Wordful Wednesday: Food from the Experienced

Wordful Wednesday!!!

The perfect day to post a picture and write ALL about it!!!

So wonderfully hosted by Angie at SeVen CloWn CirCuS! Be sure to go check her out, and see all the other Wordful Wednesdays posted today!!!

There are so many sweet surprises in life that just WOW you arne't there? Last night after shopping with my mom she said she was going to run to the grocery store and would see me at home in a bit, so when she arrived about 30 minutes later I was ready to start cookin....but then I received an amazing sweet surprise!!!! My sweet, unbelievably amazing, 83 yr old grandmother had spend teh after noon make US dinner. Why did she do this?
"Just because she wanted to" say the exact answer I received from my mom. :)

My Grams is above and beyond what any granddaught could ever in a million years wish for! I know she knows she's loved by every single member of this family whether they are apart of it by birth or by God's grace!

Soooo, I wanted to show y'all what she made!!! It's called Tamale Pie, and boy was it tasty!

Tamale Pie w/ refried beans, and white rice! Mmm

With a big ice cold glass of Diet Dr. Pepper on the side of course :)

And just in case you we're wondering if I enjoyed it....

Here is what the plate looked like
after it had been in my presence for a few minutes....

What can I say? I love Mexican, and I love my Grams cookin' even more!!!

Did anyone else have somethin' delicious for dinner last night?????

Love Love Love

~KK~

Southern Homes full of Love- Part 2

Have I kept y'all waiting long enough to find out what movie this Beautiful house is from?

A couple of y'all made some really great guesses! I can easily see how y'all thought it would be from Sweet Home Alabama, but that house is a little different!

This beautiful house is from The Notebook!! My all-time favorite movie in the world! What in the world is more romantic than a man building a HOUSE for you?! Okay, I know the house was already built, BUT he redid the entire interior and exterior of the house, made her a painting studio over looking the lake and painted teh house white with blue shutters just like she asked! It's just so sweet, and I love this house. It's... Perfect!

I've had my eyes wide open for a little beaut just like this all over the South and I've had the luck of finding a few.. nothing bought yet though.

I'm such a country girl with a slightly city girl exterior! :) I love being in the woods, and could live without shoes from now until the day I die if only it was socially acceptable. I love barn wood used in houses and really old furniture that you can just tell has a story of its very own. I want a house that fits those things. The things that say, "This is definitely a house built for Kaylan," and not a "Oh...well.. I guess this is nice... A little hoity though." I'm not glitzy or uber preppy... I just can't have a perfectly formal house. I need my lace and my boots, hehe. So hopefully that PERFECT Home will come along really soon!!!

Til then I'll be dreaming of my Notebook house and Love story happy ending!

Keep reachin' for your dreams! I know I am!

~KK~

What Happens on a Friday Night...

So I spent 2 hours stomping through the woods tonight, had my right leg go straight down into a hidden hole all the way up to my knee, and scraped up my dad's hand on thorns when he was helpin me over some trees... Interesting, but so much fun!!! And as always the iphone camera came in handy for some unplanned photos!!!

So now I'm home and spotted this cute little ABC's of Me that my cousin April had up on her facebook so I thought I'd fill it out too!!

You've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with the ABC's of YOU. At the end, choose 26 people to be tagged. You have to tag me so really you just need 25 more people.

If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you - but not in a creepy stalker kind of way. Pick 6 people and tag them then be sure to let them know!!

A - Age: 22
B - Bed Size: Queen
C - Chore you hate: dishes after dinner
D - Dog's name: Shadow
E - Essential start you day: brush teeth and wash face
F - Favorite color: pink and orange and green
G - Gold or Silver: White Gold
H - Height: 5'9
I - Instruments you play(ed): piano &tried to play guitar in 6th grade
J - Job title: wouldn't u like to know :)
K - Kid(s): none at the moment ---> many in the future
L - Living arrangements: currently lookin for a lovely home of my own!
M - Mom's name: Julie
N - Nicknames: KAY
O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: very very bad food poisoning my freshman year, it was AWFUL
P - Pet Peeve: ignorance, ahhhhh! Drives me crazy when people act as know-it-alls but are very misled
Q - Quote: When God shuts a door, He opens a bunch of windows!!!!
R - Right or left handed: Right
S - Siblings: 3 half brothers
T - Time you wake up: 5:30am
U- Underwear: yes I wear them! Geeeez! Can we say personal? lol
V - Vegetable you dislike: love 'em all! no joke!
W - Ways you run late: They call it "Kaylan time" for a reason....
X - X-rays you've had: teeth and right foot
Y - Yummy food you make: umm... carmel turle cheesecake
Z - Zoo favorite: Monkies and Tigers

Writers Workshop: Oh Baby

I looooove having Mama Kat's prompts to give me a boost at the end of the week when I'm starting to run low on energy and my brain stops coming up with blog worthy material! So this week we have a big variety of questions, but ofcourse there are always certain ones that JUMP right off the page at me! Here's Kat's prompts from mama's losin' it for this week:

The Prompts:
1.) Create a video for your blog (vlog) and participate in Tim's "vlogemotions" by talking about an emotion you've felt this week. You can link up here AND link up at Tim's place at Fort Thompson on Thursday. That's right...you have my permission to double dip.
2.) Do you want a baby?
3.) Who got in big trouble this week?
4.) Write a poem for your mother.
5.) Time for a trip? Where are you headed this summer?...Or where would you go if you COULD.

