sold!!

i have a confession.

i forgot the name of our Airstream.

today it hit me that i called her the wrong name.

her name in Inga.  it's a close second to Bertha but it's not Inga.

i named her that because she's a big boned gal (not unlike myself).  she's big and round and Inga seemed to fit.  so does Bertha. ANYWAY as i said in my previous post.....i thought that the lady that came to see her fell in LOVE and i was right.

she called today and made me an offer we couldn't refuse.

seriously....i refuse to let her hang out on my driveway one more day.

ANYWAY, Natalie, the new owner is coming to pick her up, so
i gotta clean her up and clear out 3 years of camping (8 trips all together) supplies.

we enjoyed owning an airstream. 
 
we were going to enjoy celebrating our 9th Anniversary camping, cooking on those wonderful gas burners, hiking, and kicking back.

BUT Natalie is bringing cash tomorrow!  so hellllllooooooooo Skirvin Hotel!!

goodbye Inga.
it was great knowing you ol gal!!
(tiny tear in my eye)

airstream

meet Bertha.

she's for sale.

lots of people have called with questions.

the questions are always a little strange.

here's how the ad on Craigslist reads.

31ft. Sovereign Land Yacht
$$$$.$$ (price)
skin (silver shell) in good condition
rear bedroom
cold AC
everything works
husband doesn't want to camp anymore
taking back our driveway
we've had lots of fun with this camper and now it's your turn

here are the questions....

how long is the camper?
how much do you have it priced at?
how's the skin?
does this camper have a rear bath?
so, does everything work?

ok.  seriously?

i don't get it.  everytime those questions came up i thought that they were trick questions.

anyway.  she is for sale.  i have enjoyed owning her and heck, at this rate....i may own her forever and ever.

the good news is that i LOVE her.

i have loved her from the day i met her in Alex (it's pronounced with a C).

i have loved spending the night with her and most importantly....

i love her gas stove.

i have even thought about going outside (on the driveway) and cooking dinner just so that i could use those wonderful burners.

anyway...a lady came to meet her yesterday and i am ALMOST scared she fell in love with her too.

if she buys her.......i may ask for visitation rights.

oh Bertha, how will we cope with not seeing you in our driveway each and every day for the rest of our lives. 

oh Bertha, how will we cope with having to see you in our driveway each and every day for the rest of our lives.

county fairs...part II

the fair is fun.

i LOVE fairs and carnivals.

i love the sicky, sticky, sweet smell of cotton candy and cooking grease from all the fried foods.

i love the sound of kids screaming and the hummm of generators.

i love seeing the smile on my lil girl's face when she's at the fair.

i like watching her ride (walking in a cirlce) the ponies like it's her first time...EVER to be on a horse.  even though she has ol Popcorn at home that she rides all by herself.

but she liked Sassy Girl.  probably because Sassy Girl has short legs like her momma. :)

i like seeing her be couragious and brave and try new things.

like this big slide.  the Titanic. 

she zoomed down the slide and went back for more...over and over and over and over again.

this kiddiepillar was lots of fun.  lots of fun surprises inside to play on and the generators blow hard through that tunnel so it's also a wind tunnel.  when they come out the end...it looks a lil strange.  a little like childbirth. (i am just sayin) it does.

she even tried the Sponge Bob swing (she was bored) and the Moon Bounce (bored).

then we took a break from the rides and got a sweet tea.

then she talked me into this cat face.  it was cute face art but NOTHING like the face painting my BFF Brandi Michelle can create. (BFF stories coming to a blog near you...soon)

anyway...a trip to the fair is always a great way to spend a BEAUTIFUL fall day in September.  any day is a great day to be at the fair.

i love the fair.

my lil girl is the 2009, 5 year old county tractor pull champion at our county fair this year.
she also received blue and red ribbons on her art exhibit entries.

i will always go to the fair. 

i will be a volunteer at the county fair when i am old.

my BFF (she's a fair lover herself) will probably have to drag me out each year....like these ladies.
and.....we will probably have rears like these too.

it will come from many years of enjoying fairs and their cotton candy and fried foods.

o how i love the fair!  it's a love-a-fair!

county fairs......part I

took my lil girl to a county fair today. 

we had fun. 

we saw stuff that is typical at county fairs.

and we saw stuff i've never seen before and that i'm sure i don't wanna see again.

we were walking through this group of people when all the sudden a woman carring a goose pushed through the crowd saying......excuuuuussee me!! 

she then drops this goose in a cage that had 100 numbers on the bottom of the cage.

in my mind i was thinking they were waiting for it to lay a GOLDEN egg.

then i turned to the lady next to me and said, "so...what's goin on? what's the duck doin in the cage?"
(at this point a big burly guy in a tank top and a mullet (i swear) yells out, "you might be a redneck if.........!")

