Oh, Goodness!

2 weeks, without one little post?! Holy cow, well I do actually have pictures, but they're already on Facebook, so you can go here and here to see some! Yes, I am that lazy. If you're not my friend on Facebook, you might just have to become one to see them. What have we been up to?

Let's see.

School let out on the 18th, I think. Grandma & Papa came for a weekend to hang out. We had a great time. Took them for their first trip to Washington on the Brazos State Park. Great little day trip when the weather is nice. Did I mention that most of it is free, unless you want to take a tour. We have yet to take the tour. Grandma & Papa headed back home to Plano, and I had to kick it into high gear to get all of the Christmas shopping done! Mission accomplished, by the 23rd I think. I do best in the final moments! :) Anyway, we had some great family time, visited with friends, went to church for Christmas Eve, and had a fabulous Christmas morning together here at home. That afternoon, we loaded up the car for a quick trip to Plano. Christmas afternoon/evening was spent with Grandma & Papa, and some to-die-for Prime Rib. Saturday was the main reason for our visit. All of Papa's side of the family was coming to Grandma & Papa's house for a little reunion of sorts. I think the final count was 42! We had a great time meeting some new family members and getting to know some of the older ones that we haven't spent much time with. We had a great time and were glad we could be a part of that! As if, Grandma hadn't had enough fun that day hosting the party, she was up for a little babysitting so Joe and I could go visit friends. I hadn't laughed that hard in a LONG time. We had a few drinks and played Battle of the Sexes...in which case, we discovered we married some girly men...they kicked our butts!!!

That brings us thru this past weekend, and now we are at home and waging a war with our laundry room. If you need me, I'll be buried in there for the next day or so. I know, I know, there are no pictures in this post...however, I feel some blog makeover therapy in my near future, so maybe there will be a new look!

Happy New Year! {Just in case, I don't get a post in before this weekend!}

Stole The Show!

Trey, Trey, Trey. What a ham.




My mom {aka...Mimi}, had mentioned that she was going to take Trey with her and Uncle Cody to the Texas Opry, where Cody's been singing for years & years. Sure thing Mimi! Uncle Cody mentioned to me that he would be singing "Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer"...I thought to myself...hmmm. Trey's favorite song these days. Me, to Trey: "Hey Trey, you might be able to do your dance while Cody's singing...would you want to get up on stage?" Trey responds: "YEA!" Uh oh. He really wants to. Well, you can see by the pictures that he rocked it. He stole the show, and loved every minute of it. I missed it. Boo. So thankful that Mrs. Coxe had her camera to get a few pictures!

Moving on...4 and 1/2 more days of school, and then I have to finish getting ready for the holidays! The tree is up...and decorated. The hard part is over in my opinion! Well, stay tuned and I may put up some pictures of our tree, that is about one inch from hitting the ceiling!

Emery & Trey - Hip Hop Elves

Sorry...couldn't resist.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Joe is Back.

We have survived another football season. A great season, if I do say so myself. The boys exceeded everybody's expectations, and did it with class and great sportsmanship. Last night's loss was to a great team, the Stony Point Tigers. They showed up to play, and the stars were all aligned for them. Everything that needed to go right, did. Not so much for the case for our Wildcats tonight. I thought it was going to be a close game with the Wildcats coming out and getting on the scoreboard in the first two minutes of the game. That was the highlight of our night...after that, it was the Stony Point show. Hats off to them, and they may just take it all the way. The loss is a little bittersweet...would have like to witnessed the Cats go all the way, but glad to have Joe back on a normal schedule!

Here's an iphone pic from last night...not the best, but it shows you one of the best thing about Cy Woods. Praying is the thing to do.



This is what they do every time they take the field. Along with pregame and post game. Isn't that the way it should be!?!

Moving on. I keep saying I haven't been bitten by the Christmas bug yet. Our tree isn't up (that's a whole 'nother story), not much shopping done, and decorations still in the attic. I'm hoping some of that changes this evening, but we shall see. I think there are a few factors playing into my mellow mood. First one being the photography...I've been making sure I have everyone's pictures done and orders in that I haven't taken the time to make sure our lives are in order. :) Second, being that we're not used to playing in December! I like that second one though, I can get used to it.

