New Friend Friday

If you're visiting from NFF, welcome!  I hope you enjoy your visit!

The Girl Creative and The Trendy Treehouse have officially teamed up to co-host New Friend Fridays! Each week you will have the chance to add a link to your main blog to the ever growing list below. New Friend Fridays is a fun blog hop where it's all about making new bloggy friends and offering meaningful comment support to other bloggers. Whether you add your link to the list at The Girl Creative or The Trendy Treehouse it's all just one great big list.


The Rules are Simple:

• Add a link to your main blog
• Visit the blog of the person whose name is above and below your name in the list and leave a meaningful comment on their blog.
• Visit as many blogs as you can and leave comments telling them you are visiting from New Friend Fridays at The Girl Creative or The Trendy Treehouse.
• There is no obligation and no pressure to follow everyone who follows you. Please just follow the blogs that are of interest to you. :)
• Family Friendly Blogs ONLY please. Explicit sites will be removed.

If you have any questions or concerns about the rules, please click HERE to read a post that should clarify things a bit.

Things I've Learned Thursday

I've decided to start a regular Thursday post...we'll actually see how this goes.  It's titled "Things I've Learned Thursday."  I'll share what I've learned this week, which may or may not end up in a story.

1. The plastic thing that holds the water in your toilet tank is called a flapper.  It's very easy to replace your flapper when the original gasket gets flushed down the toilet.  Yea...it just disappeared.  And, you can't buy a replacement gasket.  You have to buy an entire flapper.
2. Mini horses poop A LOT!  I mean A LOT!  Every single night this week I've had to clean out their stall.  While I really don't mind this now since it's summer, I keep envisioning what it's going to be like in January and February when it's so flippin' cold!
3. It doesn't matter that your kitchen floor was just mopped.  It will rain.  And your dogs will get the floor dirty.
4. Your calves can sweat...I mean the ones on your legs. 
5. Big Brother 12 isn't as good as BB11.  I still love Jeff and Jordan.  Brendon and Rachel can go home.
6. When your boss resigns, you get a pang of nervousness for the future.
7. When your boss resigns, opportunity presents itself.
8. Turning 38 was easy.
9. Even though it's been over 100 degrees two days this week, I still love summer!
10. I really do live my life as an adventure.  Being told on Tuesday that I have to go to South Carolina (from Missouri) on Sunday was not overwhelming.  I LOVE South Carolina, so this is just a quickly planned adventure that will test my "bounce-ability" and spontaneity, but it will be awesome.  Being a single mom of two kiddos, with 19 feathered and furry creatures that depend on me for food, it can be VERY difficult coordinating trips away from home for work or pleasure.  But I have an absolutely A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. family that helps me out even though they don't have to. 

100 Things

Here's a list of 100 Things that you may or may not have accomplished.  I have put the things I have accomplished in bold print! I hope you will play along on your blog! Leave a comment if you do! I'd love to see.......


1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis -- and I was scared to death!
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing (does that fake wall count?)
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life -- if you count the rescue / foster animals we've had
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Hope you enjoy!!

adventure Awaits! The Story of My New Necklace!

So, a few months back, I subscribed to Mom magazine after a bargain post from Collin at Hip2Save. I then read a few weeks ago that some of the new subscribers were receiving a box of free samples to try. I didn’t give much thought to this, but then I received my box. Well, there weren’t just samples of stuff to try, there were oodles of things in this box. My 11-year-old son said, “Mom, why did you order all that baby stuff?” Lots of baby stuff there was, and all of it has found a great home with some well deserving moms of young children (or ended up in my daughter’s baby box as the cloth diaper did…that thing was awesome!).

Anyway, there were several gift certificates in the box as well. Well, of course I took advantage of these! One of the certificates was from LisaLeonardOnline.com. You must check this site out if you’re looking for a gift item for someone special (or for yourself like I was…I’m the baby of the family, what can I say? I’m a little selfish…). She has such pretty things and all in sterling silver.

So I decided, after much internal deliberation, on the “Word of the Year” necklace. You can have this necklace customized with any word you wish. I chose “adventure” to represent the way I choose to live my life.

It arrived wrapped in Oh! So pretty paper and tied with a bow:

As I unwrapped, I was more and more impressed with the care that went into the

presentation of the item.

I am so happy and impressed with my necklace!! I absolutely love it and can’t wait to wear it! It’s so unique and personal. I hope you’ll check out LisaLeonardOnline.com!

I was not compensated to review or post about this product! Just sharing an item I love with friends!

Weekend Wrap-Up

I think I'm going to have to take stock in Buchheit's, the local farm supply store.  I've spent way too much time and money there since April of this year in my quest to build a small zoo empire collection of furry and feathered creatures. 

We got our miniature horses this weekend.  Better pictures to come, but here they are:

This is Pearl.  She's a very shy girl, and she's stark white.  Absolutely gorgeous!

This is Tootsie Roll.  She's Pearl's daughter and has the most beautiful blonde mane and tail.

It's hard to get perspective on just how small they are, but the green gate behind Tootsie Roll is 48" in height, and Tootsie is shorter than that.  She comes to just below my waist.  So small and just adorable.

These bring our empire zoo collection to 3 dogs, 3 cats, 4 bunnies, 7 chickens (I can't for the life of me figure how we still have all 7 after where I found them this weekend), and 2 mini horses.  The thing that makes me the most proud is that all of them (well, except for one very cranky and blanket-possessive bunny) are kid-friendly.

Feel free to stop by and visit any time.  That's why they're here!

But, this was my favorite day.  The day I did not have to mow the grass because of this:

Lainey can mow the grass!!  And she likes it!  THIS was a most wonderful day.  I sat in the garage in my recliner chair enjoying an icy cold beverage, while my most awesome daughter took care of this chore.