Thursday Thoughts

 Thoughts:

•  Happy Birthday to my dad!
• Weather has been GORGEOUS :)
• No comment on the events of 6 November...

Another one of those two possibly three trip kinda days...love my life though just notsomuch that drive :)

Many plans are being formulated regarding W727 (that's my new call sign for the wedding)! Thank goodness for Micheal's coupons, that has been awesome this week, with the 50% off! Candles are nearly all purchased. Along with the rose petals. Plugging away, we are!

Have a great day people, it's the only one you've got might as well make the most of it!

Monday, Monday oh my it's Monday!

Whoa, what a weekend! It was jammed packed and I was truly happy for bed last evening and for my extra hour but it's Monday morning now and we are prepped to start all over again though the calendar is thankfully not so full this week!

I am getting a few house things accomplished and then getting out the door to catch up on those mundane errands that have been put by the wayside in the wake of a very busy last few weeks and weekends. I am also doing launder, tidying up on the home front (dust IS evil), de-cluttering still and getting my "winter clothes" out. That kinda makes me chuckle but it seems it might be time to pull out some long sleeve shirts and put the shorts away. I could be wrong cause the weather has been so awesome but I do think shorts with the exception of one pair are going away until spring.

Sooooo hope you have a productive day, it's really a bit dreary here so finding my motivation is causing me to dig deep, very deep but I'm going there, I'm getting it done. My list is getting smaller but yet larger, I love it. It pleases me to see what I am getting done and what I am planning to do. It's exciting! Never a dull moment at 1104 that's for sure!

Happy Monday all!

Thursday Thoughts

Greetings, excitement in the neighborhood last evening, hope it's quieter today. In addition we are a full neighborhood now :) Can't wait to meet the last three arrivals. Lots more action on the streets, playgrounds and at the mail box. Funny!

Planning an ice cream social as soon as we get back from G-Town.Would do it this weekend, but MiB is out and then next weekend we leave for G-Town so will have to wait til we return. Will be fun! And as hot as it's been it will be refreshing!

So today is a catch up day, have lots to do, had planned to be home most of yesterday and after a failed attempt at getting new spectacles and shopping with LilBlue I didn't get home til nearly 5:00 p.m. and the WW ladies arrived shortly after. It was a good day but I didn't get some things accomplished that I wanted to. I will try again to day!

Oh, did you catch the "shopping with LilBlue" part. Yes, that's right, we shopped together via the phone. We were at the same store and walked through it and talked about things for the wedding, it was crazy fun! I can see this happening many more times in the next year :)

Gotta run, many prayers being lifted today for many reasons...

Thoughts:

• Ready for a farmer's market run...
• Just a reminder...it's still HOT here!
• Praying the prayer that NEVER fails
• Thankful to answered prayers as well!
• MAYBE, just maybe I will go to the pool today :)

It's been a week, missed you!

It's been a whole week since I've posted. I feel like it's been much longer. Life marched on, we came, we went, we got through another week. I am meeting this week with a not so full schedule and MiB traveling. It's been awhile since he's been away. In fact its been a long while come to think of it. Oh well, he won't be gone long and I will be laying low and staying close to the home front. I have many little chores I would love to get done but seem to never find the chunks of time to do them. This week while he is away I plan to find some of those chunks of time. I may spend a day in my PJs as well, been too long since I've done that and I'm ready for a PJ day along with a good book!

Hot is what it's been here, like really, really hot. We were in Dallas over the weekend and it was sweltering. I was glad for good AC. I was also thrilled to get to shop at ALDI. Got stocked up on some of our favs along with a few panty staples. Always enjoy going and really loved the $1.49 filet Mignon that we snagged and had for dinner last night. Ohmygoodness they were good, not to mention the sweet corn on the cob, baked taters which we used plain Greek yogurt on and garlic bread. We had caprese for a starter and this time I soaked the tomatoes in the balsamic, next time I will also soak the cheese, it was sooooo good! We were way to full afterwards! UGH but it was some really good eating. Best part is we have two more filets for next weekend when MiB returns!

