Florida Cracker

Momma's Birthday

2009-12-30T17:22:00.001-08:00

My mom any my sister celebrated their birthdays on December 3rd. Yes, my sister was born on my mom's birthday. How dare she! Unfortunately my sister who lives in NC at the moment could not be with us. It was the big 4-0 for her too :-( She will be here in January so will have to make up for it. We went to Carrabbas to celebrate because according to my parents they have the best calamarri there. I would not know because I don't eat the stuff. My girls went to tell the wait staff that it was their nanas birthday and could they please acknowledge it. The picture in the middle is the dessert they brought to her. A little glass of bourbon cake with cream. According to her it was delicious! Happy birthday mom and may you have many, many more!!

Our Little Girl turned 15!

2009-11-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

Our sweet daughter turned 15 last week. Right after school I took her straight to the DMV to get her learners permit. She is doing an excellent job driving. We are so proud of her!

Later that day her boyfriend and my parents came over dinner and we had her favorite meal lasagna, salad and garlic bread.

This is the cake that her boyfriend bought for her. He had them put orange flowers on it because he knows that is her favorite color.

Happy birthday Rachel. We are so very proud to call you our daughter!

Forever Florida

2009-09-27T12:52:00.000-07:00

This past weekend my friend and I went to Forever Florida located in Kenansville, Florida. Our guys were hunting and we needed something to do until they met us later at the motel we were staying at. Forever Florida is a 4700 acre eco-ranch and wildlife conservation area. We took this swamp buggy on a tour of the ranch.

Later we went to our motel Lakeside Inn and checked in. This is the lake and the dock behind the motel. The picture was taken from the screened in gazebo.

The entrance to my and my husbands room.

The inside was very simple, cute, and very clean. Of course we still bring our own sheets, blankets, and pillows ;-)

This is my adorable husband after a looooong day of hunting. No luck though.

This was a very nice weekend getaway. We will definetly do it again. The guys will be hunting through November. Hopefully better luck next time!

Gini

Homecoming Dance

2009-09-24T05:28:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday night Rachel and Daniel went to the Homecoming Dance. The dress Rachel is wearing was worn by her sister to the prom about 4 years ago. My mom altered the dress to fit her. Before the dance I dropped the kids off at the Olive Garden to eat and then picked them up an hour and a half later. (click on the pics to enlarge them)

When I came to pick them up Rachel seemed down so I asked what was wrong. She was upset and dissapointed because the dance was not what she expected. She thought it would be the way you see them portrayed in the movies with slow dancing and that it would be romantic. Instead she said they played ghetto music and the most of the girls were "dirty" dancing. How sad :-(

I am not sure if she will ever go to a school dance again.

Gini

First Day of High School

2009-08-26T05:48:00.001-07:00

Where did the time go. My youngest daughter started high school on Monday. Her best friend/boyfriend gets up extra early and rides his bike to our house and waits for her to get ready. Unfortunately we do not have bus transportation to the school because we live 1.8 miles away and you must live 2 miles to have bus transportation. Ridiculous considering our children would have to cross a major 4 lane highway to get to the school. And what about if it rains? Anyway, I have been taking them and it stinks because on the days I have to work it puts me behind and on my days off I still have to get up early to take them to school :-( Oh well, on the bright side since I am forced to wake up early on my days off I will hopefully get more accomplished!

Gini

De Leon Springs and the Old Sugar Mill

2009-08-21T14:01:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday my mom, daughter and her boyfriend went to De Leon Springs. It is a state park in De Leon Springs, Florida. Native American Indians used these springs as far back as 6.000 years ago. The water is 72 degrees year around. There is a restaurant called the Old Sugar Mill that serves breakfast that you make yourself on a a griddle that is built into the table.
This is the entrance: (click on picture to enlarge)

This is a wheel located in the restaurant that was once used in a sugar mill.

The kids had pancakes that they brought out in pitchers. They were $4.50 a piece for all you can eat and for $1.75 you can purchase add ins. The kids had chocolate chips and blueberries.

My mom and I had eggs that we scrambled ourselves, bacon that we did not cook, and toast that we buttered and toasted on the griddle. The only negative to this fun was that there is no air conditioning in the rustic restaurant and the griddles produce alot of heat and in turn it made for a sweaty meal. But it was worth it.

To get into the coollllddd water you have to just dive in. Rachel and I had no problem but her boyfriend was pretty wimpy about it. My mom... she didn't even wear her swimsuit.

This was a beautiful place and we had a very good time. When my sister and her family come in October we will make another visit.

