Just because I love you!

18 Tuesday Jun 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, heart and soul, RaMbLiNgs

I don’t always post each day. I know. You knew that.

Truth is…sometimes I just have to live the life that you see in the pictures.

I miss you when I’m gone though. I love to try to inspire you with beautiful things.

I love to remind all of us about the grace of God and how beautiful this world is that He made.

So…today…nothing close to rocket science. Just some beauty that you have probably seen before. It’s to tide you over until my next post…just in case you are waiting. If you are…bless your soul…thank you for riding along on this dirt road journey with us.

Smiles!

A Day Away

14 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, heart and soul

≈ 2 Comments

Do you ever just need a day away? Life can be crazy. Of course we all need some time to relax and regroup.

Time with your little family unit is priceless. It’s a blessing from above. (Don’t ask us what our son is doing. He doesn’t even know.) 😉

Sometimes on the way…..you get bored and play with your phone.

This was the first time in the history of our little family…..that everyone was tall enough to ride…everything. How exciting!

Um…yeah. You invest your life…keeping these kids alive, by the grace of God, and they ride stuff like this. That would be my husband and little son in the second row. This is Outlaw Run. If you don’t know anything about it…..Google. I was on the observation deck….um praying. God answers prayer. They stayed on the track and our little guy even has the t-shirt to prove it.

The girls and I needed some fruit and veggies. We also needed a funnel cake. We must have eaten it too fast to photograph. 😉

I have realized that I have aged since the last time that I was here.

Okay….so I am having a hard time flipping the squirrel while posting on my phone….so kindly flip your head. 😉 Thanks! Oh to be a squirrel at a theme park! They almost act tame. It was crazy.

Our chickens would have been impressed. 😉

(The two pics above are from our “road-trippin” food. Of course the first was from McD’s and when I posted the picture on Instagram….my friend Jodi answered the question with…”Real.” 😉 I said “exactly.” Freddy’s was wonderful. It was sooooo good. Maybe I was just super hungry. We had snacked all day…but hadn’t had a meal since breakfast. We will definitely add them to our favorites list!)

We stopped at Target on the way out of Branson. It’s so sad. We don’t have one in our little town. I asked the Mr. if he was glad…and he said yes. 😉 He knows his bride…of all these years, very well. Anyway…GUESS WHAT! (Yes…I’m yelling!) I’M FINALLY A MEMBER OF THE PRETTY PAPER STRAW CLUB! Isn’t that great? I also found a rug that I had looked for, before, for our kitchen….ON CLEARANCE! Woo hoo! Then at TJ MAXX I found some pretties too! If you follow me on Instagram….check it out…today!

It was all wonderful! I feel very blessed. A big “thank you” and “Happy Birthday” to my Mr. I love you…and I am blessed beyond measure to be the momma in your little tribe.

(Oh and please forgive my backseat driving. 😉 )

Smiles!

mmmMonday! Leftovers, Laundry and Lugging

10 Monday Jun 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest, Yum for the Tum

≈ 6 Comments

Hey Gang! How was your weekend? I’m hoping that it was good and relaxing. Ours was good. A Friday night to relax, a Saturday of family time and a Sunday of worship and rest. Good stuff. So…all of that brings us back around to mmmMonday! I’m so glad that you stopped by to join us. Today we are talking leftovers…for tonight’s supper…me puttering around in the laundry room today and for those of you that follow me on Instagram…the lugging of the dresser from Friday. Good stuff. 😉

Yesterday, while we were at church…I had a pork roast bubblin’ in the ol’ Crock Pot. Then when we got home, (after a stop off at the grocery store for coleslaw…which ended up in a bunch of other stuff because we were all hungry) we had pulled pork. It was pretty tasty, if I do say so myself. That brings us to tonight’s mmmMonday! meal. Our roast that I used was pretty good sized…so there is plenty left for tonight’s PORK TACOS! Do you love ’em? We do. The Mr. and I were laughing this weekend about the quantity of Mexican food that we eat. We never tire of it. Pass the chips and salsa please.

