Sunny Saturday

It was a very frosty morning but we have beautiful sunshine! : ) I've been busy working on some things inside the house, but I'll be heading outside soon to run some errands and then right back home to get busy in the kitchen. Perri's volleyball banquet is tomorrow and I'm cooking for it. I'm thinking I'll probably make this and one of these, too. Then I'm going to prepare some quick and easy things to go in the freezer for evenings when I don't have a lot of time to cook. I've nearly depleted the stuff I did earlier in the month.

I hope all of you have a fantastic weekend! Probably won't see you back here until Monday morning. : )

For now, I'll leave you with these words of wisdom:

Five Question Friday

I'm linking up to Mama M. at My Little Life for Five Question Friday. Pop in, read the rules, pick up the button, and join in the fun! : )



1. If you could be a fly on any wall, which would you choose?

I'm going all out on this one. I not only want to choose which wall, but what time frame. ; )

I would want to be a fly on a wall in my parents' home during my childhood. I'd like to see my Daddy and Mama Jones again. I'd like to watch our interactions and once again feel the way I felt when I was young and spending time with them. : )

2. Do you budget your Christmas shopping or just get it done without budgeting?

We definitely budget. My last name isn't Rockefeller and we lost the money tree in the backyard to high winds a few years ago.

3. What is the craziest fad diet you have ever done?

Probably the grapefruit diet. Yes, I tried it. I ate grapefruit because it was going to 'burn off the fat'. And the really sad part? I was a size 3 when I tried it. Do you know what I'd give to be a 3 again?

What was I thinking?

4. Is there a TV show that you have seen every episode/season of?

LOST. Yes, I was (am) a LOSTy. There are probably also many others that would fall into this category. ER...for sure. The Cosby Show...more than likely. Thirtysomething...I'm nearly certain. And so on and so forth.

My name is Kelli and I'm a tv-aholic. ; )

5. What one song always pulls at your heart?

There are so many! Ya seriously want me to pick only one?

Sheesh.

I'd have to sayThank You Lord for Your Blessings on Me and The Old Rugged Cross. The former makes me think of my Mama Jones and the latter was my Daddy's favorite. Both hold very special places in my heart. : )

I'd also have to add You're the Biggest Part of Me by Ambrosia. An oldie but goody, that's for sure. : ) The first song to which I ever slow danced. Ahhhh...the memories!

And since I have already picked three, it really won't be an issue if I choose a fourth, will it? ; )

Pachelbel's Canon in D. Love. That. Song.

I'll stop now.

But I'll just mention that I have more than 1000 songs on my iPhone.

Yeah. I do.

Thoughts for Thursday

When I write, I pretty much bare my soul. It's the one outlet I have where I allow myself to tell it like it is, lay it on the line and be brutally honest. Those writings may not always be put out there for everyone to see. They may be tucked away from prying eyes or even completely deleted from the hard drive, but either way they are my therapy. All of my writing is honest, but some may be a little too honest for others to read and is better left hidden. I'm not out to hurt feelings or stir anger. I only want to get it off my heart by putting it down in black and white because that's just what I've always done. Always know that what you read from me is what I am. We may have a two hour conversation that you think is revealing, but I could write two paragraphs and tell you so much more. It's just the way I'm wired. Other writers will understand. Non-writers may not.

On her blog yesterday, my friend Relyn asked us to reveal 'what you are the most'. Think about that. What a deep question! And it led to some deep thinking. Or I suppose I should say more deep thinking. I've been doing a lot of that lately, I'm afraid. Heavy times lead to heavy thoughts, ya know? ; )

Anyway, I love quotes. All KINDS of quotes. But on this foraging expedition I was drawn to quotes on relationships.


Assumptions are the termites of relationships. ~Henry Winkler

*Ain't it the truth? Pretty wise words from the mouth of The Fonz. :)
When we make assumptions, we create entire scenarios in our minds that may or
may not represent the truth of the matter. And when others make assumptions
about us, anger develops as we attempt to prove false those notions that
are suddenly so firmly set in their minds.


