Another Big Weekend

I'm currently prepping for another big weekend for my soaps.  We will be at Mixons Fruit Farms Fall Festival.  Wow, say that three times fast!

Prepping this week by getting supplies in and making soap!  Yesterday was a new batch of Oatmeal and Honey.  I didn't have this at my last show, but personally it is one of my favorites! 

Also did some gift baskets for a friend of mine.  Have to admit, they turned out quite well.  I did take pictures and I will post them tomorrow. 

Happy Hump Day!

Sticker Shock

Received my Cobra paperwork today.  Yes, that means I'm not working.  Another story for another time, but not for this blog!

Anyway, I am still reeling from Sticker Shock. 

Why can we not get health care that is affordable and available?????

I went through this rant while a good friend of mine was dealing with the health issues of her son.  We have the best care in the world in this country, but you better be able to pay for it!

So, I'm off to start digging through for insurance.  Don't you wish you were me?

Relax and Read These!

Click and Take A Break Reading all of these other blogs! 

I'm taking today off, if you haven't already noticed!

Lunch with Kyle

Today I had lunch with Kyle. Jeff is off at the Redneck Yacht Club for the weekend, enjoying a well deserved overnight stay.

At lunch I forced Kyle to leave his IPOD in the car and actually carry on a conversation with me. Our discussion covered, video games, paint ball games, more video games, and then, wait for it...CHRISTMAS WISH LIST!

Yes, Kyle still makes a list at the age of 15.  Hey, I realized a long time ago that a list is the perfect thing.  One, it allows Kyle to vent out all of the items he would like without it being repeated over and over.  It also, for the next two months, allows me to say "Add it to your list" every time he asks for something.  It is like a reprieve for my wallet. 

So, as he rambled on about the items that will go on his list this year, I started realizing that Thanksgiving is only a week and a half away.

One item that I love about Christmas time is being able to play Christmas music. I have a wide arrangement of Christmas CD's and they start being played the day after Thanksgiving. Today, I discovered that there is a CD out by Dave Barnes who is one of my favorites! I saw his video for one of his Christmas songs and it features another favorite of mine, Hillary Scott(of Lady Antebellum if you have been living under a rock somewhere)and the video features Jennifer Love Hewitt. I thought I would get you all thinking of the upcoming Holidays.

Yeah, you can thank me later!

Yeah, There's That

Here is an example of a conversation I had with my 15 yr old son last night.

Me:  "You have got to get working on your homework.  You are failing a class and if you don't get your homework done, you will be failing another."

Him:  "I'm doing it."

Me:  "What is IT ?"

Him:  "I have to read this book."

Me:  "You are lying in bed with the lights off, how the heck could you possibly be reading that book?"

Him:  "I was going to turn the lights on."

Me:  "I suggest you turn the lights on NOW and get to reading that book before you get too far behind."

Him:  "Whatever.  I'm not failing anyway."

Me:  "Your current grade is a 43?" (and at this point my voice is at a fever pitch)

Him:  "Yeah, there's that."

Me:  "Huh?"

My son struggling in school is not something new or out of the ordinary.  He just doesn't like it and never has.  There seems to be a strong disconnect with schools and how they interact with boys. 

For example, I was looking at the book he is reading.  I can understand his disinterest.  I read every day.  EVERY day.  I love to read.  I will read anything and everything. 

I wouldn't read this book.  Not interested, doesn't sound interesting and I couldn't be forced to be interested in it.  However, I find myself having to be the good parent and tell him he has to read it and get his homework done.  Seeing as he doesn't like to read, I may as well have just banished him to a life with no IPOD. 

One good thing, he doesn't read my blog either!

Favorite Thing...For Now

This is my favorite thing, for now anyway:

Yes, it is my FoodSaver.  (Minus the fish that is in the picture!)

Yesterday I went to our local discount warehouse and purchased enough food for a month.  It took me over an hour to repackage everything.  This was my stash when I was done.  So worth the time!

I buy steaks from a local restaurant here in town.  I can't beat his prices and his cuts of meat are just fabulous!  Normally I bring them home and vacuum seal them.  When it is time to use them, they appear fresh and look as if I placed them in the fridge the day before.

These have been in my freezer for about a month

Last week, I bought four more since I was down to my last two.  I was in a hurry the next morning, threw them in a ziplock bag and stuck them in my freezer.  Yesterday after sealing all of my new purchases, I was organizing the freezer and came across this.

Don't you just want to cook these right up?

I've learned my lesson.  I now vow to take the time and seal all of my purchases when I get home.  The extra time it takes, is worth it in the long run. 

It's Been Personal

I know I have been gone a few days.  Okay, almost a week. 

I have had a few personal things going on, and just couldn't bring myself to be cheery enough to blog. 

BUT, I'm back! 

Hunsaders finally ended last weekend.  It was a long 3 weeks.  I did however sell a lot of soap! 

Most popular?

Camo Soap

Second in line was my new Spa Bar.  It smells just like what a spa smells like when you walk in.  That relaxing, lavender, eucalyptus, chamomile smell.  It is dreamy.  I don't have a photo of it, because I kept selling it all.

The last day of Hunsaders they allow trick or treating for all of the kids.  All of the craft vendors bring candy and kids come around in their costumes.  Well, some of them anyway.  We will give candy to anyone!

I especially love this part of the event.  We live where there are no trick or treaters.  In the 8 years we have lived in this house, I only had trick or treaters once about 6 years ago.  I had forgotten to shut the gate and two teenage girls appeared at my door.  Since I don't ever have any trick or treaters I don't buy candy.  So, these two girls received giant Hershey Bars that I keep for when we make smore's.  As their eyes lit up, I looked at them and said " Don't tell anyone where you got these and don't come back again next year!"

I'm still amazed I woke up the next morning and my house hadn't been toilet papered!

Anyway, back to all of the little kiddies walking around in costume. 

This one boy came by.

Okay, he's a jet plane.

Nope.

Ummm...

Alright, now he sort of resembles a military tank, but I'm still a tad baffled.

And then, he stops.  Makes some sounds and folds himself onto the ground.

He is a Transformer! 

I really wish I could have taken a better photo from the front, but this little guy had quite the crowd around him.  The one I should have taken a photo of, now that I think of it, was his Mom!  She made this costume!

It is now time to realize that October is over and we are now officially in Holiday mode.  Seriously, where the heck did 2010 go?