The Simple Life

Shutting this blog down! Come over to my new one!!

2011-02-08T12:53:00.002-06:00

I am going to close this blog, and hopefully import all the old posts to my new blog. So this will be my last announcement. I don't want to lose any of you, so please hop over to Ida & Mae to follow along! I like readers and comments! :)

Please join me on my new blog!!

2011-01-28T13:05:00.000-06:00

I am going to close this blog and go down to just one blog now that will encompass both my jewelry business and my life. I think I can merge the old posts on this one onto my new one. That way I won't lose my old posts from all these years of blogging. So please come join me on Ida & Mae! I don't want to lose my followers!!

I relaunched my business! Come follow me!!

2011-01-04T14:32:00.000-06:00

You may remember about a year ago at this time I started my little jewelry business Beadworks by Marcy. Well, I have just relaunched that business with a new name and a new look. The name limited me to just jewelry, and I want to offer more goods in the near future. So I bring you, Ida & Mae! I have a new blog up, a new FB fan page, and I am working on my Etsy shop. Please come "like" and follow them all! I am thinking about closing this blog and just having the Ida & Mae blog only. I certainly do not want to lose any followers, so be sure to come on over and follow me there! If/when I do decide to close this one, I will be sure to make a big announcement to let you all know.

Christmas is almost here!

2010-12-22T16:56:00.000-06:00

Christmas cookies made...

Christmas gifts made and wrapped...

Christmas party finished...

And soon to have sleeping children who will awake on Christmas morning to open presents! Ron and I are super excited for Christmas this year now that the kids are a bit older. Ronnie is already anticipating it! But most of all, we will be sure to share the true reason for the season with our kids, the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We will read the children's bible story and watch the children's video about the nativity. Looking forward to it all! Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Our Christmas cards!!

2010-12-16T18:09:00.000-06:00

Well, I ended up choosing a different card design than the ones I blogged about. But I LOVE how they turned out! They arrived last night, so I filled them out and mailed them today. Here is the front of the card:

The inside has a large photo of our whole family with our names underneath it. And the message says: Merry Christmas
"She will bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Matthew 1:21

Thank you Shutterfly for the wonderful FREE cards!! :)

Baking with my friend Mandy

2010-12-14T09:40:00.000-06:00

My friend Mandy posted on Facebook last week that she had tons of whole wheat flour and eggs and was going to do some baking. She wondered if anyone would like to join her, so I did! We are like- minded when it comes to eating healthy, natural foods, so I was thrilled to be able to spend some time in the kitchen with her whipping up some yummy recipes. Her son Hunter is in the hospital recovering from his bone marrow transplant for his leukemia (click on the "help Hunter blast leukemia" link for his Facebook page). Her husband is staying in the hospital with him, so Mandy is home alone with the kids, and her wonderful friend Tawnie who is staying with her right now. We had a great time baking up a bunch of different things to try. All of which tasted great!

Tasty muffins!

Mandy's youngest two children, such hams!! (Almost 5 year old Ronin was the bone marrow donor for her bigger brother, she is such a brave little girl!)

Just some of the mess we made. :)

Me and Mandy.

Hamming it up again with the cheesy smiles!

Mandy was taking out the peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, while Drayken was spitting out the piece of thumbprint cookie he didn't want. LOL!

These scrambled egg muffins were fantastic! Like mini quiches!

Dishing out the muffins while Tawnie does dishes for us. :)

Drayken just cracked me up! He was up on the chair playing with the radio.

A Shutterfly Christmas

2010-12-04T16:11:00.001-06:00

I am new to Shutterfly, but so far I have been pleased with them! I signed up for a new account a couple months ago and received 75 FREE prints! I had not printed any photos in a long time, so it was fun to be able to get copies of some of the great photos we took this summer. I had edited some on-line and they turned out so neat! I kept some for us, and also put some together as Christmas photo gifts for both sets of grandparents. So right now they are offering bloggers 50 FREE photo cards! So I am going through their awesome selection of Christmas photo cards. I like this one as well as this one and this one and this cute vintage one. It won't be easy to pick out my favorite, but I will eventually narrow it down. Here are some of the photos I am thinking of using:

In addition to their great card designs, I also love Shutterfly's calendars! These are a great gift for grandparents, or just for yourself. Something that I have not seen at many other sites is the option to have your photos made into canvas wall art. This is neat! I may have to look into this for a family photo next year. One other item that I think is neat are their thank you cards. What a great way to send a thanks to those who attended your child's birthday party! Fun stuff! What are you doing for your Christmas cards this year?

Giving thanks for family

2010-12-03T10:37:00.000-06:00

This year we went to Ohio to spend Thanksgiving with Ron's family. We had a nice time and so did the kids. They loved spending some quality time with Paps and Mamaw! Here are some photos from our trip.

Ronnie taking a walk with Mamaw down the driveway.

Riding the 1 cent pony at Meijer, just like daddy and mommy did when we were kids! (I REALLY miss having a Meijer nearby!)

Doing the finishing touches on Thanksgiving dinner!

Rack em!

Some of the desserts, including Ron's grandma's carrot cake recipe, which I now have. :)

Daddy teaching Ronnie how to play pool.

Ronnie with his cousins Trent and Zandra.

Ron and his sister Jennifer.

Mamaw letting Ronnie play with some of her cow figurines.

Ron with his uncle Ralph, they had not seen each other in probably a good 10 years or more.

Paps playing with Ronnie.

Me and Carrie (Mamaw) playing with jewelry. I made her some rings, and she gave me some vintage jewelry.

Mamaw with Elise.

Carrie and I with Elise.

Another "photo shoot" weekend

2010-10-12T14:25:00.000-05:00

There is a neat little area here in our town with some old buildings and tractors and a train. So we wondered around a bit and snapped photos. I didn't get many of Elise because there was a wedding going on there and she is a handful to chase around! :)

Fun "photo shoot" in downtown Nashville

2010-10-06T09:04:00.001-05:00

Last weekend we went to downtown Nashville. We spent some time on the Bicentennial Mall right behind the capital building (as well as Centennial Park where the train was). It was a great opportunity to get some fun pictures of the kids. I edited these on Picnik and love how they turned out!

A trip to Papa and Nana's house!

2010-09-23T08:39:00.000-05:00

The kids and I spent a week in Michigan with my family while Ron was out of town. We missed having him with us, but we sure had a great time! Here are some photos from our visit.

The littlest cousins got to play together for the first time!

Papa and Ronnie played with trains a lot!

Great grandma holding her great granddaughter for the first time! They share the same middle name. This was a very special moment for me to capture!

Papa took Ronnie fishing for the first time. He loved it! He wanted to hold and touch the fish, he showed no fear at all!

My parents with all five of their grandkids! Very special!

My brother's baby Laci taking her first steps. We all got to witness it, so fun!

My brother Scott and his beautiful family.

Me and Scotty. :)

We walked down to a pumpkin patch right by my parents house. The kids enjoyed that too.

