It's been a long time!

A very long time LOL! Wow where has the time gone? Last post in August? HMM what have I been up to you ask? Life!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with the family. Great food, great company and a few laughs.

My Dh and I took our yearly trip to St Charles MO this past weekend. It was so beautiful there. Really gets you in the Christmas spirit.

I have been busy making cards for Christmas and getting ready for the big holiday, as I am sure all of you are. The house is decorated, the trees are trimmed and the wallet is empty LOL!

Seems everything is so much more expensive this year. Even with sales everything seems to be ten to twenty dollars more.

Going to leave you with a couple pictures of the the decorations and a wish that you are all having a joyous holiday season!

The first picture is my new Santa that I purchased on the trip. Purchased this in a lil country store in Lebanon, IL called Simple Country Treasures. The owner is so sweet. She had opened up the back part of the store and moved her counter different from last year. So that meant more stuff, LOL. It's a beautiful store. I look forward to making this a destination every year. If you want to check it out go here.

Another Santa and prim decor

Cabinet in the dining room

New blog,video & my new red door

Hey there everyone! Just a short post on what I have been up to. Yep you did see the post title right. I started another blog. So go on over and check it out when you have time and if you are interested in my blog, I would luv for you to follow. There's a button on the side bar------>
I also wanted to share with you what we did to the front door. I love red doors and think it makes the front of the house look so welcoming. Here are the before and after pics. I think it looks awesome. It turned out great. Yesterday I was out on the front porch and noticed there was a hummingbird that was very active. So seeing how I had all this free time on my hands, I thought why not try and make a video. So here it is. Sorry for the shaking. I was doing this with my camera and I must have had a weeee bit too much coffee LOL! Enjoy!

That's it for today. Need to get moving and get something done. Not really in the mood to do anything on my list. Kind of a dreary cloudy day but very warm. High humidity and temps yuck! but I would take it over below zero and snow any day.Have a great day! TTYS :D Sherri

Hi Everyone!

Just wanted to pop in and say hi and let you know that I am still here.

I have no excuses as far as why I haven't posted. I guess I just haven't had anything interesting to say. We have been busy here at the homefront. Summer always goes so fast.

As far as the house, we havent really done anything lately. We did buy paint to paint the front door but it's been too darn hot to paint it. As soon as we get it painted I will post pics.

The flowers are really filling in this year and looking beautiful.

I have also been busy making cards. Here are a few that I have made.The first card was made using Lizzieanne patterened paper. I luv there paper designs. I lifted the card design from ummmm omg I cant remember. I will find out and post it. The last card I ran thru my cuttlebug embosser using the divine swirls folder.

Since my last post we have had a couple holidays some summer fun and some crafting. Most of all I have been enjoying the summer and the time to be outside(when it's not 90 and humid LOL). Before long we wont be able to get out and enjoy the warm weather so I try and take advantage when I can. Sitting on my porch with a glass of ice tea and reading up on some of my magazines is so relaxing.One of my very favorite things to do. Well better get back to my To Do List for today. Hope everyone is enjoying there summer and hopefully it wont be another 4 months before I post again. Have a great day!

SHERRI

New Craft

Hello everyone! Just wanted to post and say Hi and update you on what I have been doing lately. Recently I started a new craft hobby. I know I know, like I don't have enough craft projects to do but this is very near and dear to my heart, my family and kids pictures. You see, after the fire, I realized that these are the only link back to our past that we have. That terrible day of the fire, I had a firemen ask if there was anything I wanted out of the house and of course the only things that I really wanted were my pictures. These are really the only things that can bring you back to those first birthdays, school plays and family gatherings that mean so much. The nice firemen went in and saved most of them. I was thrilled when he came out with the albums that my dear daughter had put together for me a couple years earlier for Christmas.I balled and balled. I couldn't believe he went in and saved them for me. After that, I realized that it was so important to save these precious memories. Not just for future step back in time moments but to pass down to my kids and they can share them with their kids. That's the reason I felt it was so important to start scrap booking. I know I have so many craft hobbies but none that are as important as this. So with that being said, I want to share three layouts that I did over the weekend. I went to a SB retreat for 2 1/2 days this past weekend and had so much fun. It was just so relaxing to just put your mind away from the everyday chores and cooking and cleaning and just sit there and concentrate on scrap booking. I also got to spend time with my beautiful sister. We always have so much fun .
This first layout is a Christmas one of my daughter and oldest son.Now be nice, don't forget that I just started scrap booking a few months ago, LOL!
The second one is of my DD. She lives in Texas and these are the new boots that I got her for Christmas one year.
The third layout is my DD at her Senior year prom. She looked so pretty with her lavender dress. I still have to do some journaling on this one.

