Happy New Year~~~2015

Happy, Happy New Years to you!

Exciting days are ahead.....Hope you are ready!!!!!

2015 here we come!!!

Cheers ~ Louise

A New Year on the Horizon

Hi there everyone....2015.....does that not sound ominous??? Well, it is almost upon us.....one more day to go. I hope the New Year brings you many blessings and you see God at work in your life almost daily. I hope 2015 will be prosperous for you, spiritually, financially and health wise.

So far, 2015 for JP and I; there will be two operations pending for us. I went to the Eye Doctor today. It seems I have the beginnings of cataracts and the eye surgeon wants to take care of it before it gets worse. So in June, we are looking at eye surgery. One good thing is that he sees no sign of diabetes in my eyes....so that is a good thing.

The eye surgeon described the operation, it will only take 8 minutes for each eye. Usually after this kind of surgery people do not have to wear glasses any more. BUT because I have a stigmatizem in both eyes there will be an added cost to the operation that Medicare does not cover. Each eye would then cost 1K for each eye and that comes out of our pocket, it is considered a luxury. I told him right away we did not have the money for that part of the operation. So, that settles that. I will just have the cataracts taken care of and possibly still wear glasses.

JP on the other hand still has to decide if he wants the prostrate surgery. The Doctor gave us some time to think about it. So that is still up in the air. On the down side....he will be off work for a month....so our financial situation will take another hit.

So is that not good news??? You bet!!! I am thinking this New Year is going to be a challenge for all of us in more ways then one....so keep looking up and look to Jesus!!!! See you tomorrow, if I can think of something to blog about. Cheers ~ Louise

The Christmas Elf......

Hi everyone.....well, just 2 more days left in 2014 and the count down begins. Do you have any plans? We stay home....I will head downstairs to watch the New Year come in on TV... I like watching the big ball drop in New York City and watch the throngs of people, then on to Chicago and LasVegas. I think this year they added one more city....Nashville??? Will have to watch and see. 

Probably will make a few snacks for us in the early evening, nothing much, cheese and crackers, bbq hot dogs, celery and carrots, pin wheels, Greek olives and whatever else I can dig up. Then JP can munch all night to his hearts content.

I re-re-decorated the tree again. The lights burned out, so I bought some new ones today at 50% off. See that little elf that Mr. Snowman is looking at????? I think the elf was the culprit....I didn't see him do it, but I think he is the reason the lights went dead....yep he was up to some mischief alright.

Doesn't he look all innocent sitting in the tree....he acts one way when I am around and then totally different when I am out of his sight....bad elf!!!! Now that the tree is redecorated in red and white.....I probably will keep it up till Valentines. I have some hearts that I can put on the little tree.....when it comes down, I will just leave the lights on and that little elf will nest there till next Christmas. I have taken down about 50% of the ornaments....that is early for me....I usually wait till around the 16th of January to take Christmas down. We'll see I just may take it all down earlier.

Well tomorrow I have an eye appointment at 11am, eyes need to be checked yearly for diabetes. I have noticed a slight difference...my right eye seems to be a bit blurry and good grief...my bifocals never work cause I still have to take my glasses off to see up close. Won't it be nice when the trumpet is sounded and Jesus takes us home....no more pain, tears and "glasses" yesssss....20-20 vision!!!

Tis' time to close this blog for tonight. I am going to try and blog one more time before the end of this year is over.....we'll see if something interesting comes up. You all take care and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Christmas Presents

Hi there everyone...gosh, can you believe there is just 3 more days left in 2014. I am hearing a lot the last couple of days, that 2015 is going to be a great year of many blessings. One last World Wide Revival and then Jesus will return for his Church. I sure do hope those prophets are right in their predictions.

 

 But so far, for 2015, JP is looking at prostrate surgery. There's a 90% chance that it will work. He will be off work for a month....for us, I am not sure how all our bills will get paid...but I guess that is something I cannot worry about at this point. Sometimes taking one step at a time can be very hard, cause I want to know the outcome before even starting the journey. Oh well....time will tell as God is God and He never changes and has complete control. I need to remember: KEEP CALM ~ GOD'S GOT IT!!!!

