Tagged

I was tagged by Tammy. The object of the game is to go into your picture files & post the 5th picture in the 5th folder. This is a picture of Shea from last Christmas. He has grown so much in just a year!

Now I get to tag 5 friends: Bekah Walsh, Amanda Davis, Jessica Britt, Lena Diaz and Michelle Jones.

Have fun!

Guitar Time

Jonathan was off today so we were just hanging out at the house. He was playing electric guitar and Shea wanted a turn. Here's a really cute picture of my lil guy jammin!

Pumpkin Patch

Beautiful.

Jonathan sent me a dozen red roses today for my birthday! It was such a surprise & I love them!

CVS - From the Ground Up

Since it has been a long time since I have shopped the CVS deals, I have been looking for a good way to get back into it without spending too much money out of pocket.

I found a great blog that explains how to start out shopping at CVS and she is doing a month long series showing the process step-by-step.

I'm excited to get started at CVS again and thought y'all might want to check out the blog too!

Go to The Thrifty Mama blog (on my bloglist) and search for her CVS - From the Ground Up post.

If anyone wants to go with me, let me know! Any weekday morning or early afternoon works for me. :)

Bike Ridin'

We recently bought Shea a bike seat and helmet. He loves ridin bikes with Da-Da! Anything outside is what Shea loves best!

You Do All Things Well

"You do all things well" by Chris Tomlin:

Mountain maker
Ocean tamer
Glimpses of You
Burn in my eyes
The worship of heaven
Fills up the skies

You made it all
Said, "let there be"
And there was
All that we see
The sound of Your voice
The works of Your hands
You do all things well
You do all things well
You do all things well

Star creator
Wind breather
The strokes of Your beauty
Brushed through the clouds
Light from the heavens
Touching the ground

Imagination runs wild
And breathes the breath of life
Across the fields
Across the miles

God the Spirit

From "The Valley of Vision"...

I pray not so much for graces as for the Spirit himself, because I feel his absence, and act by my own spirit in everything.
Give me not weak desires but the power of his presence, for this is the surest way to have all his graces, and when I have the seal I have the impression also;
He can heal, help, quicken, humble suddenly and easily; can work grace and life effectually, and being eternal he can give grace eternally.
Save me from great hindrances, from being content with a little measure of the Spirit, from thinking thou wilt not give me more.
When I feel my lack of him, light up life and faith, for when I lose thee I am either in the dark and cannot see thee, or Satan and my natural abilities content me with a little light, so that I seek no further for the Spirit of life.
Teach me then what to do.
Should I merely humble myself and not stir up my heart?
Should I meditate and use all means to bring him near, not being contented by one means, but trust him to give me a blessing by the use of all, depending only upon, and waiting always for, thy light, by use of means?
Is it a duty or an error to pray and look for the fullness of the Spirit in me?
Am I mistaken in feeling I am empty of the Spirit because I do not sense his presence within, when all the time I am most empty and could be more full by faith in Christ?
Was the fullness of the Spirit in the apostles chiefly a power, giving the subsistence outside themselves in Christ, in whom was their life and joy?
Teach me to find and know fullness of the Spirit only in Jesus.

Hangin out

While I was working tonight, Shea & Jonathan were hanging out at home together. Here's some cute pics of Shea trying to be like his Da-Da:

wondering

Psalm 8:3-4

"When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?"

Five Years!

Today is me & Jonathan's 5th anniversary! We had fun yesterday spending the day together. Our original plans were to go to disney but that was cancelled due to tropical storm Fay. Hopefully we'll be able to still go in the coming weeks.

We had lunch together at Longhorn's, I gave Jonathan a new wedding band (actually he got this a month or two ago because I just couldn't wait anymore to give it to him! His old ring was badly scratched so I wanted him to have a new one) and yesterday we bought a Wii! I am so excited! We have been wanting one for a long time.

The time has flown by - 5 years. We talked a lot yesterday about our many many memories we have made together and now with our son Shea too. Jonathan & I have known each other for 15 years so we have a ton of memories!

I am so grateful to God that He made me for Jonathan! He is such a godly man, he works very hard to provide for us, he makes me laugh, he is my best friend, he is such a great dad and loves Shea soooo much!

I pray that we have many many more anniversaries together. Love you babe!

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I love trying out new recipes! Over at Today's Housewife blog, they are doing a series of recipe swaps called "Please pass the..." This week the main ingredient is chicken. I have a chicken recipe that my family just loves! It is a little bit time consuming but it's worth it! I double it because we really really like it.

