Making a House a Home

Guess who's 2 today??

More Wordless Wednesday...

These are SUPER cute shoes, aren't they? They are black patent leather Mary Jane's from Stride Rite. They were given to Elizabeth. Worn? Oh yes, they are worn, but there is very little wear on the bottom or the inside of the shoes.

The problem? Can you see those white spots on the shoes? Good grief, I think it's WHITE PAINT!!! Like I said, these were given to us, so I have NO idea how that paint got there.

My question? How in the world do I get that paint off there without ruining the shine?? HELP!!!!! Do I stand a chance of getting it off???

EARTH SHATTERING UPDATE: Okay, so I tried elbow grease, baking soda, and toothpaste. The other suggestions, I did not have. So... I asked Mr. U. You know what he said "Oh. Fingernail polish remover." So, I figured I had nothing to lose, because, well, the shoes were free to begin with. I used a nail polish remover WITH acetone. And you know what? The stuff came right off!! No joke!! The black patent is still as shiny as ever, too!! So, if your child ever gets paint on their patent leather shoes, you will now know how to remove it!

Let's just hope that the shiny patent doesn't dissolve over time!! LOL!!

Thank you all for your help!!!

We had family come in town a week ago and I wanted to make a cake. You know me, I'll look for any special occasion to make something sweet- especially a cake!! Cake just screams CELEBRATION, in my opinion. :)

I found a recipe for a banana cake on Allrecipes. Of course, I couldn't leave the recipe alone. I just had to tweak it some. :) Here's the recipe with my modifications. :)


Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 T baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 large ripe bananas, mashed
2/3 cup sour cream

Grease and flour 2 (9 inch) round pans. In a small bowl, combine flour, soda and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together softened butter and both sugars until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Mix in the bananas. To the creamed mixture, add the flour mixture alternating with the sour cream (starting and ending with the flour mixture). Once well mixed, pour into the prepared pans.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Turn out onto cooling rack to cool.

Cool completely before icing.



Cream Cheese Icing

12 ounces of cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup of butter, softened
20 ounces of powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Beat first two ingredients until smooth. Gradually add in powdered sugar, beating at low speed, until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla.

Tip: A lady at our church owns a bakery. She told me that icing goes on cakes much easier when the cake is very cold or frozen. So, I will make the cake layers the day before I want to serve it, wrap each layer well and put them in the freezer overnight and then I put the icing on the next day. Yes, I frost it straight out of the freezer! There are NO cake crumbs in my icing. :)

The first roses are just starting to open. I love the fragrance of roses. And the lovely shade of these Queen Elizabeth roses certainly brighten up our kitchen table.

What's blooming where you are?

I know that many of y'all have little girls and with little girls come those adorably sweet dresses that often have short, puffy sleeves.

Elizabeth has such a dress and she wore it for Easter. Such a beautiful dress. And then... I washed it.

When I took it out of the dryer, I cringed. WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT ADORABLY SWEET DRESS????? It was all shriveled. Sad. I knew I had to iron it and soon. So what did I do? I did what any other mother would do- I promptly hung it up on a hanger near my ironing board where, I must be honest with you, it sat until last Thursday when I finally decided to iron it.

How did I get up the courage to brave such a task? Aaaahhhh..... My sister's friend is a manager in a Strasburg boutique. When Leslie told me that this lady has to iron every single piece of clothing that goes out on the sales racks, I KNEW I had to find out her secret to getting those short, puffy sleeves perfectly ironed. And the secret is..... a washcloth!!! She simply wads up a washcloth, stuffs it into the sleeve and irons! Well, I certainly can do that....



Yep, that's one of my navy blue washcloths stuffed inside the sleeve on Elizabeth's Easter dress. Simply stuffing the washcloth in there made many of the wrinkles come right out!! Then I just held the iron and ironed the sleeve. It was SO easy!

Here's the finished product...



All crisp and ready to go. It was SO easy this way!!

