It's December!!

It was pointed out to me today that it was December and I had not posted once this month. I just wanted to take care of that. So there Kristina, I posted in December....LOL!

Great dentist appointment!

Kinsey went to her dentist appointment this afternoon. She didn't have any cavities and the dentist said her teeth were coming in great. All her 6 year molars are in so she shouldn't have any major activity until she's 8 or so. We go back in January to have her teeth sealed. I hope these appointments stay this great for a long time!

Tooth number 8 is out!

Kinsey has had a tooth hanging by a thread for about a month now. She had wiggled it so much this weekend that it bled a little bit. My Dad offered to pull it out but she wouldn't have anything to do with that. Sunday as we were driving home she suddenly proclaimed that she had lost her tooth! It was out. When we got home she got her tooth from me and put it in her tooth fairy pillow. The tooth fairy fell asleep early and forgot about the pillow until this morning when she was getting clothes out of the closet. Thank goodness she was able to sneak out of Kinsey's room and exchange the tooth for quarters ;-)

Kinsey has a dentist appointment Wednesday so we should get an update on where she is at as far as her teeth go. I'll try to get a new picture of her silly grin. All her teeth are coming in at different rates or just gone. It makes eating interesting.

Grandma and the Turkeys

Aren't these the cutest turkey's you've ever seen? Kinsey and Grandma made these this weekend. My Aunt Mimi saw these in a store and figured out how to make them. She shared the idea with Grandma and then Grandma showed Kinsey how to make them.
















Grandma and Kinsey with turkeys

We are home!

We got up this morning and there was a bunch more snow on the ground so we hurriedly got everything packed, ate breakfast and got on the road. Guess what?? It wasn't bad once we got into New Mexico. Know what else? There wasn't hardly any snow on the ground by the time we got to our house! Oh well, better safe than sorry.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with my family. I got to visit with my parents, see my brother and Grandmother. I also got to see a few other family and friends. It was great!

It's snowing!

We are at my parents in Texas and it's snowing! Ok, it's not a lot of snow but it did snow enough to cover the grass. I have talked to people from where we live in New Mexico and it snowed quite a bit there. That will be great for the ski resort. They had put off opening the ski resort for a week or so since it was so warm. They had been making snow but it wasn't sticking since the weather had been warm. Now I'm sure they will be able to open next weekend with all the snow they received.

We are not skiers but do go sledding. Kinsey loves sledding and we have our "secret" spot we go to. This year Neal and I invested in ski bibs for ourselves since we froze last year. We can wear his heavy Carhart coats with them. Last year Neal found a great sled abandoned on the side of the road so we should be flying down he slopes soon!

I'm tired

Well I got up at 4:30am to get to Wal-Mart at 5am for the big sale. Unfortunately the Wal-Mart here didn't have the printer I wanted. I did grab a Shop Vac for $20. I was back in bed by 5:30am so it wasn't so bad.

This afternoon my Mom, Kinsey and I did a little shopping and driving around. My Mom showed me houses she used to live in and where some other family lived. It's amazing to see how much this town has changed over the years. I remember when we used to go downtown to go shopping. There was a Woolworth's, JC Penney, Sears, Anthony's, and various other stores. Now they drive to the edge of town where the Wal-Mart is. Times change.

Turkey day

Ugh....I am so full. It's been a great Thanksgiving day. We ate to much and visited a lot.
I am getting up early in the morning to hit the sales so I'm heading to bed. Good night!

Pies, pies, and more pies

We made it to my parents around 7pm and I have been making pies ever since. I made a pumpkin, chocolate meringue, lemon meringue, and a coconut meringue--Neal's favorite. My sister gave me a box of apples so I made an apple pie using a recipe from Better Homes and Gardens "New" Cook Book circa 1976. This is my Mom's edition. I have a "newer" edition from around 1989. This recipe is called Perfect Apple Pie and it smells so good! I can't wait to try it out tomorrow.

