Daylily Series: Something Wonderful...

--jackie

*Daylily is from my backyard garden and Photo 3 in my Daylily quote series.

Daylily Series: The Best And Most Beautiful Things...

--jackie

*Daylily is from my backyard garden and Photo 2 in my Daylily quote series.

Daylily Series: All We Have Is All We Need...

--jackie

*Daylily is from my backyard garden and Photo 1 in my Daylily quote series.

The Twins Did It Again...

Have I told you that my Mom has an identical twin sister? They have always had similar taste in clothing, hairstyles, home decor, etc.  Right now they live 3-4 hours away from each other and have lived as far as 20 hours away from each other.  They haven't lived in the same town or even the same county for 25 years.  

For as long as I can remember they have purchased the same items...sometimes for themselves and sometimes for gifts.  I've seen that they had the same top or sweater at a holiday gathering.  I've seen them have the same purses and shoes as well.  In almost every instance they didn't know the other one was purchasing the same item.  

Greeting cards.  Have you been to the greeting card section of any store lately?  Literally hundreds to choose from for any occasion.  These two ladies will invariably pick the very same card and send it to the same person.  I have received the same greeting card from them myself.  I can remember my Grandma chuckling and saying, "they did it again", as she opened a greeting card once from my Mom.  She placed it on the table right next to the very same card her other daughter (my Mom's twin) had sent to her.  It has happened over and over throughout their lives.  It's never planned. 

They each sent items to my Mother-In-Laws funeral earlier this week.  Both items are perfect for my Memory Garden.  By the way...I'll be posting pictures of the garden after I pull weeds and repair damage from our resident mole (sigh).  My Aunt Debbie sent a garden stone and my Mom sent an angel.  We saw both items at the funeral home and loaded them into the car after the funeral.  When we got home, I placed them each on my dining room table and then I was finally able to read the poem on each the items. I chuckled and said, "they did it again".  It's the same poem.

Thank You Mom and Aunt Debbie...we love them both!

--jackie

p.s.  My husband has a twin brother too and none of this happens with them.  Must be because they are fraternal twins instead of identical.  Hmmmmm....

Coffee On The Patio...

Most mornings, time permitting, I sit on my back patio with coffee, journal, bible and sometimes my camera.  After the passing of my Mother-in-Law yesterday and the anxiety about the upcoming funeral, I decided I needed to focus on something else...at least for awhile.  I turned my focus to what I could see through the camera lens from my chair on the patio.  My hour or so outside this morning was healing. 

Sometimes you need to see some beauty through all the sadness.

--jackie

Peace...

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
-- John 14:27

My Mother-In-Law passed away earlier this morning.  For many years she has had failing health and has lived with much pain.  Physical pain and emotional pain at times.

I know that now she is not feeling any hurt or pain.  

She is at Peace.

 --jackie

What's For Dinner?

Good Morning,

I haven't posted my menu plans for awhile and thought I'd get one up this week.  I menu plan for two weeks at a time since I get paid every two weeks.  I usually do one big shopping trip for the two week plan and go again to pick up bread, milk, etc. in the middle sometime. I'm posting the menu for the next 7 days.  

Wednesday (today) - Sub Sandwiches, Chips and Veggies/Dip

Thursday - Slow Cooker Texas Pulled Pork, Baked Beans and Coleslaw

 

Friday - Homemade Pizza

 

Saturday - Grilled Steaks, Baked Potatoes and Salad

Sunday - Overnight Baked Apple French Toast, Bacon and Fruit

Monday - Slow Cooker French Dips and Salad (a Family favorite!)

Tuesday - Taco Tuesday (another Family favorite!)

Have a great day!

--jackie

Pinterest Inspiration For A Tuesday...

A collection of links from Pinterest that have recently inspired me. Enjoy.

.decor

.eat

.garden

.read

.quote

--jackie

...and they grow up...

Kobe and I in 2008...close to a year after I started this blog...

Kobe in 2012...

When I had my first baby, Kobe, almost 12 years ago I never really thought about him getting older.  Not really.  When I was pregnant I thought about decorating the nursery, buying cute baby clothes and picking out strollers and cribs.  I never even thought much beyond all the cuteness and what I was feeling as I was carrying this baby.  As you can imagine,  I wasn't well prepared for what having a real...live...baby was like...even though I had read every dang book on the subject for the WHOLE nine months.  Geesh!  Kobe and I had a rough start...mainly since I had Post-Partum depression... but we came through it all okay.  What is amazing to me is that all those baby days really do seem like they were just last year...certainly not 11 years ago. 

I've learned that having kids is all about developmental stages and gracefully adjusting.  I've tried to enjoy every single of one them...even on those pesky 1/2 years. Anyone else experience the mood swings/temper tantrums, etc. when their kids are at the 1/2 year point between birthdays?  Okay...well...maybe it's just us!

With Kobe...I've gotten to experience the all the development stages for the first time.  With my second son, Kyler, we can kind of sit back and enjoy his experiences...because...we've Been There AND Done That.  Except... for the broken leg a few days before he was to start kindergarten.  Nope...hadn't experienced that one before.  And, you know, they are two completely different kids (of course) but these guys are opposites.  Kobe is reserved (very reserved) and Kyler will talk to anyone.  The differences are so much fun for me.

When I started this blog, Kobe was 7 years old and in the first grade.  Now, Middle School is starting soon....Puberty is close...Lots of questions coming at me.  Questions about things I didn't think about when I was carrying this boy for those 9 months.  Questions like..."How does that baby get in there anyway?"

I'm Gracefully Adjusting.

Yes.

Gracefully Adjusting...


--jackie

Strawberry Poke Cake...

I made a Poke cake this week.  My oldest son requested that I make it since he had eaten a piece at a friends house and loved it.  I'm pretty sure I've made it before but no one in my house remembers it.  If I actually did make this cake before...it evidently didn't make much of an impression on the family OR it's entirely possible I imagined I made it for the family.  Yep...definitely possible!  I DO remember my Mom and Grandma making this cake when I was young and it was always good...and very easy to make.  I've taken the recipe straight off the Kraft website...so feel free to go there if you'd like to see the original.  Such a quick and easy cake recipe and always tastes good.

Have a great Friday!

--jackie

 

What You Need

1pkg. (2-layer size) white cake mix

1cup boiling water

1pkg. (3 oz.) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin

1/2 cup cold water

1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

 

Make It

PREPARE cake batter and bake as directed on package for 13x9-inch pan. Cool cake in pan 15 min. Pierce cake with large fork at 1/2-inch intervals.
 
ADD boiling water to gelatin mix in small bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Stir in cold water; pour over cake. Refrigerate 3 hours.