Just the Two of Us

New Year New Us!

2012-01-27T10:48:00.005-06:00

Happy New Year!

I know I know I am 26 days late! But its still a new year!

With a new year you always have a new year resolution. Most people also want to loose weight in the new year and go on a diet. yada yada

I want to do those things too but my resolution this year is to eat healthier and not to try every fad diet but change my eating. I want to be healthier. Make healthier choices.

We started late but this past week was our first week eating healthier. We are also doing weight watchers. I feel that in the past I have done the best on it. Weight Watchers allows you to eat the foods you want but in moderation and watching your portions. I have had a harder time this week than Jason because I really like to snack. Most of my snacking is because I'm bored. But I have had to calculate my points for everything so I haven't snacked as much.

I have been writing everything down in my food journal I bought which has helped me see how much i snack so I have snacked as much as I did in the beginning of the week. I like my food journal but its a little too small and its really for someone counting calories. So I might have to buy the weight watchers journal. I don't have any where to check how many fruits and veggies, water, and that sort of thing off to know I am eating the right amount.

I am very serious about getting healthy this year and losing weight. There are some reasons that I am not ready to discuss (nothing serious! I don't have a medical condition or anything like that). I also want to feel more confident about myself.

Anyways Happy Friday!! Hope yall have a wonderful weekend!!

My food journal - blank

Food journal - full pages!

3 Times a Charm

2012-01-24T15:38:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to give an update on the house situation. It seems like it is taking forever!

We are now working with our 3rd loan officer. The first two wanted Jason be at his current job for more than six months and they didn't like we had a late house payment or two when Jason was laid off last.

We are hoping 3 times is a charm. This loan officer is a lot more hopeful, but the others were too. But he has found one thing that the other people missed. Which means we had to pay more $ :(. But at least he found it now and we didn't go to closing and it is popped on us. He also requested an extension on the closing and HUD accepted that so that is a good sign.

Another thing we are waiting on is an appraisal on the house, we are now working with Wells Fargo and they require one. If its appraised for more than what we are buying it at that is good for us in the long run and if it appraised for less than what we are buying it for HUD has to give us money. So either way is good.

We are waiting to here for sure we have the loan and about the appraisal. We hope to hear soon. Keep your fingers crossed for good news!

Happy Tuesday!

Happy Everything!

2012-01-05T12:17:00.005-06:00

Just wanted to wish all of you a late Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year.

We were busy during all these holidays so I did not get to post anything. Hope yall had a Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New year! Say that fast 5 times!

We enjoyed being with our families since it was the last time we would see them. We had 2 Thanksgivings and 3 Christmases (one with Jason family, one with mine, and then us).

Before we left to go to Kentucky I also visited a few friends. I had lunch with my friend Melanie who lives in Starkville. And by the grace of God me and my bff Laurie were able to see each other for brunch the Friday before we left. We have the hardest time getting together since she lives in Oxford, MS and we are both always so busy. But you can guarantee around our birthdays which are both in August and around Christmas we will be seeing each other! We have been exchanging gifts since elementary school and we continue to do so!

The holidays this year were a little sad for our families since we were moving away. But We enjoyed being there with them and they enjoyed having us home ,well I at least hope they did :) . We are not sure how will be will be doing holidays now since we are over 8 hours away from home. But we will figure something out I'm sure!

Going to leave you with some pictures! I don't know whats been with me lately but I have not taken hardly any pictures unless I have my cell phone. So I want to say a thanks to my family members who post theirs!

My family at Thanksgiving.

KK, Bella and Me at my family's Thanksgiving

Jason and Me at my family's Thanksgiving

Jason's Family Thanksgiving

KK and Bella at my family's Christmas

This is the only pic of me at my family's Christmas that is decent.
Wish Bella was looking

Recipes Reviews

2011-12-14T23:31:00.006-06:00

I have tried a few new recipes lately and just wanted to share what I have cooked and what I have thought about them or what I would change. I got a lot of these recipes off pinterest or have seen something similar on blogs that I read. The recipes are linked up to the blogs they were found on through pinterest.

1. Terribly Terrific Toffee - These were really good and a saltine cracker will never taste better. Mine did not look as pretty as hers. I messed up my chocolate. The next I make these I will use almond bark for the chocolate. I could not get the chocolate to spread and it ended up lumpy. Also don't leave them in the freezer too long like I did. I couldn't get the tin foil off of some it and had to throw some away.

2. Resurrection Rolls - These were good too. But I would spread some butter on the cresent roll and sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon on it. This would be fun to do with kids at Easter.

3. Pizza Cresent Rolls - I couldn't find my pin on pinterest for these. But so easy! 4 ingredients: cresent rolls, string cheese, pepperoni, and tomato sauce. Unroll the cresent rolls (8) each one gets a little sauce, 3 pepperonis (you can do more if you want), 1/2 a string cheese and then roll it all up and bake them. So easy!

4. Monkey Bread Muffins - From the Pioneer Woman...enough said...you know its going to be good! Love using the

5. Sausage Balls - I have made them several times before over the years. I have seen in blog land where people are adding cream cheese to make them more moist. I did that but did not put as much (4oz) and I used a whole block of cracker barrel cheese as always. I was able to tell a difference they really were more moist.

6. Butterfinger Cake - Sounds good huh! It is! Its so rich its almost hard to eat. But of course we ate it! I love how you pour the caramel mixture on the cake and let it soak in. Note to self use a bigger baking dish. I had the bright idea to use my smaller dish for it. Messy!

Butterfinger Cake!

7. French Toast Casserole (Cinnamon Baked French Toast) - Also another Pioneer Woman recipe...and of course it was delish! I didnt have sour dough bread. I bought a Panettone cake
(an Italian Specialty Cake) and didnt know what i wanted to do with it and I saw this on pinterest and decided to use it for this. On the side of the box it actually says use to make french toast! The cake has a hidden orange flavor note and raisins in it which went really goo with this recipe. This also made it kind of like a bread pudding and could pass as a bread pudding. I did not let mine soak overnight. The french toast casseroles I have made in the past i did not like them too much when I let them soak. I just made it and baked it right away. I also baked mine for 45 mins i wanted it to be like the bread pudding consistency. The blog that i found this recipe through made a glaze with powder sugar and milk and drizzled it on top instead of using syrup. I also did that. And it made it even better! Try adding a teaspoon or two of orange juice! Even better! I don't think syrup would have tasted good. This recipe was so so so good! And I will definitely be making it again. And Jason loved it!

This is the brand of Panettone cake I bought.
I actually have only seen Panettone cakes sold during the Christmas season.
I found mine at TJ MAXX. Cost a little more than sour dough bread but worth it!

Panettone cake cut up into chunks.
French Toast Casserole or Bread Pudding finished and cooling.

Serve it for breakfast with some sausage.

We found a house!

2011-12-07T20:39:00.007-06:00

I went to visit Jason last week after Thanksgiving. My main reason to go visit was to find a house. And we found one! I thought it would take longer than it did but we lucked up.

The house we got was not my #1 on the list it was #2 or three. We picked it because it was bigger, closer to Jason's work, in Lexington, and we feel like we can stay in it longer.

My #1 favorite house was a cute older home in Frankfort. But it was the longest drive out of the little towns we looked in. It also had a small side yard and it was on a hill so when and if we have kids we could never have a playset or anything like that for them. Also the laundry was down in the basement. And basements can be eerie. I tried to find pictures but it must have sold. It had been updated and looked so nice!

Our Second favorite house was just too small it was over 1800 square feet but the layout made it seem smaller. It was the cutest little house. It was an older home that had been updated. And I loved it but it had some negatives...no carport/garage, small living room, and it was in Richmond.

It has great curb appeal. and those windows on the front top are amazing!

We loved this kitchen!

The house we picked had everything we wanted except for a basement or being able to put a storage building in the back yard. But we decided after being in the neighborhood a few times to be like the neighbors and park in the driveway instead of the garage and use the garage as my workspace for big things and for storage. The house has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. It has a nice size kitchen and living room and the upstairs has what they call a activity room/living room.

We are so excited about this new adventure and can't wait to get in our house and start doing the things we want to it. I have lots of ideas already and I actually have some of the room colors picked out!

Happy Wednesday! Leaving you with a lot of pictures from our house! We hope to close next week!

Needs a few more plants to give it some more curb appeal

This is the fireplace in the living room downstairs

Part of the dining room.

Part of the living room. Bigger than it looks.

View of the Kitchen from the dining room.
The kitchen has room to put a little breakfast table

Closer view of the Kitchen.
This neighborhood is built by a company and houses can be "upgraded".
This is the standard kitchen. I have big ideas for it!

Another part of the kitchen.

this is part of the activity area.

Another part of the activity area.
That door leads into one of the extra bedrooms.
That will be my work room.

This is one of the other bedrooms.

The other bedroom.

The Master bedroom.
You can't tell from the picture but it is a big room.
We will be able to have sitting area.

The Master Bath. Just looks like a standard bath.
But we have plans for it too!

Master closet. Its bigger than the bathroom!
This picture only shows half of it.

Going down the stairs. We plan to get rid of the carpet.

Garage

Back yard. We will have to put up a fence for our dogs.
But Its too cold to build one now so that will have to wait until the spring.

Back of the house.
We plan to put something over the concrete so
we can have a patio set and sit out there.

Friday Favorites -House Hunting

2011-11-18T11:19:00.004-06:00

Its Friday! Yay! Go ahead do the happy dance! No one is looking I promise!

I skipped last Friday. I was busy packing up to leave for the Tupelo Flea Market and I honestly should be finishing last minute things and packing up for this weekend too.

Today's Friday favorites are about houses. Jason and I are house hunting. Today will be his first day to go look at houses with a realtor. I have to look online and ask him to ask the realtor about them. He is going to take pictures and video the houses so I can feel like I am there. I have a long check list so this realtor has her work cut out. But I have found several houses I have liked. We are looking outside Lexington in little towns called Winchester, Frankfort, and Richmond. He isn't looking at any of these houses today, but We didn't start looking in these areas until after we talked to the realtor.

So for my favorites today I will be posting the houses I like with some of my checklist. I will list them from my favorite to least favorite.

1. 225 Robyn Drive This is my favorite out of all the houses I have looked at. Has everything on my checklist. It needs some updating but nothing major. It has a fenced yard so the babies will be happy. It has a nice size kitchen with a eat in area and it also has a dining room. For some reason I really want a dining room so when Jason and I do have kids we can have Sunday dinners and plus for whenever we have people over.

2. 100 Prewitt DrThis house also needs some updating. But its nice and big. Has a basement where I can work on all my stuff. The only downside is no fence yard. We would have to build one.

3. 115 Linden AveThis one is on the top of our price range. It is so charming. Love the front porch. And I love the fireplace in the living room

4. 112 Lafayette Dr
This house also looks charming from outside. Love the style. I'm a sucker for older homes. I like its deck and I like the fireplace. A fireplace is a must!

5. 629 Grama Dr

You can't tell much about this house from its pictures because there is only one inside picture, but I love the style of it.

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-16T09:55:00.006-06:00

November 11, 2o11
Today I am thankful for the men and women who are serving or did serve our country. Without them we would not be free.

November 12, 2011
Today I am thankful for when I worked at Stewart's Florist in Starkville. If I would have not worked there I wouldn't have met Melanie. Even though she was my boss we became friends. I love how we can talk to each other about anything.

November 13, 2011
Today I am thankful for our friends Clint and Angela. Jason has been friends with Clint for years. And I met Angela through that friendship. We are lucky to have yall. I know Jason really enjoys playing xbox with Clint!

November 14, 2011
Today I am thankful for Jason's family. His mom and dad have helped us so much since we have been married. We don't get to see his brother and sister n law and kids very often, but we love when we do. We love you all so much!

November 15, 2011
I am thankful for a comfy bed. Just think some people in other countries sleep on the concrete floor.

November 16, 2011
Today I am thankful that I am somehow a little successful at my little business. It keeps me busy. And I am able to stay at home.

November 17, 2011
Today I am thankful for flowers. Without flowers my sweet hubby wouldn't have been able to send me the beautiful arrangement I got.

Hope yall have a wonderful Thursday!

wordless wednesday - dream girly bathroom

2011-11-16T09:30:00.000-06:00

from bhg.com

Randomness

2011-11-15T10:23:00.004-06:00

I hope that is a word...If not now it is!

Today is just random thoughts and pictures.

I go to walmart a lot...surprising they have some things I use for supplies. Last week when I went I found scent sticks. You can hang them on your Christmas tree, wreaths, and other Christmas decor to have the scent of a Christmas tree. I am going to buy some of these once we get a house and get Christmas decor up. I have to use a fake tree because Jason is allergic. I LOVE a fresh tree and maybe this would make me think it is real.

I also went to pier one to get my slipcovers for my two breakfast table chairs. I had been waiting for them to go on sale. I could spend all my money in pier one...I love that store. While I was in there they had a new slipcover and of course I feel in love it with because it had a peacock on it. I would love to have these if we get a house with a dining room. Two chairs at the end of a table with this slipcover on it would be gorgeous and the room either emerald green or a teal color...I die!

That is all my randomness for today.

Hope y'all have a wonderful Tuesday!

Shows Shows and more Shows

2011-11-14T22:38:00.003-06:00

This is the season for festivals and shows. And I have been busy. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I love going to my shows and meeting new people and meeting new customers and seeing our repeat customers.

This past weekend was the Tupelo Flea Market. And I was so surprised with how well we did...I think it was one of our best shows to date. Jason couldn't help me with this one since he was in Kentucky. I got to load and unload and load and unload all by myself with this show. And boy I am tired. It wears you out. But I did share a booth with my friend Melanie and I really enjoyed that. See Jason doesn't talk much when we are at the show. He keeps busy by playing on the computer, ipod, or his phone. So I really enjoyed Melanie being there and us being able to catch up and just talk. I miss working with her almost everyday!

