Happy Thanksgiving

I just want to say for the record that I would love to cook the Big Thanksgiving Diner. I've done it a couple of times, but since there is always something that goes wrong, Brian has refused to let me do it again. That and my kitchen is not big enough anymore.

So now we go out like so many other people do every year on this Thankful day. But none-the- less, we are still very thankful for the blessing that God has given us. Health, Happiness and lots of love.

To be honest eating out is not so bad. Carker Barrel is THE place to go. But they did run out of pecan pie:( bummer! But we ate well and laid around all day and watched the call games.... yes, a typical American Thanksgiving.

Yea, it's that time of year to start baking again. My little man and I sat down in the floor tonight and when through my cookie mags and I find some really yummy looking ones. But first I must figure just how many we need. Little Man wants to make, like , 30 different kinds... yea, o.k.:) Let's trim that list down just a little bit, ok?

Something that I must also consider this year is the packaging...cute boxes? or cute tins?

I'm getting excited, I have to take stock of my "tools" pastry bags, cookie cutters. Last year I had a real hard time finding nested trees. this year I'm going to try to find nested snowflakes. I've come across some georgous pictures of the "snowflake" cookie and want to try it. (It's late and I'm tired or I would put in a link). But the picture is inspiring.

I've been cruising around looking at some other baking blogs and as much as I love to bake and create, I think I might start doing a bit more- carve out a little bit more time out of the day. I'm not much for "cooking" but I love to bake. Cookies, pies, cakes... what ever. and I love the baking blogs... so cute! and the pictures are so much better and colorful.

Well, Happy Hollidays.... God bless and may He bring you peace.

Don'g Get All Stressed With Coupons

I have done like most women when they start to coupon. They go full force and non-stop to save their mighty dollar. And just like I have been warned on other blogs, I got burnt-out.

A little insight.... on some of the blogs I frequent, I see some woman buying 12 bottles of shampoo and 12 bottles of conditioner just because they were $.09 each. Well, some of us do not have the storage space and, I would not use 12 bottles of shampoo in 2 or 3 years.

The lesson is... if you don't need it, DON"T BUY IT! Just because you can get $165.00 worth of stuff for 20 bucks, doesn't mean you are obligated to do so. You should use your common sense and make informed decisions on what you are buying. I started with the BOGO stuff and using coupons on those products. Once you get your rhythm, then tackle the CVS Thing...... I'm still learning that one. There again.... lots of stuff on sale that I don't need and I'm not going to buy it just because I can get a "bonus buck" to spend later. That sounds like" the more you spend, the more you save".

Couponing is great if you have to time. I'm a mom of two small children who works full time. I have time to download and bunch of mfg Q's and then check the sale papers. But I don't have the time to go to CVS just because they have milk for $2.99 instead of $3.15 at the grocery. COMMON SENSE!

It is a invigorating feeling when I'm able to save $30.00 - $50.00 at the grocery. The check out lady even says "you did good" and that is very satisfying.

A Coupon-ing We Will Go

I am so getting into this cupon 101-ing. I have clipped coupons for years, but never put any effort behind it. Now I have reallized that with each coupon there is money saved. Who wouldn't love that. The only thing I'm having a problem with is... do you buy things you don't really use ? I'm going to start a new column of saving sites. For my reference and yours. I have found a great site that is for regional shoping- Southern Savers. It's got some GREAT tips and explained a lot of lingo and how to's.

Playin In The Rain

My son Loves jumping in the water puddles when it rains. "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, can we go outside and jump in the water?" Who could say no? So we remove any shoes, and grab an umbrella and head outside. If you haven't jumped in a rain puddle in a while- you should.... it's very childish and delightful to the spirit. It will truly make you giggle. One suggestion, don't do it when it's cold outside. This is strickly a summer time ativity. Ha,Ha.

It's About Time

My son is FINALLY sleeping in his own bed, in his own room, and asleep by 9:00 pm. YEA!!!! It's been about a year now that I have had to go to bed with him and that meant that I was basically going to bed at 8:30 or he was staying up till 10:30 (not good). but now, you moms know what I'm talking about.. FREEDOM. I can now do something in the evening, like watch tv-boring, or I can catch up on my blog- yea cool. Or do anything I want to.

Big Church vs. Smaller Church AAAHHHHHH!

We haven't been to church in a few weeks. I know, I know... we usually go to a BIG church, you know the kind, 3000 members and you never see the same people twice. I have just not wanted to deal with it lately. It was too much hassle for a Sunday morning and church shouldn't be a hassle.

When it's hard to find a parking place that's not a half a mile away, and trying to get the kids into their Sunday School room has become stressful, it's time to reevaluate. So we are searching for a smaller community of believers. Don't get me wrong, the BIG church has it's merit, I loved the preacher, and they offer SO many classes, 101 classes, regular Bible Study classes, how to study the Bible classes, how to be a leader classes and so forth, and don't let me leave out Starbucks(yes, that's right) but I wasn't really connecting with anyone.

So anyway, I found a new church to visit right around the corner from us and they have a great web site(big plus) so we took the plunge. Now keep in mind I have not been in a few weeks, so I was needing some serious joyful worship time. It was so different and I LOVED IT! Their music was so much more joyful and expressive.Very uplifting! I was feeling the Spirit so strong I shead some tears. The preacher was talking to people in the congragation and calling people by name. He was down on our level where we could see him. It just felf better.

Plus, the people were Soo much more friendly- because they know each other and knew we were new faces. And because they knew we were newcomers, they helped us out so much. Even found us in the sanctuary to let us know the kids were ok. That totally won us over. No more Big Church for me.

They say that the big church is what people are gravitating towards, but I'm not so sure. Maybe the younger generation. But for me, I was raised with a small country church that I went to with my Gandmother, any just about everybody there were relatives, so I like the kinship of the small church. The only drawback- they know when you don't show up on Sunday. LOL!