I could have went into Little Rock and probably found it at Whole Foods, but I didn’t feel like driving that far and I hate the smell of hippies, so I decided if I couldn’t find it close to my house I wasn’t going to use it.  So we went to Cracker Barrel because that little store in the front sells all sorts  of things, except of course sorghum.  Then we went to the Food Giant because it just seemed like a good idea.  I asked the guy stocking shelves if they sold it and he told me he had no idea what I was talking about.  Fair enough.  Then he said “oh do you mean ’saw-grum’?”  No, I mean SOR-GHUM but I’m desperate so sure that’s what I mean.  He redirected us to a catfish place that apparently sells random things like honey and “saw-grum”.  We went there and of course they were out.  So it was decided that we would go to Wal-Mart and just get whatever they had.  I ended up getting this stuff, which is a mix of cane syrup, molasses, and honey.  And it’s actually delicious.

it's called "the pride of Alabama" not kidding

Ok, now that I got my syrup story out of the way, on to #2.  This cake is not good after it’s first baked.  It just literally doesn’t taste like anything.  So after you bake it, set it on the counter to cool totally, then cover it and stick it in the fridge for at least 24 hours.  After it’s had time to sit, somehow the syrup seeps out of the cake and it becomes gooey and delicious.  I love warm cake but this is not one you can eat right out of the oven.  So here are the ingredients to this syrupy mystery:

• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of sorghum syrup
• 2 cups of flour ( I used all purpose)
• 1 tsp. of baking soda
• 1/2 tsp of baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup of vegetable oil
• 1 cup of buttermilk
• 1/2 tsp of allspice (I used a whole teaspoon because I’m heavy handed like that)

Mix everything together and place it in a 13×9 baking dish that’s been coated in non-stick spray.

i just wanted to show off my bad ass mixer

Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes.  Mine took exactly 45, but the original recipe says 35, so just use your judement.  Then like I said earlier, leave it alone for at least a day.  It should look about like this when done:

The next time I make this cake, I think I’m going to add cinnamon, and maybe some chopped pecans.  In case you’re wondering, no there is no frosting for it, because with the syrup that sort of oozes out you really don’t need any, but I could see this being good with some whipped cream or Cool Whip on top.

I already work to try to help the local children in foster care. I work with a group that provides items for caseworkers to use in emergency situations where a child has nothing at the moment of removal. We stock diapers, clothes, ect. We do other things and also work to plan child abuse prevention activities in April.

Boo and a friend at last year's event.

When Boo gets a chance, she helps out at the local animal shelter. Her dream is to buy land and build a no kill shelter for the animals in our town. Sometimes she goes to the shelter and takes pictures of the pets who need a home.

I’m certainly not bragging about what we do because heaven knows we could do more. I would like to help with the domestic violence center because I see the children who live it daily. I would like to see an after school tutoring program in our area, one that could even be mission based such as our Beach Club meetings on Tuesdays. I would like to see more done for Alzheimers research and care.

If I had one to choose, I know it would be one that involved the safe and appropriate care of children. What would yours be?

1) Eat Healthier/Exercise
Let’s just get that one out of the way because it seems to be the eternal New Year’s Resolution. In all truth, Joy has been doing this for a while now, so she has a head start. So much of a head start that our Mom believes she has anorexia.
We want to become more organized about shopping, meal planning, and making sure we are meeting our vitamin and mineral needs while not overdoing on anything else. My husband has become the primary cook and when in doubt, he fries something in bacon fat. I’m hoping that we see none of that in 2012.

2) Organize the house/storage/garage
Once again, Joy is ahead of us on this. They just moved into a new house and she isn’t one to move something she doesn’t need. Me, I am married to the man who has been buying storage units for 15 years before it was cool. My goal is to get rid of anything we don’t need by selling on either Craigslist, Swap&Shop, or the classifieds. I’ve sold a little before Christmas and I’ll be honest, the more times I meet a stranger the more creepy I feel about it. Each time I wonder if anyone would be able to track my killer through my texts and emails. Let’s hope so. (God forbid)

3) Spend Less

Lately I’ve been taking lots of heat about being thrifty, mostly from the kids who have no idea about not being able to spend more than you bring in per month. We did realize we are turning into my grandparents when we found ourselves handing out$2 bills for Christmas and saving tinfoil. While I don’t want to be the people on TV that recycle paper towels for toilet paper, I do want to be aware of my spending.   I like a bargain and will sometimes buy something just because it is a great deal.  I want to have nice things without going in debt to  have them. Mainly, I want to have nice MEMORIES. So, we may just go to someone’s house who has nice things and take pictures.

4) Give More

Yes, old thrifty tightwad gives to those in need. The goal for our family is to continue to give time and money to the charities that we believe in. Boo is devoted to anything animal related and has a dream of building a no kill animal shelter. I hope she sees that dream someday become a reality.

