Friday Freebie!!!

Welcome to the First Friday in 2010!!!!



As has become custom, we give something away every Friday. As has ALSO become custom, my friend Mimi does this at HER place the first Friday of the month. Go check her out and see what you can win this time around!

That there? Her name in lights. Click on it and go win something.

Good luck & Happy Next Year to ya!!!!!

Top Ten List!

It's that time of year again - time to make resolutions. Looking forward to a new year - a new chance - starting over - clean, crisp and fresh like brand new sheets?

Only, uh, I don't make resolutions. The past few years my friend Kim and I have picked a word we'd like to embody more by the end of the year. She was inspired by another blog she reads and we happily stole the idea. Upon checking with Kim a few days ago, we discovered that we had perhaps fallen short this year. I say perhaps because neither of us can remember what our words were so we may have embodied our words and just don't know it. So we only half failed, I guess.

So, looking for some guidance on getting a fresh start in 2010, I went looking for the Top 10 Things I should Resolve. According to ABC, here they are...

Lose Weight
Get Fit
Manage Debt
Save Money
Get A Better Job
Get a Better Education
Quit Smoking Now
Drink Less Alcohol
Reduce Stress
Take a Trip

Oh, sure - I can do that! Let's break those down, shall we? Oh come on....it'll be FUN!

Lose Weight: I've tried to lose weight. In fact, I thought I lost it, but it always finds me again. It's like my arse puts out an Amber Alert for the missing padding when I shed the pounds. SOS! Mayday! Mayday! We have LOST the ass fat! Repeat: The ass fat is MISSING! Code Adam! Red Alert! We will stop at NOTHING to get that lost weight back! REWARD OFFERED!

Get Fit: Can you buy that somewhere? I checked at Costco and they were out of stock. Overstock.com has no listing for "fit" either. If I knew where I could buy it, I'd buy me a Fit and then I'd be able to complete this resolution.

Manage Debt: My debt is managed quite nicely, thankyouverymuch. Rob knows exactly where the debt is and what we owe to which companies. It's all piled up neatly and I resent the implication that we don't know how to file our mail.

Save Money: Do I look like Wonder Woman? An Evangelist? I'm in no position to save money. Money can save itself. If money doesn't ever learn to save itself then it will be co-dependant for it's entire existence and will never reach the level of emotional maturity that it needs. I would only be hurting money more if I saved it.

Get a Better Job: Define Better. I mean, I don't hate my JOB, per se. I dislike (tremendously) aspects of my job and people at my job but on the whole i don't hate my job. I wouldn't mind a better PAYING job. Besides, who's to say what's better and what's not? Maybe I already have a better job than you do? Ever consider that? I have a better job than the guy at Taco Bell that has to clean the grease traps. I have a better job than the guy that has to suck the crap out of outhouses with a great big hose. Better is subjective. Nah, I don't need a better job. (Email me for my resume!)

Get A Better Education: Again with the better?! Better than what? C'mon now..I graduated high school at the very bottom of my class - that's better than some people, right? What kind of education is better? A BA? MD? What? Huh? And how am I supposed to Save Money if I'm getting a Better Education? These all seem to contradict each other..no wonder everyone fails to keep them.

Quit Smoking Now: That cracks me up. Not later. Not next week. Now. Quit Smoking NOW. En-Oh-Double-Ewe. Cigarette companies love this time of year - people stock up and smoke twice their regular amount for the week leading up to New Years Day just so they can "quit". Then Nicorette and the patch get to take a turn at the revenue blast. It's an equal opportunity resolution. But do it Now. Not in March, ok?

Drink Less Alcohol: This is kind of vague, again, isn't it? Less than who? Less than Tommy Lee? Done. Less than Meg Ryan in When A Man Loves A Woman? Done. Less than Rob? Hmm...I'd have to quit entirely, then. See? Subjective, again. I don't like these vague resolutions. Let's put some definition to them. I resolve to drink less than Lindsay Lohan this year. See? Now you have some guidelines.

