I (Finally) Made Something From Scratch!!!!

The last few weeks I have, of course, made things from scratch but I haven't had time to post anything. My original plan was to post about my made from scratch endeavors on Sunday but my Sunday's have been really busy. So....today is the day.

This week is a challenge week but I am posting about something I have made before so I understand that disqualifies me for the prize (bummer). I haven't had much luck winning those prizes anyhoo....

This week I made a sling! There is a little bit of a story. I hope you don't mind. When I was pregnant with Elise I was looking for cloth diapers on a website that was also selling a pouch style sling. I had tried a sling with Jude but it was bulky and uncomfortable. To be honest I probably gave up too quickly. So, I see this sling and I think it might be better for me. The problem was the price. It cost somewhere around $50! I decided to look on ebay and found them a little cheaper but noticed they were custom made to fit you in a very short amount of time. I thought, well, if they can sew one - so can I. I did a little search on the internet and quickly found several sites that told you step by step how to make many different types of slings. Here are the directions I used. I made one for myself and one for my sister who was also pregnant at the time. I used mine all the time. I've made several since but I must admit I don't have the sizing thing quite down yet so I have been a little reluctant.

My friend, Jennifer, finally had her baby this week and she had asked me for a sling some time ago. I had bought the fabric but hadn't tackled the task yet. I had seen several ads in the pregnancy magazines for slings that were the same style only lined. I thought I would try it. The results were beautiful. I took it over yesterday and she loved it. Here are some pics.



It is kinda hard to see in the pics but the inside is a cream color with little pink flowers.

Here is a picture of Elise with baby Elizabeth. I let her hold her with my assistance. Don't worry Jude told her not to choke the baby (ha ha ha - some of you will get that). She did a great job until she decided she didn't want Mommy helping her. Right after this picture was taken she put a death grip on the baby and tried to get her from my hands. I told her NO so she grabbed the baby's face. Yikes. I have more than one child so....I understand they aren't that fragile and the baby was fine but Jennifer almost jumped out of her skin trying to save the baby from my little girl. Oh....I remember my first. I thought it was kinda funny. I don't think Jennifer found it so cute. Sorry Jen!

Here are a few websites that sell slings.
Peppermint Slings
Mamma's Milk
New Native
Nest

If you want to read more "Made it From Scratch" entries head over to Stop the Ride on Tuesday!

Bloggers come back!!!!!

Where have all the bloggers gone???? Well, you may have noticed a few of my listed blogs have become quite stagnant these days. I guess people are too busy to blog. Where are their priorities? Ha. Well, I am happy to report that Justiene & Jacki are both back!!!! Check out their blogs.

Thursday Thirteen #18 - Pictures of ME!

Today's TT is a variety of pictures of myself. I will try to give you a year & explanation if necessary. Have a great Thursday!

1. 2004ish??? We were taking a walk in the Metro Parks & came across this hole. I decided to get in it and get my picture taken. Ha.
2. This is one of my senior pictures. It was taken my junior year (1990).

3. Also taken in 2004. We were on Oakracoke island in the Outer Banks. We had been riding our bikes around that day. It was fun.


4. 1994ish. Check out the stuff in the background. A Benny & Joon poster, the converse shoe boxes......

5. 2003 - me & Jude.
6. 2001. Okay...I have a couple of funny things to tell you about this pic. Look at my hair. Notice it is a different color than all the other pictures. I had taken a picture of a hairstyle (dark hair with a few chunky blond highlights) to this cheap hair place. The lady bleached my hair all over. In this pic it had actually been dyed over her surfer blond she had given me. This happened during the time that Jake was trying to get me to go out with him. I was at work, the next day & this other guy was talking about my hair (teasing me). Jake looked at me puzzled and asked what he was talking about. I told him my hair was dramatically different and he said..."It is???? I didn't even notice!" Nice. The other thing about the pic - Notice what I am wearing, the type of shoe, my sunglasses....and the four wheeler in the background. Yes, I was the driver. Funny.

7. 1991 - I was on the May Day Court. (kinda like homecoming in the spring)

8. 1997 - Truckee, California

9. 1998ish. I had that short hair style for a long time. I liked it. Man I do look pale. I probably hadn't been outside in years in this pic. I worked 3 jobs.


10. 2005 - The day Elise was born. My hair looks really good for just having a baby.