One of my pet peeves is people who claim to be a charity and are in fact, not. Once this year I found someone in front of Wal-Mart in a neighboring town collecting money for children in foster care. I asked her what organization she was affiliated with and she mentioned the town in which I live. I knew then she and her husband were scamming. I kept asking questions and then left and called a friend, who called the Wal-mart manager, who said they had already packed and left. I wish I had called the cops. Never be hesitant to question someone asking for a donation. They should be willing to answer any questions, such as “Are you a 401-c3?”.  I won’t go into my other pet peeve, people who get back thousands from the IRS in tax returns, yet always put their kids on the angel tree and end up with a much better Christmas than my kids. I don’t  begrudge anyone getting a good Christmas, but kids at school tell all, and people who scam the angel tree business are taking away from a kid who might need it and it doesn’t seem right to be asking for a handout when you are just went to the car races the weekend before.

5) Explore Our Creative Side

I’m hoping to channel some of our mom’s creative abilities this year in all areas. I hope to branch out in photography. Write another song. Maybe write another story. Hopefully, we can finish the book that inspired this website.

I know that Joy has a great novel just waiting to be written. We need to get on that before we move from $2 bills and tin foil to knitting the cat a coat and recycling paper towels.

We made great strides in 2011. Joy and Gavin got married and bought a home. Rod is retired and able to be home on a normal schedule now. Dreams came true for both of us and it has been nerve wracking and exhilarating in the same breath. For Rod and myself, we will begin the new year with a one day old grandchild! This new phase of our life is something we are learning as we go. We know that this alone will make our year like no other.

I hope when we stand before 2012, we can say that we loved more, spent less, gave more, ate less, moved more, and created something beautiful and amazing. More or less, we will be just fine.

Of course, I have to add one more set of 2011 pictures. This video contains a few of my all time favorites, a few never seen goofs, and a few of special people who really touched us this year. (my creativity seems to be hampered by a character limit)

“I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”
Phillipians 4:13

One of our best days of the year was when Joy and Gavin got married.

Gavin and Joy took a trip to New Orleans for their honeymoon. We decided it was such a good idea that we took the kids there before school started. We had a blast, except for the ticket on the way home from the crappy little speed trap known as Porte Barre, Louisana. We weren’t even speeding, in fact we were making SURE by me holding the GPS. Still, Barney Phife had to stop us. Oh, enough about that.

The downside of 2011 has certainly been the illness/injury portion. Thankfully we are all still alive and moderately well. I am hoping that we can have much less medical drama in 2012.

We had great holidays.

I loved the snapshots I got through the year.

…………………………………………………

………………..

Again, we feel that the good outweighs the bad. My husband finally got the opportunity to be a stay at home dad. It is something we have dreamed about for years and I can’t tell you how amazing it is. As we look back on this year we also see room for improvements and are ready with vows to do better on January 1, 2012. We are ready to give more, complain less, be more organized, less judgmental, less mental all together, and enjoy what we love to do.

Hopefully we will be back with a New Year’s Resolution post. I’ll leave the picture of Mom on a shopping scooter as a placeholder.  Just like the new year, she is fast moving and you never know where she will take you. Hold on, we think we are in for a ride in 2012!!

The animals are ready for Santa.

I bought a plate from one of my favorite years.

Another good year….

(not really a plate collector, I just like these!)

My mother-in-law just had a facetime chat with her niece. That was fun. Now we are shutting down and going to bed. We all watched It’s A Wonderful Life. Tonight, it really is.

Merry Christmas.

………………………….

…………………………..

………………………………

Merry Christmas! I think I’ve shopped about all I can! The traffic is insane and not something I want to venture into unless I have to. I don’t know what was going on at Walgreens yesteryday, but people were foaming at the mouth for a parking place and the guy ringing the Salvation Army bell was directing traffic, which was not a good thing.

I’m ready for this weekend. An old friend is getting married on the 23rd and the theme is Winter Wonderland. I’ve heard rumors of a snow machine, so I’m very excited! Christmas Eve will be an evening meal with the kids and watching the little ones open their gifts. These guys are new additions to the family and have made Christmas much more exciting. I love buying clothes again for ones who don’t complain!

(evidenced by the reindeer outfits they wore without question)

Sunday will be our Christmas breakfast and Santa, then after lunch family will come and have dinner. In between will be cheese balls, Christmas candy and an Elvis cake.

I’m ready.

But, we finally got off that roller coaster and jumped on another. Being parents to Boo has been full speed ahead. She has done gymnastics, dance, twirling, basketball, softball, volleyball, and band. (not all at the same time) She is in the National Honor Society and in two advanced classes. And she’s kinda cute.

I posted on facebook today the quote from Robert Frost, “ Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”  Life with Boo certainly forced us down a different road in life. It was less traveled as not many people I know have adopted an older child from foster care. Now, I know several and am meeting more each year.

