A RE- finished object.

Remember the little bench I picked up at Savers? (that's my favorite version of your Goodwill). Here...this one.

I sanded it a bit, primed it and painted it.
Then I freehanded Kaite's name and some flowers. I know...I should have waited for some stencils, but...I was impatient.

Kaite loves her new little sittin' spot!

Do Campers Fluff???

In a word..."Yes!" If anyone has ever told you that neat, clean people do not camp out, they are wrong. totally. wrong. I get accused of being too particular, too fussy, too fixey, too neat, too clean...and I LOVE to camp! All it takes is a little planning. I always make a list (usually more than one) and a menu. Always! We didn't always have a trailer either. We used to camp in a tent all the time. I'll have to say though, that I do not miss the middle of the night trips to a cold, dark, smelly outhouse or the chill that tickled my spine when I heard a 'bearlike' noise. We were able to get a great deal on Craigs list several years ago and I do love having a camper. Most of our supplies can just stay in there and we are pretty much ready all the time...just to add the food. I even have the closets packed with camping clothes. Some we have picked up at Goodwill and some are just older clothes who were selected for 'camp duty' rather than the 'yard sale' bag. Oh yeah...the 'always ready to go' thing only works if you clean the camper IMMEDIATELY when you get home.
Like I said, the trailer is not new by a LONG shot and I did a lot of fluffing inside (while hubby fluffed the brakes and plumbing) when we first got it. It has a miniature shower so I bought a full-size shower curtain and cut it down to size. The scraps were then turned into curtains for the bathroom window. I hung a picture here and there and some old deer antlers to use as a coat/hat rack. The front window, above the table has an awning over it, so I didn't think I needed curtains there. Recently, I decided to make some after all...they add a homey touch to our cabin on wheels.
Here is a closer up of them, tied back so we can enjoy the views.
Here is a quilt I made (or rather re-made) that we carry with us on every camp-out. It is wool and sooo warm and cozy.
Someone asked about camping with kids. It's great! This is Kammy a few years ago and is a favorite picture of mine. I do let my kids play in the dirt! Personally, I don't think that God's dirt is as bad for my kids as man's germs at Walmart. :) At the end of the day, we heat some water and they usually come pretty clean. It's strange, but my kids get bored at home with all the toys and things to do and yet when I take them camping where "there's nothing to do" they always find plenty to do.

I love camp cooking too! For this pineapple upside-down cake, I just mixed a yellow cake according to box directions. Line your dutch oven with foil, sprinkle generously with brown sugar nad some nice big chunks of real butter. Then lay your pineapple slices on top of the butter and sugar. Pour cake mix over the top and cover with foil before putting on the lid. I made this one in the wood coals but you can also use charcoal briquettes.

I make as much food as possible ahead of time. Be sure to plan your menu accordingly. For instance, if you are making potato salad, have it on day one or two at the latest. Otherwise it's age will start to show. :) Baked beans almost get better as they age so you could have some now, skip a few days and have them again on day three or four when you have your weinie roast. I make baggie omelets ahead of time too. They are really great and easy. Simply beat up your eggs like you would for omelets at home and then pour about 3/4 cup into a zip-loc baggy. Add a small amount of whatever else you like in your omelets to the bag and zip tightly closed. When you are ready for omelets, drop the bag in a pot of boiling water for about 10 minutes. Remove it with tongs, cool slightly, open and dump it out on your plate. Walah! A perfect omelet!

Oh! And whatever you do, don't forget the marshmellows. Your kids will never forgive you!

God.... I don't always understand him, but I trust him!

I really don't understand God sometimes. Sometimes my plan looks so much better, makes so much more sense. Sometimes he completely confuses me and I feel that my whole world is turned upside down. Sometimes I even get frustrated thinking of the missed opportunities or hardships that have happened because he chose to do things the way he did. I don't get why babies die and mother's arms are left aching with emptiness or why children are left mother/fatherless just when they need them most. I don't understand why people get cancer and they and their families are made to suffer such physical and emotional pain. Why are children born into abusive homes and made to suffer while loving homes are left barren and childless? I cannot understand why he allows innocent young girls to be molested by sick twisted men. It doesn't make sense that lives can be snuffed out so suddenly in automobile accidents or why he allows heart attacks to take the ones we love. I don't understand God sometimes. I don't understand him in the hard times, in the lonely times...the times when it seems all the world has run away and no one cares about our pain. Neither do I understand when it seems all the world is chasing me...allowing no time to relax or catch my breath. I confuses me when the ones who said they loved me are the ones who hurt me the most and leave my heart tore open. I don't understand why he doesn't answer the prayers I pray the way I want him to. I am scared by the uncertainties of this world. I want safety and security for my children, and instead all I hear is of wars and rumors of wars. I don't understand why he allows babies to be murdered before they even have a chance to cry or why they are left struggling in the trash bins of abortion clinics. It hurts to see young people confused and hurt by inconsistent hypocritical people who all the while claim the highest state of grace. I don't understand why he doesn't return before more souls are hurt or lost and yet the thoughts of his returning frightens me when I consider my lost loved ones and friends. I could go on and on all day listing the things I don't understand about God and to be honest that is what I was doing (with a respectful prayerful attitude) as I went about my duties today. And then God spoke to me in a very simple way. When I was doing laundry, I found one of these......

