MERRY CHRISTMAS

Hi there everyone. Hope you are finished with all your Christmas shopping, cooking, baking, cleaning etc. All that goes along with Christmas. It sure can get hectic, can't it?

I cut down on my Christmas card giving this year and decided to send out my cards via Facebook and "blogger." So if you did not receive a card from me this year....here 'tis....Have a Very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and healthy, happy 2019 New Year with many, many blessings!!!

PS. These cards actually went out to relatives and two Pastors. Wish I could have made more like these....they were stunning in real life. Some day I will find the die and make more!!!

Another thing I cut down on this Christmas is my decorating, I still have about 5 boxes to put up, my village, the manger and lots of figurines. I did manage to put my little tree up with lights, decorations etc, the presents were wrapped the other night and put under the tree. I put 3 window lights up (tree, wreath and snowflake) with still one box to unload. It's Christmas Eve....I may not finish, not unless when I finish this post and unload that box, then I am done with my decorating. LOL!!! 

Made some cut-out cookies and a pumpkin pie. The cut-cookies still have to get decorated....do I really care? Not sure, they are pretty good just as they are.

Had a few financial things going on this month. Had to sell a few things just to keep our nose above water. Next month won't be any better because I have to come up with $288 for taxes on the house. Not sure where that will come from....oh but God does, we will just have to wait and see.

JP has this week off, which means a smaller pay check in a couple of weeks. It has been rough going since August when he decided to work just part-time. Maybe in the spring I will get a job with Rover.com and dog-sit, my home or the dogs home.

Well, I am going to close here, time for dinner. You all have a GREAT Christmas. Keep looking up......better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

A New Year ~ What Will Transpire??

Hi there everyone. How is your New Year going so far?? Already it is January 6th.....where oh where did that time go??? I took down 1/2 my Christmas stuff. I still have my village up and my little table top Christmas tree is now decorated for Valentine's Day. I found some red Christmas decorations at Walmart at 50% off. I could not resist. Red snowflakes, a red butterfly and two red hummingbirds. Sweet. I still have to finish decorating the tree with a few more things, beads, bows and bulbs. I will take a picture when finished.

I have an apple pie in the oven right now. I can hardly wait to try it. It's called "Apple Crumb Cheesecake Pie" I am going to see if I can get the video up on this post. Nope...no video. But here is a picture of the cake/pie.

 Well, I just had a piece of pie with a small scoop of vanilla Geleto ~ YES this is worthy of making again and again. It was simple to make. I used a Pillsbury pie crust. Made the cheese spread with 1-8 oz package of cream cheese, softened. 1/4 cup sugar and 1 large egg and beat together. This mixture is then spread on the unbaked pie crust.

The apple pie filling. 6 cups of apples, peeled and diced and 2 T. lemon juice poured over the apples so they don't brown (I used frozen apples, no need for lemon juice). 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cornstarch, 1 t ground cinnamon, 1/4 t nutmeg, 1/4 t. salt 1 cup water.

Stir together the sugars, cornstarch, spices and salt in a sauce pan, whisk in the water until everything is dissolved. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer till thickened.  Add the apples then increase the heat to medium, cook and stir together for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool. 

The directions say to refrigerate the filling in an airtight container for 4-6 hours to thicken. But I poured the mixture over the cheese right away. Did not seem to affect the pie any.

The crumb topping is 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup quick cooking oats, 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 1/2 t. cinnamon, 1/4 t. nutmeg, 2 T melted butter. Mix altogether till crumbled and spread on top of the apples.
Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes. DELICIOUS !!

 How do you like these Valentine cards, I found them on Pinterest. I think I will make a few of these to send to the nephews and nieces. LOL....I think they are cute!! I do have PLENTY of eyes.

Funny cards above....kids will love them.

This heart with one eye is cute, I am trying to figure out how to put this one together. I do have that stamp..."I've got my eye on You" I have a few weeks to play with it though.