Gini

My Garage Sale Finds

2009-06-27T14:56:00.000-07:00

This morning my husband and I left the house at 8:30 to go garage saling. We had a great time and found some good deals. This is what we brought home:

The necklace came with earrings and it was $3. I think it might be Premier jewelry brand but I am not sure. For $1 we bought 3 sets of crab claw crackers and gave one to my mom. Vintage tupperware one is a container and the other is a jello mold with interchangable shapes to make a decoration on the top of the jello those were $1 for both, a large plate or picture stand for $1, a set of three candle holders for $2, and....

This milk glass rooster for $1! I have wanted one of these for a long time and cannot believe I found one at a yard sale for $1.

We also bought a wrought iron rocking chair to put out on our patio around our fire pit. That was $2. After garage saling we went to the Farmers market to buy vegetables. Then we had lunch at P.R.'s a mexican restaurant.

Gotta go. I am cooking eggplant parmesan with the fresh eggplant we had today then watching Media Goes to Jail.

Gini

New bathroom done!

2009-06-14T16:47:00.001-07:00

My husband recently gutted and completely re did our guest bathroom. This is also the bathroom that our daughters use. We put in a block window, a pre fab shower tub, new tile, new vanity, and a mirror that doubles as a medicine cabinet. This first picture shows the block window that my husband installed. I bought the curtain at walmart it is Better Homes and Garden brand.
I am not quite finished here....
I love our new bathroom. The master bath is next.

Gini

Our new temporary addition..

2009-06-12T12:32:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago my daughter brought this little guy home. He was about two weeks old, scrawny, and he has a bum eye. I already have 4 cats at home and absolutely cannot keep this one. I have been trying to find someone to take it after I have weaned it from formula. Lots of lookers but no takers yet.

The other day I took it to the vet. It weighs less than one pound! They gave me medicine for its eyes. The bum eye looks better but the vet tends to believe it is useless. He will let me know this wednsday. In my next life I sure hope that I am not such a sucker for animals!

Gini

St. Pete Beach and Tarpon Springs

2009-05-25T14:28:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we went to St. Pete as we do every year for Memorial Day Weekend. This is a picture of my girls at the motel.

On Saturday we went to the Greek village of Tarpon Springs. This village was established in 1890 and the Greeks made a fortune harvesting and selling sponges. The next two pictures are of sponges that were brought in while we were there. The pictures are backwards.

There are alot of shops there that sell sponges and homemade soaps. There are Greek restaurants and bakeries.

We ate outside at this restaurant. There was a sponge boat right next to us with the Greek boat owner on board and about 4 old greek men hanging out with him.

On sunday, we all hung out at the beach all day in front of the motel, with the exception of my dad and daughters. My dad took the girls out to go parasailing. They are brave. They went up 600 feet! They said they could see large sting rays and turtles in the water.

The girls had the experience of a life time and we had a great weekend at the beach enjoying the family, sun and beach. We already have our reservations for next year.

Gini

2009-05-08T17:42:00.000-07:00

The other day at Lowe's I saw these. I have been looking all over for these. Just not in a butterfly shape. I really wanted a ball like the one I saw at my friends mothers house. Anyhoo, these are LED solar accent lighting. They are for your yard. They stick in the ground with a stake. They use one double A battery and the sun and create quite a light show at night. Here is how they look in the daytime plain white.

This is changing from one color to the next:

The green is the brightest and the prettiest.

So run to your nearest Lowes's and buy one for $9.99!! (Oh, they also have dragonflys) In the meantime I am going to keep looking for the ball.

Gini

Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area and Lone Cabbage Fish Camp

2009-05-02T19:18:00.000-07:00

Today Mitchell and I decided to get out of the house and go somewhere nice and quiet. We decided on Tosohatchee about 20 minutes away from our house. It was a gorgeous day.

These people were there with a horse and buggy. Looks like fun!

Mitchell brought along his fishing poles and we stopped a couple of times so he could throw his line in.

Here is a little blue gill he caught.

These flowers were growing wild everywhere.

This Bridge was the perfect spot for a photo op.

This was an old wooden bridge we had to cross.

We saw this big guy in the creek on the side of the road. Scary!!

After we left we stopped here for dinner. Mitchell had the frog leg combo platter (yes frog legs gross) and I had the fried catfish (I realize that some people may think that is gross too).

This is a side few of the restaurant. They offer air boat rides here too.

Handsome hubby :-)

We had a great time. In the middle of May they start taking bids for quota hunts. Mitchell really wants to get picked for Tosohatchee. I hope he does since it is so close to home. We are home now and I ready to go to bed. Tough day driving around the woods!