My birthday!! {was yesterday}

2010-09-09T09:14:00.000-05:00

September is a big month for us with our anniversary and then my birthday six days later. My dad's birthday is later this month as well, and my grandma Ida's (who passed away in 1995) birthday was this month too. I will honor her with a blog post later this month on her actual birthday. I dug out a couple of photos from my birthday 10 years ago! We were on our honeymoon in Gatlinburg. It was SO much fun! So the first two photos are 10 years old, and the rest were from yesterday.

September 8, 2000 On our honeymoon at a cabin in Gatlinburg.

We had a great time seeing the Smoky Mountains!

September 8, 2010 Ten years of marriage and two kids later. I love my life!!

Our 10th anniversary!!!

2010-09-02T10:30:00.000-05:00

It is hard to believe that an entire decade has passed since we married! Wow! It was such a fun day, we just enjoyed ourselves. I pray for many, many more decades together! And for more babies too! :)

Fabulous lunch wrap!

2010-08-31T22:58:00.000-05:00

Oh this was so good! I need to make them again soon. We had sort of forgotten about the Ezekiel sprouted grain wraps (we only buy Ezekiel bread). Whole Foods is the only place around here that carries the wraps. So now we make it a point to buy some each time we go there (about twice a month). In case you can't see everything on the wrap, it is hummus, spinach, cherry tomatoes, black olives, avocado, carrots and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Mmmmmm!!!!!

Photos from the last couple of weeks

2010-08-30T11:08:00.000-05:00

Ronnie playing in the rain. He loved it!

Thomas is Ronnie's FAVORITE thing to play with. He loves to build the tracks. This one started in his room and went all the way into our room. The life sized Thomas will be in Nashville this weekend, and we are going! I cannot wait to see Ronnie's face when we ride on the big Thomas! I will post pictures for sure!

The track ending in our room. Yes, that is a drum kit in our bedroom. I'm a pretty cool wife! :)

Ronnie's friend Blaise came over to play. (he lives behind us)

Elise carrying a bear bigger than her at our neighbor's house.

Ronnie and Tyler playing. (they live across the street)

Ronnie dumped the whole toy bucket on top of himself. Then gave a cheesy smile. :)

Elise carrying around the lizard she likes to chew on.

Sweet baby girl in her car seat. :)

End of summer clearance bargains!!

2010-08-17T17:00:00.000-05:00

After losing yet another inflatable kiddie pool (our 3rd one in three years), I stopped in at Kohl's and discovered they were blowing out their kiddie pools, and slip and slides! Since I had a store credit of $7 to use, I ended up only paying $6.14 for BOTH of them!!! And the kids have had a BLAST playing on them! Since we live in the south, we will have plenty of time to get some good use out of these before it gets too cold. :)

Banana flax muffins

2010-08-12T22:31:00.000-05:00

I adapted this recipe from a blueberry cornbread muffin recipe. I know, not even close! But I really like how they turned out. I actually used kefir instead of milk, it was what I had on hand. Next time I want to try coconut milk, and I may substitute coconut oil for the butter sometime. If you do use coconut oil instead of butter, you will want to cut back on the sugar a bit or it could be too sweet.

1 1/4 cup spelt flour

1/2 cup flax meal (ground flax seeds)

1/2 raw sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 egg, beaten

2 bananas mashed

handful of chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 375. Grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners. Sift flour, flax, sugar, salt and baking powder together in a large bowl. In a small bowl, combine the milk, butter and egg. Mash the bananas in another bowl. Mix the wet ingredients into the flour mixture just until combined. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top and press in slightly. Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes. Let muffins sit for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Go read my other blog please!

2010-08-12T09:46:00.002-05:00

If you don't already follow my Beadworks by Marcy blog, please do! I just put up a new post and I need some organization tips!

FREE shipping in my Etsy shop!!

2010-08-03T11:20:00.000-05:00

I am having a shop sale this week. FREE shipping through Saturday, August 7th.

Perhaps you've had your eye on this..

Or this...

Or you need a fun ring like this...

Or you like a bit of vintage like this...

Or you need a sweet pair of earrings like this...

Happy shopping!!!!!!

Vintage, upcycled magnetic memo board

2010-08-02T10:21:00.000-05:00

I won a blog drawing!!!! So exciting! I recently started following Shabby Vintage Mom and entered a drawing to win one of the sweet magnetic memo boards she sells in her Etsy shop. I was super excited to win this for Elise's room! Especially since her room is turing out to be very shabby chic looking!

It arrived wrapped in brown paper tied with rick rack and had this cute little pouch attached! The magnets were inside.

So cute!

A close up of the little pouch, yes I kept it, and the rick rack!

And here is Elise's sweet little memo board with vintage button magnets! I just love it!!

Healthy blueberry chocolate glaze cake

2010-07-28T16:25:00.000-05:00

One word to describe this cake; AMAZING!!!! I already ate some and we haven't had dinner yet. Hey, I had to taste test it you know? :) Ronnie like it too, so it has been "kid approved"!

Here is the cake cooling. You already want to dig your fork in there don't you?

Melting the bittersweet chocolate with coconut oil for the glaze. Yes, I licked the spoon and pot clean afterwards. :)

Spread the chocolate glaze on, then sprinkled blueberries and shredded coconut. Oh yes!!!

Scrumptious!!!!!!!

Below is the recipe. I got this from Oh She Glows blog, and she suggested adding one smashed banana to make it more moist, so I did. It is very moist and excellent!

Healthy Blueberry Chocolate Glaze Cake

Adapted from Fat Free Vegan.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup whole grain spelt flour

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground chia seeds or flax seeds

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

2/3 cup water

1/2 cup blueberries

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup maple syrup

Chocolate glaze (1/2 cup dark chocolate chips + 1 tbsp coconut oil, melted in micro for 30 seconds or so)

Blueberries, for garnish

Unsweet. shredded coconut, for garnish

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 F. In a medium bowl, mix spelt flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, chia (or flax), and sea salt. Set aside. In a blender, combine water, 1/2 cup blueberries, and balsamic vinegar and blend until smooth, for about 60 seconds. Add the maple syrup and the blueberry mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir until completely mixed, being careful not to overmix. Pour into an oiled 9-inch round cake pan. Bake 20-25 minutes. Cool for at least 15 minutes. Prepare the chocolate glaze by taking a small bowl and adding the chocolate chips and coconut oil. Heat in micro on high for about 30 seconds. Stir to get all the clumps out and immediately pour onto cake, spreading evenly with a spoon. Top with blueberries and coconut. *Note change that I would make to this recipe is to add a mashed banana for more moistness.

Made-by-me-Monday

2010-07-26T08:16:00.000-05:00

I have started getting into making upcycled jewelry using vintage costume jewelry, combined with new pieces and findings. It has been so fun! I am going to be making up some for a barn sale I am participating in this fall. I had my rings and earrings in the barn sale in May, and did very well! I posted about the sale on my other blog, you can read it and see photos HERE. The necklace above is my first "art deco" type necklace. I saw photos of similar necklaces done by a very talented designer Lulu Frost, so I was inspired to do my own. Now I just need to get my hands on a lot more vintage jewelry!

