The making of a "Redneck Campfire"~

Thunderstorms are one of my least favorite things at night (I don't mind a quick one every now and again during the day...just not after dark). I don't know what scares me worse, the lightening crackling and lighting up the darkness of the night or the sound of the thunder rumbling across the sky. Either way...I'm not a fan!

A few nights ago as I was enjoying a nice visit with Kim in our living room, we hear the sudden onset of a rainstorm. Through our closed curtains we could see the lightening brightening up the darkened skies and every now and again I could hear the rumble of the rolling thunder. It wasn't long after that when I heard the pounding of the rain on the windows and doors...I was sure that we would probably float away because is sounded as though it was coming down fast and hard. Then BANG...a load noise and it was pitch black in our house...the power was out!!! LOVELY!!!! NOW to stumble around and find the flashlights. I knew where they were, but figured it would take a minute to get my "night eyes" working so I could get to where they were. Kim came to my rescue with her cell phone as she flipped it open and lighted my way! (what did we ever do without these handy little phones of ours? They are so good for so many things!) Upon finding the flashlights, it was discovered that ONLY one of them had batteries that worked, UHG! So I pulled out the candles and lit them. THEN I came up with a brilliant idea~ to roast MARSHMALLOWS over the candles.
I had some wooden skewers (not the best choice for roasting...but its all I had) and some miniture marshmallows...the candles weren't scented, so we didn't have to worry about having our marshmallows tasting like "white tea and lilacs"...we giggled a little bit at our creativity as well as our GENIUS idea, but in spite of our laughing, we had a blast!! We sat in the kitchen and carried on our visit, roasting marshmallows and lighting the candles over and over again (thats what you get when you buy the cheap ones that don't stay lit when the wick gets covered in melted wax!) until the power came back on.

Cameron and Halle came home from their church activity and thought we were pretty crazy as we sat there with sticks and roasted our tiny tidbit marshmallows,but they joined right in on the fun! Who would have thought that our little "redneck campfire" could bring the family together and would make us all forget about the rain, the thunder and the lightening...but it did!

Welcome home!!!

I have several bird feeders out my back window. A few days ago I loaded them all up with black sunflower seeds and then sat and waited for my long lost feathered friends to come back home. I didn't know how long it would take them to come fluttering by my abode and spot the feeders, but I was hoping it would be soon. After waiting for about 48 hours, I awoke to the sound of MANY "peeps" and "chirps". I have to say, I was a tad bit excited that my little friends had found their way back to my tree and brought along with them, a passel of pals. Waking up to the sound of birds is one of my favorite parts about the Spring and Summer. Have you ever noticed how insanely quiet it is during the winter? Its because ALL of the birds have flown south (to where its green, warm and beautiful)...NOW they've found their way back and I'm thrilled to have them residing in my yard once again.

These pictures don't do these adorable little yellow birds any justice. My photo's make them look dull and plain, when in reality they are bright and beautiful! I'm so glad that I once again get to wake up to their happy, cheerful chirping!

I hear that the "Early Bird gets the WoRm"...

Its 4 AM but I've actually been up since 3 AM. I woke up, having nightmares, three different times during the night. Finally with the last one I just decided to crawl out of bed and get my mind busy doing something else besides DREAMING HORRIBLE dreams... so I ate a few things to get my body moving, like eating these YUMMY treats (which I am totally in love with)!!......

...and I made bread, which will be 100% cooked and done by 7:00AM!

...and I completed a load of laundry and cleaned the kitchen!

Growing up I was plagued with nightmares, frequently waking up screaming or in tears with my heart pounding. They weren't ever the same dream...just awful, scary things that my mind would play out like an awful horror film, while I slept. I always thought that "when I grew up" I would outgrow the terrible curse of "nightmares"....BUT alas, I am here to tell you that I didn't...they still haunt my sleep from time to time, causing me to awake suddenly in tears, sweating and even screaming. I have to be careful about what I think, read or watch on television before I go to bed- because so often it's played out in a "horrific way" while I try to sleep. Some might say..."Gosh, I wished I had that problem, I could get so much done if I got up that early", but honestly...I would much rather be sleeping, enjoying a night of slumber, like the rest of the world. BUT for today....I will march on, accomplishing the tasks at hand, trying to wear myself out so that when I hit the pillow my body will be so exhausted that I can just fall fast asleep and enjoy some much needed rest...UNTIL then, I will just keep on moving-like the "Energizer Bunny".....Because THIS EARLY BIRD needs to get the worm!

WhY?

Have you ever wondered WHY....WHY people enjoy ice fishing? After all they sit on a chair, in the cold, bundled up like an eskimo waiting for a fish to bite... that more often than not when the fish does bite, they through back into the fishing hole anyway?

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY do we have to have wrinkles and grey hair? Really, what is the purpose? Is it so people can tell who is old and who is young? Is is to give us all one more thing to dread and worry about when thinking about aging? Grey hair is NOT my thing and I refuse to let nature take that course...I plan on dying my hair FOREVER...as for the wrinkles, I am fighting those off as well. I just don't understand what purpose these "2" things play in the course of living.

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY do we have to have ear wigs and WHY do they have those ugly pinchers on the end of their bodies? They are such a disgusting little creature and cause me to be quite squimish and jumpy when digging in the dirt. They serve NO purpose in my life and I would rather they be extinct!

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY most men can lose weight quicker and without much effort, than women? Its NOT fair that men can eat double what a woman does and still lose weight! Its not fair that women have to work out double the amount of time than a man, yet the man still loses more weight than the woman!