My goal this week is to get ready for Christmas, along with focusing on our family. Taking pictures of Trey and Emery and getting them in the spirit too. My BFF, Ryan, passed along this AWESOME SITE, for those of you with little ones or grandkids. You should see Trey when he watches his video. So stinkin' cute.

I guess if I want to get my tree up, I better get moving. Hope everyone has a great week, and maybe {just maybe} you'll see pictures of my decorations soon.

Wow.

Wildcats win, Wildcats win, Wildcats win?!! Joe's team {Cy Woods}, as a 2nd year varsity program had made it to the third round of the playoffs again this year. However, most people counted them out of their match up as soon as they found out who the opponent was. Dallas Skyline...{insert the spooky music here}. Skyline has been touted all year as a State favorite, because they are HEAVILY loaded with D-1 prospects. You can read about what people thought here. Fast forward, because I've already given away the ending. Woods trailed 14-7 until the 4th quarter. They even trailed 21-14 with 2 and a half minutes left. Time out - let me let you in on a little statistic...the Skyline quarterback had thrown ZERO interceptions ALL season...until those final 2 and a half minutes. He now has 2 interceptions for the year. Go Wildcat defense. Woods scored 14 points in the final two and a half minutes, and might have scored one of the biggest upsets of this years playoffs. It has to be one of the most exciting games I've been a part of, and I am beyond proud of those boys and the coaches. While I never thought we might get killed, my mindset had been that anything can happen, but I knew those Skyline boys were BIG. Anything did happen, and that win makes the struggles of football season totally worth it.

While the winning was more than fabulous, can we discuss stand/bleacher etiquette? To the gentleman {and I use that word lightly} who felt the need to use the words s{p}it and {d}uck (replace whatever letters you'd like!) during his rant of the players and that they were giving the game away...shame on you. Shame on you, when I asked you VERY politely to please watch your language because there were kids around, that you yelled at me to turn around and pay attention to the game or move. Oh, how I wish I had the nerve of Leigh Anne Tuoy {The Blind Side} to tell that "Crotch mouth" to sit down and shut up. Mimi, however, did tell him to shut up. Okay, moving on. Unfortunately, the fun in the bleachers didn't end there. I promise one of these years, I will let the words "Come on Coach!" roll off my back and ignore them. I'm just not there yet. Those words came flying out of another "gentleman's" mouth at the end of the first half, when Woods decided to head to the locker room with the ball, because we were getting the ball back first thing of the second half {hmm...did they think of that?}. Moving on, I politely said, "There is a coach's family directly behind you, with his children, could you please refrain from yelling at the coaches please." Part of my problem is, that Trey identifies his daddy as a Coach and all of his buddies. He knows when someone is yelling at them, and I don't want to have to explain that, I shouldn't have to. To top it off, the "lady" sitting with them turns around and states that they are coaches {completely baffles me}. In which case, I turn to my cousin and say, "You'd think they know better!" A few more words were exchanged, in which all I asked for was good sportsmanship. Good sportsmanship is cheering FOR the team/coaches/band/dancers, etc....nothing negative. I guess I am on a personal quest to clean up the stands. We'll see how well that goes over. Well, there you have it for the therapy section of my blog.

There is a potential 2 more games left of this football season. My stance on that, is if we've come this far, we might as well go for it! Again, this week...the cards are stacked against us and I don't think people are giving Woods a chance against Round Rock Stony Point. In which, I say...Bring it!

I'll leave you with some pictures of the kiddos, from our friend Miss Sheila! Love them!

So Proud...

On Wednesday, Trey's school had their Fall Feast Mini-Program. I am so blessed to have my conference period during his school time. I was a little nervous to see how he would do. Um. He. Rocked. It. He was BY FAR, the best in the class. {I am not biased. At all.} And, ,yes the kids around him are his age. Even the doctors think he is enormous, what do you expect? The kids that are his size are in the older class.

Any how, there were kids having melt downs, kids looking clueless...not mine. :) I don't think I wiped the smile off of my face all day. The proof is in the pudding video. Check it out.

P.S. If you're on Facebook, you can move on to the next blog. :) You've probably already seen this, and more.

Much Better...

