What I'm Loving Wednesday

Happy Sun-shiny Wednesday!


I'm loving that it's a cool, yet beautiful Wednesday today! After the past few days this is a gorgeous change.


SO hoping this doesn't become the norm around here. Come on SUMMER!

I'm loving that tomorrow is the first day of December. I know, I know. The traffic is already a total nightmare, but the Christmas music is flowing and the Days Till Christmas countdown has begun :)

I'm loving that the countdown has also begun for Michael to head home for Christmas! Although I talk to him regularly, it's just not the same without those hugs :) This Mama has gotta have her hugs!

I'm loving that our decorations are all up AND working. We scaled way back this year. Inside ...


and out,



which means the kids got the over-flow :)

I'm loving that Pinterest has introduced me to an endless array of recipes. Seriously. Look!


Beer Cheese Dip

2 – 8oz pkgs Cream Cheese, softened
1/3 cup beer*
1 envelope Ranch Dressing Mix
2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Beat the first three ingredients until well blended.
Stir in cheddar cheese by hand.

*If dip is too thick, add a little beer to thin it down.



Vegetable Ranch Dip

1- 6oz plain yogurt
6 oz light mayonnaise
8 oz low fat cottage cheese
1 pkg Hidden Valley Ranch Buttermilk dressing mix

Empty yogurt into bowl. Use empty yogurt container to measure out 6 oz of light mayonnaise. Add cottage cheese and dry dressing mix. Stir until well blended.

Enjoy with your favorite vegetables!

Pumpkin Pie Makeover

1 Low Fat Graham Cracker
5 Tbsp Fat Free Reddi Whip
1 Tbsp Pumpkin Spice Creamer
1 Tsp Cinnamon
2 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Filling

Spread Pumpkin Pie Filling over Graham Cracker
Drizzle Pumpkin Creamer over the Pumpkin Pie Filling
Add Whipped Topping
Sprinkle Cinnamon over the top

(Cal 110/Carbs 15g/Protein 4g/Fat 2g)

Endless information. Good and bad ...

Pecan Pie a la Mode
810 calories
65 g fat
55 g sugars

And neat, neat DYI's and just stuff!!

I just LOVE this! (Pinterest :)


And I'm loving that this find sort of leads me into sharing my devotional from today. It's by Rick Warren, author of A Purpose Driven Life (and others).

It spoke about loving the unlovable.

Loving the unlovable means when you love people who don’t love you, when you love people who irritate you, when you love people who stab you in the back or gossip about you.

It seems like an impossible task, because it is – that’s why we need God’s love in us, so we can then love others.

"Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then grab the initiative and do it for them! If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to get out of it, do you think that's charity? The stingiest of pawnbrokers does that. (Luke 6:31-34 MSG)

He shared a good reminder – that might come in handy particularly during these holidays...

When you realize how much God loves you – with an extravagant, irresistible, unconditional love – then his love will change your entire focus on life. If we don’t receive God’s love for us, we’ll have a hard time loving other people. I’m talking about loving people who are unlovely, difficult, irritable, and those who are different or demanding.

You can’t do that until you have God’s love coming through you. You need to know God’s love so it can overflow out of your life into others.

Share this with others. It might just help them see Cousin Tom, Aunt Mabel or Uncle Theodore thru a whole new set of eyes ... :)

I'm loving that the weekend is fast approaching and I'm so ready for it :) Hoping for one that's low-key, lazy and spent with family.

Can I get an Amen??

Until later :)

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Here it is! Happy Wednesday!


I mean, what is to NOT to love about this one?

I'm loving that it's my Friday! Woohoo ... 4 day weekend :)

I'm loving that the Christmas tree and decorations are going up this weekend! Ho-Ho-Ho!


I'm loving that on Friday I will be snuggled in bed because I have NO reason to join the early-bird, black Friday shoppers before the crack of dawn ...

I'm loving that tomorrow is my favorite holiday of the year ...

I'm loving that we'll be spending it with my family! Can I share a secret? Life gets a whole lot easier once you realize that everyone has a dysfunctional family to some degree, not just you. The trick is to just repeat to yourself over and over that ...


Yet on the other spectrum of things, I try to remember something that doesn't just apply to a stranger or a check-out clerk we mignt meet. It also applies to those we're related to...


Ohhh! I'm loving today because they're all looking forward to my Sweet Potato Casserole again ... YUM!!

Here's the recipe


6 med to large sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, well beaten
1/2 c milk
1 stick butter, melted
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Mix well; beat with mixer until smooth. Place in baking dish.

