In a worrisome, troubled world, people took comfort when President Hinckley said, in his fatherly, assuring way, "It isn't as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out."

Saturday, December 12, 2009

FUNNY FUNNY MOTHER

FUNNY, FUNNY MOTHER


See mother. See mother laugh. Mother is happy.

Mother is happy about Christmas.


Mother has many plans. Mother has many plans for Christmas.

Mother is organized. Mother smiles all the time.

Funny, funny, mother.



See mother. See mother smile. Mother is happy.

The shopping is all done.

See the children watch TV. Watch children, watch.

See the children change their minds. See them ask Santa for different toys.



Look, look. Mother is not smiling.

Funny, funny, mother.



See mother. See mother sew.

Mother will make dresses. Mother will make robes.

Mother will make skirts.

Sew, mother, sew.

Look. See mother put the zipper in wrong.

See mother sew the dress on the wrong side.

See mother cut the skirt too short.

See mother put the material away until January.

Look, look. See mother take a tranquilizer.

Funny, funny, mother.



See mother. See mother buy raisins and nuts.

See mother buy candied pineapple and powdered sugar.

See mother buy flour and chocolate chips and pecans and brown sugar.

Look, look. Mother is mixing everything together.



See the children press out cookies. See the flour on their elbows.

See the children frost and decorate the cookies.

See the children make a horrible mess.

See the children pull taffy.

See mother pull her hair.

See mother clean the kitchen with the garden hose.

Funny, funny, mother.



See father smile. Father is happy. Smile, father, smile.



See mother. See mother wrap presents.

See mother look for the end of the scotch tape roll.

See mother wrap and wrap and wrap!

See mother bite her fingernails.



See mother go.

See mother go to the store twelve times in one hour.

Go mother, go.

See mother go faster. Run, mother run.



See mother trim the tree.

See mother have a party.

See mother make caramel popcorn.

See mother scrub the rug.



See mother forget the gift for Uncle Harold.

See mother tear up the organized plan.

See mother get the hives.

So, mother, go.



See the faraway look in mother's eyes.

Mother is disorganized. Mother is disoriented.

Funny, funny, mother.



It is finally Christmas morning.

See the happy family.

Father loves fruit cake. Father loves Christmas pudding.

See the children's toys. Santa was very good to the children.

The children will remember this Christmas.



See mother. Mother is slumped in a chair.

Mother has ugly dark circles under her bloodshot eyes.

Everyone helps mother to bed.

Mother sleeps quietly under heavy sedation.

See mother smile.



Funny, funny, mother!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Essentially Creative

I have come to the astounding conclusion that I "MUST do something creative every single day.
Housework, while a necessary evil, is in no way creative.
In order to feed my soul, nourish my mind and preserve my sanity I need to be creative in even some small way EVERY day.
It doesn't matter if it is sewing, crochet, quilting or making cards and scrapbooks.
It doesn't have to consume the entire day or even most of it.
It can just be a few stolen minutes to do something, "anything" that feels creative.
If I take those few moments I am better able to face this crazy life and its challenges.
So my advice to every one is to find that creative outlet that feeds your soul and never let life's mundane problems rob you of its life sustaining nourishment.
Everyone has the spark of creativity within them.
P.S.
Yes, sometimes I can be serious.

Friday, October 9, 2009

OREO TRUFFLES

This is for my facebook friends
Bryan says these are "scrumdelicious". (scrumptious + delicious)
All I know is they are very rich and soooo good.

Oreo Truffles

1 pkg. (1 lb. 2 oz) Oreo cookies, finely crushed

1 pkg. (8 oz.) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

2 pkg. (8 squares each) Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate, Melted

Mix 3 cups of the cookie crumbs and the cream cheese until well blended.
Shape into about 42 - 1 inch balls.

Dip balls in melted chocolate; place on wax paper-covered baking sheet.
Sprinkle with remaining cookie crumbs.

Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm
Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

ENJOY!!!
Just don't eat too many.
YUM!!!

Friday, September 25, 2009

Making Lists

I like to make lists.
It makes me feel in control when in reality I know that I'm not.
I even make lists of my lists as you can tell from my last post.
I have made progress in my list making though.
I now have the following lists on my computer instead of in a small notebook or on random post it notes which usually gets lost.