It's been a quiet few days around here. Our internet was down and we're not sure why. We're back, though, and happy to have it. It is AMAZING how often I think "Oh, I need to Google that" or "I need a recipe for such and such" and I COULDN'T get online to find out my answers!!!!

Also, our TV went out. Not that we watch an exceptional amount of TV around here, but we do enjoy turning on the news to catch up with what's going on around the world. Mr. U found a good deal on a new TV, so I sure he will have that fixed perfectly soon enough. After all, I did record a Chefography of Julia Child that I am dying to watch. :)

We have family coming in town today. Elizabeth and I are doing that last minute cleaning that everyone does before guests arrive. It'll be nice to visit with family.

What have you been up to? I love hearing about everyone's day. :)

Congratulations to Katy at The Country Blossom!!!

Katy is the winner of the Virginia Candle giveaway!! She chose the Pineapple Woodwick Candle. Yum!! I can't wait to hear how you enjoy this fabulous scent, Katy!

Everyone be sure to go visit Katy and congratulate her!!

UPDATE: It is 8:35 EST and the contest is officially over. I will be announcing the winner tomorrow, so stay tuned!!!!!

I just discovered a blog called There is a Season. Y'all, she is having a fabulous giveaway- $25.00 gift certificate towards Wall Lettering at Fruitful Vine Creations. What a beautiful prize!!

So be sure and go enter (and she gives you the chance to enter your name THREE TIMES!!!!) and be sure and go visit Fruitful Vine Creations. She does such beautiful artwork!!

The deadline to enter is April 30, so HURRY!!!!

Don't forget to go here and enter to win my Virginia Candle Giveaway!!!!
Register BEFORE Friday, April 11 8:00 PM EST!!!!!

I am famous for letting my pasta boil over every time I cook pasta (okay, not every time, but about 9 times out of 10!!). For YEARS I have heard about this little trick, but I have never tried it until recently. You bring your water to a boil, add salt and olive oil and then stir in your pasta. Then place a wooden spoon across your pot of pasta and it is supposed to keep it from boiling over.

THIS REALLY WORKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was shocked when it worked the first time and have still been shocked that it works every time for me!! WOOHOOO!! My stove top is MUCH easier to clean these days. :)

Okay, so a good many of y'all know that I have decided to stop drinking my beloved Diet Coke. I had been drinking water only, but Mr. U (the sweetie that he is) knows that I enjoy a good cup of tea and the sweet man ordered the starter set from Adagio Teas for me!!! And me oh me!!! This is some GOOD tea!!!!

In the set came a fun teapot that holds 16 ounces. The design is wonderful and easy to clean (and you can watch the video at the bottom on this link to see how it works!!). The set came with four teas, but you had to choose which kind of tea. I chose the herbal and got rooibos (prounced "roy boss"), chamomile, blood orange and spearmint. Adagio also sent a sample of one of their blends called Bolero. And lo and behold, the blend is my favorite so far!!!



The only problem now is that I have a huge list of all the Adagio Teas that I want to try. Which to try first... Creamy Chai (chai has been my favorite tea for years now!!) or Irish Breakfast or just maybe an oolong???? How do I ever choose which to go first? What a delightful problem to have!

Yum!!! Glorious strawberries are ready in my area and boy are they tasty!! There's nothing like a sweet, juicy red strawberry!!!


And I caught the cutest little sneaker trying to eat one before dinner!! LOL!!!!

UPDATE: It is 8:35 EST and the contest is officially over. I will be announcing the winner tomorrow, so stay tuned!!!!!


Okay... so I mentioned last week that I would share just why I have the Virginia Candle Company logos flashing all over my blog. Here's why...

As most of y'all know, we adopted Elizabeth from China last year. What a BLESSING she is!! I simply cannot fathom life without her. How in the world I did not give birth to this child is beyond me. I mean, she is so much like me it SCARES ME at times!!! HAHA!! The Lord is good, isn't He, at making sure you have THE child for you, whether you birth them in your womb or in your heart.

Anyway, Mr. U and I talked and planned on adopting from China again. Sadly, though, last May the government agency in China that handles adoptions (China Center of Adoption Affairs) instituted new rules and now we do not qualify to adopt from China. This happened to MANY families. I am sure China has their reasons, but this news broke our hearts!!

