Friday Fast Five

I just love this picture!

1. This has been by far and away the longest week in history!!! I have been looking for that sexy thing called Friday Quitting Time Since Monday!

2. Charlot is having struggles with sharing at the sitter. So this morning while I was dropping her off she informed me that she didn’t want to share Olaf (the snowman from Frozen) that she had decided to bring with her. I said well then you had better leave him in your car seat. She then says ok as long as you take good care of him. (Yes I had to strap the stuffed snowman in to ensure to her I was taking good care of him!)

3. I am not at all looking forward to the prospect of more snow this weekend. I love snow but I am ready for some warm sun. PLEASE

4. The biggest looser group I am a part of is doing a kick the sweets habit challenge. Basically I am going to try to cut out all sweets for two weeks, YIKES! Then I am going to try to just allow myself one sweet treat per week. This challenge starts tomorrow; I feel chocolate cake in my future tonight!

5. We were invited to a wedding this summer of a friend of ours; one ceremony is going to be in Italy while the other one will be back here. I am totally trying to convince the Hubs we should go! Please help me with this I need a really good argument to sell this!

Thankful Thursday…

I start this with a pic of one of may fave Ag teachers

The past few weeks I have been busy visiting high school agriculture education programs recruiting individuals to come and work for the research center I work at in the summer. These visits only reinforce to me how important agriculture education is. I cannot tell you how thankful I am that there are people out there that want to teach agriculture education. It is such an important job.


I am a bit bias growing up as an Ag. Teacher’s kid and all but this profession is one with many many hours, headaches, and heartaches, and very few thank you’s. But if these people don’t teach the next generation about the most important industry in our country who will? These individuals are training our future agriculture advocates. We all know the importance of being informed consumers and without agriculture education do you think there is a chance that consumers will be hearing both sides???

Not only is it important for our industry but for the whole country the National FFA Organization is America’s Premier Youth Organization. This organization prepares its students for life and careers in and outside of agriculture. Some of my best memories from high school come from my times in that blue corduroy jacket. I know that I would not be the confident, outspoken, free thinking person I am today had it not been for the FFA. And all of that links right back to Agriculture Education Teachers.

So to all Ag. Ed. Teachers out there THANK YOU for all you do for your students and for all they in turn do.

Awesome Present Idea!!!

Yesterday was my youngest Sister-in-Law’s birthday! Happy B-day RaRa, a day late! I was trying to figure out what in the world I was going to get her for her birthday this year. You see I always try to be super creative with birthdays; I want the recipient to be totally surprised!

RaRa (that is what Charlot calls her so it is now her name) loves when I make salad. It started when I introduced her to Cesar salad probably close to ten years ago. And now she has found a love for pretty much any salad I make, especially my version of Olive Garden’s salad. So I picked up a bottle of the dressing and that is what I was going to give her for part of her present!

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Why just give her the dressing when you can give her the whole kitten caboodle! The RaRa is currently student teaching and living on her own, and I am guessing not eating the best. So making her a salad kit ended up being perfect, I even added some seared chicken breasts to make it a complete meal. The girl needs her protein!
Here is a list of what you will need to complete this present for someone special in your life!

Two heads of Romaine Lettuce Chopped (you could just do a couple of the pre-chopped bags)

Two Roma Tomatoes

1 can of Black Olives

1 jar of Banana Peppers

½ red onion sliced very thin

½ cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese

1 bag of Croutons

I did four chicken breasts seasoned with salt pepper and garlic cooked in a hot skillet (mine were pretty little so you could probably get by with two) then I put them in a lovely plastic container.
1 bottle of Olive Garden Dressing

A big bowl to stick it all in

This is an older pic of these two but I love it!

She loved the present and said that would be her lunch for the whole week!

Thankful Thursday's

                                            

I am thankful that I was able to help my daughter get her jammies on last night. I am thankful that I was able to help her brush her teeth before bed. I am thankful I was able to read her a bedtime story while we snuggled in my bed. I am thankful that she and I were able to pray together. I am ever so thankful that she let me rock her (not a normal occurrence). I am thankful that she gave me four "magic" hugs last night. I am thankful that she gave me an extra kiss goodnight. I am especially thankful that she fell asleep in my arms. 