This evening is the Uniform Depot which my neighbor spearheaded and I have pledged to be her helper during the event. It's such a great deal for our military families. All the schools here require uniforms. That's not a bad thing but it can be costly. The Uniform Depot is going to help A LOT of families and save them A LOT of money so it's win-win!!! 

I gotta run, lots of get done, MiB flies our EARLY tomorrow and I have a big to do list before he goes. Ima be really productive while he is away, really I am!

ALL ranks day

I know I have mentioned Airman's Attic before, I usually talk more about it F2F rather then the blog. If you have forgotten it is the place that our younger Airmen can come and choose things for FREE. Yes, that's right FREE. Like 5 food items from our food pantry, FREE. Yes, we do have a food pantry and sadly it is very needed. We also stock baby food and cleaning supplies. Our Attic is hard to describe but if you have ever had the opportunity to visit a thrift shop you can make a similar comparison to the Attic. Only we also have uniforms including blues, ABUs and PT gear. Did I mention it's all FREE. Yep!

So once a month we have ALL ranks days. It is the last full week of the month. We are swamped and it's crazy but it's a good crazy and super great for all those who come. We have LTs, Chiefs, Cols, and everything in between, and of course we can't forget to mention our retirees. We get ALL ranks during this week, hence the name. There are rules; some things no matter that it's ALL ranks are still reserved specifically for our younger Airmen. Some bases do not do the ALL ranks, it is definitely a perk and we see it as win-win. It's good that so many utilize this benefit. It is also a little sad, for some are not there just to help stretch the dollar, they are there out of a real need. And speaking of needs, it definitely meets needs, it is very humbling to be involved with the Attic, the blessing stories are unparalleled!

The Attic just so you know receives no funding from the USAF, it is an ALL volunteer organization. Donations and dedicated volunteers are what keep the doors open. Fortunately here one of the private orgs have taken on the oversight of the Attic or it would go by the wayside. The AFI no longer mandates that this program exist which until I came here I did not know. I thought Attics and Loan Lockers were part of the AFRC programming. It's been a learning experience to find out that they are not and again the private org oversight definitely brings a unique spin to the dynamics od keeping the doors open. But again, lots of folks are pulling together and making it happen and the result is one of THE BEST facilities I have ever seen. HUGE kudos go to our local AFSA chapter as we would not have the awesome food pantry nor some of the other necessary operating items if it were not for their helping support of the Attic

Back to ALL ranks day...I got a little sidetracked there, sorry. We were busy today, which is always the case on all ranks days, goodness, really we are pretty much busy every day we are open! But yesterday MiB stopped by as he tries to do as his schedule allows. Because as I tell him and he had some to find out it is amazing what you can find out about the morale and lives of your Airman when you meet them in such a setting as the Attic.

Anyway, he found some shoes...yes, MiB got shoes at the Attic today, now if Ms Shirl would have had her way he would have had more then one pair. But here's the kicker, we were getting ready to go to an event Saturday night and I said you really need to take the time so we can go find you some new black shoes. He said he knew and this wasn't the first time I had mentioned the need for new black shoes. So it was priceless that he stopped in, it was all ranks and he found new black shoes! I love the Attic :) He was impressed and surprised to makes such a great find as I don't think he has ever truly looked at our merchandise.

 

 MiB trying on black shoes; Ms Shirl trying to get him a back up pair!

 Seriously, we get good stuff. Our donations include MANY name brands like Aeropostle, Hollister, Izod, Coach, Kuerig, Tommy, MissMe, Levi's, Yankee Candle, Ann Taylor, Coldwater Creek, , Dooney and Burke, Nike, Abercrombie, American Eagle, Pampered Chef, White House Black Market, Columbia and I could go on and on. The donations we receive for the most part on any given day are gently used with lots of life left in them. It's amazing!

Well then...

