It's Tuesday night, must be time for American Idol!

Gosh! This has seemed like a crazy, busy week already - and it's just Tuesday! Time to take my Reality TV break. I have had SO much fun doing these weekly recaps! This is the REALLY exciting part of the show for me. We are down to the Top 9 contestants, and the competition is really heating up! Have you picked your favorite yet? There are so many talented people this season, I don't think I will be too disappointed with whoever the winner is. I do have my favorites - Danny, Matt and Allison and I also have a few that I can't help but wonder, WHY? are they still here? Well, maybe just one now, but still - HOW can Megan still be in this thing? Seriously.

Let's get down to business! The theme tonight is "The most popular downloads from ITunes". They can choose ANY song they want - this should be GOOD!

Anoop Desai went first tonight. He wanted to be more up-beat, so he chose Usher's "Caught up". Personally, I prefer Tender Dawg Anoop. His vocals were okay tonight, just not that spectacular, and I think at this point you have to blow us away. The Judges pretty much agreed with my thoughts, and then Anoop got a little snippy with them. Not good Dude - No Vote.

Megan Joy chose the Bob Marley/Lauren Hill "Turn your lights down low". She absolutely LOVES this song, and she thinks the judges are going to feel her. I did not. I'm still wondering HOW? WHY? Kara thinks she's in trouble, Randy said it was like watching paint dry. No Vote.

Danny Gokey is next. Have I mentioned he's MY FAVORITE?? Danny chose Rascall Flatts' "What Hurts the Most" This song is about losing someone you love - and HE FELT IT. I had goose bumps and a lump in my throat. SO GOOD. Paula said it left her wanting more, Simon said it was his best performance of the season, Randy said that tonight's show just started with that performance and Kara said it moved everyone emotionally. So true! VOTE VOTE VOTE!

Allison Iraheta chose a No Doubt song, "Don't Speak". Allison needs to SERIOUSLY fire her stylist. This outfit is NOT flattering - it added at least 10 pounds and her hair was distracting. This girl can SING IT, and she did. But it wasn't her best. The judges agree with me, Randy even said WHAT? are you wearing? No Vote

Scott MacIntyre got to sing a song by one of his idols - Billy Joel. His version of "Just the way you are" was great, just him and the piano. I agree with the judges, I think this is his best performance so far, but I still don't think he is Idol material. No Vote.

Matt Giraud went with a song by The Fray, "You Found Me". Because he was in the bottom three last week after choosing a song he thought the judges would like, he went with a song for himself this week. I'm not sure it worked for him. He is one of my favorites, but I didn't really care for this performance. The judges basically told him it was a poor song choice, and he needs to decide what kind of performer he is going to be - R&B or Rock? No Vote.

Lil Rounds chose a Celine Dion ballad, "I Surrender". I'm scared for Lil. I really like her, but she seems to be struggling. I think she is WAY better than she has performed the past few weeks. I like her dress, but I'm not liking the wig tonight. There was a really cute moment where one of her little one's went with Ryan over to Randy and was supposed to hit him at Ryan's encouragement. She instead gave him a big ole hug. Sweet. No Vote, by the way.

Adam Lambert chose Wild Cherry's "Play that Funky Music". I loved this song back in the day. I've got lots of good memories of my friends and I singing this at the top of our lungs while cruising up and down main street wasting our parents gas in high school. I hope he doesn't ruin that for me. I wish Paula would sit down! The song was pretty good actually. Judges all thought it was original, Paula mumbled something about genius and Randy thinks he's in the zone. I'm not voting for him though. You can't make me.

Kris Allen is the final contestant tonight. He is leaving the guitar behind tonight, and going with the piano. I didn't know he played piano, hmm. He's chosen "Ain't no Sunshine" - good song. He wants to really "Have a Moment" tonight. I think he did! This was VERY good! Kris just keeps surprising me! The Judges were impressed too. Randy said he Slayed it, Kara is counting on her fingers tonight, three words THAT IS ARTISTRY, Paula thought it was very good and even Simon thought it was a clever song choice, and said that is the Confidence he was talking about. VOTE

So only Danny and Kris got Votes from me tonight.

I think the bottom three will be Anoop, Megan and it could be Matt again. I will once again say I think that Megan should go home. I guess we'll see tomorrow night! What did you think about tonight's show? Let's Discuss!

Tuesday Treats: Larry's Birthday Cake

For my Handsome Prince's Birthday, I attempted my first ever layer cake. (I usually just do a 13 x 9 and frost it in the pan.) I think it turned out pretty good! I had a box of Carrot Cake mix, but I wanted to kick it up a notch. I dug out my Southern Living at HOME "Cake mix miracles" cookbook and found this recipe for Cheater's Carrot Cake.

Cheater's Carrot Cake
1 (18.25 ounce) package spice cake mix
1 (10 ounce) package shredded carrots (about 3 cups)
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained well
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans. divided
2 (16 ounce) containers ready-to-spread cream cheese frosting

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Fold in carrots, pineapple, and 1/2 cup chopped nuts. Pour batter into three greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 28 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.
• Combine remaining 1 cup chopped nuts and frosting;stir well. Spread frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake. Chill, if desired. Yield: 1 (3-layer) cake.

Keeping it real:

I used my carrot cake mix, and it was fine. I didn't have shredded carrots, but I did have baby carrots and a salad shooter, worked great. I used walnuts, again I had them on hand. I did not use the containers of frosting, because Cream Cheese frosting is my favorite part of the cake, and I like to make my own. Could NOT be easier.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 stick of butter, softened

1 (1 pound) box confectioner's sugar

mix together until desired consistency.