So as my title says, "Christmas Presents" I have been wanting to get a little record player and finally found this one at Shopko. It was priced at $79.99 but I got it for $39.99. Yep, good price huh?? It was marked down to $49.99 and with my coupon "Spend $50.00 and get $10.00 off" could not pass up the deal. I wanted a black record player, but by the time I got back to the store to buy it (I am a procrastinator)....this is all that was left. Not my favorite of colors.....but it works and it was fun playing some of my "big CD's" hahahaha!!!

Now I am looking forward to going back into my record collection to see what I have....hoping I have some Franki Valli and the Four Seasons records. I shall let you know how my hunt goes. That will be for another blog. If you have not seen the movie "Jersey Boys" do rent the DVD....it's a really good movie.

This was JP's Christmas present along with $10, two pairs of work pants, some peanut butter hot chocolate and a record. He loves lox and bagels....so Christmas morning I wrapped up the frozen lox and bagels, tomato, onion and cream cheese in colored tissue paper and put it on the table. About 3pm I said to JP, are you not going to open your presents???? (he is not a fan of Christmas and I have to drag him to the table to open his gifts.....kinda puts a damper on the festivities....scrooge!!!) So needless to say he was thrilled...I should have taken a picture of him, cause he had a big smile on his face and wanted to eat right away....score!!

JP's gift to me was $15.00 and he told me to buy some prime rib at Festivals. They always have a special on Saturday's $10 a pound for prime rib with the sauce. All I have to do is cook 2-3 minutes on each side while sautéing the mushrooms....oh my that is a delicious meal. So I got a little piece today....was surprised they still had the prime rib special going....yeah!!!

Well, time to close for now....maybe see you on the 31st....geez, I need to get some cards made for my Etsy store....have really been slacking in that area. Oh and time to take the tree down......another string of lights died....so my little tree does not light up. Goodness, bad year for lights.!!!

Have a good day and keep looking up.....Cheers ~ Louise

Merry "Day After" Christmas

Hi there everyone. Hope you had a wonderful Christmas Day. My goodness, all the planning, scheming, decorating, baking and cooking and then POOF it is all over.

I made this lovely No-Bake Cheesecake for Christmas. Oh yum it was delicious...but not very blood-sugar worthy. The last two days my numbers have been pretty high....so sad to say, I guess it is time to lay off the cheesecake.

Here is the recipe:
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup (1/2 pint) sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (8 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 prepared 9-inch graham cracker pie crust

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth; gradually beat in the sugar. Blend in the sour cream and vanilla. Fold in whipped topping until well mixed. Spoon mixture into crust. Chill for 4-5 hours to set. Keep refrigerated. You can top the pie with your favorite fresh fruit or pie filling.

"OOH IT'S SO GOOD!!"

So what did you get for Christmas??? Me, I bought myself a little record player....have been wanting one for a long time so I can play all my old records (hahaha, I know, the big CD's), so guess what I will be doing while making cards....yup listening to old records.

Well, time to close and get JP's dinner going, he will be home later, but I just want to get his dinner plated. One last thing I have to do at 1am.

Keep looking up and enjoy this last week of 2014!!!
Cheers ~ Louise

Christmas Eve Waffles

Hi there everyone. Hope you are having a wonderful Christmas Eve. Got all your shopping done, cooking and baking done? I just got the pork roast with sauerkraut in the oven and will add the potatoes and carrots in about an hour. The bean casserole will be made later, possibly on the menu will be a no-bake cheese pie with cherries on top....sounds yummy. Tomorrow will be leftover pork roast.

One of JP's Christmas gifts is Lox and bagels. So I will pack that box first thing tomorrow morning. He will probably eat it right away. So that will cover his breakfast and lunch. It will be a quiet day for us as we have no children or family here in Appleton.

