Survival Seeds

Friday, January 29, 2010

Snow storm January 2010

Living here in Oklahoma we know that the weather can change every five minutes. And we are used to it changing every five minutes. But waiting on the weather is something that we aren't used to at all. So when it said that we were going to get sleet, snow and ice in large proportions we were ready. We had already gone and stocked up on all the essentials (toilet paper, water, candles, birth control, bread, little propane bottles, matches, and anything else that we need or think that we might need) and then we waited, waited, waited and waited..... When I finally went to bed at 10 it was just starting. We were stick in a little keyhole area and didn't get anything when we should have. I tweeted and read blogs to know what was going on in Tulsa with Tasha and in southern Oklahoma with Elizabeth and then tweeted with Kristen who has known me forever. I heard the first two talking about what they were getting and Kristen talking about what her sister was getting but still sat just waiting.... so at 10 last night it started!!!

This morning there was a little bit of sleet that was sticking and then it started snowing and it hasn't stopped snowing since! It is so beautiful but people aren't realizing that it is a wet snow and are sliding all over. Luckily I am inside and able to watch all the crazy people out driving but we will be out in them before long. Thankfully I am not the one who will be driving, I have little patience. I will work tomorrow and then bundle up and get ready to stay inside doing homework and just spending some time at home. As long as we doing lose power I will be fine. I really would like to have the TV on and be able to be on the Internet. But it we do lose power I will gas up the generator and make the hard decision - TV or Internet.... I am sure the TV and the dvr will win!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Writer's Workshop


Mama Kat is having another Writer's Workshop this week and I am hurrying to squeeze it in. Here are the prompts.....



The Prompts:
1.) I recently read all about the importance of us bloggers developing an “Elevator Pitch” via one of my new favorite blogs. According Wikipedia and Elevator Pitch is “an overview of an idea for a product, service, or project. The name reflects the fact that an elevator pitch can be delivered in the time span of an elevator ride (for example, thirty seconds or 100-150 words).” Create one short (a sentence long) and one longer (100 – 150 words) Elevator Pitch describing what your blog is about.(inspired by Darren from Problogger)


2.) The strangest dream ever…(inspired by Amo from Where A Woman Shakes Her Tablecloth.)


3.) Write a list of 10 things that can be done to stave off boredom.(inspired by Lourie from CA Girl).


4.) “How many homes have you had? Write a journal entry about ALL the places you’ve called ‘home’ in your life.”(inspired by writingfix.com).


5.) “Why wouldn’t they just start over? Write a story where a character refuses to go back to square one.”(inpired by writingfix.com).


Which one will YOU choose??
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I choose to write a list of 10 things that can be done to stave off boredom.(inspired by Lourie from CA Girl).
These are the ten things that I do to stave off boredom....


1. Get up and take care of the two girls.


2. Get around and get ready to my full-time job that I do during the day.


3. Leave work at 5 and change into more comfortable clothes.


4. Go to my part-time job in the evenings and work with the kids.


5. If I don't go to the part-time job, I drive an hour and a half to go to school.


6. Sit in class for 3 hours and LEARN!!!


7. Drive an hour and a half home.


8. If I am not going to part-time job (see #4) or going to school (see #5, #6 & #7) I am doing home work for the 13 hours of classes that I am taking.


9. If I am not doing #4, #5, #6, #7 or #8 I am looking and reading through my friends blogs.


10. Then if I am not working my full-time job, working at my part-time job, going to school, or doing homework, or looking at blogs I am SLEEPING!!! But that doesn't happen very much.


So I will stop at the ten but I promise I could continue going on and on and on. I didn't list all of the other stuff that I do like hunting.... or fishing..... or all those other redneck things that we do in this neck of the country. I haven't even touched on my cross stitch, embroidery, quilting and all the other *girly* stuff that I enjoy....


Have you ever heard the words, BORED come out of my mouth???? I have no time to be bored. But if any of you are bored I would love to have some pointers on how to spend my few minutes a day that I waste... Just kidding but seriously, if someone knows how to make more than 24 hours in a day I would appreciate the hint. I never seem to have enough time. But such is life!


Now head over to Mama Kat's and look at what everyone else is talking about!

Friday, January 15, 2010

85 Reasons to be Thankful for Librarians

I was reading a blog from a librarian, The Gun Carryin' Librarian,who works at the college that I am attending and loved this list. He only listed a few so I clicked over to the whole list. I am going to list all of them, just because I got a kick out of it!