Topping:

1/2 c light brown sugar
1/2 c self-rising flour
1/2 stick butter, softened
1 c chopped pecans

Blend brown sugar and flour until grainy with electrix mixer on low. Slowly add butter, keeping mixture grainy. Add pecans, again keeping mixture grainy. Sprinkle over potatoes and bake @ 350 for approx 30 minutes. ENJOY!

I'm loving today for all kinds of delicious AND easy recipes I've found via my BFF, Pinterest too ...

Like Crack Brownies! DE-licious!!


Named so, no doubt due to the addiction :)

And for all the brilliant short-cuts and great ideas I've found on there too. (check my boards)


Love it when I am just scrolling through the 'pins' and have repeated 'ah-ha' moments over something like this ...





Love me some Pinterest!

But what I'm loving most about this Wednesday is that tomorrow is Thanksgiving. A day set aside to give thanks. A day to gather with loved ones and offer thanks for the many, many blessings that we all receive, yet do not deserve. A day to reflect on everything God does for us - every single second of every single day.


So this week, I am defintely loving Wednesday for no other reason than



How about you?

Until later :)

Link up

Gobble, Gobble, Jingle Bells ...

Man, I have a super early case of Christmas cheer going on! Normally I'm (well, the Mister is) dreading dragging out all of the decorations, rearranging furniture, etc. But not this year - so far!

I mean, Thanksgiving is just a little less than a week away! And I think I've mentioned before that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. I just love the whole family-getting-together-for-no-other-reason-than-to-celebrate-everything-we-have-to-be-thankful-for. I adore my family. Even the ones I didn't choose :)

But Thanksgiving will be here and gone before I know it, so I did purchase a few decorations today - since Hobby Lobby has a 50% off sale going on. I have a few ideas (thanks to my newest BFF, Pinterest) that I want to try. So that called for a few crafty things.

And then again, maybe it's because life is just so good right now. I'm almost scared to say that out loud, but know what I mean? When you feel so ridiculously blessed and all is just right with everything??

The son-in-law is safe back on American soil and home with Miss Priss ...

Michael will be home for the holidays in less than a month...

Sammie has the APSU plans on track and rolling ...

My mom is in a better place, health wise, than she's been in a long, long time ...

We love when our kids come to visit. But the empty-nest is just feeling really, really comfortable right now ...

Life is good. And I am beyond thankful ...

So yeah, I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving and even more so to Christmas, all it represents and having our family home, happy and together.

You know what Buddy says ...



Until later :)

What I'm Loving Wednesday

Here it is! Happy Wednesday!


And I'm loving that it's the middle of the week...

Two days past Monday...

And only two days until a much anticipated home coming...

I'm loving that someone special is flying to Daytona tonight to visit our son. He's been anxiously awaiting this visit :)


I'm loving that my back pain is better. And yeah, this course of treatment is s-l-o-w ... but it definitely beats the alternative.


I'm loving it because tomorrow night I'll travel to see Mrs. Forbes and visit with our crazy friends for an hour. Geez! The people are - ughhhhh ..... we'll miss you Kristina :)


I'm loving today because my son-in-law is so much closer to being home. It'll be good to see Priss with that silly 24/7 ear-to-ear grin on her face again. :)

I'm loving it because I have a love-hate relationship going on with Pinterest! It's totally awesome, yet completely addictive at the same time. There will soon be a new definition in Websters. Pinterest; a black hole!

I'm loving Wednesday though because I have found some of the neatest things on there :)

I mean from informational and helpful things (they're pinned) like what foods you can freeze ...



household tips ...

9. Safety Pins: Seriously, I had never heard of this before, but I gave it a shot, and it worked REALLY well. All I did was pin two safety pins on two different items in the dryer and everything came out static free!

10: Vinegar: I’ve actually been using vinegar for the last couple of weeks so I know it works well. Just pour about 1/4 c. of white vinegar into the fabric softener dispenser on your washing machine. You should have no need for a dryer sheet — and NO, you can’t smell the vinegar. {if you’re interested, here are 9 other uses for vinegar.}

What worked the best?
Hands down, the best solution {in my opinion} is combining the vinegar and the safety pins. After about 286 loads of laundry, that combo seemed to work the best. Plus, it’s eco-friendly — and practically free!

Another thing I learned is that using less detergent and washing your clothing less frequently also helps to reduce static cling.

simple, handy recipes ...

