Another early morning..

 I am up early, mostly because I have to work today. I slept through the night for the first time in a while. I feel rejuvenated! Adicyn and Amber are still sleeping. Chris is at work and Tyler and Trey are with their dad. I am getting ready for work. Lol, I left my make up in my SUV last night, and it needs to " thaw out". I bought the new "MAC" foundation which is ever so popular now, and it's great! I have never had a problem with acne " breaking out" so I don't need anything heavy. It's just a great coverage foundation. I have used Bare Minerals for so long now, it was hard to switch. I am still using my Bare Minerals, warmth. Mineral Veal and my lipsticks, eye shadows, eyeliner and mascara. I am a faithful Bare Minerals Consumer!

I have to be at work today at 0900. I plan to go in just a bit early just to wipe down the patient exam beds and the counter tops, Stock the Nurses Station and the rooms, since I leave at 1400 today. We are celebrating my birthday one day early today, but only at work. HR has already asked what type of cake that I want and where I want lunch from. When it's one of our birthday's we get to choose the lunch place for the entire office that day, and I chose Longhorn's of course. We are all sick of catered food, Mellow Mushroom and Olive Garden. I love Carrabba's but I was not in the mood for Italian yesterday. I chose a "fresh fruit" cake that Publix makes. It's so tasty and somewhat healthy.

It looks very similar to this cake.

Normally I am not a cake person. I don't really care for cakes, pies or pastries and I especially don't care for Doughnuts. Not liking these food items also helps me to keep my weight down. I have to say these items and Mayo, salad dressings and soda, I don't intake any of these and I am very happy about that. I also only eat maybe two to three Cheeseburgers a year on average. I eat a lot of vegetable plates. Normally at Cheddar's I will order the vegetable plate. I love their Green Beans. I don't really know why I don't like the other foods, I just never developed a taste for them. As far as a beverage, I like FUZE (Slenderize) only 2 carbs per serving size and they taste great!

They come in three different low carb flavors!

So anyway, on to today. After today I am off until Monday. So I will work until 1400, I will be celebrating my birthday at work, then off to The Shoppes at River Crossing for a little "Happy Birthday to me" shopping. Chris would prefer that I wait for him, but sometimes, I just want to go alone, lol. Any woman would understand this and why. One of the main stores that I want to visit is "Charlotte Russe" One of our patients came in yesterday with the cutest boots, she bought them last year, but i want to see if maybe they have a similar pair this year as well. I have two pair of boots, One pair is Nine West Knee High Boots in Brown or the brand-Naturalizer, can't remember which, and the other is a knee high Black pair of Etienne Aigner Boots, neither of them are very comfortable.

These are similar to mine, only the heel is different, mine have about a 5" heel.

I like shoes and boots with heels, I don't own anything "flat" other than my Nike Shox, which aren't really flat. Hopefully I can find some comfortable shoes or boots today!

New Year's Eve and My Birthday!

I am off Friday, so happy to be off on my Birthday, lol. That's right, New Year's Eve is my birthday! My friend Cheryl is throwing a huge New Year's party as well as my friend Shannon. These girls are both previous ER nurses as well, and they know how to throw a party! Shannon's husband Mike is a pharmaceutical sales rep for an Oncology drug so they are always throwing elaborate parties at there 7,000 square foot home. I am absolutely in love with their home in Southfield Plantation.  It was so much fun to watch it being built, the process of this particular home was amazing. It has even been featured in Southern Living Magazine. The December 2007 issue, if my memory serves me correct. They have the perfect home for entertaining. The back yard of their home is simply to die for. They have a "Summer Kitchen" and a huge pool, with an outdoor fireplace surrounded by built in swings and seating. It's amazing. Chris and I went to our first New Year's Party together, at their home, and we always spend Memorial Day there too. Last year we took his mom with us.

