Happy Thursday to you!  I hope your week has been a peaceful one! Today is a very special day-our oldest granddaughter turns 10 today.  I won't post photos until Monday, due to the fact that she and her sister have a joint birthday party on Saturday.
 Hubby and I had fun last night at the musical, but we both decided that we should plan on attending matinees in the future-an hour drive home is a lot when you are tired. 
The other night, while we were watching t.v. and I was quilting, Hunter curled up next to me.  We loved how his front paws were between his back ones.  He is such a joy and makes my life so much happier.
I'm off to the grocery store, then to let Hunter have playtime with a neighbor and this afternoon will visit another friend who is dealing with health issues.  Tonight we will be going over to the birthday girl's house to play games and just to be with her.  Miss S is a joy to all of our family and we are very proud of her!
Until tomorrow~
Noreen

Outdoor Wednesday

With our spring weather being so pleasant, hubby and I are starting to work on the yard a bit.  Last week we bought a yard of supreme mulch(aka gorilla mulch) for the beds.  Our plants are just showing signs of spring here.  On Sunday I told my girls I was on the lookout for a copper wind decoration for the yard; I've seen several in the neighborhood and love them.  Years ago, I got the name of a man who made them, but his prices were sky high.  So Monday, one daughter calls from Costco and says they have what I want there and did I want her to pick one up for me.  Of course I did;  yesterday hubby quickly put it together and we put it in the bed.  I love how whimsical it is. 
I would love to get out and work in the yard today, but we are heading to Denver this afternoon to see the musical Motown; if you grew up in the 60's & 70's you probably listened to this music. We have always loved Motown music and can't wait.  Tomorrow we are supposed to have rain and possibly snow, so no gardening for me; maybe this weekend.  My other goal for this spring is to walk at least 1.5 miles per day-up to 3+ miles per day and ride my bike, at least for 2 miles.  So far, I've been doing this and it feels so good to be back to normal.  I'm about to grab Hunter's harness and get going.  The more I can be outside walking and riding, the happier I am. 
I hope you have a wonderful day!
Blessings,
Noreen & Hunter

On Birds and Such

Good Morning to you!  The birds are singing, especially the blackbirds, and today promises the beauty of spring.  We've never had blackbirds around our yard before and I was so surprised to hear their melody.  We also have sparrows, juncos, finches and lots of doves; I don't put birdseed out anymore because of the incredible mess it makes and the amount of weeds that one gets from it. Instead, I've chosen to plant flowers and plants that will feed them.  However, yesterday hubby and I were outside and I realized that because we back to a strip of lawn  before the golf course and that the golf course takes care of the area, I can hang some feeders from a Blue Spruce tree that face our yard.  That way I won't have to weed, a task I hate and we can enjoy some finches, sparrows and other birds without the mess.  Mind you, the larger birds like the doves leave us huge droppings in the yard that I clean up, lest Hunter rolls in them.  I also realize it is mating season and after having gone through the grackles killing and dismembering the sparrows at our last house for several months, I don't want a repeat of this.  At the time, I was told that when the grackles have nests and baby birds, they become very aggressive with any food nearby-which was the case at our old house.  I also know this is a typical animal behavior, but when you have a dozen if not more dead birds, without heads, in your yard, you want to put an end to it.  So, I will plant food for the birds and also put a feeder outside of our yard. 
On to a more pleasant topic.  Last week a blogging buddy, Carol(Murphy & Stanley's mom), told me about a website for ebooks called Book Bub,www.bookbub.com  They have daily specials and even free ebooks; I decided to check it out. They have different genres that you can put your preferences in and they send you notifications when books you might like come up.   Carol had just finished reading "Saved by Gracie" by Jan Dunlap and she thought I'd enjoy it.  Book Bub provides links to Amazon and different sites to get the books at; so I got this ebook at Amazon for my Kindle reader.  I can tell you it wasn't free, but a very good price and so worth it.  I read the book on Saturday afternoon sitting in the sun; it is one of the best books I've read.  Since I signed up at Book Bub, I've gotten several free books.  I have many on my IPad and to be honest prefer paper backs, but this is a wonderful tool for readers.  When we take our trip to Ireland this summer I will have lots of books to chose from on my phone or IPad.
Today I will take Hunter on a nice walk, do some household chores and also take 4 grands to a fabric store to get fat quarters for our next sewing project-pillowcases.
I hope you have a wonderful day and are able to enjoy some of nature-be it flowers outside or just a walk.
Hugs,
Noreen