Ahhh...blog re-design. It's good for the soul. Maybe not for me, seeing as how it is after midnight. But, I feel better now. I want in the Christmas spirit. I do. Hence the new look. Then, it came time for the new music player. Y'all, I tried...I really, really did. I couldn't do the Christmas music yet. I just wasn't feeling it. So, for now...you get some of my favorites. Click that arrow on the music player until you get to The Band of Heathens. They.Are.GOOD. They're very talented, and that song...it'll get ya.

Moving on. Let me shout this from the roof top. I do not have one. thing. that I have to do this weekend. You heard it right. (1) the house keepers are coming tomorrow...p.s. don't laugh that it takes 2 people to clean my house. (2) I do not have 1 photo shoot, not 1...and for the first time in a long time, that is okay! (3) Joe plays on Friday and not Saturday, and that leaves at least a 5% chance we'll see him for more than just a couple of hours...and the list goes on.

Tomorrow is Friday. My favorite day of the week. To celebrate, I'm off to go watch Friday Night Light Lights...yes, I know it is almost 1 a.m. But, tomorrow is Friday...enough said.

A Has Been...

Yesterday's post is now officially marked a 'has been'. I had been worried sick with a lump in my throat for 24 hours. I am officially singing a new song...to the tune of 'God is great, and Trey is healthy!'. I know the phrase, 'If you worry, don't pray...and if you pray, don't worry." I get that...but I don't think my mind is physically capable of that. I guess I can thank the devil for that, because my mind has gone where it never should have gone since yesterday.

Since the doctor's update won't fit in my 140 characters on Facebook, I thought I'd put it here. Dr. Staton with Cy Fair ENT, might just be my new favorite person. He had us laughing and relaxed before we even got called back. He happened to be sitting at the front desk when we walked in. No Dr. coat, or anything...I wasn't even sure who it was. However, his first words were, "HOLY COW, you are a giant 3 year old. Look at that guy, he's bigger than my 6 year old daughter!" I laughed. We got the appointment today by agreeing to be 'worked in'. I was expecting a LONG wait. 5 minutes later we were in a room with Dr. Staton. Trey was trying to tackle him, he had Trey bent over his knee tickling him...not your general first meeting with a doctor. Just the way I like it. Trey's good like that. Moving on...He felt Trey's lymph nodes, he looked in his throat, and then it came. "This is it? I expected something MUCH larger." In a nutshell, Trey doesn't even really have an infected throat, nor does he have abnormal size lymph nodes. He felt like Trey's nodes were within the normal range, and nice and squishy, and not out of place. I asked him if he thought we should do an ultrasound/blood work to make sure, and he reassured me that he wouldn't even do that if it was his child. I feel like 2 tons has been lifted off of my chest. Praise God. How silly do I feel, that I could worry like that? I can't fault Dr. Parikh, because he was legitimately concerned for Trey. I wouldn't want it any other way. I saw the concern in his face, and that is when my alarm went off. Dr. Staton trusts Parikh too {Parikh happens to be his Dr. too!}, but as Staton said it's his job to know the neck, and Trey's neck feels just fine.

I feel so blessed to have friends {some that I know well, some I don't} that surrounded us in prayer yesterday and today. Thank you. I can't tell you how much it means to Joe and me. When we got in the car after the appointment, we both kind of looked at each other and Joe said he felt silly for even preparing for the worst. I felt the same. We were reassured today that God is great, and Trey is healthy!

And just for good measure...a picture from Miss Sheila. Love her.

Please Tell Me...

Not to worry. I am sick to my stomach, and I don't even know that there is something wrong. Here's why...

Trey has had several bouts of tonsillitis in the last year. I'd say at least 3 or 4. His throat gets really red, and his lymph nodes get enlarged. Well on Sept. 28 he had another go round of it. And then again in mid October. 2 different antibiotics. He has been telling me for the last day that his throat still hurts, and his neck hurts. I can deal with throat, but when you say neck...we better go to the doctor. I took Trey in to our favorite doctor today. Yes, his throat shows a few signs of infection. However, the troubling look on the doctors face when he feels Trey's lymph nodes just flipped a switch in me. Worry time. His lymph nodes have gone down a bit from the last time he examined him...on the sidelines of Joe's football game two weeks ago. However, there's another lymph node in there that is swollen. Trey is the mascot at Dr. Parikh's office...I swear they'd hire him if they could. They all get smiles on their faces when Trey decides he's sick. Hence the reason, Dr. Parikh said we're going to be aggressive with this...Dr. Parikh's exact words. "Most kids I would send home and tell them to call me in a few weeks if they haven't gone down. This is Trey, we're going to make sure." We need to get blood work done, and possibly biopsy these lymph nodes. In case you don't know...this is how the diagnosis of Lymphoma starts. However, Dr. Parikh is 99% sure that this is just a prolonged infection, and stubborn lymph nodes {that can stay enlarged for up to 3 months}...but like he said, this is Trey...we have to make sure.


