Savemore.com

I saw a post earlier today about getting a free water bottle using a deal from Savemore.com. I went and checked it out, and this looks to be a really interesting site. It's a lot like Groupon or LivingSocial except it's deals for online shopping and sometimes travel.

If you sign up for Savemore.com, which is completely free, you get a $10 credit to use on deals. Plus, for every referal, you get another $10 credit! How cool is that? So go, sign up, and get to saving!

I'm having a fabulous time.

Things are going so well right now in my personal life, you might not even believe the turn of events I've had. Normally, I'm all "woe is me, life sucks, i'm broke, blah blah blah." Well, I'm editing and contributing to another blog, joined a few affiliate programs and marketing those here and there to bide my time, and trying to find a job.


"When one door closes, another one opens." Quite frankly, I've been having a lot of doors slammed in my face today. I really listened to Katy Perry's "Firework" and a line stuck out with me: "Maybe your reason why all the doors are closed: So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road." It makes so much sense.

I've been relatively quiet about what's been going on the last couple weeks, but today I filled out the official paperwork. I'm now employed by the Music Department at William Carey University as a CIFA instructor, to teach kids to play the piano. This job will enable me to be where I can practice and finish memorizing the music for my senior recital, and will be just a few minutes away from where I'll be student teaching. I couldn't be more excited about what life is throwing at me.

I hope you can be excited for me, too!

#UpL8 w/ @TeaganShepard: A Giveaway in Celebration of 25 Blog Followers.

#UpL8 w/ @TeaganShepard: A Giveaway in Celebration of 25 Blog Followers.: "In appreciation of my blog reaching 25 regular followers, I, along with Good Vibrations, am giving away a copy of Dr. Sadie Allison's Toygasms..."

I thought Lora's readers would be interested in this giveaway at one of my blogs. She and I can't win it, but you can try! Go ahead and enter!

I've been away for far too long now...

I am actually still alive! I've been away, learning more about being an effective blogger. Funny, because I haven't blogged here!

I'm back, and I'm multi-tasking. I've got a new blog, and it's going swimmingly. I'm coming back here to apply some of the things I've learned while I've been gone the last couple months!

I'm now familiar with Alexa, Page Rank, and SEO, I've become familiar with autoposting, and I've learned how to talk to companies! I am NOT afraid to ask if they'd like to be part of my blog now! Maybe if I get both blogs going well, I won't have to worry about finding a job. I can just be a laptop mom and spend time with my sweet kiddo and hubby!

Looking forward to being back around here more often!

At McAlister's this weekend (Today thru Sunday), cookies are $1 and 50c of each sale goes to tornado relief: to employees directly affected and to the communities.

Happy Friday!

happy friday! last class of this tri is today, final is Monday. it is too nice a day to be inside all day. thank God i'll be done by lunch!!! now. where's that margarita smiley???

the past two days were Star Wars Days. let's hope today is not the Revenge of the Sixth.

Mother's Day Alert

Hattiesburg Mother's Day Alert!

there's a sign posted at our local Garfield's: Bring Mom to Garfield's on Mother's Day and we'll give her a free entree on her next visit.

sounds like a good deal to me!

This may be for all Garfield's. Not sure, but worth checking!

I got great news today!

I had to visit Dr. Guice today about the thing in my throat. Turns out, it was a mucus gland that got infected and turned into a cyst. It popped on its' own and drained, so there really wasn't anything for him to do today except confirm that was what it was and tell me how to handle them if they recur in the future. That makes me happy! Just thought I'd share.

Now, I'm off to soothe what's left of this sore throat.

In memory of my Daddy

My Dad, Dorval Nelson Bell, passed away 14 years ago today in Carrick-on-Shannon, Ireland. I was numb for quite some time afterward, and went through some really dark times. As time has passed, I still find myself thinking of him almost every day. Something always comes up when "I wish my Daddy were here."

Nearly three years ago, my son was born. We had decided, upon finding out the gender, to name him James Dorval Toney after two of his deceased grandfathers, my dad and Dr. James F. Toney DVM. I find more and more often, that JD was named appropriately. From looking strikingly like my dad, to his sense of humor and intelligence, he is so similar to my dad. I only wish he had been here to meet JD; he would be so proud!