Gini

Loving the Vintage Look

2009-03-24T17:57:00.000-07:00

These are things that I have placed on my mini pantry in my kitchen. The candle I bought last weekend at a garage sale for .50, the glass doors knobs at a church thrift store for $1.50 and the cross stitch in the frame for .25 at the thrift store. The frame I already had and spray painted black.

This vignette is on my shelf above my cupboards. I bought the bird cage from Craigs list for $5, the rooster at Goodwill for $2.99, the white vase with flowers I found on the side of the road where someone left them for trash pickup (they were in perfect condition and clean) and the bottle I bought at the church thrift store for 50.

This mongrammed tile I bought for .50 at Old Time Pottery. Not sure where I want to hang it yet.

I made these gift tags. They were white and I dipped them in water that had tea bags seeped in them and then I used the fleur de lis stamps on them. I want to do gift bags in the same way.

I have the next couple of days off so in between cooking, cleaning and laundry I will be going to the thrift stores as well. Oh, also have to take my oldest daughter to the dentist. She needs a cavity filled and her teeth cleaned. Oh, and I have to have a mammogram on Tuesday :-(

Gini

Easter Lilies and my tile project

2009-03-17T13:21:00.000-07:00

My easter lilies have bloomed and they are beautiful. Now if only the leaves would quit falling off of our huge oak tree in front. We have raked and swept up at least a million!

This is the tile coaster project I wanted to do and just got around to doing it because I could not find a fleur de lis stamp. I found it today at Michael's. I really like how they turned out. I will be making more as gifts.

Gini

Space shuttle Discovery Launch

2009-03-16T13:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Titusville to watch the shuttle Discovery launch. We went out on our friends boat and were about 3 miles from the launch site. It was an amazing experience.
This is just as it was lifting off:

Afterwards this trail of smoke was left. A part of it remained a very bright orange color. Apparently this is due to the reflection of the sun. Even though we could no longer see the sun it had to do with the angle of the sun.

We knew that the traffic would be terrible on the way home so we waited an hour and forty five minutes to leave. The guys fished and we ate roast beef wraps and chips on the boat. When we finally did leave traffic was no better. It took two and a half hours to drive what is normally a 35 minute drive. It was worth it though!

Gini

Hutch project

2009-03-13T06:51:00.000-07:00

For the longest time I have wanted to paint this hutch. This is just the bottom of it. It is made of pine and given to me by a friend who was moving. She had painted a clear stain over it and it looked very country which is not the decor of my home. I finally decided to do something about it. Here is the before minus the drawers.

Here it is all sanded and ready to be painted.

Here is the finished product. I chose a dark gray, light black color because I did not want it to be a deep dark black. The lighting in this picture does not do the hutch justice. It looks better in person. I think I am going to put glass knobs on it. I am still debating wether or not I want to do the top of the hutch as well or just find a large picture to go over it.

We are going to pick out tile tonight so my husband can put that down in the bathroom this weekend. I cannot wait for it to be done. Four people using one bathroom is not a good thing!

Gini

Tile Coaster Project and faux candles

2009-03-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

Today I bought these tiles from Home Depot with a project in mind. They will be coasters. Cheap and easy. A box contains 9 and they were $4.77.

Does anyone else think these flameless candles are great? These candle holders are in my foyer and they are such a pain to clean when a candle has burned to the wick. With these flameless candles there is no mess! They use button batteries and I bought a pack of 12 of them for $2.50.

Looks like I need to straighten out one of my scrolls.

Off to enjoy my dinner now cooked by my wonderful husband: grilled wings, french fries and green beans!

Gini

2009-03-08T14:39:00.000-07:00

I have been looking for a flower arrangement for my kitchen table but could not find anything until last week. These are faux hydrangeas that I bought at Joanne's on sale for $10. I love how they look. Click on the picture to enlarge.

My husband has been working on our bathroom remodel and up until yesterday only the tub was gone. He removed the toilet and the vanity and now even the tile is gone. Hopefully we will have this done in the next 10 days as our girls have to use our bathroom for everything.

Since he has been such a hard worker I made my husband these strawberry cheese cake bites. I am proud to say that I have not even had one!

Have a great week everyone!

Gini

Decorating and a bathroom

2009-03-03T07:02:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Mitchell worked on the bathroom. He was able to get up the green board and put in the glass block window. It turned out great. Its hard to see the picture of the glass blocks clearly because of the glare of the sun. But thats why we put it in in the first place...to bring light into the bathroom which also spills out into the hallway.

