My favorite decorating ideas

Love this bedroom! I might try to reproduce it someday. I think this is the nesters room.

My Dad

Four years ago today my Dad died. He died in a way I never imagined. A car accident. You see....he had suffered through four heart attacks and heart bypass surgery, only to die in a car wreck. Makes no sense. I really thought he would suffer another heart attack and be gone. Strange how life works. I wish I hadn't have bugged him so much about eating right. I'd have let him eat all the chicken fried steak in the world if I'd have known he wasn't going to die from heart disease.

I worked as a business partner to my Dad for three years before he passed away. Three of the best years of my life. I got to spend everyday side-by-side with one of the people I admired and loved the most in the world. You see, my Dad wasn't the normal type of Dad. He adored me. Truly adored me. He used to tell me that I was his legacy. He always wanted me to do better than he did. He always tried to give me more than he had. Every morning when I was a child, he would wake me up and make me sing an old song that goes something like this...."I feel pretty, I feel pretty, I feel pretty, and witty and wise". He wouldn't let me get by with not singing it. And..trust me, when you are a teenager that gets really annoying. But, my Dad was the ultimate optimist. Always cheerful and ready to give you a big smile. He was so proud of my Mom. When I would go to their house to eat dinner, he'd look over at me and then my Mom and say, "My Gosh...look at how beautiful your Mom is. That's the sexiest woman in the world." And then he'd smile really big. A big, ornery smile. That was my Dad.
I never saw that man down. In any situation, he was as calm as a cucumber. He used to have a sign in his office that said," Be like a duck, calm on the surface and paddling like hell underneath." That was his demeanor.
He was actually my savior in my 30th year of life. I had just suffered through a divorce with an 8 month old and a 3 year old and had no idea which way was up. I was completely lost. But, my Dad and Mom moved us in their house and made us feel at home. My Dad gave me a job and worked hard to help me learn the business world. I spent a lot of time worrying that I was a burden on my Dad financially when I got divorced and lived with my parents. But, now knowing that I only had 3 years left with him, I love the fact that I lived with my parents. My sons were able to wake up every morning and sit in his lap. And they did. Every morning. H-man even drank sips of black coffee because he was a toddler and wanted a sip of what "Dan-Dan" was drinking. Dan-Dan would also take T-man to eat at the Brown Cow Cafe before driving him to preschool. Just the two of them. That was their special time together.
I leaned on my Dad a lot in my adult years but I know he loved having me around. If there is anything in this world I am sure of....it's the fact that there was a man that thought the world of me.....and I thought the same about him.

I love you Daddy! Forever and Always!

Protein, Protein, Protein

I'm giving in and trying the South Beach Diet. Last time I did the Atkins, I lost 6 pounds in one week. The no carb thing about killed me though. I didn't realize how much I like to eat cereal until I couldn't, or cinnamon rolls for that matter. The South Beach will let you introduce healthy carbs after two weeks. I'm on day 3 and it's going pretty well. I've been snacking on my Babybel Light cheese and hummus with celery.

Tonight I made a new recipe - it's actually really simple and was highly recommended by one of my favorite bloggers, Kelly of KellysKornerBlog. She is so unbelievably adorable and upbeat. The name of the casserole is Chicken Supreme. Here's the lowdown:

4 - 6 chicken breasts

4-6 slices of bacon (or turkey bacon)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 16 oz. container of sour cream

1 jar of dried beef, torn into pieces - found in the tuna, canned chicken section (this was almost impossible to find - no Walmart store in our area had it but found it at one of the more expensive stores-I bought 4 to keep in the pantry)

Sorry for the poor picture quality!

Put the chicken breasts wrapped with a slice of bacon in a casserole dish. Mix the other ingredients together and cover the chicken breast with the mixture. It will look like this when done. Please excuse the wear on my casserole dish. It's seen many, many years of baking!

I think it's going to make a good no-carb dish while I'm on the two-week Phase I. which allows no carbs hardly at all. I'm going to steam some cauliflower, mix with half-and-half and butter. This should serve as a good substitute for the mashed potatoes, which I really want...ugh! It's hard to watch what you eat.

