Let Us Remember

Let us remember those that chose or were drafted to serve this country and in doing so lost their lives for us to be able to have the rights that we have today. Let us remember their families that sacrificed all while their loved ones protected us. Give thanks that there are still men and women out their fighting to protect FREEDOM and support them any way that you can. Go visit Rosalyn Sue if you want to find out what you can do to help soldiers today.

A GIGANTIC GIVEAWAY!!!!

Good Morning! I just wanted to tell you abt. the biggest, best giveaway I have ever found. Go now to this blog and put your name in the hat.

A Must See!!

While visiting Dawn this morning, who always finds the best blogs, she passed on a new blog that all of you must visit. It may not be very new but just new to me...go check it out! In the meanwhile, here are a few clips from that very blog.

En Le Jardin Swap

I took my goodies for the girls in this basket that Tammy made us for Girls Weekend. I managed to cram 18 flower fairies inside.

These flower fairies were my gift to all the girls.

On Friday, while the girls were in Savannah I had a light bulb moment and made this toadstool fairy for our sweet hostess, Jenn.

Andrea made us these wonderful bags to hold our swap goodies and they were packed full of heavenly things that I will post individually later on.

At each of our chairs was this sweet little box filled with gifts from Jenn.

I am trying to break this art retreat into different posts so I don't have to sit here for hours, so here are the pics of the swap that we all contributed to. I will post more pics later of all the girls, some of the craziness and all of the individual goodies that I came home with. Best of all, I made some wonderful friendships. My heart is full of love for all of the girls that I have met this past month at the 2 art/friendship retreats...no goody can compare to them!

Part 2, EN LE JARDIN 09

Last Thursday, this art retreat began at Jenn Hayslip's with just a casual dinner under the tent. Her Mom had fixed us these wonderful casseroles, Jenn fixed salad and bread and I brought a dessert. Here is the recipe for Mango Salsa Sundaes, a Pampered Chef recipe.

12 (8 inch) flour tortillas

1/4 c. sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon( I used way more than this)

2 tbsp. melted butter

1 cup strawberries, hulled and finely diced

1 ripe mango, peeled and finely diced

1 kiwi, peeled and finely diced

1 lime

1/4 c. sliced almonds, coarsely chopped( I don't like nuts so I left them off) :)

1 jar(11.75 oz) strawberry ice cream topping

3 c. vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 350F. Trim tortillas to form triangles(I save the scraps for cinnamon chips to eat the leftover salsa with). Cut a 1 inch slice into each side of the triangles. Brush tortillas with melted butter and then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mix. Place tortillas into 12 cup muffin pan, pressing down to form cups(use the slits to shape into cups). Bake 18-20 or until golden crisp, cool on cooling rack. Hull and peel fruit and then finely dice, mix all together. Use a zester to zest the lime then juice the lime to measure 1 tsp. juice. Add juice and zest to fruit mix, stir gently.

Coarsely chop almonds using Food Chopper. For each sundae, spoon 2 tbsp. of strawberry topping onto white plate, top with one tortilla cup. Place 1 scoop ice cream into cup, top with salsa and almonds.

Since mangos could not be found, I used peaches in their place, it was still just as yummy. Let me know if you make these and how you like them!

Friends, flowers and fairies

Mama Ruth, The Real Man and Judy as we finally got to go into Tammy's Studio.
Lee, Tammy, Shelby, Judy, Ruth and Don relaxing at the hot tub...it was hard work crafting!
Luz and I outside of Trish Ann's in Haddock, Ga.

I have sat here trying to figure out how to start this post for what seems like hours and not sure this is the way I want to go but I want to tell you a few things because I doubt that I am the only one that has led their life in this way and I want to share how wonderful friendships can be.

Our goody swap baskets filled to the brim with tons of goodies..my favorite being this vintage crocheted purse that Tammy and Lee kept a secret from me.

My elementary years were spent surrounded by friends, sure I had one very best friend but I also had a ton of friends in two different towns, cousins who were friends in 3 different states, softball teams full of friends. In high school I met a guy and slowly started neglecting those friendships until I was really only left with one true friend, probably like many of you. After graduation, I married that same guy and really ran off what few friends that I had either by neglecting them or by their dislike of what I was allowing this guy to do to me. Anyway, it took a little while to realize what I done with my life and "boot" the fella but at that point, there were no friends left. Fast forward a few years but I had met my future husband while working a second job to pay for all of the first one's bills and we had become fast friends, in fact the best of friends. I opened up in ways I had not done in years, telling everything I thought, felt or had done and that friendship slowly led to something more. Here I was again..best friends with my husband and only a handful of girlfriends. Once again I started withdrawing from the girls and devoting my all to my husband which I am not saying was a bad thing for me, my husband and I were completely wrapped up in each other and shared everything...absolutely the best of friends. Now after 15 years of marriage, I do have one girlfriend left from high school that I love dearly and we are very close but in the past year my life has started to change. Actually in 2005 when I lost my mom, I had this hole in my life that I have not been able to fill and while I will never be able to "fill" the hole left without my mom, I have realized how much I miss having girl friends.

Last June I met Tammy Lucik, never knowing that it would lead to forming a friendship which would then lead to meeting a group of girls that instantly hit it off. I had never realized how much I need girl friends, how much I was missing in my life and it amazes me how God has put so many wonderful ppl. in my life in the past year.

Did I shave my legs for this?!?!

I know, I know the song is horrible but it is just for Tammy...she is the only one that will understand why I placed it in the number one spot..don't worry I will delete it very soon!
I have so much more to tell and show abt. my amazing weekend with the "girls" so let me get them in some kind of order and I will be back to show you all!!!!

Girls Weekend 2009

Tammy welcomed all of us to her wonderful home and treated us like family!

Our wonderful hostess and FRIEND in her beautiful studio.

Here we are, some with pumpkins and some without,haha!

Our sweet and oh so talented teacher, Dawn of The Feathered Nest!

The displayed art after all was done, on top is mine, middle row from left to right is Judy's, Lee's, Natalea's, Ruth's, Luz's and Tammy's. All so different and all so pretty.

All I can tell you is.......Tammy really outdid herself, she went so above and beyond to make us feel pampered, appreciated and loved. Starting Thursday of last week we arrived at her home for a weekend of fun, art and just hanging with the girls and of course one fella every once in a while. As you can see in the pics we had so much fun and I am so thankful that I was invited to be a part of this weekend and given the chance to meet all of these wonderful girls. I cannot wait to do this again! I have so many more pics to show but will have to get permission on some of them, may have to blackmail with some as well, hee,hee!! Will post more pics and tell abt. more tomorrow.