Last weekend we went to a Cracker Barrell. I saw this plate and Mitchell and I thought it would look in our kitchen so we bought it. Only $10. The plate holder was gold so I spray painted it black.

Its been cold here in FL the last two days. Sunny but cold. I am off today so I am going to be heading to the church thrift store, grocery store, and then going to buy a new notebook and page protectors to organize all my recipes. Think I will make cheese cake tonight for my family for dessert.

Gini

Bathroom remodel

2009-02-07T17:10:00.000-08:00

Our house is 16 years old this month. We are having to replace and update just about everything. Our latest project is the guest/girls bathroom. Some of the tiles had come loose and water was getting behind them. On thursday Mitchell tore all the tile off. Behind it was insulation and towards the bottom it was sopping wet. Even the boards behind it were wet. This is how it looks now and will look for at least another week because we have to let everthing dry out. We are putting in a pre-fab bathtub (no more tile and grout for us) and a new vanity, sink, toilet, and tile on the floors. I also want to put beadboard and chair rails on the walls.

After this its the wood laminate flooring, then new counter tops, then the master bath, then french doors in lieu of our sliding glass doors, then new bedroom furniture, then new living room furniture, a new air conditioner, larger water heater, OK I will stop now ;-)

Gini

24th Anniversary

2009-02-06T17:00:00.000-08:00

Last sunday Mitchell and I celebrated our 24th wedding anniversary. I had to work and when I came home these varigated roses and this beautiful card were waiting for me. We then went to our friends house for dinner. Mitchell smoked ribs and our friends grilled ribs. They were delicious.

My husband is a sweetie!

Closet Makeover

2009-02-02T14:51:00.000-08:00

Today I had the day off from work. It was a dreary, rainy day. I decided to tackle our bedroom closet. It has become a catch all for all the stuff that I don't have a place for. The problem is our closet is super small. So I took everything out of the closet and noticed that it needed to be painted. So I went to the store, bought some paint, came home and painted. After awhile I started to put every thing back and started a Goodwill pile.
This is embarassing but here is the before:

And ta da... here is the after. While at the store I bought the canvas boxes to put sweaters, ball caps and purses in. I need one more sweater box.

Now I feel more organized. From now on I am not putting anything in there that does not belong in there!

Gini

Worlds Most Famous Beach- Daytona

2009-01-28T07:48:00.000-08:00

On sunday after Mitchell and I left Sanford we decided to go to Daytona Beach since we were already half way there. Daytona Beach was where we went for spring break every year. Its about a two hour drive from our home. We knew the town had really changed since the last time we were there and we wanted to see for ourselves.
This is the view crossing over the bridge..

This is the only beach in Florida you can drive cars on. I don't know it may be the only beach in America you can drive on.

Heres Mitchell looking all cute :0)

Along the beach are motels, condos and resaurants known as the boardwalk. We parked in a parking garage across the street from the beach and walked through a pass thru that linked to a movie theatre, restaurant and shops on the beach side. Then we walked down the boardwalk.

This was a memorial to motorcycle racing.

This picture below was taken from the pier. The pier juts out to the ocean and has a restaurant halfway way across and after that you pay $1.50 per person to walk to the end of the pier. Mostly fishermen are there at the end. On the beach side the band shell, an arcade and burger place are the only original structures there now.

This is a picture of the Daytona International Speedway. The Rolex 24 race was going on at this time.

We had a really great time and decided we will come back in the summer with our girls amd stay a couple of days.

Gini

A day with the Husband..Sanford, FL

2009-01-26T13:00:00.000-08:00

On Sunday my husband Mitchell and I took his brother to the Sanford International Airport to fly back to NC. Afterwards we went to the historic downtown of Sanford.
We ate lunch in this German restaurant called Hollerbachs Willow Tree Cafe. I did not get a picture of it when we went so I uploaded one from their website and this is a night shot.

This was our view leaving our car walking to the restaurant. Most of the shops were closed as it was Sunday but it was such a beautiful day and I had my fill from window shopping the day before so I did not care.

This was an shop that sold art work and the building itself was a work of art. This is how the entire outside of the shop looked. Click on pic to enlarge.

This is the Sanford Marina on Lake Monroe in walking distance from the downtown area.

After we left here we went to the world's most famous beach...Daytona Beach. I will post photos of that another day as I am tired out from my weekend and have to work tomorrow.

GINI

Stuart Florida...a day with the girls.

2009-01-25T16:32:00.001-08:00

On Saturday my friends Tammy, Rita and Amy went to Stuart, FL. Its about a 2 hour drive from our homes. Amy used to live there. Heres Tammy, me, Rita in the front and Amy behind Rita.
Here we are having lunch at a restaurant when we first got there. I have totally forgotten the name of this restaurant. Amy??