Take a Trip: If I try and keep all these resolutions the only trip I'll be taking is to the looney bin. Don't drink, don't smoke, don't spend, don't eat - what do ya do? (Adam Ant!) Let's Go Crazy! (Prince!) Besides, I have 4 kids - we have to save up to head out to dinner at someplace other than IckDonalds (Cute Little Snelling Girl!). If we want to order something that hasn't been bathed in grease and sweat then we need to budget it in 6 months in advance. Maybe we'll do that. Pizza hut? HERE WE COME!

Reduce Stress: Is this for real? I mean...seriously? Reduce Stress? How? Again - I'm not shopping, not eating, not smoking, not drinking - where is my outlet?? Yeah, yeah - Rob thinks that I should just substitute sex for all of those things. AND! Added benefit, he says, - Great Exercise - I could get FIT too!. *Ahem* Or, yk, knocked up. Reduce Stress. HA! Double HA! Reduce, Reuse and Recycle is my motto. I reduce stress by reusing it over and over - I just keep stressing about all the same stuff thus recycling the same emotions and habits. When I do this then I don't have room for any new stressors so I thereby reduce my stress by keeping up with the stress I currently have.

I really think that I've more than proven my point about New Years Resolutions.

Someone bring me a drink. (And some of those little cocktail wieners in BBQ sauce?)

Iron Chef: Christmas Goodies Winner

New to Blogstyle Iron Chef? Read about it here.

Our contestants for this month were:

Cheryl with 1-2-3 Dough
Susie with Susie's Homemade Caramel Bars
Jen T with Four Layer Dessert
Annie with Microwave Peanut Brittle

The votes are in and have been tallied but first I just want to thank everyone that entered a recipe and that participated in voting. Especially the guest judges that committed to making all four dishes and gave me their opinion on them.

All of the recipes were good (as usual!) but the recipe with the most votes and the winner of Iron Chef December is...

Jen T with her Four Layer Dessert

Congratulations, Jen!!

12 Days 2009 Wrap Up

Christmas has ended and our 12 Days of Giving for 2009 is done. We didn't manage to get EVERYTHING on our list done, but we ended up doing 3-4 other things that weren't on there, so I think it all evens out in the end.

It's wonderful to be able to give, isn't it? To give your time, your possessions, your money - whatever - it just creates a warm feeling inside a person.

A couple of times this year, our attempts to give were thwarted by people who were too proud to accept or didn't want to play along. A dear friend of mine that was named Evie used to always say, "Receiving is a discipleship." To which she meant that you have to WORK at being a good receiver. You rob other people of blessings when you don't allow them to give to you or o for you. When you're too proud or embarrassed or grumpy and you turn away those that seek to bless you? You are stealing from them the chance to have that warm feeling bloom inside of them. Be humble enough and grateful enough to just let people love you.

It's wonderful to give and it's wonderful to receive because in both cases there are blessings that abound.

May you all be as blessed as we have been in our lives.

What We Do Not Say

Have you ever just been overflowing with things you want to say but do not say them? Stories to tell but you do not tell? Praises to sing, sadness to lament, losses to mourn, anger to expel - yet you remain silent?

Why?

Why do you not say the things you want to say? Why do they remain unsaid?

Sometimes the stories I want to tell are not only my own. The sadness I feel is too overpowering to put words to and to try would feel like cheating. Praises that I want to just savor and keep close to my heart.

Words left unsaid because of the fear of saying them. They can exist in my head and my heart but the minute I say them out loud they become real and undeniable. Once they are out - I can't take them back.

And sometimes? There are just no words left.

Christmas Cards from the Edge

Dear person whose name I can not mention because it'll get me fired:

You are an insufferable jerk. Your constant need to berate and degrade those that work under you is both contemptible and laughable. The way you treat the whole team of us is unethical and immature. Your insinuations and outright degradations only signify that you lack the talent, experience and intelligence to do your job correctly. You , sir, are a joke. You are obviously trying to overcompensate for some shortcomings - both physical *cough cough* and mental.