"well, she said, we are waitin to see what number the duck poops on.  we paid 5 dollars for a square and there's 100 squares.  the winner gets $250 bucks.  then they "drawd" numbers and i got number 19.  i really don't have a chance but it sure is fun to watch."

fun?  really? 
i didn't think so....so we just walked away.

i have no idea who won.  it looked like it was going to take a while.

that poor duck had stage fright. 

so would i.

when i got home i found out that they do the same little "goose and poop" game with cows and cowpies on a field.  kev told me.

i told you my husband was smart.  apparently he's all "learned" when it comes to gambling poop games.

how did i not know that?

you'd think a farm girl would know that!

o well, now i know.

now you know....................

livin like it's 1899! or at least not 2009.

for the last 11 years my husband has wanted the world to "come off its wheels."  he only says that because he has some serious need to go back to the old ways of living.

he wants to live off the land. i almost think i would like it too....BUT.......

he wants me to grow a garden (i have and i do it well).  he wants me to can and preserve my bounty (i have and i do it well).  he wants me to milk a cow (i can do it).  he wants me to wash clothes (i do lots of that). BUT....without electricity?  what? 

no electricity? no garden growing, canning, milking, or clean clothes!  "but kev, we HAVE to have electricity!!"

"well we could have electricity, but where we gonna get 1200 dollars and thats if we just use it a little?"  "uh duh kev, we like sell a cow or two?!" 

(BTW, that's always my answer.  we need money for vacation?  we need to pay for the kids college?  we need to have work done on the farm?  we need to do blah, blah, blah.....sell a cow.  WHEW!  thankfully he doesn't listen to me.  we wouldn't have any cows left on our farms.)

ok, back to muh story......

so he brings this up from time to time and he even gives it some thought.  he goes through the "how" we would make it work from every angle.  and i am like uh huh and yes because although i think it would sorta be cool and i am pretty sure that we could do it and probably do it well....its NEVER going to happen. 

anyway, tonight he stumbled accross this show on National Geographic called Alone in the Wild.  its pretty cool.  i am enjoying it.  so is he, but i know he's thinking he could do it better.  "dead eye" as his grandpa Paul Williams called him could deliver on the hunting.  he's not really scared of bears, it seems, so i know he would totally enjoy trading places at the farmer's co-op with the fellow who's scared almost to death out there in the Yukon!

so as he watched this show tonight he began his grand plan....hmmmmmmm.  it sounded nice, but i just said, "well lets think about it some more and write out a plan."

he said we would never do it because we'd be to scared to totally let go of our current day to day!  i am mainly just scared of not being able to get nice sharp razors.  these legs grow forrests and for that reason alone...i am not sure it will ever happen.

wait.....we will need lots of razors?  we could just sell a cow?!  :) we could totally do it.........

i will let you know. 


p.s i love this man!  did i say that yet?!?

questions and answers!

i just downloaded the pics from our road trip to College Station.

i told you we were going.  we did.  we had tons of fun.  i took lots of pictures.

i was trying to think of something funny or a lil story but really....i got nothin!  Zilch, Zip, Notta!

i do have some questions....here they go...

how did this boy get so big so fast?

what are the chances that this one will go to college?

is there anything better than a seeing the love between a father and daughter?

will this man, Mike Sherman, lead the aggies into a winning era?

in college football......what's better than when 80,000 aggies unite?

don't you think i need one of these for my backporch?

do you think it's safe to sleep while driving?

answers:

age.....it just happens!

she'll probably go to college but they will make fun of her if she continues to pick her nose!

dads (especially this one) loves his three girls.

that coach better coach 'em to MANY wins or it's bye bye birdie for his tail...feathers.

when they cheer their aggies to a win!!!

of course you need an A&M fire pit....hello...dumb question!

anythings better than ali having to drive.... a man needs his rest....ooooooppsss....i mean.......................OF COURSE NOT!!!!!

the end. 

until the Texas A&M Aggies take on the Oklahoma Aggies (OSU).

