Monday, May 28, 2012

Freedom & Remembrance

Three of the four kids were here to celebrate with a Memorial Day holiday..... we had the delectable BBQ dinner. May we never forget to honor our country and those who fought to honor it.....


Jon Eric, Jonathan, Karly 

Jonathan, Karly, me, Jon Eric 

Jonathan, Karly, (love of my life) Tim, Jon Eric 

Jon Eric & Jonathan 
Hope you enjoy the day with family and loved ones! 
Valarie

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Flags....

Putting a few flags out this morning for the holiday weekend - 





hope you are getting your nest ready for the holiday!
Valarie  



Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Summer Sunday

Since 3 of the 4 kids are close by this summer, I am planning frequent dinners on Sunday. All of the kids are so busy with new careers and one left in college it's nice to catch up with them once a week and enjoy movies, new recipes, memories ... & enjoy the summer.. These are the recipes I tried out on them!!
Turkey Stuffed Bell Peppers -

Recipe here .. 


INGREDIENTS

  • 4 bell peppers, any color
  • Salt
  • 5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and chopped
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
  • 1 lb of lean ground beef  ( I USED TURKEY WE DON'T EAT BEEF!)  
  • 1 1/2 cup of cooked rice (I USED BROWN RICE!!!)  
  • 1 cup chopped tomatoes, fresh or canned (if using can, drain of excess liquid first)
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
  • Fresh ground pepper
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 1/2 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce
  • Dash of Tabasco sauce (I added 2 dashes - men at this dinner loved spicy!!) 
  • Go to this recipe link for method -- 


Spinach Salad -
Spinach, fresh cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, mandarin oranges, dried cranberries - Toss & serve! 

Blueberry Banana Pie 

Yes, this is a store bought pie crust but the filling is homemade....


  • 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 cups whipped topping
  • 4 medium firm bananas, sliced
  • 2 (9 inch) pastry shells, baked
  • 1 (21 ounce) can blueberry pie filling
  • fresh blueberries and mint and additional sliced bananas (optional)

Directions

  1. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Fold in whipped topping and bananas. Pour into pastry shells. Spread with pie filling. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Just before serving, garnish with blueberries, mint and bananas if desired.

Hope you try the recipes out... The kids were here for dinner Sunday night - we had a blast!
Valarie

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Life stuff..

I have been out playing with family - watching my GRANDson play baseball... 





and cheering him on with his baby brother - 

Back home cleaning the kitchen at the blue cottage 

And being thankful for such a beautiful family & cottage living! 
Happy Day! 
Valarie 

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Blooming...

Glimpse of my flower buckets for this year... 

Hosta, Impatients, Ferns, Petunias  

White picket fence arbor entering side yard...

Thanks for stopping by!!

Monday, May 14, 2012

sun is setting...

Sun is setting and we just had a rain shower...
Thankful for simple blessings-
Valarie  

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Happy Mother's Day! What is A Good Mother?

 Sharing.....   

