On the road again!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

We are again headed out the door, in the rain, with everything wrapped in plastic in the back of the truck.  I hope everyone has a SAFE and FUN day and night! Playlist for this trip includes some James Taylor, Eagles, Beach Boys and Ronnie Milsap!

Kdaughter is partially moved and we hope to finish the last load this weekend then bring the trailer home with us. Work interrupted the moving schedule, even though professional movers moved the heavy and fragile stuff, we still have some things to finish up, clean and put away. I am falling in love with Kansas City, especially the Jack Stack Barbecue!

During our miles on the road, I found a couple of fun signs.

Just thought I would share them today!

I also want to share a photo taken in our front yard.

This photo was taken in Nixa at a friends home.

I loved the fog, and this was taken at 11am

after most of the fog had lifted.

My friend Barbara has opened a bakery called Sugar and Spice.

She brought me a tray of assorted yummy goodness.

My favorite was the cake pops!

Have a Happy Halloween!

Dress up and have fun!

created on Pizap!

Thank you "Mad Snapper" for leading me to Pizap!

Hello World

I am back after putting 480 more miles under my seat! We were driving home when the car ahead of us ran into a deer and totaled their car. Everyone was all right, except for the deer.

Speaking of deer, I want to share a video of 

Kdaughters back yard last winter:

Today I am excited to try my 

first linking up with another blog.
www.fromthissideofthepond.com

Joyce, posts questions

and everyone can give an answer.

I thought it would be fun to give it a try.

What's something you're dealing with that might be described as 'tricky?

My new sewing machine. It has tricked me again, and again. I WILL learn how to sew. 

What's your favorite treat of choice? 

Home made popcorn balls. My Sunday School teacher made the best ones.  My Father would load us all up into the back of his pickup and drive us from street to street. We would be gone for hours all dressed up in our costumes - princess, bride, cowgirl. Then I would trade my store bought candy bars for their pop corn balls.

Did you/will you carve a jack-o-lantern this month? Which real (living or dead) fictional 'Jack' would you most like to meet in person? Why?

We will carve one on Halloween night and fill it with dry ice and watch it smoke up the porch. The only fictional “Jack” I might like to meet in person is “Jack Be Nimble”. I would hand him a dust rag, window cleaner, and a trimming saw. 

In your opinion, what's the grossest sounding word in the English language?

Crack – whether is is referring to the “plumber version”; or the “illegal drug” version; or the “in the wall” version, it is bad news.

When did your heart last skip a beat?

When I walked into the recovery room after my husbands cancer surgery. He was awake and talking, and talking, and talking. Anesthesia does that sometimes.

"Monster Mash" by Bobby 'Boris' Picket, Michael Jackson's "Thriller," "Werewolves of London" by Warren Zevon, or Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters"... your favorite 'scary' tune?

Monster Mash. Our dancing pirate on the front porch plays it as he dances and swings his hips left to right. I always dance along with him.

It was a dark and stormy night when...

Our electricity went off for 5 days. We lived by candle light, heated our home with a generator that drank kerosene like kool-aid, and had to be refueled every two hours night and day. 

My random thought.

I don't relate Halloween to anything evil. As kids, that was one day a year that we could dress up any way we liked. One year I was an astronaut, and I wore it all day. I was 37 years old and I loved it. This year I am going to be a gypsy. I want to wear a long flowing dress with lots of jewelry and scarves.

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Well, it wouldn't be a Tuesday without a couple of my Pet Peeves:

Number 1: Guests who come to our Halloween Party and don't dress up and wear something similar to a costume. Those of us who do dress up, have a great time acting silly. Boo to you!

Number 2: People who wear their pajamas to Walmart when it is not Halloween.  There have been days when I have wished I could, but, I didn't.

Hop on over and take a look at Marla's blog.

http://mfabiansc.blogspot.com/

Happy Tuesday!

Where are my????

We are out the door... well almost...

Me:

where are my keys?

Where are my shoes?

Where is my purse?

Where is my phone?

Is the coffee pot unplugged?

Did I call the dog sitter?

