Will Work For Food

Lately I've been thinking I might need to get a piece of cardboard and a sharpie! Times are tough for everyone right now, and since my husbands been getting less and less miles at work, money's been really tight for our family. I'm afraid I might have to start looking into alternate forms of income! ......honestly though, I think my pride would prevent me from ever turning to such drastic measures, but this article from a year ago says that panhandlers can earn up to $300 per day (tax free), doing, virtually nothing! My husband has to drive 882 miles in his truck to make that much, and then after Uncle Sam takes his unfair share it's a lot more like 950 miles! Crazy times we live in! I was reading today in the news headlines that there are soon to be 10,000 more job layoffs soon. What are all of those people going to do with no jobs out there for them? I think it's a really messed up world we live in when when people who want to go to work and provide for their families can't, but people can stand out on street corners begging and make hundreds of dollars a day and greedily come back for more the next day. I really feel for all the people and their families who are about to be, or who already have been laid off.

Get Paid for Blogging

I want to get paid for blogging, but I'm not sure where to start. Rose, in her blog, Etcetera Etcetera, wrote a really helpful post about websites where you can get paid for blogging. She listed 16 different places and tells what you have to do to get paid for them, and other pertinent information you may like to know. Now that I know where to go to get started, I just need to find the extra time to do it!

Emma's Birthday Party

Emma had a lot of fun at her birthday party. She is now officially 6 years old! They grow up so fast, don't they? We had a homemade pinata filled with more candy than I ever hope to buy at one time again, and we played a couple of party games. She had a butterfly/anything I could get a good deal on, party theme and I think it went over pretty well. All except for the "Cars" party hats we ended up with. The boys really liked those anyway! She got a lot of presents, including a 14k gold heart necklace from a little boy in her class! So sweet, kindergarten love! .....lets hope I've got quite a few years to go before I've got anything too serious to worry about! All of the kids had a great time and I sent them home full of sugar!

Here she's about to blow out the candle, but I think she was more concerned with all of those presents!

Wow! A guitar!

Here's a picture of my attempt at making a pinata.

This is one of the presents I gave her. I won it in a giveaway at http://www.dointheworkingmomthing.com/ back in December. She's so excited about it! It's a really cute Precious Girls Club kit. It has some really cool club stuff in it and it has instructions for starting up her own girls club with her friends. She can't wait to be able to do it!

Crazy Kitten

I love our little kitten, but sometimes he's not the brightest bulb in the box. Yesterday morning I sleepily stumbled into the bathroom and the kitty followed me. I went potty and I'm really glad I didn't forget to flush, because while I was washing my hands he jumped up on the toilet and was watching the water go around and around. Then I heard a splash! A second later he dashed out the door. I don't think he really appreciated his morning bath!

*This isn't our kitty in the toilet, but it is a cute picture!*

Music Monday "Sweet Child of Mine"

Confession: Way back when I was 12 I had a huge crush on this guy named Axl. ;) Maybe you've heard of him. Here's one of the songs he sang.

Come join Music Monday and share your songs with us. One simple rule, leave ONLY the actual post link here. You can grab this code at LJL Please note these links are STRICTLY for Music Monday participants only. All others will be deleted.

Yummy, Yummy Pumpkin Bread!

This is the yummiest pumpkin bread I've ever had. It's pretty easy to make too. I got the recipe from the allrecipes website. I've made it 5 or 6 times so far and taken it to a couple of potlucks and everyone loves it! It usually doesn't last very long, even though the recipe makes 3 loaves! I'm not sure why, but it says to use coffee cans, I just use the regular loaf pans. I hope you enjoy it!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

3 cups white sugar
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
4 eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 1 pound size coffee cans, or three 9x5 inch loaf pans.
In a large bowl, combine sugar, pumpkin, oil, water, and eggs. Beat until smooth. Blend in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts. Fill cans 1/2 to 3/4 full.
Bake for 1 hour, or until an inserted knife comes out clean. Cool on wire racks before removing from cans or pans.

Bed Time Battles (with a strong willed child!)

After battling my little girl for two nights in a row about sleeping in her own bed I went to sleep last night, finally victorious! ......or so I thought! I never realized I was such a sound sleeper! I woke up, surprised to see my defenses had fallen while my opponent found me sleeping! I went against my nature, which is to let sleeping babes lie, and woke her and told her to get in her own bed right now! What am I going to do with this child! She is so determined to have her way. She is so much more stubborn than I am, but I know I can't let her win, or it will encourage her even more! Not to mention I may never get her out of our bed!

Visiting Golden

The other day the hubby, kiddos and I all went for a back roads drive. We love exploring new places. One place we love to see when we go wondering up and down mountain roads is a little ghost town nearby called Golden. On our drive we stopped by there and I took some pictures. I think ghost towns are really interesting places to visit. I asked the kids if they knew why it was called a ghost town and my 5 year old said "because everybody in the town died all at once and now the ghosts live there!"

Here they are, standing at the back of the general store.

This is the old church in the town. There were some people there, shooting a western "movie," with costumes and everything! They had filled the church with smoke from a smoke machine. You can see it spilling out of the steeple.

This is Amber inside the smokey church.

Here is Levi, preaching the sermon!

Emma standing outside of one of the buildings.

....and the outhouse, of course!

Got t.p.? If not there's always leaves (these ones are a little prickly though!) .....apparently, putting the seat down was a problem, even in the good ol' days!

Adding Tabs To Your Blog

I think it's cool how some peoples blogs have tabs that link to different pages. I've been wondering how I can add them to my blog too. I'm slightly computer illiterate, but surprisingly, I found a blog that not only explains how but also makes it so simple that even I was able to figure it out what to do with no problems! I'm going to go back to find out how to align them on the left instead of in the center like they are. http://www.reallifeblog.net/2007/09/how-to-create-menu-bar-for-blogger.html is the link, if anyone who doesn't already know, wants to learn how!

House Cleaning

Here are some great reasons to not clean your house! ....just in case you're needing some. ;)


I don't do windows because ...
I love birds and don't want one to run into a clean window and get hurt.

I don't wax floors because ...
I am terrified a guest will slip and get hurt then I'll feel terrible ( plus they may sue me.)

I don't mind the dust bunnies because ...
They are very good company, I have named most of them, and they agree with everything I say.

I don't disturb cobwebs because ...
I want every creature to have a home of their own.

I don't Spring Clean because ...
I love all the seasons and don't want the others to get jealous.

I don't pull weeds in the garden because ...
I don't want to get in God's way, HE is an excellent designer!

I don't put things away because ...
My husband will never be able to find them again.

I don't do gourmet meals when I entertain because ...
I don't want my guests to stress out over what to make when they invite me over for dinner.

I don't iron because ...
I choose to believe them when they say "Permanent Press".

I don't stress much on anything because ...
"Type A" personalities die young and I want to stick around and become a wrinkled up crusty ol' woman!!!!

REMEMBER: A CLEAN HOUSE IS THE SIGN OF A BROKEN COMPUTER!!!

(Funny) New Years Resolutions

*I came across these while net surfing. They made me laugh, so I thought I'd share them with you!*

for 2009.

This year, I resolve to:

Always replace the gas nozzle
before driving away from the pump.

I will always "check for paper"
when leaving the restroom.

I will try to drive closer to the speed limit.

I will keep an extra safe distance when driving behind police cars.

I will no longer park the BMW
next to fire hydrants.


and never again will I try to diffuse an explosive device with a known practical joker.

Have a Safe and Happy New Year!