I refuse to answer your emails any longer. If this gets me fired, then so be it. Every time I see a message from you I need a xanax just to open it. You are a small, small man and the air around you rots in your presence. Birds drop dead in mid-flight from the evil that emanates from your aura. Snakes slither away in fear. Babies cry when they sense your presence. Small children cower.

It is my sincerest wish that, for Christmas this year, someone leaves a huge steaming pile of human feces on your doorstep and eggs your house with eggs that have sat rotting for months. And that they stick fish under the backseats of your car to rot. May you get incurable jock itch and hemorrhoids the size of golf balls.

You make me sick.

Oops...I Did It Again...

*sigh* In the past few weeks I've also managed to melt another plastic bowl on the stove top (FYI - putting a plastic bowl on a burner that's on is not smart), lit the metal tea kettle on fire (was using it as a humidifier and it ran out of water), set the top of the stove on fire while trying to make gravy and cut the turkey (gravy boiled over and I had all 3 other burners going - POOF!) and cracked the bottom of a glass bowl using it in the microwave.

Bowl to my obvious kitchen superiority.

No, I'm not pregnant.

12 Days of Giving Update

Heya! Thought it was time for a little update on our 12 Days of Giving!

Bake Treats for Neighbor - the girls took over a tin of cookies to the college guys that live behind us. You know - the ones that keep me up at 2 in the morning with their stupid bull whip? Yep. Them.

Collect all the change in the house and put it in a Salvation Army red bucket - Oooh! We tried to do this today and hiked up to Smith's to drop off the money. Only, uh, apparently they don't bell ring on Sundays. Der. That's ok, it was a good walk! LOL We'll try again later

Buy and give flowers to the school secretary - Sienna picked out an African Violet plant and a Chocolate bar and delivered it to her school secretary with a note saying Thanks for all she does. Yay!

Make Ornaments for Neighbor and Deliver Anonymously - I totally forgot to take pics! The girls painted some clear glass ornaments and have been delivering them throughout the day to neighbors in a bag with some little treats. I snagged this pic and here's a how-to:



Make a Wreath and Leave it on Someones Door Anonymously - the girls decorated this wreath and dropped it off at a neighbor's house this morning. Didn't they do a fab job???



Buy a Bag of Groceries at Smith's for Charity - If you go to Smith's/Kroger's you can most likely pick up a little sheet of paper/order form. For $7 they will put together a bag of groceries full of things like veggies, mac n cheese, hamb helper, etc. and donate it to the food bank in your area. Just SEVEN dollars! I know $7 is a lot for most of us, but it might be two meals for another family, yk? I can find $7 SOMEWHERE.

Cara Go Play Checkers at Retirement home with a resident - talked to the guy we're doing this with and just need to call and set up the day. Waiting to see Rob's schedule so we can work it out! The guy is pretty darned excited to teach Cara how to play HIS version of Chinese Checkers LOL

Deliver Dinner Anonymously to a Neighbor - Oh, we had SO much fun with this one! We created a little note from Santa's Elves and gave the neighbors the choice of a few items. Then we gave them their choice of days and asked what time they ate. The day they wanted it delivered, I made up a big ole pot of Chili and pan of cornbread for the family of 8. Sienna and I snuck over and dropped it off on their porch at the appointed time and then they feasted! Cara goes to school with the kids that live there and they were telling EVERYONE about how Santa's Elves were delivering dinner that night. Yay! Such FUN!

Food Drive - Sometimes, things don't go as you plan. We handed out 96 notes and bags letting people know we'd be by to pick up their donations the next Saturday. This Saturday we went to all 96 doors and got not ONE donation. The girls were sorely disappointed. Rob said it was too long between dropping the note off and picking up. People forgot. Probably true - plus the economy, blah blah blah. So, I took the girls over to the grocery store and let them spend $30 on food which we took and donated to the Food Bank. We improvised. *wink*

Still left to do:

Shovel Someone's Walk - has to snow first!
Give Blood (heidi) - this week sometime!