Did I pack everything?

Are the doors all locked?

Is the thermostat set?

Him:

Did you pack the fritos and potato chips?

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A few old couples used to get together to talk about life and to have a good time.

One day one of the men, Harry, started talking about this fantastic restaurant he went to the other 

night with his wife. “Really?”,

one of the men said, what’s it called? 

After thinking for a few seconds the Harry said,

“what are those good smelling flowers called again?” 

“Do you mean a rose? the first man questioned. 

“Yes that’s it,” he exclaimed. 

Looking over at his wife he said, 

“Rose what’s that restaurant 

we went to the other night?”

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Geeeeeeze!

as Kdaughter likes to say!

Have a Happy Friday!

Around here...

I wanted to share another photo of some sign art by Mr. Lowell Davis, a local and well known artist. Mr. Davis lives just a few miles from us on some acreage along old Route 66. He recreated his hometown of Red Oak on his farm where he still creates his unique masterpieces. He has many of his creations around local business where his style is unique and noticeable.

We were able to spend a couple of days at 

the Lake House even though it was cool outside. 

The lake was just beautiful in the afternoon sun.

The Lake House list of projects is 

getting smaller with the retaining wall being finished. 

A neighbor who does landscaping did a great job 

setting all of those heavy blocks.

We stopped at a little store while out 

goofing around and I spotted this mailbox. 

I just had to share it with you.

If you have read my blog about my attempt to learn to sew... 

I have made some progress. 

I have gotten myself organized.

I have also lined up my first project, based on this beautiful find at the gift shop in Branson. I am going to make some napkins.

I need to establish a good relationship with my sewing machine.

I hope making some napkins is a good start!

My goals is to sew an apron like this one!

Happy Thursday!

Pet Peeve Tuesday!

We are back from a short trip! We put 700 miles behind us in three days and today my body is not a happy traveler. I do not like riding in the car especially in heavy traffic, or even not-so-heavy traffic.  I have a history of bad luck in traffic that has left me with what I shall call "anxiety" when we travel. Thehubs is an excellent driver, so excellent that we avoided two accidents only 100 miles into the trip.

PET PEEVE #1:
Drivers who make left turns from the center lane that is clearly marked with signs and painted arrows; and who make that left turn (from the center lane) when their signal is red. Thank you Chevrolet for good brakes and seat belts.

Our first stop on this trip is one of our favorite places to eat and our daughters least favorite place to eat. Thehubs and I love cafeterias.  The Heritage Cafeteria in Springfield has a vegetable that is very hard to find and so delicious - Harvard Beets, cooked in their own juice to delicious perfection.

mmmmmm... good.......

PET PEEVE #2:
Children who refuse to eat at their parents favorite cafeteria.

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Another one of our favorite shopping places is the Amish Store in Branson.  They carry dehydrated spices of any kind, pickled vegetables of all kinds, and baking goods.  We had to make room in our trunk for a case of the Sweet Baby Corn with bits of red peppers. Sweet, hot and yummy.

PET PEEVE #3:
Having to drive 100 miles to purchase my favorite pickled item, therefor having to purchase a case and then hauling it another 700 miles without breaking the jars and avoiding a pickle mess in the trunk.

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Then it was on to my favorite clothing store in the State of Missouri - Belks at the Landing in Branson!   I need small, short clothes for a 55+ year old woman who just received her AARP card. I can find them at Belks. They were having a huge sale so I had to dig deep into my wallet and find that hidden $100 that I had been saving and nobody knew about, but me. It was so hidden that it took me 15 minutes to find it.


PET PEEVE #4:
Jeans that have zippers that are 2 inches long. Thank you Belks managers for having a post-menopausal section in your store just for short people like me.

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On day two we headed down a two lane highway towards Little Rock enjoying the beautiful scenery and stopping in little towns, little flea markets and mom&pop cafes.  We were about a week ahead of the beautiful colors so no great autumn pictures are posted today.  I did get some new kitchen decor at one of my favorite flea markets in Greenbriar which happens to be next to a signal with a "left turn only" lane.