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients
3 tablespoons oil
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup water chestnut
2/3 cup mushroom
3 tablespoons chopped onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4-5 leaves iceberg lettuce

Special Sauce
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon hot mustard
2 teaspoons water
1-2 teaspoon garlic and red chile paste

Stir Fry Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

Directions
1. Make the special sauce by dissolving the sugar in water in a small bowl.
2. Add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, ketchup, lemon juice and sesame oil.
3. Mix well and refrigerate this sauce until you're ready to serve.
4. Combine the hot water with the hot mustard and set this aside as well.
5. Eventually add your desired measurement of mustard and garlic chili sauce to the special sauce mixture to pour over the wraps.
6. Bring oil to high heat in a wok or large frying pan.
7. Saute chicken breasts for 4 to 5 minutes per side or done.
8. Remove chicken from the pan and cool.
9. Keep oil in the pan, keep hot.
10. As chicken cools mince water chestnuts and mushrooms to about the size of small peas.
11. Prepare the stir fry sauce by mixing the soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar together in a small bowl.
12. When chicken is cool, mince it as the mushrooms and water chestnuts are.
13. With the pan still on high heat, add another Tbsp of vegetable oil.
14. Add chicken, garlic, onions, water chestnuts and mushrooms to the pan.
15. Add the stir fry sauce to the pan and saute the mixture for a couple minutes then serve it in the lettuce"cups".
16. Top with"Special Sauce".

Thank You!

Thanks for the new shoes, Grandaddy & Grammy!!!!!!

Busy, busy

It was a busy day at our house yesterday.

I was cleaning out my pantry and Shea was playing in the kitchen when he slipped and fell. He has his first busted lip now. After a few tears he was up and playing again but his lip is swollen. I know it's probably the first of many bumps and bruises my active little boy will have in his life.

Then we made more freezer meals. Lena came over and she made lasagna while I made chicken stuffing casserole & baked spaghetti.

We ate some of the Chicken Stuffing Casserole last night and it was yummy! Here's the recipe:

2 packages (6oz each) chicken stuffing mix
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 cup milk
4 cups cubed cooked chicken
2 cups frozen corn

2 cans mushroom stems & pieces
4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1. Prepare stuffing mixes.
2. In a large bowl, combine soup and milk. Set aside.
3. Spread the stuffing into a greased 9x13 pan.
4. Layer with chicken, corn, mushrooms, soup mixture & cheese.
5. Cover and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

After that we ran some errands and then Shea & I came home and played for a bit before I went to work. I thought this was a really cute pic & wanted to share it. :)

Staples

Many of you know that I got a part time job at Staples a few weeks ago. It's convenient because they give me the hours I want: evenings & some weekends (so Jonathan can be home to watch Shea). And it's only 5 minutes from my house.

Well they are having a pretty good sale this week on school supplies: 4 pack gel pens free after rebate, slider pencil cases for a penny, mini staplers for a quarter, and 2 pocket plastic report covers for 20 cents. The report covers are good for organizing coupons or menus; they have holes on the side, like a folder does, so you can put it in a 3 ring binder.

Another cool thing about Staples is this Saturday, Aug 2, they are having Teacher Appreciation Day. This is even for homeschool moms. I know you get a free gift if you are one of the first 200 teachers (I think 200) and I'm pretty sure there are other cool perks if you stop by. I will find out more details tonight and post here.

Diapers, Diapers Everywhere!

I have been hoping this Walgreens diaper deal would work out, and had pretty much given up on it until last night.

Those of you that shop at Walgreens know about a coupon book they have available at the front of the store. A new one comes out each month. Well, July's coupons were good thru 7/26 and August's coupons started 7/25 so there were two "overlap" days where you could use both coupons.

My friend Lena and I decided that Friday morning we would drive to all of our local Walgreens and hopefully get this great deal on diapers. But it was a bust; no one had the August books out.

On Saturday I called every Walgreens in my county to see if they were available yet but they were not. I was so disappointed!

Lena was coming over Saturday evening to do some more freezer meals with me and she stopped by Walgreens on her way over. OH MY GOODNESS they have the new coupons! Needless to say, we abandoned our meals and drove to 3 different Walgreens and cleared out their shelves!

Here's what I got:

27 packs of diapers @ 5.99 each = 161.73

minus (9) $5/2 coupons from July book = 94.23

minus (9) $5/2 coupons from Aug book = 26.73

After Register Rewards back ($5 for every 3 packs) this was my total:

-18.27

Yes, Walgreens paid me 18.27 to take 27 packs of diapers out of their store! Crazy, huh.

This picture doesn't really do it justice. But here it is anyway. Lena's 24 packs & my 27 = 51 packs of diapers!! Wahhhhooooooooooooooooooo :)

My help comes from the Lord

Psalm 121:1-8

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.

The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

New Pictures

When I said I would have some pics up by the weekend, I meant THIS weekend. As in today. Erm, yeah. That's it. Well I'm glad to finally have my pictures up & hope you guys enjoy them.

July 4th:

And Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A:

Whew

Shea decided to lock himself in my room this morning. He has been learning to "turn or twist" things this week. For example, on Monday it was my mascara wand that he learned to twist open and put on his face like blush - I guess he was trying his best to copy mommy! Good thing it was washable! Yesterday he twisted off the cap of a water bottle. And today, he went in my room and shut the door. I started walking toward my room when I heard the click. He had turned the lock on the door. Oh boy. I tried to unlock it with bobby pins, screwdrivers, anything I could get my hands on but couldn't get it unlocked. So I finally took the doorknob off the door and rescued my boy who was just crying his little heart out. But we are all better now & glad to be out! :)

Some old news - we had some fun family time over the last couple of weeks. I have pics from July 4th and from Cow Appreciation Day at Chic-Fil-A to post but my camera adaptor is broken and I'm unable to load pictures on my computer for now. Stay tuned - hopefully I'll get them up by the weekend.