And 1 of these (depends on budget):
Adopt a Child off Angel Tree
Buy a GOOD (not fast food) dinner for someone holding a Sign
$10 Gift Card to Target for Someone that Needs it

Thank you SO much to everyone that has joined in! I just know that you are blessing so many people with your acts of kindness! I love it!

Have a grand week.

Friday Freebie!!

Welcome to Friday - Christmas RUSH week! I don't know about *you* but I have been utterly SWAMPED lately, and I've barely done a lick of Christmas shopping, either! Not one gift is wrapped (since, yk, I barely HAVE anything LOL)!

But yk what? It's all good. Who cares?? Not me. Really and truly - free yourselves and just stop stressing about it all. We lose the gift of Joy that is given to us through the holiday season when we worry so much about what to buy, when to buy, how we're going to afford to buy. Just breathe and revel in all the love that surrounds you.

This is the LAST Friday Freebie of 2009! That's right - no freebie next Friday because it's Christmas and a freebie was already given to you on that day. It trumps anything *I* could add!

But today? Oh, today. Today we're being hosted over at a site I love to meander through. I almost had to break up with her because I was feeling envious of her abilities and obvious talent. But, I stuck with it, overcame the jealousy and go drool at her site quite often.

You should, too! If you don't already read Jen from Tatertots and Jello then you are truly missing out on a wonderful, warm, caring woman.

Go check her out and see what she has for you today!!

Ode to Morning

Morning, Morning - man, you stink,
you're here before I can even blink.

In the winter it's bitter and dark.
A happy time? What a Lark!

With Summer we get an early sunrise,
which means my snooze button has met it's demise.

Morning, Morning - You've been unfriended.
My favorite time is after you've ended.

Please, oh please, just let me be
take a vacation, I beg you! Geez!

Keep your light, your sparkle and dew
I'm not ready to start the day anew.

Morning, Morning, you really suck,
you make my children run amuck.

A moments peace I'm never afforded
my attempts at quiet are always thwarted.

Cheery people, happy faces
just need to stay in their own little spaces.

Morning, Morning - we're over and through.
Let the world know I've banished you.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

12 Days of Giving 2009

(Original post here.)

Today is the official start of our 12 Days of Giving. The kids and I will be heading out to do a little leg work for our biggest thing and then we'll come home and do the one we've got planned for today. Here's our list:

Shovel Someone's Walk
Bake Treats for Neighbor
Give Blood (heidi)
Collect all the change in the house and put it in a Salvation Army red bucket
Buy and give flowers to the school secretary (maybe give her lunch, too, depends on budget)
Make Ornaments for Neighbor and Delivery Anonymously
Make a Wreath and Leave it on Someones Door Anonymously
Buy a Bag of Groceries at Smith's for Charity
Girls Go Play Checkers at Retirement home with a resident (see about making it a long term thing!)
Deliver Dinner Anonymously to a Neighbor

And 1 of these (depends on budget):

Adopt a Child off Angel Tree
Buy a GOOD (not fast food) dinner for someone holding a Sign
$10 Gift Card to Target for Someone that Needs it

Our big thing this year is a neighborhood food drive. I've printed off 40 notes that say:

Neighborhood Food Drive!
We are collecting food for the Food Bank. Please help assist local Families by donating needed food items. Simply place your donated items in this bag and place it on your doorstep for pickup on December 16th after 12 Noon. We will then deliver the items directly to the Food Bank on behalf of our neighborhood. The food wish list is below but any non-perishable food items would be greatly appreciated and useful.

Peanut Butter & Jelly
Hamburger Helper and Macaroni & Cheese
Canned meals like Stew and Ravioli
Canned Fruit and Canned Vegetables
Ramen

The girls and I are attaching them to plastic bags and leaving them on peoples door knobs this afternoon. Next Saturday, after church, we'll head back out and pick up whatever people leave for us then deliver it to the Food Bank.

How about you all? Is anyone else doing the 12 Days of Giving or anything like it? How's it going?? Feel free to steal any idea! I also posted a list of free ideas we came up with here, if you need some help. ALso feel free to snag the 12 Days button and post it!



Have a day!

Friday Freebie!!!