Someone please hand me a trash can. I need to vomit now. While I love this blog world, it also leads me to read several stories of why I should be worried. However, God gives and takes away...and I will choose to follow him.

I got Trey in to the ENT tomorrow at 2:30, where we will just go from there. No, I will not sleep until then. Yes, I've cried. If you know me, I am a silent worrier. But, we need prayers please. Prayers for peace until we find out that this nothing. Prayers that this IS nothing. Prayers for Trey, that he remain the healthy, spunky, sweet Trey that he is and always will be. This blog post will hopefully become a 'has been' and I will praise God when it is.

I'm scared.

{The Blind Side}

I must see this movie. I WILL have a babysitter on the day it comes out. This is the first movie in a LONG time that I have been this excited about.

Why am I excited? Let me list the ways:
(1)Tim McGraw, do I need to go on?
(2)Sandra Bullock is awesome.
(3)It involves football.
(4)The story looks AWESOME.
(5)Being in education, the thought of doing this has crossed my mind more than once.

That's why. Have a great week!

P.S. I've had a lot of awesome families to photograph lately, go check it out!

Just a Few Days Behind...

Where has the time gone? Thought I'd share these before Christmas...um, HELLO, it's right around the corner. :) Anyway, if we're friends on Facebook, feel free to continue on with your stalking...these have been up on Facebook since Halloween. Enjoy! :)

Recipes!

Following thru with my promise of providing some recipes! I am not a cook that likes to do a bunch of little steps, so these recipes are very low on the difficulty scale!

We'll start with Party Sandwiches. First and foremost, you must use the Hawaiian Sweet Rolls. The little ones. You know, these...



Just trust me. Okay, moving on. Separate all of the rolls and cut them in half {horizontally, in case you were wondering}. The filling of the sandwich will be ham and swiss cheese. Now, comes the sauce...it makes the sandwich.

Sauce: (makes enough for 2 dozen sandwiches)

• 1/2 stick butter (melted)
  
• 4 tbs mustard
  
• 4 tbs Worcestershire sauce
  
• 4 tbs Poppy seeds
  

Stir the sauce until well blended. Spread sauce on inside of both the top and bottom rolls. Put 1 piece of ham and 1 slice of swiss on each roll and put the sandwich back together. I put the rolls in a casserole dish all nice and snug next to each other and cover them with foil so that the bread doesn't dry out. Once you have assembled the sandwiches, you bake them at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes...really just make sure they get good and warm and the cheese melts. These are best served warm. How good are these? Let's just say, when Joe got to the party Friday night...he grabbed an entire tray and may or may not have devoured them.

Recipe #2: Corn Dip

Here's what you'll Need:

• 2 cans Fiesta Corn
  
• 2 cups Fiesta {Mexican blend} cheese
  
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  
• 2 cups Mayonnaise
  
• 1 small can chopped green chiles OR jalapenos {depends on your mood}

Mix ingredients together in a nice, big bowl. Put into 8 x 8 dish and bake at 350 degrees for about half an hour. It should be nice and bubbly and golden when you pull it out. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes before serving, and serve with tortilla chips. This was the hit of the party. Stephanie and I will never tell our secret. Never. Okay, maybe...just not now.


Recipe #3: Peach Pecan Cobbler Dessert {Owens' Style}

This recipe has a story. Joe's 'way-back' great grandfather, Jared Groce, built Liendo Plantation out in Hempstead. That is where we had our rehearsal dinner. Beautiful, beautiful place. If I wasn't afraid of the law, I might consider moving in with the family. Love. that. place. The current owner is an awesome guy that can put together an amazing menu. The dessert at our rehearsal was phenominal. So much so, that I needed to know how to make it. Okay, that didn't happen, but we have since come up with a pretty close second. Thanks to my Aunt Dana. She's good. This is a NO. FAIL. RECIPE. Ready?

