NEW YEAR GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GIVEAWAY......ENTER NOW

What a way to start the new year! With a free gift! I love to enter my fellow bloggers giveaways! I thought since I will be gearing up with school starting on the 5th and returning back to college to complete my counseling degree I would give something away that is absolutely one of my all time favorite things! "McCall's Reed Garden" and the luscious flavor of "Hot Butter Rum" smell! YUMMMMMEEEEE I have this one in my classroom and 'everyone' loves the smell and how its aroma covers the room!

All you have to do is leave me a comment and you are entered! Leave as many as you want and each comment will give you a chance to win! It is that easy! I will be drawing next week so don't forget to enter!

Couper ?!@????!?!?!?.........

I have had many animals since I have grown up on a farm and now live on one! This has got to take the cake! Couper is a corgi I purchased about 4 months ago from a lady in Texas. He was 6 weeks old when I brought him home. Very intelligent dog, he was house broke in 1 1/2-2 weeks ( I mean he would tell us he needed to go or he would hold it until we took him), he is very playful and loves to be around everyone! BUT for some reason he is getting Americanized/humanized real quick. Last night we were watching a movie and had some theater popcorn when my husband noticed Couper sleeping on the floor upside down and he sat his popcorn box on his belly! Oh, did I mention he sleeps with us every night, all night long! I think he is our son we never had! LOL

Show me your 'jewelry'!

(pls don't look at the ol' hand) LOL just the jewelry

After visiting with my lovely (newly wed) relatives from Texas, I was amazed how beautiful Jeff designed Sterling's ring! Absolutely beautiful, one that I have never seen before! So this Christmas, I thought it would be GREAT to see others 'ring' or special jewelry! Being a horse person, would you have expected anything else? I think of the pioneer woman, I would love to see her jewelry! Show me Ree and everyone! :)

Attached by my vacuum cleaner!

As I do each week, take time to really clean my house! I can deal with a lot of things, but a dirty home is not one of them.

Red flags were raised from the beginning, I dropped a whole container of sour cream when making a cake on my kitchen floor, my cat snuck into my dryer when I was loading it (caught him before I turned it on, no harm to my boy)...... so many more stories, but I will continue on with my vacuum cleaner, I was vacuuming the utility room, when all of a sudden the vacuum just hit my freezer, bumped off it and came back and ran over my toe! Hurt like haydeeees, that was my little toe, then when vacuuming the living room, I was moving my recliner when my vacuum decided to move again and when I was moving the chair back knocked it over my big toe trying to avoid the vacuum! It started bleeding, took care of it and of course today they are BOTH swollen! But what is worse, I can't wear shoes! I am not sure what I am going to do!

Thanks Pioneer Woman.....!

Not exactly like 'The Pioneer Woman's' rolls, but very close *Yumee
Fresh Farm eggs, best deviled eggs ever!

Fresh buttered corn on top of my wood stove (cooking)

Thanks Pioneer Woman and her wonderful recipes! I found the rosemary roll recipe on her website 2-3 weeks ago. A local business let me purchase some 'frozen' rolls that are the BEST ever! I collected all that was needed for the recipe and this morning before I went to Church, I started our lunch! Rosemary Rolls, Chicken and rice casserole and fresh corn on the cob that I made into cream corn.

I HIGHLY recommend the rolls and plan on making these for Christmas! As Ree says, "they are a great tasting roll" and who would have thought rosemary? The skillet also plays an important part! If you have not visited her website, here it is:

www.thepioneerwoman.com I also have her link on my sidebar, just click the picture.

My husband loves that I visit her website often, last week, was "Pioneer" week in my home, I made a reicpe off her website each day! That is how easy and good they are! Enjoy

Two black eyes!

Trying to center around what was, and not what is now is the focus of our lives today! After the basketball game Friday night and 'foul' against the opposing team member, BB received a bloody nose, swollen nose and eyes, and now today have turned to black eyes. Thank goodness for makeup! LOL Hopefully she will let me take a picture of her face and I can show you the after.

After printing her Senior pictures last night, I am so thankful this happened after the pictures rather than before! Or we would be doing a lot of photoshoping!

Having a merry, happy and black eye Christmas!

Do you ever see a picture that stops you in your tracks?

I saw this beautiful picture on a blog I follow! As I was reading her blog,I came across this picture and it totally stopped me in my tracks! As I just starred at this picture, I just can't help but think of all the things the Bible does for us. It has a cover and our lives inside the cover, His hands, His love, His rules, His direction, His forgiveness, His Plan. I just can't believe others who do not believe!

Recipes for the heart

I love to go through Kelly's recipes periodically to try and find something I haven't cooked, (lol). I also love reading her blog "Kelly's Korner". Christmas is usually the time I make all the pies and side dishes, after years of cooking, I wanted to find something different in the sweet department. Not that I do not like pies, but I want to make something that is not as sweet!

I found this recipe that I have not made in a long time and feel this may be it!

Dirt Cake
INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese softened

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix

3 1/2 cups milk

1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed

32 ounces chocolate sandwich cookies with creme filling

DIRECTIONS ~ Chop cookies very fine in food processor. The white cream will disappear.Mix butter, cream cheese, and sugar in bowl. In a large bowl mix milk, pudding and whipped topping together.Combine pudding mixture and cream mixture together. Layer in flower pot or trifle bowl, starting with cookies then cream mixture. Repeat layers.Chill until ready to serve.

Love Christmas Shopping

My "old High School" friends home "so beautiful"
Amazing decorating skills

I love to shop during this time of the year! I love winter clothes and I love to cook! This time of the year, I love to spend with family. Recently I went to my older brothers home in another town, my wonderful sister-in-law is so special to me! Melissa and my husband are always at it, we took them out to eat and I laughed so hard, I could hardly eat because the two were always joking! It was a great time. We decided during this time we would do "dirty Santa" for Christmas instead of just buying gifts for each other, we think it will be fun and exciting on Christmas day. So this morning I have wrapped gifts for dirty Santa and started my decorating! I am very country and love living in the middle of this 100 acre farm! My daughter will take the jeep or 4 wheeler and run all over the land, we are able to breathe and feel the freedom of space in this cold weather.

Recently, I found an old friend from High School that I have not seen since 1977. I loved her, she was so full of life and laughed all the time. After the passing of her close family member she moved to Oklahoma. She recently posted these pictures of her home and talk about decorating skills, this girls has always been talented, but she really is showing off her talent. Only if I could do this! LOL, but like I said, "I am country" so everything in my home will be western and country! If I can complete my decorating today, I will post some of it! Until then, I will only wish I could decorate like my friends home! :)

Decorating at school...

My classroom door! I have not put "Santa's" bag of gifts on it yet, I am afraid I may come in the next day and it be gone! LOL

Every year we have a contest for door decorations. It is amazing how much fun we have! I will have to take pictures of other teachers doors, some are so funny, I have been laughing up and down the halls and running around trying to see all the doors today.

Christmas early!

View one of my new leather couch
second view of my new leather couch
My new rock wall and slab for my wood stove

I am so excited, I love wood heat and am so excited that we are "going green" by heating our home with wood! We turned our central heat off, and this stove keeps our home so toasty, while sitting on my "new" leather couch! I LOVE IT...
I have looked at leather couches before and didn't think I would like them, but when my good friend who teaches in Northwest Arkansas told me she was selling her leather couch and it was in great condition, I had to purchase it. It looks brand new and in perfect condition. She bought it and didn't like it, so went and purchased her a new Christmas couch! I am so excited! What a great Christmas for my family!