Yes, it was sort of kind of one of THOSE days...not really bad in the big scheme of things but it certainly was not good, so to speak!

Of course this morning was the memorial for one of our own. His life was cut way short due to a traffic crash. What a great family, from all indications his parents did a fabulous job rearing him and he was so very highly thought of by those who knew him. A true witness.

Meetings this afternoon, along with a clinic visit for that "fungal infection" that is not...I know! So much for me going on to medical school! It is, well, they don't know what it is. Seriously, they do not, I go back next week, so stay tuned for further developments.

Then this evening it was a catch up night for me as MiB did some icebreaking on the main base. I was able to finish gathering things for our trip this weekend, do some long overdue filing, sort through other pending paperwork, along with organize a few things in the unpacked closet that still has a looooong way to go before it is done. Oh me, I am ready for bed.

It is storming here this evening so really going to bed might be pointless as I don't really sleep all that well when it storms, but I am willing to try. I have another full day tomorrow with several items on my "to-do" list before we leave. I would like to hit a couple stores for their sales...also need to make an order on base, along with secure 5 photo frames and a new brown shirt. Then I should try to do a return that I have and finish getting LilBlue's spring basket items. And work in the other things on my planner, yep, I have enough to keep me busy that's for sure!

Take care and be safe!

Doing my part, sort of...

Since you know we are moving I am trying to use up as much of what we have on hand as I can. I am only buying perishables, well that and snacks for WoW. When we get to move in a few weeks we have to go 14 steps to our new home and I don't want to carry any more than I have too. So far the freezer is looking pretty good and empty...

 I guess there really is still quite a bit in there but trust me it's not near like it was. 

It will continue to dwindle down as we still have a little over a week or so to work on its contents. before we go out of town, return and move. Then there is the fridge, it's bit harder...but we did finish off a ketchup bottle and the caramel and chocolate syrup bottles are almost empty as well! There is only one sour cream on the top shelf but still two margarine's! Though I don't know if we can make it w/o ketchup until we move. There is a new bottle in the pantry so open or not it has to be moved!

 The door shelves are what I notice the most as they are not crammed full!

And yes there is only ONE 12 pack of soda in our fridge and YES that is 5 half gallons of milk on the top shelf. I'm having a party tonight and we need milk for the drinks. The contents of the shelf under the milk are all leftovers and will be consumed tonight and tomorrow. Also the veggie bin contents will be gone before the weekend is out.

Then there is the pantry.

 Not much there, but still nice choices. Going to be fixing some pudding and jello over the weekend! And green soup and hopefully polish off some cereal if I have milk left after tonight.

 Little more to deal with on this side. YES, that is three cases of green beans, I like green beans, a lot; there is also a case a peas but it is nearly empty! Yep, that is two BIG boxes of saltines; MiB likes those a lot and with a can of diet Coke on the side usually at night after I have gone to bed!

I definitely see a major commissary shopping trip soon after the move, we are way down on the choices in the food department but we are getting by and no one is starving that's for sure. I feel like I am doing a pantry challenge of sorts, where you shop your own pantry and try not to go to the grocery store. For weeks now I have only been buying perishables and necessities in preparation for this move. Now that we finally have a date I just really wish it was over already. I'm not real overjoyed in this whole move thing in case you were not clear or wondered.

Thursday Thoughts!

Hmmm, this week has been a wee bit down for me, I think it has to do with LilBlue having a birthday. And thinking about MiB taking off for a 3 weekish trip and finally scheduling my long overdue dentist appointment for a checkup and cleaning Yeah, that's my exciting life! LOL

The weather here has been unbelievable, it was over 70* this week and now it had dropped to cold temps again. It's those cold days that I wear my Uggs even in the house! When we first got here I thought they would probably just stay in their box, I am pleasantly surprised they are getting use!