The weekend before (1st weekend in November) we had the Oxford Holiday Market. We did good at this show being that it was our first time and we didn't really know what to expect. It was our nicest show to date. And we loved being able to stay in a hotel and not have to worry with the dogs for just a few days. Plus I got to see my friend, Laurie and my cousin, Kaitlin, and her boyfriend.

This week I have 2 shows. I am doing the Deck the Halls show in New Albany, MS and the Muscle Shoals Flea Market in Muscle Shoals, AL. Both shows are new for me so I am excited to see how they turn out. I hope they are a success.

When I get to Kentucky I am going to have to do some research on shows and festivals that I can do. I enjoy doing this and I am happy that Jason lets me stay at home and do this instead of having a real job.

Tupelo Flea Market

Oxford Holiday Market

Ox ford Holiday Market

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-10T23:41:00.004-06:00

Continuing on with Thankful Thursday today. Hope I can remember each day. I told myself to write my thanks down each day, but I didn't listen!

So picking up where last Thursday ended...

November 4, 2011
Today I am thankful for my hubby! Yes, he should have been first, but I am listing them by what I am thankful for on that particular day. I am thankful for him everyday, but on days like this one where we are loading up for a show I am even more thankful for him. He helps me load everything up and unload. I couldn't do my hobby without him. Even though I complain about him not helping, he does help (when he wants to :) ).

November 5, 2011
Today I am thankful for Jason's new job! We are so excited to move to Kentucky. We have prayed and prayed for him to get a new job that is with a stable company. We feel that this is the one.

November 6, 2011
Today I am thankful for my sweet friend Laurie. We have been friends since 5th grade. And through all these years she has always been there for me (cheesy? Yes! But so true). There have been many times that I don't know what I would have done with out her. I treasure each time we get to see each other since those times are not very often. Love you Laurie! And I miss you too, hate being so far apart!

November 7, 2011
Today I am thankful for all the special customers Jason and I have had. We started our business over 2years ago and we are kinda surprise we are still doing it. It wouldn't be possible without our customers and fans. We thank you!

November 8, 2011
Today I am thankful for my family. I hate that we will be so far apart, but I still love all of you. My family will do anything for each other and I love that about our family. My papaw, mom, cissy (my aunt), my sister, and my cousin are a very close family. If we all lived in the same town we would have family supper every night instead of just on Sundays. We might argue and disagree with each other, but we still love each other and always will.

November 9, 2011
Today I am thankful for running water. I couldn't imagine not being able to take a hot shower or having clean water to drink. Kelly at Kelly's Korner has been sharing different Compassion International Stories and I just have these precious children on my mind.

November 10, 2011
Today I am thankful for coffee. Some mornings I just have to have a cup or two. Today was that kind of day. Needed two cups. One to warm me up and the second to help with my headache. Plus I love coffee! I should say I love creamer with a lil bit of coffee! HA! I crave coffee and Jason just doesn't get my love for it.

wordless wednesday (2 words)

2011-11-09T22:41:00.003-06:00

Bed Hogs!

Playing Catch Up

2011-11-08T22:35:00.003-06:00

I haven't been a good blogger lately. We have just been so busy!

First I will start with telling you about our trip to Kentucky for Jason's interview. The plane rides there were not so good. We missed our first flight because security dan incident and would not let anyone through. We later found out that the problem was a guys belt buckle that he had received at his grandfather's funeral. The security were afraid to open the bag so they just stopped running all together. I thought if they were suspicious of someone they took them and the article aside and keep things going. The security lady promsied us and others in line that our planes would wait on us...boy was she wrong! Then I had to go through the metal detector about ten times! It was awful! I had to take every single piece of my jewelry off! So after we got through security, we learned our plane did leave and we had to wait for over an hour for the next plane to come in. Thankfully time passed by fast because we made friends with a couple and their two little girls. The little girls were precious. The older one had the best manners...she would say excuse me" But why are we waiting?" when she wanted to ask you something she started her sentence with excuse me...so cute!

On the second flight from Charlotte, NC to Lexington Jason almost killed a lady by eating peanuts on the plane. She was severely allergic and had an allergy attack just by the smell of them. Thankfully the Stewardess came over and asked her what was wrong cause she had her epi-pen out ready to use it.

When we finally got to Lexington we prayed our luggage was there since we had to catch another flight. Thankfully it was. We were also met by Jason's recruiter and his wife. They were so sweet to us. They drove us around the city after we checked in at our hotel and they took us to dinner.
We ate at a good Italian place that was once a church. It was very interesting! Sorry I can not remember the name of the restaurant.

The next day Jason had his interview. The interview started at 8 am. I figured he would be done around lunch time, but I was wrong. Around 1:30 I started getting worried, but I was also getting hungry cause I hadn't ate anything. So I went and looked around at the shops around the hotel. Then I ate lunch by myself, 2nd time ever!, at smashing tomatoes. It was really good. I had their salad special for the day.

Jason ended up getting to the hotel around 4:15. What a long interview! So we didn't get to do much except ride around before we had supper with his future boss and coworkers. They we were all so nice and made us fill very welcomed! They even had things printed up on the table that said Good Luck Jason and Mallie!

The next day was our flight back home, but we did get to go to the Peddler's Mall which is like a Flea Market that is open everyday, but the vendors don't have be there. I bought just a few small things that could fit in my bag. I ended up almost having an issue with the security they sent my carry on bag through the machine several times. We made it home safely to Birmingham with no other issues on our flights.

Although we didn't get to do much in Lexington, we loved what we saw. And I am excited to say Jason did accept the job there. So we will be moving to Kentucky. He actually leaves tomorrow. He starts work Thursday. And next week he will be in Chicago.

All the pictures I took were of just us. Hope you enjoy those. And I also hope you have had a great Tuesday!

P.S. I will blog about this past weekend tomorrow...too much for one post!

Us before going to dinner with Jason's boss and coworkers.

Us before going to peddler's mall and coming back to Bama.

Friday Favorites - Fall

2011-11-04T02:03:00.008-05:00

Today is all about my favorite Fall things. I am just going to share pictures with you today. They are pretty self explanatory why I love these items in fall.

1. Pumpkin Patch/Pumpkins/Gourds....love to use them to decorate

2. Apple cider...Love it!

3. Trees changing colors...love seeing all the different colors

4. Soups/Stews/Chili...Best way to warm up after being outside

5. Roasting Marshmallows....mmm

6. Thanksgiving/Family....love gathering with my family for the Holidays

7. Cardigans and Sweaters to keep warm

8. Boots to keep the toes nice and warm

Thankful Thursday

2011-11-03T10:13:00.004-05:00

Instead of catching you up today on what we did over our long weekend. I am going to start Thankful Thursday. This will go on through the whole month of November. I am just going to share with yall what I am thankful for each day. Everything might not be serious but I am still thankful for each of them.

November 1, 2011
I am thankful for safe travels. We took two different flights to get back to Alabama. Flying is not my favorite thing. I am scared of heights. And for some reason on these two flights everything made me nervous. I am thankful that God allowed us to fly safely and guided our pilots.

November 2, 2011
I am thankful for my two fur-babies. While we were in Kentucky Ellie Mae and Lil Man went to the vet to get their shots, heart worm test, and to get their medicine. I am so thankful that we have two healthy dogs and they do not have heart worms or any deadly disease.

November 3, 2011
Even though I don't particularly like when it rains. I am thankful for the rain we are getting today. My paint dries slower, but If we didn't have ran things couldn't grow properly. And what would fall be with out the turning of the trees, pumpkins and gourds. So we have to have rain!

Hope Y'all have a great Thursday!

New blog design and name

2011-11-02T20:46:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to let all of you know that I am not missing LOL. We didn't have an internet connection while in Kentucky so I couldn't blog. I will catch you all up tomorrow.

But I wanted to introduce our new blog to y'all. I wanted a neutral name so that was the first change. I decided on Just the Two of us, well because its just me and Jason and the dogs. But I couldn't come up with anything cute that included them. Plus we can add onto this name when we have kids (ex. Just the two of us plus 1). Then I wanted a nice "professional" looking blog, so I got Leslie over at Lamberts Lately to design us a new blog. I googled several people, but I decided on Leslie, because I read her blog and always love how her blog looks. Don't ya love the new design?! It combines everything I love...peacock feathers, pink, lime green, polka dots, and it kinda has a vintage feel.

The last change was just signing it Mallie. This was a hard decision. It use to be Jason and Mallie. Jason doesn't blog on her so I thought it was more fitting to just have my name.

Hope you like the new name and the new look!

Friday Favorites - Hair Products

2011-10-28T15:52:00.004-05:00

Today's Friday Favorites is all about my favorite hair products. I use each one of these on an almost daily basis.

1. I will start with my absolute favorite shampoo and conditioner. It is called Nourishing Coconut Milk. Its made by Organix. You can find this anywhere: Walmart, Target, Walgreens, CVS, Etc. It cost a little more than other products. But I love the way it smells and it makes my hair feel good. I have also used all the other scents from Organix and I like them too, but this one is my favorite!

2. My second favorite hair product is Intense Therapy Leave in Treatment by Pravana Naturceuticals. I spray this in my hair after I towel dry my hair. This softens, hydrates, and detangles your hair. LOVE this stuff! I have a sensitive head so I have to use this before combing my hair out. I also spray it in my hair when I am going to wear it wavy/curly. I buy this product from my hair dresser, but I found it on amazon.com for cheaper than I buy it for, but you have to add shipping to it.

3. If I am going to straighten and tease my hair I have to use this next product. # 3 on my list is Straight Sexy Hair Smooth & Protect by Sexy Hair. This helps protect it from the heat of my straight iron and it helps make my hair style look smooth & last longer. You can get this product from a salon, buy it online, or I found mine at Ulta. You can only find it at Ulta in the store. But I found it online here.

4. My next favorite is my hairspray. I use Aussome Volume Hairspray Maximum Hold by Aussie. I have tried all kinds of hair sprays, but I always go back to this one. It doesn't take much of it to get your hair to stay in place. I buy mine at Wal-Mart or Target.

5. My final favorite product is T-Gel Theraputic Shampoo Extra Strength by Neutrogena. Jason and I both use this product. We use it every other day or every other time we wash our hair. I will admit we get itchy dry heads. And this help so much! It tingles and makes your head feel so much better! We buy this at many different places; Wal-Mart, Target, CVS, Walgreens, etc.

Hope Y'all Have a Fabulous Friday!

*I found all the pictures of the products from google.com

My Workroom

2011-10-27T10:00:00.000-05:00

I finally got my little room all organized and I wanted to share some pictures with you because it will not stay this clean.

My pictures aren't the best because they are from my phone and I am apologizing now for the bad quality.

You will also have to over look some areas of the room such as the windows and walls. I haven;t painted yet just in case we do end up staying here. And I have curtains for the windows, but I have to get the part that you hang the rod on them. Plus during the day I raise the blinds to let natural light in.

I love the way my desk area turned out, just wish the walls were a different color. I need some more shelving this isn't even half of my stuff. My windows and all the frames and wood that I work with are under the carport. I also have to store the furniture we buy at a building. I sure do miss having a larger carport and shop! That will go on the gotta have list for our next house!

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

From the Door

One of my work tables.

Another view of my book shelf.

My desk area.
I just painted this desk and chair last week.
I am in Love with the colors!

My smaller bookshelf by my desk.
In the glass jar on the left is old/vintage wooden blocks.
The glass jar on the right has old/vintage stamps.
The pink pig is from the fair this past weekend.

Front view of my desk.
Love the old/vintage wooden rocking horse toy used to hold some books.
The mason jar holds some wood knobs.
I also love the 1/2 circle window. I found 3 of them in an antique store.
Also love the layered wreaths. The peacock wreath is from our wedding.
Love how many drawers and cubies my desk has.
I decided to leave the roll top part off because it would never be closed.

Side view of the bookshelf and desk.

Sorry this pic is in black and white, but the lighting was horrible.
This is a little work table behind my desk.
The I love you was done by Jason and i love how he ran out of room for the !
and still got it on there.

Going to Kentucky

2011-10-26T11:32:00.004-05:00

Today isn't a Wordless Wednesday. I missed blogging yesterday. I was busy from the time I got up until the time I went to bed. I don't know exactly what took all my time because it seems like I didn't get much done. However my work room is finally all organized and ready for me to really mess up. :)

We got our itinerary yesterday for our trip to Lexington, KY. We fly out from Birmingham Sunday morning and will arrive in Lexington Sunday afternoon. Monday morning is Jason's interview and then Monday night the guy who could possibly be his boss is taking us out to dinner. Tuesday we leave to come back. We won't have much time to look around but I am just excited to get out of the house and actually be going somewhere besides Wal-Mart or Lowes. Jason and I are both excited to be going and he is nervous about the interview. We both have never been to Kentucky so it will be nice to see somewhere new.

I would like to go to the Horse Park, but they are not having any races or events while we are there. Their downtown area is suppose to be nice so I am looking forward to going and looking around. I hope to find a unique shop. Would like to find something to bring back with me. We both would like to see the castle that is in Lexington. So we might drive out to see it Sunday after when we get. It is nice that they rented us a car for while we are there. The company really wants us to look around the town to see if we like the area.

I am curious to see what the weather is like there. I know it is cooler than here. I just hope not too much cooler. I am also hoping it doesn't rain while we are there or while we are flying. We haven't flown much and I sure haven't flown through a storm.

I just ask that y'all pray for safe travels for us.

