M's. There was a young man in front of me with one of those suitcase size packs of beer. Jake kept staring at it and looking up at the man then back down to the beer. He turned to me, his little lips parted, and I thought "Oh no." Sure enough, in his not so quiet voice, I heard "Boy, he must be planning on drinking a lot of beer." I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me. But I couldn't help but laugh under my breath.

He's always been such a vital part of the family. He is a loving cousin.

An awesome big brother and role model for his little brother Coy and his nephew Acey.

He is an avid fisherman and hunter. And has a deep respect for God & Country.

He is looking forward to his career as a United States Marine and has spend the last few months preparing for his journey.

My brother is very proud of his son, but is also dreading the trip to the bus station this morning that will take his baby boy farther away from home than he has ever been. But it is what Jake wants and we are very proud of him and very thankful for the journey he is taking that will truly show his love for his God, his country, his family and his friends.