A little know fact about me is that I worked at a library for two years, starting the month before I graduated high school. I worked in the children's department and LOVED it. I know that I should have started this degree sooner but kept looking at all the other things that I "needed" to do. I am also able to understand the one reason that speak about still liking to hold books. I took an online class last semester that taught me all the different aspects of the library. I was amazed at all the things that we are able to do now. I didn't know about Ebrary and it is amazing. I even entered to win a Kindle on Swagbucks but I am one of those who loves the feel of a book and the texture of the pages. There is something about having that book in my hands and being able to actually feel and manipulate it. By manipulating it I mean making notes in the margins or marking a page with a sticky note so that I can go back and look at something more in depth. Call me old-fashioned but there is just something to be said about being able to physically hold a book. But, without further ado, here is the list!!!

85 Reasons to be Thankful for Librarians

1. Librarians take care of libraries, which are still invaluable today.
2. Not all information is on the Internet.
3. Older books still hold great cultural significance.
4. Libraries are still repositories for some of the most valuable works of literature in the world.
5. Even with the Internet, the library is still the best place to do research.
6. Girls with glasses can still rock the “sexy librarian” look.
7. “Sexy Librarian” is still a popular costume at Halloween.
8. You can’t exactly find periodicals like The New England Journal of Medicine in Barnes and Noble.
9. For that matter, looking at turn-of-the-century National Geographic is still pretty entertaining.
10. Colleges need something to remodel every so often.
11. The library is still the best meeting spot for college students working on group projects.
12. Libraries are where most colleges store some of their history (choir CDs, videos of athletic matches, etc.).
13. A library is one of the few places people can have free Internet access.
14. This means some libraries even hold LAN parties during later hours.
15. Somebody has to help lazy people find what they want.
16. Even online collections of books usually connect directly to a library.
17. “Librarian” is still a better career choice for spinsters over “School Lunch Lady.”
18. Studies have shown libraries and librarians improve student test scores.
19. They also have been shown to improve students’ individual learning skills.
20. With their training in instructional design, librarians can help teachers find resources for their curriculum.
21. Librarians also help teachers to use a variety of media in the classroom.
22. Many libraries today offer enough DVDs to serve as a poor man’s Netflix or Blockbuster.
23. Librarians often put together special programs to get children to read early on.
24. While teaching children to use the library, librarians end up teaching them valuable problem solving skills.
25. They also teach children to use multiple resources to form their own original works.
26. If librarians were no longer around, kids wouldn’t understand the opening scene from Ghostbusters.
27. Librarians know a lot about proper citation skills, as well as ethical uses of information, in order to avoid plagiarism issues.
28. Libraries are still a cheaper place to make photocopies than FedEx Kinko’s.
29. Despite the advances in computer technology, a human will still find information better than a search engine.
30. Librarians can also find information better suited to the person who needs it.
31. A library is much MUCH more well cataloged and organized than the Internet.
32. Libraries have much better quality control than the vast majority of websites.
33. Who else is going to learn the Dewey Decimal System? You?
34. Seriously though, no one wants to learn the Dewey Decimal System.
35. For that matter, who else is going to show you how to use that microfiche machine?
36. Experienced librarians often know exactly what resources students need for particular courses.
37. Many libraries collaborate and offer book exchange programs, offering users an almost limitless supply of books and media.
38. Librarians can help relieve some of the workload from teachers by helping students to understand information better.
39. Some engineering teams have already explored the idea of a fully digital library…and ended up designing a traditional library with some advanced technology.
40. The copyright costs for digitizing all literature would be astronomical without even factoring in distribution and storage.
41. Even without the costs, digitizing all books in existence would take hundreds of years at the current rate.
42. The Internet still mostly only holds information from the past 15 or so years, compared with the hundreds of years of knowledge found in a library.
43. Even though libraries themselves may be losing attendance, their online archives and websites are still receiving plenty of visitors.
44. Despite the rising popularity of e-books, 80% of people surveyed say they still prefer paper books.
45. The experience of reading an actual book is being preserved by libraries.
46. Libraries provide one of the few places for anyone to find quiet area to just read or study.
47. Sometimes, but not always, libraries have free coffee.
48. Sometimes there are even free snacks.
49. Unlike the Internet, libraries are careful that the information they contain is checked for usefulness before being included.
50. Also unlike the Internet, libraries are much less influenced by corporate interests.
51. They are also less likely to be manipulated by individuals, like search engine optimizers.
52. Information on more specific topics can be much easier to find in libraries.
53. Digital or not, a library still needs a human staff to run it.
54. The resources of a library are well indexed and will always deliver reliable results (I.e. no “broken links”).
55. Many popular news publications still require subscriptions to view their content online, but are still available for free at the library.
56. Libraries provide free and abundant knowledge to everyone (a privilege people didn’t always have).
57. Not everyone can afford books, but everyone has access to the library.
58. Someone has to buy all those books that college professors write.
59. Public bathrooms in libraries are usually cleaner than most places.
60. A library can mold itself for the specific community it’s in, whereas websites usually try to bring in everyone.
61. At libraries, you can take practice qualifying tests for almost any profession.
62. You can always make suggestions to librarians for specific books you’d like to see.
63. Many libraries also display original works of art or even have separate galleries.
64. Some libraries also hold a limited number of free museum passes that anyone can use.
65. If you don’t have a computer, you can always use the ones in the library.
66. The same goes for certain premium software and special databases.
67. If your library offers wi-fi, it’s probably free.
68. Several libraries also offer programs that cater to senior citizens.
69. Believe it or not, studies show that libraries are good for their local economy, since they make their community for attractive to potential businesses and individuals.
70. Libraries are still a cornerstone for free speech and open access to information.
71. When dictators like Hitler and Mao Zedong set out to eliminate a country’s culture or history, they started by shutting down the public libraries.
72. A library still provides a neutral environment for the free exchange of ideas.
73. Public libraries are surprisingly cheap to maintain, but benefit everyone in the community.
74. If you’re a comic book lover, you can probably find plenty at your local library.
75. They might even have some of those expensive indie graphic novels available.
76. We’re still an incredibly long ways away from a paperless world.
77. You might as well use the library, since you’re already paying for it through taxes or tuition.
78. There’s less risk of getting carpal tunnel syndrome from reading books.
79. A library is a great excuse to get out of the house (seriously, why would anyone argue with you about it?).
80. Books are very portable and never need recharging.
81. With the economy these days, going to the library is a great source of free entertainment.
82. You can “try before you buy” any number of books without spending a dime.
83. Some libraries even have bookmobiles or mailing programs that deliver books right to you.
84. Studies have repeatedly shown that reading improves your basic vocabulary and just generally makes you smarter.
85. Regardless of what form a library takes, a librarian will always be ready to guide you to the information you need.