Happy Hump Day!

The Castle in Lexington, KY would like to see this.

Downtown area. Hoping for some good shopping and unique stores.

The night Skyline.

Love this country picture of Lexington, KY

*All pictures we found through google.

Weekend ReCap

2011-10-24T11:00:00.000-05:00

We had a great weekend. Friday night we went to the Fayette County Fair. We were a little hesitant to go because we both do not remember going to a Fair. I went to a few carnivals when I was in junior high but they never ended up good. I usually got sick on a ride. Jason and I are both scared of heights. We walked around at first just so we could work up the nerve to get on something. We started off with the Ferris Wheel. And I did not like it. The last Ferris Wheel I remember getting on you sat in a cage like seat. This one I just felt liked if you rocked you could fall out.

The Ferris Wheel

After the Ferris Wheel We walked around some more cause we were a little nauseated from it. We first watched the Steer Championship Show. And bet which one would win. Jason put dibs on the smaller one and I am happy to say he lost! I won with my bet on an older and bigger steer. We walked and looked at all the farm animals. They had tons of different breeds of chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, goats, donkeys, turkeys, and horses. And you could pet some of them.

Jason petting Simon

After petting some super cute animals we worked our nerves up to ride 3 more rides we started with the Sizzler. I laughed the whole time during this ride because I learned how big of a wuss my hubby is! He screams like a girl!! It was hilarious! And the guy operating it even called him out on his screaming! After the sizzler we rode the predator. Again he screamed like a girl and I laughed again! Then we finished with the Hurricane. I joined in on the screaming this time. I knew what this ride did because we had watched it but I didn't expect it to feel like it did. There were two more rides, Moby Dick and Pharaohs Boat, but we could not work up any more nerves for those. The Hurricane made us very very nauseous.

The Sizzler

The Predator

The Hurricane
Can you tell why we got so nauseous?

Moby Dick
It raised up and went in a circular back and forth motion.
Our tummies wouldn't have been able to handle it.

After the Hurricane we were freezing so we walked inside the Ag Center and got some hot chocolate. Then we walked around some more because we wanted some Fair food before we left. Before we ate we played a few games. We first played the dart game where you pop the balloons with the dart. Together we won a stuffed cute fuzzy pig (I had more points though!). Then Jason played the baseball throwing game and he didn't win a thing. Then we played the game where you toss the balls in bucket and try to get them to stay in. We both lost, but I did get 2 in but they didn't count :(. The last game we played was the basketball game. Jason ended up not playing (I think he was scared I would beat him). I did make 2, better than none.

Then we moved onto eating. First we ate a caramel apple, not the best but it was good. After that we shared a slice of pepperoni pizza and it was surprisingly good. Then we finished with a funnel cake. I think it was one of the best funnel cakes I have ever had. It was so light and fluffy and had lots of powdered sugar. Mmmm....I could eat one now. After all that eating we were stuffed and cold so we went home to get warm.

The Funnel Cake before we ate it all.
It was soooo good!

Saturday we slept late and then we went to Tuscaloosa to pick up of a piece of furniture that we are doing for someone. Since we were there we ate a late lunch/early supper at Olive Garden because we had a coupon. We decided to get some new jackets since we are going to Kentucky and its colder there than here and we don't have a good wind jacket. So we ended up going to Academy sports. We ended up getting Columbia matching jackets (awe how cute! I know! We are sweet when needed). After that we decided to go to Target to get a few groceries and things we needed. Plus its one of my favorite stores and the one in Tuscaloosa has groceries so its even better shopping. We also had fun in Target in the Halloween aisle. I somehow convinced Jason to put on the costume below.

All I can think is Hot Dog Hot Dog Hot Diggity Dog!

Hope Y'all Had a Wonderful Weekend! And Happy Monday!

Encouraging Words

2011-10-23T09:00:00.001-05:00

Jason and I have not had our string of luck since we have been married. Our faith in God has been a big part of our life even more so. Since we have been married we have gone through 2 different job lay offs and we are not so sure the job is has now is too promising. And because of that he has been looking for a new job with a stable company. He has two recruiters helping him find a job. And yes, most of them are not in Alabama and Mississippi. We have come to realize that God is in control and that when he says go, you go.

He had a phone interview with a company in Lexington, KY and it went really good. They want him to come for a in person interview and we are waiting for the details on that. We do know its soon. But the company is working our the details for flights and such.

Your probably wondering what all this rambling has to do with encouraging words and here it is. I signed up for KLOVE's Daily Encouraging Word over a year ago. I admit I don't read them everyday, but it amazes me that somehow each one I read is exactly what I need to hear.

I just wanted to share a few that has helped me feel better and trust in God that we will be where he wants us to be soon. It just about waiting and not just waiting, but waiting patiently. I have patience but it seems with issues like these I just can't be patient. And I worry. I worry so much it makes me sick, have headaches, or not be able to sleep. So of course every day I pray that God will give me patience to see what he wants us to do and for him to take my worries away.

Oct21

“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.”

Psalm 37:7 NLT

Oct20

“Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me.”

Psalm 103:2 NLT

Oct16

“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.”

Colossians 3:15 NLT

Oct09

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

Romans 8:28 NLT

Oct06

“God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

James 1:12 NLT

Oct03

“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.”

Romans 5:3 NLT

Oct02

“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16 -18 NLT

Sep29

“Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.”

Psalm 5:3 NLT

Sep28

“Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying.”

Romans 12:12 NLT

These have helped me remember that God is on my side. He might take things away that we love or like in our lives, but he has a plan. A BIG Plan. And I will admit its hard to be thankful in times of trouble and not knowing what is going to happen, but you and I have to remember God will never give us more than we can handle.

Friday (Saturday) Favorites

2011-10-22T02:36:00.008-05:00

I almost forgot about Friday Favorites, so I am going to share them with you today. I was busy yesterday organizing my work room so I could mess it up again :)

1. Cardigans. I am really into cardigans. Its the perfect weather for them. Love Fall. The cardigan below is on its way to me. I had been eying it since it came out. I don't have a brown cardigan so when it went on sale I decided to get one. I purchased it online at oldnavy.com (its plus size).

2. Thai. Jason and I have been really into Thai food. We found a little Thai restaurant in Columbus. Almost every time we go to Columbus we eat there now. Its called Bann Thai and everything we have tried has been so good. And this little restaurant has some of the best sushi. My favorite dish has been duck tamarind and mango shrimp curry. If you want to check them out they are across from Lowe's in Columbus, MS.

Mango Shrimp Curry
(The mango balances the spiciness)

3. Glass Green. This is the name of one of my favorite paint colors this week. Its by Valspar and you can get it at Lowes. Its kind of a weird color because you would think from its name it would be a green color, but its a blue color. I painted my roll top desk this color this past week. I will post pictures of it soon. The paint "chip" from Lowes.com does not do the color justice at all.

4. Jewelry Tray Organizer. I went to TJ MAXX this week and found these jewelry trays. I needed something to organizer the bathroom drawers and my nightstand drawers. They were a perfect fit. I bought just two just to see if they would work. I got a 3 tray and a 9 tray. I looked online for them but I only found them on ebay.com. They are over priced on there but just wanted to be able to give you that option.

This tray is in my top drawer on my nightstand.
I would have shared the one in the bathroom but its still not very organized.

5. Stress Relief Vanilla Verbena Body Wash. I love this stuff. I normally do not like body wash, but I LOVE this stuff! I am not stressed a lot but the smell it has is so soothing and relaxing. Perfect way to end or start a day. You can find it at Bath and Body Works.

Have a Wonderful Saturday!

Nutter Butter Balls

2011-10-20T23:07:00.001-05:00

I am always looking for new recipes so we don't get tired of the same ole thing.

We love oreo balls(find that recipe here). My aunt starting making them a couple of years ago and we have been hooked ever since. We make them a lot...holidays, birthdays, parties, and even weddings.

I joined pinterest not to long ago and last week I was looking for some kind of new something to take to my friend's, Emily S., baby shower. I stumbled on Nutter Butter Balls. I clicked on it and its recipe was just like oreo balls except with Nutter Butter Cookies of course. So Easy.

So I just wanted to share them with you. I made these and the oreo balls for the shower and they were a hit.

Ingredients:
1 block of cream cheese ( I will only use Philadelphia cream cheese, nothing else taste the same).
1 package of Nutter Butter cookies
1 block of chocolate almond bark

1st lay out your cream cheese so it can come to room temperature.
Finely crush your nutter butter cookies. I use my food processor. If you don't have one put just a few at a time in a zip lock bag and beat it with something (rolling pin works good).
After you have crushed the cookies add them and the cream cheese in a bowl and mix. Use your hands. They are the best tool for this. Mix good, you don't want a bite of cream cheese.
Form the mixture in a big ball and put in the freezer for 30 minutes or your fridge for an hour.
After the time is up roll them into little balls 1/2 inch to and inch. I lay mine out on a cookie sheet.
Once you have them all laid out put them back in the fridge or freezer for the same time.
When there is about 5 minutes left before taking them out melt your chocolate. I put mine in the microwave. Just follow the directions on the bag. Don't over cook it. Burnt chocolate is not too appetizing.
Bring your nutter butter balls out and dip them into the chocolate and lay them on wax paper to dry. I use a toothpick and a spoon to dip mine. If you want to add anything on top do it fast cause the chocolate drys fast.

Enjoy! They are delicious! Jason says they taste like a Reese's Cup.

Nutter Butter Balls (left) and Oreo Balls (right) before getting dipped in their chocolates.

Nutter Butter Balls (left) and Oreo Balls (right) ready to go to the shower

I also wanted to share how sweet my hubby is. He bought me a happy the other day. I had been complaining about the sos pad and dish sponge sitting on the metal part of the sink. The sos pad was leaving "rust" on the sink and the sponge was leaving soap. So he bought be a piece of pottery to sit them on. Meet my sponge "dish". Its my first piece of Alabama pottery.

Love how it matches my McCarty and Peter's pottery. Its made by Shelia.

In its new spot by the sink and my Peter's Spoon holder (I actually think its suppose to hold a wine bottle)

Hope Y'all had a great Thursday!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-19T13:00:00.002-05:00

Have a few words...He has the LIFE!

Bella came for a visit

2011-10-18T20:47:00.003-05:00

Last week we (I) had the joy of keeping Bella. Tuesday I met Brande and Bella for lunch in Starkville and then Bella went with me. Bella was not a happy camper from Starkville to Columbus, she cried all the way. But she quickly stopped crying once we got out of the vehicle and did a little retail therapy (we just went looking for pieces for me to redo). She loved shopping with me. After shopping we headed back to Fayette and we did a pit stop at Bullets and got a vanilla milkshake to share. Theirs are the BEST!

Bella is on a constant go. She is like the energizer bunny she keeps going and going and going. I couldn't get her to nap unless we rode in the car. She wore me out! She is a lot tougher to keep now. She is in the terrible twos stage and she tests everything you tell her. You have to tell her no several times or just let her hurt herself.

Although she wore me out I loved having her here. Love Loved seeing her smiling face in the morning. Love hearing her say Mae Mae. Love hearing her laugh. And plus she is too cute not to love.

Leaving you with a collage of sweet Bella from her stay.

Friday Favorites

2011-10-14T12:06:00.004-05:00

Since I am home now and not working I am going to really try to keep the blog updated. We have a lot going on. Just to update you some. Jason has been having phone interviews and some in person interviews with some companies. We went to Fort Smith, Arkansas and Loudon, Tennessee a couple of weeks ago. He also had an interview in Birmingham. He had a phone interview with a company in Kentucky this morning. He told me it went really good. So it looks like we will be going to Kentucky soon for an in person interview. Some of you might be wondering why is he looking for a job. He is technically a temporary person at Ox Bodies until they make him salary. Its the end of the year for them and the VP doesn't want to put anyone on salary so their numbers look better. This scares him that the company isn't doing as good as he thought. And he is also more likely to get let go and we don't want to be in that boat again.

I have been keeping myself busy with furniture and things. I am trying to get some shows on my schedule. I did the Tupelo Flea market last week and I have two-three more shows coming up. I also have things in two stores. I have things at Stewart's Florist in Starkville and I just got a booth in Pontotoc at Pure Bliss.

So that lil bit updates you onto Friday Favorites. I use to do Friday Favorites kind of regularly, but I got busy and stopped blogging. Friday Favorites is just a few things that are my current go to products or things.

My 1st current favorite/love is my minnetonka moccasins. I have the style # 403 which is the Kilty Suede Moccasins Hardsole. I picked the Dusty Brown color. When we were in Fort Smith I picked these up. I try to wear them with everything. Right now I pick my outfits to go with them. They are so comfortable and I can walk a lot in them. Jason doesn't like them and can't believe i bought them. But I LOVE them! And they are perfect for Fall!
My 2nd favorite is a candle from Bath and Body Works. They are one of the best candles to me. They put off a lot of scent and you can smell them through the house. My favorite scent right now is Marshmallow Fireside. Jason doesn't like sweet smelling candles so this one is a perfect combo for us. Its a sweet manly candle. Its hard to describe the scent but I love it. I have already been through one candle since I moved here and I picked up another one the other day.

My 3rd favorite, its hard for some people to like, is my washer and dryer. What you say? No I don't like doing laundry any more than anyone else, BUT I love mine because they can hold so much that laundry is done in half the time. AND they sing to me! Instead of that annoying buzz sound when its done it plays a little tune. It makes you want to do laundry a little more. We have the LG Wave Series Washer and Dryer. We had to buy a new washer and dryer because we sold ours with the house, perfect excuse to get new ones. Plus I hated that I could not wash comforters. I always had to take them to the dry cleaners. If you need a new washer and dryer I highly recommend these. The only downside is the washing powder cost more cause you have to buy the he powder. But we bought a big box of what Sears has and I buy gain or snuggle fabric softener so our clothes will smell good.

