Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey

Yes, that is a cowboy monkey riding a border collie.  His name is Whiplash, and he has been riding for 16 years now.  He is my absolute favorite part of the Ft. Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, which just happens to be going on as I type!  Oh, the things I'm missing in Texas!!  If you want to see him in action, just click here, or you can see him starring in his own  taco commercial here. Because really, why wouldn't a monkey riding on the back of a dog help promote tacos?? 

Hope that brightened your day just a bit :)

~A

Movin' on up!

Hi Blog Friends! 

I have some very exciting news to share...are you ready for it??  We're moving!  I can't tell you how excited I am about this new development.  Perhaps it is because our new house will not feel like it is constantly caving in on us due to it's incredibly small size.  Or, perhaps it is because we'll be a little bit closer to a new "American" restaurant that Chris & I are dying to try.  But, if I'm honest, I think it is because we will now have a dishwasher, a garbage disposal, closets (actual closets, people!), and lastly, and MOST importantly...a washer &  dryer!!  I will no longer have to spend exactly $9.25 every other week to do laundry at the really rather nasty laundromat!  I will no longer have to waste  hours of my day sitting alone, waiting for my clothes to wash and dry.  Oh, think of all the wonderful things that I can do with my extra time now!  The possibilities are endless!

I'd post pictures if I had any, because I know that you are all dying to see what I am raving about.  Now, I can't say that it's the house of our dreams, but holy moly it is a VAST improvement from where we have been living the past 2 years.  These plastic bins, that hold everything from clothes to computer gear, are just not cutting it anymore.  There is only so much you can do to those babies to make them look decorative, and I'm afraid I've failed miserably in that arena!  But now...now we will have room to use Chris's poor speakers who have made their home under our guest bed for the entire time we've been in England.   AND, we have a full size mirror...I'm incredibly excited to see the bottom half of my body when I get dressed in the morning (or am I??  heehee!).  We move in about 2 weeks, and I'm literally jumping for joy at this very instant.  

I'll post more about it when it gets a little closer, but for now I'm just daydreaming about doing my whites :)

~A 

Re-thinking the Card Display...

Who knew that behind the dry-wall was a sheet of metal??? I think I hear the sound of our "security deposit" being whisked away as I type!!

Do you have any holiday blunders that you'd like to share?? :)

Happy New Year!

I've been MIA for a few days now...just hanging out with my hubs and enjoying our Christmas holiday together!  It was wonderful, by the way!  Chris took off for a few days, and we had NO plans...it was awesome.  We watched tons of movies, lounged around the house, enjoyed our new goodies, and tried to do as little as possible.  

On Christmas Eve, we attended a service at out church and then came home to start up the birthday celebration!  Since we were going to have dinner with some friends on Christmas night, we decided to celebrate Chris's birthday on the 24th.  I made him steak (his fave!), and some yummy apple turnovers (he's not a cake guy).  We then caved, and decided to go ahead and open our stockings...I mean, why wait??  I think stockings are my favorite!  You have to find small, meaningful gifts that will fit into, well, a sock!  I always love what Chris finds for me, and this year was no different.   

Christmas morning we woke up and opened our gifts from each other & our families.  I told our parents that I got Chris the Wii, and WOW, they really took that to heart.  We are set with Wii stuff, and everyone is officially invited to come play at our house anytime you want!!  This year, since we were away from everyone, we decided to take a picture of ourselves with each gift so that we could send them in with our thank-you cards.  It was pretty fun, looking back, to document who gave us each gift.  I'm glad we did it that way, and definitely plan on reviving that trend next year!  The rest of the day was spent talking to our parents via Skype.  We watched my mom's family open our gifts to them, and then did the same w/ my sister's family.  It was so much fun!  That night, we went to a friends house and enjoyed a wonderful Christmas spread w/ two other families.  Ahh, the food!  It was incredible...and the leftovers were just as amazing the next day!  

So now we're slowly getting back to reality.  The decorations are put away, I've rearranged the house for the millionth time (I'm feeling restless lately!), and Chris goes back to work tomorrow.  2009 is sure to hold some big changes for our little family.  We've already said good-bye to several very good friends, and there is a huge possibility that we will leaving good 'ole England this year too.  I can't wait to see what God has in store for us!

Hope your Christmas was awesome, and that you have had a wonderful start to 2009!

Amy

Chris ~ A Steak & Potato Man!

Before...

After!!

He Will Bring Us Goodness & Light

Merry Christmas Eve, everyone!  What a thrill it was to wake up this morning and know that there is only one more day until Christmas!!  I love this day for many reasons; baking goodies for tomorrow's dinner, finally trying my hand at my Nana's pecan pie recipe, celebrating Chris's birthday tonight w/ a fancy-pants dinner that I will lovingly prepare, singing in worship at the Christmas Eve service, watching Home Alone & snuggling w/my sweet husband, and sneakily (is that a word??) filling  stockings tonight so that Chris will be surprised tomorrow morning!  But, all of those things pale in comparison to the real reason that tonight is special!  

Now, I love surprises.  Sometimes I love them so much that I can't stand to wait for the actual surprise, and I have to sneakily (there's that word again!) peak at whatever it is that is supposed to surprise me!  Hey, at least I can admit it!  But I can't imagine the glorious surprise that Mary must have felt when an angel told her that she would be the mother of Jesus.  And on this day, so very long ago, the tired couple must have been huddling close in that inn, awaiting His magnificent arrival.  The world changed the very next day.  Nothing would ever be as it was.  Instead of darkness and sin, God sent His only son so that the world could bask in "Goodness & Light".  

"Glory to God in the highest, an on earth peace, goodwill towards men."

Luke 2:14

On this Christmas Eve, I wish for all of you the peace, joy, & love of this very blessed season.  

~Amy

Abundant Sunday

Another week has flown by for us out here in England.  The weather isn't quite as cold as it is back in Texas, and we actually had 3 consecutive days of sunshine (I know, VERY shocking!).  The stores are starting to get busy, and the air is starting to hum with Christmas excitement!  It's getting so close, I can hardly stand it!  Here are my blessings for the week, along with some pics our home...thanks again for the suggestions about the card display, I LOVE it :)

1.  That there is a Chili's in Cambridge that we can just pop on down to if we're feeling a little homesick!  

2.  Ben & Jerry's "American Dream" Ice Cream.

3.  Skype...I just figured this out, and I love it!  It was so fun to get to talk to my dad this afternoon "face to face"!

4.  Heart-to-hearts w/ good friends.  

5.  Our first month of being completely DEBT FREE!!  I'm telling you, Dave Ramsey ROCKS!

6.  The movie "The Holiday".  It came on AFN yesterday, and I loved it just as much as the first time I saw it.

7.  Hot Chocolate on a cold day...nothing beats it :)

Our mini-tree w/ presents!  AND, the cute card display!!

I hung a red ribbon between the two walls, and then used red/green/white paper clips to hang the cards...turned out super cute!

A Christmas Treat

Want a super easy, and super yummy Christmas treat recipe??  Well, here you go:

Ritz Cracker Goodies

30 or so Ritz Crackers (paired)

Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bark (or you can use Chocolate Chips if you can't find bark)

Peanut Butter

Wax Paper

Put a little bit of Peanut Butter on your Ritz Crackers, and pair them up to make "sandwiches".  Set aside.  In a medium saucepan (I use a double boiler) melt your chocolate.  When completely melted, dip your Ritz sandwiches in the chocolate until they are covered on both sides.  Use a fork to remove, and set on wax paper to cool.  Let them sit for about 30 minutes so that the chocolate can harden, and serve!  Yum!