SCRIPTURE SUNDAY

On Sundays, I usually post something random. But, besides doing that, I decided I would share a scripture with you all instead. I pray that it will be a blessing to whoever reads it!

You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance.-Psalm 32:7

TEA FOR TWO

Last week, my youngest daughter wanted to surprise me with our own girls tea party. It was such a sweet gesture on her part. I'm glad she decided to do this because it was so much fun! What started out to be a girly tea party ended up being pretty unconventional! We were not minding our manners at all! I was trying to mimic the way you should act properly at a tea, and then on the flip side, we were all talking with mouths full of crackers. You had to be there.

Here we have a tray with all the goodies she put together! Saltines, ritz crackers, blueberry scones, sliced cheese, and good ole' sandwich meat.

We had the tea in the girls' room, of course, so the boys couldn't disturb us! What you see there is a towel under the plate, lol, and Veronica's own cracker sandwich!

I love how she just threw it all together!


This was toward the end. Can you tell by the way the sandwich meat is just laying there?


"How ya like me now, mom?"


Thanks for the party, Veronica!

FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK

I started "Friday Photo Flashback" because I have so many pictures from my PRE-digital camera days. I thought it would be fun to scan them and share them here with you. I'm having so much fun doing this, that I would love for you to join me, too! So dig out the photo albums and put your scanner to good use! Don't forget to sign in to MckLinky so we can all visit and comment on each others blogs!

JULY 1996

Looking at this pictures makes me realize even more, how time literally flies by. This was just the beginning of our family. I was only a couple weeks away from my 27th birthday, and my husband was 25. Isaiah was a newborn here, and I got pregnant again with Miranda when he was 6 weeks old. I know, crazy, right? I remember stressing that everything was going to be double. I was still working, and back then, I NEVER would have thought that I would eventually be a stay at home mom with five children! It just goes to show that Gods plans are definitely different than ours (and better)!

WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?

Meet my new "BFF."

My life just got so much simpler.

You exceeded any expectations I ever had.

We will accomplish so many things together. I just know it.

I have plans in store for me and you!

I love you.

Yes, I'm referring to the crock pot, and not the beef stew, although, the stew was yummy! My in-laws got me this for Christmas, and this was the first time for me to use one, EVER! Now I need recipes, and I'm so glad that I found hundreds of them online already! Do you have any favorites that you would like to share?

Now, that's what I'm talkin' bout!

WORDFUL WEDNESDAY

My son, Eli started his art classes again, and it inspired him to paint this the other night. I'm not sure why, since he's never painted clowns before.

If you saw this in person, the eyes look very realistic.

Borderline creepy.

If you have a fear of clowns, this would be the LAST thing you'd want staring at you in the face!

Be sure to visit 7 Clown Circus for Wordful Wednesday

WHAT'S FOR BREAKY?

My kids LOVE hot breakfasts'. Not that I make them one every morning, but when I do, they get really excited. Actually, one thing that I make more often than not, (because it's fast and easy) are pancakes. Not from scratch, just the simple Bisquick mix. However, I am looking for a great recipe. Do any of you have one that you can share?

As you can see here, some of my troops are ready to eat!

The night before, I made some banana muffins, so yah, we were carb'd out that morning!


Look at that fluffy goodness! Perfect every time! Gotta have the powdered sugar!

"JUST ONE MORE"

I wanted to take a quick picture of the kids because they were lookin' so cute before church! Well, you can imagine how hard it is to get one good picture with all five of them, so I knew the odds were in my favor when I decided to take a picture of just three.

Uh...not!

But, tell me if you notice a pattern.

Isaiah, open your mouth when you smile, and Miranda, can you please just fake it that you want to be in the picture? I know that you only like taking pictures when YOU'RE in the mood. Just pretend you're in front of photo booth taking hundreds of pictures of yourself.

Um..what's up the eyebrows, Isaiah? Remember, look natural! And, Miranda, please no peace signs right now.

After the third picture, we were done, or I should say "they" were done, lol. At least two of them are looking at the camera, and even though I have no idea what Isaiah is looking at, I still love his smile!

And if you didn't figure out the pattern, well, I'll tell ya.

Veronica is always ready for a photo-op!

Ya think?

SCRIPTURE SUNDAY

On Sundays, I usually post something random. But, besides doing that, I decided I would share a scripture with you all instead. I pray that it will be a blessing to whoever reads it!

Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all.-2 Thessalonians 3:16

SPAGHETTI NIGHT

My family loves spaghetti! I probably make that more than any other meal.

It's easy, hearty, inexpensive, it feeds a lot, and tastes even better the next day.

I normally make baked spaghetti with tons of cheese (thanks to Paula Deen's cookbook), but sometimes good ole' fashion spaghetti does the trick.

I'm not fancy by any means, and I don't have a secret family recipe. I use a common spaghetti sauce (Ragu), and I don't add any fancy spices. Just give me some salt & pepper!

