Today while we were out we went to Michael's. I signed Chris and I up for a cake decorating class. They had a special going that if you bought the basic kit for $20.00 you got four free decorating classes (2 hours long each). Chris is very excited.

President's Day

The boys had today off so we went to the park and flew kites. We also went to the mall and did a little shopping. We had so much fun together! It was great to sleep in too.

Weekend Fun

We had a blast at the rodeo on Saturday night. The kids had so much fun cheering the cowboys on. We got to eat there too. The pictures are a bit blurry because they move so fast.

Pathetic Puppy

We had to get a cone to put around Pepper. She has some very bad alergies (like everyone else in Florida).She has been scratching and biting. The vet gave us medicine but she just licks or bites it off. Anyway, she was a riot with the cone on. I couldn't help but laugh. She would run in to things and then just stop and not know what to do next. She would stand there for a minute or so. We gave her attention when she ran into things. She picked up on the fact we would give her extra attention when she ran into things. No joke she then proceeded to run into things on purpose. She actually would make wide turns just to hit stuff. How pathetic is that. She eventually wore herself out.

Happy Valentines Day

Today I made a nice meal for John and the kids. Each part of the meal was someones favorite. For Michael I made lasagana, for Chris a baguette,and for John cream puffs. We also got our veggies in with a nice salad. The cream puffs are John's mom's recipe. I have only made them four times since we have been married (16 years). They are hard to make. Needless to say John was thrilled. You have to see what John made me on his post. He knows I like to read the post secret site so he put up a post the obvious on his site. It is so sweet. Yes, I know how much he loves me. Check out his link on the right side of the page where it says my hubby's blog.

What we have been up to

We have been pretty busy for a while now. We got to visit with Ben and Gina right after Christmas. We had a great time with them just hanging out. John and I kept our regular schedules while they were here. Unfortunately, the boys had to go to school while they were here but at least they got to spend the weekend with them. John had to run into work in the mornings to make sure his guys were doing what they were suppose to do. Ben and Gina work at Dixie Stampede in Misouri. They were able to get us a great discount. So we got to see the show while they were here. Before they got here we were able to get the guest room and the bathroom done. It is so nice to have two bathrooms. No waiting or at least not as long of a wait. John and I were sick for about a week. Michael is home today because he is not feeling well. We have been waiting to here if Michael's school is going to close. Still there is no word. I hate not knowing. Please pray that it will stay open.
My computer had a virus. Thankfully John's dad who is a computer genius was able to fix. Thank you so much dad.

Our new guest room and bathroom

Angel's cleaning supply fetish

Yes, I am still alive. Life has been crazy. I will post more about what we have been up to. Just a weird note for now. After helping Darla clean out her house because she is moving,she gave me all her cleaning supplies. I was thrilled to get it. Thank you Darla. Anyway, I brought it all home. As soon as I got home Angel my siberian husky was all over the stuff licking it. I thought maybe she smelled Darla's cats. I stuck the supplies in my laundry room. Angel stays in the laundry room when we leave the house. When I came home she had chewed all of the SOS pads. She seems to be fine. I guess she has a weird cleaning supplies fetish.

I have been keeping busy. Sunday night,Monday,and Tuesday I had Joy to take care of. Today I cleaned and did some shopping afterward. The traffic was crazy. I was so happy to get home. The problem with cleaning other peoples house is that I feel guilty if mine is not clean. So, usually when I get home I end up cleaning mine too. I have to say I always sleep real good after working hard. John is planning to camp out in the back yard tonight. He is smoking the turkey. The boys are going to sleep out there with him. I plan on climbing in my nice warm bed tonight at a reasonable hour. I warned John that on Friday we may need to get up real early and go to some of the sales. I shouldn't use the word need I guess. I really enjoy getting up and going to the sales. I know I am crazy. John said he would be fine. He is such a good sport. I am looking forward to tomorrow. I love Thanksgiving. We always have such a great time at John's parents house.

pictures from this weekend

The boys had a lot of fun at grandma and grandpa's house for Halloween. Christopher dressed up as a pirate and Michael dressed up as a prisoner. They had a great time trick or treating with Nathan. I think they have eaten most of their candy by now.
This weekend was very nice. Friday night we took Robin to the dance. When we picked her up she was all smiles and she gave me a hug. I asked why she was so happy. She said because work was done and she got paid. I told her that always makes me happy too. She cleans house for her sister. Robin is such a sweet heart and I really enjoy taking her to the dance.Saturday Darla and Henry stopped by it was nice to visit with them. Also on Saturday John and I cooked. I love to listen to music while we are cooking. I was dancing around to the song "I wanna dance" on the Shall we dance soundtrack. As I was dancing I had an egg in my hand which with one of my o so cool moves ended up cracking and sliding across the floor. Of course John will never let me live this down. The food did turn out great inspite of my dancing moves. We made potato salad, oatmeal raisin chocolate bars,lemon aid, and some nice sandwiches. We took our food to the park and had a picnic. I took some pictures of the boys playing lacrosse at the park and then showing off there muscles. Sunday we went to church and then relaxed for the afternoon. We went to Walmart and bought some more eighties music. A girl has to have music to cook by.