This morning I made some waffles, plenty of waffles for JP to munch on. Gosh they were good, my choice of toppings, peanut butter and cranberry sauce. Munched them down while making more waffles.

My little waffle maker makes the best waffles....this was just the start of the waffle making, should have taken a picture after all the waffles were made....but you get the idea. There was enough batter to make about 12 of these cakes. Oh so good!!!!

 

I watched a great movie last night from Netflex...."Jersey Boys" about the Four Seasons and their bumpy offstage lives stretches across four decades....it's ironic how Jersey Boys has showcased the group and they are even bigger then ever. I went on Youtube to see Frankie Valli and he is still singing and going on...amazing story!!! So I probably will watch it again downstairs while making a few cards....I have to get some more cards ready for the Hospice meeting in January. Valentines and winter cards are on the agenda.

 

Well, you all have a wonderful day and enjoy the blessings that God has given and don't forget to keep looking up.....the merry go round will slow down and you can get off for a breath of fresh air. Then we will have the NEW YEAR to think about and what it will hold for us all. Take care.

Cheers ~ Louise





Christmas and an Etsy Sale 2!!!!

Hi there everyone...hope your Christmas festivities are going well and you are getting all you want done. I just have a few more things to accomplish and then I can sit back and enjoy. As you see in my title I also had an Etsy Sale....wow that was neat surprise (does anyone still use that word?)

The lady wanted the cards for framing and Christmas giving....so it was important to get the cards out in a timely manner (gosh, the lines were long at the Post Office.) As it is, she will receive them on Monday....just in time for framing, I hope.

Here is Kylie....she is none too happy with me....I found the deer antlers in one of the Christmas boxes and put them on her....she sat there looking at me....like..."Please take this strange thing off me...Please!!!" Finally she shook them off and was happy again.

So here is my Christmas Village and Manger Scene. Didn't put the manger scene up last year, JP took over the space that the manger scene went....so with no place to go, it did not get put up last year. As you can see, this year I got the bright idea to put it under the Village....why did I not think of that space before????? 

"Oh Christmas Tree, oh Christmas tree." I had this tree already trimmed and lighted....but the top strand of lights burned out.....so I stripped it and bought some new lights and redecorated it.

Here it tis....all decorated....cute huh? Bought some new ornaments and the stringed beads were hidden downstairs for a couple of years....found them and strung them on the tree. See my little elf in the tree....he stays there most of the time.....I have heard of some elves getting themselves into a little bit of mischief during the Christmas season....this one has been good....so far.

I am done with all my food and gift buying. Don't have many to buy for. Sent Pops his gift of Chex Mix and a big candy bar. Also made a devils food cake and mixed pudding with it....gosh was that good. Gave a little muffin cake to the Schwan's man tonight...he was thrilled, said when he gets home that will be the first thing he eats. Another little muffin cake will go to the Pastor, plus it's his birthday too.

I made a really delicious soup last night....Zucchini Sausage Soup.
Here is the recipe with a few of my changes of course.
Start to finish - 30 minutes and makes 11 servings.
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage or pork sausage (add Italian seasonings)
2/3 cup chopped onion
5 cups of water
1 medium zucchini, spiralled or chopped
1 can (14 1/2 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 jar (14 oz.) pizza sauce (yes, pizza sauce....very good)
3/4 cup uncooked orzo pasta
1 envelope au jus gravy mix (did not use)
1 Tablespoon dried basil
2 teaspoon dried oregano
In a Dutch oven, cook sausage and onion over medium heat until the meat is not longer pink; drain. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until pasta is tender. Dish up a bowl and top with mozzarella cheese.

Well time to close...hope you are having a good night and a great  Saturday!!! Hooray for Saturdays. Keep looking up!!!
Cheers ~ Louise

A Poem About Coffee

Hi there everyone....well, it's Wednesday... hump day!! I will make this short......very short. Not sure where I picked this picture up of the coffee cup and poem...might have been Pinterest, (I remembered...Diana's blog) it tickled my funny bone when I saw it and had to save it to my files for future use.