So today is the day to be thankful!!!

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Today is THAT day

Today is the first day of the spring semester. It is THAT day. I now have no freedom. I will constantly be busy with school work and all the other stuff that comes along with school. I am taking two late classes so I will still be driving two nights a week. I am also taking two online classes and one weekend class. Grand total of hours this semester = 13!!!! That is along with both jobs. Maybe I have gone absolutely out of my mind....Or maybe I just see my goal. Either way, I am going to be one pooped out chick! I think that I will be getting a very little bit of sleep.

One of my online classes posted stuff yesterday so I got a head start on it. That felt good. Let's see how long it lasts! (Ha ha) The other won't start until the 19th so I have a slight break. Not really though since I am going to class the two nights a week, the high school basketball tournament at the college starts next week and I will also be starting intramural basketball Wednesday..... So the slight break will be appreciated time has come to woman up. Nothing like jumping in with both feet and hitting the ground running!

So if I get to where I am not posting as regularly as I should leave a comment and give me a hard time!!! I will need it and it will be appreciated!

Monday, January 11, 2010

The truth about this Okie Redneck!!!

I was sitting here, minding my own business and out of the blue, on my google reader popped up a blog that I read CONSTANTLY Forever Rhonda and reading through it I found out that I won an award. I have never won an award in blogger world!!!! This is my first that I have ever won! Thanks Rhonda!!!!



So here are the rules.
1. Get nominated. I think I did this one.... Oh yeah Rhonda did it!!!

2. Tag 7 other totally awesome bloggers.

3. Tell TEN completely honest facts about yourself in your blog.

My nominations are... (drum roll please.....) in no particular order

1. Sarah at Life{Sweet}Life who is expecting a baby BOY in May. I am so excited for them!

2. Mandy over at Campbell Family Party of 3. I actually went to school with her and although we weren't close in school we have became better friends since school. Amazing what adulthood does! She has an amazing story about her family and what they have been through to get their daughter.

