Weekend Wrap Up

It sure is hard to get back to work today after being off for 5 days. I feel a little lazy this morning. I didn't decorate for Christmas yet, I am going to do it one day this week. But here are some fun things from the weekend.

I have been wanting some pine cones for a centerpiece idea, but we don't have any pine trees. I asked my granddaughter, Alexis, to bring me some when she came over for Thanksgiving. She is little Miss Memory 'cause look what nice ones she brought me. 

But she surprised me even more by having a bag of these for me. I love them and never even thought about little ones. But I have an idea for them. 

Friday and Saturday were spent shopping. I got up at 4:00 Friday and by 4:30, I was heading out the door with my favorite Christmas shirt and my favorite Christmas earrings. My earrings say JOY as well. 

Saturday was our annual Christmas trip to Turkey Creek and lunch at Steak and Shake. They had a new dessert....Oreo Ice Cream Sandwich. My number one weakness in food is ice cream and my favorite cookie is Oreo so I had to try. I guess you can see by the extra spoon, my daughter wasn't going to let me try it alone. Oh my gosh, I highly recommend this. It is bigger than an Oreo though the picture doesn't look it. It was perfect for two of us to share. 

I did get my two little poinsettias I wanted for just .88 cents each at Walmart. 

And I got a Douglas Fir wreath for just $4.46. It smell so good. I love fresh greenery at Christmas. 

I haven't put up my tree or decorated yet. That is on my list for this week. I did go ahead and hang my front door wreath though. I had to get the fall piece down so I could get my Christmas spirit going. 

At church yesterday, I had another gift from my secret sister. I fell in love with this little guy. And then when I realized his belly was a candy jar and it was full of Junior Mints (my other weakness) I just fell even more in love. His belly will be empty before the day is out. 

My hubby surprised me last night when he came home from work. He had brought me a large bowl of Buddy's soft serve ice cream...off for just me! Have I mentioned my love affair with ice cream? Hubby is the best and he sure knows what I like. 

Hope everyone has a great week. 

Grace has a Face

One of the songs in our Christmas Program at church is Grace Has a Face. No matter what is going on during the Christmas season; no matter how much I enjoy the shopping, the dinners, the parades, the gatherings...I never, ever, ever lose sight of the fact that God sent that tiny little baby down here for one reason and one reason only. And that is to save us from our sins. Please listen closely to the words of this song. It is one of the most poignant songs I have ever heard. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Have a blessed Sunday.

My "must see" Christmas Special List

There are certain movies and specials that I have to watch every Christmas. It just isn't the holiday without them. Here are my "must see" items that I watch every year. 

1. Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer - I have been watching Rudolph as long as I can remember. It simply isn't Christmas without me getting to see Rudolph. I love when Clarice sings "There's Always Tomorrow."

2. A Charlie Brown Christmas - I love this one as well. My daughter even bought me a little Charlie Brown tree a couple of years ago. I put it in my kitchen every year. 

3. Santa Claus, The Movie - This is one of my favorite Christmas movies because of the legend at the beginning about how Santa became Santa. I love the part with Burgess Meredith, as the Ancient Elf, proclaims "Now, all those within the sound of my voice, and all those on this Earth everywhere know that henceworth you will be called Santa Claus."

4. Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas - This is a cute twist on The Gift of the Magi. I love this little show and it just isn't Christmas without Emmet Otter. My kids like to watch every year too. I love the song "When the River meets the Sea" that is in this movie. 

5. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (The cartoon. I don't like the movie.) Who doesn't just love little Cindy Lou Who. This is a classic and we should all learn from it that even if we do not have much in this life, we still have reason to rejoice. 

6. Miracle on 34th Street (The original version.) My favorite quote is when Fred says "Faith is believing when common sense tells you not to." Maureen O'Hara is one of my all time favorite actresses. 

7. A Christmas Story (otherwise known as "You'll shoot your eye out." This is my husband's favorite Christmas movie and we have to watch it two or three times every year. It is a classic around our house. 

8. Christmas comes to Willow Creek. This is a wonderful Christmas movie full of twists and turns that all put together give a happy end with a Christmas miracle or two thrown in. I love this one. I had it on VHS and it broke last year so I need to find it on DVD...SOON.

9. A Smoky Mountain Christmas. Obviously, living in the Smoky Mountains this is definitely a favorite one of mine. I just love Dolly.

10. The Santa Claus (just the first one. Didn't care for the sequel.) This is a good movie to watch for a light hearted take on Santa Claus. 

Well, there you have it. My top 10 favorite Christmas specials. What ones are a "must see" at your house every year?

Better late than never

I'm a little late in posting today, but it's been a busy day. I headed out at 5:00 a.m. to do some shopping. There wasn't anything on my wish list for the early sales yesterday and last night, but I just love going out early on Black Friday. I did manage to snag three items that I wanted. Needless to say since they are gifts, I won't be posting what good deals I got. Let's just say I'm very happy.

We had an awesome Thanksgiving. Hubby and I used a lot of my Pyrex. There is no better combination than Pyrex and Duncan Hines.