• 2 Granny Smith Deep Dish Peach pies {You can really use any kind of peach whatever}
  
• 1-2 jars of caramel ice cream topping {as much or as little as you want}
  
• Cinnamon
  
• Pecans {again, as much or as little as you want}
  

Let the pies sit out to soften. You will take a large knife and attempt to dice them. This will get messy. It's OK. You just want them in 'chunks'. Once you have the pies all nice and cut up, put them in a nice, BIG bowl. Pour your desired amount of caramel on top, sprinkle as much cinnamon in there as you want, throw some pecans in there and stir. It's a good work out. Dump it into a nice casserole dish, and bake at whatever time/temperature that Granny Smith told you to bake it. To top it off, don't you dare think about serving this without ice cream. Don't.

Let me know if you try these recipes and you like them! We definitely LOVE them.

We're Alive!

Joe reminded me last night that I had not updated our blog. I promptly reminded him that I've been a little b.u.s.y. Let's see, where to begin? I had a photo shoot last weekend. Fun family! From there, this week has been solely dedicated to planning the Wildcat's after game party for the week. After each home game, we head to a house for {hopefully} a little celebration. I had to decide on a menu...if you know me, then you know deciding is not my thing. :) Here's what we had:

The Menu:
Party Sandwiches
Corn Dip
Spinach Artichoke Dip
Pasta Salad
Lil Smokies
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Peach Pecan Cobbler Dessert

The party finished up around 12:30 or 1 a.m. and Trey was still going strong. Yikes. Fast forward to Saturday morning. THIS was Saturday, all day long. Can we say marathon? Had a great time meeting new families and playing with some cute little ones! I know have 8 shoots to edit. Whoa. Gotta get going!

Stay tuned for recipes!

{Overdue Randomness}

Whoa, it's almost taken a week to get back into the groove of things. We had a fabulous time back in Nac. It was such an honor. This was the inaugural Hall of Fame Weekend, and they did it up right! They paid for our hotel room. They gave us a nice tour of all the new stuff on campus. {P.S. If you haven't been back on campus in the last couple of years...it's worth the trip.} They had a booth in our honor at the tailgating festivities. We sat in the rain at the game. We were honored at half time on the field. I was able to see lots of my friends and family, and that made for such a memorable weekend. Thank you SFA. Here are just a few pictures. I didn't want to take up the entire page, so check out the little album below...



Some other random thoughts for the week...

• Why do 4-day weeks seem to drag. on. forever?
  
• Our puppies are begging for new homes. I'm just sayin'.
  
• How about that balloon boy family. Ridiculous.
  
• Trey is doing awesome at school. Well, that is when he's not telling the teacher how it should be...
  
• We are SO looking forward to the weekend!!!
  

Big Week - Weekend

Whoa, what a week! Trey started preschool Tuesday. We are blessed enough to have Grammie take Trey Tuesday thru Thursday to my school's ECP program. He gets to go from 8:30 to 11:30, Tuesday thru Thursday. How awesome is that?! Trey is a sponge and he is lovin' it! The really fun part is that I have 3 or 4 of the girls that teach Trey in the mornings...they're in my class in the afternoons. Trey better mind his P's and Q's...because they like to spill the beans. He has gotten great reports each day...I am really proud of him. Every Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday I go check on him during my conference, and I walk away grinning from ear to ear. So fun! Oh yea, Trey had homework the first night. I don't know how much he liked that!





Emery had to have some of her own pictures this week...





Tonight, I am procrastinating packing. We are headed back behind The Pine Curtain {aka...East Texas, Nacogdoches to be exact} for this. Can we say, "I'M A LITTLE NERVOUS!" Nervous, but excited. I don't like the 'lime light'...is that even the right phrase? I am very honored, and can't wait to see what the weekend brings. One thing that I know it is bringing, is a reunion with great friends and family. I. can't. wait. That, to me, is one of the best parts! Well, stay tuned for pictures...and I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend.

