Slow Fade

This song by Casting Crowns is one of my current favorites with such a powerful and true message.

It's a great reminder that the little choices that we make each and every single day- those that seem so minor and insignificant- are truly important and have consequences.

It's a reminder that because each choice is so important we must continually seek God's wisdom- so that we make the right choice.

It's a reminder that one sin doesn't usually cause someone to fall- it's one sin after another after another after another that leads to devastation.

It's a reminder that although we cannot undo the mistakes we make, we can learn from those mistakes so that we don't make the same ones again.

It's a reminder that we don't move away from God and a relationship with Him in one single instant but slowly fade away from Him, one act at a time.

It's a reminder that we must protect our hearts and minds and watch what we fill our minds with.

It's a reminder of God's mercy and grace and that He always forgives us when we come to Him with a repentant heart.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
I John 1:9

Pecan Pie Surprise Muffins

These are a great way to use up any leftover pecan pie you might have after Thanksgiving! They are absolutely fabulous fresh out of the oven. I made these for Madison's teachers and as soon as they came out of the oven I immediately ate half of one and I don't even like pecan pie!

3 slices pecan pie, frozen - homemade or frozen

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

3 1/2 t baking powder

1 t salt

2 T sugar

1/4 t cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 12 cup muffin tin or spray with flour-added Pam. Cut each frozen pie slice into 4 chunks. Place one pie chunk in each muffin tin. In a small bowl, beat together egg, milk, melted butter and vanilla extract. In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add egg mixture; stir just until blended. Spoon batter into muffin tins, covering pecan pie chunks. Stir together topping ingredients (sugar and cinnamon) and sprinkle evenly over muffin tops.Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes; remove from muffin tins.
Makes 12 muffins

NEVERENDING Thanksgiving Prayer

It's 4:00AM, Where Are YOU?

On Your Mark...........................

Get Set.................................

SHOP!!!!!

Blessed and Thankful

Hem your blessings with thankfulness so they don't unravel.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Blessed Beyond Measure

As I stop today to thank God for the
many, many, many undeserved
blessings in my life
I am truly in awe of His love
for me and for you.

We truly are the apple of His eye,
the bee in His bonnet,
the Cool Whip on his pumpkin pie,
the cherry in His Sonic Diet Coke.

Regardless of how many times
we lose our tempers,
are ugly to those around us,
snap at others,
are selfish and thoughtless,
He loves us simply because
He is who He is.






And because of that fact
we are truly
Blessed Beyond Measure!


On this day of Thanksgiving
my prayer for you today is that you
are reminded
over and over and over again
how much God loves you!


Happy Thanksgiving sweet friends!

Thanksgiving Inspiration

This morning I'm running around like a crazy woman in my grandma's apron cleaning and cooking and preparing for Thanksgiving for my sweet family at our house tomorrow.

So instead of reading my silly ramblings, here are some fabulous and thoughtful posts that you simply must read. These truly touched my heart this week and I hope they will touch yours.

You Choose

Running (not that kind of running)

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

PS Here's one more link that is guaranteed to make you laugh your Thanksgiving head off! Be prepared because it's a HOOT! Fun Things to Do On Thanksgiving

Randomness on a Tuesday Morning

I got to see a sweet childhood friend this weekend. I've known Dia for FOREVER (at least since we were 5) and haven't seen her in at least 20 years. What a treat it was to get to catch up with her and meet her absolutely adorable 2 and 1/2 year old daughter! Old friends are so special!







How cute is this Thankful garland hanging from my mantle? These pics do not do it justice (my camera stinks and I'm hoping Santa will bring me a new one)- it is truly adorable. I saw it on the Emmie Cakes website and just had to buy one. You can buy the garlands either assembled or unassembled (which is how I ordered mine) and in many different styles and for many different occasions- birthdays, Christmas, baby showers just to name a few. So fun!




I saw these in my new Sur La Table catalog last night and absolutely cracked up! They are Onion Goggles and are sturdy plastic goggles that feature a comfortable foam seal that protects eyes from onion vapors; with anti-fog lenses for maximum clarity. For only $22 you can have your very own pair. What a hoot!

As I am super busy preparing for Thanksgiving with my sweet family this song keeps running through my head over and over and over again from Adam Sandler on SNL back in the good old days(please forgive the not so nice part of the song).

Soapapilla Spanish Cheesecake

When I visited Dory a few weeks ago, her precious daughter Luby made the yummiest dessert EVER! It was a Soapapilla Cheesecake and it was FABULOUS! Although I only allowed myself to eat two bites of it- it was, pure HEAVEN!As a bonus, it was easy-peasy!

