Cooking

Now that hubby's home more nights for dinner, I've had to actually cook, lol... So since I was taking pictures for Martha's food challenge I took pictures of a few other dishes...

This was an experiment that failed, lol... I thought I would add pasta to the pork roast instead of potatoes, however I did it in the crock pot... I had never cooked pasta in the crock pot... It was a big mushy mess... Son2 and I tried it, very slimy with no taste... hubby wouldn't even try it... The roast came out good! I had also added some seasonings and brown gravy to the pot....

So in a pot on the stove I made another roast with potatoes and carrots as a back up, lol... with a mestique seasoning.... much better!! A dish that always comes out perfect is pasta with meatballs and texas toast... mmmmmmm..... Just Wednesday night I fried up some pork cube steak with a purple onion, oh it was so good with some BBQ sauce... And some honey cornbread... And then this morning I made son3 a waffle with a smiley face...

Happy Journaling...

Fantastic Food Challenge #2

Fall is here, it's the time of year we start looking forward to nice hot comfort food meals. The theme this time around is "Soup, Stew or Chili."

To Play Visit Martha at Menagerie...

Whenever we are in need of snacking, partying, or just an additive to dinner... I pull out three cans of chili and a package of cream cheese, simmer them together in a sauce pan, and make bean dip...

Happy Journaling...

Happy Friday!

(not my image, from email joke)
Happy Journaling...

More Halloween Decorating

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Happy Journaling...

Halloween Decorating 2008

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Happy Journaling...

A-Z Photo Challenge N

A-Z Photo Challenge - N...

To Play visit Martha at Menagerie...

Noah's Ark piggy bank, Noah's Ark snow globe and Noah's Ark cookie jar...

Happy Journaling...

*Saturday*

Ahhhhh it's Saturday... and I have a chore list a mile long, lol.... and yet here I sit... I have been deleting pictures from AOL photos and photobucket, cleaning everything up for a new start... no need to save them for the journal that will soon be gone since I have them all saved on CD's... I have such mixed feelings though... It's sad deleting everything but I knew I did not want to migrate, besides there is no way all the pictures on my journal would have migrated and my entries won't make sense without all the pictures to refer too.... The main entries I will miss are all the photo scavenger hunt entries, lol... but then if it wouldn't have been for all the themes and entries to be written I would not have all the photos and memories to look back on in my photo cd's.... and with all the entries that were written and the loading and reloading of pictures into the journal the all the better to remember what each photo was, lol.... So I'm looking forward to the clean slate of all the new photo challenges and entries that are created not just cause life happens but cause if we 'did this' it would make a good journal entry, lol...

And yesterday the whole four hours wasn't spent just working with making slide shows but I was shopping.... I was over at Current Catalog, shopping for goodies for the trick or treaters and then to DoubleDay for new books for Christmas... Tomorrow we are going to start building the grave decorations for the front yard for Halloween and start putting out a few decorations... It has been way windy the last few days, which I was thinking it usually is this time of year cause just when everyone starts decorating for Halloween the wind comes and blows it all down.... Our temps have been so nice in the 70's but we will be back to 85 by Wednesday.... It was nice weather for the fair, I even wore long sleeves thinking fall thoughts... We got there about noon and started working our way to the food stopping at exhibits as we went... The Jr exhibit, SPCA, the Gem exhibit, then lunch, the advertising/business exhibits, agricultural exhibit, horticultural exhibit, waterfall, pirate ship and fort and then on to the animals... By 5pm I was pooped, so we headed home and had banana splits for dinner since we were still full from lunch, lol...

Did you notice the fried foods... would you or have you tried... poptarts, oreos, spam, frog legs, avocados, veggies, zucchini, twinkies.... I always have the zucchini and I would definitely try the veggies and probably the spam and even the frog legs before I would try the poptarts or oreos.... can we say heart attack.........

