Cuper Duper

Jeans to skirt and hair flower

2012-02-20T19:15:00.000-06:00

I needed some skirts to wear and love denim, but good jean skirts seem hard to find when you are looking for them. I had older Levis pants. In my attempt to make something modest, I went to the internet for tutorials to do this. I was so intimidated by ripping out the inside seam in the jeans. Once I got started, it wasn't so bad. I wanted my skirt to be a few inches below the knee so here it is.

Warning: Bad quality cell phone pics! :)

It is an A-line skirt. I trimmed the bottom off and pieced in the panel. I frayed the edge and ran two lines of stitches above where I cut it so it won't fray past that part.

It has turned out to be one of my most comfortable skirts now. Didn't cost anything since I used what I already had.

I also decided on a whim today that I would like to make some pretty flowers to put in my hair for church. I saw some for sale but knew I could create them cheaper and more unique. I got some tulle, organza, felt, and alligator clips at Hobby Lobby today. I already had some seed beads. It was fun.

Plucco is not so little

2012-01-30T23:10:00.001-06:00

This Plecostomus has become the star of our tank. He is a few years old and eats wafers everyday. Our tank is 47 gallons and vertical. He is getting so big that some of our decor is having to come out.

You can see that the plecostomus is probably 12 inches long now. He looks stuck in the colosseum, but he's not. I have removed some of the extra fake greenery and other things so that he can lay on the gravel.

He is so large that when I am on the couch staring at him, I am sure that he is staring back at me. I do not handle him, but I have read that some people like to do that. I am not that brave. It is becoming harder to clean the tank and keep him undisturbed. He is graceful and looks like a dragon flying through the water.

When I first got this plecostomus, I thought he was just going to be an algae sucker. He was maybe 1-2 inches long from the pet store. If you feed them wafers and don't allow them to only eat from the tank, they will Flourish!

Make your own Peppermint Water

2012-01-23T19:23:00.000-06:00

If you like the taste of MetroMint Peppermint Water but do not like the price, you can make your own. I bought some of this water and paid a little over $2.50. Wow Expensive! I saw the ingredients and knew I could make something similar.

You can add 1-2 drops of Peppermint Essential Oil in a glass of water. That's it. Stir it around and you have peppermint water. You can also steep some peppermint leaves if you wanted to go that route. You can get a small bottle of Peppermint Essential Oil for $4 online.

There is a huge savings to making it yourself, and the health benefits of Peppermint Oil is very long. It can help with digestion, UTI, immunity, and blood circulation among many other things. You can view a great page of info here.

Revisited Scented Pine Cones, Orange Slices

2012-01-02T19:20:00.003-06:00

I made a blog post back at the beginning of November telling how I was making the scented pine cones, orange slices, and lemon slices. They smelled really good and were supposed to sit for several weeks. I got all caught up in the holidays at Thanksgiving and forgot about them until now.

I pulled them out today and made a small centerpiece for the table and another basket for the fireplace. They had some cinnamon sticks in them as well. They smell wonderful and the dehydrated slices turned out nice.

Thieves Oil to the rescue

2011-12-28T11:31:00.001-06:00

I had never heard of Thieves Oil until this past year. I started dabbling in essential oils and making cleaners. I heard this word come up several times. So, the best resource I found for easy DIY instructions was Ma & Pa Parker's Sustainability Blog. There is some history to Thieves Oil that you should look up. It's interesting. It helped the robbers of Medieval times fight off the plague so they could rob the dead without getting ill and dying.

You can find the recipe there on their blog. I had to make some variations because of what I had.

Thieves Oil (My substitutions to the side.)

1 lemon peel (20 drops Lemon EO)
4 Sprigs of Rosemary (I grew mine this year)
4 Cinnamon Sticks (18 drops Cinnamon EO)
1/4 cup Whole Cloves
7 drops Eucalyptus EO

Bring 1 Quart of water and all of the hard items to a boil. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Stir Often. Strain into Quart Jar and add the Essential Oils. The picture of mine above is after I have used it several times.

What can you do with this? I use it to mop with and fight off nasty flu and germs. I pour a little (1/4 cup) into some hot water to mop with. It smells really good because of the Cinnamon and Cloves. If it is good enough to kill the plague, it should work for everyday flu.

On Ma & Pa's blog, they tell how you can use it for a General Purpose Cleaner, Glass Cleaner (mixed with vinegar), Wood Cleaner (Polish), and Laundry Additive. Make sure to find out how to mix these things before you use it. Some things can be damaging if not known how to properly use.

DIY Foot Soak

2011-12-23T19:40:00.002-06:00

I haven't been to get a pedicure in 2 years. Last few times I went, they cut me pretty deep or injured me somehow. I decided to just pamper myself at home.

I used a large dishpan and filled it half-full with really hot water. I put about 1/4 cup Epsom salts, 1/4 cup baking soda, a few drops of Rosewood Essential Oil, and a small handful of dried Rose Petals. It was super relaxing. By using Epsom Salts, you will absorb Magnesium through your skin. See more benefits here at SaltWorks.

I got to soak my feet and watch some TV at my couch. How cool. I put all of my pedicure tools in a small bucket so they would be available while I was soaking. Don't forget to have a towel handy! I finished up with some great Shea Butter Lotion for my feet, cuticle oil, and some fuzzy socks.

So, I saved myself $40 dollars plus Tip. I will probably never go back to a Nail Salon for a pedicure.

Curry Hot and Sour Soup, a crock-potting tale

2011-11-03T23:45:00.000-05:00

Perfect day today for a good crock-pot soup. I wanted to try and make a Hot and Sour soup because I had never made one. I also love curry and Thai. Mix of 2 recipes. Fabulous.

I am so excited to say that I have now cooked Tofu. Shame on me for not doing it sooner. And after watching Forks over Knives, thank you Michelle, I feel proud.

Here is a basic run-down of how I did it. It happened throughout the day, but I will spare you all the scatter-brain details.

Curry Hot and Sour Soup

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts
carton of chicken broth
3 TB Red Wine Vinegar
2 TB Soy Sauce
2 tsp curry powder
2 cups water
2 TB Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp chopped Jalapeno
1 carrot, peeled and sliced
1 celery stalk
1/2 Red Bell Pepper
1/4 cup or handful of shredded cabbage
1/2 box firm tofu, bite sized cubes
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/3 cup wild mushrooms (frozen or dried for my area)
1/2 can Bamboo Shoots, drained
1/2 can Water Chestnuts, drained
-----------------------------
3-4 green onions, green tops
1 TB chopped cilantro

Basics

I started off with frozen chicken breasts and dumped a carton of chicken broth over it. I let it cook for a few hours (probably 4) on high. After awhile, you can see it boiling and know it needs to be pulled out to cube or chop up. If you aren't worried about cloudy broth, which I am not, I throw the meat back in to cook with everything else.

Then, I started adding everything in as I chop it. No need for too much prep. I added the 2 cups of water, the Red Wine Vinegar (Rice Wine Vinegar may be more traditional but that is what the Cooper Cupboards had), Soy Sauce, Curry Powder, Brown Sugar, red pepper, jalapeno, carrot (I wouldn't have peeled them if they were organic), celery, red bell pepper, cabbage, garlic, wild mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts. Let that cook up for about 2-3 hours. Depending on how hot your crock pot gets, you will want to monitor that.

Throw the last few ingredients in at the last and let it get good and hot. The flavor of the cilantro really adds a flavor punch mixed with the curry mix.

I couldn't get enough of it. The flavor was so good. It was definitely the best comfort food I have had in awhile. This was too spicy for my 17 year old daughter, and too weird for my picky 13 year old son, but my little buddy D ate this right up and kept saying "Bite Bite" after each bite. He really dug the broth.

Scented Pine Cones, Orange Slices

2011-11-01T09:48:00.000-05:00

Several weeks back, we collected pine cones from the yard and set off to make scented pine cones and other holiday items. I used my dehydrator to dry these orange and lemon slices. I added cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. I then mixed up some essential oils and painted the pieces with a paint brush. I closed them up in this tin canister. They will be ready in a few weeks, Right about time for holiday decorating. You could hang these on a Christmas tree, attach to a package with the tag, spread in a decorative bowl, add with potpourri. Ready in 4-8 weeks.

We filled this basket up with pine cones. Then, I did the same for the pine cones. We got a few pieces of cinnamon sticks to throw in there with them. We made up our oil blend and painted each pine cone. Put it all in a big trash bag. You can shake it every once in awhile. This may help to distribute the scent.

My tips for you that I learned was "Wear Gloves." Pine Cones will stick you. Also, this helps with not getting the strong oils on your hand. Your house will smell good when you make this.

My mom used to keep scented pine cones in a canister before the holidays. I went in search of how to do it. I found a quick article on SnowDrift Farm. Change it up however you want.

Who can resist the curing table?

2011-10-26T00:12:00.000-05:00

This is the funnest part of making soap. The curing. It is a pretty slow process, but you get to see your soap turn into a nice looking bar. In the beginning, sometimes it looks pretty scary. Colors change. Fragrances change, sometimes not for the best. You never know how it will really turn out until the very end.

The soap you see above was cold process and then oven processed. It will be ready in 4 days. This soap was made many days ago.

No one can resist walking by curing soap and touching it.

Buffalo Wing Jerky - Dehydrator

2011-10-11T12:07:00.001-05:00

I really enjoy some homemade jerky. Once you get used to eating it, you never want to buy any from Wal-Mart again. Our friend (Jonathan) told my husband a few years ago that he started making some Buffalo Wing Jerky. Mmm You don't need any exact measurements to make jerky. It tastes awesome if you just follow basic instructions and add what you want.

First, you need to get a roast. Really any roast will do. You need to cut off any major fat so the leaner the better. The last roast we used was a Rump Roast. It is usually around $10.Cut it across the grain if you can. The pieces that are cut across the grain will fall apart more easily. The ones with the grain will be tougher to chew. To each their own.

I cut my meat with a cheaper electric meat slicer that I picked up from Wal-Mart one holiday. You can get it at Amazon as well. It folds up and is pretty easy to use. It is a booger to clean because it does come apart into about 4 pieces. You will find little pieces of meat in cracks, but it does come clean. If you keep your box, it stores nice in a closet.

Slice up your meat. I like to get a cookie sheet out and just lay the slices on it. After I get done, I take some sea salt and sprinkle the mess out of it. You want to be able to see it. Now this is optional, I like to add a few splashes of soy sauce and lemon juice. Soy sauce is salty and lemon juice seems to help break down the meat. I also like some cracked black pepper on mine. I put it all in a big bowl and dump half of a bottle of Frank's Wing Sauce on it. You can get this about anywhere now and Amazon.

Very Important - Wear Gloves. I use some spiffy black gloves like they use in the hair salons. Sally's Beauty Supply. Coat the meat until it is red. I mix it around. There is so much vinegar in this sauce that it does seem to break down the meat's toughness. Let it sit in the fridge overnight.

Next morning, put the meat in the dehydrator. Don't let the pieces touch or you won't get as good of air circulation. I am using an older Nesco Food Dehydrator. I realized that I may need to upgrade mine soon because I can't do a whole batch of jerky at a time. It has 4 trays counting the bottom one.

I encourage you not to throw away your small little pieces because they are yummy. If you have little tidbits, just put them in there. They will help you gauge when the meat is getting done without wasting a big piece.

After it has started cooking for a few hours, your house will start smelling nice. After about 4 1/2 hours, you will notice the meat changing drastically. Your small little pieces will be crispy.

This picture was taken after a few hours. You can see how it started drying nicely.

Your jerky will take anywhere from 6-10 hours to get done depending on how thin you sliced your meat. I check on my jerky every hour after I start taking pieces off. The only real problem we have with making jerky is that I can eat it all as it comes ready. This jerky can be stored on the counter because it is dried!!!