I guess I am going to start working on our income tax. We got our work sheets from the accountant today. So, the sooner I get them done the sooner we might have a refund. I just have to get my rear in gear and motivate myself to do it.

We have quite a few Doctor appointments coming up in the next couple of months for both JP and I. Why does it seem the older we get the more the Doctors want to see our bodies. I don't remember seeing the Doctor that much in my 30's and 40's, maybe for only the annual exam...oh well, I guess they have to eat too. JP always says that. And I say, yeah, but not on my nickle!!! Boo, bad sport!!

We ended 2017 with car problems, the car was leaking antifreeze. Took it in, JP thought the clamps needed to be tightened, they did that, but it still leaked. So we started 2018 with car problems. On  Friday, JP took the car back in and it was decided we needed a new water pump. The water pump was on warranty, which saved some money. So we just have to pay for labor. Whew, glad it was not more then $100.

Since I do not have a crystal ball, I cannot say what will transpire this New Year....maybe I do not want to know, I might not want to take that leap into the unknown. I just hope I can draw closer to Jesus and seek Him more for all my needs. It is so easy to walk this life without inquiring  of the Lord as to what to do next. I used to do that...ok Lord, what do I do next. But I forgot, and stopped doing it. I think 2018 should be my year to depend on God more for my every need. Oh, oh.....you know God is inspiring me to write this, He will take me at my word.....this should be an interesting year!!

Well, time to close here....this post is getting a bit tooooooo long.

You all take care, keep looking up ~ better days are coming!!

Cheers ~ Louise

Happy New Year!!!

Wishing you all a Happy New Year. May this new year bring you much happiness and good health. May all your needs be met by God, spiritually, physically and financially. Minus not too much sadness.

Thanks to all of you that followed along with me this past year. It's been fun posting about cards, food, flowers, gardens and ideas. Sometimes it is hard to come up with something to write, so I found that posting once a week was a bit easier for me. Didn't feel under bondage to produce a post when there was nothing to talk about. I just may do that again, so fear not, if you do not see me on a regular basis. I do visit many of you everyday, sorry I don't always comment on a daily basis.

But, maybe 2018 will be different. I like the new year, it's a new slate and a new beginning. Not going to make any resolutions here....because they are soooo hard to keep. And, there again, I don't want to put myself under bondage again, it's just too hard to live up to the expectations that I place on myself. Trying to do things that are just too hard to attain.

Live each day to the best of my ability, is all I can do. I tried to do better at everything, but that only led to a few bleeding ulcers over the years.....one of them, I almost died from. So, it takes me a long time to learn a lesson...but I eventually get it and hopefully am not too late learning it.

One thing I will do though....is draw closer to God. Read his word everyday.....that is doable, even if it's just a verse or two or a chapter. Being thankful for all HE does in my life and how HE shows Himself real in my daily life. Day in and day out. Yep, that's what I need to do.

As I type this post....the Green Bay Packers are playing the Detroit Lions. Packers are losing 11-35, the game is almost over. Whew, no more games till next season. Hopefully things will be better and Aaron Rogers will be back to play.

Well, I still have the Chicago Blackhawks to root for, hopefully they will be contenders for the Stanley Cup. NASCAR starts up again 2/18/18 so we have that to look forward to also.

Well, time to close this post for the year. You all have a great night and a Happy New Year. Keep looking up ~ better days are coming.
Cheers ~ Louise

Happy New Year ~ 2016

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE

May this New Year of 2016 bring you

a closer walk with Jesus, 

good health,

financial well being

and blessings galore!!!

I have not decided if I will make any resolutions as yet...they are always so hard to keep, not even sure I kept, and was able to follow through on last years resolutions. I know I had a long list, will have to find it and see how close I came.

I am hoping I don't have a lot of medical issues this year. 2015 was pretty scary for me. I am forever grateful to God and how he brought me through the Hernia surgery and colonoscopy, ulcer, dental work and cataract surgeries. I think this new year will bring medical issues for JP though. He has an appointment already lined up in January with a neurologist....for his shakes that have gotten much worse. Maybe through this, they will find the reason for his arm pains.....that would be nice.