I have had made the time to work on my scrapping lately and it has been AWESOME, I have completed the 1999-2010 years in the new CM books. I will be starting 2011 in the even newer 12x12 format. However, I still have to finish my Vegas trip mini album, do the two Hawaii mini albums and finish MiB CMSgt Promo mini album and I want to get those done first before I tackle 2011.I also plan to do a couple projects digitally. After I see how that goes I am contemplating switching to digital for this year...it's a tough choice and I'm not totally sure I will like switching, but I am giving it a go. I will do a small project to see how I like it first. I love that I have been able to play with our pictures again, it has been too long! I am also planning to get our early year albums into better albums. That will be a huge undertaking and I will be getting the replacement albums at Hobby Lobby as funds and sales coincide to complete this huge task! That is not to mention I need a sale on the pages and protectors so I can procure the new 12x12 size supplies since I have none. Did I mention I am trying to SAVE money...yeah, well, I am, it's new year's plan and so is getting the scrapbook albums done so I guess those two sort of work against each other, hmmmmm.

I also have a couple sewing projects  I would like to work on/complete. I am waiting til after this weekend then I am getting out LilBlue's sewing machine to tackle those. I am setting it up on the dining room table and I anticipate it could be there a few days, okay weeks, as I snatch moments of time to work on the the projects I have. I'm so glad she let me bring it down to play with :) Love you LilBlue!

Thoughts:

• Spring Break - what to do, what to do??
• Couple more "home" days would be nice...
• My ice dispenser  in the door is still not fixed!
• I need a haircut or at the very least my bangs trimmed!
• Neighborhood progressive dinner this weekend, oh yeah :)

Thursday Thoughts...

Another week is nearly in the books, hard to believe. It's been such a full week and I will be ready for the weekend for sure. I do wish we were able to have pulled off the road trip we had tentatively planned but maybe next time. It's still all good.

Thursdays have quickly become my near favorite day of the week. I enjoy my time at the Attic. It's such fun to interact with the young ones . Today has a bit more then just the Attic since I will also be going to a MLK event this morning and then this afternoon there is a Shirt retirement. Good stuff!

I may stop in the commissary on my way home, but hopefully not! I'm trying to avoid all shopping, using what we have in the pantry and already own. This is not a new concept to me, but one I sort of got a way from and I want to get back to it. I want to really ask myself do I need it or do I want it. This is not really in regards to my food shopping, but more for our other buying. However, with the food shopping I want to ask myself is it good for me or do I just want it. I am still on that quest of ridding myself of those #'s so thought this mindset might help. We'll see.

Anyway, on to thoughts!

• Do I need that?
• Do I really want that?
• I don't like shopping anyway...
• Weekend plans will be low key!

Time is just flying by...

After spending most of yesterday shopping, but also taking a movie break and having to say goodbye to G we have been out and about doing random things today...

One of the cute pair of new shoes from her shopping excursion yesterday!

Today we did some tourist stuff, we went to the 8th AF Museum and it's always a good choice for visitors and the outside static displays are always hugely popular.

 

Strolling the air park outside the 8th Museum

It was Olive Garden for lunch after we stopped off at Kohl's for a price adjustment on some undies LilBlue had got Tuesday that went on sale on Wednesday. I was not thrilled to learn this since I had asked if they were starting a sale and was told, "no, not that I know of"... Riiiight, we get home and find out a sale starts in the morning. They will be $3.00 cheaper and since she bought 5 sets I knew we would be going back to get a refund (or price adjustment as they preferred to call it... whatever I just knew I was getting some money back). Lunch was with a high school buddy from Omaha that LilBlue knew and I blogged about earlier this month.

Then we did a few more shopping stops and on to get more surfboard plans printed before making it back home for pizza then on to a night of bowling fun...yeah, I said bowling! What a hoot, the four of us are not good bowlers but we had fun!

The BUD and I had the lowest scores for BOTH games!

 Second game scores...

As we made our way home we took to looking at the Christmas lights around the base. Many have already taken theirs down and some that were still up just were not lit. Kinda bummerish, we always leave ours up til New Year's.