We often say that we make our bucket list as we go. We never dreamed that we would be on live TV with our dog, but there we were. Who else has that on their bucket list?  It was awesome. We have driven her in parades as a reinging beauty queen. Had a sell out crowd at her book signing. BUCKET LIST!!

It hasn’t all been perfect, don’t get me wrong. Somehow, I am raising a small version of my mother. While mother is wonderful, she is headstrong and leaves a path of destruction behind her in anything that she does. Candy wrappers are everywhere, as are socks, combs, and a can of exploding hair spray.

So now, I find myself running behind her with an armload of tights, batons, and a camera. I try to find time to volunteer with our foster care system in our county. I listen to those in the process of adopting. And I think of how blessed we are, expecially each November 1.

You can read other adoption stories at the blog hop here at Foster2Forever.

You can link your stories here if you like and join the blog hop for the month.

• 1 package of crescent rolls
• 1-8 oz package of cream cheese, softened
• 6 slices of thick cut smoky bacon, crumbled
• 2 medium jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
• salt to taste if desired

Mix together your cream cheese, bacon,and jalapenos.  Taste this mixture and add a little salt if needed.  Then take the crescent rolls out of the fridge and spread them into two large rectangles.  Most recipes will tell you one large ractangle, but I find that two smaller ones is always easier.

not a perfect rectangle but close enough

The spread half of the cream cheese mixture onto the crescent, keeping it about 1/4 inch away from the edges.

Start from the bottom and slowly roll the crescent up.  Repeat with the other section of crescent and cream cheese mixture.  Place both rolls in the fridge for at least two hours.  These can be refrigerated over night.  If you were having a get together with these as an appetizer it would be easy to prep them the day before and slice and bake when you’re ready.  When you do decide to back them, slice them about 1/4 of an inch thick with a serrated knife.  Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes depending on your oven.

I seriously could have eaten this entire plate full.

This recipe should make roughly 36 pinwheels.  Try not to eat them all at once.

She was fast and furious with her wisdom. She jumped right in and told everything she knows to be true and never slowed down. Have you ever realized you are in the presence of greatness? It sounds trite but it was certainly true.

Photo credit: K. Stine

I think that her most profound statement was in our expectations of our kids. She was speaking of children with autism but I think it applies to all kids. We don’t expect enough. We have kids going out into the world who have never had any responsibility, have no manners, and have had excuses made for them their whole lives.  Oh, I could go on and on, but the bottom line is to have high expectations of your kids. All of them.

The other great mind on my mind is Steve Jobs. I’ve always admired his genius and see that many others feel the same. One thing I am seeing pop up constantly is that he was adopted. I wish that the media didn’t explore this in his death, but in his life.  I am sure it will be written about in a way to create drama for the media but I wish they would take this opportunity to show the world that a child who is adopted isn’t loved less than any other.

In fact, about twice as much. Birthparents never stop loving their child. Adoptive parents love like they gave birth to that child. I don’t see why people feel the need to dig into his life now. I almost see it as the media thinking they have found his Achilles heel. Maybe this is what I notice because I have adopted and know the questions that come. We don’t ask people why their parents divorced, what their salary is, or “Hey, have you had that mole checked?”. (some nosy people do but they have NO MANNERS and I try to scurry away when I see them coming)

I wish Joy were awake to proof this, but I’ll just leave saying we need to reflect on our own greatness. We all have it and are sometimes in such a rush to follow famous people that we lose sight of what we know to be right, to be genius.   Yes, look for examples but don’t rely on others for everything.

So… stop making excuses, take responsibility, and do something.  (with manners, of course)

]]> http://www.redvelvetwisdom.com/2011/10/07/great-minds/feed/ 1 http://www.redvelvetwisdom.com/2011/10/03/the-reason-im-getting-no-sleep-these-days/ http://www.redvelvetwisdom.com/2011/10/03/the-reason-im-getting-no-sleep-these-days/#comments Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:18:41 +0000 LanaJoy http://www.redvelvetwisdom.com/?p=2883 Well, you remember that song we used to sing about two people sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g?  First came love, then came marriage, and then came the couple with a baby carriage.  Well, this spring we made it all the way through the marriage part, so it was inevitable that we would take the next step……..

.

.

.

.

….and get a puppy.

that's him next to a granny smith so you can get an idea of his size.

It’s a boy!  He is a York-Chi which is a yorkie/chihuahua mix.  Gavin decided he needed to be named Ewok because he slightly resembles that fictional creature.  We have been to two different pet stores and been asked a total of 6 times “is that a dog?”  One woman thought it was a chinchilla.  Clearly we aren’t dealing with the cream of the intellectual crop around here.

Right now his hobbies include chewing on my hair, attacking his itty bitty tennis balls, and lots and lots of this:

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

We weighed him today on the electronic scale at the pet store, and at six weeks he weighs in at a whopping .89 pounds.  He is very frisky and likes to play super hard for about 10 minutes then he passes out where he is standing.  Prepare to see future posts of him in various states of being dressed in baby doll clothes.