Optional ideas: Before I started cooking with the Frank's sauce, I did it other ways. I never made a bad batch of jerky so just experiment. I sometimes add about 1/4 cup of Dr. Pepper or Coke on the meat. The fizzy helps the meat get tender. If you like your jerky a bit sweet, you can add some brown sugar on the meat when marinating it. Get wild crazy and make some Jerky!

This is a great idea for Holiday Gift Giving.

Why Store Bought is not always the Best

2011-10-02T16:24:00.000-05:00

Picture is not enhanced. iPhone pic.

You are looking at a plate that has some dried Rosemary leaves on both sides. The one on the left is Store Bought. That is McCormick's Rosemary Leaves. I admit that it is a few years old, but it was air tight and has not changed that much since I bought it. To the touch, it was dry and brittle and crumbles when you pick it up. I could probably crush it to a powdered state if I gave it a good try.

The pile on the right is my home grown Rosemary. I cut about 4-5 long sprigs of it, tied it in a bunch and hung it upside down inside a well-ventilated (poke holes in it) paper sack. I just clothes-pinned it to a hanger. I hung it up for a few weeks. It was that easy. When your leaves are dried and ready, they will just pop off the stem really easy.

I cannot get over how the color of my leaves are drastically different. I will definitely dry some more soon. This is probably all I will use in a year, anyways. I tasted it, and it tastes more flavorful than the store bought. I got this glass herb jar at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Animal Petting

2011-09-20T16:50:00.001-05:00

We went to the Four States Fair in Texarkana last night. Baby D enjoyed it a lot. Our favorite part was petting animals.

This is D petting a small deer. It was very soft. There were tons of little goats, a few big tortoises, caged llamas, and a small deer roaming around. I was shocked to see how tame it was. This is D's second experience with goats. He loves them.

Thank you to Becka for sharing these pictures with me.

Pressure Cooked Boiled Peanuts

2011-09-13T15:55:00.001-05:00

I love Boiled Peanuts. I started eating them when I moved to Georgia for a short time. That is also where I fell in love with Hot Wings. Yumm!

How to? Soak the peanuts in cold water for a little bit before, maybe 20 minutes or so. Drain the raw peanuts, found in your local grocery store. Put them in a pressure cooker. Add a cup of salt if you want it salty and 2/3 cup if less. Cover with water and you can fill about 2/3 full. Cover with lid and bring to pressure. Cook at pressure for at least 45 minutes. Turn it off and depressurize. Let it sit and cool in the water. If you take it out of the water early, they will shrivel up a little and not be as tasty. That will give it more time to soak up the salt. You can tell that the peanuts will sink in the water after they have set for awhile. After a little bit, you can drain them in the sink in a colander.

Storage: I like mine cold, the best. Put them in a Ziploc bag and they will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks. You can also freeze them.

Variations: You can add Tabasco in while cooking if you want them hot.

No Pressure Cooker? No problem. You can boil them on the stove for 2-3 hours.

I soaked the oats

2011-09-12T13:26:00.001-05:00

I made this recipe, and it turned out fabulous. I soaked my oatmeal in buttermilk that I made last week when making butter. I used this recipe from this blog below:

Baked Soaked Oatmeal Recipe from Kelly the Kitchen Cop

This is the picture from her site. I did not take any pictures, shame on me!

The only differences I did were that I added some prunes in with my raisins. I also added some peaches with mine along with the apples. I kept the fruit measurement the same. Super yummy!

Butter and Whey

2011-09-01T00:01:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I made butter again. It's pretty easy because I make it in my Blender. I used the large container of whipping cream. I let my butter rest on the counter top for half an hour. The jar beside it is the buttermilk it made. Last time I had some of this buttermilk, I made pancakes with it. Maybe some buttermilk fried chicken is in my future. I have a great recipe from the cookbook "From Elvis' Kitchen to Yours."

Since the butter was washed with cold water, it has some water in it even after draining. It will seep out for a bit.

After all of the extra water seeped out of the butter, I finished it. I use two spoons and mix it around while adding salt. I put some in a container for the fridge and made 2 small logs for the freezer. :)

Later, I wanted to make some whey because I read that you can soak brown rice in it. I put yogurt in a cheesecloth lined strainer so that the whey could drip off of the yogurt. I saw this here at The Nourishing Cook.

After a few hours, it slowed down enough to change it to hanging suspended. I put a larger piece of cheesecloth around my ball of yogurt so that I could bring all four corners together and tie it up. Then, I tied it to a wooden spoon that was sideways across a big jug. Do not squeeze the white glob. Just let it drip out slowly.

After it set out all night at room temperature and dripping. It was done. It made cream cheese and whey. Pretty cool! I started with half a container of yogurt (16 oz). It made around 6 ounces of cream cheese and a little jelly jar of whey (plus 4 TBSP you can't see). I used StoneyField Organic Plain Yogurt.

The cream cheese will last for one month refrigerated, and the liquid whey will last for 6 months refrigerated. I have already used some of my whey while making Kimchi (another new adventure). I found a good quick use for my cream cheese. I was dying to try it out.

Not too pretty, but I made a quick cheese ball. I had a seasoning packet of Hombres Garlic Onion Chipotle Dip Mix. I didn't make much cream cheese with my half-batch so I just used half of the packet. I mixed in 2 TBSP of my homemade butter and 1/2 cup of shredded cheese. I rolled it in a ball. I should have just stuck it in the fridge for a bit so it would firm up before I rolled it in the green onions and chopped roasted pecans. I was in a hurry and just forgot. Put it in the fridge and chill for a few hours and then it's ready to eat. It was super tasty and way spicier than I suspected. Ugly but good.

Soap Journey - The curing and cured

2011-08-23T11:58:00.001-05:00

For a few months now, I have started making soap. Real soap! The last few batches, I have stepped out of the norm and tried something new. Room Temperature Method. No heating oils and using thermometers. I use the heat of the lye to melt the hard oils. Worked perfectly.

My Citrus Honey Beer Soap is ready and cured.

My utility room has been smelling good while this soap was curing. It has citrus, citrus peel, touch of sandalwood, honey, and dark Guinness Beer in it. I wondered how much of the beer you would be able to smell once it cured. It doesn't smell like bathing in beer. The beer is good for your skin. If anyone wants the recipe, I will post it. I had to trim this soap because I had ash form on it.

This last weekend, I made a new batch of soap. It seems to be around 4 pounds. I used a 5 pound mold from SoapMolds.com. It was a Shea Butter and Coconut Milk soap with a great light fragrance of Oatmeal, Milk, and Honey. This has Calendula petals mixed in.

I unmolded the soap after 24 hours. I then let it sit on the counter for another 24 hours before I cut it.

It will sit for 4 weeks and cure. It will lighten in color and shrink as the water evaporates from it.

My next adventure is that I am going to make soap in PVC pipes instead of the wooden mold. It should make nice round bars of soap. I plan on making Lavender Oatmeal Goat Milk Soap. I am going to grind up lavender and oatmeal to put in the soap. I am going to use 3 inch pipes and cut them down to around 12 inches. They are thick enough to withstand the heat during saponification.

Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent

2011-08-19T15:51:00.002-05:00

My HE machine (which is a total piece of moldy crap, don't buy one) handles powdered better than liquid. So, I made Powdered Laundry Detergent. You can, too!

This is what the finished product looks like. Beautiful and Cheap! It made more than this. I had been using it for over a month before I decided to take a a picture. A Tablespoon at a time. It will last.

Ingredients (In the laundry section at Walmart):

1 grated bar of Fels Naptha Laundry Soap (grated with cheese grater), some may say 1/2 bar
1 cup baking soda (this is probably optional but I think it is good)
1 cup washing soda
1 cup Borax
Optional Essential Oils. I put in after it was mixed up. I used some Peppermint, Bergamot, and Tangerine. I am still working on what would be a great scent. The Fels Naptha bar also has a bit of a smell.

How? Pulse grated soap and dry ingredients in a blender or food processor. I did it in a Ninja! I put a combination of about 45 drops of essential oil in mine. Keep in mind that the Fels Naptha laundry soap bar has its own smell so make sure your smell and its smell will blend. You can also use Ivory if you want. Stir. It is done.

How much to use? I use a small wooden scoop for my HE machine. That is 1 Tablespoon. Supposedly, you just use half of what you normally use for a HE Machine. I think that 1 Tablespoon works good for my loads. Homemade Laundry Detergent is low suds anyway. I would suggest to use at least 1 Tablespoon for no matter what kind of washer you have.

Why these ingredients? Fels Naptha laundry soap is good at fighting stains. Baking soda is good for fighting smells and removing stains. Washing soda is also good for removing odors and removing dirt. Borax cleans, disinfects, softens water, and deodorizes. There you go.

Lesson Along the Way. One thing you will notice when making your own laundry detergent is smell. We think store bought laundry detergent is good when it leaves your clothes smelling a certain fragrance. That is not true. By putting 45 drops of essential oil in my detergent, it has a fragrance. Once the clothes are clean and dried, it does not still smell very strong of that fragrance. That lets you know just how much fragrance is in store bought detergent. That can't be that good for you.

Home School Stuff for Sale

2011-08-19T01:45:00.001-05:00

I have recently listed a few things on Ebay. Attention: Home Schoolers. Going August 25th!

Singapore 7th Grade Math

*SOLD* Teaching TextBooks Grade 7 Math

RocaWear Size 8 Boys Shorts

Nike Air Jordan Flight 23 Boys 6Y

I have a whole set of 7th Grade Moving Beyond the Page I will be listing in the next few days.

Snowdrop clawhammer banjo

2011-08-16T10:21:00.001-05:00

Finally, after 2 years, I have recorded another banjo video. I just got back from Acoustic Music Camp in Arlington, TX. It was my third time to take from Dan Levenson, otherwise known as ClawDan. He is amazing and my banjo hero. I have quite a few bad playing habits so just know I didn't learn those from Dan. :)

This song is called SnowDrop. Tuning GCGCE. It is a tune that i first heard Mary Z Cox play. It was the song that made me want to learn the clawhammer style. It took me a few years to play it up to speed, but here it goes.

I realize I make some funny faces playing. Ha! It was 100 degrees on the back porch so I guess I was allowed.

Vase of Flower Pens

2011-07-20T14:19:00.000-05:00

This is just a vase full of pens. :) I made flower pens. This was something fun to do on a Friday night. It took about an hour to do all of these. Nobody will take off with my flowery girl pens now.

Materials needed: Vase, handful of pens, floral tape, wire cutters, and bouquet of flowers.

I did not cover up the grip on my pens because it feels good. You cut off the stems with flowers. I pulled off a lot of the decoration but left some of the leaves up top. I put it on the pen and started wrapping them together. I started at top. The tape was a bit sticky so I guess that is why you roll it between your fingers (to smooth down and help the sticky).

This is the video I watched. Not the best quality but you get the idea.

Garden is still going

2011-07-19T11:42:00.004-05:00

Here is my one spaghetti squash. I planted it in a bag of soil at the beginning of season. This vine probably went 6-7 feet and a squash appeared towards the end. It has been growing for a bit. I am waiting for it to turn a good yellow and toughen up a bit.

I had surprise watermelons this year. The seeds must have been in the compost I made from last year. Surprise. Watermelons are now taking over where my potatoes were. I had them growing up a tomato plant. They get kind of wild.

I just moved the melon out of the tomato plant and laid it on the ground. I have three watermelons total. Pretty good since I didn't plant it.

At last, a music room

2011-07-02T00:14:00.000-05:00

This area started as a formal dining area (used once or twice). Then, when I was pregnant, I did away with it. ha! Who needs a formal dining? It turned into a sitting area. Then, I finally moved the piano out from a bad place between the kitchen and living room. I think this is my favorite place in my house now. Thank you, wonderful husband, Danny, for letting me just go music decorating crazy at times. (Getting rid of our big table for 10 was a pretty wild thing to do on a whim - but it has worked out perfectly!)