I doubled the recipe for this cake, since I was frosting each layer. I didn't quite need all of it - there may have been some bowl and spatula licking taking place! :)

We had our good friends, Bob and Lisa over for a Birthday dinner on Saturday evening. We had a wonderful salad, Cavatini and garlic bread, and this birthday cake. There was some over-eating done by all! Another GREAT weekend, and Larry thought it was a good way to celebrate his birthday!

Red Envelope Day

Some days I think I live under a rock! I have not heard a thing about this wonderful project, but I read Shannon's blog this morning and I think this is a GREAT idea! Just in case you don't know anything about Red Envelope Day either, you can go to Bless our Nest and read more about it, or go to http://www.redenvelopeday.com/ and watch the short video clip. You can even order your envelopes from the sight if you don't have any.

Here is a snippit written by Christ Otto that I have taken directy from the websight:

Why red?
The envelopes represent the innocent blood shed through abortion, and the plea for the blood of Jesus over the sin of our nation. This campaign is a symbolic act to flood the mail with red. The more we send, the more powerful this symbol will be.

Why March 31?
Although that date was chosen arbitrarily by Brian Potter when he created Red Envelope Day, it also reinforces the symbolism of blood. The envelopes will be arriving near the beginning of Holy Week, just prior to the start of Passover. I don’t think it is a coincidence that these arrive so near the annual remembrance of the Passion and Death of Christ.

As long as you have proper postage, federal law requires the delivery of all mail. Messages on the outside of an envelope will not hinder their delivery. There are many strange urban myths about where the mail is going, and that no empty envelopes will be delivered by the USPS. Red envelopes are not a problem for the postal service (hand addressed envelopes are more of an issue and require hand processing) and can be scanned. Although empty envelopes may not be opened, they will be delivered.

PLEASE PUT YOUR RETURN ADDRESS ON THE LETTER–RED ENVELOPES ARE BEING PULLED AND SENT TO THE DEAD LETTER BIN BECAUSE THEY DO NOT HAVE RETURN ADDRESSES!!! This from a postal worker on Friday March 27.

Postal workers have contacted me to tell me the letters are coming through the mail, but that they need to be standard sizes. If you send square red letters, please put 62 cents on the envelope. They will be returned without proper postage.

What is the goal of this project?
This project is a living parable of my philosophy of life, “listen to the Lord and do what He tells you.” If you make listening to God a habit, and you do what God tells you, you are going to impact the world around you. My main goal is to show people that anything is possible if you listen to God.

My second goal is to communicate the message, “Fear not, God can be trusted.” By simply trusting God, this idea has reaped amazing results.

Finally, we are trying to change the president’s heart. This is a message to a man that God hears the cry of innocent blood. It is not a political stunt, although I hope it changes policy in Washington. If the capitol is flooded with so many letters that no one can deny it, I am hoping the image will be burned into Barack Obama’s mind that this is about human blood, and that he lies awake at night until he cannot resist doing something about it. Even if the mainstream media ignores this, I know I was obedient, and SOMEBODY in Washington will have to cope with 50 million red envelopes.

I already have some Red Envelopes, so I am planning on mailing them tomorrow. I have written this message on the back of the envelope:

"This envelope represents one child who died because of an abortion. It is empty because the life that was taken is now unable to be a part of our world. Responsibility begins with conception."

I have addressed the envelope to:

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500


I hope you will prayerfully consider mailing an envelope tomorrow.

March 28th, 2009

Happy day after your Birthday My Handsome Prince!

We are hoping that we are still having friends for dinner this evening, but this is what we woke up to this morning...

Look how big those snowflakes are! It's absolutely beautiful - as long as it doesn't mess up my plans!
It isn't snowing as hard now, but it is still snowing. According to our "trusty" weather people, we were going to only get a "dusting" after lunch. This started at about 8 o'clock this morning, and it is more than dust!

Oh well! We have wood in, and the fireplace is going. It will be a great weekend for us, I hope for you too!

American Idol Top 10: Results Show

BIG night tonight! An hour jam-packed with performances and surprises. There's much to cover, so let's get right to the **SPOILER ALERT** This post contains all the details from tonight's American Idol results show. If you want to be surprised, come back once you had a chance to watch the show! 36 Million Votes last night. That is the most EVER for the Top 10. Did America get it right? Let's see...

We start things off with the Top 10 performing a medley of Motown hits. They all take turns making sure Scott gets where he needs to be. The Ford commercial was really good this week. I bet that is a lot of fun putting the commercials together. They make it look fun anyway!

Season 2 Idol Reuben is in the house tonight. He performs his latest single "Together". Poor guy is sweating something fierce and Ryan wants to chat. Can't you see this big boy needs to catch his breath Ryan? Give the man (and us) a break! We really just want to know the results! Dim the ligts, here we go:

1. Adam is SAFE
2. Matt is in the bottom 3??? WHAT?? My mind is blown and my gut is rolling. Wow.
3. Kris is SAFE
4. Lil and 5. Michael stand at the same time. Ryan gives us a bit of Idol History, all the other contestants that sang "Heatwave" including Jennifer Hudson ended up in the Bottom 3 that week. Lil however, is SAFE. Michael joins Matt in the hotseats. At least we got this much right.

Josh Stone and Smokey Robinson perform for us next. I really liked this song, "You're the one for me". I'll be the first to admit I rarely listen to anything other than Contempory Christian, and occasionally Country radio, so I have no clue if this was a new song? Old Song? I think Megan is similar in style to Ms. Stone. I still think she should be the one to go home tonight, I just had that thought and thought I'd share.

Dim the lights, here we go again:
6. Allison is SAFE
7. Anoop is SAFE
8. Danny is SAFE - YAY!! Happiness.
9. Scott and 10. Megan stand at the same time. This is where I am thinking we will have the three "M's" in the Bottom 3 - Matt, Michael and Megan. I'm also still thinking Megan is done. And then Ryan announces Scott is in the Bottom 3, and Megan is SAFE. Huh.