My 4th & 5th favorites go together, and they are my last favorites for this week. We have been really into pita bread and hummus. I eat it sometimes for lunch with a little salad or we snack on it. Its healthier than chips and dip. The brand of pita bread I buy is Hungry Girl. We really like the kind with rosemary, but the original and wheat are good too. I couldn't find a picture of the pita bread, but I bought it Wal-Mart in the bakery section. The hummus we buy is by Sabra. We like the Roasted Pine Nut version (well actually our Wal-Mart only carries two varieties, Roasted Pine Nut and Original). This is the perfect snack. I just cut the pita in half and toast it then cut it up and dip away into the hummus. Mmmm...makes me want some, but I just had lunch!

Hope you have a great Friday! Try something new today!

Boxes and Boxes

2011-10-04T19:31:00.002-05:00

I have been in Bama for a couple of weeks now. And not much more has been unpacked. The front room of the house we are renting has furniture and boxes stacked high. We also have a storage building with things it. Mostly the storage building has my craft/furniture stuff in it.

The little house is so small that we can't unpack much more. I hope to have the living room in some kinda order soon and be able to unpack my pottery and things like that. It just doesnt feel homey yet. We did get our bedroom and living room painted so that is a plus. We are lucky and have a really nice guy that we rent from.

We like living here. Its a cute little town. But we are already having house blues. Or at least I am. I like everything to be in its place and its not. It bothers me more than it bothers Jason of course. I miss our house now. I just miss how I had room for everything and i miss our shop and carport. Hopefully sooner than later we can buy a house.

Here is a picture that I found on google to give you an idea of our boxes. But think furniture too.

It's My Birthday, I Will Cry If I Want Too!

2011-09-18T11:16:00.004-05:00

My birthday comes every year on the same day, August 26. This year it was my 24th birthday. Not a special number like 16, 21, 25, 30, etc. I don't feel older. It just another day and a start of a new year for me.

This birthday was relaxing no fuss. I had my birthday off from work which was a Friday. Thursday I had class so I went to Bama and stayed at the rental house with Jason. I am horrible with keeping secrets when it comes to presents. I tried to get my birthday gift Thursday night from Jason but I couldn't him talk him into it.

Friday morning he woke me up like it was Christmas morning and he was a little boy again excited that Santa had came. So I knew he must have been really REALLY excited about giving me my gifts. Even though it was terribly early, I got out of the bed rubbing my eyes the whole way into the living room. When I got there I saw a very large something wrapped in brown craft paper. I was surprised at how large it was (we had been looking at getting me a larger wedding band b/c I knocked my stone loose on my engagement ring and I want to retire it so I don't do it again and loose the diamond, so I thought or I was expecting to get a ring). I unwrapped it and I was surprised! Underneath the craft paper was a laptop computer and the chair I had been wanting from pottery barn. He did good! Really good! I was not expecting either especially the chair I had just started talking about it that week.

After getting my presents Jason had to go to work. I was meeting my sister and my sweet niece, Bella, later for lunch so I watched a little tv then got dressed and took my time. While I was getting dressed the dogs went crazy barking I thought it was just the postman or just someone going by the house. Well when I was finally ready to leave I was going out the door and almost tripped going down the stairs. I just thought I guess I have two left feet today, But when I turned around to shut the door I saw what had made me tripped....it was a package...for me! I had no clue who it was from. Not many people have our address to the house in Fayette, so my next thought was I haven't ordered anything and shipped it here. I couldn't just sit it inside the door and leave it for when I came back, so I took it inside and opened it. It was a blueberry crumble coffee cake, birthday napkins, and candles. I was surprised! Then I found the card that said who it was from...It was from my sweet BF, Laurie!! I was even more surprised! I couldn't remember her asking for the address. She was sneaky!

I finally got to Starkville to meet my sister and Bella. And somehow I got there earlier than them! We met at Old Venice for lunch. We had a great lunch. I loved seeing them and Bella melts my heart now! Not that she didn't before. She lit up when she saw me and kept saying Mae Mae. She is so fun now. After eating we walked down to Mary Virginia's Consignment Shop and did a little shopping for Bella. After shopping we went to get some ice cream at cold stone. It was so so so HOT that day. Bella loved the ice cream. She immediately decided that mine was her favorite. Which was okay because I didn't need it!

I hated to have to leave them, but I went back to Bama. When I got back Jason surprised me with a caramel cake and my favorite strawberry cookies from the local bakery. Jason took me to eat at the Mexican place in Fayette. It's surprisingly really good for such a small town.

My birthday kind of continued into the next week. My family always does a birthday supper for whoever birthday it is. The whole family couldn't be there, KK just started college, Brande, Mike, Bella were in Eupora, and Jason was in Bama. So it was just me, my mom, papaw, and Cissy, but that was fine. On your birthday you get to pick what you want for your supper. So as always, I know I am boring, I picked my aunts ham. It so good, perfectly cooked! We had Baked Ham, sweet and sour green beans, candied yams, and fat man salad. It all was so good. I had gotten some kind of stomach virus. I ate way too much for just starting to get over the virus. (The supper was on Wednesday, I started to get sick with the virus Sunday and had it Monday)

I had a wonderful birthday this year! I love my family and my friends! Thank you for making it a special day for me!

My Bday gifts from Jason

My blueberry crumble coffee cake from Laurie

Me and Bella at Old Venice

My birthday and and my favorite cookies from Jason

Christmas 2010

2011-03-04T22:54:00.005-06:00

Just wanted to share a few pictures from Christmas since I am so far behind on blogging.

Bella's Hand print ornament that I made.

Bella opening presents

Bella looking at her baby doll

Me and Jason

Cissy and KK

Bella's Birthday

2011-01-05T22:54:00.006-06:00

Bella, my sweet niece, had her birthday in December (Dec. 18th). She turned a big number 1! She had two little birthday "parties." One was for her friends and family (and I did not get one single picture). Then she had her very first family birthday supper. My aunt started a tradition of cooking either on or close to your birthday and having a family meal. She let's you decide the menu. Bella LOVES scrambled eggs, so we had a breakfast supper. We had eggs, bacon, grits, and pancakes. And Cissy (my aunt) made Bella the cutest cake! Bella would not eat anything but her eggs. Then we had cake and that changed her mind...I will let the pictures explain.

I can not believe a year has already came and gone for her. It seems just like yesterday that I was trying to rush home to get to the hospital to see her. She makes me laugh by all the cute silly things she does. She has the best personality. She is walking (started around 9 1/2 to 10 months) and getting into EVERYTHING!! She loves for you to laugh at her. She is learning words. She is learning what no means and loves testing you. And she absolutely still LOVES LOVES her passie.

She is my heart and I LOVE being her aunt!

Bella loves people clapping for her

Cutting up

Pay attention to me!

Is this for me?

It is isn't?!

I think I will try it!

mmm...I think I will have more!

And some more!

Did y'all want some? If not I think I can finish it!

P.S. Thank you Cissy for uploading your pictures!

Changes....Changes are Good Right?

2011-01-03T11:01:00.002-06:00

So I have not blogged since early November and we have had a few changes happen in our life.

The biggest one would be that Jason got let go at work in November. This ended up being a blessing because he was starting to get miserable working second shift. He loved his job, but didn't like the shift.

Since Jason doesn't have a job we had to make a big decision about the store keep it open and struggle or close and try again in the future. We decided to close and try again in the future when we are more settled. I loved having the store, so it was very hard for me to finally agree to close. However, we still will be doing furniture and things on the side because it is our hobby, one of the few things we do together and enjoy. Plus it is my therapy.

Now we are both looking for jobs. We hope to stay close to this area. We love being back here because we have so many people here; my family, his family and most of our friends.

So I just want to ask my blogger friends to keep us in your prayers.

You do What???

2010-11-06T08:45:00.000-05:00

I get asked all the time What do you? What is your job? I have many jobs that is put all into one....Let me explain

My jobs include but are not limited to: Painter, Accountant, Manager, Customer Service Rep, Marketer, Cleaner, Payroll, etc.

Those are many of my job titles....that is what I get for owning my own business...

Some say I don't have a "REAL" job! I have to disagree, I have many jobs! Yes, I am doing what I love and love what I am doing. BUT it can be stressful at times too.

People often think owning your own busniess is SO easy...BOLOGNA!! I believe you have to work so much harder at owning your own business than working for someone. You have to learn a lot fast!

I have had to learn a lot since we bought the store in June. Its not what I thought it would be. I don't really know what I thought it would be either! LOL!

I will admit there has been a few times when I have asked my myself and Jason "What have we gotten into?" But then I remember I LOVE what I am doing! Yes, there are some days when I don't feel like doing anything or coming to the store. But I am sure you have days that you don't want to go to work either.

So What is my Job???

I am the owner of The Cotton Exchange (along with my sweet husband, Jason) in Greenwood, MS.

What do you Make??

2010-11-05T22:29:00.003-05:00

Kelly at Kelly's Korner is having her weekly Show us Your Life Friday today.

This week is What do you Make???

You are suppose to link up your website or etsy store. Our website is under construction and you can't really buy things off of it and I do not have an etsy store.

So I decided I would do a blog post about it and link my facebook page and website. I update Facebook way more than the website. If you see anything on either that you are interested in you can email us cottonexchange@ymail.com

Our main thing is redoing furniture. We buy used furniture and give it a new life. We paint it, fix, and refurbish. We have also gotten a lot of business lately with custom work for customers. We have people bringing us furniture all the time!

I also make other things using old windows, shutters, door knobs, and etc.

If you are interested in anything let me know! I am steadily coming up with new ideas and products. BUT what we can get changes all the time since we do reuse items that we find. We CAN NOT guarantee that we can do something twice.

I will leave you with a few pictures of things we (I) have done lately :)

Christmas Ornaments made with Chippy Paint door plates

Cabinet and Chair Custom painted for customer.

Pillow made from Peanut Burlap sack

I also go out and find furniture.
Found these two great chairs.

I painted the end table.

This is one example of what I do with old shutters/ Cabinet doors.
This has cork board covered with fabric.

My Version of Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

2010-10-25T16:04:00.014-05:00

Last week before I went to buy groceries Ree at The Pioneer Woman made a post about main dish salads (you can read it here). She had a picture of her Spinach Salad (you can find her recipe here) with the post and it looked so good! I have made a spinach salad with warm bacon dressing before, but I have not in a long time since it wouldn't be good left over. Jason didn't have to work this weekend so I decided I would cook it for us. I made mine different from hers I'm sure (I did not look at her recipe). The first time I cooked it I combined two recipes to make it my own. And surprisingly it turned out really good! So this time I set out to do the same thing again but with a twist. I saw that Ree had put mushrooms in her version. I thought it looked good, so I added that. And so the salad would be even more fulfilling I decided to add some chicken.

Ingredients:

Bacon
Purple onion
Mushrooms (optional, I bought sliced to make things easier)
Spinach
Rotisserie Chicken from your grocery store
Red wine vinegar
brown sugar
garlic (whole or minced)
salt
pepper
butter
olive oil
pumpernickel bread (could use sourdough or french breads)

Optional:

Boiled Eggs
Croutons
I first started by pre-heating my oven to 400 degrees to heat my rotisserie chicken up and for my homemade croutons. Then heat a large skillet on medium heat and add 3 tablespoons of butter and let melt. When your oven is heated add put your chicken in to heat up (don't leave it in the container it came in!) While your pan is heating cut your onion into thin slices. Once your butter is melted add them into your skillet along with your mushrooms. I added an extra tablespoon of butter to make sure both the onions and mushrooms were coated. Add salt (to your liking...helps the onions sweat). I use kosher salt in cooking, but you can use whatever you like. Once your onions and mushrooms get cooked(onions will be almost translucent--don't burn them) pour them in a bowl and sit it to the side for later. Add 6-8 slices of bacon in your skillet and let them get crispy (need to cook on a little higher heat--on our stove its #6)

Once your bacon is all crispy put it on a plate with paper towels to cool. Let your bacon grease cool down (DO NOT throw away! Its the best part!!) If you want to make your own croutons cut your bread into pieces then put them in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle some salt on them. Toss them to make sure they all get covered but not drenched by the olive oil. Put on a baking sheet and spread evenly. Put them in the oven for 15 minutes.
Next add brown sugar, red wine vinegar, and bacon grease and mix. Taste and see if it needs more sugar or vinegar. (sorry I eyeball all of this part---I probably used a packed 1/3 of cup brown sugar, almost a cup of red wine vinegar, and whatever amount of bacon grease the bacon produced). Next add salt and pepper to taste and minced garlic. Mix all together and taste. Add anything if necessary.

By now your chicken and your croutons should be ready and you can assemble your salad. **Note if you would like eggs on your salad boil them at the beginning and let them cool so you can slice them. I like eggs on mine, but did not have eggs.

Add your spinach to your salad bowls and put your onion and mushroom mix to one side. Crumble your bacon and put it on another side. Add your croutons to another side. Cut your chicken and put desired amount in your bowl. Then mix your dressing and pour it over!

You are now ready to eat your salad! We mix ours all together and dig in!

Hope you enjoy! I am hungry now! LOL!

Us before eating!

What do you do when you can't sleep??

2010-10-23T16:06:00.003-05:00

On Sunday night I didn't feel good. And for some reason I couldn't sleep for anything.

I eventually got out of bed and went to watch tv and surf the web.

That got boring after a while so I decided I was going to make something. I didn't have much to pick from...All I had was my sewing machine and some fabric since everything is at the store.

