Free Time Free Money ~ Monday Listicles

This week for Monday Listicles there's a choice of theme:

#1 – list 10 things you really like about yourself, things you are good at, your super powers!

Or

#2 – You have 48 hours free of all responsibilities and unlimited cash, what 10 things would you do, places you’d go, etc.

I chose #2 because I am just NOT good at saying nice things about myself. 

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Here are my 10:

1.  I'd go to the bank and pay off our mortgage.

2.  I'd go to a car dealership and buy one brand spankin' new car and one brand spankin' new truck.

3.  I'd fly to Ireland and buy a castle.

4.  I'd buy a beach house.

5.  I'd hire a house cleaning service to do a total overhaul on my house while I'm out and about.

6.  I'd get a complete spa treatment.

7.  I'd get hair extensions until my own hair grows long again.

8.  I'd set up college funds for the girls.

9.  I'd go on a romantic date with the hubby.

10.  I'd take a nap :)

So what would you do with 48 hours of free time and unlimited money?
Have fun!

Mani Monday ~ 4/30/12

hosted by Heather and Heather

This is a new feature that is just starting today.  I love the way Heather describes painting your nails:

"What I want to clarify about this feature is that its not for fashion, its not to be vain, its not because we are spoiled girls who get our nails done. Its for you. Its for you to take time, just a little bit of time out of your day to do something nice for yourself. When I started reading Moorea Seal, I loved her series called Paint Your Love, in polishing her nails she had a reason behind it. My reason is clear, take time for you."

This explains it so well!

Having 2 daughters, painting our nails takes on another meaning.  Quality time.  When I pull out the fingernail polish, a gleam shines in their eyes :)  It is a chance to be creative, have fun and show them that they are also important enough to spend time on.

Even though they can't sit still long enough to let their nail dry completely, it always brings a smile to my face to see them sitting there, hands splayed in front of them blowing on their tiny fingernails.

Girl time:

Kaylee (10) went for the "every-other" look.  She chose the colors shown below:  Bijou Blue (Wet-n-Wild) and Eggplant Frost (Wet-n-Wild).

Laken (5) has to copy everything her big sister does but still maintains her unique-ness.  She went with the "every-other" as Sissy did, but chose Bijou Blue (Wet-n-Wild) and Wall Street (NYC).  Do you see the remains of her Little Mermaid fake-too on her wrist?

And here is mine.  (Yes, my girls got their short, chubby fingers from me:)  I went with Carribean Frost (Wet-n-Wild).  It is actually greener than this picture looks.  I'm trying to break out of my red/burgundy rut.

So, that my friends is my first Mani-Monday.  Although, technically we did them on Friday evening while hubby/daddy was at work.  Total girl-time  :)

( Doug REFUSES to let the girls paint his nails.  Believe me.  They have tried.  In a house full of chicks, he has to draw the line somewhere !)

And because everytime I think of this link-up, it comes to mind:

Its just another Mani-Monday!

Menu Monday ~ 4/30/12

This weekend flew by!  I can't believe it is Monday already.

This is going to be a busy week for us.  Kaylee's softball season officially starts tonight so we'll be eating early and going to games. 

I'll be adjusting my schedule to try to have our meals before we leave.  This will save us LOTS of money at the concession stands.

Here's what this week looks like for us:

Monday:

Baked Steak
Italian Parmesan Potatoes
Corn
Strawberries

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Tuesday:

Sweet & Sour Chicken
Rice
Broccoli
Apples


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Wednesday:

(Church Fellowship Meal /Prayer meeting)

Cheesy Potatoes and Smoked Sausage
Oreo Cookie Cookies

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Thursday:

Spaghetti
Garlic Bread
Green Beans
Apples

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Friday:

(Family Night)

 

Homemade Pizza

 

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Saturday:

Sausage
Eggs
Toast
Strawberries

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Sunday:

(Church Fellowship Meal)

Mini Corn Dog Muffins
Cinnamon Cinnabon Cake

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Have a great Monday!

Scripture Memory Verse ~ 4/29/12

Scripture Memory Verse ~

4/29/12-5/5/12

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this:  While we were still sinnners, Christ died for us."

Romans 5:8

(Growing in the Fruit of the Spirit, Week 2)
 Hide these Words in your heart and they will be with you always.