This is the part where we stand awkwardly at center stage wondering who Ryan will let off of the hook while he chit chats with them. After a sweet FOREVER, Scott is Safe. This is absolutely blowing my mind. Matt or Michael, Who will it be? For now, Stevie Wonder is going to treat us to another Medley of Motown hits. Love me some Stevie, and he starts out with my song! My Sherri Amour :) (I meant to spell it that way) Was it just me, or was Stevie a little pitchy tonight? And as they panned past the Contestants dancing while he sang, I couldn't help noticing poor Megan just can't dance. It's not just when SHE is singing. Girl got NO rythym.

Okay, dim the lights, here we go. America has voted, and Matt is

SAFE. HUGE sigh. So Michael is singing for his life. They got it right! I don't see the point in the Judge's deliberating about "The Save", since Simon already told him last night he would not win. I will give Sarver props, he went out with class. I think it is the first time he didn't talk back to them, a welcome change.

That's it for this week. What do you think? Did they get it right? Do you have a favorite yet?
Let's Discuss!

American Idol: Top 10

It's Wednesday night, time for American Idol! Because of the President speaking last night, our scheduling is a little off this week - tonight was actually performance night. We'll have a recap of the results show tomorrow. As the announcer was introducing the judges this evening, I could not help SAYING OUT LOUD, "WHAT is Paula wearing?" Good Grief! She looks like she's going to the Prom after the show and doesn't have time for a wardrobe change. My Goodness.

Tonight was a tribute to Motown. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of Motown, and the contestants got to go to Detroit this week and get a tour with the Founder, Mr. Berry Gordy. The Mentor this week is Smokey Robinson. Are we in for a treat! Here is where I will do my weekly **SPOILER ALERT** Don't read any further if you don't want to know what happened on tonight's show.

First up tonight is Matt Giraud. He went with Marvin Gaye's "Let's get it on". He started out seated at the piano, and then he DID get it on! I thought it was a very good performance, and Matt is becoming one of my favorites. The judges were all in agreement that it was a great way to begin the show tonight. VOTE

Kris Allen was next with "How sweet it is" by Marvin Gaye. (James Taylor is the version I am familiar with). Smokey said that Kris "blew him away" when they were doing their rehearsal. I thought he did alright. Overall the judges thought he did well, but stressed that he needed to begin to believe in himself. I agreed with that thought, and I think he is safe again this week.
No Vote

Scott MacIntyre chose Diana Ross' "You Can't Hurry Love". He was at the piano again, and I think that is how we will always see him. He's comfortable there, and it works for him. Didn't care for the pink-ish pants the stylist chose for him. The performance was okay for me, the judges felt like he chose the wrong song. I think he'll be safe for now, but the end is in sight for Scott. No pun intended, and No Vote.

Megan Joy I dropped my last name was next. She went with "For Once in my Life" by Stevie Wonder. She was obviously feeling much better tonight. The dress was cute, but the whole time she was singing I couldn't wait for her to be done. I kept thinking "HOW is she still in this?" And then the judges basically agreed with me. I think she's in trouble. No Vote.

Anoop Desai was next. Noop Dawg went with some Smokey Robinson "OOH Baby, Baby" GOOD Move Noop Dawg! Fire your stylist, but I loved the performance. VOTE

Michael Sarver, our Oil Rig guy was next. He really turned me off last week with his talking back, so I have a bit of an attitude myself before his performance begins. He chose "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" by the Temptations. Appropriate. But not so good. The judges didn't like it either. No Vote.

Lil Rounds was up next. I had high hopes for Lil tonight. This should be her week to shine. She chose "Heat Wave". Lil got very emotional during the trip to Detroit. She really wants to do the music proud tonight. She looked HOT in the dress tonight (pun intended!) The emotions got the best of her in my opinion. I've heard her sing SO much better than she did tonight. I hope she is safe another week to prove she's in it to win it. The judges were disappointed too. I completely agree with Simon, she could have had "a moment" tonight, had she chosen the right song. No Vote.

The big surprise of the night for me was Adam Lambert. No black nail polish, stylish suit and tie, hair greased back like he was channeling his inner Elvis. He actually looked nice. He went with another Smokey Robinson song, "Tracks of my Tears". And he did a GREAT JOB. The judges thought it was the best of the night. I think I would have to agree, but I still couldn't vote for him. Just can't do it.

My FAVORITE, Danny Gokey has the unenviable job of performing after that. No small task.
Danny went with "Get Ready". I thought it was great. Very high energy, he showed us he has a few dance moves. Awesome. The judges were split, Randy and Kara thought it was good, not his best. Paula rattled on, but I think she liked it. Simon did not. I Did. VOTE.

The last Contestant tonight is 16 year old Allison Iraheta. I am constantly amazed that this girl is only 16. Probably why I bring it up every week. Allison SANG "Papa was a Rolling Stone" SANG IT! OWNED IT! By far the best female performance tonight, and one of the best overall in my opinion. She got a VOTE from me!

My Top picks tonight are Matt, Anoop, DANNY and Allison
Bottom three are Megan Joy, Michael Sarver and probably Scott. I think either Megan or Michael go home tomorrow.

What were your thoughts? Let's Discuss!

Spring has Sprung!

Welcome Spring, 2009!

I love the change of seasons, but I especially LOVE spring. I've been busy (in between watching all this Reality TV) putting out some of my spring decorations. I enjoyed the Spring Fluffing tour that Rhoda from Southern Hospitality hosted earlier this week. LOTS of GREAT ideas there, if you haven't checked it out, you should! Another of my Favorite Blogs is Bless our Nest. Shannon has been busy fluffing her nest this week too! Everything looks so cute, but I am always inspired by her! She is one very creative Lady. She is showing off some of her work on her blog, check her out too!