Whenever you're in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.~William Jones

*I confess. My attitude is not always as it should be. It comes from years
and years of allowing the same thing to occur over and over again and never
doing anything to actually change it. But let's face it: In some
relationships you are powerless to change things. Sometimes you just have
to do what's best for you and if that involves stepping back and doing it
differently the next time, so be it. Sometimes you have to be the one who
looks out for you. And sometimes it takes 40+ years to realize that.


We are never more discontented with others than when we are discontented with ourselves. ~Henri Frederic Amiel

*Don't think there's much I can add to that one, so 'nuff said. ;)

Your opinion is your opinion, your perception is your perception--do not confuse them with "facts" or "truth". Wars have been fought .... because of the inability of men to understand the idea that EVERYBODY has a different viewpoint. ~John Moore

*Amen. Why do we struggle so when it comes to realizing that our perception is our reality and not everyone's reality? Why is it so difficult to realize that it isn't okay to expect others to behave differently in order to accommodate our own perceptions?

When you can think of yesterday without regret and tomorrow without fear, you are near contentment. ~Source Unknown

*That's when you've done everything you can to right a wrong, to mend a fence, to allow someone else to see you as you really are and let them decide if you're worth it to them. And when you are, TERRIFIC! Smile and know go on with your life! And when you're not, realize that you can't change who you are to satisfy everyone in your life. No one can be that many different things to that many different people. As long as you can sleep at night and look at yourself in the mirror the next morning, knowing you've done all you can possibly do...just short of no longer being true to yourself. That's where you draw the line. The sooner you accept it, the sooner you can find that contentment. That's where I'm heading. It's a long road, but I'm getting there. :)

And the sweetest way to end this post, in my humble opinion. : ) One of my all-time favorites:

If you've found that, you are blessed beyond measure!
Because really, isn't that deep down what we all want?

Hereafter

The Hubster and I went to see this movie yesterday and I wanted to tell you a little about it.


Don't be fooled by Matt Damon's somewhat spooky looking eyes on the poster. It isn't a horror movie. I wouldn't even classify it as a psychological thriller, which happens to be one of my favorite kinds of movies. I'm not sure it should be pigeonholed by calling it one thing or another anyway. It is quite simply an excellent drama. And don't take your kids. This one's more for Mom and Dad.

I was going to start off by saying that you get a lot of bang for your buck because this movie is looooong, but I have since come to discover that it was only 2 hours and 9 minutes. All I can say is that the previews must have gone on forever because we were in that theater for nearly 3 hours. My butt was numb. ; )

Now, moving on...

Hereafter is a prime example of exquisite storytelling. Don't look away! There are three stories going on here and each of them is worthy of your undivided attention. Really. It isn't often that you get a movie with one gripping storyline, let alone three, so this was a pleasant surprise. I could have watched a full movie based on any one of these storylines.

Now allow me to say that I could watch Matt Damon count blades of grass and be entertained. Anything he does is worthy of my time because I adore him. And now I will be on the lookout for any film starring Cecile De France. She was amazing! There is something so familiar about her; so 'I would swear I've seen her somewhere before'. But upon visiting her filmography I realized I had seen none of her previous work. She pulls off this character, a strong, educated, independent woman who has the world at her fingertips, and still manages to portray a certain girl next door quality that leaves you thinking you could easily be friends. I like her in this movie, and that's important to me. It is much easier to dislike the intimidation of powerful female characters than to relate to them, but Ms. De France doesn't allow you to even consider that you might not be able to forge a friendship.

I won't tell you that it didn't move a little slowly in places because I think it did. But I also won't say that it wasn't necessary to the storyline. Looking back on it, I'm not sure that there was any portion of this film that could have been edited away and still allow Eastwood (Clint...yeah, he was behind this one!) to maintain the integrity of the stories. Allow me to also say that it ended perhaps a bit....abruptly? I know that sounds like a contradiction, but it's true. At least until you look back on it.