After tears and much prayer, we are confident that the Lord is still leading us to adopt again. We are not yet 100% positive whether that means another international adoption or domestic adoption. Either way, we are listening clearly to the Lord and we know that He knows best. :)

The biggest thing we know, though, is that no matter what the adoption, we do not have the funds to afford another adoption. And that is why I put the Virginia Candle Company logo on my blog. If anyone wants to purchase a candle from them, please come back to my blog and click on their logo. Their computer will know the click is coming from my blog and Mr. U and I will get credit for it! No, we won't get much money, but we have to start somewhere raising the funds, right?



Now... the GREAT news!!! A GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In honor of this fun new button on my blog, I want to give away a FREE CANDLE FROM VIRGINIA CANDLE COMPANY!!! Yessirree!! A FREE candle and I want YOU to choose the one you want!!!!!!

You can choose from two different types of candles...
-the NEW Woodwick Candles (22oz)
or
-Farm Grown candles (Triple OR Single Frangrance- 26 oz)

Here's how you can enter to WIN!!

1) Go visit Virigina Candle Company (just click on the link on my sidebar) and look at all the delightful scents there are to choose from in the NEW Woodwick or Farm Grown collection.

2) Leave a comment here on my blog stating which candle you would want to win (the New Woodwick or the Farm Grown) and share the name of the scent you would like to win.

If you blog about this giveaway on your blog and provide a link back here, please let me know and I will enter your name a second time!!

So, please, y'all go visit Virginia Candle Company... you just might be the blessed winner!!

Oh... this contest will be over next Friday, April 11 at 8:00 PM EST. I will happily announce the winner the next day, Saturday, April 12.

PLEASE NOTE: You do NOT have to have a blog in order to enter the giveaway. If you don't, though, just be sure and leave your email address so that I may contact you if you win. Also, this giveaway is NOT limited to only those in the US. I would LOVE to have anyone enter from anywhere in the world. I will happily make sure the candle is shipped (even internationally) to the winner. :)

A couple of weeks ago, I discovered that I had two really large blocks of mozzarella cheese in the refrigerator. I had bought the second block thinking that I didn't have any more cheese. I'm sure y'all have done similar things before, right?

I didn't want the cheese to go bad, but I didn't need to use it all right then. Thankfully, I remembered that a friend told me she had, at one time, shredded her cheese and frozen it all in freezer bags. Well, I decided to try it out for myself.

I grated my cheese with my trusty box grater and put it all in a freezer bag. I made sure all the air was out of the bag and zipped it up. I made sure that the bag was lying flat when I put it in the freezer. It was quick and easy and I was hoping and praying that when the time came for me to use the cheese, it wouldn't be one huge lump of shredded mozzarella!!!!

Well, I pulled it out yesterday and it was PERFECT!!!! The individual pieces of cheese did NOT stick together!! I was quite happy with the results and will most definitely be doing this again!!!


What did I need to use the shredded mozzarella for yesterday? Why, quick "pizza" for Elizabeth and me, of course!!!

Wednesday I shared the wonderfully tasty homemade pizza sauce that I found online. WOOHOO!! What a delicious recipe!! Silly me, though, I didn't share the recipe for the entire pizza!!! Thank you Ginny and Jthemilker for pointing that out!!! What was I thinking?? :)

So, to make pizza, you need dough, right? I always use my favorite pizza dough recipe (aka my favorite French bread recipe!!!). This time, however, I decided to use 2 cups of freshly milled soft wheat and 2 cups of bread flour. My family wasn't crazy about the new twist on the crust, but I personally LOVED it!!!

Here's the "recipe" (meaning, I just kind of make it up as I go along... come on now, I know y'all do the same thing, too, with different recipes!!)