So I decided to make some pillows.

What do you do when you can't sleep??

My two pillows

The Redneck came to town!!

2010-10-19T13:06:00.000-05:00

So there are a lot of Rednecks here in Mississippi and like we needed one more in these parts. But I think this lady is the best one of them all (and she is from Texas, so it doesn't really count towards the Redneck population here)! And I had an unsuspectingly surprise visit from her on Saturday here at the store!

Do you know who I am talking about?? What? You have never heard of Redneck Chic??? You have got to be kidding!

I have followed her for months now and I am in LOVE with her blog (you can visit it here). She has me cracking up all the time. And not to mention she is very talented! She makes the most gorgeous handbags(and you can view and purchase them here)! Not only does she make handbags she makes the coolest junk even cooler when she gets her hand on it!

I have been dying to go to Texas and meet her and many more people, but we have not had the chance to be able to go. And much to my surprise she has a connection to the Mississippi Delta!!

When she came in on Saturday I was sitting at the computer (probably on ebay doing what I do best, looking for things to buy for the store). I knew she looked familiar but I didn't say anything but hey how are you. Then She said I got something for ya! Thats when I saw the bag with her logo and I about freaked out on her!!

She brought me my boots she rednecked (is that even a word? It is now!) up for me and my very own Redneck chic purse.

I felt like I had met a star. And Jason can even tell you I was giddy all day long after she left and I kept admiring my boots and bag (Do you think they would look alright together??) I need a cute dress to wear these with so they can get seen and noticed!

I wish she was closer so I could carry her handbags and cool junk in the store (maybe we can work something out!)

So go one over and visit her! She will have you laughing rolling on the floor and screaming YeeHaw!

Me with Robelyn (Redneck Chic)

My Redneck Chic original!

She doesn't leave out the small details.
Leopard pockets in the inside!

Proof its real!

My Rednecked up boots!

Love those ruffles!

Love the details!

Can't wait to wear them!

The Bag that surprised me!

Love her business card!

Show Us Your Life....

2010-10-17T23:09:00.004-05:00

I missed last weeks Show us Your Life at Kelly's Korner. So this will be a double post. Last week was Kitchen and this past Friday was Office.

I have already shared our kitchen with y'all so I will be just sharing pictures again and you can view that post here.

We have changed where our "office" space has been in the house multiple times. It started out in the living room. Then it went to "Jason's room". And now it has been the work room/guest room. We took the computer(s) with us when we left so there is just a desk now.

I love the desk we have. It is a really old school desk and its really cool. I did not use the chair that is in the pictures. We have a ugly black rolling desk chair, but for staging the house we put the lavender chair in its place.

Show Us Your Life Friday....Dining Rooms

2010-10-02T14:22:00.004-05:00

I am a day late with this post but I think that is okay.

Kelly at Kelly's Korner is having Show Us Your Life Friday...Dining Rooms this week.

We don't have a dining room, but we have an eat in kitchen. We hope to have a dining room when we buy our next house. I would love one since we are close to family now and I would like to cook for everyone and have them over. Plus, one day (Not sure if my aunt will let me cook holiday meals now) I would like to cook for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

But in the meantime I will just share the pictures of the eating area with you.

Our table came from an estate sale and it was a wedding present from my aunt. The chairs came with the House when Jason bought it. I don't like them, but I can not find what I am looking for to go with the table. I even thought about painting them, but I couldn't decide on color. When we get a new house hopefully I can find something.

There use to be shutters on the bottom
half of the window. Kinda wish I would have
painted them and kept them there now.
I need a curtain to go with the valance too.

This is what our table looked like for Christmas last year (2009).

Show Us Your Life....Master Bedrooms

2010-09-24T11:05:00.003-05:00

I just love Show Us Your Life Fridays at Kelly's Korner. I love to be inspired by other people and get ideas that I can use myself.

Today is show us your life...master bedrooms. I bet you are wishing I would have waited to do all posts about the house. This time I will Just share pictures and link back to my earlier post.

Our bedroom is comfy, but I feel it is to matchy matchy with the furniture. This is one thing I am excited about changing when we sale our house.
Enjoy the pictures!

P.S. You can fine my earlier post here and I tell you what all we did to the room.

The Help

2010-09-22T16:04:00.003-05:00

At the beginning of the summer I read the book called The Help. It is written by Kathryn Stockett who is from Jackson, MS. The book is based on the lives of the help that families have. Great Book and a must read. I would tell more about it, but you should read it for yourself. The book made me life and cry. Has a good ending too!

The book is based in Mississippi. And it is being made into a movie. Guess where its filmed?? Yes, here in Greenwood! They are also filming in Jackson and Cleveland or Clarksdale (cant exactly remember just know it is a C-town close to me).

The town of Greenwood over the summer and now has been busy with movie people. There have been road blocks around town. But people still go down the road to get as close as they can just to get a glimpse of a movie star. It has also brought people to Greenwood, just so they can see where it is being filmed and to get their glimpse.

Talking about stars...Some of the movie stars in the movie are Emma Stone, Bryce Howard Dallas,Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Anna Camp, Sissy Spacek, and many more. And a lot of people from Greenwood and other towns will be extras.

A lot of talk around town has been who they have seen. My sister saw and spoke to Emma Stone at the Viking Cooking School one day. It seemed liked everyone was seeing somebody except for me. Then my day came!

I got to meet Anna Camp! One of mine and Jason's favorite places to eat lunch is at the Turnrow Bookstore downtown. Anna was in there one day we were eating. She had her hair all done up for the movie. Didn't recgonize her at first. But I went downstairs to look at books while I waited for my sandwich to be ready. Then I was standing next to her and I noticed who she was. (PS I hate how some people freak out when they see a star, But I didn't). I casually asked her if she would be on anymore TrueBlood episodes (She was the preacher wife, Sarah Newlin). She was surprised I even noticed her. We talked about her hair (she asked if it looked fake and it didn't, but it was wig!). She asked if I watched Mad Men and I said no (don't watch much tv), but she suggested I watch it because she is in a few episodes and she said the men are hot! She was so sweet! So glad I got to meet her and She was on one of our favorite shows(TrueBlood)!

The movie has also brought the store some business. We sold them two childs chairs to be used and they have also bought things to take home with them.

I am so happy that the town of Greenwood could be a part, a major part, of the movie.

And just so you will go read the book here is a better detail description of the book (I got it off http://www.facebook.com/thehelpcommunity):

Set in Mississippi during the 1960s, “The Help” stars Emma Stone (star of the breakout hit, “Zombieland”) as Skeeter, a southern society girl who returns from college determined to become a writer, but turns her friends’ lives—and a small Mississippi town—upside down when she decides to interview the black women who have spent their lives taking care of prominent southern families. Academy Award® nominee Viola Davis (“Eat Pray Love”) stars as Aibileen, Skeeter’s best friend’s housekeeper, who is the first to open up—to the dismay of her friends in the tight-knit black community. Despite Skeeter’s life-long friendships hanging in the balance, she and Aibileen continue their collaboration and soon more women come forward to tell their stories—and as it turns out, they have a lot to say. Along the way, unlikely friendships are forged and a new sisterhood emerges, but not before everyone in town has a thing or two to say themselves when they become unwittingly—and unwillingly—caught up in the changing times.

Now I will leave you with some pictures of Anna Camp and some others so you can know who I am talking about (thats if you don't know them by name)!

P.S. No, I was not able to get a picture with Anna, I didn't have my camera or my phone at the moment.

Anna Camp

Anna Camp on True Blood as Sarah Newlin

Emma Stone

Sissy Spacek

Crock Pot Meal....Smothered Pork Chops

2010-09-21T15:33:00.006-05:00

I love using my crock pot for easy meals. Its nice to be able to put items in one pot and forget about it for the rest of the day. Its even better when you arrive home and you remember I don't have to cook!

I left my crock pot in Columbus and I have not been able to use it in months. :( But One day when I was cooking, I was digging in the cabinet looking for a pot and guess what I found in the very back? A crock pot! I was scared it wasn't going to work because it looked so old. But this past Saturday I got to test it out. It made me nervous though, unlike my crock pot it did not have a timer nor did it have hour settings. It just had numbers (1-5) for the temp. And to my surprise when we returned on Saturday we had No raw meat!!

One of my favorite crock pot meals is smothered pork chops. For some reason my favorite way to eat pork chops is smothered with onions, mushrooms and gravy over rice. Being a southern girl you might have thought I would have said fried, but not me!

For the last few months I have cooked smothered pork chops several times because its so easy and its comforting. But I had to cook them in the oven and I made a mess every single time.

I had been craving pork chops for a couple of weeks and I noticed one day ( Friday night) I had pork chops in my freezer and had all the ingredients I needed. So I thought I would share with you my crock pot smothered pork chops.

You could easily cut this recipe in half if cooking for just two and you don't want leftovers.

A pack of pork chops (I had a pack of 4 with the bone on, but you could get boneless)
Can of cream of mushroom soup
Can of cream of onion soup
Half a pack of lipton onion soup mix
Seasonings of choice (I used garlic powder, salt, and powder)
1 medium onion sliced
Can of sliced mushrooms (You could also use whole or fresh mushrooms)

Put the soups, soup mix, and seasonings in the crock pot and stir it together. Add you pork chops and onions. Add two cans of water (use your soup can to measure). Cook on low for 8 hours. Add mushrooms 30minutes to and hour before you are ready to eat.

See that is super easy! I love to have rice with this. I can not cook rice for anything so I use minute brown rice, but my favorite to use is the ready to serve rice cups. I like the brown rice the best and you don't even have to add butter! I just realized I didn't use any butter at all in this whole recipe (that should make it lowfat right?)

Hope you try the recipe and like it!

Sorry I don't have any pictures, but I did find these on google.

These look yummy! And its from eatbetteramerica.com

Minute Rice

6 years ago

2010-09-18T15:26:00.003-05:00

6 years ago today I was 17 and a senior in high school. I had been dating a guy for almost a year. BUT I had a huge crush on a guy named Jason Ellis who I had met over a year ago at Camp of the Rising Son.

Being a teenage girl with a big crush on a boy, I prayed so hard every night that Jason would ask me to be his girlfriend even though I did have a boyfriend at the time. And He also had a girlfriend.

We talked almost everyday, secretly so our bf/gf wouldn't find out. He would tell me over and over you are just too young (I met him at 15 going on 16). I would tell him I am not 15 anymore, I have aged since we met at camp.

My prayer was answered on September 18, 2004 when Jason asked me to be his girlfriend! (Yes, we did both ended our relationships before dating. We did not cheat on them!)

I was ecstatic! I had been chasing this boy since I was at camp! I was in LOVE with him. When I first met him I told myself I was going to marry him! And I am happy to say it did come true! I married him last summer on June 6!

I am still in LOVE with Jason. We might argue, fight, and not agree on things, But I will always love him!

And he was sweet today and sent me 6 sunflowers! They are beautiful! I love when he surprises me with things! I have reminded him all week that it has been 6 years and he would tell me we don't celebrate that anniversary anymore which is bologna to me! It still counts!!

I do have a picture of when we met at came (No, not the actual minute we met, but from Camp), but it is framed at the house in Columbus, so I will have to share it later. BUT I do have a picture of my pretty flowers!

Show us your life...Living Rooms

2010-09-17T14:51:00.010-05:00

I know I just posted a few days ago about our living room, But Kelly@ Kelly's Korner is having us Show Us Your Life Friday...Living Rooms. I thought I would join in and do a re-post of the earlier living room post.

I wish we were able to enjoy to enjoy our house. It has grown on me a lot. The living room is one of my favorite rooms. It feels so cozy to me. In the winter its even better when we have the fire going and you can hear the fire crackling.

My favorite item (s) in the room is the painting above the TV cabinet. One of our friends painted it for us. It is actually of a Chapel in the woods at Camp of the Rising Son, where Jason and I first met. When I got it in the mail I cried. I love it and it fits perfectly with our living room.

My next favorite thing would be the couch. Although, Jason doesn't love it as much as I do. It is so comfortable and soft. And I also love the fact that I only paid $50 for it at the thrift store!

And my next favorite thing would be the picture of the lighthouse on Tybee Island. It reminds me of our honeymoon and of Savannah and Tybee. I feel in LOVE with Savannah and Tybee Island when we were there. I dream about going back and about living there one day. Even though I said those were my favorite things, I do love everything in the living or they wouldn't be in there.

Well, there is one thing I am not in love with...Its the curtain...I wanted something to match the back door valance (can you believe I found it at Fred's???) and could not find what I was looking for in time to stage the house. But it will do for the time being.

I have to say it again, I love our living room and wish we could be living there and enjoying it.

View from the Kitchen door way.

View from the other Kitchen door way.

View from the back door.

This picture kinda shows you how tall the ceilings are

Looking towards the kitchen

From the Front Door

Also from the front door.

The Coulumbus House....Part 5....The Master Bedroom

2010-09-17T10:00:00.001-05:00

Wanted to start and end this post with pictures. So these pictures of before pictures of the master bedroom. Hope this helps you visualize the room better!

Not a lot happened in this room. The walls Started off a a chocolate brown color and the trim was espresso. And the beam the fan is hanging on was painted espresso. It was very very dark in there. SO we really wanted to lighten the room.

We picked library blue from the Biltmore line at Lowe's (they don't have it at the store anymore but you can still get it matched). The first thing we started on was priming. We didn't last long since the walls were so tall. So we ended up getting someone to finish the painting for us.

Our Bedroom furniture (all but the table and two chairs) is from Ashley Furniture. I think out of everything we have bought together as a couple, It is our biggest regret esp now since we do the furniture thing.

