Oh yeah, I forgot that he had such a good personality!

As I sat watching the unveiling of George and Laura Bush's portraits at the White House, I found myself actually laughing and smiling. Very odd since I prayed for 8 years that we could have a do over and his presidency would turn out to have been a  HUGE miscount. (Kinda like the mishap in Florida years back.) But what I discovered as I heard Mr. Bush speak, was how funny and warm and...likeable he was as a person. He was borderline hilarious in his acceptance speech, ordering attendees to "sit down" as they gave him a rousing standing ovation.  Former President Bush was extremely likeable, gracious, and unforgettably humourous.

There was one touching moment during the speech that was my favorite. He spoke about how much of an honor it was for his portrait to hang fairly close to a man who showed him "unconditional love." "Number 41", his Father Former President George H.W. Bush. As a mother, my heart melted. At that moment, he was just a grateful son who had followd in his daddy's footsteps, which further intensified that beautiful, sacred bond of a father and son.  It made me think of how close my boys are with their Dad, and for once, I had stopped and acknowledged the humaness of our former president.

I thought it would only be fair to point this out, since I was often so harsh in judging his political record. Being the President has to be one of the toughest jobs around, but I now have a new understanding: Never forget the person behind the position.

Follow this link to watch the ceremony. It was really good!
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/cvplive/cvpstream4&hpt=hp_t2

Thank you Dr. Oz

So you check the time on your computer and on any given weekday and it's four o'clock, you think "Just one more hour, one more, and I'm off the MAN's clock! But, if  you're a domestic engineer like myself...It's time for Dr. Oz!
His show is like a chocolate chocolate cupcake....only fat free! Seriously, the wealth of health knowledge and tips is very addictive. His show today on "eating to avoid cancer" was by far the best. Please see the tips below or go to http://www.doctoroz.com/ for more info!

20% of women with lung cancer HAVE NEVER SMOKED A CIGARETTE!!!

Eat blueberries! They are a superfruit and also help fight lung cancer.

Drink 2 glasses of citrus fruit juice per day or eat Tangerines and Clementines to help fight cancer of the esophagus.

Eat bananas and squid(not necessarily  together) to stave off breast cancer

Frozen squash to fight off lymphoma

A mini spa for your "hoo-hah"?

Ladies, I have tested and tried this one. There is no need,  for a long post I'll just dare you to try it. Dr. Bronner's Peppermint soap. This will make you smell minty fresh in all the right places! I am hooked. You can buy it online at http://www.drbronner.com/ or at Target. The bar of soap will run you just under $5 and should last about four weeks (unless your husband mistakes it for irish spring and lavishly lathers like there's no tomorrow!)  This soap not only smells unreal, but leaves you with a refreshingly clean feeling like no other. Warning: You may have to get used to the tingle!

Secret for longer, leaner legs

Forgot to share this in other posting but this is super important.  If you have thick legs, the last thing you want to do is to make them look short. So I have posted shoes to stay away from and ones to run to.  Of course heels make you look "stacked" and that's a great thing.  But if your option is betweem wearing flats or ankle strap pumps that make your ankles look choked??? Pick flats. Those ankle straps cut off the flow of your legs and thus emphasizes the chunk. The exception is open toes with ankle straps that look sexy and creates the illusion of longer legs.  This is from personal experience.

I've done the leg work...arm work...& booty work

Ah, my beloved ladies, I took one for the team today. The hubby took the kids, and I sacrificed myself at the altar they call "the dressing room." Yep, I went to the girly store, gathered about 20 fashions and trends, all in an effort to see what actually works on curvy women. So, here are my findings!

Wanna hide chunky thighs?

Find the deepest darkest denim . None with that faded look. Just deep deep blue denim, and marry it. I was so sold, that I vow here and now to NEVER buy anything else. Unless you want to do color jeans  but even still stay away from white and pastel shades.

Wanna minimize chunky midsection?

Make horizontal striped dresses your bff. The lines are not only hypnotizing but very flattering.  I must say, this was my favorite look.

Say yes to prints with one exception:  stay away from overly blousy loose printed material. It only makes you look like a frumpy ethereal mess.

Belts!!! Belts "create" a defined waist.

The biggest shocker was the trendy solid-top-printed bottom dress. REALLY, REALLY slimming, I was looking pretty hot, I must say.