My grandson likes to make woven potholders and make his own pattern. He wanted to do one yesterday when they were over, so I had him do one in blue to go with my Pyrex bowl. 

I love the pattern he designed. 

Worked some on my latest project....getting all 5 grandchildren in one photo. It didn't work. So I gave up on a group photo and took what I could get. Garret did agree to let me take one of him....but he preferred not to smile and I didn't argue.

Caleb on the other hand likes to do his crazy faces so again, I'll take what I can get. 

Colby just gives me that "Seriously, Mamaw? Another picture?" look. 

My girls will pose at the first site of my camera. They even got me to pose with them. They are so "camera ready" that if I pick up my phone even, they start posing. Not sure why Alexis's eyes are glowing, but we at least got a picture together. 

Guess I'll have to resort to bribery to get a group shot at Christmas. 

One thing I noticed today while I was shopping was the return of leg warmers. Oh, how I loved these. They look so warm. Does this mean big hair may come back as well? 

Saw these really cute boots. I need to check and see if the granddaughters might be interested in something like this. They are both fashionistas.

The parking lot at Sears was loaded with Canadian geese. Guess they were shopping for some scarves for Christmas? I rolled down my window to get a good picture and one started waddling over to me so I snapped, rolled up the window and moved on. 

By 8:30 a.m., I was at Target and my breakfast from 4:30 a.m. was worn off so I needed nourishment. It is never too early for popcorn from Target. 

Met my daughter-in-law for lunch at O'Charley's. Their sampler platter was just the thing I needed.

Of course, the brownie and ice cream for dessert just topped off the day. Going to have a nice long soak and redo my nails. They were red glittery today to match my red Christmas shirt. I'm polishing them green to match my green Snowman Christmas shirt for tomorrow. Going to look over the regular ads to plan my day for tomorrow. My daughter and I are heading out to do some shopping at Turkey Creek tomorrow. Leftovers for supper tonight then vegging out on the couch all evening. Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday weekend. 

Happy Thanksgiving

When saying my thanks today, I consider each and everyone of my readers and all those who leave comments as one of my blessings. 

Thank you for being faithful to come back and visit on a regular basis and for taking the time to leave comments. I appreciate each and everyone of you. I know I have a habit of rambling, but you are always faithful in letting me do that. So again, thank you.

Hope you and yours have a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Meandering Monday

It's Monday and time to focus on the new week, but my mind is meandering again so here our some of the thoughts running through my head today.

.....Don't think I'm rushing the season because I have changed my blog to Christmas. Here's the thing. I have a full day today and this evening. I have a lot of things to do on Tuesday and Wednesday as well. Add to that the fact that Thanksgiving is Thursday and then some serious Black Friday shopping to do on Friday and Saturday. I am writing some of my blogs in advance and want to have my site changed by Friday but don't know when else I am going to have time to do it. So I'm going Christmas in Blogville starting today.



.....I figured since we have Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's on the horizon I would opt for a Happy Holidays layout for now. I have found about 3 or 4 templates I love for Christmas. So don't be surprised if I change it once a week.


.....I got another cute gift from my Secret Sister on Sunday. Check out the cute basket. Inside was full of juicy red apples.

I hung the little pillow on the side of the rack in the kitchen.

I put the little basket on top of the cabinets with my other baskets. 

I put the apples in the red Pyrex bowl my niece Amy sent me. Don't they look delicious? This bowl is quick becoming one of my favorite pieces of Pyrex. In retrospect, I was thinking that Wednesday is pie and praise at the church. Do you think the apples with the little pillow that says "Sweet as apple pie" was a hint that I should bring an apple pie for my dish that night?

I used my Corelle platter to make some peanut butter candy this weekend. It's candy, not fudge because it is more of a solid dessert then creamy like fudge, but once you bite into it, it melts in your mouth. Mom has made it for years and years and it has always been my favorite. Just 2 cups of sugar, 2/3 cup of milk. Stir and put in a medium pan over medium heat. Cook to the soft ball stage, stirring regularly to avoid scorching. At the soft ball stage, remove from heat and add 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 heaping tablespoon of peanut butter. Beat until it start to set up a little on the side and pour in a greased platter. Let cool. This doesn't need refrigerated. 

Then I made a pan of brownies. No recipe on this since they were just a box of Duncan Hines brownie mix. But they were still delicious.

Guess I just wanted to get a head start on this being a week of favorite foods.

It is already 8:00 a.m. and I haven't stopped for breakfast. I think I hear the brownies and some cold milk calling my name. 

A special birthday wish

Today is my daughter-in-law's birthday. She has been such a blessing to the family. I could not have asked for a better wife for my son nor for a better mother for my grandchildren.

She is so easy to talk to and is always there for me if I need her. She brings an order of calm whenever things get chaotic. She has a great sense of humor which makes her fit in well with the rest of us. And she is a very loyal, loving, devoted wife and mother.

Happy birthday, Jamie. I hope you have an awesome day.