In Honor of the First Day of Spring, I thought I would show off a little bit of my spring decor. This is my Entry. I have my Cross Collection in here. I added Easter grass and eggs, along with a few silk Forsythia stems to my sconces on either side of the painting. I love how this looks against the dark blue-gray paint we have in here. You can click on any of the pictures to make them bigger.


Remember my Easter Egg Project? A few of them showed up here! The small framed cross I found at Lifeway a while back, it has "My Verse", Jeremiah 29:11 on it.

Sorry these are a kind of dark, the Living Room is on the north side of the house, it's always dark in here. This is our Formal Living room, and I love me some flowers. (as if you couldn't tell!)

For the sofa table I made an arrangement in one of my Southern Living at HOME canisters. I used the Forsythia stems to hang some glitter eggs I got at Walgreen's a few years ago. The flash made them look glow-in-the-dark!

A couple more of my painted eggs for the table in front of the window.

Moving on to the kitchen, I love changing the bay window display. I hung a new cross in the middle window too. The bloom in the center symbolizes "New Life", an appropriate message for any time of year!

Here is our Dining Room. I'm all ready for company! If you like the centerpiece, you can see how I made it Here.

Another of my painted eggs made it's way to the mantle in the Family room. I made the "moss" ball last year, another simple project! A bag of moss, some hot glue and a styrofoam ball.

I rearranged the furniture in here too. I wanted a different look, so I moved the couch over in front of the fireplace, since (I hope!) we won't be using it for awhile now! I did not move our art work though, because I wasn't sure I was going to like the furniture this way. So Please overlook that it isn't centered, okay? I'm still finishing up on last large egg, and I'm in the process of painting some miniature eggs. I have all my craft supplies surrounding my chair, so I can watch TV and work on my project. A multi-tasker, I am!

I hope you enjoyed my little tour! Happy Spring ya'll!

American Idol: Top 11 Results Show

As always, I want to remind you of the **Spoiler Alert** Come back later if you don't want to know who was eliminated on Wednesday night.

Ryan started right out promising that tonight's results could shock us, and quickly reminded us we have one Judge's Save, would they use it tonight? We'll see...

The group performed "T R O U B L E" with Scott MacIntyre on the piano. I think it is great that they are keeping him involved in these group ensembles while being respectful of his handicap. He is a very talented pianist, so that was the perfect task for him instead of making him try to bust a move (and possibly a leg!) on the stage with the rest of the contestants.

Getting down to business, we are reminded that whoever is eliminated will NOT be joining the rest of the group on tour this summer. Just one more reason they want to make it in to the Top Ten! Dim the lights, here we go:

Danny, SAFE (Happiness! He is my Favorite! Have I mentioned this?)
Lil, SAFE
Anoop, SAFE (Good for you NoopDawg!)
Allison and Michael are asked to stand at the same time. Allison is sent to one of the three stools on the other side of the stage. Sarver thinks he is safe and sits down, but Ryan sends him over to join Allison.

The two of them are made to sweat it out while Brad Paisley performs his new single "I thought I loved you then". I love Brad Paisley. I love how you KNOW he wrote that song and is singing it for his pretty little wife Kim. Is it just me, or is it every girl's dream to have your man sing you love songs? sigh

Back to business!
Scott, SAFE
Megan Joy (Who evidently has lost her last name), SAFE
Matt, SAFE
Kris, SAFE

That just leaves Alexis and Adam. This is where I'm thinking MAYBE America got it right and voted Adam out after that disrespectful performance of a Johnny Cash CLASSIC. But no, Adam is safe and Alexis is sent to join Allison and Michael across the stage. Ryan then announces he will put one of them at ease before our special performance, and sends Allison back to join the others. The 16 year old is safe for another week, and going on tour this summer.

Carrie Underwood and Randy Travis perform one of Randy's classics, "I told you so". Larry and I haven't always watched Idol. We didn't get on the bandwagon until the season that Carrie was a contestant (Season 3? or 4?) I was for her from the start because she was from a town in Oklahoma that is near where we live. I think she has a beautiful voice, and she is truly grateful for the opportunities that American Idol has given her. Plus, I think she is a nice girl! AND I LOVE her hair cut! But I'm rambling...

Back to business! Ryan asks Simon if they would consider using The Save on either Michael or Alexis. Simon revealed that they had talked about it, and one of the two they were considering using it. Hmm I feel like it is too early to see them use it, since they can only save one person. I think they would have used it on Adam, had he been the one to go this early. Anyway, Dim the lights, the contestant with the lowest number of votes this week is:

Alexis

Not who I was expecting. Simon reveals that she is the one they are considering using The Save on, and her performance with determine what they do. Poor girl has to sing for her Idol life. I think the pressure got to her, because that didn't sound as good as the night before. Ultimately, the judges decide to send her home. Paula leaves her with a final bit of encouragement - "Your life will never be the same". Whatever, Paula.

Next week is the Tribute to Motown. Should be good! The show will be on Wednesday and Thursday next week, due to the President speaking on Tuesday night. So check you DVR's so you don't miss anything! Especially if you are on Spring Break like everyone around here will be next week!

