And the Winner Is....

The winner of the Pioneer Woman Cookbook is....Maureen from Illinois!!! Congratulations to Maureen! She'll be fixing supper for us all on...just kidding! But I do think I smell something really great wafting over to Missouri from Illinois! Since I bought myself a copy of the cookbook as well I think I'll go sink into my space on the couch and see what recipe I'm going to try! Merry Christmas, friends!

Pioneer Woman Cookbok Giveaway

I promised a giveaway a few weeks ago and I think it's high time I followed through!!! I became interested in blogging due to this woman, Ree Drummond, also known as Pioneer Woman. She is one of the best and widely known of all bloggers. Her blog chronicles her life on a ranch in Oklahoma with her husband and 4 children. She is also an accomplished cook. She has just released her first cookbook, and, so, I'm pleased to be giving one away.

I've not done this before so help me muddle through. To enter just leave a comment telling me what it is you like best about the holiday season. Not hard...one word will do although I welcome more. (For me my one word would be "food". But I have my own cookbook!) I'd also appreciate it if you would sign on as one of my followers...it's kind of embarrassing only having three when two of them are relatives! Of course, you'll have to leave a way for me to contact you. If you are shy and I know you, you know how to get in touch with me. This contest will close on Monday, December 14th, at 7:00 p.m. CST. Good luck and Merry Christmas!!!

H.K. Anderson pretzels...endorsed by Sam!

Sam and I have discovered a great new snack that is quickly turning into an addiction! H.K. Anderson's Pretzels...yes, I said pretzels. But these aren't just any pretzels! I found the sacks in the checkout at Walmart. (Yes, an impulse buy.)
The simple, retro packaging is what caught my eye. I took the bag home and it was quickly devoured by a young man who is rather picky about his food. Sam's ADD medication suppresses his appetite, so I was pleased to find a healthier snack for him that he would actually eat. The pretzels are filled with peanut butter and are quite yummy. They were such a hit I started searching for a larger package. I found these containers across the aisle from the potato chips. Besides the peanut butter filled pretzels they also carry the pretzel balls-double baked butter. I think the pretzel balls are my favorite, but Sam always goes for the peanut butter pretzels.
Check them out the next time you're in Walmart and let me know which is your favorite. After all, we could be eating much worse things, right???

Holiday Hunt

Sonja Henngeler and Kristi Wolbert threw one heck of a "Holiday Hunt" last Sunday at The Hanger in Maryville. They really out did themselves, bringing in some of best artisans, showing us that "this ain't no ordinary craft show".

My hands down favorite was the pottery of Andy Rogers. Andy lives in Maryville and creates the most beautiful pottery. He has mastered blending his love of ceramics and gardening in his organic forms. I'll tell you more about Andy and his work in a later chapter. Let's just say I bought myself a Christmas present...or two...or three..Okay, four! Dammit I deserve it!!! You can check Andy out at www.andyrogersceramics.com. Sorry about the blurry photo. Here are some more pictures of Andy's work.

This is my new BFF, Ben. His family works with stone from Israel. They do a lot of building for people who can really afford it! At the show, Ben was selling soap dishes, coasters, and key chains made from the stone leftovers. His mother made cell phone carriers from wool she gathered from their sheep. She also confessed a love for buttons and had many interesting items made from old buttons. The patriarch of the family was hand engraving custom key chains. They also provided stones for children to play with and entertain themselves. They were an interesting family!








In the past, Sonja and Kristi have held a bi-annual event called "Hodge Podge". Their booth offered a lot of recycled, re-invented, and re-purposed items. I bought a long, narrow basket full of greenery for my front door. It also had a Christmas ribbon and was adorned with an old rusty buckle. When I got home, Sam's comment was "You like rust, don't you Mom?". Yes, son, I do!!!

Holiday Hunt also had many more booths ranging from prints, ceramics, home baked goods, purses, baby items, and much, much more. Sonja said they were already making plans for next year's Holiday Hunt! I'll be looking forward to it!!!