My friend Shannon and Mike's home

My friend Cheryl is a Hospice Nurse now, and she too will be throwing a New year's Party. She lives in Perry, near the High School. She too is a wonderful hostess! We may try to attend both parties that night. I will probably want to go to Savannah for the day. Savannah is always host to an Amazing New Year's Bash. Not to mention, it's such a romantic place to visit. This weekend is Michael's weekend with the kids, they always look forward to seeing him and Paula and all of his family. I'm sure Michael's best friend Kevin B. will have an amazing party with a fireworks show over his lake home. He never misses it. He's a physician with no children, he still seems like a child himself sometimes. He and his dad Ron go way out for New Year's with the fireworks show! I am not quite sure yet, you never know we may just go and hide in the mountains for the weekend, lol. I need to visit some of my family anyway.

Speaking of family, if it were not such a drive, I would go and visit my family in Destin this weekend. They can't wait for us to visit. My God parent's live there. They are like my own parents. My children call them "Grandma and Grandpa" and they call my children their  "Grandchildren,"

They have been in my life since I was around the age of nine. They are great "parent's" to me. They love Chris too! We haven't visited with them in quite some time, we once spent every holiday together before they moved. They lived here in Byron until 2005. That's when they relocated to Destin. My godfather -David is the senior Aerospace Engineer with his firm. He received a Masters Degree in Engineering from Mercer University and he also taught College Algebra at Georgia Military College, RAFB Campus and he's also a retired Air Force Captain -thirty years he spent in the military. He's a brilliant man. We love to spend time with them. We usually just stay at their home whenever we visit. They live on the water and just minute's from Eglin AFB. They live in a great location! My godfather has been trying to get Chris to relocate to Eglin for so long, he could very easily get Chris on with him at SAIC. (Southern Aerospace Integration Company), with Chris' award winning Sheet metal work, it would be easy for him. Chris has tons of recent awards for his craftsmanship in his sheet metal work. Especially with his work in the "fuel cell"

Whenever TDY's come up for Eglin, they request him, even if he is not next on the list. I am very proud of him.

My Godparent's on their wedding day. (David and Susan Felker)

Yesterday...

  Yesterday was a very productive day. I got of work a little early. After work I drove to meet a lady that I bought some things from on Robinsyardsales. Then on to get Adicyn from school, we cam home and picked up Amber, went to Verizon, picked up dinner and came home. Chris was home when we got here. He had been helping Jessica and Scott (Our Best Friends) with there salt water Aquarium. We sold them most of the salt water fish in there, and the live rock. Chris knows a lot about owning a salt water tank by us having had one for a while. They needed help moving it to their new home. They sold their home in a pretty nice neighborhood that's here off of Lakeview Rd, Rose Hill. They actually downsized to a smaller home in Carlton Ridge, still a nice neighborhood.

After he finished up helping Jessica and Scott, out neighbor, Sean came over. He and Chris left for a bit to get our new appliances. We saved money by using Sean's truck and Sean, lol instead of having Best Buy deliver and install them. Sean was such a great help. He and Chris had everything installed in less than an hour. The appliances look great in our kitchen. They match my Brushed Stainless cabinet hardware and faucet beautifully. I also have a stainless trash can ad Canister set, that I had before this house. It all ties in together. The sad part will be leaving behind my new appliances. Although, most of the homes that I we have been looking at have all had appliances. Some don't come with the fridge, but those are easily replaced. We plan to leave the fridge here at this house is the new home owners need it.

I can't wait to sale our house. Our Realtor really feels as if it will sale quickly. She had a new listing come up on the next street over last week. It's on Carver. That house she sold before she was even able to get it in the MLS. Literally, it sold in one day. I hope our home sales just as fast. We have completed most of the upgrades that we had planned in the beginning.

Our home now has more buyers appeal than most homes in this area. We have an arched entry, beautifully landscaped lawn front and back, an outdoor fire pit and sitting area for entertaining, a privacy fenced back yard with a newly installed walk through gate, sprinkler system with a new control panel, we even installed a new digital thermostat in the house.

Kitchen Project is almost complete.

  We installed our new appliances today. I sold the dishwasher last night to a guy that we know whom owns a local body shop. The dishwasher was the last of the old appliances to go. One more thing to do, and our home is ready for the Market!

