Weir Living a Wonderful Life

Latest Obsession

2012-01-27T15:58:00.000-08:00

I've always loved Yardley soaps. I know, I know - they are considered 'cheap' soaps by some, but I love them! They cleanse your skin without stripping it, and they always smell so fresh and clean; like laundry on the clothesline.

Until now, Oatmeal Almond has been my #1 fave scent, but just after Thanksgiving, I discovered Winter Spice. Mmmmmmmm. I wish this blog had 'smellivision',but alas, it does not! The scent is warm and a bit spicy without being overly 'baked goods-ish'. It's a scent that can be used year-round, and definitely will be!

Initially, I bought two bars of the soap. It's hard milled so it lasts a long time (which is great - can you believe how expensive bath soap has gotten?! These little babies are a bargain at just $1.00 a bar) I opened the second box the other night and put it in the shower. Kevin commented that he really liked the soap, too, and I decided to high tail it back over to Big Lots to stock up before it goes away (it's a limited edition scent - seasonal for the holidays). Whew - glad I did! They had just 12 bars left and I bought every one. Hopefully it will last us through the year until it makes is re-appearance around Thanksgiving.

Hmmm...just in case, maybe I should check out a few more Big Lots!

In Loving Memory

2012-01-27T15:33:00.000-08:00

(I've tried to write this many times over the last month, but just haven't been able to do so. These few words will never begin to cover my thoughts and feelings of the events over the last couple of months; nor will they touch how much I miss my mom and how much I loved her. Words alone could never be enough.)

On December 21st, the unthinkable happened: my beautiful, loving, caring, generous, amazing mom passed away.

It's still so surreal that I can't quite wrap my head around it. It's unfathomable, really. How does one go from alive and (mostly) well in October, to passing away in December with a horrible infection that stemmed not from the initial injury, but from poor care in a facility that's supposed to help you recover and get back to your life?

Mom was such a fighter. She kept her spirits and sense of humor up as long as she could. Near the end, she was suffering so much she just couldn't take it any longer. The Sunday before she passed away, we'd gone to visit her in the hospital before we picked up dad from the rehab facility to come home. When Kevin and I walked in the door, mom smiled and said she was glad to see us and that she wanted to talk to all of us. I knew then and there what she was going to say - and she did. She told us all that she loved us very much, but that she was ready to go. It was just too much for her to continue to fight. One day she'd be a bit better, then the next, much worse. She just needed the rollercoaster ride to end.

That Tuesday we brought her home with hospice care. By the time mom arrived, she was mostly sleeping by benefit of morphine. But when they brought her in the house, we said "Mom, you're home. Welcome home!", and she opened her eyes and had a huge grin on her face. She knew she was home, safe, and with the people who loved her the most. That night, we all had dinner together at the house with mom right there in the middle of things. We shared dinner as well as stories and laughter. The next morning at about 6:30, the hospice nurse phoned to say that mom's blood pressure had dropped and her breathing was faint. Kevin and I walked in the door at 6:50 and she had just passed.

I'm so sad to have lost my mom. She was truly a very special woman; a friend as well as a mother. However, I'm so grateful to God that her suffering is over. She deserves to be happy and pain-free, and that's exactly what she is now.

This past Sunday, we had mom's memorial service. It was wonderful to have so many family and friends there to share such a special event. It meant the world to all of us.

Mom, I know you know it, but I just want to say that I love you with all my heart. How thankful I am to have years and years of wonderful memories of you and our life together. Thank you for always being there for me; for loving me even when I wasn't lovable; for teaching me how to live and to love, and how to make it in this crazy world with a positive attitude and boundless sense of humor. Though we're apart now, I know that one day we'll be together again. God willing, it's a long ways off, but I'm looking forward to seeing you and catching up. In the meantime...how's the email server in Heaven?

Power

2011-12-12T21:57:00.000-08:00

"Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe."

Voltaire

Over the last several weeks, I've been witness to countless aspects of power and it's varied consequences in our lives. If you think about it, "power" is really an amazing concept. It encompasses so many different sources and a nearly endless array of outcomes. It can be both good and bad - often at the same time. Let me show you what I mean:

Power: Good v Evil
Last week, a terrible injustice was perpetrated against someone we know. A local School Board called a last moment 'emergency' meeting to discuss the dismissal of a Principal. The meeting was very hush-hush, and was called in such haste that is was clear to those close to the matter that something was amiss. The Principal in question has been a long-time district employee who has both taught at this particular school, and whose children attended the same school as well. She is well liked by students and staff alike, and has dedicated many years of service to the community she represents. Those 'in the know' felt that charges being made against the Principal were baseless and the issue really stemmed from a personal vendetta of one particular Board member. Though I'm sure not what they expected, at the meeting, the Board faced an angry gallery that was filled with parents, staff and students who supported the Principal - many of whom spoke up on her behalf. After half-heartedly 'listening' to the attendees, the Board went behind closed doors to vote on whether or not to dismiss the Principal. It was no surprise to anyone that the Board voted not to renew the Principal's contract for next school year. Score: Evil 1, Good 0

Interestingly, this 'emergency' Board meeting took place just two days before a regularly scheduled meeting. At the regular meeting, one Board member retired, a new member was sworn in, and elections for Board positions took place. With the new Board member seated, and positions delegated, a new 'emergency' meeting was called for January to re-visit the dismissal issue. Though the outcome has yet to be determined, it's fair to say that most everyone believes the Board will rescind the dismissal and renew next year's contract for the Principal. Score: Even-Steven

Power: Mother Nature v 60-year Old Christmas Tree
Wednesday (or WINDSday as we now call it) November 30th brought the most powerful windstorm that's hit our area in a very, very long time. Winds up to 90 miles per hour ripped through local towns downing power lines and uprooting 60/80/100-year old trees - snapping them like they were twigs.

When all was said and done, our small town, as well as many others in the surrounding area, lost hundreds - literally - of majestic trees of all shapes and sizes. There was no rhyme or reason as to which trees were toppled and which remained - Mother Nature was indiscriminate in her fury. One particularly significant loss was our town Christmas tree. It's been standing at the north east corner of Library Park for 60 years. Each year it's decorated with lights and ornaments and we hold an official tree lighting ceremony and follow that with a town Christmas parade. This year the lighting ceremony and parade were to have taken place on Thursday, December 1st. Sadly, the Christmas tree was downed by the powerful winds and is no longer standing. Obviously the ceremony and parade were canceled. Here's a look before and after:

Heartbreaking. Score: Mother Nature 1, Tree 0

However, there is a bit of a bright spot: the local Home Depot has donated a 17-foot Cedrus Deodara to replace the tree we lost. Hey, at least it's a start! Score: Tree 1, Mother Nature - well, I'm not one to trifle with Mother Nature, but let's just say we didn't completely completely go down in a blaze of glory ;o)

Power: Super Bug v Super Antibiotic
I mentioned in my last post that mom came home from the care facility, but was still experiencing some difficulties. Shortly after I posted that, mom returned to the hospital - she was very, very ill.

As if the accident and surgery weren't enough, while in the care facility, she developed pneumonia which they treated with antibiotics. A couple of days before she was due to be released, she developed severe diarrhea. They treated her for a couple of days with Flagyl, but it did not subside. Still, in their 'ultimate wisdom', the care facility released her to come home - even with severe diarrhea (go ahead, ask me how I feel about this ... I double-dog dare ya!). Within a few days, mom had grown worse. The diarrhea still remained, and in fact had become even more severe, and she was terribly weak and short of breath - a sure fire sign that the pneumonia had not subsided either.

On Monday, November 28th, I took mom back to the hospital where she was admitted with pneumonia and a severe intestinal infection. She had an extremely elevated white blood cell count - 43,000, and they began treating her with antibiotics immediately. By Wednesday, her white blood cell count had soared even higher - 50,000 - and they told us that mom's intestinal infection was so severe, in order to survive, she would need surgery to remove her colon the following morning. They felt at that time that surgery was the only way she would be able to get rid of the infection. She had contracted Clostridium difficile; a 'super bug' so powerful, if not treated immediately and aggressively, it can cause death. We were stunned - shocked. How can this just keep spiraling out of control? That day, they started treating her with a brand new antibiotic that just hit the market in August. It's the first drug in 25 years that was created to specifically treat this particular infection. The following morning, we all gathered at the hospital early to be with mom before she went in to surgery. By the time we arrived, they'd already taken blood to do some lab work prior to the surgery; while we were talking to mom, the doctor came in and said that the lab work had improved significantly from the previous day. Her white blood cell count had dropped from 50,000 to 38,000; the new medication was definitely working!

It's been - and continues to be - a very long, slow process, but each day mom gets a little bit better. Currently, her white blood cell count is within normal limits, her vital signs are stable, and she's recovering. Score: Super Bug 0, Super Antibiotic 1

Power: The Awesomeness of God
Though not overtly 'religious', I'm definitely a believer - I always have been. But the last couple of months have really shown me the incredibly awesome power that is God. Most days I have my own casual conversations with God; thanking him for the many blessings in our lives - each other, our families, our jobs, food and shelter - the usual things. Lately, however, with the lives of two of the people I love the most dangling over the edge, my prayers to God have been different. Multiple times a day I find myself talking to God - praying for my parents' restored health; praying for the wisdom of the doctors treating their ailments; praying for the compassion of the nurses tending to their needs. These prayers are different; they are more direct in desire, and more complex in scope. I find that I'm praying to God for wisdom of my own; for the strength to give everything up to Him, as I know it should be, and to be at peace with His chosen results.

I've always known it - and somehow felt it, but recently I've witnessed first hand the power of prayer and the power and awesomeness of our loving God. By the grace of God, I am blessed. Score: God 1 - and really, that makes us all winners.

So Much to be Thankful For

2011-11-26T21:27:00.000-08:00

The day after my last post, our family had another near tragedy.

With mom away in the rehab center, dad was left at home all alone. Deb, Kevin and I had been going up a couple of times a week to check on him and calling him several times a day. Still, he hadn't been feeling well and hadn't been eating much and kept getting weaker. Friday morning on my way to work around 7:00 a.m., I called the house and there was no answer. It made me a bit uneasy, but I thought maybe dad was out getting the paper. I waited another five minutes and called again. This time, mom and dad's neighbor, Jose, answered the phone. He sounded frantic and said that he'd found dad in the driveway; he was curled up on his side and wasn't breathing. Jose said that 911 had been called and they were just pulling up. I told him I was on my way. I called Deb immediately and she made a quick dash into school to let them know there was a family emergency and she could not stay; she headed over right away. I called Kevin and he said he'd meet me up at the house.

Of course it would be raining that morning. Of course there would be a ton of traffic. Still, I made it up to the house in about 12 minutes or so. By the time I arrived, they already had dad loaded in the ambulance and they wouldn't let me see him. I knew by the look on everyone's face, it was grim. I began sobbing, got in the car and followed the ambulance to the hospital. I called Kevin and told him to meet me at the hospital instead of the house - I lost control and just sobbed into the phone.

When we arrived at the hospital, I insisted upon seeing dad. The ER doctor did try to stop me, but I marched past him anyway. Dad was laying on a gurney and did not look good. He was completely gray and his chest was sunken in. I leaned over and gave him a quick kiss before they rushed us out to keep working on him. Someone from the hospital - a social worker I think - escorted us to a private conference room. Kevin and I sat in there not knowing what was going to happen. We were both in a panic and crying. The doctor came in and asked what we wanted him to do. He said it did not look good and they didn't know if they'd be able to get dad to hang on. We told him to do whatever he had to do to keep him alive. At this point, Deb was still driving through traffic and hadn't yet arrived at the hospital. The doctor came in once again and told us that they'd inserted a breathing tube and had set up a dopamine IV; both things were keeping him going, but he was still in grave danger.

Deb arrived and we all waited in the conference room for the next update. The doctor came back in and told us that we could go in and see dad in a few minutes. The three of us huddled together and said a prayer. After several moments, we gathered together and went in to see dad. He still looked so pale and fragile just laying there in that gurney. Deb and I each took a hand and began talking to him. He was completely out - they'd also given him a sedative - but I still think that even in that compromised state you can hear what's going on. With that in mind, we just kept talking and talking. We told him how much we loved him, and what a great father he is. We told him he was a good man who'd lived a good life. We said that we didn't want him to leave us yet, but gave him permission to do so if that's what needed to happen. We took turns talking, and then talked at the same time. On and on it went.

Finally they told us that, though he was still in danger and they didn't know what to expect, he'd stabilized enough to be transferred to the Critical Care Unit upstairs. Up we went. As it turns out, he was placed in exactly the same room mom was in just a few weeks before. We affectionately dubbed it "The Maxwell Suite". We kept talking throughout the day and into the early evening. Around 6:30, dad began to try and open his eyes. We called the nurse in and she said that sometimes that just an involuntary reaction. She called his name and said "George, if you can hear me, hold up two fingers." HE DID! For another hour our so, he kept opening his eyes and looking around at Deb, Kevin and myself. He was agitated with the tube in his mouth and, had it not been for hand restraints, would have tried pulling it out. About 7:30, they asked us to leave the room for a while during the nurses' change of shift. When we got back an hour later, they'd sedated him again and said that he'd be out the rest of the night.

We called first thing in the morning before we left to go to the hospital to see if there was an update on his condition. The nurse said that he was awake, alert, responding to commands and seemed to be doing well. UNbelievable! By the time we arrived at the hospital, they'd removed the breathing tube (to which he responded: Well, that's better!) and he was breathing on his own and talking up a storm. He continued to improve over the next several days; his only complaint was that his chest hurt from the CPR the paramedics and docs in the ER had performed.

As it turns out, the reason the fire department would not let me see dad in the ambulance is because he'd crashed and they were certain that he'd passed away. En route to the hospital, they were able to resuscitated him - only to have him crash again while in the Emergency Room. When mom and dad's neighbors heard that he'd pulled through, they were astounded; they had been told that he'd passed away. I called the fire department that Sunday to let them know, too, that dad had pulled through; they couldn't believe it.

It's been a very long and emotional six weeks for our family. Both mom and dad have had some major obstacles to overcome - and are still in the long process of doing just that. However, at this point, they are both on the mend. Mom came home from the rehab center just this past Monday. She's still having difficulties, but is enjoying being back in her own home. Dad is now at the rehab center and will, hopefully, be coming home by the end of the week. It's a long and difficult road ahead. Deb and I were saying just this morning that it sometimes feels like mom is making a baby step in progress, and then a slide to two steps behind. We're still very concerned. Dad is really doing well. He's hoping to 'get his legs under him' and gain some strength so that he can be home soon.

Thank you for all of your kind wishes, words, thoughts and prayers. God is so good! Prayers do work, and miracles happen.

Mom Update

2011-11-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

First, let me say thank you all so much (!) for all of your kind emails with prayers and good thoughts for my mom. My family and I really appreciate it - it just means the world to us.

Mom is still in the rehab facility, but is progressing. Her wounds are healing nicely and most of the stitches in her forehead were removed this week. We've had a very difficult time with the facility with regards to getting appropriate care and communication, but we had a meeting with them the other day and things seem to be looking up. She's now getting physical therapy twice a day, which is making her stronger, and she's been able to eat more which is helping to build up her strength as well.

We have an appointment with the neuro-surgeon on Monday. Hopefully he'll give us a good report on how her neck is healing.

The closest estimate we have at the moment is that she may be released from the rehab facility in a week to a week and a half. The (GP) doctor phoned this afternoon and said that, based on her chest x-ray, they were putting her back on IV antibiotics as a precaution. The last thing she needs at this point is pneumonia!

Please keep mom in your prayers. God is good.

Little Green Men

2011-11-03T21:05:00.000-07:00

Kev's school had a Halloween costume contest on Friday. Hands down the most clever and creative costume of the bunch belonged to the trio of girls who were dressed up as the Green Army Men from the movie Toy Story.

Kevin said they walked around with something that looked like a skateboard, but when asked to 'strike a pose' the girls would drop the things and stand on them - their platforms! - and hold their pose.

Take a look (click on the photo to make it larger for a better view):

Too funny!

Ahoy Mateys!

2011-11-03T20:57:00.000-07:00

So ... remember the ship? Well take a look at the final product:

Isnt' it the coolest?!

Sunday morning we were going to breakfast with my mom-in-law, Vicky, and her brother, Bob who was visiting from El Paso. I asked Kev to drive us by the 'ship house' so we could see the progress. As you can see, they added a TON of stuff since the last set of pictures! First of all, they stained the natural wood to a darker finish. But the biggest additions are INside the ship. We parked the car and got out to take a closer look and, when we did, we happened to see the homeowners outside getting ready to begin work on their project for the day. We struck up a conversation about the ship and asked a lot of questions. For instance, there is a door in the side of the ship...

and I asked the homeowner if that's where the Trick-or-Treaters would come in to walk up to the door. She said that it actually led to the 'Treasure Chest'. She invited us in to take a look. DARN IT! I didn't have the camera with me - of course! But it was SO COOL! They had it all set up ala Pirates of the Caribbean. with lots of glistening treasures and skeletons of the unlucky souls who tried to hoist the sunken treasure. It was so much fun! We were all so impressed with the Treasure Chest that she invited us over to the other side of the ship's interior where the 'Voodoo Hut' was located. Amazing! It contained all sorts of bones and bats and shrunken heads - and a stone fireplace that looked pretty darn close to the real thing. We asked what it was made of and she said styrofoam! They have a styrofoam cutter that sort of melts the edges of the styrofoam to make whatever you're creating look more like 'the real thing'. Here's an example of the cut styrofoam (the ship's railing, not the skull):

After our tour, I asked her about how many Trick-or-Treaters they were expecting. She said that they've been doing this for 23 years and they're now up to about 1,000 Trick-or-Treaters! They have goodie bags for the smaller children, mardi gras beads for the teenagers, and candy for everyone. They will have family and friends dressed up as pirates on the ship handing out the loot. How fun is that?

