A True Warrior

Do you want to see who the recipient of my special "Sunshine" care package was?

She's the chick in the middle (the adult, not the child)...

She's had one heck of a personal trial the past 5 months, and Carrie (the Asian) and I had the privilege of spending the day with her.  She told us all about her war with cancer and showed us all her war wounds.  It started out as Breast Cancer, but then spread to her liver, lungs and brain.  She takes her treatment in strides, with a positive attitude and a fighting spirit.  She truly is a warrior.  

We talked about high school (and how we'd never go back, even if we could). She introduced us to "tangy's" (sp?) at a local dive, and seriously... if you ever drive through Morgan, stop and get one. You won't regret it. And after the many hours of conversation, some good food and diet soda, she reminded me that life is precious, family is important and that you can face anything when you have faith in the Lord.

I cannot wait to go visit her again.

Sending Sunshine

I'm seeing a high school friend tomorrow for the first time since... well, high school.  The reason for the visit is because she has cancer. I cannot even begin to imagine what her family must me going through.

Aside from taking her lunch, I've been racking my brain to figure out what I could possibly do for her.  With the amount of time I've been spending on Pinterest lately, you won't find this surprising, but I've found just the thing to "brighten" her day.

I'm calling it the "Sending Sunshine" gift basket...

I went to multiple stores looking for everything and anything yellow.  A candle, lemon anti-bacterial hand wash, lemon lip gloss, lemon candies, lemon scone mix, suckers and more.  By tomorrow morning when I head out, that green box will be filled with a Lemon Meringue Cupcakes (yum).

I created more labels and printed "sunshine" quotes on them...

"Always look towards the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you"

"Even on a cloudy day, the sun is shining somewhere"

I can't take away all her pain, and I certainly can't solve all her troubles.  But I really do hope this will "brighten" her day.

Pinterest

You people are in trouble.  And you know who you are.  

How dare you turn me on to this crazy wonderful website full of ideas and recipes that I don't have time try?  How dare you make me see pictures of beautiful kitchens and bathrooms when I don't have the funds to remodel?

You see this?  Everyday I see beautiful outfits, complete with shoes and accessories that I think I would look great in.  But where can I get it all for free (or at least less then $50 per outfit)?

And don't get me started on the party ideas.  I've found enough darling, super cute party ideas to create for Brielle, twice a year until she's 30!  Maybe even 32!  Like this one...

This site has also made me covet anyone with a sewing machine.  Hey you with a sewing machine!!!  Feel free to sew me a purse just like this...

(And find me those red flats while you're at it.  Thanks.)

And finally, this site has made me realize how ridiculously un-creative I am.

DISCLAIMER.  WHILE I SPEAK THE TRUTH, I SPEAK WITH A SARCASTIC TONE.

Lesson #127

DON'T WEAR CAPRI'S TO FEED THE HORSES DURING WINTER (Even if they are sweatpants)

Now, this seems obvious because it's cold out, right?  I get it.  But my muck boots cover my legs, so it's not like I freeze.  It's the water issue that makes this a problem.

Hoses freeze in this frigid cold, so we have to bucket water from the house to the horses twice a day.  While carrying a bucket of ice cold water, when wearing capris (in the winter time) don't be surprised to find your boot full of water by the time you get to the horses water barrel.

The Voice

I don't watch many reality TV shows.  Except the Bachelor.  Oh, and Project Runway.  Okay, I watch some reality TV shows.

But I've always hated American Idol.  Especially the first weeks of shows that basically show a bunch of people embarrassing themselves on national television.  Plus, it hurts my ears.

So, you can imagine what my interest level was when NBC starting airing "The Voice." Um, no thanks.  But then I saw this, and now I'm hooked.  Obsessed.  Completed engrossed in this season.

And this is why.  She is amazing!  Ridiculously crazy, unique voice!  I only wish she would have chosen Blake.  Cee Lo gives me the creeps.

Izzle-fo-Shizzle Turns {2}

Valentine's Day isn't just a day of love... It's the day that we celebrate the day our 3rd child was born.