11. 2001 - My wedding day. That is Duane & Stephanie, two of my old pals.

12. 2004 - Right before I got pregnant with Elise. I am holding Jude & Indy and that is Lake Erie in the background.
13. 2001 - I was eating something. This picture was taken in our first apartment.

And one ****BONUS**** picture....Just because it is soooo funny.

For more Thursday Thirteen GO HERE.

How Much Is Too Much???

So, I have been thinking. Thinking about blogging and life. An interesting mix, isn't it? Well, I need your opinion. I am wondering what you think about blogging and what you should and should not blog about. I am, by nature, a pretty open person. I hate keeping secrets. Not the kind your best friend tells you and asks you not to tell anyone but things like Christmas presents. I've never been a very good liar and if I have a feeling you see it right there on my sleeve. That is just me. I am who I am. You don't ever have to worry about me being mad at you and not telling you - I think that is unfair and I wouldn't do it to you. But that's me. When it comes to my blog I write all sorts of things about my kids, family and life. In the past, I have come under attack (yes I said attack) for things I have written. When I was going through stuff at work or after we changed churches I wrote very little about it. I kept most of it inside but I did say some. You can't believe the backlash. Someone told me if I wanted to write my personal feelings, I should write them in a private diary. Oh, it was much worse than that but I don't want to open up old wounds. Really, to tell you the truth - I am afraid to tell you all the crap that happened. As entertaining as it may be - it was hurtful to know people said and thought such mean things about me.

It is funny because when I see people I haven't seen in a while they will often say....I still read your blog and they have kept up with things like "I am having a girl" and "Jude made a huge mess". I think that is cool. But what do you think? Do you think there are things you should NEVER blog about? Do you think people (not just me) get too personal on their blogs? What exactly is TMI???? I hope you leave me comments about this. Thanks in advance.

Wordless Wednesday...I Wanna See!!!

For more Wordless Wednesday GO HERE!

Marriage Meme

Stephanie tagged me to do this.

1. Where/ How did you meet? Jake & I worked together at a Crisis/ Runaway Shelter for teen boys. I was the Outreach coordinator. He was a Group Life Supervisor. The day he came for an interview I was in the office, talking to the secretary and I asked her (she was also young & single), who's car (with Texas plates) was in the parking lot. She said it was a new interview...some guy named Jake. I asked if he was cute....she said "he's young." We both laughed and said oh well. When Jake did get hired I told my boss to fire him (while Jake was sitting there) because I wanted my friend to work there instead. I think that made him like me.

2. How long have you know each other? Well...almost exactly 6 years.

3. How long after you met did you start dating? 4 months. Jake started asking me out about a month after he was hired but I kept avoiding him. I lied and told him I had to work, then picked up a shift so he wouldn't find out. Once he asked me out to lunch & I told him I had to clean my house because my friends were coming from out of town for a Bachelorette party (for Amy!). He once told me I just needed to find a nice guy...my response was "oh, and I suppose you think you are a nice guy!" He gave me his phone number & I threw it away. Finally, my best friend came into my work and met Jake (BTW...she said something like, I've heard all about you to him - He turned beet red!). As soon as she left she called me and asked me WHY I wasn't going out with him & WHY I was being so mean. For the first time I thought...oh, I guess I never thought of it as an option. Ha. Looking back, I wonder why he even liked me. I suppose it was the challenge.

4. How long did you date before you were engaged? Well, our first date was in early August. We were engaged (with the ring and everything) by October. Our parents met and it seemed to go well so Jake said we should get married. I said okay. He bought a ring later that week and basically handed it to me as I was walking out the door to go teach a class. I still remember he was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and had the ring hidden in the front pocket. The whole engagement was very casual. We had no idea what we were doing. Ha ha ha.

5. How long was your engagement? A little more than 2 months. Yes, we met, dated, got engaged and married within 8 months.

6. How long have you been married? 5 years

7. What is your anniversary? December 29

8. How many people came to your reception? About 200. I made 200 heart ornaments in my pottery class...one for each guest.

9. What kind of cake did you serve? What the leaning tower of cake??? I think it had 3 or 4 tiers and they were all different flavors (vanilla, strawberry, spice & I don't remember...maybe it was just 3). Either way...it tasted good but it almost fell.

