Where the heck is Wilcox?

My last project for my nieces is now complete........and it's for SARAH! Good thing they're all done cuz we leave for Wilcox at 5:00 am tomorrow. We're going to bless Sarah and Trent's baby, Houston (don't you just love that name)!? Can't wait to see the little guy. I've seen lots of pictures but tomorrow will be the real thing. I can honestly say I have never been to Wilcox and I'm a native of AZ, so I'll let you know how the trip goes.

Now, back to the project for Sarah. I had made a dried arrangement like this for her a few years ago and in one of their moves it got ruined. When we had the boutique here in Oct.she asked me if I would make her another one. Absolutely! I have lot's of dried roses to use up and I needed to get this done for her ........so my trip to Wilcox is the perfect excuse to get with it.

See you guys bright and early in the morning!

Another Saturday project under my belt.....

This is one of the little walls in my kitchen. I LOVE this clock, but I was so ready for a new look on that wall. So, when I was putting stuff back in the storage shed after Christmas I found this old piece of crap cupboard that I have had for probably 10 years. I don't even know where I got it but it was ugly. It had cupboard doors on it and the middle of the doors were done in that wicker-cane stuff that had rotted away. It was 2 or 3 different color of browns, covered with who knows what and it was filthy dirty. We drug it out, took the hose to it and then some soap and water. The magic began when NT took the doors off and I painted it black.

So, what do you think of my new look on that wall? Cost $3.00 in paint and another thing to mark off my bucket list. I still have lots on the list to do but it is getting smaller.

Now my next dilemma, where to put the clock that I LOVE? Stay tuned....I'll let you know where it ends up.

Friday night sleep over...Tanner's turn

This is my guest room (aka know as Rylle and Tanner's room). I did it in Americana so it could be more like boys would want to stay in it. The closet is full of toys and they have they're own TV......but will they sleep in there...............Noooooooooooooo.............
They would rather sleep on my bedroom floor, in they're "bean bags" (as Tanner calls his sleeping bag), sandwiched in between pillows off of my bed, the night stand and my bed. Can you imagine? Crazy kid!

We are a happy ....... F A M I L Y

Roxanne....this one's for you! I made these family signs for each of my brother's and sister's family for Christmas. Roxanne wanted one and I had one left to do something with, so here it is! I'll bring it when I see you on Sunday. Sarah, your surprise will be the post tomorrow, just putting on the finishing touches. Tammy, when you come I'll have a surprise for you to take home too, and Emily gets the Valentine blocks. Just want you girls (nieces and nephews wives) to know how much I love you and hope I can bring a smile to each of your homes.

To my Sweetie Pie.....

Isn't this the cutest Valentine idea! Simple, unique and so SWEET!! This is what I plan on doing for my Valentine. For more cute ideas, click here.

You've had a BIRTHDAY..shout HORRAY!

Today is Emma's birthday.....#15...driver's permit....here we come!! Happy Birthday Emma! You are an amazing young lady and a good example to all your friends and leaders! Here's 15 things I love about........EMMA~

1. She's full of energy...good energy I might add!
2. She's got a beautiful voice
3. She can play the piano and violin (like no other)
4. She makes really goooooood bread, just ask Bro. T~he'll tell ya!
   
5. She's fun, fun, fun!
   
6. She has a strong testimony
7. She's loyal...through and through
8. She's thoughtful to everyone around her
9. She's a good friend, just ask Hanna, Cassie, Kristina, Emily and Afton!
   
10. She's a natural, born LEADER
11. She's a good athlete
12. She's always willing to help, whenever needed
13. She's cute!! I mean, cute!
14. She can ride a TANDUM!
15. I love her natural RED hair!!!!!!

Happy Birthday dear Emma! Sorry about stealing the picture from your blog, but I didn't have Cassie to do a really, really, really cute one for me.....besides, your cute enough, just like you are!

My sister's sad!

My sister is sad, and when she's sad, I'm sad. So Char, just remember, I've got your back and I'm right here when you need me! After I talked to Char tonight, this story kept running through my head....so Char......here's some advice from someone who's been run over by a garbage truck a time or two in her life.....hugs!!

The Law of the Garbage Truck

by David J. Pollay

How often do you let other people's nonsense change your mood? Do you let a
bad driver, rude waiter, curt boss, or an insensitive employee ruin your day?
Unless you're the Terminator, for an instant you're probably set back on your
heels. However, the mark of a successful person is how quickly she can get back
her focus on what's important.Years ago I learned this lesson.