3. Kerri over at I'm Just Sayin is a hoot to read. She is a new wife and mother and I love seeing those pictures!!!

4. Ya'll have got to go and check this gal out at Deer Passion. I really think that we are long lost sisters. She is on a small hiatus but go and look through her back stuff, it is amazing!

5. The Momma Hen of this bunch at Henhouse Pottery is amazing. I keep learning all the different aspects of her talents and she blows me out of the water. She doesn't know it yet but she has inspired me to try and start keeping bees. So I will most likely be picking her brain!

6. A gal who is an awful lot like me but lives across the United States! Go and check her out at Sweet Sue!!!!

7. Marian over at Marian's Hunting Stories is a blast. She loves the outdoors and makes me more aware of what is going on around me!

So here we go. Ten fascinating truths that you may or may not have known about me....

1. I am scared of heights. Like deathly scared of heights. But I still crawl up into a tree stand that is anywhere from 10 to 20 feet in the air. As I am crawling up I am thinking to myself, "What in the heck am I doing this for?" and then I am up there and remember the beauty of it all.

2. I have been married twice.... to the same man.... We were married young and are making a more educated pass at it this time.

3. Although I love my Real Tree camo but my favorite color is pink. But I like green too...

4. And speaking of green I have owned 3 vehicles in my life and all three have been green...

5. I am three semesters away from being a teacher. This makes me ecstatic and utterly speechless all at the same time. I am so ready to get into this profession and make a change!

6. I have a sis-in-law who is 5 years old and a bro-in-law who is two. When we go out everyone thinks that they are OUR kids. We have the most fun with this.

7. Even with school, a full time job, a part time job and all the normal stuff that I have to do my goal is to cook through the Pioneer Woman's cookbook. I am not setting a schedule due to the previous mentioned time consuming activities but it is my goal!

8. I got 3rd place in a chili cook off at the local college when I was 24. I was competing again a lot of women who had been cooking for many years. I didn't tell them until after what my secret recipe included - DEER!!!!

9. I have two mother-in-laws, one is five years older than me.... We get mistaken for sisters if people don't know us. The five year old and two year old are hers.

10. I have a best friend who is an awful lot like me. She hunts, fishes and had a brand new beautiful baby girl, AJ. We are so much alike and I don't know what I would do without her!

That is all the fun and interesting facts that you will find out about me today. I know that you are wanting to know more since I am SOOOOO interesting but it will have to wait until another day! Have a wonderful one!

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Canadian geese, it's what's for dinner!!!

While I was working and watching the snow, the boys went out goose hunting. As you can see they had a good day and they are back out today. I am going to have to make some goose jerky now! It was snowing these perfect snow flakes and then the sun came out. It made them look like glistening jewels. Then the wind started blowing and it looked like a snow globe out the window. The guys were very cold but prepared and had things to lay on. They said that there were thousands of Canadians and it seemed like they had such a good day. In fact part of the boys went out today again. They came in one shy of their limit. It was a good two days of hunting for them. They enjoyed the "boy" time. Does anyone have any good recipes for goose? That is one of the few wild games that I don't have recipes for.... Hope everyone had as good of a weekend as we have had!!!

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Writers Workshop


Mama Kat is giving you an assignment, if you choose to accept it. Here are the prompts for this week.
The Prompts:
1.) Describe what you would change about yourself if you could.
2.) Book Review! What children’s book do you hate reading to your child?(inspired by E. from Mommy’s Still Fabulous)
3.) What do you predict will happen this decade? (You can be funny or serious if you like).(inspired by Christopher from CaJoh)
4.) Choose the 7th picture you took from last January and write a poem.
5.) Write about a heated argument you had with your parents (real or fictitious).(inspired by Writer’s Digest)
I am going to choose the first prompt....
My poor, poor husband. I do feel sorry for him sometimes. He is this relaxed guy who is a *fly by the seat of his pants* kinda person. I.AM.NOT. I am the type that has everything planned out and wants it to go just so. I have a planner that I put every ones birthday in (with the year that they were born beside their names) and anniversary (with the year also beside it) and I have all the days that school will be out, any appointments and all that information. Did I mention that I have the cards for the appointments also stuck in a paper clip in the planner? I have all of Matt's tournaments down, what holidays I will have off, what days he is planning on taking off. Okay you get the idea.
I have a rule that has been this for the last 11 years that we have been together. When someone asks about Christmas the name and time is put on my planner. It has a number that is circled beside it. 1 is for the 1st person to ask, 2 is for the 2nd person to ask and so on. This is to make the holidays *easier*. I still end up a bawling, sobbing mess because I am worried about upsetting someone or things not going like they have been planned. This year I threw it all out the window and told everyone what our schedule was to come over and the times that we would be around. (Keep in mind when you are calling me crazy that Matt had four sets of GREAT grandparents living when we got together. This meant at least 4 days of traveling around for Christmas.) Between the snow storm that we had and the ability to just let go I enjoyed this holiday season much more than the previous ones.
So if there was one thing that I could change about myself it would be how scheduled and OCD that I am about it. I need to learn to relax and have a more easygoing attitude. Although I will have a hard time since I am taking 13 hours. I will have to schedule my times to study, which will be most of my free time. But I will try and get better at being relaxed and not worrying about the time, or about making others happy at my expense. I am going to live life fast and loose, as much as I can!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Spiced Tea Recipe

