WORK IN PROGRESSFARM

Family Zoo Trip

2010-07-22T07:22:00.000-07:00

Each year we take a family day and go to the zoo...this year we went to the COlumbus Zoo in Ohio where there is a really cool new polarbear exhibit....with underwater veiwing.

Sour grapes being as they are- we had a terrible time trying to view because parents let their kids run amuck and it was CRAZY!...

However, it costs our family the same to get in for one day as it does to go for a whole year on a membership, so we just go when we want to go....

More pics to come...

new things...ideas

2010-07-12T09:38:00.000-07:00

I havent been around for a while..been kinda busy ....neglectful for my poor blogs....I figured Id come back because I put so much work into these things that I owe it to my writing to at least cisit them once in a while...right?

School is keeping me busy this summer- preparing for fall quarter, and working an internship all at the same time...

I am very blessed to have great kids and a fabulous husband...

And did I mention we have already canned?
Green beans and apple butter, apple sauce, bread and butter pickles and dills....

Here is my recipe for apple butter....I have no clue where I got it- but its one of the best borrowed recipes ever! ENJOY!

Apple Butter
16 medium apples
4 c sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves

wash apples, remove stem and blossom end-chop into pieces and boil with 2 cups water until "smooshy"

Run through food mill 2x to remove and pulp the apples...add sugar, cinnamon and cloves...

cook slowly until thick enough to hang on spoon- fill hot jars 1/4" from top

process in water bath canner for 10 minutes...
about 5 pints

YUM!

Spring has Sprung....:)

2010-05-04T06:27:00.001-07:00

Spring has sprung....I am so psyched at the prospects God has put in front of me!
School is going great, the garage maybe replaced due to wind damage, and Im looking at working in my field of study...FINALLY...
Finances are T-I-G-H-T....but we will manage somehow.

Its all about priorities and what do I need and what do I want?
I have some awesome pics and a lot to share with you all..so hang on to your hats...cause its gonna be a crazy ride!

I am ready for spring.....

2010-02-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

Why am I still looking at this?

And this

Now this is what I am ready for.....

Single game tickets go on sale tomorrow- on my birthday....someone needs to call my husband and remind him. Or maybe I will email him this link as a subtle hint....:)

Never have I wanted spring so badly.

Talkin ABout Thursdays...

2010-02-25T08:02:00.000-08:00

This recipe is for delicious broccoli cheddar soup....
and its relatively inexpensive...

did I mention YUMMY?

place 1 bag frozen broccoli florets in crock pot
add 1 cup milk (sometimes we use cream)
add 2 cups water.
add 1 can cream of ------soup-
this is where it gets tricky

I like cream of mushroom in mine
Morgan likes cream of chicken
we fight. :)

add 1 can of cheddar cheese soup

stir stir stir

after the broccoli has cooked - about 2 hours on high-
we add teensy weensy egg noodles.
they make the soup creamy, and filling.

we top ours off with cheddar cheese...
sometimes with more steamed broccoli...
sometimes mushrooms..

you can make it to your liking...
and comfort food is always welcome when the weather is somewhere in between rain and snow.

For those who do not like this, we also have a cheesy potato soup...

1 bag frozen hashbrown cubes...
2 cups milk
2 cups water
bring to a boil so potatoes get done
add
2 cans cheddar cheese soup
2 cans cream of chicken soup

let simmer for 15 minutes or so, until steamy and HOT

we add things like shredded carrots or tiny broccoli pieces for color.
Can be cooked in crock pot as well..:)

dont forget the crackers and hummus!

Quilt Raffle!!!!

2010-02-19T08:20:00.000-08:00

God is so good.
This is a picture of my friend Rita ( clear on the left cheesin') and Jeff ( clear on the right, also cheesin') and all of the survivors of the earthquake in Haiti from Vals Orphanage.

This is whats left of Vals Orphanage.

And this is how we are going to rebuild it. One quilt at a time.

This quilt, made by Rita and a friend, will be raffled off, and all of the proceeds will go to rebuilding the orphanage.
Cost for raffle tickets are just $1 for one, $5 for 6
I am so excited to be a part of this concept. This is something everyone can contribute to. If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say they are helpless, we could have already built it again.
But I don't
Instead we have a beautiful quilt to raffle off.

Please feel free to repost this or link to it. I am excited I can do something to help.
For more info on my friends in Haiti...please visit these links....

Doug and Amy

MY Post on my Other Blog

Haitian Christian Projects

You can either reply to this post for tickets, or mail Rita at:

Haitian Christian Projects
808 Ophir St. #7
Moncks Corner, SC, 29461

Mackenzie says...

2010-02-12T14:40:00.000-08:00

Hi I am MackenzieThis is when I went sledding. It was fun.Someone fell in the ditch.It was at
john bryan.Then we went hiking.Thats where this was taken.this is my first time blogging so i don't know what to say now.