Are you ready for some FOOTBALL?!?!

This week's Friday Freebie is hosted at a place with a Quarterback and a Receiver and I can't guarantee that the prize won't have something to do with a sports team. HA! I kid. It most likely won't. It FOR SURE will be something fabulous, no matter what!

Head on over and see what's up for grabs today!

Thanks for hosting, Tarah!

Spoon Man

If you know me at all, you know I'm not big on touching or snuggling or whatever. I mean, I do it with my honey and kids but I have limits. The girls and Rob are ALL too familiar with the "I'm Done." pat. When I feel like I'm going to suffocate I do that pat and they get the message. Other people in my family (*cough*My MIL*cough) do not get the whole "pat" thing. Rob tends to think it's funny to just hang on tighter and tighter AFTER the pat. He thinks it's ok to NOT let go and to further hold me captive. He laughs his evil laugh while I try to get away.

Note to Rob: That's not cool, yo. Vengence will be mine.

I'm not really sure why I picked a cuddler as my husband, but I did. This man likes to cuddle and snuggle. It's one of his love languages, I think. Once, when we were still dating, we had gone to help his parents pick up his sister from the private Christian school she attended. While waiting for the advisor/dorm person to come clear the room so we could leave, Rob and I were just laying on the bed in the "spoon" position. Another lady we knew from church went by and made a comment about us spooning. Without missing a beat and without even understanding the magnitude of what he was saying, Rob says, "At least we're not Forking."

I damn near wet myself.

To this day he's still a Spooner.

Here's to you, Spoon Man.

Iron Chef: Christmas!!!

Here we are again! This is the FINAL edition of Blogstyle Iron Chef for the year! The challenge was Holiday Goodies and we had some great entries!

New to Blogstyle Iron Chef? Read about it here.

Our contestants for this month are:

Cheryl with 1-2-3 Dough
Susie with Susie's Homemade Caramel Bars
Jen T with Four Layer Dessert
Annie with Microwave Peanut Brittle

Get your aprons on and get baking!! I'll put the poll up in the sidebar next week, for poular opinion and collect the guest judge votes Tuesday the 29th.

Good luck and Enjoy!!

And the Winner is....

Many of you entered to win this Stacking Toy Train by Melissa and Doug but I have bad news. I'm just gonna keep it for myself. Thanks for stopping by, though. I appreciate it.

HA!

Just kidding. LOL That would suck for you, wouldn't it? Ok...so...according the random.org the winner is the owner of comment #14.

Congratulations Kaleena!! Please email me with your mailing information and I will get that where it needs to be ASAP! If I don't hear from you within 48 hours, I will choose another winner to ensure that this item gets out in time for Christmas.

Thanks for playing along!

5 Gifts & A Giveaway

List 5 must have gifts you are purchasing for a loved one this Christmas.

1) Apron for Cara
2) Boots for Sienna
3) Gift Certificates for all the kids stockings
4) Diego's Animal Rescue Railway for Corban & Brennan
5) New Jammies for all 4 kids to open on Christmas Eve

Remember in this post I talked about ordering a gift for Corban that combined two things he LOVES? Well, now you know what it is! It's Diego's Animal Rescue Railway and I'm so excited! We decided to get it and give it to both the boys as their big gift. The plan is to set it up after they go to bed Christmas Eve so they see it first thing in the morning. I can't WAIT to see their faces!!

I ordered from a place that sells online toys and I'm really glad I did. I didn't have to go out in the -10 degree frozen tundra, it was shipped SUPER fast and it came to my door. I mean, really? How much easier can it get??? If you need to still shop for that little someone I definitely say hit this store up. They even like to know if you find the item for a lower price elsewhere - that's nearly unheard of! Most items ship within 24-72 hours so you can still shop and get it in time for Christmas (for all us late bloomers out there LOL) and they have a great variety of items for all ages.

What? Oh - the giveaway? My wisdom and advice about a store that sells online toys isn't enough for you? Hmph. Fine. How about we give away a little sumthin' sumthin' you can give to YOUR little one??