My quick, healthy snack

2010-07-21T08:41:00.000-05:00

This was a quick, tasty, healthy snack I had the other day. A fresh tomato from my neighbor's garden, chopped fresh basil from my basil plant, salt and pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. DELICIOUS!!!!!

A cheap, fun, and easy way to redecorate your desk

2010-07-17T12:44:00.000-05:00

This old wooden desk was salvaged from Ron's work. They were going to toss it and he brought it home (several years ago). He sanded it down and I painted it black, then we had a piece of glass cut to fit the top. I finally decided to do something fun with it and bought several pieces of coordinating scrapbook paper. I cut some of them and then arranged them on the desk and laid the glass on top. I LOVE how it turned out! So fun, and it only cost me $2!

Just a quick post

2010-07-16T17:34:00.002-05:00

Been busy this week, so I thought I would pop on here a minute and share a couple photos from last weekend. We had a really fun family day last Saturday, but these are the only photos we got. I sure do love my babies!!!

Sand and silver

2010-07-08T22:36:00.000-05:00

One of my newest ring creations. Sand and silver ring.

It makes me wish I was here (Lake Michigan 2008):

Or here (Virginia Beach 2008):

I think we need another beach vacation someday!

Our night of fireworks

2010-07-05T09:11:00.001-05:00

We don't have to go any further than our own yard to watch an amazing fireworks show! Fireworks are legal in residential areas down here, and some people spend a LOT of money on them! (We spent $13 on our fountains and fun things for Ronnie) :) Amazingly Elise slept through the whole loud fireworks display, then she woke up around 10:40pm when it died down. Go figure! LOL!

Silly cat!!

2010-06-30T12:44:00.000-05:00

Shortly after Ron and my dad did the finished top of the gate on my parents last visit, Kitty Cat decided she had to check it out. Now I know why they say "curiosity killed the cat"! They do some dangerous stuff just because they are curious!

Speaking of that, our other cat Pearl, who just turned one, did something really stupid last year. She used to climb up into the engine or undercarriage of the car or van. One day we left to go somewhere and as we were going down our street, we heard a weird noise and a "thump" sound. I quickly turned to look out the window only to see Pearl running out from UNDER the van and into someone's yard. She had been under the van while we were driving!!!!! She is SO lucky that she did not fall in front of the wheel or she we would've run over our own cat. Good grief!!!

My new favorite ring!

2010-06-30T08:39:00.000-05:00

My latest creation, Jade-ite Delight. It is available in my Etsy shop, go check it out!

Sleeping baby

2010-06-29T10:57:00.002-05:00

I just LOVE to watch my baby's sleep, no matter how old they are. :)

The new curtains and throw pillows

2010-06-24T13:42:00.000-05:00

Wow, all these posts in one day! :) I thought I'd better share photos of the curtains and pillows my neighbor made for me since I have been posting all our home improvements. I love how they turned out!!!

Maple cinnamon almond butter

2010-06-24T12:49:00.000-05:00

I have one word to describe this nut butter, AMAZING!!!! It is SO easy to make. You just have to have patience when using the food processor to get it to a butter consistency. I got the recipe from the edible perspective. I just started following her blog and I love it!

First you roast the almonds in the oven with some maple syrup on top. I used some awesome grade B maple syrup that Ron brought home from Vermont. It is SO yummy!

Then you grind the almonds up in the food processor with some more maple syrup, cinnamon, salt, and coconut oil.

This is what it looks like when you first start grinding.

Starting to look like butter now. Just be patient, it takes a lot of stopping and scraping the sides to get to this point. But I promise is does happen!

And the end result!! An amazing tasting almond butter that is out of this world! It will not last long, trust me! I made a double batch and it made enough to fill an 8 ounce jar. Enjoy!

Here is Ashley's recipe:

Roasted Maple Cinnamon Almond Butter

• 1c Almonds

• 2.5T maple syrup

• 1/4t salt

• 1/2t cinnamon

• 1/2T oil [I used grapeseed – any light oil would work ie: safflower, sunflower, etc]

1. Preheat your oven to 325*

2. Line a pan with parchment if you don’t want to clean a sticky mess! Pour the almonds on the pan with 1.5T of the maple syrup.

3. Roast for ~15min, stirring 3 times. Watch so they don’t burn.

4. Let them cool for 10+min.

5. Put in the food processor, with the salt, cinnamon and 1T maple syrup.

6. Turn the processor on. Scrape down the bowl as needed.

7. Stream in ~1/2T oil. It took about 10min of scraping and processing before it was the consistency I wanted. If you get to 15min and it’s still not as smooth as you want it, you can add 1/2T more oil, but that shouldn’t be necessary. Just be patient

**Notes** Next time I will definitely make a double batch. 1- because it was THAT good 2- If you have a larger food processor [I think mine is 11c] it seems to do cream a little easier when you have more volume in the machine. However, 1c did work and it was great if you just want a small amount.

Recipes for strawberry cream pie and coconut milk ice cream

2010-06-24T12:31:00.002-05:00

Per request, here are the recipes! :)

Homemade coconut milk ice cream

blend 2 cans coconut milk, 2/3 cup cocoa powder, 5 TBSP (more or less, according to taste) honey or maple syrup (or sugar of your choice), 1 tsp vanilla extract, tiny pinch salt. when blended, pour into ice cream maker as directed. mmmmmm!!! (it freezes harder than dairy and soy cream, so i let it sit out for a while before eating it)
(This recipe came from a friend.)

Strawberry cream pie (gluten and dairy free)

Crust:

3/4 cup crushed pecans or walnuts
1/4 cup dried unsweetened shredded coconut

Filling:

2 cups fresh strawberries
1 cup raw cashews
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup raw honey
1 pinch salt
1 cup coconut oil, melted

Grind crust ingredients in food processor and press into bottom of a 9 inch pie plate, building up the sides slightly.

Place all filling ingredients into blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Carefully pour on top of crust and refrigerate for 3 hours.

I think I will add more strawberries next time I make it, I want more strawberry flavor. But it was awesome! For more recipes like this one visit Tropical Traditions website: http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/index.htm

My baby boy turns 3!!

2010-06-23T07:47:00.000-05:00

Ronnie got a Thomas toothbrush. He thinks it is the coolest thing!

He also got Mr. Potato Head from the Toy Story movie. We have borrowed Toy Story 2 from the church nursery and he has really enjoyed it. I didn't even know the third one was coming out until about 2 months ago. I ended up getting Mr. Potato Head for $2.07 at Kohl's!! It was awesome!! I had a $10 coupon off any purchase, and the Toy Story toys were 30% off, so all I ended up paying was $2.07. Love bargains like that!!

