Lil' of This, Lil' of That, a Small Touch of Fall...

I am behind in posting awards that I recently received! Forgive me! :)

....Well, actually I am behind posting PERIOD! It's taken me two days to complete this one, with all of the interruptions! ...Again, Forgive me! "BIG smiles!"

I do appreciate and cherish each award I am given, and am always humbled that anyone would read my blog....and enjoy it too! So, from the bottom of my heart, I THANK YOU all who passed these on to me!!!

This first special award below is from Pearl, Pearl's Sentimental Journey!

Pearl created this sweet award herself! If I could only live up to the ..."and grace," part! :)

Pearl also passed on the "I (heart) your blog," award to me,

as well as Melissa, from Little Things in Life.

This super cute "Dog Lover Blog," award came from Nikki, at Blah, Blah, Blah Blog. She is a fellow dog lover, and Coco, Bailey, and I thank her for this unique award!

If you would like to read a few posts that will keep in you stitches with laughter, visit her blog and scroll down to the "Squirrel Hunt I & II (August Archives)." Hilarious!!!

Nikki also tagged me a while back to list 6 Quirks about me! She stated that I was "sweet and normal" and wanted to know if I had any quirks! HAHAHAHA! Yea, if you guys only knew! In person, I am anything but normal!

1) I think anything drenched in ranch dressing and/or marinara sauce tastes better!

2) In fact, I only eat french fries, if I have plenty to ranch to dip them in!

3) I like to mix all my food on my plate together, after all it is all going down the same way, right?

4) I love living on the water, but I hate getting wet! ...even the littlest drizzles of raindrops make me utterly miserable!

5) I LOVE shoes!!! ...but on most days you will find me barefoot, (especially in the house)...or at least wearing no more than flip-flops!

6) It makes me crazy for anyone "to eat off of MY plate!" I'll gladly cook you your own, or buy you a whole plate of whatever, but please do not graise on mine!

7) I detest making plans with people who are NEVER on time!

8) And NUMBER 8, (two quirks too many! LOL!) I usually bend the rules and do things my own way! ...Do you still think I am sweet and normal??? LOL!

And for the Last Award...

This pretty pink award came from Cindy, at Just Another Day in Paradise! If you visit her, you will get a lesson in kissing! LOL!
She doesn't "dream" about it, just likes to look, (and sometimes with BINOCULARS!!!) LOL!

Girl, You know I love ya! Couldn't resist a little teasing! ;)

Cindy also challenged me to a Tag....

Seven Things I Plan To Do Before I Die....

1) Have my entire house clean, including the kids rooms, for 3 days.

2) On the first day after I clean my house, rest the entire day without feeling guilty, just be lazy!

3) On the second day after I clean my house, shop the entire day without feeling guilty.

4) On the third day after I clean my house, scrapbook the entire day without feeling guilty.

5) Go to Paris with Ashley. Would also like to visit Scotland and Ireland!

6) Lose 50 pounds and keep it off!

7) Volunteer with the Southern Baptist Relief Team after hurricanes and such!

7 1/2) Own and operate a B&B, including an antique/gift store and restaurant on the grounds.

Seven Things I cannot do...

1) Lose 50 pounds and keep it off!

2) Bake a perfectly level cake! I am very lucky if it will just come out of the pan in ONE piece!

3) Speak a foreign language! I was tutored by a "native" Spanish speaking teacher in college, and that still didn't turn out very well!

4) Play a musical instrument!

5) Stand the sight of snakes!

6) ....or needles or blood! I have a very weak stomach!

7) Be patient!

Seven Things I Can Do...

1) Race in the Daytona 500 and possibly win! After years of practice making the morning run driving the kids to school, I am more than qualified! :) I am thankful to come back alive and unscathed! LOL!

2) Cook.

3) Plan and throw a party or large function.

4) Give me a slanted slash brush, and I can paint a straight line like nobody's business. No painter's tape required! :)

5) Speed clean the entire downstairs for unexpected company coming in less than 15-20 minutes! Just don't open any cabinets or drawers!

6) Strive to be a good mom and wife!

7) Blog for hours at a time!

Seven Things That Attracted Me to Kevin...

1) He's super handsome with thick, dark hair!

2) His chocolate brown eyes, that "smile" when he does.

3) He drives a tractor, seriously, and everyone knows that is sexy! :)

4) He is a manly man, or "burly man," as Picket would say! He always makes me feel safe and secure!

5) He has a tough exterior, but he is very patient and kind!

6) He has a wonderful sense of humor! ...although I am often the butt of his jokes! LOL! But that's okay, I'm a big girl, I can take it and still laugh! LOL! Joanne Woodard, said of her late husband of 55 years, Paul Newman, that he could still make her laugh. And years after good looks and all else fades, laughter is what keeps you together!

7) He loves the Lord!

Seven Things I say most often....

1) David, David, David, David....at least a million times a day!

2) And do I care what anyone else did??? ...said after the kids tell me that everyone else made a bad grade, or got in trouble in class, too!

3) I was thinking..... (Kevin dreads this one, usually involves a new project!)

