Merry Ho, Ho, Ho!!!

Photos will come later this week, when I can sit down, go through them, and find one or two that are in focus, illustrate the joy and happiness of our holiday, and don't make me look like I've eaten six meals a day for the past three days! (Although, yay, me! I was DOWN 2.4 lbs at Weight Watchers yesterday!)

We spent Christmas Eve here at my house, with my sister C and her 2 children (who were 1-1/2 hours late), C's boyfriend T and his son R, and my mom. Our neighbors stopped by to say hello and deliver some gift cards - you were ALL WAY TOO GENEROUS! I have a lot of shopping to do on my week off!

We went to Christmas Eve Midnight Mass at 10:30pm. (Does that bother anyone else like it bothers me? Even the Pope celebrated Midnight Mass at 10-something pm. That really ticks me off!)

On Christmas Day we woke up, I put the ham in the oven, all 13.89 pounds of it, we showered and waited around for DSD M to come up from her mom's. We went to my sister-in-law's house where we watched them open their presents - they were late this year! Then we snacked on bagels and cold cuts for a quick 1/2-hour and Jack and I and M returned home by way of my mom's to pick her up, and we opened presents, then ate dinner. M's fiancee S stopped by en route to his dad's house so we got to celebrate with him, too, for a little while.

Santa was very good to me - lots of little presents, with many to open, just the way I like it! I don't want one big present that ends the day as soon as it begins! I'd rather get a bunch of stocking stuffer gifts, all wrapped and put under the tree for distribution and unwrapping, so that Christmas lasts a long time!

Come back and visit in a few days, when I post my pictures!

Miss you all and wish we could have celebrated the holiday together!

Christmas Paperback Trees

I made one of these! (If you go to the original page you can see the awesome glitter on the edges of the trees!) I will take a picture of mine and upload it here next week (well, sometime after the holiday!). LOVE this idea! I just happened to have a trashy romance novel just lying around that had no socially redeeming characteristics, and lo and behold! It became a treasured holiday decoration!!!

http://wendysmedley.typepad.com/possibilities/2009/11/kayla-aimee---sample-lesson.html

1/2 an Hour to Christmas Vacation

It's 3:25pm on Tuesday, 12/22. My Christmas vacation starts at 4:00pm. I'm off until Monday, 01/04/10.

I never took a vacation like this until last year. It was the first time I was off the entire holiday season with Jack, the first time EVER, actually. And I LOVED it! I really liked not knowing what day it was 'cause I didn't have a computer in front of my face 8 hours a day. I liked trying to figure out if I had to be anywhere that day 'cause I didn't know what day it was!!!

I'm so looking forward to having to arrange my day around Live with Regis and Kelly, The View, Dr. Phil and all my evening shows, Castle, Criminal Minds, CSI New York, The Mentalist, America's Funniest Home Videos, Extreme Home Makeover, Desperate Housewives, and Brothers and Sisters. And I hope to be in front of the TV often enough to watch any episodes of HouseHunters I may have missed, and to find out exactly when they're airing What Not to Wear. Say Yes to the Dress is another favorite.

I know. You're disappointed in me. No Public Television, no History Channel (unless there's something good on) - just lots of junk TV and HGTV and TLC. For variety we'll throw in some Food-TV and Discovery, and who wouldn't want to watch something on ABC Family?!

Don't worry - Ms. Book Addict has a stack of books up at the lake just waiting to be read, and I hear some scrapping projects calling my name.

But I have to admit, I'm looking forward to rotting my brain - nay, I'm planning to rot my brain from tonight at 4pm until 8:30am Monday, 01/04, except for a few hours daily of actual thinking and planning (just so I don't forget how!).

Might even try a couple of recipes I've always wanted to try...

Well, it's 3:36pm and I have to go and work for the next 24 minutes!

More over the holidays! Happy Christmas to All!!!

Two-and-a-half more days...

... until I can start wearing real shoes, without my favorite fashion accessory, the black broken-pinkie-toe-boot!