As I was thinking about what I wanted to blog about...first thought was to make this a "Wordless Wednesday" kinda blog. But...I guess that won't be happening because look at all the words I have typed so far...hahaha!!

I love coffee...but a good cup of tea is fine too. I usually have a cup of coffee every day...but I can go without for a couple of days...actually went 10 days recently, with no coffee, was feeling pretty good, then I gave in for a cup of Jo. I guess you can say, I am not addicted to it....and that is good. Years ago, back in the 80's I had a pot of coffee going all day long and would drink the whole pot and then brew another pot and drink that. Yeah....I was addicted to caffeine, then I would take asprin to counter act the aches and pains....gosh, I was a mess. Then I got a bleeding ulcer and lost a lot of blood....almost died. I was rushed to the hospital. A week later (October, 1981) JP ended up in the hospital with a nervous break-down. We were quite the pair, both of us in the hospital at the same time.  Crazy times.

But, I did not learn my lesson and in 1986 I ended up again in the hospital with another bleeding ulcer...same circumstances..drinking too much coffee, taking too many asprin and trying to do to many things, wearing too many hats....working in the flesh and not in the spirit. That was my biggest problem. The Doctors ended up operating and cut the nerves in my stomach accidently touching the spleen and that bled and they had to remove the spleen. I have a big scar on my stomach to remind me everyday of how careless I was at 40.

Why am I telling you this....I don't know. But I guess to tell you what coffee can do if you are not careful. Maybe some people can handle a lot of coffee....but I guess this girl cannot. "Others can, I can't"

Well I guess that is all for today....you all have a great day and keep looking up. Tomorrow is another day, or today is that is.
Cheers ~ Louise

Some Stampin'Up Cards, Bag and Tags

Hi there everyone. How did your Monday go? Mine was busy. Went to the store to pick up some more lights for my little tree...for some reason the bottom string died. Guess after 10 years that is a probability...huh??? I found some other old lights and put them on....so no telling how long they will last. But ended up getting some lights that are battery operated....70% off....so hey why not try them.

I had to un-decorate the little tree, pulling everything off. So now to re-decorate it....guess that is life. I may change up a few things. Found some old beaded garland downstairs so I added that to the tree too. Yeah, I think it will look a little bit different this year. Guess that is what makes life interesting.

Yesterday I went to a Stampin'Up Camp with my friend Shirley. She had never been to one of these camps and really enjoyed it. So here is a walk through the things we made. Oh yeah....she won the door prize...some snowflake stamps...yayyyyy!!!

This is a bag that was stamped with snowflakes. Then a card was added to it with some of the same snowflakes.....washi tape was added to the card then stamped on....cute idea, never thought to do that. The card fits in a punched slot so it does not fall off the card. See that little bow at the top??? I won a roll of that ribbon as a door prize.

This was a neat tag to make....the blue part was pre-cut. The dots are stamped. The bottom part of tag, washi tape was layered on it and stamped, To: and From:

Another tag, folded card stock and covered with a patterned paper then a special punch for the top part.

This was fun....it's a gift card holder. Using Stampin'Ups envelope maker. You can make dozens of different sized envelopes. Then the buckle was two different punches. The small center was punched then a larger punch used to make the outer buckle. A long strip of black was wrapped around the card holder. Sweet huh?

This tag is a star, with the scalloped punch used and a circle punch for the center. Stamped with one of the stamp sets from Stampin'Up.

This was a neat tag. I do have the upper part of the tag punch and have made lots of tags using this punch. The stamp comes in a set of three...one was Love, one Merry and (forgot the third). Was thinking of ordering this stamp set, but I was just not sure how often I would use this stamp set.

Here is my door prize...another roll of ribbon.....one of these days I will get the big door prize....a stamp set!!! Maybe the next Stampin'Up Camp in February will be my lucky day.

This last card we made was this lovely card of a Christmas Cardinal...I really liked the technique and may try this with a few of my next cards that I make. The bird was stamped on punched out cardstock, then stamped again on white cardstock and colored in with markers. Nice effect....I tell you the ideas are endless.