After we ate we went to the historic part of Stuart. There were alot of shops with alot of STUFF!

I actually did not buy one thing.

In one of the stores they had all these pennies scattered around on the floor.

This was our favorite store. Its was nothing but perfumes, lotions and candles.

We had a great time and look forward to doing it again!!

Gini

Salisbury Steak

2009-01-21T05:20:00.000-08:00

Last night we had my parents over for dinner. I made Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes. I found this recipe for Salisbury steak on-line and it was delicious. Try it sometime, I promise you'll like it.

Salisbury Steak in Mushroom Gravy

1 lb ground beef
1 egg
3 tablespoons crushed buttery round cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp poultry seasoning
2 (4 oz) cans sliced mushrooms w/ juice (I actually use fresh)
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
3 cubes beef bouillon

In a medium bowl mix together the ground beef, egg, cracker crumbs, onion, salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning using your hands. Shaped into 6 patties about 1" thick

Fry the patties in a large skillet over medium-high heat for 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until browned. Drain off grease, and remove patties to a platter; keep warm.

Melt the butter in the same skillet, and add the mushrooms. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over, and mix in until blended. Stir in the milk and beef bouillon. Cook and stir over medium heat until smooth and starting to thicken. Return the patties to the gravy and cook over low heat, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Gini

My Kitchen

2009-01-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

This is my new kitchen table that my parents got us for Christmas (and my birthday!) I love it. My mother made the curtains for me and I jsut bought the black and white polka dotted place mats. Now I just need to come up with a centerpiece.

These kitchen cupboards are a result of HOURS of work by me and my husband. They are builder grade cabinets and they were very outdated looking. We stripped, primed and painted them and put on new hardware. Next we will change out the countertop. I love my kitchen now!

Gini

A day at Ft. Christmas

2009-01-09T14:55:00.000-08:00

Today my mom, sister, niece and nephew and me went to one of my favorite local places:
Click on picture to enlarge to read:
Ft. Christmas is located in Christmas, Florida. The fort and stockade were reproduced in 1976-1977 by the Orange County Parks Department as a bicentennial project. The original fort was located approximately one mile north of Fort Christmas Historical Park on a small creek. Built in 1837 by the United States Army under the orders of General Jesup, the fort was a supply depot in a chain of forts constructed along the St. Johns River during a winter campaign against the Seminole Indians. In March of 1838 the military abandoned the fort, since the fighting had moved so far south that supplies were brought by ship into Jupiter Inlet.

There are many items located in the museum not necessarily from the fort but from families that lived in the area a century ago. These are children's baptismal clothes as well as some of their toys.

This is me outside of an outhouse holding a corn cob. Can you imagine?????

Behind the fort they have old houses that were brought in piece by piece from around Florida. They are known as Florida cracker houses. This was the inside of one. They had to use mosquito netting to keep from being eaten alive!

Built in 1917 by local labor for the Tosohatchee Ranch Company, the Beehead Ranch House provided housing for the ranch foreman and his family. In 1925 the ranch was purchased by a group of sportsmen from Sanford and Orlando. It became a hunting club, called the Tosohatchee Game Preserve.

This was on the mantle of one of the houses. I want one! If anyone knows where I can get one let me know.

On the way home not too far from Ft. Christmas we stopped at Back to Nature. They take in wild animals that have been injured and can no longer fend for themselves. I have had to take a few birds and a couple of squirrels there before. The curator is someone I went to high school with. I have contemplated volunteering there on my days off but it is a big commitment. These are people after my own heart. They even help the buzzards out!

Look at this adorable owl. They are my favorite birds of all.

We had a fabulous day today. Hope everyone else did as well!

Gini

A great day with the family!

2009-01-08T15:54:00.000-08:00

My sister, brother in law, niece and nephew are in town. We celebrated our Christmas with them on the 6th. Today we went to Merritt Island on the east coast to look at a house they saw on the internet that they were interested in. Can you say beautiful and unique and right on a canal that leads to the Banana River that leads out to the Atlantic Ocean?!? The house is 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, close to 3,000 square feet with a screen enclosed built in pool. The canal has a floating dock and if my sister moves in there will be a boat lift installed. The house has many upgrades as the owner is a builder. My husband and brother in law will be fishing fools.

After dinner we went to Port Canaveral and ate at Rusty's. This is a restaurant that sits right on the port and you can see cruise ships such as the Disney Cruise Ship sail right by as you eat. I had a caeser salad with blackened grouper and it was delicious!