4) Ashley, Clean up in isle 7! (After Coco has an accident.)

5) Bailey, what are you doing? ...It drives my family crazy that I talk to my dog, and NO, I do not think he will answer me!

6) I need to run in here for just one thing, won't take me a second! (While Kevin or the kids wait in the car outside.)

7) Get over it, life is not fair!

Seven Celebrities I admire..., (tough one, I read and blog more than watch TV and movies)...

1) Paula Deen

2) Meryl Strep, love her in any role she plays.

3) Tyler Perry

Sevin Favorite Foods...

1) Dot's Chicken and Dumplin's

2) Stewed Tomatoes and Rice, topped with crispy bacon

3) Red Velvet Cake

4) Chicken Parmigiana

5) Tiramisu

6) Stew Beef n' Rice

7) Apple Fritters (from the local doughnut shop)

I am to challenge SEVIN people to participate in this TAG, but I will leave it open to anyone who would like to play along!

I would also like to pass on the Awards above to all who read my blog! And again, THANKS the great ladies who passed them to me!

I leave you with just a few more pictures of Fall from around my home! ...live pumpkins on the hearth! My MIL found the silver bucket at a yard sale! SWANKY, huh! :)

Two Fall Gatherings and an early Pink Saturday...

Fall is my favorite season!

Two of my dear blogger friends are hosting Fun Fall Events this week!

... gathering and sharing beautiful fall decor and tablescapes, delectable recipes, interesting pumpkin facts, etc....

I encourage you to visit them, Lisa, at Stop and Smell the Chocolates...

And Heidi, tomorrow at, Foxgloves, Fabric, and Folly!

(If you are here for PINK Saturday...please, scroll on down)

please, Join me in my Dining Room....

I shared the table arrangement below a few weeks ago, but have since "tweaked it" a little, taking out most of the orange accents and adding deep red and green hydrangeas. Compliments the colors of the dining room much better.

New Valances finished and hung just last night! Blogging motivates me to finish many projects, how about you??? :)

Fall Gatherings Recipe:

Chocolate Chip Pie

3 eggs beaten, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 3/4 cup self-rising flour, 3/4 cup butter, 1 tsp. vanilla, 3/4 cup chocolate chips, 3/4 cup walnuts or pecans, 2 unbaked pie shells

Blend together eggs, sugar, flour, and butter. Then add remaining ingredients. Bake shells in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until pies are brown and firm. Top with Cool Whip.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Tonight I am off to the lakehouse, to carry Ashley and a group of girls for a sleepover. I will not have access to internet until late Saturday, and then I will probably be really tired!

....Know what I mean? LOL!

So, I have posted my PINK Saturday post below....

Beautiful PINK sky, just before dusk a few evenings ago!

(~Hosted by Beverly at, How Sweet the Sound)

Wishing you a fabulous FALL weekend! ~Rhonda :)

A Boy Named Samuel

When Samuel was a young boy, he lived in the temple under the guidance of Eli. One night as Samuel slept, he awoke to someone calling his name. He thought it was Eli, and went to him, calling "Here am I." But it wasn't Eli that had called the child from his slumber. On the third time it happened, Eli realized that God was calling Samuel. "Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak Lord; for thy servant heareth..." 1 Samuel 3:9

In 1991, God spoke to a small group of teenagers in Burleson, Texas. God used these young people, who listened to His call just as Samuel did, to ignite what has become a global movement of prayer, SEE YOU AT THE POLE, alive in over 20 countries.

Today, on September 24th, over 3 million teenagers all over the US alone gathered around flagpoles this morning to intercede in prayer for their schools, family, and friends, communities, their country, and it's leaders at....

See You At the Pole!

As I was looking up the history on See You at the Pole, I came across a feature on Christianity Today's website....8 Creative Ways to Pray.

I'd like to briefly share them with you.

1) Journal your prayers. Write out and record your requests, questions, heartaches, and prayers. Try putting your prayers into poems or letter form to God. Go back and reread your entries from time to time and reflect on how God has moved in different situations.

2) Take a prayer walk. Pray for homes that you pass.

3) Pray over your calendar and schedule.

4) Pray Scripture. "Casting all your care upon Him; for he careth for you." 1 Peter 5:7

5) Pray about the news.

6) Partner up. Join in prayer with others.

7) Be quiet. ...Just as young Samuel did. Which by the way is the theme for SEE YOU AT THE POLE.

"Be still and know that I am God..." Psalm 46:10

8) Keep prayer on your lips. Let your daydreams and thoughts turn into prayer. "Pray without ceasing." 1 Thessalonians 5:17

(Picture borrowed from the Campus Crusade for Christ Website)

I invite you to join me in prayer today, for all of our young people. Many have taken a stand and already prayed for us this morning. It's not always easy being a Christian, to follow God, especially for our teenagers! Let us lift them up together! :)

God Bless, ~Rhonda

False Advertisement....

...or maybe I should have entitled this post,

The Good, the Bad, and The Ugly...

Stick with me, and you'll see why! :)

I am officially the first one in the neighborhood to start putting out my Fall decor. I waited patiently until the first day of Fall, and up it went!