PET PEEVE # 5:

Please refer to Pet Peeve #1, second time around.

I love the colors cream and black and the
Harlequin pattern has moved to the top of my "LIKE it List"!

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Thank you Lord

for keeping us safe during our travels

and for blessing us with a good report from the cancer doctor.

Just call the man...

There have been several times in our past 16 years of marriage that I have said to my wonderful and loving husband after he had tried so hard 

 “Please, honey, call the man”. 

As embarrassed and humbled as I feel right now, 

I had to say it,

 to myself,

 today. 

I had to eat my own words, they tasted awful, and were hard to swallow. I nearly choked.

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My day started off really well planned. On the list: try a new recipe and bake a deeeelicious pie; get my brand new cute little sewing machine from walmart out of the box and hem two pairs of pants.

-------------------------------

As I listened to some Lorrie Morgan, I made the crust, rolled it out, carefully placed my delicate creation into my favorite pie pan. I set my new cute little lime green portable timer from walmart for 12 minutes. I may have evened hummed along to a song or two.

Then...

The phone rang and I got in a deeply involved discussion with a friend about how husbands who won't ask for help, even when they need it.

Then...

That cheap little ugly so and so walmart timer didn't go off resulting in an awful, dark brown, inedible pie shell for my brand new chocolate silk pie recipe. 

One hour of my day burnt. So I – repeated it – only this time without that cheap little so and so ugly walmart timer. I took the phone off the hook and sat in front of the stove and watched it cook. It turned out perfect and so did my new recipe FRENCH SILK PIE from my “Taste of Home – simple and delicious" magazine.

On to number two on my list – Getting my new cute little sewing machine from walmart out of the box and hemming my trousers. Is that an old word that only people who now have an AARP card and get senior discounts would use? 

I had gotten over my burnt pie shell and was in such a happy mood as I took that new cute little sewing machine from walmart out of the box and saw all of the cute little gadgets that had come with it. Oh, I thought, this will be so much fun! 

I didn't even mind that it took me 15 minutes to find the English version of the Quick Start Guide before I could even peel back the blue shipping tape which was clearly printed with "Read Quick Start Guide before removing tape".

Then...

It took me an hour and half to thread that cute little sewing machine from walmart . But I didn't give up. I will never give up I told myself. I will figure this out! 

Then...

As for hemming the pants – 

the photo speaks for itself -

only I am not duplicating it five times.

Then...

I sewed, ripped it out, then I sewed, ripped it out, then I sewed, ripped it out, and then I sewed and then ripped it out AGAIN. I tried adjusting the tension and changing the weight of the thread. Then I chose a different stitch, then reread the Quick Reference Guide again (in English). Then I watched the video again. Then I sewed it again. 

Then...

I got up and went for a walk around the house. I may not learn to sew using this cheap little ugly sewing machine from Walmart. I left it, full of tangled thread sitting on the table.

Then...

I reached for my phone and called an alterations store in town a half hour away.

A MAN answered.

and I almost cried.

I had just...

CALLED THE MAN!

About me...

Recently I was building the “About Me” tab on my blog. I opened my FREE “Open Office Software Suite”, made notes, wrote questions and then pondered my answers...

I AM 55 years old, just qualified for my first senior discount and received a pamphlet from AARP with a card in it with my name on it.

I LIVE IN the southwest corner of Missouri in a very small town of less than 300 residents with one four way stop, a church and a bar. The UPS man can never find me.

I LOVE to decorate my home but I have a very limited budget so the process is slow. My style is based on memories, gifts and purchases on trips. I don't make quick decisions about it, I think about things way too long before I act on them. I don't care for the popular all-white rooms or stainless steel, it reminds me of hospital rooms and x-ray tables when I was a child. I really don't care for the mid-century style, it reminds me of the Brady Bunch and I think their lives were just too perfect and they never had money problems. Now, I am not judging those who have the above mentioned choice in style I just have history that keeps me from relaxing.