The new Stainless Stove and Over the Range Microwave accent the kitchen beautifully.

The appliances look great with the stainless cabinet hardware!

New Stainless Dishwasher

 We met with the Realtor yesterday at the home on Hampton Point, not sure if we will be able to get that home, the banker had six offers on it yesterday alone, it will probably get snatched up, lol. That's okay because there are new foreclosures on the Market daily. Our main focus at this point is to sell our house!

Adicyn has discovered freedom of the open road!

 Adicyn has been having a blast driving her new Toy. We charged the battery and today has been the first day that she has driven it!

Addy had a blast with her daddy today and her new toy!

Kitchen Project under way...

Old appliances removed

  Last night I sold our old Microwave and our new Convection stove. I didn't want to sell the new stove, but we found a much nicer set of new appliances. We just paid OVER $900.00 for that stove just last month, by selling the stove and Microwave last night, that's just putting us one step closer to a newly revamped kitchen. I was happy to be able to give the buyer a great deal. He is a pastor of a local church, he seemed to be quite young, and he so desperately wanted his wife to have a new Convection stove, but he hasn't been able to afford a brand new one. Now she has a new one!

Our new appliances will be here tomorrow. We already purchased the new fridge, so tomorrow our new dishwasher, stove and over the range microwave will be here. Our kitchen has new flooring, lighting, cabinet hardware, faucet, counter tops, window treatments for the breakfast area, will have all new appliances this week, and has just been professionally repainted. The famous saying is "Kitchen's sale homes", well, this kitchen is going to be so beautiful when I get it completed. Our most important mission for early 2011 is to sell this home so that we can buy our new Dream Home.

We are actually meeting with our Realtor -Gayle, this afternoon at 2:00 pm. we are meeting her at one of our prospective homes at 108 Hampton Point @ Statham's Landing. We have seen the outside and Chris has taken his parent's to see it, but today we will see just what the inside is all about!

108 Hampton Point, Warner Robins, GA

Christmas 2010 is behind us...

 Now that Christmas has come and gone, It's time to get this house back in to some type of order. I am not sure what to do with so many leftovers. My fridge is so cluttered inside.

Time to clean out the fridge!

where do I begin?

 My next project was to get the Dining Room & Foyer back to less of a Christmas theme. I love Christmas time , but every year I am probably the first person on my block to take the down the Christmas Tree and remove anything that resembles Christmas. After Christmas, I can't help it, I immediately look forward to Spring time!

Christmas table cloth and Christmas decor have made their way back into the attic.

Back in order.

 I am ordering a new piece of furniture for the foyer. The chair that I currently have positioned in the foyer is an antique, I like it, but I want to re upholster it. I will be placing it in the attic when my new furniture piece is delivered. The red tin in the chair is home to my Pottery Barn Catalogs. It too, will probably make a home in the attic until we move.

This is how the Foyer looks for now, that is....

 I have many more projects to complete today. I have so much to do to get our home ready for the market. I will update my blog as I complete them!

Christmas Day

Christmas Day turned out great for us. I awoke early enough to get everything in place. I even had extra time to complete some laundry and clean the floors. I just knew the kids would be up early, but to my surprise, they actually slept in this year. My sister planned to be here really early, but they overslept. Every year she comes to watch the kids open their gifts. She's pregnant this time, lol..maybe that had something to do with it.

My sister and Ted ..btw, I love their Truck!

Eventually, one by one, the kids started to wake up..first, Amber, then Trey, then Chris (the bigger one, lol) then Adicyn and last, Tyler. Chris started on the pancakes for everyone. After everyone was all finished with their pancakes, my sister arrived, and right on time -Time to open presents. They had waited for what seemed like forever to them. I try to get every child everything on their Christmas wish list, This year was no different. Each child had a great Christmas, Tyler's favorite gift was his i-pod touch -4, Amber had many favorite's - bare minerals makeup set, her Aeropostale wish list, her Pottery Barn i-pod docking station and so much more, Trey's favorite's were his Nintendo dsi XL and his Nerf Gun ammo (He is the all American boy), Adicyn loved her Baby Alive, her kitchen apron set, her remote controlled puppy, her Escalade and a few others. They all made out like bandits. Christmas is of course about Jesus' Birthday and I have taught each of my children the real reason for the season. With this being said, as far as presents are concerned, it's all about the kids to myself. I of course, purchased gifts for the adults as well, and I received Christmas gifts, but Christmas when I was a child was all about us.