This is where the piano used to be. D loves to play the piano. This is the infamous piano bench that busted Alex's toe open.

This is where D usually ends up - playing on my piano or strumming a banjo. He loves music just as much as Grace and I do.

Kids, Toes, and Tomatoes

2011-06-28T20:33:00.000-05:00

D sure loves his Juicy Juices. Grace took this picture while babysitting him.

Warning: Graphic Picture

Poor Alex ended up in the ER on Friday evening after D pushed the piano bench over on his bare toe. Who would have thought that a standard bench without storage in it would be so heavy to split his toe open? We could not get it to quit bleeding so we had to go the ER. They cauterized his toenail to let the blood out. Then, they had to give him 2 stitches, and one had to go through his nail. Yikes!!! I made him hold my hand, probably for my sake.

Alex is a good sport. Even though he felt all cruddy, he had it in him to blow up that glove and stick it up his nose (sort of).

I had so many tomatoes this morning on the counter that I had to freeze them. In the picture above, I had already combined my tomatoes and had scored on the bottom of each one. I got my boiling water and my ice water ready. I blanched, peeled, and froze them. I got 6 small quart bags out of this. I also gave some to one of our friends last night. My 4 tomato plants have really been putting out. I am really not sure how many pounds each plant has yielded, but I bet it is over 10 pounds.

Cajun Watermelon Relish

2011-06-21T14:18:00.000-05:00

Excuse my iPhone pics. They are not the best. I have an awesome camera and no time to use it or edit photos. One of these days...

Anyway, this picture above is what it looks like when you brine watermelon rind. It doesn't take as much watermelon rind as they say in the recipes. You cut the pink off. You can tell that I did not remove every last piece. It was fine. Then, you take a handheld grater and remove the rind. You can keep removing it, and it will have a slight green color. Since this was a double batch of my recipe, I added 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of canning/pickling salt. Refrigerate for 8 hours or more. I left mine in there for over one day because I had stuff to do.

This recipe calls for red and yellow sweet pepper. When you use those colored peppers, the mixture turns out beautiful. I grew my own bell peppers this year so I used the green. It was not as pretty, but it still tastes great.

This is what my mixture looked like cooking in the pot. You can see my pickling spice cheesecloth bag in it. Yes, this is an ugly pot. I can't quit using it because it is so thick. I think it is third-hand. ha!Your house will smell pretty stout for a few hours after you do this. My girl thought it smelled good.

My recipe came from the You Can Can book put out by Better Homes & Gardens. That link went to the Amazon listing. This can also be purchased at Wal-Mart in the canning section.

I found that I had scanned this recipe in awhile back. It is in picture form. Click it to go the bigger picture.

It is very green due to the green bell pepper. 6 half pints and 1 itty bitty sampler.

On the right in the above picture is the same with the colorful peppers. I made this batch last year. That was probably Jalapeno Pepper Jelly on the left. Still, the same iphone camera.

Family updates & Garden stuff

2011-06-21T12:26:00.000-05:00

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Here is my little buddy, D sucking the ketchup off of his fries at the Macaroni Grill in Shreveport. He had a pretty great time sitting in a booster chair.

Alex seems to have a good time in D's tunnel. haha

D got a cowboy hat at Academy. He really loves it. He got a little fishing pole to go with it.

Here is my biggest baby, Grace, with her fish. She has been doing great at fishing lately.

Just a crazy face from me.

This is from 2 days of picking. It was close to 10 pounds of tomatoes. That is from only 4 tomato plants. We were pretty blessed with great weather at the beginning of our growing season. I have been able to make salsa, eat tomatoes everyday, give away 5 small sacks to people, and freeze 4 quarts. It's not over yet either.

I will leave you with this great video of one of my fave girl folky bands, The Be Good Tanyas. This is a good upbeat song that is fun to drive to when you are on a road trip. The Littlest Birds

Gonna make a quick blog that just contains stuff about Cajun Watermelon Relish.

Maters and Taters

2011-06-15T23:10:00.000-05:00

Here is my harvest today. This is from 2 potato plants and 4 tomato plants. I just picked tomatoes 2 days ago. They are turning quick. Woohoo! D can't resist these taters.

I stopped at a farmer's fruit stand in Pittsburg today. I got okra, cucumber, squash, onions, and peaches for $17.00. If you saw in person the amount of food you get for your money, you would be surprised. When you grab your bag, it is heavy.

That smarts

2011-06-02T11:40:00.000-05:00

Respect your knives because they will bite you. I was handling a knife that was too big for what I was doing. Ended up grabbing the blade with my thumb. My hubby doctored me up so I could finish cooking (with a glove on). This is picture is the day after. It was a bleeding mess yesterday. I am so glad he poured the alcohol on it because I am not sure that I would have done it.

I love my knives although they are sharp. :) I was using the largest in this set. Danny got me these for Christmas. It is a Fiesta Cobalt Blue Wood Block Set that can be found at Amazon. I didn't even know Fiesta made these. This is a Kitchen Cutlery Set. It is not a steak knife set.

I found this pretty picture of the Fiesta Steak Knife Set that matches it. Ahem!!! Hint!!! Smiles!!!

I did finish preparing my meal anyway - King Ranch Chicken Casserole and Fried Green Tomatoes. I grew my tomatoes. ;)

First attempt at California Rolling

2011-05-31T20:53:00.000-05:00

Not perfect, but it was tasty. I made some California Roll Sushi. I made the sushi rice a day ahead and got sidetracked. I like these rolls occasionally although I wouldn't want to eat it all of the time.

When I was making these, a small piece of the ever so stinky seaweed fell on the counter. I thought I would just pop it in my mouth. I have to say that the taste of it by itself was a little yuck to me. I got it down, but the smell got up my nose and I thought I was smelling it all evening. Somehow, the mix of all of these flavors is pretty good. I don't do fishy fish or raw fish so these little sushi rolls are all I will probably make for now.

Here is the video I used to help me through the rolling.

Here is where I purchased my Bamboo Rolling Mat.

Little John, I Am

2011-05-27T16:02:00.001-05:00

Little John, I Am - Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out.

Feels like a Bluegrass Friday. I just heard this song today for the first time in the car on the Bluegrass Channel. This should be the next bluegrass song I learn. I hope everyone has a safe holiday weekend.

Today's Harvest

2011-05-24T14:21:00.002-05:00

I got a few bell peppers, handful of peppers, potatoes, white and red radish, rosemary, mint, pineapple sage, and a few green onions. Even though my harvest is small, it is enough to add to my cooking for the next few days.

Here is what the little garden looks like now. I have a few other various things planted in the yard in containers. Our 4 tomato plants are covered in tomatoes. Raise a few things even if you don't want to plant rows and rows like old traditional gardening. The reward will be tasty.

Playing in cold process soap making

2011-05-16T19:52:00.002-05:00

I have put lots of effort lately into making cold process soap. I have always wanted to but really afraid of the lye and how precise everything needed to be. I did it. Look out Christmas! I bet everybody is getting soap.

Shea Butter Coconut Milk Soap

I took the plunge and made a 3 lb batch of Shea Butter Coconut Milk Soap 2 weeks ago. This iphone pic is not great. The soap was not bad for a first time soap. It has some calendula in it. It is unscented. I am curious to see how the smell of the soap changes as it cures. I am wishing now that I added a light scent of something. This soap that is shown has already cured for 2 weeks. I was definitely learning. Note: I now tap the mold to make sure all of the air bubbles are out. Character!

Half a week ago, I tried again. I made 4 pounds of Cucumber Green Tea Cocoa Butter Soap. I will take some pictures after it has cured for a bit longer. It was fun, and I used real pureed cucumber, green tea, and some aloe vera juice in it. I scented it with some lavender and tangerine. It smells pretty great. I got 24 bars out of the batch.

Black Coffee Soap

This soap making is truly addicting. I then thought Sunday that I should make some coffee soap. I had some olive oil melt and pour. I mixed ground espresso beans and a few other things. I had a pint creamer carton. I recycled it into a one time mold. Coffee is supposed to get rid of bad odors. Smelly things such as fish! The coffee I made does not smell as nice as I would like it to, but it does work. It has a very strong raw coffee smell. I purposely rubbed my hand in wet canned cat food and then washed with the new soap. It worked. I heard the smell will wear off some over time, but it will not lose its effectiveness. I wrapped these already. This black soap look great up close. They look rustic and the finely ground coffee feels nice on your hands.

Pink Sugar Floating Blocks Soap

2011-04-27T23:51:00.000-05:00

My first attempt at suspension soap. It was a lot of fun.

iPhone pic

I had some avocado cucumber melt and pour base and some olive oil soap base. I made two small thin batches of avocado cucumber soap. It was cloudy. I made them pink and blue. Cut them up into little squares. I then made enough olive oil soap to cover the bottom of my container/mold. I tinted it light purple and made it smell like pink sugar. I poked a few of the blocks in it. I would then do a few layers of more olive oil soap and put a few more blocks in it.

The most important part of layering I learned is to spray alcohol. Once you pour the soap, spray alcohol to pop the bubbles. Before you can add another layer, you need to spray with alcohol again. I read that if you don't have alcohol sprayed, that the layers won't stick and they may come apart.

Potatoes and Tomatoes Update

2011-04-27T16:43:00.000-05:00

My little garden is doing pretty well. I have pulled all of my first crop of radishes out of the ground. I have replanted them as I was pulling them. I hope to get another cycle of radishes.

Some of my Potatoes

I added another bag of soil trying to hill up these potatoes. I bet I have to keep adding because they are tall.

4 Tomato Plants (Better Boy)

Believe this or not, but this is 4 tomato plants that have sprawled out and aren't staked or caged. I am not sure if I will have to stake them anytime soon. They have made one giant bush. Ha! They are starting to get little tomatoes all over them. I have hilled them and pulled off the lower branches. I am constantly pulling off the tomato suckers. I was going to cage them, but I waited too late. There is no way to force these into cages at this point.

I currently have this growing (not shown): radishes, crookneck squash, swiss chard, cucumber, bell pepper, some kind of pepper, jalapeno, spinach, onion, garlic, lettuce, purple beans, spaghetti squash, mint, cilantro, dill, rosemary, pineapple sage, and strawberry. Plus, 11 potato plants and 4 tomato plants.

I want to note that I do not have any of this planted in the ground. Our yard does not have topsoil so we have found other ways to grow.

Itsukushima Shrine, Japan

2011-04-19T13:02:00.000-05:00

I ran the 5K in Itsukushima Shrine in Japan on my iFit Live yesterday. This is on the Miyajima island. This place is so beautiful. Unfortunately, I could only run the terrain and could not see any sort of pictures or video. Beautiful!

I did it on an elliptical with iFit Live. The course mimics the inclined terrain of this beautiful place. Most of the time, the incline was on 20 and the resistance was from 11-15. That is pretty much about topped out. I am not a runner and have only started working out more about 6 months ago. I am trying to shed those baby pounds.

The winner of the race completed it in 57 minutes. Wow! I was much slower. 99 minutes. 1582 calories burned. Bam!!! I didn't really compete to win. I just wanted to finish. I was so excited that I didn't quit or fall off of the elliptical. Ha!

Here is a quick peaceful video of the Shrine that also shows the Otorii, the grand gate in the water.

Harvesting More Radishes

2011-04-18T15:01:00.001-05:00

I have been able to get a few good radishes here and there, but this was probably my biggest harvest. I have a small area designated for radishes. I ended up using more space on potatoes than I wanted to. These radishes are not near as long as the first ones. The first ones were around an inch thick and 5 inches long.

I took my dad's advice and planted new radish seeds where I pulled them out. I also have another rotation of radishes growing in an old broke down swimming pool. Not sure if it will be deep enough for them to get so long. This time, I planted the small red round radishes. I think they were called Sparklers.

My dad said that my grandmother used to eat the green tops from radishes. They are known to have more vitamin C than the actual radish. I also heard you can juice it.

