At the Fence

Hey neighbors! Everyone remember Zylie the bear ?  She is going on vacation with us to Florida!  Zylie will be traveling with my daughter and occasionally dropping in here At the Fence for updates.  We are actually leaving Thursday, but I thought we would begin the first post here. Zylie has her bags almost completely packed, with my daughters help.  She has borrowed some clothing from my daughters dolls, so you will see her in some different outfits.  Every well traveled bears needs a few outfits for a month long trip!  Tomorrow, Zylie and M will finish packing and they will load their bags into the trailer.  We will be pulling a cargo trailer for all our stuff!  Of course Zylie and M are bringing some books to read, some stories to listen to, and M has started drawing, so I am sure they will spend some of their time traveling, drawing pictures. Zylie and M will have to share a seat with M's older sister and brother.  Hopefully it won't be too crowded.  But Zylie &

Hi Neighbors! We just received the cutest, and I mean cutest pair of sock slippers!  They are little, pink pigs !  Lately my feet have been cold.  Nothing else, just my feet.  I think it has to do with my diabetes and the hardwood floors in the home here.  I am the first one to complain of being too hot, but not my feet.  I used to run around barefoot as much as I could, now I wear socks or these really nice sock slippers. They really Chase Away the Chill! They actually come a little above the ankle, and are super soft, and super warm! The sole is non-slip, and the actual base of the slipper is a nice comfortably, padded bottom.  I do have to hide them from my daughters because they will try to wear them when I don't.  The sock slippers came from BunnySlippers.com .  They have a wide variety of animal slippers.  They also have... get this, Microwavable slippers!  They have removable insoles, that are lavender scented.  You heat them up, slip them back into the slipper, and e

Hello Neighbors! Before my family got their hands on them! Wow!  That is all I can say.  I received 5 Boxes of cereal from General Mills and My Blog Spark.  I opened the package in the late afternoon, by the next morning one box was empty and 2 more were on their way!  My family LOVES cereal!  And not just for breakfast.  They love to have a snack in the afternoon or right before bed and many times it is cereal.  Two of them had three bowlfuls that night!  (My husband was one of the culprits!) First bowl! Anyway, we received Total, Honey Nut Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, and Cheerios.  We all know how important whole grain is to our health, and the health of our children.  Now with a quick glance at the box, you will be able to tell which cereal has whole grain as it's first ingredient.  They will be marked with a white check. Below are some tips from Dr. Stork, Emergency Room physician and host of "The Doctors". Start Early! The Diet

Hey Neighbors! Imagine, I have just started doing extra in the kitchen with my children, and Social Moms and Uncle Ben's team up to bring a post about making healthy meals for your children.  Now I just have to tell you, that we add rice to alot of our meals!  My husband could have rice with butter as a side dish every night of the week! Just yesterday we created a really great meal using rice!  We started out by marinating chicken breast chunks in a Teriyaki Sauce and some of it in a Buffalo Sauce.  I personally don't like spicy, but the Buffalo Sauce won hands down with the rest of my family.  The girls all helped prepare the meal.  Anyway, after marinading the chicken for several hours, we placed the chicken in baking dishes and placing them in the oven.  We started rice next.  While waiting for the water to boil, we pulled out the wok and started stir fry veggies.  Yum!  The veggies included broccoli, mushrooms, snap peas, red pepper, carrots, water chestnuts, and those

Hi Neighbors! How many of you have a little girl, or not so little girl who likes to play dress-up?  My 11 year old is going through an amazing stage right now.  Not only does she like to play dress-up, but she is starting to want to bake, cook, sew etc.  One minute she is running around in a princess dress and cape, and the next she is making homemade bread all by herself. She is the youngest, so watching her go through this stage is sad, but sweet.  She goes from little girl to young lady.  My husband said the Lord gave her to us to put a smile on his face.  She loves to tease him in return.  In the last week she has baked bread and made chocolate cream pie, all from scratch.  She even whipped up heavy cream to make her own whipped topping.  She did very well on her first tries. We are working through a book from Keepers of the Faith called Keepers At Home.  It has all sorts of ideas and projects for girls to accomplish to prepare them to be a wife and mother.  T

Hi Neighbors! Did you wake up to snow this morning?  What a perfect day to find something for the children to do inside to Chase Away the Chills!  How about an Aerobie Megatop .  This is some serious fun, after you get the hang of it.  You have to practice a little first.  The Megatop comes with a good sized top, a string to launch it with, a Spin-Booster, and a Catching Plate. Do some of these terms sound strange?  They were to me!  I finally got the hang of sort of back-handing the top on the table, then I found the Spin-Booster.  It is a little rubber paddle to help keep the Megatop spinning.  Pretty neat!  The Catching Plate is so you can transfer it to another surface or you can toss it up into the air and catch it.  Some other tricks are listed that you can try, but I don't think I will!  You can come up with all different kinds of contests, from who can spin it the longest to who can make it go the furthest difference.  You can also set up an obstacle course.  They al