I am always thankful for these things but last night I took the time to be extra thankful for all the little things! I took that time and I am so thankful  I took this time because not every parent out there can say they were able to do the same. 

As most of you probably know a terrible thing happen in Missouri this week. A sweet innocent child was taken from a yard she was playing in and her abductor then took her life. Her parents will never be able to do the simple things that I was able to do tonight again. I am so very sorry for them and all I can do is pray for them and their future. 

Everyone please pray for the safety of all precious little ones out there. Parents hold your babies a little tighter tonight and every night. 

Thankful Thursday’s… for her health

Today and every day I am so very thankful for her health. Because short of a few ear infections and tubes being put in her ears she has been and continues to be a pretty healthy little one! Which I know is not the case for every child.


In July of 2010 I started reading the blog In This Wonderful Life, this blog is about a family that now has a set of boy-girl twins that are now just a little over two. But when I began reading this family had just gone through and was continuing to go through every parent’s worst nightmare. They had just lost their new born son after his battle with several heart defects. Congenital Heart defects they had learn of several months earlier during the earlier stages pregnancy.

I found it was really odd how overwhelmed I was by their story. Well little did I know, but about a month after I started reading I found out I was expecting our sweet bundle of joy. After reading their blog I educated myself and asked my doctor countless questions about my baby and her heart.

Each year February 7th -14th is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week, something that I feel pretty strongly about. No parent should have to go through what these parents went through and there are many more stories like theirs. But we all should be aware. So take a moment this week and reading something about CHD. And be so very thankful for the healthy kiddos in your life. If you would like to check out Megan’s blog go to www.inthiswonderfullife.com.

Be ever so thankful this day and every day!

Career Mom Mondays… Clean House

Yes I look like this at times!

I will never ever ever say that I have the cleanest house on the block because I just won’t, even if I am the only house on the block there will probably be something tidier. Being a working momma I have found that on the weekends I don’t really like to spend massively cleaning my house. I want to spend that time with my kiddo and making my weekly grocery run (haha). But you still have to make time to clean sometime. These are a few things that do to ensure my house is at minimum presentable.


1. I wash, dry, fold and put away one load of laundry per night. This way it doesn’t pile up and I don’t feel so overwhelmed by laundry on the weekends.

2. I run the dishwasher daily, sometimes more. Typically I run it after supper dishes are cleaned up if we have an extraordinary amount of dishes I will get up in the mornings and unload then re-load and run.

3. Mail gets sorted when we get home it doesn’t end up in a pile on my kitchen table. Trash, Bills, Magazines, Etc.

4. Each night before Charlot goes to bed she knows that she is expected to pick up whatever she has been playing with and put it in the toy bin.

5. I try to wipe down the bathroom once per week this usually happens on Monday nights (really no reason why it just does).

6. Last but not least each night before I go to be I try to tidy up any clutter that may have accumulated over the evening.



This seems to work for me so it leaves vacuuming and dusting for the weekends. Which doesn’t always happen, please don’t judge!

Now I know there are many other things that you have to do to keep a home clean and I do those but these tips help me keep my home more presentable!

The Things She Continues to Say!

This child of mine she is well I don’t really know how to say this…other than she is well spoken. And pretty much anything that pops into her head is coming out of her mouth! I know I do these posts pretty frequently but I can’t help it there are some pretty amazing things coming out of her. Plus I started this blog sort of as my personal scrap book and I want to remember these moments for a lifetime.


I will first start with a classic moment that didn’t really have anything to do with what she said it was more what I said. Right before Christmas one night I was cooking supper and she was playing in the living room. We have a really cute nativity scene that my aunt gave Charlot that is plastic so she can’t really hurt it. This year the kid was obsessed with the baby Jesus figure in the set, every time I would turn around there she would be rocking it, or carrying it, or possibly throwing it in the air. Well this particular night I had already told her to settle down several times and to not loose baby Jesus. It was pretty quite in there (which is a sign of trouble) so I step in there and here it comes out of my mouth.

“Charlot put baby Jesus down and take the dog toy out of your mouth!” Yup you can send me my mother of the year award any time!

Charlot isn’t a big fan of eating, it isn’t a secret, and I won’t lie she only eats when she feels like it. I don’t care how much you pry or force it isn’t happening if she isn’t in the mood. As she and I were sitting down for supper the other night I was asking her about her day at Telpha’s (the world’s most patient baby sitter).

