I'm Back!

Hey everyone! It's been a while, huh? As you can see, I'm not the best blogger out there! Not too consistent! We have been busy around here. Last week we were at the Isle of Palms and it was wonderful! The weather was great. The time with family was great. All the food was great. The date with my hubby was great. I didn't want to come home! I was telling my sister that anytime I have to leave from a vacation, I seriously get that homesick feeling. I don't know why, but I do. She said she gets it too. Is that just us or do you experience that too?
We came home Thursday and my sweetie still had a few days off so he began demolishing our back porch so that we can tun it into a deck. I think it will be so nice when it gets finished.
Sunday we had church in Charlotte. Our church along with some people from another church got together to take a stand when Mr. Obama came to town. People, this is a scary guy. His "followers"are scary too. But we must trust God. He is in control. No matter what comes, trust Him! Our family left around 2, but some hung around until 4. Here is a video of what happened after we left.


I don't know what lies ahead for us as a nation. Now more than ever, I feel I must have time with God daily. Now more than ever I feel compelled to read about the persecuted church, about martyrs. I want to finish this race well. I want to stand strong. I want to be an example to my baby girl, and show what it really means to have faith in Christ. I want to support my husband in the stand that he takes. I want him to know he must stand for Christ at all costs. That is a VERY hard thing to think about. But my comfort is in knowing that this is not our home. It won't be long. But knowing it won't be long makes us realize the great urgency in making sure we have done all we can to show Christ to lost family and friends. Oh how I wish we could MAKE them become children of God! Lord break our hearts!

Recipe of the week

A good one I found on the label of a can of Mexican Festival Rotel (chili's and diced tomatoes)


Rotel Fiesta Chicken

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

6 boneless, skinless

chicken breast halves

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 cans Mexican festival rotel, undrained

4 green onions, sliced

1 can (2 1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained sour cream (optional) shredded cheddar cheese (optional) cilantro (optional)


Combine first 3 ingredients. Roll chicken in flour mixture. Brown chicken in oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add tomatoes, green onions and olives. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Serve chicken mixture over yellow rice and top with sour cream cheese and cilantro if you want.

Makes 6 servings.

I love saving MONEY!

I think I can attribute this quality to my thrifty sister who taught me a thing or two about bargain shopping. I gotta tell ya...for me it's really fun! I love finding ways to cut down on costs and still not feel like I'm missing out on too much. The more bang for the buck- the better! So I am going to pass along some really great websites for saving money.
If you have a baby go to www.diapers.com. On your very first order you get $10 off (plug in PAIG5972 so they know I referred you and I get $1 credit each time you order). Plus if you spend over $49 you get free shipping! I was able to get 268 PAMPERS' diapers for $43! And it was at my house in 2 or 3 days! Very cool!
The next site my husband heard about somewhere and I love it! It's http://www.couponmom.com/
It's so great. You get emails once a week of coupons that you can print from your computer. There are also a ton of money-saving tips on there as well. One of their emails told me about a place called www.restaurant.com. You can get gift certificates to restaurants in your area that you can print from home for cheap. Couponmom.com will even send you a promotional code to save even more at this site too! Let me give you an example. Yesterday coupon mom sent me a one day promotion that restaurant.com was taking 80% off of their normally low price. So I ended up getting 3 NICE gift certificates for a TOTAL of $6!!! One to Dressler's restaurant worth $25, one to Max's Alley, and one to Fuji San (japanese). You have to get a certain amount at these restaurants (say $40 or $50 before you get $25 off...but thats a $40 or $50 meal for $15 or $20! Great for date nights!
If you have any great money saving ideas or sites then pass 'em along!

Recipe of the week

Granddaddy Lawrence’s Banana Bread



2 cups plain flour 1 cup sugar

1 tsp. soda ½ tsp. salt

Mix dry ingredients together. Make a hole in the center and add:

½ cup oil 2 eggs

2 very ripe bananas ½ cup milk

1 tsp. lemon juice ½ cup nuts

Blend it all together. Bake in greased loaf pan at 325° for 1 ¼ hour.

A photoshoot with Daddy

Last night Adam was taking tons of pictures of Olivia (he made them kinda artsy in Photoshop). He surprised me with the cutest screensaver of her...here are a few of the shots. Enjoy!

She is MAD!

Recipe of the week

I know its not Thanksgiving or Christmastime yet...but I am actually cooking a turkey as I write this. I figured it was something that I could invest a day in cooking and have dinner for about 3 or 4 days with! I made it back in December for some young folks that we hang out with. This was my first turkey and I can't take the credit...but it was soo good. The credit goes to Tyler Florence on the Food network. It was so tasty...

Maple-Roasted Turkey with Sage Butter Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

1 sticks unsalted butter, softened to room temperature 1/4 bunch fresh sage, finely chopped Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 (12 to 14-pound) fresh turkey, giblets, neck, and liver discarded 8 strips bacon 1/2 cup maple syrup 2 tablespoons hot water Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and remove the top rack of the oven. Put the butter and sage in a mixing bowl and mash with a fork or spoon until the sage is well incorporated. Season with salt and pepper. Rinse the bird thoroughly inside and out with cold water, and pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the cavity and skin liberally with salt and pepper. Using your fingers, gently lift the skin from the turkey breast and slip the remaining seasoned butter under, massaging the breast meat as you go. Truss the bird by crossing the legs over one another and tying with a piece of kitchen twine. Shingle the bacon strips over the breast so it's totally covered. Put the turkey on a rack in a large roasting pan, cover the turkey with aluminium foil, and place in the oven. In a small bowl, stir the maple syrup with 2 tablespoons of hot water to thin. Roast the turkey for 2 hours, basting with the maple glaze every 30 minutes. Continue cooking until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the meaty part of the thigh registers 170 degrees F. The thigh juices will run clear when pricked with a knife, about 3 hours total (15 minutes per pound). About 1/2 hour before you think the turkey is done, remove the foil so that it can brown. When done take the turkey out of the oven and put the roasting pan on the stovetop. Transfer the turkey to a serving tray to rest at least 20 minutes before carving. Serve with Turkey Gravy.

Visit to Great Grandaddy's house

On Tuesday, Olivia and I visited my granddad's house. You can tell it really made his day!