My lists for Christmas organization are:
1. Christmas cards
2. Christmas goodies to make
3. Christmas gifts to make
4. Christmas project ideas
5. Christmas gifts to buy

So, you see, I am getting organized and ready for Christmas.
I have listed people to send card to, but not their addresses.
I have listed goodies to make,
but of course it is a bit early to start cooking.
I have listed a few projects and gifts that I want to make and
even bought some of the required materials.

Now for the amazing part.
I have actually finished two gifts.
Yes you heard me right, two gifts are completely finished.
Not only that but, another is in progress.
I know that is hard to believe, but it is true.
Now all of this craftiness is completely top secret
so I can't provide further details,
but all will be revealed in just 93 days.
Yep, that is how long until Christmas.

I will continue to give updates on how little time we have to prepare so that you can become more stressed as time gets shorter.
I however will remain calm, because after all, I have my lists.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

100 Days Until Christmas

I belong to a group called "100 Days Til Christmas. They promise that if I follow their guidelines and use the planning list that I will have an organized and stress free holiday season. Now I certainly believe in miracles but I think maybe that is too much to ask. Everyone knows that me and organization mix about as well as oil and water. I mean if you look up the definition of organized you will not see a picture of me. I have my system and it works for me, most of the time. I know which pile of papers are the bills and which pile is the recipes I want to try someday. I usually know which room a certain article resides in unless I have been cleaning and then all bets are off. I have been working on this lately, but it is still a work in progress and progress is slooooow.

Back to that 100 days till Christmas thing. I will not panic yet. I will be more organized. After all having a goal is good, right? I'll start with making lists. I am VERY good at making lists, just not so good at actually accomplishing the things on my lists. But I have to start somewhere.

These will be my lists;
1. Christmas Cards
2. Goodies to Make
3. Gifts to Buy
4. Gifts to Make

Yeah, that looks like a good plan. (Pat myself on the back)

Ok it is probably to early to do anything about the first two and I don't have the faintest idea what to buy anyone so I guess I'll work on number four. Oh, but first I need to make a "list" of the projects I want to create. Hey, this means another list. I think I'm going to be good at this organization stuff after all. I just have to keep making lists.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

AUTUMN

Autumn sounds so much more classy than FALL.
No matter what you call it I love the season between
Summer and Winter.
I LOVE FALL !!!
It is, in my opinion, the perfect time of year.

So today by popular request I am:
1. Continuing my "Things I am Thankful For" series and
2. Rambling about Fall.

And yes I know I don't have to capitalize Fall every time I write it but in case you didn't get it the first time "I LOVE FALL".
There is nothing I don't like about Fall.
(I will spell it with a capital every time because I want to and just so you don't forget what I'm talking about)

I love that the excessively hot and humid days of summer are coming to and end for another year. Those days when as soon as you step out of the shower you are soaked in "perspiration" again. Summer days so humid that is is like trying to breath underwater.
That must be what fish feel like when we pull them out of the water and they try to breath air.
Summer is NOT my favorite season.

Fall is the season before it get so cold that my fingers turn blue. I know we live in the south and it doesn't get cold by some people's standard, but heck we ARE southerners and not used to cold weather.

OK, enough negativity, on to why I LOVE Fall.

I like cool crisp mornings with a hint of colder weather to come.
I like seeing the first frost on my lawn.
I like the smell of leaves burning.
I love the colors of the leaves; golds, yellows, oranges, browns.
I like to see people raking leaves into piles and
children jumping into those piles.
I like to drive down the tree lined streets and
have the wind blow down the leaves in little "leaf showers"
I like to see the big yellow school buses roll down our street.
I like to see moms buying school supplies and kids excited about returning to school, seeing old friends, meeting new ones and
finding out who their teacher will be.
I like to throw on my favorite sweatshirt when I go out to get the mail.
I like curling up with a good book, a cup of hot chocolate, an afghan and feeling all warm and snug in my home.

I love football season. I've never been a big sports fan, but football is not just a sport. Football is huddling in the stands on a crisp Saturday afternoon. It is cheerleaders and pom poms. It is homecoming and bowl games. It is legendary school rivalries. It is mascots and coaches. It is yelling until your throat is sore. It is tailgating and victory parties.