Buzz Lightyear of course! He talks about him all the time, so we had to get him one. Sister liked it too. :)

He ended up playing with the toys the rest of the day.

I made a gluten free, dairy free strawberry cream pie. It was awesome! Ronnie didn't care for it, but Ron and I did.

Now, Ronnie did enjoy our homemade coconut milk ice cream though!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-16T16:34:00.000-05:00

Little buddies

2010-06-15T11:17:00.000-05:00

It is SO much fun to watch my babies become little buddies! They make each other laugh and really just entertain each other. It is an absolute blessing to see their relationship develop and grow!

And the home improvements continue!

2010-06-13T18:14:00.000-05:00

I painted the trim and our front door this past week. The door was black like the shutters, but I was kind of tired of it. So we did a fun green color, and the more I look at it the more I love it!

Papa and Nana (my parents) visit

2010-06-09T16:30:00.000-05:00

Ronnie and Papa watching the Nascar race. Lightning McQueen watched too. :)

Elise loved climbing onto their bed!

Hanging out with Nana :)

My mom painted my kitchen for me!! She is awesome!!

My new butter yellow kitchen. I just LOVE it!!

I was able to paint most of the dining room myself, she only had to finish one wall for me. The green is NOT mint green, but it matches my jade-ite dishes. My neighbor is sewing curtains for me right now, I am very excited!

Wagon ride with Nana.

Heatherly Designs is giving away some jewelry!!

2010-06-05T10:44:00.002-05:00

I LOVE her jewelry! Be sure and enter to win HERE!!

We have a winner!!!

2010-06-02T10:47:00.001-05:00

It is Theresa!! Congratulations!!! I'll be in touch with you. :)

Kids photo shoot

2010-05-27T16:30:00.000-05:00

These were taken by a friend from church who recently bought a new camera and has Photo Shop and some other great software. This is just what she's done so far, and I am THRILLED with it!!!!! She did an awesome job!!! She is working on more of them!

EcoMom product review {and a giveaway!}

2010-05-25T11:36:00.002-05:00

I am SUPER excited to be doing my first product review on my blog! I discovered EcoMom on my friend Michelle's blog as she did a review and giveaway too. I contacted EcoMom about doing a review on my blog and she sent the products immediately and I received them two days later! She is awesome!! So let me start with my review, and then read on for the giveaway, as well as a discount code for YOU, my readers, to use on your purchase!

I received a few flavors of the Plum Organics baby food for Elise to try. I love, love, love the pouch packaging! It is so convenient and less messy than jars. And that makes it much easier to only squeeze out the amount you need at a time so you are wasting less. Then you can refrigerate the rest for 24 hours. Definitely two thumbs up from this mama! Here are some photos of Elise trying out the food.

I also received some of the Revolution Foods squeezable Fruit Mash Ups and Grammy Sammy and Jammy Sammy bars. The squeezable fruit is pureed fruit in a pouch with no sweeteners or added ingredients. Just fruit! Ronnie liked those, he slurped them right down. Once again, the pouch packaging is just awesome! He also enjoyed the bars, they are similar to a cereal bar, but a smaller size. Perfect for a little snack on the go.

Plum Organics and Revolution Foods offer a wide variety of products from high chair to the lunch box, so be sure and check out their site.

And now for the giveaway part!! EcoMom is giving away $20 worth of Plum Organics/or Revolution Foods to one lucky winner! All you have to do to be entered is simply visit their site and leave me a comment telling me which food item you think your kids would like. And here are some ways to get extra entries, be sure and leave a separate comment for each one:

Follow EcoMom on Twitter HERE
Become a fan of EcoMom on Facebook HERE
Sign up for EcoMom's newsletter HERE

I will draw the winner on Tuesday, June 1st.

The promotional code to use for 15% off your first order with EcoMom is SBBL353 and is good through June 30, 2010. EcoMom has a new program called EcoPass which allows you to purchase a $99 annual membership which provides for a 15% discount on every order, as well as free shipping with no $75 minimum requirement. So be sure and look into that on their site as well.

Disclaimer: While I did receive product from EcoMom I was not in any way compensated for reviewing these products and the opinions expressed here in this post are my own.

Family bike ride

2010-05-24T17:24:00.000-05:00

This was Elise's first time in the bike trailer. And she fell right to sleep! So it is safe to say she likes it, which is great as it will allow us to have more family bike rides together!

My baby girl is ONE today!!!

2010-05-22T16:11:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday sweetheart! Mama loves you more than you'll ever know. Your little smile blesses my heart. I am so humbled that God gave you to me and has allowed me to be your mommy. It is my prayer to raise you in the fear and admonition of the Lord so that at a tender age, your heart will be on fire for Jesus. Please forgive me when I fail you, because I do, and I will. But I will always love you and will always be here for you. And I pray that you will learn to lean on Jesus as He will never fail you.

Reviews coming!! Stay tuned!

2010-05-20T13:38:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I apologize that it has been just over a week since I last blogged. Shame on me! BUT, I will be doing some blog posts soon. One thing I will be blogging is a book review. I recently started reading books to review and blog about through a couple different companies. I am very excited about this! I choose one of their new books to read, they send it to me for free, and I promise to read it and write a review of it on my blog, and other sites like Amazon, within a few months of receiving the book. I just finished reading Lisa Welchel's new book Friendship for Grown Ups, so I'll be giving my review here shortly.

And today I just received some products in the mail to sample and review, along with a giveaway!! Woo hoo!!! So I'll be posting on that soon as well. In the meantime, enjoy a few recent photos. :)

Nashville flood

2010-05-12T15:30:00.002-05:00

Some of you may have heard about the flooding here in Nashville almost two weeks ago. We were okay out here, but many areas in Nashville, and counties throughout the state, had serious damage. The last I heard 21 people died as a result of the flooding. This is the worst flooding we've seen here in 80 years. I watched the TV in disbelief when they showed footage of the Opryland Hotel under 10 feet of water. As well as The Grand Old Opry and Opry Mills mall. Places I have been to over and over many times through the years. Tennessee is called the Volunteer State, and we lived up to our name immediately following this disaster. People helped get their neighbors out to safety, and volunteer efforts continue to go on daily. And it will until everything is cleaned up and restored. One way you can help, and get a fun shirt too, is to purchase a shirt from this site. Proceeds go to help flood victims. This is a much better way to give than through the Red Cross where we aren't sure exactly which place the money will go to.

http://nashvilleflood.myshopify.com/

Declutter swap meet. You need to do one!!

2010-05-11T12:43:00.000-05:00

Last week I held a "declutter swap meet" at my house. I had read a blog post about having a declutter and purge party, and I thought it was a great idea. So I put it on Facebook and sent a message to several other local women to see if there was any interest. We ended up with 5 women and 12 kids! (for the record, one woman only brought 1 of her 6 kids, so there would've been more!) I meant to take photos of everything, but didn't even think about it until we had everything almost completely packed up. What a bummer! We all had a great time and we all were able to get rid of lots of items, and take some nice things home too. Everything that was left over went to a local church who is taking the items to the flood victims here in Nashville. Below are a couple of the nice toys that Ronnie got, he has been enjoying them! I think we will definitely do this again next year!