Fun at the Beach

This morning we met a bunch of friends at the beach! We had lots of fun and made a run for the car when the rain started! On the way home we stopped by Office Depot and got some school supplies for a penny each - 20 folders & 5 protractors for 27 cents!

Hope you enjoy our pictures!

Freezer Meals

Yesterday my friend Lena came over and we started making some freezer meals. I made 5 (8x8) casseroles: 2 King Ranch Chicken, 2 Chicken & Brocolli Rotini, and 1 Cheddar Macaroni & Beef Casserole.

We each ended up buying 1 whole chicken and cooking it for about an hour or so in the oven, then pulling it off the bone & shredding it. I had plenty from that one little $4 chicken - enough for 4 casseroles & a little extra to snack on while we assembled. :)

I am so excited to have these meals done & ready to heat up and eat! If any of you have made a successful freezer meal, please share your recipe! I am looking for more ideas to make in a few weeks! Here is a recipe for the Chicken & Brocolli Rotini; most of the ingredients you should have in your pantry already.

Chicken & Brocolli Rotini

2-3 cups chicken

1 can cream of chicken soup

6-8 oz rotini

3 cups brocolli

2 cups cheese

1 cup milk

Combine all ingredients except 1 cup cheese. Pour into casserole dish. Sprinkle 1 cup cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes (longer if frozen).

Jonathan's Birthday

This past Monday, Jonathan turned the big 2-9!!!!

I planned a surprise birthday dinner for him and invited a few friends over to celebrate. We had a great time eating baked ziti, spaghetti, salad, garlic bread, and home-made mozzarella sticks! We also had funfetti cake with sprinkles on top!

(Check out the candles - they cover the whole cake!!) :) :) Love you Jonathan!

Enjoy the pictures...

love

1 Corinthians 13:4-7:
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Lamentations 3:22-23:
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Psalm 103:8, 10-12:
The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Park Day

We had such a fun day today! We started the day with cinnamon rolls for breakfast and then we headed to the fountains where we met my friends Cherie & Lena and their kids. We tried to get a good pic of all the kids but we were pretty unsuccessful! You'll notice the girls are sitting pretty, and the boys, well... they were too busy to sit still for a picture.

Then we went to the mall and had lunch at Chik-Fil-A ---- YUMMY!! We went to the pet store and in Claire's. Now that was fun trying to keep Shea out of the wall to wall jewelry! Then we let the kiddos play in the little cars by the food court. You know, the ones that cost a dollar to ride for about 5 seconds. Well I didn't have any change but Shea was happy as could be just sitting in it. Here's a pic I was able to take just before my batteries died. Too bad Ady looked away right as I snapped the picture!

And here's one last picture of my little guy. He is just too cute!

Time to go figure out what's for dinner! Have a great weekend everyone!

Laundry Fun

Today was laundry day. I don't know why it took me all day, but it did! Shea took a nice long 3!!! hour nap so I was able to get it all nicely folded. I didn't get it put away in time and when Shea woke up he decided it would be funny to pull a couple piles of clothes on top of him. I wish I had been able to get a picture of that, but oh well, here's a pic of my laundry - refolded - and ready to put away tonight. I am looking forward to getting into bed with my nice clean sheets!

I'm glad I got it all done today though. Tomorrow I'm taking Shea to play in the fountains at the park! Hopefully I will have some cute pictures to post this weekend!

Pantry Fun

This morning started before the sun came up. We have been trying to get Shea back on his pre-vacation schedule. Naps and night-time routines have been going great - praise God! But mornings.... that's a different story. Jonathan leaves for work by 6:30 so we usually get up together and I pack his lunch while he gets ready. Even though we try to be veeeery quiet, Shea has been waking up ready to start the day!

Anyway, this morning was no different. I was pretty groggy and bleary-eyed so I just let Shea play while I sleepily watched the weather on tv. Next thing I know I hear some crashes and bangs in the kitchen. No crying, so I peek around the corner and see Shea in a pile of cans and tea bags. He was so cute that I couldn't pass up taking a couple pictures! At least tea bags are really easy to clean up. :)

Summer Vacation 2008

We spent a few days in Daytona Beach last week & had so much fun! It was Shea's first trip to the beach. We spent our days relaxing, eating, playing at the beach and pool, eating, napping, and relaxing some more. And did I mention eating? :) We had a blast but we're glad to be home and getting back into normal life. Here are a few pics...

Daytona Beach

Hello!

I've decided to jump on the bandwagon and create a blog. I had intended to do it last week while we were on vacation, but the internet was not working at the condo. I hope to post some pics from our vacation at the beach soon!