If you are interested in learning how to grow radishes, you can read about it on Mother Earth News.

Crafty Catchups

2011-04-13T13:18:00.001-05:00

Over the last week, I have been so busy that I hadn't had a chance to catchup. So, here is some of the latest.

I tried my hand at some colorful bath bombs. They were fun.

I also made some more melt and pour soaps. I added some good stuff in these. One had chamomile and honey added and the other had some rose buds and green tea. I am getting up the nerve to try the lye soap making.

A week or two ago, I decided to try planting in some bags of soil. Can it be? No digging up my clay. This is what it looked like when I planted. I already have stuff coming up. I will get updated pics soon. I will have to show you a pic of the broke down baby pool I planted salad stuff in. Recycling at its best - redneck style!

My radishes have started getting big enough to eat for sure. The taste is great! I am going to attempt to cook some of these. I read that they are like an onion and will caramelize. You can grill them in some foil. Look it up.

Last weekend, I decided to get something on my baby's windows. We only had window blinds. I wanted to do something that looked like a toddler and less infant. I got 6 yards of a robot fabric, and I am on a mission to add it to everything in his room. I started with adding material trim to some valances. The sheers on the window really helped. I plan on making a comforter, and some pillows or throw animals. I should have enough material to go awhile.

Baby Haircut and Pleco

2011-04-05T11:25:00.000-05:00

Baby D got his first full haircut. I was hesitant because I was afraid that all of his curls would get cut off. He still has small curls!!! He did really well getting his haircut. He didn't cry. He liked the cape and loved Laura. She gave him a certificate, too. This happened because some man at church called him a girl.

Blurry but oh well!

I snapped this picture of my huge Plecostomus. We have had him for a few years. We have to feed him 2 algae wafers a day. He looks like a dragon swimming in the water. To be so big, he is quick and agile.

Organic is Bigger

2011-04-01T00:08:00.000-05:00

This is not trick photography. This lemon came in my biweekly organic shipment. It was grown in California. Compared to the shriveled small lemons we get from our stores, this lemon looks Huge to me. The cucumber that came in the shipment was at least a foot long.

I have to give credit for the awesome produce to Papa's Organic.

Six Little Hands' Giveaway

2011-03-23T22:06:00.001-05:00

Six Little Hands - having a giveaway on Sampler Village. The details are here - Sampler Village.

The giveaway consists of Lavender and Honey Milk Bath Salts and Mom's Shea Lotion Bar. I have personally used all of my Lavender and Honey Milk Bath Salts. I loved them. They were the best salts I had ever tried.

Go enter this giveaway or go directly to her Etsy shop.

Vegetable Warrior - printout

2011-03-23T10:44:00.000-05:00

I created this document to print out and put on our fridge for my kids. I think the fridge is a good place for the kids to read "good stuff." I home-school so this will be handy. It is just fun facts for fruits and vegetables. I have a problem with getting my 13 year old boy to eat anything that is healthy. Knowledge is Power.

You can download the pdf from here. It is a better quality for printing than this jpg used for viewing.

Go Steve Martin Go

2011-03-22T09:52:00.001-05:00

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Exclusive - Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers Performance

www.colbertnation.com

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor & Satire Blog

Video Archive

Spring Cleaning Outdoor Spaces

2011-03-21T20:23:00.001-05:00

Saturday, I enlisted the help of my older kids to help me clean and watch my littlest one. Our back porch is almost as long as the house and has three distinct areas because of the odd shape. It has been the catch all for quite some time. Last summer I could hardly put the baby down to go outside and water or clean the porch. This summer, we are ready to enjoy the outdoors since it is Baby D's favorite place to be.

It took us over 5 hours to remove everything and clean it to a sparkly shine. One of our hunter cats tends to deliver dead animals at our doorstep and then by a few hours all you find are the yucky organs that even the cat won't eat. I felt the need to disinfect the porch. Yuck!

Baby D looks dangerous with brother's iPhone and the water.

Instead of buying some new patio furniture, I decided it was best to save money and clean up and oil my old wood furniture. I spent the money instead on a water fountain. Woohoo! Way better investment.

Quiche on the Fly

2011-03-15T00:03:00.001-05:00

I am still using many great organic vegetables since I received my awesome biweekly combo box from Papa's Organic. I had to look up how to use Swiss Chard because I had never cooked it or ate it, that I know of. I received a bunch of red chard and a bunch of green chard.

Sauteed Veggies

I found this recipe on Food.com. It is for Crustless Swiss Chard Quiche. (I did not use the stems of the Chard) I changed it up a bit when it came to the vegetables because I have a ton to use right now. I sauteed 2 cups of Red Chard, handful of spinach, 1/2 small onion, 1/4 red bell pepper, 4 mushrooms, 1/2 yellow crooked neck squash, 1 clove of garlic, and about 12-15 little smokies cut in small pieces. I sauteed the veggies and smokies in olive oil and seasoned it with salt and pepper. I just used the kind of cheeses I had: Cheddar and Parmesan. I followed the rest of the directions.

Raw mixture ready to go in oven.

I popped it in the oven for 40 minutes, and it was super yummy to me. I am the only quiche lover in the house so I got plenty. :)

Garden Quiche - all browned!

Organic Delivery and Zuppa Toscana

2011-03-10T22:01:00.000-06:00

I was so happy when I woke up. My bi-monthly delivery from Papa's Organic came in by FedEx on my doorstep. It was everything I hoped for and more. It was packed nicely with shredded paper and cold packs and sealed in an insulated foil bubble wrap.

This amount shown was a Medium sized box of Veggie and Fruit Combo. It contained: zucchini squash, 1 bunch kale, 1 bunch spinach, 1 bunch Red Chard, 1 bunch Green Chard, 4 bell peppers (3 red & 1 green), avocado, sack of new potatoes, 2 apples, 1 yellow grapefruit, 2 yellow onions, 3 red onions, bag of mushrooms, bananas, and pack of blueberries. Awesome! 40 Dollars and worth it to me.

This called for a cleaning of my fridge. I started gathering all of my old produce that needed to go. I even added the shredded paper that was with my veggie shipment in there. I got it ready for my compost tumbler. Today was the day I emptied my compost from last season in my garden bed and started a new batch. You can put almost anything in compost except for plastic, meat, and dairy. We have put everything in ours from food, hair, junk mail, paper from our shredder, dryer lint, and grass clippings. I also start mine with a little compost starter.

Here is what my dirt looked like when I removed it from the tumbler. Yep, I made that dirt.

Hard to believe it came from all of that junk I kept throwing in there. Tea bags and Coffee grounds and so much more!

Here is a picture of my tumbler I ordered from Amazon. It is called an Envirocycle Composter. It's pretty slick. The bottom can catch compost tea. It comes totally put together. It has rollers where it sits on so you can roll the tumbler to mix it. Sit it in the sun and it will make some dirt. I am going to get another one this year so I can have two batches during the summer time.

I added my compost to my little above ground planter that Danny and friends built for me. You can see in the background that Danny's office is coming along nicely.

I decided to make some of my favorite soup with some of my great organic veggies that came in. I made Zuppa Toscana. It is the one they sell at Olive Garden. You can get the recipe here.

This was a shot of my last ingredients to put in. The Kale was already chopped and the cream was waiting. I love that Pink Himalayan Salt. After it was all done, here is what my bowl of soup looked like. Hope yall enjoy!

Recreate Yourself

2011-03-08T13:48:00.000-06:00

I have been listening to an audio book, "Throw Out Fifty Things, Clear the Clutter, Find Your Life" - Gail Blanke. The best surprise message from this book is Recreate Yourself. We tend to hold onto old ideas we have of ourselves because we need a kick in the pants. If you ever say to yourself that you wish you were more like another person because of their qualities then you need to make it so. Start becoming that person you want to be. It is just that easy. Throw out the old clothes that you don't like and start over. Isn't that a concept? It's just that easy.

The most important part of this book is to get rid of all of the stuff that you have latched onto that is weighing you down. It is a great motivational book to get you going. Sometimes that is all we need. Someone to say it out loud.

To go along with the book, you can download a workbook from her site. Even if you don't get this book, her site has some help.

Peppermint Hiccups

2011-03-07T22:56:00.000-06:00

My friend, Michelle, told me that Peppermint Essential Oil would cure hiccups because it stops spasms. I hope I said that right.

Anyway, the other day I had hiccups, I turned the bottle up and dropped a drop of oil on my tongue. In a few seconds, my tongue felt funny and my throat started feeling cold. ha ha It worked. My hiccups stopped immediately. Tonight, I got hiccups again and thought I would give it another try. It worked immediately. Not only do the hiccups stop, you get extra minty breath.

Thanks Michelle!

ALO Awaken with a side of Ginger

2011-03-01T01:09:00.000-06:00

My friend, Michelle, told me about the health food store in Texarkana called Granary Street Discount Store. It is pretty awesome! I grabbed a few different drinks while I was there and popped them in the fridge.

My favorite so far is a drink called ALO Awaken. ALO's official website here. It has chunks of aloe in it with wheatgrass. It is surprisingly good to me. I already juice and have been drinking aloe juice almost daily so the flavor was not weird for me. My normal aloe juice does not have a taste. It can be put beside water, and I couldn't tell it apart. This drink has 2 servings in it. One serving is supposed to be equivalent to a cup of coffee, naturally.

A review of the ALO drink here: BEVNET. The user reviews outweigh the site's review. :)

The other night while I was working out, I tried another drink called Ginger enerGizer. It is put out by the Ginger People. It really is an energizing drink. It has triple the Ginger with a splash of apple. You can feel your body start to heat up when drinking it. It is said to improve digestion and metabolism. Woohoo! I usually add ginger to my juices when juicing, but I had never had this much at one time. It did its job. The taste was a little strong for me, but I would probably grow used to it quickly. It can be served hot or cold.

Baby Shower Basket

2011-02-26T17:54:00.001-06:00

I went to a baby shower today for a beautiful young mother. It was my friend's daughter. It wasn't that long ago that I was attending my own shower. It really puts a perspective on how time flies.

I made this gift basket pictured above. I got everything at Target. I built up the inside with paper and added the crinkled purple paper strips inside so it would be pretty. I packed it with diapers, wipes, lavender bath, lavender candle, infant gowns, infant bodysuit, socks, toy, diaper sacks, diaper cream, clothes hangers, pacifiers, a toy, bathtub temperature duck, and a little blanket baby.

This is the back shown above. I shrink wrapped it. I don't do things like this often so it was fun. Usually, I crochet a baby blanket. No time lately.

After I got back, I made some Lavender Milk Bath Salts. They smell awesome, and I can't wait to try them. I was experimenting with a new recipe.

Organic Produce via the Internet

2011-02-24T19:38:00.001-06:00

A few years back, getting produce in the mail from online ordering was hopeful for some but not likely for those of us in the sticks. Now, more websites are offering delivery to us secluded Texans. Since my closest organic health food store that serves produce is around 1 1/2 hours away, I found somebody on the internet to try out.

I decided to give Papa's Organic an order. I was able to select a bi-weekly fruit and veggie combo box. Since the shipping will be higher to come to my part of Texas from California, I chose bi-weekly. I can cancel at anytime. Worth a shot.

I am supposed to be on the next bi-weekly shipment so in a few weeks, I will let you know how it all goes.

Splinter Be Gone

2011-02-23T13:25:00.001-06:00

Yesterday, I got a splinter in my big toe. Wasn't sure if it was a small fine splinter or a piece of glass. Yesterday was also the first day that D (14 month old) broke something - a glass charger plate to hold candles. So, I did sweep up some small shards of glass.

Before I got out my tweezers, I grabbed my Epsom Salt. I put 2 cups in a bucket of hot water (gallon). I soaked my foot while the baby played in his bath (maybe 15 minutes). Surprise! The Epsom Salt drew the splinter out of my foot. It is gone, no pain, and no tweezers.