My little man!

2010-05-08T15:26:00.000-05:00

This is Ronnie's infamous "cheesey" smile. It cracks us up every time!

Working on his little schoolhouse project at Lowe's with daddy. They have been enjoying their father and son time on Saturday mornings.

Trying on hats with daddy at Target. Being cheesey of course!

First time we had the sprinkler out this year, he LOVED it!!

Now there is a "normal" smile from him! I cannot believe he turns 3 years old next month! Wow! My little man is getting so big!! It almost makes me tear up just thinking about it. I sure love my babies!!

Enter the giveaway at Gather In Spirit!

2010-05-05T08:25:00.002-05:00

I am featured on another blog today, with a giveaway! Go check it out HERE!

My little sweetheart

2010-05-03T22:24:00.000-05:00

Elise is at that fun age (11 months) where she is so social and interactive with us now. Here she is doing her fun new thing of kicking her feet out of excitement.

She likes to smile for the camera. :)

Once again smiling for the camera, and holding her new doll that Mamaw and Paps sent her (Ron's parents).

Hamming it up and kicking her feet again! LOL! That baby girl just melts my heart! I love her more than words can express. Of course I love her big brother too, I'll do a post about him later this week. :)

Made-by-me Monday!

2010-05-03T15:48:00.001-05:00

I saw this post idea on my friend Jen's blog, so I thought I should start doing it too! Especially since I do have two blogs, this one and my Beadworks by Marcy one for my jewelry business. So without further ado, here are some of the items I've made in the last week. Be sure and visit my Etsy shop if you would like to purchase any of them.

Kids workshop at Lowe's

2010-04-30T11:35:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday Ron took Ronnie to Lowe's for the kids workshop where they get to build something. They made a bird feeder. Ron said that Ronnie did really well and seemed to enjoy himself. Here he is with his bird feeder, and proudly wearing his little apron! They plan to go again tomorrow to build the next project. What a special father, son bonding time this is for them!

I added this photo just because I thought it was cute! Elise loves to crawl over to big brother's room because she knows there are lots of toys in there! :)

Go check out my Etsy shop!

2010-04-27T22:25:00.000-05:00

If you have not visited my Beadworks by Marcy blog, or Etsy shop, you need to head over there! I am having a Mother's Day sale all week long of 20% off your entire purchase. I just purchased some new beads today and listed this cute lady bug ring tonight. I will be sharing photos and listing more new rings all this week. So be sure and subscribe to my Beadworks by Marcy blog as well! And fan me on Facebook too.

Zoo fun!

2010-04-24T06:36:00.000-05:00

This was our first trip to the zoo with the kids. Ron and I have not been to the zoo ourselves in years. So it was a special treat for all of us. Ronnie is at the perfect age for the zoo, he is old enough now to enjoy the animals and just really get into the fun of it all. We hope to go back again at the end of summer.

I'm planning to look through them all.....honestly!

2010-04-19T15:59:00.000-05:00

Does anyone else have magazines piled up?

Or is it just me??

I intend to look through them so I can pull out recipes I would like to make, or fun decorating or crafting ideas. I do have two 3-ring binders, one is for recipes, and the other is for decorating and craft things I like. But it is always a matter of having the time to go through the magazines, hence the stacks you see in the photos. So, should I keep them in the hopes of going through them one day, or just toss them out or pass them on?

Joining the party!

2010-04-16T17:47:00.003-05:00

I am joining the Ultimate Blog Party from 5 Minutes for Mom. Fun stuff! I hope to meet some other mom bloggers during this party time too!

Welcome to my first blog, the one I started several years ago to join the blogging world. I have a business blog as well that you may visit if you wish. :) My name is Marcy, I am a sinner saved by grace, wife to my best friend Ron, and stay-at-home mommy to our two (so far) children Ronnie and Elise. I try to live "the simple life" as much as I can. I am slowly learning to declutter and become less of a packrat, to make the most of the small space we live in, and enjoy each and every blessing God has given me. Learning to live a more simple life is truly a day by day process. I hope to blog more about that too.

Thank you for stopping by! Please feel free to introduce yourself so I can go to your blog and meet you too! :) Here is a photo of our family from Easter weekend.

I would love to win any of the following prizes:

*GRAND PRIZE at the Ultimate Blog Party 2010 is a Toshiba Satellite L505D-ES5025**

US6
US56
USC 35
US62
US69
US76
USC 15
USC 43
US2

Giveaway from The Rusted Chain!

2010-04-14T20:58:00.002-05:00

I LOVE her jewelry! Enter her drawing before its over! Go HERE!

Scripture verse to define "The Simple Life"

2010-04-13T10:03:00.001-05:00

A friend posted this on her Facebook status this morning, and it made me think of my blog title. This scripture verse is one that helps sum up quite well what my life, and blog, are about. I hope to find more verses that will define my life (and blog) as well. But I wanted to share this one since it hit me this morning when I read it. Especially the part about "being content with what you have". Something I need to die to daily in my greedy flesh.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:5

My summer footwear

2010-04-12T21:53:00.000-05:00

Old Navy flip flops, 2 for $5. Simple, fun, and super inexpensive! I have a few other sandals, but I mostly just wear flip flops during the long warm season here in the south. What type of footwear do you like for summer?

A spot of tea...

2010-04-07T14:24:00.000-05:00

...In my new brown coffee mugs that I scored for just 50 cents each!!!! I think I'll go have a cup of Earl Gray right now!

Easter basket fun

2010-04-06T14:17:00.000-05:00

We did our Easter baskets on Saturday morning. Partly because Ron had to leave on his business trip Sunday morning, but also because we have decided to do the baskets a day early so as not to take the focus off Christ's resurrection on Sunday. Ronnie's basket had a lot of the Cars items in it, he just loves that movie and all the little Cars characters! Elise got a few things, she will get more as she gets older, but hey, she doesn't even understand it yet at 10.5 months old!

Ronnie was super excited about Mack! The back opens up and he can put Lightning McQueen inside.

He also got Filmore and Sarge to add to his Cars collection.

Not the best photo as it was taken with Ron's iPhone, but this was baby girl that morning wearing her "baby's first Easter" outfit.

And we scored this from Walmart the day after Easter for 50% off! They didn't have much Easter stuff left by the time we went to the store in the afternoon. Just as we were checking out Ronnie spotted it in a shopping cart full of re-shop that was going back out to the floor. So I pulled it out and went back through the line to pay for it. He thinks its the greatest thing and now I can store all his Cars characters inside of it. :)

Great giveaway!

2010-03-29T11:46:00.002-05:00

Go enter this great giveaway for a beautiful necklace! I lover her stuff! Go HERE!