This weekend was uneventful just like I like it. I worked on a few projects. I painted a set of bookends for H's room. Red - just like our beloved OU Sooners. I'm not going to talk about the National Championship heartbreak.....so sad! Our niece spent the night Saturday. I had taken her to Wal-mart on Friday night to pick out some eye makeup. She's 12 and really wanted to start learning how to "tastefully" wear a little eyeliner and eyeshadow. I love it that she comes to me for these things. I'm glad I could try to show her the proper way. Not that I'm the expert or anything! Ha!

Isn't she the prettiest?! She's almost a teenager.

Mystery Solved

Apparently the lunch money mystery has been solved. H-man has been eating breakfast every morning at home. I usually fix waffles, pancakes and even scrambled eggs for them. No shortage of good food to eat at home. Well, he has eaten breakfast at school every morning since school started. No wonder all of the money I was sending was disappearing. He was eating something close to $4 a day in cafeteria food.

At least he's not one of those picky kids that won't eat anything. I feel pretty lucky!

I owe how much?

My little H man came home today from school with a ton of notes in his backpack. Apparently they have saved all paperwork throughout the semester and decided to send it home the first couple of days back after Christmas break. While weeding through his notes, I came across an official looking letter from the Principal at the elementary school. Inside it stated that I owed no less than $55.50 for H's lunches. WHAT?!
FIFTY - FIVE DOLLARS.
That's right - I'm going to need to send at least $100 to school with him to even pay for lunches for the rest of January. So much for trying to save money in the new year. I guess I never saw the notes that usually come home saying you are running low on lunch money. My friend Melissa called and I was complaining to her about the lunch money dilemma....and she asked, "Is he eating breakfast there too?" I turned to H and asked him if he ever ate breakfast there. We always feed the boys breakfast at home. Then he pipes up and says, "Well, whenever I'm not full enough, which is about every morning."
I guess he's been eating the equivalent of about $4.00 a day for meals when I thought it was $2.00. No wonder we have such a debit in our account.

Are you ready for some football?!

If you know my family at all, you know that the most important part of our lives is college football. Specifically, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Alabama and Georgia. We schedule our lives in the Fall months in advance so that everything comes after football. I am an Oklahoma State fan while my honey is a die hard Oklahoma fan. That was the first thing Jim cleared up with me on our first date. He simply told me that there was one thing that was really important in his life and it was Oklahoma Sooner football. He proceeded to tell me that he bought season tickets every year and he didn't want to hear any complaining about it or we wouldn't be able to date.

I knew then that I had met my match. He was so much like my Daddy - a true college football fan. Rain, sleet, snow, he was going to the game. I went with my family to almost every home OSU game as a kid.

Nothing stops Jim from attending as many OU games as possible. Try figuring that scheduling out during soccer season with two little boys. UGH! Not fun.

Needless to say, our favorite family activity is watching football. Either in the stadium or on TV. This bowl season has not been a good one so far for me. My Oklahoma State Cowboys lost and then Alabama lost. So heartbreaking. My brother went to Alabama when Bear Bryant was the coach. He feels the same strong emotions for Alabama that Jim feels for Oklahoma. Our dog is even named Alabama Tide because my family loves Alabama so much.

Tonight we ordered pizza in so we could be ready to watch the Texas v. Ohio State game. We're actually rooting for Texas because, all in all, we LOVE the BIG 12! Here are the boys laying on a pallet with Miss Allie in between. She loves her little boys so much.

Here we are last year at the OU/Texas game - the Sooners kicked some booty that game!

Let's hope the Sooners show everyone this year that they are true National Champions! Go Sam Bradford! Heisman Trophy winner - woo-hoo!

Happy New Year!