They say "time will make it easier." It hasn't really been any "easier" per se, but it is different. I am not numb and angry at God for taking my father. I do wish he were around, but I know he is in a much better place.

Daddy had no formal music training, but he sang this song often and well. Miss you Daddy...



Also, he was very interested in the Bell/Boler family genealogy. This was one of the last, if not THE last book we bought him:
Red clay hills of Neshoba: Roots-reflections-ramblings : the early history of Neshoba County, Mississippi

You strep'd me right off my feet

O. M. G. The kiddo started out sick week before last. I thought he had a rough time with allergies, and a little stomach virus. He never complained of his ears or throat hurting, but when he finally went to the doctor (thanks, Mom, for taking him while I was in class!) he had strep, conjunctivitis, ear infection and possible bronchitis. Poor little fella...

When Mom called me and told me it was strep, my throat had started hurting and my ears stopping up that morning. When I left town to head home last Thursday, I decided to come to the same clinic he'd been taken to. They closed at lunch. Boo. And everyone was closed Friday for Good Friday! I managed to tough it out til yesterday. I have strep, got a load of medicine and Doctor's Excuses from school last week and yesterday.

I don't ever remember having it, but it strep'd me right off my feet. I have been good for nothing. JD's been pretty pitiful as well, and has to go this afternoon for a checkup. We've piled up and watched movies and drank juice for the better part of the weekend.

As for me, I'm waiting on a phone call from the clinic. They didn't like what they saw in my throat. I have a cyst just under the size of a marble in the back of my throat. I have to go to an ENT now and have that checked out. Hopefully, it's something that will dry up soon and not cause any problems, but it worries me regardless. If you don't mind, say a prayer for me. I'd appreciate it.

Have Sippy Will Travel: Thomas & Friends™: Pop Goes Thomas! DVD Contest

Have Sippy Will Travel: Thomas & Friends™: Pop Goes Thomas! DVD Contest

I just entered Have Sippy Will Travel's contest for a Pop Goes Thomas! DVD. In exchange for an extra entry, I am posting a blog linking back to her giveaway.

My toddler loves all things Thomas, so when I saw this giveaway, I had to enter! I figured some of my readers and facebook friends might also be interested, so I had to share. Good luck! :)

smiley360.com—Be Heard. Be Happy.

smiley360.com—Be Heard. Be Happy.

Just joined smiley360.com. join me?

Injustice is served.

I want to preface this entry with "I'm not BLAMING my problems on anyone." Things have happened throughout my life that have been misunderstood and has caused a lot of hurt. These are a couple of things I've kept under a tight lid, but it is time to let it out.

I just saw a post on a friend's Facebook that prompted this blog entry. It was not the first time I'd seen it, and won't be the last I'm sure, but seeing how I'm staring down the 10 year reunion of my high school graduating class, I felt it was time to address this.


"A 15 year old girl holds her 1 year old son; people call her a slut, but no one knew she was raped at 13. Make fun of someone for being fat, but you don't know that person has a serious medical condition that causes her to be fat. Call the old guy ugly, but you don't know he got a serious face injury after serving the country or saving a life. Repost this if you're against bullying and stereotyping."


I went to school with some of the most rude and insensitive folks. Ahead of me, in the same grade, and behind me. I even had one particular piano student clue me in that her family (which happens to be family of  my own) had been discussing my weight and that I needed to lose the fat by exercising. Not so simple! God bless her, though, she didn't realize it wasn't okay to let a person know what was being said about them...


I have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome). It is a metabolic disorder, characterized by otherwise unexplainable weight gain, exceptionally difficult weight loss, crazy hormones, inability to conceive, and other various symptoms and difficulties. Dr. Cole wasn't able to diagnose this disorder, treated my weight issues with SEVERAL different therapies all to no avail, and eventually said "just back up from the damn table." My gracious! I was barely eating, starving myself just to MAINTAIN my weight, riding bikes and rollerblading for 2-3 hours a day, and not getting any results. 


But none of you knew anything about my personal battle. You just knew I was fat. And you LOVED to remind me. You know what? I've come to terms with the fact that I will always be heavy, unless I decide to undergo very expensive surgical treatments including, but likely not limited to, Ovarian Drilling and Gastric Banding. 