 As each Christmas passes here, I can see more and more that we need a new, more functional home. Space is tight and it's hard to entertain in this home, especially me being used to having a larger kitchen formal living and formal dining room. Enough space to spread everyone out. It's hard to entertain comfortably with this smaller house.Next Christmas we will be in our new house. I am so ready to live in a much larger home, once again. 

 Okay on to our Christmas Menu.
I baked two hams (one for my sister and Ted and one for Chris' parents, as I had them to come at different times. My sister came for "Christmas lunch" and Crhis' parents came for "Christmas Dinner."

I planned it this so that each guest could receive our undivided attention. I decided this after our Thanksgiving Dinner, i felt as if I hardly saw my sister during that time. So, I baked two hams, a huge pot of Italian Green Beans with ham, Creamed corn, Broccoli Casserole, smashed potatoes with Brown gravy, Rolls, Cranberry Sauce, Pineapple Upside down cake, Cheese cake, Brownies, vegetable tray with dip and Baked Ziti for those whom don't care for the more traditional menu!

My Beautiful and so delicious Pineapple Upside Down cake.

Decadent Brownies! (My sister cut these like little pieces of pie, lol)

Merry Christmas to everyone and thank you for the many blessings this year!

Our pre-Christmas Eve find!

 Last night we drove Amber over to her grandparent's house. It was great to see my ex-father-in-law. He came out to see Chris and I, and he couldn't wait to see Adicyn, it's been a while since he saw her. Chris likes him a lot, he always makes Chris feel very welcomed when he is around. Lol, Chris thinks that it's crazy that my Ex-husband's dad is so kind and social to him. I told him that he would just have to know the family. They are good people. Even my ex and I still have a great relationship. As a matter of fact, he just text me last week for ideas on what to get his girlfriend for Christmas. Lol, He's the one with the money, his possibilities are endless as far as what to buy her for Christmas.

So after we left Stanley's house, Chris wanted to know if I were interested in seeing if there were any new properties on the market in their neighborhood. I hesitated because we had just drove all around the previous week. We looked anyway.

Wow we found this foreclosure, it does not have the land that our dream house on Waters Edge Ct, has but it has more square footage and a newly built detached 3 car garage, as well as an attached 2 car garage, a built in summer kitchen on the back porch and a huge yard overlooking the golf course. It's beautiful! My ex-husband's best friend -Dr. Kevin Baggett's brother, Jeff lives next door, that's cool because i like him, he's a cool guy. I think that Chris would like him too, and my friend Joyce lives just around the corner, also, my friend Wendy's mom, Mrs. Nancy lives across the street. As far as Chris' commute to the base, it's very close!

Formal Living Room

beautiful foyer with Double Entry

Rather large kitchen

Great Room

Master Bath

Bedroom

I love most everything about this house, with the exception of the "White" Kitchen Cabinets. The arches through out are beautiful, It's almost 4,000 square feet with 4 bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms. It's only 3 years old!

I made My first Fleece Blanket !

  Not bad at all for my first made by me: Fleece Throw. My friend Jessica made Adicyn and Amber one of these last Christmas for their Gift. So, the other day I went over to her house for a visit and she was sitting on the floor making another one. I thought, that looks really easy and I am sure that I could do it. So a few weeks ago, I went to Hancock Fabrics and picked out several different pieces of Fleece. I purchased about six yards. Three yards of different patterns and three yards of white. The white for the reverse side of the blanket.

Last night after Adicyn went off to bed, I went to my closet and pulled out my neglected Hobby Lobby bag, grabbed my scissors and got to work. After an hour or so, my blanket was complete. This blanket will be a Christmas Gift to someone whom loves wolves.