I AM ADDICTED to fudge bars. I can't even buy them and bring them home. I once got up at 2am and sat in the kitchen floor with the freezer door open and ate 23 of them. I was menopausal and having night sweats and they made me feel good. It is possible to get HIGH on fudge bars.

MY FAVORITE TELEVISION SHOW is The Real Housewives of New Jersey and Los Angeles. My husband hates these shows. So on that night, I get the remote all to myself, I don't answer the phone, I eat unhealthy snacks and drink soda pop. Maybe it is not the show so much, but that I get to eat bad food and be selfish and enjoy rich girls fighting.

MY FAVORITE FOOD is?????? I don't have one specific food or cuisine I can call my favorite. My husband makes the best mashed potatoes in the world and I request it at least once a week. It is easier for me to tell you what I don't like... coconut and brussel sprouts. I am not a big fan of eating out in restaurants. I can blame that on Robert Irvine from the show “Restaurant Impossible”. If you have ever watched that show, you will understand.

MY FAVORITE MUSIC is everything from K.T. Oslin to Nickelback to Don Williams to Miley Cyrus to Marvin Gaye to Ronnie Milsap to Train. (Miley please put your tongue back in your mouth and never twirk again.) I don't like rap, or songs with offensive lyrics or “auto tune”. I love a good voice, with good range and the ability to hold a note without taking a breath. Thank you Adele, Christina Aguilera, Whitney Houston, George Michael and Jake Simpson. Please Jake, make another album.

I CRY FOR - CANCER, as it has invaded my life and changed it forever; HEALTH INSURANCE for people with pre-existing illness as that directed my life down a path I would not have chosen; SOLDIERS who have dealt with health issues and long term side effects of wars that were too complicated for me to understand.

I AM an empty nester who misses having children to take care of; 

semi-retired and trying to find a hobby to fill my time

and not empty my checking account; 

a want-to-be baker who loves chocolate and cream cheese; 

and a post-menopausal women who can't find a bra that fits.

Crafty? Me?

I found a couple of hours today to play on my computer and avoid that big pile of laundry in the utility room. I love to go to craft shows, especially the War Eagle Show in Rogers, Arkansas. We make a day of it, endure the long lines of cars waiting in line to park, and wear our walking shoes. It is a great show, features great artists, great crafts and has just about everything crafty. If you would like more information, below is the link to their site.

http://www.wareaglemill.com/fall-craft-fair/

I have always wanted to be crafty but my somewhat OCD personality makes it challenging, very challenging for me. It is hard for me to start something and then leave it out unfinished. So I recently moved a cabinet in from the garage to store some crafty projects and supplies. It also has to have space for work, files and some storage.

The room looks pink but it is really a dark burgundy.

Note: sewing machine still in box. I recently went to the FM Store and looked at fabric, apparently I may need to make payments in order to make something. I didn't know fabric, notions, and scissors were so expensive. I also went to Hobby Lobby and investigated taking up scrapbooking. Again, I will need to exercise some stock options before I start that type of crafting. Whew...

I am going to “try” to be more crafty and make some things that I have pinned on my “want to do” Pinterest Board. Just pinning them makes me feel crafty.

http://www.pinterest.com/Dazeez/want-to-do/

My right hand doesn't always do what my brain tells it to so I felt my first projects should be something on the computer so that I can use the “back” or “revert to previous” button. Here are a few projects I would like to share. I am loving my Picmonkey!

My first collage using buttons and double border.

A mirrored image of our bench during last winters snowstorm.

Meet Braddock my cousins baby boy!

A mirrored image of some trees.

Chalkboards - How I did it!

I have been saving quotes for most of my life. I have them stuffed into drawers, folders, and places I am not even sure where.  They are written on napkins, post its, the back of junk mail, torn pages, etc.  

check me out on Pinterest

I pin them on my own Pinterest board I named "Quotes" (creative huh?).  I follow lots of other pinner's boards who seem to be more creative than me and name their boards cute names like:

Wisdom and Wit
Letters upon Letters
Words
Words, just words
Inspire
Write this down

Have you noticed all of the

pretty chalkboards on Pinterest?

I wanted to learn how to do it.

