Black Friday and Special Gifts...

A Typical Black Friday Crowd

If you have read any of my recent posts on Facebook you will see that I did most of my Black Friday Christmas shopping from my dinning room; in my Jammie's, and Online.

I loved it. No pushing. No shoving. No cussing. No rude arrogant tirades at defenseless cashiers. No standing in line for 45 minutes to find out the person in front of me got the last one.

It was fabulous. I loved it.

I did go out to the store late in the afternoon.

It was wonderful. I found parking near the front of the stores. I could actually walk down the aisles without being in fear for my life. I even bought a few items. Some of them were on sale too.

I don't mind tooting my own horn on occasion. I got some great deals. There will be some smiley faces on Christmas at our house. That's a good thing.

I returned home this evening to check out my email

(in case some email alert on a special item should be in the inbox.)

Having found nothing special I decided to peruse through my wall feed on facebook. I see a lot of interesting comments there. Today was the usual, game requests, prayer requests, even a friend request. Funny comments about lots of stuff.

Then I saw this posted :

Just set the manger up under the Christmas tree. my daughter just offered baby Jesus some microwave popcorn. :)

How precious is that? I was so busy today trying to find just the right gifts. I was so proud of myself. Then I read that post.

I was again reminded that Christmas is not about the Sales, the great gift finds, or how much money I saved. (though that is a good thing, being all wise with my money and staying on budget.)

I was again reminded that the best Gift, The first gift of the Season, came over 2000 years ago. That gift was Jesus. I need to offer Him a gift. That little girl was offering that little baby in the manger something that was hers. Something special to her.

So today as I mark the gifts I purchased off my list, and calculate where I am according to my Christmas budget, I'm going to remember to offer myself as a gift to Jesus. He can have anything I've got.

You may be asking why...

Because He gave all of Himself for me...

Happy Black Friday, Happy Shopping, and Merry Christmas!!!

Today I Am Thankful ...

Today I am Thankful...

I am Thankful for a God who loves me,

cares for me, sings over me, knows my needs and then

supplies Just what I need when I need it.

I am Thankful for My Family; all of them; Each one.

I am Thankful for the Friends that God has placed in my life.

Each one special in their own way.

Some that have become part of our family.

I am Thankful for the little things that happen each day.

I am thankful for smiles, kind words, and music.

I am thankful for hugs and kisses from my husband,

hugs from my kids and grand kids,

hugs from my friends.

I'm especially thankful for dog kisses.

I am thankful for the sounds and smells of fall, cheers at football games,

campfires and smores.

the taste of Cold Apple Cider and Warm donuts.

I am Thankful for the Sparkling white diamonds of snow in the winter, and the promise of life to come as the earth renews itself

I am thankful for the bright colors of the trees and flowers in Spring,

The smell of fresh dirt

and For the sound of rain gently falling on our roof.

I am Thankful for the hot days of summer,

BBQ grills, hot dogs, and ice cream.

I am thankful for this journey called life,

I am thankful for the smooth roads that I have traveled.

I'm thankful for the rough ground

where my character has been tested

and where I have been made a better person.

I'm thankful for the long nights of weeping

for they were, as promised, followed by Joy in the morning.

I am thankful for so many things

that there aren't enough pages to write them on.

Today I am Thankfully Rejoicing for it all...

The Pie That Almost Wasn't...

whew, the Pie is done..

No small feat today. Usually Pie's are one of my good things. I can make homemade crust, but I don't. I like the Pillsbury "roll it out yourself" pie crusts. I had one in the freezer.

If you read my last post you will see a few comments about what not to do when making a pie to take for Thanksgiving dinner.

Above you will see the pie.. The pie crust didn't roll out right; and the pan was to big.

I re-rolled the top crust.. uh my only comment about the bottom is crust is this.. "I just hope it stays on the bottom and the pie will come off the pan without a scraper".

Another Note you may want to make, if you take a Pie to your dinner..

"Cinnamon sugar sprinkled on Top will cover a multitude of sins"

And it's mighty Tasty too...

Happy Thanksgiving !!!

A Few Things To Remember When Preparing That Favorite Thanksgiving Dish

I have been cooking today. I'm taking food to our friend's home for a Thanksgiving meal tomorrow. I remembered a few things I should Never forget.

Here is a list for you.... Happy Thanksgiving!

1. Thaw out that fake pie crust (the roll out one or the kind that are already formed in the pan) early.
2. Don't use old frozen crusts, they really will not work. Mine didn't.. Even balling it up and re-rolling can only help so much.
3. Do use the correct size Pie pan. If you use the bigger one cause you can make a bigger pie, buy extra fake crusts, or make more dough.
4. Don't run out of stuff to make pie dough with.
5. Make sure you favorite husband, boyfriend, sister, friend, or significant other; knows where the ingredients you need can be found in the only store that will be open.
6. If your items can not be found at the local gas station/convenience store; have a back up plan. A nice box of hoho's can be decorated with redi-whip (in the can) and topped with a Maraschino Cherry.
7. If you are preparing the Turkey, Don't forget to take the bag of innards out before stuffing or cooking it.
8. If your favorite husband, boyfriend, sister, friend, or significant other; comes home with 6 of the item you only needed one of. Look thrilled.. thank them profusely, and make a note to make at least 6 more pies for friends, neighbors, co-workers, etc. within the next few days.
9. If you are signing up for a dish to take to the Family Thanksgiving Volunteer to bring the Jumbo size foam plates, plastic cups, and Napkins. Or better yet Chips and Dip.. the latter can be picked up at any local gas station/convenience store in the area.

