Happy November 1st

I love November. A month of giving Thanks and finding joy in the blessings we receive every day. We take so many things for granted in this life that we should stop and give thanks 365 days a year. But too many times we get so caught up in the trials and troubles of everyday life that we forget to appreciate what we do have instead of focusing on what we don't.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Time for bobbing for apples. Ghosts and witches showing up at your door. Treats for the cuties that come by. But in my neighborhood, we never see any trick or treat guests at our door. We live in a small subdivision that makes a loop then comes down over the hill. Nobody realizes it comes down over the hill. Not to mention, we live in a tourist area where a lot of stores, mall and stadiums host big events to give out candy. Plus the churches usually all have a festival or trunk-or-treat. We have trunk-or-treat at our church and I go to that with my daughter and her children. They have games and lots of decorated vehicles and free hot dogs. 

So whatever you do today, be sure and have a safe and Happy Halloween.

Dollar Tree ideas

I saw some cute ideas on the Dollar Tree Crafts Facebook group. This is one I saw on Pinterest that I say every year I want to do. But this year I have already made a list of friends who will be getting one so I don't forget to make them. 

I love fresh greenery in the house. This year, I am going to stop at our local nursery where I get my tree and ask for a couple of pieces of a branch they cut off so I can do this. I love it. I will probably tie a pretty Christmas ribbon on the stems and put these around the house.

Somebody posted that these stuffed animals are available at Dollar Tree. I may pic up a few for decorating purposes. 

These are being added to their store stock. I love the buckets but need ideas on how to incorporate them in my decor. I am thinking they would be cute to set out as candy dishes. 

Shower curtain rings $1.00 for 12. Pipecleaners .88 cents for a ton of them at the craft store. A package of 12 ribbons for $1.00. I would need to get 2 of everything and that would be an awesome craft for my Children's Church to make and it would be under $6 for 24 kids. 

But I absolutely fell in love with this wreath. With the snowflake theme, you could even keep it up through January. Love, love, loving it.

I see a trip to Dollar Tree in my future ... like tomorrow!

I wanted a hamburger.....

I wanted a hamburger the other night, but really didn't feel like eating a big burger. But that was the flavor I wanted. I remember the old Roseanne show where her and Jackie created loose meat sandwiches. So I decided to try that.

I browned my hamburger meat in the iron skillet and used my favorite seasoning for the hamburger.

I put some mustard on a hot dog bun.

When the meat got browned, I drained it and then spooned it what I thought would fit on the bun and put a piece of cheese on it. 

I covered it for just a little bit to let the cheese melt down into the meat to make it easier to scoop up on my bun.

I topped it with onion and dill relish. Added some barbecue Snyder's chips and a cold Pepsi. 

It was delicious and the cheese was good and oozy.

Then I baked some of those "break and bake" Nestle Toll House cookies and had them later that night for a snack with some cold milk.

The loose meat cheeseburger was a really, really good idea. It was delicious. And now I have the leftover ground beef that I can either add to macaroni and cheese or add brown gravy and ditalini noodles with a side of fried potatoes for tonight's supper. 

Have you heard?

I posted many times about Kelsey Cate and her beautiful voice. This young lady from my church is watching her dream become reality. Only 18 years old and she is releasing her first album in November. 

The title song is Destination. I am helping Kelsey pass the word about her new release. If you are a blogger, please feel free to share her song on your site or put a link of Facebook. Please feel free to follow and share her page on Facebook at Kelsey Cate Music

AOK Records is releasing the title track from Kelsey Cate's debut album, Destination. Click on the link below to hear it...then SHARE it to win a piece of Kelsey Cate HISTORY.....

Each person who shares the song will be entered into a contest to get the FIRST out-of-the-box DESTINATION CD, autographed by Kelsey Cate and will be presented the CD at a meet and greet with the artist at her album release party next month. The winner will be announced on FRIDAY! Go listen to DESTINATION....NOW

https://www.reverbnation.com/kelseycatesinger

Any help in sharing the word about her new release is greatly appreciated.

Top 10 Tuesday

Top 10 things I am loving today.....

#1. I am in love with Sally Hansen's Miracle Gel polish. No need for a heater to dry it. I am loving the new color "Too Haute".

#2. The Daring Abbey purse from Jewel by Thirty-One. I love the color and size of this bag. I am going to have to put this on my wish list. 

#3. A new craft idea that I have got to make. Talk about super simple.

#4. One of my birthstones (December has more than one) is blue topaz. Isn't this a beautiful set. 

#5. I want some warm fuzzy slip on boots to wear this winter. This would be just perfect. 

#6. I love red and like to get a new red sweater every fall. This one would be perfect.

#7. You know how I am about tea pots and I love poinsettias. It stands to reason I would love this. 

#8. And for a whimsical one with a poinsettia, this is perfect.

#9. Check out his gorgeous vintage Christmas tablecloth from the 50's. 

#10. And what an awesome, stylish way to stay warm this winter.

What are some of your favorite things right now?

Weekend wrap up

I am not one who likes idle time. But this weekend, I actually enjoyed it. 

I ran to Walmart on Saturday to pick up a few things I needed. I got back shortly after lunch. I just sat around and watched TV and read my book most of the afternoon.

Later that evening, I ran down to Pizza Hut and got a pizza. They have a new crust, but I didn't order it because I wasn't sure if it was thick or thin. Turns out it is almost like a hand-tossed, which I like. The thing that makes it special is once they get everything on your pizza, they surround it with four twisted breadsticks and back it. It is only a $1.99 more for this crust than a normal crust. Considering breadsticks are $4.99, you can save $3.00 if you like breadsticks with your pizza. I am trying this the next time we order pizza. 

Sunday in our Sunday School class we had scrambled eggs, sausage and biscuits. It was delicious. Our lesson was fantastic as always. We are studying Genesis and are just moving into learning more about Abraham.

In Children's Church we made paper sailboats in honor of our story where Paul was sailing to Jerusalem. Then for the activity, each child picked where they would sail to. One little 4 year old blew my mind when he picked Germany. Another little 5 year old was hilarious when she told us she would sail to go see some cats. I got my boat plans from Pinterest. 

I came home and had a light lunch and looked at the coupons and sales ads in the paper. Then I stretched out on my couch with my next book in the Icicle Falls book series. If it wasn't a fictional town, I would want to go visit there. This has been an awesome series to read.

I held a Thirty-One style Family Feud game on Facebook. That was a blast. 

I ended the night with watching Hocus Pocus which is my all time favorite Halloween movie. 

You would think I am refreshed and ready to hit the week. Nope. I woke up hearing rain and I just want to go back to bed. It's one of those days where you just want to keep your fuzzy jammies on and lay around all day doing nothing. But alas duty calls so I must go into work. Have a great day!