That's just a few that I have done. I still have allot to learn but I am having so much fun.
I hope everyone is doing well. I also want to thank everyone for following me and being interested in what's going on in my life.

Well that's it for today. I need to get back to laundry and cleaning, YUCK!

Have a great day everyone!

Until next time,

Fabric covered books and a lil Spring

I hope every ones week is going well. Just wanted to share my project for this Wednesday. I have been wanting to make some of these fabric covered books. Over the weekend, I went to an antique shop and picked up these books and thought they would make great craft projects. Besides they were next to nothing for the price and couldn't pass that up. I used Chars tutorial over at http://charsethman.blogspot.com/. The only thing different that I did was left off the pocket because I wanted to display these closed.

Here they are after I finished covering them. I used blue fabrics that have been coffee stained to give them a very prim look.
Here they are after I wrapped them in cheesecloth. Think I might get some of those hang tags that are stained to hang on the cheesecloth just to add a little more interest...... and here they are displayed in my dry sink.
Thanks Char for another great tutorial. I have also been doing some spring decorating around the house this week. I took my snowmen down a couple of weeks ago and everything looked so bare. I know it's a little early but nothing wrong with making it feel like spring in the house. Especially since it's been so cold and yucky outside. It kind of lifts the ole spirit to see new things. So go ahead and pull out the bunnies and flowers. Put a little spring in your life.Oh BTW, another project this week are the eggs you see in the picture. I just used paper mache eggs from Hobby Lobby and painted them and stained them to make them look old.

Well I hope everyone has a great rest of the day and week.