There was one more tag we made, but it did not take a good picture....so if I think about it...I will take another and post it in my next blog.

Well, I need to go work on decorating my tree. Have a good evening and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Some Fun Christmas Favors and Cards

Hi there everyone...hope you had a wonderful Saturday....these Saturdays sure don't last long...it's like you get up in the morning and POOF the day is over. Wednesday, I went to my friends house for a card making session, we made some Christmas favors and a card. In the month of December we usually bring snacks and a card for each of the ladies that come, my friend gives us each a gift. This years gift was 10 rolls of permanent tape for our tape gun....I was happy about that, cause I was running out and needed to buy some tape from her. Excellent gift.

So in the following pictures are the things we made. Here is a sweet Snow Lady. As you can see she is a Hershey bar holder. This is done with mostly die cuts...her head was threaded around the face...it is called "spirally" thread art. Her face is from the Rubbernecker Stamp collection.

She really makes for a nice decoration. Probably the candy bar will be eaten or made into something else and she will be put away till next Christmas.

Here's a cute little chimney, this was fun to make. The panels were inked with 3 different reds, and the white part was cut to look like snow dripping from the chimney. The red bag is holding some sweet treats.

In this picture is the card we made. The snowman is a take off from the movie "Frozen" Olaf is his name. I guess he does not look exactly like "Olaf" I think he is pretty cute though even if he is not the real thing.

This was fun to make....5 Christmas tags. Each piece was cut from die cuts and we just pieced them together. They can be tags, or ornaments for the tree.

You want to hear something just so unbelievable???? Hope you are sitting down as you are reading this. Yesterday the nurse from my Doctor's office called and said my blood tests came back and the Doctor wants to put me on another medication to bring down the A1C (or is it AC1). The medication will be ready for pick up.

So I made a special trip to Shopko to pick up my new medication. It could not be found. Then the pharmacist came to the window....it seems the medication ordered by the Doctor was $300....I just about fainted...."oh no...I cannot pay that." The pharmacist said he realized that and faxed the Doctor back...because the insurance would not pay for that either!! So at this point I do not know what will happen. The pharmacist also said that even with a co-pay my share will be $225. NOPE that is still way too expensive. I would have to take 3 pills a day, I can't imagine the cost of each pill and how often I would have to order these outrageously expensive pills!!!

I was so nervous after visiting the pharmacist that I literally got sick to my stomach and wanted to throw up. By the time I got home, I actually did. Friday was not a good day for me. I suspect by Monday or Tuesday I will find out what the scoop is. Also we may find out about JP's dilemma. He had an ex-ray and was put in that tube...MRI on Tuesday...the results should be coming soon.

Well time to close this post...I need to finish decorating my tree and finish putting up my village. So you all have a wonderful rest of the weekend. Tomorrow I am going to a Stampin'up Camp with a friend. We are going to make tags, bags and a card. Snacks and prizes are on the agenda too. I will post those items in my next blog. Cheers ~ Louise

Some Christmas Mice.....

Hi there everyone. How are things going with you...this will be a short post today, as I have to run out to the store for a few short errands.

I love these House Mouse pictures.....I must have at least 20 house mouse stamps in my own collection. Actually an old friend gave me her House Mouse stamps years ago....what a treasure. But I really need to start using them. Eh...maybe in 2015 (hahaha...that's just 3 weeks away isn't it?!?!)

Every day I get one of these house mouse picture in my email....so I thought, why not put them up here...only problem is, they make me want to order a few stamps now or at least hunt up some at the store.

I Like these Candy Cane House Mouse stamps.....they are so sweet aren't they??? My only problem is, when I stamp these...can't seem to get the color right on the mice...oh well, guess that is something to work on.

Well there you have it...a short blog about nothing much. Except maybe just a little bit of Christmas House Mouse Cheer. Hope you are getting all your Christmas "ducks in a row" or should I say "Mice" hahahaha.