Healthy doesn't have to be "expensive"

2010-03-26T15:59:00.001-05:00

This is just an idea of some of the meals we eat here. These are not all from the same day, but it at least gives you an idea of what we like to eat and what we buy. It really does not cost a whole lot to eat things like this, that just means you buy less packaged stuff and more whole foods.

For breakfast we almost always have scrambled eggs with cheese, and if we have turkey bacon in the house we'll have that too. Then avocado if we have it as well, or sometimes oatmeal. We usually do it up big for breakfast since that is the most important meal of the day.

The lunch the day I took that photo was SO good! (carrots, grapes, apples, beets, cottage cheese) It was just a few days ago and I hope to do some more lunches like that. Although I did sneak in a couple pieces of cheese and a slice of turkey deli meat. I really do crave and need protein.

The green smoothie is something we have for breakfast or a snack. It is simply just banana, frozen mixed fruit, coconut milk, sometimes kefir or yogurt, ground flaxseed and raw spinach. Ronnie LOVES smoothies and asks for them almost every day.

What are some of your favorite things to eat for breakfast, lunch, and snacks?

Test driving

2010-03-22T17:02:00.000-05:00

I've been test driving a friend's double stroller to see if I want to buy it. Here are my babies after one of our walks last week. Aren't they cute? :)

Bible giveaway!

2010-03-20T13:46:00.001-05:00

My friend Jen is giving away a neat slim bible for mom's! Go HERE to enter!

Sale going on in my Etsy shop!!

2010-03-19T15:48:00.002-05:00

Be sure to visit my Etsy shop this weekend! I have a sale going on until Monday.
20% off rings and 30% off earrings!
Happy shopping!

Our family

2010-03-17T17:18:00.001-05:00

Our pastor's daughter took this photo of us at church this past Sunday. I realized we have not had a "family" photo taken since Elise was born almost a year ago! I guess we should have someone take a photo of us more often!

Save some green in my Etsy shop today!!!

2010-03-17T09:51:00.000-05:00

If you are not following my Beadworks by Marcy blog, then you will have missed out on the announcement I made there that I am having a sale today! 20% off anything with green in it from my Etsy shop!! TODAY only! Happy shopping! (and be sure to become a follower of my Beadworks by Marcy blog too!) Click HERE to visit my shop!!

Lazy cat!!

2010-03-16T16:39:00.001-05:00

This is Pearl, the kitten Ron found at his work last May. She was a tiny little thing, and was a bit beat up. We took her in and nursed her back to health. She was very scared of us (and everything!) but over time she has gotten much better. She began to follow me around the house and just took to me as her favorite. Now she is slowly letting Ron pick her up and pet her too. Oh, and the reason you can see so much skin on her belly is because we got her spayed a few weeks ago, so her fur is still growing back in. :)

I won a blog giveaway!!

2010-03-15T13:37:00.001-05:00

I enter lots of blog giveaways, but this is the first time I've won! This sweet blanket just arrived in the mail, so I had to take a photo of Elise trying it out, I think she likes it. :)

A very tasty meal!

2010-03-15T11:12:00.001-05:00

We went to Trader Joe's over the weekend for some groceries. As always they had samples at the back counter, and they were giving out samples of their corned beef brisket and cooked cabbage. It was so tasty that we bought some too! I just love that the brisket has no nitrates in it! And it is flavored with all natural ingredients!

Rather than cook it on a pot on the stove, I decided to throw it in the crock pot Sunday morning so it would be ready for us after church. Look at all those yummy spices in there!!

I came back for seconds and finally remembered to take a photo. LOL! I sauted the cabbage in coconut oil with a little salt, and I cooked up some squash. All of it came from Trader Joe's. I love that store!! 'll be having leftovers today for lunch, yum!

Ronnie's interstate

2010-03-11T13:03:00.000-06:00

I just love watching my almost 3 year old play! I have no idea what is going on in his little mind, but he certainly does!

A sweet treat

2010-03-09T10:24:00.000-06:00

A neat little shop opened up here in our town last year called Gigi's Cupcakes. She started her first shop right in Nashville, and it has grown by leaps and bounds. She has several locations in TN now, and is branching out in other states as well.

Just look at this cute little box that they put your cupcake in when you buy it! It is like having a little gift to yourself!

This is the Tiramisu flavored cupcake, it is only served on Fridays and I kept forgetting to try it out. So finally one Friday a few weeks ago I remembered! All the cupcakes are so pretty! The frosting is usually quite high and it is decorated in such a sweet and unique way. (see her website for more photos) No, these are not organic or natural, but they are very tasty for a fun treat to indulge in every now and then.

Mmmmmmmmmm!!!!!

Spring has sprung in TN!!

2010-03-08T21:17:00.000-06:00

You say soda, I say pop

2010-02-26T09:11:00.002-06:00

Even though I have lived in the south for 11 years now, I am still a Yankee at heart! You just can't take the Yankee out of a gal no matter how far removed she is from her roots. Even after all these years of being teased for saying "pop" instead of soda, I still call it pop!! Since Ron and I made our healthy lifestyle change nearly 6 years ago, we just don't drink pop anymore. But when we do want to splurge and have some with our pizza (like we did earlier this week) it is nice to know there are healthier options out there. And Izze is one of them. Ron had it before, but I had not. So we bought a pack to go with our pizza, and it was fabulous!! It is simply just fruit juice and sparkling water. That's it!! No added sugar, no high fructose corn syrup, no preservatives or any other cancer causing agent. Two thumbs up for Izze, they got it right! Go check out their website for a coupon!

Awesome giveaway from the Vintage Pearl!

2010-02-26T08:20:00.000-06:00

Gussy has a lot to say {and sew} is having a giveaway for a gift certificate to The Vintage Pearl! Beautiful hand stamped sterling silver jewelry! Go check it out and enter!

A bit of vintage

2010-02-19T08:15:00.000-06:00

This cute little nursery rhyme plate was mine when I was a little girl. Since my mom is a pack rat like me, she kept some things from mine and my brother's childhood. As hard of a struggle as it is to overcome being a pack rat since I grew up with one, I really have appreciated the fact that my mom kept some of my childhood things. Especially now that I am a mom myself. I love seeing Ronnie use this plate knowing that 30-some years ago I was using it too! It is a nice melamine too, better than some of the newer plastic plates today.

And now that we have Elise, I am super excited that she will get to use my old doll cradle and high chair for her dolls when she gets older! As well as my Cabbage Patch kids and my favorite plastic headed baby doll too. Do you have any of your childhood items that you have passed down to your kids?

Better get over to my jewelry blog soon!!

2010-02-14T14:59:00.000-06:00

I posted on my Beadworks by Marcy blog, and Facebook page, that I am doing a give away this week for one of my rings. So if you don't want to miss out, start following my jewelry blog now!!! I have 32 people following this blog, but only 3 following Beadworks by Marcy. So hop on over now and become a follower so you don't miss out on the latest jewelry, latest news, and of course FREE stuff like the lovely ring below!