We spent our New Year's Eve at a neighbors house just around the corner. It was so much fun and my friend Melissa is the best cook! She grilled steaks, made spitfire shrimp (recipe to follow), and baked potatoes. Dessert was Bananas Foster and Lemon Bars. My favorite meal for sure! It was especially good since the stomach bug had been visiting our family for the past 10 days or so. I was so sick....I felt like I would never get over it. Yuck. That's the worst thing in the world. But, I rallied and felt better by the afternoon of the 31st so we could go enjoy spending time with our friends. They had just gotten the Wii for Christmas so we spent the night bowling, playing darts, and golfing. Anytime competition is involved, Jim is a happy man!
The boys were with their Dad so we haven't had them with us since Christmas. That really makes the holiday hard for me. It just doesn't seem like a holiday without my little guys around. But, I always try to make the best of it and get through it.

The economy is still shaky so I'm looking for recipes for the New Year to make at home. I want to stop eating out for lunch everyday at work. That's a good $10 that I don't want to spend on food. Especially when I can just bring leftovers to work and eat that. I found some recipes that sound really great. I think I'm going to try them in the next week or so.
From whatsmandicooking.blogspot.com

Country Casserole
from: Southern Plate
2 cups small shell pasta, cooked and drained
3 cups frozen mixed vegetables, cooked and drained
2 cups shredded cheddar, divided
One can French fried onions, divided
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 can cream of chicken soup
¼ cup milk
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine everything in a large bowl, reserving half of the cheese and half of the onions for topping later. Spoon into 9x13 casserole dish. Bake for twenty five minutes. Top with remaining onions and cheese, bake until cheese is melted, about five minutes more.Freezing options: Instead of freezing this in your casserole dish, simply spoon it into a gallon ziploc bag. Lay the bag flat so that it will thaw out quicker and place it in your freezer. On the day you want it, take it out the night before and refrigerate or place in fridge that morning.If you forget to do all of this, no sweat! Just microwave the bag until it thaws just a bit, pour into your casserole, and bake! To bake a casserole that is still frozen, simply place in the oven while the oven preheats. This allows the casserole to thaw quickly and then bake to perfection!

Bruschetta Chicken Skillet
From: Brie's Blog
1/4 cup KRAFT Sun-Dried Tomato Dressing
4 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves (1 lb.)
2 large red peppers, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (14-1/2 oz. each) pasta-style or Italian-style diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 cup water
2 cups instant white rice, uncooked
1 cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1 large tomato, chopped
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh basil
HEAT dressing in large skillet on medium heat. Add chicken, peppers and garlic; cover. Cook 10 min. or until chicken is cooked through (165ºF), turning after 5 min. Remove chicken from skillet; cover to keep warm.
ADD canned tomatoes and water to skillet. Stir in rice; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer, uncovered, 10 min. Meanwhile, combine cheese, chopped tomatoes and basil.
RETURN chicken to skillet; sprinkle with cheese mixture. Cover. Cook 5 min. or until chicken is heated through and cheese is melted.

2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil1 medium onion, peeled and diced3 cups diced, cooked chicken2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans green beans, drained and rinsed1 (8-ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and chopped1 (4-ounce) jar pimentos1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of celery soup1 cup mayonnaise1 (6-ounce) box long-grain wild rice, cooked according to package directions1 cup grated sharp Cheddar Pinch saltPreheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat butter or oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl.Add all remaining ingredients to bowl and mix together until thoroughly combined.Pour into a greased 3-quart casserole dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for a few minutes before serving.

Poppy Seed Chicken (From Kelly's Korner)
2 or 3 chicken breasts, boiled and cut in small pieces
1 16 oz sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken
2 tbls of poppyseeds (I don't measure - I just shake a ton in)Ritz crackers
1 stick of butter
Mix the first 4 ingredients and put in a baking dish. Cover with crushed up ritz crackers. Melt a stick of butter and pour on top. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350.

The recipe above came from KellysKorner.com. I just love her blog. She's so cute and positive. Everyone needs to be as positive and thankful about things in life as she is. I'm going to work hard to just thankful for what I have.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night

This Christmas

was spent with just our immediate family. It was fun getting together and enjoying each other's company but the boys were with their Dad for Christmas break this year and it just wasn't the same without them. Every other year seems like an off year at Christmas.