You know how you leave the theater after watching a good movie and you think about it, pick it apart, and search for the answers to the questions you thought it should have answered? Well, Hereafter was one of those movies for me. It left me thinking (and discussing it with my husband) and I quickly realized that it ended pretty much as it should have. The questions were answered (if you were paying attention!) even if it wasn't totally obvious at the moment. Eastwood made YOU think about it and much of it was conveyed in undertones and actions, not through obvious verbal exchanges. I like that in a movie. And then I like to discuss it with others because most of the time, the next guy got something totally different from it than you did.

And I beg of you: DON'T READ ANYTHING THAT MIGHT SPOIL THIS FOR YOU! I went into this movie having read absolutely nothing about it (no spoilers at all and I really knew very little about the general theme of it) and I am so glad that I did. This was good stuff, so go in with a clean slate and no expectations or idea as to what you think is going to happen. You won't be disappointed.

And one little tidbit I found interesting. Do you know who this is?

Her name is Bryce Dallas Howard and she plays Melanie. But that's not the interesting part. What floored me is that she's Ron Howard's daughter! Yes, little Opie has a daughter who's all grown up! :)

5,113 Days Ago

(That was 14 years ago, by the way.)

It was October 26, 1996 and it was a Saturday.

The Yankees beat the Braves 3-2 in game 6 of the World Series.

A new episode of Early Edition aired, titled Thief Swipes Mayor's Dog.

There was a tornado outbreak in Minnesota.

But in Glasgow, WV it was a drizzly day; gray and overcast. I was watching neither Game 6 nor Early Edition (though I dearly love both my Yankees and Kyle Chandler!) because I was a bit preoccupied.

This was me:

I was just a little over-dressed for the ballgame or sitting at home watching any type of serial television.

But at least I wasn't alone. This guy was there, too.

Lucky for me.

It would have been pretty lonely standing in the front of that church all by myself.


He even took off work today so we could celebrate, so we're outta here.

I foresee the Olive Garden in my very near future.
And if there is anything decent playing, maybe a movie.
And of course, a few other stops...
Like Lowe's, Books a Million, the mall.

Do we know how to celebrate BIG or what?

How 'bout them 'eers!?!?

Oh, wait.

They lost.

I nearly forgot.

But that's okay because the BAND was worth the drive to Morgantown! : )

The WVU Marching Band (aka: The Pride of West Virginia) never, ever disappoints and this homecoming weekend at WVU was no exception.
Plus we had the added bonus of seeing the Alumni Band!

The Alumni Band struttin' their stuff...


Did I ever tell you how much I love a band?

THIS MUCH!!!

Anyway, the pregame show was fantastic! As always. Since I couldn't really get a good shot of the band from our seats, here is one of them on the JumboTron. They form the shape of the great state of WV! Isn't that awesome? And they march the length of the field, then invert the state so the fans on the other side of the field can appreciate it, too! Then they march the length of the field again. Pretty amazing. And they sound fantastic, too. :)

A couple more shots.

And here is our Mountaineer mascot:

The team entering the field via the HUGE inflatable helmet:

A shot of the crowd. That's a whole lot of blue and gold!

And I suppose that since it was a football game, after all,
I need to post a pic of some football action.

There.

Now on to bigger and better things.
That is, as far as Tucker was concerned, these are bigger and better things.

That handy-dandy little blue and gold car is part of the PRT system in Morgantown.
The PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) is a lifesaver for WVU students because the University campus is all over the place. It's pretty terrific for folks like us on game day, too.
This is some of the scenery we enjoyed on the way across town to the stadium.

This was indeed the highlight of Tucker's day. : )
He thought the PRT was just about the coolest thing ever.

And just one more thing before I go.

I have a little wish to make.

I sincerely wish with all my heart that the seriously drunk young woman who sat behind us,
showering us with her peanut shells and jabbing Tucker and me in our backs with her knees
throughout the entire second half of the game,
has suffered a horrendously intense hangover ALL DAY TODAY.