Well I will keep this short....who wants to read blogs on New Year's Eve night. I shall be going downstairs to make a few cards and watch the "ball drop" in New York City....my little tradition every year. 

You have a great evening and keep looking up.....better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Some of My Favorite 2014 Cards

Hi there everyone. How is the New Year treating you???? I got some kind of bug yesterday and was sick most of the day. Had a few things planned but never got to them. Ended up going to bed about 5:30 pm and slept till 10, then back to bed. Never made it to church. Better today....thanks.

 So today I thought I would review some of the cards I made in 2014.....some of my favorites. The above card was pretty versatile because it could be used as birthday or Father's day. Shall have to think of another use for this stamp for a new Father's Day card, 2015.

 I love this stamp....there is actually 4 stamps to make this flower. The background is a paint chip....matching the flowers up with the chips was the fun part of making this card.

 My Birthday card for children....I now have 4 grand nieces and nephews.....the oldest is going on 6. So they shall see these cards in their mail box for the next 8 to10 years or so...lol!!

 This was a fun card to do....lots of embossing and dabbing of ink.

 One of my new Stampin' up stamps. Embossed in white on black card stock then I painted pearl-x on the petals.....lovely card.

Oh....and my all time favorite card for Christmas....Mr. Snowman. The stamp set is from Stampin'up's Works of Art. You most likely will see a few more cards using this stamp set....I can make a sail boat, butterfly and a tic tac toe Valentine card....of which I am eagerly looking forward to making....maybe tonight.

Well, there you have it...a few favorites for 2014....Maybe my next blog will be a few favorite flowers of the season. Who knows, maybe January will be called "My Favorite______of 2014"

Have a great evening and a better tomorrow....keep looking up!!
Cheers ~ Louise

A New Year Begins With a Fresh Pumpkin Pie

Hi there everyone and Happy New Year!!! Hope you had a good first day of this New Year!!!

My day was relaxing. I finally cooked up that pumpkin I bought back in October. Had plans of making a pie with it in November but, it never made it to the oven. Neither did it make it to the oven in December.

But here it is...January 1st and that cute little pumpkin got cooked up.....sorry no pictures in it's original state. Here it is all cooked up. I put the pumpkin in the oven for about an hour. Took it out and let it cool down a bit. Peeled off the outside shell, then sliced it and scooped out the seeds and stringy stuff.

Then I put the pieces of pumpkin in the blender and added some water....it became very creamy (Thanks Biz for the blender). See the pie shell crust? I tried something new, using a spoon, turned it over and pressed down on the crust-ridge making a different kind of design. Think I will do this from now on.

In this picture is the recipe I followed from www.cooks.com , the pie shell and the pumpkin liquid all mixed together.

Here is a closer look at the recipe....hope you can read it.....tis very simple.

AND.....wah lah....here is the pie all baked up....my crust got a little burned, next time I will add some tin foil for protection.

Here is the end result of that pie....OMG...guys was it ever delicious....this will be my "go-to pumpkin pie" for now on. YUMMY I want another piece but my blood sugars might be too high tomorrow morning, so I will reframe from having another piece tonight.

New Years dinner was hamburgers, mushrooms and cheese, potato hash browns, beans and salad. Simple but delicious. Well, time to close. I am recording "The Taste" so I want to get downstairs and watch that. (gee, I wonder if I could get the taste on a spoon of what we had tonight...that would be a challenge.)

JP is sleeping right now, he had the day off. Sooooo, my schedule changes quite a bit when he is home. Can I say, I enjoy my evenings when there is just me and Kylie. Well, you have a great day and I shall post again when something exciting happens...or not. 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

Burrrrr....Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year to you and yours. May 2014 be the best ever for you. I for one am looking to better things ahead. If the END of 2013 is a sign of things to come........maybe it won't be so good for me. For the last 4 days my kitchen drain has been backing up and water was not going down, and if it did, it was ever so slow going. So I have plunged and plunged and plunged. and to no avail, plunged some more. Bought some Draino and  then JP attempted to plunge and plunge and then poured draino down and hot water from the facet. Then again he tried it. He went off to work and I took to plunging again. It took me 3 times to plunge and pour draino down and hot water...hot, hot, hot water from the microwave. FINALLY the pipes cleared and I could hear the sound of gurgling water going down the drain.....oh what joy!!!