You just gotta love the kids that never grow up ;o)

Knott Knott's .... who is there?

2011-11-03T20:30:00.000-07:00

For the boys' 8th grade promotion in June, mom and dad bought them tickets to Knott's Berry Farm. Well actually, they bought all of us tickets to Knott's Berry Farm! Somehow the summer escaped and we never quite made it there, but we still had through November 1st to use the tickets. Even though things have gotten a bit crazy lately, we didn't want to miss out on the generous gift from mom and dad, so we decided to meet at the Farm this past Saturday for a little bit of fun and relaxation.

We had such a great time! The boys have never been to Knott's Berry Farm and the rest of us hadn't been there in ... well, years - literally! It's changed a lot since the last time I was there - they've added quite a few roller coasters and thrill rides. On the one hand, Pat is a thrill-seeker who absolutely loves roller coasters. Drew, on the other hand, uh ... not so much. But it all worked out. We went on some rides together, and split up in various groups for other rides. Overall, everyone got to go on the rides they were interested in, and we had a great time together.

One of the best parts of the day was dining at Mrs. Knott's Restaurant. They have the best fried chicken dinners - YUM! We haven't been there in years either, so it was a fun treat. Saturday was Deb's birthday, too. I'd made her a birthday badge to wear for the day, and a cut-out that said 'Birthday Girl'. At the restaurant, I snuck a cupcake candle into her celebratory boysenberry sherbet, and we all sang Happy Birthday.

Thanks mom and dad, for treating us all to a fun family day!

Old Blue Eyes

2011-11-03T20:03:00.000-07:00

Several months back, we found a great deal on a 3-show pack of tickets to the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. Last Friday night we went to the first show: Come Fly Away. We didn't know too much about the show - other than it's a concept piece by Twyla Tharp, and it's based on the music of Frank Sinatra - so we weren't quite sure what to expect.

WOW. It was amazing!

The show is completely free of spoken word. It consists of a small jazz band on a riser on the stage, a nightclub-type set that stays the same throughout the entire show, and a troupe of dancers that are phenomenal. Though there's no spoken word, you know exactly what the story is just by listening to the choice of Sinatra song, and how the dancers move. I know, it sounds a bit out there, but trust me, it was phenomenal. The show was 80 minutes long with no intermission and it felt like we'd only been there about 30 minutes; it flew by quickly because we were so entranced. The band was fantastic! All of the Sinatra songs were mastered to contain only his voice; the band played the music to each song perfectly. The dancers were incredible - they made it look so easy ... but of course, it's not. As Kevin said, it didn't ever look as if they were even breathing hard.

Next up: Riverdance in mid-November, followed by Wicked in early December. We've seen Wicked before and can't wait to see it again. We haven't seen Riverdance, so I'm sure it will be fun. Or as Kevin says "First we see the full dance (Come Fly Away), then we see the waist-down dance (Riverdance), then we see the play (Wicked)." He has a way with words, doesn't he? ;o)

Just in time for Halloween ...

2011-10-25T20:00:00.000-07:00

a smashed pumpkin.

One week ago today, my mom went out to get the newspaper at 6:30 in the morning and fell. She leaned over and either lost her balance or slipped - either way she landed right on her head. Dad wasn't out there and she couldn't get up, so she crawled up to the garage on her hands and knees. She made it into the house and dad called 911. They took her to the emergency room with a huge gash in her head, all of the skin off her legs and knees, scraped up hands and a scraped shoulder. Dad called us and Kevin went to pick him up while I went on to the hospital.

The result was two broken vertebrae at the base of her skull which required surgery and 28 stitches on the gash in her head. She had surgery on Thursday and came through it just fine. The surgery consisted of inserting a screw through one of the vertebrae and putting it back into place; the other vertebrae did not require surgery but both with take quite some time to heal.

Currently, she is doing pretty well. The scrapes and gashes are beginning to heal, her facial swelling is mostly gone and she's a lovely shade of purply-yellow ;o) They've transferred her from the hospital to a rehab facility just across the street. We're thinking that she may be home by the weekend, but we're not certain at this point. She's getting physical therapy to build up her strength and help her walk (she's been off her feet for a week now and is fairly weak) and to help her adjust to the collar she will be required to wear for the next 10 weeks.

It's been a terribly frightening experience for everyone, but really, she was very lucky. The broken neck could very well have resulted in paralysis, so we're thanking God every day that that's not what happened. Mom said that when she fell, she could heard what sounded like a smashing pumpkin and realized that was her head. UGH.

I have no right to ask, but I'm going to anyway: If you're reading my blog, please keep my mother (and father who has not been feeling well, either) in your thoughts and prayers. I will be eternally grateful.

I'll Scratch Your Back, Don't Stab Mine

2011-10-17T19:00:00.000-07:00

(Caveat Emptor - Be very, very wary if you ever decide to make a purchase from this website: Backscratcherworld.com)

As sort of a gag gift for my sister, I wanted to buy her a backscratcher (pretend you didn't see this, Deb). I found what appeared to be a nice website that carried several different types of backscratchers at a reasonable price. The website indicated that each order included a 'free' backscratcher.

I decided on what looked to be a sturdy, durable model - priced at $14.95 - and placed my order. They promised fast shipping and, true to that statement, the order that I placed on 10/11/11 arrived today in a timely manner.

When I opened the box, I was disappointed to find just the backscratcher I'd ordered - no freebie. I called the number on the invoice in my order, and spoke with someone who had a very surly tone of voice. I explained why I was calling and she said "Did you put the free item in your cart?" I told her that I hadn't, not realizing that this was required. I did say that their website states that a free backscratcher is included with each order, so I didn't understand why I had to add it to the cart. Clearly irritated, she put me on hold.

A minute or two later, another voice came on the line. I was very nice and polite and told her that I'd received my order and the item arrived in perfect condition. I again mentioned that the order didn't include the free backscratcher that had been indicated on their website. With a tone of voice bordering on rude, she asked if I'd added the 'free' item to the cart. I explained that I had not, that I didn't realize I had to, but that their website did indicate a free backscratcher with every order. She told me that if I didn't add it, I wouldn't be getting it. I was shocked by the tone of her voice and her attitude!

I continued the conversation by politely asking her name - which she gave - and I asked her if she was the owner of the company. She said she was and that as such, she would do business any way she chose to. I can't tell you how taken aback I was. I said that I didn't understand how they could stay in business this way to which she replied "And I don't understand how YOU function!" I told her that I would be reporting her to the Better Business Bureau and she told me to "Go right ahead".

Unreal!! I've made hundreds and hundreds of online purchases and I've NEVER had anything like this happen. There have been times where items have arrived damaged; I've returned them with no problem. There have been times where I've received the incorrect merchandise; when I've notified the company, they rectify the situation immediately and tell me to keep the incorrect item. Whatever the problem has been - and honestly, there have been very few - every company that I've ever dealt with has handled it quickly, professionally and to our mutual satisfaction. Not this one. Not this time.

I did report her to the BBB, and I'm letting everyone I know to use extreme caution should you ever decide to order from this company.

My advice: stick with the world's best backscratcher:

The Great Race Place

2011-10-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Kevin and I 'trotted' off to Santa Anita - the Great Race Place! Mom and dad received some free tickets in the mail and were unable to go, so they offered them to us. We had a great time!

It was a beautiful day - not too warm, not too cool and lots of hazy sunshine. Having been to Santa Anita over the past couple of years and seeing how the crowd has really dwindled, we were so happy to see that there was a very nice crowd! When I was younger, my parents and grandparents went to the races often. At that time, there were very few off-track betting sites (of which there are many now) so the track was nearly always packed during the season. Watching the crowd lessen over the past couple of years has made me kind of sad, so I was thrilled to see more people in attendance yesterday.

How did we do? Well, let's just say we'll be reporting to work on Monday ;o) But we had a really fun time. This is was just the fall Oak Tree meet; we're looking forward to going back when the regular season opens in late December!

...and, I'm off! (but you already knew that ;o)

Do you remember these?

2011-10-15T08:02:00.000-07:00

Apparently these have become like fine diamonds and gold ... rare and terribly expensive!

These little Halloween treat sacks used to be a dime a dozen - literally. Around the first of October when everyone started filling their shelves with candy corn and other Halloween goodies, you'd find these cute goodie bags right along with them. Of course, those were the days before plastic became king.

The other day, one of our teachers brought in a catalog that she'd received in the mail. The catalog had all sorts of nostalgic, hard to find items. Two pages had old fashioned candies, which made me start thinking. For Halloween, I thought it would be fun to have a 'Retro Candy Day'. I found a site that has lots of favorites I remember from when I was growing up, so I sent the site to the staff and asked what they thought of the idea. There were many enthusiastic responses! Since it looks like it's a go, I thought it would be fun to bring a bunch of the classic Halloween goodie bags so everyone would have something to hold their treats.

Silly me, I thought I'd just be able to pop into Walmart and find the bags without any problem. Um. No. You know what you can find? Lots and lots and lots of plastic and cellophane bags. It's not that they're not cute, and I'm sure that one day we'll consider them retro, but they're just not the same thing. So I came home thinking I'd be able to find them online --- and I was right, you can. ...if you don't mind spending and arm and a leg!

I found some plain paper treat sacks and Michael's and ended up buying those, but I am SO disappointed. Not just because I couldn't find them to buy, but because it seems like that's just one more piece of my childhood that's gone by the wayside.

If you find any, please let me know.

One Hull-uva Ship

2011-10-13T19:39:00.000-07:00

I definitely know when it's getting close to Halloween around these parts. Not because of the falling leaves and chill in the air (uh, no chill here ... it was 100 degrees today!), but because the neighborhoods in our area begin decorating their houses to shiver the timbers of the young trick-or-treaters who will soon be making their way across the lawn and up to the front porches across city to fill their goodie bags with candy.

One of the neighbors whose house I pass every day on my way to work has decided to make a change this year. In past years, they've built a 'castle' in their driveway marking guidelines that all of the hob-gobblins follow along to reach their destination. This year, however, they've decided to build a ship. Or, rather, part of a ship. And let me just say, it's *amazing*! I'm not sure what these folks do for a living, but considering how elaborate their displays are, something tells me they might be in set building and/or design.

I was describing this ship to my friend Linda yesterday when she asked me how big the ship is. I told her that it probably stood about 12-15 feet. Then I decided that pictures speak louder than words, so I stopped this morning on my way to work and snapped a few photos. While they are still in the process of building it, what they have so far is pretty impressive! Check it out for yourself:

Pretty cool, no?!

I can't wait to see the finished product. I'll post more pictures when it's complete.

Having a Mary Tyler Moore Day

2011-10-13T19:21:00.000-07:00

My sister Debbie left a voicemail message on my cell phone the day before yesterday. She said "I'm having a Mary Tyler Moore day!" Without even thinking about it, I knew exactly what she meant.

I called her back and when she picked up, I asked her one question: "How is your hair bump?"

She explained that, while it had been tamed by then, the day before every time she moved her head, she could feel it flopping from side to side.

I'm not sure if it's a sister thing that I knew exactly what she meant, or a generational thing. We grew up in the Mary Tyler Moore Show era and can remember a TON of things from the show by heart. Did you do this in your family, too? Our drama teacher came in to the office yesterday and I asked her what she would think of if someone said to her that they were having a MTM day. She immediately said: hair bump! Solidarity, sistah! She gets it. She said that she and her sister do exactly the same thing my sis and I do. She said that episode is also famous in their family for another reason. Every time she and her sister feel like they're not looking their best, they say to each other "I usually look soooo much better than this!" ...exactly the speech that Mary gave in that episode when she walked up to receive her TEDY award.

While I believe it is a 'sister thing', it's clearly also a generational thing. While having this conversation, another friend of mine asked our office aide if she knew who Mary Tyler Moore was. (Keep in mind, these are middle school students we're talking about.) She said "no". My boss asked her if she knew what M*A*S*H was. She said "no". I asked her if she knew who the Kardashians were; she said "Yes!".

I don't know about you, but I'm afraid of this generation. Very afraid.

Apple Time!

2011-10-10T20:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went up to mom and dad's for dinner and to help with a few chores. One of the things on the list was picking all of the apples from the tree. This isn't exactly a 'chore', it's really more like FUN!

Mom and dad have only one apple tree in the yard, and in past years, it really hasn't produced a whole lot of fruit. And what fruit it did produce was generally eaten either by the squirrels, the birds, or both. Last year, however, dad discovered these little bags filled with dander that the squirrels don't like at all. You hang them in the spring and the squirrels pretty much leave the apples alone. Which is a good thing for us! Last year the tree yielded quite a bit of fruit, and this year, even more!

After we picked the apples, all I could think about was a warm, fresh apple crisp. Mmmmm. I couldn't resist - I just had to make one! Does anything say "Fall" more than fresh apples cooking in warm, spicy cinnamon? I think not! After dinner, we dished up bowls of apple crisp and topped them with a scoop of rich, decadent vanilla ice cream. Mercy. It was delicious!

Thanks mom and dad for all of the wonderful apples! We've shared some with our neighbor, Ted, will enjoy eating some out of hand, and freezing the rest for holiday pies. YUM!

The Good, the Not-so-Great, the Ugly, and the Completely Unaffordable

2011-10-10T20:06:00.000-07:00

The Good: A friend of mine at work started selling cookware as a sideline. He has some health issues he's wrestling with an was told by his doctor that, to avoid going on a certain medication, he needed to lose some weight. Just about that time, he discovered a line of cookware that helps him cook more healthfully. As a result, he lost 25 pounds! He is so excited about it, he decided to start working for the company.

The Not-So-Great: This friend is a nice guy and is well liked at work, so everyone is really trying to support him in his efforts and everyone has been booking cookware demo parties right and left. (*Awkward*) Though invited to several of the parties, I'd managed to successfully avoid committing to any of the parties, until...

The Ugly: Until one of my friends said 'Remember that desk I moved for you?' I did remember, but it has been years and years ago. Not knowing where this was leading, in a puzzled voice, I said 'Sure, I remember.' To which he replies 'Will you and Kevin come to my cooking party?' UGH. There it was, right out there in the open: the spider and the fly. Sure, we'll come to the party.

The Completely Unaffordable: Though it was his party, because we had only three people (besides my friend who booked the party and my friend who was doing the demo), they asked if they could have the party at our house. Sure, that's fine. At least I get to come home, change into comfy clothes, and sit in our own kitchen for the demo. For the demo, they prepare a five course meal for you: salad, mixed vegetables, 'fried' chicken, lasagna and a cake for dessert. Throughout the demo, they talk about the benefits of the cookware, the company itself and how it started, how they found the company and how it's changed their life, etc. After the demo and the meal, you get down to brass tacks and find out the price of the cookware. HOLY MOLY I'd heard that it was expensive, but I had no idea that it would be THAT much. How much? Well, let's just say the top of the line set would be equivalent to buying a very good used car. And the monthly financing would, indeed, be just as much as a car payment.

Takeaway of the Story: It's great to help out your friends (keep your friends close), BUT be realistic and don't let the pressure get to you and buy something you know you neither need nor can afford (keep your checkbook closer).

We did have a fun time, though! Here are a few pics of the evening...

Grammy Museum

2011-10-06T18:59:00.000-07:00

Gosh, time flies doesn't it? I can't believe I haven't posted this event yet since it's two weeks old! Well, almost...

Anyway.

For the Smithsonian Magazine Free Museum Day event, we chose the Grammy Museum at the LA Live complex by Staples Center. What an AMAZING place! I mentioned that I really think it's mis-named; though there is Grammy material and information there, it really encompasses music in general, not just specifically 'Grammy's'. A fine line maybe, but I think it's a distinction worth noting. Some people might not be inclined to go to such a specific museum, but if they knew that it was more broad spectrum, they might give it a try. And trust me, it's totally worth it!

The museum itself is 4 stories tall. The bottom floor really doesn't account for too much - it's basically just an entrance. It did, however, have one of Keith Moon's drum sets, so that was pretty cool! From the bottom floor, they direct you into the elevator that goes to the 4th floor and drops you off - that's really where the museum begins.

There were TONS of things on exhibit (Stevie Ray Vaughan's guitar, Buddy Rich's drum sticks, Pavarotti's tuxedo...) and lots of interactive, hands-on opportunities. There were guitars that you could 'play'; you put on a set of headphones and pressed different buttons on the guitar to get different sounds and pressed different 'waaa-waaa' pedals to add different dimensions to the sound. SO COOL! They also had electronic drum sets that you, again, would listen through headphones to a piece of music (all different types from rock to symphonic) and play the drums for the track. Again, SO COOL! There were also mixing boards, tons of music history, exhibits currently dedicated to James Brown, Roy Orbison and Bob Marley - and so much more. There were fun, interesting, and different things to do and see on each level.