So after arriving home last night from our trip to Dallas, I whipped it up for my family. I also took a piece to a few of my favorite ladies at work who loved, loved, loved it! So, if you are looking for a yummy and easy dessert or breakfast, this recipe is for you!

2 pkgs cream cheese

2 pkgs crescent rolls

1 cup sugar

1 t vanilla

1/2 c melted butter

1/2 cup cinnamon sugar (1/2 cup sugar with 1 T cinnamon)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 9 x 13 inch pan (sprayed with Pam), unroll 1 roll of crescent rolls and press them onto the bottom of the pan. Press them together to create one solid sheet of dough. Mix together sugar, cream cheese, and vanilla. Spread over crescent rolls. Unroll the other can of crescent rolls and place on top of cream cheese layer. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture and pour melted butter on top. Bake for 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

A Premonition

Leaving the hotel in Dallas this afternoon after a fabulous weekend at a Dance Revolution with my sweet daughter I had only one thing on my mind.

Just one. (Which is rare considering the fact that I am ALWAYS multi-tasking. ALWAYS!)

Not trying to make sure that I knew where I was going on the never ending maze of highways and interstates- even though I didn't exactly know where I was going.

Not thinking ahead to all that awaited me at home- laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, and all that fun stuff.

Not thinking about how I missed my hubby and wanted to kiss his sweet face- although I did miss him and wanted to kiss his sweet face.

Not thinking ahead to all that must be done at school after missing school on Friday- although there is a TON.

My mind was on one simple thing.

Something I had been missing terribly since early Friday morning.

Two whole days.

My love.

Mi amor.

Mon Amour.

And so I tuned out the chatter from the car and focused intently on scouring the frontage roads looking for a sign.

THE best sign ever.

And yet I did not see one.

For miles and miles and miles and miles I looked and did not see one.

We continued on past exit after exit after exit with my heart feeling so very sad.

All of a sudden I saw a sign for Exit number 38 and I had a premonition.

I felt relief flood all over me.

Somehow I just knew that my love would be waiting for me there.

I immediately changed lanes and exited at exit 38- which just happens to be the same number as my current age. A true sign, don't you think?

I scoured the roadside and pulled up to a stoplight.

Sadly I did not see my love anywhere but as I waited for the light to change my sweet friend Betty looked to the right - and there, just a few blocks down there it was!

I pulled in to place my order with a huge smile over my very tired face.

My premonition was right.

My Sonic Sense was intact.

And all was well.

Sweet Girls

Dancing faces you towards Heaven, whichever direction you turn.

Links I Love

Blogtations- this site is a HOOT! Each day it features a funny quote from a blog. Most are absolutely hysterical and never fail to crack me up! Here's one recent example:

Note to Self: Do NOT get a bikini wax from someone who just found out her boyfriend is sleeping with someone else. (from I Found a Fatal Flaw in the Logic of Love)

Little Brown Photo Converter- this is a site where you can take a recent photo and turn it into a cool vintage looking photo. The site is in Japanese but it's easy to navigate regardless. Beware- it's addicting!

Upside Down Dogs- This site is just a fun one that is just pictures of cute doggies- upside down. Great for those days when you just need a little smile! So silly but so funny!

DIY Candy Bar Wrappers- I love anything personalized and these cuties from Rachel Ray are customizable candy bar wrappers. Simply choose a wrapper, fill in the information, print them out and fold around a candy bar. Such a cute party favor that's simple and oh so cute!

Please STOP Saying That!!

Is it wrong that I take such joy in repeatedly saying a phrase that drives my daughter absolutely crazy?

I think it's funny but she thinks it's so stupid and rolls her eyes and says "Mooooooom" every single time I utter it. I even shared it with Honey and he now does it too.

Is it bad that I enjoy it?

He he he he he he he he.

PS The phrase she hates is "Double Duh". Not just "Duh" but "Double Duh." Isn't that a hoot?

Happy Fail

I read this quote and decided to try it out:

Be pleasant until ten o'clock in the morning and the rest of the day will take care of itself.

Elbert Hubbard

I'll let you know if it works.

So, Maybe They AREN'T So Fun After All

Not everyone is as amused and tickled by our pay-back prank

as you sweet blog readers are.

Let's just say that after just one attempt,

my days of prank pay backs are

OVER.

Paybacks are FUN!

Remember back a few months ago when I arrived at school one Monday morning to find this?

My friend Josh had pranked my room and Betty's room- along with a little help from our friend Shawna.

I've spent the last few weeks pretending I had forgotten that little prank.

But forgotten I had NOT.

