SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT

"I've got a bright red sticker on the back of my car
Says United States Marines
And yesterday a lady in a mini-van held up a middle finger at me
Does she think she knows what I stand for
Or the things that I believe
Just by looking at a sticker for the U.S. Marines
On the bumper of my SUV

See, my brother Chris, he's been in for more than 14 years now
Our dad was in the Navy during Vietnam
Did his duty then he got out
And my grandpa earned his purple heart
On the beach of Normandy
That's why I've got a sticker for the U.S. Marines
On the bumper of my SUV

But that doesn't mean that I want war
I'm not Republican or Democrat
But I've gone all around this crazy world
Just to try and better understand
Yes, I do have questions
I get to ask them because I'm free
That's why I've got a sticker for the U.S. Marines
On the bumper of my SUV

'Cause I've been to Hiroshima
And I've been to the DMZ
I've walked on the sand in Baghdad
Still don't have all of the answers I need
But I guess I wanna know where she's been
Before she judges and gestures to me
'Cause she don't like my sticker for the U.S. Marines
On the bumper of my SUV

So I hope that lady in her mini-van
Turns on her radio and hears this from me
As she picks up her kids from their private school
And drives home safely on our city streets
Or to the building where her church group meets
Yeah, that's why I've got a sticker for the U.S. Marines
On the bumper of my SUV"

--Chely Wright

EASTER DEVILED EGGS

Yes, you heard it correctly! Dyed Easter eggs.I found this really cool idea I found on the website:  www.sistersinthekitchen.com. Grant it, colored deviled eggs is definitely different, but it's still too awesome not to share. 

To create this, here's what you'll need to do:



 EASTER COLORED DEVILED EGGS
10 hard boiled eggs
food coloring
1 teaspoon vinegar for each color you are using
1/2 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip (for egg filling)

Remove the shells from the hard boiled eggs and slice each egg in half.

Remove the yolks from the egg halves and place in a bowl.  Set the yolks aside.

Using enough glasses or mugs for the number of colors you want to use, fill each of them 2/3 full with cold water.

Add 3 drops of desired food coloring along with 1 teaspoon vinegar to each glass or mug.

Place egg whites in the mugs and allow to sit in the food coloring until desired color is reached.  (You can color 2 or 3 egg whites in one mug).

Remove whites from dye and drain on paper towels. 

Take the reserved yolks and mash them with a fork.  Mix in the mayonnaise with the mashed yolk (or use your own favorite recipe for deviled egg filling).

Pipe or spoon the yolk mixture into the colored egg whites (I fill a zip-lock sandwich bag with the filling, snip off the bottom corner of the bag, and you have a neat way to pipe the filling into each egg white).

Makes:  20 deviled egg halves.

(From:  RealMomKitchen.com)

A LITTLE OFF-SEASON CREEPINESS

OK, Halloween isn't until six months away, but...had to share. The only questions is: disturb what? Or, better yet...WHO???

A tad creepy, don't ya think?

AN "EGG"CITING CHALLENGE

As you know, from now until Easter, I will be discovering exciting ways to dye Easter eggs.

I was googling ways to dye eggs and ran across these natural colorings. Some look fascinating while others are...well...a pure challenge.

But I'm up for it. Dear God, help us all and the poor little eggs who will sacrifice their shells for the sake of my amusement.

And to the eggs I will experiment with: Little eggs, you will all be my Frankensteins in the hands of the Favorite Things Guy. As a blessing in hopes your outside shells really do turn out to be beautiful, I'll say this, in the words of Effie Trinket from THE HUNGER GAMES, "May the odds be forever in your favor."

Now, let's get cracking...NO PUN INTENDED! LOL!

CANDLE IN A CUP

I was at work and found something someone actually threw out.

It's a candle making kit from Hobby Lobby. I followed the directions to the letter and was rather proud i didn't blow anything up.

Then...

With a stir of the spatula...

A soaking of the wick...

And with a lot of TLC, I made...

          A candle in a cup! What do y'all think?

EGG DYE ATTEMPT #1: THE ROBIN EGG

As promised, I am trying to dye various Easter eggs in a variety of different ways.

For starters, I choose to call this one "the robin egg." It looks like a natural robin's egg and can be done in any color. Here's how I did it:

First, I boiled one egg. Then, I took the egg and sprayed it with a thick layer of vegetable oil. Then, I dropped the egg in a cup consisting of a mixture of warm water and blue food coloring. I allowed the egg to sit in the dye mixture for fifteen to twenty minutes and then removed the egg from the cup.