We had lunch at the Farm of Beverly Hills first (also at the LA Live complex) first, and then headed over to the museum. By the time we finished lunch, we didn't get to the museum until a bit after one, and because one of our friends had other plans for the evening, we only stayed until about 3:30. Next time I would definitely plan on spending more time there - there was just too much cool stuff that I wasn't able to explore as fully as I would have liked. No matter - we had a fantastic time! If you're ever in the area, I'd definitely recommend that you pop into the Grammy Museum for a visit; it's still a bargain - even NOT on free museum day - at just $12.95 for a ticket.

Here are a few pics...

"Booger Stickers"

2011-09-22T21:57:00.000-07:00

It's a good thing I work at a school, because I think I'm really just a kid a heart.

For the last couple of years, I've been buying gel stickers for every holiday and season, and putting them on the windows in the office. At first I said it was because I thought the kids would enjoy it, but now I know that I really do it because I enjoy it just as much.

Last week I put up all of the fall/harvest stickers I've collected; my favorite is this owl:

I put him right smack in the middle of the window of the door so that everyone sees him when they pass by. He's surrounded by lots of fall leaves, pumpkins, scare crows, and such, but my owl is still the best of the bunch.

Kids will come into the office just to touch the stickers. Have you ever felt them? They have kind of a soft, sticky consistency ... I call them 'booger stickers' (Hey, what can I say? I work at a middle school!) One of our new students was in the office after school waiting for his mom to finish up with a meeting. He wasn't in trouble - he's a very sweet boy with Asperger's and his mom was in a meeting following up with some things she was concerned about, so he was just hanging out in the office. I watched him walk over and start touching the stickers and pretty soon he said "These feel funny." I said, "I know - aren't they cool?! I call them booger stickers because that's what they feel like - boogers!" He absolutely cracked up and touched more of the stickers, just to make sure they all felt like boogers.

Before long his mom came out of the meeting and, as she was signing out, he was playing with the stickers on the window. She told him not to touch them and I told her that it was okay for him to touch them and that we'd been talking about the stickers. I asked him to tell his mom what we call them; he blushed and giggled and said he didn't remember. I reminded him that we call them booger stickers and he put his head down, and became very shy. His mom let out a good belly laugh and he looked up at her with a huge grin on his face.

I know it sounds like such a simple thing, but it was really cool interaction with a young boy who has a lot to handle on his plate. Sometimes it really is the simple things in life that are the best.

First Day of Fall

2011-09-22T21:35:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we're celebrating a birthday in our office at work. Usually it's just the 10 of us that work in the office that celebrate, but since it's the first day of fall, I thought I'd make a treat for the whole staff.

Pumpkin muffins with a dollop of cream cheese icing. YUM! I found what looked like a great recipe - the only problem was that as it was printed, the recipe only made 12 muffins, so I had to quadruple it! I'm always a bit leery about doing that because sometimes it just doesn't turn out well. Luckily this one did. It made a HUGE amount of batter, but in the end, it made exactly 48 muffins. Perfecto! And did they ever make the house smell good! Warm and spicy ... absolutely delish.

I hope the staff enjoys them.

Happy fall, y'all!

Smithsonian Free Museum Day 2011

2011-09-18T16:34:00.000-07:00

Each fall, Smithsonian magazine sponsors a free museum day. We love participating in this event! Over the past several years, it's grown to include a wonderful selection of museums - this year is no exception.

The event will take place this upcoming Saturday, September 24th. Click here to find out all of the information and find a venue near you. Just a head's up: this year you are required to have a ticket. No worries. If you follow the link and read all of the information, it will lead you to a registration page. All you need to do is complete the required information and a ticket good for two people will be sent to your email address.

This year we'll be going to the Grammy Museum. Sounds like fun, right?! Happy Free Museum Day - enjoy!!

L.A. County Fair

2011-09-18T15:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Kevin and I went to the L.A.County Fair. We haven't been in about 5 years, so we thought it was about time. As luck would have it, just before the fair opened, there was a great Groupon for the fair: two adult tickets and preferred parking for just $25.00. That's a darn good deal! Usually, entry on the weekends is $17.00 per adult, and preferred parking is $15.00, so this was definitely a money saver.

We had a good time: ate some good food; tasted award winning California wines; watched a cooking demonstration (great recipes!); shopped a bit; watched a cool lumberjack show; took some silly photos (see below); and even got to visit with Kevin's brother Brian who was working at the fair for the pool company he represents.

Still, I have to say that I was a bit disappointed. We used to go to the fair almost every year when I was growing up - either as a family, or as a school field trip. One of the landmarks of the fair is a huge clock tower that's easy to spot from wherever you are. Or I should say was. Yesterday morning, I talked to mom before we left and she teasingly said that they would meet us at the clock tower. We were going to have someone take a picture of us at the clock tower, post it, and say to mom and dad 'We waited here for you, but you never showed up!', but we couldn't. We looked all over for the tower thinking we'd just remembered incorrectly about where it had been, but we found out that we could stop looking as they'd removed the tower to make room for more carnival rides. BUMMER

I just don't understand why we are a nation of makeover artists. I understand updating and moving with the times, but there are just somethings that define a place, or time, or event. Can we not learn to leave these things alone? For years they also had a giant slide. I remember that, for the longest time, that slide terrified me; then, when I actually went on it, I had a blast! Well, except for the scratchy burlap patch you had to sit on to slide down. Well guess what? They took that out this year, too. Grrrr.

As I said, we did have a good time, but we were both disappointed by the unnecessary changes. And while we may find ourselves there another time, I really think we're pretty much done with the fair for a while.

On to the silly pictures ... They have these whacky painted wooden cut-outs at various locations. I couldn't resist taking some photos of us with our faces popping out of some of them. After all, aren't count fairs supposed to bring out the silliness in us?

And one seriously gorgeous sunset

Quakin' in our Boots

2011-09-18T15:20:00.000-07:00

Having done this last year as well, I think this has become a new First Avenue tradition. Last Sunday night, a bunch of us went to the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes game at the Epicenter. We had a blast!

Though we'd already bought the tickets, I was worried that with Kevin's oral surgery, he wouldn't feel up to going to the game - but he insisted that he was okay and wanted to go. Poor guy had a heck of a time eating ... until we bought ice cream - then he was all smiles =) (Side note: You should have seen us trying to explain away Kevin's black eye!)

There were about 30 of us from First Avenue; 10 or 12 staff members and our families. It's always so fun when we get together because we've got a relatively young staff, many of whom have small children. Nearly all FA events are family friendly and most everyone feels free to bring the kids - this event was no exception. And the kids were having a great time, as were the adults!

Here are a few pics of our evening.

The kids had a lot of fun shooting silly string with Tremor, the Quakes mascot

We even saw Tommy Lasorda!

Thanks for organizing this fun event, Catherine. We had a great time. Can't wait 'til next year!

Toofless

2011-09-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

My poor Kevin had a tooth extracted last Friday. Poor guy - he was miserable!

Over the summer we'd both gone in for a simple cleaning. Mine went fine; Kevin's however, was a different story. While cleaning, the hygienist mentioned that she thought one of his teeth felt 'a little weird', so she took an xray. Sure enough, there was a problem. He had something called 'resorption' which had not been there on the previous xray. Resorption rots a tooth from the inside out and affects the bone, so it has to be dealt with fairly quickly. It was recommended that Kevin have an implant done, so this past Friday was the first step in that direction.

The extraction 'should' have been easy ... but it wasn't. Unfortunately, when they took ahold of the tooth to remove it, it was so brittle that it broke off at the gum line. Not good. The end result was that they had to cut into Kevin's gum, lift that section up, insert an instrument and push the root of the tooth out. OUCH! Poor guy. He took it like a trooper, but was absolutely miserable for a couple of days.

Oh, and the black eye left behind, not to mention the swollen face and extremely painful mouth - well let's just say they made for a very unpleasant start of the week =(

Red sky at night, sailor's delight

2011-09-04T21:56:00.000-07:00

WoW

I don't know about 'sailor's delight, but it was certainly a delight to us! We don't often have summer showers, but tonight? Oh man! Tonight we had a summer storm that was well worth the wait!

Earlier in the evening, we had some showers. Nothing major - it rained heavily for a few minutes and then stopped, but the sky was filled with clouds. Later, as the sun began to set, the sun and the clouds together made for an absolutely AWESOME sunset!

Still later, Kevin and I were out enjoying dessert in the newly remodeled fern grotto when the lightening began to strike and thunder roiled across the sky. Oh. My. Gosh. It was amazing! There was still a bit of red in the sky and then suddenly, POP! A flash of bright, white lights. Soon afterwards, a mighty roll of thunder across the Heavens. The trees were rustling with a swift breeze and soon, another flash of light - and the thunder to follow. We watched in awe and delight for the next 15 or so minutes until the show was over.

God is great, and we are so blessed.

Last of the Mohicans

2011-09-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh, I'd forgotten how much I love this movie! It's been years since I've seen it and, late this afternoon, I happened to turn the channel just as the movie was starting. Since it's a holiday weekend and we're not in a rush, of course I had to watch it!

I love this movie on so many different levels. The story is captivating: tragic and trumphant all at once. The scenery is truly awesome: lush and green and just so damn beautiful. The music is soulful: rich and understated. And then there's Hawkeye. How could you not swoon for this man? Smart, rugged, skillful, brave and passionate (I will find you!)

Have you seen it? No? Why the heck not?

Family Time

2011-09-04T21:07:00.000-07:00

Kevin was out in front this morning trimming some shrubs when I heard him calling my name. Usually that can only mean one thing, so I ran out with camera in hand, and there they were - all out for a Sunday stroll through the neighborhood...

Amazing!

72 bags of gravel (3,600 pounds!!), lots of elbow grease, 6 hours and .... Viola!

2011-09-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

The fern grotto got a (long overdue) makeover!

Since we moved in a couple of years ago, we've been thinking about what we should do with the side yard (aka: the fern grotto). It's such a nice area - and huge! Last year I was thinking about a flagstone patio. Until, that is, I talked to my friend Michael about it. He'd just finished putting in a smaller flagstone patio at his house and I was asking him how difficult and how expensive it was. He told me that it really only took him one full weekend ... and $1,500.00!! Whoa Nellie - guess that's out!

This year we were thinking something easier that would still set the area off nicely and make it an inviting, useable space. We came up with gravel. Lots and lots and lots of gravel!

Yesterday morning we began clearing the area of everything that lived there - furniture, garden, crazy cement filled tire (Wuhhh? We have no idea why it's there.), and preparing the area for all of the gravel. Vicky came over with tools and a garden cart that made the job soooo much easier! (Thanks, Vicky, for all of your help! We can't tell you how much we appreciate it!). Kevin chopped down a tree that had been growing as an unplanned volunteer; I pulled weeds and moved some larger rocks; Vicky cleared the area of larger rocks and leaves. Then, it was time to start adding the gravel - one 100 pound load at a time. Load after load after load. Kevin made 4 trips back and forth to Orchard Supply Hardware (known more affectionately as OSH). He was becoming quite the regular. The first load had 16 bags of gravel, then 18, then two more loads with 20 bags each. If you're thinking to yourself 'Boy! That's a lot of gravel!', you would be correct! Each time Kevin dropped off a cart-ful of gravel, Vicky and I would begin spreading it out in all directions until we had the entire area covered. Holy cow - we were all completely exhausted!

It's totally worth it, though!! I love the new look! We still have some work to do. I'd like to put a scalloped brick border around the tree, maybe some potted plants, an outdoor buffet to hold necessities to have drinks and munchies over there and maybe even a hammock! Here are a few before and after pics:
Before ...

During...(it's funny how the gravel changed colors after it dried. It was dark to begin with and then dried a pale gray)

And after...

Isn't it just great! We love it. Now I'm more anxious than ever to get that red brick border in place!

School starts tomorrow...

2011-08-30T19:27:00.000-07:00

...and this seems just about right ;o)

Ice Cream Social

2011-08-28T12:31:00.000-07:00

Our teachers start back to work tomorrow and, while I know they are anxious to come back, there is also that 'back to work' dread. For a little pick-me-up, I decided that it might be fun to have an ice cream social about 2:00 p.m. Tuesday. They'll be working hard in their classrooms at that time, getting ready for all of the students who will arrive on Wednesday. It's going to be another hot week, so I thought the ice cream social would be a welcome distraction and a fun break from the heat.

So far I've purchased root beer and grape soda for floats and mini chocolate chips, Heath bar chunks and Ande's candies bits for sundaes. Oh and of course, chocolate sprinkles. I need to get hot fudge and caramel; fresh bananas and cut up the fresh strawberries I have; oatmeal, sugar and chocolate chip cookies for those who would like to make ice cream sandwiches; whipped cream; and, of course the star of the show, ice cream! I'm thinking just two flavors - vanilla and chocolate - but lots of it. Mmmmmm. Sounds good to me! I can't wait - hope everyone enjoys it as much as I will!

Dinner for Breakfast

2011-08-28T12:16:00.000-07:00

Wait a minute - what time is it?

We often have breakfast for dinner, but not dinner for breakfast! Okay, well technically we didn't actually 'have' dinner for breakfast, but I did make dinner at breakfast time.

This summer has been very mild, in terms of temperature. We had many days that were below normal temperatures - which suit us just fine! But now that it's time for school to start, we're having a heat wave. Of course! And wouldn't you know it, it's just when I've started back with my menus - nearly all of which include at least the stove if not the oven. Yay.

To combat the heat/cooking dinner dilemma, this week I made dinner at breakfast time! That is to say that, in the evening, I would prepare the next day's dinner. Then in the morning when we got up to walk, I'd pre-heat the oven and by the time we got back, I'd put the meal in the oven and let it bake before we went to work. That way, we'd have a nice, home-cooked meal at dinner without having to heat up the house to cook! It worked out perfectly!

Fantasia at the Hollywood Bowl

2011-08-21T17:41:00.000-07:00

Last night was our last HB concert of the season. I'm sad about that - I absolutely LOVE the Hollywood Bowl season. Honestly I can think of nothing I love more than sitting outside on a summer's evening enjoying a picnic and fabulous music with family and friends. Life just doesn't get any better than that. I always look forward to the season and can hardly wait to see what's on the calendar for the summer! Alas, I guess I'll have to wait until next spring =(

That said, we had a great time last night! There were several factors that made last night really wonderful. First, of course the food and company were spectacular. And come on - Fantasia accompanied by the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra? - how bad can that be?? And last, but not least, a sentimental favorite: the orchestra was conducted last night by John Mauceri - former principal conductor at the Hollywood Bowl from 1991-2006. The show was amazing! The HB Orchestra is phenomenal - none better. They even snuck in some fireworks during the last piece. So cool!

Dinner was simple, but delicious! Cold Thai noodles and Asian Chicken Salad - mmmmm - delish! For dessert, choices of lemon cake, coconut pecan cookies and trail mix cookies. The wine? Why Cupcake Red Velvet, of course! Here are a few pics of last night's show:

Menu Planning

2011-08-20T13:28:00.000-07:00

A little planning goes a long way ... and makes my life SO MUCH EASIER.

8/18/11 thru 9/2/11
Thursday 8/18 – our 10th wedding anniversary – dinner at the Derby
Friday 8/19 – leftovers from last night's dinner
Saturday 8/20 – Hollywood Bowl potluck (we're making Asian chicken noodle salad)
Sunday 8/21 – chicken and dumplings, steamed green beans
Monday 8/22 – pulled pork chili, warm buttered flour tortillas
Tuesday 8/23 – roasted chicken and sweet potatoes, steamed baby squash
Wednesday 8/24 – pepper-jack macaroni and cheese, sauteed fresh spinach
Thursday 8/25 – clean out the fridge (lefty-overs) night
Friday 8/26 – soup (tomato or French onion) and sandwiches (grilled cheese or lunchmeat)
Saturday 8/27 – tacos or fajitas with all of the fixings, rice, guacamole
Sunday 8/28 – crockpot swiss steak, egg noodles, steamed broccoli crowns
Monday 8/29 – apricot glazed chicken breasts, rice, sauteed brussles sprouts
Tuesday 8/30 – spaghetti with sausage marinara, garlic bread
Wednesday 8/31 – grilled brats, caramelized onions, german potato salad
Thursday 9/1 – clean out the fridge (lefty-overs) night
Friday 9/2 – pizza and rootbeer

Our New Favorite Dessert

2011-08-19T19:09:00.000-07:00

Bananas Foster ...sort of (no alcohol version)
(Serves 2)

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 bananas, sliced
2 scoops vanilla bean ice cream
whipped cream topping

Melt butter in a small saute pan; add brown sugar and stir until well combined. Add sliced bananas and stir until bananas are warmed through. Place ice cream in a bowl and top with the banana mixture. Top with a dollop of whipped cream. Devour.

A Rant

2011-08-19T09:43:00.000-07:00

When did it become acceptable to wear worn and faded jeans, a less-than-clean cotton T-shirt (undershirt style) and a backwards baseball cap to a fine dining restaurant? Was I absent the day they changed the rules on this?

Last night for our anniversary, Kevin and I went to a well-established, long-historied fine dining restaurant in Arcadia. It opened it's doors in 1922 and has been 'the' go-to fancy restaurant in the area for decades. I've been going to this restaurant since I was a child and it's always been the same: lush, well maintained, elegant - one of the very few old steakhouses left. And as such, diners has always been appropriately attired. I'm not talking about evening gowns and tuxedos by any means, but certainly gentlemen wear slacks and at least a collared shirt, and ladies wear dresses or upscale separates that are appropriate to the occasion.