Happy Birthday Martha!

i love my mother-in-law!

i am not even saying that because she reads my blog.

i am saying that because it's true and because i am truely thankful.

i am thankful for our relationship and for her love and friendship.

i am saying that because i realize that i am in the "i love my mother-in-law minority."

i am saying that God broke the mold after he made Martha.

she's a wonderful WIFE, MOM, MIMI, and Mother-in-Law.

she takes all those titles seriously and she is the best a person can be at all four.

she's a Christian, she loves her neighbor as she loves herself......she's selfless.

she's sweet, she's thougthful, she's kind, she's loving, she's smart and she's a country girl at heart!

AND she's celebrating a Birthday today! 

happy 60th (it's the new 70) Martha!

love, ali


P.S. she's so special they named a town after her in Oklahoma!

*not really, but if "the town naming people" met her they surely would!

1 mile South of Blair, Oklahoma in Southwest Oklahoma

no followers? no problem!

seriously, it will take so much more than only having two followers (i love you two) to make me give up this new found blogging fun!

are you kidding me?  i am a married woman!  i am used to not being listened to!  my sweet, sweet, SMART husband is good at throwing out uh huh and yes when i'm talking and he's not listening!

GAWD i sure like to blog and GAWD i love my man!

this man.........

College Football Road Trip!

did someone say FREE Texas A&M football tickets?  well yes, yes they did! and we said, "yes! we'll take em!"  so this Saturday we are loadin up the Tahoe and headin to College Station, Texas to see the Fightin Texas Aggies take on the Utah State Aggies!  OH, and we get to see our Texas babies!

These two.  Katie and Luke!









"But Alison, why are you a fan of Texas A&M?  you live in Oklahoma?!"  

i'm a Texas Aggie fan because the man i love, the man who has those two in the picture, Maci's daddy, is a PROUD graduate of Texas A&M University!

"But Alison, why did Kevin go to school at Texas A&M?"

Kevin went to school there because his daddy earned his doctorate from A&M.

and heck, they accepted him so he went.

here's a picture of kev's daddy.  Dr. Namon Glenn W! 
fancy name huh?

and also Maci Anne with her Mimi, Martha Anne W!
fancy name huh?  :)

so now you know our A-G-G-I-E history!  we sure hope to have another Texas A&M graduate some day.  Luke Aaron is now attending Blinn College in College Station and living with his cousin Jacob who is attending A&M now!  we look forward to the day Luke transfers schools and we get to DONATE to A&M!

so tune in and look for us on tv! 
we'll be the ones in Aggie Maroon and White!

Gig 'em Aggies!

"you can run, but you can't hide!"

how long has it been since you've had a pillow fight?  i bet it has been too long.  i know that it had been too long since i had found myself in a real deal, fight til the finish, pillow fight! 

Maci and i had one of these on Saturday and i laughed so very hard. i laughed so hard i had to hold my sides to breath and i had to run for a potty break (i'm just sayin)!  NOW THAT'S A FIGHT!!!

it started in my bedroom.  on the bed that i had JUST made.  she ran in there and popped up on the bed and grabbed a pillow and hit me.  pop!  i grabbed one and took a few light shots at her and then i realized that she meant business so i gave her a nice POP in the head and ran.....

she came running after me, screaming, "you can run but you can't hide!"  i doubled back through the bathroom and squeezed up against the wall and got VERY quiet.  as she came through...i gave her a good smack!  POP!  the fight was on.  we moved to the livingroom and used all the pillows on the couch!

then i remembered that i should take pictures of all this fun, so i called break and ran outside to get my camera from the car.  as i came through the front door she gave me a nice hard POP! 

we continued our fight in the livingroom and finally quit when i got tired and decided to fall to the ground in.....surrender!  as she stood above me...all 42" of her....she took many, many more shots at my head and then all the sudden.....she stopped.  she leaned down and in a moment of excitement and i don't know what else.........SHE BIT my ear!!  Game over!!

might i suggest a pillow fight or some other childhood game that makes you laugh until your sides hurt.  until you can't breath. 