The doctor had told me to wear it 2-3 weeks. I went with 3, to be safe. Yesterday and today, it really feels good - a bit stiff, but less painful and I seem to be walking more normally.

I finally got a tree - 7-1/2' and artificial, but it's not.a.pigmy.tree!!! I was so tired of small live trees to replant at the lake or my little 5' tree... I'm a Christmas person and I wanted a Christmas TREE! Not a Christmas bush!

I'm in the midst of decorating it - will post pictures when I have them!

We'll be at the lake over the holidays - I'm off from 12/23 until 01/04 (YAY!) and will be shopping for a laptop, using a borrowed one in the meantime! So I'll be online over the holidays!

Well, gotta run! Toodles!

BORING!

So nothing is really going on...

I'm still limping.

I'm nowhere NEAR done/started with my Christmas shopping.

OH!!!

We bought a Christmas tree last night, so I'll be doing some decorating this weekend!

AND we went to the N Family Christmas Party this past Sunday. The 50th year in a row (I've only been going for about 15 years...)!!! One of the cousin's sons put together a slide show, about 150-200 photos of the family dating back to the early 1900s. Considering the youngest aunt is 80, YOU do the math!!! There were photos of her as a baby, and photos of her parents when her oldest sibling was born!!!

I swear. I could have sat for five hours and watched that slide show! I only wish there were 500 MORE photos for me to look at!!

Remember way back when, I mentioned that I was working on a Christmas photo album, sort of a scrapbook of December? (Or at least, I THINK I mentioned it...)

Yea, right. No way. I've printed out all the prompts. I've not taken a single photo, except for maybe 4 or 5 at the party. I have to take a picture of my decorated limping shoe, too, and start - better late than never, right???

Well, gotta run and do some more online shopping - if I don't get it online this year, you're most likely not getting it at all!!!

Have you ever???

Copy, paste, and bold what you have done!

Have you ever.....

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been to Key West, FL
4. Vacationed in Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/Disney World (both of them - lucky me!!)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo or played a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Gone rollerskating
15. Adopted a child
16. Gambled in Vegas
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (when I was younger, that was the ONLY way I took a sick day!!! Now I have to waste them when I'm actually sick!!!)
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon (yea, right!)
28. Worked at a Cannery or Welfare Farm
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Played an instrument (does it count to have taken piano lessons for one month?!?)
32. Been on a cruise (several!!!)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Acted in a play or performed on stage (in elementary school)
38. Been to Italy
39. Gone river rafting
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke (and I never will!)
42. Seen ‘Old Faithful’ geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Gone water skiing
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Been to Japan
50. Rode a horse
51. Gone snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Sailed a boat (not sailed, exactly, rowed and motored - does that count?!?)
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Surfed
57. Started a business
58. Visited the Great Wall of China
59. Lived in a foreign country
60. Delivered Meals on Wheels or Served at a Soup Kitchen
61. Snowmobile or snow skiing - I went snow skiing once, and that was enough!
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Gone ice skating
67. Bounced a check - I was in college
68. Flown in a helicopter - no, but I really want to!
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy - I have my stuffed bear and my stuffed leopard from my dad
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar - yes, but I didn't like it!
72. Knit, crochet, sew, or quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job - yes, they closed the company down
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone - I'm wearing my special, attractive boot right now!!!
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle - not a speeding one...
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper or been on TV
86. Visited the White House
87. Been stung by a bee
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous (Sarah Ferguson, Nancy Reagan, Ann Margret, Donald Trump, Danielle Steel, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Vanna White, Richard Simmons, Jackie Collins, and a whole bunch of famous authors)
92. Joined a book club
93. Had to put someone you love in Hospice Care
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Eaten sushi - California roll, only, and I didn't like it!
99. Won the lottery - not the MegaMillions, well, not yet anyway! But a few dollars here or there!
100. Read an entire book in one day - just one??? Heck, yea!! That's easy!

Pick Me, Stephanie, Pick Me!

The Mother of All Giveaways

Oh, would I just LOVE to win this contest!

Stephanie Howell is a mom, a scrapper, and a military wife. She's a good person, a good mom, a good wife. I've never met her but do you want to know how I know? I read her blog, http://stephaniehowell.typepad.com/.