C.J.'s Barn

This little red barn is like a sentinel waiting to greet me every time I reach the south edge of my small hometown. It belongs to C.J., a long-time friend of my family. I love the view of the bottom land sprawled out behind it. I also love the fact that it is a RED barn! Sadly more and more barns are being torn down, which makes the remaining ones even more special. Morton buildings dot the landscape, and while I am sure they are functional, they lack the personality and charm of old-fashioned barns. I can easily see in my mind's eye a farmer headed to the barn to do chore in the early morning light.





On this particular day, I decided to visit the barn instead of just driving by. I wanted to drink in the view, to savour the beauty and the smells of the scene on a beautiful Fall day. I needed to stop and show my appreciation to the ordinariness of a small barn on an ordinary day in my ordinary life.






I was rewarded with another treat. I hadn't been up close to the little wash house in a long time and had forgotten all about it. The tiny little structure is trimmed with gingerbread. It's front door is intricate and the glass window it a complex etching. We certainly don't see buildings like this anymore. All this detail for a wash house!!!






Even the wood stacked between the trees had it's own visual appeal and conjured up images of a warm fire. I could almost smell the wood smoke.





So maybe it isn't just about learning to appreciate what is ordinary in our lives, but finding the EXTRAORDINARY that lies in the ordinariness of our lives!

Blog...What Blog????

For those of you who have been kind enough to notice, I have been absent for awhile. This disappearing act can be attributed to a myriad of circumstances. During my absence I have been having an internal debate on whether I should continue. I've decided I want to go forward with my little project. So... I'm baaacckk!!!

I originally started blogging after becoming a fan of Pioneer Woman, who is probably THE most well known blogger. Being somewhat of a negative person, I was impressed with how she took her, well frankly, pretty ordinary life, scrutinized it, photographed it, wrote about it and suddenly, it became an extraordinary life. Because everyone's life IS extraordinary!!! We've just become so busy we don't take the time to realize each and every one of us has an extraordinary life in it's own way. Life isn't about the big things, which are few and far between. It's about appreciating the little, everyday moments! And so I started to see how even my ordinary life does have it's special moments. Blogging also gives me a chance to let some creativity flow. When I write about my small adventures it forces me to appreciate the normal life I have and be thankful! It makes me realize I have a very full life!

So as I go forward, I would like to see my blog become more interactive. That means I would like someone to comment besides my sister!!! Please, become a follower and give me some feedback!!!

To celebrate my return, I will be having a "give away" contest in a few weeks! I'll give everyone a chance to realize I'm back and join me on my journey. Trust me, you won't want to miss my "give away". It's a good one!!!

Daytripping in Des Moines at Penzey's

Penzey's Spices, above, below Sam being somewhat patient in front of the sea salt display.

Recently, Mom, Sam, and I headed North for a couple of days, just to say we'd been somewhere! Actually, we went to visit my cousins and do all the fun things I love to do when I'm in Des Moines, which isn't as often as I'd like. So hang on, the next few blogs will feature what we do when we hang out in Des Moines. After all, there is no commercial that says "What happens in Des Moines, stays in Des Moines. (And c'mon, Mom and my 10 year old son were with me!!!)

I have this list of things I have to buy when I go to Des Moines. Hostas, orange almond creme cake, hostas, chocolate raspberry jam, hostas, and Snookies Ice Cream. This year I've also added quilt stores, since I've started thinking about sewing again!

Mom and Jan found what they were looking for...and then some!

Our first stop was Penzey's Spices. Last year, Jan introduced us to Northwoods Fire Seasoning and we were instantly hooked. We've had to resort to ordering from Penzey's catalog and we were ready to see the real deal. Of course, it had everything the catalog has, but there were SAMPLES here!!! We loaded up on Northwoods Fire, Southwest Seasoning, cocoa, vanilla sugar... well, you get the picture. I tried not to spend all my money on the first stop. I made mental notes of what I'd have to have next time! Sam endured it well. It's not easy being stuck in a spice store with Mom, Grandma, and the cousins. But even Sam highly endorses Northwoods Fire on hamburgers on the grill!!! Although, not as highly as he recommends Snookies' ice cream!

Cousin Belinda found something she needed. What's nice about Penzey's is they offer everything in several sizes.

Me, grinning like an idiot, because I drag everybody to the places I want to go. I'm lucky though, because they want to go to the same places! Or at least they pretend to and Sam doesn't get a choice. There are some advantages to being the adult!