I learned it in the back of a New York City taxi cab. Here's what happened.

I hopped in a taxi, and we took off for Grand Central Station. We were driving in the right lane when, all of a sudden, a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.
My taxi driver slammed on his breaks, skidded, and missed the other car's back end by just inches!

The driver of the other car, the guy who almost caused a big accident, whipped his head around and he started yelling bad words at us. My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was friendly.
So, I said, "Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!"

And this is when my taxi driver told me what I now call, "The Law of the Garbage Truck."

Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them, they'll dump it on you.
When someone wants to dump on you, don't take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You'll be happy you did.

So this was it: The "Law of the Garbage Truck."
I started thinking, how often do I let Garbage Trucks run right over me? And how often do I take their garbage and spread it to other people: at work, at home, on the streets?
It was that day I said, "I'm not going to do it anymore."

I began to see garbage trucks. Like in the movie "The Sixth Sense," the little boy said, "I see Dead People."
Well, now "I see Garbage Trucks." I see the load they're carrying. I see them coming to drop it off.
And like my Taxi Driver, I don't make it a personal thing; I just smile, wave, wish them well, and I move on.

One of my favorite football players of all time, Walter Payton, did this every day on the football field. He would jump up as quickly as he hit the ground after being tackled. He never dwelled on a hit. Payton was ready to make the next play his best.
Good leaders know they have to be ready for their next meeting.
Good parents know that they have to welcome their children home from school with hugs and kisses.
Leaders and parents know that they have to be fully present, and at their best for the people they care about. The bottom line is that successful people do not let Garbage Trucks take over their day.
What about you? What would happen in your life, starting today, if you let more garbage trucks pass you by?

Here's my bet.
You'll be happier.

Visiting Teaching Tuesday

We're going Visiting Teaching tomorrow.....well, actually, the ladies we Visit Teach are coming to us. We're going to have a Valentine craft/bonding/becoming better friends Visiting Teaching night. We're making Valentine XOXO blocks. We'll be munching on treats, craftin', laughing, visiting and having a good time. Our Relief Society President has been trying to stress "Don't just be a Visiting Teacher, be a friend"!! So, we're just practicin' what she's preachin'. The ladies we teach are a blast and I'm looking forward to having a fun, fun time and getting our Visiting Teaching done at the same time.

Here's a sample of what we'll be making. I made these blocks for my niece, Emily!
I have a surprise to take to Roxanne and Sarah too when I see them in Wilcox, Sunday when we get together to bless Sarah's baby. When I get the other girls things done I'll post them. So Roxanne, if you or Sarah check my blog, check often, keep your eyes on the look out for your surprises.......And Em.....this one is for you!! (I'll give them to you Sunday when I see you).

Food Network has a HIT!

I have a new favorite show....CHOPPED, on the Food Network. If you've never seen it I would suggest you give it a look.....We really like it. I don't very often sit down and watch a TV all the through....too many other things to do, but for this one, I'll take and hour and really pay attention.....and Newel likes it too. That's the best part, we never agree on a show. Be sure to check it out!

So much for the weekend, back to the office tomorrow. But, to tell you the truth, I'm happy to go. I'm thankful I have a job to go to and I hope I can appreciate it half as much in the morning when the alarm goes off.

Who does this remind you of?

Yep!.......me too!! I'm a lucky girl!!

My poor, tired body!

I'm tired and every single bone and muscle in my body hurts. I pulled weeds in the back yard for an hour or so, bent over, pulling weeds like a mad woman and I'm paying the price tonight....so I'm off to take a nice, hot, bubble bath and prepare for the sabbath. Night, night, sleep tight!

Another Saturday project

I have this little space by the side of my fridge. I've had (which seems like forever) these four frames with veggies in them. (I forgot to take the picture before I started taking them down), so I only got a picture of two of them, oh well, you get the picture. A friend of mine gave me her old 2008 calendar with roosters and chickens on every month. I was going to give it to Lavina (my dad's sweet wife) cuz she collects roosters and chickens, but when I looked at those black frames with the veggies in them, the light bulb went on and I decided to replace the veggies with.......what else, but roosters and chickens. So, here is the finished product, what do you think? Again, another finished fun project without spending a penny. Don't tell my hubby, he'll start expecting me to do no cost decorating and I'm just not that into that kind of thing.

A great Valentine idea.....

