happy Friday

Happy Friday! 

~

My laptop is at the Apple store getting new speakers - for the second time...

Apparently I keep blowing my speakers out because I listen to music too loudly :/ 

ANNOYING!

Luckily, I'm armed with some Halloween candy, and a new episode of Suburgatory :) 

~

Anyway, the post meant for today will have to wait till Monday...

which all of the sudden reminds me of something Charlie Bucket's teacher said 

in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory:

"I've just decided to switch our Friday schedule to Monday, 

which means that the test we take each Friday on what we learned during the week 

will now take place on Monday before we've learned it."

These things just pop into my head.

~

Go chill out with a nice DC and see you on Monday!

tgif

Have a great weekend everyone!

Phil: "Not too early for one of these, I hope"

Lenny: "I'm thirsty"

manna news flash

Quite often I am reminded that clouds do have silver linings. Even though you may first have to stand in a downpour. Without an umbrella. As a bus speeds by. And you end up wearing a lot of mud on your face.

So it is with the continuing saga of my suspiciously cocaine infected nostrils - which, you will be most grateful to hear, I will not go into yet again - as well as the staples of my health regimen you all know I depend on most. None other than my personal manna and nectar of the gods: Ruffles and diet Coke. For such a coincidence to occur at the same time is really quite extraordinary. I'm certain the planets must be in alignment and all must be well in the universe. Or it could be that I'm just my optimistic self and my medication is really awesome. 

If you're not aware of my close relationship with Ruffles and diet Coke - or if you really could care less - that's perfectly all right. Go head on over to the Onion - I'm sure they have something to get you laughing and thinking. Or go visit Dooce - no doubt she has something perfectly nasty to say. Now is your chance, so make a break for it! But if you want a little news flash... stick around for just a minute.

I admit it. I've been downright pathetic about this nose nightmare. And not just because I've been completely miserable. It's just the absolute wrong ailment for a germophobic, bacteria fearing, clean freak. So when my husband went to the store for milk Friday night, he actually bought me some Ruffles. He felt bad for my sad, sorry, pathetic self, and he noticed they were on sale, so he brought home several bags. Needless to say, he scored some major points. Now here's where my little news flash comes in.

You already know I can't eat the Original Ruffles. WAY too greasy - even just one handful will make me feel ILL. I have to stay away - far away. I had always eaten the Ruffles Reduced Fat and was good to go. Well, several months ago, I was head-over-heels to discover Natural Ruffles Sea Salt Reduced Fat. Soooooo Good!!! In fact, I even posted that they were my new Fall Line-Up! And I've been loving them ever since! It wasn't until my husband brought home my old favorite - the regular Reduced Fat Ruffles - because they were the ones on sale, that I realized what a difference there was in the SALT! HOLY SODIUM! Hence, wearing a lot of mud on my face!

I truly never realized how much more salt there is in the Natural Sea Salt Ruffles! They still may be considered Reduced Fat, but they are MUCH saltier! It was actually a relief to taste my old faves with less salt. I'll probably be able to delay that stroke a while longer too. So I am here to tell you my friends, run - RUN! - back to the regular Reduced Fat Ruffles for less fat and MUCH less salt! You'll be so glad you did. Your world will be round again.

I can't believe it took a freaking nose infection to bring it all about. Go figure. 

And God will look down and smile upon your manna :)

new fall line-up

Ah, the innocence of youth. So ignorant was I. All last year, I was so content - nay, delighted - with my big vintage glass of diet Coke, and my bag of Reduced Fat Ruffles potato chips. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (and in-between snacks)... of champions. Okay... slight exaggeration. But oh, how I loved them! My Reduced Fat Ruffles were my personal manna... my diet Coke was my nectar of the gods. Sigh... how little I knew then.