Until next time,

~~~~Sherri~~~~

and the winner is....

Kim at theprim schoolmarm. Kim I tried to email you and it was sent back to me. Get in touch with me and I will send out your magazines ASAP. Just go to my profile to get my address.Thanks to everyone that follows my blog and for all the nice comments. Have a great day!
~*SHERRI*~

MY CS magazine giveaway

Hello everybody. I have been cleaning and organizing for the past few days. As I was cleaning out my magazine baskets, I came across two of each of these Country Sampler magazines. Why you asked? maybe I got too impatient while I was waiting for my subscriptions to come in the mail but I can't believe I would do that hehehe! Anyway, one is the July 2008 issue and the other is the May 2009 issue. I really do not need both so I am going to send these out to one of my faithful followers. I also wanted to point out that the May issue is the one that Karen from http://mycolonialhome.blogspot.com/ is featured in.
There are four criteria for this giveaway.
1. Please leave me a message on this post stating why you would like these issues.
2. You also need to be one of my followers before this post.
3. I would also like the winner to have their own blog.
4. If you already have these issues, please give someone else a chance.
That's it. The drawing cut off is January 31st. I will draw the name February 1st.
Good luck!
Until next time,
~SHERRI~

My latest project

Hi everyone. Just wanted to share a couple pictures of my latest project. My DH made this mini stove board. I guess it's really not a stove board since I have it displayed on my counter so I am going to change the name to counter board. We just looked at the larger stove boards and made a scaled down version. I painted it khaki tan and went over it with dark walnut stain to make it look old of course. This is before I got it decorated..........

and this is after.............

My Dh and I have been working on another project for the past couple weeks. Since our son moved out and went to school I have been dying to get in his room and paint it. It was painted a blue color that really didn't go with the rest of the house. We painted it two different colors and put up a chair rail and I have to say it looks so much better. A while back I bought a new quilt and a much smaller bed knowing that I was either going to have the computer room in there or my craft room. So I was really feeling kind of bad for taking over his room because I knew he would still be coming home every now and then. We talked and he had no problem with us moving the computer room in there,so that's what we did. Now I have a room all to myself for crafting and scrap booking. YIPPPEEEE! I am so happy with it. Yesterday I went and bought some baskets and decorations and have to say it turned out so nice. I am not completely done with it yet so I am going to have to wait until it's completely done before I post pics :(sorry! Same thing goes for the computer room. I am waiting on curtains and still have to decide what I want on the wall. Not really much else going on other than waiting for spring to get here. Does anyone else feel like hibernating in winter? I just feel like curling up in a ball under the covers and not coming out until the weather changes. It's almost the end of January so really only about a couple more months of this. I really don't like wishing my life away. My mom would always tell me to not say that because it goes so fast anyway. I really didn't know what she was talking about at the time. Now that I am older, I know exactly what she means. I just keep myself busy and try not to think about it. Hope everyone is having a good week so far. Hope it's filled with lots of accomplishments or fun. If you can do both that's even better.

Until next time,

~Sherri~

Heart Bowl Fillers

Hello everyone. Just wanted to share some pics of what I have been working on but first take a look out our back door. It's a sea of snow. We probably got 5 inches of new snow since last night and more expected tonight with the winds picking up. Needless to say, I wont be venturing out any time soon. So no better time than now to get some of my crafting projects done that I have been wanting to do. My DH got me a new sewing machine for Christmas and I couldn't wait to try it out. I have to say that sewing is not one of my talents but now that I have a machine, I can practice and maybe get a little better. I wanted a machine to make simple things like pillows and new I could find some easy patterns to do. So I started cruzin the net and found this easy bowl filler heart pattern over at http://www.rabbithollowprims.com/patterns.html. I thought they would be cute tucked in my wood bowls since Valentines day is just around the corner. I normally don't do much decorating for Valentines day but these just looked so cute and easy. You could also put some string on them and use these as ornaments.

Here they are in one of my lil wood bowls.
They were so simple, I thought why not make some bigger ones? So I made a pattern and cut these out and stitched these up last night. As you can see I still have to sew them and stuff them but I think they turned out pretty cute.

Well that's it for now. I will be back with some more projects soon. I have a little side table that's just waiting for a coat of paint. I will post pictures when I get that started. Everyone enjoy your day and stay in safe and snug. Not much else you can do with the bad weather. IS IT SPRING YET?

Our St Charles MO trip

Hi everyone. Yeah I am still around. I know it's been awhile. We have been so busy decorating and getting ready for Christmas, it's been a little overwhelming but I am so enjoying it. My DH and I did manage to arrange a weekend away. Today I want to share some pictures of our trip to St Charles Missouri. This is the most quaint little town with so much character. I think this is going to have to be a tradition every year from now on. It just really gets you in the Christmas spirit. There is a Christmas festival that starts November 27Th and ends December 26Th, complete with storybook characters and Santa's from around the world. There is also an ice skating rink. I didn't get pics of that, of course, being the cold blooded person I am, there was no way you were going to get me out there on that ice.To read about this Christmas traditions festival, just go to this linkhttp://www.stcharleschristmas.com/index.html.
Here are pictures of some of the historic buildings. They were all decked out with fresh greenery and beautiful decorations. The streets and sidewalks were all brick. Here are the carolers. They walked along the street and sang.(sorry for the blurry pictures. It was a little cold and I couldn't stop shaking long enough to get a good picture)

Sometimes they would stand underneath one of the buildings awnings and sing.

This is the Christmas angel.

This tree was huge. The ornaments were as bis as basketballs. The building to the right is a restaurant. We ate lunch there one day.We were seated in the top section and could look down on all the beautiful scenery. I wanted to get pictures of the parade and it was going on when we were eating. Oh well, maybe next year.