     

Camera Critters ~ 4/28/12

Camera Critters is a Saturday meme hosted by Misty Dawn at Camera Critters  which is all about photos of animals/critters. 

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This is Delilah (aka Lilah, Girlie etc.) our Black Lab.

Daddy was out in the front yard mowing the grass.  She stood there at the window watching him go back and forth.

 

You could tell everytime Daddy came near the door.

Her tail wagged the whole time :)

 

Lilah Loves Her Daddy!

 

Have a wonderful Camera Critters day!

TSMSS ~ "I Choose Jesus" by Moriah Peters

This song is one of my new favorites.  I really need to get this CD.




Have a blessed weekend!

Cole's Book Club ~April~ Review & Giveaway

The April book for Cole's Book Club was "The Next Always" by Nora Roberts.

I'd never read anything by Nora (we're on a first name basis now) before so I was excited to dig into this book.

Book Description:

The historic hotel in Boonsboro has endured war and peace, the changing of hands, and even rumored hauntings. Now it's getting a major face-lift from the Montgomery brothers and their eccentric mother. As the architect in the family, Beckett's social life consists mostly of talking shop over pizza and beer. But there's another project he's got his eye on: the girl he's been waiting to kiss since he was sixteen.

After losing her husband and returning to her hometown, Clare Brewster soon settles into her life as the mother of three young sons while running the town's bookstore.Though busy and with little time for romance, Clare is drawn across the street by Beckett's transformation of the old inn, wanting to take a closer look...at both the building and the man behind it.

With the grand opening inching closer, Beckett is happy to give Clare a private tour -- one room at a time, in between blueprint meetings and kindergarten pickups. It's no first date, but these stolen moments are the beginning of something that could arouse the secret yearning that resides in Clare's independent heart -- and open the door to the extraordinary adventure of what comes next...
 
On to the Book Club questions:
 
1.  Did you like the book? Why/why not?
I really  did.  I enjoyed the characters, the setting and the atmosphere that Nora created.



2.  Do the characters seem real and believable? Can you relate to them/ do they remind you of people you know?
The characters did seem believeable.  So many of the "situations" that arose around the 3 young children made me chuckle because I can so relate!  I don't think I really know people like the characters but I wish they were real so that I could be friends.



3.  Is the ending satisfying? If so, why? If not, why not...and how would you change it?

I liked the ending.  Especially because I know this was the first book of a trilogy and it even had a sneak peak at the second book in the series.  I look forward to reading more about these people and this town.


4.  If you could ask the author a question, what would you ask?

Who is Lizzie!?!?  The suspense is killing me.


5.  How do characters change or evolve throughout the course of the story? If so, how/why?

The characters did evolve throughout the book.  In the beginning, Clare was all about being the best mom ever to her 3 boys.  I liked the she learned to lighten up a bit.  Beckett goes from being a true bachelor to cleaning up a spaghetti fight and tucking 3 little boys in bed.

Nora was a new-to-me author but now I look forward to reading many more of her books.  I enjoy that aspect of a Book Club.  Being introduced to new authors really broadens my reading world.


Cole has a new poll up on her sidebar to vote for May's Book Club book.  It was a difficult choice, but I know which one I voted for!
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Now for the GIVEAWAY!

I am giving away my copy of "The Next Always" to one lucky reader!

To enter just leave me a comment below letting me know that you want to be entered.  Easy as that!

I'll draw a winner on Friday, May 4th, at 12pm EST.

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Happy Reading!

Fill In The Blank Friday ~ 4/27/12

Hosted by Lauren.

1. When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is, hit the snooze button 4 times.  Really.  I set my alarm ahead by 36 minutes so I can still get up in time.

2. I can hardly wait for our trip to Disney World!  You can see the countdown tracker on my sidebar.

3. The quickest way to my heart is sweet words because I need tons of affirmation.  Can you say "self-esteem issues"?

4. A little known fact about me is that I was valedictorian in high school and college.  Don't hate me but I hardly had to try at all.

5. The best part about my job is that I get to be a SAHM while my etsy shop gives us some fun money.

6. Something I just couldn't live without  are books, books and more books!  I absolutely love to read.  I can go anywhere and anytime just by opening the pages of a good book.