I guess now I can do the dishes that are waiting to be done. My mother always said, "put a penny on the window ledge and you will always be rich in the new year. Have your dishes and clothes always washed by the last day and you will be caught up in the new year"........huh, not sure that has ever worked for me. Wonder if that works for the husband, have him all fed by 2013 and he'll not be hungrey all the time in 2014?????? He is eating a BLT right now....I have enough bacon for a couple more sandwiches.

I was frying some bacon in the oven this morning while dealing with the drains, plus trying to read some blogs...........my last batch of bacon got a little well done. I opened the oven and a bunch of smoke came out and all of a sudden the fire alarm went off......well, at least we know that works!! I ran for a pillow to wave the smoke away and then opened a window to let the cold, freezing air in and smoke out!!!!

Oh my goodness I have had enough excitement for a morning to last a week. SO, if this is a sign of what next year will be like??????? I am not sure I am ready for 2014!!!!!!

So have you set any New Years Resolutions??? I haven't, can never keep them anyways. I like the picture on my blog today.....a guitar. I have a guitar, maybe this year I will find time to learn how to play it. That would be nice, never too old to learn. Maybe I should find someone to teach me....we could barter, I will make some cards for them if they will teach me a few chords????

Well, I am hoping to see a few more sales in my Etsy store this year......hopefully a few more then what I had last year. Just not sure what people are looking for. But I am thinking maybe a set of 12 Thank you cards, a set of 12 Birthday cards, a set of 12 Thinking of You cards.........and of course the set will be a reasonable price like maybe $16 (that would be about $1.35 a card + postage).

I believe this is my 122nd blog for this year. I challenge myself to try and surpass each years number, so 2014 hopefully will bring more blogs then 2013, maybe I will try 12-15 blogs a month, 12-15 a month will be 144-150.....that will be my goal. Oh yes, I am planning on doing a "Give-Away" April 25th. I will have been blogging 6 years.....now that is hard to believe.....where did all those years go??? I have made a few new friends and probably lost some friends in 2013. Hopefully 2014 will bring new friends that I have not yet met. My "Give-Away" will most likely be a set of 12 cards that I have made. The rules will be simple, 1) that you are following my blog and 2) that you leave me a comment on a regular basis. The drawing will be April 25th and most likely I will announce the "Give Away" April 1st. So, you have some time.

I guess I will try to lose 10-20 lbs this year. Managed to keep my blood sugars down the last 6 months.....but my weight went up 10 lbs..........I have felt very uncomfortable. SO I guess this will have to be a priority for me this year. January 9th I have another blood test to see if my AC1 is down from 6 months ago....here's hoping.

I am wanting to get our roof fixed this year. We could get another grant from the city, which would mean a lien against the house again. But it would not have to be paid off till we sell the house.....if we don't ever sell the house then we don't have to pay off the loan. I have to get the papers all together and the application filled out and sent in by the 17th. So if we get the help, the roof and new gutters and possible the kitchen ceiling would finally get fixed properly. We'll see, if 2014 will be kind to us involving this situation.

Now that we have a good running car, on the agenda is a little trip to Ladysmith and see our old poll-shed home in Ladysmith. Maybe see some old friends and stay a night at the Elrancho and  then come home again.......not a long trip, just long enough to say hi. I have a good friend in Ladysmith that I used to work with....and some friends in Barron, we still send Christmas cards to each other. It's good to send cards to each other.....you just never know.