Something that I didn't realize before was that when you put this in your bath water, your body absorbs the Magnesium Sulfate. I read somewhere this can even help with osteoporosis. Wow! I put 2 cups in my bath as well. It make you feel kind of floaty in the water. I also put a dropper full of tea tree oil in there, too. That is also good for your skin and hair.

I made a quick salad today for lunch, and it looks great. It tasted even yummier. Grilled chicken salad. Mmm

Sniffing Oils on Friday Night

2011-02-18T21:39:00.001-06:00

Yep, that is what I am doing. I am trying to put together a blend of oils for a fragrance that I may want to use on some of my household cleaners or salts. I took the advice of a book I was reading that said to dip some test strips just barely in the oil. Put only 2 or 3 scents together and make one strip higher than the rest (dominant). I wondered if this would really work as well as it sounded. It did. I would take turns holding each strip higher than the rest and then fan them in front of my face. I was breathing in the coffee bean aroma between smells so my nose would be clear. I read that there should never be equal portion of dominant smells. The smells just compete too much.

Had a good day today. I juiced earlier and shared with my husband and friend. Apple, Tangelo, Celery, Cabbage and Carrot! I am celebrating today. I have lost 11 pounds in the lat 3 weeks. Woohoo for the Elliptical.

Lavender Love

2011-02-13T17:44:00.001-06:00

I have been hearing everyone talk about essential oils lately and posting all the good uses. I am already a big fan of anything homemade and natural.

I have made everything from bath salts to green tea facials although I am just learning and love trying all of my favorite vendors' products. This morning I made a backup supply of bath salts for when my new favorite stash runs out. My child hood friend, Melanie, creates an amazing bath salt from her family business - SixLittleHands. You can view it on Etsy here. I put this in my whirpool tub and RELAX. The water just fizzes and feels all tingly. I love it.

I tried to use some of my oil to freshen my clothes. I put a few drops on a damp rag and put in the dryer. It does not fight against static, but it does make the clothes and utility room smell wonderful.

My biggest fun today was adding 5-6 drops of my Lavender Essential Oil to my homemade Window/Glass Surface Cleaner. It was 5:1 of Vinegar & Water. The reason I quit using it before was because it didn't smell that good to me. Before today, I never thought of adding a smell to it. I had recently purchased Watkins Natural Lavender All Purpose Cleaner for $5.99 and loved it. I made it myself for much cheaper - probably less than $1. My homemade cleaner smelled amazing. Lavender is supposed to relax you so there is another plus. Make a cute label, and it will make you smile.

I am most impressed with the homemade surface cleaner. My appliances wiped up nicely. I wiped off my shiny chrome on my washer and dryer, faucets, appliances, marble counter tops, mirrors, glass, tv, and most important - Flat Top Surface Stove!!! Just buff it off with a dry cloth if you want it to be streak-free.

The cleaner that I made today was the best smelling cleaner I have ever used. Also, I won't worry that my baby is touching everything. No toxic chemicals today. And it is okay if it goes down your drain and into your aerobic septic system.

Taking Crocheting Too Far

2011-02-11T22:13:00.000-06:00

I love to crochet and search for new patterns sometimes. I saw this on the Lion Brand Yarn site.

Crocheted Cheese Burger

I wonder why does someone spend all this time crocheting fake food? For decoration?

Beef Tips and Rice Pressure Cooker

2011-02-10T21:40:00.001-06:00

I was in a hurry for dinner and didn't know what to make. I had already cooked up a big batch of Jasmine rice today in my rice cooker, and it was being kept warm. I had almost 2 lbs of stew meat thawed so I decided to make some Beef Tips and Rice in my pressure cooker.

Everything looks better in Fiesta!

Although I use a large pressure cooker for canning, I have smaller nicer ones that I use for my everyday cooking. You can cook chicken in no time, and the meat will fall off of the bones. That takes 10 minutes under pressure. You can cook pinto beans in around 55 minutes. Roast is done in less than an hour. Boiled Peanuts!!! I could go on forever.

Fagor Splendid 6 quart Pressure Cooker. This is the best sized pressure cooker for everyday cooking I have found. It has more than one safety feature and will not allow you to open with pressure. Not all are created this nice.

Beef Tips & Rice

Ingredients: Cooked rice, 2 lbs stew meat (cubed), 1 onion (chopped), brown gravy mix, 3 cups water, salt, garlic powder, pepper, soy sauce, Worcestershire.

Anyway, here is how I cooked my Beef Tips. I heated up a few tbsp of olive oil in the pressure cooker saucepan with lid off. I seasoned my meat with garlic powder, salt, pepper. 1/2 tsp is a good amount if you are unsure how much to put of each season. Brown your meat. I dropped a chopped onion to cook over my beef cubes. After the onions started cooking down, I added 1/4 cup or a few good shakes of Soy Sauce, and 1/4 cup (few shakes) of Worcestershire, 2 cups of water, and mixed up one packet of gravy mix with a cup of water. Most people add brown gravy mix. I had some Cajun red gravy mix so I used that. I added the gravy mixture in and stirred well. Locked on the lid. I cooked on med-high until I reached pressure. Then, I lower my burner but kept hot enough to remain under pressure. I cooked for 20 minutes and then released the pressure. You may need to thicken your gravy a little bit. I have a container of brown gravy mix that shakes out. It is Tony Chachere. Sometimes I add it to stuff I want to thicken instead of flour or corn starch. Learning to cook with pressure cookers on an electric stove is an art. Learning to cook with one on a flat top stove is a tricky skill!!! I also can on my flat top stove.

The Beef Tips and gravy tasted like it had simmered for 2 hours just like most recipes call for. If you are a busy mom, get a rice cooker and a pressure cooker. No more boiling stuff for hours in the kitchen. Soups don't have to cook all day. I think of it as Cooking Smart with your time.

This got my little 13 month old baby boy's approval. The meat fell apart and was easy for him to eat. This is him after eating, bathing, and now brushing his teeth.

Snow again... Ugh

2011-02-09T23:20:00.002-06:00

Living close to Texarkana, we don't usually get too much snow. We get little bits of flurries and occasionally it will stick. This year has been different. This is our third time to get snow. We had it for around 4 days the first time. Then, shortly after, we got it again. The day we got snowed in the second time, my son developed an abscessed tooth. Oh, the feeling of helplessness. Now, it did it again. I think it may have only been one week or less since the last one.

This is a view from my back porch into our back yard. Our backyard drops off and is two different levels. Alex said this was really soft snow and wasn't able to snowboard as good down the back hill. haha

We didn't get it very heavy this time, but it is just enough to become annoying.

I Can Can

2011-02-04T20:13:00.003-06:00

Last week, I canned twice. Ground Beef and Potatoes. Last Friday night, I decided to can ground beef. Here is how I did it.

This was my first time to can strictly a meat. This was kind of a test. Ground beef is cheap, so that is why I canned ground beef.

Update: I have tasted the ground beef, and I would probably not can this again. Although it preserved it, the texture of the ground beef was not good to me. It changed the taste and texture. If I was broke and hungry, I would eat it.

I bought a 10 lb tube of ground beef because it was on sale for $10. Kaching! I cooked it with some onions and seasoning. I also put water in it while I was cooking it because I wanted to help get some of the grease off of it. It is important to not can foods that are too greasy because that can mess up the sealing process. (so I have heard) I then drained the meat after it was cooked. I tasted it and made sure that it tasted good with seasoning.

While I was cooking the meat, I got all of my equipment ready for pressure canning. I got my quart jars ready as well. I spooned ground beef in the jars and topped off with beef broth. I left 1 inch headroom.

I processed for 90 minutes and was able to fill 3 quart jars. These jars will be great the next time I make spaghetti sauce, tacos, or casseroles. Once the jars came out of the pressure cooker, they looked the same as when I put them in but bubbling.

As they cooled overnight, the grease rose to the top and created a ring around the top. This is normal. I saw this in other people's pictures. When I reheat this, I will do as always (bring to boil for a few minutes or really hot in skillet).

Wednesday night, I canned potatoes. I saw a video where people were cooking mashed potatoes from canned potatoes. Looked easy on the fly. So, I had to try.

I bought a 10 lb bag of potatoes for cheap (a little over $3). I peeled, quartered, and chunked all of the potatoes. I covered them in water in a large stockpot and brought to a boil for 10 minutes. Then, I packed my jars to an inch of headroom left. I added 1 tsp of salt in each quart and covered with hot/boiling water. I sealed and then cooked under pressure for 40 minutes (quarts). A 10 lb bag of potatoes will yield 6 quarts of potatoes. I made 2 pints instead of one of my quarts. One of my pints did not seal so I used them the next day.

These potatoes will come in handy next time I am making soups, mashed potatoes, or casseroles.

A Shot of Life

2011-01-25T23:55:00.002-06:00

My brother said this when he came to visit and I made him a glass of juice. A Shot of Life. He's right. It is better than you would think.

I only made a small amount tonight and shared with my husband. Down the hatch! Mmm. I make my juices with an Omega Masticator Juicer. That is why it is so thin. Usually, I make more. We usually each get a glass with 6-8 ounces.

Ingredients: handful of spinach, 2 carrots, 1/3 cucumber, 1/3 sweet potato, small apple, handful of grapes, mandarin orange, and a shot of lemon juice.

Here is what the Omega J8005 looks like.

I love mine. I have not only made juices, frozen banana puree, pasta, minced up veggies and pork for egg rolls, but I can also grind nuts into nut butter, coffee beans, make baby food, and juice greens including wheatgrass.

2011-01-24T22:55:00.002-06:00

Fade to Black

Everybody who knows me knows that I am a banjo nut. I wanted to share this video which is really just a song with a picture of the album on it by "Iron Horse." They are a bluegrass band covering Metallica.

Fade to Bluegrass - The Bluegrass Tribute to Metallica - Fade to Black. I love this album. Hope you enjoy!

Probably not the Healthiest

2011-01-20T18:42:00.003-06:00

But mmm mmm good. I threw some cooked zesties french fries in a cast iron skillet. Topped with cheese, bacon, and green cheese. Broiled in oven till melted. Walah! This is similar to what you would get at Chili's. This sure was good today with our lunch.

2011-01-16T16:51:00.001-06:00

Canned Fresh Mushrooms

2 bags of sliced mushrooms = 3 1/2 pint jars

I decided to pressure can some fresh mushrooms. I started with 2 bags of fresh sliced mushrooms. I put them in water to soak a few minutes and wash them. Even though the bags say they are prewashed, a lot comes off in the water. Drain the water.

Add them to a pot of plenty of water and cook them. After they come to a boil for 5 minutes or less, take off of the heat. You will drain them again because this water will be brown colored.

Meanwhile, get your pressure canner and jars ready. Also, I heated a 4 cup measuring cup with water in the microwave to bubbling. You will fill each jar with 1 inch headroom. Fill each jar with strained mushrooms. I put 1/8 tsp of canning salt in each jar. Fill the jar up with the clean hot water. Seal up and put them in readied canner.

Process under pressure for 45 minutes.

At least you know that your jarred mushrooms will never taste metallic like the canned mushrooms from the store. I think some good variations could be adding garlic and herbs.

2011-01-16T11:51:00.002-06:00

Drunken Deer Chili

Makes about 6 or 7 pints or 3 quarts with a little left over.

• 5 lbs. deer meet (I like stew meat chunks instead of ground)

• 2 cups chopped onions

• 2 or 3 cloves garlic

• 6 cups canned tomatoes and juice (I used 2 gallon sized freezer bags of fresh tomatoes)

• ½ cup chili powder (I added some Emeril’s Rustic Rub mixed in with this)

• 1 ½ tbsp. salt

• 1 large roasted red pepper

• 1 tsp. cumin seed
• 2 shots tequila

I soak my deer meat in milk for a little bit (hour or more) before I use it to get the gamey taste milder. I drained off the milk and seasoned it with just some salt and pepper and meat tenderizer. Brown it in a big stock pot. You need to put a good bit of some oil so it doesn’t stick. I use olive oil.