Izzy... Izz-the-Frizz... Izzle-fo-Shizzle... was born February 14th, 2009.  Come March, when she was old enough to leave her mama, she became the most perfect (and needed) addition to our family.  Some of our favorite things about this Pup are:

1. She's a lover. She's kisses everyone.
2. She prances like the ponies. It's so refined.
3. She eats her fruits and veggies when asked (unlike Brielle).
4. She'll squeak her squeaker-toy when you say "squeak-squeak!"
5. She has a lazy eye. When she's looking at you, it doesn't really look like she's looking at you. But she is.
6. She looks after our home and let's us know when someone or something is approaching.
7. She barks like a hound dog.  And after 2 years, we all still giggle when she howls.
8. See the upper right picture?  She still does that, and I love it!

Happy Birthday little Missy!  

Brielle's Valentine

Aside from making treat bags with cute tags for Brielle's school Valentine party, I dropped the ball getting cards out to friends and family (whoops).  But, Brielle and I decided to do something much cuter, much more fun and completely postage free.

We sent a home-made, computer generated e-Valentine.

Hope it makes you giggle as much as it does us.

Danger on the Farm

You remember when this happened a of couple weeks back, right?  If not, click HERE.

Well, most of the water is gone now, except for where the arrow is pointing.  There, we have our own little ice rink.  Many a times over the past few weeks, I've seen Izzy slide across it, Brielle slide across it and Chris hot doggin' it out there. 

The point I'm trying to make is that I knew the ice was there.

My neighbor was out feeding their animals the same time I was this morning.  We got chatting.  Izzy dropped her ball in front of me, like she does every morning.  Without thinking, I picked it up and threw it as hard as I could into the pasture.

Before I go on, let me ask this... do you know what happens when your rubber tires hit ice on the road?  Ya?  Well, the same thing happens when rubber muck boots slide on ice.

It was at that moment, with my feet flying out from underneath me (backwards, no less) that I remembered the ice.  My knee is swollen, torn up and bleeding, and I'm pretty positive I just undid the thousands of dollars of physical therapy to my wrist from a previous farm accident.  This will likely be confirmed this afternoon when I make a trip to InstaCare.  I consider myself semi lucky, because my face hit the ground too, however, there's no broken nose or bleeding forehead. 

The farm can be a dangerous place... but only when you're stupid and not thinking.

Valentine Tags

I'm all alone today.  The loves of my life took off for a fun day of skiing at the Beav.  Don't feel sorry for me.  I wanted to stay home.  This past week required a lot of early mornings and late nights at the office.  I couldn't be happier to stay home and enjoy some "me" time, doing what I want, when I want, without interruption.

Eventually, I'll have to clean the house.  But for now, I'm working on some Valentine's Tags.  I created some tags for cookie bags that we'll give to friends and neighbors, as well as some tags for the goody bags Brielle will take to her Valentine Party at school.

They turned out darling.

Seriously, how cute are these!  When I was selling cupcakes, I found a box of circle labels that are about 3.3 inch wide/tall, with 6 labels to a page.  They are perfect for these kinds of things, and I find myself using them to create labels for gifts, jars, and of course, treat bags.

If you want to see the Valentine Cookies I'll be making to fill the treat bags, head on over to Glorious Treats website and take a peak!  I won't be cutting out the middle (I like my cookies whole... not holey), but will be using a similar pattern.

The labels are done, now it's off to the kitchen!

When the Sun Comes Out

It's 20 degrees outside.  The sun can be very deceiving in Cache Valley this time of year.  

When it's this cold outside, I like to treat myself to a mug of hot chocolate with whipped cream on top.  I hold the mug with both hands, in an effort to warm them.  My hands are always cold.  

So what do the animals do when it's cold outside, and they have no access to hot chocolate?  Well, Izzy does this...

She pulls her blanket (which used to be Brielle's) out into the middle of the yard and stares at the sun to make her face warm.

And the horses?  They turn their rear ends to sun.  

So, I like my hands warm, Izzy her face and the horses their arses.