Pineapple and Ham Pizza
-Pizza crust
-Pizza sauce
-Ham, chopped into bite size pieces (whatever kind you like in whatever amount you like)
-Pineapple, in bite size pieces (again, whatever kind you like and however much you like)
-Lots of grated Mozzarella cheese

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Pat your pizza dough into your pan. (This can be FRUSTRATING, but it's worth it in the end. Yum!) I like to bake the dough for about 10 minutes to make sure it gets done on the bottom and doesn't stay soggy once the toppings are put on.

When the dough is done, spread the pizza sauce on top, and then sprinkle the ham, pineapple and cheese on top. Place back in the oven for about 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling.

For extra crispy edges and browned cheese, I turn on the broiler for maybe 5 minutes until the cheese is brown and yummy.

Okay... so my directions are clear as mud, right? But... the pizza DID turn out to be VERY tasty!!!!

Well, after reading of SO many of y'all that have also given up Diet Coke or another diet drink, I started reading online about Nutrasweet (also known as Aspartame). I wasn't super concerned about the caffeine I had been consuming, although caffeine is not healthy for you, either. I was mostly concerned about Nutrasweet.

I found a movie online about it called Sweet Misery. Oh boy, is this eye-opening!!! Maybe y'all have seen this before, but I hadn't. I DEFINITELY will NOT go back to Diet Coke or anything that contains Aspartame!!!

You can watch the movie here.

And how am I doing? Well, today is day 6 of no Diet Coke. So far, I haven't had any headaches. WOW!!! But, I have thought about having a Diet Coke MANY times!! And, somehow, snacking doesn't sound nearly as fun because I don't have a Diet Coke to go with it!!!!! HAAH!!!

And don't be surprised, y'all, if sales of Diet Coke go down. With all that I was drinking and buying, I was keeping them in business, I'm pretty sure. :)

I recently spoke with a friend who will be starting to homeschool her son this coming fall. He is going to be in kindergarten. I'm sure many of y'all that homeschool have not forgotten the fear and worry that you felt when you first began- What in the world do I do? Where do I start? What do I use? WILL I MESS UP MY CHILD FOREVER???????

So, I was wondering if y'all could help. Would y'all share what helped you when you first started homeschooling? What curriculum did you use and did you love it or hate it and why? What are your suggestions for a family that is going to be just starting off homeschooling?

I SO appreciate all of y'all's help (can I wrote "y'all's" that way?????). I am so blessed to be able to learn from all of you!!!

Oh y'all!! I found the BEST homemade pizza sauce recipe!!! I just googled "pizza sauce" and there it was on Allrecipes (I should have looked there first, that's my favorite place online to find recipes).

Exquisite Pizza Sauce
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
6 fluid ounces warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (optional)
3/4 teaspoon onion powder 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried marjoram
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
salt to taste

1. In a small bowl, combine tomato paste, water, Parmesan cheese, garlic, honey, anchovy paste, onion powder, oregano, marjoram, basil, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes and salt; mix together, breaking up any clumps of cheese.
2. Sauce should sit for 30 minutes to blend flavors; spread over pizza dough and prepare pizza as desired.

** I did not use anchovy paste and I will probably not use cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes next time. They were a bit too spicy for Elizabeth.

I used our yummy pizza sauce on Pineapple and Ham Pizza. Yum!!!!

Okay, if y'all don't know this by now, I am pretty clueless when it comes to computer things. So, I need your help.

As you can see, I added a new link to my sidebar up on top for Old Virginia Candles. How can I get that link centered? It looks funny off to the left like it is.

Oh, why do I have that there? Well, I'll explain a more later on this week. But for now, is there anyone that can help me make it look better???

Thank you!!!

His,
Mrs. U

WOOHOOOOO!!! Thank you, Tammy, for your help!!! You are good! :)

What you are looking at, my dear friends, is very near and dear to my heart.

My beloved Diet Coke.

This is actually a picture of my very last Diet Coke in the house.

Sigh.

I love Diet Coke. No, seriously, I LOVE LOVE LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE this stuff!!! I am too ashamed to tell you how many cans of this that I drink a day. I started drinking Diet Coke when it first came out and have been in love with it ever since.

