Thankful Thursday

Happy freezing Thursday!!!

I am joining in with Rebecca Jo for her Thankful Thursday...

Today I am thankful that I still have a job and that that job allows me to work from home. We are having below freezing temperatures here in Pittsburgh so if I can stay in my home in flannels and work; I am a very happy girl!!!

Also, I am very thankful that I found THIS wonderful and EASY recipe for chicken tortilla soup on The Seasoned Mom!!

It is soo yummy and was really easy with my crock pot!! I threw everything in the crock pot (including frozen chicken) and four hours later; I have soup!!  The hardest part was chopping the onion. HA!  It is low in calories and I will be eating it for every meal during this winter freeze out!! HA!



I am thankful that although it is freezing; the sun is shining! The sun makes all the difference!  Here is our single digit weather today...the funny part is we go from 5 degrees to 50 degrees in two days! Crazy weather!!!

Speaking of crazy weather...I do not talk politics on my blog EVERY ....but I saw this tweet and I am AMAZED that this is my president saying something so STUPID!!! I was so angry when I read this...

Will someone PLEASE explain global warming to this man?!??!?! He makes himself sound SOOOO STUPID on a regular basis...UGH!

Happy Thursday everyone!!! I love you all tons...stay WARM!!! Hugs


UGH UGH UGH!

Wednesday Medley and Charlie

Hi!!! I hope everyone is having a great week so far?!?!

Today I am joining in with Terri for her Wednesday Medley! You can join in also if you wish...just copy the questions below on to your blog, answer and link up at Terri's blog so we can all read your answers!  

Tomorrow is National Croissant Day!!

NATIONAL CROISSANT DAY – January 30

NATIONAL CROISSANT DAY

In the United States, National Croissant Day is observed each year on January 30th. Croissants are a buttery, crescent-shaped rolls that are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.  

The key to a perfect croissant is laminating the dough. Laminating the dough is a process by which butter is folded into the mixture creating multiple thin layers of butter and dough. The result is a mouth-watering flaky crust and airy body.

Legend surrounds this pastry, as is often the case with a popular, worldly treat. What is known, is that crescent-shaped breads have been found around the world for ages. One of these was the Kipferl which originated in Austria as far back as the 13th century. This nonlaminated bread is more like a roll.

Credit for the croissant we know today is given to an Austrian military officer, August Zang. In 1939 he opened a Viennese bakery in Paris introducing France to Viennese baking techniques.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Stop by the bakery for a fresh, warm croissant or try making your own using this recipe: Croissants recipe.

1.  So... do you like croissants?  What is your favorite way to eat them? I am not a real croissant fan...I like biscuits and muffins way more!

2.  Speaking of food... How do you handle stress? I eat...don't we al1? HA HA

3.  Out of the negative emotions of greed, anger, jealousy, and hate, which one would you say affects you the most? Probably greed. I have anger, jealousy and hate pretty much in control but my greed can get out of hand often!

4.  Out of the positive emotions of compassion, positivity, enthusiasm, and initiative, which one is your biggest strength? Definitely positivity...but that is only because I choose to focus on it. I think how we choose to view things is EVERYTHING!

5.  What do you get every time you go grocery shopping, other than the staples such as bread, milk, butter, flour, sugar?  I love cottage cheese, yogurt and chicken. Those are definite for me every trip!

6.  Please tell us something random about your week so far.

Last night I went to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with one of my very best friends, Donna! It was such a great night!!

Here we are at dinner! We went to Peter Allens which is right near the Benedum Theater in the cultural district of Pittsburgh.

Here is the menu in case you have never been there! It is awesome!!! They are know for their fried zucchini strips!! YUM! If you ave never tried this place; you should! We go here a lot - the service is great and food is consistently delicious!

The other side....

Here we are at the show!!! Sooo much fun!!!

It was so good! The music and dancing were great and it was so cool to see how they performed the story on the stage! Great show and high energy!!! The 11 year old that played Charlie Bucket was fantastic!!!