 MiB loved this house!

It's late and I need to get on to bed, if you haven't checked in lately you won't realize I just made some catch up post...if you have checked in and thought I had dropped off the blogging world posting bubble, you were nearly right, I just had not had time or wanted to take the time away from LilBlue to post, but tonight we are sitting here, she playing with her iPad and me doing catch up blogging! Life is good, but I am tired and I have a pulled groin from bowling...like you really needed to know that, but now you do :) Night!

ThursdayThoughts...

It's been crazy trying to pack in a lot of doing, loving, living in the time we have with LilBlue, I feel the minutes are flying by and I hate it, so I am trying to focus on enjoying and not thinking about the time slipping away. But I am constantly aware of our limited time with her and want to take advantage of all the moments, it's hard, she is a sleeper inner and we want to wake her at the crack of dawn to be with her. Did I mention we are trying to restrain ourselves? Geez it's hard!

So since she has been here we have done a lot of shopping, movie going, eating and just hanging out playing with all the new toys we have all gotten. I think the iPad is a huge hit along with the goof board.

G had tried it out before he gave it to MiB so he had a bit of an advantage!

 MiB playing on the GOOFBOARD!

Truth be told the BUD is probably the best at it of everyone! But he is also the youngest so we are blaming it on that... LOL

 Playing on the iPad!

Thoughts:

• We are soooo blessed!
• We have so much to be thankful for...
• We are so thrilled to have LilBlue here!

Thankful for loooong weekends!

I am so thrilled to have an extra day with MiB. That's a big bonus in my book! It looked at first like we were taking a road trip, which would have been fine by me. One direction would have taken us south to the beach, but then the "wave outlook" changed and it just wasn't going to be worth it to drive there without waves. Then we were going west and well, that just didn't work for any number of reasons, so we ended up just hanging out right here in our own area. And NO, we did not do Black Friday! In fact we did not contribute to the success of any retailer today with the exception of a grocery store stop. You couldn't pay me enough to partake in that madness. Seriously, I am not a shopper anyway and to shop on this day is just not in my plan EVER. I get it, great deals can be had, you can have my portion! For me, it's not worth it in any way, shape or form, period. I will pay a little bit more, IF there is even anything I want, which I couldn't even tell you! I don't know because I did not even look at the ads. Usually someone goes to buy a paper just to see what's available, but we didn't this year. I am not feeling like I missed anything.

Now part of this could be that I am not shopping for much in the first place, I mean our one and done will be 21 and what she is getting has already been got. And remember I am not a shopper! MiB and I are pretty low key in our gift giving, in fact most of the time we do not exchange gifts. We do, however, do stockings. Then there are the nieces and nephews that we buy for and our parents and a few others and that is it. So it's not a big list and it's not a big deal and I am 90% done with the shopping. The other things I need, I need MiB to weigh in on and then finalize a group gift that we are participating in, so it's easy low stress holiday shopping in my world and I am soooo okay with that. Hence, one of the BIG reasons I enjoyed the day with MiB and we just took a little drive, went to a movie, made a grocery store stop on our way home. I just enjoyed awesome leftovers and now we are going to watch a bit of football as we enjoy the rest of our day together. It's been a great day.

Looking forward to a replay tomorrow...not the same things we will do, or maybe we will, I don't know, but I do know we will enjoy each other and whatever we do and continue to love the long weekend!

So, yeah, for long weekends! I am thankful for them!!!

Thankfulness...

This morning as I watch the news and such I am thankful I am not experiencing cold and snow in my world. I am also praying that the weather holds for our travels this weekend. We will be making a quick to trip to MO this weekend and LilBlue will be coming down as well, so I am praying for good travel weather for all involved.

I find as I mature (yeah, you can read that age if you want!) I prefer a warmer climate. In fact as MiB and I discuss retirement plans we are keeping that in mind. While we don't know where we will end up ultimately, we know if we have our druthers we will be choosing a warmer climate over a colder one to be sure. Course if the MiB has his way we will be in Hawaii and while I think that would be okay for a while I am not sure living there all the time would be thing either.

