My Totality Experience

I love astronomy.  I discovered it at nine years old, when I checked out a book about the stars from my school's library.  My teacher told me that the star patterns in the book were the same as in the sky above my house and when I discovered that was true, I was hooked. I read all I could in school about astronomy and took one college course that was offered.  Over the years I read about comets, star patterns, galaxies, new discoveries and did my best to keep up with the information that was available and when the internet hit, I couldn't keep up! So many experiences around the stars I have had!  Sailboating in the Bahamas and seeing thousands of stars, in a different hemisphere, and seeing shooting stars left and right.  Mind blowing!  Watching the Perseids every summer by camping in my own backyard.  So many wonderful opportunities. So when I learned about the total solar eclipse that was to happen on August 21, 2017, I knew I had to experience it.  Then I learn

Accidents Happen, #NaturesMiracle to the Rescue #ChewyInfluencer

I was given this product for free in exchange for our honest opinion. This post is going to be all about Truman.  Not that I don't want to talk about Wilson, but Wilson rarely has accidents at home.  Wilson is potty trained.  Good dog. The thing is, I think Truman is potty trained too, but he uses his wetting like a weapon. It seems that he urinates when he is angry or stressed about something we did.  Like, putting him in his carrier for the day, or not letting him run through the house, or bark at the UPS man. Puddle.  On our hardwood floors.  TRUMAN!!! It is hard to be mad at this face, though.  We do scold, but we aren't sure the message is getting in, especially since we think he waits until our back is turned to do it.   Nature's Miracle gives you a product to use to be sure that the contaminant is cleaned thoroughly without harming your floors.  It is a miracle for us and I wanted all of you with pups to know.  It works on stains and on n

Weekend Trip to Branson!

Branson holds a lot of fond memories for me.  My grandparents retired there (actually in a tiny town just south of Branson called Hollister) and my mom and dad used to drive my sister and my brother down in our purple Chevy to see them. We'd go fishing in Taneycomo lake.  We'd walk around Candy Mountain (where my grandparents lived) and eat fried fish and stewed okra. When Bob and I married, we started going to Branson in the summers with his family.  Bob's dad, Giles would get so excited about the trip. He wrote notes every year about what the grandkids liked for snacks and he always came through!  Our daughter remembers him bringing sticks of summer sausage and Cheese Whiz.  She also remembered him making pancakes on the grill and serving them with Velveeta.  We always stayed at Twelve Oaks , with a girls room and a boys room.  Never so happy to be a girl!  This trip was especially bittersweet as this was the 8th anniversary of Giles' passing. We didn't

Sous Vide Sirloin Steak with Asparagus #SundaySupper

The Labor Day weekend is almost here and if you are like us, we like to plan our food to match the event. For laborers, we want a hearty meal that will satisfy!  Labor Day was first celebrated in 1887 in Oregon, and became a national holiday in 1894.  It honors the American laborers and is celebrated everywhere in the USA the first Monday in September. Labor Day is also the unofficial "end" of summer.  Kids are usually back in school or will be starting very soon.  If you are a fashionita, you might be one who believes the wearing of white ends here.  I do know I start to get antsy for the fall weather after Labor Day is over. We are enjoying the cooking process known as sous vide.  Its a cooking method where you vacuum seal the food and then cook it in a water bath for longer than what you usually cook at.  It is at a very specific temperature and the item gets cooked perfectly evenly, ensuring that the inside of the food is properly cooked without overcooking the out

Day Trip To The Land of Lincoln, Springfield, Illinois

Day trips are those short little trips you can make from home within a couple of hours of driving.  We love doing day trips as we keep pretty busy and finding the time to do a whole weekend has to be carefully planned into our schedules. With a day trip, all we have to do is wake up and decide its the right day to go!  This day trip was to Springfield, Illinois.  Springfield is about an hour and forty minutes from our home in St. Charles, Missouri.  We decided the night before to make the trip, so we were able to set off around 8:00 in the morning, after breakfast at home. Using the internet and materials we had gathered from various trips, we decided we wanted to make our first stop at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum.  We were definitely interested in learning more about our 16th president, but there was a special display that we were interested in as well: The History between the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals!   The museum is huge and focus

The Return by Suzanne Fisher Wood and others! #OurGoodLifeBookReview

I was given this book in exchange for my honest review. Betsy Zook is a young woman with her whole life ahead of her and then the unthinkable happens, her family is murdered and she and her brother are taken way to be sold or traded in the Indian community. Betsy's fiance is devastated but Tessa, another woman in love with Hans, sees her chance to step into Betsy's shoes. The Return (Amish Beginnings) The book is historical fiction with the American Revolution war still yet to be fought.  This book is filled with differing viewpoints, and multiple characters that need to have their stories shared. There is romance and the struggle with Native Americans. The main characters are mostly German Americans, Amish and live peacefully among the Native Americans and other settlers.  Other settlers, not so much.  They want to push the Native Americans from their home and take their lands.  The Native Americans are a divided people, too.  Some want to live peacefully with

The Nutty Professor Cookies #creativecookieexchange

School is starting up all around me.  My local district is already back in session, and all the districts I worked in as a public school teacher or principal are having Back-to-School teacher meetings.  The beginning of the school year is a fun time for me, even though I don't have a classroom to decorate or new curriculum to learn.  I am fortunate that my day job allows me to interact with teachers.  Another  opportunity I have is to teach preservice teachers as an adjunct professor.  I absolutely love working with pre-service teachers and it is what I would love to do full time.  I don't think that is in the cards for me, so I will love the opportunity I do have.  My husband is a full time college professor, too, but he works with doctoral candidates who want to be administrators. These cookies, then, are aptly named.  The two of us couldn't be any nuttier, especially when it comes to our neighborhood.  We love our neighborhood!  We also adore these easy nut bu

$500 Cash Giveaway! #pinkfortitude

Many of you know, and some of you don't, that I am a breast cancer survivor.  You can read about my story here and my post of gratitude here.  In October I will celebrate 8 years of being a survivor.  I don't think too much ahead, because, well, most survivors realize that if you have had cancer once, your odds are higher that you will get it again.  No one likes to talk about that, though. And, neither do I. I like to celebrate the days I have right now!  I also like to celebrate the anniversaries of other survivors, like Holly from Pink Fortitude.  She's celebrating her 7th anniversary and is giving away a whopping $500 in cash and is letting me "cash" in on this opportunity! It's an exciting day - we are celebrating my dear friend Holly Bertone's 7-year breast cancer survivorversary by helping her share love, inspiration, and a $500 giveaway with all of you! We are celebrating with an amazing group of friends and Giveaway Promote to bring you