10. Where was your wedding? Stow Parks & Rec. Heritage Barn.

11. What did you serve as a meal? Beef tips, cabbage rolls , pasta & sauce, green beans, salad, mashed potatoes, bread, cheese & relish tray, cookies, cake, coffee, tea, wine & beer. Oh...and these chocolate spoons that I made. They were to put in your coffee but they ended up being a hit with the kids.

12. How many people were in your wedding party? Um...two. Heather my sister & Jim, Jake's friend. I wanted to have more but one of my girls was giving me a hard time about the dress and who she would stand by and all that so I opted not to have any other girls to save her feelings. Looking back I should have cut her and kept the others...I am not even friends with her anymore but I am friends with the others. Oh well.

13. Are you still friends with them all? Ha ha...I guess I already answered that...yes, we are friends with everyone that was involved.

14. Did your spouse cry during the ceremony? No.

15. Most special moment of your wedding day. My sister gave a very nice toast. She started with a joke and then went on to say lots of nice stuff about me and Jake. Awwww..... Jim's toast was a good one too. He said he and his wife knew Jake was going to marry me after the first time we met at Borders. Man that seems so long ago (almost 6 kids ago between the two couples!!!!).

16. Any funny moments? Yes. The piano player (who was very VERY old) forgot to play the wedding march. We waited and waited and waited. People were sitting in the room looking at each other saying, "See I told you Delilah wouldn't really get married." Nice, eh???? Well, my sister walked out to the sound of her heals clicking on the floor. She told him to play it when she got to the front. Also, my father-in-law, Paul married us. It was his first wedding and he got very nervous. Jake & I thought he was going to pass out.

17. Any big disasters? Besides the piano man & the cake???? Not really.

18. Where did you go on your honeymoon? On an Eastern Caribbean Cruise.

19. How long were you gone? One week.

20. If you had your wedding to do over what would you change? It would be smaller (half the people that came...no wait....probably way more than half aren't even friends of ours anymore). Looking back we probably should have just eloped. We could have saved a TON of money. Or maybe we would have just had a much smaller. I don't know.

21. What side of the bed do you sleep on? Left side.

22. What size is your bed? Queen

23. Greatest strength as a couple? This might sound a little sad, but this is such a difficult question for me. I called Jake at work and asked him and he said that we balance each other out - trust me that doesn't feel like a strength at times (our difference). But after talking to him I think our greatest strength is our commitment to make the world a better place. Weather it be through church or our children or just by being nice people I think it is a strength. So there.

24. Greatest challenge as a couple? Now this one is an easy one. I think just growing up and becoming responsible adults together has been the greatest challenge. We weren't kids when we got married but we still had a lot of growing up to do. And meshing all the stuff we already had learned through life together into our own family has been a challenge as well.

25. Who literally pays the bills? Jake

26. What is your song? We are so not romantic. We don't even have a song.

27. What did you dance your first song to? Who knows? I have NO idea. The band played something and we danced. It was something slow and mushy, I am sure.

28. Describe your wedding dress. White, plain, long sleeved, long train (that I busselled during the wedding, rather than let it flow), scoop neck, beads & sequins around the wrists and hem line. It had a zillion buttons in the back. I had a simple head piece and the longest veil you have ever seen. I didn't put it over my face. I also wore platformish type shoes and blue fish nets for my something blue.

Man this was a long meme. I am not going to tag anyone. If you want to do it just let me know and I will add a link for you.

Which is Worse????

When you aren't pregnant & someone asks you if you are OR if you are in your 6th month of pregnancy and someone says they didn't notice you are pregnant? Just something to think about.

This is what I am doing this week...

Obviously I haven't been blogging. I have had way too much to do. Earlier in the week I heard the weather was going to warm up by today and I have been trying to get all my stuff done for the week so I could go outside today. Right now it is storming. Oh well. I didn't get all my stuff done anyhow & at least it is warm and I am able to open the windows and listen to the rain.

Since I haven't felt good for the last few months I have really slacked on cleaning. So this week I decided to give this house a proper tackle. On Tuesday it was the kids rooms. It took the better part of the morning to clean & organize those rooms. I am not one of those mom's that picks up the toys each night and pretty much their rooms usually look like a cyclone went through. It isn't a big deal. The little neighbor girl comes over (she is 8) to play with Jude and she is always complaining about how messy Jude's room is. I tell her she can clean it if she wants. Ha ha ha. Either way....we organized, put some toys up, cleaned and sorted. I threw away a few things because my kids have so much JUNK. Too much. One area I am really having a problem with is the books. My kids love the books but they have so many and they never stay on the shelves...