PERFECT APPLE PIE

6 to 8 tart apples, pared, cored, and thinly sliced (6 cups)*
3/4 to 1 cup sugar
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/2 to 1 tsp cinnamon
dash ground nutmeg
dash salt
2 pie crusts for 9 inch pie (top and bottom)
2 tbsp butter

If apples lack tartness, sprinkle with about 1 tsp lemon juice. Combine sugar, flour, spices, and dash salt; mix with apples. Line 9-inch pie plate with crust. Fill with apple mixture; dot with butter. Take second crust and cut into strips for lattice top. Weave strips criss crossing then trim ends even with outer edge of pie. Fold over lower crust, seal, and crimp edges. Sprinkle top with cinnamon and sugar, dot with pats of butter. Bake at 400 degrees for 50 minutes or until done.
*or, use two 1-pound 4-ounce cans (about 5 cups) pie-sliced apples, drained.

Over the River and through the woods..........

Actually it should be down the mountain and through the desert to Grandmother's house we go. We are going to my parents for Thanksgiving this year. It'll be a lot of fun and great food. Neal will get to go hunting with my Dad and Kinsey and I get to go shopping with my Mom! We'll also get to see some family and friends.
I'll still be posting so watch out for daily updates!

Balck Friday

This Friday is known as Black Friday--the day when most retailers go into the "black" as far as sales go. They are making money! I have been patiently waiting for the Wal-mart ad to come out so I can see what's on sale. Today was the big day! I now have a few things that I will be getting up at an un-Godly hour to go buy. Hope Mama's up for a shopping trip. Ok, it only takes 5 minutes to drive from her house to Wal-Mart but that's better than the 30 minutes from my house to my Wal-Mart...lol!

Pink eye

I am having one of those weeks. I woke up this morning with pink eye. Last night my eyes were blurry and a little itchy but I chalked it up to taking my makeup off. This morning my eyes were crusty and still blurry. When I looked in the mirror they were red. YUCK! I've been putting drops in them and hopefully they will be better tomorrow.

decorating Halloween cookies....a week before Thanksgiving

I found a cookie decorating kit on clearance last week and Kinsey has been asking to use it. She doesn't care that it's after Halloween, she just wanted to decorate. Instead of making the frosting in the box (I would have thought they would have had pre-made instead of a mix) I got out a can of chocolate frosting for her to use. She had a blast decorating.
Let me warn you if you see these kits by Wilton that the cookies aren't that great. I was thinking they would be a soft sugar cookie but they are rather hard.
Yes Grandma, that is the apron and cooking utensils she got for Christmas last year! I still can't get her to wear the hat ;-)

Blah, blah, blah

today's one of those days when I run out of stuff to post about. Also I'm tired so writing doesn't come that easy to me when I can barely keep my eyes open. I knew that I would get to a point where I wouldn't have anything to write about and kept thinking I could just post a picture. Well I haven't taken any pictures lately so there goes that theory. We are in that yucky period where everything is brown, dead, and just blah. It was cold, overcast and misty this afternoon. Tomorrow it's supposed to be warm again. One of these days we'll have winter.
I'm off to bed! Have a good night and I'll try to take some pictures and look for something to post tomorrow..........

I think she's trying to give me a heart attack

My friend/boss called tonight to tell me she had a call for someone wanting daycare. It was a woman with three kids ages 2 months, 22 months, and 3 years old...O*M*G!!! We are totally slammed right now. There are days that only certain kids can come because we have so many. It's a fine line that we walk to make everything work. There is no way we could handle that many more little ones. They were put on the waiting list that is about 5ft long now. There is such a need for good childcare in our area. We get so many calls each week especially since we also do a preschool/pre-K program.
Besides all that I can't imagine having 3 little ones that close in age. I have family that have several that close and it just boggles my mind.

Not as young as I used to be...

Kinsey and I went to the mercantile today to buy dog food. Someone was supposed to be around back to load it but he was busy loading some guys hay. I decided I could pick up that 50lb bag of dog food and load it myself. Not such a good idea. I'm feeling it now in my lower back. I remember when I could carry all kinds of heavy things.....of course that was 10-15 years ago when I was younger. I was always the one people asked to help move heavy things. Now I should be the one asking people to help me. I'm hoping a hot bath and a good nights sleep will work the kinks out of my back.