She totally deserves it.

A Second Friday Post to Say....

...you need to check out Kelli's Kitchen! Just posted a bread pudding and vanilla sauce recipe that you'll LOVE! : )

Friday Flashback...a borrowed idea

My new friend Staci over at Lizard & Ladybug had borrowed the Flashback Friday idea from another blog, too, so I hope she doesn't mind that I decided to use it as well! : )

It just seems appropriate to blog about 'flashbacks' today. Yesterday I got into a great conversation with some friends on Facebook regarding things that instantly take us back to our childhoods. My friend Holli was reminiscing about boxes of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups that her mom used to bring home and her anxiety over the possibility of not getting her fair share once her siblings spotted them! ; ) Isn't it funny the things we remember?

Holli's flashback brought about one of my own. And it involves these:

Oh how I LOVED these things!

When I was young Saturday Night Wrestling was on a local television station and my Daddy loved to watch. Wrestling wasn't really my favorite thing, but spending time with my Daddy was so I would beg to watch with him. : ) Trouble was, Saturday Night Wrestling didn't come on until 11:30 at night, after the local news. I'd be tucked into bed by 9:30 or 10:00 o'clock but I could hear the television playing in the other room and the hushed voices of my parents. And I would not go to sleep.

Then my mother would finish up her nightly routine of listening to the news headlines with Daddy, straightening up around the house and making sure the kitchen was all cleaned up and ready for breakfast the next morning. Once everything was in order, she made her way to bed. But the muted sounds of the television and Daddy's heavy footsteps would still penetrate my bedroom door as he finished the local news and then made his way to the kitchen for a snack.

And I waited anxiously to see hear the squeaky hinges of my bedroom door being opened.

You see, Daddy and I had a routine. Once Mom had enough time to fall asleep, Daddy would grab the snacks and then let me know the coast was clear. The thin sliver of light coming through my not-quite-closed door would grow wide as Daddy pushed it open and his silhouette filled the doorway. He didn't have to say a word. I would scramble out of bed and follow him to the living room where I would crawl onto his lap as the voice of Shirley Love would announce that it was time for Saturday Night Wrestling to begin!

As I said before, the wrestling wasn't what it was all about for me. It was daddy/daughter time first and foremost, and it had the added benefit of being snack time! These Pizza Spins were our very favorite. For years I could find no one who could remember these little snack crackers and I was afraid I had imagined them! But it seems they do have a cult following. Check out this link. : )

It was like the ultimate in rule-breaking for a 6 or 7 year old child! My teeth were already brushed and I was supposed to be sleeping soundly. I can even remember a couple of occasions when, despite our best efforts to keep quiet, Mom came walking in and caught me out of bed and EATING AT MIDNIGHT!!!

But I survived.

And it also left me with some terrific memories. : )

Luminous Leaves and Future Fodder...plus one

Just a few pics I want to share.

The October Glory maples are absolutely beautiful in person.
I wish my camera could really capture how bright they are!
They are perfectly luminous and these pics just don't do them justice.

This burning bush simply glows!
You can see it in the above pic, all the way to the left end of the porch.

I thought that perhaps a different angle of the tree might show the sunlight that made it a blinding red, but if there was an angle that did that I certainly didn't discover it. :(

What's left of the garden.
Soon we'll cut it and make fodder shocks.

And just for fun...
This is a shot Brie took of Tucker.
She was practicing action shots and wanted to catch him midair.
I just think it is SO cute! Not sure where the hat came from or how it is that he managed to
look like a jazz dancer in his pose,
but I LIKE IT! : )

And by the way....

A Little Fashion (Non)Sense

Last week was Spirit Week at the middle school.
No one can ever say my girl doesn't have school spirit!
I'm willing to bet that she was the clashiest person there on Clash Day.

I'm also willing to bet she had a blast!

Ahhhhh......to be young again. : )

Yesterday ...