This is a pelican that was hanging outside the restaurant. They really are the funniest looking bird. I wish I could have been quick enough to take a picture when he opened his beak so wide that the top and bottom were completely vertical.

Afterwards, we went to Cocoa Beach and enjoyed the sunshine and the warm sand on our feet.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that my sister and my best friend will move back and be nearer to us.

Gini

2009-01-02T06:30:00.000-08:00

Twas the Month after Christmas

'Twas the month after Christmas, and all through the house,

Nothing would fit me, not even a blouse.

The cookies I'd nibbled, the eggnog I'd taste,

At the holiday parties had gone to my waist.

When I got on the scales there arose such a number!

When I walked to the store (less a walk than a lumber).

I'd remember the marvelous meals I'd prepared,

The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared.

The wine and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese,

And the way I'd never said, "No thank you, please."

As I dressed myself in my husband's old shirt,

And prepared once again to do battle with dirt.

I said to myself, as I only can,

"You can't spend a winter disguised as a man!

"So--away with the last of the sour cream dip,

Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip.

Every last bit of food that I like must be banished,

'Till all the additional ounces have vanished.

I won't have a cookie--not even a lick,

I'll want only to chew on a long celery stick.

I won't have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie,

I'll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.

I'm hungry, I'm lonesome, and life is a bore,

But isn't that what January is for?

Unable to giggle, no longer a riot,

Happy New Year to all and to all a good diet

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T17:16:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a great New Years Eve and day! We did. New Years Eve was spent at the home of our good friends eating and hanging out by the fire pit. We got home around 1:45 in the a.m.

This morning I made this delicious quiche. Quiche before cooking.....

Quiche after cooking.....

Heres the recipe for two quiches:

2 9" pie shells
8 ozs reduced fat pork sausage
1 cup milk
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup reduced fat may(for some reason it says NO MIRACLE WHIP!)
2 tbls flour
2 cups (8 ozs ) shredded cheddar cheese
1 large or small GRANNY SMITH apples, peeled and chopped

Prick the bottom and sides of the pie shells with a fork. Bake them at 400 degrees for 6 minutes. Remove from oven. Maintain the oven temp.

1) Brown the sausage in a skillet, drain
2) Mix the milk, eggs, mayo, and flour in a bowl. Stir in the sausage, cheese and apple.
3) Spoon the sausage mixture into the prepared pie shells.
4) Bake for 40-45 minutes or till light brown.

You can freeze the cooked quiche and when ready to eat heat at 350 for 30-35 minutes in or microwave for 3-4 minutes.

This is super delicious try it!

New Years day was spent at home doing things around the house. Around 5:30 my parents came to the house to eat. I made corned beef with cabbage,carrots, and potatoes and corn bread. Then the x-box came out. For Christmas we got Guitar Hero. Here is oldest daughter playing....

Husband is playing Nascar......

And youngest daughter showing off her expert skills on guitar hero for grandma and grandpa.

After we ate dinner hubby started a fire in the chimnea and we sat out back around the fire for about an hour and a half. Tommorrow its back to work at 1:00 p.m. I am looking forward to this New Year and hopefully it will be better for all than last.

Gini

2008-12-25T16:57:00.000-08:00

So another Christmas is behind us. Hope everyone had a good one. We did but sure wish we could have spent it with our family that lives out of state. Monday and Tuesday I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off and by the end of the night I had everything done and ready to be delivered to co-workers, friends and family. *click on pics to enlarge*

At christmas not only do we celebrate the birth of Jesus but also the birth of our beautiful daughter. She turned 19 on christmas eve. Yes, 19 years ago on christmas eve I was in the hospital giving birth to her. It was one of the coldest days on record in Central Florida. It is such a rip off to be born around christmas. It was hard to have birthday parties for her at this time because everyone was so busy or out of town or had family in town. She had parties before where only two kids showed up. Also she gets all her presents for the year at one time and alot of times her gifts would be wrapped in christmas paper!

On christmas eve we went to our friends house for a party. There was food galore and beautiful decorations. Can you believe the party was held outdoors in their gigantic screened in room? It was 75 degrees outside!

Christmas morning we woke up around 8:30 and the girls unwrapped their gifts. As you can see they had a helper. Actually our 6 month old cat was really annoying the girls. She kept grabbing at the presents they were opening and then once they got the paper off she would attack it and bat it all around the living room. She also had to jump in and out of all the boxes.

Later in the day we went to my parents house for dinner. Here is my dad carving the spiral ham. We also had all of the other traditional dishes: sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, pineapple souffle, rice and broccolli casserole and rolls.