American Idol: Top 11

**Spoiler Alert** If you haven't watched Tuesday night's show yet, come back after you have had a chance to watch!

Tonight was a tribute to The Grand Old Opry. One of my favorite country stars, Randy Travis was Mentor this week. While I really enjoy country music, I usually dread country week on Idol. Simon doesn't like this genre, and is ALWAYS negative, even when the Contestant does a really good job in my opinion. So I'm already on pins and needles! Here we go:

Michael Sarver started us out this evening with his version of "Ain't goin' down 'til the sun comes up" by Garth Brooks. His performance was okay for Larry and I. The judges weren't all that impressed, and then he made the mistake of talking back to them. PEOPLE! Do NOT talk back to the judges! They are trying to help you! No Vote

The little 16 year old was up next. Allison Iraheta chose Patty Loveless' "Blame it on your heart". WOW! She put a blue-sy twist to this song that I really liked. The judges really liked it too, and all Randy had to say was DOPE! VOTE

Our local boy, Kris Allen chose one of my very favorite Garth Brooks songs. "To make you feel my love" from the movie Hope Floats. I'll be honest, even though Kris is from Arkansas, I've always struggled with enjoying his performances. I've really been on the fence with him. I feel like I SHOULD like him, because of the local connection. Tonight Kris won me over. He came out with no guitar and just SANG. Simon said it was a terrific song choice, and Randy called him a "tender Dawg". All I know is, VOTE.

Lil Rounds was next and she chose "Independence Day" by Martina McBride. She was nervous about her performance, because this isn't really her music of choice. She wanted to honor the music and I really felt like she did a good job. She looked really pretty too. The judges weren't fans of her performance tonight. This is where I have to remind myself that I will not vote for everyone, because it just doesn't make sense. So I initially had her down as a vote, but after everyone was done, there were others I felt more deserving tonight. No vote.

Adam Lambert went with "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash. I don't know where he found this version of the song, but I am not a fan. I didn't care for it, AT ALL. Paula is hitting the sauce again tonight and she apparently liked it, although it was hard to tell what she really meant carrying on and ON. No Vote.

Scott MacIntyre performed "Wild Angels" by Martina McBride. I think he did a good job of making it his own. Paula thinks he needs to not play the piano every time. I like his story, but I don't see him going all the way, so tonight for me it was a No Vote.

"Little Dolly", Alexis Grace performed "Jolene" by Dolly Parton. She changed it up just enough to make it her own. I really liked it. VOTE.

My Favorite, Danny Gokey was next. Going to commercial they said he was going to do a Carrie Underwood song and I immediately said to Larry he's going to do "Jesus, Take the Wheel". Sure Enough! I scared my Handsome Prince (and myself!) with my uncanny ability to predict this correctly. GOOSEBUMPS. VOTE.

Anoop Desai had some serious work to do tonight. Simon told him last week that he didn't deserve to be in the Top 13. He took that to heart and really wanted to prove he DID belong here. I was scared for him when he revealed his song choice was "You were always on my mind" by Willie Nelson. Let me just say: NOOP DAWG IS BACK! (and yes, I did say this before Paula) He did a very good job, and Simon even said that he went "from zero to Hero" this week. VOTE.

Megan Joy Corkrey chose "I go out walking after Midnight" by Patsy Cline. Patsy is one of my girls, DON'T mess with Patsy! Megan has not been one of my favorites, but she actually did a pretty good job. And then I found out she has the flu, and has been in and out of the hospital this week. Great job, but No Vote.

Matt Giraud was the final performance tonight. He chose another Carrie Underwood song, "So Small". Matt was back at the piano and definitely in his comfort zone. WOW! VOTE.


So, to sum tonight's performances up in MY opinion, the bottom two were Michael and Adam. Everyone else did really good and we had "vote" by all of their names at one point. I had to make some tough choices tonight. I have high standards I must uphold! You just shouldn't vote for everyone. So here is who I ended up calling in for tonight:

Allison
Kris
Alexis
DANNY
Anoop
Matt

Do you have a favorite yet? Let's discuss!

American Idol: Results Show

And then there were eleven. Or ARE there? This is where I remind you *SPOILER ALERT**
If you don't want to know the results yet, come back after you've had a chance to watch the show!

The big announcement that was sure to be dramatic, and could possibly Change Everything is called "The Judges Save". Ryan reminded us how we felt when Jennifer Hudson and Chris Daughtry were eliminated. Most of us felt like it was too early, and were totally shocked. This year, the judges will have the opportunity to give someone a second chance. They can only do this once, and it has to be a unanimous decision. They are only allowed to do this through the Top 5, and once they use the save, that is it. Plus, the week after they use it two people are eliminated.

I don't know that I'd call this dramatic, but I kind of like the idea. We are all still voting for the winner, and I for one will ALWAYS be curious if Daughtry hadn't been eliminated so early, would he have won? He's very good, and has had success even without being the "winner", but I still wonder... We'll see how this plays out!

Here's how it went. Dim the lights please. Cue the soft drum roll...
Michael Sarver - safe
Allison Iraheta - safe
Jasmine Murray - go stand at center stage
Matt Giraud - safe
Kris Allen - safe
Megan Joy Corkrey - join Jasmine center stage

Megan is safe, Jasmine is out unless the Judges save her. I will admit that at this point I wasn't fully grasping how the whole "Save" thingy was working. In my head, EACH contestant had one chance at a save. Looking back at that now, especially after just typing that here, I'm wondering WHAT was I thinking?? DST strikes again! Anywho, the judges didn't use the save on Jasmine, so she is done. Such a cutie. I do hope she tries again, I think she is just too young and there are lots of very talented people in this group this season.

Kanye performs for us next. NOT my thing. Found other things to do...

Okay, we're back! Dim the lights and drum roll please...
Scott MacIntyre - safe
Alexis Grace - safe
Danny Gokey - safe (YAY!!)
Anoop Desai - knows to go to center stage even before Ryan tells him to
Adam Lambert - safe
Jorge Nunez - join Anoop center stage
Lil Rounds - safe

Make Anoop and Jorge suffer while Kelly Clarkson chats it up with Ryan and then performs "My life would SUCK without you in it" from her new album. Yes, that really is the title. At this point I'm feeling really OLD, because I thought that song Sucked. In the end, Anoop was safe this week - YAY! and Jorge is going to have to say goodbye, because the judges did not use their one and only save on him.