Do people teach their children nursery rhymes or children's songs any more?

I work in a daycare and it just amazes me when new children start and they don't know any nursery rhymes or children's songs. Most do at least know the ABC song but that's about it. We have circle time almost every morning and start out with about 10 minutes of stretching and exercising. Next we sing for about 20 minutes. Most of the kids now have their favorite song and you can count on them to request that song. I think doing this helps open their little minds and gets them ready to learn. We get all the wiggles out and get calmed down to learn. The ones with hand motions are their most favorites. If we don't know motions we make them up. It's a great way to start the morning!

Easy beef stew

Do you ever have those nights where you want comfort food but don't have a long time? This is my version of beef stew that takes less than an hour. I buy an inexpensive cut of steak like flank steak or round steak. You could also buy stew meat but it's a lot less expensive to buy a steak and cut it up yourself. If you don't have steak you could use ground beef.

Brown meat in a dutch oven or large pot then add a package of beef stew mix and 2-3 cups of water. Simmer over medium heat while you chop up 2-3 potatoes into small cubes. Add potatoes. When the potatoes start to get fork tender add one can green beans, one can corn, one can diced tomatoes, and one can carrots. You can vary these veggies according to what your family likes--we sometimes use frozen veggies including peas. When you use the can veggies do not drain the juice just poor it all in your pot. If you use frozen you will need to add more water. Continue simmering until everything is hot. Make a pan of cornbread and you are set for dinner!

Playing dolls with Kinsey

Kinsey has two Our Generation Dolls that she got for different occasions over the last year. These dolls are similar to American Girl dolls but sold at Target and much less expensive. Each doll came with 2 outfits and I've bought them assorted underwear/pajamas. Last night Kinsey and I were playing and we each had our dolls in ballet outfits. Kinsey informed me that it wasn't ballet time any more so we needed to change clothes. As soon as I had the pretty net skirt off my doll and was putting khaki's on her, Kinsey informed me it was ballet time again and her doll was wearing the pretty skirt. Hmmm...I think she just wanted the pretty skirt. LOL!

After playing last night I realized she doesn't have much clothes for these dolls so I went to Target.com to see if they had any clothes but they don't offer them online. My next option was Ebay where I found a wonderful "lot" of clothes for a very reasonable price. I bid on them expecting that I wouldn't win because the price was so low. I was very surprised to find I had won today! Now her dolls will have a lot more outfits to pick from. I also plan to get her the horse that goes with them. Kinsey would love a real horse but she will have to live with this smaller horse. I even found one like she wants--a brown horse with a black mane. A few more Christmas presents take care of!

My sister and I went to a great shopping experience today. It's called the Christmas Jubilee and is held at the convention center. Local stores and crafts people in the area are represented. It's not really a crafts show but more of a trade show. It's a great way to go to a lot of stores in one place. We also went to a few retail stores and a flea market type place. It was nice to shop together and visit...something we don't get to do often. Between work, kids, husbands, etc we don't see each other as much as we would like. We live less than a mile apart but some days it seems like 100's of miles.

Of course the hot water heater died today.......

when Neal and I got up this morning we kept smelling a chemically smell in our bedroom. When I opened the closet the smell was even worse. I asked Neal if maybe he had chemicals on his clothes from work yesterday--our laundry baskets are in the bottom of our closet. We finally decided to check the water heater which is at the end of my side of the closet. I took all my clothes out and we took down the panel that it's behind. There was water all over the floor. After checking it out, Neal decided we would need a new one. Thank goodness he was off today and is a plumber. He called the supply place they use for work and they said they had one and would stay open until he gets there since they closed at noon. We rent so we contacted our landlords and let them know about this. At least they won't have to pay to have it installed...lol!

Neal ended up getting a 40 gallon tank instead of the 30 gallon we had. For some reason the 40 was cheaper than the 30! Yeah, more hot water!! I have a fan running in the closet floor and the doors open hoping it will dry out soon. I sure would like to hang my clothes up again. Right now they are in the recliner.

I'm off to bed.