I love Melissa and Doug toys. They're so well made and sturdy, ya know? And I don't know about your kids but my littles LOVE trains. LOVE them. So, how about this...


A Stacking Train Toy from Melissa and Doug! Oh c'mon, you KNOW you want one. Heck *I* want one LOL

This prize is so great you're going to have to work a little for it...but I'll give you two chances to win.

1 entry for telling me 5 things you're getting your family this year
1 entry for heading over and checking out the online toys and telling me one item on your wish list (in a separate comment, please)

I'll leave the contest open until midnight tomorrow (Tuesday) and announce the winner on Wednesday morning. The item will ship DIRECT to you from the site and has a ship time of 24-48 hours - Woot! another Christmas gift!

Well, what are you waiting for??

Have a Monday.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Writing prompt courtesy of Mama Kat's Writing Workshop, again. Thanks Mama Kat!

COMMENTS CLOSED

7th Grade Sucked but the Music Rocked.

Actually, 7th grade was a mix of things, ya know? It was when I first got the crap really beaten out of me by some 9th grade hussy who was upset that her boyfriend was flirting with me. So she tormented me and taunted me and pushed me down the stairs. Then one day she and her little gaggle of groupies cornered me in the bathroom and smacked my head against the radiator. Good times.

It was also the year that I had my first period "accident". I was in Science class, in a mini skit (thankyouverymuch) and just started bleeding all freaking over. I tried to go to the bathroom but had used all my bathroom passes and my teacher wouldn't let me go. He was a..He. A friend donated hers and I ran to the bathroom, cleaned up and called my mom. She brought me clean clothes but as I'm sitting in my bloody skirt in the hall by the office, anxiously awaiting her arrival Thad walked by. Thad. With hearts. Thad. He was my crush. And it was the FIRST FREAKING TIME he ever spoke to me. Sitting there hoping to God above he didn't notice anything weird. Good times.

Of course, it was also the year I had my first "steady" boyfriend (John Pharr), started going to dances and met my very best friend in the whole wide world, Michel. In fact, one of my children has her name as their middle name.

So, as part of Mama Kat's writing Assignment, she gave this prompt and I just couldn't pass it up:

1.) Verse by verse, dissect a favorite song you had in 7th grade.

I had SO many favorites! Talk Dirty to Me by Posion (uh, how was this appropriate?), Bon Jovi, Motley Crew, Guns and Roses and yes *hangs head in shame* I even dabbled in Tiffany and Deborah Gibson. What? You wanna throw down? Psh. That's what I thought.

So what was my most favorite song? Well, it's still one of my favorites today that's how much I love this song. It remained a favorite through the years, and when it comes on the radio station now I totally hit the volume to full and rock out the mini-van. In my mind I imagine I'm Tawny Kitain - I mean, who didn't want to be Tawny Kittain when this video came out? Huh?

Here I go Again by Whitesnake

I don't know where I'm going
But, I sure know where I've been

It was a mystery, indeed.

Hanging on the promises
In songs of yesterday

So many promises in the songs of yesterday to hang on.

An' I've made up my mind
I ain't wasting no more time

Time was a wastin'. I wasn't gettin' any younger.

But, here I go again
Here I go again

Again. Here I go. Because I've gone before and now I'm going again.

Tho' I keep searching for an answer
I never seem to find what I'm looking for

I was looking for a lot when I was in 7th grade and there was no cheat sheets.

Oh Lord, I pray
You give me strength to carry on

Middle school requires infinite amounts of strength.

Cos I know what it means
To walk along the lonely street of dreams

No, I wasn't a streetwalker - but the street of dreams was just up the road from Electric Avenue so, yk, I was familiar with it.

An' here I go again on my own
Goin' down the only road I've ever known
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

A lonely 12/13 year old drifter. On the only road I'd ever known. Can you feel my pain and agony? The despair??

An' I've made up my mind
I ain't wasting no more time

Seriously. There's no time to waste. 8th grade would be here before I knew it and I needed to not be "on my own".

