Alphabitty Moments - The Letter D

Alphabitty Moments is a blog carnival created by MamaBear at 4 the Love of Family as a way to record the little things our kids do.

I'm a little behind this week. I got sidetracked when I got this book in the mail.

I couldn't put it down until I finished reading it. Scott Rigsby is a friend from high school, or actually from 5th grade through high school, so I already knew the end of the story, but I still couldn't put it down. As a result of an accident the summer after our senior year, Scott had to have both legs amputated below the knee. After years of struggling with depression and addiction, in October 2007, Scott became the first below the knee amputee to to complete an Ironman (2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride, 26.2 mile run) on prosthetics. The book hits book stores October 1, and I highly recommend it. Scott is truly an inspiration!

Moving forward.

This week's Alphabitty Moments letter is 'D'. 'D' is for Disney. We love going to Disney. Living in Florida, only a two hour drive from Disney World, we used to get season passes every year. We let them lapse the year I was pregnant with Little Man, and we haven't been able to re-new them yet. The girls and I can't wait for Little Man to go on his first Disney trip.

The pictures in these layouts were taken during trips in March and May 2007.

I really wasn't planning to use the same word for both girls, but it has worked out that way the last two weeks.

Now go check out other Alphabitty Moments at MamaBear's campground!

You Don't Say Saturday

When you're curious, you find lots of interesting things to do.

~Walt Disney

Find more inspiration at 4 the Love of Family!

I ♥ Publix

I am constantly looking for ways to save money on our weekly grocery bill, and while surfing around looking for tips and coupons today, I came across the I Heart Publix site. I already shop almost exclusively at Publix. My husband works there after all. Needless to say, I was thrilled to find this site today. I have already found that I could have saved at least $3.00 on the six boxes of Toaster Strudel currently in my freezer!

And to top it all off, I Heart Publix is hosting a $50.00 Publix gift card giveaway! I've got my fingers crossed. I can stretch $50.00 a long way!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter C

It's time for another installment of Alphabitty Moments. We're on the letter C again. For some reason, this was a tough one for me at first, but I finally came up with the perfect word, so I'm using it for both girls.

Every year around the end of September or beginning of October, we make a trip to visit my parents in Georgia. It's one of my favorite times of year, and you can find out why here. We always get Grandaddy to take us to pick cotton. I grew up around cotton fields, and I honestly don't remember ever picking any until after I had kids. We don't see cotton fields here, so it's a big deal to them, and I love that they get that experience with my daddy every year.




Now head over to 4 the Love of Family and check out MamaBear's layout this week. I hear she's hosting a Mixbook giveaway, and I am beyond excited!! Have I mentioned my current addiction to Mixbook?

You Don't Say Saturday

If nothing ever changed, there'd be no butterflies. ~Author Unknown

For more inspiration, or to share your own, visit 4 the Love of Family.

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter B

It is time for another installment of Alphabitty Moments, a blog carnival created by MamaBear at 4 The Love of Family.

By the way, I have become totally obsessed with Mixbooks. If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend you do. I think I'm addicted. My mountain of laundry and dusty furniture would agree.

**You can click on my images to see them larger. They were larger last week, and I have no idea what I did differently this week.

For my Sweetpea, I chose to use 'Banquet' as her 'B' word. Last year was the year of the banquet. The Sixth Grade Banquet is a graduation of sorts. It marks the end of elementary school. As I was on the banquet planning committee, we felt like we worked on banquet stuff all year. The end result was well worth it. The kids all had a great time, and just look how grown up my girl looked!



The Princess is a child made for the beach. She has blond hair and blue eyes and seems to get a deep dark tan just by thinking about the sun. I slather her with sunblock, but she still tans like crazy. She never burns. She just gets browner and browner as the summer days go by. She loves going to the beach, playing in the sand, boogie boarding in the waves, collecting shells to bring home and leave in a bucket of salt water until they stink up the neighborhood. You get the picture!


Go on over to 4 The Love of Family and take a peek at what other moms are celebrating this week. I've already peeked at MamaBear's layouts, and they are gorgeous! I may have to borrow some ideas from her!

You Don't Say Saturday

Life sends rain......

Hope dances in the puddles

until the sun comes out again.

From Rain on Me by Holley Gerth

Find more inspiration at 4 The Love of Family.

BooMama's DipTacular

I know! Blog posts two day in a row! It almost seems as if I've become organized and efficient. Truth be told, my air conditioner isn't working, and have I mentioned I live in Florida? Did you know it's rather warm here? So, I have spent most of the last few days sitting with my computer under the ceiling fan.

When I read that BooMama is hosting DipTacular today, I was almost giddy. Dips and appetizers are my favorite food group, and my girls and I love to put out a selection from that food group on Saturdays while we watch SEC football games. We eat pretty much all day!

My dip recipes are not at all original, and I'm sure the first one will be on this list several times, but seriously, if you haven't tried it, go to the store, get all three (Hello?!? How easy does that sound) ingredients and make this stuff. Now! I'm not sure what the official name is. I've heard it called "Mommy Crack".

(I've just noticed that BooMama has this dip recipe in her post. I was going to delete it from mine, but it's so good, I decided to just leave it here too.)

Sausage Dip:

1-8 oz. package cream cheese

1 package sausage (like Jimmy Dean or Tennessee Pride, but we prefer the Publix brand, and we prefer it hot)

1 can Ro-Tel

Brown and drain the sausage. Put the sausage, cream cheese and Ro-Tel in your crock pot. Let it cook until the cream cheese has melted and the dip is hot.

Serve with Tostidos Scoops.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dip number two is Paula Deen's South Georgia Caviar. I may live in hot Florida, but I'm from South Georgia, which means I love me some Paula! My sister actually introduced me to this dip, and I have been hooked ever since. It's super easy to make, and it makes enough for a crowd. Or for leftovers if you want to sit in your kitchen and eat it for lunch. Or whatever.

Paula Deen's South Georgia Caviar:

2 (15 oz) cans black eyed peas (drained)

1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn (drained)

1 (10 oz) can Ro-Tel

2 cups chopped red bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped fresh jalepeno peppers

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 (8 oz) bottle Italian dressing

1 (4 oz) jar chopped pimentos (drained)

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve with corn chips.

Easy peasy!

I make this throughout the year, but the black eyed peas make it a great choice for New Years!

Now head over to BooMama and check out some more dip recipes!

Alphabitty Moments - The Letter A (again)

We made it all the way through the alphabet, and now we're starting over at A.

I say we made it all the way through, but what I mean is they made it all the way through. I still have a few things to catch up. The letters C, D and Z come to mind. So does a book cover.

However, I didn't want to start out behind this time, so I'll catch those up later.

The last time around, I just stuck some pictures in a collage using Picnic. This time, on MamaBear's recommendation, I'm going to use Mixbook and try to create actual books I can print and order some day. You know, when I have actual real money to spend. I played around on Mixbook today, and I loved it.

So, without further adieu, 'A' is for art. My girls' elementary school has an amazing art teacher, and I have been blown away by some of the masterpieces they have brought home over the last few years.

Artwork completed by my now 8 year old when she was in 1st and 2nd grade.



Artwork completed by my now 12 year old when she was in 5th and 6th grade.