A healthy Valentine's Day treat!

2010-02-14T14:48:00.001-06:00

I made some YUMMY healthy chocolate for our Valentine's Day treat! I bought the heart shaped silicone ice cube trays at Target in the dollar section. Mixed up the yummy concoction in the Vita Mix and poured it into the tray and let it refrigerate for an hour.

And this is the end result with some strawberry's added! Mmmmm! Very tasty! Here is the recipe:

1 cup cocoa powder
1 cup coconut oil, divided (virgin unrefined coconut oil is recommended for its nutritional value), palm oil or butter
3/4 cup honey (raw honey is recommended again for its nutritional value)

Gently melt half of the coconut oil in a small saucepan. Allow too cool slightly. Place the remaining 1/2 cup solid coconut oil in your blender with the cocoa and honey. Carefully add the melted coconut oil and pulse a few times till smooth. Make sure not to over blend or else it can seperate. Line a bread pan with a layer of parchment paper or saran wrap. Carefully pour the fudge into the pan. Place in your refrigerator until solid, about 1 hour. Gently remove from pan and cut into squares. Makes about 12-15 squares. Store in refrigerator till ready to serve.

Note: I found that if I melted all the coconut oil, the final result was a very stretchy, wet fudge. For the more solid fudge like texture, I melt half of the oil, just enough so that it blends together well, and this seems to work perfectly.

The recipe came from Passionate Homemaking's blog. I LOVE her blog! We are kindred spirits, we have a lot in common. I know that if we lived near each other we would be fast friends!

Enter a giveaway from The Vintage Pearl!

2010-02-12T10:04:00.000-06:00

I LOVE her jewelry! So go check it out and then enter to win a $50 gift certificate to her shop! Enter HERE.

Granola mom's

2010-02-09T08:55:00.000-06:00

Last week I went to my doctor's office for a physical. As the nurse was getting ready to draw blood (ouch) she said I smelled good and wondered what I was wearing. I told her I usually wear patchouli or lavender oil, but all I had on that day was Burt's Bee's lotion. She said "oh, I love granola mom's!" LOL! I have to admit that is the first time I have heard a "stranger" refer to me as a granola mom based on what I wear for fragrance and skin care. It was kind of funny. And it was a compliment as well!

This morning as I went into the cupboard to find a cup for my tea, I realized that the above mug was back there and I had not used it in a while. So I pulled it out. A very dear internet group of granola mom friends of mine got me this mug, along with some other natural baby things, as part of a gift when I was pregnant with Ronnie. I think of them whenever I use this mug. And although I have never even met most of them in person, they are some of the closest friends I have. We granola mom's have to unite, no matter how many miles may separate us! That is what hold us together when the rest of society rolls their eyes at us, or criticizes us for the way we choose to do things since it may be different than the "main stream" way. I am happy to be considered a granola mom by my doctor's nurse, or anyone else who decides to label me that way. :)

Our big snow this winter

2010-01-31T08:12:00.000-06:00

Since we live in Tennessee, we do not get much snow in the winter. Usually one or two days where we get maybe an inch. So this arctic blast we got over the weekend was a pretty big deal! A good 4 inches and a layer of ice on top. The temperatures have not gone above freezing, so it is taking a few days for all the ice and snow to clear. Things should be melting by tomorrow. But it was a lot of fun for Ronnie! And we even got Elise out there for a few minutes to enjoy her first snow. :)

My baby girl is 8 months old!!

2010-01-27T15:50:00.000-06:00

Say it isn't so!! That means in just 4 short months she will have her first birthday. Amazing how fast they grow!

Visit my Etsy shop today!!

2010-01-18T11:33:00.000-06:00

I got it up and running and even sold a couple things already! Come check it out! Beadworks By Marcy.

Book giveaway at Passionate Homemaking!

2010-01-16T19:37:00.002-06:00

Visit Passionate Homemakings site to enter a giveaway for a great book for Christian women.

Gotta love our technology these days!

2010-01-16T19:21:00.000-06:00

Okay, I just had to share this. So while I've been sitting here blogging, Facebooking, e-mailing, and listing my jewelry on Etsy, my husband is at the store picking up a few things. I asked him to get some strawberry jelly. I got an e-mail with this photo taken with his iPhone letting me know that the strawberry is gone and if peach or grape would be okay. I love it! He cracks me up sometimes! Only in this day and age with our high tech cell phones and wireless connection can you do things like this!

Bargains to be had everywhere!

2010-01-16T19:13:00.001-06:00

I love end of season/end of year clearance!!! I got all these items for $11.42! Old Navy has an additional 50% off their clearance price. So I got Elise some nice things (notice the cute brown corduroy dress!), and the two items on the left are a baby gift for a shower I am doing at the end of this month. I just love getting bargains like that!!

Some of our new "traditions"

2010-01-15T14:28:00.000-06:00

I realize that Christmas has been over for a little while now, but I have been wanting to post about this, so I'm doing it anyway! :) Now that we have children, I have wanted to come up with some things we can do as "traditions" for different holidays. I want to make it special for the kids and for them to have certain things to look forward to. I remember our little traditions we had growing up, and they always made the holiday's a bit more special. So one of the traditions I want to do each year is get the kids some Christmas pajama's. I don't know if they will always match, but they did this year. And they looked so cute!

My parents always bought my brother and I an ornament every year. I loved that! It allowed me to have a nice collection of them when I moved out on my own. Plus, I just love Christmas ornaments! The two shown above are from Papa and Nana (my parents). I didn't get any photos of the ones from us. So that means the kids will get 2 ornaments each year since Nana will get them one too. :)

The sweet Christmas clothes they are wearing in this photo also came from my parents. I hope we can continue do something like this each year too. It is fun to see them all dressed up!

Another tradition we are doing is only giving the kids 3 or 4 presents each, and then their stockings. We want to stay focused on Jesus birth at Christmas and not get all caught up in gifts and "stuff". We will also read the story of Jesus birth starting next year when Ronnie is a bit older. We really enjoyed our Christmas together as a family of four! Looking forward to making more traditions throughout the year and for other holiday's.

My new adventure!! Beadworks by Marcy

2009-12-28T13:37:00.000-06:00

I am starting a jewelry business with the rings I have been making; Beadworks by Marcy. I've had some sales happen in the last few weeks just by posting photos of them on Facebook! An Etsy site is in the works, but for now just go to my business Facebook page to see the photos of beads and jewelry as I post them, and keep up to date with what I am doing and making next. Click HERE to visit my Facebook page. I am also starting a blog about it, you can click HERE for my jewelry blog. I have not done much with that yet, but I hope to soon. Become a follower of my jewelry blog so you can be up to date when I post!

Merry Christmas!!!!