...I didn't get nearly enough done around the house.


...Tucker had a Cub Scout meeting.

...was Perri's final volleyball game of the season. (They WON!!!)

...while driving home in my Two-Door Speck (it's really a Chevy Cobalt) from that volleyball game, we hit a deer . :(

...said deer did absolutely no damage to the Speck. YAY!

...my Yankees took a whoopin' from the Rangers during the ALCS. :(

BUT THE BIGGEST NEWS OF ALL............

...my blog reached NOT ONE but TWO milestones! : )

I reached 10,000 hits
and
Got my 50th follower!

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING THE BEST BLOGGY FRIENDS A GIRL COULD EVER HAVE!

Miscellany Monday

Between lessons learned, volleyball games, a Cub Scout meeting, birthday parties and a whole lot of baking, these last few days have been a crazy-busy rollercoaster. From the looks of my schedule for this coming week,
I have much more of the same in store for me.
But busy is good. : )

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I've had a request for Kelli's Kitchen, so this week I will be making bread pudding and vanilla sauce. It's a recipe that my grandmother started using back during the Great Depression when nothing, not even stale bread, was allowed to go to waste.
I'll also post the cute little story of how she came by the recipe in the first place. ; )

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Random Acts of Kindness are pretty wonderful. : ) While having dinner at a local restaurant with my family on Sunday afternoon, a perfect stranger touched my shoulder, smiled and said "Your hair is beautiful!" as she walked past our table.
How sweet! Hope she realized that she really made my day! : )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There are only 67 days until Christmas!

WOW!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today is Perri's last volleyball game of the season. This makes me sad. :( I'm a huge softball/baseball fan, but the season doesn't last long enough to keep Perri busy year round. Since leaving gymnastics (which is a FULL TIME sport) she has struggled to stay as busy as she stayed in the gym. She decided to give volleyball a try and I'll be honest...I DREADED IT. I am very happy to say that I surprised myself by LOVING IT!

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I think that's about all the miscellany I can handle on this Monday morning.
How about you?

If you'd like to join Carissa Graham on Miscellany Monday, just click on the button!

Frosty Fall Morning

This morning I awakened to our first frost of the year and I was THRILLED! : ) I adore fall weather! You may awaken to a sparkling frost, then by midday the bright blue skies are dotted with fluffy, cottonball clouds. The sun is bright enough to make you think summer, but sends only enough warmth to cut the chill of the breeze.

Here is one of my October Glory maples.
Her twin is not quite as far along in changing into her fall cloak, but I'm sure she'll catch up soon.

And my fire bush is bright and beautiful right now as well.

I'll try to get a full shot of my yard while all the colors are vibrant.

I just need the right lighting and right now I'm not sure when exactly that occurs.

And here is a shot of what I most enjoyed this morning:

See the frost line? I love to watch the sparkles dissolve and melt away as the sun's warmth reaches further and further across the yard. It wasn't a very heavy frost, but it certainly was beautiful out there this morning. I just don't have that gift for capturing it with my pitiful camera.

My house currently smells like a little slice of autumn, too! :) Just took a pumpkin roll out of the oven and as soon as it has cooled I'll be spreading on the cream cheese filling, rolling it back up and putting it in the fridge to chill. LOVE me some punkin' log! :) Be sure to check for the recipe later on tonight over at Kelli's Kitchen.

Hope all of you are having the same beautiful weather we're enjoying and that your weekend is relaxing and sweet! :)

A Lesson Learned

You're never to old to learn ( or re-learn, as the case may be) a lesson. I stuck my nose in where it didn't belong and now I'm paying for it. When you see your son or daughter being hurt, it's hard to just turn your back. I didn't say or do anything out of anger and simply stated facts, yet somehow I'm the bad guy now. I only wanted to expose the issues that were at the heart of the matter and that's exactly what I did. Not in a hateful or antagonizing manner, but as one adult communicating a problem to another. I thought that might possibly be the proper thing to do, the way to bring the situation to a resolution.