Yesterday, Dunkin Donuts was giving away a free iced coffee to celebrate the first day of Spring. I thought that was nice and I needed to go to Walmart so I decided to swing by DD and pick up my free drink. I thought it would be nice if I took it to Jake at work. After all, he has been working hard lately. So, I go through the drive through and (of course) that free coffee ended up being the most expensive cup of iced coffee I have ever bought because I ended up buying myself a drink, Jude a milkshake and Elise an ice-cream. So much for a cheap surprise gift!!! After stopping by Jake's work we headed off to Walmart, which did not end up being a cheap adventure either. I did buy something that I think will prove to be lots of entertainment for us. I bought a little "green house" thingy. It has little dirt starter things so you can start seeds in the house and move them outside when it warms up outside. It came with 72 of the dirt plug things, a tray & cover. I had a bunch of seeds already so when we got home the kids and I had fun picking out and planting what we want to grow this year. Some of my seeds were a little old so I am going to monitor it pretty closely to see if they actually germinate. Jude was very excited. I have the perfect window for it to sit in, as long as Elise leaves it alone. I will keep you updated.

Yesterday I also SCRUBBED my kitchen ceiling to floor. It looks so much better. I am pleased.

Okay, one last thing. Jake and I have decided not to tell anyone the baby's name until she is born. This will probably be our last kid and we probably won't definitely pick a name until she is almost here. Trust me people won't like the name we pick at first just like no one liked Jude or Elise when we first picked those names. But...when you see that beautiful little girl you will think her name is perfect. It won't be something common, although it may be a little more common than Jude or Elise because we are running out of options (ha ha...not really). And unless something hits us out of the blue it will probably be one of the names I have already mentioned so my suggestion is re-read them and start embracing......

Have a great day!

Did you want to know????

Well, in case you did - the baby is healthy and it is a girl!!! So we can leave the pink stuff out and we can start sorting through the crazy girl names. Jake and I had made a deal that if it was a girl I could name her and now he says NO WAY. Can you believe that???? What do you think about Meadow Miller???? I think I am feeling another baby name TT coming on!!!!

Avacado Kids...

I thought this was cute.

The Parade of Skinny People.....

If you live in a place that has sidewalks, you'll know what I am talking about. For us the parade was on Tuesday. It happens every year, usually on the first warm day. Every skinny person (especially stay at home mom's who have been cooped up all winter), step away from their treadmills and join in the parade. Tuesday morning I got ready for the day pretty early, opened the blinds to let the sunshine in and there they were...prancing outside my window. I watched, thinking...hmmmm....that should be motivating. Well, I watched my friends children that day until about noon. After my kids took their naps we did go outside and we stayed out until dark (other than to eat, of course). By time we made it out the skinny people parade was over and the more rubenesque had made their way out doors. That was good. Later that evening, while Jake was getting the kids ready for bed I headed out to Handels (the ice cream place) to get our bedtime "treat". After all, we did walk and ride our bikes so we needed to make up for all that healthy stuff. The place it fairly close to our house so I went alone to pick the stuff up and bring it home. When I pulled in I was surprised to see there was a parade of sorts....well, it wasn't moving so I guess I can't call it a parade....let's say a "gathering" of rather large people surrounding the ice cream stand. Seriously...there wasn't ONE skinny person there. My theory is that they were all tired from their early morning march. The display may have normally worked as a serious turn off but hey, I am pregnant and I wanted ice cream. For the first 18 weeks of pregnancy I hadn't been able to eat the stuff without barfing....you better believe I am going to make up for lost time!!!! Plus, knowing what I was going to order, I felt more comfortable surrounded by people that weren't going to stare in shock!!!! It took me a while to make up my mind but I finally settled on a chocolate Oreo cookie combo...in a waffle cone. It was HUGE. I swear it had at least a half a sleeve of Oreo cookies in that waffle cone. Do you know, I normally don't even like chocolate ice cream that much and I am not really a HUGE Oreo fan but that ice cream was the best thing I had eaten in a while and I have been thinking about it ever since. I wonder what time that place opens....I could go for one now.