Easter

Good Morning to you. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! WE had such a fun weekend~on Friday night 7 of our granddaughters spent the night. What fun we had, from nails being painted to watching Night At The Museum 3, to giggles and having a hard time getting to sleep in the fort that Papa made. Saturday morning we had a big breakfast and then went on a 1.5 mile walk. After they went home, I just had a very relaxed day; I got a new ebook recommended by one of my blogging buddies and read the entire book in the afternoon, just sitting in the sun. Yesterday the entire family came over for lunch. We fixed ham, bbq chicken, deviled eggs-isn't the one in the middle cute! I also made cupcakes for dessert and had splurged and bought a box of Sees candy(A family tradition). The girls brought rolls, potato salad and fruit salad. Such a good meal.
These tulips were a birthday gift from a dear friend; they package had a label that said Bloom Makers, Long Life Flowers. I love them; you just keep adding water to them.

Just before the candy hunt(they already did egg hunts at their house), we lined them all up for a photo. Well, actually there was a little more to it than that. After this picture was taken, all the adults whipped out cans of silly string and sprayed them all. It was such fun and they thought it was so funny. One granddaughter, the oldest, kept saying "well, I just wasn't expecting that". It was Papa and my idea and one to show the kiddos that we still like to get silly now and again.

I'm off to walk now, will bike later and maybe take a second shorter walk. The weather will be nice today and I'm loving being outside.
Joy to you!
Noreen

Happy Easter 2015

                                    

While many are out searching for Easter eggs, for those of us called by Christ's name, it is indeed a day of joy and celebration.
 "But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spice which they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
And they entered in and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass as they were much perplexed about this, behold two men stood by them in shining garments,And as they were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them 'Why seek ye the Living among the dead? He is not here but is risen, remember how He spake unto you when He was yet in Galilee, saying 'The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified and the third day rise again' And they remembered His words." Luke 24:1-8 
 May you know the power and love of a living Savior this Easter and every day of your life and   may you come into a more profound and deeper relationship with Him than ever before.
Because He first loved us,
Noreen

Taco Salad

Happy Thursday to you!  Several of you asked about the Taco Salad I made the other night for dinner, so wanted to share it with you.  I didn't grow up eating Mexican food and it wasn't until I was in my late 30's that I had this salad. By that time I was eating Tacos on a regular basis, but just not in a salad.  Of course, I didn't grow up eating Pizza either but once I discovered it I loved it.
Basically a Taco Salad is just a Taco deconstructed.  We use all the same ingredients except for tortillas, we substitute Taco Chips for that. 
Here is a rundown of what we put in ours, though yours may vary. We make it for just the two of us, and it makes two dinners. You may need to adjust quantities if you have a large family.
Salad greens-either Romaine or Iceburg lettuce. I prefer Romaine because it is healthier for you.
Ground Beef or Turkey(your preference)browned.  You can also simmer it in a Taco seasoning if you have it sold at your grocery store.
1 onion-chopped; we prefer purple.
1 tomato cut up.
1 can slices black olives.
1 avocado, cut up
1 can of black beans
shredded cheese-we use Mexican(which is a blend of several cheeses)or Cheddar
Salsa-your choice, we also drizzle Ranch dressing on it.
Sour cream-again a personal preference
Taco Chips

Generally, we break up our taco chips and just mix them in, but for the photo I put them at the side.
We didn't have any sour cream for this dinner.  It is an easy summertime salad and kids love it, so do hubbies. I've also taken this as a quick dinner to friends.  There you have it.  If you've never made this, give it a try.  If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Blessings on your day!
Noreen

A Boy's Appetite

Happy Wednesday to you! As I mentioned yesterday, last night we had our two oldest grandsons over for dinner and a sleepover. It was such fun! To begin with, Papa took them to the golf course where they hit a bucket of balls. When they got back we played two games of Quirkle and then got dinner ready. They had told us that they wanted hot dogs on buns, french fries, coleslaw and beans and for dessert they had angle food cake with ice cream. Our grands have the appetites that match their age~which means they are adolescent boys and can eat non stop. I meant to get pics before we ate, but wanted to share I think we have a food network host in our midst. They thought it was so cool to put everything on top of their hotdog-so it was overflowing. They loved it; they weren't being sloppy, just truly enjoying their creation.

It is so different when we have the boys over; I'm thinking they are quiet because of the number of girls we have for a sleepover.  The girls will be here Friday night and have requested almost the same meal. I'm not sure what we will do with them, but know it will be fun.
I'll be popping by to say hi today, I'm behind but have the afternoon free. 
Joy to you!
Noreen