Perception is reality. The way you see things, the way a situation makes you feel....that is your reality. Whether or not the others involved see it the way you do or intended their words or actions to have the affect on you that they did, it is still your reality. And my daughter's reality had been somewhat troubled lately. I honestly believed that there was no malice intended in what was happening, that it was just a matter of them not realizing that my girl's feelings were being hurt. I doubted they understood that she has a bit of trouble putting any of her faith in the words and actions of others at times because she has been fooled so many times in the past by people who had no business abusing her trust. I thought I could help smooth things over if I got involved. I should have known better.

You see, emotions rule in this sort of situation. The others involved may say they value the truth above all other things and that putting things out in the open and being perfectly honest is the only way to handle a situation, but that holds no value when your truth isn't what they want to hear. Remember: Perception is reality. Our perception of things that had been going on for quite some time was not the same as their own, therefore we are the ones who are wrong. It doesn't matter that there truly was another way to perceive some of the things that had been happening or that their own words and actions could have been seen as something less than honest and up front due to circumstances that existed long before all this started. All that does matter is that I handed over the perception of the situation and they didn't like it because it wasn't the same as their own. They didn't want to see that another person could have an opinion different from their own or that there was good reason for it. A persona can only be fooled so many times before they become suspicious and distrustful of everyone.

The hard part for me is that I like these girls. One I have known for a while and the others I was just getting to know. They are young, just starting their families and so full of possibilities and hope for the future, just like my daughter. I wanted to see their friendships grow and deepen and for my daughter to develop the kind of relationship with them that she deserves. Because no matter who we are or at what place in our lives we may find ourselves, everyone needs trusted friends. Even if that trust takes a little more effort than usual to build.

All I can do now is live with the results. No one can possibly know how sorry I am that I ever got involved. There are very few people in this world whose opinion of me doesn't matter to me. I sincerely wish I didn't feel this way, but I do. It bothers me to know that someone doesn't like me or that perhaps I've done something to hurt someone else. I can think of only 2 people in this world whose opinions truly do not matter to me and even though they are nasty through and through, I find myself wishing from time to time that I could do something to fix the situation. And I would never purposefully do anything to hurt either of those people. I don't have that in my nature, though sometimes I find myself wishing I could be just a little more mean and a little less easily hurt.

But then... I wouldn't be me.

Guess I'll just keep living my life.

And learning my lessons.

(I've chosen this as my Pick of the Patch post for this week.
Come join us at Windy Poplars for PotP by clicking on the button below.)

Manic Monday!

What a crazy day already! And the problem is the entire week looks to be pretty much the same. I really wanted to do Miscellany Monday but I don't even have the time to do the whole link thing, so this is what you're getting for today. : )

Second birthday party for Hayden yesterday was a HUGE success! : ) That little guy is so loved! This is a little of the scenery surrounding the building where Brie had his party. Isn't it gorgeous there?


This place is only 7 miles from my house and yet I'd never been there. I'll definitely keep it in mind for future parties.

Also went on a hayride. WOW! 44 years old and I finally get to go on a hayride! Gerrod, a friend of Josh and Brie's, hooked up his tractor to their hay wagon, threw on a few bales of hay, and loaded up everyone who wanted to go! It was AWESOME! Beautiful scenery and don't ya know....I FORGOT MY CAMERA!!!
Anyway, I have a crazy week ahead. Tons of running back and forth to Charleston (1 doc appointment, a mammogram and picking up my Mom), then running Mom to her doc's appointment and a hair appointment up here before driving her back home on Thursday evening. Plus on Wednesday, after having already driven to Charleston that morning, I'll be driving back down there and then even further down the road to Perri's volleyball game in Winfield.


I have phone calls to make (Shannon, I PROMISE I'll call you before the day is out!), 160+ birthday treat bags to put together for PTO, a Cub Scout meeting to get Tucker to as soon as school lets out, and I have to pick up Perri at school and get her fed before her volleyball game this evening. At least it's at home.