Belted shirt dresses are also a good camo!

How about meaty arms?

If you have pretty decent shoulders, try a sleeveless dress or tank with straps NO thinner than 2 inches.

Which capris look best on shorties?

Straight and long. All the others make us looked "sawed off."

The biggest and most important lesson deserves all caps...
DO NOT WEAR DRESSES THAT FALL HIGHER THAN TWO INCHES ABOVE YOUR KNEES IF YOU HAVE BIG THIGHS AND FAT KNEES!!! Trust me, please.

You're welcome. (lol)

Need a marriage booster?

Well...so do I! I know that I'm the blogger and should have something to share so here it goes. PRAY. And if you are not a Christian, then most certainly pray even harder because the uncertainty of your eternal life must be causing you extreme unrest. But back to marriage. Although it is like walking a bed of hot coals sometimes, realize that your spouse's unresolved hurt, could be causing him/her to hurt you. (not physically)  Things in the past, feelings of failure, childhood terrors, strained familial relations and simply the stress of everyday life can all be things contributing to unresolved hurt in your spouse. So pray for their strenghth, peace and healing. Pray tha t the Lord allows you to show him/her the same grace and mercy that He shows us.

Please, share some of your marriage.secrets!

Clothing your family on a BUDGET?

Is it possible to look "fly" and pay less? Yep! Check with your local thrift stores for deal days. Our Salvation Army has half off Wednesdays. Ok, so I had to wait in the car for 15 minutes for a parking spot because I got there 10 minutes after they opened the doors. And yes, I had to wait 20 minutes for a shopping cart to free up. BUT, I snagged 20 items including brand names Guess, Izod, Bon bebe, Cherokee, and Gap for...LESS THAN NINETEEN DOLLARS!

My NEW favorite thing(s)

I am constantly on the hunt for some extraordinary use for an ordinary thing. Yesterday, I'm proud to say I made a pleasantly shocking discovery in the baking aisle of the supermarket...GRAPESEED OIL!
This is literally like liquid gold. I bought it for a natural hair moisturizer and when I poured it in my hands, my skin instantly turned into   satin! I continued to rub it into my hands and it absorbed into my skin leaving no oily residue and no scent! It also left my hair soft with a great sheen!
I look forward to sauteeing my spinach in it tonight.

Second runner up, also in the same aisle, COCONUT OIL! Bought this for the same reason, natural hair regime, and was delightfully surprised. It's coagulated like lard, but tastes nothing like it and is much better for you. The shocker was when I used it to cook pancakes this morning. You try it and see if they are the best tasting pancakes you've ever made. Seriously.

All in all, that was the best eleven dollars spent!

Yep, Convenience costs you!

A staple in any American home with children is, of course, Velveeta Shells and Cheese. Having two toddlers, it made sense to get the individual, microwaveable bowls.
So last night, I'm at my fave Buy one get one free spot, Publix, and they had the boxes on sale basically making it around 1.30 per box! Fantastic, I thought since with the individual bowls, you pay about a dollar per bowl, and these boxes have at least two servings so that's almost .35 savings per serving right? Wrong!!! I was so exited when I cooked it up for lunch today and realized that one box contained 4 kids servings! Therefore, I saved nearly $3 bucks since I usually buy the four pack of indy bowls for about $4. 

Moral of the story? A little more effort costed me ALOT less!

Allowing guns on campus???

Heck yes we should! Since Virginia Tech and recently Oikos University in California, everyone  has been having this debate. Just so there is no confusion on my stance...
HECK YES GUNS SHOULD BE PERMITTED ON CAMPUS!!!

This debate is pointless. Is it just me or is it blantantly obvious that the assailants CLEARLY hadn't planned on obeying the law when they showed up to campus to committ these heinous crimes? Denying students their right to bear arms will only punish those law abiding, upstanding students. I really can't picture a rogue, cold, sick, gun-toting murderer pausing in front of the biology building checking the University handbook to see if his intended actions are permissable!!!

Really.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/02/us/california-shooting/index.html

How do you recover from forgetting a friends birthday?

You BLOG about it! You admit to the entire world wide web that you are a terrible friend, but at the same time allow hundreds of readers (hopefully) to know how special she is!