After it has browned, the deer’s natural juices come out. I add a bit more water and put a lid on it cracked so it can cook that meat and tenderize it. The stew meat pieces aren’t as tender so they need some cooking.

I scoop out the deer meat and chop it on a cutting board so it resembles something closer to ground but more texture. I return it to the pan and add the chopped onions, chopped garlic, and chopped roasted red pepper. Let that cook down until the vegetables are starting to get done. I then added the tomatoes and seasoning along with tequila. 2 for the chili and 1 for you. :)

I made sure and kept adding a little bit more water because I wanted it to cook down thicker but didn’t want to lose my chili. Let all that simmer down until your meat is good and tender. If you want it to reduce a good bit just boil it with the lid off. If that isn’t working fast enough for you and you want it to thicken, you can add a little bit of cornstarch mixed with water. I used about a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons of water. My total cook time on the chili was over an hour because my meat needed to get tender. In the end, the tomatoes cook down and everything thickens. The roasted red peppers still keep shape so there is some pretty color floating in there.

Canning Instructions:

If you want to can this, it will need to be pressure canned since it contains meat. Ladle into 6 or 7 pint jars or 3 quart jars. Leave 1 inch headroom. Bring pressure cooker up to pressure and cook pint jars for 75 minutes and quart jars for 90 minutes. Pressure canning this chili will make it even tastier because it is being cooked with 10 pounds of boiling pressure. The meat will be like it set in a crock pot all day.

Will keep for 1 year.

What kind of coffee are you?

2010-11-26T02:48:00.003-06:00

Are you a coffee drinker? If so, what is your favorite kind? Mine is breakfast blend. Liquid creamer. Sometimes a little coolwhip. Hot or cold.

Papa and D

2010-11-22T21:24:00.002-06:00

One of my favorite pictures of my dad and youngest baby. They were playing BlackJack in this pic. Baby D is 10 1/2 months here. This was a week and a half ago.

Lessons of a young adult

2010-11-18T19:39:00.002-06:00

I remember this lady was going to show me how she fixes her Swedish meatball dish. She got a box of hamburger helper (Swedish meatball). When she was browning her hamburger meat she added in onions and garlic salt. Is that it? Was this her idea of really jazzing it up? Yes, it was. Sixteen years later, this makes me giggle. I thought she cooked pretty good at the time. Lol

Campbell's Soup Ruined my Tastebuds

2010-11-18T01:22:00.001-06:00

Growing up on this condensed canned soup, I often times did not dilute with water. I got used to eating soups very salty. I always grabbed for the salt shaker. As an adult, I find myself only diluting 50% of the time and even then I can only put 3/4 a can of water.

Not Enough or Too Much!

2010-11-16T14:13:00.002-06:00

I felt like a goober awhile ago. I just made coffee and forgot to set the coffee mug in front of the maker. Surprise! All of the coffee went into the overfill tray. Yay! Either I have had enough or need a little more.

The Poop at Graceland

2010-11-05T11:03:00.002-05:00

In August this year, we decided to take a family vacation to Memphis, TN. It was a lot of fun. It was our first big trip with the whole family. My hubby, my 16 year old daughter, 12 year old son, and our littlest son who was probably around 7 months.

We made it to Graceland and was getting loaded up for the drive over to Graceland on the Elvis shuttle bus. We were about to enter the bus when my hubby says "I think the baby pooped!" Oh no! We just paid 100 dollars and are about to get on the bus. I thought I could change him on the back seat because it seemed like a good idea at the time.

I opened his diaper up to find that he had explosive diarrhea and it was everywhere. I frantically tried to clean it up and people are entering the bus at the same time. He was squirming and I was trying to gracefully clean him up. I had poop on my hand and various things and was getting down to the last few baby wipes. The smell was starting to circulate on the bus and everyone started getting that look on their face. Then, the mean looking bus driver says really loud "I know you aren't changing that baby on this bus." Oh yeah, she called me out several times. I thought they were about to kick us off the bus. The bus driver walks to the back with air freshener and to scold me some more. I felt beet red and was about to cry. ha! ha!

My hubby was nice enough to be the one who got off the bus and dispose of the stink bomb. It was probably one of the most embarrassing moments in a long time. And for the occasion, we decided to dress the baby up as Elvis for Halloween. He had the white shiny jumpsuit with the red sequins and all.

Hindsight is 20/20. Don't ever do this.

2010-02-16T15:43:00.003-06:00

Danny Lynn Cooper III - 6 weeks old

How to Unsubscribe to your friends' Junk Mail

2009-07-09T16:29:00.002-05:00

How do you nicely ask someone to quit sending you all their junk mail? Probably no nice way to do it. That is why I just hit delete. I really am not going to forward to 10 people to save my luck. Phones will not ring and nobody is going to walk through my door. Just kidding but you know what I am talking about.

I have one friend in particular that I had been friends with for years and we moved away from each other over 7 years ago. We tried to email and phone call from time to time. In the past few years, I write an email and get nothing in return. I just get their never-ending forwards. So, I wrote her an important email when I got pregnant to catch her up. Nothing! I finally reply to one the ridiculous forwards and said, "Are you getting my emails?" Later, I received a "Yes, been real busy. Will write you tonight." Okay, if you guessed I did not get any real email, you are correct. But a few days later, I was still receiving all the junky emails. I am thinking if you have time to read this garbage and keep the flow of spam circling, then you could have written an email if you really wanted to.

So, I just hit delete and go on about my day. After a few years of frustration with this, you finally get to the point that you want to reply with the words Unsubscribe. As fitting as it would be, I will not do that. Maybe I am just hormonal and pregnant.

If BumBum could see me now

2009-07-02T09:44:00.001-05:00

My grandmother, who I was very close to, was called BumBum. Her real name was Errolene Brimberry and went by Lynn. I spent lots of time with her and always strived to make her proud. When I was little, I use to go to church with her when I visited her. She attended the Sunset Christian Church in Grapeland, TX. She loved that I was involved in music and especially that I had started trying to play banjo in high school.

Many years later, picked up banjo again and have recently joined the Antioch Christian Church in Hooks, TX. Well, she would be super happy if she is watching me from Heaven because I am playing banjo this Sunday in a Christian Church. I am playing bluegrass style even though it is not my favorite because it is easiest to chord along with piano. I am just going to keep it simple and do some simple rolls in the chords and maybe throw in a bluegrass lick or two. We are playing 3 songs so I hope I don't choke. I was so excited when I left church yesterday. First thing I did was call Nana. I was like a little kid going "Guess what? Guess what?"

I am thankful we get to wear casual clothes in church because banjos are not made for dresses. :)

Cucumbers and Church

2009-06-29T11:35:00.002-05:00

Here is one of my cucumber plants in my hanging basket. This isn't my biggest plant, but I have 2 good sized cucumbers growing on it plus some smaller ones. Super neat! We have to water them once or twice a day depending on the heat of the day.

We still have 4 of these hanging on my backporch. We never lost any of them. I have started using Miracle Grow spray once a week now. It seems that they have start producing a little more since I started with that.

I am so anxious to eat the cucumbers!

I have now joined the Antioch Christian Church. They will make it official in a few weeks once Grace is back from Band Camp. My daughter and I both moved our previous memberships to this church. I haven't moved my membership since I was in high school. It's a great church, and I am happy to be a part of it. Another great perk is that they don't mind you wearing casual clothes so you can wear skirts, capris, jeans, or long shorts. All is welcome.

I am taking my banjo down there this Wednesday and am going to start working on incorporating banjo into their music for them. Woohoo! I am nervous and excited.

I am 14 weeks pregnant now. My belly is starting to show, and I am having to really spend more time picking out clothes now since I don't have many loose fitting clothes. There are a few of my bottoms that absolutely don't fit anymore. I am on a tomato kick and sometimes eat 4 a day. My daddy's home grown tomatoes are awesome.

Back in the Day

2009-06-25T16:39:00.001-05:00

Becka sent me some old pics that she scanned in. This picture seems like a lifetime ago. It was around 4 1/2 years ago, I believe. My kids are now 15 and 11 (on the left). Becka's girls aren't so little anymore, 5 and 7. Becka is probably the one taking the picture.

Fish Babies

2009-06-22T14:08:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, I was adding some water to my fish tank and noticed something small moving on the side. I have 3 small babies. The only livebearer fish I have are Dalmation Mollies so I am sure it belongs to them. I was totally shocked. The big Dalmation Mollies are not pictured in this image.

You will have to click the picture and look at the full version. They are hard to see because they are transparent with just a little bit of black on the tail. You can only see 2 in this picture, and I had to make red arrows to point to them. Not the most detailed picture since this was taken with my iPhone. In this picture, you can see one of the clown loaches swimming toward the camera and part of another one. They are orange and black striped.

Club Dead

2009-06-17T16:08:00.002-05:00

I am following suit from Elissa and Kasey and sharing what I am reading. I am a slow reader because I am a spastic hobbyist and work too much. I am reading Club Dead right now from Charlaine Harris. It is the third in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I had watched True Blood and saw that Elissa was reading this series. She has good taste and suggested to read it. Wallah! She is right. It is gripping.

You can get it cheap on Half.com.

Overton Tin Whistle

2009-06-16T10:40:00.002-05:00

This guy from Brazil commented on one of my piano videos on Youtube. He said he played the song on his Tin Whistle. I thought of a little kid's tin whistle but was curious so went and looked. What he played in one video was testing out his new Low D Overton Tin Whistle. You have to listen because it is amazing. If you remember listening to the Sacred Spirits music a long time ago, that is what it sounds like.

Beautiful!!! After hearing this, I really want one. So, I went looking for one on the internet. It will have to be a splurge in the next few months because I am tapped out after my last old banjo buy and Danny's bday and father's day. :)

Here is where you can buy it in the UK. Overton Whistles I did some quick converting from Euros to Dollars and including VAT, it would be about $303 for the Low D, Tenor D Tin Whistle. Not really sure why I am fascinated about playing instruments outside and in the woods, but wouldn't this be awesome to go find a nice hiding spot in the middle of nowhere and just play.

Canoeing on Caddo River

2009-06-15T09:31:00.001-05:00

Saturday, I was at the church by 8:30 in the morning so we could all go on a canoe trip on Caddo River in Glenwood, AR. I was a chaperone, and both of my kids went. We had 5 adults and 8 kids. We headed out after a bit and made it there around noon. We had to do some stopping and get signed in. There were a ton of people, over a hundred. Some people were just camped out on the grass in tents. We got all geared up and waited for our big shuttle bus. This was one of those old school buses that had been painted and no a/c. It was a definite adventure about to happen. We rode the several miles in the bus to our drop off point.

We had 5 canoes, several ice chests, food, sunscreen, and such. We took off and did a 5 1/2 hour canoe trip. It was around 8 miles long. The river was low so we had lots of rocks to avoid and a lot of paddling to do. We saw 2 snakes. This picture is from the place we used, Caddo River, Camping & Canoe Rental. It shows what the river looks like. There were parts that were super peaceful. Along the way were plenty of rockbed to stop on to eat a bit of food or just rest. There were also tree swings. I rode in a canoe with my daughter. It was a lot of work, and I don't think I knew just how much it would be but it was fun.

After we got back, we grilled out some food and found the community shower and bathrooms. Later in the day, we made our way to our bunkhouse. These rooms are really just a bunkhouse. Small one room with 3 bunkbeds in it and window unit for air conditioning. We had two of the rooms. No chair or anything else. There was a community bathroom and shower at this camp. There was a front porch to sit on and plenty of fire pits to use and such. We didn't do the paint ball. I carried my 100 year old openback banjo up there with me and sat on the front porch and played my banjo. Awesome!