Dreading Holiday Eating

I recently found this list of weight watchers points for holiday food from the wwchick's blog - thewwchick.blogspot.com.

I have been eating so bad lately - I'm not even going to weigh myself. I know the outcome will be bad! All I can do is try to eat with caution on Christmas - thank the Lord that I'm not a sweets person. But it means that I'm a turkey and oyster dressing person. I can't wait for my Mom's oyster dressing!

TURKEY LEG (WITH SKIN), 4 OZ, 6
WHITE MEAT TURKEY (NO SKIN), 4 OZ, 4 POINTS
♦HAM WITH BROWN SUGAR COATING, 3 OZ, 2 POINTS
SPIRAL SLICED (BONE IN, HICKORY SMOKED), 3 OZ, 4 POINTS
SPIRAL SLICED (BONE IN, HONEY CURED), 3 OZ, 3 POINTS
BLACK FOREST (SMOKED), 3 OZ, 2 POINTS
MAPLE GLAZED (HONEY COATED), 3 OZ, 2 POINTS
VIRGINIA HAM, 2 OZ, 1 POINT
GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE, 1 CUP, 5 POINTS
GREEN BEANS (STEAMED), 1 CUP, 0 POINTS
♦CORN CASSEROLE, 1/2 CUP, 8 POINTS
CORN, 1/2 CUP, 1 POINT
♦CANDIED SWEET POTATOES, 1 CUP, 8 POINTS
MASHED SWEET POTATOES, 1 CUP, 4 POINTS
♦BAKED SWEET POTATO, 1 LARGE, 3 POINTS
♦GARLIC MASHED POTATOES, 3/4 CUP, 6 POINTS
PLAIN BAKED POTATO, 1 LARGE, 3 POINTS
♦SCALLOPED POTATOES, ½ CUP, 4 POINTS
AU GRATIN POTATOES, 1 CUP, 13 POINTS
CANNED CRANBERRY SAUCE, 1/4 CUP, 3 POINTS
HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE , 1/4 CUP, 2 POINTS
BREAD STUFFING, 1 CUP, 8 POINTS
WINTER SQUASH, 1 CUP, 1 POINT
♦PUMPKIN PIE, 1 SLICE, 9 POINTS
PECAN PIE, 1 SLICE, 12 POINTS
APPLE PIE, 1 SLICE, 7 POINTS
PLUM PUDDING, ½ CUP WITH 1 TBSP SAUCE, 9 POINTS
WHITE ROLL (WITHOUT BUTTER), 1 ROLL, 3 POINTS
WHEAT ROLL (WITHOUT BUTTER, 1 ROLL, 2 POINTS
WHIPPED BUTTER, 1 TBSP, 2 POINTS
LIGHT MARGARINE, 1 TBSP, 1 POINT
BROWN GRAVY, 1/4 CUP, 2 POINTS
WINE, 2 OZ, 1 POINTS
MULLED CIDER, 1 CUP, 3 POINTS
EGGNOG ( HOMEMADE WITH OR WITHOUT LIQUOR) ½ CUP, 4 POINTS
EGGNOG (REDUCED CALORIE, STORE BOUGHT, NO LIQUOR) ½ CUP, 3 POINTS
EGG NOG (STORE BOUGHT WITHOUT LIQUOR) ½ CUP, 5 POINTS

T's Birthday - The Big 10!

T and His Nana

My oldest baby turned 10 on the 13th of December. What a wonderful little boy he has turned into in the last 10 years. He was my first born and I still remember the amount of love I felt for him the minute I saw him. It's like I knew all along what he would look like. I instantly thought that my heart would burst. I still can't even put into words what a privilege it has been to watch him grow. He's everything I thought he would be - sweet, sensitive, affectionate, intuitive, smart, and the cutest little redhead on this earth. His little freckles on his face just melt my heart!