Here is a sad ending note to 2013....I got a little note in the mail yesterday. I had sent a Christmas card to an old friend from back in the 60's. Char and I were great friends back then and we had dreams of going out west together, following "Route 66" in our corvette. (Charlene made it out west to Nevada, I stayed in the Midwest) Every summer, Char would stay with her sister and you could find us playing canasta every day. We also played with cut-out dolls her sister made for us. (Darlene was an artist) We would make clothes for our cut-outs too...I just ran across those cut-outs, geez that brought back memories. Charlene's sister died about 5 years ago. Char just passed away this past November of lung cancer. I had wondered why I didn't hear from her....the note that arrived yesterday from her BIL that anwered the question. So keep your friends close, you never know.

Well, I guess in a way I have laid down some of my resolutions for this new year 2014. Here's hoping it's a good year for you and for me..........keep looking up!!!! Cheers ~ Louise

A New Year is Coming Soon

Hi everyone, how did your day go??? Mine was fine...went shopping today and bought half a turkey, "managers special". Just took that turkey out of the oven. JP will have baked potatoes and turkey for dinner. Frozen cranberries and string beans. Pumpkin pie for tomorrow.

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. We had a plumbing problem and had to call the plumber. He replaced the innards of the toilet. I am suspecting there was a slow leak that got worse these last two weeks. Maybe that was why our water bill was so high this past billing. We will see when the next bill comes across my desk.

Well I think I will close this blog for today. Only a few more days before 2014 is upon us. We have nothing planned for New Year's Eve, it will be quiet on the home front. Here's hopeing 2014 will be much better then 2013 was. In the mean time, keep looking up for your redemption draws nigh. Cheers ~ Louise

PS I hope you use the whole box of crayons this year!!! Every color will be perfect!

Happy New Year ~ Happy New Year!!!

Well........hope your not feeling like this cute little turtle above. I found him on one of the websites I was on tonight. Will be using him for a card in the near future. The site I was on had alot of "free digital stamps and svg. die cuts" soooo, got lots of great ideas to play with.

Today we had a nice day. Went to Sandi and Doug's place on the river, had ham dinner (yum) and basically relaxed while watching the water and ducks float by. There were even some ice chunks that passed by too.  Sandi gave me a few sites to check out and download some die cuts, which is how I spent the evening. JP spent the evening having arm pains........I don't know, something has got to give with those pains, I sure could not handle them as much as he does. He struggles alot with them especially Sunday evenings for some reason. Wonder if part of it is stress and his neck is all tensed up which causes the nerves to constrict. The tension comes from his worry about work.......he moans and groans an awful lot!!!!

I found out over the holidays that I am allergic to shrimp.....boohoo......my mouth itches, and now also crab. I only had just a real little bit, coating on salmon and my mouth started itching.......oh well, I guess that also means lobster too, not that I have had much lobster lately, nope, it's been years! So I guess, don't give me shell fish, a shot of penicillin, sting me with bees or mosquitoes or spiders, I will break out.

Well, guess it is time to close this blog.......just figured out that I must be that turtle at the top of this page....hope my new year won't be up-side down and will finally turn the right way. Or maybe this world is just up-side down and I am really right-side up.......who knows, shall have to figure this out.

You all have a great day and keep looking up for your redemption draweth nigh. Cheers ~ Louise

The New Year and a New Card!

Happy, happy New Year! Oh I know it is already the 6th.....but you know how time flies when we're having a gooooooood time...lol!

Been busy with exercise, working and shopping, taking down some of my Christmas stuff, (still have my village and small tree up), cooking (I believe) gourmet dinners for JP. Last night it was London Broil......oh my, was that delicious!!!! Not so good for the diet, but mmmmmmm good, the meat almost melted in the mouth. NO pictures this time, maybe next time I make London Broil, as I only cooked half the meat and froze the rest for another time.