I took a wash cloth and wiped the egg as though I was drying and polishing it. What happened was the colored dye began to stick to the egg, and as I rubbed it took on a shiny, speckled form.

It was awesome and very realistic!

For my next egg dyeing experiment...Well...you'll just have to wait and see. =)

Be Patient, Dear Hearts...SOON!

Soon...very soon, people. Winter will pass, and Spring will be here with its warmth.

SOON! =)

THE EARLY BIRD CATCHES THE...WELL...REALLY PRETTY EGG

I know Easter isn't but a few weeks away, but I am still looking forward to doing this. There's nothing like the joy of dyeing eggs for such a festive and sacred time of year. Nothing like it at all! In fact, it was the only time as a child I enjoyed the smell of vinegar.

The ONLY time.

Throughout the course of the weeks to come, I am going to work on various ways to dye an egg: regular, Tye-dyed, neon, natural, marble, etc. Life gets away from us so many times, but sometimes we have to make ourselves do stuff. Pain and heartache is inevitable and part of our lives. Well...so can this be as well.

And I want you all to come along and do this with me. Our kitchens will smell with vinegar together and we will be better people for having made the world a little more beautiful as well as interesting. =)

SHORT AND SWEET, PART DEUX

Short, sweet, and speaks for itself. Don't you agree?

THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE

OK, y'all. For one split second I want to take this time to give a short, but sweet sentiment. It's Valentine's Day in a few weeks, so this is very fitting. Also, call it clairvoyance, but I feel someone may need this today.

I used to think this statement was such a conceited sentence, but it's true.

Sometimes, we all have people in our lives that tend to either not accept us for who we are or fail to respect us and our beliefs.

Here's the deal. Life's too dang short not to be yourself...AND if someone chooses to be with you in any form or fashion, they'll respect you for who you are and love you just the way you are. From the movie THE HELP, which I absolutely adore by the way, all I can say is "you is loved, you is important, you is somebody."

We all are.

Couth and unconditional love haven't gone out of style, folks. They're both sitting and waiting in the wings for anyone to give to his and/or her fellow human being. It always has, and it always will, no matter what goes on in this great big world. Love is love, and that's all that matters.

TINA THE GREAT, JASON THE PRUDE

The other day, my neighbors decided to invest in a llama. Why a llama? I have no idea.

I decided to call her Tina, in lieu of the llama from the movie, NAPOLEON DYNAMITE. She doesn't eat ham, but loves to sneak a kiss on your forehead if you're not careful. However, she can be weird sometimes.

For instance.

When I don't feed her any veggies, she sticks her tongue out at me and let's out a raspberry (PBBBBBBT!). One day, I was afraid she'd spit on me, but she gave me a kiss...right on top of my bald head. And then wants to blow me kisses from a distance. No joke! It's wild.

She's a sweet girl, but man, does she have a lot to learn about human interaction. HA! HA! But, oh well. Who can blame her? She does have live next door to my nutty, crazy self, so I'll overlook her just this time. =)

BIRD ON A WIRE

Once again, it seems as though Mother Nature has showered us once again with cold, white flakes in the Eastern Tennessee region. Grant it, I'd love for it to be Autumn all year long but can always make an exception when it comes to the serene hills of the Appalachia to be draped in white beauty.

As I was taking pictures with my camera, I noticed a bird--a brown, orange-beaked cardinal sitting so very still on the metal fencing connected to wooden fence posts.

Then, for a split second, my hunger for Autumn wavered, but only for a moment. The wind whistled gently, and there didn't seem to be any problems with the world. It was just me, winter's wonder, and a sweet little cardinal who decided to spend part of his busy day enjoying it all with me.

What could be any better than that?

TURTLE HEAD ROCK

Somewhere in the heart of East Tennessee, there's a big rock called "The Turtle Head."

One day, someone decided to get creative and paint an image on a rock shaped like some sort of amphibious creature. With so many people placing their creative mark along nearby bridges and underpasses, someone decided to take their creativity and shed light on something awesome. The pictures don't do this creation justice. In person, it's pretty cool and fascinating! And all because someone decided to not only think outside the box but also do it for all to enjoy.

The lesson to be learned is instead of thinking and/or talking about your vision, go out and make it visible to everyone around you to see as well and be in awe along with you. You might be surprised what could happen.  