Ahem, to a gracious, patient, kind, exuberant, super smart, and encouraging friend, I would like to wish

 "Mrs. Ybonne" 

 

HAPPY, HAPPY 45TH BIRTHDAY!

( I did get the age right...right??!!!)

Paula Deen Y'all

Hello everyone!!! Hope you are having a great week. Found out I have tendonitis of my right wrist...too much blogging maybe??! Anyhoo, here's my Paula Deen Sweet Treat for the Week. You must try!

So as of late, I've become even more aware of the things that my family eats and have been dead set on minimizing fast food and prepackaged baked treats, etc. Preservatives? Blah! Hydrogenated Oil? Yuck!
It's very easy, affordable, and honestly it just plain feels good to feed your family some of your own homemade baked goods!

This recipe is crazy affordable. You may have all but two of these ingredients at home. I'm going to make it this week and take a pretty picture for y'all. ( channeling my inner Paula)
***Remember to WHIP the whipping cream or you'll have a mess***

Mae Dawson's Hoosier Sugar Cream Pie

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, unsifted
• 1/2 pint (1 cup) whipping cream
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces
• Pinch nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Combine sugar, flour, cream, and milk in a mixing bowl. Pour into pie shell.
 Dot butter bits all around top of pie. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake for approximately
10 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and cook for approximately
30 more minutes. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate until chilled. Serve chilled.
Cook's Note: If using a glass baking dish, lower oven temperature by 25 degrees F.

Baby come back!

Dear College Body,

If you just come back to me, I promise I'll never take you for granted again. I'll hold my head up proudly as I strut in my size 0 pants. I'll work out 3-5 times a day to maintain you. I'll treat you to the spa and everything. I'll dress you impeccably and I'd never let anything come between us. I'd find a surrogate to carry my kids just to preserve you,because having a mom with a Hot Body would eventually pay off for them in the end for them as well! I love you, and I miss you. I enjoyed our times. Please consider my offer.

Love,

Random Mom

So yesterday, I found myself on a college campus while my husband was working with some church members on track and field training...and WOW.  I noticed all of the little college tarts walking around and got a little uncomfortable , honestly. I noticed a BIG DIFFERENCE! 

I've had three kids, one just a few months ago, gained some of that happy marriage weight(7 years worth)  so of course I've developed a womanly figure, which is a far cry from the stick and bones mantra I wore for the first twenty two years of my life.I was so skinny in high school and in college, that I would eat dinner twice, eat whole large pizzas by myself, and even snack on bread sandwiches (yep, just stacks of bread) to gain some "thickness'.  I looked good in my size 0 pants but to me, I just needed more meat on my bones, more of a shape.Oh but now, now I don't have to look far for the "thickness" it's here....to stay obviously! So, yeah I just wanted to share with my bloggers a letter I wrote to my old College Body.

Whitney Houston: When "WISHING" doesn't work

I've been fairly silent about how devastated I was by the death of an Icon and my musical Idol, Whitney Houston. She was my EVERYTHING as a young girl. I won my first talent show, not to mention Five whole dollars in prize money, singing " I will always love you." But the point is, I just like many people, hoped and wished that the drug rumors were not true. Even when she came out in the famous 2002 Diane Sawyer "Crack is Wack" interview, a lot of us still looked the other way. I don't know how many of us prayed for her, but I didn't. I just wished it weren't true. "Somebody will take care of it. She'll be fine. She'll come back. " These are all things I thought to myself. But clearly, the problem was bigger than we thought.

 http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/whitney-houston-crack-whack-2002-interview-diane-sawyer-entertainment-15566496

When the news broke of her death, and all of her friends came to her defense, including my favorite Kim Burrell, I was relieved. I thought, "Oh good, she returned back to God. She was clean." I was so happy.  I had watched the re-airing of the 2009 Oprah interview, and I felt better. It was "well with my soul."

 http://www.thelifefiles.com/2009/09/14/watch-whitney-houstons-entire-interview-with-oprah-winfrey/

But on March 22, 2012 the story broke that Cocaine was found in Whitney's system. This made me almost sadder than I was when I found out that she died. She wasn't okay. She wasn't better. And most of all, those mean-spirited, blood sucking reporters and bloggers were right. No matter how I wished that she was better, wished that she was clean, wished that she had overcome that horrid demon, it seems that she had not.

Rest in Peace Whitney.