Ok I'm getting the hang of putting in the pictures and dragging them, just have to do them one at a time as you write each paragraph... of course we all know that I am far from a one picture at a time kind of person, lol.... So lets see what have we been up to this week... I have barely been working with the supervisor but one day a week as we have no hours but it has been better cause I get so much more done as we are not talking... some management changes coming up again in the next month or so, not the supervisor but her boss... Still haven't heard from son1, don't know what's up... Son2 has been showing his teen horns lately... so grumpy and no patience for son3... Son2 has been wanting to go to the football games, paintball, friends house... I'm all for him going out, gives us a break from the grumpiness, lol, but he doesn't get all the information until it is too late to go... So we're working on his communication skills.... Son3 has been getting in trouble again... twice this past week, once in class and then in after school care... it's not so much the getting in trouble, just boy stuff of goofing around but the shutting down and refusing to come or go to punishment when the teacher tells him... puts fingers in his ears or turns his back on teacher... and we are learning it's not just the zero tolerance that the teachers are dealing with but the fact that their hands are tied when it comes to discipline too... can't be politically correct on discipline and expect zero tolerance... so hubby and I are still figuring all this new school politics out... so different from when son2 and son1 went to school... of course the school or teachers don't come straight out and say their hands are tied, just what we are seeing... I did however make a mistake when talking to the daycare teacher when I said son3 does not act like this at home and why he is pushing the teachers on defiance... cause hubby pointed out that son2 acts that way with us so that is where son3 is getting it... cause no matter what we ask son2 to do, he takes his time about it or just forgets.... so even though son3 is grounded again from video games, both boys are in trouble for rudeness and inappropriate behavior to adults....

Wow this is the most relaxed I have felt all week, lol... Actual time to just write.... I just wish I had more time than just once a week... As soon as I get caught up with all the new blogs to read then I might just feel organized... Of course all the new fall shows to watch, take up time... So far we are watching: Terminator TSCC, Fringe, Bones, Criminal Minds, CSI NY, Smallville, Supernatural, CSI, Ghost Whisperer and Numbers.... And then whatever comes from Netflix... We have the original Lost Boys to watch now and Don't Mess with the Zohan comes today and a Goosebumps for the boys... Plus homework, although son3 is doing good with homework and son2 never has homework although he is reading The Hobbit for a book report and he just finished a report on Edgar Allen Poe that he got a 48/50... His goal, not ours, this year is to get a 4.0... His progress report just came and it was 3.57; 5 A's and 4 B's... I haven't had any time for yard work or taking pictures... The pictures in Not Just Roses are from last month that I am just now putting in.... I need to do some serious house cleaning like dusting and bathrooms.... Son3 wants to make cakes, brownies and a cake today... He and son2 are watching the original Terminator movies today... Plus I want to cook some dinners for the week... So I best get busy with some chores, dishes, laundry and catching up all the reading of everyone's new blogs all before hubby gets home from work... I just work in the morning tomorrow to set the ad and then home to decorate for Halloween....

Happy Journaling...

Learning...

Yay it is Friday... No homework for the boys and I am off tomorrow... Was a fast busy week... Work was good... Son3 was not... I have spent the last four hours on the computer learning that I don't know how to arrange pictures in this blog... I know you click and drag them but they don't go where I want them to... So I thought I would make a slideshow in Photobucket, nope the pictures were loading but not showing up until I put them in the slide show so they were out of order cause I couldn't see them... Then I remembered Smilebox, ahhhhhh... Very easy... and it doesn't use up our photo space in blogger for photos.... But now it is 8pm and time for Ghost Whisperer and I still haven't read any blogs all week... Lots of time to play tomorrow in between doing chores....

Happy Journaling...

The Fair

Make a Smilebox photobook

Happy Journaling...

Dining Delights!

Welcome to the new fun food photo challenge, Dining Delights!

To Play Visit Martha at Perception...

I have no fancy title for this dish...

It's just a box of Macaroni and Cheese, prepare according to instructions on box...

A bag of frozen peas, cook the peas separately and then add to the prepared macaroni and cheese...

A can of Spam, fry spam, cut into cubes and mix all together....

No, there's none left, hubby and I ate it all... the boys won't even try it....

Happy Journaling...

It Rained

Is it wrong that I am loving this new blog... I am just keeping it simple at the moment, waiting til the journals are gone and then I'll have more time to play with all these template choices.... I am so curious how some have different wallpaper backgrounds that I have been seeing around... It is so nice to have everything right on the blog or just a click away in dashboard... and I have not had more than twenty emails, lol.... the alerts were very stressful to me, lol... now right on my blog if I follow the blog then it tells me when they last updated.... I am concerned about how much room we have for photos though... it says we only are allowed 1024mb and I have already used 3mb between this blog and my photo blog.... I like clicking on as a follower in others blogs, I'm hoping not to be such a lurker, lol... so even if I don't comment, they know I am there reading.... So far I am up to 51 blogs though, lol... but then I had over 125 set to alerts in jland...