We hung out and the kids roasted some marshmallows and threw those little popping things. We were so tired that we didn't want to do much but sit. I had a ton of snack food so we just sat around snacking. Later by lantern light, we got a game of Spades in. I hit the hay by 12, and we were up by 7 the next morning and gone by 7:45. We hightailed it back to Hooks and made it to both sessions of church.

We were so lucky that the high school class of '49 reunion had some food left over and it was at the church. They fed us. We ate really good. We looked and smelled funny, but we made it back.

I made chicken and dumplings yesterday and did a few loads of clothes. Danny took us to see UP 3D later in the evening. I passed out pretty early and got plenty of sleep. My body still aches, and I am still wore out. If I was asked to go back and do it all over again, I definitely would. We had a few water cameras, and I am not sure how great the pictures will be, but once I get them developed, I will upload them.

Angeline the Baker Video

2009-06-09T23:22:00.001-05:00

I decided to make another banjo video. It was hot today and the sun was really shining on my front porch. I decided to wear a crazy cowboy hat because all old time banjo players wear crazy hats. I know, I must get a really funny hat. I plan to, but this old cowboy hat will have to do. And, of course, I am barefoot because it is Texas and hot. Funniest thing is that I am barefoot and pregnant. Tuning is ADADE.

Babies and Cucumbers

2009-06-09T14:37:00.002-05:00

I went to my first doctor visit yesterday. That always seems a little tramatic because you are anxious about going and then they make you do so much stuff. Anyway, my due date is December 30, 2009. I am 10 weeks. I had a sonogram done, and I got to see the baby move around. Very cool.

Awhile back, my dad suggested for me to grow some trailing vegetables on my backporch in hanging baskets. What a great idea. I was a bit skeptical at first and figured that they would dry out too fast. I do have to water them daily, but they are making it pretty good.

Here is what one looks like up close. They are just now starting to put baby cucumbers on them. We have one that is starting to reach the top of the backporch.

Here is my baby cucumber. I hope they do good and get big. It is starting to get hot here in Texas and the noontime sun is really hot.

Here, you can see the whole thing. I have 4 hanging on my backporch. The best part about hanging baskets is that I never have to weed, EVER.

Back in the Gym

2009-06-04T12:30:00.001-05:00

After a month of yuckiness, fatigue, and company, I was able to make it back to the gym yesterday. I started slow and only did 30 minutes since I haven't done it in awhile. It felt great. I was watching Dog the Bounty Hunter and doing my elliptical. I really was focusing on my heartrate yesterday because it is not supposed to get too high since I am pregnant. I do those machines and my heartrates get high in a hurry. So, everytime I would get close to 140, I would start stepping slower and would let it fall again.

Even though yesterday was Sonic's Customer Appreciation Day and they were giving away free Rootbeer Floats from 8-12, I didn't get one. yeah me! My kids got them with church. I ate a big salad.

So, finally I used Staples to recycle my ink cartridges. They give you $3 a cartridge when you recycle. I always have ink cartridges around.

I got the True Blood DVD series yesterday. I am so excited because I missed most of the shows due to their nature. I wasn't able to watch them with the kids around. I have the books and love them. I am on the third book. I wish the series was a little less nasty, but I can live with it. HBO always nasties up their movies for more viewers.

2009-06-03T14:17:00.002-05:00

Pregnancy Update & Band Banquet

I am about 9 1/2 weeks pregnant now. I don't really look pregnant, but I feel it. It seems that eating is always on my mind. I am either starving or so full I feel sick. ha! I was having a bad spell of morning sickness or all day nausea, whatever you call it. This week, I have started eating all beef hotdogs for breakfast with a tall glass of milk. Man does it make me feel good, and I haven't had a problem with the sickness now. I really never used to eat pickles and now I am eating them up. It is very strange. I have a doctor's appointment Monday. It will be my first one.

My mean old mom finally wrote back after I told her I was pregnant. 3 weeks to squeeze out a note. No mention of love. She signed her letter with "Wishing you good health, Mom." Nice!!!! Not surprised but still dissapointed. She hasn't mentioned love in the few times she has contacted me in 3 years. Hmm!

My daughter, Grace, had a band banquet last night. She is a freshman. She had a late start with band and has only been playing now for 2 years. She plays in the jazz band and had a solo last night. We are really proud of her.

Last Sunday, I went to a great church called Antioch Christian Church. It is the first church I have been to in a long time that I felt like I could call a church home. Everybody was really friendly and they were so involved. The one thing I did love was that they paid a lot of attention to their youth and they weren't a very large church. I used to attend a Christian Church with my Bum Bum when I was a kid. It reminded of my childhood, and I always felt welcome at that church. I can't wait to go back because I realy enjoyed the women's group.

I mean some Green Beans

2009-05-28T15:44:00.006-05:00

My daddy farms in Lufkin and is always growing a ton of food. He shares with me when he sees me. He has already supplied with me with a bunch of onions, potatoes, and now green beans, radishes, and zucchini. He asked me the other day if I wanted some green beans. I love to eat stir fried green beans so I said yes. He asked if I wanted them fresh or already frozen. I said fresh. I was expecting a few handfuls. He brought me this big bushel basket thing full. Wow! I am going to learn to clean, snap them, and freeze them tonight.

I'll have to blog about the response I finally got from my mother about being pregnant. That will be for another day. I hate to spoil a good green bean blog. :)

Clown Loaches

2009-05-27T22:43:00.006-05:00

Here is a pic of 2 of my 3 clown loaches.

iPhone to blogger stinks and the pictures don't come through. Not very handy for yall iPhone users.

2009-05-26T10:48:00.000-05:00

Super Quick Weekend Highlights

Went to Shreveport Boardwalk and shopped a good bit. Bought more makeup like I needed it.

Got an awesome package in the mail from 2 of my highschool friends that included a Purple Mexican Blanket, my first baby tshirt (awe), and a ton of great dental stuff because they are both in the dental profession.

Played my banjo a ton. Agreed to buy a new banjo. Another 1900 banjo - S.S. Stewart.

Found a leak in my utility room ceiling last night. Oh lucky me. It is a leak in our hot water pipe that runs over our utility room. Plumber coming tomorrow. Looks like a big boobie about to explode of water. We will have to do some sheetrock repair when this is over.

Made my first baby appt for June 8th. The doctor tells you to wait till you are 8 weeks before you call and then they take 2 weeks to get you in. I believe today I am 8 weeks and 2 days. Also, I finally tossed my cookies for the first time with morning sickness today. I have came close and been totally miserable in the past but never had it just come out of nowhere and BAM!

I just finished my second book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. It was Living Dead in Dallas. Author's name is Charlaine Harris. It is the novels that True Blood was based on. Awesome book if you like Southern Vampire Mysteries. I have already ordered my next one on http://www.half.com/, Club Dead.

It's Ladies Night

2009-05-23T22:52:00.003-05:00

On Friday night, Becka and Lele were going to do something. As soon as I heard food may be involved, I was like "I want to go." ha ha So, us sisters landed at Shoguns, a Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar, for a ladies night. I decided to eat some California Rolls. I had only had the ones at Chinese Buffets which were never too fresh. These were good. I can't eat real sushi because the thought of raw fish disgusts me and also I am pregnant. It's no good for the baby. I can't even take the taste of salman. *cringes at fishy taste*

Yummy, this was sooo good.

We noticed that one couple at the bar was having a really good time with lots of alcohol. I saw one sipping some saki and the other two throwing back some beers. The lady sounded like she was trying to teach the Sushi Chef, Danny, how to speak his own language. It was crazy and a little hard to ignore. She did get lost on her way to the bathroom. haha Before they left, they had to give Danny, the chef, some Dap! She started staring at Becka and looked like she wanted to say something. I gave the weird glares back and then came a fake smile across her face and she started to yell "Heyyyyy!" About that time, her husband tapped her it was time to go.

The drunk people were cutting up with the Sushi Chef, Danny, and he sent a complimentary plate their way of some Fried Crab Ball things. They probably have a fancier name like Tempura Crab Roll, but it really was a crab ball. A few minutes later, a server brought a plate to our table as well and said compliments of the sushi chef. Woohoo! Free food. I asked him if it was scary. haha You know, being pregnant and all. Becka is allergic to shellfish so Lele and me tried them. I let Lele go first. haha Here is our plate of them below after Lele took one of the plate. They were round balls that had crab, seaweed, rice, and something maybe like cream cheese inside and a battered and fried with eel sauce. Wooh! I ate it, and it wasn't half bad. Not as great as a California Roll, but Free! They could grow on you.

So, after our evening and almost time for check. I thought I would see what they had for dessert. Been to Shoguns a million times and never tried dessert. I asked the server for some ice cream. He ended up giving us a free bowl of Plum Ice Cream. Woohoo! More free food. They were about to close so I guess they were in a giving mood. I asked for 3 spoons. It was very good with big chunks of fruit in it.

After the ticket, I remembered we needed a to-go salad for my daughter because she loves the ginger dressing. Another server just gave it to us. I was thinking we hit the jackpot. haha I usually pay a fortune when I go out to eat so I was really enjoying this night.

There was one saki bomber left sitting at the bar who took a liking to Becka. He was funny and kept eavesdropping on our conversation. He had the sushi chef make up something for Becka to take home. haha A flower made from a Beet, Parsley stalk, chopstick, and foil. Aweee how sweet. We made sure this guy didn't follow her home. haha

All said and done, I paid a little over $8 for my sushi dinner complete with salad and soup, complimentary crab things and ice cream with Tea. I guarantee you I will never get out that cheap again.

Yearlings in the Canebreak - Clawhammer Video

2009-05-22T10:18:00.003-05:00

I made a video yesterday playing my banjo. This song sounds like a trance to me. I am playing it in my living room with high ceilings and you can really how beautiful the banjo's tone is. I am around 2 months pregnant playing this. :) It took a few times for me to get it right because my daughter was making belly dancing hand gestures while I was videoing this.

This is more of that old timey style clawhammer. You can just picture some old dude sitting on the front porch at dusk playing this song.

Oh Yeah! I spotted another old banjo yesterday on the BanjoHangout that I think I may not cannot live without. It is another 100 year old beauty. It is called an S.S. Stewart. Fingers crossed that it rings like mine.

Smacks for Watermelon

2009-05-21T10:28:00.003-05:00

My little fat pug, Chia, sat by me all wrapped up in her blankets on my couch and smacked her little chops the whole time I was eating watermelon. She loves it. I only gave her one little bite but she was happy. It is pitiful how much she begs.

2009-05-20T10:26:00.000-05:00

Morning Sickness Blahs

So lately, I have been getting the morning sickness which has really been most of the day sickness. This has been for several days. You wake up and feel fine and then later, the nausea starts to creep in. I had been trying to do really healthy breakfasts and was doing so good, but once the nausea hit, it went out the window. For a few days I could only eat a few crackers. I have lived most days off of gatorade. Yesterday, I discovered how wonderful popsicles taste. This morning, I started with crackers and tried to move to something else dry before nausea set in. I found myself Chocolate Fudge Pop Tarts. I know, this is the worst thing I could eat for breakfast, but it stayed down and that is good. I feel like I just ate candybars for breakfast. The only good thing out of it is that I washed it down with milk and a prenatal. I just don't ever eat that stuff in the mornings. Usually, it is toast with peanut butter, apple or grapefuit, maybe some yogurt if no fruit.

Here is how bad they really are. The nutritional info tells you per 1 pastry. Well, they package them in 2 so obviously, you grab a pack and sit down and eat it. Bam. You just ate twice as much as you are supposed to. 402 calories, around 9 grams of fat, ungodly amount of salt and almost the sugar equivalency of 2 cokes. Only good thing is that it contains Vitamin A and Iron. I think I will not grab for these again.

I'll be glad when this yucky stuff is over because I haven't been able to go workout. By evening time, I have been so drained that all I want to do is lay around and veg on the couch. I'm ready to get some energy.