I agreed with the results tonight - What did you think? What is your opinion of the new rule, The Judges Save? Do you have a favorite yet? Let's discuss!

American Idol: Top 13

** SPOILER ALERT** Come back to discuss what you think about Tuesday night's performances AFTER you have watched the show!

Tonight the Theme was Michael Jackson. WHAT?? Are they trying to sabotage these people from the get-go? Seriously!

Lil Rounds started us out tonight with her version of "The way you make me feel" I must say I thought she did a good job. She looked cute to. You can tell they have stylists now! VOTE

Scott MacIntyre was back at the piano tonight. You can tell he is much more comfortable there. I liked his version of "Keep the faith" VOTE

My favorite was next! Danny Gokey sang "PYT" (Pretty Young Thing) I think this was an excellent song choice, and I thought he NAILED IT! VOTE

The Oil rig guy, Michael Sarver went with "You are not alone" It wasn't bad, but I try to limit the number of people I vote for, and this didn't make the cut for me. No Vote.

Little Jasmine Murray was next. She chose "I'll be there" for her performance. I thought it was good, but the judges felt like she chose a song too old for her. I'm thinking "It's Michael Jackson, it's ALL going to be too old for her!" In the end, there were better performances tonight. No Vote.

Kris Allen is the Arkansas local boy. He got out his guitar and belted out "Remember the time" I thought he sounded very pitchy, and I just didn't care that much for it. Paula got on my nerves and carried ON and ON about how sexy he was. She must be in heat. No Vote.

Allison Iraheta is only 16 years old. MY GOODNESS this girl can SING! She rocked the house with "Give in to me" VOTE

Anoop "NoopDog" Desai took on a biggy. He went with "Beat it". I didn't think he was as bad as the judges made it sound. There were others that I felt were better though. No Vote.

Jorge Nunez chose "Never can say goodbye" I'm afraid we might have to though. No Vote.

Megan Joy Corkrey was next. She performed "Rockin' Robin" Really. Quirky dance moves and all. No Vote.

Adam Lambert wowed the judges with his performance of "Black and White". It was okay. I wasn't as moved as the Judges were. Maybe DST is kicking in...No Vote.

Matt Giraud played the piano beautifully while he sang "Human Nature". One of the best tonight in my opinion. VOTE.

Alexis Grace was the final contestant tonight. She chose "Dirty Diana" WOW! VOTE

I will say, I'm voting for more tonight than I like to. I don't understand the concept of voting for everyone. What is the point? But, we couldn't make up our minds so we voted for six. Crazy we are! Here is who we liked tonight:

Lil
Scott
DANNY
ALLISON
Matt G
Alexis Grace

They are supposed to make some big announcement during the results show on Wednesday night that will "change the whole process" - can't wait to hear about this! Two will be eliminated, so we will be back on track with the Top 11.

Painted Easter Eggs

I love Spring!
Easter is right up there with Christmas and Thanksgiving for my FAVORITE Holidays. So when I ran across these eggs at The LOB I knew I just HAD to have them! They are in the Easter decor aisle, right at the front of the store. I'm not certain what they are made of, I think they are paper mache that they have painted all different pastel colors. The egg is very light weight. I think they are cute just as they are, BUT I wanted to make them even BETTER! I am a firm believer in MORE is BETTER!

I purchased some regular acrylic craft paint. Make sure that it says it works on any surface. I got out some brushes and let my creativity flow! I wanted them to all be different, so I just started free hand making lines and flowers.

My glitter glue pens added a little Bling to each egg. I would draw the glitter on over the paint, and then I used a toothpick to move the glitter around where I wanted it. This also helped to get the air bubbles out. The pens I used were Elmer's, I found them at Wal*Mart with the children's coloring supplies.

See how pretty those swirls are now?

For the Polka dots, I used the other end of the brush, dipped it in the paint and just randomly made the circles all over the egg. I could make all different sizes just by moving the tip of the brush around a bit. Of course, it had to have a little glitter too! The circles actually took a LOT longer to add the bling to, so that would be why I only did one color :). The toothpick is your best friend with this project! You can see where an air bubble blew out too much glitter, I had to improvise a bit!

My Handsome Prince wanted me to try a patchwork egg. I used a pencil to make my square "pattern". The eggs are erasable too! It did help to have a guideline, and then I just randomly painted squares different colors. If I ended up with a certain color side by side, or too close together, I painted over it once it dried. DON'T be SCARED! You could do this too!

The glitter helped to cover some of my lines that weren't exactly perfect! This is probably my favorite!

Easter eggs always have zig-zags on them! I'm not quite finished with this one, but I was far enough along to share it with you. I used the pencil once again to help me make the bands. I made three different sizes, top, middle and bottom. I painted the bands first, then came back and made V's all around them, letting each color dry before adding the next.

I'm just finishing up with the glitter on this pretty baby, and then it will be done. I think I am going after two more eggs tonight. This has been so much fun, and I still have a few more ideas I want to try!

This was really an inexpensive project. We don't do the colored, boiled eggs at our house since we don't have any little ones. And these will last me for years - without the SMELL!

Jaxon Update and another craft project

First of all, I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU! for your prayers for my nephew Jaxon. He was diagnosed very quickly, responded to the medication and was sent home late Sunday evening. PRAISE GOD! The Doctors anticipate a FULL Recovery, after about a month of medication. Thank you so very much for all your prayers for my family!

Here's a little preview of my latest craft project. I bought these eggs at my favorite craft store, AKA Hobby Lobby! I liked the size of them, but they were a little too plain. So I grabbed up some craft paint while I was there.