This past weekend my alma matter- Baylor University (which is NOT known for it's sports ability)- beat our hometown team- Texas A&M. Now Texas A&M is a school that takes it's football VERY seriously and is known for it's football team,. As a result, they consistently beat my poor little BU team. So the fact that Baylor won this weekend was a huge victory and one I was tickled green over!

Now Josh is an Aggie (as is just about everyone in this town). A die hard Aggie. During the game in Waco- where Josh was in attendance (as he is at EVERY SINGLE A&M game- home or away)- I texted him each time Baylor scored. Just fun little messages like "Go Bears!" or "Sic em Bears!". I never heard back from him but am sure he just loved those little surprises from me!

Since it was such a great and unusual victory- and since I won't be at school first thing tomorrow morning because Maddie has an orthodontist appointment- I decided this was the perfect time to pay him back for his little prank.

So after a visit to several dollar stores here in town to find some green supplies (Baylor's colors are green and gold) we were ready to go.

So this morning, Josh will be greeted with this sign on his door.

And will open that door to see his room:

I even changed the desktop on his computer.

That's what he gets for leaving his computer on and himself logged in. :)

This is a note I left on his suggestion box. Good suggestion don't you think?

Paybacks ARE fun, don't you think?

Thanks

The LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.

My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song.

Psalm 27:7

The Joys of Living in the South

In the winter, birds migrate to the south.

We, in Texas, ARE the South.

This was the parking lot as I arrived at the grocery store yesterday morning at 6:05am.

Let's just say I was a little bit (ALOT) scared to get out of the car.

Can we say Alfred Hitchcock "The Birds"?

Another Mystery Solved

And this is how my sweet husband is able to stand living with two

VERY VERY VERY

chatty females.

(And believe it or not, I am the quieter of those two. Really.)

What if He Says No?

As I read a wonderful book recently ( John 3:16 by Nancy Moser- which I highly recommend and got at our local library) I was struck by a scene during which an older lady was speaking to her daughter-in-law about something she really wanted.


"Have you been praying about it? Asking God for His direction?"

"No"

"Why not?"

"What if God says no?"

"So you only want to consult God if you'll get the answer you want?"
"I'm certainly not seeking an answer I don't want."

"No I suppose you're not. I suppose none of us does. The thing is, God knows best. He knows what he's doing because he sees the big picture. We may think we know what's best for us, or even for others, but he knows. That's why it's best if we let him do the choosing for us."

"Then why pray for anything specific? If you're just going to let God do what He wants anyway, then why ask?"

"We don't let God do what He wants. He just does it."

"I repeat, why ask?"

"Because above all else he wants us to turn to him, communicate with him. That's what prayer accomplishes. And it does yield results. 'For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened'"



I was struck by this scene because on the surface it seemed so ridiculous- not praying because you are worried He will say no? I thought......how silly is that?

But as I went on to finish the book- that scene kept coming back to my mind time and time again.

And it made me think of the times I have NOT prayed- simply because I didn't want to hear an answer from God.

About the times I did NOT pray because I wasn't willing to accept His answer, His will, and His plan.

About the times I did NOT pray simply because I was selfish and didn't want to submit.

About the times I did NOT pray simply because I didn't want to go through the difficult times that might follow.

About the times I did NOT pray because I simply didn't want to be obedient.

And I realized that sometimes, I'm just like that girl in the book.

Silly and ridiculous and disobedient.

And so I prayed and asked God to forgive me for those times and to help me to pray- always and about everything.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Strep Throat Haiku

Strep throat is NO fun
Feels like a bunch of cut glass
Dancing in my throat.

The weird, the cute, and the funny

The Weird
As Dory, her girls and I shopped in Dory's favorite store (the one that starts with W and ends with ALMART) last Thursday, we walked past a display that caught my eye. It wasn't something I had ever seen before so I stopped to take a look. The three of them laughed at me as I whipped out my phone to take a quick picture.

I don't know about my fellow Texans, but this is not something I had ever seen before.

Pickled.

Bologna.

Pickled bologna.

And they say we are a bit odd here in Texas.

And as if regular bologna wasn't yucky enough.


The Cute
Then while staying in a hotel in Louisville I opened the bathroom door to find the cutest little tiny sink in with the potty. It was so stinkin' tiny and so stinkin' cute. My hand could barely fit in the sink.

Dory said it was so cute and dinky that it should be called a DINK. Isn't it precious?

The Funny
After our trip to Louisville Dory and I were driving home to her house when we passed by several concrete stores with very large statues out in front. Even though it was freezing cold outside, we stopped to take some fun pictures with a few of them. Every time I look at them, they make me smile! And they make me miss Dory even more than normal (which is already A LOT)!