The Parking Lot of Dismay

2010-02-12T12:14:00.000-08:00

So Im giving this look because Im taking my own picture.
Sometimes I have this look on my face because I cannot BELIEVE other people can be so, well, stupid.
I guess Im not going to mince words here.
I loathe the parking lot where my kids go to school.
Its not a safe place for my car. And I drive an expedition.
Its not a small car.
I think parking places were put in for a reason, and I think when people are driving in a parking lot where kids are walking they should NOT be on their phone, they should NOT be driving fast, and they should NOT be parking forty feet from the next car, just so they dont get "stuck" trying to pull out.

I think there are people who do not care about anyone but themselves, and I think the school really doesnt know how bad it is out there. Probably because they expect adults to act like adults. and that is a really high expectation.
I realize the school cannot police every person, but would it kill us to have a traffic director or something?
Im afraid that someone is going to get hurt.
It really bothers me
Im sure you noticed.
And dont even get me started talking about the snow.
argh

winter wonderland

2010-02-08T12:37:00.000-08:00

these pics are taken at John Bryan State Park.

except for a this one, of our "mower" Not sure why its out....

this is a great shot of our road

and my poor lonely clothesline

this is a popular hiking trail at John Bryan

this is the tree I slammed my head into when sledding..everyone was asking if the tube was ok...:) this was all I could see...

these are my lonely pine, and my zebra grass,,so magnificent in the snow!

A Grandpa

2010-02-05T08:37:00.000-08:00

This is my Grandpa...Paul.
today is his birthday, but a few years ago he left us.

He is my mothers father, and is greatly missed.
He was a good man, and loved us dearly. He always had something funny to say and always had a crooked grin to back up his humor.

My favorite memory- and I have tons of them- was when he told my brother and I he got a new car- with bucket seats.
We were so excited, because that meant one of us could sit in the front, and one had to be in the back.

Joke was totally on us.
He was a drywaller.
He installed buckets into his car in place of seats.
We were disappointed, but it was funny.

On the day of his funeral, as we were driving to the funeral home, I was overcome with emotion telling my husband and my sister in law about the bucket seats.

Kinda surprised me, because I was with him when he passed, and I was able to keep my emotions pretty well in check.

Never have I laughed and cried so hard at the same time EVER.

Although we are saddened each year on this day, i will never forget those silly bucket seats. :)

Or my grandfather who is greatly respected and missed.

My Grandma (part 2)

2010-02-04T05:22:00.000-08:00

This is Carol Jean...another one of my fabulous grandmothers..

She is not your typical grandma either.
She has 3 children, who have given her 6 grand children and 18 great grandchildren...
WHEW!
She shops for each one of them for Christmas , and you can bet the day your birthday rolls around, there will be a card in the mailbox....because she sends those too!

One of my favorite things about my grandma is her calendar- she writes down EVERY little thing that happens to us-good things, bad things, medical things.
I can call and ask her about a date, and she can tell me what, if anything, happened on that day.
Its fun to look back at her calendar-especially since I have the child with the most hospital visits at my house- he for sure has a day for himself every month...:)

Its nice to have a grandmother who cares enough to make sure we are all honored on our birthday, because we know everything she does comes from the heart.

She shares my love of gardening with ornamentals, which she inherited from her mother...she has the most beautiful clematis I have ever seen.
And tons of hens and chicks.
hehe
I love those to, but I dont have one.
She wears her hair in curlers, and has been known to be on the news a time or two..wearing them. :) haha

But its ok, cause then I know its her.

Grandma Kell

2010-02-03T06:09:00.000-08:00

Can I call a person "VINTAGE" ?
This is my grandma Thelma.
She is vintage, and I mean in every aspect of the word.
I love her lots, and I really respect her.
She is a young 92, her birthday is in March.
She has been having a lot fo trouble with her memory in the last few years, but as long as she know who she is, Im not worried. She's 92! How can she remember everything? :)
She lives with her youngest daughter, and she is well taken care of, thats for sure.
She is a quilting GENIUS. I have some of her stuff and there is no way I could compete with that! When we were younger she used to make all of her grandchildren something fantastic for Christmas. Most of my stuff is gone now, but the one thing I have is a red dress she made me when I was young. She saw it in a store window, but wouldnt pay the price they asked, so she sketched it and made it, and it was awesome...
my daughter even wore it. :)
Grandma has always been an important woman in my life...
And I love her dearly.

painting weekend..

2010-02-01T13:47:00.001-08:00

So this is the end result of a very long weekend of tedious painting.

Morgan is very happy with the end result, and well, I am kinda stoked too.

The process was fun..and messy

the palette was broad....

And until we rescued them, the walls pretty boring.....but we survived. and so did the room....

Anyone got any sunglasses? hahahaha

Very First Post..

2010-01-29T10:08:00.000-08:00

This is the very first post on our brand new blog. This blog will be an attempt at keeping track of our daily lives here at our own Work In Progress. I am hoping to get all of the members of my family to contribute. We love followers, and we love to put a smile on your face!

I am not a big "designer" but I am learning a few simple tricks to make our blog neat and easy to get around on.

There are links to other blogs to the right, and a link back to my home blog as well.

I hope you all enjoy this as much as we do!

Welcome to Work In Progress!