Proud Mama Alert!

My son, Chase, a freshman, at his first high school game, this year.  

I am very proud of him because as a freshman, he placed second chair, top band (out of three bands).

LIFE: Spilled-Out

Recently, I had reason for some introspective pondering of my life.

My life is an explosion; loud and noisy, spilling-out, messy, overflowing. Not for me are the neat and tidy compartmentalized segments of life, carefully not touching, easily moved out of the way until their proper time to be displayed.

My secular job spills over into my family time, my church work overflows into my job, my family crosses lines with my job and church until it's all blended and interwoven into one vivid, exciting, abundant life.

What does your life look like?

My Perfect Garden

I finally decided to go for it ~ a garden.

A good friend had given me possible placement and dimensions for my garden, along with a layout, explaining about how much work would be needed to tend to each size and type.

Hours spent poring over Home & Garden magazines, dreaming and planning the perfect garden. Time spent at Lowe's, agonizing over seed packets, choosing the right fertilizer, the right plants.

And now... the fruit of my labors:

BASIL, OREGANO, PARSLEY

I must admit that I'm concerned about my parsley.
It just doesn't seem to be as hardy as the others.




Yep. Just the right-size garden for me!

Here's to Health!

Recently, due to uncomfortable health issues, I decided to re-think my eating habits. The first staple I gave up was the acid and caffeine combination of Coca-Cola Classic


...followed by tea

...and hot chocolate.

Now, for those who don't know, I kept Coke in business. I have reps who are calling me, begging me to purchase coke again, or if not coke, then to at least get addicted to another Coke product!



If you are in caffeine withdrawal, EAT FRUIT in the mornings. I have used this technique in past efforts and it is amazing how much that cuts down on the no-caffeine headaches.


In addition to the removal of these beverages from my lips, I am adhering to a modified 'Fit for Life' philosophy of eating.

Basically, this means anything that is not a fresh or frozen fruit or vegetable is a 'complex' food. You only have ONE complex food with any meal. It's that simple.

Simple? For a woman raised in Texas, whose favorite type of food is southern, that's a bit hard to swallow! That means no gravies, no to most sauces, no casseroles, no batters, no good ol' southern breakfasts, no Italian, no Mexican, no beans and cornbread.... well that's not an issue, because I never ate that anyway... but you get the picture.

Oh, yeah. One more thing that's not in the Fit for Life philosphy: Dairy products.

Let's take a look at the foods that would be classified as 'dairy':
Milk, BUTTER, sour cream, yogurt, cheeses.... ALL cheeses.

No dairy.


Fortunately, I used the Fit for Life plan, years ago, and I know how phenomenal I feel when I eat that way...how well I rest.... how much weight I can lose.

In all my years of being overweight, I never had a real desire or will power to diet. I refused to try weight-loss pills or do the fad diets. I always said that if I ever lost weight, I'd do it the 'right' way, by eating healthily. Actually, it's almost amusing how easy it has become to surrender my desired way of eating, now that ingesting those foods causes me extreme physical discomfort, even pain.

So, planning on a healthier, happier, pain-free me... Here's to health!

God's Artistry

(click on image to enlarge for better view)

This is a picture taken by a friend who is vacationing in Hawaii.
It's so incredible, it's almost unbelievable.

Just remember, the God who made this.... cares for you.

My Wedding Designs

Vintage-style veil and fascinator I made

I also made the Bridal bouquet

Beautiful bride - Jessie Hernandez,
friend of my daughter

I like the back view

I made the bridesmaids bouquets

My daughter

My daughter trying to get her husband to kiss her.
From this photo, I'm very fearful of ever getting a grandchild. : (

My son-in-law and daughter
(Thingamabob and Thing 1)

I also made the throw away bouquet.

I enjoyed getting to work with Jessie to create the vintage veil and fascinator and bridal bouquet that she wanted, as well as the bridesmaids and groomsmen bouquets and boutonnieres, mothers/grandmothers corsages and toss bouquet.

It was fun to get to be part of her very special day.

The Savvy-Homemaker Apron

I've developed a new product I'm thinking about marketing.

I wanted to share it with my blogger readers first, to see what they think.

The Savvy -Homemaker Apron
Coming in 2010

Please notice the detail at the waist and the ease of attachment; no more struggling to tie a bow behind your back. Two easy-to-attach clips make fastening a cinch (pardon the pun).

The ruffle along both edges is flirty and sure to please the man in your life, proclaiming your femininity; just imagine warmly greeting your man, with this apron on, when he comes home from a hard day's work, inviting visions of home, hearth and romance.

And best of all, it is extremely versatile and totally interchangeable.

So readers, now its your turn. What price would YOU pay for this charmingly versatile apron?

New Year's Menu

Everyone is having pork, black-eyed peas and cabbage.

I thought only black-eyed peas were a tradition on New Years.

??