Hello Neighbors, This review is somewhat different than most as it is of a classic film, Tora, Tora, Tora.  I thought this would be a good item to review being  historical as it deals with the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  The film, originally done in 1970 and winner of the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, looks tremendous on this new Blu-ray edition!  Simply put, it looks like a modern film, not one from over 40 years ago!  This film has been appreciated over the years for being particularly accurate in the details of this tragic event, which is exactly why it has been labeled a docu-drama, providing the facts while still maintaining a story-telling feel as you watch it.  Compared to the movies of today, Tora, Tora, Tora is very tame regarding violence, although I was somewhat surprised and disappointed that a few curse words were in the film, despite its "G" rating.       This Blu-ray DVD edition comes LOADED with extra's including the Day of Infamy Documentar

Hello Neighbors! Fuller Brush Foaming Disposal Cleaner now has Rafflecopter.  Please email me when you notice something is missing.  I apologize that it was not in place.  Thanks so much!  See you soon, At the Fence!

Hello Neighbor! How are all of you doing today?  The weather here is gorgeous!  So nice.  Hopefully it is just as nice for all of my Neighbors. Have any of you heard of See's Candies?  I have and I heard that they were really good.  Well guess what?  They now have candy fundraisers !  So if anybody is looking for fundraising ideas check them out!  Are any of my Neighbors planning a fundraiser?  Candy is always a great fundraiser.  If any of my neighbors has ever tried their candies, leave a comment and let me know what you thought. We are planning for our trip to Florida next month.  It will be so fun!  There are a lot of things we plan on doing, a lot of friends we are going to meet up with, and a lot of places to go.  :D  We are also planning on a short trip in March.   My little sister is sooo excited!  We are staying in a cabin for a week.  We found some really nice ones that have some cheap rates!  It has two bedrooms.  Another thing we like about it is that there is a f

Hey Neighbors! As some of you know, we homeschool.  My youngest, loves history and has begging to read old poetry books or some Shakespeare.  (Strange child!)  Anyway, when I was asked to review one of the Sixty-Minute Shakespeare books, I chose Romeo and Juliet.  These are designed to give a sixty-minute presentation of one of Shakespeare's works.  There is an introduction, that includes tidbits on Shakespeare and his works, hints for the director, and some of the most often quoted lines. Throughout the book there are blank pages for the director to write notes in.  The play can actually be completed in sixty minutes.  Now, I will tell you up front the problem I have is not with this book or the way it is done, it is actually that they take God's name in vain.  Yes, I know that is how Shakespeare wrote it, but I personally do not care for it.  So, I have allowed my daughter to read through the parts and we actually put together a small part she acted out in the vide

Hi Neighbors! We are having another beautiful day here At the Fence.  It is actually short sleeve weather outside.  Not complaining at all!  Do any of you have a business that could use some brochures for advertising?  Or perhaps you have an event coming up.  I know we have many uses here between 4 websites and the ministry.  We seem to always have printing needs. UPrinting is offering 50 Brochures: 8.5" x 11" 100lb Paper Gloss With Folding (Half Fold, Trifold/Letterfold, Z-Fold, Roll Fold, Accordion Fold) Front and Back Printing 2 Business Days Turnaround *Free shipping Restriction: Limited to *US residents 18 years old and above only If you have won or hosted a giveaway with UPrinting Brochures, you may not win this giveaway.  Otherwise feel free to enter.   Tweet UPrintings brochures look super great!  I have received other products from them and have never been disappointed.  Both the quality and the speed with which I received them impresse

Hi Neighbors! I just had to share this.  My two youngest daughters are learning to bake bread.  They are 14 and 11 and have both completed one loaf each!  With a family the size of ours they don't last long though!  The minute they come out of the oven everyone wants some!  Pull out a knife and butter and let's go. Looks ready to eat. Can you tell she is happy with the results? Anyway, yesterday Modesty baked her bread all alone.  Today she helped Mercy bake hers.  They both turned out great!  We did have to rescue Mercy when she forgot to put some flour on her hand before kneading the dough.  They both did an excellent job and will each be making a pie, a sweet bread, cake, cobbler and cookies.  I will post more as they work on these. Sticky hands! Still smiling though. Much better! Looks good! Can you taste it? Ready to eat.  Have you ever made bread from scratch?  Have a favorite bread recipe to share?  Leave a comment!

Authored by Rickey Combs I have decided what I am going to get my sister for her birthday in February. I was looking through gift blogs using my Clear Internet Somerset connection and saw something that was really cool. When I buy gifts, I always try to buy something that I would like and also something that I know that the recipient would never buy themselves. Those are the kind of gifts that I like getting too. Anyway, I got a great idea to buy my sister a Pendleton Woolen Blanket. They are really works of art. They are hand woven fine wool. They have some really beautiful colors and prints. They have a native American flair and most are actually designed by Native Americans. The blankets will last a life time. I think that my sister will really appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into making these blankets. I think that they will also be a perfect fit with her funky style. I can’t wait to give it to her on her birthday, she is going to love it!