When we get a new house we are passing this bedroom set to my mom (Well, unless we can sell it. Would you like to buy it???) Now, I don't want everything to be so matchy.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

View from door

Sorry about the curtain pole....

The Columbus House.....Part 4.....Guest Bedroom 2

2010-09-16T12:20:00.005-05:00

The next room I want to share with y'all is the 2nd guest bedroom. I feel we didn't do much in here, but when I think about it we did.

The first thing we did in this room was paint the walls. They were navy blue. We painted the room red. I had it set up as the guest room for a little while, then it turned into my craft room. But before turning it into my craft room it got painted again. We went with a yellow this time. Jason hated the red. He said it was too bright for such a small space ( don't tell him but I agree with him).

Since we put the house on the market, this room is staged as another bedroom, not a craft room. So the first thing we tackled before listing was pulling up the ugly stick down tiles (please don't buy them!!) Since we were on a budget we didn't want to spend a fortune on flooring, so we decided to paint the concrete instead of putting carpet in. We primed the floor then we painted it with concrete paint that can be tinted to whatever color you like. We picked a blue/gray color. And I LOVE the way it looks.

We also painted all the trim and the built in book shelves (thank goodness these looked a lot better than the other room).

I also got things to decorate this room from here and there. The twin bed is from Jason's parents (its actually his Grandparent's bed and Jason used it in college). The bedding is from Wal-Mart. The dresser is from the Salvation army (Got a great deal on it and its in Great condition!) The school desk is from Jason's parents (It seems like they had a lot of unwanted furniture huh? They have collected over the years from family members). The chair at the desk came from my great grandmother. The blue chair in the corner is from the thrift store (its the most comfortable chair ever! I can't wait to get it recovered! And later it will be put in our baby's room because it rocks, but that is later down the road when we have one). The picture above the bed is from an antique mall in Columbus. Then a lot of the decorations are things we have collected over the years and some are wedding presents.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

View from standing at the Door.

I wish I would have taken a better picture of the dresser

The Columbus House...Part 3...Guest Bedroom One

2010-09-11T17:06:00.005-05:00

So onto the next room...Guest Bedroom One.

This bedroom has had a lot of work done to it (sorry no before pictures.) I'm going to try to describe what it use to look like... If you were standing in the doorway to the left you would see horrible built in shelves, look up and around the top of the walls was...you guessed it...a wall paper boarder that was tropical leaves with airplanes, and to your right a TREE HOUSE....yes I said TREE HOUSE. Someone had the bright idea to build a tree house inside. They belong outside!

The tree house was a huge pain to take down (yes, I am speaking for Jason because, no I did not help!) I heard his frustration the whole time. It was bolted to not one but two walls and the ceiling! After the tree house (months later), Jason tackled the built in bookshelf. I tried to "help" it but it needed more than I wanted to give it. Plus I had nowhere to put a dresser in the room since one wall consisted of a window and closet doors and the bed went on one wall and I had an armoire on another. The book shelves were a pain too. Again it was bolted to the walls and the ceilings.

After taking down everything, we patched holes in the walls and ceiling then painted the room. I picked out a mossy green color since this room was going to be "Jason's room", which means hunting theme (kinda...no camo bed spread or anything). We also gave the trim a fresh coat of paint. (the room still did not look good until over a month ago...Jason is horrible at painting and left drips everywhere!)

So, when the guys came to paint the kitchen and living room we had them touch up this room, put moulding where the book shelf was and make the patches on the ceiling look better.

Since I had this room decorated when they did all the touching up I had to put things back in place. But like our living room our furniture is from here and there. We got the armoire, dresser, trunk, and the tall twisted leg table from Jason's parents. Then the wicker head board was a thrift store find that we cleaned up and stained. The white telephone table was a find at an antique store in Columbus. Then I picked up decorations from here and there...Some of the ducks in the room are ducks that Jason painted when he was little with his Nanny, The antler lamp and all 3 pictures are from his room at his parents house, and then some of his hunting things are displayed and they are made by Mr. Henry who is a sweet man that use to be Jason's neighbor. A few items are also some things I gave Jason over the years, such as the Ducks unlimited plate. Then of course I threw in my touches...the peacock feather curtains, candles, peacock wreath leftover from our wedding and the Peter's Pottery animals.

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Standing in the door way looking to the left.
No book shelves!

Standing in the door way looking to the right.
No tree house!

The Columbus House.....Part 2....Living Room

2010-09-01T22:39:00.005-05:00

Continuing with the tour of the house in Columbus.....Next is the living room.

We didn't do much in the living room. We had it painted the same tan that the kitchen got painted. It use to be peach and yellow. We did add the mantle to the fireplace. Other than that it was in good shape. It has nice engineered hard wood floors. The living room is a little awkward/ hard to decorate because there is really only one solid wall to help ground the room, but I kinda figured out the best way to put everything.

The sky lights and the fireplace are the best parts of this area. The sky lights allow a lot of natural light into the room. You don't even need to turn the lights on during the day. The fireplace makes the area nice and cozy to me esp in the winter when the fire is crackling and your snuggling with your sweetie (Ha I wish. Jason was usually found in the other room playing xbox. So I snuggled with the dogs!).

Most of our furniture in the living area was FREE or really cheap!!! The hutch, tv armoire, chair, and trunk are all of our FREE pieces. We got the hutch, tv armoire, and trunk from Jason's parents. The chair Jason won at a golf tournament he had in college. Then I got our couch at the thrift store for $50! I found the telephone end table and the dresser (by the front door) on craigs list. And everything else that is furniture I picked up from little stores in Columbus and Starkville. And most of my decor was wedding presents!

I love how the living room looks and I hate I don't get to enjoy it. Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Below are before pictures

If you read the post before this one about our kitchen,
I mentioned it had two wallpapers that we took off. In the picture above
you have a peek of what it use to look like.

The Columbus House....Kitchen

2010-08-24T16:29:00.005-05:00

I wanted to share some details about what we did to the kitchen at the house in Columbus. I don't have many before pictures of what the kitchen looked like, But I do have plenty of afters!

The kitchen had two different kinds of wallpaper (a border and a bottom wall paper) and it had chair rail molding here and there. All of that got taken down. The the painters primed and painted the walls. We picked a nice neutral tan since we are trying to sell the house. Then we had the cabinets, which were an awful cheap wood, painted white. Unfortunately, Jason and I had to come back and paint the cabinets antique white because they did not look as good as I wanted them to white and the wood of the cabinets showed in some spots.

After all the painting we got new counter tops. They took forever for us to get put in place. Jason likes to think he can do anything. I tried to tell him it was not going to be as easy as he thought and boy was I right. Our cabinets ended up not being level, one counter was too long, and the angles were not matching up. We finally got someone to help us get it done.

The kitchen now looks completely different. I'm sad I can't enjoy it. I did stand in it for a while when we were there last in awe of it.

Enjoy the pictures!

This picture above shows what the counter tops use to look like.

Busy Bees

2010-08-19T16:46:00.002-05:00

Jason and I have been Super Busy since May. Which is the reason I have not blogged.

In May Jason was working 7 days a week on second shift, which was tiring for the both us. I tried to be nice and stay up until he got home, but it wore me out. I was babysitting two very sweet kids in May and June and staying up with him and getting up at 6 am was HARD! Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE to sleep late!

At the end of June we took over/bought out the busniess that we had a booth for our furniture in that is located in Greenwood. Which means we are official business owners and have our own store called The Cotton Exchange!!!

We have been busy trying to build it up, organize, clean, get furniture painted, and everything else that new business owners have to do. It can be very overwhelming and can make you second guess yourself and wonder why did i do this? But we are LOVING it!! We have added new vendors and have gained new customers that makes us so excited about the store! We also have been looking for a better location for the store, which we finally accomplished two or three weeks ago. Now we are waiting to move in. I am trying to decide on paint colors, layout, and everything with some help from Jason (I will give him credit he has looked at wallpaper with me!)

Also besides the store we have been working on our house to get it SOLD! We are finished FINALLY!!! WHOOO HOOO!!!

We had the kitchen and living room painted and the kitchen cabinets. Had new counter tops put in. Planted plants, bushes, and shrubs in the front flower beds. We took up stick down tile that someone put down in our guest bedroom (please refrain from using stick down tile!!!). Then we primed and painted the concrete floor (sounds like it might not look good, but it does!) And cleaned, cut grass, and many other things to finally get it ready. Now, I wish we could live in the house to enjoy what we did. I LOVE the way the house looks now. Hopefully it will sell fast! We have already had several couples look at it and we are waiting on decisions from them. Please pray that we will sell our house so we can settle in our "new" town.

Next (Hopefully soon) we will be looking for us a house here in Greenwood. I hope it will not be hard to find a home for us. With the store we do not want a total fixer upper, but something that just needs cosmetic changes. We do have a few house on our list to go look at when we have time to go.

As you can see I have a million things on my list to do and many things constantly on my brain. Jason says I think WAY too much! And sometimes I agree with him (but don't tell him I said so!). So please forgive me I don't blog regularly. But I will try to keep you up to date with what we are doing.

Oh and I will have pictures of the house and store soon!

Friday Favorites/ Show us your Life

2010-05-13T23:00:00.006-05:00

Friday's Show Us Your Life at Kelly's Korner is favorite books/children's books. So I thought I would tie in Fridays favorites with show us your life.

I have not always been a big reader. I remember reading Dr. Seuss and the Golden Books when I was little. As I got older I have always been picky when it comes to reading. We read a lot at school so I didn't read much outside of school and I hated reading the summer reading books and during the year books.

I remember 2 books the most from elementary that I had to read during the school year. If I remember correctly I had to read them in 5th grade. The first book was Number The Stars. It is about the Holocaust and I did enjoyed reading it. The 2nd book was Bridge to Terabithia. I hated this book. I did not like reading it. My grandmother saw how frustrated I was with reading this book after a few chapters into it that she started reading it aloud to me to help me understand it and answer questions that were given as homework. I dislike that book so much that I have not even seen the movie. Although I might enjoy the book and movie now. Also in 5th grade my homeroom teacher would read to us after lunch every day to lest us rest a little bit. I remember her reading Where the Red Fern Grows and Old Yeller. Loved both of those!

I don't remember what year we had to read Anne Frank, but I enjoyed it. I know most of the people my age did not like it. But I went through this phase of really enjoying books about the Holocaust. I read every book in the elementary library I could about the Holocaust. And I still like books based on that time period.

In elementary we did go to the school library and checked out books. I remember checking out the BoxCar Children books, Babysitter club (of course I loved the movie too), and American Girl.

I don't remember reading many books after elementary. I read some on my own time, but not much. Plus we did not have the best english teachers. And we went through so many. I do remember that for 10th grade we got a new english teacher (she didn't last but a semester) and we had summer reading. She gave us a list of books and assignments we had to pick 2 books and an assignment for each to turn in when school started. (its called summer for a reason NO SCHOOL WORK!) I picked Mr. and Mrs. Bo Jo Jones by Ann Head and The Chosen by Chaim Potok. I dreaded reading these two books but to my surprise I enjoyed them. I liked Mr. and Mrs. Bo Jo Jones the best out of the two.

Since I have graduating high school in 2005, I read more books. I enjoy reading. Reading lets me go into another world for a few hours and be someone else. My husband, Jason, likes when I read too. His reasoning is that he can play Xbox without me complaining. I have read a lot of books since we have gotten married because he LOVES playing Xbox, but I am not complaining. I get to enjoy a good book and learn too.

Right now a few of my favorite authors are Nicholas Sparks, Charlaine Harris, and Janet Evanovich. I am picky when it comes to finding a book to read. So when I find an author I like I stick with them until the books get repetitive.
Books That I have read lately:
The Last Song (Loved this book and the movie)

Dear John (Liked the book but wished it would have ended different)

Plum Lucky from The Stephanie Plum Series by Janet Evanovich (this series keeps me laughing)

I have read the whole Sookie Stackhouse books and I am currently reading the latest one
(the HBO series Trueblood is based on this series by Charlaine Harris and this series is the only vampire book I have been able to get into. Plus she is originally from Tunica, MS and now lives in southern Arkansas.)

I am also reading The Carrie Diaries by Candace Bushnell (I hope to get it finished so I can see the new Sex and the City movie)

And I am still trying to finish the Gossip Girl series (I love the show, but the books are so different)

Some of my favorites:
The Last Song (Jason and I were in Savannah/Tybee Island, GA last summer on our honeymoon when they were filming the movie)

The Notebook (Love this book and the movie..Who couldn't love the movie?)

Any Sookie Stackhouse book (Jason and I enjoy watching TrueBlood together)

Dear John

Mr. and Mrs. Bo Jo Jones (my favorite book from high school)

Sisters by Danielle Steele

Night's Edge (a collection of 3 stories, one by Charlaine Harris)

(My brain is not wanting to remember what all I have read, but I do have more favorites)

Do you have any suggestions for my book list? I hope all of y'all have a good Friday and a wonderful weekend. Try to relax and get a good book to read curled up on the couch!

Pacifier Dependent

2010-05-12T11:42:00.005-05:00

Back in March I was really busy with us kinda moving and both Jason and I working. And that caused me to not blog much. Since then I have quit my job waiting tables (too much drama) and now I am waiting to start babysitting next week. I am also OCD and I can not just blog without putting pictures so there is at least something interesting on my blog and I like to blog about my pictures in the order of when I took them. (crazy I know!)

All of that to tell you that I keep my sweet niece, Bella, at least once a week. She usually comes and spend the night with me and I keep her until the next afternoon.

