Fun Monday - Showing My Patriotism

Happy Memorial Day! Thanks to everyone who served and gave their lives for our Country.

 God Bless America!

(Scroll down for a complete list of Fun Monday Participants)

Fun Monday Assignment

Hello all! I am hosting Fun Monday for May 31st and since here in the states we are observing Memorial Day, the assignment is to post a photo of something patriotic or post a photo honoring a veteran. 

Sign up below:

Shoot Me #4 of 52

Is it Thursday already? Every Thursday I will be participating in "Shoot Me" hosted by Forever In Blue Jeans. You too can play. Click here to sign up and to see the other participants. Here are the rules:

Shoot Me! It's time to stop hiding behind that camera of yours. Your family is missing you in the picture. So it's time to post a picture of YOU (yes, you) every Thursday with your child, your spouse, your friend, your dog, or even by yourself. Just get in the picture, you'll be glad you did!

This photo was taken in the late fall of 2009. I am pictured here with my husband and my 2 daughters.

Obsolete

I love my job. If you are new here, I am the secretary at my church. I have been there almost 4 years now. I work alone, usually. The pastor pops in from time to time, but his office is mostly mobile. The church is 96 years old and in need of many many repairs and updates. The roof was just replaced and now the stained glass windows are in need of repair, which is estimated to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

Since I started as the secretary there, I have made many changes and updates to the office itself, including a total makeover - new window treatments, new pictures for the walls, plants and some new office equipment. There is, however, one piece of office equipment that I am still using and I despise it. It is the old fashioned, outdated, obsolete...typewriter (as shown in my blog header).  We use the typewriter to type confirmation, baptism and new member certificates. I am fully aware that there are certificates that you can print out and design on the computer. But, I have to convince the Pastor that the computer generated certificates will look and feel as nice as the high quality ones we are now typing on. 

It is my mission. My goal. My passion to rid of the ugly green outdated monster that invades my space.  I am a Church Lady living in the 21st century for goodness sakes!

24 Reasons Why I Should Adpot a Little Dog

Not sure why, but lately I have been having the I want a little dog syndrome and that thought has not left my mind since, well, for a while now. As most of you know, we already have one big very large yellow labrador retriever and of course, I love him to death and wouldn't trade him for the world.  I don't care for his constant shedding, and the mess he makes and the fact that he NEVER listens. So, the thought of wanting another dog has me wondering... why?? I thought making this list would help persuade my husband me in making the right choice.

1. I would be adopting or rescuing a dog that needs a good home.
2. My current dog, Cooper needs a play mate.
3. Church Lady needs a play mate.
4. The kids need a play mate.
5.  Little dogs are cute (just look at the Tea-Cup Yorkie in the photo!).
6.  I can take the little dog with me practically everywhere.
7.  I can dress up the little dog in cute little doggie clothing.
8.  I can put the little dog in one of those cute little dog strollers.
9.  Little dogs are great companions.
10. A smaller dog can cuddle up on your lap and sleep in your bed. (well, maybe not my bed)
11. They give you unconditional love.
12. Smaller dogs don't eat as much food.
13. Little dog = little poop.
14. They make you smile.
15. Church Lady needs a play mate.

Ok, I could only come up with 15 reasons, (technically 14 - I threw that last one in for good measure) but they are 15 very good reasons, don't ya think?

CL's Yard Sale Find of The Week

I'm not a big yard sale person, but I have been known to frequent them on ocassion. Here in my big red neck part of the world,  yard sales are a dime a dozen. They are big here. Huge. There is a yard sale on every block pretty much every Thursday, Friday, Saturday and yes, even on Sundays.

I have also been known to hold my own yard sale from time to time. Alot of  time and energy goes into gathering unwanted household items and clothing, cleaning them up, organizing them, marking each item practically free with a very reasonable price, and setting up and displaying them in a marketable way. My earnings never ever outweigh my efforts. I think the most money I ever made at a 2-day yard sale was $150. While I am not complaining about my profits, it is hardly worth all the work!

In all my years of yard sale-ing, the one thing I've learned is that there are alot of professional yard sale hagglers out there. I feel slightly uncomfortable in haggling over a price. What if the seller says, "No, that price is not acceptable". Do I walk away? Do I barter again? I once came face to face with a buyer who bartered on an item I had marked .25 cents.  For crying out loud...why don't you just take the item for free?! Now that I think about it, why would I try to sell an item that was only worth .25 cents?  This is probably why I never made a huge profit and this is also why I don't like to hold yard sales anymore.

However, this past weekend was an exception. My mom's development had their community yard sale and at the last minute, I was able to gather some unwanted items I had stashed in the basement for the Good Will. I took the items to my mom's house and made a quick $50 bucks!

That quick $50 I earned did not stay in my pocket for long. I spotted 2 wooden woven chairs for sale that I HAD to have. Other than the paint chipping a little on both chairs, they are in excellent condition.

I have researched the chairs to figure out the type of weave and what they could possibly be worth. I have come up with nothing. So, if any of you know anything at all about these chairs, please let me know.