Blogging is also somewhat new to me. I love to read blogs with tutorials, how to paint, how to decorate, how to make things, and more.  So today is my first attempt at a "how to" for my blog.  So... here I go...

Picmonkey is a FREE photo software that the blogging world calls easy, that is how I found it, I needed an EASY one.  I have no photography background so I started with just the basics. I found Picmonkey to be so much fun and easy to use, I upgraded and purchased the software.

Not quite centered, but a good try!

My camera is a very inexpensive but reliable 5 year old Kodak EasyShare C813 that our business uses to take photos of empty, vacant and most of the time "stinky" houses. It is a dirty job. Since the companies we work for require a date stamp, that option is always turned on (because I forget to turn it off).  Recently I had to learn how to go into  picmonkey and cover it up. You can see it in my previous posts, the date stamp is there in my photos, in bright yellow, in the corner, or it has been pasted over with a bright purple daisy. I was so proud when I learned how to fix that.

                                       Click here to go to Picmonkey!

I found a black chalkboard background on the internet by simply asking google to find me one. It gave me several to choose from. I then saved it to my computer.  I then resized it and made it bigger with a free resizer I use for our business to make images smaller (making images smaller makes them faster to upload to the web when quality is not an issue.) You can probably also find one on the internet, just ask google. Or you can use mine below.

You can right click on this image and "save as" to use mine!

Then I opened picmonkey and selected "edit a photo", then uploaded the chalkboard image. 

 I proceeded to place text in different fonts around the chalkboard choosing the text tool. I chose a light yellow color and then selected lighter from the blend option.  I played with it, using different fonts.

Then I went to the overlay option on the menu on the left and chose my overlays, you can see the tree I have chosen.

Then I moved onto the Textures option and chose the "smudge". 

This fades the text and blends it all together.  Be sure to select the apply button afterwards to save your work.  Then I saved it to my computer. 

Whew, my first attempt.... 
at a how to.... 
on my blog...
is now over....

Six words friday - yellow

This my first linking up to...

Six Word Friday - Yellow

A big thank you to Debbie over at "It's all about purple" blog

http://itsallaboutpurple-debbie.blogspot.com/

 for sharing her beautiful photos and linking me up with 

Adrienne at My Memory Art - Six Words Friday

http://mymemoryart.blogspot.com/

This is a day lillie from my garden.

Summer is over and they are still blooming.

Back when...

Today it is gorgeous outside, the sunrise this morning was just breath taking. The dew was heavy and the fog rolled across the hill just across the pond.

The field across from us is leased by a local veterinarian who has a herd of black angus roaming around. I have walked this farm most of my life. The Yocum farm was 368 acres, bordered on the east and west sides by County Roads, with hills and valleys in between. It boasts pecan and walnut orchards, ponds, and lots of wild life. Pete and Faye Yocum raised cattle and horses and bailed the hay and grass several times a year.

Pete and Fay Yocum owned our local lumber yard back when I was only 8 years old. 

I would ride my bike down to visit them and buy an ice cold Coca Cola from the cold water filled soda machine. 

It was only a nickel and I would have to clean out my Dad's bird dog pens to earn that nickel. I would ride my bike everywhere back then.

I would ride it so much that I had to ask for new tires each summer.

Pete and Fay lived in a rock house with a solarium on the south end. When our daughter was born we bought the old 2 story farm house across the street from them (and only a half mile from my where I grew up). 

 Faye was more than my neighbor. Faye was my dear friend. Faye's Mother “Grandma Daisy” was up in years and Faye moved her in giving me two sets of grandmas just across the driveway. They both played such an important role in our everyday life. I am so grateful for them, I saw them everyday, they were my family.

I moved away and then came back 20 years later. We built a home just a ways down the road and I can see their home place from my patio. Pete and Faye are gone but the view is still the same. The fence rows are not as clean, but the pecan trees are still producing the thinnest shelled pecans I have ever cleaned and the cows still stare at me when I walk the fence.

I grew up in this small town of less than 300 residents. We were all neighbors. We were like a big family back when...