Sunday, November 27, 2011

Thanksgiving Day

We go to my cousin’s house in Glennville every year to celebrate Thanksgiving. It includes my Daddy’s side of the family and Tyrone’s wife Jane’s side of her family so it’s a big crowd. Everyone brings a side dish and a dessert. You can imagine all the food there is to eat.

This year, I made Pumpkin Trifle and Pumpkin Bread

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I found the recipe for the Pumpkin Trifle at Taste of Home.

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This has become a family favorite. I wasn’t going to make this but Gabrielle begged me to. The great thing is that this recipe uses sugar-free, fat-free and reduced-fat ingredients but loses nothing in taste. Plus, it’s a lot of fun to make!

 

I also made pumpkin bread to take with us. I found this recipe on Pinterest. This recipes calls for a box of Duncan Hines Spice Cake and a can of pure pumpkin. That’s it. Mix them together and throw it into a baking pan or muffin pan and bake. It tastes wonderful! I was suppose to top it off with some powdered sugar but was out.

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I LOVE Pinterest! I have found so many great ideas and recipes on there. If you want to join in, then let me know and I can sent you an invite.

My girls love to go to Tyrone’s on Thanksgiving. He’s an excellent craftsman and has a shop that he sets up for us to eat in. There is always plenty to eat.

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There were four different kinds of meat…

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  And here is Gabrielle fixing her plate.

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I am embarrassed to say, here is my plate. I took a picture of it to send to my oldest daughter, Ashley. She spent Thanksgiving with her husband’s family in Ohio and was so upset that she wouldn’t get any “southern” cooking with dressing and pecan pie. That was so mean of me! Tee hee hee.

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After lunch, we hang around socializing for several hours. There is plenty to do…

like riding the kids around on his golf cart. Cassidy was so in her element driving her cousins around.

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Or playing ping pong…

Lots of matches took place like Gabrielle and her friend Ivy,

 

or Cassidy

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Or my nephew Jonathan and his sister, Eleni.

After you get tired of ping pong, you can play a good game of “Horse”.

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You can always listen to tall tales about hunting from Tony and my sister’s husband Stanley.

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By the time you have done or watched all this, you are tired. Here is my great niece Skylar all tuckered out.

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So now we get to load up and go to Baxley to Tony’s sister’s house and do it all again.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, Happy Thanksgiving weekend! I hope you all are spending time with family and friends. We have been so busy the last two days that I haven’t had time to post until now. Before I get into Thanksgiving, I will show you what we did to get ready for Thanksgiving.

First of all, I got a wild hair and decided to move my dining room table and hutch into the other side of my living room. My living room is a looonnng and narrow bowling alley type box with a brick wall and hearth on one end. It is terrible to try and re-arrange furniture in because it is so narrow. It is dissected in the middle by my front door and the hallway that leads to the kitchen, bathroom and my scrapbook room. On the side with the brick wall, I have my living room furniture and TV set up. I had a hard time decorating the other side but I always had two bookcases flanking the window with a desk in-between. The rest of the room was a hodge-podge of furntiure including a rarely used treadmill.

Our kitchen was remodeled years ago and included a large peninsula where a wall once was. I had them make it with on overhang so I could use barstools with it.  I loved it but it made the area for my table smaller. When we had people all around the table it was difficult to maneuver around it. So I decided to move it into my living room.

Gabrielle and I were the only ones home at that time. Tony was off deer hunting of course and Cassidy was at a friend’s house. We managed anyway but I was so sore for the following two days.

Here is the finished results.

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This is the view from the other side of the living room. See what I mean about a bowling alley?

Here is the hutch.

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I just realized that this picture is crooked. LOL!  I will come back later and give a close-up of all the details.

This side chest was on the other side of the living room but I knew I would have to move it to make room for the Christmas tree so I went ahead and moved it to this side.

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On the other side of the table I have a dresser that a friend gave me. I had originally had it in the hallway but like it here better. I still need to repaint it and fix the sticking drawers. The large mirror was also a gift from another friend. I love it but it is soooo heavy. It has a gold finish but I think I’m going to paint it also.

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And now for the details…

On the table

I have had this pilgrim couple for several years but I just picked up the green tin bucket and the mini pumpkins from Family Dollar this year.The leaf table runner and placemats came from CVS a couple of years ago.