Have a great day and keep looking up. As soon as I take some pictures of the cards I made the other day at my friends house, I will post them here...maybe tomorrow. Talk to you later.
Cheers ~ Louise

PS....Happy Birthday Diana!!!!

Making Christmas Cards

Hi there everyone. How is the Christmas season treating you?? I am not sure as yet. It seems JP and I are seeing the Doctors way too much within the last couple of weeks. By the end of this month JP will have had 3 appointments and I with 3 appointments. Yuk!! Mine was a follow-up and change of meds, blood test and urine test and end of this month the eyes need to be checked by a specialist. JP's appointments revolve around the urologist and today they put him in a tube (he said). Is that an MRI??? Geez, I don't know. Well, in the midst of all this....I must find time to make cards (it's my therapy.)

So in this picture is a fun card. It is called "Iris Fold" strips of paper arranged to make a square. The background went through the cuttlebug and was embossed with snowflakes. Very hard to see the embossing. I think next time I will ink the snowflakes so they show up better.

Here is another picture of my snowman using the Stampin'up "Work of Art" stamps. I really like this set of stamps. And this cute snowman got stamped and made into 16 more cards last night. I think I will use this card for Happy New Year cards and possibly make some more, turning them into "thinking of you" cards for Hospice. With this same stamp set, I can make the American Flag, a butterfly and 2 different sale boats. That will be for another blog, when I get them done.

This is another "Iris Fold" card. The card stock was already cut out to form an ornament. I followed a pattern using strips of paper to make the ornament. Then glued the card stock on a card and layered washi tape on top.

Both the tree above and the second ornament below are done the same ways as the ornament. You can see that both ornaments are done just a little bit different.

Here is another tree in different washi tape colors and the iris fold is in different colors. I sent these cards to the in-laws and nieces. So I hope they like them. I should be getting these cards in the mail tomorrow. Then I just have to decorate a bit more and make some cookies and make my step-father's package and send it off to LasVegas.

Well time to close and go walk Kylie around the block. It's suppose to warm up the rest of this week, so the sidewalks should be clear.

Tomorrow is card making at a friends house....yeah, I always look forward to that and getting new ideas. Next Sunday is another Stampin'up Camp and some more ideas. It's no wonder these days fly by...I seem to plan so much and look forward to each and every event....then it comes and goes so quickly!!! POOF!!!!

Talk to you later and keep looking up!!! Cheers ~ Louise

Making Chex Mix Snacks & a Card

Hi there everyone. How is your day going. It's a lovely, sunny, balmy day of 32 degrees. A good day to Sun-Bathe or sit on the front porch????

As you can see in the following pictures, I made some chex mix. This is my second batch of the season...my goodness, thought for sure that first batch would last at least till after Christmas. Guess JP and I were munching on it more then I realized. Then I ran out of pretzels.....oh, oh time to make some more. I did give a bag away to a trucker, guess I will give him another bag. Oh and I probably will send a bag to my Step-father in Las Vegas. I am sure that is something he can eat. He doesn't want money or candy...the last couple of years I have sent him a stuffed animal....you can just send so many animals. He likes doing cross word puzzels, but cannot see very well to do them. I think that is what has kept his mind sharp. SO I think Chex Mix would be the sealed deal....cause he can munch while watching TV.

So in this picture is the chex mix on the counter....lighting was a bit better. There are pretzels, oyster crackers, M&M's, peanuts, Wheat chex and rice chex.

The lighting was not very good in this picture as I took it in the far corner of the kitchen standing in front of the light. Oh well....you get the idea.

For the mixture, I used 1 package of Ranch dressing, 1 stick of melted butter, 2 tablespoons of Worcester sauce, and maybe 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Mixed together and poured over the pretzel/chex mix. Trying to mix real well so that every morsel is covered. Then I covered my pizza pans and cookie sheet with parchment paper and poured the mix on the sheets, spreading them out evenly and sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on top. Baked at 250-300 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the mixture is hot to touch. Then let cool and munch!!!.

