Where Have I Been!?!?!?

Where have I been!?!!? I promise, I have been around...but in between work and trying to get everything ready for "Miss Priss" (AKA Katelyn's) Graduation party I have had just enough time to drop in and check out all of your blogs (somedays not enough that) but I have not had any time to even touch my blog...much less create new posts.

I promise, I will soon be back with some Prim eye candy, pics of our Koi pond and maybe even a pic or two of the party itself!! LOL!!

But let me tell you girls, I AM EXHAUSTED!!!!!! I am ready for a vacation. I was supposed to be on vacation next week but I think I may give the days up....and save them for later on in the summer. Mainly because, "Miss Priss" will be in Florida, "Muscles" will be in summer school part of the days (he is taking Driver's Education) and "Big Daddy" will be at work...so I am not sure if it would be worth taking it. I think I rather take the days off whenever we all can take the time off together.

Even though, I really think I could use a few "me" days. You know those days where I don't have to be any where at any certain time. Or answer to anybody. Where I can do what I want when I want. No pre-set agenda. But then again, knowing me I would be lonely and bored!! Isn't that sad!?!?! Not that I would ever really know...I haven't had too many of those days. LOL!!

Seriously though, how do you all do it?!?!?!? It just seems that all of you girls have your "stuff" together. Where most days, I feel like I am always going but yet never getting much accomplished...you all seem to be able to blog, craft, take care of your children and homes (beautiful homes, I might add) and still have your sanity? I swear between work and home, I feel that the is never enough time in the day. Not to mention that fact that there never seems to be enough time for things like crafting (which BTW, I would LOVE to do more of!!)

BTW, THANKS FOR ALL OF THE ADVICE ON HOW TO HANDLE STRESS. I HAVE TRIED A FEW OF THE SUGGESTIONS. BUT WITH WORKING, GETTING READY FOR THE GRADUATION PARTY, AND EVERYTHING ELSE LIFE HAS THROWN MY WAY IN THE PAST WEEK OR SO, IT DOESN'T SEEM TO BE HELPING. BUT I PROMISED "BIG DADDY" THAT AS SOON AS THIS PARTY IS OVER I WILL SLOW DOWN - TAKE A FEW DEEP BREATHS, MAYBE EVEN START EXCERCISING AND THAT I WILL TRY TO RELAX MORE!! I HAVE A FEW PRIM PROJECTS THAT I AM EXCITED TO START....

Hello

Sorry, I haven't been around much lately...but I think the above pic says it all!!!!!

Please tell me that I am not the only one feeling stressed lately. I am sure with the economy being the way it is we are all feeling it's effects.

Even though my husband and I both have full-time jobs outside of the home, we are still feeling the stress of these trying times. Everyday, we both pray that we will continue to have jobs.

Not to mention, all of the other stresses I have been feeling lately. You know the ones that we as Woman, Wives and Moms all feel on a daily basis.

So with this I ask you all...what do you all do to try to relieve some of your stress? Do you all read? craft? keep a journal?

Where Have I Been?

Sorry ladies, I know I have been MIA for a few days but I will show where I have been...

A PRIMITIVE PLACE

I recently joined the forum over at A Primitive Place and let me tell you there is so much inspiration over there. If you haven't been over in their neck of the woods yet, go check them out!!

~Sunday Supper~

BAKED TILAPIA with MANGO SALSA (RECIPE AS FOLLOWS)

Ingredients:

Butter cooking spray

4 (6 to 8-ounce) tilapia fillets

1 teaspoon seasoning salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 lime, finely grated zest and juice

2 tablespoons butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a large cast iron pan with a nonstick butter spray.
Rinse fish and pat dry; place on the prepared baking sheet. Season each fillet with seasoing salt, cracked pepper, lime zest and lime juice. Add fish to the pan. Place a pat of butter on each fillet and cook in the oven for 8 to 12 minutes.

MANGO SALSA

Ingredients:
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 mango, chopped
1 cup seeded chopped tomato (roma works well)
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lime, juice
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Directions:
Mix and chill for about an hour. Serve over tilapia.