There is something about Diet Coke that seems like it is addicting. The people that I know that love Diet Coke are die-hard fans like I am. Why is that? There has got to be something in it that makes you crave the stuff.

Anyway, after reading a bazillion things about the dangers of Aspartame (just google it and read for yourself), I have decided that it is time to bid farewell to my love.

Yes, this will be HARD, which is why I am asking y'all to pray for me. It may seem silly, but my flesh is weak and I don't want to return to my old ways. I want to be healthy and live long and I don't like all the strange things I've read about the ingredients in Diet Coke.

So, please, pray if you think about it.

Also, I would LOVE to hear from anyone else that has stopped drinking Diet Coke or any diet drink. It's nice to know you're not alone. :)

Roast beef (which Mr. U grilled on his Holland grill- OH YUM!!!!!) with oven roasted potatoes and roasted asparagus...

Deviled eggs (WHY are they called that???)...

Chocolate Velvet Cake with Butter Pecan Cream Cheese Icing (which is so tall that the lid to the cake plate won't fit on top!!! LOL!!!)...


And yes, we are all quite full, thank you very much.

UPDATE: In case anyone else is wondering, I found an interesting bit on deviled eggs here.

"...and He said to them, 'Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day...'"
Luke 24: 46

I want to wish all of y'all a very happy Easter. Many of y'all that are reading this are Christians, but there are many of you that are not. If you are not a Christian, please take time to read this.

PS- I just visited The Deputy Domain. Jodi has a very encouraging post today. It brings tears to my eyes to remember what the Lord has done for me and saddens me to think how little I do for Him. He DIED for me!!!!! Does my life reflect that I am His and that I truly love Him?

My last blog post about hospitality is still fresh in my mind. I want to thank everyone that commented- I have learned SO much for all of you!!

My sister shared this post with me from Radical Womanhood. Since hospitality is on my mind, this post captured my attention. Here's a snippet....

When I was in Charlotte this past weekend, I learned a great phrase coined by my hostess, Jane Connolly. Instead of referring to women with grown children as "empty nesters," she speaks of such women as "open nesters." These women are in a season where they can now be open to new people to care for and new ways for God to use the experience and wisdom they have gleaned from rearing children of their own.

Wow!! What a wonderful opportunity to practice hospitality!! I'm not at this season of life yet, but now will look forward to it. I always thought that this would be a time to be sad and dread the empty home. This new way of looking at it, though, has given me a new perspective on it.

What about you? Have you ever thought of "open nest" instead of "empty nest"? Are any of you in this stage of life right now?

Does your home say "Welcome" when people come to visit? Is your family ready to have guests over for a meal? To stay the night? For friends who drop by last minute at dinner time? Are you prepared?

I found some wonderfully helpful Hosptality Tips recently at The Purple Cellar. Maybe some of these will prove helpful to some of y'all, too.

I would LOVE to learn from y'all about how your family handles showing hospitality. Does your family mostly have spend-the-night guests or meal time guests? Do you have guests over often? Do you always cook just enough for your family or do you cook extra just in case you have someone stop by? What are some helpful tips that y'all have learned over the years?

Please share, I have MUCH to learn in this area. Even though I enjoy having visitors, I still get nervous and would love to gather information from some of y'all that are pros when it comes to hospitality in your home.

UPDATE: I just found more hospitality tips over at Money Saving Mom!!!

Note: Sorry about the weird spacing and the messed up alignment. I usually prepare my posts under the "Edit Html" heading, but today used the "Compose" heading. Boy, it sure is messed up!!! And I can't fix it, either!!! So just pretend that everything looks normal. LOL!!!

There's a nasty virus going around right now and, unfortunately, most of our family caught it last week. Elizabeth was first. Bless her heart, I know she felt miserable. She definitely had it worse than Mr. U and myself. It just broke my heart to see her feel so bad!!!

Mr. U awoke during the night one night and heard Elizabeth coughing. He went in to check on her and found that she had gotten sick. So after cleaning her and changing her sheets, we were able to put her back to bed. The next day was lots of laundry, as you all well know, and her dear FarleyDog had to be given a "bath", too. He looked kind of cute afterwards.