I hope you all have a great rest of your week!!

Hugs!!!!

It is freezing where you live? or warm? any snow? Ever see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?


 

Not Much to Report

Good morning everyone!

I hope everyone had a good Monday! 

I don't have anything new to report today so I will leave you with two thoughts...

I have been spending a lot of time reflecting on this...

It really gives me so much peace in a world that just seems to be spinning out of control lately.

And...

I am going to dinner and a show tonight with one of my favorite people...Donna!

We are going to dinner somewhere in town and then to see Charlie and The Chocolate Factory at the Benedum in Pittsburgh! I am so excited.

I promise to tell you all about it tomorrow!!!

I hope you all have a great day! Hugs!

Anyone else like to go to the theater? Anyone see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory yet? What is your favorite candy? Did you have an exciting Monday?

Frozen in More Ways Than One

Happy Monday

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I know I did! We got a little snow here in PA. 

I needed a little family time so I took a little drive to spend the weekend with my parents at the lake. My sister came with one of her daughters also! We had so much fun just hanging out! 

My parents church had a fundraiser. They sold tickets to see the movie Frozen at a local theater called the Roxy Theater in Minerva, Ohio. It cost $5 a ticket and your ticket included the movie, popcorn, a drink and a coupon for a kids meal at McDonalds. What a deal!!! The current Miss Akron Canton, Emelia Sherin, attended as well as some characters in the movie. Below is myself and my niece Alyssa with Anna and Christof and their reindeer named Swen...

Another of the whole family. I made my sister (in pink) and Mom get int he second photo. They were less than thrilled! HA!

This picture of me is horrible; but I love that we also got a picture with the current Miss Akron Canton - Emelia Sherin! She was really sweet!!!

The benefit was a fundraiser for the the new hall that is being built for my parents church - it is to be called the Good Shepard Hall and should be opening this spring! Yippee!

 This is my adorable niece eating her popcorn!! HA!

And sister and Mom...ha!

Here is a picture of the inside of the theater...it is a really cool old theater!!!

After the movie we all returned to my parents house where this began...

My family loves puzzing in the winter and on rainy days at the shore. I can do it for a while but I am too antsy to do it all day. So, after an hour of puzzling, my niece and myself did a little sledding!!!!

My parents and the neighbors have great hills at the lake that are perfect for a fast sled ride!!!

Soooo much fun!!!

HAHA!!!

After about an hour we were freezing so we returned indoors and had cocoa and played a new game my mother found called Yeti in my spaghetti! It was super fun!!

Here are the adults toasting with their wine...I think they just drank the whole time we rode the sleds...HA! Everyone was really happy by the time we got back inside ;-)  HA!

I got a picture of this adorable, little woodpecker. I had to look him up!!  He is a downy woodpecker! So cute!!! This was a female as it was lacking a red splotch on its head.

Little closer...

I love the amount of nature and beauty at the lake! It was a great weekend spending time with my family and chilling!!! 

We went to church and out to lunch on Sunday. Then returned home to repeat Saturday! HA! The adults puzzled and my niece and I went sled riding again!!  We missed my other niece and nephew but they had sporting games so they stayed home with their Dad.

How was your weekend? Did you get snow? When we the last time you played in the snow?

Friday Favorites - Aldi's

HAPPY FREEKIN' FRIDAY YA'LL!!!

I am so excited for the weekend!! Today on my lunch hour I am getting my tires rotated and then I am headed up to see my parents and sister this weekend! That means spending lots of fun time with family this weekend - yippee!!

One of my favorite stores is Aldi's. Are you seeing a trend here? I enjoy a great bargain for a quality price!!

This is not a sponsored post. I truly just wanted to share with you my exciting favorites from Aldi's in case you have not yet been to one. 

This week I found this awesome buy! It was the roast, veggies and seasoning all in one package. It was only $8.99 for everything. I threw it all in my crockpot and it has feed me many dinners and lunch this week.