Fall makes me want to ... wait for it ... it makes me want to "COOK".
I am not the best cook in the world, but I make a great veggie soup.
Which is the only way I will eat vegetables.
Fall makes me want to cook big pots of soup or chili.
I want to make chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies.
(Again that is the only way I will eat peanut butter)
I love the smell of cinnamon and pumpkin
(which I refuse to eat no matter what you do to it)
Fall is time for cups of hot chocolate and
oooey, gooey, yummy, s'mores.

Fall is Wayne County Fair time.
I will NOT ride any rides, but I love the fair.
The sound, the smells (most of them anyway), the lights,
the exhibits and even the crowds.
I love bumping into people you haven't seen for a while.
I love seeing the food booths that are run by church groups and
volunteer fire departments.
I like to look at the art from the local schools and the crafts and
the home canning displays.
I have to eat cotton candy, boiled peanuts,
and a hamburger or a hot dog.
But most of all I HAVE to have a funnel cake
covered with powdered sugar.
Hot fried dough covered in sweet sticky sugar.
What could finish off an evening at the fair any better.

I love Halloween not just because my favorite goblin was
born on that day. Which is, of course, my number one reason.
Halloween is just fun!
No gifts to buy, no big meal to prepare no STRESS.
Just fun decorations, silly costumes and CANDY.
Preferably of the chocolate variety.
Halloween is little spooks standing on the front porch holding out their bags and being to afraid to say "Trick or Treat". It is having at least one "ring and dash" from that teenager who is too old to go trick or treating, but just wants to join the fun.
I have to watch "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown",
but positively NO scary movies or hurtful tricks.
Just FUN.

Fall is for carving pumpkins and toasting the pumpkin seeds. Why I toast the seeds I don't know. It is another one of those things I make but don't like. But is seems like the right thing to do after you rip the guts out of a perfectly good pumpkin. Kind of paying respect to "The Great Pumpkin"

Then comes Thanksgiving which is a bit more stress,
but a good kind of stress.
I Love planning and cooking our "Family Feast".
I cook too much and can you believe it, I eat too much.
We watch the Macy's parade and some football.
Then it is time to get the sale papers and plan our attack strategy for an early morning of black Friday bargain shopping.

Fall just never seems to last long enough for me.
It feels like the shortest season of the year.
It is gone much too soon and then we are into the hustle and bustle that the Christmas season has become.

I want the world to slow down and enjoy Fall for the perfect season that it is. The season to just enjoy the feeling that is kind of like that peaceful, cozy feeling you get just before you fall asleep at night.
Maybe that is what Fall is to me; that half asleep, half awake feeling after one busy day and before another.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Keeping In Touch

I had a great chat with my brother, Randy last night.
Randy and his family live in Hawaii so we don't get to visit in person.
I am so glad that we can "bump" into each other on line every few weeks and have a chat.
It makes me miss him and feel closer to him at the same time.
Randy, I loved looking at the pictures on your blog.
Hope you find time to read mine and leave a comment or two.
That goes for everyone else also.
Let me know what you think of my rambling.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Clutter, Clutter Everywhere

Clutter clutter everywhere and not an end do I see.
Shhhhh.
Don't tell anyone.
I'm decluttering my house and therefore my life.
As hard as it is to believe, I save "stuff".
There I said it, I'm a PackRat.
Hello, My name is Sherrie and I am a "collector".

Now don't get me wrong I haven't stepped over the edge into "hoarder" but I'm close. I do NOT need an intervention though.
They say the first step is admitting you have a problem.
Well I admit it and I'm in the process of doing something about it.
The problem is compounded by the fact that I married another of the PackRat species, but he will never admit it.
What do you get when two of a kind marry and have lived in the same house for 30 years? You get an unimaginable amount of "things".
I also love gadgets that I usually use once and then just pack away.
Plus the fact that I am a sentimental sap who saves anything that has even the least amount of tug on my heartstrings.
Oh and I have more craft supplies than an army for crafters could possibly use in three lifetimes, but that is a story for another post.

Well, you probably get the picture. We are working on it though.
Yes, I have managed to convince my fellow PackRat that if we don't want to become the lead story on the six o'clock news, "Couple found beneath mountain of clutter", that he has to own some responsibility for the situation and thus must help with the solution.

So, to make a long story even longer,
see I'm even excessive in my writing.
Maybe there is no hope for me.

Anywaaaay,
We are on a quest to reclaim our home that I so lovingly wrote of in my previous post.

