Rance and the giant turkey leg

All that and he took one bite out of it.

Rance's first babysitting job

This little guy came over for a visit the other day while his mommy got a haircut.

Mr. Kolson was a sleepy guy at first...

but was quickly entertained by his big buddy Rance.

He let us know when he got hungry. Rance begged to feed him. He did pretty well for his first time holding and feeding a baby.

Rance is available pretty much anytime to babysit Jenna. And he's cheap!

15 Years Old

Briana started her day off with a toaster strudel and candle stuck in it and lunch from Sonic. We went to church and the youth sang Happy Birthday to her while she stood on a chair.

Later at home, we all came together in the kitchen to sing to her. Trevor picked out a raspberry swirl cheesecake. After we sang it was time for her Rance to blow out the candle. I finally made him stop right before he was going to spit out the flame.

She asked to go to Shoguns or something like it and then see New Moon this weekend. Pics coming later from that.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRI!

Cheesey Chicken Enchilada Soup

picture from Betty Crocker

 

I made this Sunday and everyone loved it, except for Colton of course. It was easy and quick to make. The only thing I did different was I grilled my chicken and seasoned it with taco seasoning. You might want to double the recipe.  I had 2 adults and 2 teens eating this at lunch and really just didn't have enough for plenty of seconds. I also used the Wholly Guacamole from the produce section at Brookshires.

 

2 cans (10 3/4 oz each) condensed 98% fat-free cream of chicken soup

1 can (10 oz) enchilada sauce

2 cups milk
1 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (4 oz)
1 package (9 oz) frozen cooked southwestern-seasoned chicken breast strips, thawed, chopped (2 cups)
3/4 cup crushed tortilla chips

1. In 3-quart saucepan, mix all ingredients except tortilla chips. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thoroughly heated and cheese is melted.
2. Top individual servings with tortilla chips.
3. Serve with salsa and guacamole.

9 Years old

Colton wanted a fishing theme for his cake. I checked Brookshires but wasn't too crazy about their choices. I found the pirate theme and asked if I could get just the icing without the decorations. The baker said it was OK, so we used Colton's toys to decorate the cupcake cake. I saved about $5.00 by not getting the pirates, you know, since I'm on that kick right now.

Unfortunately, Rance had a sample of the icing right on Colton's name. He thought the cake was 'mmm, yummy.'

Trevor lit the candle with a blow torch which impressed Colton's buddies.

They played video games, rode bikes and scooters, ate pizza, cake, icecream, and just had all kinds of fun.

Here is Colton with his Jango Fett costume (Star Wars).

We drove to Tyler so he could pick out a new bike. He got a red Tony Hawk bike and couldn't wait to ride it when he got home.

Happy Birthday buddy!

34 Months

On 10/27

and a year ago.

Budget? What budget?

As some of you may know by now, I have been trying my hand at really sticking to a budget. I mean really sticking to it. I clip coupons, print coupons from online websites, look for coupon codes when ordering online, and use online rebates/cash back websites.

This past week I read my sweet friend Jenna's post on her endeavor with budgeting. Even though I have been at this for a while now, she has really inspired me to 'work' harder at it.

On my last shopping trip I had $4.50 in coupons. Brookshires was having a buy one get one for one cent deal. I was able to purchase bread, sausage, gatorade, & sliced cheese using the one cent deal. That alone was a savings of $11.92! These are also items I would normally purchase, so I wasn't just buying something for the sake of having a coupon. Of course I didn't buy everything for less than half my total after savings of $113.22, but hey, it's a good start for my family of 5. I am especially glad I spent so little considering I had to purchase a big bag of cat food, cat litter, and diapers. (Most of the time, I will opt for the store brand rather than name brand on some items. This is a trial and error with some items since not all things are created equal. I prefer Huggies over generic when it comes to diapers, Parents Choice baby wipes over named brand, and Great Value 24 hour allergy over Claritin. This is just something you have to figure out what works better for you and your family.) I was also able to plan my menu for the week with this budget and forwarding a couple of days from last week to help keep from over spending. Just for kicks, here is my menu thus far starting with Thursday:

T- Chicken tetrazinni

F- kinda skipped this with all the ball games going on, so snacked (this day will be forwarded to next week)

S- hot wings, cheese fries, variety of veggies to each ones' taste

S- sausage and cabbage, bread

M- breakfast for supper- eggs, bacon, biscuits

T- Hillbilly spaghetti pie

W- mac n cheese, beef brats, fresh veggies

Here are some links to the places I frequent to get any extra savings:

coupons.com

ebates

smartsource

coupon chief

retail me not

Money saving mom

the Freebie blogger

all of these are free, some require registration.

"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb." Psalm 139:13-14

I found this article interesting...

...and helpful.

www.huggieshappybaby.com

Would you leave your half done grocery shopping?