Either way, I think a lot of people become painfully aware of their "status" this time of year with the warmer weather and less clothing and all. I only have the prospect of gaining in my horizon. At least I have an excuse this summer. No, seriously - I am trying to be more healthy and I know I need to exercise more (which I have been talking about for some time now). I think I am even going to go take a class at the Nat next week. Jake has been trying to get me to go to the gym with him and now Justiene has joined in....so I am fighting a loosing battle. Besides, I am sure it will give me something good to write about, right?

You May Want To Cover Your EARS!!!!!

This morning I woke up. I heard the heat running. That is strange because it has been 65-70 the last two beautiful days!!!! The last of our snow melted yesterday. Jake came upstairs and told me he was leaving for work. I am usually up but since the time change I am having a problem getting motivated. So I am laying in bed and I hear Jake's car running but not going anywhere. Hmmmm... I wondered what was going on so I looked outside. I could not believe my eyes. EVERYTHING is covered in &%!@#*** SNOW! Yes....@#$%%^! snow! I can't tell you how upset I am about it. I have a sore throat and it is @%#!@!##%^& snowing!!!!

That is it....I am out.

Kathleen Cochrane cat attack!

This is from our local news...it happened live!

Wordless Wednesday....Happy 60th Dad!!!

For More Wordless Wednesday GO HERE!!!

Time...oh give me time!

I seriously don't have time to be sitting here right now. Busy, busy, busy. I am watching some of my friend's kids today, while she takes one of the others to the doctor. They are going to be here in like an hour. Yikes. I am not ready and I am blogging. In fact I have a lot to do today. I still need to do some sewing. I don't know what my problem is but I keep putting it off. I actually started "preparing" yesterday but I didn't make it that far. In the mean time Jude got into my ribbon (for gift wrapping) and cut a bunch into one inch pieces. Funny....a long time ago, my nephew, Kellen did the same exact thing to me. ARrrrrhhhhHHH.. Jude did it in the basement and I haven't cleaned it up yet. I told him he has to vacuum it all up. He looked a little like..."is she crazy???? She's going to let ME vacuum?"

Okay....gotta run. C YA. Have a good one.

Daylight Savings Time, Spring & Life

My kids woke up at 6:30 A.M. this morning. To me, that felt like 5:30 A.M. Why didn't they sleep in until 7 or 8???? Isn't that what Daylight Savings Time is for...parents to have an hour or two to blog in the morning, without the kids asking for this or that???? Not at the Miller household. We had a really good week-end. Jake's parents came to visit. It was the first time they were able to stay for more than an hour or two since we moved here in June! Overall, we just relaxed. That was nice. The weather has really warmed up (to the 40's & 50's) and the sun is FINALLY shining here in Northeast Ohio. Friday I got out of the house for a little trip to the Super Walmart. It was nice to get out...but Walmart was just ok. When Jake got home we took a little walk. It was great to get some fresh air. I had spent the rest of the day cleaning. Saturday I cooked all day. Well, not really but since I have been avoiding the kitchen lately it was nice to cook and not feel sick over it. I actually made three meals and a carrot cake! We also did a little shopping and took a stroll around the neighborhood. We weren't out that long but we all got a little sun (pink cheeks). I thought that was interesting. Sunday we went to church, which is always good. The sermon was about marriage (and the stress of it all). For those of you that aren't married you may not want to continue reading for fear I may destroy the fairy tale you have been told about marriage. For the rest of you, who are married, you already know, although marriage is great in so many ways....it is also difficult and not always the bed of roses you may have expected. So...the sermon was about all that, in a way. It was good. The Pastor showed this video at the end of the service (Luggage by Rob Bell). It was about the luggage we carry with us in life and how it effects different relationships. It was pretty intense. At the end the message was basically, you never know when you are going to be living your last moment....so take care of the luggage now. Live free - right? It was so good. Thought provoking. Then, last night, we got a phone call. For those of you that keep up with the other blogs listed on my blog...you know Jacki. Well, I guess yesterday her dad was at church and after the service he passed out. There was a paramedic there who immediately started CPR but unfortunately he didn't make it. I heard it was a heart attack. He was only 51. It was totally unexpected. Wow...what an intense day. It is horribly sad for the family. Please say a prayer for them.