JD is indeed a miracle child. He should never have even been conceived, much less carried to term (but that's a whole different medical chapter), but he is here and is amazingly healthy. I will likely never have another child. And as much as it hurts, I am okay with that. I'd rather not put myself through the miscarriages again, or the "trying" to even get pregnant. 


And as for those of you who talked behind my back about me being a lesbian: yes, I found out about that. I'm very much not a lesbian. I do have friends who are GLBT, but my personal conviction is that God intended marriage and sex to be between one man and one woman. That is how I've always felt. What you do with your partner(s) is between you and the god you serve. 


I've held these things in for a long time. I knew you didn't want me in your circles. And that's okay. And it's not that I'm better than you, and you're certainly no better than me, but we just aren't right for each other. The politics have and will continue, and that's fine. But I think I've made up my mind that it's not something I want to re-hash.  

"what a day this has been, what a rare mood i'm in, why it's almost like bein' in love!"

ha! this has been great. went out for bbq @ the shed w/ the hubby last night and saw kipori "baby wolf" woods, then marble slab for dessert, then stopped by inertia to see brandi and danielle. had a headache and ended up spending the night w/ will. on the way home to pick up my sweet toddler, i hit a few great garage sales! got the kiddo, headed to "day out w/ Thomas," and get to meet Melissa's sweet Elizabeth, followed by Gattitown for lunch. then teaching piano, and heading home to get ready for a women's conference featuring Laura Leathers. full day? yes! complaining? by no means! i love it!

headed out for some much needed QT with the hubby. if there is one thing i've learned during our struggle, it is that you must set aside time regularly to connect with your spouse. if you havent cleared your calendar (even for just a few hours) to spend time with your SO, do it now. make it count. even if you cant afford it, do something together just the two of you. if you're growing apart, a sure-fire way to finish off the relationship is to not spend time together.

Welcome Back....

I have missed blogging. I'm going to make a better effort to set aside some time to get back to it daily.

So much is going on! Trying to wrap up school so I can student teach this fall, dealing with a lovely toddler, teaching piano, my Avon business, starting up with BambooPink... I am loving the new-ness of it all, but I miss having the time to myself that I found in blogging!

The hubby has even started blogging. He posted his first entry today! You can read it here.

I'm looking into getting some other gigs going, and I'm excited about those, too. I know this post was ramble-y, but it'll be ok. The next one will be better. I'm going to go listen to some Adele now.

~LT

TacoMac!

I regret not taking a picture before this great dish was devoured by my boys. I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it though!

1 box mac n cheese (cheese powder type)
1.5 lbs ground beef
4 Tbsp olive oil
1 pack taco seasoning
1 Tbsp dehydrated minced onion
2 Tbsp parsley
3 Tbsp sour cream
1 can sweet corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained.

In one pot, boil macaroni noodles. In a skillet, pour olive oil and taco seasoning. Heat slightly. Add ground beef making sure it is thoroughly crumbled. Add onion and parsley as meat is browning. Add corn and tomatoes. By this point, the macaroni should be ready to drain and add to the meat mixture. Add noodles, followed by the cheese packet and sour cream. Mix well and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve. :)

Pardon my brain...

I need to think "out loud" for a few minutes and develop a plan to finish my degree by next May. I figure if I publish it publicly, I can be held responsible for my plan and I can pull it up and check things off the list!

In finishing my Bachelor of Music Education degree (which I only lack Senior level piano lessons, Senior Recital, Praxis II - Music Content Knowledge, and Student Teaching), I don't have enough required hours to be full time. I've always loved Biology, so why not finish up a minor in Bio and get certified to teach that, too? Maybe then I can assure myself a job in the classroom.

1. Contact business office to promise to pay off outstanding balance as soon as income tax refund is available.
2. Fill out FAFSA
3. Pay off outstanding balance
4. Fill out Student Loan paperwork
5. Re-fill out Start Of School Experience paperwork packet, update student membership of NEA, MENC.
6. Enroll in Piano, Biology II for Summer '11. 

Hopefully, I'll be coming back frequently (and soon) to check these things off. Pray for me!