What I paid for chairs - $45

Type of weave - Spanish Hemp ??
Total worth of chairs - ??

Fun Monday - Food Glorious Food!

Debs is our lovely hostess for Fun Monday this week and she must be hungry cause she wants to know all about the kinds of food we like and dislike and perhaps even share our favorite recipe.

Well Debs, I like pretty much like all kinds of food. Seafood is probably my favorite. I "see food" and then I eat it. Ha! However, these days I am on a healthy food kick. I love all kinds of vegetables and salads are at the top of my list. I can honestly say that brussel sprouts is the only vegetable that I have tried and dislike. I try to incorporate healthy cooking and eating into my daily living. After losing a significant amount of weight, I fully understand the saying, "you are what you eat".

Here is a low-fat, quick and easy recipe that I make often. I call it "Chicken over Rice"

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can 98% Campbell's Fat-Free Cream of Chicken Soup

Minute Rice or brown rice

Place chicken breasts in crock-pot. Add Cream of Chicken Soup. Turn crock-pot to low cook for up to 6 hours. 

Prepare rice as indicated on package. Serve shredded creamy chicken and "gravy" over prepared rice.

I usually serve a vegetable on the side with this dish. It is one of my kid's favorite meals!

All this talk of food is giving me a rumbly in my tumbly, so I am going to go fetch me a snack! Happy Monday everyone!

Click here for more food talk. Thanks for hosting Deb! 

Shoot Me #3 of 52

Is it Thursday already? Every Thursday I will be participating in "Shoot Me" hosted by Forever In Blue Jeans. You too can play. Click here to sign up and to see the other participants. Here are the rules:

Shoot Me! It's time to stop hiding behind that camera of yours. Your family is missing you in the picture. So it's time to post a picture of YOU (yes, you) every Thursday with your child, your spouse, your friend, your dog, or even by yourself. Just get in the picture, you'll be glad you did!

This photo was taken a few months ago by my youngest daughter, Nature Girl.

I am pictured here with my very best friend, husband, lover....soul mate.

Whisper Wednesday - A Girl and Her Dog

The difference between friends and pets is that friends we allow into our company, pets we allow into our solitude. ~Robert Brault

Fun Monday - My Shoe Fetish

Today's Fun Monday host is the one and only Thom from Hawaii. Thom's assignment is as follows:

Imelda Marcos apparently loved them. I despise them. We all have to use them. Shoes. What would we do without them? So please tell us about your shoes and pictures are encouraged.

Well it's no secret among my family and friends that I, Church Lady, have a shoe festish. I mean, what girl doesn't need a different pair of shoes to go with every outfit? I admit that I do have my fair share of flip flops, which are above all the most worn shoe out of my entire collection. But, I pretty much wear every single pair that I own at some point or another, depending upon the ocassion and the outfit. Here is my entire collection, minus the basket of flip flops (I forgot to take a photo).

Can you spot the pair of shoes below that DOES BELONG in my collection?

Be sure to hop on over to Thom's place to see some more SHOES! Thanks for hosting Thom!

It's A Bird, It's A Plane...It's The Space Station!

Last night at approximatly 9:35 p.m. we sighted the International Space Station flying in a straight line across the night sky. That's right folks, it flew right over my house in plain view. Then, at approximately 9:50 p.m, the space shuttle followed the same path!

Image above: The International Space Station is featured in this image photographed by an STS-131 crew member on space shuttle Discovery after the station and shuttle began their post-undocking relative separation. Credit: NASA

I'm not sure why, but this exicted me in a geeky kind of way. Just knowing that there are people on that tiny lighted object moving through space, is amazing in itself. But what is absolutley astonishing is that NASA can predict the exact, precise moment for these sightings where you live.   

I was first told about this exciting opportunity by M from M is for Misanthrope. We have become good blogging buddies over the past year. When she posted something about it on her blog last year, I remember thinking, huh, I'll bet my husband would love to see that! And sure enough, he is hooked.

Today, the space shuttle will catch up with the space station and will dock at approximately 10:27 a.m. The shuttle is dropping off supplies to the space station. You can click here to get a listing of sightings and times in your area. Just remember, if you live in or near a big city, it may be harder to spot because of the bright lights.

Thanks again to M for introducing this to us. I was so excited after my sighting, I wanted to share it with you all!

Shoot Me #2 of 52

Is it Thursday already? Every Thursday I will be participating in "Shoot Me" hosted by Forever In Blue Jeans. You too can play. Click here to sign up and to see the other participants. Here are the rules:

Shoot Me! It's time to stop hiding behind that camera of yours. Your family is missing you in the picture. So it's time to post a picture of YOU (yes, you) every Thursday with your child, your spouse, your friend, your dog, or even by yourself. Just get in the picture, you'll be glad you did!

I've decided that this project is harder than I thought it would be. Over the past 3 to 4 years, there are very few photos of me. With this project, I am  forced to take recent photos with me in them. I am slowly learning to be ok with this - slowly but surely.

