My friend in the kitchen is approaching "Antique" status!

This morning while I was measuring flour, baking soda and oatmeal to make my husbands favorite Chocolate Chip Oatmeal cookies I reflected on the life that me and my Kitchen Aid mixer have seen.

I think back to what originally spurred me to make the investment purchase in the first place.  I have been volunteered to make my baby sister's wedding cake!  My Mother said that she would pay for Cake Decorating Classes at OTC if I would make the wedding cake, so off I went.  After several classes and trying to make my decorator icing at home with a hand held beater it became apparent that I NEEDED a Kitchen Aid mixer of my own at home.  This was truly an investment and large spend back in 1988 as it was over $175.00!  With two children under the age of 5 and working part time, money was tight.  I did make that mixer pay off during the next few years of making custom birthday, graduation and anniversary cakes.

My mixer has stood by me throughout the years and NEVER a problem with any part of it for over 24 years!  It tickled me to think of what a great purchase it has been since the style has not ever changed and it looks just like the new off white ones!  I love that all the younger gals I know now wisheth for a Kitchen Aid mixer but now the question is....What Color!  I have actually seen "skins" for them on Pintrest, in which I love because I can "remodel" my kitchen companion without the rejection of replacing her.  Here is a picture of what her daughter might look like now.  Click on the picture to view the going purchase price at Kohl's.  I love to shop Kohl's coupon specials and think that you could even get a better price using their 15% off or Kohl's cash!

Let me count the ways and yummy goodies that have come from my kitchen companion!  I love that it will do all the stirring for me while I multi-task around the kitchen.  It also is the ONLY mixer that will handle the motor demands of decorator icing and stiff cookie dough.  It will whip up some light and lovely whipped cream too!  I have used the dough hook for cinnamon rolls and bread a few times and loved it too.

I also decided that my kitchen companion has missed out on a formal name from me all these years.  I am looking for suggestions.......do you have any?  We have put out many wedding cakes, cookies, and deserts.  Here is her picture too, isn't she a beauty still?

Ella, The Water Bug

It's hard to imagine that our Ella is over a year old and into her second summer on earth!  I get the privilege to send time with her when Katy gets some "Mommy" time away. 


Ella and I play, rock, eat and yes, she sleeps and this time it was for 3 hours!  Katy got her a new pool to play in and I got her a little play swimsuit that she could wear since hers was a little too short in the ka-poot!  After her long nap, we suited her up for some major water play.  First off was this great big smile!

She was just so fun to watch and laugh with.  She totally was in tune with every noise that nature supplied around her....birds flying over, cows mooing, and the dogs trying to join her water fun.

In her own little world she is the expression QUEEN!  Everything produces the "surprised look" that she is famous for complete with the sucking in of air!  She conducted a symphony, Mooed at the cows, insisted on playing with NeeNee's flipflops, holding the toy saxophone as a telephone and invited me to play the sunglasses game...put them on her, she takes them off!

Many more days of fun ahead with this precious, entertaining and sweetness of a grand daughter of mine!  Love you bunches Ella!

Branson Scrap

My annual retreat with girl friends to Branson for the weekend.  We pretty much just hold up in the conference room from Friday to Sunday except to grab a couple of meals and a Starbuck or two.  This year was no exception!  This year I worked mainly on Christmas by finishing a couple of mini books and a couple of double page layouts.  This one is just at the starting stage.  Becky and I decided to do layouts similar in sketch but with our own papers.  I love the red/off-white and light blue together.

 The pictures are of Mark's family Christmas Eve at his parent's house.  

And...I finally finished our honeymoon album!  Oh the memories!  And now the dread of putting on my swimsuit knowing that I have gained lbs. mucho since these pictures!  Poor guy is gonna think???  What happened in a year!

When we called roll in Branson we found that Susan, Becky, Julie and Barb all made it this year!  It was so much fun getting to catch up and spend time with my friends.  Missed you Lexi!

Why buy toys?

Ella got a new car seat today as she is nine months old!  Her Momma, Katy, found the perfect one that she could use for the duration and still be able to seat other passengers.  She is a very wise woman.

We took the box that it came in and turned it on it's side for entertainment.  Ella's Daddy, Dustin, use to spend hours playing in boxes.  He would even be talked into a nap in one or two of them.  I would cut "windows" in them and he would have a great time coloring them up.  Ella has a way to go before she can manage the crayons but in the mean time, she likes putting her toys in and pulling the box forward to get them out.  Actually she found this out by mistake as she tried to  pull up on it and the toys came out.  Good thing she didn't pull it back on her or she would be mad at it and maybe not want to play in it anymore.  I do have to say that the dark box was intimidating to her at first.

Camp Scrapin'

I made it back to Springfield for the fall Camp Scrap at Second Baptist Church.  It was so fun to get to see all my friends and craft together.  This time Becky, Susan, Barb and myself did no demos, table hosting or anything!  We were paid guests.  I couldn't pull myself together enough to get a scrapping project together so I re-purposed my Trader Joe coffee bean containers and a metal cigar box.  I covered them with Christmas flavor papers and added some zing.  I plan to use them to host cookies and a few Christmas presents in just a couple of months from now.  Does this mean that I am actually ahead???

Wells Fargo Coach Riding

My friend, Jeanne, works for Wells Fargo Mortgage and today we visited the open house for Wells Fargo Financial.  Had some great Jeff City pork steak (it's everywhere!) and some great visiting for our lunch.  

 Jeanne is all about the Wells Fargo story of the Stage Coaches.  She even knows the doggy names!  Gabbing with the driver between rides she found out that the two doggies were rescue puppies.  Awh!

 Jeanne poses for a picture from my phone for her office back on Stadium Boulevard.

Stephanie and I pose for our original Stage Coach photos.  It was a very smooth ride but what do you expect when you are on asphalt?  I can't imagine days and day in one of these on bumpy roads.  Fun Fact:  They stopped every 8-10 miles to change horses!

Our first Springfield Visitors

Last weekend we had our first visitors from Springfield, actually they live in Nixa.  Mike, Susan (my scrapping ya-ya) and their two boys, Ian and Ethan.  We had a full weekend with Saturday for Susan and I to run the town and then on Sunday, the two grown boys hit the golf course.

 Susan and I became antique/flea marketers for the day.  It was gorgeous outside but the allergies took us into Whaley's Pharmacy for Susan to get some meds.  Old fashioned pharmacy with a soda fountain.

 Ian, Mark, Maitlyn, Ethan and Marissa after lunch near the Capitol.  The big boys took the kids to the Corn Maize, Sonic for lunch, walking around the Capitol and then they somehow wondered into Yo Yums for frozen yogurt!  And here Susan and I felt guilty about grabbing our lunch there!  Funny how we were all in there one time or another during the day.

 The Jefferson City Corn Maize before the kids entered.  They had to wait for 45 minutes for the other group to get done so they goofed around the outside for a while.  All had fun in the maize and they all got lost for a bit.  They got "corn-fused" so they "corn-cut" themselves out the side of the maize.

 The grown ups went out for the evening.  We started at the Summitt Winery for a glass of wine and then for dinner we went to El Jimador for a stuffing full of Mexican food.  At home we played Spades, a new game that Mic and Susan taught us at their lake cabin.  Susan entertained us by her upside down person!

Sunday the boys went to the Eldon Golf Course for a beautiful day of golf.  Mike is cleaning his golf balls in this picture.  What a great smile!  We ate dinner and then our friends headed back to Nixa :(  We are so ready for you to come next with Susan and Mike!!