The light colored pumpkin came from the Farmer's Market. The farmer selling these has been saving and replanting the seed for this variety of pumpkins for 35 years!





I would love to tell you that I planned and intentionally put only one wreath on the double doors. I had one on each door, but with the carpenters coming in and out, the hook wouldn't hold. So, now I like to think of the remaining wreath as an extension of my fall display! LOL!

Now onto to the back door...

A Fall Mum to greet you!

And on the other side of the back doors, another fall display....

Still needs a little tweaking, at least a few more mums and pumpkins.

Check out the rooster, decked out in his finest for the season! :)

From the outside of the house, everything is just peachy, or should I say just pumpkiny! :) Looks like a normal clean, organized house ready for the Fall season, right???

Anything but!

Come on in and see my shame! LOL!

The Seemingly Neverending Remodeling Project...

Why is it so hard to finish one room before moving on to another??? Ah, men! LOL! If they weren't doing such a great job, it would be harder to choke down! In our area, new construction has stopped, so skilled carpenters are looking for any work! ...which was fortunate and a blessing for us! Four homes right around us are doing remodeling projects for the first time in the three years we have been here.

Most of the white walls in the picture below were painted the taupe today, by me! I pitched in to help paint, hoping to move things along a little faster! :)

The marble floors will be coming up tomorrow, and making way for new tile...

And these glass blocks on the stairwell will be replaced next week by new banisters and railings. These are MY "white eleplant" in the room. They look so cold and clinical, and I will be glad to bid them farewell!

See all the little John Deere toys behind the couch! David often brings down a few to play in the floor with. I've told him to take them back up to his room when he was done. I thought he was, but when we pushed the couches up, I found his stash! LOL!

I guess from the outside you would never know just how bad things are on the inside! But, slowly they are coming together! If I just maintain my sanity until then! LOL!

~Rhonda :)

I Made the Sunday Star News....

The Sunday Funny Papers, that is....

Have you seen the comic strip HI AND LOIS, today?

It certainly depicts my life and blogging...How about yours??? LOL!

~Rhonda :)

Saturday Evening Post...

Since I haven't blogged since Wednesday, I hardly know where to begin! :)

Yard Sales, I suppose are as good a place as any...

I only found one yard sale today, and was pretty pleased to get the Paris picture for Ashley's room, and the fish soapdish for the lake...both for a dollar! (got a 25 cent discount...woohoo!)

The flea market was packed, but full of 80's decor, that no amount of spray-paint could transform!!! LOL!

Finally, it feels like Fall!!!

The last few days have been so nice and much cooler, with little humidity!

Fall in our household brings about harvest time...corn picking!

Kevin and Josh making their first round of the year, below.

Is this not the cutest little combine??? It was made in 1968, the same year I was born!

Doesn't need near the maintenance I do to keep it up! LOL!

Josh making a few adjustments...

So on to the more fun, girl-stuff!

I have now joined the ranks of Ballard Designs Copy-Cats! Marie and Susie are both such pros, with their imitations, I had to jump on the band-wagon!

TAKE NOTE: Ballard Designs will be featured on the Oprah Show Monday. I don't normally watch Oprah, but I did get an email from Ballard Designs, so I will definitely make an exception! Have the Tivo already set! :)

Why you should never give anything away...

My MIL gave me this lamp several years ago. It's cute and gives off great accent lighting, but it is silver. ...Doesn't really fit in with my decor. I started to put it in the "thrift store" bag last week, but I just love the capiz shell accent. So I stuck it back under the bathroom counter.

Then I got the Ballard's Catalog in the mail...and look below....

Capiz shell lighting with dark brass metal hardware.

I went to Wal-mart for a can of Rustoleum, and here is my very own imitation...

But the Copy~Cattin' didn't stop there.....

Scattered all over the magazine, on the backs of chairs, knobs, etc., were bayleaf wreaths, tied and hung with pretty wide checked ribbon.
So, I went "shopping in my store," and found an old bayleaf wreath. (Boy, is that a real tongue-twister!) Couldn't find the ribbon in a check, but I did find a wide satin chocolate brown.

(The two pictures below don't do it justice. The leaves are more uniform and full all around, than appears in the picture.)

Here it is hanging in my newly trimmed windows! The windows had no moldings around them. (None in the entire house!) I compensated by strategically using window treatments! The guys are doing such a good job trimming them out, now I don't want to cover them back up.

Just a few more shots of the kitchen...
Didn't want to overdo "pumpkins"....too late, huh! LOL! The cute little turnip was something a little different to add to my fall decor, found at HL.

My dad gave me the old picture above, and it reminds me of my favorite story of Ruth and Naomi.

We also added a coffered ceiling to the kitchen, painting it a lighter shade of green, trimmed in white...

That is about all I have to share! I am hoping to put out my "outside fall decor" tomorrow!

Here are a few sneak peeks of what I will be using.....



Hope everyone is having a great weekend! ~Rhonda :)
~~~~~~
"And God said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years,..." Genesis 1:14