About halfway through the evening as we dined our fine meal, in walks a man somewhere in his late twenties/early thirties - old enough to know better. He was wearing faded jeans, a ratty T-shirt and a backwards baseball cap. We were both pretty shocked, but thought he was at least going to sit in the bar. Nope. Grabbed himself a prime seat, right smack in the middle of the restaurant. We couldn't help thinking to ourselves: Really? You couldn't go home, clean up and change into decent clothes for your $100.00plus meal? How nice that you decided to share your grunginess with all of us who bothered to shower and dress appropriately. Hrmph.

Elitest? Maybe. Call me old fashioned by I still believe there is a place and time for everything. For the most part I have no problem with casual - it's appropriate in many cases. However, that particular restaurant is not one of them. If you go out looking like you're ready to chowdown on some wings, swish a coupla beers and watch the game, fine ... but do the right thing and drive a couple of block down the street and do so at Chili's.

Wedding Anniversary

2011-08-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

I'm the luckiest girl in the world: I've been married to my best friend for ten years. TEN YEARS. How did 10 years go by so quickly?

Tonight Kevin and I relived our wedding day. We had such fun playing 'our' songs, reading all of our cards and pages in our guest book, looking at all of the response cards we received and meandering through our wedding album looking at all of our photos. My goodness - what a fun walk down memory lane! We'd see a photo and smile and laugh and say 'Remember when ____' - Pat played harmonica with the band; Drew tried to take a picture with the camera turned the wrong way and the flash went off in his face (poor little guy!); Brian got choked up making a heartfelt toast to the bride and groom; you (Kevin) sang our first dance song to me acapella; mom drew an adorable 'Just Married!' poster to put on our car as we drove away. Such warm, sweet, amazing memories.

One night ten years ago, we pledged our love and our lives to each other. It was just one night, but THE one night that would change our lives forever. And change it has. I thought I knew what happiness was - and that I was happy. And I was, I guess, at least to a degree. But after we married, I truly did find happiness. And what I'd thought was happiness before, well, there was no comparison. Not by a long shot.

Kevin - my dearest, sweetest love: I love you with all my heart with a love that grows each and every day we are together as man and wife. You make my life complete. And on this our 10th wedding anniversary, I have just one question for you: will you please always be the Pepsi in my Sangria?

Huntington Library

2011-08-14T14:43:00.000-07:00

Four evenings each summer, Huntington Library holds Member's Only musical events. It's fabulous! You can take your picnic, spread a blanket out on the lawn and enjoy some nice music in an unbeatable environment - for FREE. Well, as long as you're members it's free.

Kevin and I have been members for years. We don't go nearly as often as we should, still, I think the money is well spent. It's going to preserve a truly precious entity. If you're visiting the Los Angeles area and you've never been to Huntington Library, it's definitely a 'must see'.

Anyway, last night was one of the Member's Only evenings at the Library and we went. My mother-in-law, Vicky, came with us (members may bring guests with them; guests pay a small fee to get in), and we all had a great time! A simple picnic of roast chicken, angel hair pasta with fresh garden tomatoes and basil with garlic and olive oil, bread and brie with apricot jam. Oh, and a bottle of vino, of course! Mmmmmm...it was delish!

We all commented on how this outing is far different than our normal Hollywood Bowl outings. The music at the Huntington, though live, is really designed more to be background music, whereas the music at the Bowl is designed to be the 'event'. Last night's main 'event' was picnicking and visiting ... while some nice music played in the background. Both are equally enjoyable, they're just different.

Next weekend we're off to our last show at the Hollywood Bowl. Boo, hiss - that means that summer really IS nearly over. Sigh.

...and the living is easy

2011-08-12T19:25:00.000-07:00

Is there any more perfect dessert for a warm summer's evening than a cold, creamy, delicious rootbeer float?

I think not.

Money Down the Drain

2011-08-12T14:23:00.000-07:00

Well, maybe not exactly, but it sure feels like it.

Now that summer is over and we've both gone back to work, I absolutely have to get back into making my weekly menus. I do so well with them for the majority of the year, and then June and July hit and - POOF - those menus just seem to disappear. And, when they disappear, so does our money.

For instance, last night we decided to go to Panera. We both absolutely love Panera and, while it's technically 'fast food' - it kind of isn't. It's healthier than most fast food for one thing, and we both think it's just far better quality. Of course, that also means that it's more expensive, too. We each got the "You Pick Two" meal; I had a small bowl of lemon chicken orzo soup (outstanding!) and a small fuji apple chicken salad, and Kevin had half of a turkey sandwich and the same kind of small salad as I had. We also each bought a cinnamon crunch bagel for breakfast this morning, and a small container of hazelnut cream cheese. We just had water to drink. Our bill came to $24.11. OUCH! That's for just four meals!! As good as it was, this kind of makes me sick to think about --- so much money for so few meals.

So, this morning I made a meal plan (still in my head, need to write it down when I finish this post!) and went grocery shopping. I bought enough food for the two of us for a minimum of 9 days. I say minimum because some of the things I bought will last longer than that and will be parts of other meals in the future. I thought I'd use the 9 day figure to give a conservative estimate. So - 3 meals a day X 9 days = 27 meals. I used two $10.00 off coupons with my grocery order, so I purchased $107.64 worth of food for $87.64. So ... $87.64 divided by 27 equals just $3.25 per meal! Now that is just a HUGE difference from what we spend when we go out. Kind of sickening, isn't it?

It definitely makes we want to not go out to eat for a while. (Disclaimer: we will go out next Thursday to celebrate our 10 year anniversary, but that will be it for quite some time!)

Turn off the TV!!

2011-08-11T20:49:00.000-07:00

Last night while channel surfing, we came to the conclusion that, well, TV stinks! Not always, but often. We find ourselves cruising with the remote control only to find there is not one darn thing worth watching. We just couldn't take it any longer and shut the darn thing off.

Instead, we decided to stretch our brains and play Scrabble =) I always forget how much I love that game; Kevin does, too. We didn't even keep score, we just had fun filling in the Scrabble board. By the end, we'd used every single tile! Now that's a rarity! ... at least it is for us!

Dow Plunges More Than 600

2011-08-08T18:43:00.000-07:00

OUCH.

This kinda says it all ...

Mmmm ... Lasagna!

2011-08-07T11:33:00.001-07:00

Doesn't that just look soooo good!

I was watching the news this week and someone was making lasagna during a cooking segment. I just couldn't get it out of my head, and decided that I had to make lasagna this weekend.

If you've ever made lasagna, you know that, though it's not difficult, it is definitely messy. Having three things going at once - the sauce, the noodles, and the ricotta filling - certainly keeps you on your toes. Not to mention the number of pans and utensils used. Whew! (Thanks, honey, for cleaning up my mess!)

Because it's messy and labor intensive, I'd never make just one lasagna. I figure if I'm going to mess up the kitchen to that extent, I'd better make it worth my while! Sooo ... the end result? One small-ish (enough for dinner one night, and lunch leftovers the next day) pan for this week, and two larger (enough for dinner one night and lunch leftovers for two days, or dinner twice and lunch once) pans for the freezer.

I *LOVE* knowing I've got good home-cooked meals in the freezer for nights I just don't feel like cooking. It certainly makes facing the weeknight dinner dilemma a bit easier to swallow ;o)

Getting Back to Normal

2011-08-05T16:54:00.000-07:00

I mentioned earlier that I am already back to work. I started this past Monday, so I've already tackled my first week back. YAY! The first one is always the most difficult!

Actually, it's not bad at all. We sort of 'ease' our way back in - working only four days a week and taking Friday off. I wouldn't mind that as a regular schedule! But, working for a school, that's just never going to happen. Ah, well - our bank account will be happy to get back to receiving our twice-monthly paychecks! Kevin starts back this upcoming week - Wednesday - so he'll be getting back to the routine, too.

Going back to work at the end of the summer means that fall is just around the corner. YAHOO! I'm definitely a fall girl - it's my absolute favorite season. Soon we'll be making pots full of soups and stews and cuddling up with books, puzzles and movies indoors. A pumpkin festival here, maybe a hayride there (hard to find in this neck of the woods!), and of course, lots of fresh apple cider.

For now, though, I'm content to settle back into a comfy routine and bid the last of summer a fond farewell. It's been a great one!

We All Scream for Ice Cream!

2011-08-05T09:32:00.000-07:00

Deb and the boys spent the night and a couple of days at mom and dad's this week. I'm already back at work (how did that happen?), and Kevin's been working the Pony Palomino World Series tournament since late last week. It's been a busy time!

Deb called us Wednesday night to see if we wanted to meet them at the Fair Oaks Pharmacy and Soda Fountain for ice cream. Ice cream? Us? ABSOLUTLEY!

If you've never been to the fabulous vintage soda fountain, you must put it on your to-do list. It's such an old fashioned, charming step back in time. The pharmacy has been there since 1915 - and it's still an active pharmacy, but the big draw is the soda fountain. A number of years ago, the man who bought the pharmacy somewhere along the way, decided to incorporate a soda fountain into the pharmacy. Lo and behold, he found an in-tact vintage soda fountain in Joplin, Missouri, and had it shipped out here. And here it has remained - and thrived, I might add! When we went on Wednesday, the place was packed! And, if you're an ice cream lover, you'll not be disappointed in the selection of flavors, or the myriad choices of concoctions on the menu.

Deb and Drew had the classic hot fudge sundae; I enjoyed a rootbeer float; Kevin and Pat were a little more adventurous in their selection with a Banana Blitz and a Banana Royal. The soda 'jerk' (and I use that affectionately - he was great!) was kind enough to suggest making a smaller-sized version of each of these behemoth delights. Great suggestion! By the time we left, we were all absolutely stuffed - with ice cream, nostalgia, and fun =)

Thanks for treating, Deb!

Ten Years In

2011-07-27T20:44:00.000-07:00

... almost.

In less than a month, Kevin and I will celebrate our 10-year wedding anniversary. We both are shocked by this, in two ways. Firstly, we can't believe we've already been married 10 years! Where did the time go? And, lastly, what do you mean we've only been married 10 years? Surely there's never been a time we haven't been together - is there?

It's true - time flies when you're having fun. And we are. So much fun! We've both been commenting about how much we've really loved this summer. We've had so much wonderful time off to relax, work on a few home projects, take some wonderful vacations, visit with family. Honestly, it just doesn't get any better than this!

Anyway. Ten years. It's a big milestone and, as such, Kevin presented me with a milestone gift. Yes, early! We're both a little impatient when it comes to giving gifts ;o) The other night just before going to bed, he took out a small velvet box that he'd had hidden for a month. He told me how much he loves me, how thankful he is that I'm his wife and how lucky we both are to share the love we have. Then, he opened the box and presented me with my gift: a diamond anniversary band! Oh.my.gosh - it's absolutely GORGEOUS! It's simple, elegant and classic - exactly the perfect gift ... from the most perfect husband.Isn't it magnificent?!

Thank you, honey. Kevin, I love you more than you will ever know and can't wait to see what the next ten, twenty, thirty (and more!) years hold in store for us.

Living Pictures

2011-07-27T20:25:00.000-07:00

Once again this year we were absolutely blown away by Pageant of the Masters. Honestly, this show defies explanation - it's truly something you absolutely must see in person.

Each year they have a new theme - this year's is "Only Make Believe"The living pictures focused on things like Alice in Wonderland, dragons and fairies, spacemen .... things from the imagination. Except, we didn't just imagine them - we witnessed them in all their incredulity.

They don't allow photos to be taken during the show, so I borrowed these photos from the Laguna Pilot newspaper:Uh-huh. See, I told ya. Incredible, right?

It's not too late! If you want to attend this year's show, you can still buy tickets. The show runs through August 31st. If you do go, why not stay over night? We decided that, because the show is over fairly late, we didn't want to drive the hour home afterwards, so we stayed at the Ayres in Laguna Woods. We can't recommend it highly enough! Wonderful hotel - great room, delicious breakfast in the morning. Yeah, we know ... pretty 'touristy' taking photos of our hotel room. What can we say? We're just kids at heart ;o)

Don't you just love vacations?!

Sarah at the Hollywood Bowl

2011-07-27T20:10:00.001-07:00

Recently we saw Sarah McLachlan at the Hollywood Bowl. She is one of my all-time favorite singer/songwriters. Her music is so dramatic and haunting - just amazing.

If you've never seen her, she's a pleasure to watch in concert. We've seen her before and both times she's been so genuine - really just having a great time up on stage performing. Someone in the audience kept shouting out a song they wanted her to play. She acknowledged the request by saying 'Just sit back and enjoy the show; dessert will be coming soon.' We had a great time!

And of course, our picnic feast was delish! Tarragon chicken salad on squaw bread, kettle chips, fresh fruit and coconut/pecan cookies. Oh, and of course, a bottle of Cupcake Red Velvet! Perfect!

Working on the Wardrobe

2011-07-22T15:37:00.000-07:00

I love clothes, I admit it. I love the huge variety of colors and textures - silks and cottons; crunchy knits and soft rayons; denims and velvets....you name it, I love it. I always have. I love looking through magazines to get ideas, and then shopping for things I like, usually spending a fraction of what I saw in the magazines. And I have proof. A packed closet filled with amazing (or at least what I think is amazing) clothes for any occasion.

Each season I go through my closet and evaluate what's in there. I re-organize things and purge items when necessary. This past month while I've been off, I've purged quite a few items from my closet. It's amazing, really. Considering how packed it still is and how many things I donated...where did all of those things fit into that crammed-full closet?? I've also washed, ironed and repaired any items that were in need of it. So now, having done the prep work, I've been thinking about what I might want to look for while shopping for fall clothes.

Before shopping, I thought I'd look through and put some outfits together with the things I already own. You know, come up with some different pairings - things I haven't tried together before, including jewelry and scarves - and make notes and take photos so I'd remember them later. I kept thinking about it last night and was excited to get an early start on it this morning.

Oh.My.GOSH. I'd only been working on it for a little over an hour when I realized that, this one task could - and probably would - take me several days to complete, and by the end, I'd be totally exhausted. Literally. How do I know this? In just a little over an hour's time, I came up with 44 different outfits ... and I hadn't even gone through one quarter of the possibilities that were in that closet.

Needless to say, I decided that several days of doing just this one thing was completely out of the question. I did, however, put together some really nice outfits that I really like! I thought that maybe once a month I'd go through and put together five or six outfits so that I'm not overwhelmed by trying to do it all at once. One benefit from working on this task is that I realized I don't really *need* any new fall clothes. That said, I know that I'll probably pick up an item or two, but going through my wardrobe now certainly helped me realize that I already have hundreds upon hundreds of choices. I think I'll mostly look at buying a few accessories and, later when it gets a bit cooler, probably some heavier sweaters since I don't really have many of those. In the meantime, here are just a couple of things I came up with:(It's kind of hard to tell, but the pants are dark brown)I've had this leopard print scarf forever. I bought it at a vintage clothing store about 25 years ago.)I just love these colors together! It just looks like fall!I love these soft grays and lavender together... That's it for now. My mind is still reeling with the myriad possibilities!

The Happiest Place on Earth

2011-07-22T12:08:00.001-07:00

Monday we took the boys to Disneyland. Kevin and I haven't been to Disneyland in about 8 years or so. We went to California Adventure about 5 years ago and we were supposed to go to Disneyland, too, but ...uhh... that didn't work out so well. But that's another story.

Annnnnyway....

Monday morning we got up early, got ourselves ready and the car packed and off we went. Boy. Disneyland has definitely changed since the last time we were there! It's funny - it's not like I go there a lot, but when I was a child, we went there quite a bit, so that's really the Disneyland I remember. It's strange to see how it's changed. One big difference is that you park off-site and they bus you to the entrance of the park. That's not bad in and of itself, but it certainly curtailed our plan to go out to the car for lunch. Oh well, you know what they say about those best laid plans.

We had a GREAT time! We go there early enough to get a few fast passes and to go on several rides before it a) got really hot, and b) got really crowded. For instance, when we went to Pirates of the Caribbean, we stood in line maybe 15-20 minutes. When we passed by the same spot later in the day, the line was nearly 2 hours long! When we first went in, we picked up fast passes to Star Tours. We figured since they've just renovated and updated this ride, it would be pretty popular so we figured rather than standing in line, we'd get a fast pass and come back later. So glad we did! Our return time was 1:30; at that time they were no longer giving fast passes - they were all out for the day - which meant you'd just have to take your chances and stand in line. A two-hour long line. We used our fast passes and waited, again, no more than 15-20 minutes max. And it was totally worth it!

Over in California Adventure, Pat really wanted to go on the Tower of Terror ride. Ugh. That's the ONE ride I would never go on again. When Kevin and I went last time, I was SO excited to go on this ride! It's the first place we headed. Big mistake. I hated every.single.second of that horrible experience. Needless to say that I wouldn't go on it, Kevin passed, and there was no way Drew was going on it either, but Pat rreeeeaaaalllllly wanted to go, so he got a fast pass for it and we came back. The three of us waited for him at the exit of the ride. You've never seen such a huge grin. He absolutely loved it! More power to ya, kid!

We stayed until after the fireworks show was over and then we headed home. We were all completely exhausted. While we were waiting in line for the bus, Pat said he couldn't wait to sit down on the bus. He said it would be the first time he'd sat down since the last ride we'd been on ... about 2 hours before! It was a crazy fun, long, hot day - and I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

Baseball Reliquary

2011-07-22T10:43:00.000-07:00

Never heard of it? Neither had we until Kevin read an article about their upcoming Shrine of the Eternals Induction Ceremony in the newspaper. It was to be held at the Pasadena Central Library this past Sunday afternoon. This year's inductees were Maury Wills, Pete Gray, and the San Diego Chicken. Cool! Apparently they conduct this event every year, but Kevin and I didn't know that.(Huh - how did we miss that one?)