Here is how to get started:

Items you'll need to make a no sew fleece blanket

1. Two pieces of fleece fabric of different patterns
2. Sharp scissors. The scissors get really dull after this project.
3. Tape
4. Paper clips

How to make a fleece tie blanket

1. Go to a fabric store like JoAnne's Fabric, Hobby Lobby, Hancock's, etc. , and choose two rolls of fleece fabric that you would like for your blanket. I prefer a pattern and a solid. (One blanket uses two pieces of fleece fabric-one for each side; you could use the same pattern on both sides of the blanket. I prefer two different patterns.) The fleeces should be the same except for the pattern; i.e., don't use different thicknesses or textures. You also want to make sure the fleece isn't too thick or it will be really difficult to cut.
2. Have an attendant cut your fabrics equally so you don't have to re-cut later. I chose to have each piece of fleece cut to one yard in the above blankets. If you want a larger blanket or smaller blanket, cut accordingly. I thought the one yard size was perfect.
3. At home, lay the blankets down evenly on top of each other, and clip them together so they don't move.
4. Choose a side to begin and fold the two fabrics up about an inch and a half and use four or five pieces of tape to secure it along this side. Make sure that it is even. 
5. Begin cutting along the folded piece up to the edge of where the fold ends. Bring your scissors just past the end of the fold. Make your cuts about an inch apart so your strips will be about an inch in thickness. Continue until you finish the entire side. Be sure to cut evenly.
6. Begin tying the two fabrics together. The pieces that were cut together are tied together. It's easy to get off a tie, so pay attention so you don't have to go back and untie.
7. Continue on for the remaining three sides. The corners can be a bit tricky. Cut as you did the first side and cut off any ties that look awkward on the corners so that you have a right angle.
8. Tie a bow around the blanket and you have a great homemade gift

My first Fleece Blanket

This is the reverse side, I used plain white fleece for this side

Master Bedroom Project

 My Master Bedroom isn't quite there yet. However, I did work hard at it today. Now that the remainder of my Bedroom Suite is out of storage, I can somewhat redo the Master. I can't decide on which theme that I want to go with. I like the Beach Look, then again, I am very attracted to the whole tranquil spa theme too. Tomorrow I am going into the attic to bring down some of my Pottery Barn drapes to see which will flow best in this room.

Here is where I am at so far...

I can't decide if I want to change the bedding...

Close up

Right side of the Bed, I love my Iron and Canvas Magazine holder by Pottery Barn

One of the Night stands

Night Stand

My Dresser/Mirror

My Lingerie/Jewelry Armoire

I am not quite sure where I want to go from here, I will be browsing through my Pottery Barn Catalogs tonight for ideas and inspiration.

It's almost Christmas Eve....

 We are all so very excited for Christmas to be here. I am still decorating for the holidays. We have been getting so many Christmas Cards in the mail from friend's, family, and my co-workers. I always look forward to my annual Christmas card from Dr. Doyle, I miss him! We received a Christmas Card in the mail from our old neighbor Rodney yesterday. He moved to Jacksonville, Florida and is now working at a base there. He's a great guy. Chris always looks forward to Rodney's visit when he is in town.

Chris' parents stopped in today to drop off gifts for everyone. I have invited them to come back Christmas Day at around 3:00 to spend Christmas here. I probably won't make anything fancy, maybe just some pasta. Probably Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and some Italian Bread. They will bring some desserts. We have friends coming to our home for Christmas Eve Dinner, and other family driving into the area to spend Christmas morning with us. So, I am sure that I will have plenty of opportunity to cook. I'm not a big eater, so I am glad everyone else can enjoy my famous Potato Salad, Home made Macaroni & Cheese, Broccoli Casserole, and a few other of my tasty delights!

Here are a few more Christmas Pictures that I shot today!

Adicyn's Christmas Project that she made at school!

Our Tree, Adicyn has redecorated it several times.

So adorable- Art by Adicyn

This little scripture makes my heart melt...

Our Tree 2010