Get Your Puppies! AKC Shelties

Whoa. An entire week with no posts. Shame. I think we've had a good excuse though. Emery with a cold, Trey with tonsillitis {shocker} and an ear infection. We're your regular 3 ring circus around here...you know, 5 dogs. Count 'em. 5. 3 of them however, need to find their new home. Is it your home? Maybe! :) They {being 2 girls & a boy} are R.E.A.D.Y. They're eating their own food. Playing, jumping, running everywhere. You know you want one. Just take a look. E-mail me if you're interested!


Female Merle
A sheltie, with Australian Shepherd coloring...




Male Sable
Just a miniature Lassie!




Female Sable
The female mini Lassie!





Excuse the 'blah' of the pictures. It has been a wet, dreary weekend and the pups were enjoying the wet backyard! The lil' ones will be ready this week, so come and get 'em! Don't tell Trey though, he may need therapy.

* Show Us Your Life - Desserts *

Oh, the desserts! The best part of every meal, right? This is by far one of my MOST favorite desserts. I haven't made it in forever, a little heavy on the calorie counter, but hey...that's what dessert is about! Something like this was served as the dessert at our rehearsal dinner, and everyone raved about it. My aunt went home and concocted this recipe, and it was very similar. The best part? There is no slaving over a mixer, hovering over the oven...nothin! Okay, okay...enough rambling.

Caramel Peach OR Apple Pecan Bake

You'll need:

• 2 Mrs. Smith's {or whatever frozen pie floats your boat} Deep Dish Apple OR Peach Pie's {Go with your gut}
  
• 1 jar of caramel ice cream topping
  
• 1 cup of pecans {chopped}
  
• However much cinnamon you want to add

Directions:

• Set pies out on counter for 30 minutes or so, let them soften
• Once soft, take a large knife and dice the pies {this can get messy, and does not need to be perfect!}
• Put chunks in large bowl, add jar of caramel topping, chopped pecans, and cinnamon
• Mix it up and down and all around with a large spoon
• Dump into a 9 x 13 or a nice, big casserole dish
• Bake according to directions on the pie box
• You must serve this with Blue Bell Vanilla Ice Cream, that part is not optional

Enjoy!! I can't wait to see all of the other dessert recipes over at Kelly's Blog!

Maybe a New Favorite...

As I was perusing technology sites this morning, I came across this site. A dream for a multimedia teacher! Check it out. It's free. Oh yea.



*That is, if I can get the video to show over here!* Nonetheless, check it out.

Friday Night Lights

You can find us here...most Friday nights.

Emery has yet to make her appearance. She'll be wearing these when she does...


Grammie is sewing ruffles to the bottoms with that cheetah fabric. Cuteness.

Here are just a few pics of what our game nights look like. Enjoy!

Pregame: Playin' in the dirt.


Haulin' the backpack that is bigger than he is. (FULL o' toys)


Checkin' out daddy in the box...(this before he headed for the field, because the headphones weren't working!)


Watching just a little of this...


Talking on the phone...It's important.


Deep thoughts...


Thankfully, we celebrated a victory. Woods over Stratford 35-14. Daddy is home on a Sunday, long enough to mow the yard and wash the car. I think I'm going to cook...stop the presses!

Hope everyone has a great Sunday and an even better week!

Show Us Your Life - Dinner Recipes

Who can pass up sharing recipes? Kelly over at Kelly's Korner has a 'Show Us Your Life' theme each this week. This week is recipes and I thought I'd participate, you know...so I don't feel guilty stealing the other recipes. I know I've posted this on here before, but hey...my brain is tired. :) Hope y'all have had a great week and are as excited for the weekend as I am!

The Tickle Family Meatloaf:
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1 1/2 rows of saltine crackers
1 med. onion, chopped
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 tbsp. ketchup
1/2 cup milk

Sauce:
4 tbsp. vinegar
4 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/3 onion (left over from above)
*I always double this, b/c we love the sauce...

Mix the meat, crushed saltine crackers, beaten egg, 2/3 chopped onion, salt, pepper, ketchup, and milk. Form into loaf in 9 x 13 pan. Pour sauce mixture (see below) over the top of the loaf and bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

What's so special about meatloaf? This one...it's the sauce! This is by far one of our favorite dinner meals. It makes for the best left overs too! We were blessed with this recipe from one of my college roommates. We would double/triple the recipe and have a house full...memories!

Head on over to Kelly's Korner to find more recipes!