This week she's doing a contest, along with 10 other awesome bloggers, to give away a Craft Desk from The Original Scrapbox (oh, would I love to have one of those, too!).

By blogging about it, and in turn, letting you all know about the contest, I get a couple of extra entries! Hope it works!

The other bloggers who are participating, by the way, are:
http://lifeaslou.blogsome.com/
http://www.vanillajoy.com/
http://priscillastyles.blogspot.com/
http://capadiadesigns.blogspot.com/
http://craftymakes.blogspot.com/
http://nicholegiles.blogspot.com/
http://auntiethesis.blogspot.com/
http://parkcitygirl.blogspot.com/
http://lovelylittlehandmades.blogspot.com/
http://elizabethkartchner.blogspot.com/

Am off to post my contest entries!

One down, nine to go...

So I have 10 toes. If one's broken, and it's only my right pinkie toe, I don't really need it anyway, right? I have nine more! In fact, my sister said they could amputate it and I'd never even miss it!

Jack's Aunt Anna died last Monday. Because of the holiday and traveling issues (a lot of her family had to come from Texas), they delayed the wake and funeral to Friday and Saturday. My first thought was that although we'll miss her and it's terribly sad that she died, and sadder still that it's over a holiday that her family has to deal with this loss, she's finally with Uncle Nat and maybe, just maybe, she's not so cranky anymore. She's been one unhappy camper for the last eight or nine years, ever since her husband died. She missed him something fierce. So now, even though we've lost her, she's back with Uncle Nat and she's finally happy again.

Anyway, the wake was Friday night. We went to the lake and came home early to shower and get ready to go and pay our respects. That night I asked Jack to wake me at 7am so I'd have time to shower and get ready for the 8:30am service at the funeral home without rushing. I overslept. I'd like to blame Jack and say that he didn't wake me after the alarm went off (which I ignored 'cause it went off at our usual 5:50am and he shut it off), but he says he woke me and I said, "Okay, just another minute" and proceeded to sleep another 20 minutes or so.

I got up and when I realized how late it was I started scrambling and somehow I was taking a step forward with my right foot at the same time that I was pulling the bedroom door closed toward me. OW! I went right to my knees!

But being the trooper I am, I powered on and showered, dressed and drove to the funeral home. We went in separate cars 'cause Jack wasn't going to go to the repast after the cemetary service, and I was. By the time he changed his mind and we were en route in two cars to the repast, I was realizing that my shoe was feeling a bit tight. I sat down at the restaurant, ate a good meal, socialized with the cousins, and when we were leaving around 2:30 or 3:00, I decided it would be a pretty darned good idea to visit the Immedicenter and have them look at my toe.

I'd always hoped to hear "Congratulations, it's a girl!" rather than "Congratulations, you have a broken toe!"

But after three x-rays, it was confirmed. I broke my toe. And as I'm sure we all know, you can't do anything for a broken pinkie toe but buddy tape it to its neighbor and hope for the best. So I'm taped, and she did give me a very attractive black boot to wear for two to three weeks. I'm stylin' now!!!

Anyway, other than that, Thanksgiving was nice. Mom was home but spent the day with my sister at said sister's boyfriend's house. Just to play with her head, I told her we were all waiting dessert for her, and why didn't she ask C or T to drive her to my SIL's house? After a VERY brief moment of silence, she said she knew I was pulling her leg and she moved on... Well, I thought it was funny!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday - lots of family, food and fun, and (private joke to come!) I sure hope your oven worked and your pies remained intact!!!

Happy Turkey Day, in advance!!!

Today is the day before Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays of the year, primarily because to me, it's the start of "The" holiday season! Here's how it goes:

1. Thanksgiving - November 20-something
2. My birthday - December 18
3. Christmas Eve - December 24
4. Christmas Day - December 25
5. New Year's Eve - December 31
6. New Year's Day - January 1

I start at Thanksgiving weekend - writing out Christmas cards and decorating the house. And it really doesn't ever stop until it's time to take the decorations down on Valentine's Day. (Just kidding, although some years my fake tree has stayed up for quite a long time into January simply because of time constraints...)

