Ahhhhh

Gardenias are blooming in the yard!!! I wish you could smell this! Heavenly! Check out the front yard! They're everywhere!! Ahhhhhh...

Tasty Tuesday

I made spaghetti this weekend and found this recipe on the back of a can of spaghetti sauce. It sounds so good and so easy!! I am going to make it as soon as I get the missing ingredients! Yummy! Let me know what you think!!!

Beefy Skillet Ravioli

1 lb lean ground beef

1 can(26-oz) Hunt's Garlic & Herb Spaghetti sauce

1 can(14.5 oz) Hunt's Diced Tomatoes with Sweet Onion, or Hunt's Diced Tomatoes in Juice

1 pkg (9 oz) refrigerated cheese-filled ravioli

2 Tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley

Brown ground beef in large skillet; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce and tomatoes; blend well. Bring to a boil.

Add ravioli to skillet; spoon meat sauce over ravioli until well coated. Reduce heat; cover and simmer on medium heat 15 minutes or until ravioli is tender.

Sprinkle with cheese and parsley.

Enjoy!

I'm in a Treasury!

I'm in a Etsy Treasury!! http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=99398 Thank you QuiltingGranny! This Black and White Polka Dot collection has different items all in black and white. I am honored to be included! Check it out before it expires Tues at 11:13am! Click on my apron...the more views the more chances to be on the Front Page!

All That's Left...

This is all that is left of "The Visitor". She made this bed for herself on Thursday...it was so hot here. I had the screen door propped open for her but she liked this space better! It is right beside the porch at the edge of the patio in a very shady area. Such a smart dog!

Yesterday Sweet Mama called the Animal Control people again to see if someone could come out and check to see if she had a micro chip... Bella has one from when she was at the humane society. They chipped every animal who was brought it, cats and dogs. (Bella is so 21st century..Beau is jealous!)

Sweet Mama talked to the guy for a long time. Making sure that if "V" was taken to the animal shelter she would not be put to sleep. He reassured her and said that only the "bad" animals were put down. "V" will be kept at the shelter for a week and if no one claims her she will be put up for an adoption or given to a rescue group.

So, sadly, Sweet Mama let her go when no chip was found in her. The rain was coming and now she would stay safe and dry. The reason we kept her in the first place was so that she would not get run over. With guarantees that she would not be put to sleep, she rode away. Such a sweet dog but too young and strong for Sweet Mama to handle. Plus she didn't want a dog anyway. Bella makes sure of that by napping with her everyday! We are going to go down to the shelter and check on her middle of next week... and take a donation of dog food. We will miss her.

Meanwhile....Beau is missing his dog. He looks for her all the time.

Bella, on the other hand, is overjoyed that The Animal is gone. She can now go back out on her porch and chill.

The Visitor

This showed up at the house yesterday morning! Sweet Mama and I were out pruning roses and putting out the trash...it was trash day! When who came walking down the street and into the yard but this sweet girl. Now, mind you, Sweet Mama DOES NOT want a dog.

Bella , the cat who can get along with everyone, doesn't either! She will not come out on the screen porch at all... But Beau thinks that "it" is pretty cool. As you all know by now, he hates every cat that THINKS about putting a paw in the yard. But the dog, well that's a different story! He just sits and watches her through the screen...chillin'!

The dog is very well-mannered. Can sit and stay. She also has a bark collar on (I think). This did not stop her from softly barking from 3:15 til 4:00am! And then again at 6:00. I'm sorry... as sweet as she is , she has got to go! I put up flyers all around the neighborhood yesterday...even call the animal control people today(just to see if anyone was missing her). But I haven't heard back from them. Hopefully someone will call...they have to be missing her.

Arggggh...She is now digging holes in the flowerbeds... Someone better call tonight...please!!

The Newest!

Here is the newest Mom and Me apron set! It is so cute!! This was orignally a custom order...but I thought why not make it available to everyone?! The custom Me apron was a size 7-8...or it can be made is a 3-4 or 5-6! My mind is buzzing with the possiblities!!

Guess What?!

Sheila Simmons, one of the authors of Georgia Hometown Cookbook, bought this apron from my shop yesterday! Yea! She saw the last post and checked out the shop. I love her cookbook! It has the best recipes from around the state of Georgia. I found it in a little shop in Perry a couple of summers ago.

Red was looking for gifts from Georgia for her husband, Kojak. He was stationed in The Republic of Georgia at the embassy for a year or so...during the time the war broke out over there. We found this and she bought 10 copies for him to give as gifts..from one Georgia to another! (Of course I had to buy one for me!) It was a big hit! Not sure if it translated very well...(grits?) but they loved it!