She is spoiled rotten and a big momma's girl. She loves to be held and she loves her pacifier. And those two things make it difficult to get things done when I keep her. Don't get me wrong I would love to sit and hold her all day, but I got to do laundry and things too (esp. laundry and that's a subject that could make its own blog post).

On this particular day it was my day off and I had to get some laundry and things done before I took her home and went to work that night.

So I put her in the swing we have out here at the cabin that my two nephews used and loved. Bella does not love it as much as they did (she doesn't like any swing). She would sit in it and be happy until her pacifier fell out. Well after about 10 times of going back and forth to put her pacifier back in her mouth I finally decided I had to do something to keep it in her mouth without me holding it.

I tried to find string, couldn't. The only thing I could find was twist ties from old loaves of bread. So I twisted them onto her pacifier and then I put the pacifier in her mouth and prayed it would work.

IT DID!! Thank goodness! If I remember correctly she slept several hours in the swing with her pacifier in her mouth and did not cry until it was time for her to eat again.

I need to put a patent on this! I think moms would love it!!

I ended up being able to get some laundry and other things done!

I also got some pictures of her and her pacifier to share.

I want my paci, Aunt Mae!

The rigged pacifier

All better now!

Bella taking a nap.
Notice she has no blanket in this picture
She kicked it off!

Happy after her nap!

Realizing she does not have her pacifier.

Thank you Mae!
I missed my paci!

Coke Crates

2010-05-10T15:05:00.008-05:00

I got a magazine a few weeks ago that had ideas on how to use old things. One item was coke crates. Someone made theirs a small end table and someone else put flowers in theirs.

I really like coke crates and have someone that I can get some from so I decided to make "flower" boxes out of them.

I have made three so far. On two I put wheels on so you could roll them around. I put a mixture of flowers and plants in them. And on the other one I put legs on. I planted Calla Lilies in it. You could not see the wording on it so I stenciled diet coke on it since my cousin was giving it to my aunt for mother's day and she loves diet coke.

They all turned out so cute! My favorite one is the one with legs. The two with wheels are in our booth at B.E. Shaw. I have more crates to work with so look for them in another post.

P.S. Go check out Skip to my Lou she is having Made by you Monday and I'm linking this post over there.

P.S.S. Even though its after Friday I am linking to Trash to Treasure Decorating too.

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-09T10:43:00.004-05:00

To all moms: Happy Mother's Day!!

I have a wonderful mom who has always worked hard to give Brande and me all that we wanted and more. My mom has always had 2-3 jobs to give us what we need and what we want. My mom unfortunately could not be at everything when we were growing up, but she made it to all the important things that mattered the most to us. She didn't have to be at every basketball game for us to know that she loved us.

My aunt (Cissy) has played a HUGE role in raising me. I lived with her from 8th grade until I went to college. When I speak of home it is her house. When I was little you could more than likely find me with her. I was Cissy's girl. Cissy has been like a mom to me. And I have appreciated everything she has done for me.

I have one of the best Mother-in-laws! I liked her since I met her and have similar names probably helped (Sallie and Mallie). Throughout Jason and I dating she has always been so nice, plus she is the one that gave Jason money to take me out on a date (lol). This past year Jason and I would have not made it with out her when he lost his job. And we appreciate everything she has done for us.

I also have a sweet sister that is celebrating her 1st mother's day today. She has a precious daughter named Bella, that I adore. Me and my sister have not always gotten along but over the years we fight less and less. Thank you Brande for having Bella so I can be an Aunt (lol).

Then last but not least I do have a sister-in-law, Elizabeth, that is a wonderful mom! She has two precious boys, Vaiden & Whitten, and one baby on the way. She has always been nice to me, which is great because who wants a mean sister-in-law? Not me! Even though she is older than me we can still find things to talk about like cooking and scrapbooking.

I have a lot of great mother's that I know, but I can't list them all....But Happy Mother's Day!

Momma, Cissy, KK, and me
Summer 2008

KK, Brande, Cissy, and Me
@ Marley and Dustin's wedding

Ellis Christmas 2009
Sallie, my MIL, is in the green sweater standing
Elizabeth, my SIL, is in the front in the green sweater

Tuesday Finds

2010-05-08T16:50:00.004-05:00

On Tuesday I went to Columbus to check on the progress of the kitchen and living room getting painted. While I was there I went to one of the older men that I get a lot of our "supplies" from.

I just wanted to share pictures of my finds. I didn't realize how much I got until I unloaded all of it and set it up.

I got a lot of good stuff. I got more things than usual because I won't be able to go in a while since we don't live close anymore.

Some of the things I got:
a water spigot on an old piece of wood
4 sets of shutters
1 window
wood frame
wood door
coke crates

sorry the pictures are not the best.
click on them to enlarge.

Can you see Daisy?
She is trying to help with the set up!

Daisy inspecting the window

Keep checking back to see what I do with my finds.

Hope you are having a good weekend!

Baby Names....

2010-05-07T18:45:00.005-05:00

Today at Kelly's Korner its Show Us Your Life Friday. And today's Topic is Baby Names. How did you pick your child's name or future baby names.

I think a lot of girls have always thought of names for their babies. I know I did. I have always loved babies and children, so I might have thought about it a little more than others.

Jason and I have discussed names on several occasions and he is PICKY!! Keep in mind for him to like a name he says it either in his mind or out loud like it would be said at a football game over a pa system. I on the other hand make sure the names would all flow together on a Christmas card. LOL

The names I have liked have changed a lot. If you would have asked me in High School, I would probably have said I would name my future baby girl Victoria Elizabeth. (Poor girl would have a hard time learning how to spell it!) I never had a set in stone boy name. I have dreamed about having a little girl and mainly focused on girl names. But I have always liked Carson, Matthew, Mason, and Hunter. And Jason does not like any of them except for Mason and we won't even use it unless we have 4 boys.

We now have two girl names and two boys name picked out for sure. I pray that I have a girl. Jason's family would love a girl. The only girls are his mom, sister in law and me, but my family wants a boy.

So to the names....I will start with the boy names and where they came from

First we have Charles Acy, but call him Charlie. (Jason really wants to call him Ace, but I think Charlie is cute!)Charles is from Jason's dad. His first name is Charles, but most people who know him call him Bubba. Mr. Charles is a great man and father. Acy is my Papaw's middle name and his mother's maiden name. I love papaw and I feel that naming a child after him is a great way to honor him for all the things he has done for me.

The Second boy name is Henry Sawyer or Henry Weber. We have not totally agreed on the middle name, but we do like both. I really want Sawyer to be the middle name just because it sounds southern. Jason growing up had a great neighbor, that he looks up to Mr. Henry. Jason spent many afternoons in his workshop watching and learning from him. Mr. Henry is still alive, and we visit with him when we have a chance. Sawyer is just a southern boys name that I like. I really didn't start thinking about the name Sawyer until we started watching Lost. And I like how it is said in a Southern drawl. Weber is Jason's maternal grandmother's maiden name. I like Weber, but I am not sure I would want to call my son Weber. If we do end up naming the child Henry Weber we will probably call him Henry.

Onto the girl names....I LOVE double names for girls and both of the names we picked out are double names.

The first name we have picked out for a girl is Sarah-Kait (pronounced Kate). Sarah is Jason's paternal grandmother's name. Jason never really met his grandmother, but his dad was a big momma's baby, just like Jason is. And I have always thought that Sarah was a good strong name for a girl and you hear it more in the South. Kait is from my little cousin Kaitlin (aka KK). She is more like a sister to me than a cousin. When I was little I loved to help my aunt with KK. I moved in with them when I was in 8th grade and I have always thought of KK as my sister and my aunt (Cissy) as a 2nd mom. We didn't want it to be Sarah Kaitlin, doesn't go good together, so we decided Kait for short.

The second girl name we have is Anna-Cole. Anna is from my sweet Momma. My mom's middle name is Anne, although we like Anne, we like Anna even better. My mom is an amazing mother and I want to show her how much she means to me by having a child named after her (well if we have 2 girls, but the thought counts just as much). My mom's first name is Faith, but no one calls her just Faith they all call her Faith Anne. Cole is from both Jason and me. His middle name is Cole and mine is Nichole (pronounced like Nicole). I always have wanted to name my daughter after me and name my son after his dad, so this is as close to that as I will get. Jason doesn't want a Jason Cole Jr.

If we do have more than 2 boys the next name for a contender is Mason. If we have more than 2 girls I would really like to name her after me.

My name (Mallie) is a family name and I would like to keep it going. I was named after my maternal great great grandmother. I use to hate my name when I was little because no one said it right (and still doesn't, They usually call me Mallory....its pronounced Mal-leigh) or spelled it wrong (most people spell it Malley or Mally). But now I love my name. I use to joke that I would have hated to have her middle name (Augustus), but now it would have been cool because I was born in August. I didn't ever get to meet my great great grandmother Mallie because she died a few months before I was born.

If you can't tell I LOVE LOVE family names. It would be nice to be able to use all my names...but we will see what the future holds.

I had a little fun on morphthing .com with a picture of me and Jason.....this is what our future child could look like.

Hopefully it will be a little cuter than this picture.
(I will love my child no matter what it looks like though!)

They morphed the following two pictures to get our child's picture.

Friday Favorites.

2010-05-07T08:50:00.000-05:00

Everyone has a few favorite things. Favorite shirt, shoes, magazine, candle, etc....

My favorite things change pretty regularly esp when it comes to food and clothes.

I just wanted to share a few things that have been my favorites lately.

My favorite Candle right now...
unfortunately I left it in Columbus.

+
+

= PBJ Sandwich
We have been eating a lot of PBJ sandwiches lately

Old coke crates have lots of uses.

Coke is my absolute favorite drink.
I have to have one everyday, unfortunately.

Love Old Tin Ceiling Tile
Has so Many uses.

This is my favorite purse right now.
Jason got me a red one for Christmas.
I just got the pink one (pictured above)
not too long ago.
Its by Jessica Simpson and its called the Element Tote.
Has lots of room!

My favorite necklace right now.
Unfortunately, I left it in a dressing room last week.
I will have to order one soon!
It is by Jewels by Park Lane. Its called Hooty.
I have a great rep if you would like to order!

My favorite show is Gossip Girl.
Comes on Monday night.

My favorite lip gloss.
Its a good sheer pink.
Called Fancy Nancy.
If you would like to order,
I sell it.
www.marykay.com/mallieellis

I'm into Damask prints right now.
This one is pretty, esp since it is pink!

My favorite magazine right now.
I get a lot of inspiration and ideas from
this magazine and others.

I wish I could find some of these old milk crates!
They could serve many purposes.

I bought an old water spigot from one
of my wholesalers/pickers. I love it!
I wish I could find some more of them.
I have ideas for them if I can find some.

This is my new black sandal for the summer!
I love them! They can be dressed up or down.
I love the jewels. I got them at Belk.
They are made by Kenneth Cole Reaction

My favorite Nail Polish.
My favorite color right now is
Strawberry Margarita, perfect
for the summer.

My favorite shirt right now.
Its kinda slouchy, but not.
Its comfortable and cute with
jeans, capris, and shorts.
Can be dressed up or down.
I have it in 3 colors: Black, white,
and the pink color pictured above
(shot of love). From Old Navy.

This has been our favorite juice since we moved home
I have a glass every night before bed.
Its the only time I really want juice. lol

I LOVE ice cream.
Its my WEAKNESS.
Thank goodness
Blue Bell came out with a Light version.
Yes, I am a boring person.
I like vanilla the best.
BUT i usually top it with fresh fruit.

Try some of my favorites if you get a chance too!!

Hope y'all have a good Friday!

Our Last Meal....In Columbus

2010-05-06T22:18:00.000-05:00

Before We moved the last meal I cooked in Columbus was one of my favorites.

BREAKFAST!!

We had pancakes, bacon, ham, and strawberries. Jason would have liked to had eggs too, but I don't like them that much and I can't cook them very good.

Jason is not a big fan of pancakes, but I LOVE them. I probably LOVE them so much because my sweet Cissy (my aunt) use to cook them a lot for me and my cousin. They are comfort food to me and they remind me of being younger.

Its just something about how the pancakes, butter, syrup, and bacon all taste together. They just all go together great.

The only thing I don't like about cooking pancakes esp. just for two people is how much batter and pancakes go to waste.

I can't wait to cook again! I actually have missed cooking for Jason and I think he would tell you he has missed me cooking for him. (Well he better say he has!)

Happy Cooking!

Pancakes and Bacon Cooking

Pancakes done and other cooking,
Bacon done, ham cooking

Everything

Everything done and ready to eat!

The stack of pancakes!
Too many for 2 people!

Two Before and Afters

2010-05-06T01:29:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to share a few Before and Afters with you on a few pieces I have done this past month.

Before

After

Before

After

Morning View

2010-05-02T14:59:00.001-05:00

Until our house in Columbus sells we are staying at Jason's parents cabin that is in the middle of nowhere. Its peaceful and calming, but I am a city girl.

One of the best things about staying out here is the view in the mornings. Its best when the sun is coming up, but unfortunately I am not up at that time of the day.

The back of the cabin faces a pond and the sun rises up behind the tress over the pond. Its beautiful.

I took some pictures one morning. No, I was not up early enough to see the sun come up. But its still pretty and peaceful.

New Job, Old Town

2010-05-02T13:35:00.000-05:00

Jason got a new job working for Milwaukee Tools in Greenwood. We are so excited because we get to live a lot closer to family and friends. We have been back for little over a month and we are loving it! Its nice not having to plan a weekend to go see our families. Instead we just drive down the road (maybe a county over).

I always said I would not live in Greenwood or close to it. But now, that I have gotten a little older and married I see all the positive sides of living here, #1 being closer to family.