The only thing I did differently this night was add in some mild Italian sausage (which I have not done in awhile). It gives the sauce that extra kick!

All I did was cut them in little pieces and fried them till they were no longer pink on the inside. I let them drain on a paper towel before I added it to the sauce.

At the same time, I was browning my ground beef in another pot.

While the sauce was simmering, and the noodles were boiling, I had my younger kids two prepping the french bread.

And that's it! Our spaghetti dinner (with veggies on the side). It was a winner and everyone had seconds! Always a good thing!

FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK

I started "Friday Photo Flashback" because I have so many pictures from my PRE-digital camera days. I thought it would be fun to scan them and share them here with you. I'm having so much fun doing this, that I would love for you to join me, too! So dig out the photo albums and put your scanner to good use! Don't forget to sign in to MckLinky so we can all visit and comment on each others blogs!

1972'ish

This is another edition of, "What was my mom thinking?"

I had to be about 3 years old, and I STILL remember that this was my preschool picture. Correct me if I'm wrong, but is this not the day to dress your child in their cutest outfit? And, if you had a girl, you'd put her hair in a pretty bow, clip, or headband? I know that's what I would do.

My mom MUST have been running late that morning, and had to put together an outfit for me in less than 15 seconds. I can't imagine that she would purposely let me out that morning looking like this, especially if it was PICTURE DAY!! But, could she have at least run a comb through my hair first, or try to make me look like a girl?

Mom, I'm sure you're reading this.

Can you tell me, why??????

39/52 PICTURES OF ME

I'm participating in a year long challenge, created by Carin at Forever In Blue Jeans. The goal is to be in one picture a week, for 52 weeks. Since us moms are always behind the camera, this gives us a chance to get out in front and be in the pictures with our family. So, click here if you want to join in on the fun!

Here we are, waiting for our movie to start!!!

WORDFUL WEDNESDAY

It looks like our black dog, Skippy is trying to bite Mocha's head off.

What's really going on is Mocha trying to bite Skippy's neck. Her head is actually underneath his mouth.

She's such a brat to him. Nips his legs, bites his neck. If he wanted to, he could kill her.

But, not Skippy. He's the best, most obedient dog, ever. He's never shown aggression toward us, or the kids.

And by the way, that is our old couch, and it's in our backyard until my husband brings it to the dump this weekend. I just realized it looks like they are indoors. Not that it matters, but I always have to point out the littlest/unimportant detail.

I think he likes Mocha as a playmate, anyway. Keeps him busy!

Be sure to visit 7 Clown Circus for Wordful Wednesday

TAG-I'M IT!

I discovered a new blog recently, and I have to say that it keeps me very amused! I love visiting "Mostly Grocery, Adventures Of A Grocery Clerk", and reading about the daily happenings of his life working at a grocery store. Now, I can't help but think of some of his stories when I'm at my local supermarket.

Well, he tagged me a few days ago, and I'm supposed to share 10 things about me that you don't already know! I bet you can't wait, right?

Okay, here I go...

1. One of my BIGGEST pet peeves is misspelled words and using punctuation incorrectly.

2. Both my parents are Filipino, but I cannot speak or understand the language.

3. My LEAST favorite thing to do is go to the mall.

4. I don't know how the "blog world" perceives me, but I talk fast, talk loud, and laugh even louder! That is why I use so many exclamation points. That is how I talk!! See!!?!

5. I do not like confrontation.

6. I used to be totally addicted to Ebay. I would buy the cutest custom clothing outfits for my youngest daughter, plus she had to have matching bows with every outfit. And she would never wear the same outfit twice. Here are a couple of my favorites!

If you notice that the bridge of her nose is bruised, it's because she tripped over a dog leash and bumped her face right into the side of the car.

I always loved the ruffles on the hem!!

7. My all time favorite show is Smallville!!

8. I love to do laundry. It's like a challenge to get to the bottom of the basket.

9. My other biggest pet peeve is vulgarity. Nothing makes my stomach cringe more when I hear someone say a cuss word, or use Gods name in vain.

10. And finally, sometimes I do wish we had cable, but then I know I would totally get sucked into all the reality shows that I used to love. I think I can do without MTV's "The Real World" or "Road Rules." Do they even have those shows anymore?

I would love to know more about you, so if you want to participate, consider yourself tagged!

MOVIE TIME!

This past Friday, I took my three younger kids to the movies to see the new Jackie Chan movie, "The Spy Next Door." If you like Jackie Chan, and all his awesome stunts, this movie will not disappoint. It was cute, and predictable, but I was thankful that there weren't any bad words or sexual innuendos in it.

I love taking them on weekday afternoons because we literally have the place to ourselves. One of the perks of homeschooling!

Getting our popcorn, and Daniel's "must have" hot dog." We always get our candy and soda at 7-Eleven first, and then I stick it in my purse. Yes, my purse is that big! I'm not about to spend $20 just for drinks and candy at the movies.

Can you see my mom in the background? My two older kids did not want to see the movie, so they stayed home and did their schoolwork. They just requested I bring them back some candy.

