I am No Bakerella

So while "blogstalking" I found Bakerella. Coy's upcoming birthday party inspired me to try my hand! Almost laughable, but it was fun!

Thirteen

I can not believe that Coy turned 13 yesterday. Thirteen years he has brought smiles to our faces with his smiling face. He is such a sweet boy, a teenager now. He is having his birthday party next weekend, a skating party! I fixed him pancakes yesterday morning, they are his favorite. We asked what he wanted to do this day. He said skateboarding, just him and dad. He wanted steak and mashed potatoes for dinner. We begged to go out to celebrate 13 years, but insisted on steak and *mashed* potatoes! It seemed fitting to share a few pictures of him through the years:

Bread Machine

A great friend in LaGrange found out a couple of months ago that I was in the market for a bread machine. He and his wife had one in storage, new in the box, with no time or intention of using it. What a blessing to recieve! I have been working on finding a great sandwich bread to no avail as of today, but I am still working on it . I have made monkey bread (yum), pretzels, banana bread, various loaves of bread and these! My prized bread machine token. . .Organic Wheat Bagels! I made strawberry cream cheese to boot with organic strawberries, of course!

This and That

Ok, so not much has been going on with us. Chase is doing great at school and seems to be enjoying college. He still hasn't found a job, but I think he is working hard at it and actually had an interview this morning. (yay)

I have been very busy with various projects. I have decided this year all gifts with the exception of a very few for the kids will be handmade. I am very proud of the gifts I have completed. I refuse this year to buy into the commercialization of Christmas and with the economy on the brink, we just don't have the extra funds to be so wasteful! Stay tuned, I'll post pictures after Christmas!

I made new quilts for the boy's bedroom out of recycled jeans. Thought I'd share them with you. Through this project, I realized I am not a quilter and really just don't like sewing that much! The quilts are great and I love that I made something new from something old! I also recovered their booths which I had the fabric for well over a year!

Jimmy Carter Presidential Library

Joe had to go to work really early this morning and got home about 10am. We decided to do something, but what? LaGrange is not know for having tons of things to keep one busy! We decided on the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum. What fun! Coy and I have been studying the Election Process so, this was a great field trip! Let me warn you, no flashes allowed in the museum, so some of the pictures are not great!

This a photo from outside the library. There is no water in the pool due to the drought in Georgia.

This is a replica of the Oval Office, but with the actual furnishings used during Carter's Presidency.

This photo is of Carter created from different objects of his life and presidency.

Are You Kidding Me?

You have all seen them, right. . .reusable bags. I use them often. I wish I could say exclusively, but I tend to leave them in the truck and remember them when I am in the checkout line. Anyway, I go to the grocery the other day. I get to the cashier, hand her three reusable bags, more than enough for my groceries that day. I turn around and start getting my items out of my cart. When I finished, the cashier and the bagman are loading my groceries in to plastic bags and then putting them into the reusables! *sigh* Honestly! I told her the point of the reusables is so I don't have to have plastic. Her response. . .are you ready?. . .Can you believe this?. . ."I just figured that out!" I wanted to laugh so badly, but I was absolutely stunned in a world that I feel overwhelmed with Green Earth info that someone. . .two people would have no idea what a reusable bag is. We really need to get the word out!

Happy 90th Birthday, Grandma

September 3, 1918, Eula Marie (Sue) Payne entered the world. She had five children, which she raised by herself. She has served the Lord most of her 90 years. All of her children and most of her grandchildren are serving the Lord. At 90, Grandma is quite the fireball, not a force to be rekoned with. She has 9 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. We, along with many friends and other family members, including two of her brothers, one is 98, celebrated her birthday this weekend. Our theme was "The Roaring Twenties." We had a great time and it was a wonderful way to celebrate 9 decades of Grandma's life! Here are a few pictures commemorating the day.