A Late Thursday Thirteen....More Baby Names (Suggestions, please!!!)

Okay since Jake mentioned baby names on his blog and he actually got two comments (that is a lot for him) over it I thought I would throw some more names out there. They are mostly girl names because it looks like Holden or Grayson will probably win out if it is a boy (it probably isn't) so here are the girl names that I like!

1. Sloan
2. America (she could shorten it to Erica if she wanted to do so when she is older!)
3. Avery
4. Lillian
5. Phoebe
6. Eden
7. Keziah
8. Naomi
9. Lorna
10. Violet
11. Ila
12. Meredith
13. Blake (I had to throw in one boy name)

For more TT go here!!!

Wordless Wednesday...This Morning

To See More Wordless Participants GO HERE!!!!!

Five Minutes...

Current Temp: 9 stinkin' degrees F.

I seriously only have five minutes to post. Lucky for you, I can type fast! It seems like I have been getting so caught up in the meme's I haven't really talked to you. Where does the time go??? We had a good week-end. Friday night we took the kids to this Japanese Steak House (hibachi grill). They were really good and totally mesmerized by the chef cooking right in front of them. Afterwards, we stopped by the video store and rented movies. We NEVER do that because we have a problem returning them. Have you ever done that? We didn't even have a membership anymore so we had to redo that whole process. ARgggHHH. Since we were new they limited us to 2 movies. Which was 0kay. We got one kid one (Over the Hedge, which Jude turned off because he said it was getting scary) and one adult one: Little Miss Sunshine. It was good. I don't know that I think it was great. It was indeed funny. Lots of interesting characters. It reminded me of the Miller's a little. Not the dysfunctional part but the van. I will try not to ruin the movie for you...if you are planning to see it and are afraid I will just skip over this: Okay...this family takes this VW van on a trip to California (I forget where they were from but I think they said it was 700 miles). Well, the van breaks down and needs a clutch (I think)...well, it needs something but the part is going to take a long time and the family was on a deadline to get to Cali for a beauty pageant. So, they would push the van and after it got up to a certain speed they could start it and jump in the van. I SWEAR that is something the Millers would do. I told Jake that would be us on our next vacation with his family. We just laughed and laughed. It is true!

One more thing about the movie - it is rated R and I wouldn't watch it with children around. There is a lot of foul language in it. Which I could go on and on about. Is is necessary? We watched The Departed last week and it was full of the F bomb. Well, it was a good movie and full of violence (departed as in dead, get it?) so I guess the language was just as bad as getting your brains splattered on the wall, right? It was a good movie as well, if you can get past the yuck factor. It did win Best Picture of the Year.
I was going to give you a book review too but I ran out of time. Sorry. I will tell you about it later. Have a good day!

Prego Belly Meme....

Stephanie at Adventures In Babywearing started a "Baby Bump" meme . She asked that you post your favorite preggo pics on your blog. Here are a few of my belly shots from my second pregnancy (Elise). I didn't have a digital camera with Jude and I didn't feel like scanning and all that... I am pregnant know but still in that I just look like a fat cow stage...not really pregnant. Ha ha. So you won't be getting any recent shots.

This is me and my sister. We were pregnant together twice. She was about 6 weeks behind me. I think I was 7 months pregnant in this photo.
This is the hubby, Jake...I think he was making fun of me or saying something perverted. I don't know....but I the look on his face says it all.
This picture was taken a few weeks later at my house. That isn't my hubby but it is my sister's hubby, Ivan, who thought he was being funny. He is a goof ball and it made the pic priceless!
Jake took this one the morning before I went in for my C-Section. This pic has been featured on my blog before!!!! It was like 5:30 A.M. and I was already sweaty (check out the pits). Man I was big....

To see more entries or to participate GO HERE!!!

It's A Party...

A very BIG Blog Party. The ladies over at 5 Minutes For Mom are hosting the Ultimate Blog Party. If you participate you can win fabulous prizes and you will definitely find some great blogs you didn't know were out there! There are already over 600 people at the party!!! WOW! I hope to see you there!!!!!

EDIT***** Okay, I guess I didn't really understand what I was supposed to do here when I posted about the party. I should have introduced myself! About 100 people stopped by and now they probably think I am rude (sorry!!!).