As it turns out, Sunday was the day we were picking up the boys to visit with us for a few days, so the Induction Ceremony was the perfect activity for us! The event started at 2:00 p.m., and the library opened at 1:00 p.m. We were there when the doors opened so that we could check out the baseball exhibit also on display within the library. About 1:30 we meandered over to the auditorium where the ceremony was going to be held - good thing we did! It's a small auditorium so seats were in short supply. We managed to find four seats in the back of the auditorium and sat down to people watch. Before long, Maury Wills appeared in the crowd. What a genuinely nice man. He had his entire family with him and they were all seated in the front of the auditorium. Shortly there was a small crowd of people around him asking for autographs. We weren't certain if he would stay after the even to sign autographs, so we decided that Kevin and the boys should get in line now. I'm so glad they did! Mr. Wills was very personable and happily signed autographs for everyone who asked. He asked both of the boys if they played ball and commented on how tall they were. He gave Drew a 'what-for' for wearing a Marlins cap instead of a Dodger cap =) When Kevin approached, he asked if he'd sign a baseball for an umpire; Maury gave him the once over and said 'Yeah, what the heck.' ;o)

The ceremony itself was very nice. Over and above the Inductees and their awards, there were two other awards presents; one named the "Hilda" award and one the "Tony Salin Memorial" award. The "Hilda" award is named in honor of Hilda Chester; a lifelong Brooklyn Dodger fan. The award this year was presented to Chris Erskine - a columnist for the LA Times. The "Tony Salin Memorial" award is given in honor of Tony Salin, an author, humorist and Reliquarian who passed away several years ago at just 49 years of age. This year's award was presented to Paul Dickson - a prolific author of all things baseball. Both recipients were honored by their awards and very humorous in their acceptance speeches.

At the end of the ceremony, we stood in line to get the Chicken's autograph. Kevin has such fond memories of the Chicken from when he was growing up in El Paso. Apparently the Chicken traveled to different minor league ballparks as well, and Kevin remembered him from spending so much time at the El Paso Diablos stadium. In fact, a couple of weeks ago when we were straightening the shelves in the mancave, we ran across an El Paso Diablos baseball. It was just sitting on the shelf and we moved it to it's new home - a plastic baseball case. When Kevin found out the Chicken would be at the Induction Ceremony, he decided to bring the Diablos ball and have the Chicken autograph that instead of just a regular baseball. When it was finally our turn to meet the Chicken, Kevin pulled out the Diablos baseball and asked him to sign it, the Chicken was thrilled! He asked Kevin about the baseball and Kevin explained that he grew up in El Paso and had attended many of the Diablos games. His dad worked as a statistician and he knew the former owner of the team. Both Kevin and the Chicken chatted about those days and the Chicken happily signed the Diablos baseball. FUN!The four of us had a great afternoon. What a fun - FREE - event! You can bet that we'll be looking forward to attending next year's Shrine of the Eternals Induction Ceremony next year!

Wanna keep two adolescent boys busy for years?

2011-07-15T08:33:00.001-07:00

Buy them baseball cards. Ten thousand of them.About 4 years ago, Kevin and I bought the boys baseball cards for Christmas. Not just a few specific cards, or even a few packs of cards. We bought them boxes and boxes and boxes of cards. I bought them from someone who posts on a forum I visit; she said that they were clearing things out and her husband had 10,000 assorted baseball cards he wanted to get rid of. I asked her how much she was selling them for and she said she had no clue what they were worth. I told her that, to 10 year old boys, they'd be priceless! We agreed on a price - $90.00 for the lot - including shipping - and I bought them.

Kevin and I could hardly wait to see the boys faces when they opened their Christmas gift that year! Talk about priceless!

Anyway ...

Flash forward to the present. Yesterday Deb and the boys went to mom and dad's for the day. When I talked to Pat and Drew and asked them what they were going to do, they said they'd brought baseball cards with them to sort. I asked if they were *still* sorting the cards we'd given them that Christmas. 'YEP!' And they've found some pretty good ones, too! Derek Jeter's rookie card. A Rod's rookie card. Barry Bonds and Manny Ramirez - BEFORE they started 'juicing'.

Not bad for $90.00 bucks!

Peter Putterer's Daughter

2011-07-13T19:55:00.000-07:00

The other night when we were at the Hollywood Bowl, I mentioned to Bev that my dad has turned into 'Peter Putterer' - meaning he's been puttering around the house finding all sorts of little projects to keep him busy. She misunderstood. She turned to me with an odd expression on her face and asked, "Your dad's turned into peanut butter?"

Uh, no.

Anyway, I too have been puttering around the house finding all sorts of projects to keep me busy. (Strange segue I know, but there you have it.) That's one of my favorite things about summer and having the month of July off. In addition to some traveling, I'm able to regroup, reorganize and enjoy the gloriously mundane tasks that seem like drudgery during the working months of the year. I love to take the time over the summer to clean, organize, stock-up, and cook in advance so that when I start back to work, I have the peace of mind knowing that I'm ahead of the game.

So what have I been working on? A little of this and a little of that. I've washed and ironed all of my pants, and made any necessary repairs; I've washed and ironed all of my sweaters; I bought a new purse and organized that; I revamped my coupon file and made new dividers, complete with printed labels so that I can actually read them; I'm now up to date on all medical procedures: physical, mammogram, blood work, teeth cleaning and eye exam (complete with new glasses); I've weeded through my closet and donated items I no longer wear; together, Kevin and I cleaned out the entertainment center and went through all of our CDs - we downloaded anything we wanted to keep, and then donated all of the CDs to the Goodwill; I reorganized a dining room cupboard that has needed it for a long time; we renewed our lease with our fabulous landlords; helped Kevin straighten and organize the mancave; purchased a small recliner and new TV for the mancave so that we can relax in there with the AC on in hot days that will be coming in August and September; worked in the garden and around the yard; bought a new date book and transferred all information to it....

As you can see, I've been a busy little bee! In between, I've read books and magazines, enjoyed some wonderful meals with Kevin out on the patio, made ice cream, swam, spent time with family and friends - everything that makes summer so enjoyable!

My to-do list isn't finished, but I'm making headway. Lots of headway. And enjoying the heck out of every single moment! Pat and Drew will be spending a few days with us starting this Sunday and we have a few surprises in store for them. I still need to help mom and dad get some things done, and I'll be going up there tomorrow to get started. My laundry/craft room is still in need of reorganization and we'll be traveling to Laguna towards the end of the month to enjoy a little fun on the beach and be awed by Pageant of the Masters. This week we still have a Hollywood Bowl performance to attend and a picnic to plan for.

Have I mentioned how much I love summer?

The Growing Season

2011-07-13T19:33:00.000-07:00

The urban garden has been hard at work since we planted it a few months ago.

The cherry tomatoes are ripening nicely! The larger tomatoes are well-formed, but have not yet started ripening. There are many, many peppers growing now - all still green at the moment, but soon they'll be ripening to both red and yellow. Surprisingly, we've had several cucumbers as well! I tried growing cukes once a long time ago without success, so I was somewhat hesitant to plant them. I'm glad I gave it another try! The two cucumber plants that we planted have just gone crazy! As for herbs, the lemon thyme is just massive - you'd never know it's all coming from just one plant! The basil is holding it's own and the mint, as usual, has just exploded.

Early on the lettuce faired nicely, but once the cukes started taking over, the lettuce took a back seat. We would like to make another raised bed and I think one half will be dedicated to just leaf lettuce. Different varieties, but just lettuce - that way it won't have to compete. The other half of the bed will be broccoli and cauliflower. We'll begin searching for the supplies within the next couple of weeks, but probably won't get planting until late August or early September.

Here are a few pics of the garden the other night:

Ain't the Canyon Just Grand?!

2011-07-11T08:17:00.000-07:00

WOW

Just wow. Kevin and I just returned from the Grand Canyon - neither of us had ever been. In planning for our trip, we talked to many people who had been there and all of them said that the moment you first see the Canyon is indescribable. No kidding. It's THE most amazing thing I've ever seen. Awe inspiring, really.

We arrived at the Grand Canyon by train. It was an amazing journey from the small town of Williams, Arizona to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. The train ride was beautiful. And peaceful. And very relaxing. (An aside: Why did society choose to fore go train travel? I realize that it's a slower method of travel, and a bit less convenient, but what it lacks in convenience, it more than makes up for in soul-soothing charm. You still get to where you need to go and the bonus is that you're much more relaxed and at peace when you arrive. How is that bad?) Arizona is funny; in my mind, I've always pictured desert - lots of cactus and dry desert landscape. And that's true - in Southern Arizona. However, not so in Northern Arizona. In fact, having left 100 degree temperatures and a great deal of humidity in our area, we arrived in Williams to high 70-low 80 degree temperatures and thunder storms. You know that old saying "If you don't like the weather, wait a few minutes (and it will change)"? That's what we found in AZ.

The morning started out gorgeous - beautiful sunny skies with nary a cloud in sight. We had breakfast, watched a wild west show and then boarded the train.By the time our train hostess finished her talk about train rules and regulations, complimentary snacks, and what we might see along the trip, the skies were filled with high, puffy clouds. Within another 20 minutes or so, the high, puffy, white clouds had turned a dark, stormy gray. The hostess predicted that, between 1:00 and 2:00 p.m., we would have some pretty generous thundershowers. She's in the wrong business; she's far more accurate than most weather forecasters you see on TV. At 1:00 p.m., it began to shower. A few drops first, then, a bit heavier just as we were heading out to sight see at the Canyon.

It was amazing. Our first real close-up included the Canyon in sun, clouds, thunderstorms (complete with lightening strikes!), and fog. It was absolutely breathtaking.Isn't it incredible?! We kept trying to capture a lightening strike in progress, but they proved to be elusive. We'd hear a clap of thunder and then try an anticipate where the lightening would strike - inevitably, we chose the wrong place!

While the top of the Canyon tangoed with the clouds, the view of the Colorado River down below was so clear you could see the rapids.Is this Heaven? No - the Grand Canyon! We had such a wonderful trip. Everything about it from start to finish went perfect. We packed up early Thursday morning to hit the road driving to Williams, Arizona.(Ummm...yeah, that book we're holding? It's an atlas. Guess it kinda loses something since you can't see what we're pointing to, eh?) Mom and dad watched our baby Slippers for us (thanks, Mom & Dad!), and while she was a bit mopey, she was just fine. The drive to Williamsis about 7 hours from our home (far from the 3 and a half to 4 hours the hotel's website indicated!) but the drive went by really quickly. Really! I'd gone to the library a day or two before we left and picked up a book on CD. Not just any book, but Wally Lamb's 'The Hour I First Believed'. Not familiar with it? It's one of those huge tomes that scares you away from selecting it because of the enormous number of pages within it's covers. Read (or listen to) it. REALLY. You will not be disappointed. The volume contains 20 CDs. TWENTY. It's such a compelling story that we were both completely engrossed - on the way up as well as on the way back. In fact, we only finished half of the CDs, so last night we sat in the living room and listened to two more. Only 8 more to go!

The small town of Williams is directly on Route 66. It's one of the many don't-blink-or-you'll-miss-it places on the map. Kevin said, and he's probably right, that it's one of the places Disney/Pixar used to model the town of Radiator Springs in the movie Cars. The town is a bit hokey, but charming in it's own way. It's an interesting mix of western heritage and Route 66 tchotchkes - but it works.(I just love this little guy peering over the top of the stagecoach!)Honestly, if the town didn't have the railroad, I think it probably would have perished by now. But, luckily, the Grand Canyon Railway lives here, and so the town of Williams, while not thriving, continues to hold it's place. The Railway is THE main attraction here. Okay, probably the ONLY attraction here!, but it's quite the attraction indeed.This (and the other) hard working cowboy works the town. Literally. They hold two Wild West shows a day - one at 9:00 a.m. and one at 7:00 p.m. During the day they act as entertainment...errr...train robbers on the Railway, and then walk the town talking up the shows and inviting folks to watch.All in all, it was just magnificent. The trip, the scenery, the experience. All of it. Grand Canyon National Park. Grand indeed. A true national treasure. If you've not been to the Grand Canyon, I urge you to go. Okay, not necessarily this very moment, but soon. Why? Obviously the Canyon isn't going anywhere - it's been there for, well, millions of years. However, at the rate things are changing in our nation, and the rate at which national historic landmarks are closing (if you live in the state of California, you know exactly what I'm talking about), who knows if you'll be able to see the Grand Canyon in years to come. Or how much you'll be charged to see it. Take the time. Make the time. You'll be grateful for the lifetime of rich, wonderful memories.

The Winner and Still Champeeeen....

2011-07-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

R-E-L-A-X-I-N-G

Ahhhh, who doesn't love the 4th of July? It's such a relaxing holiday. It expects nothing of you other than to sit back, relax and enjoy the slower pace of summer. Maybe a little swim. BBQ, of course. Fireworks, natch. And then there's ice cream. Cool, creamy, homemade ice cream. Is that not just the essence of summer?

So, having not been able to pick just one flavor, Kevin and I made three. We finally had our ice cream taste test challenge yesterday up a Mom and Dad's.

The challengers: on the left, weighing in with lots of fresh, juicy, delicious fruit,
FRESH PEACH

Next up, chock-ful of sweet, juicy, red-berry goodness, FRESH STRAWBERRYAnd finally, last but not least, creamy, sweet, velvety VANILLA

First, let me say this: they were all absolutely delicious. If you're in the market for an easy tabletop ice cream maker, you can't beat the Cuisinart. Chill the canister, mix your ingredients, plug it in, press start, and pour the ingredients in from the top. In 20 to 30 short minutes, you will have a delicious, soft-serve style ice cream. You can eat it right then and there, or ripen it in the freezer until you're ready for dessert. I highly recommend it. The ice cream maker, I mean. But that would apply to the finished product as well ;o)

Okay, without further ado, I proclaim .... VANILLA ... the winner and still champeeeeeen. At least until next time!

Hollywood Bowl Season

2011-07-05T13:34:00.000-07:00

YAHOO! Summer means Hollywood Bowl season!!

I can't remember how many years we've been going to the 4th of July shows at the Hollywood Bowl, but it's something we look forward to every year. This year was no exception!

Early in March I begin scouring the HB website for the schedule for the upcoming summer season, so that we can plan which shows - besides one of the 4th of July shows - we'd like to see. On this year's docket: July 3rd - Hall & Oates, July 16th - Sarah McLachlan, and August 20th - Fantasia.

Of course, half of the fun of an HB concert is the picnic that goes along with it! This past Sunday we enjoyed brie with apricot preserves and baguettes, fried chicken, spinach salad with mushrooms/pecans/bleu cheese, orzo with lemon & parsley, sliced fresh peaches and lime & white chocolate chip cookies. Mmmmmm - what a feast! Kevin stopped at the store in the morning to pick up a few things from our list, and I asked him to pick up a nice bottle of red wine to enjoy for the evening. He did a great job picking out a delicious wine! He chose Cupcake - Red VelvetIt was yummy! We enjoyed a bottle of sangria with dinner and had the Red Velvet after dinner - before dessert! It was a great evening with family and good friends, good food, good music and fireworks. Ahhh life is good!

LEWTENANT DAN!

2011-07-02T09:37:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but in our house, that means ICE CREAM!!

(An aside: the reference is from "Forrest Gump" and Kevin and I use it all the time. A couple of years ago, Kevin sent me an email at work that just said "LEWTENANT DAN!", and I knew right then and there that he was enjoying sweet, satisfying ice cream. Yeah, we know ... we have a language all our own ;o)

We'll be heading up to Mom and Dad's for the fourth of July to BBQ and swim! We're so lucky that they have a wonderful swimming pool that we can enjoy because it's going to be HOT! The weatherman is 'guesstimating' that it will be about 103. Yikers - I can't wait to dive in!

This past Christmas, Kevin gave me a Cuisinart ice cream maker that, until yesterday, we hadn't tried. (What were we THINKING?) For our Independence Day celebration, we volunteered to bring homemade ice cream, so we gave it a go yesterday to test it out. WOW! This is so much fun! And so easy! We couldn't decide on just one flavor so we decided to make three. (We subscribe to the school of thought that says: If one is good, three are better.)

Our first go round was fresh strawberry.Oh.My. It's delicious! On the menu for later today: fresh peach. Mmmmmmm. Then on Sunday, we'll make vanilla. I know, I know - grandpa would ask "Is there any other kind?" But something tells me that if he tried the fresh strawberry and fresh peach, he may change his mind ;o)

This time last week...

2011-07-02T09:28:00.001-07:00

we were in Port Hueneme.Trying to get on the Naval Base.Okay, maybe it didn't look that foreboding, but ... not far from it!

Pat and Drew were invited to play on the Conejo Valley All-Star team, and participate in a tournament on the Naval Base at Port Hueneme. Deb had called the week before to get all of our information so that it could be added to the list of attendees. If your name wasn't on the list, you couldn't get on base. Guess what? Our name wasn't on the list! Then again, neither was theirs!! As luck would have it, an active-duty officer was around when Deb and Bill were trying to get on base and he was kind enough to sponsor them. When Kevin and I arrived and couldn't get on base, we met up with Deb and Bill and went into to the Pass Office to see if we could be added to their pass. The young woman in the office was very nice and added Kevin and I without a problem, and we were all able to head over to watch the game. WHEW! That was a close call! It wasn't too bad, though - we arrived in the bottom of the first inning.