This is the sugarplum fairy. She was one of the more popular characters. She would take people off of the street and dance. She really had the personality for this character.

Here is one of the Santa's. I believe this is Father Christmas.

If you want to read and get the history of some of these characters, just go to this linkhttp://www.stcharleschristmas.com/christmashistory.htm

I just realized that I didn't really get many pics. I hope you enjoyed what I did get and maybe I will get more next year.
Well I hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas season. It will be here before you know it. I will try and get pictures posted of my Christmas decorations soon.

Until Next Time,

Happy Thanksgiving

Just wanted to pop in and tell all my blogging friends to have a blessed and Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy the day with your family and friends. I am thankful for so much. From my healthy family to my blogging buds. I have been so blessed to have what I have. A wonderful husband and kids and a loving family. Caring and thoughtful friends. That's really all that is important in life.
Tomorrow all the fall decor comes down until next year and Christmas things come out. Yeah, I absolutely love this time of year. There is nothing like the feeling of Christmas. There is a chance of snow flurries today. No accumulation but just the site of snow gets me in the spirit of the season.
Take the time today to hug your kids and family. It really is special to have them close. You never know what next year will bring.

New recipe and craft project

Good Friday morning to all my blog friends. I want to share a couple of things with you this morning. First is my craft projects I have been working on. I purchased these wool ornaments pattern over at http://www.prairiepointjunction.com/. I think they turned out so cute for my first try with wool and learning all the new stitches.

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The second part of my post is a recipe that my sister shared with me and it is so delicious. I linked it so you can print it out.http://sites.google.com/site/goodeatsorg/cajun-pasta-chicken

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I hope the past couple of weeks has been good to all my friends out there. I know the flu is going around here and everywhere else, really bad. I have been fortunate enough to have dodged it so far(knock on wood). The boys have had it but nothing serious just coughs, sore throats and low fevers. I leave the hand sanitizer and lysol right on the counter handy. I spray and sanitize constantly.

Hopefully I will be able to stay healthy.

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That's it for today. Better go so I can get my list of things accomplished.

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween.

Until next time,

Mexican Veggie Bake

Good Friday morning everyone. The week weather wise not so good. It has been raining, gosh I can't even remember when it started but I know it's still raining. Suppose to until Sunday. I have been finding myself being a home body this week. Don't feel much like going anywhere when it's rainy and cold. I guess that's good though, I have been getting some things done that needed to get done.
This weeks recipe is something I tried for the first time this week. I found it in the Gooseberry Patch "Speedy Suppers" cookbook. I have used alot of recipes from this book. This one is yummy and I served it with tacos.

Mexican Veggie Bake
1/2 c. green pepper, chopped
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1/2 c. celery, chopped
1/2 c. carrot, peeled and chopped
2 c. cooked rice, I used minute rice
16 oz. can refried beans
15 oz. can black beans, drained
1 c. salsa
12 oz package shredded cheddar
Saute veges in a lightly greased skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes or until tender. I just sprayed my pan with cooking spray. Remove to a large bowl; add remaining ingredients except cheese. Layer 1/2 the mixture in a 13x9 pan; sprinkle with 1/2 the cheese. Repeat layers, ending with cheese. Bake 350 degrees untl heated thru, about 15-20 minutes. Serves 6
That's it for today. I hope everyone has a nice day and weekend. Until next time,

And The Winner Is......

Jayne! and here is what she had to say...........

Just look at this bucket! It was overflowing. Thank you everybody for signing up for the giveaway and for all your kind comments on my home and on my blog. I appreciate each and everyone.

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Happy weekend everyone! The sun is shining but boy is it deceiving. I stepped out to take Kaci out and couldn't believe how cold it was, 30 degrees. Oh well at least the sun is shining which it hasn't done in a couple days. It was so funny when I got up this morning. I went into the bathroom and peaked thru the house and there was a bright light coming from the office room. I thought somebody left the top light on but nope it was just the sun coming thru the window,LOL. I forgot what it looked like!

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Our son is home for a couple days from college. It's always so good to see him. It seems like he has grown up so much. He walked in the last time he was home with this new haircut and it made him look so much older. It's amazing how it seems like they just grow up overnite.

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That's it for today. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather,well hopefully beautiful wherever you live, cuz the snow will be flying soon. Until next time,

Fall giveaway and New recipe

Hi everyone! Just wanted to let everyone know the deadline for signing up for the giveaway is today. So if you want your name in the pot, just leave me a message.
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I also want to share a new recipe that I just tried this week. It came from the GP cookbook "Speedy Suppers". It's another one dish meal. The less work and clean up the better, in my opinion. Kielbasa and Peppers
2 T. olive oil
2 lbs. kielbasa, sliced 1/2 inch thick
1 red,green and yellow pepper, sliced into strips
1 onion, halved and sliced
Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat; add kielbasa. Saute for 3 minutes; add vegetables. Cook until kielbasa is golden brown and vegetables are tender, about 8-10 minutes. Serves 4-6.
I serve this with white rice and a lettuce salad. Would be good over noodles also. So simple and very good.

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I hope life is treating everyone well. It's been rainy and cold here for the past two days. I see some of you have already gotten snow. They are calling for snow flurries here Sunday night, YUCK! Maybe if we get snow early, we will have an early spring. We can only hope.. That's it for today. I will let everyone no who won the giveaway soon. So stay tuned. Until next time,