So today I sit here with a headache after a very little sleep night...not sure what's up with that. I have had a few days of uneasiness...that is usually not a good thing in my world. I am still trying to pinpoint the heart of it. I know I am juggling several things and feeling somethings are taking way too much of my time and other things I should be giving more time to, it's a balance. I still have not reached a balance here. I still do not feel connected here. I don't think that is really bothering me but maybe it is. The job here is bigger, has way more to it and I don't feel quite like I have a handle on it and the expectations are there. I know I will not be all things to all people and I have never tried to do that anyway; however, I do try to keep up. I try to keep the big picture in mind and not get too in the weeds, nonetheless, I do find myself out there, taking on too many little things that really someone else should have done at a much lower level but didn't and then it's really become an issue with someone or something. I am trying REALLY harder to stay out of those weeds...

I have a small to do list today, so now that I have had my cappuccino I should really get on to it. I hope the things I need to pick up do not prove difficult, I am once again on a mint hunt. I had this same hunt going on last year about this time for a birthday bash. I also need nuts, that will be the easy one!

I am outta here, enjoy your day. Oh, and it's an uber good friends b-day today so Happy Birthday LS!

31 Days of Military Life ~ Day 19

Happy Birthday Ladies!

Today we gathered to celebrate the October birthdays. What fun we had! We ate at a new Mexican place, ToMolly's. I thought it was tamales when they told me the restaurant, funny! Anyway it was pretty good, I had the enchilada special, which is every Wednesday, three enchilada's (cheese, chicken or beef) with rice and beans for $4.99. My kind of deal, I brought two home for my dinner!

 Our birthday girls!!!

JH made a gluten free cake, my first taste of such a thing, it was tasty, I had a sliver! Chocolate is not my first choice, gasp! I would prefer lemon, carrot or pumpkin, call me crazy but they are way better then chocolate any day in my book!

With the traditional sombrero, I mean we were at a Mexican restaurant. They also brought them a sopapilla topped with strawberries and whipped creme, now that I would go for, but I had already had my sliver of the chocolate cake so I said no!

After our lunch I did a little shopping, well I also did some before our lunch too :) The area were the restaurant is has lots of stores and I don't make it up to that neck of the woods much so took advantage of it while I was there. I scored at Target! They had cute paper goods marked down to 56 cents a package. That's a bargain in my book, 10 count dessert plates, 20 count napkins, oh yeah, next neighborhood gathering is covered for plates and napkins :) Then I headed south to World Market to pick up some new SF syrups. I got a bottle of almond and a salted caramel. Looking forward to trying those! We have tried the brown sugar cinnamon and won't be buying that again, I like the pumpkin pie, MiB not so much, vanilla is a keeper and so is English toffee, there are only about 30 others to try! Some don't ever sound appealing others I hope to get next!

I also sadly report that I am struggling with that horrid 7#s again...I know, it totally bums me out. I have got to make time to get back on the exercise wagon cause for me and my body it make a huge difference. I can watch what I eat, count my calories and all and what my fat and if I don't get my booty moving it just doesn't help me to keep the weight off. So I haven't been getting the walks and occasional runs in and this a.m. the scale (and yesterday and the day before) really told on me. With cooler weather and all the holidays coming up I have to get back on top of this. Right now I sit at needing to get back off about 5#s but I know that could easily be the 7 if I am not careful. And eating at Mexican places doesn't help :(

So right now I gotta run! LITERALLY!!! I just got a text from MiB he is headed to the gym so I am headed out for a walk and depending on how I feel since it's been a while I MIGHT run a little, but irregardless I am going to get this body moving cause that is a start and you gotta start back somewhere, CIAO!

31 Days of Military Life ~ Day 11

Since yesterday was a holiday, today feels like Monday!