This is my snowman card. I got the idea off of Pinterest. It is made with the "Work of Art" stamps from Stampin'up. I really thought this was a great idea, so I made some Christmas and Happy New Year cards. Need to make some more for Hospice.....maybe a "Winter thinking of you" card. I will be putting a Happy New Year card in my Etsy store for $3.00 along with a set of Winter/Christmas Note cards in a case ($12) I made these last year at Christmas. Was a bit too late to list them in my store.

A side note: some other ideas that can be made with this set of stamps is the American flag, a sail boat and a butterfly....I have tried the sail boat...but must try the butterfly and flag soon and very soon.

Well, time to close this blog. Need to get going on sending Christmas cards out and getting downstairs and bring some Christmas ornaments up for decorating. You all have a great day and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Blenders and Smoothies

Hi there everyone....gosh, it has been 7 days since I last posted. Where has that time gone???? I guess I must have taken a short "blog break" or, I just did not feel like blogging...just seems to be too  "much stuff" is coming at us at a rapid pace.

The news on the radio and TV has been so unsettling lately, so many bad things are happening around this world....so sad, the devastation, lawlessness and lies and down-right meanness, one to another. I don't know, it can't be very long now, that the trump will sound and Jesus will gather His church home. That surely will be the greatest day ever!!!

So in the mean time we live our lives and occupy till He does return. Taking care of ourselves and those around us in our neck of the woods.

I have a blogger friend that sent me this blender through Amazon for my Birthday. Oh my, it was a total surprise. I am really loving this little machine. It sure makes some good smoothies AND soups too. (which I blend then heat up on the stove or in the microwave. My previous blender was sounding like a "cement mixer" and could only hold half as much as what this one does.....yeah, I am really liking this blender a lot.

Today's smoothie was:
1 Halo tangerine (peeled of course)
1 cup coconut water
handful of greens (any kind...right now I am using "Power House" greens that have kale, spinach etc)
1/2 frozen banana
handful of frozen fruit (strawberries, mango, pineapple)
1 Tablespoon plain Chobani yogurt
1 teasp. chocolate superfood from NutriBullet

Mix it all up in the blender and "wah lah" a dandy smoothie!!!

The other day I made a vegie soup in the blender that included:
1/2 bag carrots (1 1/2 cup)
2 tomatoes
1/2 red bell pepper
1/4  raw beet
2 handful spinach
1 glove garlic
1/2 teasp. sea salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
pepper to taste
2 cups vegetable (Swanson)broth
Blend, then heat. Great with some thin crackers...yum, yum.

I have been doing these smoothies pretty regularly for the last 6 to 7 weeks, one smoothie a day. To date, I have lost 14 lbs. Yes.....I feel pretty good, and getting lots of vitamins in my body that were not there. Also, taking Vitamin D3 every day. I have noticed my blood sugars are not so high. So, I think this is a good thing. After struggling so long with my weight, I think I found the "magic pill" that works for this old lady!!!! Something that has been so elusive to me.

Well time to close and go walk Kylie around the block.....or should I say, she takes ME for a walk....lol!!! Weather will be nice for the next week, so we better walk while we can, except it is SO dark out...ish!!!!

Have a good one and keep looking up!!! Cheers ~ Louise

CHRISTMAS DECORATING

Hi there everyone. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. Now we head into the Christmas season like a bull let loose in a china store!!!! Yikes! What a mess!!!!

As I have not put up Christmas as yet....thought I would go back into my picture archives and brings up some Christmas pictures from 2013. Most likely this is what decorations will look like for 2014....not a lot of changes.

This is my little table Christmas tree. I thought about buying a new little "white" tree....but I am not sure yet. I like the idea of turning it into a "snowman" as you can see in my banner picture....I thought he was rather cute....where ever do people come up with these ideas...it amazes me. I had a white Christmas tree years ago and all the decorations were red. It sure was a pretty tree. JP and I were the only ones to enjoy it though....family never showed up. They did not like our living conditions....we were living together and that was not acknowledged back then....we are talking 1972 and 1973. Oh well...times have sure changed.