Slow cooker breakfast casserole

This is another recipe from my March Mommy board. I'm not sure who posted it first since there are a few of the same recipe floating around. I made it a few weeks ago when my Mom was here and we loved it. I'm making it tonight so we can eat it in the morning and will have leftovers for Sunday morning. It's great for a crowd and would be really good for Christmas morning or someday when you wouldn't have a lot of time to cook before hand. When my Mom was here I served it with a side of assorted fruit.

SLOW COOKER BREAKFAST CASSEROLE

1 bag (32 oz.) frozen hash brown potatoes
1 lb. of bacon diced, cooked and drained or 1 lb. cooked ham, cubed **
1 medium diced onion
1 green bell pepper diced
1 1/2 C. shredded cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese
1 dozen eggs
1 C. milk
1 t. salt
1 t. pepper (more or less to taste)

Spray inside of slow cooker with non-stick spray. Place a layer of frozen potatoes on the bottom of the slow cooker, followed by a layer of bacon then onions, green pepper and cheese. Repeat the layering process two or three more times, ending with a layer of cheese.Beat the eggs, milk and salt and pepper together. Pour over the slow cooker mixture, cover and turn on low. Cook for 10-12 hours.

**I'm making it with ground sausage instead of bacon.

Christmas is coming faster and faster

Do you realize that there are only approximately 45 more days until Christmas?? Where did this year go? I'm not sure how I'm going to get my shopping done this year. Last year I found all kinds of great ideas online but am having no such luck this year (so far). I have no idea what to get a few people in my family (hint, hint loyal reader). I have a few things but man I'm a long way from being done. Hopefully I won't have to do an all day shopping spree like my sister and I did last year. It was a lot of fun but man I was tired when we got home. We brought home some major loot that day. I guess I'll start checking things out and see what I can find. Happy Shopping!

Easy pulled pork sandwiches

Who knew pulled pork could be so easy. I was given this recipe on the Mommy board I belong to. This is a wonderful group of ladies I met when I was pregnant with Kinsey. Most of us have been together since we were pregnant. We share our ups and downs, our families, our recipes, and our lives. I don't know what I would do without them!! (((HUGS))) to my March Mommies!

EASY PULLED PORK SANDWICHES

1 pork shoulder or pork roast
1 onion
salt and pepper

1 bottle of favorite BBQ sauce
buns

Spray the inside of your crock with non-stick spray. Put the pork in your CrockPot, slice onion and put in, season with salt and pepper. I always add about 1/2 cup of water. Cook on low for 8-12 or on high for 4-6 hours. It's always best on low but if you are in a hurry it does work on high. When the meat is done, drain any juice (take out bone if there is one) then shred meat with 2 forks. Pour some BBQ sauce over it and mix. Keep adding sauce until it's the consistency you want. I always leave it in my CrockPot so it will stay warm.
Serve on hamburger buns and leave BBQ sauce out for anyone who wants more.

Perfect attendance 1st quarter, 1st grade

Kinsey received an award for perfect attendance today.

I'm not feeling so great or I would post more, just wanted to post this picture.

One of our favorite meals

We had chicken with honey, hash brown casserole and steamed broccoli. Kinsey loves my chicken tenders dipped in honey. It's one of the easiest things I make and she eats them with no complaint. I take chicken tenders and roll them in bread crumbs seasoned with citrus grill seasoning. I put them on a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick spray. Then I drizzle a little olive oil over each one and bake for 30 minutes at 350F. Turn over half way through cooking. Serve with a little honey drizzled over each tender.

The hash brown casserole is from the back of a package of Surefine Southern Style Hash Brown Potatoes (small squares).

HASH BROWN CASSEROLE

butter
2 pounds (32oz) southern style hash browns
1 cup milk
salt
pepper
1 cup shredded cheese

1. preheat oven to 350F
2. butter 9X13 baking dish and spread hash browns in dish
3. pour milk over potatoes and season with salt and pepper
4. bake for 40 minutes or until potatoes are done and milk is absorbed. (If potatoes were defrosted before cooking, cut baking time to 20 minutes)
5. cover with 1 cup shredded cheese
6. bake for 10 minutes longer or until cheese melts.