TRAINS-FORMERS

"Please hurry, he's causing confusion and delay throughout the city, not to mention copyright infringement issues!"

Haha! Op-Thomas Prime! YES!

Enjoy!

I apologize for being a bit detached this week.

I had a bit of an accident Monday afternoon. Luckily, everyone is ok.

Sometime back, a neighborhood dog (whose owner is not taking care of her), came and tore up about 3 bags of trash in my yard. She is a nice dog, but starved, so she was looking for food the best way she knew how. I had seen the garbage strewn all over the yard, but didn't see her at first. When I opened my back door to let air through the house on the first dry day in some time, she started barking at me. Or, I thought it was at me. She was chasing my cat. I had to run her off. She had eaten, and she was terrorizing my cat. Sorry, not on my property does a strange dog assault my cat.

That said, I was left with quite a mess to clean up. We've been having a very cold snap here in South Mississippi, along with wetness on the days it wasn't as cold. Those conditions don't make it feasible to go outside and clean up the yard. In waiting for a pleasant day, I've been having a massive cleaning out inside the house, putting stuff on ebay or in the trash. Monday, we got a break in the weather, so I went outside to burn some boxes and clean up the strewn trash. Oops...

My first mistake: not checking my water hose. It had been run over by a lawnmower by the man my mom hires to mow our yards. *My mom owns the property I live on, and she lives next door* Second mistake: not breaking off some pine limbs to beat out any grass fire that might get out. And get out, it did. I freaked. At one point, JD and I were surrounded by fire. Not to mention, we have Cogon Grass. Evil, evil stuff. This is what happens when a Cogon Grass wildfire breaks out. It goes. Hot and fast. I managed to get back to my phone and call my mom and 911. She drove up with my cousin and he kept it from getting under the trailer (it was just inches away, in much shorter grass.) and the fire department got there in time to put out the burning Cogon Grass. We spent some time with them putting out the bulk of it, and me helping to keep an eye out for hotspots flaring back up. 

Sadly, there had been a pop up tent (10x10 canopy type) with some items under it that had been in a vehicle we sold. The "stuff" is no longer there, but JD and I came out with our lives and our home still intact. 

I've been quite shaken up over the experience, but accidents happen, and I learned valuable lessons about being careful and better prepared. Needless to say, I won't be burning anything anytime soon. Unless it's in a 55 gallon drum with a waterhose nearby!

Control of Cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica)

Studies of an alang-alang (Imperata cylindrica (L.) Beauv.) vegetation (BIOTROP bulletin)

There are some positive things about cogon grass. It makes beautiful woven items in the right hands. But, it's not native to this area, and it goes crazy when fire is added.

Improvised Taco Soup

1 can condensed tomato soup
1 can water
4 Tbsp sour cream
1/2 cup shredded cheese
1 Tbsp parsley
1/2 packet taco seasoning
1/4 cup "pastina" pasta stars

Combine everything in a microwaveable bowl, stirring well after adding each ingredient. Microwave for 4 minutes. Enjoy!

Yes. I chose the ad.

Another mommy-files giveaway, Wilton Heart Pops!

This is another fun review/giveaway from themommy-files.com. Enjoy! Just click the link above and see what you have to do! :)

Chuggington review and giveaway @ themommy-files.com :)

I'm posting this entry as an entry for a contest on themommy-files.com, but I felt some of my readers would probably be interested in it, too! Click the link above and check it out!

We love Chuggington at our house, almost as much as Thomas!

Does your kiddo love trains and deserve a trip?

Amtrak - Deals - Advertised Specials - The Little Engine That Could

I was just looking for deals on train tickets for a trip to New Orleans with the kiddo. Lo and behold, what did I find on amtrak.com, other than a free kid's ride in The Little Engine That Could starting March 22! Just in time for fall travel! You can get the DVD's with the free ride coupon from March 22 thru Sept 15, and can be used for trips booked starting Oct 1 thru Feb 29, 2012! We will definitely be picking up our copy when they become available.

*No compensation whatsoever for this post. I found it on my own and felt it may be of interest to my fellow Moms!

Lazy day today...

Welcome to AddThis for Chrome!