Pumpkin Pie Spice

2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground ginger
1½ tsp. ground allspice
1½ tsp. ground cloves
¾ tsp. ground nutmeg

Combine all spices in a small bowl and whisk well to blend. Store spice blend in an airtight container.

and of course crafts and ideas I would never have thought of ...


But - all of you fellow Pinners already know that this is just the tip of the iceberg.

But I'm also loving today because Pinterest is a good place for inspiration too. So since I just happened to be browsing anyway ...









Seriously, if you haven't checked it out yet - do so. Just remember I will not be held responsible.

Because ...



and I'm apparently not the only one ...

Until later :)

Easy, breezy ...

Wow, what a breezy kinda weekend!

We have the strangest weather around here. It says something that not many people are even surprised by it anymore. It's summer one day, winter the next, a day or two of fall and then right back to summer, etc, etc. It makes it hard to know what to wear on any given day and I'm sure even harder to dress the kiddo's. But don't take this as complaining. I know too well that the 'real' winter will be here before we know it.

Our weekend was calm and unusually uneventful. Once again - not complaining! I'm still taking it easy because of the back and about the only way I can actually do that is to stay away from home. You know what I mean.

Priss agreed to do a little shopping with me on Saturday. I almost forget sometimes what it's like to shop with her.

Never a dull moment :) After an awesome message at Grace on Sunday (see below) we met our former small group for lunch. It's amazing how close we all are. They are like family to us now and it feels so good :)

Following that Priss picked up the granddog and spent the day with us. She has a hard time staying out of my kitchen. Everytime I turn around she's got her little head stuck in the pantry. It usually leads to this ...

which leads to this!
Her daddy is happy, but it's killin' me. Hopefully there will be someone around to take care of these delicious, calorie laden treats real, real soon :)

And like I said, the granddog came over. This child has more energy than you could possibly imagine! I don't know how he does it, but his grandpa somehow manages to wear him out (thank goodness :)!

Looks like it's going to be another roller-coaster week of weather in our fair city.
So keep the scarves, hats, shorts, tank tops, gloves, flip-flops and boots all ready!!

Until later :)

The Final Chapter from Gcomchurch Sermons on Vimeo.

What I'm Loving Wednesday...

It's here again! Happy Wednesday!


Middle of the week...

Two days past Monday...

And only two until the weekend...

And I'm loving today because my back feels mucho better! Man, I've had a time with it this go around. Have another chiropractor appointment after work today. Hoping for even more relief after that.

I'm loving it because I began a 6 week bible study with some pretty neat women. Can't wait to see what God teaches me through this one.

I'm loving today because of the reminders of what an amazing Creator we have ... took this gorgeous shot at lunch.


I'm loving today because my son-in-law is even closer to coming home where he belongs. Clock's a ticking ...

Been searching for some boots. Found these and bit the bullet. I'll consider them for a few days or a week. Not above returns - been there, done that.


I'm loving it because of the amazing weekend the Mister and I had. A much needed get-a-way. Just a short recap ...
It was total peace and quiet -
In a quaint and cozy little cabin -

Yet with all the comforts of home -

And filled with pleasant, subtle reminders -


So yep ... I'm really loving this Wednesday for all the many, many blessings I receive. And for all of those that I continue to receive on a daily basis.

And on that note ...

Until later :)

t*r*o*u*b*l*e

OH MY GOSH!! I have fallen victim ...

... never mind the fact that I had to sign up to join and then wait 3 days to be invited into their club(what's up with that anyway??).

I remembered the warnings from Priss and Kristina that the DIY's were addictive. So I knew going in that I should definitely stay away from those.

And what is the very first thing I see??

I mean really - just look at those adorable flowers!! How stinkin' easy is that????

Can I just say it was hooked at first sight?

Then! I come scroll down a wee bit and find this :) If I've heard Priss murmur this once, I've heard it a 100 times. What a funny idea :)


And I'm always reading printed pictures at Hobby Lobby or wherever. So I started coming across things like this ...


We really were, weren't we?

I saw this and it reminded me of pictures of my mom as a newlywed wife.


She has always been a strikingly beautiful woman.

Oh! And then this! It's become a tradition over the past several years to watch Elf while putting up the Christmas tree.


Hope Mr. Forbes realizes that's not going to change ...

And then this picture. How cute??


Immediately brought back memories. Can't wait till there is another grand'baby' around our house ;)

And then pictures of foods - strange foods ideas - started showing up. I mean seriously - who'da thunk it??



Ahh! It is all so overwhelming! And I was just beginning to fully realize I should have heeded the warnings when I came across this ...

... is that spooky or what???

Until later :)