Pictured below, I am with my yellow lab, Cooper. There is nothing he won't do for a cheese curl!

CL Parties Til Midnight With 70-Year-Old Man

FW (my hubby) and I attended an American Cancer Society fundraiser dance on Saturday evening at a nearby firehall. It was something I had been looking forward to for a while. But mostly, I was looking forward to a date night with  my hubby, having a good time with old friends, socializing and dancing the night away to the sound of some good ol classic rock and roll music. Quite frankly, I was looking forward to regressing a little. After all, it had been a very long time since I went to a dance. 

The dance was very well attended, and even though I had invited many friends to join us, we were only accompanied by my father-in-law (GD) and my step-mother-in-law. For blogging purposes, I will call my Step-MIL, Wonder Woman. She really is one fantastic lady. But, I'll save that for another post some other time. My friend Kim, the Dancing Hot Mama, also came to support the cause and to hang with us.   

I had a fantastic time with FW. We danced, we sang, we laughed, we drank (responsibly). It was the perfect date night.  The band, Bootleg played all my old favorites...Mustang Sally, Funky Town, Sweet Child of Mine and so many more! In fact, once upon a time, I was a Bootleg (Eclipse) groupie. My good friend is the lead singer and her dad plays the keyboard and harmonica. I used to hang out in their basement during band rehearsals many years ago. 

I was most impressed with my 70-year-old father-in-law who danced the night away like he was a young, vibrant stallion. His beautiful and vivacious sidekick, WonderWoman complimented him very well, as they boogied til midnight without a single yawn or look of boredom from either one of them. I could tell from their smiles that they were enjoying themselves and I felt  honored to be spending the evening with them. FW and I are seriously thinking that perhaps we should spend more double date nights with them. They like to have fun and they live life to the fullest every. single. day.

So, how bout it GD and Wonder Woman?  Are you open Friday night for some more dancing?

GD is not really sleeping in this photo. Or, maybe he is sleeping and smiling at the same time!

The band Bootleg (I apologize for the poor photo quality):

Kim, CL & Erin:

Fun Monday - Having a Ball

Joangee From Musings n Waffle is our hostess with the mostess this week and she is asking us to share our toys! Or, more specifically:

Toys, games and pass-times. If like me you have pets, and/or children which are their favourite toys? Photos please... Or what are your favourite pass-times?

The timing for this topic could not have been more appropriate. Although I have many toys (*wink *wink) that I could share with you all, I am most excited to unveil the latest, greatest toy my girls received as an early birthday present from their G.J. and grandpa.

My girls are getting a little older now and their toy collection has dwindled significantly. The days of the barbie dolls, blocks, lincoln logs, and dress up clothing are over (*sniff). Let me just add that the "toys" they wish for today are mostly electronics and a parent could go broke trying to keep up with the latest high-tech gadget that every teen must have.  BUT, there is still a glimmer of kid left in them as I discovered this weekend when they begged and pleaded for one of these:

 The Giga Ball

Check out a video clip here:

Be sure to check out the other fun toys from the FM participants here. I encourage you to play along too!

Shoot Me #1 of 52

Every Thursday I will be participating in "Shoot Me" hosted by Forever In Blue Jeans.  You too can play. Here are the rules:

Shoot Me! It's time to stop hiding behind that camera of yours. Your family is missing you in the picture. So it's time to post a picture of YOU (yes, you) every Thursday with your child, your spouse, your friend, your dog, or even by yourself. Just get in the picture, you'll be glad you did!

I have come to realize that I am not in too many photos these days. It all started a few years back when I reached my all time heaviest weight - ever. I was not feeling good about myself at all and found that I would rather die a slow death than have my photo taken. And even today, since I have lost 54 pounds and have been steadily maintaining my healthy weight range, I am still very reluctant having my photo taken. I am ALWAYS the picture taker...until now! So, get ready *gulp* and get set for 52 weeks of photos starring ME with my family, friends, pets, or just me alone! Yikes!

Whisper Wednesday - Stumped

"If you wish in this world to advance, your merits you're bound to enhance. You must stir it and stump it, and blow your own trumpet, or trust me, you haven't a chance." »W. S. Gilbert

Fun Monday - Up Close and Personal

Sayre Smiles is our lovely Fun Monday hostess this week and she has given us a photo challenge. Sayre would like to see a photo of our pet(s) up close and personal. The challenge is to take this photo at close range! It isn't always easy to have your pet hold still for a photo, so it should be fun to see what everyone can capture! Just click on Sayre's link above to see all the pet photos.

We spent a good part of our Saturday spreading top soil along our driveway to prepare it for grass seed. It was this time last year that our long driveway was finally paved and we are now just getting around to growing grass alongside it. 

In between shoveling and grading, our yellow lab, Cooper kept getting in the way. He loves to lay in the cool dirt.  So, I was able to capture a few close-up photos of his muddy nose! Notice the dirt on his tongue, teeth and around his lips. Ewwww!

Can you see the smile on his face?

He is most happy either in the dirt or on the boat and in the water!