Unfortunately the boys lost, but we had fun cheering them on! Afterwards we all headed to Topper's Pizza for lunch ... and a fun story to tell about getting on the Navy Base!

Father's Day

2011-07-02T09:14:00.000-07:00

I know this post is a bit late, but it doesn't diminish the sentiment behind it.

We celebrated Father's Day at mom and dad's house a couple of weeks ago. What a feast! We made kabobs - teriyaki chicken, garlic lime shrimp, and Montreal and olive oil seasoned filet mignon roast, cut into bite sized chunks. We also had grilled veggie kabobs and I tried my hand at making coconut shrimp - a copycat recipe for Outback coconut shrimp. Everything was absolutely delicious! The coconut shrimp was a bit of work and it's not something we'd make every day, that's for certain, but it turned out okay. We had a wonderful pasta salad chock-ful of veggies, and rice pilaf. For dessert, dad requested Beard Papa cream puffs. Mmmmm...they were SO good!

We all had such a fun day getting together to celebrate Dad. We took a few photos to celebrate the day: Me, Dad & DebThe boys and their PapaThe girls (don't you just love Mom's orange linen top? I do! Orange is my favorite color these days - I just can't get enough of it!)The boys and their GrammaHappy Father's Day, Dad. Thank you for all you do for us. We hope you had a fun celebration - we love you!

Ahhhhh....

2011-06-30T08:26:00.000-07:00

Okay it's been a while and I have posts to catch up on, but for now, let me just say this: I'M ON VAY-CAY-SHUN!!!!!!!! Last day of work yesterday; don't return until August 1st. Man, am I ready for a break!More to come soon!

Gotta Love Simple

2011-06-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday night we went to an impromptu wine and cheese party. We asked what we could bring, but of course the host said we didn't need to bring anything. Yeah. Right. Have you ever shown up at a wine and cheese party with nothing? Me neither. We decided to KISS (keep it simple, stupid) and brought a respectable zinfandel, a wheel of brie warmed and toped with warm apricot preserves, and a crock with warm Greek olives. Mmmm. Everything was delicious! The most surprising hit of the night was the warm olives. Everyone was crazy about them!

Around Christmas time, a friend of mine mentioned that she'd been given the tip to heat the olives while she was shopping at Sur la Table. They told her that heating them slightly added a nuttier flavor to the olives. Who knew, right? I never would have thought of it, but I have to say, it really did make a delicious difference.

Anyway, at the party everyone kept asking how I 'made' them. I kept saying that I really didn't do anything other than heat them up. Apparently, my explanation was not believable ;o) Today I received an email from one of the party guests requesting a step-by-step guide of what I did with the olives. Here's my reply:

Easy, peasy.

1. Go to Pavilions (or any store with an olive bar)
2. Select olives from bar; I chose assorted Greek olives (already combined - no effort on my part)
3. Place said olives in a microwave-able crockery vessel
4. Microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute
5. Remove from microwave
6. Place crockery vessel on serving table; add cutesy plastic toothpicks to retrieve olives from aforementioned vessel
7. ENJOY!

Just call me Martha ;o)

Urban Gardening: Woohoo - We have veggies!

2011-06-14T19:28:00.001-07:00

So it's been a while since I posted about our urban garden - and it's growing like crazy!

Tonight when I went to water, I was happily surprised to find all sorts of new discoveries out there. The first discovery is that we have tomatoes - and quite a few of them!! We found about 8 or 10 of them just sitting there pretty as you please. I swear, we were out there on Sunday and there were only flowers on the plants - no actual fruit. Those little lovelies just seemed to burst out over night!
Next, while we were looking at the greens in the raised bed, we discovered cucumbers! Right now they are still teensy weensy, but before you know it, the'll be ready to pick and enjoy. Can hardly wait!
Then, just outside of the Fern Grotto, we have grapes. We didn't know that until last year when one of our neighbors pointed it out to us. Now that we know they're there, I've been keeping an eye on them. The other day I noticed that we had baby green grapes. I don't know what variety the grapes are, but I'm guessing the small champagne variety. Last year there were a ton of them and they all ripened but they stayed very small. Anyway, while watering tonight I went over to check them out. The vines are loaded! I think they just look so cool! We do have a lot of deer in the area and last year I noticed them munching on some of the grapes; hopefully we'll be able to keep them more to ourselves this year. I'm sure we'll be able to salvage at least some of them - some of the clusters are pretty far up in the yard and I didn't see the deer up quite that far in the yard.

I saved the best discovery for last. Isn't she cute?She always turns to the side just as I snap her picture. Silly girl. No matter - she's cute from every angle ;o)

The Red Sox Win the Pennant!!

2011-06-14T19:03:00.001-07:00

Okay, well maybe not the pennant, but definitely the Championship!

Two weeks ago we had the pleasure of going out to TO to watch Pat and Drew play their final Championship game. Their team, the Red Sox (sorry about that, Pat ;o), was undefeated and this final game was double elimination, meaning that if they lost the game, there would be a second game.

So ... what do you think happened? Second game? Or no second game? If you guessed second game, you'd be a big winner - just ask my poor sunburned shins and feetsies. (Let me just say this about that: wear sunscreen. Even if you think it's cloudy. Go ahead, ask me how I know.)BUT ... it was totally worth it! Both Pat and Drew got and awesome hit! And Pat had the perfect catch out in left. It was so thrilling to watch. We enjoyed the heck out of it. Deb is the team scorekeeper and Bill walked from one side to the other taking pictures of the boys. AND, the best part of all - Auntie Nan and Grandpa Bill from Seattle flew in for the game. Die hard fans, no? ;o)

Check out these handsome ball players: Pat - Go Big 3!

Drew - Go 4-2!

Proud mama and papa:The Seattle Lala's:The Champs and their trophies:Congrats P&D - we're so very proud of you!

Put another candle on your birthday cake...

2011-05-30T13:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had dinner at Vicky's house to celebrate Brian's, Kevin's brother, birthday. We hadn't seen Brian, Amanda, Lilly and Jackson for a while so it was fun to get together to visit. The kids have grown like crazy! Lilly is quite the girlie girl and loves pink and princesses. Jackson has two main expressions: a big smile, or a very serious look that says 'somebody is up to something here and I'm going to figure out what.' Too cute!

We had a fun time and a delicious dinner of grilled pork chops, potato casserole, green beans, corn, and of course, birthday cake. Lilly helped grandma make the birthday cake and was very proud of her creation. First, getting the table ready for the big celebration:Next, making sure all of the candles are lit:She even helped dad blow out all the candles on the cake:Yep, it was a tough job, but now we're all ready for birthday cake!

Pumpkin Update

2011-05-30T13:06:00.000-07:00

It's been just about 5 weeks now and the pumpkins and veggies are growing like crazy!

Kevin and I are both very excited by the progress and can hardly wait until mid-summer to reign in some of the veggie harvest. The lettuce is leaf lettuce and will be ready before then; hopefully we'll have enough to make it through the summer - we'll see. There are quite a few flowers on the tomatoes right now. If luck is with us, they'll stay on the vines and turn into lots of delicious tomatoes. As for the pumpkins...I'm hoping we have jack-o-lanterns everywhere come Halloween!
Veggies, looking good!

Look who else has been enjoying the Pumpkin Patch:
Yep, Miss Slippers and Miss Daisy enjoy roaming around the patch watching the pumpkin vines grow. Slippers typically lays behind the patch while Daisy, being a cat, pretty much enjoys it from wherever she wants to =)

Community Concert & Festival

2011-05-30T12:25:00.000-07:00

As with most school districts these days, my school district is having budget woes. We've had them in the past, but the outlook for next year is pretty dire. A large number of teachers and several classified staff were given layoff notices earlier in the spring. Not good.

To help offset some of the burden, each of our schools have been thinking of different types of fundraisers. During the month of May, our school participated in a Jog-a-Thon, Penny Wars, and a Community Concert and Festival. The concert/festival was held last Sunday afternoon from noon to 5:00 p.m. Nearly every staff member from our school participated by running a booth, helping to set-up or donating goods for the event. It was a HUGE success!

The event was quite an undertaking. We had a number of booths with carnival type games, activities, food, music, drama and drill team performances and a silent auction. After just four short weeks of planning the festival - something we've never had before - we raised $15,000.00!!

Kevin and I ran the 'Decorate - a - Cupcake' booth. Our Home Economics class baked the cupcakes and made the frosting, while Kevin and I provided colored sugars, sprinkles and candies in every color and form you could possibly imagine. Never having done this before, we brought a TON of supplies with us - about 20 pounds in all. To say that we over estimated would be a bit of an understatement; though it seemed like we used a lot, we still came home with about 13 pounds of candies and sugar!! However, the booth was a huge success. At the end of the day, we sold all but 5 cupcakes - not too bad at all!

We had some amazing items in the auction - including a handmade guitar from our guitar making class, a gorgeous watercolor created by a former student, a Tony Hawk signed skateboard deck and boxing gloves signed by Manny Pacquiao:

Our custodian, German, had the great idea of going up on the roof of the school to take a few ariel shots. So cool!

With all three fundraisers that we held during the month of May, our school raised $78,800.00. We're all pretty blown away by that amount - especially in such a short amount of time. While it won't save everyone's job, it definitely will help.

Zac Brown Band at the Hollywood Bowl

2011-05-16T12:44:00.000-07:00

Oh.My.GAWD.

Saturday night we had the extreme pleasure of attending the Zac Brown Band at the Hollywood Bowl. If you've seen them - you know; if you haven't they defy explanation. I was a bit concerned because, though I'm a huge fan, Kevin has only heard two songs - maybe one time for each song. My concerns were laid to rest after the very first song -- Kevin loved them!

These guys are all amazing performers. Kevin said that 'Zac Brown was the worst musician on stage ... and he is great!' What does that tell you about the other guys? The fiddle player - holy cow - AMAZING!

On the way home we 'deconstructed' the concert and both agreed; you know how sometimes you say that a band is better on the record (or CD, actually) than they are in person? Not these guys - they are FAR BETTER in person than they are on the record. Honestly, I can't praise them enough. They were amazing. The musicianship of this band is phenomenal, their harmonies will blow you away, and their lyrics are killer. They really paint a picture that you can feel.

Guess you can tell that we enjoyed the concert, eh? Here are a few photos (photos Orange County Register):

Gig!!

2011-05-09T18:51:00.001-07:00

Kevin had another gig this past Saturday night. The guys sounded GREAT! Take a listen...

If you're ever in town the first Saturday of any month, come on by the Gem City Grill and hear Frater Band live and in person!

Our Ninth Annual Weir-Hosted Mother's Day Brunch

2011-05-09T18:19:00.002-07:00

Flash back to last weekend: it was glorious! Lots of sunshine and warm temperatures. Just perfect for brunch alfresco. Flash forward to yesterday: not so much. Unless, of course, you like dining outside in cool, drizzly temperatures. We don't.

Sooo....this year, Mother's Day brunch went with Plan B: inside where it was warm! Even with the rushing around to get everything decorated and set up inside, everything was just perfect. The food was delicious; the company, divine.

Kevin and I always have so much fun putting this little event together. This year, I decided to do something fun and make my own "Edible Arrangement". I thought it turned out great. One caution, though ... when your guests begin to remove the skewers from the arrangement, make sure they do so all the way around and not just in one spot, otherwise it's likely to tip over! Luckily we didn't have that happen, but there was a threat of it there for a while =) Making the arrangement is a bit time consuming, but not at all difficult. Here's a little peek:

I thought it turned out kinda cute - and it was fun to make.

Here are some of the other photos of the day:Boo! Hiss! Rained out =(Plan B...looking pretty good!

If you ask two particular teenage boys what their favorite part was, you'll hear 'REAL bacon and hot chocolate with LOTS of whipped cream!' If you ask the mommies, I hope they'll say that their favorite part was the love with which this event was created. Mom, Vicky and Debbie, we love you very, very much and hope that your day was as special as you are!

New Growth

2011-05-09T17:59:00.000-07:00

Well the garden had a great week last week. It got lots of sunshine and water and, as a happy result, the lettuce seeds began to sprout and so did the pumpkin seeds!! Everyone keeps telling me that the pumpkins will take over once they start growing. I hope so. The area where they are planted could use more foliage and I'm hoping that, come fall, we will have lots and lots of pumpkins!!

Here's a peek at what's growing in the garden:
The two pictures above are the pumpkins just yesterday (Sunday), and the pictures below they are today

Crazy! Yesterday there were 3, today there are about 7! Here are the other veggies and herbs:

Just look at these two Ja'moes. They have so much fun playing together and chasing each other around. They're hilarious! Kevin says one of his favorite things is to see me sitting on the couch with Slippers curled up at my right hip, Daisy sitting on my lap and the three of us nodding off to napville. Awwww, how cute! ;o)

Urban Gardening in the Fern Grotto

2011-05-01T14:50:00.000-07:00

If ever there was a perfect day to plant a garden, today is it. And because we're not a couple to miss out on such an opportunity, Kevin and I planted our urban garden this morning. It was glorious! The perfect morning to get out there and get your hands dirty - and we did exactly that. We've talked about our garden for a couple of months now, but have been too busy until this weekend to make it a reality. Yesterday we went to Home Depot and got our plants and soil; then we came home and Kevin got our 'raised bed' ready to plant.

This morning after a quick breakfast and sneak peak at the newspaper, we headed outside to 'dig in'. And let me say this about that: that's it - we're exhausted!

On the west side of our house, there's a charming side yard that houses one of the biggest trees I've ever seen. It's a particular variety of eucalyptus tree --- though I don't know what variety. What I do know is that it's huge. And wonderful. And very, very shady. Well, at least until recently. It's still shady, but during a windstorm a couple of months ago, a rather large branch fell off, which prompted our fabulous landlords to give the tree a bit of a haircut. Once it was all trimmed up, we discovered that this area does, in fact, get a decent amount of sunlight. (I've taken to calling this area 'the Fern Grotto' because, two years ago when we moved in we stuck a couple of potted ferns in this area. While we've meant to get to this side of the house and really make something of it, other than placing some outdoor furniture over there, we really haven't done anything - this includes watering it. In spite of all of the neglect, the ferns that have been sitting over there for nearly two years now, are still - miraculously - green. Hence, the Fern Grotto nickname.) With the newly discovered sunlight shining through, we decided to try our hand at being urban gardeners.

In planning the garden, we wanted to make sure we planted things we will actually use and enjoy - hopefully all summer long. We included leaf lettuce, two yellow bell peppers, two red bell peppers, two cucumbers, four different types of tomatoes - two cherry-type and two full-sized, two basil, one sweet mint, and two different types of thyme. Additionally we have a TON of rosemary that surrounds our mail post. If everything does well (fingers crossed!!), this summer our produce trug will runneth over!

We also have a small area in the front that didn't have anything growing. It gets a lot of sun and I thought it would be the perfect place to try our hand at growing pumpkins. So, we now have 6 hills of pumpkins planted. I've put up two cute little wrought iron garden gate pieces and a wrought iron plant marker to cordon off the pumpkin patch. Hopefully this will alert our gardeners to the pumpkin patch - and will help keep the curious Miss Daisy out. Here are a few pictures of what we worked on this morning:

Miss Slippers sneaking a drink of water 'straight from the source' ...Now ... if only I could talk Kevin into an Urban Chicken Coop ...

Much Needed and Long Awaited

2011-04-18T20:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday Deb and I enjoyed a fabulous Girls Day. It's been ages since we've had one! The day was chocked full of massages and lunch and shopping - what more could a girl ask for?

Our first stop was a wonderful foot massage spa in Thousand Oaks. Man! It was fantastic. I wasn't too sure that I could take a 1 hour massage just on my feet, but as it turns out, I didn't need to worry about that - they also worked on my neck, shoulders, arms, back and legs. Sheer Heaven.

Next up, lunch at PF Changs. The food was delicious, but our waiter left a lot to be desired. For instance, at the end of our meal he brought us the check. Our bill came to just over $31.00; Deb had a $25.00 gift card from a student, so we used that and I put in a $20.00 bill to cover the overage. Our waiter took the folder, came back and said, pointing to the total "This is your total after the gift card is deducted (showing us $6.25) -- did you need change?" Uh - YEAH! Kevin's standard tipping rule: double the tax and you come out with the correct tip. A standard tip is 15% and tax here in good old So Cal is 9.75%, so if you double the tax, you're still leaving more than the standard 15% Can you believe the nerve? He seriously thought we'd leave him a $13.75 tip?? Apparently if this is what waiters are being tipped nowadays, we're all in the wrong business. Unless, of course, you're a waiter. So ... he brings us back our 'change'; three quarters, three singles ... and a TEN DOLLAR BILL. Nice try, buddy, but you're still not getting that ten as a tip. Between the two of us, Deb and I were able to dig up exactly $5.75. (Now, be a good waiter and use all of those coins on your laundry. Hrmph.)