Just added this extension to my Google Chrome browser. So far I love it! What's going on in your world today?

I'm still waiting to hear about the job I interviewed for the other day. Been drumming up a few new Avon eCustomers and adding stuff for sale on ebay.

Hope to have a better post this afternoon! :)

The Avon Makeover

Click on shop now, then Virtual Makeover.

Here's my "after" pic, using the same "before" as the MaryKay makeover!

I guess what I like more than anything about these online makeovers, is that I can go in and do makeup on a picture if I need to, before I post it on here. I don't have the patience at this point for PhotoShop, so I really like "automated" editors online. But, being that I love makeup anyway, I like to play with different colors before I commit to buying a product!

Sometimes I wax nostalgic.

Found my two old blogs today. Thought you might be interested in reading my history.

My AngelFire blog

Anybody remember EasyJournal?

Happy reading :)

MaryKay Virtual Makeover

I've been playing with pictures again!!! Here's what I've been up to this time.

If you ask me, it's pretty amazing what they can do online nowadays. And yes, I'm an AVON lady. I just wanted to check out MK's makeovers. Avon does them, too, and I'll be posting that new look tomorrow!

If you can't sleep, make money: part one.

I CAN'T SLEEP! Been having some trouble with that lately. So, rather than stay miserably in bed (did I mention I fell today??), I decided to get up and accept some of my paid tweet opportunities (Join me here!), post some stuff to ebay (you can find that here), promote my Avon website (here), and blog some more! Oh! And when I do go back to bed, I'll probably curl up with my BlackBerry and Kindle App and read Fanny Hill, which is one of my favorites as of late. I love this version of the movie: Fanny Hill.

watch out for bread crates...

Today was designated not only as "interview day" (which I thin went well, and waiting on background check and a phone call), but also as "take down the Christmas decorations day" at my mom's. If you follow me on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/ltoney) you know I used bread crates in the construction of Christmas scenes. We also use them to build chicken and rabbit cages. We picked up more crates today, and had them stacked seemingly out of the way.

I was removing a string of stars off the chain link fence, came "around" the crates, and caught the hem of my black dress pants on the corner of a crate. It was all downhill from there! I screamed a not-so-toddler-friendly word, catching the attention of my cousin who was visiting and changing the sparkplugs in the truck, and down I went, much to his amusement. I hit my hip, and shoulder against the crates, skinned my lower leg on the crates, and landed on my arm with my wrist in a funny position. I laid there for a minute, crying, trying to not let loose a string of four-letter words, and punched the ground with my free hand. By this time, my mom was running to me, and my cousin asking if I needed help, while the kiddo came running saying "mama are ok?" I finally said "I'll live!" and sat up. It hurt so bad! The cousin stood straight up, and matter-of-factly stated, "I love you, and I'm glad you're ok. I'm also glad to know you well enough to say what I'm about to say. Watching that was funny as he**!" Thanks...glad I could amuse you. Now help me up!

My wrist is swollen, and my son hasn't let me out of his sight. I'm going to take it easy until his appointment tomorrow afternoon and then teaching a piano lesson or two. The moral of this story: when you're taking down the Christmas lights, watch out for bread crates. You never know when they'll sneak up on you!

Making graphics :)

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Happy New Year!

I realize it's a little late already, but I have been enjoying some much needed time with my family. I hope your 2011 has been awesome so far! So far in 2011, I've enjoyed time with my dear friend Kandice, met a new friend, Neil, listened to the amazing Cary Hudson at 206 Front where we sang "I'll Fly Away" in a bar on New Year's Eve (later they danced to "Will the Circle Be Unbroken"), and spent some awesome downtime (*WHAT'S THAT!?*) with my husband and super-toddler.

I am convinced that 2011 is going to be a better year than 2010, as it is already shaping up nicely. Lots of "stuff" moving out of my house, either in bags or flat-rate boxes, and food resolutions involving all of the adults being more tolerant of the foods the other liked. I'm really hoping for a great year this year. And it's all because we didn't eat the "standard" New Year's Day menu of cabbage and black-eyed peas. We had chicken nuggets, mac n' cheese n' broccoli, green beans, and tea. It was grand.

I sincerely hope that all of you have a fabulous 2011 as well.