So - I will tell you a little about me and my blog. I am Delilah, a 33 year old, wife of 5 years, mother to two and one more on the way. I have been blogging for a year and a half. You can't believe the drama it has caused. People are very sensitive. Either way...I am a pretty bold person with lots to say - sometimes rubbish I should keep to myself and other times, thought provoking or maybe even entertaining. One thing I can say is...I am ALWAYS me. Always have been walking to the beat of my own drummer and humming along. If you are interested I will list a few of my posts you may want to check out to learn a little more about my blog and me!!!

I'd love to know who stopped by so leave me a comment! I am trying to get around to visit everyone else's blogs. I have a feeling I will still be working my way through the list long after the party is over. Whew....there is a lot of reading to do!

Here are some posts you may want to check out!
How to save the world!!!!
Stuff I Made
Sunday Evening Reflection
Jarhead
Rabbits
Praying for Rabbits

These are just a select few. I hope you enjoy your visit! Stop back again!

Since everyone else is doing it....

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

I don't really agree with the new age puritan thing. I guess in my dream world everything is neat, orderly and simple. Not in real life.

I Made It From Scratch #3

Well, I am posting this a little late so I don't know if I will make it into the carnival (sorry Steph). I messed around and didn't get on the computer at all yesterday! That is really a good thing.

Enough excuses...Let's get to the matter at hand. I made several things from scratch this week. First I made homemade BBQ Chicken Calzones. They were YUM-MY! It wasn't my first time making pizza crust from scratch so that isn't my official entry. Then I made gummy bears with the kids. Seriously. They have the mix stuff now at the craft store (candy making isle). I already had some molds so it was a cheap activity and they loved it. I did not like the end result...I thought they tasted weird but this kids, of course, gobbled them right up. Since, it was just mixing a packet of powder with water and squeezing it into a mold, I have decided this is also not my real entry. I just wanted to keep you here longer (ha ha). No, really - My "real" made from scratch entry is.....(drum roll).....I made homemade rolls. Probably not a biggie for most of you out there but I have seriously been afraid of recipes that involve yeast until lately. This week I used the stuff twice (pizza crust for the calzones) and then the rolls. I used a great recipe I borrowed from Amy over at Mom Advice. We had guests over on Saturday and I planned enough in advance (part of my yeast problem...you have to plan ahead) and whipped this rolls up. They were a hit. I got to use my bread machine (dough cycle) and I baked them myself. So...there it is. I made rolls. It was a first. I used to love these spoon rolls but now that I know how easy real rolls are to make I will probably make them more often!

I also made the most delicious Blackberry Cobbler but it wasn't my first time......

Can you tell I am getting over my food aversion???? I haven't cooked this much in, well....18 weeks! Only 22 left to go!

For more "I Made It From Scratch" participants, visit Stephanie at Stop the Ride!

Thursday Thirteen #16...Things I Learned In College For Free!!!!

A college education is very expensive (especially these days...it has TRIPLED since I graduated and it hasn't been that long ago!). Yesterday, while at my pottery class, we were talking about the things we learned in college that didn't cost us a penny! Ha ha ha ha. Some of the things aren't appropriate to write here but I thought I could come up with 13 things I learned for free!!!

1. Wintergreen Life Savers spark when you chew them in the dark!!!

2. How to sleep through any noise (music, yelling, laughing, talking, etc...).

3. 101 different ways to eat Ramen Noodles.

4. Cereal is good all times of the day!

5. How to detect if someone has been using my laundry detergent, shampoo, toothpaste or nail polish remover!

6. How to drink for cheap!!! Dollar pitcher night, frat parties, free birthday shots....

7. How to get into concerts for free! It is not what you think. Advice: work at a concert venue & get connections to all the other places. I swear I didn't pay for half the concerts I attended!

8. Time Management - Juggling work, school and a social life.

9. Crossword Puzzle Skills - I needed something to do during that Quantitative Methods of Behavioral Sciences class.

10. How to have a quite fashionable wardrobe from Thrift Stores.

11. How to share a living space with other people (preparation for marriage)!

12. How to Rollerblade. I have scars to prove it!

13. How to paint my toe nails, pluck my eyebrows, distinguish between everyday clothes & "date" clothes and basically how to be girlie!

Have a fabulous Thursday!
For more Thursday Thirteen GO HERE!!!