POP!

make this today!

it has rained all weekend long.  i thank the Lord that it has rained all weekend long.  we need rain.  we need lots of rain and we are thankful for every drop.  i like rain.  i like to be indoors with the windows open so that i can hear the sweet sound of rain and smell the musty smell of the earth being drenched by rain.

i did lots of laundry this weekend and i made my NEW favorite chili.

a few weeks back i was at the grocery store, after work, and i was starving to death.  i bought enough food to feed two families for two weeks.  it took me forever to get out of there and when i realized i wasn't going to have much time to cook dinner (is it Dinner or Supper?)  i ran down the isle to grab some taco seasoning so that i could throw together some tacos.  as i grabbed for the seasoning i noticed a package i had never seen.  it was this package........

McCormick's White Chicken Chili Mix

it's my new favorite packaged dinner helper!  it's delcious!  i cant believe i waited so long to try this recipe!  it has a definite mexican flavor, so i went with the package suggestion and added cilantro and for white beans i used Garbonza beans.  i added one can of corn, fresh garlic, salt and pepper.   i garnished with avacado slices and grated cheedar cheese. 

next time i may throw in a can of blackbeans.

serve it with Jiffy cornbread.  try it today.  serve it at a party or take a big pot of this to work to get on the good side of your boss and those pesky co-wokers!!  shhhhh.......don't tell them you cheated..........just a little.

blackberry pickin party!

MY MY..........Blackberry Pie!!

last month i held my first Blackberry Pickin Party.  it was a fun way to spend a HOT August, Monday evening!!  we met up at the house and had a some yummy appetizers and some refreshing wine....all in the name of preperation (for the squelching heat, humidity and swarming bugs) !!  we had lots of yummy food but there was one appetizer that was simply delicious!!  i feel it is my duty as a fellow American to pass this recipe on so that everyone in the world can be happy!

Pepperoni Pizza Dip

2 8oz pkg. cream cheese
1 12oz pkg. sliced Pepperoni (chopped fine)
1 1/2 cup grated Mozarella Cheese
1/4 cup Mayo
3/4 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
garlic
salt
pepper
jalepeno pepper chopped (optional)
chopped black olives (optional)

*mix everything together and place in a shallow pan.  cover with foil.  bake 30 mins at 350 degrees.  uncover and sprinkle with dried oregano and bake until lightly browned on top.  serve with crackers and/or celery sticks.

delicious.....take this to your next party or eat the whole thing by yourself with a spoon.

ok...back to the blackberry picking.  next year i will send out a dress code in the invitation.  it will include jeans, long sleeve shirt, and boots.  it will not include long beautiful skirts or high heel boots!  neither of those worked too well in the tangled thorns of our blackberry patch.

we had lots of fun.  everyone picked enough berries to make a pie.  my pie.  my, MY MY.....Blackberry Pie!  (SEE PICTURE ABOVE) i am not sure how many did make my pie, but here is the recipe in the event you find yourself with some blackberies and a "hankerin" for yummo delicious pie!!


My My.........Blackberry Pie

3 cups blackberries
2 cups sugar
3 tbs. corn starch
1/2 stick of butter
2 pre-made  8" pie crusts (bought or homemade)
lemon juice (fresh squeezed from 1/2 a lemon)
sprinke of cinniamon

sugar, cinnamon , and cornstarch.  sprinkle over berries, squeeze lemon and mix well.  let sit.  place one crust in 8" pie pan and add fruit mixture.  cut the stick of butter into little pads and place all around pie.  sprinkle with a tiny bit more cinnamon.  place second crust over the top.  pinch edges and cut a pattern into the top of the pie for venting. lightly brush the crust with water and sprinkle sugar on the crust.  cover with foil. bake 45 mins at 350 and remove foil.  bake until golden brown and fruit is bubbling.

mmm, mmm good!

my body is NOT a wonderland!!

who can resist the sweet, sweet sound of John Mayer's voice and his MAD guitar skills?  raise your hand!  anyone?  anyone?  i didn't think so.  today i was thinking about lunch, my blog and lunch and this song, "your body is a wonderland" popped into my head and it made me think!  hmmmmmmm...not mine.  and isn't it funny (or sad) how we just make so many excuses for ourselves?  i have have birthed a child, i have a job, i have to cook dinner, i am tired, i have a hurt hip, i just like to cook and eat!!!  i have said them all and usually all in one day. BUT i am putting a stop to all the nonsense.  it's over rover. i am a woman on a mission to get healthy and to stay healthy. i am not talking about the lbs. (but i better loose some) i am talking about doing something and sticking with it. i am talking about pounding the pavement (ok gravel) rain or shine.  tonight i ran in the rain and it was amazing!!!  it takes such little time and i always feel better about my myself...minus horizonal stripes!!