We have discovered a new pizza place in our neighborhood. Pappa Murphy's. Guess what...they have a heart shaped pizza for Valentine's Day. They will be 5.99 and are on sale from Feb. 7 thru Feb. 14. They also have the best cookie dough.....just ask Tanner and Rylle...they love it! So, my thought is ~ you try a heart shaped pizza sometime between Feb. 7 & Feb. 13, but on Feb. 14 make sure you have your SWEETHEART take you out for dinner, because even though their pizza's are good, you still have to turn on the oven and you still have to bake it and that is still way too much like cooking.

Here's the latest project.......

I was ready for something that reminded me of Valentine's to hang on the door. Not wanting to spend any money (I'm trying to recycle all the crap I already have) I took an old wreath with ugly red berries on it and decided to give it a face lift. I went to the dollar store and spent $3.00. I bought some of that wirey garland that had red hearts and red and white "Love" on it and just looped it in and around and over and under till it looked like something that could resemble a Valentine wreath. Oh well, what do you expect for a $3.00 job. That's another thing on my bucket list...."recycle some of my old craft stuff". I'm working on it.

The passing of the sign.................

Don't you just love this sign! One of my BFF's, Terri, made it for me. She thought I'd hang it in my bedroom or the TV room or somewhere I could take my humble self and enjoy it....but NO, are you kidding, I have it hanging right in the entry of my living room so everyone that comes to my home can see it too! I love it but more than anything I love that Terri made it for me. I'll have to post some of the other cool things she's made for me, but that's another story all together.

Last night we had our Enrichment Night. We were talking about our 72 hour kits. I debated about going, but Jenny wanted to go, so I decided I'd give it a try. I do need to seriously make a 72 hour kit and that's one of the things on my bucket list and with their help I know I can do it.

We'll Jenny and I drove up to the church and there weren't any cars in the parking lot. We drove all around and on the other side were a bunch of vans, so we decided to go in and give it a shot. I tell you, I was so impressed. We have the best Enrichment Committee. Every single one of them "SHINED"! The evening was full of information, handouts, guest speakers, lots of displays, food, water, homemade bread to try, you name it, they had thought of it. My hats off to you ladies!!

OK, back to the sign. After going to Enrichment last night I decided I needed to step down and give my sign to Jan! You go girl! Is there anything she cannot do and do WELL!? And, guess what, she's the nicest person too, all that and she's kind! Love you Jan.....you are amazing, but I'm going to have to tell Terri to make you your own sign cuz I decided I'm not going to part with mine.....I just love it too much. Congrats Fairfield Ward Enrichment Committee...you ladies ROCK!!!!!!

Here's my new MOTTO!

Gosh, wouldn't it be great if we could all practice this MOTTO. I'm going to give it a try! I just love this thought. Just think, Happy, satisfied and even joyous....how wonderful could that be? Come on.....join me.....let's try and practice this....what do you think? To see more cool stuff be sure to click here. I promise, you're gonna love this stuff.

Lovely Blogger Friend Award

I just got my first AWARD! YoooHoo!! A lovely blogger friend award...from a lovely blogger friend or cousin who's a friend too! Thanks Andi for sending the love.

Today is National Pie Day.....

For today and today only, since it's National Pie Day, all the calories, fat and carbs have been removed from PIE!! So, go out today and have a piece of pie and get ready for the weekend!

Look what I found...............

Ok, I'm ready for Christmas again. Look at this window box......I love it! I'm thinking I'll have to give it a try next year. Don't know what I'll do for snow though??? Instead of snow I'll add other things in the greenery!! Think I can wait a whole year?

Low carb cookies......ya think???? NOT!!

Are these just the cutest Valentine cookies ever! I love the colors pink and brown together and I also have this thing about polka dots and strips and checks and different patterns together. Soooo cute! To order some or check out the other yummy, cute stuff click here.

I'm in LOVE!!

Have you ever seen anything so cool in your whole life as those little crock pot liners? If you don't believe they're wonderful just take a look at the before and after and all I did was pull the liner out, had not even wiped or washed the crock pot out, just took the picture. Are they awesome or what? Bless whomever invented them!! I won't use the crock pot without them! I've got Newel sold too!!

Funny, I'd never taken a picture of a crock pot before in my life until I started blogging. Go figure!

Don't forget to PRAY!

Let's all remember to pray for our country. Everyone says change is good. History is being made and change is upon us. There's not much we can do about our situation now, it's already done, but we can pray for our leaders and do our part to support our country.

I need some advice, please...........