Elizabeth didn't agree. She didn't like FarleyDog being all wet.



Two days later and Elizabeth was back to her normal self- running around the house (rarely does she walk), listening to her music (Scripture CDs and kid songs) and chatting happily to herself about whatever it is that 22 month old little girls chat to themselves about.

I'm so happy that my girl is feeling better.

We had a yummy crockpot soup for dinner recently. It's called Crockpot Chicken and Quinoa soup. I found the recipe over at The Nourishing Gourmet. The recipe is super simple and delicious!! It was a chilly day outside and this was just the thing needed to warm you up.

I had never cooked with quinoa before and was a little nervous about it. The end result reminded me of chicken and brown rice soup- homey and good for you.



NOTE about the recipe- it calls for using 1/2 to 3/4 cup of white wine. We don't use or drink alcohol, so I just used the same amount of chicken stock.

I am in LOVE with PHOTOBUCKET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously, if any of y'all read my complaining about Blogger not uploading my pictures, you will be happy to know (well, maybe you won't be happy about it, but you know what I mean) that Photobucket works WONDERFULLY WELL!!!

I tried using Flickr, but that didn't work at all. I even tried opening a blog at another bloghost (gasp!!!!), but THAT didn't work, either!! I was ready to throw it all in and leave the blogging world all together. Then, my Knight-in-Shining-Armour (and computer whiz) Mr. U stepped in with Photobucket!!!! Aaaaahhhh!!!!!!! My worries are over and Photobucket will upload my photos WAY quicker than I ever dreamed!!!!

So... here are some photos... just because I can share LOTS of them now!!!!



Miss E and dear Aunt Leslie.


Simply sweet face.


Typical Elizabeth. Full of laughter and smiles!!!

Today, for Kelli's Show & Tell Friday, I would like to share something very special to me.


This is my favorite quilt in the world. My grandma made it for me when I was very small and I have fond memories of picnicing with it in our backyard as well as making forts with it in our family room. Believe me when I say this quilt has been well used over the years!!!

My grandma made Sunbonnet Sue quilts for all her granddaughters and Sunbonnet Sam (often known better as Overall Andy) quilts for all her grandsons. I'm sure this must have taken her quite a while, but she did it because she loved her grandchildren so.

My grandma was a Christian, and when she died in 1993, she went to Heaven to be with the Lord. Even though my quilt is wearing thin and doesn't warm nearly as well as it used to, when I wrap up in it and I see the stitches she lovingly made, I can't help but think, "I wonder if Grandma ever knew that her great granddaughter would be wrapped up in this quilt one day, too? I wonder if she knew it would cover her granddaughter's bed when she was grown and married? I wonder if she knew how much I would miss her?"

What a great legacy she left. I am blessed to have this beautiful quilt and blessed to have such fond memories of my dear grandma.

Do y'all every have those days when, for the life of you, you just can't figure out what to have for dinner? You open the refrigerator and see that you have a few eggs. You also have some pita bread, too. Looking in the pantry, you notice a can of baked beans. What can you do with THOSE ingredients???

Lo and behold, I found a neat website!!! It's called CookingByNumbers and you simply click on the ingredients that you have and, voila, you've got recipes to use with your ingredients!! Granted, there aren't zillions of ingredients to choose from, but there are many ingredients that I think most of probably have hovering in our pantries, anyway.

Next time you're wondering what to prepare for your family's supper, check out CookingByNumbers and, hopefully, you'll get some tasty ideas!!!

One year ago today, February 25, 2007, we received our daughter, Elizabeth. Words cannot even begin to describe how very much we love this little sweetheart. We simply cannot imagine our lives without her.

This is one of the first photos of Elizabeth on that wonderful day.



And here she is one year later. Full of laughter. Full of love.



God has truly spoiled us by allowing us to be her parents. We are so blessed!!!!

Is it only me? Is anyone else having problems uploading photos to your blog? Not photos from the internet, but your personal photos.