Spiced Tea Recipe

1 cup instant tea
2 cups Tang
1 cup lemonade
3 cups sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup red hots

Mix together well. Use 2 tablespoons in hot water and then adjust to taste. Wonderful for those cold nights!

Vet time again & Potato Soup in a Jar

My in-laws have that cute schnauzer, Lilly, and it is time for her to get fixed, get her rabies shot and all that good stuff. She has an appointment on January 18th (since I am off work and can watch her). I am so worried about another rabies incident like what Sasha had. It has just made me a bit more cautious about how they react and what we give them.

My poor dogs probably think that they are being abused by all the fresh stuff we give them. They don't even get treats anymore. We give them fresh carrots, avocados, apples, frozen green beans. They will eat just about anything that we give them and it is much healthier for them. They don't get onions or grapes since it is bad for their system. Roxy was weighing almost 85 pounds. We were having issues with ear infections and she was going to the vet every two and a half weeks. I think that we have them under control now (with extra meds at home in case!) but now we started hitting it hard with the weight loss. We cut her food back to one rounded measuring cup in the morning and one at night with carrots and all that yummy stuff in between. She is losing the weight!

It is hard to look at the amounts but when we take into consideration that Roxy is much less active than Sasha she does need less food but it is still hard when you measure it out. Sasha gets a total of two-thirds of a cup a day at 11 pounds and Roxy gets 2 1/4 cups a day and she is now weighing 78 pounds. She has lost 7 pounds so far and it is showing. She is looking good! She goes into the vet for her normal check up in March and they will do her rabies shot then. My goal is to have her down to the 75 pounds that the vet is recommending!

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Speaking of losing weight the holidays always get to me and I seem to gain. I love the food and atmosphere of Christmas. Loving this causes me to eat more, which causes me to gain weight. Now I am back to my watching my portions again and cutting some carbs out. I am refusing to cut all carbs out just because I love them. We are just going to start eating healthier. My biggest obstacle will be having two nights a week that I will leave the day job, get on the turnpike and drive, start class at 7:20 and then hit the road some time after 10, thus not getting home until almost midnight. I ate at the cafe on campus some last semester but it got me BAD.... I would go in thinking that I was only going to get a burger, then I would see some fries, or I would see the personal pizzas that were actually more the size of a small pizza and I would lose it and over eat. I am trying to start planning now what I can take. I am a huge potato soup fan and found a recipe that is convenient and tastes good.

Potato Soup Mix in a Jar
1 3/4 cups instant mashed potatoes
1 1/2 cups dried milk
2 tablespoons instant chicken bouillon
2 teaspoons dried minced onion
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
Combine all ingredients in a bowl; mix well. Put ingredients in a 1-quart jar. Mix 1/2 cup of mix with 1 cup boiling water and stir until smooth.

This is one of those things that I can keep in the car and mix up a small amount to eat before class or even during class. Any other ideas that could help me with easy to make meals that can be taken to school????

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We have had over 14 inches on snow since Christmas Eve and I am enjoying it, I just hope it doesn't snow like this when I am having to drive my hour and a half to and from school. This has been the first year in a long time that I have just really enjoyed the snow and what it looks like around us.

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AJ went for a two week check up and she weighs 7 pounds 2 ounces now and is 20.75 inches long. She is growing so much!!! I have been taking care of the hubby who has been sick so I haven't gotten to see her since Christmas!!! I am going through withdrawal. I can't wait until Matt is feeling better so that I can go hold her.