A LITTLE ABOUT ME

I got this as an e-mail a while ago & thought it would be fun to post it on my blog.

( x ) Gone on a blind date
( x ) Skipped school
( ) Watched someone die
( x ) Been to Canada
( ) Been to Florida
( x ) Been on a plane
( x ) Been lost
( x ) Been on the opposite side of the country
( x ) Gone to Washington, DC
( x ) Swam in the ocean
( x ) Cried yourself to sleep
( ) Played cops and robbers
(x ) Recently colored with crayons
( x ) Sang Karaoke
( ) Paid for a meal with coins only
( x ) Done something you told yourself you wouldn't
( x ) Made prank phone calls
( x ) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of Your nose
( x ) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
( x ) Written a letter to Santa Claus
( x ) Been kissed under the mistletoe
( x ) Watched the sunrise with someone you care about
( x ) Blown bubbles
( x ) Gone ice-skating
( x ) Been skinny dipping outdoors
( x ) Gone to the movies
1. Any nickname ? Lis
2. Mother's name? Mary
3. Favorite drink? Coffee
4. Tattoo? 1
5. Body Piercings? 5 in ears, nose
6. How much do you love your job? Love it! Wouldn't trade it for anything - most days!
7. Birthplace? Salem, OR
8. Favorite place to visit? Kristin & Casey's in OR
9. Ever been to Africa? No
10. Ever eaten cookies for dinner? No
11. Ever been on TV? Yes, when I was little. I was on a local kids tv show - Ramblon Rod & also when I was camping a local news channel was doing some story (maybe about camping ?) & they interviewed me & my family
12. Ever steal any traffic signs? No
13. Ever been in a car accident? yes
14. Drive a 2-door or 4-door vehicle? 4 door
15. Favorite salad dressing? Litehouse Caesar Caesar - so good!
16. Favorite pie? Dutch Apple Pie, heated with ice cream
17. Favorite number? 4
18. Favorite movie? I love chick flicks!
19. Favorite day of the week? Sunday
20. Favorite brand of body wash? I use soap
21. Favorite toothpaste? Ultrabrite - the cheap kind
22. Favorite smell? Coffee
23. What do you do to relax? Stamp, scrapbook, bible study
24. How do you see yourself in 10 years? 2,3 or 4 kids hopefully they'll all be in school, working a part time job. Living in a house we can stay in for a while, maybe forever. Celebrating my 15th Anniversary with Nathan. Pulling my hair & praying to not kill Gracie because she will be 14! Hopefully still being extremely happy!

THANKFUL THURSDAY

I am a blog copy-cat. If I see something on someone else's blog I like, I do it on my own. Wordless Wednesday is an example. A friend of mine did a 'Wacky Wordless Wednesday' post one time & I have started to do it every Wednesday. I don't know if it is good blog etiquette to do that so I'm sorry if it is not.
I do come up with some on my own. The cookie post is my own - no one else can do a post like that because I'm sure no else makes cookies as pathetic as mine!
Here is another one I copied from someone else. I don't even know where I got this idea. Some days it is easy for me to get caught up in all I want & need that I forget to be thankful for all that I have. So, this is Thankful Thursday.
And just so all of you know, I would never be offended if you liked one of my ideas & used them on your blog!

I am grumpy this morning because my house was a mess & I felt like I cleaned up everyone else's (husband included!) mess. I was not very happy with my hubby so this morning I am going to remember to be thankful for him.
-He is a very thoughtful person & is not selfish.
-He would do anything for his family before himself.
-He is a great provider & doesn't ask for much so we all have enough.
-It is just as important to him that I stay home with my girls' as it is to me!
-He loves me despite all of my issues.
-He is a great Daddy & I love to see my girls' faces light up when he comes home from work!
I am blessed with a wonderful guy!
(That was a nice reminder this morning - I needed that! I'm sure he will be thankful too when he comes home - I will be in a better mood!)

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

FALL PICTURES TAKEN AT LAKEVIEW PARK

FUNNY GRACIE STORIES

Got a few funny stories for you! Gracie sure does keep us laughing!