Two:  The second thing is these Aldi versions of laughing cow cheeses. They cost less than $2 so they are way cheaper than Laughing Cow brand and they taste exactly the same! Also, they are 10 calories less than laughing cow wedges!! Only 25 calories a wedge.

Three:  Every week they have specials and fun buys. This week they had these flowers in a glass vase for $2.99!!! It smells awesome and it is so nice to see a flower everyday!! Ahhhh....

Four:  Their blue cheese crumbles are the cheapest I have found. And delish too1 I use them all my salads.

Five: And lastly, I love these! I tried the expensive brand and these are less than $2 at Aldi's and they taste exactly the same!! Try them - I promise you will love them!

That's it for my five favorites!! I could go on and on as I try to buy all my veggies and fruit there too. I have not been able to try everything yest - so, if you shop there - what are your favorites?  They have great quality fruits and veggies for much more reasonable prices than the grocery stores around me.

I hope I helped you find a new favorite today!! I promise you will love it if you have one near you!

Happy weekend everyone - I hope your weekend is filled with fun and happiness!!

Anyone else love Aldi's? What are you favorites? Anything you think I should try? Any exciting plans for the weekend?

Thankful Thursday

Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is having a good week so far?? We are almost to Friday!!! Yippee!

I am joining in with Rebecca Jo at Knit By God's Hand for her...

This week I am definitely thankful first and foremost for my God. My faith has made the news of my work site shutdown bearable.  I know, whatever happens, I will be okay and for that I am truly thankful!

Also I am very, very thankful for my family and friends (real life and bloggy)! You guys have all been so sweet and supportive and I cannot imagine what I would do if I did not have this blog for support!!! Thank you!!!

Now, onto the more material things...HA! I am also thankful that my aunt sent me a gift card for Old Navy for Christmas!! Between the sales and discounts; I got a ton of great stuff with $25!!! (This is not a paid endorsement; I shopped with my own money and Old Navy has not contacted me in any way - although it would be okay with me if they do now!!! HA!)  Here is my haul...

These two adorable dresses! (Right now it is $9.95) The material is flowy, loose and so comfortable for work and play!!! I bought XL and they are perfect!

This adorable workout shirt!!! (it is $7.97 now) XL also!

And finally this workout bra...and, again, XL! HA

Serious deals for $25 total right?!?! I love Old Navy!!! Check it out...their sales are awesome!

I am also thankful that I allowed myself to splurge. I did not get myself anything for Christmas this year and I really wanted one of these robot vacuums since I did my floors so I bought myself one! It is awesome!!! I love it so much and it is great with the cat hair under dressers and beds!!! The cats enjoy following it around also! HA!

I am also thankful for this adorable medal rack my little sister made for me! God blessed me with strong bones the first half of my life so I got all the running in I could! I completed many 5K's, 10K's, half marathons and one full marathon! I am grateful that I was able to accomplish this and now I have this rack to see all my hard work. With the psoriatic arthritis I can no longer run but I am okay with that at 50! HA!

I am thankful when I find these adorable little notes in my purse! My niece hid this in my hand sanitizer bag and I found it the other day! How sweet!!!!! I love those kids!!!

And finally, I am so very thankful that someone at work told me about these delicious drinks called LaCroix! I think you can get them everywhere but I got mine at Target.  They are great when you want something fizzy and light! They have the greatest flavors (Passion Punch and Tangerine are my favorites) and they are 0 calories and 0 sodium!!! YUM!!

That's it for me today!! Again, thank you all for being so wonderful and kind - you will some of the first to know any update on my job situation when I know something.

Hugs to you all!!!

What are you thankful for? Every tried LaCroix? Do you have a robot?

Wednesday Medley

Happy Wednesday!!!

You know what Wednesday is...right?!?!?

I am joining up with Terri and a bunch of other fun-loving bloggers for Wednesday Medley!

If you want to join in, copy the questions, answer them as you choose and link up at Terri's blog!!

NATIONAL PIE DAY

National Pie Day is celebrated annually on January 23rd. (Not to be confused with March 14 which is PI π Day.) 