2009-05-16T19:21:00.001-05:00

Grace went to Prom

Here is a slideshow of Grace and Ryan. He came to get her and forgot her corsage. They had to go back to his house to get it. We couldn't pin his boutteniere on so I told him he may need to get his brother to do it. He did let the top back down on the car to preserve her hair. That is good. Grace is 15, and this is the most beautiful I have ever seen her. We had a time getting ready.

Ragtime Annie Video

2009-05-15T22:03:00.002-05:00

Earlier today I had a few minutes and thought I ought to make a banjo video. I haven't had much time lately. I just kind of went with it. No special makeup or anything.

This is one of my favorite songs to play on the banjo. It is fast paced, and I probably don't play it exactly like it is supposed to go. Anyway, here you go. First of my banjo videos where I am pregnant. ha!

Laura's Bodum Tip

2009-05-15T00:51:00.003-05:00

My friend, Laura, who I went to school with back in the day with since elementary, took twirling with, marched in band together, and even did some brief flag corps time with, dropped a hint about a Bodum French Press. I got the French Press today, and I already love it. I got it from Amazon. She's right. The coffee is wonderful. I tried it out with some Millstone coffee that was flavored Chocolate Velvet. Yummy!

The French Press doesn't take long to get right. No electricity required. Bodum is a good brand. So, you put your course ground coffee in, fill with really hot water, stir, put the lid on and let steep for 4 minutes. Then, slowly press the plunger down and walaah, perfect coffee.

Here is me and Laura when we were in Coldspring High School Flag Corp back in the early 90's. She was on left and I was the smiley brace face in the back. I really wish I had a picture from our early days when we were Cheryl's Twirling Stars. haha Laura, do you remember Land of a Thousand Dances? I can still do the first several 8 counts in my head. Nothing like some knee pops, a flash, and a shimmy. We step together stepped touched our little hearts away. Here is to the Twirling Stars - Laura, Liddie, Brandy Hill, Michelle Hill, The Ward Twins (Pat & Fern), Brandie Currie, Kerrie Jo Humes, and me. I know I am missing a few more.

Then, 15 years later, we got together when I was visiting my mom (this was about 3 1/2 years ago, maybe). I played the banjo, of course haha, and her husband Mike played the guitar. Our kids played together. It was great. Now, she has more, and I have another one on the way. We'll need another reunion soon.

I should probably lay off the delicious coffee now or I will never go to sleep.

Blanket Number 2 Finished

2009-05-13T08:48:00.002-05:00

I started this blanket on Friday evening. I worked most of the day Saturday on it and could have finished Saturday night, but I ran out of yarn three rows before finishing. Isn't that my luck? So, I finished it on Sunday.

This was a super easy Granny Square Baby Blanket. This is not traditional colors. I am trying to reuse some of my prettier colors since I have a lot of scrap yarn. This blanket was made with an I hook and measures to be a 36" square. Two of my color choices were the Vanna Yarn. I really do love that and can tell the difference in softness.

Here is another shot of it from a different angle.

I started the third blanket shortly after finishing this one. I am reusing more of these colors, again. The one I am working on now looks like a Log Cabin quilt. It comes out of the Vanna book I have. It says it is easy, but it seems hard because you are supposed to turn your work 90 degrees every 3 rows. It's a learning experience for me.

2009-05-11T10:09:00.002-05:00

Happy Mommas Day To Me

Well, yesterday on Mother's Day, I got the most special gift. My baby was supposed to get its first heartbeat. I am glad that Mother's Day is over though because it is sometimes stressful. My mom quit talking to me I guess going on 3 years now for the most dumb reason. I said, "You can't keep calling me fat and making fun of me." And somehow she became the victim so I guess she would rather not talk to me at all since I won't allow myself to picked on. It's good though. One day, she will come around. If not, I have other women in my life that are great and help guide me in the ways I need. Shoutouts to Nana, Momma Rose, and Grandma Charlotte. I love them so much. You have to keep postitive influences in your life.

Danny asked me what I wanted, and I said a big fish tank. I used to have a 29 gallon that I loved, but we outgrew our first house, and it needed to leave. We went fish tank shopping yesterday and ended up with probably way too much. I love it. Alex helped me put it together last night. It is a 47 gallon tall square tank instead of the rectangular tanks. When it is on the stand, it is as tall as me - over 5 feet.

That pic above was taken with all the lights off so there wouldn't be a glare. I still want to get a little more floating bamboo in there and then I will be done and can start picking out fish. I am guessing about a week on the water ph before I can put fish in.

That isn't as good of a picture, but you can tell what it looks like. The stand is cherry wood with metal poles on the side and a glass front. There is 50 pounds of rock in this tank, and I bet it weighs a ton.

New Beginning

2009-05-09T09:59:00.002-05:00

Started a new baby blanket. I am doing a super easy one. It will be just a granny square blanket. This is the first kind of blanket most people start with. It was my first kind of blanket I ever made. I started my first baby blanket in 1st grade. Even though this is super easy, I got the pattern out of Vanna White's Color It Beautiful Book. That link will take you to the best prices for it on http://www.half.com/. Vanna has her own line of Lion Brand yarn that is really soft and the entire color pallette looks good together.

Here is what my Friday night looked like from my perspective. I had just started my new blanket. You can see that I have my basket with all my yarns in it beside me. I have my feet proppe up on my coffee table. Beside my feet, you can see Vanna's pattern book. And to the left, you can see my rescue pug, Mickey.

First Baby Blanket down

2009-05-07T09:09:00.002-05:00

I am so excited to be crocheting blankets for myself. I may not do some of those more elaborate patterns since I wouldn't be able to do as much. I plan on getting a little chest and filling it with homemade blankets.

I finished my first baby blanket last night. I usually make blankets and give them away so this is kind of neat for me. As always, if anybody sees a blanket I made and wants a pattern, I am happy to scan the pattern and send it to you. I am not creative enough to make my own patterns.

This blanket measures at 32" X 36". It was made with a G hook. It was a combination of just a few stitches. The alternating solid color stripes (excluding the white) was done in a puff stitch so it has a bit of texture. The white edging does a little ruffling. Right now, I have to make generic color blankets since I am unsure what sex the baby will be.

Pregnancy Scrapbook & other Stuff

2009-05-06T15:36:00.003-05:00

Elissa brought by the most beautiful pregnancy scrapbook for me yesterday. She is super talented. It was put together with paperbags that were bound like a book. Check it out.

You can see there is a place for each month.

My favorite is the last part is left open so you can put stuff in. Too cute.

I worked out last night for an hour while watching House at the Ultimate Fitness on my favorite Elliptical machine. I was wondering if Kasey was out there somewhere close sweating at her Ultimate Fitness. I dropped another pound. Woohoo!

My sister in law, Becka, has created a blog now called Becka Boo and had her first shoe haul blog post. I am sure there are many more great posts from her to come. You should go check her out.

Shoe Haul in a Tornado Warning

2009-05-04T11:36:00.003-05:00

This is my first "Haul Blog." I would like to dedicate it to Dreamer0703. I splurged and fed my shoe addiction with 4 pairs.

I have already previously written about the tornado scare while at the mall on Saturday in the Texarkana, TX mall on my FaceBook. While my kids and my sister-in-law (bff) and I were in the Victoria's Secret, the lights went out. They pushed us out of there and into the service hall. We all sat in the dark on the floor and up against the wall for a bit. After it past, we were allowed to get up and exit the mall and run for our cars with cloud to cloud lightning happening. Always an adventure in my world. The first 3 pairs of shoes were purchased before tornado warning. After we left the mall, we then went to Kohls and to Target because it still had power.
Green and Paisley Platform Heels from Journeys. They were in the Forty Dollar range. Maybe $44. 2 inch cork heel with buckle and ankle strap. These shoes have been calling out to me for at least 2 weeks. I bought these so I can take a picture in them before I have to put them up for 9 months. I will also have to learn to walk in them properly. haha

Conservative Black Flats with little wedge from Journeys. These were on sale and had some cushion. The sales girl showed them to me, and they were an impulse buy. These were only $20. They have a cute little fastener on the toe.

Turquoise, Black, Purple Lightning Flats with black diamond studs from Hot Topic. I think they were $22. These cute little flats have a little strap across the top of the foot that kind of reminds me of a babydoll style. There are litle skulls on the liner of the shoe. They are very thin and can bend really easily. It is almost like walking barefoot. They are a shiny vinyl style. I love Hot Topic and probably shop there every week for something cool.

Black flats with brown stitching from Target. I thought I was done for the day, but these shoes caught my eye. They were $19.99, I believe. I have already worn these and they were uber cute. I really like the little strap across the top of the foot. A little blurry, but you get the idea.

Bass Fishing Tournament

2009-05-01T10:16:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow, my husband (Danny) and his friends will be entering this fishing tournament, Uncle Jesse's Big Bass Classic on Pat Mayse Lake. This is the first year we have had a boat. I hope he does good and has a great time making memories with his buds. A prize would be nice, too. He loves to bass fish.

I haven't been bass fishing this year yet. I have been so busy doing other things. Working out, chauffering the kids, playing my banjo, shopping, planting, cooking, cleaning. You know the routine. Last year, I happen to hold the record among all of our friends for catching the biggest bass - 6 lbs. I caught it and then didn't go back all season. I was like "Wheh! - Snakes, I'm done." This picture was taken on 6-3-08. It was HOT!

Chuck Lee Banjos In Action

2009-04-30T14:13:00.001-05:00

After creating the last blog, I saw a video of 3 Chuck Lee Banjos in action. The players are Mary Z Cox, Judy Muldawer, and Wayne Shrubsall. The lady on the left is Mary. She is fantastic. I have a few of her books and cds, and I think she is awesome. Hearing her play Snowdrop is what made me realize I love clawhammer. I haven't heard of Judy although I bet she is also a great player. I am new to the scene so I am still learning the legends. The last guy, Wayne Shrubsall, is one of the best teachers that I have had. 2 years ago, I attended Camp Bluegrass in Leveland, TX. He taught me on the bluegrass style. He is a multitalented teacher and plays both styles, bluegrass and clawhammer.

Enjoy!

2009-04-30T10:57:00.006-05:00

Chuck Lee Banjo Company

My dream banjo will come from Chuck Lee. This banjo builder is awesome. He creates some of the best openback banjos around and is located in Ovilla, TX. I have only been playing openback for close to a year so I couldn't justify a purchase like that yet. Sometime in the next year, I would love to order a custom banjo from him. I could go to his shop and pick out the exact piece of wood and have it custom to fit me and my hands. I can't even begin to tell you about the sound and the way it feels when you play it.

I met him at the Acoustic Music Camp last year in Arlington, TX. He is one of the coolest guys in the banjo world. You tend to find really unique openback banjo enthusiasts. I am going back this year again so I can take more training from Dan Levenson. He is one of the best clawhammer players in my opinion.

The one banjo I have kind of had my eye on is this one called the Ovilla. I believe this is one that was similar to the one I got to play on at camp. His daughter was using one of his to play at camp and we all got to take turns trying it out.

Baby Blanket for Jourdan

2009-04-29T09:44:00.004-05:00

I created this baby blanket for my friend and coworker, Jourdan. I didn't realize how hard this pattern would be, but it ended up taking me 4 months of continuous work and twice as much yarn as the pattern called for. My stiches may now have been tight as the person who created the pattern. It was made with a G hook. This pattern was actually 4 pattern rows that repeated. You can see that there weren't many easy stitches in this one to keep it going fast. But, in the end, this is the most intense baby blanket I have made yet. It is very soft and has a metallic thread running through to keep it shining. Congratulations Jonny and Jourdan on your new bundle of joy - Hayden.

You can see it looks like alternating diamonds. This was a constant counting of stitches.

Here it is folder in quarters. It turned out 45x54 or something like that.

I have seen it in their baby pictures already with Hayden. That makes it all worth it. Now, I am crocheting for myself.

If anybody is interested in attacking this project, I would be happy to scan the pattern and send it to you.