Story 1:
After waking Aunt Kristin up at 7 a.m. one morning Kristin is yawning & says "I'm tired". Gracie looks at her & says "I'm sorry but I had nothing to do with it!"

Story 2:
Gracie & her little friend Daniel got in to a little sharing tiff. Gracie lied down on the couch & started reading & said "I am tired of all this sharing with Daniel stuff!"

These were the funniest things Gracie has said recently! I think you had to be there for them to be as funny as they really were but you at least get the idea!

THERE'S A NEW BABY & I HAVE THE BLUES!

Congratulations to Amy, Jeff & Avery (my sister, bro-in-law, & niece)! Amy had Dallan Jeffrey this morning at 4:30. He weighed 8 lbs & was 20 inches.

I have the blues though. I am here & they are in Colorado. I want so badly to be there snuggling with the new little guy. I want to be there to visit with Amy & help her out.
I am thankful because Amy was really good about keeping us up to date during the night & I already have a picture of him. He's darling!
I miss them though! I haven't seen Jeff in over a year, Amy & Avery in 10 months. I really miss them & Gracie misses her little playmate, Avery!

I will see them at Christmas though & am counting down the days!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Gee, thank you Auntie Kristin for the percussion instruments you gave Cassidy for her birthday! (Your turn is coming in a BIG way!)

CRAFT IDEA

A friend of mine asked me where I got the idea for the pumpkins so I thought I would share with you all. I googled 'fall crafts for kids' & it brought up this site. Now, mine obviously didn't look that nice because I had to make it simple enough for Gracie. Instead, I just used pipe cleaner I had laying around.

PRICELESS

One bottle of orange paint: .58 cents

Paper lunch bags: $1.92

Pipe cleaners: $1.72

Seeing the smile on Gracie's face while we did a craft together: PRICELESS!

Finished product

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY CASSIDY!

I cannot believe my sweet Cassidy is already one! But yet she has fit right into our family it is almost like she has always been with us! What a blessing she is! It has been so much fun this past year to discover her personality & what it will bring to our family! She is definitely our little firecracker! It has been awesome to see the bond between her & Gracie - already best friends! Since I shared my labor story about Gracie I will share about Cassidy - a completely different story!



The Dr. stripped my membranes on Wed. morning & gave me some tips on how to get labor going - so I was kind of expecting today would be the day. I went about my usual day - went to Costco, played with Gracie, got the house picked up, all while enjoying cramps! Around 4:30 they started to get pretty intense, but manageable still. I gave Gracie a bath & then called my wonderful friend Sarah, who was taking Gracie, & asked her to come get her before church. Nathan & I enjoyed a nice evening home - it was great! Around 9:30 p.m. my contractions started to get very intense. I still didn't want to go to the hospital because I wanted to spend as much time at home. Around 10:30 I had a contraction & felt like I needed to push, so I told Nathan we better go! We pulled out onto the main road & no joke - there was an accident & our lane was blocked! Nathan rolled down him window & politely told the policeman that his wife was in labor. He kindly let us through & we were off. The contractions were so painful - I tried to breath through them but wasn't doing very good! We got there around 11:55 (the E.R. lady kindly wrote admittance time 12:01) & I immediately asked for my epidural. The nurse said "oh honey, we don't have time!" Nathan said he has never seen such an extreme look of fear! So, it was time to push! The Dr. wasn't even there when I started! 38 exremely painful but quick minutes later sweet little Cassidy was here! Weighing 6 lb. 15 oz.

She has been such a blessing! Happy Birthday my sweet girl!

WHITE CHICKEN CHILI RECIPE

I have had a few requests for this recipe. I can't take credit for this recipe, my friend Christine introduced me to it. Thanks Christine! It is so good! Enjoy!

1-2 chicken breast - cooked & cubed

1 small onion - chopped

2 garlic cloves

1 can chicken broth

2 cans Great Northern beans - drained & rinsed

2 cans chiles

instant mashed potatoes (just enough to thicken it a bit - maybe 1/4 c)

salt, pepper, oregano, cumin

1/2 c heavy whipping cream

Saute onions & garlic. Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot, except for the whipping cream. Cook on low for 2-3 hours. Add whipping cream just before serving & top with tortilla chips & sour cream. Enjoy!