It's a baking weekend

Since the weather has been cooler lately, I decided to do some baking. A few days ago my sister gave me a starter for Amish Friendship bread so I made 2 loaves it. They turned out ok but I forgot to add extra flour for the altitude so it didn't rise like it should have.
Last week I bought some fresh cranberries and needed to use them up. I made a double batch of Cranberry Nut Bars and used pecans instead of walnuts. They are so good. Fresh cranberries are perfect in these.
We had 7 very ripe bananas so I made a double batch of Banana Bread and threw in a package of pecans. It smells heavenly baking. Anytime I have over ripe bananas I throw them in a bag in the freezer. When I have enough I make this bread. You could also make them into muffins.
Next I'm going to make Fresh Apple Cake from a recipe I found in American Profile (small magazine we get in the paper). I made one a few weeks ago and it was so good. Recipe to follow.
I may make a Pumpkin Sheet cake if I have time. I like to bake them in loaf pans and eat it like pumpkin bread instead of cake. Most of these items I'm putting in my food sealer bags and putting in the freezer to use for the holidays. I love to bake when I have fresh items but if I keep all these things around we (I) will surely eat them all.

FRESH APPLE CAKE

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups peeled and chopped apples
1 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a 13-by-9-inch baking dish.
2. Beat sugar, eggs and oil together with a mixer until well blended. Mix in flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir in apples and walnuts, mixing well.
3. Pour into baking dish. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool.

the original recipe comes with a cream cheese frosting but I don't think it needs it. If you do want to add one, you can use the one that is with my Pumpkin Sheet cake recipe.

**note...with all my recipes I always divide my flour between all purpose flour and whole wheat flour. I also use pecans instead of walnuts in my recipes.

Library book sale today!

The sale started at 9am and I got there at 9:30 so it was already a little picked over. When the library does these sales they give you a plastic grocery bag and let you fill it for $5! I'm good at filling a bag to the brim. I came away with 21 books in my bag including 8 hardbacks. They also had a section of newer books that they were selling for $1-$4 each. I bought 2 large paperbacks--Emma by Jane Austin and Favorite Dishes which is a book of recipes from the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. In my bag I got part of a series by Marcia Muller. I found 10 of those then got home and found out there are about 25 in the series. Oh well, I have a good start on the whole set . I also found a Janet Evanovich that I haven't read called Manhunt. I finished the last book in the trilogy I was reading last night so now I have to decide what I want to read next out of my treasures.

Great kids recipe

At the daycare I work at I make the menus and cook the food. Pizza dippers were on the menu but I didn't feel like making the same old thing I always make--biscuits rolled out with olive oil, garlic, and cheese on top. They are sliced in strips and dipped in pizza sauce. I saw this idea on another blog but cannot remember where it was. After some research I found some other variations.

PIZZA CUPS

1 can refrigerator biscuits (not flaky)
pizza sauce (spaghetti sauce)
cheese
any additional toppings you would like

Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray. Press a biscuit in each cup so that it goes up the sides and leaves a depression in the middle. Put about a tablespoon of sauce in each cup and sprinkle with cheese--you could add your additional topping before the cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes until biscuits are done.

The kids loved them! I also read that you could use the filling for tacos, sloppy joes, or even BBQ. This would an easy thing for the kids to make and help with. They could press the biscuits in place and even add the filling. Make sure they wash their hands and have an adult put them in and out of the oven.

It's National Blog Posting Month again

I plan to post everyday in November! It may be a picture or a quick little story but I will be posting daily. Check back to see what's going on!

Happy Halloween 2007!!

Here are a few pictures of Kinsey from Smokey Bear Park and Museum. We went to a community party there tonight then went Trick-or-Treating.

Fall has arrived!

Fall has arrived in the Lincoln National Forrest. We drove through Nogal Canyon and around Bonita Lake this weekend. The leaves are changing and it's just beautiful. Here are a few pictures I took on our drive.

This last one is us at a beautiful cabin in the woods. Neal was showing us a new subdivision being built near there. This house was gorgeous. The house of my dreams. I'm sure it's going to be someones vacation house. Someday........