Friday night we spent the evening with Henry and Darla. We had a great time talking, eating pizza,and watching a movie. On Saturday I woke up at 5:00.I let the dogs out and Pepper's little tip tap of her paws on the floor woke everyone else up. It was so nice to spend the morning together just sitting around and watching The Munsters. I am so use to getting up early that I have a hard time sleeping in except for Sunday. It must be that by Sunday I am exhausted. On Saturday John and I went to BJ's to pick up a few groceries. After grocery shopping John and I went to Crate and Barrel. I love their store. They have such beautiful displays. John bought a wooden salt container. We are like to kids in a toy store when we go there. To bad it is such an expensive toy store. I just love looking. When we came home my friend Jacquie and her son came over. John helped her son with a science fair project. My husband is such a sweetie. We went to church this morning. Tonight we are just relaxing. They having been running a House marathon today. What a treat. I love the show. It has been nice to just eat and watch tv. I took a few pictures. One is of the boys and Angel watching The Munsters on Saturday morning.One is of Christopher making a cake for the Fall festival. I thought it turned out real cute. One of John's new salt container. The other is of some conditioner I want to try. John made me laugh. I told him the shampoo was anti-poof shampoo. He said "You could put it in a magician and really mess him up." I know it is lame but it made me laugh.

I am typing this on my newer laptop John got me. It is so nice. John's dad got us a real good deal on it.Chris is very excited about getting my old lap top. We thought it would be good for him to have his own. They do a lot of school work using the internet. Today I went to the Bible study in Satelite beach with Darla. We had a great time. Tomorrow John and I will be taking Robin to the dance. I got my first pay check from the new company I work for today! Yea! All in all today was a really pleasant day. Make sure you check out John's new web site. I put a link.

Chris the chef

I have been having fun teaching Chris how to cook. Here are a few of his creations. The brown dish is a peach cobbler.

Delicious dish

I made this Santa Fe beans and rice recipe. It is very good.
This tastes like the weight watcher's Santa Fe beans and rice dinner only fresher.

2 cups cooked white rice
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen corn
1 (10 ounce) can of diced Mexican-style tomatoes (like Rotel)
1 cup salsa
1 cup low-fat sour cream
2 cups shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend, divided
1 small red onion, chopped
1 (2 1/4 ounce) can sliced ripe olives, drained

Not the one? See other Santa Fe Beans and Rice Recipes
< 60 mins Side Dishes
Tex-Mex Side Dishes
White rice Side Dishes
Preheat oven to 350.
In a large bowl, combine beans, corn, tomatoes, salsa, sour cream, 1 cup cheese and cooked rice. Season with salt and pepper.
Transfer to a greased 2 quart baking dish and top with onions and olives.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup cheese and bake 5-10 minutes longer until cheese is melted.

Pictures from last weekend

I forgot I wanted to post some of these pictures. Last weekend John helped our neighbor cut down one of his trees. You have to look very close but you can see my husband the monkey up in the tree.

Thanks for your prayers. The dance went well. Robin had a great time. There were a ton of people there. I have never seen so many happy people in one place. Several people came up to me to shake my hand and ask if I was having a nice time. It amazes me that people who have to deal with mental and physical handicaps in there life can be so happy. What a joy to be around them. Saturday was very nice. John was suppose to take Chris to the gun and knife show. Chris decided he didn't want to go. So, John and I went out for breakfast and to some yard sales. I found some cool wood boxes at one of the yard sales. I am not sure what I am going to do with them. Do you have any ideas? Church went well today. I really enjoy the little kids in my Sunday school class.

Weird Bird at Our Bird Bath

I forgot to say in my last post that Chris won the election for class treasure.

I had a lot of fun today. Darla and I went out to the chapel in Satelite Beach for the Bible study there. The women are so kind. I ate to much but that was fun too. I really enjoy spending the day with Darla. Tomorrow I will take the handicap girl I am watching to a dance. It should be a lot of fun. My only fear is that I won't be able to understand her. She does not speak clear and is very hard to understand. I hate having to ask someone to repeat things. Please pray that I will be able to understand her and that she will have a great time at the dance. I am very excited about January. It sounds like Ben and Gina will be coming for a visit. I miss them dearly. It is so nice to have something to look forward to.