GIRLFRIENDS

Growing up I didn't have a lot of great girlfriends. I dealt with most of the girl drama -we're friends today, not tomorrow -blah, blah, blah. Some of the hardest situations I dealt with growing up had to do with girlfriends. I had a few now & then but none that stuck for good. I was always trying to be someone I wasn't - following the crowd.

Today in bible study Beth Moore talked about how we as women are all on a journey together. We need to work together not against each other. She said it is amazing how God pulled all of us women, all from different walks of life, different ages, personalities, yet we become sisters in Christ. Each of us is who we are for a reason & we all have a place.

Every Thursday after bible study a whole group of us moms get together for lunch. It is a time of chaos with 10-15 or so kids running around & then trying to feed them (today a mom forgot to give one her kids lunch - it is that crazy. Note: her son was outside playing & just never came in & asked. She is a great mom!) But it is an awesome time for us moms. We are all so different; we each bring something to the group; we have a great camaraderie (don't know if I spelled that right), that is just so fun to see! It is a great support system & there are some days I could never survive without them! There is no way we could have the type of friendship we do if we weren't all in the same spot of life, just wanting to raise our kids the best we can & be great women of God.

Today I realized I don't need to worry about feeling bad that I am not like this person or that one (one of my weaknesses). God made me who I am for a reason & I have some sort of a place with my group of friends- although I am not sure what it is! And I don't have to worry because my friends really do love me for me! They know all about me & it doesn't change anything! (Although getting my nose pierced did shock most of them : ))

I am so thankful God has blessed me with all of my wonderful girlfriends!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Good Night, Sleep Tight Gracie!

FALL IS HERE!

My favorite fall creamer

My hands start getting so dry so I use Satin Hands often in the fall

My bed - notice one side is made, that's Nathan's. Fall means hunting season. So I usually wake up & he's gone or he's been gone for the night - this is the not so fun part of fall! He waits all year for this so I am glad he enjoys it!

I love to decorate!

This is our neighbor's tree. All of those leaves end up in our yard needing to be raked. We get them all raked & then Gracie jumps in them! I am looking forward to Cassidy being able to play in them with her!

I love to burn candles! My favorite scents are Spiced Pumpkin Pie & Spiced Cranberry from a local company here called Flickering Scents.

FALL FAVORITES

Borrowed this from a friend's blog & thought it was fun!


Tell me what you like about fall! Leave your answers in my comments or on your blog!


F (Your favorite food)
A (Favorite fall activity)
L (Favorite fall liquid drink)
L (what you look forward to when fall comes)


Here are my answers:

F- I love soups (White Chicken Chilli is the best!), Pumpkin Muffins

A- We like to do outside activities. We like to go to pumpkin patches & harvest festivals

L- Pumpkin Latte from Brownstone coffee!

L- I find fall very refreshing. I don't like summer so I love the change in season! Also, I know after fall Christmas is coming - My favorite!

I DO NOT BAKE COOKIES

I have never been a good cookie maker. I don't know what it is about me & cookies. I don't make them very often but every once in awhile I try again. Well, I tried again today. Here's what I got:

They don't look as bad in this picture but they were flat as can be, crispy & I let Gracie & her friend use cookie cutters on 2 of them. You can't even tell! My mom made these exact same cookies with the exact same cookie cutters & they turned out great!

They looked even more ridiculous on the cooling rack. Some of them weren't fully cooked, some of them were over cooked...ridiculous!

Every time I make cookies I ask myself why I even try - then I remember it is something fun that Gracie can help with. She had a friend over & thought it would be a fun project for them. He even said 'those didn't cook very well'! I hope he doesn't tell his mom who is a fabulous cook!

Oh well, I have other strong points - my family can't get enough of my French Toast! I'll just stick to that!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY: Waiting for Daddy