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I bought the tin hen from a decorating store here in town. The leaf plate, I got from Family Dollar…they had 3 different designs at $1 apiece so of course I got all of them.I made the 3 glass hurricane globes from a post I saw on Pinterest. I filled 2 of them with min-pumpkins bought from The Dollar Tree and the 3rd with a candle and leaves bought from The Dollar Tree. I have found a new love for dollar stores since finding Pinterest. I will replace the mini pumpkins with ornaments at Christmas

In my hutch on the top row I have a set of 3 rooster plates my mother gave me. She knows I have a thing for roosters. Next, I added a mini pumpkin to a cheese dish I had from when I sold Princess House crystal.

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Here’s the second shelf of my hutch with some more roosters and mini-pumpkins I picked up the charger plate from Wal-Mart this year. I wanted to get a complete set of them but was waiting until they marked them down more. I waited too late and was only able to get one..

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And here is the bottom row of the hutch. I again used some of my Princess House crystal this time filled with some scented pinecones along with some pumpkins.

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And last but not least, here is the dresser.

 

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I have had these candlesticks for ages. I got the pumpkin from a dollar store and painted it off white. I forgot to go back and paint the stem I see. Funny how you don’t catch mistakes until you are blogging about it.  The candle on the other candleholder is one of the flameless candles again from The Dollar Tree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s another rooster filled with mini pumpkins again. I picked up alot of these from Wal-Mart when they marked them down to 50 cents.

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Okay so here’s the last picture. I have seen lanterns everywhere on Pinterest including some DIY’s to make from cereal boxes. I found this little jewel at Family Dollar on sale for around $3 and grabbed it quickly. The pumpkin plate also came from there. I bought it along with the 3 leaves plates.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So that was my dining room redo for Thanksgiving. I moved the 2 bookcases and the desk into the kitchen where the table was and love it. I will show pictures of that once I am through with it.

Stay tuned for more Thanksgiving posts.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

29 Days of Thanksgiving…

Today, I am thankful for my parents, Darrell and Weada Joyner.

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They definitely had their hands full, raising 4 girls. I am the oldest and have always been a “rebel without a cause”. But they loved me no matter what kind of trouble I got into. Mama made sure we were raised up going to Church every Sunday and on Wednesdays. Although there were days when I resented it, I am so glad she made up go because that laid the foundation for my trust in God today.

Thank you Mama and Daddy for raising me to be a strong, independent person. I love you!

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

29 Days of Thanksgiving…because I started late; Day 1

During the month of November, everyone takes the time to think about and put to paper what they are most thankful for. I decided that I needed to do this also since I have so much to be thankful for this year.

It’s no secret that the last few years have played havoc on our financial situation…we’ve gone from being a happy “middle-class family” to becoming a stress-ridden “low-income family”. I’m not really trying to complain because I know that we are not the only family that this has happened to and that in fact, there are other families in much worse shape than we are. Still, it hasn’t been easy.

There are days when all I want to do is pack up and run away trying desperately to believe in the old adage that “the grass is greener on the other side”. But I know it isn’t. You will always have trials and tribulations to go through no matter where you are.

So, on this 2nd day of November, I am most thankful for my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He loved me even though I was a sinner (and still am), unworthy. I have done some pretty despicable things in my lifetime and have been so ashamed of my actions to the point that I didn’t like myself so how could anyone else like me much less love me? But in those dark times, Jesus was there to pull me out of the ditches I was wallowing in. He gave me the strength to try and become a better person day by day. And I’m doing just that. I’m not perfect by any stretch of the imagination but I’m definitely not the same girl I once was. Some days are easier than others.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Philippines 4:13 and I find myself quoting it often.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

I saw a translation on Facebook tonight that said; Use the strength in Him when you don’t have enough of your own. You can do anything through Him but little without Him. That pretty much sums it up, doesn’t it?

I thank God today and everyday that he loved me enough to let his son, Jesus die on the cross for my sins. Without Him, who knows where I would have ended up? So tomorrow, when I am wondering how we are going to pay the mortgage…I know that we will survive what lies ahead. Because…..

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

 

 

I’m sorry this post was so long and dark but I felt like I needed to quit holding things in so much and really speak from my heart. Hopefully the rest of this month’s posts will be more cheerful!

 

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

November Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

 

The November Stamp of the Month is called “Cherish the Day” is will be great for all your cardmaking and scrapbooking layouts.

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There are about 60 consultants participating in this month’s blog hop. I’m sure you will be amazed by all the wonderful projects they have created.