For a number of years, a Russian peasant woman held the record for having the most children. She bore 69—including numerous multiple births. She was most certainly a mother. (And undoubtedly a tired one.) But, I can't help wondering, was she a good mother?
What is a good mother, anyway?
A good mother doesn't nag — much. Only the essential amount and only about essential matters. Like where to squeeze the toothpaste, how to hang up pants without making eight creases, the inadvisability of 20-minute showers, and which noises are easily produced but socially unacceptable.
A good mother has a speech that begins, “When I was your age, kids had it much harder. My mother didn't take me everywhere. I didn't have all these things you kids take for granted....” She belts out this national anthem of motherhood regardless of the indifference of the crowd. She can make herself heard over a blaring CD player by teenagers hanging opossum-like over a bed with a phone plastered to one ear.
A good mother cooks, cleans, and launders without expecting to be appreciated. She knows that only in TV commercials do kids get excited about fragrant T-shirts or seeing their reflection in the china. In real life most kids have lost the directions to the laundry room and would be content to eat off paper plates or pizza boxes eternally.
But a good mother is much more than just a resident reminder service, cook, cleaning lady, and laundress. A good mother is a launching pad with a soft lap: hardheaded about discipline (especially compared with “everyone else's mother”) and soft-hearted about everything else. She motivates her children to help them reach their full potential and praises them whenever she catches them doing something right.
A good mother gives her children more than a balanced diet and a roof over their heads. She teaches them how to feed their souls and gives them a spiritual foundation on which to build. She directs them into the right paths and prays for them when they occasionally wander off onto others.
A good mother cares how her children turn out. She doesn't just wait for them to get out.
Stationary companies have tried to glorify motherhood by producing syrupy slogans on plaques. One of the worst is: “God couldn't be everywhere, so He created mothers.” That phrase may sell a lot of trivets, but it just isn't so. God is everywhere, and mothers can't be. I know because I've tried.
Maybe God created mothers because He needed someone to keep every generation reminded of His presence. Good mothers have been doing that for thousands of years, ever since Eve held her first wriggling infant in her arms.
Motherhood doesn't need to be sentimentally glorified with ridiculous statements, but it does need to be respected. It is a high calling, a God-given challenge.
The writer of Proverbs 31 described the woman who, like his mother, was a good mother: “She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed” (Proverbs 31:25-28a, New International Version).
As important as mothers are to us, it is amazing how often we take them for granted. Mother's Day is a good time to arise and call your mother blessed, but any day will do as well — as long as you do it before it is too late.
Legendary Alabama football coach Bear Bryant used to remind his players: “Be sure to call your Mom.” Then he would add wistfully, “I wish I could call mine.”


Have a fun day with your family!! 
Valarie 


Compliments of ... Vicki Huffman is a syndicated columnist and former editor with Thomas Nelson Publishing Co.

Friday, May 11, 2012

follow me....

Hey sweet friends... will  you hop over to my other blog and follow? Click 



A fun blog of vintage trailer fun, happenings etc....   


See you there!! 

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

We had to move the fountain to the other side flower bed.... 

Fountain was here now replaced with vintage metal cart - water splashing on the side of the home = rotted boards.. lesson learned! 

Looking down the side yard... 

Love the sound of trickling water - 

New whirly thingy we got last week on our anniversary trip... when the wind blows it is really whimsy! 

Close up view of the twirly, whirly thingy!

Happy Wednesday!
Valarie
 

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Lingering....

Ever have one of those mornings... when you want to linger... light a candle and enjoy home? 

Adding fresh frilly greenery in my silver pieces 

Candlelight and frilly greenery = smiles for my dining space 

You all know I have a fetish for chandeliers and burlap ruffles

What makes you linger in your home and late to the office??
Hugs..
Valarie  

Friday, May 4, 2012

sneak peek -- MCKINNEY GARDEN & HOME TOUR!!



Will I see you there? 

SAVE THE DATE AND PLAN TO COME! I promise you a day of fun in my city! 
Valarie 


Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Back Home....

Arrived back home today....We had a nice time and enjoyed the time away.. 
 
Sharing the beauty of Gruene!  
From our cabin that faced the river.... 

I did a whole lotta of this... feet propped up and watching the river go by.. 

The love of my life did a little fly fishing on the river.. 

We had a few adult beverages at Gruene Hall 


Love the old windmill 

Fabulous right ... on the grounds of THE GRUENE MANSION ...  There is a swing in there so we did a whole lotta  swinging too...  

The breezeway to our cabin 

This is the cabin we always stay in... this is where LOML proposed to me years back .. so we only stay in this cabin!
Thank you Cecil... Thank you Gina at the front desk!!   

"OUR CABIN" 

Beautiful flowers everywhere!!

Hope you enjoyed the tour!!
Valarie 

Related Posts Widget for Blogs by LinkWithin