Off to Crabtree & Evelyn we went. Oh.My.Gosh. To say that we got a bit carried away is an understatement. But then again, if you've ever shopped in this store, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. They have a new fragrance that I absolutely fell in love with: Lily. If you're familiar with the store and it's products, you'll know this isn't really 'new'; it's a remake of one of their older fragrances, Lily of the Valley. The scent is fresh, light and absolutely swoon-y. I couldn't help myself -- I bought the 3-pack of French milled soaps, the dusting powder (Isn't dusting powder just dreamy? Especially for the summer. You so rarely find dusting powder - this is a real treat!), and the small bottle of perfume. Even the image on the bottle is just darling:We had coupons and they were giving away all kinds of freebies with your purchase so both Deb and I walked out with a TON of things from Crabtree & Evelyn. So much so, in fact, that Deb has declared she needs to open her own C&E store!

With very little money left (after our major splurge), we still managed to fit in Penney's and Kohl's for a few more bargains to round out our day.

WHEW! At this spending rate, maybe it's a good thing we don't have girls day more often! Thanks Deb - I had a great day! Can't wait until next time =)

Ultimate Sandwich Makeover PAR-TAY

2011-04-18T20:21:00.001-07:00

Friday was the big day - Kraft Ultimate Sandwich Makeover day!

About a month or so ago I was chosen to host this fun - and delicious! - party. I decided to have the party at work and share the fun with some friends. It was a huge success and a great way to kick-off the weekend. Here are a few of the photos from our party.

The conference room before our picnic party was set up:
Just beginning to get 'the goods' together:

This is starting to look like quite a spread!:

The 'stars' of our show:
Mmmmmm - cupcakes!(These are to die for, made-from-scratch, orange chiffon cupcakes. We all deemed them 'contest-worthy', so most likely they will be making an appearance in our town's upcoming Cupcake Contest.)
All of the party-goers (Kevin, Linda, Semeen, Nancy, Pam, Amy, Bev, Jaydene, Steve, Merilyn, Connie and Kimi working on and enjoying their sandwich creations:

We all had such a great time! I can't wait to host another party!

Powdered Drink Mix Sticks

2011-04-11T19:43:00.001-07:00

We've all seen these drink mix sticks, right? In fact, they're so popular that every time you turn around, there's another brand or another flavor to choose from. Though I see them all the time, I'd never really given them much thought -- until last week.

Last week dad was in the hospital for a small surgical procedure and I stopped in at the cafeteria several times getting either coffee or cold drinks for mom and myself. At the cash register I noticed that there was every type and flavor of powdered drink mix stick that you could possibly imagine. And do you know what they wanted for them?? $2.00! TWO DOLLARS - EACH! Are you kidding me?!! Even more of an insult, if you don't already have your own bottle of water (or cup of hot water), you have to buy that, too. I can't remember how much the bottles of water were going for - my guess is somewhere between $1.50 and $3.00 depending on what size you bought.

Holy cow. Have we all lost our minds? I wondered to myself how many people buy those ridiculously expensive things. And moreover, why? I understand that sometimes you want something besides soda or just a plain bottle of water, but ... really? Why not just buy a box or two to keep at home and put one or two in your purse 'just in case'.

...which is what I did. The following day I was at Walmart and picked up a box of raspberry lemonade sticks, and a box of Taster's Choice coffee sticks (I received some as a free sample a while back - they're surprisingly good - even to a coffee snob like me!) and I put two of each in my purse. Oh, and two Wild Sweet Orange tea bags. YUM! Now, the next time I want something besides just plain water, I can pull one of these out of my purse for a little treat. Without feeling like I got robbed!

Priorities

2011-04-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

As I was leaving school today, I ran into one of my all-time favorite students. He is a very smart, high functioning autistic boy who never ceases to amaze me. We always have interesting conversations and today was no exception.

I asked him if he'd enjoyed his Spring Break last week and he told me he was "very productive". I inquired as to what he'd been busy with and I imagined that, like most teenagers, he'd reply that he'd caught up on movies, video games and sleep. Nope, not this boy. He told me he was very, very busy working on his priorities. Only after he addressed all of his priorities did he relax.

What was his #1 priority? He told me that he was learning not to be an impulse buyer. "If you buy on impulse, you ruin any money saving chance that you may have had if you didn't buy on impulse."

See. I told ya - very smart ;o)

Bits and Bobs

2011-04-06T17:06:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up, my grandmother always had what I call a 'Bits and Bobs' basket. It wasn't particularly fancy, but in the eyes of a small child, that basket held pure magic. Every time I was allowed to look through it, I found new treasures. It was one of my absolute favorite things to do: spend a rainy afternoon sorting through all of the trinkets in the basket.

A couple of weeks ago while cruising through the Goodwill store, I came across a charm bracelet. A Halloween charm bracelet to be more precise. It caught my eye the minute I looked at the case and asked the clerk to take it out. Upon inspection, it was clear to me that my grandmother wasn't the only one who had a Bits and Bobs basket! Each of the 'charms' was both glorious and goofy in their own right. In reality, they are just small pieces of plastic, glass or metal, but when combined, they form a very charming vintage-y charm bracelet. At just $2.99 I couldn't resist. I bought it. (You knew that was coming, right?) Here it is - see for yourself: Kitschy, no?

So. As you might have guessed, I was inspired. As it so happens, I have my grandmother's old basket. I thought what better use than to fill it up with Bits and Bobs?! I headed to yet another Goodwill store to see what I could find. Luck was a lady and I came upon a florist's vase filled with baubles - who knew what treasures would be inside?! - for just $14.00. Sounded like a fair price to me, so I bought it, brought it home ... and was thrilled! It was exactly what I'd had in mind; inside there were cute bobby pins with embellishments, actual charms (9!) with clasps, a couple of funky pins, a menagerie of vintage clip-on earrings, necklaces of all shapes and sizes that can be used as fun beads, a broken strand (but with LOTS) of black vintage glass beads, and so much more. Next stop was Patty's Antiques (which is closing - boo/hiss) where I came across a couple of $5.00 grab bags that had more fun vintage-y Bits and Bobs. Plus, I came across some old Monopoly game pieces, so I added those to the mix, too.

WHEW! Here's are a few photos of the new generation Bits and Bobs basket: Isn't it fun?!

Now I ask ya, who wouldn't want to spend an afternoon sifting through all the treasures in this basket? Not only that, I'm pretty sure I see some fun, funky, vintage-y charm bracelets on my crafty to-do list ;o)

The (Savings) Power of One Single Shopping Trip

2011-04-06T15:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I combined a bunch of errands and saved a fair amount of cash in doing so (and 'earned' a bit, too). How? Actually, it was much easier than you'd think! Here's what I did:

1. Went through all of the Sunday circulars and all of my coupons. (Lots of potential savings; more below)
2. Mapped out the most direct route hit all of the places I need to visit. (Saves gas ... and who doesn't need to save gas?!)
3. Bought the items I had on my list, but kept an eye out for any other bargains that might be around. (Saves money - both ways, as long as you don't buy on impulse.)

The long and short of it:

I wanted to go to CVS, Walgreens, Ralph's and the Goodwill drop off station. Lucky for me, they're all less than a mile from our home and all in the same general area.

First stop: CVS - I did a total of five transactions. I earned $7.00 in Extra Care Bucks and used them to lower the cost of the items I bought. I wound up with 1 large tube of Gold Bond body wash, a package of 150 tooth flossers, four boxes of Puffs + Lotion, and five Oral B toothbrushes (one even had a small size toothpaste with it). I spent a total of $13.00 and saved $15.71 in coupons.

Next stop: Walgreens - I was able to do it all in just one transaction. They didn't have one of the products on my list, but they generously offered to substitute a very similar product. I bought four large bottles of Old Spice body wash, 2 Old Spice deodorants, a four pack of Duracell batteries, a package of Windex wipes and a bottle of Fantastic. I spent a total of $22.65 and saved $21.80 in coupons. PLUS, they offered me a free gift from the Easter basket they had on the counter (I chose a toothbrush - my dentist would be proud), and I got two different coupon booklets that are good through the month of April.

Next stop: Goodwill Donation Station - Luckily, it's right across the parking lot from Walgreens. I had just one bag - the result of paring down my summer T-shirts and shorts. Plus, an ollllllld pair of shoes I haven't worn in at least two years.

Final stop: Ralph's - This grocery trip was a combo fill in what we need for the week/and stock up on a couple of good deals. They are also running a special where you receive double Rewards points when you buy certain products (juice, yogurt, cold cereal, detergent .... hmmmm...which of these things is not like the other?) I didn't buy them because of the points, but I did buy yogurt and juice so was able to accumulate more Rewards points. Plus, I brought my reusable grocery bags, so I earned Rewards points for that (WOW! I just checked my receipt; they usually only give you credit for 10 bags at 5 points each, but for some reason, I got credit for 16 bags. The checker just kept adding bags until it wouldn't allow him to go any further = 80 points!). I used just $4.75 in coupons, but added to my Rewards card, I saved a total of $34.74.

Total savings for the day: $72.25!! Not bad for just the small bit of planning I did. I wish everything was this easy!

A Fleeting Moment

2011-03-23T19:56:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the smallest things catch me off guard and really make me ______. Fill in the blank with: wonder, think, sad - in this particular case all of those words would apply.

This morning I had a student come into the office. She handed me an envelope and said that her mother was coming in to sign the document inside; after it was signed she asked that I put it in her teacher's mailbox. I told her I'd be happy to. She left the office and a moment later, came right back in and looked at me sheepishly. She looked kind of sad and asked if, when her mother got there, I would call her to the office. We normally don't do that, but before I could say anything, she said "I just want to see her."

My heart just broke. This young girl is the product of a divorced family. She lives with her father and her step-mother who is less than gracious towards her biological mother. I could see how anxious she was about asking and her eyes were pleading with me to not say 'no'. How could I? She's 11. She desperately wants to see her mom. Who could say no to that?

Her mom came in a few hours later and I called the girl to the office. You've never seen two eyes so full of joy! Four, really. Her mother was just as thrilled to see her as she was to see her mother. They hugged and talked for a few minutes, and all too soon, the girl went back to class and mom left to go on to her own class. I felt so sad when they parted. I wondered when they'd see each other again. Not soon enough, I'm guessing.

The Pantry and Freezer are Full!

2011-03-20T16:52:00.000-07:00

Currently, several of our grocery stores are having 'grocery wars'. I love it when that happens! I get to cherry-pick the best items to stock the pantry and freezer. I grocery shopped today at a store I rarely go to; I used to shop there all the time, but their prices sky-rocketed and, even though it's the closest grocery store, I hardly ever shop there. However, today they had a great flyer in the Sunday paper with lots of their own coupons, so I went there instead of our usual store. I'm glad I did! Our pantry and freezer are stocked! Here's what I bought:

6 cans of Green Giant Niblets corn
6 jars of Skippy peanut butter
2 large chuck roasts
3 whole chickens
6 boxes of assorted flavors of Rice-a-Roni
2 large jars of Light Miracle Whip
2 bags of Lays Kettle Cooked potato chips
6 jars Classico pasta sauce
2 bags of Ritz chips
2 packages of Mission tortillas
8 packages of assorted pasta
4 cans of Pillsbury Grands biscuits
1 package Philly Cooking Creme
2 large packages Kraft Sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
2 packages store brand sharp cheddar cheese singles
3 packages Athenos greek yogurt
1 bottle Tropicana orange juice
2 gallons 1% milk
1 loaf of whole wheat bread
2 pounds of fuji apples
2 pounds ground beef
4 containers of Oscar Mayer Deli Selects lunch meat

I bought a total of 79 items for grand total of $104.33 which breaks down to just $1.32 per item! For this area, those are really great deals. DH and I spent some time this morning straightening up our two pantries and the freezer to accommodate everything. It's packed, but we did manage to fit everything where it needed to go.

I'm in the process of looking for a long, low bookshelf to add to our outdoor (enclosed) pantry area. I'd love to find one soon so that I can stock even more great deals - and jam making time is just around the corner!

Now THIS is an Estate Sale

2011-03-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday after our investment club meeting, mom told me they were having an "Estate Sale" (a REAL one this time, not a yard sale like last week's adventure!) at a house not far from theirs. She described the location and I knew exactly which house she was talking about - it's a house that, having grown up there, I've driven by at least a million times. I've always loved this particular house. The front is now a bit overgrown by shrubs (for that matter, I guess it always has been - to some degree at least), but the shrubs don't overshadow the beauty of the house. It's a two story brick colonial with window boxes outside the rows of upstairs windows. I've always wanted to go through that house and yesterday I finally had my chance.

As much as I love estate sales, there is one thing I really don't like about them: it typically means that someone has passed away. It always makes me feel a bit guilty - not to mention melancholy - to walk through a home watching people paw through things that someone took a whole lifetime to collect. There's just something about it that makes me really sad. When I do go to them, I'm always very careful to treat both the home and the items being sold with a great deal of respect. I go through the home slowly, trying to imagine the family that lived there - who they were, how they lived their lives, celebrations they had - and I'm very careful when picking up items for sale. I treat them very gingerly and only touch things I'm really interested in buying.

Yesterday's sale was a big one. Lots of cars parked along the street and lots of people mulling around the house. And what a house it is! It's even more beautiful on the inside than I'd imagined. Several of the rooms were closed off, but the most of them were open and had lots of things for sale. I was talking to a guy who was helping to run the sale and I told him that I'd grown up in the area and had always admired the house. He told me that it had been in the same family since it was built in 1936. How cool is that?! I mentioned that the home had clearly been lovingly maintained and he countered with the fact that it was desperately in need of some upgrades: the home still has STEAM heat! Oh my. I do hope that whomever ends up buying the house maintains the integrity of it's vintage. Something tells me they will ;o)

Anyway --- on to my finds. I picked up a bag of assorted flatware (remember last week's fiasco?), a darling pair of vintage women's gloves with sweet little bead and pearl details, an aqua celluloid vanity box and a charming little vintage Baby Ben windup alarm clock. As I was at the sale on the second day and they were getting ready to wind down, I asked the man if he was able to give me a better price. He added everything up - for a total of $28.00 - and said 'How about $20.00 for everything?' DEAL! 'Wow!', I thought to myself 'This is exactly what I tried to accomplish at last week's sale, but no dice.' Funny - it's definitely one of those times where fate stepped right in and did it's thing.

Another fun find from yesterday ... Last week I read a new-to-me book and re-read an old favorite. They're both focused on war time cooking - methods, rationing, etc. The author happened to mention that, during the 1940's, women would triple sift their flour and cake flour. In fact, they made a specific type of sifter - a three screen sifter - specifically for this purpose so that women would only have to sift their flour one time, and it would still be triple sifted. Huh. I'd never heard of such a thing. As luck would have it, I stopped in at the Goodwill store in Pasadena. I walked up and down the housewares aisles and suddenly, something jumped out at me like a beacon in the night: a three screen sifter! Now I ask you, what are the odds??

Here's a look at 'the goods':(49 pieces, all told - and many of them are initialed. What are the initials? W, M, L - too crazy, right?!)

P&D Turn 14

2011-03-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

Really? 14? How did that happen so fast? I can hardly believe these are the same two boys who made their debut two months early ... and here they are, one is as tall as me and the other is not far behind. Where does the time go?

Last Sunday we celebrated their birthday. The celebration was at mom and dad's house and we had a feast fit for two kings! ...or at the very least, two 14 year olds. Grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, homemade potato salad, baked beans, lots of fresh fruit, and cupcakes for dessert. Mmmmmmm ... cupcakes!Lucky boys got all kinds of loot. Drew wanted a Huskies hoodie and a Knicks jersey:
Pat wanted a Celtics jersey (on order, but has not arrived yet), and a pair of Air Jordan shorts:
All of those goodies were from Grandma and Papa. Uncle Kevin and I got them umpire pants (how fitting is that?!), and gift cards to Lids and Game Stop:
WHEW! I'd say these two raked it in!

On Monday, their 'actual' birthday, Deb and Bill took their boys to Famous Dave's BBQ - Pat & Drew's favorite restaurant - to chow down on even more BBQ. Plus, they got new shoes, new cell phones and Pat got earphones, while drew got a new radio.

Hmmm ... kinda makes you want to turn 14 again, eh?

Paddy-o-furniture

2011-03-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, corny joke but it seemed appropriate since we just celebrated St. Paddy's day =)

Kevin and I have been looking for new patio chair cushions. I have one question: when did these things get so expensive?? Holy smokes, we've been blown away by the cost of them. Each of them. Then, times six cushions ... it seems like a small fortune.

I was walking through Penney's last week and found some cushions I really liked. I was talking to the clerk about them and they were on sale for 40% off. Good deal, right? Well, that's what I thought, too. I asked him to put six of them away and told him that I'd be back in the evening with my hubs and we'd decide if we would take them or not. I Kevin and I returned that night, and Kevin did like them, so we went to the register to pay for them. The clerk (a different clerk) rang them up and the total came to almost $200.00! WHAT? I said to the clerk that I thought that was a mistake - the cushions were on sale for $23.99. He said that price was for a different cushion - these were originally $59.99 and that they were on sale, but the sale price was $36.00. Hmmm ... Clearly the other clerk and I were looking at the wrong cushions =( We decided not to buy them. Since then, we've looked at Walmart, Target, Big Lots, Kohl's, Home Depot, and tons of places online. We've not found them for very much less, and nothing that we liked as well as the cushions from Penney's.

Friday morning I got an email from Penney's about their weekend sale. They showed the cushions we'd looked at, so I clicked the picture to see if they were a different price. THEY WERE! The $59.99 cushions we wanted in the store were now priced at $29.99! (click the link and view the color "Warm Stripe 2") I googled and found a 20% off coupon code and we snagged the cushions for an even better price! They will be here in two weeks - just in time for Spring Break. YAHOO!! Whadya think ... pretty, right?