Of course there is nothing to do in Greenwood or the surrounding towns, unless you think of going to Wal-mart as something to do. But I don't. To do something (movies, shopping, ...) you have to drive at least 30 minutes.

BUT like I said before we do love being closer to our families, which makes everything else less important.

Since Jason is working at Milwaukee I hope to get some good new tools!! I can think of a few I need...sander, drill, nail gun.....

Bye Bye Ugly, Hello Vintage!

2010-03-14T22:40:00.001-05:00

I have been trying for months to sell our couch and love seat. Our couch and love seat "came" with the house when Jason bought it. I did not like those couches. Don't get me wrong they were comfortable and we did not have to buy any. But I did not like the way they looked and they were not my style. Last weekend we sold them!

comfortable but ugly

Before we sold them I went to the thrift store to look at furniture to see if they had anything we could redo and sale. I saw a couch that caught my eye and I had been eying a chair in there for a while, but Jason kept saying No! I even came up with several different reasons for needing the chair.

my blue chair!

Anyways back to the couch. After I inspected the couch and saw that it was in really really good condition I called Jason and Asked him to meet me at the thrift store to look at it. He did not like it, which broke my heart. He told me we will get something when we sell what we have. I still asked the girl in there how much they wanted for it and she said $75. Jason once again said NO!

our new couch!
*sorry I didn't fix the cushion for the picture

Well of course like a woman, when you really like something sometimes you tend to dream about it and how you would place it, and sure enough I did. I kept thinking it would bring out the cream in the rug and it will compliment the color of the living room we have now and when we paint it. I ended up going back 2 days later to see if they had anything new for us to redo and the couch was still there and not sold! I asked the girl again how much it was she told me that I could have it for $50 because I come in all the time and buy things(furniture). I was so excited because it was $25 less than what she originally told me and where can you find a couch in really good condition for $50? SO I paid for the couch and stuck Sold on it! Jason was not to happy when I told him because he did not like it in the thrift store. I did end up getting the blue chair I wanted, but it was by accident.

the new set up in the living room

The photographers who did our engagement and wedding pictures (Twice the Focus in Mathiston, MS) had told me to keep my eyes open for them some cool furniture. I told Melissa about the chair and she said sure go ahead and get it. SO I went and got it and took a picture of it so she could see it. Well she thought it would look different than it did so she didn't really want it, which I was totally fine with because it let me have the chair!! I spent $20 on the chair and they originally wanted $45! I was really excited when she said it wasn't what she thought it was, but once again Jason not so much! He kinda thought I had planned it. LOL So in all I spent $70 ($50 for the couch and $20 for the chair). I was very excited to finally get the couch and chair into the house. We pulled another chair from our bedroom that matched the couch so we would have more seating. This past week I have sat in the living room every day and admired my new couch and chair. I love the blue chair! It rocks and swivels. Its soft and comfy! The couch is soft and comfy too, but I love sitting in that chair!Now Jason and I have our own chairs. Mine is the blue soft and comfy chair and Jason has the brown modern chair.

Jason likes the couch and chair now since we have it in the house! And eventually they will get recovered if we can find someone to do it. The chair will be recovered first and I have two fabrics already in mind that I am in love with! Can't wait to see them both recovered!!

Daisy and Belle taking a nap on the new couch. They love the couch. And even though Ellie Mae is not pictured above she loves the couch too (she is camera shy).

Leen The Graphics Queen

2010-03-11T19:15:00.000-06:00

I recently ordered a word sign from Leen the Graphics Queen. I got "Welcome." I wasn't sure where to put it. I didn't really want to put it at this house because of the possibility of moving. But since we are moving now, I decided I wanted a way to use it but take it with me. So I put it on a canvas. I measured, taped, and painted. And now I have a cute Welcome sign! Thanks Leen for the Welcome!

You can visit Leen at www.leenthegraphicsqueen.com and www.leenthegraphicsqueen.blogspot.com

School Bullentin Board Project

2010-03-11T14:47:00.000-06:00

Just wanted to share pictures of a project I had to do for school. We had to do a bulletin board at a daycare center. One of my classmates and I did the bulletin board at West Point Methodist Church daycare center in West Point.

The board was going to be viewed by all ages so we decided to make it more dimensional and have textures. And since March is national read across America month and Dr. Seuss' Birthday we went with a book theme. We chose I Spy and put things you would see during the month of March.

Forgotten Valentine

2010-03-11T14:41:00.000-06:00

I was looking back at my recent post and noticed I left out one photo that was suppose to be on the Valentine's post. So I just wanted to share it since my sweet Hubby made it for me at Dandy Doodlez.

Catchy Cute Name

2010-03-11T00:09:00.000-06:00

I read a lot of blogs and they all have catchy and cute names. But ours/mine is boring. I have been trying to come up with a name, but can't come up with anything. Our blog is mainly about Jason and me, but the name does not have to pertain to Jason or us. He only knows we have a blog because I have been complaining about not being able to blog lately. If he knew before then that we had one I would be surprised! So I wanted to ask for some ideas on what to rename my blog. Please Help!!

Oh and you can follow our blog at malliejason.blogspot.com

Sausage, Peppers, and Onions

2010-03-10T23:26:00.001-06:00

I love one pot meals! Why? Because it takes less dishes and less you have to clean or should I say put in the dish washer. Sausage, peppers, and onions is a good one pot meal unless you want to serve it over rice, which is how we usually like to eat it. I just wanted to share a simple recipe with you.

Sausage, Peppers, and Onions:
1/2 of a large purple onion
1 medium sized white or yellow onion
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
1 yellow bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 package of smoke sausage (I buy butterball turkey sausage)
butter (I am not sure how much, I just eyeball)
about 1/2 can of beer (I use Pabst Blue Ribbon)
about 1 cup of chicken broth
garlic powder
onion powder
parsley(optional)
salt
pepper
Carolina seasoning(optional)

Slice onions and bell peppers. Let a large skillet get hot and add butter (I use probably 2 heaping tablespoons. You could use olive instead, but butter taste better with the beer). Let butter melt. Once melted add the peppers and onions. Onions need to get soft and almost translucent. While the peppers and onions are cooking slice the sausage up. When the peppers and onions are soft add the beer, chicken broth,sausage, and seasonings(to your liking). Stir it all together. Cover and let simmer until sausage is cooked (takes 10 minutes or less).

Like I said before we like to eat it over rice. It is also good in flour tortillas (how we eat it left over). Hope you enjoy!

Fireplace Before and After

2010-03-04T21:20:00.000-06:00

Jason and I have given the fireplace in this house a little makeover. When Jason first got the house it had no mantle. To me it looked so weird without a mantle. We shopped around for a mantle, but never found one in our price range. We ended up giving up on it. One day we went to the thrift store here and stumble upon and old dresser top. Jason and I both thought this would make a cute mantle. So we (he) did most of the work and now we have a mantle! Since we will be moving now, I hope whoever buys our house likes the mantle if not they can take it off.

Before

The dresser top

The middle of the redo

almost finished!

Its complete!

Valentine's

2010-03-04T20:35:00.000-06:00

I ended up decorating a little for Valentine's Day.

* I painted that cute plate at Dandy Doodlez!

*I made the garland myself with felt and ribbon.

*I painted the two little vases at Dandy Doodlez also!

For Valentine's Day I made cards for our close family and friends. I wanted the cards to be extra loved this year!

* This is not even half of them! I sent out 22 cards!

On Valentine's weekend we keep Bella and went to eat dinner at Yianni's.

Since we were not home for Valentine's the following week I made Jason a big heart chocolate chip cookie. It was Yummy! I think I ate more than he did!

Mary Kay Inventory Sale!!!

2010-02-02T14:58:00.000-06:00

I am putting all the inventory that I have in stock on sale!! This does not mean I am not going to stop selling Mary Kay. I just want to get these products off the shelf so I can get new products. Prices that are listed are ONLY for in stock products. This means only the products that I currently have at my house. After these products are gone you will have to pay regular price. This is on first come first serve basis. If you see something that you want call (662-889-0410) or email me (mallieellis@marykay.com). Do not place order online!
Price sheets are below.

50% off Product List:

Product	Quantity	Regular Price	Sale Price
Time Wise Targeted-Action Revitalizer	1	~~$35.00~~	$17.50
Time Wise Even Complexion Essence	1	~~$35.00~~	$17.50
Time Wise Night Solution	1	~~$30.00~~	$15.00
Satin Lips Lip Balm	2	~~$9.50~~	$4.75
Satin Lips Set (Lip Mask & Lip Balm)	1	~~$18.00~~	$9.00
MK Men Moisturizer with SPF 25	1	~~$22.00~~	$11.00
MK Men Cooling After Shave Gel	1	~~$14.00~~	$7.00
MK Men Face Bar	1	~~$14.00~~	$7.00
Eyesicles Eye Color in Vanilla	1	~~$10.00~~	$5.00
Tinted Lip Balm with SPF 15 in Blush	1	~~$13.00~~	$6.50
NouriShine Lip Gloss in Hawaiian Sunset	1	~~$13.00~~	$6.50

30% off Product List:

Product	Quantity	Regular Price	Sale Price
Sheer Mineral Pressed Powder in Ivory 1	1	~~$16.00~~	$11.20
Full Coverage Foundation in Beige 300	1	~~$14.00~~	$9.80
Full Coverage Foundation in Beige 404	1	~~$14.00~~	$9.80
Mineral Eye Color in Moonstone	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Chocolate Kiss	2	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Granite	2	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Vintage Gold	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Honey Spice	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Raisin	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Iris	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Precious Pink	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Mineral Eye Color in Silky Caramel	1	~~$6.50~~	$4.50
Eye Liner in Bronze	2	~~$10.00~~	$7.00
Eye Liner in Black	1	~~$10.00~~	$7.00
Ultimate Mascara	3	~~$15.00~~	$10.50
Small Compact Unfilled	1	~~$18.00~~	$12.50
Mineral Cheek Color in Sparkling Cider	1	~~$10.00~~	$7.00
Crème Lipstick in Sweet Nectar	1	~~$13.00~~	$9.00
NouriShine Lip Gloss in Gold Rush	2	~~$13.00~~	$9.00
Brow Gel	1	~~$10.00~~	$7.00

Devotion Time

2010-02-02T11:26:00.000-06:00

I have always wanted to be able to find time for devotion time. I have bought several devotional books over the years thinking I will spend 30 minutes everyday in devotion. I usually can stick to it for a couple of weeks but slowly fall out of it for many reasons.

I decided starting in February I would start doing a devotion book that last a year. I went to Books a Million here in Columbus and picked out a devotion book. And I have to say after doing one devotion already, I think I found the perfect one. The one I picked is called "Be still....and let your Nail Polish Dry." It was written by busy women for busy women. It is a year long devotion book and you only have to do 2 devotions a week. Which is perfect for me because sometimes I forget and the next day I have to catch up.

Do you have devotion time? If so when do you do it (morning or night)? What devotion book do you like?

New Years Resolutions?

2010-01-14T11:57:00.000-06:00

I know this is 14 days late...But it is not too late to start since it is still January.

New years resolutions usually are made then broken. This year I am going to try to stick to mine. I usually make the same one every year: weight loss.

This year I have decided to make the same resolution but take a different approach. I usually didn't set goals when trying to lose weight. But this year I am going to set goals for each week or month so I can accomplish a more healthier lifestyle. If you set just one goal you more than likely won't reach it. For example my goal in the past for resolutions has been lose 20lbs. It is more rewarding to set goals you can reach weekly. Such as: Drink more water this week. or exercise at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes. To me those goals are easier to reach than just one broad goal.

To help me get the pounds off I am going to try Alli. I know several people who have used and it has helped them get the pounds off. Columbus also has a program called Shrink down Columbus. It is kind of like Weight Watchers, but cost nothing. The program is hosted by YMCA and the Baptist Hospital here. You go every Friday and weigh in. The program started last Friday and Jason and I both went. We also have decided to join the YMCA here. There are 3 facilities here in Columbus and they all have different equipment.

I also think it is important to have support when trying to lose weight whether it is your spouse or friend. They can help you reach your goals by encouragement, keeping you reliable, and exercising/dieting with you.

Hopefully Jason and I will shed some pounds and be healthier and in better shape. We have not said we want to lose X amount of weight. We just want to be healthier.

If you are trying to get healthy and lose weight Good Luck! If you have any tips please let us know.

Valentine's Day Decorations?

2010-01-13T16:15:00.000-06:00

Since Christmas is over Valentine's Day is approaching now. I do not know about your local stores, but here in Columbus stores such as Wal-Mart started putting Valentine's Day candy and things out before Christmas. It seems like they started putting things out earlier and earlier every year.

This blog is simply to ask Valentine's day decorations? Do you decorate for Valentine's day? If so what kind of decorations do you put out?

I am thinking about doing a little. My front door for Christmas had red and white plaid mesh. I am thinking about getting some Valentine's ribbon and hearts and using the mesh again around the front door. I also had the idea to make my own garland for my fireplace. Just something simple like felt hearts strung onto some ribbon.

And then I have came up with some new word signs for The Cotton Exchange. One of them is a Heart cut out of wood and painted then have a word on it made out of galvanized wire. You can hang it on your front door. I am thinking of making us one with Ellis on it or Love. I have been racking my brain at what I could put in the apothecary jars. So far I have thought about candy hearts (the ones that are different colors and have sayings on them.)

I have also thought about going to one of my favorite places (Dandy Doodlez) to paint a plate or something that is Valentine(ish).

One thing I have decided to decorate is our blog page. I will be adding a Valentine's Day themed template to the blog.

This is kinda what I am thinking about making for my fireplace.

I would do different size and colored hearts though.

And Maybe spell out Happy Valentine's Day.