Just Because...

Just because? I'm blogging, just because I'm tired of looking at the pork chops from last Tuesday's post. Just because, I feel the need to dog Kanye West for his antics last night. Shame on him, that's all I'm gonna say. Just because, we have a crazy busy week this week. Just because.

Halloween is just around the corner. My favorite time of year! Look how stinkin' cute Emery is going to be in this...I'm gonna make it.



Trey has his little heart set on this...



I think it's just an excuse for him to be able to jump off every piece of furniture we have, and get away with it!

Why is our week crazy busy? Hmmm. Tuesday night is Open House. Wednesday night might be a regular night. Thursday night we have the sub varsity football games...thank goodness this week they are at home. Friday night is the varsity game. However, I have half of my laundry done, half of the house picked up/cleaned...therefore, I might have some time to get started on that costume. I also am going to be making some of our decorations this year for Halloween and Christmas, so I best get started!

I have to give a huge shout out to Mr. Trey. I know sometimes I just have to throw my hands up, but this weekend he was soooo good. For Trey. Saturday night at the football game, he did pretty well...other than a few 'not listening' moments. Then, we had a party after the game, and he did awesome at the coach's house. Not to mention he lasted until 1 a.m. You read that right. 1 a.m. in the morning! Okay, gotta get back to grading papers. Hope everyone has a fabulous week.

Um. Yum.

Tonight was the typical Tuesday at the Owens' household. Home from school. Naps. Go catch a game or two of volleyball {no, we don't make it the entire match}. Grab a bite to eat I cook. Bath. Bed.

Tonight I actually cooked. This as a matter of fact.


and this...


That would be barbecued pork chops and sauteed green beans. I say barbecued, but I'm not really sure what category my lil' sauce would fit into. It was one of those "throw whatever you got into the bowl" sauces. This happened to be: apricot preserves, soy sauce, lil' bit o sherry, oil...I think that's all, and don't ask me measurements. :) That's how I roll. I just seasoned the pork chops and threw them on the grill and basted while they cooked. YUM.

The sauteed green beans are actually CANNED green beans. In the past, I've used fresh, but let's face it...I didn't have time to clean fresh ones. I just threw a couple slices of chopped bacon in the skillet, drain the green beans and throw them in. Season with salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and a little soy sauce. DOUBLE YUM. Joe gave it the thumbs up and that's all that really matters.

Enough about cooking. It probably won't happen again this week. JUST KIDDING. Okay maybe not. Anyhow...you know you want one of these...



I'm just sayin'.

And this girl...she might be too stinking cute for her own good.


Her brother...he's a mess. At least he's a cute mess though.

Uneventful

{2 weeks down, 34 to go!} I'm just sayin'! We haven't been up to much at. all. this week. Joe's been workin' hard with football. First game tomorrow night in College Station! Let's say a little prayer that we come out on top, otherwise...next week, might be a very long week!

I, SO, look forward to coming home every other Friday. Why? Their names are Angelita and Mina, and they are quickly becoming my best friends. They make my house live-able every 2 weeks. Oh, how they make my Friday's. When they are through, my garage even smells clean. Oh, happy Friday!

I was somewhat productive this week. You can see the floor in my laundry room now. Stop laughing. It's true. It's actually ALL in 1 basket! You read that right, 1 basket!

Okay, okay...I know you just came lookin' for pictures...and if you're a Facebook friend, sorry...these are repeats. I'll have more pictures this weekend. Promise.







You want to talk about some socialized puppies...Trey might need some therapy when they have to go to their new homes. Speaking of new homes, all 3 of these puppies need one! {ahem!}

Well, this might just be the most random...good for nothin' post. Can you tell I am ready for a weekend? Hope everyone has a great one!

Definitely Trey's blackmail picture for his life. Lord help him. Had to share. I can't stop laughing when I look at this!

It has begun...

What has begun? I'll let the pictures do the talking...I'm too sleepy to come up with something witty!


Trey definitely is on paw patrol...he is always lookin' for the Wildcat!


He found him...


Trey loves him some Coach Neill! He was getting to catch the snaps from the center...In case you were wondering.


Daddy in action...


Trey get's very excited to see his daddy at the game...


I think the feeling is mutual!


And, so it has begun. Our favorite time of year!