7. Something useful that I wish I knew how to do is keep my house clean.  I would have to be cleaning 24/7 to keep this place in order.  I keep telling myself that the kids will only be little for a short while.  Neatness can come later.

This was my first Fill in the Blank Friday and my answers seem kinda lame.  Hopefully, I'll get better at it :)

Happy Friday!

Feel Good & High Five Friday ~ 4/27/12

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&

"Just make a list. List 5 things that made you really happy this week. No matter how bad or boring you think your week was, I bet you can find 5 things."

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1.   My lilacs are BLOOMING!  Lilacs are my VERY favorite flower ever.  Love the smell, love the beautiful tiny flowers that make up the whole, everything!

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2.  Our area Churches had our annual "Ladies Salad Supper".  The hosting Church picked the them "The King's Daughter".  We all were crowns and tiaras.  It was so fun digging though Laken's crowns and picking out which ones we wanted to wear.

This is a quick shot of the table setting:

Cinderella was even there!  Laken told her that she'll see her again in June at Disney World.

There was a skit about Esther and the 10 and unders went to a special room to make crafts and then gave us a "Parade of Princesses".  My two are 3rd and 4th from the left on stage.  They had so much fun!  So did we adults :)

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3. I got this super cute flip flop tumbler at the Dollar General.  It will be my go-to cup for the summer.  Mine.  All mine.

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4.  As I mentioned earlier in the week, I was accepted to fill one of the newbie spots in Mamarazzi's Favorite Color Swap!  I love swaps!  I should be finding out who my partner is very soon and then I can go SHOPPING!

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5.  And, finally, my business cards from Vista Prints came!  I was so excited to see how they turned out.  Much better than my homemade ones and so much easier!

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I look forward to reading everyone's favorite things from the week!

Have a great weekend!

p52 ~ Week 17 ~ Green

Theme:  Green

My picture this week is kinda girlie.  But, hey, I AM a girl!

I've been trying to veer away form my usual red/burgundy nails.  So I got this green, a turqoise and a purple polish while shopping yesterday.

This is called "Carribean Frost".  I'll let you know how it looks on my nails when I get a chance to paint them.

See, really girlie!

Upcoming themes:

Week 18 – April 29 – May 5: Fiesta or Siesta
Week 19 – May 6 – May 12 : Still Life
Week 20 – May 13 – May 19: Mothers
Week 21 – May 20 – May 26: Favorites
Week 22 – May 27 – June 2: Playtime
Week 23 – June 3 – June 9: Water
Week 24 – June 10 – June 16: Sunlight
Week 25 – June 17 – June 23: Fathers

Full Plate Thursday ~ Millionaire Squares

Miz Helen at Miz Helen's Country Cottage is such a sweetheart! 

She hosts Full Plate Thursday.  You can click the button to go share your recipes :)

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Warning:  This dessert is VERY rich!  and YUMMY!

And it all starts with store bought Oatmeal Cookies.

Millionaire Squares
from:  Chocolate Chocolate and More Chocolate

Crust:

1/2 cup butter
2 cups crisp Oatmeal Cookies

Filling:

1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
1 large egg
2 cups confectionar's sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Crust:  Melt 1/2 cup butter in medium saucepan over low heat or in a glass bowl in the microwave.

Crush cookies.  Using a food processor or chopper is the easiest way to do this.

Combine melted butter and cookie crumbs until moist and buttery throughout.  Reserve 1/4 cup for topping.  Press remaining crumb into the bottom of a greased 8X8 pan.  (I doubled the recipe for a 13X9 pan).  Bake for 5-10 minutes until you can smell the crust baking.

Remove from oven and cool completely.

Filling:

Heat chocolate and 1/2 cup butter in a medium saucepan on lowest heat.

Stir often until chocolate is almost melted.  Remove from heat and stir until smooth.

Add egg and beat well.  Also add in sugar a bit at a time and stir until you have a smooth consistency.  Stir in pecans.

Spread evenly over cooled crust.  Sprinkle reserved crumbs over top.  (I forgot to save some so I just sprinkled some graham crackers on top.  oops.)  Chill until firm.

Cut these into small pieces and make sure you have some milk handy :)

Enjoy and share!
Happy Full Plate Thursday!