Here is the big plan.
Ever so slowly we will sort and purge.
This takes a tremendous amount of self control
of which I have very little.
Now before you say,
"Yeah right, I've heard her claims of cleaning out before."
let me tell you that it is not just a plan of action,
but that it has begun.
And I don't mean just the usual shifting of boxes from
one room to the other.
We have made actual "progress".

Our bedroom and the closet have been "decluttered" and three bags of clothes were taken to Good Will or the dump depending of the decade of said clothes.

The living room closet, formerly know as the game closet, is now a coat closet.

The next adventure was the laundry room, which is actually a closet, but in which you had to move things off the washer in order to do a load of laundry.
I am proud to announce that that is no longer necessary.

Our most recent project was the kitchen, which is still a work in progress.
It is looking much better though if I do say so myself.

All of this has included numerous trips to the dump with garbage bags full of what I now see as useless clutter.

Oh, I almost forgot.
Bryan, under much protest, cleaned out his rolltop desk.
He even threw away ancient receipts etc.
I am so proud of him.

Next on the agenda is the computer room/office/guest room.
Then it is on to the craft room/guest room.
hhhmmm Our house is so small that every room has a dual purpose.
Multitasking to the extreme!

The big finale will be "THE DUNGEON".
This is actually our garage which was many years ago converted to a game room and in which, under a monstrous amount of who knows what,is actually a pool table.
We will probably have to demolish that to get it out of the house.
I kind of like the thought of taking a sledge hammer to something.
When this herculean task is finished it will become a playroom for grandchildren/guest room.
See, dual purpose again.

So, I am very proud of our progress so far
(She said, trying not to break her arm while patting herself on the back.)

My goal is to have the mission accomplished by the holidays.
Wish me luck.

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Home

Thursday, in an effort to be a more positive person, I decided to choose one thing each day that I'm thankful for and focus on appreciating that.
Since so many people are losing their houses, I decided I would focus on my Home. Notice that I said my "HOME" not my house.
A "house" is just somewhere to live.
A "HOME" is where you spend your "life".
My home is tiny, old, and in need of much repair. When we moved here 30 years ago it was only going to be temporary until we could build a bigger house. Well life got in the way as it usually does. Now I wouldn't trade my home for anything bigger, fancier or in a "better" neighborhood. This is where I belong. This is "HOME". We have raised our family here. There have good times and difficult times; happy times and sad times. There have been slumber parties, birthday parties, cook-outs, Thanksgiving feasts and Christmas mornings. I marked my children's growth on the kitchen wallpaper (which was saved when the awful 70s paper came down). There has been play dough smushed into the carpet, crayon masterpieces on the wall and later the occasional hole punched through the wall. There have been teenagers playing pool and loud music. There was the Mulberry tree in the back yard for climbing and a tire swing. The backyard was the place for football, volleyball, badminton, and bike ramps. The basketball hoop still hangs on the front of the garage. We have drawn on the driveway with sidewalk chalk and played in the sprinkler. We have built the occasional snowman and with stood hurricanes. We have rescued baby animal of all types. We have had dogs, cats, bird, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, turtles, frogs lizards, geckos and rabbits as our many pets. From our home we have sent our children off to college, on missions and then off to make homes of their own when they got married. Our babies and now grand babies have been rocked to sleep, fed, and loved here. They have brought total chaos and much happiness. My home is much like the stuffed rabbit in the story "The Velveteen Rabbit". It is quite simply loved. What more can I say "This Is HOME"

Saturday, February 14, 2009

More Project Photos

I'm still having fun with my Cricut.
Thought I would share a few more photos of my projects.
Pictures are: etched glass vase, turtle stamped with stamp I made, fabric flowers on t-shirt and misc.cut outs.You can click on the photo to enlarge and see details better.




Friday, February 13, 2009

THE TOY

My new toy is ....... drum roll please ...... a Cricut!

No silly, not a small insect. That is spelled cricket.
This is pronounced the same, but is much more fun.