THE MULLING CAULDRON

Now that winter's here, one of my favorite things to do is to get crafty and hands-on.

I purchased this green bell pepper-shaped pot a few years ago for the sole purpose it made the rest of my kitchen look warm and welcoming. Since I'm unable to cook a lot with it, it had to have some use other than to, as my granddaddy would say, "sit around and look pretty."

So...with a lot of love and TLC, I decided to designate it as my mulling cauldron. I call it a "cauldron" for the simple fact that I love anything mystical and Halloween-related. The last time I used it, I mulled something that smelled like a citrus grove and it refreshed the kitchen and even parts of the house. I took pieces of sliced lemons, limes and oranges, and created the most wonderful-smelling concoction.

Don't get me wrong. I can't walk out the door without my cell phone, my laptop possesses a great deal of importance, and my Kindle Fire rocks, but there's something about mulling spices and sipping delicious ciders and gourmet cocoas on cold days like today that make this chilly season oh, so perfect!

FIRE AND ICE

Somewhere deep within the recesses of a winter's evening is a sight that can only be see with the naked eye and appreciated by those who look outside the box of norm.

Deep oranges mixed with hints of cold lavender blend together to create the most gorgeous light show in the chilly January sky.

Is it the evening itself on fire? Or perhaps it's nothing more than several cauldrons of a thousand witches? Or maybe, just maybe it's the heart of the sky beating?

Either way, it's gorgeous, and that's the only thing we need to worry about tonight--not bills, not people, absolutely no event we can't change or stop. Simply the beauty of it all that makes us so glad to be alive.

BEAUTY AMONG THE BEAST

Even though it's the middle of January, my household's getting ready for Springtime buying garden supplies at estate sales and flea markets before they're gone.

This was one of the things we put in our garden on the back porch. The rustic, antique chair may not look appealing to the naked eye, but there's something about it that possesses character unlike any other.


And I'll admit. It's not the most eye-catching beauty, but it sure does tell a story. And, just like with anything in life, when we look beyond the mundane and find the exquisite, we also find ourselves loving one the greatest stories ever told.

And in the end, among its years, we'll be blessed to have experienced it all.

EVENING SHADES

When I was a child, there was nothing like nighttime. Its whimsical, care-free contrasts and creatures of the night, like fireflies and twinkling stars, adorned every corner of the pitched black ecstasy.

The orange cream hues mixed with periwinkle colors, and a certain chill in the air. Early yesterday evening, I couldn't help but notice the most beautiful evening I've ever seen.


And so there it was: beautiful and radiant. Yes, there it was, and so was I marveling in the breath-taking wonder of it all.

"LOVE LIFE"

The one thing I love are old cemeteries. Call it creepy, or the macabre, or even just-plain weird but it is what it is.

This past Summer, I was walking along an old hiking trail when I came across an old cemetery along a partially-overgrown path. As I walked along and noticed headstones that dated all the way back to the early 1800s, one particular scene intrigued me. 
 
 I came across an old wooden bench, preferably for people who are paying their respects to sit down and reflect. Something about it stopped me, as I studied it carefully. I think it's appropriate to call it sheer irony, but it was definitely different. Two words were spray-painted with black paint along the side of the bench.

"LOVE LIFE"

As a knee-jerk reaction, I couldn't believe anyone would vandalize such a sacred ground, but another part of me stopped and understood. LOVE LIFE. Why? 

Because none of us are promised another one. So, all-in-all, take time to smell the roses, taste every kind of food you can, and share a smile. Because when life's over, the only thing we can do is either thank the Good Lord we lived life to the best of our abilities and talents, or die with the regret we didn't live enough.

HIDDEN BLESSINGS

A few days ago, our country was rocked with the lowest temperatures in decades. Wind chills that, as my grandmother used to say, "could cut through you" penetrated through even the most impenetrable clothing.

Still, despite all the chaotic weather conditions came this gorgeous scenery. The skies were a stunning baby blue and the snow was as white as cotton. Grant it, temperatures reaching 20-below zero isn't necessarily my idea of a serene time...BUT...I made the best of a bad situation.

I took steaming coffee in my favorite mug, wrapped myself in my favorite blanket, sat on the couch, and watched the snow fall like tiny earthbound angels. No, there's nothing like the warmth of spring, the pool-splashing summer, and my favorite time of the year which is autumn. However, there's also nothing, and I do mean nothing like those precious moments when we step back, look at what we've been given, and simple smile, thankful to be alive to have experienced it all.