The playground is done!

The playground is finally done! We went to two birthday parties there last weekend and it was a lot of fun. This past weekend, my Mom was visiting so she and I took Kinsey and my nephew to the park. Here are a few pictures I took.

Kinsey at the top of the tower


Cade on the fire poleKinsey and Cade in Smokey Bear Park

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my 38th birthday. It's been a pretty good birthday weekend. I got to go shopping all by myself yesterday. It was nice to look as long as I wanted and be by myself in the dressing room. Neal and my Mom told me to pick out what I wanted so I got 2 pair of jeans and a purse from Neal and Kinsey. My parents bought me a pumpkin colored denim jacket and 2 shirts. Today my sister brought me a wonderful messy chocolate cake and 4 new cookbooks! I'm super excited about those! My bestest friend gave me candles and M&M's...yummm!

Kinsey was invited to several birthday parties today and we made it to 2 of them. I've had cake a few times today but hey it's my birthday ;-) Here's a picture of Kinsey after the birthday parties.

She has a balloon sculpture on her head from one party and a cat tattoo on her cheek from another. She was a little bit dirty but she had fun!

How about a recipe since this is supposed to be a cooking blog?

I found a new recipe that I've been wanting to try for a week or so. It smells wonderful in my house right now. I put everything in the slow cooker at lunch time and now it's a heady combination of tomato, onion, bell pepper, and garlic....yummmm! Here's the recipe for Swiss Steak I found by Paula Dean

Swiss Steak

1 round steak (approximately 1 1/2 pounds), see note
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper
All-purpose flour, for dusting
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (14-1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 medium onion, cut into strips
1 medium bell pepper, cut into strips

Cut steak into serving-size pieces. Season, to taste, with garlic powder and salt and pepper. Dust meat with flour. In heavy skillet, brown both sides of meat in vegetable oil. Transfer to Dutch oven. Combine garlic, tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, and 1 tomato-can measure of water. Pour over steak and simmer over low heat until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours adding water, if necessary to keep meat partially covered. Season, to taste, with additional salt and pepper.

Hint: Cook this in a slow-cooker, according to manufacturers instructions, on low for a most fabulous dinner. Low heat on a slow cooker is about 200 degrees F and high heat on a slow cooker is about 300 degrees F. (I PUT IT IN THE SLOW COOKER FOR 4 HOURS ON HIGH. YOU COULD DO IT 8 HOURS ON LOW)

Note: to ensure tenderness, it is necessary to have the butcher run the round steak through a cuber. (I BOUGHT CUBE STEAK)

It takes a Village...........

to build a playground. Neal and I participated in the building of the new playground in Capitan. I helped by sanding and sealing this swing structure. I was only able to do as high as I can reach. I don't trust myself on ladders any more so I held the ladder for someone else to do the top beams and top 1 ft of the uprights. I also sanded and sealed a few other smaller things.

Neal had to work for part of the morning but when he got there he helped build the firetruck. The theme of the whole playground is Smokey Bear/Ranger station since it's beside the Smokey Bear Park.

The main structure is a fire tower with climbing wall, slide, and a rope climb.

The kids are going to love it once it's done. There were not nearly enough people there to help but those that did show up gave it their all!! When it's completed I will add a few more pictures.

Out with the old, in with the new (to us)

As long as I've known Neal (just over 8 years) he has never kept a vehicle for more than 18 months or so. Yesterday he sold his old '76 Ford pickup and bought a little '86 Nissan pickup. The gas for the Ford would have killed us for him to drive it to work this winter. I'm not even sure it got 10 miles to the gallon. This new little pickup should get a lot better mileage since it's also a stick shift. It's 4 wheel drive so I will be able to drive it to work if I need to. I was never able to drive the Ford because 1) I had to have a milk crate to climb up in the stupid thing and 2) I hate driving a stick on the floor. I have the hardest time finding the gears that way. I jumped in the Nissan earlier and took off in it. I guess you never forget how to shift after you've learned to drive a stick.