Our pork tacos tonight will be pretty basic. Flour tortillas, pork, sour cream, lettuce, tomato, onion and cilantro. I like to whip up a little sour cream with lime juice…but the kiddie-poos aren’t too crazy about that. Oh…and cheese! How could I forget the cheese? Tonight it will be a little mixture of cheddar and mozzarella…just cause that is what I have on hand. We also have one last jar of last year’s homemade salsa that we are working on. I am very pleased that we had enough to give away and to last us through the winter. (Lord, please bless those tomato plants this year too. Okay…yes…I pray for our garden…and just maybe…last year I could be seen walking along the tomato plants…praying for them. “Ask and ye shall receive.”) 😉

So…I’m thinking about puttering around out in the laundry room today. I have a large metal rack out there…that things tend to pile up on. I’m wanting to revamp it a tad. I see all of these beautiful laundry rooms on our favorite Pinterest. Also…I never have made my coffee sack curtains. I may have to get on that too. After I made our drop cloth drapes…my poor little sewing machine tried to give up the ghost. I may see if the Mr. will oil her tonight and give her a tune up. I love our laundry room. It’s a good thing…I spend a big part of my life there.

Okay…okay…the lugging. If you follow me on Instagram…you probably remember the dresser that I was going to lug from one side of the family room to the other. Well…it’s done. One of my new…super sweet IG friends also emailed a printable to me and it’s framed and I’m displaying it on the dresser for now. I love it. Thank you, sweet friend. Don’t you love Instagram? I do. I have “met” so many neat people on there. One friend and I found that we have a common love for fall décor. We think that it’s fine that we are already stoked to decorate with pumpkins this year. 😉 Anyway…if you don’t follow me already…I am….yep…you guessed it, Along the Dirt Road. Come and join in on the fun!

Well…I’ve bent your ear long enough. (Strained your eyes…maybe?) I hope that you have a wonderful mmmMonday! Dirt Roaders. May the peace of God…that passes all understanding wrap right around your hearts today. He is amazing…He is love…and He is there for us.

Needing to scratch an itch…

06 Thursday Jun 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest

≈ 4 Comments

Do you ever sit in a chair at your house and look your family room over and think about…where you could move stuff? I do. I am thinking about doing this today. The only problem is…that it’s a thousand pound dresser that I’m talking about. Okay…not really…but I will have to take the drawers out to move it. I don’t want to be blogging tomorrow from a hospital bed…because I’m having hernia surgery.

(This is where it sits now.)

I wasn’t going to tell the Mr. that I was moving it. I was going to surprise him. Why do we wives like to do this? “Hey Babe. Notice anything different?” Maybe it’s more because we don’t want to see the look of utter distress on their faces when we throw our big idea out there. Probably both. Anyway…he gets my blog posts sent to his inbox…so he will know. (Secretly he will be glad that he missed out on this one.) His only job will be to line the drawers back onto their tracks when he gets home. This little chest is persnickety that way.

(Pardon the fall décor. These are old shots. But…it kinda makes me excited to decorate for fall. I know…I have a problem.) 😉

I need to clean today. I am notorious for “piddling” on cleaning day. I think that it gets me in the groove to clean. It also slows me down…cause I have to stand around and think about what I am doing…instead of just firing up the vacuum. (I love to vacuum. Have I ever shared that? Well…now you know.)

(This is where it will go now…if I can accomplish this feat. I will put it where the lamp is. We shall see…I may move it right back!)

Have a wonderful Thursday, Dirt Roaders! The beginning of the weekend!

Smiles!

Can one be addicted to blue jars?

04 Tuesday Jun 2013

Posted by Kelli in Culinary Style, everyday stuff

≈ 2 Comments

They came in the mail. Amazon offered a pretty tight deal. Free shipping. Can you beat that? Not when you cannot find them in your town. Yes…I am talking about the new “vintage” Ball jars. Have you seen them? If you are an addict like me…I know that you are in for a treat today.

Okay…so addict is a strong word. I just have a very strong liking for the turquoise Ball jars. (Did you know that they were blue because of the sand that they used from lake Michigan and the temperature in the furnace?) You have probably noticed that before in posts. I’m sure that somewhere lurking in the background of some shot was a turquoise Ball jar or two. Oh..duh…there is one in the header of this blog. It just dawned uponst me. (Ha! Uponst…my new word! Spell check is balking!)