This has been going on for several weeks now and it is driving me crazy!! Every once in a while I'll hit it at just the right time and upload a photo (maybe even two- woohoo!), but for the most part, I just sit and wait and wait and wait... and nothing happens. Oh wait... something does happen. I get this message on the screen that says

"This program cannot display the webpage"

Am I the only one with this problem?? Help!!!!

Oh dear. I just ran across this on April's blog (thank you, April, for sharing this!!!). I find it rather alarming and I think you will, too.

Definitely part of making a house a home is making it a safe home!!!!



UPDATE: Mrs. Pear has kindly shared with me that Kwikset makes a "SmartKey" that helps protect against lock bumping. Thank you, Mrs. Pear, for sharing this!!!

I found another wonderful blog, y'all. It's called Passionate Homemaking. Definitely go over and visit with her.

I've been wanting to make homemade mayonnaise for a few years now (since I saw Alton Brown make some on his show). It just seemed to complicated and something that only real chefs and people like Martha Stewart could do. Well, Lindsay explains how to do it and it is wonderfully easy!!! Much easier than I ever anticipated!!!

So... here it is.... Homemade Mayonnaise!!!!! Can you believe it????



Now...the next thing on my "I-simply-HAVE-to-make-that-just-to-see-if-I-really-can" list is HOMEMADE MARSHMALLOWS!!!!!! Yep, the thought of that scares me, but I WILL attempt it one day and, success or failure, y'all will hear about it.

Have a blessed day!!! And, while you're at it, try making some mayonnaise!!

My sweet friend (in real life), Melissa, has ventured into making her own bread!! I am so very excited for her. If you head on over to her blog, you can see the yummy pictures that she's posted.

She would LOVE it if you shared your family's favorite bread recipe with her, so please do. There are lots of y'all that have been making your own bread for years and have learned little helpful hints here and there and she would love to learn those, too!!

The jasmine is blooming profusely this year. It looks so pretty growing all along our backyard fence. This is definitely the best year it has had so far.

The Lord is so kind to give us such beautiful flowers to look at and admire His handiwork.

This is my refrigerator door. You see that plastic strip across the top of the door? It's the brown strip.... see it???? Look closer...


No... look even CLOSER!!!!



OH MY STARS!!!! Do y'all see all that icky stuff in there? I discovered it the other day and just had to take a picture to share with you. I mean, when was the last time you looked inside that little crevice? I never thought to look in there to clean, but boy am I glad I did!! All it took was a quick brush with an old toothbrush (that I use to clean with) and the nasty crumbs were all gone.

How they got there in the first place will always be a mystery, but I can promise y'all they will never return!!!

Can you guess what these are??? They are homemade crackers!! Yes, can you believe it? I, Mrs. U, made CRACKERS!!! And the best part? They are GOOD!!!!!

I was visiting a wonderful blog on Friday called The Nourishing Gourmet. She has some really good information on there! Anyway, she shared a recipe for easy and YUMMY rich, whole grain crackers. I knew I just had to try them, so Saturday I mixed up a batch to let it start "soaking". I rolled them out, cut them and baked them Sunday and SUCCESS- a very good cracker to share with my family!!

I have to be honest. I tried one time before to make crackers and they were a FLOP!! Not only did I not roll them out thin enough, but the taste wasn't very good, either. These, however, are QUITE tasty and I made sure to roll them out thinly. They are now sitting all snug on my counter in a container just waiting to be nibbled on.

If any of y'all try theses, too, let me know. Kimi even shares how you can change the taste for different flavor crackers. YUM!!

So, today is Friday and the weekend is soon underway. What kind of things do you and your family have planned this weekend? We will do the usual on Saturday- sleep in a bit later, we'll probably have biscuits for breakfast and head out to run errands and maybe stop for in our favorite Mexican restaurant for lunch.

Sunday, of course, will be spent fellowshipping with the saints at church. We have monthly fellowship groups and this Sunday night is the time for the next group to meet. It's a fun time to meet in a smaller group to talk and get to know each other better.