Yard Work, Yard Work and MORE Yard Work!!

OMGoodness, Ladies!! Sorry for the absence, but I feel like all we have been doing lately is yard work, yard work and MoRe yard work!!

For the past two weekends we have been coming home on Friday night after work and working in the yard pretty much non-stop. Well, except for last Sunday afternoon when we treated ourselves to a trip to the pool that we belong to.

We have weeded, planted flowers, laid mulch, re-did Koi pond and even re-did our re-do of the Koi pond. And that was just last weekend. So far, this weekend we have painted, cut the grass, went and picked up and loaded FOUR huge truckloads of flagstone and now we are getting ready (after "Big Daddy" takes a little "baby nap") to go back out and start laying flagstones in our fire pit area.

Hopefully we will be finished soon....because the inside of my house has been neglected the past few weekends. Even though, "Miss Priss" has been helping me out and trying to keep things "picked up" during the day. Which I TOTALLY ApPrEcIaTe!! Not to mention the fact that my back is killing me and I am tired of spending my weekends doing this kind of stuff. I am telling you it is times like this that I either wish there was more time in the day or that I didn't have to work outside of the home full-time so I had more time during the week. Too much to do and not enough time to do it!!

You maybe wondering why we are killing ourselves trying to finish all of these projects now...well, we are trying to get ready for "Miss Priss'" Graduation party on the 27th. Nothing like some added pressure. It's the ultimate motivator. LOL!!

Anyway, just thought I would take a little "blog break" while "Big Daddy" was napping but I promise to be back soon with not only some pics of my Prim projects but some of our yard. Hey, maybe that is what I will start our "Tour My Home Thursdays" with...the yard. Like Heather's Stitches suggested we could start with the entry way. And what is the first thing you see before the entry way? The outside. Makes sense to me!! LOL!!

Help Needed Please

Hi Ladies!! Hope you all are having a wonderful evening!! I was just wondering if any of you would be willing to share some step by step instructions on how to Prim up various wood pieces.?!?!? Or if any of you know where to possibly find a tutorial on this?!?!?

I completed this cutting board the other evening but I am not quite happy with it. I am not sure if I didn't sand enough, or if I sanding too much on the edges. I am not quite sure but something just doesn't quite seem right. Now looking at the picture I can see that I forgot to paint the hole on the handle...ooops!!

Any advice of what I did wrong?

Yard Work, A Sunburn and A Couple Prim Projects!

After MANY, MANY hours of yard work we finally got to go the pool Sunday afternoon. I know, I said that we were going to try to go Saturday but after re-doing the Koi pond all day Saturday we were TIRED but guess what we ended up having to do again Sunday morning?!?!? Yep, the Koi pond. Which, BTW I will show some pics of as soon as we get some of the planting completed.

You see, our pond liner had gotten a hole in it about a year or so ago but we have been "nursing" it up until this past Saturday when we decided thought we could just "fix it". Needless to say, it was obvious first thing Sunday morning that our plan didn't work.

So, after running to the store and getting a brand new liner we re-did our re-do. Make sense!?!? It wasn't too bad we only had to re-do the bottom half so we were finished probably by noon, plenty of time to go to the pool. And at least it is fixed correctly this time.

To reward ourselves for all of our hard work this weekend, we decided to go ahead and go to the pool for a few hours where I obviously didn't put enough of this on...

because I got BuRnT!! That is one of the reason it took me so long to post these "before" and "after" pics. I have been so sore the past two days between getting a major workout doing yardwork and the sunburn. Let's just say I have been moving ExTrA slow. But remember these...
BEFORE:

AFTER:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Just a couple pics of just two of the Prim projects I have FINALLY gotten finished. I am not sure how happy I am about there turnout but for my first real Prim paint jobs, I guess there are OK. I did also paint the bowl seen in this before pic but I wasn't very happen with it and so "Big Daddy" (AKA "Mr. Know-It-All") decided to try to sand it "with the grain" as he was telling me and let's just say he did NOT make it look any better. So, I guess I will be re-doing and other re-do. LOL!!