Kathleen Androlewicz
http://BowlOfStamps.blogspot.com

Helen Onulak
http://www.hookedonstamping.com

LeAnne Dudley
http://www.dudleychickdesigns.blogspot.com

Wanda Riley
http://Creatingwithwanda.blogspot.com

Angela Tutton
http://www.tuttonstreasures.blogspot.com

Paige Dolecki
http://PaigesPaperParadise.blogspot.com

Beth Naumann
http://www.bethscreativeblock.blogspot.com

Tamytha Jenkins
http://www.paperheartist.com/

Krista Ritskes
http://simplycreatingtogether.blogspot.com

Katy Donaldson
http://www.scrappinkaty.blogspot.com

Traci Pasqualone
http://ScrapiTraci.blogspot.com

Mary Eisen
http://mestamp2.blogspot.com

Angel Sawyer
http://RunningwithScissorsDesignCo.blogspot.com

Kami Welter
http://www.scrappin4memories.blogspot.com/

Haley Dyer
http://inkyscrapper.blogspot.com

Michelle Loncar
http://michelleloncar.blogspot.com

Jen Rubio
http://JenRubio.blogspot.com

Lori Brown
http://www.savingmine.blogspot.com

Doreen Guilfoyle
http://whereisyourhappyplace.blogspot.com

Pamela O’Connor
http://cherishyourmemories.blogspot.com

Traci Godbee
http://createwithtraci.blogspot.com

Gina Brandstetter
http://gmbscrapper.blogspot.com/

Debra Van Patten
http://memoriesoftheheartbydeb.blogspot.com

Lisa Sargent
http://www.lisasargent.net

Melinda Everitt
http://www.ifyoublingit.blogspot.com

Nicole Griggs
http://www.nicolescreativezone.blogspot.com

Jill Lucas
http://scrapwench.blogspot.com

Carla Ironside
http://carlacreates.blogspot.com

Sheila Bennett
http://sheila-bennett.blogspot.com

Susan Brooks
http://stampingintheopen.blogspot.com

Sarita Schraeder
http://www.blessedscrapper.com

Teresa Scrivens
http://www.creatingwithinkypaw.com

Georgia Hauglid
http://inkygeorgia.blogspot.com

Judy Burger
http://www.makingtimeformemories.blogspot.com

Adeline Brill
http://www.adeline-brill.blogspot.com

Amy McVey
http://www.clearlystamping.blogspot.com

Nancy Brown
http://creativelyartsygallery.blogspot.com/

Shirley Ross
http://www.momnmescrap.blogspot.com

Brae Montgomery
http://thebrae-er.blogspot.com

Wendy Coffman
http://www.stampingrules.blogspot.com/

Dawn Ross
http://iamahappystamper.blogspot.com

Elizabeth Mindemann
http://www.ejoym.blogspot.com

Jen Patrick
http://roxybonds-scrappin.blogspot.com

Dawn Heuft
http://stamptildawn.blogspot.com

Shannon Beck
http://www.cardsfromthefarm.blogspot.com

Melissa Laverty
http://www.fancymelissa.com/blog

Annette Green
http://AnnettesCreativeJourney.blogspot.com

Heather Schmuckal
http://www.heatherjanedesign.blogspot.com

Allisa Chilton
http://rockymtnpapercrafts.blogspot.com/

Luisa Morgan
http://www.creativedesignsbyluisa.com/

Casandra Bennett
http://casandra-scrappinbliss.blogspot.com/

Corina Mitchell
http://www.mycreativeink.org/

Karen Fullam
http://www.enrichingmemories.com

Nikka Geers
http://Nikkageers.blogspot.com

Krista Hershberger
http://kristascraftycorner.blogspot.com

Kristine Ponte
http://kponte.blogspot.com

Vicki Price
http://PriceOfPaper.blogspot.com

If you are interested in purchasing this stamp set, you can order it from my website at www.nancyhoover.myctmh.com. Click on shop online and then stamp of the month.

 

 

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When you place a minimum order of $25 in My Acrylix® stamp sets in November, you can purchase a new D-size Holiday Wishes stamp set for only $5! That’s significant savings off the full retail value of $17.95 US / $19.95 CAN. And here’s a bonus: many of the images in the set coordinate with our Cricut® Art Philosophy cartridge for added cutting and stamping fun!

Holiday-Wishes