Goodbye old Ford

Hello new (to us) little Nissan

By the way, that's our camper in the back ground. We should be able to tow it with the little pickup. It will be great to be able to tow the camper, carry the 4 wheeler, and then be able to go mudding in the truck! Neal is finally getting all his "toys" back.

Has it been a month already?

Back to school and pre-school starting has kicked my butt this year. We have a lot of younger kids in pre-school this year and they take a lot more work than our previous years. We also have a few more babies that before. Two days a week we have a 7 month old...wow! I think we forgot how much work a baby is.

At the beginning of the month, I went to my Mom's retirement party in Pecos. She worked for over 40 years and decided to retire this year. The next day we left to go to Central Texas to visit family and go to my great-Aunt's 90th birthday party. We had a great time. I got to visit Waco, Tx where I went to college. It was interesting to go back and visit places I used to go and work. Here are a few a great picture of the suspension bridge over the Brazos River.

First day of first grade!

It was back to school today! Kinsey started 1st grade this morning. She has been raring to go for about a month now. As we got in the truck this morning she told me I could just drop her off at the door but I told her that as her Mama I got to walk her to class on the first day of school...lol!

Here she is ready to go.

Kinsey and Mrs. Rice. I don't know why she is making that face......

Yard Sale finds for $13!

This post is inspired by one of my favorite bloggers Sarah of Mommy, Are the Toys on Sale?. I got to go yard saling today and wanted to post my great finds like she does. There weren't a lot of sales today but I did get some great deals. The first yard sale on our list we never found. Why don't people put up signs?? When I have a yard sale I make lots of HUGE signs so people know where I'm at. You can't sell your junk if you don't advertise! The 2nd sale was a bunch of junk. At the 3rd my friend who went with Kinsey and I found a bunch of clothes for herself. It was like looking in her closet...lol! Kinsey found a cute black and leopard print hat for $1. At the 4th sale I found tons of children's books. Since I work at a daycare, I always ask what the price would be if I bought them all and mention that I work at a daycare. This bunch had quite a few hard back books including several Dr. Seuss (Kinsey's favorite!). I always let Kinsey pick what she wants and the rest go to the daycare. I was thinking $5 but the lady said $15 so I said no. She offered $12 so I told Kinsey to pick what she wanted and we would just pay for those. Finally the lady offered $10 so I took that. Not to bad for this box of children's books.

My friend bought 2 wreaths and a baby toy (she owns the daycare).

The next sale we went to I found a football for my friends son for $1 and she bought some under counter lights and a bracelet for Kinsey. I had to drop my friend off after that so it was just Kinsey and I now. We went to a dollar store near by for a few things then hit an Estate sale that started at 10am (why so late??) and bought two little plastic measuring jars. I'm sure they went to some Oster blender or mixer at one time but I think they will be great to mix small things in. They were $.25 each. The last sale we hit was at a storage building and they had stuff strung out every where. I found an adult life jacket for $.25 and Kinsey found the game Trouble for $.25. Here is a picture of all the little odds and ends.

Kinsey and I grabbed some lunch and were home by noon. We've already played several games of Trouble and looked through the books. Not bad for a Saturday!

Somewhere over the Rainbow

We've been getting rain almost every afternoon and having a beautiful rainbow. One of these days I'm going to find the end of the rainbow and it's pot of gold ;-)

Don't ever say "It can't get any worse" because it can.....

I thought Neal breaking his leg would be the end of our troubles this year but it wasn't. On July 11th, I took Neal to the doctors office in Alamogordo and we were in a wreck. We were in his work truck and it messed it up pretty bad. The wreck was totally my fault. I did not see the on coming car when I pulled out. The other driver was ok but his car was totaled. Thank goodness none of us were hurt.
So my advice is never say it can't get any worse because it can. We are hoping and praying that the rest of 2007 is better for us.

Update on us

I guess I should update since I haven't posted in awhile. We just thought Neal's medical adventure was over, but nooooo it's not. He broke his ankle Wednesday, July 4th. He was unloading a portable toilet and stepped backwards onto a rock. He rolled his ankle and broke the smaller bone in his leg right where it meets the foot. He has to go the orthopedic doctor Monday and we will know more. He was to wait and let the swelling go down before anything can be done. Prayers and thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

This will give you hope

Kinsey was playing outside and called me to come look. This is the view I saw. It's the Baptist church across the highway. Beautiful isn't it?