My Three Kings. I made these guys back in 1968, they are paper mache'....yep they are going on 46 years old. They are packed away in an "All Detergent box" and I suspect the Kings and "All Container" are all antiques.

Here is my Christmas village....I really enjoy putting this up....although it does take a lot of time, but always fun to look at during the holidays. I always buy some little people or another building to add to the montage of village pieces. My first couple of pieces were the Church and little green roofed park pagoda. From there I just kept adding pieces year after year.... mostly after Christmas sales when everything is 50% to 75% off. That's always a good time to buy.

My snowman....this was the first gift I received from JP back in 1972 (I was expecting a ring, but got a snowman instead). The ceramic angel was made and given to me by a lady back in 1984...we were, at the time picking up kids in a bus and taking them to church....I guess she was happy that we took him off  her hands for Sunday mornings. Brock was his name.....he is probably a married man with kids of his own now. Funny how different things bring back memories.

These are some cookies I made and probably sent some to my Step-father in LasVegas. Need to think about his gift and get it out before the rush....what do you get an 88 year old???? So hard. My snowman in this picture was given to me by my Mother. She had a friend that was into ceramic making......it's always fun to pull him out of the box all wrapped up and set him up someplace in the house.....he always makes me smile.

Well there you have it.....a little bit of Christmas in my neck of the woods. Now the work begins, to lug things up from the basement, one box at a time. What a chore....but it is so cheery and Christmasy when the job is done.

Well, you all have a great day and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Happy Thanksgiving 2 You All

Hi there everyone. Just wanted to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. With many blessings coming your way.

I decided not to make a turkey this year....didn't feel like it for 1 reason....and for another reason, they just seemed too expensive. I am making chicken breasts, dressing, broccoli, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberries and pumpkin pie with whip cream. Sounds just like a turkey dinner doesn't it?

So I wonder what the Pilgrims and Indians really ate back at that first Thanksgiving....do you think they had turkey??? Maybe they ate venison...who knows. Beans and rice, corn bread and apples? Oh and there must have been pumpkins too. I should really check out the history of what they ate....that would be an interesting search.

We have nothing planned. So I shall watch the parade for awhile, then at 1:00pm is the dog show...we always like to watch that. Maybe we will eat around 2pm or so. No plans to go shopping....no, I have never been a "Black Friday" Shopper, it does not excite me that much.

Can't believe how fast this month went....zip, zip, zip and time gets away from us. I wonder if time will ever slow down????

Well, you all enjoy your day with family and friends. Keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise

Birthday Update.....

Hi there everyone....how did your day go??? Today I was totally surprised by a gift in the mail from Amazon!!!! A Hamilton Beach Blender sent to me by a blogger friend. My blender was starting to sound like a cement mixer (that's what JP said). I think I shall really like this blender. I make smoothies every morning, plus I shall be able to do many other things, like crush ice, make salsa, grind, grate, whip, puree, stir, dice, chop among other things. I may also get the food chopper attachment that goes along with this blender....maybe for Christmas.

I am wondering how she knew I needed a blender, I don't remember ever mentioning it in any of my posts....but then, maybe I did. But what ever the reason....it sure was nice of her to think of me...."Thank you Beth that was very sweet of you."

Lots of snow tonight 4-7 inches..........I still don't think those politicians know what they are talking about...."Global Warming" is some one's fantasy dream. Does not look like things will be warming up till at least March!!!!

Our car was ready to be picked up, a new serpentine belt and pulley was put in. It seems that this is a common thing to go out for this year and model car. Well, better it happened Sunday when there was no snow on the ground. We had a towing bill of $138, hopefully our Ins. Company will cover part of that. Not sure what the total bill will be. I guess that will be another "UPDATE". JP will pick the car up after he shovels out. Uge.....winter.

Well time to close this blog for today....I need to get downstairs to make up some cards. You take care and keep looking up. Cheers ~ Louise