Me: “Well what did you have for lunch at Telpha’s today?”

Charlot (as serious as a heart attack): “It was pretty bad mom.”

Me: “Oh yea well what was it?”

Charlot: “Telpha fed us dog food”

Me: “Really, I don’t think so?”

Charlot: “Yes MOM, Telpha FED US DOG FOOD!!!”

Well by this point I have to not look at her because I am laughing so hard. And for those of you wondering no she didn’t feed them dog food, it was Ravioli.

Here is another moment involving Telpha the sweetest babysitter on earth! (She has to be to deal with my kiddo) One morning this week while we were off due to the snow, I was watching the TODAY show and Charlot had just gotten up. She walks into the living room and says.

Charlot:“Hey you can’t watch that show it’s time for Telpha to watch Kelly and Michael!”

Me: “Well sweetie we aren’t at Telpha’s and I want to watch the TODAY show.”

Charlot: “Oh ok well then I can watch Mickey Mouse.”

Last but not least the hum dinger of them all!

We went to Arby’s last night for supper after a way too long Wal-Mart run. We just decided to run through the drive thru because the hubs and I had some things we needed to take care of at home. She ate part of her meal on the way home. Then when we got home she sat down to eat the rest of supper. I headed into the kitchen to do some things I needed to do. A few minutes later I peeked around the corner to check on her.

Me: “Charlot you need to finish your supper.”

Charlot: “Momma you need to eat your supper.”

Me: “I already ate mine on the way home.”

Charlot: “Really What did you have?”

Me: “A Chicken Sandwich”

Charlot: “Yummy that sounds good.”

Me: “It was good”

Charlot: “Oh maybe when I get a big mouth like yours I’ll try one!”

And there is another reason why some animals eat their young!

Enjoy your weekend and have a laugh for me!

Thankful Thursday

So it is really popular during the month of November to post on Facebook everyday what you are thankful for. I even took it to the next level and tried to blog each day about what I was thankful for that day. I really like this idea and I think it is so important to always be thankful for things in life. So today I am starting a new series called Thankful Thursday’s. I will post about many different things I am thankful for. Please if you would like to join in do so. If you have a blog great if you don’t comment on this blog or on my Facebook post. It is always important to count your blessings and be thankful.


Today I am starting the series with a group I have been a part of since October. Let me just start from the beginning. I was getting my nails done one day last October and my nail lady texted me that she would be a few minutes late. No bigge. When she got there she apologized and said that she was weighing in that is why she was late. Weigh-ins where? That was my question. She then explained to me that there were a few people in the area that were putting together a biggest loser group. I got all the details from her and we finished my nails.

As I was pulling out of her lot I thought well if the people doing the weigh-ins are still there when I go by the building I will stop in and see what it is all about! By the grace of God they were there and I actually got out of my car. I went in and discovered a group of people that weren’t there to judge or out do, just there to support each other in a journey of becoming healthier people. That very night I joined them and called my dad to ask him to join with me!

This “Biggest Loser” group includes nutrition classes, exercise classes, and a support group of amazing people who really are there for each other. We all are struggling in some way and we are there to help each other through. I have learned more than I could imagine. The fact that the number on the scale is getting smaller is great but the fact that I simply feel better about myself is even better! It has been a long time since I have looked at a picture of myself and like what I saw but this picture below changed that for me I truly like what I am seeing and I know I am going to continue liking what I see!

So thank you to my biggest loser buddies I am so very thankful that I have joined this group, you truly are helping me make the life changes I have needed to make!

Crazed MIZZOU Fan...

We took Charlot to a Mizzou women's basketball game and boy oh boy did she enjoy! She spent the bulk of the evening shouting "GO TIGERS" in-between bites of popcorn of course! I will say this was probably the best decision we have made to take her to the game. We sat really close, there wasn't a huge crowd (so she could spread out) and Truman the Tiger came to see everyone in the crowd! If you are looking for a fun activity, but kind of low key, I would highly suggest heading out to a women's game! On top of all the great kiddo friendly benefits, the lady tigers are a ton of fun to watch! We saw a great game where they took down a top twenty team in the nation/SEC rival! Thank you mom and dad for the awesome tickets! Oh the pics where she looks scared she isn't that is her tough "go tiger" face!

Seriously go check one of their games out!