Happy Christmas Eve

And so I sit here.........watching out my front windows as the snow whips around in the front yard. It is truly snowing now and the hurricane force winds are just down to West Texas tornado winds. At times, I can't see past my front porch. Is this what they call blizzard conditions? About an hour ago, the winds were calm and we were just watching the snow fall. Now even the now has whitcaps! But, I am sitting here in the comfort of my new home which will be having a covered porch addition added this spring. With a wood burning stove! I don't want to go through ice another year with this porch. So go ahead...forget the whales...for the next year they have plenty of water....forget the elephants...they will have babies and more tusks. Give to Louski back porch fund. There is nothing keeping snow from blowing into my dining room when we open the door. I have to say that I have never been nervous during a "winter weather" warning until now. I have always had a wood burning stove. Hmmm don't have that...BUT I still love the house. I just have to tweek it a bit. My parents are without electricity. Has been out since 7:45 this morning. So, that means that the pigs have NO heat either. So, we may have plenty of bacon, ham and sausage. This is crazy!!! This is TEXAS, not New York! Or wait....has New York moved in? I don't think I would have made a very good "on the prairie person"!
Thank goodness for heaters....the Wii and a television. WE have popcorn made, I have coffee and hot chocolate and we will hopefully find an end to the wind....snow...and my parents will have electricity.

One more for the road?

I need a title for some of my entries. If you have an idea let me know. I thought of Car Musings....Curves in the road.....Point of views to you...or the title for this one. Something like that. It would also have to have numbers after it because I need to number each of those "Great" discussions held in the car when one or both of the kids has "a moment". Like today.
We were picking up one of my last 3 Christmas Gifts at Mardel today. The kids found these Bible cards that are similar to Football Cards, Bella Sara Cards, Baseball cards, and NASCAR cards. I allowed them to each have a package at the price of $.99. What a bargain. Only 3 cards and they have really good educational value to them. On the card are several "did you know" questions about the picture. So M. has one about King Solomon. They were discussing the baby to be cut in half and what a smart guy he was to make that decision. Then the discussion led to the fact that God gave him great wisdom. We all agreed that we would wish for that gift because we all lack true wisdom sometimes. Then M has the next question and the scene went like this:
M: How many wives did King Solomon have?
Me: Over a hundred.
M: Seven hundred to be exact.
K: Wow...he had a mess at Christmas. And that had to be a huge bed!
M: Well, back then they had many wives and they all didn't see the King every day.
K: (quiet which leads to thinking...most of the time) That would mean that he got married everyday for 2 years. Yuck!

And there you have it! Another thought to make you understand the way it really is.

I resemble this photo!

I would love to tell you exactly the minutes and seconds until Christmas, but I only have the number of minutes and seconds until Friday. However, there are 10 days until Christmas Eve.

And, do you wonder why Friday? Go ahead..think that question...because I am going to give you the answer.

On Friday several things happen.....We get out at noon!!! And, at 1PM, I sign my house over to the eager buyer. But, in between now and then......hmmmmm band concert, root canal, orthodontist appointment, moving furniture out of the old house, practice for Sunday's worship, changing schedules, piano lessons, pigs, pigs, and more pigs. So my daughter has so perfectly demonstrated the atmosphere around our house.

I only have 4 more gifts to buy. Oh, but that will get done too.!!!! but the Christmas card have just become New Year's Cards.

Christmas on the prairie

People encouraged me to blog. "Oh, you must blog. People will love it. You will love it." So, I blogged. People encouraged me to do FB. "Oh, you must FB. People will find you; you will love it" so I did FB. Now, people say...."you blog?" Hello, how else do you keep the memories for your kids. Maybe one day I will print all of my posts and make a book for my kids. I will title it "Surviving Mom" or something like that. So I say that to say.....no one may read these things, but I will continue to blog "for the love of the children". Okay, and die hard readers too.
You have read that I have a new house. We love it. Yes, concrete is cold in the morning, but house shoes are the thing for us. My son doesn't have a pair, but he cleans the floor with the socks that he wears around. Anyway, I promised the Lord that IF I got a new house, I would use it for things other than eating, sleeping, yelling at the kids, and cluttering. This past Tuesday, I hosted the "staff (women in the office) party. This weekend, I am helping co-host the shepherding group party. My house was up and ready before Dec. 1st thanks to "the man", my house keeper (Pam), and my friend Diana. Diana is responsible for the tree! Wow, I was just about in tears.

Now, can I confess to you that I have always been in love with entertaining. It is a lot of work. It costs money, but I love it. Instead of china when we married, we received 20 place settings of Christmas dishes. I also got all the service pieces and place mats. I have not used them in the last few years....just because. This week, I not only decorated, but we ate out of the dishes, and they are being used daily. (only after a lecture about the concrete floor and dishes).

So today I want to share a few pictures of my new house with my decorations. I can not tell you how fun, and exciting this is. I have the best Christmas present....a bright, cheerful, new house, with places to park, and decorations. My children come home from school and tell me how happy they are in this house. We had snow yesterday, and my daughter was taking pictures as we drove out to school. I am so thankful that God has given my family this new "undertaking" and we are happy there! It was again another leap of faith that we took.

The walls are not white. They are a sand color. This is the top of the entertainment center.
Top of my beautiful tree!!!

The first is my children's bathroom; the second is my bathroom.

To you they may look bland, but to me.......it is all beautiful and festive.

We are having fun now!!!!

So true...