My hubby is leaving tomorrow to go visit his mother, father, and brother in North Carolina. I really wish I could go but I have to work and want to save my vacation days for the summer. He is excited to see his family but I will miss him :-( I have to work today until one but as soon as I get home I will take down all my christmas decorations. I am one of those people that the day after christmas I cannot stand to look at the stuff one more day!

Gini

2008-12-22T16:37:00.000-08:00

Today I finished all my christmas shopping. First I went to Joanne Fabrics where they were having 70% off of all their christmas items. I saw many, many, many things I would have loved to have bought but I restrained myself knowing I needed to finish buying for others ;-) I did buy a photo album for my oldest to put her pictures in from her trip to NYC with my sister last year. I then went to Walmart which was disgustingly packed and bought the ingredients to make homemade chex mix. It is so easy to make and delicious. I used a recipe that I found online but had to tweak it because it just seemed like it was missing something. Here all the ingredients minus the butter.

I then went to Big Lots and bought these tins to put the chex mix in. They will go to my husbands and my co workers as well as friends at the christmas eve party we are attending and friends and family that will be at my mothers on christmas day. The tins were $2 for the larger ones and $1.70 for the smaller.

At Big Lots I saw this Jelly Belly strawberry daquiri mx that I thought was cute and I bought it to give to my friend Tammy. It was only $3.50.

I also met my hubby for lunch for chinese this afternoon where they gave us enough food to feed an army. There was enough for me, my husband and my daughters lunch plus dinner for the both of us. I then went to a bbq place called Kellers to buy his boss a gift certificate. It was a busy and productive day and I am so glad that I do not have to set foot in a store again before christmas!

Gini

Merry Christmas from my girls!

2008-12-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

Okay I just figured out how to send the video to my blog hence the two different posts for today :-p

Merry Christmas from my girls!

2008-12-21T16:17:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Yay! I am almost done!

2008-12-20T18:10:00.001-08:00

I am almost done with my shopping. On monday I will wrap it up. The "big" gift this year was an Xbox 360. My daughter and husband requested this one. Husband likes to pretend he is a nascar driver and 14 year likes to play games. She also asked for and recieved guitar hero. That is pretty fun. The other gifts are the things girls are made of: perfume, clothes, cute pajamas, and jewelry. See that carpet? This coming year it will be ripped up and replaced with laminate wood floors. I made these cupcakes for my wonderful co worker friends. The green things are actually little tiny christmas trees as you can see in the next pic.

Well maybe not....

I cannot believe there is only 5 more days till christmas. What really makes it unbelievable is when it is 80 degrees outside!

Gini

Weekend get away in Homosassa

2008-12-16T18:04:00.000-08:00

This past friday my husband, me. our youngest daughter Rachel, and her friend Bree left right after work to go and visit my friend and her family in Homosassa, Florida. We really needed a break and we always have a good time when we go. Our husbands love to fish and her husband has a boat. On Saturday morning the guys got up early and went fishing and us girls went out to lunch here at the Sawgrass restaurant. Click on the pictures to enlarge.

Afterwards we called the guys who said they would be heading through the river soon and they picked us up at a dock and took us to see the manatees in the springs. These are a couple of the houses that we saw along the river.

This is an island called Monkey Island and there are what else... monkeys on it! There is a restaurant on the bank of the river and this island is visible from the restaurant.

Every year Homosassa has a christmas boat float parade. These are a couple of the boat floats. We did not stay to see the parade because we were just too tired.

We left sunday afternoon. We had a great time. Homosassa is old time florida. It is so rural and peaceful and such a change of pace from where we live. I am looking forward to going back in the summer for a few days.

Gift to me :-), Decorating and a project

2008-12-08T16:30:00.000-08:00

Today was my day off and I went for some retail therapy. I was actually supposed to Christmas shop but I got a late start and did not have a list made up yet of what to get and where to go to get it. I like to comparison shop prior. So.... I went to my new favorite store for stuff for my home...TJ Maxx and then Ross and Kirklands. I found this really cute "vintage" apron at Ross for $8.99. I just wish it wasn't so wwiiddee on me ;-).

This is the top of my entertainment center. I am not done yet. I need to fill the white bowl with some red christmas balls. I made the monogrammed plaque. I got the idea from one of the blogs I read but I can't remember which one.

My kitchen is green, black and white theme and I bought this lamp post at Goodwill for $3.99 without the shade. I bought the shade at Walmart and hot glued the little white ball ric rac to it. I think it turned out cute.