I'm almost never in a bad mood in December - how can I be? I love the cold, I love snow, and I love Santa! And December has all three, most of the time! This year the weather has been a bit strange - it was almost 60 degrees the other day - who knows whether we'll get some winter weather or not this year - I hope we do - but I'm afraid Santa might be wearing Bermuda shorts as he comes down our street this Christmas Eve!

Well, gotta run - time to start the cooking!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!!!

I apologize in advance.

I'm sorry.

I'm just not a Twilight/New Moon fan (sorry, Miss Hope!).

I haven't seen the first movie, won't see the second. I'll probably watch them when they hit TV or someone I know lends me the video, just to see what all the hoopla is.

I read the first book. And I read the second book.

And I just wasn't thrilled.

Here's why (and I really do have real reasons!!!):

These books were written for teenage girls. While I admit that Stephanie Meyer did a great job of putting Bella's typical teenage angst into words, I have a BIG, HUGE, MONSTROUS problem with how much of this appeared in the books:

• "I'm not pretty enough for Edward."
• "I'm not smart enough for Edward."
• "He's so much better than me."
• "He's so much more handsome than I am pretty."
• "He could never like me."
• "I have nothing to offer Edward."
• "Why would he like me?"
• and on and on, ad nauseum.

Again, teenage girls feel this way on their own. I didn't see enough of the epiphany in the books, the times that Bella realized that yes, damn it, she IS good enough to date Edward! He's pale and sickly looking, for crying out loud! (Sorry, I digress!)

I would rather Ms. Meyer addressed Bella's insecurities but made the thrust of the story how she realized that yes, indeedy, she WAS good enough, smart enough, pretty enough, for Edward. That she had BUCKETLOADS to offer, that any young teenage vampire (or normal human) male would be lucky, honored to be her beau!

Bottom line, I just wish there was a little more emphasis on helping teen girls NOT feel so inferior or not good enough, instead of overwhelming the reader with her inferior status!

Yea, I get it, I know how the stories end. But it takes 4 LOOOOOONG books to get there, and quite honestly, speaking as a HUGE Harlequin romance fan who really believes in the happy ending, I like stronger girl characters in my stories, not such wimpy ones.

I'm officially overwhelmed!

I'm taking three online Xmas scrapping classes - and I can only scrap on the weekends! I will try my darndest to keep on top of the photos and the journaling and the note-taking and list-making, and hopefully I'll be able to have a finished product at the end of the season (or, let's face it) at the beginning of the next season!

Spent all weekend in the hospital with my husband's 93-year-old aunt. Aunt Fanny literally looks like she's in her late 60s or early 70s. My girlfriend has a theory that being cranky keeps you young!! She's been falling a lot and refusing to use a scooter or a wheelchair - why? Because in her youth she made fun of people in wheelchairs (according to the rest of the family) and now doesn't want to be on the receiving end of what she dished out years ago! If you can't take it...

There's also some tension in the family among some relatives of the husband - I think it will all shake out in the end and resolve itself, but suffice to say that some people should just butt out of other people's business!!! 'Nough said!


My niece C is 8 weeks along and her due date is June 28th. How exciting!!! I think I'll have to do some baby shopping this weekend!!! Or even tonight before we see her, if I can squeeze it in...

One photo I owe you...

Blackberry Mint Tea, poured over ice.

I have nothing else to say but, "MMM, GOOD!"

We ate in Alexandria at the Jamieson Grill in the Westin on Courthouse Square.

I did everything but lick the plate.

I had the Salt and Pepper Calamari for an appetizer. Now keep in mind that (1) I don't eat the tentacles, and (2) I only eat it fried with spicy sauce for dipping. They delivered a platter that looked a bit light in color, and I was worried it wouldn't be cooked all the way through (to me there's nothing worse than under - or over - cooked calamari). My God, I wished I hadn't offered to share with my boss and my client! It was SO delicious, tender, served with smoked salt (for dipping) and green peppercorn aioli. I chowed down and ate it all. Except, I admit, the one tentacle they included on the platter...