Sorry, but I had to laugh, cry and agree! The following photo comes with the following thought:

"The only thing children wear out more than shoes are parents! "

There are times that I would almost rather put the board across my back and tell them to get on with it. Someone "will fall off and get hurt, then I can say I told you so." I don't have time for the whining, crying, and "nah-nah-nah-nah - nah" stuff. Hello, there are 4 pigs.....pick two and feed, scoop,water, and walk. Get on with it! Hello, you are the one that undressed in the bathroom, showered without getting a towel to dry off with......cold air on an old wet woman taught me to never forget a towel. You have a long way to go. Hello, You what? dumped the closet out to clean the room and now need to sleep with me because your bed is full? What were you thinking.....I am worn out from just looking in the room. Here's some floor space (which you don't have either) and a blanket that I don't need. Hello, I didn't wear those shoes yesterday so I didn't take them off and misplace them. Excuse me, you signed me up for what? I don't cook!!

However.......I am so thankful that I have two precious children who keep me young but worn out. I may have had them late in life, but life wouldn't be life without them. Love my kids.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!!!

When I was younger....

It has been years (since 1977) that I was part of the 4-H food show. Today I was honored to be a judge for the District Food Show. I really didn't want to do it, but as always, am glad that I did. Really Really glad that I did. I love 4-H. As a thank you, I received a recipe book with all dishes in the district's show. But man, things have changed.
When I was younger.......and in 4-H, the food show was different. Along with the dish, we prepared, we had to include it in a menu for the day and make sure that the daily menu fit the food pyramid as well as the exact amount of daily requirements. We also had to have a place setting that included dishes, utensils, napkins, beverage glass, and "anything that didn't interfere" with the display. The judges came by and asked questions. When they finished the interview, they then asked to be served a portion on a plate furnished by the contestant, and then they judged the taste and texture. The judges were always older women who were scary looking and usually intimidating to young 4-H members who have stayed up all night making their dish which was so complicated that no one else would want to make it.
Now.......the whole thing is the way it should have been. They don't have a place setting equipped with everything you would need for the complete meal. They don't have to hand the judge the recipe.... the 4-H office does this. There are now questions available for the contestants so they can almost plan their "speech". When the judges are finished with the questioning, they are served a portion. Want to know torture? It's all diet food...in other words, you don't gain weight on it because you can't eat it. You can poke it, squish it, smell of it, roll in it, bathe in it, and do anything you want to except eat it! You can not eat it. What is wrong with this picture? AND.....you can wear diamonds and heals, but you must accent your outfit with either gloves or be holding some kind of serving utensil. I had to sit there and judged breads!!! All kinds of breads!! Breads are my weakness! My judging partner and I joked about taking our trash sack and going to the parking lot to eat what we had, with great sadness, placed in the trash..
I told my daughter that next year she could serve cow patties (with icing) and no one would know as long as she knows the food pyramid; the patties are of good texture and are served at the appropriate temperature while she is wearing plastic gloves. It doesn't matter if they taste like poop or chocolate. Just know your business.
And the judges.....they were beautiful, non-scary, wonderful, caring women.

New and exciting things!

Some people get new cars...others get new clothes...some get their Christmas Trees up....and some people have additions to the family. These people get excited. They share their good news with anyone who will listen. I am excited. I want to share my good new with you too. No, it's not a new car......already told you about the new house (photos will come sometime before next summer) and no...I am not getting married or giving birth! (yes, I am excited that the dog is being "fixed" today and no puppies to come) I want to share my news with you..here on my blog. You see, we are excited. We have new pig pens. These are not the best photos. If the "big" was to take pictures, she would stand on a rail and do the "shoot". Well, I am older and wiser and not interested in a fall.
Why are we excited about new pens. Hello, it is just a bunch of metal welded together to hold pigs. Hello, didn't we already have pen? Yes to both thoughts BUT...then pens are the Superman of all pens!!! Let me explain. Instead of opening a sliding door and fighting a pig to keep it in, we slide a door, and there you stand in an "alley" so to speak where you can walk, reach over and feed, fill water tubes, and I can just climb up a little, lean over, and work the heat lamps or fans. There are little gates that open (ever so easily!!!!) so that the kids can let the pigs out to walk them. I mean like let the pigs out one at a time with no pig fighting to get out when they are supposed to stay put. The shavings are thick and the pigs are in "hog heaven". Oh my...life is sooo easy in the pig barn. Well, if someone could keep the stupid hamps from biting us. I hate when these pigs try to eat my shoes.
So, THANK you Donald!!!!! You are awesome. We love our pens and we love you and the family!!! We are so blessed by our "extended" family and support crew! You guys are the best!!!! (Have I used enough exclamation marks?!!!) People have told us what a great "set up" we have, but now we are the "new and improved, ultra modern, go ahead and wish you were a pig of ours pig pens" Thank you Jordan!! Thank you Jeremy ( a friend who showed up to just look at the pigs and ended up shoveling poop, standing in poopie water, and helping set the pens. Thanks Ashley for getting into our lives and bringing so many good things to us by just starting out as a volunteer for BBBS.
Of course, I can't leave out my dad and "the man". Dad does struggle with turning the barns over completely. Rightly so when he paid for 99.9% of it. Okay, all of it "The man" keeps everything in working order (including me when my attitude gets out of whack). Together these two guys have been the "hands" that don't get a hand very often.
Our church is always striving to be a "Front porch community". Come sit on my front porch. You may smell pig poo, but you will find tons of love, support and family! We promise that.

K. taking care of pipsqueak..aka peanut and Marylin (for her figure) You can almost see Sally's nose.

One of the hamps (Daisey) waiting for my muck boot!!! Look at that gate! There is a panel running between the two watering tubes (white things) that separates both pigs. Then, there is another gate for Piper the pig.