I'm just another heart in need of rescue
Waiting on love's sweet charity

Sad, lonely 12/13 year old heart needing rescued from the pain. Sadness. Loneliness.

An' I'm gonna hold on
For the rest of my days
Cos I know what it means
To walk along the lonely street of dreams
An' here I go again on my own
Going down the only road I've ever known
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
An' I've made up my mind
I ain't wasting no more time
But here I go again
Here I go again
Here I go again
Here I go again
Cos I know what it means
To walk along the lonely street of dreams
An' here I go again on my own
Going down the only road I've ever known
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
An' I've made up my mind
I ain't wasting no more time
An' here I go again on my own
Going down the only road I've ever known
Like a drifter I was born to walk alone
Cos I know what it means
To walk along the lonely street of dreams

Awesome guitar solo in there, too. But you can see why it appealed to me, right? There I was about to embaek on a tremendously lonely journey: Middle School/Jr. High. I needed to find solace in song. *sigh*

You can watch a video of it here but I can not embed it because the jerks have gone and required it disabled for copyright purposes. Whatever.

What was your favorite song in 7th grade?

12 Days of Giving

(Original post here.)

Wow! It's so amazing to see how many of you are incorporating this into your holidays this year!!

Some of you have contacted me, asking for ideas on what to do, so I've compiled a little list. Hope that it helps! Oh, and if you are participating I'd LOVE to know about it and follow along on your journey, so be sure and let me know.

I understand the importance of keeping costs low. It's hard to dig in and find something that doesn't exist, so what about these FREE options for Giving?

*Scrape your neighbors windshield one morning

*Shovel someones walkway

*Bring back their garbage can from the curb

*Let someone go in front of you in line

*Put together a Parent's Night Out in your neighborhood and offer to babysit the kids at your place for 3 hours, for free.

*On a smaller scale, offer to give someone you know some free time by taking their kids for a Saturday afternoon or evening.

*One of the dinners you plan on having this week? Let your neighbor know that you'll be dropping it by for THEM to have, as a gift. Then eat a sandwich or cereal for your dinner.

*Organize a food drive in your neighborhood for your local food bank. (This one is on our list - We plan on distributing a note to the neighbors with a plastic bag. The note will let them know that we are collecting donations for the local food bank and give them a short list of items the food bank has specifically asked for. Then we'll let them know what date and time we will be by to collect and tell them to just leave the bag on their doorstep if they have a donation. Monetary cost? $0)

*Donate blood. There is always a shortage of blood around the holidays yet the accidents and need for blood increases because of all the travel.

*Call your local nursing/retirement home and ask them if you can come and play a game of cards or checkers with someone.

*Call your local pet shelter and ask if there is something you can do for an hour or two.

*Bake a loaf of bread or batch of cookies and secretly deliver it to a neighbor.

*Offer to take your neighbors kids to school with yours for a week/Offer to drive the carpool on a week/day that isn't yours.

*Donate your unused blankets, coats, clothes, toys, etc to a shelter. Make sure the items are still in good condition though! No reason to use the local shelter as the dump. If it isn't good enough for YOU to use, it isn't good enough for them.

*Leave thoughtful notes for someone in your family in a place they'll find them when you're not around.

*Mail a love letter to your husband/wife/person of interest. HA!

*Forgive someone.

*Donate your time and expertise to a shelter.

*Become a mentor in your local elementary school.

*Serve food at the soup kitchen.

And that's just off the top of my head!

There are NO rules to the 12 Days of Giving other than to just resonate kindness. You can do them whenever, wherever, however. You can adopt a family and do all 12 acts for that one family. You can do it spending no money. You can do it spending a lot of money. Whatever you decide and whatever works for you.

I ran across another version that is in the same vein. I hope she doesn't mind me linking her up, but go check it out for some inspiration along with the other blogs in the McLinky.

Happy Friday to ya.

Friday Freebie!!!!

Boo ya!! Welcome to the First Friday in December!



As has become custom, we give something away every Friday. As has ALSO become custom, my friend Mimi does this at HER place the first Friday of the month. Go check her out and see what you can win this time around!