Then for lunch I had the Jamieson Crab Cake Sandwich: a "crispy crab cake , old bay aioli, buttery brioche roll." It was too small. Not in real life, just for my appetite once I tasted it! It was the perfect size for lunch if you wanted to be full but not feel guilty for overeating. But it was so delicious that I wanted it to be twice the size!

And the star of the show, as pictured above, Blackberry Mint Tea, sold under the heading "Healthful Tonics and Teas." It was served hot, steeping over a pitcher of ice, with a glass of ice and a shot of simple syrup to sweeten it, if you so desired. I didn't personally find it necessary to sweeten the tea (I had it both ways, with and without the syrup), but then again, I'm an "unsweetened iced tea" sort of gal. I SO regretted not bringing my camera; I really wanted a picture of the way they served it, on a bamboo tray... Thank goodness Andi, my client, apparently never leaves home without her camera so she shot it and forwarded it to me this weekend! (And check out the teabag! Instead of a boring 'ole tag, it's a silk bag with a fabric tea leaf on the end!)

It takes so little to make me happy: food, drink, good company...

More later this week!

I'm going to be an aunt!!!

My niece C on hubby's side just announced she's pregnant!

YAY! She's newly pregnant; her doctor hasn't even seen her yet. He said to wait until she's at least 9 weeks pregnant. I think she said the online calendar/calculator put her due date somewhere around June 26th-ish so she's, what, minutes pregnant??!! But we're happy for her, that's for sure! Nervous for her, but happy! She had to immediately go and get the swine flu shot which scared everyone, but it's definitely recommended for moms-to-be. She catches colds so easily - with a headache on Tuesday she couldn't even take an Advil...

Already asked her if I could be called "Cioci" by her baby, instead of Great Aunt Krys (which, thankfully, C knocked right out - "you'd NEVER be Great Aunt anything, Krys!") and she agreed. Thanks, C!!! I have such great warm memories of MY Cioci Eliza and I still get a special flutter in my heart when my sister's kids call me Cioci - a new baby to call me Cioci?!?!? Yes, please!!!

My sister-in-law is thinking about what she wants the baby to call her - she does NOT want to be "grandma." AT.ALL. Personally, I like "grandma" but still want to be Babci if my stepdaughter ever gets pregnant. Babci is grandma in Polish - no idea what Jack would want to be called... he's still getting used to "his" baby being engaged - a grandbaby? We can't even conceive of that right now, in our house! (Well, HE can't!!!)

So swamped at work that I haven't had time to post any photos; I know I owe you a few... Will get to it when I can (maybe this weekend???)...

In A.C....

We're here in Atlantic City for a credit union seminar. Jack has some meetings scheduled for today - one this morning, another after lunch. We're at Harrah's, in the Waterfront Tower, and the rooms are quite nice. I'll take some photos and download them later this week, if time allows.
Forgot to take any photos in Alexandria last week, but had a beautiful mini-suite at the Sheraton in Old Town. My meetings went quite well, better than expected, actually. Although we didn't spend hours and hours at each, I think we came up with some good marketing ideas, ideas that if we really do implement them, will help some of my key accounts to build their business. And in this BO economy, I'll take whatever comes my way!

Halloween is not one of my favorite holidays. We were home Saturday night, but between the neighborhood we live in and the fact that our lights were off, we didn't have any trick-or-treaters. We had some candy ready, but will be donating it to the local food pantry at Thanksgiving, along with some other canned goods... I don't even remember liking Halloween all that much as a child. I guess I did, my mom never said I hated it or anything, but I can't even remember any costumes I wore... The holiday just never really stood out in my mind.

That said, I DO remember eating candy so I KNOW I went trick-or-treating, but my more vivid memories are of going to the circle on Route 23 in Riverdale (the circle is not there anymore) and buying a bag or a basket or a bushel of fresh-picked apples with my mom and dad, and sisters, once they came along. I can still smell the apples, and see their shiny red skins...