Today was the officer installation at the York Rite Lodge for Mr. H. He's an officer in the Scottish Rite and the York Rite. The ceremonies for the installation are really neat to watch. It was nice to see the lodge brothers that Mr. H is with every other week. They seemed like a great group of guys. I couldn't help thinking about the Flintstones and Fred Flintstone going to his lodge meetings or Mr. Cunningham on Happy Days and the Grand Puba.

I found a recipe I'd like to try. I think the boys will really like it. I might just whip it up for Christmas.
Blueberry Delight
1 (3) oz. pckg. blackberry gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 (15 oz.) can blueberries
1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (8 oz.) pckg. creme cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 - 2 cups chopped pecans
In large bowl, dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Drain liquid from blueberries and pineapple and stir into the gelatin. Pour into 2 quart mold (or large pyrex dish) and refrigerate until firm.
Mix together softened creme cheese, sugar, sour cream and vanilla and spread over the congealed gelatin mixture. Sprinkle creme cheese layer with chopped pecans and chill for approximately 30 minutes. Invert (or cut into serving size pieces) and serve.
*NOTE: I add the creme cheese mixture AFTER the gelatin has set up and become firm. It makes it much easier to spread. I also add the pecans in with the creme cheese mix and then add MORE pecans on the top.


So far, here is our menu for Christmas Day:

Turducken - it's a boneless duck stuffed inside a boneless chicken stuff inside a boneless turkey. It is soooo good. The duck keeps all of the meat so moist.
Ham - Mr. H's ham from work
Oyster Dressing
Collard Greens
Green Bean Casserole
Sweet Potato Souffle
Rolls
Pies - Pumpkin, Pecan and Chocolate
Iced Tea and Cokes

I made a spreadsheet for the holiday planning. When I figure out how to do a screenshot, I'll post a pic.

More Christmas Parade of Homes Pics

More pictures of my soon to be mother-in-law's house. Such beautiful decorations. I think I might "borrow" some of the ideas for next year. I'm hoping the economy won't be so horrible and I won't have this horrendous guilt about buying any unnecessary decorations this year.

For some reason, I am especially in love with anything glitter. The little glitters balls that she put in the garland on her light fixture in the kitchen are beyond adorable!

Christmas Parade of Homes

My soon-to-be mother-in-law was on the Christmas Parade of Homes this year. She decorated her house so beautifully. She already had most of the decorations but had this wonderful little floral shop in town called Stems help with the embellishments. The most unique thing she did was the Native American ornament wreath. She actually had purchased some indian ornaments from a store in Tulsa and had them on a little tree in her master bath. I loved the tree. What a great way to showcase her heritage. The tree turned into a wreath and look at the beautiful bronze color. I adore it!

More Christmas Parade of Home post soon.....

Halloween fun

I got creative and made myself a Happy Halloween shirt. Look at me...I'm definitely channeling Martha Stewart!

Nana and her little guys! Oops....I mean gangstas!

Checkin' out the loot!

The boys and some random other boys that jumped in the picture. Our nephew Little J is in the pic too.

The boys were inspired by my love of hip-hop this Halloween. I know, I know, I'm a small town Mom that should like country music or something....but I should have been born in New York City and become a female rapper. I think that's what I should have been. Hmmm...anyway, the other night I was watching Hip Hop Honors on VH1 and the boys were diggin' it. So.. they decided they wanted to be old school rappers for Halloween. I personally thought it was a cute idea. I mean, come on, how many red headed, freckle faced and platinum blonde boys do you know that look really gangsta. Pretty cute if you ask me! We searched high and low for the right outfit and decided on the mix between white boy Eminem and old school Run DMC. A white shirt and baggy jeans that they already owned worked for the clothes. We went to the Halloween superstore and found some *Bling* - gold chains and big blinged out gold emblems or whatever you call them. They already had the little beanie things so the thug rapper look was born. My kids are about as far from thug as you can get - maybe that's why I thought it was so funny.

A quote from thewwchick blog

There is greatness in doing something you hate for the sake of someone you love.
—Rabbi Shmuley Boteach