That there? Her name in lights. Click on it and go win something.

Good luck!

Seriously Stupid.

I accidentally posted my Wednesday Iron Chef post, today. Just a few minutes ago, in fact. That was Seriously Stupid.

I have the following posts saved in my drafts folder. It's seriously stupid that a) I wrote them b) I never posted them and c) I'm posting them now.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Wasn't Me

It wasn't me that, when B threw a toy at me and it missed only to hit HIM in the head instead, that said, "Boy, that was karma kicking you in the butt."

It wasn't me that actually laughed so hard she snorted during a work conference call today.

It wasn't me that threw a ball and said, "FETCH!" to get my son to leave me alone for a few more minutes.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Google-Eyed

You know those posts people do where they talk about the google searches that land people on their site?

I'm not doing one of those.

Instead, I'm going to show you a bit more of my crazy by listing out some recent google searches I have ACTUALLY done. Exciting, no? Right.

blogger that puts together amazing outfits with super cute bangs <--that one was for Summer

alcohol content in sutter home white zinfandel <---what? huh? I was curious.

can a tooth infection make you sick <----it really, really can.

voice of fillmore in cars <---Rob said Cheech, I said George Carlin. Guess who was right?

maid service bozeman <---I was dreaming.

do fiddler crabs change colors? <---they do, indeed, change color. Did you know?

for the love of pete <-- I was curious where the saying came from.

custom made temporary tattoos <---I'm a 'try before you permanently etch things on your body' kind of gal.

what I'd say to my boss if I won the lottery <---people pretty much pick the same thing.

yawning while sleeping <---B does this all the time and I thought maybe he had sleep apnea or something.

5 months pregnant with negative tests <--- No, I'm not, but I was just curious about something.

866 227 1453 <---annoying telemarketing company that knows EXACTLY when you use your credit card and call to tell you that you are getting free gas vouchers and blah blah blah.

And, of course, I've searched for my name. Who hasn't??

Thanks for wasting your time reading this inane post. Have a day!

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Things That Don't Make Sense

When I smack B's hand and tell him that we don't hit after he smacks me int he face for the 15th time.

When I scream at Corban to quit screaming.

When I tell them no candy for breakfast then serve them Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Lucky Charms.

When I tell the boys no jumping ON the couch, but then set up pillows for them to jump OFF the couch.

That Rob will take the time to clear, rinse and neatly stack all the dinner dishes but not load them into the dishwasher.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

See? Seriously Stupid. Anything Seriously Stupid happening in your world, lately?

Iron Chef: November Winner & December Challenge

Thank you to all of the participants and guest judges this month! There were some delicious recipes this time around, weren't there? Yum!

The Chefs:

Brandi at Okkar Lif with Cornbread Stuffing
Mimi at Screaming Mimi with Mimi's Famous Sweet Potato Crisp
Kameron at A Wrinkle in Time with Kam's Kran with a Kick
Heidi at Tayterjaq's Rebels with Cheesy Hashbrowns

According to the poll on the side - there were 2 votes for Cheesy Hashbrowns and 2 for Sweet Potato Crisp. The guest judges weighed in with a vote for Kam's Kran, 2 more for Cheesy Hashbrowns and 1 for the Cornbread Stuffing. Which, if you can do simple math, means that the winner is...


Heidi at Tayterjaq's Rebels with Cheesy Hashbrowns


Congratulations, Heidi! Second time was the charm, eh? Take one of these here buttons and display it for the world (and Dan!) to see!!

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

It's also time for the Iron Chef December challenge, and I think you'll realllly enjoy this one!

New to Blogstyle Iron Chef? Read about it here.

Since it's time to be baking all those holiday goodies, I thought it would be a great time to ask you to submit your favorite cookie, fudge, brittle, candy, etc recipe. What do you make that everyone looks forward to each year??

So, let's have it. You can link up to a recipe you've posted in the past, one you post right now and you can even link to more than one recipe. Next Wednesday I'll list the final three contestants and we will start the challenge.

"Allez! Cuisinez!"