I don't suppose that they understood everything about God during the civil war either, but they looked to him to hold our union together then and we can trust him now as well. Our founding fathers began working then to have a religious motto inscribed on our currency and it showed up there a few times but didn't become official until around 1950. From that time until now, 'In God we Trust' has been placed on all our currency to be a daily reminder to Americans that God is the true source of our sustainance. We are successful only so long as our trust is in him. Thank you for the reminder God. It's true, I don't always understand and I'm not going to claim to be to super-spiritual as to say that I do. I know you are there though. I sense you in the quiet times, when my heart sings in spite of the storm. I hear you in the speaking rain and your bow in the sky reminds me that you have a purpose for all that you do. You calm me with a darkened heaven dressed only in the beauty of the stars. These are the precious times, the worship times, when you are nearer to me than I am to me. You comfort me with your presense and the flowers of the field. You brighten my day through the smiles of a little child. Your word is precious to me. I don't have to understand you to know that you live...to know that you live within, to know that you gave your all to redeem me and are just now preparing a better place for all those who place their trust in you! I know that you love me and have a plan that is best for me, and that is enough.

For I know the plans I have concerning you. Not of trouble, but of peace. To give you fulfillment. Jeremiah 29:11 paraphrase

This chick's fluffing!

I've been fluffing the nest a bit today. New curtains for the dining room were included in said fluffing. I like the toile and pom-pom fringe. They were straight, simple and fast. This 'seamstress' is all for that fast part. They compliment my 'blues' quite nicely!
I picked up the glass jar below at the thrift store the other day and stuffed a bit of curtain scrapes in it today.
This was my Great Grandmothers silverware--Well, some of it anyway. I love the way the large spoon is worn on one side. I'm sure it spent plenty of time in her hand stirring, stirring, stirring over a hot stove.
Some of you have never seen my 'ancestory wall'. I simply chose plates I liked from here and there and some special photos. I copied the photos and super glued them lightly to the plate. Then I sprayed them with a clear paint/protectant, super glued hangers to the back and hung them up. I love being able to enjoy them...(OUTSIDE of the photo album/scrapbook).
All us chicks get a kick out of fluffing and I'm no exception. Thanks for visiting my little nest!

I'm joing a link party with Jo over at http://http//secretgardencottage.blogspot.com/2010/06/feather-your-nest-thursdays.html. I love her blog...and her roses! I'm not in a spot where I can grow a lot of them right now, but they are a fav of mine too and I love that they are so easy! Anyway...I apologize for not getting this link in earlier. I do know how link parties work, I just had something come up (namely a crying baby) and had to run. I love feathering my nest, but sometimes you have to stop and feed the chicks. :)

Camp Out!

Camping season has finally begun! I may have mentioned it before, but we LOVE to camp! In fact, we usually opt for several small inexpensive camp-outs rather than one big vacation. Family time spent around a campfire is unbeatable!We like to explore new camping places but sometimes we choose an old faithful spot. This time we went to Sage Hen. As we drove through I would tell the kids, "We camped here or there when I was such and such with so and so and this or that happened." They love my stories! Sage Hen was my second home as a kid. :)
We have a favorite camp spot on the Hollywood Point side of Sage Hen Reservior but this time someone else was 'favoriting' there. We camped there nearly 2 years ago when I was going to have Kaite and the doctor had just told me to go ahead and go and enjoy it as much as I could because there was really nothing they could do, that there was no heartbeat and I would be losing the baby. I walked down to the water one lovely sunset night and cried and prayed asking God for a miracle. This time, we took our little walking, jabbering 'miracle' along! God is indeed good and he does an awesome job with sunsets too! (Sunset from that night is pictured in previous post).
Four pretty girls on sitting on a log. Can't believe they are mine...I am blessed!
The wild sunflowers are beautiful on the drive up!
And here is our pretty little campsite.

Kalli found some styrofoam and pine needles and let her creative juices flow making arrangements for the table.

She's looking up to her daddy with big adoring smiles.

A couple of campers.

Fishing from the dock. I think all daddy got done was casting and baiting for 3 small girls.

Campfire cuddles are the best kind of cuddles!

Kammy patiently waithing for someone to take her fishing.

The girls really enjoyed feeding the geese who actually ate out of their hands.

Kaiters was getting a wee bit sleepy.

We hiked up to Sage Hen falls.

Kammy rode and rode and rode her little bike.

Sweet Kam at the falls.

A happy camper...at the moment.

She was big stuff in that big 'ole chair!

Standing up on a boulder near the falls.

Babycakes our first night out. She sensed the excitement and was voicing her enthausiasm. In fact, maybe it's just me but I think she looks a little ornery here.I've never yet been camping and wished I wouldn't have gone. This time was no exception in spite of 1 carsick child, 1 dead truck battery, a bit of rain and hail and 2 flat tires! I think the whole idea there is exchanging your current set of troubles and worries for another set and realizing how truly blessed you are in the big picture.