over Labor Day weekend we had company in town.  ok not really company....family.  those PYT's got me all motivated to get moving. i actually said, "i can't run because of my hip!"  oh my gosh i felt old!!  then i strapped on my IPOD shuffle and started running....ok jogging. and it was the first time i had ran anywhere other than to the fridge since April when i managed to run....ok jog a 5K.  
my girl Katie is training for a marathon.  first a half and then a full.  my girl Kehley broke her foot recently and she's already back to running and exercising. my girl Maci is 5 and she can almost run a mile.  my hunk of husband is running 4 miles and he's...old(and hot)!!  haha.  so from this point on....i will post my miles.  i will not EVER be a runner.  i like my 1 mile.  i plan on getting up to 2 miles but i am not in any hurry.  this is IN NO WAY A RUNNING BLOG.  it's just a way to keep me honest.  so please, feel free to REMIND me. 
 
i think i will add that song to my IPOD now.......

"alison...your life is not typical...what we did yesterday is not typical."

how did i get here?  i said i wouldn't be here!  i already said that i said that i wouldn't be telling people all about my life but it seems that it was a natural progression.  several months ago my cousin Renee told me about the pioneer woman.  i wasn't really interested but then she was talking about how this girl, Ree, was married to a cowboy and how wonderful her recipes were and how she lives in Oklahoma!  it took me a while, but i did go look and do you know what i did?  i feel in love.  i fell in love with her humor, her dog Charlie and her retarded brother (her words not mine). i told all of my friends and made them read all about my new friend PW.  i MADE my Katie read it.  i turned on her computer and MADE her read!  seriously, i held a banana to her head (not really).  she too fell in love and was inspired to create her own blog.  She said i should start a blog myself and i said, "really?  what the heck would I write about?" she said i need should write about the things that are important to me. she said to have a purpose (ha) and write about it.  i gave it some thought and thought, "why the heck not?"  all in one day we had the conversation and alisnwonderland was started! 
the next day, i was so happy to tell her what i had done.  she read it and said she LOVED it.  she said that my page should be whimsical and i said, "i am not sure how my life will look in "whimsical."  i am trying to figure out how the things that happen in my life will be displayed in a blog.  i am a farm girl.  i (along with my husband and daughter) raise a few beef cows.  we have 3 chickens (children) and i cant wait to tell stories about them!!

Katie said today, "alison...your life is not typical....what we did yesterday is not typical."  we helped Kevin take our bulls off of our momma cows so that the bulls can always do their business in a set breeding season!!  IT'S JUST WHAT YOU DO, and depending on who you are......it may be typical.  if it is not then i cant wait to share some of our lil ranching stories.  sometimes you'll learn something and sometimes you with just plain say, "YUCK!"   To my new blogging friend PW this is typical, but what is not typical is how all in a few months...i read my first blog, met the blogger herself (story to come) and started my own.  Here we go.......

disclaimer: beware of rabbit WHOLES!!!!!

i cannot be held responsible for my spelling!  i am bad, horrible bad!  i am a few credit hours from having a minor in english but not in spelling english!  if i had a penny for everytime i asked. "how do you spell...something" i would be RICH.  i actually asked kevin (my hunk of a smart husband) how to spell COLLEGE!  the funny thing was....he had to think about it too.  good ol Texas A&M and USAO deserved every penty (ha)!  also, i am choosing to not use capitolization when it's appropriate and i will also start sentences with AND, BUT and many other inappropriate words.  i almost changed my mind about this blogging thing when i noticed there is no SPELL CHECK but then i had a serious thought......do we spell check our lives?  how much editing do we do for the benefit of others?  i am going to try to do only what is appropriate to SAY what i want to SAY in my entries but leave my thoughts as true to form as possible.  this should be fun....for me at least and hopefully you will enjoy my daily musings.  maybe you will laugh.  maybe you will learn something.  maybe you will post a comment and SAY something to me....beware of rabbit Wholes...you never know where they may lead........