I'm certainly not a video blogger... me doing public speaking? Yeah... we'll work on that! Maybe some time soon I'll guts up and make that happen, but not today!

No one got in trouble this week and though I love my mother my creativity is on hiatus... therefore #2 win this time.

Do I want a baby? Did you say do I want to wake up every morning to crying that seems unmanagable, to sticky hands and crayon murals on the walls? Do I want to have to change smelly, stinky diapers, make time to puree carrots only to have it all flung at my head? Do I want to wake up at 3am to little knocks on the bedroom door begging to let she and puppy sleep with mommy and daddy? Do I want to kiss booboos and cut the crust off of every sandwich I make until I'm 45? Do I want the feeling of wanting to deck a 5 yr old little kid when they are the cause of the hurt feelings that I hear about on the ride home? Do i want to fall asleep in a chair waiting on their friends to drop them off 2 hrs after curfew? Do I want to have to take pictures the day they go to junior prom and look way too grown up to even bare?

Nah.. Not really.
...
What?
...
Expected a different answer?
...
Wait... YES! I want a baby. Are you crazy?! Better yet do you think I'm crazy??? Ofcourse I want kids. I want four and I want to adopt or foster or whatever God sees fit and knows I can take on! I love children. I want babies for all the joy that they bring into this world. I do want my own babies, and one day hopefully that dream will come true.

All in good time! I'm not rushing my life. Life is great! I'm happy, we're happy, life is moving smoothly as planned :) *Knock on Wood!!!!!*

So even though I want a baby today.. don't mean it's going to be happening today! Or even this year just so were clear! :)

To all the mommies reading this I hope you're enjoying your sweet little blessings every day. The ones that I've had the opportunity of meeting thru your photos and stories are soooo beyond sweet and precious! Keep them safe and very well loved! Luckly children you have to have such beautiful amazing moms! Happy Early Mothers day girls!

Soap Box Wednesday: Be Fearless

Welcome to Soap Box Wednesday! If this happens to be your first time to Soap Box Wednesday and you want to know what it's all about , click over to this blog and find out more! Get on up on your perverbial Soap Box and let me know what is on YOUR mind this week! What is it that's got your blood boiling, and drivin' ya crazy? Fear not, now is the time to speak out!!

<a href="http://kakeeter.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="BeingTransformed" src="http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f305/KayK312/whitesoapbox-2.jpg" /></a>

I'm holding back tears right now because of frustration. I'll never understand how Satan can have such a strong hold on people that they take their families lives and then take their own. HOW? I want to yell, " HOW GOD CAN THIS KEEP HAPPENING?". It isn't fair.

An article today on MSNBC's Crime & Courts-Top Headers is what broke me. I welled up tears began to build because of my lack of understand of all the pain that leads to... more pain that is just passed along to more unsucpecting people. And An article today on MSNBC's Crime & Courts-Top Headers is what broke me. I welled up tears began to build because of my lack of understand of all the pain that leads to... more pain that is just passed along to more unsucpecting people. And why?

Life just snuffed out as if it's a melting candle that was burning too hot on a table and as quickly as it was lit... a gust from the night air blows it out. 5seconds. Gone. WHY.

Why is it happening?

Why does it keep happening?

Why do people act without thinking?

Why don't people realize the finality of their decisions?

Why are people so broken on the inside that they feel as if ever cold breath of air is burning in the throats making them miserable and unable to fight for the fire that was once in their world?

Just.... Why?

I can't say honestly that I even know how to turn to other people when I'm hurting. I'm just now at 22 learning how to rely on God to hear me when I'm in pain, let a lone feel safe that telling someone else, someone here on Earth, that I need help in a big bad way some times. But fear is the desire of Satan. He wants us to fear trusting one another, fear rejection, fear being wrong, or even being right. Our fear of openning up no matter what occurs is what allows Satan to consume us.

And for some that consumption rules over me.

I went to college to find a way- to learn a way- to safe children. To save them from their parents, adults, other children and sometimes even themselves from that consumption. I want to help them see that their hearts can be filled with something so much greater, so much strong if only they are willing.

I feel like I'm falling short of what I'm meant for. I feel a weakness that I haven't felt in a long time. I just feel weak. I feel that the task that I have mentally taken on is so far out of reach. It angers me because I'm a go getter, and I can go get every child about to fall victim to stupidity, or sadness, even to hate.

I wrap my arms tigher around every child who is in my life because that ability to atleast protect them IS in reach.

I've seen sadness in children in my life lately, but how do you tell their parents that you're a little worried? It isn't actual all a parents fault sometimes. Life happens. Life gives us twists and turns so we can learn and grow, but some are hard. And as a child well... it can be harder, because you're just starting to learn how to trust and how to communicate.