Happy Belated Halloween to all my ghoul-loving friends and family! Reving myself up for Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!

P.S. Send congratulations to my sister P - she just got herself a NEW red Honda Element! She SO deserves it! (I'm just sorry she had to be in a car accident to get it! Thank God she's okay, but poor Percy (may her 1990 Civic rest in peace!) was totaled!

So far, so good...

I'm in Alexandria, VA, on a business trip with my boss. I have 2 meetings left; we've met with 3 of my accounts so far. Surprisingly, even though we didn't do any product presentations, even though we're not taking home orders for thousands of books, we've accomplished "some stuff."

We have an in now with an account that historically doesn't buy books from other vendors; they only resell their own publications. Well, they're involved with an education initiative that is directly related to one of our books - they're going to buy 500 copies!

And while following up on my emails, I got a lead on another potential order of 500 copies of another title, for another account.

Having a laptop and/or internet access is a HUGE help. Even though I can't accomplish everything, without access to our titlebase, I am able to stay on top of my emails and my voicemail aned that's BIG. This is the first time I've borrowed a company laptop, and I'll keep it as long as I can!

Heard some great things about my job performance and what people think of me, people who, by the way, I am not convinced I like... Her opinion of me surprised me; I didn't think that she was that observant... And another ex-co-worker had lunch with our CEO and told him she knew me and that I was an asset to the company... Thanks, Claudia!

It's been raining for, it seems, 40 days and 40 nights... Okay, seriously, it's been raining for about 4 days and 4 nights... Just seems like 40!!! Today the sun came out around lunchtime. I tell you, these days I'm convinced I suffer from some type of Seasonal Disorder. The sun came out after lunch today and all I wanted to do was raise my face to it and soak in the rays!

Mom's old friend Elaine called - all three of her children are (gasp!) married, AND there are three grandchildren!! OMG!!

Well, it's about 11:22pm and I sill have to take out my contacts, wash my face and go to bed. Last night I crashed about 11:20, fell asleep until 12:22am, then fell asleep again, woke up again at 5:04am, and then dozed on and off until 7am.

Toodles!

How many days 'til Christmas?

Okay, it's been almost 20 years that I've been with my husband, counting pre-marriage, and I've ALWAYS been the Christmas ringer-inner! The holiday had some not-so great memories for him during and immediately after his divorce.

But I've always been such a Christmas baby, totally unrelated, by the way, to the fact that my birthday is a week before Christmas! I decorate whatever stays still long enough to have tinsel attached!

But today, October 25th, TWO MONTHS BEFORE Christmas, my darling husband is outside hanging Christmas lights on our lakeside deck. We spent ten minutes deciding colored bulbs or white icicles. Although white lights are my favorite, I went with colored bulbs 'cause Jack likes them...

We just went outside to check them out - and except for a couple places where we have to clip them up closer to the railing, we're on our way to being decorated for Christmas! Well, we're on our way to starting our Christmas decorating...

My SIL and BIL are in Puerto Rico, relaxing in what I hope is much warmer weather than we're having here in NJ. They deserve a restful vacation - there's a lot of stress in their lives and I hope they have a GREAT few days!

I leave on Tuesday for Alexandria, VA, on business, not for fun. It's a nice town, one I always enjoy visiting. We're having at least two VERY important meetings, along with a few "meet and greet" ones, and for sure, I don't have busy 10 hour days planned. We'll have quite a bit of free time... I'm borrowing a laptop from work so I can stay on top of my emails, at least... although my message will clearly say I have "limited" access to email and I'll refer them all to Customer Service unless it can wait until Friday, when I return... It's just too hard to stay on top of everything when you don't have all you need at your fingertips...

I'll be staying in the Sheraton Suites in Alexandria; they have some beautiful hotel rooms, that's for sure! I'll post some pictures next week (or over the weekend).

I picked up some fabric scraps from my mom so I can practice my sewing. I also will be hemming an old sheer curtain for our 2nd floor bath so it doesn't have to hang down into the tub.

