Home Improvement Week 1

Here's a peek at the work that has been accomplished so far...

Before, a house with ferocious lions, but in need of new paint and trim


With a beautiful pool in the back:


So we're matching the pool stone


And having it added to the front of the house


I think our lions are going to enjoy their new domain when it's finished!

Friday Foodie

No new recipe this week. Les is riding the Cool Breeze Century (that's a 100 mile bicycle ride for your non-cyclists), so he needs pasta tonight! That being the case, I decided to make a big batch of spaghetti sauce - turkey meatballs, mushrooms, bell peppers, tomatoes, zucchini - mmm!!

After last week's Friday Foodie I received an anonymous comment. I was a bit offended at first, since the commenter decided to be anonymous and they provided a link entitled "This is Why You're Fat." Umm, hello? That's not very nice!! You know, anonymous, picking on someone's weight is kinda rude.


Then I clicked on the link!! Oh my!!! If I ate the stuff on this website I would not be fat - I would be a walking heart attack waiting to happen!!! After looking through just a couple pages, I knew I would have to share it with anyone else reading this blog!

So happy eating! And Anonymous, your identity, cough, cough (Bro. Nembro) cough, cough, is safe with me!!!!

Cash for Clunkers

I was reading in the Simi Valley Acorn the other day about the government's "Cash for Clunkers" program. I really thought there was a typo. They listed the suggested improved MPG as 24. Here is a chart that shows 22 MPG as the minimum fuel efficiency.


I'm just wondering if the government will pay us $4500 to keep our Saturn that gets 34 MPG...

No Greater Joy

3 John 1:4 "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth."

Lance was telling us about a conversation he had with Claire a few weeks ago. Claire has had quite a summer - trips, camp, Music is for Kids, etc.

Lance said, "Out of all the things you've done this summer, what was the best part?"

Claire replied, "The Tuesday night at Youth Camp when I got the Holy Ghost."

Aww... that just made my heart sing!


I know the summer is winding down for most - to all Youth Camp workers everywhere THANK YOU for your love and care for the children and young people you ministered to this year! 35 years later I'm proof that it's not in vain.

Weed Pulling Time

We are in major home improvement mode this month. We are replacing all our windows. Strike that - we are paying someone to replace our windows! We are also having our house painted with some stone work added. Our house was built in 1989, we moved in in 2001, so it is definitely time. I promise to post pictures as the project develops.

Our landscaping is in need of a face lift as well, and since there will be workers around our place for the next month or more (they said four weeks, but you know how that goes...) I don't want them to worry about plants or flowers that we want to get rid of. So I decided to do some weeding on Saturday.

Before (click on the picture to get the full effect):



After:

That's SOME weeding, wouldn't you say?! I was just going to pull a few, but the more I pulled, the better I felt! We pay a yard crew to come every week, but they just don't pay that close attention. It usually takes them many weeks before they realize it's time to do some pulling.

Ever feel that way in your spiritual life? You're just going along when one day you realize there is so much junk (bitterness, regrets, jealousy, anger) growing in your heart. Sometime it's a slow process, but one great service is all it takes to open your eyes to the "stuff" you've let grow.

The only solution to getting rid of weeds? Get on your knees!!

The Gaylord Opryland Hotel

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we stayed at the Opryland Hotel in Nashville while celebrating Bill and Dolly's 50th wedding anniversary. This place is massive! There are nearly 3,000 guest rooms, the Relache Spa, a fitness center and 3 swimming pools. If you so desire, you can rent one of several amazing Gibson and Epiphone guitars for a day. Also within walking distance is the Grand Ole Opry and Opry Mills.



As seen on the map above, there are four sections to the Hotel - Magnolia (the original hotel built in 1977), Garden (phase II, added in 1983), Cascades (phase III, added in 1988), and Delta (phase IV, added in 1996). It is VERY easy to get lost here!!

On the final day of our visit, Lance, Monica, Claire, Hannah, Les, and I walked the entire grounds. We spent about two hours wandering and enjoying the company as well as the beauty of the hotel. Every picture in the slide show was taken by either Claire or Hannah, unless they are both in it! My only input was to make sure they each got a turn. Aren't digital cameras great?

Friday Foodie - French Toast on Sunday Morning!

Last night Les said he'd been wanting French toast for a couple of days. So we made a stop at the grocery store after prayer and had French toast this morning! Here's how I made it:

2 eggs, beaten
1 cup light vanilla soy milk
cinnamon and nutmeg to taste
8 slices Orowheat Sweet Hawaiian bread



Preheat griddle to high and spray with cooking spray (such as Pam).
Mix eggs, milk and spices together. Pour about half in a flat bowl.
Dip bread in mixture (both sides) and place on griddle, cooking four slices at a time.

This was so yummy!! I've never made French toast with soy milk before but the vanilla gave it a slightly sweeter taste.

Nutritional info: 129 calories/3.5 g fat/less than 1 g fiber/3 WW points. Makes 8 servings. You could probably get 10 slices out of this recipe because I had some of the egg/milk mixture leftover.

Friday Foodie

I made meatloaf with a twist this week!

2 lb. lean ground beef (I used ground turkey breast - 99% fat free)
1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 cup water
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup Barbecue Sauce, divided
1 pkg. meatloaf seasoning


HEAT oven to 375°F.
PLACE meat, stuffing mix, water, eggs, 1/4 cup barbecue sauce in bowl, and seasoning mix.
MIX just until blended.
**If you have time, place the mix in the refrigerator for a few hours to the let the seasonings blend before baking.
SHAPE into loaf in 13x9-inch baking dish.
TOP with remaining barbecue sauce.
Bake 1 hour or until done (160ºF).