Today I need to vacuum the house, wash all the bath mats and wash all trashcans, too. It is AMAZING how nasty trash cans can get and it is equally amazing how much nicer they look when they have a good cleaning. :)

Above all, I need to spend time with the Lord. I have been blessed lately by watching sermons online by John MacArthur. The internet can be SUCH a blessing sometimes!!

I pray that everyone has a wonderful weekend with their family!! Spending time with your family and loving them is the best part of making a house a home!!!!

I know that most of you reading this blog aren't Chinese nor do most of you celebrate Chinese New Year. We didn't either, until Elizabeth came home. Now that has changed for us.

While we do not follow the zodiac signs, we do want to teach Elizabeth about the history and culture of China. Part of that culture is learning about Chinese New Year and today, February 7, 2008, is the beginning of the New Year on the Chinese calendar... at least for this year, anyway.

We will make lanterns, go to our favorite Chinese restaurant to visit with the owners (who are also from the same province Elizabeth is from, Guangdong), and, most importantly, we will pray for China. Yes, I do pray for China almost daily, but on this special day (and the Moon Festival), I want to make sure that we pray even more for China, for her people, for the government, for the light of Jesus Christ to shine brightly in a dark, dark, land.

So today, if you think about it, please pray for China. Two websites that can help you pray more specifically are Pray for China and The Voice of the Martyrs.

We fell in love with China while we were there. It will always hold a most special place in our hearts and we would love to be able to go back there one day. And if we are never able to return, I know that the Lord is watching over His children there. I know that His purposes will be fulfilled. And I know that He created China for His glory.

So, HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!!

Okay... so April has tagged me to post 7 things about myself. The rules are to link the person who sent this to you and leave a comment on their blog so their readers can visit yours. Post the rules on your blog. Share 7 strange/weird facts about yourself. Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, linking their blog. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So here goes...

1) I do not like seafood. Of any kind. No, not fishsticks. No tuna either, thank you very much. If it swims in water, I am NOT eating it!!

2) I must have all the dishes facing the same direction in the dishwasher.

3) I do NOT like to eat one thing at a time. I have to eat a few bites of one thing, move on to another, etc. Always saving the best bite for last. :)

4) Every night, no matter how late it is, I MUST wash my face, brush my teeth, and put Carmex on my lips (sure does keep my lips from chapping!!!). I simply cannot fathom going to bed with a dirty face, dirty teeth and dry lips!! OH MY STARS!!!!!

5) I visited Albuquerque, NM, for 2 1/2 hours last March 10. And I NEVER touched my foot on the ground!! HAHA!!! Seriously, a lady on our plane coming home from China (well, we were flying out of LA back to Atlanta) got sick. Our plane made an emergency landing in Albuquerque and we sat there for 2 1/2 LOOOOOOOOOOONG hours before our plan was allowed to take off again. It was NOT fun.

6) I like vacuuming.

7) The longer Mr. U and I are married, the more of a "night owl" I am turning into. I used to go to bed about 9:30, but since we were married over 9 years ago, the evenings get later and later!!!

And here's an extra, just because...

8) I LOVE LOVE LOVE taking photographs of Elizabeth!!!!!!(In this photo, she's "modeling" a new winter hat. HAHA! For some reason, she thought it was neat to pull it way down over her eyes. Silly girl!!)




So if you are reading this and there is a "7" anywhere in your phone number, consider yourself tagged!!!

Yesterday, Mr. U hung around home after lunch (he usually heads back to work after lunch). He told me he had ordered The Andy Griffith Show- the Complete First Season from Amazon and he knew that UPS was going to deliver it then. Sure enough, UPS came not too long after lunch. He brought the package in and I asked why the box was so big. "Oh, lots of bubble wrap I suppose" was his answer.

Well, look what was in the box!!!!



Yep!!! Now y'all all know... I have the sweetest hubby in the world!!! He knew I've been eyeing this Taste of Home cookbook and he bought it to surprise me!!!

Oh, he did order The Andy Griffith Show. It's just coming tomorrow. :)