National Pie Day was created simply to celebrate the pie.  It is a day for all to bake or cook their favorite pies.  Even more importantly, it is a day set aside for all to enjoy eating pies!

The first pies appeared around 9500 BC in the Egyptian Neolithic period or New Stone Age.

1.  Okay, fess up.  Tell us your top three favorite pies, please.  Will you have some pie today?  #1 Cherry; #2  Apple; #3  Peanut Butter.  I will not have pie today...I am officially focused on my healthy eating...but cheers to all of you that will...I am jealous!!!

2.  While we are talking about food... are you a picky eater or are you ready to try almost any new food?  I am not a picky eater at all.  What is the worst thing you have ever eaten?  I tried squid and immediately got sick...never again!.

3.  Baking could be considered an art as could cooking.  How do you define art?  I have no definition for this...HA!

4.  Tell us a really stupid joke that made you laugh, please.  What kind of flower is on your face? Tulips....HA!

5.  January 23rd is also National Handwriting Day. Do you have nice handwriting?  I do not...I try hard to print and write nice but I am very sloppy! Did cursive writing come naturally or did you practice in those double-lined practice books until your fingers hurt?  When I see the sheets below I get very sad. I printed out a bunch of these for my ex-BF after he had his stroke. I think he used them one time for about 30 seconds and then just gave up. Over time he gave up on everything!  Makes me so sad to my inner core that he does not love himself enough to give a shit about trying to get better and stronger.

6.  Tell us something random about your week.  I ordered some things from the Old Navy sale with a gift card I got from my Aunt for Christmas. I spent $25 dollars and got so many cute things!!  I am going to do a post tomorrow about it. This is not an affiliate link and they did not pay me...I am just amazed at the value of the clothes for the price I paid!! I love everything I got! Stay tuned...

Now I am off to visit everyone else! Have a great week everyone!!!

What's your favorite pie? Every have to watch someone you love neglect themselves? Ever shop at Old Navy?

May 2017 - New Buffalo, Michigan

When I was first assigned a short term assignment in Mishawaka in 2017 everyone said - UGH! What will you do in Mishawaka, Indiana? It was truly the greatest job assignment to date! I lived and worked in Mishawaka, Indiana (5 minutes from Notre Dame University) and every night I drove to Lake Michigan! 

I was blown away at the lake! I had never seen it before and it was HUGE!!! It really was like the ocean only no salt and no sharks!!! AMAZING!

There are so many awesome and exciting beaches and restaurants to visit along  "The Mitten" of Michigan! I really love that state and that lake now! I miss it terribly! Here is a rental car selfie...

I found this awesome restaurant Stray Dog Bar and Grill because of a recommendation from one of the employees. It is located in New Buffalo which is a cute little vacation-ish town on the shore of Lake Michigan.

The ahi tuna salad was TO DIE FOR! Sadly, so was the bread! HA! I gained so much weight during that year and 1/2 of travel but I would not trade the experience for anything!

And the view was truly amazing!!! I spent every night walking the shores of Lake Michigan looking for sea glass and crinoids! (I learned about the crinoids from Jeri)  It is an amazing mystery how they got there!!!

Seriously, I love the beach and this was a dream job come true!!

I met so many friendly people as I walked these shores every night! One woman, Jeri, I still keep in touch with - she lives there year round!! Check out her instagram in the link above for really cool winter photos!!!

Cute little decorative lighthouse on the shore of New Buffalo...

Beautiful place...

Sun was setting...Sooo pretty!!!!!!!!!

Closer...

Almost done...

I got to watch the sun set over water everyday during that assignment...I got really spoiled those 6 months!! Then it was time to leave and winter took hold so I think I lucked out there too!!

From what I hear from the locals; winter is brutal near the lake! I will take summer anytime!!

Have you got a favorite job experience? Love the beach or not so much? Know what a crinoid is? Do you search for sea glass at the beach? Have a favorite or special place - what is it and why?