But I have grown (much wider) in the last year and put away my childish things. My eyes have been opened and seen the light. My taste buds have matured and there is no turning back. The seasons are changing and so am I. Fall is in the air. Change is imminent. And besides... everyone is talking about the new fall line-up.
Well feast your eyes on my new fall line-up! All natural, still-reduced fat, sea salted Ruffles! Diet Coke in my vintage glass... with a splash of sugar-free vanilla syrup in it! Oooooooooooh baby...... life is GOOD :)

The Ruffles are awesome because just like the regular Reduced Fat, they're not greasy like the Original Ruffles. I just can't handle the Original Ruffles - they make me sick to my stomach. And these Sea Salted ones have just a tad less salt than the regular Reduced Fat too. Still salty enough for sure, but wow, they taste so good! And just a splash of that vanilla syrup mixed in - smooth :) And my cousin Julynn gets credit for the Vanilla syrup (in other words, it's all her fault I'm hooked on it)

that's right

uh huh

oh yeah

If you want it then ya better put a ring on it :)

recovery mode

*sigh* Was yesterday one of the saddest days ever or what??? So sad :( Today was like a strange non day - a kind of quiet continuation of yesterday spilling over into today. I think the world is still very much in shock, left without it's King of Pop. And so..... I shop. (not intended to sound cheeky)
Are these not the CUTEST little lemon dishes??? I found myself wandering aimlessly down the aisles of Pier 1 during their fabulous summer sale. I could literally live at Pier 1 and World Market. Oh yes. And let me just say, it is a FAB sale. I didn't even make it half way through the store because I went into sensory overload. I have more things planned than even I can imagine. And I can imagine quite a lot. But I was on a be-kind-to-myself mission, so before I inadvertently started honking "MAYDAY!" I purchased these adorable lemon dishes, went to the store for diet Coke, Ruffles, lemons & limes, and drove home. I set myself up in style to watch the outcome show of So You Think You Can Dance, which I hadn't had the chance to watch yet, and I had a little party all by myself. It was...... exquisite.

*chill*

Spotlight on 3 Etsy Artists

Is this not the most adorable set of crocheted items for play? I fell in love with Crafty Anna's Cute Colorful Crochet store. Talk about eye candy! After coming up with the most creative ideas for imaginative food play, she has painstakingly made extremely affordable patterns with directions, so you can make fun sets of crocheted toys children will love. She does not sell the finished sets, mind you - she sells her copyrighted PATTERNS, simple enough for beginning to intermediate crocheters. Stop by her Etsy store so you can see for yourself, what colorful, creative sets she has invented!
I knew I would get your attention with this little guy! This is Charlie. He's just a small bird, but as you can see, he has a LOT to say! Enter Brainiac the Art of Matte Stephens, and you enter a world of soft, pleasant colors, quirky but endearing characters, and unique retro style. Matte sells both his original gouache paintings, and his very affordable prints here in his Etsy store. His work could easily stand alone, or would make a fantastic grouping of several.  Go on one of his "family vacations" and see the wonderful cast of characters he has created for all to enjoy! 
Okay, now seriously. You didn't think I would forget my precious diet Coke did you? When I came across these ingenious ornaments cut out of diet Coke cans, there was no way I couldn't spotlight them! They came from Jenn's Recycled Things. They are backed with a foam backing - no sharp edges - and hooks are included. And they are so fun and affordable, how could you possibly go wrong? Of course other products are represented as well (Dr. Pepper earrings anyone?). Just a very fun idea to represent one of our favorite obsessions during the holidays :)

Please let me know if you would like to see more Etsy spotlights in the future. And definitely let me know how you liked the ones I just featured! I enjoy spotlighting others' creativity, so if you're all for it, I'd be happy to continue periodically. And of course you can always visit Etsy yourself - but I warn you, it might be days before you come up for air!

Gratitude Shmatitude?

In the month of November we give our thanks. Thanks for those who came before us, for our country, our freedom, our homes, our families - all the big stuff that we often take for granted. Thanksgiving is a great reminder that we do indeed, have much to be thankful for.

Life has really taken it's toll on us lately. We're constantly bombarded by uncertainty, by stress, by fear, by heartache. It's hard to remain thankful in a world full of turmoil. But there are positive things - oh, so many positive things - in our lives. Some very large, some very small - some so tiny we hardly know they're there. But all essential. And the small joys add up into large joys. Often overlooked, those simple pleasures can give us a great amount of happiness.

Have you heard of a Gratitude List? Have you ever tried it? All it is, is a simple list of the every day things in life that lift your heart. It doesn't matter what you write on. It doesn't matter if it's messy or neat, long or short, plain or artsy. What matters is that you do it. All it takes is a few minutes every day to add a few more things to your list. It's easy to do - there's no right or wrong way, because your list will be as individual as you are. And if you've had a rough day, all the more important! You will be amazed at how writing down the little gems that are meaningful to you, truly can give you a happy, thankful heart.

Here are several of my little gems that I love, love, love, and am so thankful for - - -

   

It's true - my relationship with Ruffles and diet Coke is legendary.