I've completed a page in my art journal - I had started it before but I didn't like it so I painted over it and started again. I even added some paint to some other pages, so that I'm not looking at a totally blank canvas - that can be intimidating. It was fun getting paint all over me!

Well, more while I'm away...

Photos - as promised!!!

In no particular order...


Sean, me, Maria, and Jack


Jack and me


Jack, Maria, Sean, and me

Darling daughter and dad!

Cutting the cake (practice makes perfect!)

The flower arrangements I made - 2 or 3 per table, on average

Artistic & Creative: I Am!!!

A few years ago I NEVER would have used the words "artistic" or "creative" to describe myself. And I'm still not comfortable with them. But today they apply a heck of a lot more than they did way back when.

I picked up scrapbooking several years ago, when I became unemployed. I wouldn't recommend this: no income? Scrapping stuff? They don't go together. One needs money to buy stuff...

And lo and behold, I really liked some of the pages I created. Not all of them, but some of them. And that's okay.

And I found Donna Downey. What a creative genius! And she makes it all look so easy.

So I tried.

I bought an art journal kit from her months ago. It required sewing. No one had a working sewing machine so I carried that kit from room to room, convinced some day I'd start on it.

And I did. Last weekend.

I'm STILL not happy with my first page, which admittedly is a work in progress: I put some color on the page, liked it, and fell into the old trap: if I like it now, I'll like it more with more paint! And I don't. So I'm going to re-create my first page this weekend, but for now, here's what I've created so far!

And THANK YOU, DONNA!!! For helping me find my creative and artistic self!!!

(I sewed this!! On my new sewing machine! I'm feeling so inspired!!!)

Sewing, Sewing, Gone!

I sew.

Doesn't that sound cool? I sew.

I took exactly one 4 week sewing class in, oh, 7th or 8th grade. Which for the record, was REALLY long time ago!!! I made a bodysuit (remember them?!?!) according to a pattern. The sleeves were too short and I had to put fake cuffs on them so I didn't have 3/4 sleeves (which was not what the pattern called for!).

Well, I bought an art journal kit from Donna Downey. Here's the link: art journal. Now, that's not the pattern I chose, but Donna's kits sell out really fast! Anyway, I've had it for a few months now, probably close to six months! This past week, not that I had anything else to do, what with the engagement party and all, this past week hubby and I went to Wal-Mart and bought a Singer Sewing Machine for me. I figured that, worst case scenario, I'd try to sew this journal, try to shorten the curtain for the bathroom window, and then, when I failed miserably, I could just return the machine, nothing lost.

My journal came out AWESOME!!! (I will be posting a picture of THAT, too, later this week!) I had to sew a piece of printed cotton, wrong side to wrong side, to a piece of canvas. I had to leave a 4" gap, turn it right-side-out, starch and iron it, sew the elastic loop closure into the gap, add the button, then bind the pages in with the ribbon Donna included in the kit.

It came out so well - I was shocked at how cool it was! I can't wait to create in it. I can't wait to show it off. I know, to those of you who make your own clothes or sew your own slipcovers, this is nothing. But to me?

WOW!!!

Post Party Wrap Up

The engagement party was lovely! Everything went smoothly, no great crisis, no collapsing tables or inter-family arguments!

My only problem: I was too busy playing "hostess with the mostest" to get pictures. So I'm waiting for my friends G&M to forward the photos they took to me - which came out beautifully, from what I saw on the little camera screen!

I took a couple, mostly of daughter and future son-in-law, but of course, being me, I remembered to bring the camera but forgot the USB cable so I can't download them right now.

I promise: photos in a day or two!!!

The food was delicious. And I didn't know this, but the staff wrapped it all up and sent the leftovers home with us! The party lives! I don't have to cook all week!!! (They must have heard me telling Sean's family that the closest thing to being a chef for me is my maiden name (Cook, for those of you who don't know!).

Everyone looked beautiful. Boy, do we all clean up well! And my niece? GORGEOUS!

The favors worked out well, and the flower arrangements were a real hit. They did come out nice, if I say so myself! (Maybe I can retire and work in a flower shop...)

Anyway, photos and more to come, I promise!