A Cricut is a computerized die cut machine. Does that still not make any sense?
I will explain. It cuts shapes that can be used for scrapbooks, cards etc. I know that doesn't sound very exciting, but it does much more too. Some of the things that I have made so far are Valentine cards and gift bags. I cut a stencil and etched a glass vase. I cut fabric flowers and put them on a t shirt. I made a vinyl decal for hubby's truck. (An orange Tiger paw, of course) I made a rubber stamp of a cute turtle in the exact size I wanted. Have you heard of "Wall Words". It is a quote or saying made of vinyl placed on the wall. Very popular and pretty expensive. I can make these in any size, color and style that I want. If you want to know more go to cricut.com or look for the infomercial on late night TV. Yes, I sometimes watch infomercials, but I saw the Cricut first on a craft show, then on QVC. Yes. I watch that too. You can google Cricut and utube has videos of Cricut projects. I know, this is my new obsession, but it is so much fun. Brandon and Lisa gave me a program that lets me take any font or wing ding on the internet and use it to cut. So many possibilities! If this STILL doesn't make much sense maybe some pictures will help. And yes lil sis I can and will make something for you. I already have something in mind that I think you will like. Anyway here are some pictures.






Wednesday, February 11, 2009

My Newest Toy

Everyone knows I LOVE crafts, gadgets and technology. Anytime I can combine ALL three, well let's just say I am a happy crafter. That is exactly what my new toy does. I have wanted this for a very long time, but couldn't justify the price of $400 or more that it was advertised for. Now don't misunderstand. I have no problem going to Michaels every week with my 40% off coupon and buying something/anything. I mean it is wasting money not to use a 40% off coupon. After all I will eventually use all the craft supplies that threaten to take over my house. I mean I just have to live till I'm 103. I'm in Michael's so often that the people greet me by name as I enter and ask me about my latest project. I really think our local Michael's would close without my business. So I am doing my small part for the economy. OK, back to my newest toy.It is tradition in our house to check out the Thanksgiving sale ads after we have consumed enough feast food to satisfy an army of starving hyenas. This year as I was checking out the Walmart ad I saw IT! There It was for an unbelievable price of $200 at the early bird sale on the day after Thanksgiving. Now I was suffering from the most awful cold in the history of womankind, besides I already had my shopping battle plan set to the second. So unashamed child that I am, I begged my wonderful, indulgent hubby to brave the crowd of crazies to get it for me before they sold what was probably the only one they had at that price. I insisted that it was absolutely the only thing I wanted for Christmas and I had resisted the temptation to buy it at full price for a LONG time. I assured him that I could make wonderful, marvelous things for everyone we knew. So bright and early on black Friday my one and only trudged into the crowds and came home with IT. He placed it behind the couch, covered it with a blanket, and made me promise that if I dared to even peek under the blanket that it would disappear back to where it had come. I know this is hard to believe but I didn't peek, really I didn't. But I did go on line and read every thing on every web site I could find about all it's wonderful, magical possibilities. Now by now I'm sure you are imagining that I now have in my possession a machine that will end world hunger, do away with war and at the least take me back to my younger and much more slender days. I would settle for the last one. Oh dear readers, I am afraid I have built you up for a terrible disappointment, but drama queen that I am I was having just to much fun getting carried away with my writing. Alas, I have wasted too much time at the computer this lovely morning. I must get back to my dreary life and do some laundry. I promise that my next post will include pictures of my toy and what it has created. Don't you just LOVE a "cliffhanger" ending.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Sunbeams

Ok, contrary to some tabloid accounts, I was not abducted by aliens nor was I conferring with Stephanie Meyers on my top secret roll in the next Twilight movie.
I have been alternating between playing with my Christmas toy (More on that later) and teaching three year olds on Sundays. I have spent many years teaching Primary kids on Sundays, but for a few years now I have been leading women's groups. (just bigger kids really) Anyway it is taking me a while to get used to teaching little ones again, but I love it. Three year olds are like Mexican jumping beans they can't be still for a second. Their attention span is shorter than a gnat's. I use lots of visual aids, games, and roll playing to try to keep them somewhat under control for an hour. After which I send them back to mommy and daddy with a handout explaining what the lesson was "supposed" to be about in the hopes that their parents can get them to listen for a few minutes. I have 7 little darlings in my class; four boys and three girls. some have just barely turned three and some are almost four but will stay in my class until next January. At this age there is a wide range of development which keeps things interesting. Really though they are so sweet and I do love teaching. I come home exhausted, but by next week I'm ready to see my little Sunbeams.

Tomorrow I will share my new toy with you. Hint: Think awesome scrapbooks, cards and sooo much more.