mother nature didn't disappoint....

 ....or did she???

well, she disappointed all the children......not enough snow to cancel school!

Rats!...maybe next time, kiddos!

tis the season.....

for Christmas......and snow!

This time of year is such a joy (and a bit overwhelming).

The Christmas music makes me smile and sing
(which terrifies the boys)

& seems to give me the boost of energy I need to make it through the long busy days.

I have yet to put up my Christmas decorations....I know.......

I usually transform our home over the Thanksgiving weekend
but this year I was

busy finishing up classroom projects for Holy Rosary Catholic School's

auction dinner (which is this Saturday!)

This weekend the decorations won't see the light of day either because
Friday
Kevin and I are setting up the booth for a show,
then off to his Remax Christmas party,

Saturday

we will be at the show all day then go directly to the auction dinner,
Sunday
we will be at the show again along with taking down the booth and loading up!

Hopefully during the upcoming week I can do a
little bit of decorating every night after dinner

....we'll see.

Oh and shopping........yeah, can't forget the shopping.....
haven't started that yet either.

I mentioned snow because who doesn't love a white Christmas?!?!

We are expecting 3-5" tonight which is a bit early if you ask me
(all the kids in the area are hoping for a snow day tomorrow).

In a perfect world it would snow a couple inches every day
the week before Christmas

(just enough so they can keep the roads clear but cover the trees and grass)

then in January, a few good 6-8" snow storms,

and come February 1st all the snow melts and it becomes spring....
dream on, right?

Hoping you all are enjoying the busy Christmas Season so far!

before

I started Turbofire yesterday and decided I had better stick to my word and post my "before" pictures. You have no idea how hard it was for me to post these pictures! BUT, it is my motivator. Two days into Turbofire....also did P90X ab ripper today.....after Thanksgiving and indulging in the left overs, I decided extra ab workouts are necessary ;)

Other things I am adding to routine to help with my quest for "abs by Easter".....I am eating only 1200 calories/day for 1 week. Then up to 1500 calories/day until I plateau (using MyFitnessPal to track EVERYTHING I eat). Consuming highly nutritional foods and drinking lots of water! I did this about five years ago (it is the Curves weight loss plan) and got down to 127lbs. I felt great! So here I go again!

I will post pictures of my progress once a month.

Etsy Sale!!

Sale this week only! Today through Monday when you check out at my Etsy shop, type in coupon code, CYBERMONDAYONLY, and you will receive 30% off your total order. 

Tuesday, Nov 29, through Friday, Dec 2, type in coupon code, CYBERMONDAY2011, at the checkout to receive 20% off your total.

Go to www.cre84life.etsy.com to start saving!!

happiness is....

a merciful God

Jesus

a joyful family

a loving husband

seeing your children smile and laugh

parents that love you unconditionally

friends that love you like family

freedom

a career that brings passion and inspiration

a home where we all gather to find shelter against a sometimes harsh world

pets that warm your heart everyday

and for all these things, I am thankful for.

WISHING YOU A JOYFUL AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING

more originals in my Etsy shop

I have added some Christmas and Winter original watercolors to my Etsy shop today. All these paintings have been licensed either on Christmas cards, quilting fabric, or candle labels. Perfect time to purchase an original to give as a gift :) 

Abs by Easter

Ok, just a quick note......Since having children I have wanted toned, non-flabby arms and a flat tummy. I have been doing the P90X dvds since March 2010. I have lost fat and better yet have toned my muscles....my legs especially! However, I want to burn more fat so the muscles that I have worked so hard to tone will show...mostly my arms and tummy! 

I will admit that over the past couple of months I haven't given it my all during the P90X workouts. Reason one is because I pulled a shoulder muscle while doing the Kenpo X workout so I am just doing three days of weights and two to three days of 30 minutes on my elliptical machine. The second reason is I think I just need a change in my workout.....I'm getting a little bored. Here is my current schedule:

Monday: P90X Legs and Back dvd

Tuesday: 30 minute elliptical

Wednesday: P90X Shoulders and arms dvd

Thursday: 30 minute elliptical

Friday: P90X Legs and Chest dvd

Saturday: 30 minute elliptical

**I also try to fit the P90X ab ripper routine in at least twice a week. 

Soooo, I have ordered TurboFire. This exercise dvd set should be what the Dr. ordered, so to speak. It is very high energy and I am hoping it will burn off the fat! It should be arriving within the next couple of weeks. At that time I will take "before" pictures of me and post them here on my blog (the thought of posting this pic terrifies the heck out of me, but I know once that picture is out there for the world to see, I will do it!) Anyone want to join me????