These are certainly not all the things you should remember when Preparing that favorite Thanksgiving dish, but it's a start.

Happy Thanksgiving !!

What I Got To Do On My Fall Vacation

As you will see from a few of my previous Posts, We spent 2 weeks this fall at our little Ky. cabin. We were hoping to spend a little more time there.. but hubby wasn't feeling well and I had to get back to work the General Election. I would have been thoroughly disgusted by our abbreviated trip except for one thing... I got to see my brother.

That may not seem like a big deal to most.. but it was to me. You see I haven't seen him for about 18yrs. I think he was 15 or 16 the last time I saw him, He thinks he was 14.. who knows, I just know it was a very long time ago. to long.

As you may have read in a previous post, I was adopted. I met my birth-family almost 20 yrs ago. Mom was living northeast of here with my youngest siblings. My brother Juan and Sister Francisca. After only a few months of visits and getting to know them and the rest of mom's family, She and the kids moved back to Texas. She had lived there for many years and was really homesick for Texas. Trips were planned, but seemed to fall through at the last minute. We would talk on the phone, and message over the Internet, but we never did get to see each other face to face..

Before I knew it Juan had graduated high school and was working. Time flew by and I heard he was getting married. Wow.. cool.. Then the call came that had us both laughing.. He was going into the Army. Egad the boy, I mean man was almost 30. What was he thinking? LOL he told me "Sis, if I can live through basic, I can live through anything".. We laughed, especially when he told me the rest of his group called him grandpa.. they were mostly 18 yr old.. LOL Grandpa kept up with them and surpassed most..

Juan was trained and placed in a Calvary unit. We really like the hat and the spurs.. LOL looking good little brother.. anyway.. He was deployed to Iraq twice. Due to some injuries sustained through IED attacks he is retiring out this winter.

He was the reason we went to Ky. I got to spend 4 glorious days with him and his family. We got to hear some great stories and just talk. He even made Chicken enchiladas and rice for us. It was wonderful. It was so great to just sit and look at him. What a wonderful man he has grown into. I was so thrilled to meet his wife and their grandson. They are raising him. What a beautiful family they are.

The time with my brother and his family was way to short. But it was so good to see them.

We got lots of great pictures. I even got a Camel from FOB Warrior.. a real treat.. He sits in my bedroom gazing out the window. We promised that another 18 yrs would not pass before we saw each other again. It's a promise I plan on keeping. He does too. It was difficult to watch him drive away, but so good to think on those days that we got to look at each other.. and laugh together.

Whew What A Week I Mean 3 Weeks..

Wow, another week has flown past; Actually I think it was more like 3 weeks. Christmas shopping has been started, lists compiled, food purchased, recipes perused, and budget planned.

My planned budget was the first thing to go. LOL Hubby blew that when he came home with a request for the funds to buy a "most sought after item".. one he's been looking for. He never asks for extra out of the bill money.. so I could hardly say no. so the "most sought after item" is now making it's new residence in our home..

With a new plan and budget in hand I made my first shopping trip. Frankenmuth Michigan. I love it. I love Bronners (the world's largest Christmas store) We also spent a couple of hours at the area outlet mall, and of course had our traditional Chicken dinner at Zehnders. Yummy. I did purchase several things for gifts; so all in all I would call it a good day.

I spent the next day in the grocery store.. stocking up on chocolate chips, pecans, evaporated milk, cranberries, and marshmallow cream. I have fudge and cookies to make this weekend for my Special Soldier boxes. I also make peppermint bark for our boxes. oh no.. I forgot to get the chocolate bark.

OOPS.. guess I better head back to the store.

I have plenty of other things to catch you up on.. I have had a very busy 3 weeks.

The Days Are Getting Shorter Again...

Oh for the nice long days of summer. I am pining for them already. The days are getting to dark to fast. I am already feeling hurried to get up and get moving.

We returned from our Trip to Ky. about 2 and a half weeks ago. My how the time has flown. We ran full tilt unpacking and organizing right into and through Halloween. I thought I had entered some weird land of Cold that weekend. When we left Ky. it was 80 degrees. Halloween night I dressed for the 35 degree weather in long underwear, long pants, 3 shirts, coat, hat with ear flaps, and mittens.. I still froze.. goodness..

Then it was time to prepare for Voting. I'm a precinct Chairman in our area. Wow was I bowled over by the number who came out to vote. It was awesome.

We had almost 40% turn out, and that is awesome. I think we actually had more vote this time then voted in the Presidential election.

Zooming right along, at times it seems like at breakneck speed. We flew into the first weekend of Nov. and Daylight savings time. And here we are. The days are getting shorter. It's 5pm and the sun has set or is about to.

We are having our last look at some warm days this week. Highs in round 60 YES !! There are events starting to pile up on the calender. Thanksgiving plans are being made and my first Christmas shopping trip is scheduled for tomorrow.

Our local news announcer suggested we put the Christmas lights up this week. I asked husband if he would like to help me put up the lights. I got a stare and a grumph.. guess not.

I would like to think that things are winding down, but they aren't. They are just starting to wind up. The days getting shorter don't help me. They make me feel more rushed. I really need to start making some lists. Lists of gifts to buy, goodies to bake and for whom, lists of parties and dates. I'm getting my calender out right now. Time to seriously start those lists. The days are getting shorter you know..