2009-12-16T21:53:00.002-06:00

Merry Christmas from our family to yours! I pray that you know the love, grace, and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ whose birth we celebrate during this season. And if you do not know Him, take some time during this Christmas season to open His word and find out more about Him. And if you feel a tugging in your heart, just say a prayer wherever you may be and ask for His forgiveness and His cleansing mercies. And receive Him as Lord and Savior of your life. You will never be the same, and that is a good thing!

We like books!

2009-12-14T13:08:00.002-06:00

I can't begin to tell you how happy this makes my mama heart! To see my little boy love books enough that he will sit down in front of the bookcase and pull out his books and page through them. He loves to have Ron or I read to him almost daily. And now we get Elise involved too. She likes her soft books that she can chew on. :)

One thing that I totally love is Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. It is a program that sends your child a free book each month from birth to age 5. So both Ronnie and Elise get a free book each month. Isn't that awesome?? If you have a child in this age range, you need to sign up! Check it out HERE.

The last week in photos

2009-12-11T18:30:00.003-06:00

Ronnie had woke up during his nap, then when I didn't hear him anymore I went in and saw him like this. I love it!

Elise hanging out with Kitty Cat, she thought it was fun to grab Kitty's fur!

Ron's birthday. We had our friend DeVante over and had chili for dinner, then cake and ice cream for dessert.

The little cake came from Whole Foods, and the coconut milk ice cream is our favorite!!

Sweet gifts from neighbors

2009-12-09T19:43:00.001-06:00

I.LOVE.THESE.HATS!!! Our sweet neighbor girl Zoe made these hats for Ronnie and Elise. She brought them over this afternoon. What a fun surprise!

It's looking a lot like Christmas around here!

2009-12-06T06:49:00.002-06:00

The inside wreath, I have one on the outside of the door too.

The kids stockings. We got these at Old Navy for $2 each. I normally prefer to do traditional red and green, but they didn't have many in those colors, so I got a purple girlie one for Elise.

One of Ronnie's first ornaments. We need to get one for Elise this year.

Our Christmas tree.

Recent photos

2009-12-03T20:30:00.002-06:00

Elise loves the jumperoo, she spends a lot of time in there!

Having a little goats milk snack, bottles are new to her. :)

Ronnie and I playing with Photo Booth in the iMac, he loves to see himself on there!

Baby girl in her new girlie bed!

I got her crib all set up with her pretty bedding, now to get the room painted! I've got some fun ideas, so we'll see what we actually end up doing. I'll post photos when we finish.

Win a 7 qt. slow cooker!!!

2009-12-02T08:27:00.001-06:00

Visit this link for a chance to win a nice slow cooker from Libby's!

Ronnie's Flat Stanley is in Italy!!!

2009-11-26T21:34:00.003-06:00

My high school friend Robin is in the Navy and currently stationed in Italy. We are connected on Facebook and I had mentioned in my status one day that I would like to do a Flat Stanley project for Ronnie, but he is too young to understand it. Robin commented on my status that she would love to take photos of Flat Stanley while she is in Italy and then I can save it all to share with Ronnie when he is older. So I took her up on the offer since she will only be there until May 2010. I sent Flat Stanley to Robin's husband who is also in the Navy but stationed here in the US, and he took it with him on the plane this week when he went to visit her in Italy. In the photo above, Flat Stanley is in Rome. Isn't that awesome?? As you can see, Ronnie colored it himself. :) She has more photos to come and I am looking forward to seeing them! I think I am about as excited as the kids who do the Flat Stanley projects! LOL!

My first granola bars!

2009-11-25T10:04:00.002-06:00

I got my recipe from the Hillbilly Housewife. I made mine in two parts, first I made the granola, then the granola bars. Below are the recipes. Both originally called for margarine, but we don't use that stuff here. These were a huge hit in this house!

Honey granola

3 cups dry oatmeal
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup each nuts and dried fruit (optional)

First melt the butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the honey and salt. Honey is easiest to measure in a well oiled measuring cup. Otherwise, just scoop the last of it out of the cup with a clean finger or spoon. Heat the honey briefly with the margarine and then add the oatmeal. Stir it up nicely. It smells really good. Turn the mixture onto an ungreased cookie sheet, the kind with shallow sides; a large 9 by 13-inch pan works well too. Spread the granola out evenly and bake it at 375° for 10 minutes. It should be a toasty brown. Now remove it from the oven and allow it to cool and crisp up right there in the pan. Store it in a clean coffee can or sealed canister. Add the nuts and dried fruit, if you are using them, when the granola is cool. Serve it with milk like regular cereal, or if you are hankering for a divinely inspired treat, get a big bowl of plain yogurt, and sprinkle a large handful of granola on top of it. Mmmmmmmm, very tasty. Sliced bananas are good with this too.

Peanut butter granola bars

3 cups of homemade granola
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 medium eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
Optional: 1/2 cup raisins, or peanuts, or chocolate chips, or coconut, or sunflower seeds, or chopped apricots, or dates, or whatever strikes your fancy

You may use any recipe for granola that you like. If it already has peanuts and raisins added then you probably won’t want to add more, but you could if you wanted to. The end results wouldn’t be affected that much either way.

In a 2 quart sized saucepan melt the butter and peanut butter together. Make sure the heat is low and stir it a lot to melt it evenly. Meanwhile crack both eggs into a cereal bowl and beat them up with a fork. When the butter and peanut butter are completely melted together remove the pan from the heat. Whisk in the eggs. You have to do this quickly so the eggs won’t cook into scrambled eggs and peanut butter mess. The mixture will thicken and emulsify making a nice dough like texture. Beat in the vanilla. Stir in the prepared homemade granola. Add any optional ingredients to suit your taste. Turn the mixture into an oiled 8-inch square pan. Chill the bars in the fridge until hard. Cut into 16 squares. Serve with milk for a good snack, or pack in lunch boxes as a (relatively) healthy treat.

I added raisins and chopped walnuts to mine. YUM!!!!

Some of what I've been up to since my last post

2009-11-19T13:46:00.003-06:00

Family trip to Trader Joe's. We LOVE to go there!!

Ron's cousin Jason and his girlfriend Kodi came to TN for a visit. We were able to get together a few times, and we had a blast! Ronnie sure liked Kodi! He likes the girls. :)

Ronnie and I played on Photo Booth on the iMac. He loves to see himself on there.

My junior high friend Jennifer came down for a visit. This is the first time we've seen each other in 21 years!! We had a great time catching up, and I had a Mary Kay party for her. We reconnected on Facebook, so that is what made this whole thing happen. Gotta love Facebook for things like that!

I have more to blog about, but it took me several days just to post this one! More to come though, including my first granola bars! :)

I finally learned to make a craft!!

2009-11-10T17:15:00.004-06:00

I learned to make these rings with wire and beads. My neighbor Hannah taught me how to do it. They are so fun and easy to do! I have several more fun beads to use. I plan to make them for all the ladies in our family for Christmas this year, and for some friends too. If you would like one for yourself or as a gift for someone, let me know. I'm only going to charge $8 each.