It's almost rodeo time!

Next weekend Kinsey and I will attend The 125th Annual West of the Pecos Rodeo. No we don't participate but we are spectators. I grew up in Pecos, Texas "Home of the World's First Rodeo"and have attended as many years as I've been able to. Kinsey has gone pretty much every year of her life.

Growing up I wore jeans, boots, and western attire. Now days I wear shorts, flip flops, and the coolest shirts I can find...lol! Pecos is hot in July usually averaging about 110 degrees during the day. When we want to take Kinsey to the park to play we wait until 10pm to go so it's cooler. You would be surprised at how many people are out there at that time of night.

The following week we will be back home and attend the Smokey Bear Stampede and Parade. It's the local rodeo and festivities. The parade is amazing because it has so many fire trucks in it. Trucks from all over the area come to participate. You just have to hope there's not a fire any where because all the fire trucks are here...lol!

ps. this fire truck picture was actually taken in May at another parade...that's why the trees don't have leaves yet. All but one parade in Capitan have firetrucks in them...lol! The Christmas parade is a non-motorized parade so there aren't any trucks in it.

Look what happens when you eat watermelon

Kinsey was sitting here eating watermelon when she suddenly felt her top tooth fall out! The dentist had told me there was nothing holding it in so I'm not surprised that it finally fell out. Now she has two more on top that should come out soon since they are wiggly! I guess the tooth fairy needs to make sure she has the appropriate amount of money for tonight ;-)

By the way, check out how long Kinsey's hair had gotten. She decided she wated to grow it out again so we've only been getting trims. She wears it in a ponytail a few times a week.

Lincoln National Forest

We decided to take a drive up past Bonito Lake yesterday and check out some camp grounds. We want to go camping but fuel just about kills us if we drive to far. We decided that since we live in a National Forest we should just go camping around here. We found a few places that we want to try in the near future. Kinsey wanted to play in some water but there were so many people fishing at the lake and the river that we finally just let her play in a low water crossing. There is a little stream that runs down from the mountains to the lake that has very very cold water. Kinsey played in it but didn't stay in the water to long...lol!


Here are a few pictures of some pretty wild flowers I found while Kinsey was playing in the water.

And lastly a picture of why we left and headed home.

Hens and Chicks

My chicks are out growing my hens. I guess I'm going to have to start pulling them off and replanting them. I would love to make another rock garden but I'm not sure where. I love how this little one looks around the water spigot.

I want to ride my bicycle!

Kinsey has started riding her "big" bike she got for her birthday. She needed a little more time on her little bike to get comfortable riding without training wheels. Yesterday we pulled out her big bike to see if she could ride it and now she's riding all over the place!

Does anyone know where my title comes from?

Camping at Bottomless Lakes

We went to Bottomless Lakes State Park this weekend and had a great time. I took a few pictures...surprise, surpriseKinsey and Neal playing in the water.Kinsey after we made Smores.

One of the smaller "lakes"

I love the reflection on this one

This is my favorite picture of all that I took. I'm looking down into the "lake" and it's reflecting the clouds back up at me.

All of the lakes are actually sink holes that are fed by springs. The water in them is salt water. The largest lake has a beach with sand and a great swimming area that is roped off. You can rent paddle boats and paddle boards to go out in the deeper part of the lake. The camping area is very nice and has a great bath house. We use it instead of trying shower in our camper (aka "the smallest shower in the world").

Capitan, USA

Here is a picture I took during Smokey Bear Days in Capitan. This is our main street Smokey Bear Blvd. We are across the street from Smokey's Country Market and down the street from The Smokey Bear Motel and Cafe...sensing a theme here?

http://www.villageofcapitan.com/

http://www.smokeybearpark.com/

Graduation

I just realized I forgot to post graduation pictures! Here are a few from Kinsey's graduation that was held on May 16, 2007.