This is your typical meatloaf, but the barbecue sauce replaces tomato sauce or ketchup. I also used French's onions (crushed) instead of the stuffing mix. And of course cut the recipe in half! We enjoyed this with sweet potatoes, corn on the cob and fruit salad. And the leftovers were even better!

Nutritional info: 177 calories/3 g fat/0 g fiber/4 WW points. Makes 4 servings

Meet the Kids

It's so interesting observing siblings and cousins. Of course boys and girls are different, but none of them are alike! Here is a snapshot of what they're like right now. I know they'll change in the years ahead - not just in looks!

Claire is the oldest grandchild. We were thrilled that she received the Holy Ghost this year at Youth Camp and was baptized on Father's Day! She's growing by leaps and bounds, physically, mentally and spiritually. She and I can now share shoes! (Yep, Leesh, "Little Feet" is an appropriate nickname for me!) She told me, "I love taking pictures of flowers." When I downloaded all my pictures, there were lots of flowers in the mix!

Wesley is the oldest Wearing. He's definitely all boy, but he's a thinker, too. I have Sudoku on my iPhone and Claire and Hannah were playing it. Wes had his own solution, "it would be easiest if you could just start with a blank screen."

Hannah is an incredible swimmer, but I was sorry to hear her say, "I don't really like going shopping!!" We're still praying for a conversion!!! She went on to say, "I'm just a homebody like my dad." She is always the first to ask if she can use my camera. I never know what the pictures will be, but she does a great job.
Reece is probably the funniest of the bunch, possibly without meaning to. He doesn't intentionally draw attention, but his quips are hilarious. While Wes was playing football on Saturday, Reece was on the playground with his friends. After about 45 minutes he came to his dad and said, "What I wouldn't give for a drink of water!" I didn't get many pictures of Reece, when I asked his mom if she had any she didn't either and said, "elusive little booger, isn't he?!"

Galina takes a little while to warm up to everyone. I think we can be a bit overwhelming for a 5 year old, all of us aunts, uncles and cousins that she sees only occasionally. But it doesn't take long until she finds my or Monica's lap and makes herself at home. Sunday at breakfast she sat between us and was on one of our laps except when she was eating.

Aleksi will come right to me, no matter how long it has been since we've seen her. She pretends to be camera shy, but really isn't! At breakfast on Saturday, I was asking how old she is. Are you three? four? Her response? "I don't have a number!" This first picture is her attempt at not having her picture taken!

Anniversary Celebration

Before I get into all the details, let me introduce you to all the attendees so you can have a list to refer back to in case you get confused!!

The Parents - Bill and Dolly McElhaney - they have three children, Lance, Les, and Lisa.
Lance, his wife Monica, their two daughters, Claire (age 11) and Hannah (age 8)
Les, his wife (that would be me!)
Lisa, her husband Rick Wearing, their two sons, Wesley (age 10) and Reece (age 7) and their two daughters, Galina (age 5) and Aleksi (age 4).

We started the celebration weekend on Friday evening. We all stayed at the Opryland Hotel (which will get a complete post of its own!)

Rick had to work, so the Wearings were not with us for dinner on Friday evening. The rest of us met at Opry Mills and ate at the Rainforest Cafe. We then wandered around the mall for an hour or so before heading back to the hotel. There were all kinds of mall kiosks, like Gigi's cupcakes but also a very unusual one - the electronic cigarette called "Smoking Everywhere." So cool - NOT!!!

Les and I had walked from the hotel to the mall. Claire and Hannah asked to walk back with us, and as soon as we ditched the parents Uncle Les suggested we stop for ice cream! We three girls did not say no!

By the time we made it back to the hotel the entire clan was there and the kids enjoyed the indoor pool until closing time at 10:00 p.m. All of our nieces and nephews love swimming. Hannah is on a swim team, so she's definitely the strongest swimmer of the bunch, but Aleksi was the only one I saw do a backward summersalt!

We met up Saturday morning and had breakfast at Bob Evans. Dolly had in her possession a tablet that recorded their honeymoon trip 50 years ago! They had written down everywhere they went, how much they spent on gas, food, auto repairs, etc. When we all split up on Sunday, they were heading to Toledo, Ohio, to retrace that same trip. Something tells me they'll spend a bit more this time around.

Wesley's first flag football game of the season was Saturday morning and since Rick is one of the coaches they didn't want to miss it. Les, Bill, and Reece traveled with them to Cookeville and Wes' team won!

Saturday afternoon we had a photoshoot scheduled. Photographer and fellow blogger, Tammy Batson, met us at the hotel and proceeded to shoot us all! We wore matching khaki bottoms and light colored tops. I didn't even attempt to take any formal group shots since Tammy was doing this. I don't think I could have gotten all 14 of us to stand still for a single picture, much less an entire shoot.

Saturday night we went to Germantown Cafe and the food was de-lish! We had a fabulous waiter. There was lots of talking, eating, and laughter. The card shown at the top of this post was made by Claire and all the grandkids signed it.

Sunday morning we met for breakfast at Cracker Barrel (you knew that was coming, didn't you?!) Shortly after breakfast the clan started breaking up. Bill and Dolly were heading to Toledo, while Rick and Lisa were heading to Georgia. Lance and his crew were also heading to Georgia, but they ended up staying a few more hours with us and we enjoyed roaming the incredible grounds of the Opryland Hotel. Claire and Hannah took over 100 pictures with my camera and I'm amazed at many of them.

Les and I finally said goodbye to the Lance McElhaneys and headed to Doug and Lori Long's. We attended First Church in Nashville Sunday night and the service was awesome. The sign team did "Holy Thou Art God." Bro. David Bryan preached "My God is Bigger Than That!" We finished the evening with Doug and Lori and Jerry, Allison, and Sophie Barlar at Cracker Barrel!

As usual we packed a ton in a little time, but we fully enjoyed ourselves!