This cookbook is one in State Hometown Cookbooks. Check out the website and see if your state is there! http://www.GreatAmericanpPublishers.com/

While your looking I'm going to put the finishing touches on Shelia's apron!! Maybe Skippy will drive me to the post office after school! ;)

Tasty Tuesday

Ok...I'm hungry and on a diet! Not good this time of day! I am trying to lose 10ish pounds before my birthday this summer....I will be the big 50. As depressing as that is, I don't want to add fat and fifty to my description. In the past two year I have put on about 15 pounds, give or take. Most of it appeared while I have been taking care of Sweet Mama. She has lost about 30 pounds...I found some of them. I have been trying to put weight on her...not me! So I am doing Weight Watchers. I have done it in the past and it does work! You just have to pay attention to what goes on your plate and in your mouth. But some things are not on the list.

I am sharing with you today a recipe from my favorite cookbook. Georgia Hometown Cookbook by Sheila Simmons & Kent Whitaker. It has tons of recipes from around the state of Georgia and local state festivals. This one sound good!

Chicken Taco Stew

1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed
1 package taco seasoning mix
1 cup water
1 cup cooked white rice
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (15-oz) can pinto or chili beans, rinsed and drained

In a large skillet, lightly brown chicken. Ass taco seasoning and water; simmer 5 to 10 minutes. Ad rice, corn and beans; heat completely. Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream and chips.

Enjoy!!

My First Rose

While catching up on my favorite blogs I came across this! My web-friend Janet has this blog http://www.theemptynest-janet.blogspot.com She last posted about her flowers and Mother's Day. Check out her blog! It is one of my favorites!!

So I remembered I had taken a picture, to share with you, of my first rose of the season! Look how big it is...I put a penny on the counter to kinda show scale. I wish you could smell it..it was wonderful! It has been a great spring for growing roses around here. Thank goodness the drought is over. My roses are thriving! More are blooming..so more to come! ;)

One Year

It has been one year since Sweet Mama had her last surgery. And what a year it has been... Doctors, another surgery, more hospital stays (in different cities), radiation, MRI's, weight loss... this list is endless. And yet we made it through it all. I am so thankful!

In the meantime she is busy. Goes to church, bible study and her TOPS group every week. She even went to Florida to see her brother and celebrate his 80th birthday! We spring cleaned the back porch..powerwashed and everything..even bought new cushions. That made her happy!

Yesterday marked one year. She was a little down all day. We went to Red's for a Mexican fiesta dinner (cooked by Precious who is home from college!). By the end of the night we finally figured out what was wrong. She thought that she would be more like her old self by now...and was disappointed that she was not. She is still having difficulties with her mouthpiece and the way she looks. Her eye is also still sewn closed. But she is alive and able to take care of herself! We have plans to talk to the plastic surgeon about her face...but so far there hasn't been much good news about a good outcome. But we go and listen what they have to say in person. Medicine changes so fast..who knows what new thing they have now to replace cheekbones.

So this is our last picture taken in summer 2008. It was at the volunteer fire department here. Every year they come by asking for support. With a payment you get a free photo and Red has taken the kids for the past few years to get their picture taken. This particular year Sweet Mama wanted to have hers taken too. So Red and I decided in would be a good time to have a picture of just us girls...Notice or coordinating shirts! Later, at the end of our shoot, we added the kids in! Of course it was flooding that day! I think we had the remnants of a hurricane passing through...you can tell by my hair! It was great for the shot three of us but by the time it got to all five in was ridiculous! My hair is naturally wavy but by then it had taken on a life of it's own!! Seriously...you would have thought the photographer would have said something...but he was a guy! Whatever... now my hair is back to normal and a little long. I have decided with all the drama of the past year and no time to get my hair cut...I am going to donate it to Locks of Love. It will make a good wig for some little kid with cancer! I think it has to be 10 inches....so only a few more to go, then off to Savannah to get it cut! Just in time for Summer!!

Happy Mother's Day to all! We will be celebrating many more!!!!! :)

The Flower Garden

As I mentioned in my last post...this is my new Dahlia that I am adding to my flower garden (see above). I had plans to plant it yesterday with my Gerber Daisies but with the rain coming I thought I would wait. I didn't want it to drown! So I put it here.
Then the rains came...and the winds blew....and it rained and rained ... This is what was left.
I'm still going to plant...just a litttle disappointed...but there are lots of buds so maybe it will come back. This is a work in progress...Will show you more as it grows!

Pretty Sunday!

Here's what I am doing today... Trying to get it planted before the rain!! It's going next to my Gerber Daisies...Hope they like each other! ♥