It actually rained... I didn't see or hear it but everything was wet when I woke this morning... of course didn't notice at first as we were distracted by all the ants... stupid ants, don't they see all their dead friends, don't they get a clue... no, just send in more soldiers to be defeated... this time they were in the kitchen in Raisin's bowl, to which Raisin was meowing me his complaints... so cleaned up the ants, hubby made breakfast of eggs, ham and English muffins.... had a talk with son3, he got in a bit of trouble on Thursday, pushing and goofing around in line with his friends... of course the trouble got worse as he forgot to bring home the note on Thursday so phone call from teacher on Friday and then she sent home two notes... I'm not sure though if she was implying that son3 didn't bring home the note on purpose or she was just frustrated that he forgot it... Hubby will talk to her on Monday... She doesn't want to talk with me, I'm so frustrated with all this zero tolerance at school and the immediate call the parents about every little thing... Son3 did lose his recess and fun Friday at school and no video games this weekend, so moving on once again...

Also talked to son2 about him wanting to go paint balling with his friends next weekend and raising a cow, lol... We're like can't you start with a chicken or a rabbit.... He said he has always wanted to raise a cow since son1 was in high school... Ok when has he ever said this before last week, lol.... Meanwhile he is waiting for his friend to call so they can hangout...

Hubby has been off to work for three hours now and here I still sit.... still in my jammies, lol... I am half way through the laundry though and have kept up on the dishes all week... really need to do some bills and paperwork though and fill the bird feeders and do a bit of straighten up... Clean up son3's room a bit and then make my macaroni dish for Martha... Tomorrow it's back to work but just for a few hours to set the ad and then we are off to the Big Fresno Fair...

Happy Journaling...

I'm Here

I have a vacation day today, yay!! Hubby and I got the boys off to school, came home and I vented on hubby a bit, as I didn't have a chance to vent lately, he said it was ok, I hadn't done it in a while.... We had breakfast, I trimmed a few roses, opened the two new blogs, hubby got ready for work, made lunch, went off to work and here I am....

Now to sum up what's been happening quickly as I already have to pick up son3 in just a few minutes... where has the day gone....

Son2's school opened their new Swine Facility last week... Son2 wants to raise a cow for next year's Fair, just a $1000 and the school will give you a loan...

I cut my PG&E bill in half just by upping the temp in the house from 78degrees to 80degrees and 82degrees when no one is home.... $400 electric bill two months in a row is not fun...

The bank that manages our home loan was bought out due to the economic troubles... waiting to see what that means... still want to get into a locked in interest rate....

The Big Fresno Fair has started and we will be going on Sunday!

We have no hours at work... Either I or the supervisor are floor coverage on top of all our duties and then the night person comes in and that is it... I don't think I play well with others as we have a person temporarily helping us and I guess I said something that hurt his feelings and we had a bit of an altercation... I have since apologized and tried to smooth ruffled feathers... Must have thicker skin if working retail....

We have not seen the kittens in days... hubby is sad... I'm glad as I didn't want to have to choose between the three... and now I know hubby does want another kitten for Raisin... just hope the kittens are safe... they were starting to get friendly and we could pet them so maybe someone else took them in...

We have been overtaken by ants... I have ants in the kitchen, master bathroom, boy's bathroom, family room and son3's bedroom... so I have been busy all week battling ants.... Grrrrrr......

Gasp! It is supposed to rain tonight... A 70% chance even...

I was doing so good with the crunches and weight lifting and then got all thrown off schedule this week... I'm back on schedule with the crunches and even did more to make up, now just have to get back on the weightlifting...

Ghost Whisperer starts back up tonight... Will miss Moonlight though, as it was cancelled.... Still need to watch Smallville and I think I taped over a Bones from a couple of weeks ago, I knew there was a Bones we hadn't watched yet....

Ok, lots of chores on my to do list and time to pick up the boys.....

Happy Journaling....