I've had these very cool window boxes hanging on the front of my house under the bedroom windows for a couple of months now. They are empty and I don't know what to plant in them at this time of year. Any suggestions? What ever I decide I think I'll try to plant stuff in pots and place the pots in the window box, that way, whatever it is that I plant dies (and it will die, I promise) and it will die soon, that's just the way I am, I kill everything I try to grow. My dad and Hoke can make anything grow and flourish, but not me. You'd think that green thumb would run in the family........NO........I didn't get the green thumb, I got the brown thumb. Let me know what you think I could get to grow and would look nice. I'm interested in your suggestions.........and don't say SILK FLOWERS!!!!

OH NO! Where did the weekend go?

Someone stole my weekend. Where the heck did it go? Why can't Monday and Tuesday go as quickly as Saturday and Sunday? Tomorrow is a holiday for some, but not me! I'll be back at the grind stone before I know it......so.....kiss the weekend goodbye!

Feasting on the Spirit

Today was Ward Conference in our Ward. We had an amazing Young Women's today. The Stake Young Women's Presidency, our Stake High Councilman over Young Women's and our Stake President were there. We heard from Afton and Katie about Personal Progress in their lives.......what good examples they are not only for the other Young Women but for their leaders as well! They did a GREAT job! I love those girls!!

Then the Stake Young Women's President spoke along with President Bradshaw! I was personally moved by the words of President Bradshaw when he spoke of the refiners fire. He spoke of the new Value, VIRTUE, and how significant it was in the color being GOLD. Absolutely moved me and strengthened my testimony as to the fact that our Heavenly Father knows each of us personally and knows our struggles and weaknesses. I am so thankful for the gospel and the part it plays in our lives.

For an amazing place to find good church stuff click here:
Emma's Place

My baby boy has grown up!

Sean and Meghan are the proud owners of a house!! Big step.....they are now officially adults! We're so happy for them.........and they're so happy too! Lot's to do, it's a house that had been empty for awhile, it's a foreclosure home, but Meghan has great taste and Sean's a hard worker so it will be great for them to work on together. Congrats kids!

I got TAGGED!!

These are the roses of the week....what a SWEETIE PIE!!

What's your husbands name? Newel Don Turley
How long have you been married? 13 yrs
How long did you date? 3 mo. or so
How old is he? He says he's "29" but we all know better
Who eats more sweets? Uh, that would be him, I'm lovin' Splenda these days
Who is a better singer? We both stink at that!
Who is smarter? It depends at what. Neither one of us can win at "Who's Smarter than a 5th Grader"
Who does the laundry? He doesn't even know how to turn the washer and dryer on, he never has in 13 years!
Who pays the bills?NT, I don't ever even give them a thought
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? ME
Who mows the lawn? No lawn, all rock or asphalt
Who cooks dinner? Usually me, he cooks breakfast
Who drives? Depends, if we're in my car, probably me, if we're in his truck, probably him
Who is the first to say they are wrong? Neither one of us are ever wrong, just ask us
Who kissed who first?He did, and he tried to kiss me way before I would let him, he still complains about that 13 yrs. later
Who asked who out first? He asked me out first! Yes he did and I'm glad he did!
Who wears the pants? He thinks he does, but we know better than that now don't we!

I TAG-CHAR!!

It's 6:30 on Saturday morning and both Newel and I are wide awake!! Shouldn't we be sleeping in? You'd think so......but no........wide awake and bushy tailed! If either of us had to go to work we'd be wanting to sleep...but not today. Go figure!!

After all the Christmas stuff came down the place looked bare. So, here's the centerpiece I put together for my dining room table. Whaddddda think?

If you're HAPPY and you know it, clap your hands!

A couple of my favorite people in the whole, wide world joined the blogging force today! YIPEE!
Paula and Char....welcome to my new world. I can't wait to be part of your life on a daily basis! Leave me some LOVE when you check my blog out and I'll do the same....and oh yea, at last, I finally found Marcy too......I'm a happy girl!!

It's Official....I've turned into my MOTHER!

No matter how hard you try...sooner or later....you turn into your Mother....and I'm there. Any of you that knew my MOM know how particular she was about her car. Well, tonight after work, I came home and washed my car.....by hand.....what is wrong with me? Newel drove up and said, "I have never seen this before", and I said, "I know, I've turned into my MOM". Scary isn't it. I usually go to the car wash, but lately, they just haven't been doing a good job.....so I had to do it myself. Crazy isn't it??? I'm going to try not to ever do that again........HELP ME!