Card making seems to have been put on the back burner these last couple of days (sigh). BUT...........I am going downstairs in about 5 minutes to make a card or two, saw an idea in a magazine today at the store, so before I forget it, gonna make it! Well as you can see.....I made a card with my new folder from Cuttlebug. Ran silver cardstock through, then glued the embossed cardstock on a silver card. The pre-made snowman was glued on a cuttlebug scalloped circle with snowflakes then glued on black cardstock. "Let it snow" was layered on silver and blackcardstock. The inside of the card is says "May this winter greeting find you well and warm."

I will be putting this card in my etsy store for $3.00 + postage go to: http://www.cards4ubylouise.etsy.com/ to find all my cards.

Back in a few ~ Louise ~

Happy New Year - 2011!!!!

The New Year is about to begin for us....in about 6 hours........I maybe down stairs watching all the festivities of the New Years programs and will most likely watch the ball drop in New York City. We had no plans for partying tonight, as it all depended on the weather.....as of now it is foggy out.

We did go out to dinner at the "Taste of the Windy City" JP had a gyro and I had a cheeseburger.....oh yummmmmm. I missed going to Inches A Weigh today, as my car was getting fixed, another $249 dollar bill again. Well, so far we have invested $500 into the taurus and we have had it almost 2 months. YIKES!!!! Going to keep a running tab on how much this car costs....when it hits $5000.00 we are getting a newer car. HA HA HA!

Have you made any resolutions for the new year? I haven't, can't keep them anyways. I am thinking I will try and lose a few more lbs, not sure how much, by the end of March I am quitting Inches A Weigh. It has been 2 years of going regularly and sad to announce has not been a success for me......I have felt like I have been under much stress for two years more than anything.....and that is not the way to feel. This whole experience should have been a good one and I have not found it that way. Plus, it has been very expensive and now I have a car payment plus extra upkeep. So "cherio Inches A Weigh" we are off and running in a different direction.

As for Etsy and my card making, I would like to do a little bit more, been alittle lax in this area. The merchandising has slowed down a bit, which is fine with me, maybe now I can focus on card making and get my cards out there more. I really see a few changes coming on the horizon in the next few months, I just hope I am up for all these changes, good or bad......I am not sure.

Well, see you in the new year 2011 for now this is ~Louise~ signing off for 2010.....Cheers!!!

♥ Last Week of 2009 - Thanks for the Memories♥

Here we are, in the last week of 2009 with the NEW YEAR - 2010 peeking right around the corner. I have no way of knowing what will be happening in this new year............I could only hope that things would get better for us all..............but then with the economy the way it has been, I just am not sure where we are headed.

I guess that is why God has said........."take one day at a time". Yesterday is gone and you can do nothing about it, and the future is not ours to hold. Only live for today and live the best you know how. Good advice.........now the trick is to live it. Enjoying everything that God has blessed us with, good health, a nice warm home during the winter, and cool during the summer. Two sweet dogs, two cars that are paid for BUT need lots of TLC. We both have jobs that keep us busy and it pays the bills. We have food on the table and clothes on our back. The husband has his ministry to the truck drivers and I have my little card business on Etsy. God has been good to us.

Did you have a nice Christmas..........it went all too fast..........all that planning and now it is all over but the shouting. I managed NOT to charge anything and paid for everything with cash. That was a mile stone............but alas I still have charge bills to pay........we will be forever in debt at least for another year.

My husband and I spent a quiet Christmas. His family is down in Chicago (Obamaland) and my only family (Pops) is in LasVegas. My daughter Tiffany whom I do not hear from anymore lives in North Carolina............I think she fell off the face of the earth. Anyways we had a nice day, opened a few presents, had a ham dinner with sweet potato pie, baked potatoe, broccoli, relishes and stuffing and gravy. Pulled out Grandma Gatti's old Bavarian Dishes, they must be close to 90 years old...........so that made it kinda fun. We shall do that again for New Years Day Dinner......though the dinner will be different......like steak and shrimp, salad, broccoli and oven fries..............now that sounds good!!!!!

Well, I think I shall close this blog for a while and talk again in 2010...........it's been fun keeping up...........have a great rest of the week and see you next year.
(Hugs and Kisses) Louise