Anyone know how to clone? I'd almost be willing to give it a shot! However, I'm not sure the world is ready for two of me. ; )

Fill in the Blank Friday

Just this morning I discovered a really cool blog called The Little Things We Do. I read through her last few posts and decided I like it there! : ) Just what I need....another place to check in daily. Dear me. If I keep this up, pretty soon I won't have any life at all away from this computer! ; )

Anywho, Lauren has a little thing called Fill in the Blank Friday and I decided to play along today. (She uses a different pic each week so there is no code to C&P. If you decide to play along, just save the pic to your hard drive and use it with your post.)

So here we go. My first Fill in the Blank Friday. : )

1. The first thing I do in the morning to start my day is check my email and FB on my iPhone...before I even get out of bed. Is that an addiction or what???

2. Today I wish I was at the Bob Evans Farm Festival with my son's school. Unfortunately he is STILL sick and is having to miss out on yet another fun thing with his classmates. :( Hoping his asthma decides to leave him alone and that he can go back to school on Monday.

3. If I had an extra $100 in my bank account today I would Take a couple of my favorite people to a movie. That would include huge, buttery buckets of popcorn; boxes of Goobers, Raisinettes and Hot Tamales; THE WORKS!

4. Tomorrow I'll spend the morning helping my daughter prepare for my grandson's birthday party on Sunday and then possibly working at the band festival at our local high school. Much depends upon how Tucker Man is feeling at that point in time.

5. Two things that don't go together are fall and allergies. Not for me and not for my Tucker Man. :( It's my favorite time of year but the allergens that come with it could stay away indefinitely!

6. Something I can never pass up at the grocery store is bread. Lots and lots of bread. Rolls, loaves, garlic breads, dark breads, light breads...you name it. Bread is my Kryptonite. It brings me to my knees. It weakens my defenses. Unfortunately, it also pads my hips.

7. The last time I tried something new was WOW. I have no idea. What exactly does that say about me? Is my life that...predictable? I do believe I need some spontaneity, folks! I need to find something new and exciting to try! I'll let you know when I find the time to do that. ; )

Get ready, get set.....GO!

I feel like I am lagging so far behind.

On housework.
On decluttering.
On EVERYTHING.

And I have a terrible need to catch up. I'm hoping this means that I'm working my way out of the funk I've been experiencing for the past few months and that I'm ready to get busy around here!

Someone PLEASE give me a good swift kick!

I've been visiting some websites I've used in the past for ideas to jump start my cleaning/decluttering/organizing. Have you ever visited here? It is a terrific website with so many great printables to help keep you on track. I'm going to spend some time there in the next few days printing off the lists that I think will help me the most and then I'm actually going to put those lists in a binder and USE THEM!

(Please, close your mouth. I'm shocked, too.)

The monthly meal planner I am using right now (still in a trial phase, but going well!) is making my life a little easier. It's nice to plan ahead and know what's for dinner most days. I don't want to plan every aspect of a meal for every single day of the month, but I do like to have a basic idea. I'm still flexible and I'm not unwilling to go with Plan B when I'm not in the mood for whatever is on the menu for that particular day. I just like having an idea and knowing I have the ingredients on hand because planning meals also means planning grocery shopping.

How about you? Do you have any tips, tricks or secrets you want to share regarding how you do it all? If you've blogged about it in the past, leave me a link to the post. I'd love to see what works for you! I'm realistic. I know that what works for me doesn't necessarily work for everyone and vice versa, but there are often ways to adapt a plan to fit your own needs, too!

I want so much to be less like this tired, frazzled, overwhelmed version of me:


And more like this organized, capable version of me that I know is hiding deep down in there somewhere:

MY HERO!

I KNOW there is a Donna Reed inside of me,

just begging to come out!

So here it goes. The race is on. Time to make the donuts.

(And clean the house, get rid of junk we don't need, organize what stays, etc.)