Pic-a-Nic Basket

2011-03-18T13:51:00.000-07:00

YAHOO!

I was chosen to host a Kraft Ultimate Sandwich Makeover party! What does that mean? It means that I will receive FREE coupons for (5) packages of Oscar Mayer Carving Board lunch meats, (3) bottles of Kraft Sandwich Shop Mayo, and (2) packages of Kraft Natural Cheese. To these items, I will add several types of bread, lots of veggies and 'mix-ins', some chips, maybe a salad and some cupcakes, and I've invited my officemates to 'Have lunch on me!'

I'm very excited about hosting this party - and so are my officemates. The moment they received their E-vites, they RSVP'd "YES!" - well, at least most of them did. I'm still waiting for the last two responses.

I will host this 'shiny-of-dig' in the conference room at the office and decorate it like a picnic. You know - red & white checked table cloth, cute 'lil cut-outs of cartoon-y looking black ants, picnic baskets spilling over with sandwich making supplies, and old fashioned thermoses filled with lemonade. I'll have to think up an activity or two for us to do ... got any ideas? Sounds like fun, right?!

Our big event will take place on Friday, April 15th - TAX DAY! What better day to have a FREE party?! Hopefully it will help ease the pain a little bit ;0) Not to worry - I'll take lots of pictures and post them here. Can't wait!

Isn't that what you do at a YARD sale?

2011-03-13T11:50:00.000-07:00

So Saturday morning after the gig, Vicky and I let Kevin sleep in and we headed to an - ahem - "Estate" sale and to Pavilions to pick up a few things for breakfast.

We thought the sale looked promising - there were many cars parked all around and it was early (or at least relatively early, 8:00 a.m.). We hopped out of the car, crossed the street and hunt was on! I quickly gathered a card of vintage buttons, a shoebox with some pieces of mixed flatware (about 40 pieces), a small glass citrus reamer and a foldable yardstick. The shoebox of flatware had a sticker that said $20.00; I thought that was a bit steep and asked the woman running the sale if she would take a bit less. She quickly and abruptly answered 'NO'. Okay. I continued. There wasn't a price on the buttons so I asked about those. As I was considering my purchase, I added everything up and said the amount under my breath 'twenty seven dollars' -- to which she replied "IT'S $27.50". I asked if she would take $25.00 for everything I'd gathered. She looked at me with a cold stare and said "NO!" Ooooooookay. I told her she could keep the whole darn thing! I said to Vicky, isn't that what you do at a YARD sale? Barter? I said it loudly enough for her to hear. ESTATE sale my pitute. It was a bunch of stuff lining the driveway. I've had many a yard sale and called it what it was - a YARD sale.

I should have known even before I asked that she wasn't open to negotiation. Case in point: The sale started Friday morning at 7:00 a.m., so by Saturday morning when we got there, things were mostly picked over. She had several cool vintage hats (think circa 1940's) and a customer asked her how much for the hat? I didn't hear the amount she'd given, but the customer counter-offered another amount. The woman said "NO", to which the customer replied 'Well, this IS a yard sale' as if to remind the woman that you typically barter prices at such a sale. The woman running the sale then replied snarkily 'But the 'VALUE' is still there.' The customer asked if she'd left the items out overnight and the woman said 'Yes'; it was a cool, damp morning with lots of dew and the customer again picked up the limp hat and said 'No value there!' and walked away.

Shoulda known.

I'm a Groupie!!!!

2011-03-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

Kevin is in a new band and they had a gig Friday night. COOL!

For those of you who may not know, Kevin is an amazing drummer. He's been drummin' for countless years and has been in several bands. A couple of months ago he went to watch some friends and their band play at a local club. He was invited up on stage to play a few songs. There was a guy there who was literally walking out the door and then heard Kevin start playing. He immediately turned around, sat down and the minute Kevin came off stage, introduced himself and asked if Kevin was currently in a band. As luck would have it, he wasn't so they started talking, and then rehearsing and, well ... Friday night was their debut.

They were fantastic! This particular band has played at this club numerous times and there are a ton of 'regulars' who've seen them many a time, so when Kevin showed up, they were all commenting about the 'new' drummer. I kinda got the impression that they weren't really, ahem, thrilled - until they heard him play. Everyone kept coming up to him all night telling him how great he sounded, what a difference from the last drummer, etc. He was thrilled! And I was thrilled for him =)

Vicky came over and we went down and watched until close to midnight. Linda and Jerry came to watch, too (thanks guys!). It was a fun night and the Frater Band will be having more gigs soon. Stay tuned!

Abundance

2011-03-05T10:33:00.001-08:00

Good Saturday morning, all!

I hope everyone is out there having a wonderful Saturday. I've been a busy, busy bee this morning and it's just 10:30! This morning brings abundance to our home.

Sunshine. It's supposed to be 80 degrees today! It's just a gorgeous day outside.

Pink jasmine blooming in the yard and now, in small vials in the bathroom, bedroom and kitchen.

Fresh fruit. This week there were some phenomenal deals at various grocery stores on produce. I thought I'd take advantage of some of the deals and stock our freezer with fruit. It's just about smoothie time and we love them! I bought 5 packages of blueberries, 3 packages of strawberries (some of the berries were just huge!), and six and a half pounds of bananas. This morning I washed and processed all of the fruit and it's now in our freezer. Once everything is frozen solid, I'll put it in freezer bags and wait. But not too long - I want a smoothie soon!
Kevin has two games today, but before he left, he pretty much single-handedly finished the laundry. After processing the fruit, I swept the kitchen, the rugs and Swiffered the rest of the house, so two-thirds of our weekend trifecta is complete. Now we need only pick up a few things at the grocery store, but not too much - it's a light grocery shopping week. Shortly, I'm off to run a few errands and then I'll relax this afternoon with a new book I just received in the mail today. I can't wait to read it! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Public Service Announcement

2011-03-03T20:06:00.001-08:00

Life is too short to wear uncomfortable undergarments.

That is all.

CHARM-ing

2011-03-02T18:19:00.000-08:00

Do you subscribe to Country Living magazine? Oh mercy. In the March issue, I found page after page after page of inspiration!

One of my favorite things was a charm bracelet created by Cathe Holden over at Just Something I Made. I just fell in love with the vintage images she shared for the project - I knew I'd have to make one for myself.

So. I did! It was very easy to do, didn't take long at all, and I think it turned out just adorable. See for yourself:Isn't it cute?!

If you love it, you can find all of the supplies you need on a quick trip to Michael's - and nothing was over $5.00. Plus, the images are downloadable for FREE! Check out Cathe's site or Country Living online for all of the details.

Happy crafting!

Playing with Books

2011-02-27T14:10:00.001-08:00

A friend of mine at work lent me this book: Oh my gosh - I think she's created a monster! Each chapter was better than the next. There are a TON of amazing projects that I am just going to have to do.

Thanks, Linda, for loaning me the book. But darn you! Now I'm going to have to go buy it! ;o)

Lazy Weekend

2011-02-27T13:50:00.000-08:00

Kevin and I have been enjoying a very lazy weekend. While I was out Friday night, Kevin stayed home and did all of the laundry! THANK YOU, honey!! What a fun treat that was. Saturday morning, we got up late (well, late for us) and just lazed around.

Around mid-morning, we decided to go check out our favorite thrift store. I have a few craft projects that I'm working on and was looking for some specific things and thought I'd see if I could find them there. Linda has often remarked that it's uncanny - whenever I think of a project, I can go to that particular thrift store and find exactly what I need for the project. Guess what? Yesterday was no exception! I was looking for some nice vintage silverware and was thrilled to find that they had just put out a wooden case filled with it! The whole shebang was $25.00 - which at first I thought was a bit steep. However, once I got out my trusty little cal-cu-lator, I discovered that it was really a great price. I can make at least 6-sets of my project (which will become gifts) and still have a few pieces leftover for myself. Not to mention the wooden box everything came in. (I'm sure I can turn that into a project, too. Have any ideas for me?) Sooooo we bought it. Hip, hip, hooray!

Included in the box was a very cool butter knife, and a mother of pearl handled relish fork. SCORE! I knew I'd be keeping those for myself. You would too. Wanna see how cute they are?
Pretty cool, right?! Heck, I almost think those were worth the cost right there!

After we left the thrift store, we had a bite of lunch (Jim's - YUM!), and then headed to our library book store. Just inside the new library to the left, there is a really cool Friends of the Library book store. They've got a huge collection of books for sale, very inexpensive. They also have a FREE basket - YAY! The first thing that caught my eye was a freebie - an old clothbound book of the short stories of John Steinbeck. Pretty cool freebie! They also had a few other books that I'll be using for craft projects. Here's the day's take: All in all, we had the most wonderful day! It was perfect - we got to spend some fun time together, and it was a very casual, relaxed day. What more could you ask from a weekend really?

WOFA

2011-02-27T13:35:00.000-08:00

So Friday night we had a WOFA event (Women of First Avenue). If you guess BINGO, you would be correct! It was so much fun! We've done this a time or two and everyone has such a great time we can hardly wait until the next BINGO night.

It was a bit of a soggy night, but that didn't keep the heartiest of souls away - there were 18 of us, Holly made dinner and we all brought either appetizers, wine or dessert. What a feast! Everyone brings a gift and we draw to see who chooses the first gift. After that, we go in number order until everyone has chosen something. You open your gift and show it to the group; then, when someone wins a round of BINGO, they can steal your gift. Bummer! I brought this cute scarf and a cute pair of pale pink earrings to go with. The gift I chose was a gift bag that had a package of Eiffel tower tissues, a 3-pack of emery boards and a Nordstrom gift card. Not too bad! But I have to say that, honestly, out of all the gifts there, I really liked the gift I brought the best. As luck would have it, when I won a round of BINGO, I stole it from the person who'd opened it! All is fair in love and war, though, because someone stole my Nordie's gift card. No matter, I had a GREAT time, and I was very happy with the 'gift' I brought home =)

Take a deeeeeep breath....

2011-02-24T15:06:00.000-08:00

Does anything smell better than this??I think not! Just outside the back door on the patio we have two huge pink jasmine bushes that are in (nearly) full-bloom. Magnificent! That heady aroma is so exotic, so evocative, so ... SPRING!

Soup-er

2011-02-21T15:34:00.000-08:00

There's been a whole lot of 'under-the-weather-ness' around here and I think the best remedy for that is homemade soup. Sooo...I made some. Or rather, I made a lot of it. Two huge stock pots full of it. One of beef barley with lots of yummy carrots, onions and celery, and one pot of creamy chicken with wild rice (and lots of veggies, of course!). Saturday evening when Kevin returned home from band practice, I asked which one he'd like to have for dinner. He had to - ahem - taste each one several times before he could render a verdict. Beef barley it was. The creamy chicken and wild rice had to wait until Sunday at lunch. No matter, we enjoyed them equally.

There is some of each residing in the fridge for soup and sammie lunches this week, and some in the freezer. Both our freezer and mom and dad's freezer as well. Oh, and Deb, we might be able to work out a trade ... say a little soup for a little tube of Crabtree and Evelyn Gardener's Therapy hand cream ;o)

Big Night Out

2011-02-21T12:55:00.000-08:00

Last night Kevin and I went on a date. That's not all that unusual for us - we date a lot ;o) It is unusual for us to go some place shi-and-shi-and-la-and-la, though. Which is exactly what we did last night. We decided to have a late Valentine's dinner at The Melting Pot. Mmmmmm - yum! Have you ever been to the melting pot? No? Well, only go if you love good food. And you like to cook. At your table. We'd scoped out the menu before we went and had decided on the 'Big Night Out - France'. Oh.my.ga. It was sooo yummy! The first course was a cheese fondue. White wine, baby swiss and gruyere - how could you go wrong? The dippers were three different kinds of bread, green apples, carrots, cauliflower and broccoli. My fave was the green apples and Kevin's was the broccoli (say what?!). Next course, a salad nicoise - sans tuna (otherwise I would never have considered it!). I enjoyed it, but Kevin wasn't very fond of it. I think the shredded beets turned him off instantly - he says they taste like dirt. That would do it for me! I, on the other hand, love beets, so I wasn't deterred. It was quite tasty. Next was the main course. We chose a meat and seafood selection that included filet mignon, new york pepper steak, lobster tail, shrimp, chicken, duck a l'orange, and ratatouille ravioli. I didn't try the duck or the lobster, but everything else was delish! Kevin really enjoyed the seafood as we don't really eat much of it at home. (Okay, we don't eat any at home.)The grand finale was a creme brulee dessert fondue. Oh mercy - it was utterly delightful! They caramelize the sugar on top of the fondue right at your table. So cool!It was a delicious dinner and the company was absolutely perfect =) The hostess seated us in 'Lover's Lane' - nice touch, don't you think?

Who says we don't have seasons?

2011-02-21T12:51:00.000-08:00

It is so not true!. Yesterday morning we woke up to this:So perfect, so beautiful and so close! If I had long enough arms, I could have reached out and touched it.

The Perfect Valentine Gift

2011-02-14T10:56:00.001-08:00

... as long as it's from your heart.

Frugal in so many ways ...

2011-01-28T13:08:00.000-08:00

So I've been trying to make myself leave the office at lunch at least a couple of days a week. The last couple of weeks have been crazy and it's good to get out mid-day for a little break.

As it happens, there's a huge Goodwill store just a couple of blocks away so that was yesterday's destination. I looked around and didn't really find much - kind of disappointing really. Then, I thought I'd make a sweep through the housewares department. I'm so glad I did!

Several years ago I bought a stainless steel thermos at Starbuck's. I talked myself into believing it was frugal because, afterall, I'd be saving money by brining my own coffee to work. And to that end, it was frugal. The UN-frugal part is that the darn thing cost $25.00 in the first place! But, buy it I did. And both Kevin and I used it for quite a long time. Over time, though, the coffee creamer and gunk built up in the vacuum seal/pour spout and we ended up throwing it away when we moved to our new place a couple of years ago. I do have another thermos - something similar (but far less costly!) - that I use to tote my coffee (or, okay, hot chocolate!) to work. I don't use it every day, but it's nice knowing I have it when I want it.

Yesterday while looking through the housewares, I spotted it. There - on the shelf right in front of me. Ahhhh, thermos love all over again! It was pink. And perfect. And had never even been used! I picked it up immediately and headed to the check-out. Three dollars - THREE DOLLARS! - and it was mine, all mine. It's scrumptuous! I'm reserving this one for cold water and lemonade (doesn't that just sound perfect for this PINK thermos?!)

...now all I have to do is use them!

2011-01-28T12:24:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday I took a trip through Michael's. I haven't been there in a while (I try and stay away as much as possible because it's like an addiction!) and I wanted to see what was on sale. After all, I *did* receive a $25.00 gift card from a friend for making some invitations for her, so it was like getting 'free' stuff ... right?

Anyway, I also had a coupon for 40% off any Martha Stewart craft item - and you know I couldn't pass that up. I came away with a goodie bag filled with things - AND I still have $8.00 left on the gift card. Score! More on the other goodies later, but I was really excited about the Martha Stewart item and just had to share.

So this is what I ended up buying with my 40% off coupon: Cute, right? I know! I ended up spending just $5.00 on the whole set. I looked at the plastic mounts you're supposed to use for these new kinds of stamps (remind me again, what was wrong with the good 'ol days of wooden stamps?) and I was pretty shocked. The mount alone was $12.99! Yikers. No thanks.

When I got home, I began thinking of things I could possibly use as a mount for the stamps. Then, it hit me: ask my friend Michael - who also happens to be our Industrial Technology teacher - if he has any wooden scraps he was going to throw away! I emailed him and he asked to see the stamps so that he would know what size scraps I needed - makes sense. I brought the stamps in today and by 10:00 a.m., he brought me a box FILLED with the perfect sized pieces of wood - just like the old wooden stamps! YAHOO!! He even brought me the sandpaper to smoothe the edges and 'make them pretty'. I'm going to work on putting them together this weekend and I'll post a picture of the finished product. I can't wait!

Road to California

2011-01-25T14:40:00.001-08:00

...quilt show, that is!

This past Saturday while Kevin was working on umpire updates in Phoenix, Deb, her friend Andrea and I had a girls day! As it happened there was an outstanding quilt show last weekend at the Ontario Convention Center so the three of us headed out to see what we could find.

WOW. It was absolutely amazing! Lots and lots of vendors carrying everything you could possibly imagine, from fabrics and patterns to quilting machines to yarns and embroidery transfers and floss. You name it, if it was for stitching, it was there. So many beautiful things to see (and be tempted by!), but THE most amazing things, of course, were the finished quilts. One was more beautiful than the next. I cannot imagine how much time it must take these amazingly talented women to finish their quilts. There is so much incredibly fine detail in these treasures - they truly are a labor of love.

My favorite quilt at the show was called "Tea with Miss D." - a quilt by Sandra Leichner. It's absolutely phenomenal. I didn't take any photos at the quilt show, but I did contact Sandra and request permission to post some photos of her quilt, to which she generously agreed (thank you, Sandra!). So, without further ado, check this out for yourself: (the quilt - not including white border) (center of the quilt)(all the rest of the sweet details)

I have to say, this quilt was such a treat to see! I just fell in love with it; hope you enjoy it, too!