Not a lot going on but I did make a trip out and found an awesome grey shirt ON SALE at SteinMart and also a grey cardigan at Loft, again, ON SALE!!! I was really wanting to incorporate more grey in my wardrobe since it seems like it is one of those good classic colors that can be seasonless. I am still on the search for a cute little pointy toe flats in a "pop" color and also a new handbag, again in a color that will somewhat "pop". I'm what I call fashion challenged, I try, I really do, I think I have come a long way, but I still feel totally inept and most of the time not that pulled together, which IS what I would desire. So while this 31 day challenge is going on, I have taken to reading a couple new blogs. If you would like a little wardrobe help try checking out these two blogs!

Oh and I did and am still doing laundry, yeah, those very fun necessary things, I do them too!

The evening holds an event for us, it will be at a location I have not yet been, kind of excited about that as it is a pretty cool location from what I'm told. This is a full week, something nearly every night, next week MiB will be gone. I still need to make some decisions on my going to MO. I am not so much concerned with the going it is the getting back that makes me concerned. The weekend we need to be there is a CRAZY busy weekend here, so MiB's attendance at this point could be questionable. This really makes me sad and mad all at the same time! I mean he has missed so much already from his being gone, like really gone, TDY , deployed, however, the fact that he is here but just can't get away irks me. I know it will pass, it always does, but since I am just now facing that reality I am a little fresh with my dislike :(

Well, more laundry awaits and a bit of paperwork dealings, along with tidying up the house after our long weekend so I must go be productive. Hope your Tuesday is awesome!

Ciao!

Oktoberfest

Tonight is the base Oktoberfest so it was a morning of decorating!
 

K.L. showing off her hanging skills!!!

And then I did a bit of shopping! Hip Hip Hooray for clearance! Oh, and a coupon! I snagged a dress, a pair of capris, two blouses, one t-shirt and a camisole for (drum roll please), are you ready for it? $60.xx

So back to the house to finish pre-weekend chores and get ready to return to Oktoberfest. We went and enjoyed the evening, The food was decent, though the pretzels would have been tons better had they been a bit warm they were still edible! The red cabbage was tasty and the potatoes were really nice. MiB said the brats were really good, the schnitzel was off the mark in our opinion, not sure but authentic it was not. However, overall the food was better then I expected which is always a plus when you go to things like this. Part of that comes from the fact that we have actually been to Germany and had the real deal so we are often a bit harsh in our review of the food since we know what it should be. MiB and I do not do beer so we gave away our beer tickets that came with our meal. Still it was a nice night with some fun folks and we enjoyed meeting some new Team Barksdale members and visiting with others that we have already met. I was most thrilled that we knew people and had people to share the evening with that we were comfortable that does the heart good!

 MiB with his authentic German cuisine!

One of my new Southern Friends!

Night all, prost!

Deer, Speeding Ticket, Shopping and Casa

Sooooo yesterday was eventful after a lovely FFA breakfast in Bronaugh, MO we were heading back to Nevada, MO to go to shopping in Kansas City, MO we encountered a deer, the deer did not make it...

Vehicle was not drivable, airbags DID NOT deploy; I could not exit the passenger side door!

So after the deer encounter, my other cousin came to pick us up and off to KC we went. We were about half way there when a Missouri Highway Patrolman wished to visit with us...Saundra was traveling somewhat OVER the posted speed limit and Trooper Jones let her know just exactly how much over and gave her a nice white envelope to mail in a contribution to the state for her transgression. He was a very nice trooper and bid us a good day and we were on our way again! In KC I scored some awesome bargains! The Littles are going to be set on PJs for the next year!! We headed home, going right at the posted speed limit and in no time we were back in Nevada, MO mySherry and I quickly unloaded and headed to Casa, since Saundra did not take us to Ponack's and we were both in the mood for Mexican food.  What a day, glad it was no more eventful then it was and that everyone is okay! I'm gonna have to be careful hanging out with the cousins from now on!! LOL

If you are squeamish, you may not want to scroll down any farther, just sayin'!