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY some people are blessed with tiny bodies by nature, eat everything they want and still don't gain weight? Why some of us are required to limit the "yummy" food we partake of and then have to sweat blood and tears for countless hours a week just to keep from piling on the pounds?....just doesn't seem right!

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY some people have the "golden touch"? Seems as though everything they touch turns to gold. They seem to have countless streaks of "good fortune"...call it luck, call it a blessing, call it crazy...I don't understand it and it completely boggles my mind!

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY some days the "time" seems to DRAG on forever? I have days like that, it seems that no matter what I do the day goes by so slowly and never seems to end.

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY the only thing thats on television on a Saturday morning are CARTOONS? If you have cable, thats probably NOT the case. BUT for those of us that just have the "over the air" channels, there isn't a darn thing for adults to watch on Saturday morning...I don't know if thats because the networks assume we adults will be sleeping in or if we are supposed to be the only ones doing Saturday Chores...either way, its not happening in my house. I don't sleep in and I'm not going to be the only one working on Saturday Chores...but I would enjoy a bit of NEWS to start my day.

Have you ever wondered WHY...WHY some people

wonder and have so many questions?

JUST thought you might want to know the little things that I can't wrap my mind around and that no matter what the "LOGICAL answer" to my many questions might be, I still won't understand WHY!!!

Choices, Choices......

I don't know about you, but everywhere I go I see flowers, beads and ruffles. Ruffles on blouses, cardigans, skirts and jackets. Flowers adorning head bands, bracelets, necklaces, broaches and clothing....and BEADS everywhere from on clothing to around necks... I am loving that the look of "femininity" has made a come back. I like fashion, I always have, but only if its "tasteful", sadly enough there are many trends out there that aren't tasteful, leaving much to be desired.

Over the years I've worn a lot of different looks, both in clothing as well as in hairstyles... but I've always loved the "feminine", classy look best. As "ruffles, beads and flowers" have come back into play in the fashion world, I have taken to the "NEW LOOK" and jumped on the band wagon, wearing beads, ruffles and flowers whenever possible...! I seriously love, love, LOVE it...all of it-- its terribly "girly and fun" and thats what makes it so exciting! I saw a tutorial a while back on someone's blog...it showed how to make these adorable flowers that everyone is wearing. I've seen them in the stores at the Mall, but these flowers can run you $14 or more...which seems a little on the "pricey" side especially if you want more than ONE (which I do...I want ONE in every color...you do the math, that WOULDN'T be cheap!) The tutorial looked easy enough so I knew I had to give this little "craft project" a try! They make up extremely fast...making them an addictive thing for me...classy, easy and cheap! What is there NOT to love?!
I wear them on my cardigans, adorn my beads with them and even my scarves...they are so stinkin cute that I might even attach one to my purse....(its a thought I really am considering!)

NOW, there is only one problem...

Which one should I wear today?!

Once upon a time.....

Once upon a time there was a handsome prince named Cameron.

He got all dressed up and ready to go....

where else but to the...

"Jr Prom"

You know the one...its the big dance that each and every little girl and boy look forward to from the time they start school. They both dream of girls in pretty dresses, boys in dark tuxes, the fancy cars they will ride in and ALL the fun they are going to have...they dream of who they will go with, what they'll eat and where the big dance will be...

Until one day they wake up and

THE Jr. Prom has arrived...

the big day is here... no more dreaming~

Cameron was so excited to take Xela...one of his close friends, to the Prom.

He brought her to the house for some quick pictures before heading back

to the school for a nice dinner and then the "PROM"

(I thought they both looked amazing!!!)

Cameron was very careful not to let Xela stumble down the stairs!

Cam and his best friend Morgan, posing for a picture...Morgan happens to be

Xela's big brother as well~

Pictures, pictures, pictures....I think they both had seen enough of the camera

and were just ready to get on with their night...but

they were good sports and let us keep snapping shots here and there.

The two of them coming out during the "Promenade"....isn't Xela's dress gorgeous?!

She looked like a princess...

....and was even crowned the 2011 Prom Princess!

It was a wonderful time had by all and I'm actually pretty sad that its over!

I don't have any more son's that will be going to the prom...

this was the last of the boys left at home.

Kids grow up too fast...move on too quick and do it all

right under our noses!

Cam is an awesome young man and I love him to pieces....

and actually, I'm quite fond of Xela too...I've known her since she

was just a baby and think the world of her!

Cameron couldn't have picked a better date!

I'm glad that the two of them got to spend their big Prom Day together!

Party TiMe!

Babies grow up WAY TOO FAST! Although this little guy started out a VERY TINY baby boy...he's growing like a weed now. This past weekend I got to have my very first

"Grandma Weekend"

(a tradition that I plan on keeping and doing with all of my grandkids)...

a big slumber party at grandma and grandpa's house.

We had so much fun!!! Kenron was so stinkin cute and an angel the entire time...I'm not even kidding. I was a bit worried about night time and him waking up because he was someplace different., but happily he slept from 10:30 pm-8:00am....and he woke up smiling and thrilled to see me!!

I treasure him so much and the time that I get to spend with him.

He's almost 16 lbs now and has discovered his voice, jabbering and gooing

with the cutest little facial expressions to go along with his "talk".

He loves people and INDIVIDUAL attention...just like his UNCLE CAMERON~

He likes to put things in his mouth... towels, fingers, toys and FOOD!

He does some of the cutest things...awwwwh~

Sometimes I think I likes to sing and it makes me laugh right out loud, its precious!!

AND.... he has a smile that completely melts my heart every single time!!!!

What a Doll!

I love this little guy and am thrilled to be his grammy!