33 Months

Christian Women

Christian Women

By Carol Wimmer


A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ;

That a man should have to seek Him first to find her.'

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not shouting 'I'm clean living''

I'm whispering 'I was lost, now I'm found and forgiven.'

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I don't speak of this with pride.

I'm confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not trying to be strong.

I'm professing that I'm weak and need His strength to carry on.

When I say... 'I am a Christian ' I'm not bragging of success.

I'm admitting I have failed and need God to clean my mess.

When I say.... 'I am a Christian' I'm not claiming to be perfect,

My flaws are far too visible but, God believes I am worth it.

When I say... 'I am a Christian' I still feel the sting of pain..

I have my share of heartaches, so I call upon His name.


When I say... 'I am a Christian' I'm not holier than thou,

I'm just a simple sinner who received God's good grace, somehow!

LMBO!

What Rance has been up to...

...since school started. He played destroyed the game cabinet.

Helped put the laundry in the dryer.

Peeled off some wall border in his bathroom.

Got creative with a dry erase marker on the wall and his mouth.

And tried balancing on his head.

I guess since Bri and Colton are at school now he gets a little bored. I don't have time to get bored keeping an eye out for his next stunt.

Saw this on FB today and wanted to share...

...because we all can relate, right? (Don't forget to pause my playlist on the left first)

This sounds so much like my daily 'routine.' And yes, I have to say 'the usual' also. Be sure and watch her other songs. Too funny! Thanks, Julie L. I needed this after today.

First Day of School Blues

Surprisingly, both older kids were up and ready to go this morning. By the time I made it to the kitchen, Colton was dressed, finished with breakfast, and taking the dog out. He started 3rd grade today. This year he has to tuck in his shirt and wear a belt. I hope he remembers. He picked out his outfit last night. He wanted to wear the skull shirt and a belt with skulls on it. Skater dude w/o the skateboard.

This is MY daughter??!! No way! Wow, I can't believe she is a freshman this year. High school. 9th grade. fish. No way, it can't be. She has a full load this year, but I know she can handle it.
Rance woke up fine but didn't want to take Sissy and Bubba to school. He got really upset when we had to get in the truck. I guess he is not much of a morning person. Wonder where he gets that from?
Dropping Bri off in front of the high school. High school. Did I already mention that?

As she walks into a new chapter of her young life.

(yea, I need new wiper blades)

Colton was in a pretty good mood as he got dropped off.

Ok, I did good up until I was pulling off from the elementary. A woman (a mom I am sure) walked out of the gym and was crying, holding a camera in her hand. I started to lose it. Sympathetic cryer I guess. (I hate that)


On the way to drop Bri off, I switched the radio over to KLTY. We caught the end song of Steven Curtis Chapman's Cinderella. But I held it in. When 2012-13 gets here, I will probably need a valium the first day of school and the last. Rance will start kindergarten, Colton will be in 6th grade, and Bri will graduate high school.


I pray that each child, parent, teacher, guardian, & administration will have a good first day and school year.

A day full of kids and fun

One day this past week, I had a whole day of kiddos visiting. Ally came over first and spent the day outside with Colton playing with lite-sabers and baby dolls (but I didn't get a pic of them). A little while later Kaitlyn came over. This little bitty girl can put away the groceries.

She had 3 helpings of Bri's noodles plus lotsa pretzels and apple bites she snacked on through out the day. She also entertained us with her many faces.

Here is her funny face:

And her mad face:

A sad face:

And last but not least , her happy face:
She and Rance thought it would be fun to pretend to sneeze.

Ahhhhh....

chooooo!

Next, Gracie and Sophie came over. Sophie's bottle wasn't quite enough, so Bri fed her some baby food.

She wasn't too sure about the vegetable medley but she liked the fruit.
Grace stayed thoroughly entertained in Bri's room with all of the Barbie stuff. Rance had fun playing with Grace and dumping all the little things on the floor.

The Booth household was busy but we had loads of fun!

Hambone, hambone, have ya heard?

Trevor learned how to do the hambone at church camp of all places. It's not something you can just pick up easy. Cliff called him up to the MC booth so he thought he was going to do some calls at the square dance the other night. I guess you could say I set him up (thanks for the help Jen). Be sure and pause the playlist on the left sidebar before you hit play on the video.

Progress

And even more progress. The wall was started today and should be completed soon.

If anyone is curious as to how all this is coming together, come on over and take a look.

Need any dirt?

Or scrap lumber?
Here is a remnant of the old wall. See the tree next to the old wall? I hope they don't have to tear it down and that it doesn't die from the roots being exposed or something of the like.

This is the barge the trackhoe was brought in on.

Destruction

This is in my backyard at this very moment. There used to be 3 good shade trees right in front of this massive machine. They provided lots of shade in the evening. There are also the beginning of ruts. I hope all the destruction and cost are worth it when this project is finished. I'm still reeling over the initial shock of the whole boathouse building process.