Greetings Neighbors! Once again Gorton's is offering something great for my neighbors here At the Fence.  Not only will there be a giveaway (more information later), but they have a Grill Your Way to Gorgeous Giveaway going on.  It started January 4th and runs through February 9th.  With all the New Year's resolutions that were made to lose weight, seafood is one of the best options to assist in reaching your goal. We here At the Fence, love Gorton's Seafood .  This time we tried the Grilled Tilapia Roasted Garlic Butter and the Grilled Tilapia Lemon Peppercorn.  We served it up with rice and spinach.  My husband was raving throughout the meal!  He loved it!  I think that their favorite was the Roasted Garlic Butter, but there was not any fish leftover.  See the pictures! Be sure to take time to enter the Grill Your Way to Gorgeous .  The Grand Prize is a $1,000 Wardrobe Makeover and the 1,000 First Place winners will receive a coupon for a free Gorton'

Hey neighbors! As you all know, we will be taking a month long trip to Florida and then spend the whole month traveling and camping.  We will be returning the first week of March.  So, what better time to add some driving tips, especially when traveling with children.  Remember, we have 6 children, and although 3 of them are now considered adults, we have spent a majority of the last nine years on the road. First of all, we plan as much as possible in advance.  We like to know the route we are taking, and approximately where we will be stopping each evening.  By doing this, we cut down on having to read a map while driving, or get concerned we past a turn or exit.  I can't tell you how many times when we first started on the road that my husband would hand me the map and say, "Quick, tell me if this is the exit we need!".  And I personally hate having to make a judgement call like that. So now we map out our route, so we don't have surprises like that!  We also ha

Hi Neighbors! As you know from previous posts, my family LOVES Pringles !  It is the number one snack that my 14 year old daughter asks for.  And with a family of 8, everyone has their favorite.  Some like the Original, others Sour Cream and Onion, and others the Barbecue.  They are one of the snacks we have on game night. Game Night!  Board games that is. Now Pringles has a new idea for using the can afterwards.  You can visit their Facebook page and download and print activities for the children to use on a trip.  Print them off, roll them up, and put them in the Pringles can. Now, add something for them to write or draw with, pop on the lid, and you are ready to go.  My personal preference is colored pencils.  They don't melt, and don't leave stains like ink pens or markers.  They can be used for writing or coloring!  You could throw in a small pencil sharpener.  Sour Cream and Onion. Original for her! Not only could you take these on road trips, but t

Hi Neighbors! Do you have any odors emanating from your sink or disposal system?  Perhaps you should try the Fuller Brush Foaming Disposal Cleanser .($6.99)   We do not have a disposal, but we used it in our sink drain.  We are in an older home, and the drain has a tendency to back up and also to emit odors.  The Fuller Brush Foaming Disposal Cleaner has a fresh citrus scent.  The natural citrus oils break down the grease build up and removes grime and odors.  I personally think it smells great!  Fresh and citrusy! It is very simple to use.  Shake the can well, remove the black cap, and place clear plastic tube on the tip.  Place the tip down the drain or disposal and press the button.  When you begin to see foam around the lip of the drain, stop.  Allow the foam to sit for approx. 4-5 minutes, use a special Multi-purpose Kitchen brush to scrub the disposal, and then rinse well with warm water. Now, Fuller Brush is going to send one neighbor their own can of Foaming Dispos

Hi Neighbors! Have you ever tried Sticky Monkey Labels ?  I received a sample pack, and they are not only adorable they work very well.  I have not tried the labels inside the shoes yet, because I wanted to get this posted as soon as possible.  My originals were somehow lost in the holiday mail, so when Sticky Monkey Labels sent me new ones, I wanted to share them with you right away.  These labels are waterproof, dishwasher safe, microwave safe, laundry safe, and weather resistant.  Not only that, you can personalize them with really cute designs.  I had a kitten added to one and the other was done in Pink and Chocolate.  They are really cute! About Sticky Monkey Labels : " Who are we?  We are a couple of girls raised in small town Oklahoma.  And we happen to be sisters.  We’re the two youngest of five girls.  Four girls very close in age and then me, Dodie, eight years later.  And like most sisters there were instances of torment and torture, but also many instance

Greetings Neighbors! Another cold, cold day here At the Fence!  We have had alot of activity at our birdfeeders!  So, here is one thing I enjoy on a cold day, it is to sit inside, light a couple of fragrant candles and watch our feathered friends visit.  Or perhaps curl up with a good book.  Nothing like Chasing Away the Chills! Here are some of our feathered friends! You can see it here. Anyway, I received this gorgeous candle from Diamond Candles.  It is Carnival Candy Scented.  I have a confession to make here, I LOVE cotton candy!  Now, I can't eat it anymore, but the fragrance of this candle sure brings back memories! Diamond Candles are soy candles .  One of the most exciting things about Diamond Candles though is there is a ring in every candle!  What a really neat idea!  Each candle has a foil sealed ring in the candle, and you don't know what you will receive.  You have to burn your candle down until the foil wrapper is exposed, blow out your candle, an