So then…one day…somewhere in Blogland, or Instagram or the Web, there they were. Ball decided to come out with these “vintage” blue jars to celebrate their 100th anniversary! How cool is that? I know…pretty cool. I checked around and couldn’t find them here. I even had my husband’s aunt check in their town. Nada. So…I checked out good ol’ Amazon…and now…here they are.

The funny thing is…um…I haven’t taken them out of the package. It’s weird. I was kinda like that when my very first roll of baker’s twine came from Pick Your Plum. I just didn’t want to open it. It was too pretty. This though, is more like…I’m not sure what I’m gonna do with them once I open them. I know that I will wash and dry them. Believe me…I have lots of ideas…I just haven’t decided. What would you do with them?

Canning season is just around the corner. Things are growing in the garden…but I’m not sure if I will can in these or use them for pretty. Whatever I decide…I will try to let you know. They are just so stinkin’ pretty…I just stare at them. It’s Momma’s fault you know. She always dressed me in turquoise when I was a little kid.

Have a wonderful day, Dirt Road Sweeties! May it be filled with all things wholesome and grandmotherly. Then tonight…when you snuggle up in your little nest…may you dream dreams of vintage mason jars and cobbler and warm days on the farm and antique quilts! Wouldn’t that be fun!? A junkin’ dream! 😉

p.s. This is not a sponsored post. It’s just me…gabbing about something that I love. 🙂

Happy Friday, Dirt Roaders!

31 Friday May 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff

≈ 2 Comments

You made it! You did it! Congratulations! It’s Friday. Are you glad? Of course you are. You know…it’s been a tad crazy this week. We, of course, had Memorial Day stuff on Monday and then our internet wasn’t working. I had a couple of wreath orders and then it was Friday. I was going to show you guys some pictures of Memorial Day weekend…and I still will. I have to get them loaded and edited first. So today…I’m just going to offer you a little relaxation eye candy. Shots from here and there. I hope that you enjoy.

Sheesh Suzie. Have some class.

Pool therapy. Nothing like it.

Green grass. Nothing like it.

SONY DSC

Do you have a good read for the weekend? It’s supposed to rain here.

Maybe you are going junkin’ this weekend. That sounds like a plan to me!

Maybe you are heading off to a drive in the country. That is always fun. Maybe you live in the country and you are just going to enjoy your yard. Isn’t that fun…just sitting and soaking it all in? Love that. So. Much.

I hope that you have a wonderful weekend. I hope that you get to sit down with a glass of iced tea and count your blessings. God is good. All the time.

Lemon Button Love

11 Thursday Apr 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest

≈ 6 Comments

Hey Gang! How is Thursday working out for you? Hopefully….perfect. Today…I just had to share something with you. Yep. You guessed it….my new Lemon Button fern. She is so very pretty. If you follow me on Instagram (alongthedirtroad) you can probably already tell that I’m in love with this little plant. I just had to share it with you today.

If you have read my blog much, you know that we have discussed the fact that for so very long I didn’t have real house plants. Born in the late seventies…when terrariums where making a splash and house plants were all the rage, by the time I got married and had my own home…that seemed so old school. I mean, come on. Ha!

Then I started to get older and more wise (hopefully) and turned into my mother. (Okay, I just admitted that on the world-wide web.) I found out that having living green things around is actually a method of relaxation. For several years now, I have had happy little plants in our home. I enjoy watering them and watching them grow.

Who knew? Mom knew. Moms are smart that way. Thanks Mom.

So are you wondering how I came upon Lovely Lady Lemon Button? (Just kidding, I don’t name them.) Well okay then. Friday night, my daughter and I had to run into town for a bit. While I was there I got a call from a certain husband. He told me in a sad little voice that he forgot to pick up turkey tags for both he and our son. They needed them before sunup the next morning.

Enter: Lemon Button Fern

When we walked through the front doors of Wal-Mart, there she sat in all of her green glory. She begged to come home with us. My daughter couldn’t hear her little voice…but I could. “Please Ma’am…you look like good folks. Can I please come home with you. I don’t drink much and I am really quiet.” What? Your purchases don’t talk to you? Okay…mine don’t either…but I was really excited. She was only five American dollahs. 😉 That makes it all good.