Whoever you are, however old you are, do not allow fear to keep you from speaking up. If you try and the person you need to talk to just doesn't seem to be listening, try this:

Go to them when no one else is around, and gently take their face in your hands and move their faces slowly so that their eyes are looking at yours and tell them,

"I need to talk to you. And I really need you to hear me because to ME
this is important. I need you to listen to me first before you say anything,
because this is what I'm needing right now, Please?"

Then tell them how you're feeling, and what you're worrying about and fearing. I promise it will help whether it's your mom, dad, wife, husband, friend, family member. Some times we all need some redirecting to realize how much someone may need to be heard.

So what's have you seen this week that has you on gritting your teeth and angered to tears?? I wanna know!!

Love always and forever,

Kaylan

OhhhOH! Livin' on A Praaayeeerr!!

Take my HAND, We'll make it I SWEAR! OHHH-OH! Livin' on A PRRAAAAYYEERRR!!!

I wish I could say we could breath easy no that Ankoo has gone through his testing for the police department, but that just isn't the case yet! Boy was Saturday a crazy day though!

Ankoo had to be at the rec center by 8am... so ofcourse he decided he needed to be early, and he got there around 7:35am. Gooood think he did too! When he arrived, around 100 people were already inline to fill out the release form saying they were willingly about to throw themselves at a 6 foot wall and hoist themselves over it. :)

After signing the needed papers he was broken into a group alphabetically and Phase 1 began....

Two groups went before him (about 10ppl per group) and he said it was quite the thing to watch men of all ages try their hardest to finish out the obstacle course in under 3 minutes. The course began with the 6ft wall, straight into dirt....which after every person became muddier and muddier due to the flood we had just hours before the tryouts. Next was a sprint, stairs, sprint, 4ft jump sprint, and then a 160lb dumbie pull. THE END... i.e. Paint for water and listen intently for someone to tell you your time.... Then turn to see how the next people did.

THANK YOU GOD FOR PULLING ANKOO UP AND OVER THAT SILLY WALL OF DESTRUCTION!!

Man oh man, You don't know how proud of him I am for what an amazing time he got! I'm so proud of him. He's been practicing and getting back in shape, and no matter what comes of this I am so pproud of him for sticking with it even when he's been bruised up, scratched up, and tuckered out!

He and exactly 130 people (only 2 women) moved on to Phase 2: the 90min written test! I refuse to jinx him so I'll just say we think it helped him that he was a Crim. major and was in Jr. Police Academy Camp every year since...8th grade.

*Sigh* Now the waiting period begins! Ugh... Oh, I am horrible at waiting. It makes me CRAZY!!!! No joke, i hate waiting on anything. Whether its 5 minutes or 5 weeks, I can't stand to sit idle!! But... we're praying, and hoping, and praying, and wishing, and praying a whole whole lot more about the WHOLE situation!!

I told him the other night, " Ya know what? Don't even sweat it. You did amazing. You did everything you possibly could do to show them that you're right for the job and that you actually want this job. You can't worry about it now. If it doesn't work out we can't be mad about it okay? I know I want you to get it, and I know you do to, but if you don't well... then... it's just part of the path, not the end of it. God has a plan. His plan is going to work out, and we can't get mad if what we think is the plan turns out not to be the plan. Lets just pray about it, and whatever happens we'll be able to be happy with it either way, right?"--- He agreed, and to be honest we've had nearly no anxiety about what the future holds.

There are currently 3 open positions, 3 people will be given those jobs immediately. Another 30 people or so will be placed on a ranked list that will start first of July, and as jobs come available they will fill the positions starting at the top of that list.

Letters will be sent out in a week or 2 letting only the people who have received a job, or who are on the list know that they have been requested to come to a formal interview. So our prayers are as follows:
1. That we follow the path that God is leading us to.
2. That he receives a letter.
3. That the wonderful, very wanted letter will arrive with news that a job awaits him immediately!!!

I know all this are already planned out in His blueprints for our lives, but we have no way of knowing what those are. I just pray he gets this job. He's in the process of packing away his college life and headin' it all out to storage until that day comes when a job arrives and our lives can start together here in GA. I pray that day comes soon!

Love you all oodlez!

KAYLAN

Alien Skin Software Giveaway!

Who doesn't love a great giveaway?! I know I do! Over at I ♥ Faces they are doing a giveaway that ends TODAY for a $199 worth package that includes the full Alien Skin Software Bokeh! Y'all this thing is amazing!! I downloaded the 30day trial version and love it! I unfortunately haven't had much time to figure it all out so I would love to win today, BUT I'd love for one of y'all to win if I can't!!! They have a bunch of other software you can try out too. It can be used with a number of programs, I'm using it on Photoshop Elements 6.0 and it's working great!!



Head over to I ♥ Faces and leave a comment about which bokeh element you like best and **VOilA!** You'll be entered to win!!

GOOD LUCK!

Kaylan