Tomorrow I will definitely get some christmas shopping done as well as some cleaning. I will be working wendsday and thursday and then this weekend we are going to Homossassa springs to visit my best friend and her family. I am looking forward to it!

Gini

Christmas Decor and Egg Rolls :-)

2008-12-04T17:31:00.001-08:00

I decided to do something different with my tree this year. It has a white and red theme. I don't know why it looks so blurry in the picture it's actually really pretty.

I bought this to hang in my kitchen at Joannes Fabrics. They have all their Christmas merchandise on sale at 60% off.

Tonight I made these for dinner. They are... egg rolls. They are delicious. They are made with pork, cabbage, green onions, celery and soy sauce. They are time consuming but so worth it. My husband loves them. Here they are cooking away in the deep fryer.

Here they are done. Ready to eat. Delicious!

Have a great weekend!

Gini

A day with the daughter

2008-11-29T15:59:00.000-08:00

Today was a great day! My daughter Jessica was babysitting her friends 3 year old daughter and we decided to go to the park. First we went to Gators Dockside and had boneless chicken wings and fries.

Next we went to Lake Mills Park. Its a little bit of heaven in our crowded concrete jungle.

At Lake Mills there is a boardwalk running through the woods. There is a little stream that runs through it too. Lexi had us on the lookout for lions, tigers and bears. We did not see any of those animals but we did see a squirrel and a butterfly. Oh, and a man that was up in a tree over the stream and the woman he was with told Lexi it was a monkey. Lexi kept asking us the rest of the way if we were going to see any more monkeys!

After we left we went down the street to pasture with cows. We stopped so Lexi could look at them up close. Unfortunately these cows probably will not be here much longer as there are neighborhoods going up right next to their pasture or what used to be their pasture and across the street as well. We need more subdivisions around here like another hole in the head.

Then to top off the perfect afternoon we stopped at Twistee Treat for ice cream. Jessica and I had banana splits and Lexi had chocolate.

I was so happy to spend the day with my daughter and her cute little friend!

Gini

Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T19:14:00.000-08:00

This Thanksgiving was one I will remember forever. My sister, brother in law Mark, niece and nephew surprised us by coming down from North Carolina. My sister had told us that they would not be able to make it due to Mark having to work. My mother called me at work (I had to work 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday) and told me she needed to show me something she bought for my daughter Jessica for Christmas. Then when I went outside they came from around the corner of the building and yelled suprise!

My niece Shea (click on the pictures to enlarge)

My sister and Shea

My mother would love this picture!

Dessert fast and easy and quick like!

Hope everyone had a great thanksgiving. I know that we did!

Gini

Justin Timberlake like you've never seen him

2008-11-24T15:05:00.000-08:00

http://video.aol.com/video/real-men-wear-heels-saturday-night-live/2325069

Now this is funny!

Finally!

2008-11-20T14:29:00.000-08:00

I finally recieved this book in the mail from the public library. This is an extremely popular series and it is so hard to get these books. I waited for 4 weeks. I can't wait to start reading it tonight. Wonder how long I will have to wait for the second one.

I bought two of these today. Yankee Candles are my favorite. I had a buy one get one free coupon for the three available sizes small, medium and large. I bought one for my boss for christmas and one for me of course. I will give my boss his tomorrow so that he can enjoy it throughout the holidays.

And now tonight when my hubby gets home and ready we will be going here for dinner:

Its cold in Florida. Hope it stays this way for Thanksgiving!

Gini

Happy Birthday Rachel

2008-11-18T06:36:00.000-08:00

HAPPY 14th BIRTHDAY MY BEAUTIFUL BABY GIRL! It's time to call Dr. Shrinker!

YUMMY!

Last night we had our family birthday dinner. Rachel wanted lasagna and salad and she got lasagna and salad. The cake is an ice cream cake from Publix. She received lots of money and gift cards from friends. From us she got the Ipod Nano in orange. She is a happy camper now.

2008-11-15T16:49:00.000-08:00

Last night our daughter Rachel celebrated her 14th birthday early with 5 of her friends by having a sleepover. I had to work Wendsday and Thursday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on friday 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. so needless to say I had to throw the party together. I made the kids hot dogs and mac and cheese..

And lame cupcakes..

At 7:55 the girls went into the backyard to watch the night launch of the shuttle Endeavour. We can see it perfectly from our backyard. This picture does not do it justice.

The girls had a blast. Thankfully they stayed out in front of our house most of the night with a few of their friends who happen to be boys. When they did come in they were quiet and respectful. In the morning I made them a breakfast of eggs, bacon and pancakes. By noon they were all gone but one. They are a great group of teenage girls and I am proud to call one of them my daughter.