Here they are in various stages of "done-ness"! I've gotten very creative at finding things to prop them in while drying!

I already had some glitter glue from a long ago project. This is working perfectly to add a "little Bling" to my Easter Eggs!

It has been kind of fun having these to work on a little each night while we are keeping up with our intense Reality TV schedule! I'm just about finished with these bigger eggs, and I have started on some adorable smaller ones. I'll post pictures when I 'm done!

URGENT! Prayer Request.

**Edited to add 3/7/09 Jaxon was admitted to ACH last night. They are still running tests, but Jaxon's kidneys are functioning at 50% right now, and he has very high blood pressure that they are trying to determine the cause. The Doctors do feel that he is 100% treatable, so that is GOOD news! Thank you so much for your prayers! We will continue to update as we can.



Please be in prayer for family RIGHT NOW.

My brother Royce and his wife Tammy are driving to Little Rock to the Children's Hospital with Jaxon, their youngest. He is 5, and complained last Thursday about a red spot on his leg hurting. They took him to an after hours clinic and couldn't find anything wrong. Friday he was screaming because it hurt to touch it, and he could hardly walk. Back to the clinic, gave him some pain meds and sent him home. Saturday Tammy took him to the emergency room because he still hurt so bad. They determined he had a very bad kidney infection, gave him some antibiotics and sent him home. They have monitored him all week, this morning Tammy noticed some swelling in Jaxon's face and took him back to the Dr. They called us this afternoon saying the Dr sent them to LR because Jaxon's kidneys are failing fast.

Please be in prayer for a safe journey for Royce and Tammy. I'm sure he's driving too fast.
Wisdom for the Doctors - determining WHAT is wrong and the best treatment
My family, peace while we wait for some answers
Thank you!

American Idol: Wild Card Round

My goodness! My Thursday night TV plate is FULL! We decided to watch Idol, and then watch Survivor after so that we could fast forward through all the commercials! BEST way to watch TV. Gotta love the DVR! Getting down to business, **SPOILER ALERT** If you don't want to know the results yet, come back later!

The Wild Cards were all decided by the Judges this evening. They had the eight contestants perform, and then they chose the contestants they felt deserved to go through. Here's how it went:

Jessie Langseth sang "Tell me something good" I didn't like it. Neither did the judges

Matt Giraud - "Who's Lovin' You" I did! The judges seemed to also.

Megan Joy Corkrey - "Black Horse in a Cherry Tree" I thought it was okay. Judges seemed okay with it too.

Von Smith - "Sorry seems to be the hardest word" I wasn't a fan, seemed a little creepy to me. The judges weren't real pleased with it either.

Jasmine Murray - "Reflection" VERY GOOD. Judges liked it too.

Ricky Braddy - "Superstitious" Not so good

Tatianna Del Toro - Made the HUGE mistake of singing the exact same song "Saving all my love for you" She does have a voice, she just GETS ON MY NERVES.

Anoop Desai - "My Prerogative" GREAT! Judges thought so too.

If I were voting, my choices for tonight are Matt, Jasmine and Anoop. Except I'm not voting, the judges are deciding and they choose:

JASMINE MURRAY YAY! Good Choice.
MEGAN JOY CORKREY Tattoo girl is IN. At this point I am worried that they ARE trying to even the BOY/GIRL ratio. Then they announce that the twelfth spot goes to:
MATT GIRAUD Yay! I got this right.

Oh NO! No 'NoopDog?? BUT WAIT! Simon has an announcement! The Judges talked it over, and made the decision that this year we will have a TOP 13! ANOOP IS IN!!

I was very pleased with the choices tonight. Especially since Tatianna should be on her way home now. I'm not sure why they wasted a choice with her. Oh well, it's getting late and I need to call it a night!

And now there are Nine...

I was very pleased with the results show for American Idol tonight. **SPOILER ALERT** Don't read any further if you haven't watched it yet and don't want to know!

It didn't seem like they drug things out as bad tonight. The little group performance was cute. I appreciated that they took Scott's disability into consideration when they did the choreography. I would hate for him to trip or something while trying to do a dance. They got right down to business, which surprised me. I figured out why towards the end of the show!

So what did you think of the results tonight? I was right on the money this week! YOO HOO!

Top Female was Lil Rounds
Top Male was Scott MacIntyre
Third Place went to Jorge Nunez

I was disappointed that Ju'Not didn't make it. I really liked him. I was hoping he would get one of the Wild Card spots. THAT was the reason they picked up the pace tonight. So here is what I know about how the Wild Card deal is going to work. The judges picked eight contestants that they felt deserved another chance from all of the remaining contestants. These eight are going to perform one more time tomorrow evening. Then they will pick three from those eight to move on to the Top 12. I'm not clear on whether we will vote for these, but I'm thinking no, since I think we find out the results tomorrow night as well.

Here are the eight that get another chance:
1. Von Smith from group three tonight
2. Jasmine Murray from group two that performed 2/25
3. Ricky Braddy (one of my choices!) from group one that performed on 2/17
4. Megan Joy Corkrey from group two
5. LORD HELP US! Tatianna Del Toro from group one WHY??
6. Matt Giraud from group two
7. Jessie Langseth from group two
8. Anoop "'NoopDog" Desai from group one YAY!

So that makes our Top 12 so far:
1. Danny Gokey
2. Alexis Grace
3. Michael Sarver

4. Kris Allen
5. Allison Iraheta
6. Adam Lambert

7. Scott MacIntyre
8. Lil Rounds
9. Jorge Nunez

The boys are out-numbering the girls, so are they going to try and even this up? I hope they just go by the talent each of them has, and not worry about having 6 boys and 6 girls. I would like to see Jasmine, Ricky and Anoop do well enough to make the Top 12. Can't wait to see tomorrow night's show! I'll be back to talk about then!