So there you have it Dirt Roaders. The tale of my lemon button love. Ain’t she a beaut? I think so too. Have a wonderful rest of the……my favorite day of the week.

p.s. Mr. Husband…..I will do errands for you…anytime…for a small fee. HA!

Does the big W. ever surprise you?

24 Sunday Mar 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff, fluffin' the nest, Simply...living

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Hey friends. How are you? I know…I know…I usually don’t post on the weekend. I happened to take one of those old lady naps in the evening…and now I am having trouble sleeping. Plus…I happened upon some amazingly cool stuff at Wal-Mart today…and I couldn’t wait to share it with you. Does the big W. ever surprise you like that? You know, not just your basics, but some pretty nifty stuff!

The whole reason that we even went to Wal-Mart was to get a new welcome mat. My Mr. has been painting our exterior doors and we wanted a new mat for the front. I am totally in love with the color that we have chosen for our doors. It’s called Slate Tile. I love the depth that it adds. Anyway…..we decided to park back by the automotive entrance…and head to the rugs. Two perks in this. One…you usually don’t meet up with tons of people who you know…just in case you didn’t dress like you were going to an inaugural ball and two…you get to go right past the CRAFT department. Yes…I can hear your *sigh*! 😉

So…I picked up a lone cart that was left back there, (Hey…at least I didn’t jump on the motorized one.) and zipped right down a craft aisle. What to my wondering eyes did appear….but a little shelf full of wondermous things! Rolls of burlap ribbon and cute little grapevine wreaths. They even had a little chicken wire basket. What chicken farmer’s wife could turn that down?

I figured it up on the way home and my little shopping spree cost us about thirteen dollars. (As far as my sashay through the craft department goes.) How fun is that? I actually had two rolls of burlap ribbon…but I could live without the original color. The apple green had to come home with me.

and……

Thanks for coming along on our Wal-Mart trip, Dirt Roaders. Sometimes the big W. surprises me. What a fun little trip! By the way…I was sweet and let the Mr. pick out the rug. He did great. I love it when we do this. It may or may not be exactly what I would have picked…but I love it even more…because he picked it. He is my sweetheart. 😉

Signs of spring…

31 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff

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Hey my friends. How are ya? Are you living in the midst of Spring vs. Winter like us? I should be used to it by now…after living my whole life in the Ozarks. That is just the way we roll. One day balmy, one day sleet. Seriously. Just this week. It’s a little crazy. My tulips are trying to come up. Signs of spring? Maybe so.

Have a happy Thursday…and if winter isn’t your thing, just hang on. There are signs of spring…everywhere.

Love,

Laundry today please!

28 Monday Jan 2013

Posted by Kelli in everyday stuff

≈ 2 Comments

(This post is actually for Tuesday…but I’m posting late Monday night.) 🙂

Hey Friends! I hope that all is going well in your part of the planet. We are trying to feel better. Sometimes it’s a job. Even when you are sick though….laundry goes on…..and…on…and…on…and…well you now. So, even though I have been a tad under the weather, laundry is still on my agenda. I have to keep my family clothed and in their right minds.

I think that this sign from our laundry room pretty much says it all.

I love this little canvas. It reminds me of a simple time. It reminds me of the era in which my parents were born. It reminds me that I would have never cleaned my house in high heels. Even back then…I would have kicked them off and “ripped a bone out.” (That is my mother’s term for really getting with it when you clean. 😉 ) When I clean our home…I have my hair clamped up on top of my head…and when I ever pause to glance in a mirror…I have been known to have a dust bunny stuck in it.

I know that we ladies tend to complain a little about household chores, but I really do find it an honor…down deep inside. I feel honored that I get to be the one that makes sure that the laundry is smelling good to put on precious little (and big) bodies. So…even though sometimes it’s a little frustrating when I have all of the laundry done…and someone finds another pile stashed away somewhere…if they say “Laundry today please!” I will try to oblige. After all…..naked is only acceptable on some beaches. 😉

Have a marvelous day, Dirt Roaders. Sniff some good smellin’ detergent for me.