This is also good timing with Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays upon us! 

back home again :)

My Mom, Yvonne, went with me to the Wilton, CT folk art show this past weekend. It was a 12 hour drive and I didn't get tired once...must have been the good company! Friday, Mom and I had time to kill before we could set up the booth, so we used the GPS to find what interesting things there were to do and see in the Wilton, Connecticut area. Our first stop was the Maritime aquarium.

After a few hours at the aquarium, we searched for parks.....we wanted to see the ocean! It was cold and windy as you can tell by my Mom's picture below.

We ate lunch at the Bear Grill.....great food and atmosphere.  Then off to the Wilton High School to set up the booth.

Mom and I had a wonderful time together on this trip! We shared many many laughs and made memories we both will treasure for a lifetime. I am so blessed to have such a kind, sweet and fun-loving Mother...she is beautiful inside and out! Thanks Mom for going with me to CT and for making the show so much fun.

Wilton CT tomorrow!

"He Will Sustain You"

16" x 20" acrylic on cradled board

©Teresa Kogut, all rights reserved

Mom and I are headed out tomorrow morning for the Wilton, Ct show! Praying for a safe and successful trip! I have never been to this show but have always heard great things about it. I have also never been to Connecticut (neither has Mom), so it will be an adventure for us. One thing I know for sure is that we will enjoy our time together and share many laughs! I will be sure to take lots of photos to share upon our return. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend :)

november give away

I thought this was fitting for the November give away. Heritage Lace makes these beautiful lace wall hangings. You can see their website here.

Here's how to enter.....spread the word! Repost, repost, repost! You can either repost to your blog or post my give away on your facebook page with a link to my blog. Once you have reposted, just let me know and I will enter your name in the drawing :) Thanks to all of you who enter........oh, and if someone sees your repost and enters the drawing, as long as they mention your name, I will enter you twice!!

Good Luck!

drum roll please.....

the October give away winner(s) are........

Cathy Eichorn Trombley

and

Mary Dissmore

If you are a follower of my blog you will recognize Cathy's name......this is the third month in a row that her name has been drawn!!!!  My husband, once again, said, "well you can't do that, draw another name." I replied, once again, "she won fair and square."  (Cathy must put a special mojo on her entry ;)

So, in order to give someone else a chance, I drew another name. Congratulations to Cathy and Mary!! You both won boxed Christmas cards!!

who knew???

Tomorrow is National Deviled Egg Day!!!!

photo from www.incredibleegg.org

So while making my after-workout-omelette this morning, I was watching the Rachel Ray show and she mentioned that November 2nd is National Deviled Egg Day...much to my surprise and delight!! Everyone in our house absolutely adores deviled eggs. I can remember growing up, my brother and I would dang near come to blows over the last deviled egg!!

So I want to start by sharing a tip from the RR show about how to boil the perfect egg EVERY time...so she claims. If you are like me, I would make deviled eggs more often if they peeled nice n' easy. Can't wait to try this tomorrow. Put the eggs in cold water, slowly bring to a roaring boil. Remove pot of eggs from heat, cover and let sit for exactly 10 minutes (set a timer!). Then drain the hot water and shake the pot a bit to crack the shells before putting cold water in the pot (this is the part that must do it, because I never heard of it and it make sense). She said the cold water will get inside the shell and help them to peel better. So there you have it!!

I also took a little time to look up a yummy deviled egg recipe for you to try if you want something different......tbh (acronym for "to be honest"....I'm learning from the young ones in my life) I don't know if I will do all the eggs like this tomorrow because my boys LOVE the way I prepare them and sometimes don't welcome change.

BACON & CHEDDAR DEVILED EGGS

What You Need

14 HARD-BOILED EGGS

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

1-1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/3 cup crumbled cooked bacon

1/4 cup finely shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (1 oz.)

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives OR green onion tops

Here's How

1. CUT eggs lengthwise in half. REMOVE yolks to medium bowl. RESERVE 24 white halves. Finely CHOP remaining 4 white halves.
2. MASH yolks with fork. ADD mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, lemon juice and pepper; mix well. ADD chopped egg whites, bacon, cheese and chives; mix well.
3. SPOON 1 heaping Tbsp. yolk mixture into each reserved egg white half. REFRIGERATE to blend flavors.

(recipe from incredible edible egg website)

ENJOY!