NO ONE LIKES A FROWNY FACE!

Marci........I don't know your blog address or email address, so I need to get in your loop. Can you email it to me? newel13@msn.com. Can't wait to hear from you.........then I can turn my frown upside down and check your family out and Jerry's and Tiffany's, etc., etc., etc.

Go SUNS!

I love basketball season and this team is the best! We play at 8:3o tonight......so I'm off to meet Marla for my walk and then I'll cozy in to watch the game. And now for the best part.......tomorrow is FRIDAY! Yipee! Be sure to watch the game!

So, tell me what you think is wrong with my eye,,,,,,,

OK, so my eye has been red off and on forever. I've been to the Dr., months ago, he thought I had pink eye and gave me drops, but as soon as the drops are gone it seems to come back, but never this bad. The darn thing is ugly!! I kind of burns and has this film that forms over it, but Ican't quite figure it out. I guess I'll try going to the Dr. again tomorrow....what the heck!

4 Generation Photo!!

4 generations of HOLYOAKS! The planet will never be the same......Alva, James, Ryan, Sonny and Andrew Holyoak.........can you imagine! How cool is that?

HELP WANTED!

I've had it with incompetent people. I had TWO experiences tonight that make me wonder where they get some of these people that work in retail and why am I always the person to have to deal with them.

• My first experience happened tonight on my way home at Sam's Club. I checked out and was going merrily on my way when the guy at the door needed to check my receipt. No problem....he says "it says here you have 7 items and I only see 6". Sure enough, the gal had charged me for grapes, twice. No big deal, but I had to go all the way around the cashiers, back to the front (they won't let you walk straight across from one door to the other door), give them my receipt, my Sam's Club card, sign and print my name, get my refund and walk all the way around again to the check out door. Then the same guy that sent me to get the refund had to have my receipt again and log down the mistake, then he bid me goodbye and I was on my way. What a hassle.....and I got money back, whew.........glad that's over......... Glad I wasn't in a hurry....probaby took me an extra 15 or 20 mintues......but I had to go to the bathroom and I was hungry.
  

• Then next, I picked Marla up, we ran to Hobby Lobby cuz their Christmas stuff is all 90% off. Not much good stuff left, but we wanted to check it out. I picked up a few things and proceeded to check out. My total seemed a little large for the few 90% items got, but whatever....we were outta there. We got to the door and Marla looked at my receipt and noticed she had charged me the full price for a Christmas platter I picked up. It was 5.99 full price, and I would never, ever pay that much for it, it wasn't that great, but it was worth 60 cents. I said "I'm not paying 6.00 for this thing......I'll take it back and tell her she made a mistake". Well, wrong thing to say! They only had 2 checkouts open and only one of them could do a refund, and the refund line already had people trying to do refunds and had a couple of managers trying to help her. After waiting in line what seemed like forever, but was actually about 5 minutes, another lady opened her register and said he could do a refund. So, I explained what happened.........no problem........sure! She asked for my receipt, then she proceeded to do the refund, then she needed my license, then she had to get a manager to approve it, then the manager had to go and make a copy of my receipt, then I had to fill out a refund slip, and sign it...............and I had never even left the store........by this time I was ready to scream! I'm usually a pretty patient person, but this evening I had just had it, besides I needed to go to the bathroom and I was hungry....enough said........!!!!

Birthday Boy turns 87! What a happy Guy!!

Meet my happy Dad!~He doesn't look very happy but I think he was having a good time. I guess if I was 87 I'd have a frowny face too!
Dad and his sweet wife Levina. She is a dear person and takes such good care of our dad. She will never know how much we appreciate and love her!

Y'all know who this character is.....yeah, the one in the blue shirt....my brother Hoke and his fun wife Diane. She's a good sport to have lived all these years as Hoke's wife.....there's never a dull moment at their house. They are a hoot and we love them and have fun with them!!

Then look at this happy couple.......yep, my baby brother James and his sweet wife Kay. James and I both believe........ life is better the second time around! We love you Kay and we're glad your part of our family cuz you make my Bubba sooo happy!!

Hand and Foot....the game of Champions!

We love this game and these crazy people too. We taught it to Jeff and Jenny and we had a blast!!

They caught on fast....gosh, you can tell they're young, they probably know how to use the remote, the cell phone and the DVR player too! They're smart!
The guys won.......the girls pouted and fun was had by all!! Thanks Jeff and Jenny for a fun night....you ROCK!!