I love my Megibug. We are tight. And she is FAST. 

I am grateful for these dorky faces.

And who could not *ADORE* this precious face!?!

I am so grateful for the beauty of flowers.

Oh, textiles! How do I love thee!

Color. How grateful I am for color. Can you imagine a world without it!?!

Oh yippee! It's amazing what a little pedicure tenderness can do.

Doodles :)

Cherished books. And my fave magazines - such sources of inspiration.

So are you ready? There are little gems in your lives waiting for you to write them down.

Pet Peeves

No, my dogs are NOT pet peeves. But since they ARE my pets, it was a really good excuse to put their picture on here :) Stretching it, I know. Anyway. We all have pet peeves. Small, annoying things that really get under our skin and BUG us. And we all have the deep-seeded desire to share them with others - and to feel validated that yes, we have every right to be annoyed. But we always end up keeping them to ourselves. So today is Pet Peeves Day. I'm going to start off by sharing a few gems of mine. 

1) jam falling off the knife when making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. This pretty much makes me want to take the knife AND the jam jar AND the sandwich and throw them across the room. If you knew how many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I have made over the last 20 years you would understand.

2) ice cubes from the freezer slipping out of both sides of your hand and ricocheting all over the kitchen when all you were trying to do was fill up your glass for a nice diet Coke because if you don't have one soon you're going to kick a piece of furniture.

3) trying to get wet clothes out of the washing machine to put into the dryer when they're all tangled up and wrapped around each other and it hurts your back because you are short and then you get even more mad when you can't reach the bottom of the washing machine to get the last sock out. 

4) walking into a room and forgetting completely why you walked into that room, and/or, starting a sentence and not having the capacity to finish one freaking sentence because you've got so much on your mind that it's already borderline "Sensory Overload" but you just keep cramming it with useless information to the point of "MAYDAY" and then your kids are staring at you like you've got goo dripping out of your nose or something and all of the sudden you feel mentally disabled and 90 years old. Which is a good reason to have that diet Coke handy, because you're going to need it.  

But this is no fun unless you share your pet peeves too - so by all means please comment!

A Small But Meaningful Life - first post

Well, here I am. The first post ever on my blog. My blog? Weird. I can't believe I'm attempting to fake my way through this. I'm not young, hip, or cool. Actually that's not true - I am still cool. But definitely not young or hip. And I don't really know what to say of particular interest. But I love to write. LOVE IT. And I love to do crafty, creative things someone other than myself or my kid's friends might like at some point along the way. My life lately is feeling just a bit on the scattered side. This and that are all over the place. In between kids and friends and chores and errands and definitely hiding behind laundry. Paintings here, poetry there, photography still elsewhere. Dogs, drawings, ideas that keep me up at night. Projects constantly simmering. Mosaics still patiently waiting to be created. An Etsy store that MUST be created! And of course antiques all over the place. So I'm going to try to bring all these loose ends together here on my blog. A tall order, I know. But it might be a great thing - it could be a terrific thing.

I guess I need to introduce myself, considering this is my first post. Most of my friends still don't know what a blog even is, and the ones that do think it's mainly an exercise in narcissism. Fine. Nevertheless, I still need to establish my voice here. So because I have a headache and can't think of anything too creative, I'm going to rip off what I wrote about myself in my Facebook profile:

I'm the mom of 3 boys. There's a husband (of 26 years) in there somewhere too. I'm a bohemian. Color makes me happy. I'm so tie dye I need my own Ben & Jerry's flavor. I have more favorite scents than you would believe. I have a weakness for peace signs. I'm super creative. I will only use McDonald's straws. I don't know what I'd do without music. I love sunshine but I HATE the heat. I love food way too much. I read magazines backwards. I have 2 tattoos. Abused and abandoned animals make me cry. I love decorating but I hate excess. I'll do anything to avoid a public toilet. I am fun loving but I love to be by myself too. I'm still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. My speed record in my Bug is 120mph so far.

So that is pretty much me. Let me explain the "small but meaningful life" part of this post. Remember when Meg Ryan said that? In "You've Got Mail"? She was explaining her life to Tom Hanks via the internet. That description really struck me. Because no matter how small a life is, you still affect a lot of people, a lot of things. No matter how small it is, it can still be full of meaning and richness. I definitely have - and am blessed to have - a small but meaningful life.