The deer did not make it...

Add another one!

I think I have been making way too many commissary runs...I have found, yet another, new to me item that I think is yummo! These veggie straws are a nice crunchy treat that remind me of funyuns and/or Munchos which when I was a kid were two of my favorite crunchy things to eat! Now that I am, uh, wiser, I think funyons are way too oniony and make your breath incredibly stinky while Munchos have that really fake potato taste so I have moved on. My current favorite crunchy snack is SunChips in garden salsa, oh my, my, my, hide the bag!!!! BTW I do not work for Frito-Lay, I guess I just enjoy several of their products :)

These veggie straws took me back to 2001 and living in Alabama. I was at a baby shower planning meeting (yeah, they have meetings to plan baby showers AND wedding showers, it is serious business!) Anyway the hot topic of discussion was cheese straws! While they debated who would make them, how many should be made, where to make them and who would help, I had visions swirling around in my head of a block of cheddar cheese and a drinking straw. I was thinking ain't no way I am going to volunteer for this! Well, come baby shower time I got a first hand look at this delicacies and I was hooked from the first bite! YUMMERS, they are absolutely lovely!
Well, the veggie straws are no cheese straws but they ARE nice...they are relatively low in calories at 130 calories per serving, that is one serving on the plate. A serving is 38 of the straws. They are a mixture of potato, spinach and tomato flavors. and are lightly salted, I love salt so they could have salted them more, but my doctor would probably be pleased they are lightly salted! They also come in olive oil and rosemary, think I will try those next time!
The close up shot shows you that they are hollow, makes them even more crunchy IMO. While they are what I would consider healthier they still have some fat in them, they are also not real cheap. The 7 ounce bag I bought cost $2.69. There was a .75 cents off coupon affixed to the bag which I promptly pulled off and used during check out. The bag says it serves 7. If you do check out the website they allow you to print a coupon for a $1.00 off.

That's my plate after my snack =P I hope you are enjoying a great day, the sun is shining here and I am soaking it up, it's a beeee-u-teeee-ful sunny day here on the SpaceCoast!

Two new things I like!

I know I mentioned that I tried and liked almond milk, but can I tell you I really, really do like this stuff...I have been using it in latte's and quiche, and on cereal. It is amazing! I am using the original, but I understand there is also sweetened vanilla and chocolate, along with unsweetened in the original and the flavors as well. I would like to try the unsweetened as I definitely do not need the sugar. However, I will probably stay with what I have since right now that is all I have available where I shop. I bought mine in the refrigerator section but it is also available in shelf stable. I am so glad the commissary started carrying this! Yeah DeCA! Maybe they will carry the other varieties if sales are good enough!

Another new item in my cupboard is SunButter. I really like this product as well!! It's a nice spread that is somewhat thinner then regular peanut butter with a toasted sunflower seed flavor. I love sunflower seeds so trying this was a no-brainer once I found out about it. I think it is a great alternative for those with peanut allergies, too. Again, this is conveniently available at our commissary! Another shout out for DeCA!!!

This was not paid programming!! Just sharing some personal product experience, try either or both at your own risk of loving, liking or totally grossing out!

It's Thursday!!!

So it's Thursday again and I am thinking, WOW, LilBlue has only been gone two days and it already seems like forever...

Thoughts for Thursday

• Found three new thrift shops today!!!
• Summer HAS arrived, translate: IT'S HOT here!
• I'm ready for some homegrown 'maters anytime now.
• I love walking on the beach pretty much anytime I choose to.
• I am thrilled to find a great selection of petite clothing at most stores!

Since MiB has a CivMil function to attend this evening that leaves me with some downtime. My bathtub has been calling me since I arrived and tonight I will answer that call :) I really need a good foot soak and some bubbles so me and my bathtub will be spending some quality time together tonight. The bathtub in this new house looks awesome...see?

:)