American Idol: Round 3 and The Bachelor Finale, Finally

Oh MY GOODNESS! So much to watch, so little time to blog about it! So let's get right down to business. Tonight the final group of twelve performed. I think I'm going to write a letter to the producers. While I enjoy being a part of the decision making process, some of these contestants just DON'T deserve to be here.

VON SMITH, 22 from Greenwood, MO went first tonight. He sang "You're all I need to get by" by Marvin Gaye. The judges loved it. Of the three shows, I do think he did the best of the three first performers. That being said, he wasn't the best tonight. No Vote.

Seventeen year old TAYLOR VAIFANUA from Hurricane, Utah sang "If I ain't got you" by Alicia Keyes. It was okay, but No Vote.

ALEX WAGNER-TRUGMAN is a 19 year old from Studio City, CA. He attempted "I guess that's why they call it the blues" by Sir Elton John. I really have no words for this, other than No Vote.

The judges told 17 year old ARIANNA ALSAR that she was cute as a button. She evidently did not understand that this was a compliment. She wanted to do something to make them notice her talent. She got to sing the very first ABBA song to be performed on Idol. "The winner takes it all" was the song she chose. She has a fabulous voice, but she tried to make the arrangement more contemporary, and she messed up. No Vote.

JU'NOT JOYNER was our first good performance of the night! He went with "Hey There Delilah". He performed this during Hollywood week, but changed it up a bit for tonight. Whatever he did WORKED! I liked it. VOTE.

Little KRISTEN MCNAMARA is a 23 year old from Napa Valley, CA. She has had all sorts of drama, from purple hair gone bad to drama among her team during the group portion of Hollywood week. She handled it all with class. Tonight she went with "Give me one reason (to stay here)" by Tracy Chapman. LOVE this song, did not love her performance. No Vote.

Nineteen year old NATHANIEL MARSHALL just wants to have FUN! He chose Meatloaf's "I would do anything for love". If I close my eyes and listen to him, Nathaniel has a very good voice. Kara wants to go Karaoke with him. The headband and the whole Olivia Newton-John look he has going on is just too distracting for me. And there were others that just did a better job tonight. No Vote.

FELICIA BARTON from Virginia Beach, VA got a second chance. She is the contestant they chose to replace the girl that had been picked, but had recording contracts before, and I think there was talk about a friendship or business deal with one of the producers. Anyway, she was removed from the competition, and Felicia got the call to take her place. She belted out "No One" by Alicia Keyes. It was good, but No Vote.

One of my early favorites was next. SCOTT MACINTYRE from Scottsdale, AZ is blind. He sang "Mandolin Rain" by Bruce Hornsby tonight. Not his best performance to date, But he can SING! and I hope he gets the chance to go on. he got one of my VOTE's for tonight.

Cute little KENDALL BEARD was next. She's our country girl this year. She sang "This one's for the girls" by Martina McBride. Love the song, loved her performance, and her outfit! VOTE.

JORGE NUNEZ is 21 years old from Puerto Rico. He has been working with a coach to perfect his English. He chose "Don't let the sun go down on me" by Sir Elton. I will be the first to admit that I was scared for Jorge. He had a LOT of obstacles in his way with this choice. But OH! MY! GOODNESS! He NAILED it! And then I cried because the judges all loved it and Jorge got so excited he "couldn't think in English" and started to cry. It was sweet. VOTE!

Our final performance tonight was by LIL ROUNDS. She is a 24 year old Mom from Memphis with three children, trying to make a better life for her family. "Be without you" by Mary J. Blige was her song choice, because it reminded her of her situation being away from her kids. She nailed it. Great song choice for her! VOTE.

So here I am again tonight voting for way more than I like to, but I can't narrow it down on my own. Here is who I chose:

Top Females: Kendall Beard and Lil Rounds

Top Males: Ju'not Joyner, Scott MacIntyre and Jorge Nunez

I went straight from Idol over to ABC to check out Part Two of the After the Final Rose. I HAD to know just what in the WORLD Jason and Molly were thinking. It's been six weeks since he dumped Melissa. She stayed home, but sent a note to Our Host Chris Harrison that she is doing well and believes everything happens for a reason. Jason and Molly are still dating, and Molly is getting ready to move to Seattle to spend more time with Jason and Ty. They are still making out on the couch. And the producers gave them a little "Parting Gift" - the tent that they spent the night in.

The best news of the night was when they announced who the next Bachelorette will be - JILLIAN! So my Husband was right - I will watch again beginning in May! And I am sure he'll be sitting right there beside me!

The Bachelor Finale

So tonight was the episode we have been waiting for FOR MONTHS. It had been called "The most DRAMATIC ending in the history of The Bachelor". Dramatic? Yes. Disappointing? Even more so.

I was really looking forward to this season. I thought Jason got a raw deal with Deanna. Over the course of the season my opinion of him changed. A LOT. Many weeks I found myself having to find something else to "busy myself" with while he made out with every girl on the set. I know this is a dating show, but could we have just a little bit of class?

I was really excited that he chose Melissa. I was for Stephanie at first, and for her sake I'm happy he sent her home now. He wasn't good enough for her. I don't think it helped to ease the hurt any for Melissa that they didn't have a studio audience present when he dumped her. HELLO! You are still on NATIONAL TELEVISION. But the MOST class-less act (in my opinion) this evening is Molly. I would have told the jerk "that ship has sailed" my friend. You made a BAD decision, live with it.

I guess I'll have to tune in again tomorrow night, to see what they have up their sleeve next. I told Larry I would never watch this show again. He countered right back that yes, I would. He's probably right! I'm a sucker for romance...