SCRIPTURE SUNDAY

On Sundays, I usually post something random. But, besides doing that, I decided I would share a scripture with you all instead. I pray that it will be a blessing to whoever reads it!

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.-Romans 12:9

LOOKS ARE DECEIVING

I know what you're thinking...

Now, before you judge...

Please know...it's not as bad as it looks.

Really.

I'm just keepin' it real.

We have good days, and then we have bad ones, too.

They go hand in hand.

This day was a little bit of both.

I learned my lesson, quick.

Let the cake COMPLETELY cool off before frosting.

And it's not like I don't know this already.

This is what I get for being impatient.

My friends, here is my Red Velvet Cake. I know, you're thinking, "What in the world is THAT?" I actually took the picture before I smoothed the sides out, really, and my oldest daughter did the cute decorations on top. If I wasn't so anxious to get it over with, the outside would look halfway decent.

But, don't let the outside fool you. My kids LOVED it, and ate the cake in one day. Yes, I know, savages! Ha! Everything was made from scratch, including the icing. I don't think I can ever go back to pre-packaged frosting again.

Here's the recipe I used from one of my cookbooks.

FRIDAY PHOTO FLASHBACK

I started "Friday Photo Flashback" because I have so many pictures from my PRE-digital camera days. I thought it would be fun to scan them and share them here with you. I'm having so much fun doing this, that I would love for you to join me, too! So dig out the photo albums and put your scanner to good use! Don't forget to sign in to MckLinky so we can all visit and comment on each others blogs!

Here's a picture of my sister (on the right) and I, when I was visiting her in Hawaii (Oahu), in 1994. In the background is the famous Chinaman's Hat. She took me sightseeing that day, and we spent time taking pictures at this park. I still remember that there were only a couple of other people there.

Hawaii will take your breath away.

38/52 PICTURES OF ME

**The winner of my Dear John book giveaway is A Nut In A Nutshell!!!**

I'm participating in a year long challenge, created by Carin at Forever In Blue Jeans. The goal is to be in one picture a week, for 52 weeks. Since us moms are always behind the camera, this gives us a chance to get out in front and be in the pictures with our family. So, click here if you want to join in on the fun!

This picture was tagged to me on Facebook at the perfect time because I didn't have any other ones to share for this week!

This was at a friends Christmas party, and yes, that is me arm wrestling my friend Lorna. We did once before in the cafe at church, and it was a total tie. You should have heard everyone encouraging us to go at it again. It was so fun!!!! I tell ya, both of our arms were hurting the next day, because even though we were smiling the entire time, we were both giving it our 100%!!

So, here behind me are some of the kids watching in amusement, but what you don't see are at least 20 of the men and boys to my left with cameras and cell phones taking pictures!!

And in all honesty, I was thinking of this movie the entire time.

WORDFUL WEDNESDAY

My oldest daughter wanted to take some photos the other day, and she came up with some really artistic ones. She totally has a better eye than I do!

For some reason, I JUST LOVE THIS!

I overheard her telling Veronica to put her face on the table, and I love how you can barely make her out in the background. But, to me, she looks so natural.

What do you think? Makes me want to get my new camera even faster!


Remember the pumpkin bread I made?


Two of my favorite things! My camera & my MAC!

Be sure to visit 7 Clown Circus for Wordful Wednesday

I LOVE...

I absolutely love our church family.

I love the fellowship.

I love that I can be myself.

I love that our kids are loved.

And...I love that we all love to eat!!

Look at their greasy mouths!!


We all went across the street from church to a Chinese buffet.


And I'm missing some teens in the picture. Good fun!

I HAVE A GIVEAWAY!

Last month, I posted about this book I won, and how much I LOVED IT! If you are familiar with Nicholas Sparks, then you know he wrote wonderful books like Message In A Bottle, A Walk To Remember, and The Notebook.

I can't wait till this movie comes out next month!

Since the book is just sitting around the house, I thought that I would give somebody else the chance to win this, too.

The book is used, but it is still in good condition. No bent or creased pages since I read through it in one night.

I'm going to make this giveaway as easy as possible, since those are the kinds of giveaways I love entering myself.

All you need to do is comment on this post that you want in, and that's it!! I will pick a winner on Wednesday!!

Here's an excerpt from his official website, so you can get an idea of what this story is about.

An angry rebel, John dropped out of school and enlisted in the Army, not knowing what else to do with his life--until he meets the girl of his dreams, Savannah. Their mutual attraction quickly grows into the kind of love that leaves Savannah waiting for John to finish his tour of duty, and John wanting to settle down with the woman who has captured his heart. But 9/11 changes everything. John feels it is his duty to re-enlist. And sadly, the long separation finds Savannah falling in love with someone else. "Dear John," the letter read...and with those two words, a heart was broken and two lives were changed forever. Returning home, John must come to grips with the fact that Savannah, now married, is still his true love—and face the hardest decision of his life.