Christmas Goodies

1.wool felt present topper by eclu

2.wool felt christmas stocking by Drysdale & Co.

3.Set of 5 needle felted and glittered hanging acorn ornaments (red) by AnnaBelleArts

4.Simply White Felt and Gold Filled Earrings by 3FUN

5.Holly berry Brooch by Shanineal

6. Christmas Reindeer Felt Pillow by Photographik

7.Needle Felted Friend - Owl Ornament by ScratchCraft

8.Christmas Tree Garland by ImaginationInFlight

9.Thick Wool Felt Christmas Garland by Babus

10.Christmas Poinsettia Headband by Hillyhouse

11.Six Green Ornaments With Snowflakes by JaniceCordeiro

How did I get so lucky?

I am just going to come right out and say it, my husband is AWESOME. Thanks to PMS, I have been a real treat to be with this week (and it is only Wednesday). Poor guy has been so loving despite my extreme moodiness.  It really makes me wonder how I got so lucky!

Just Around the Corner...

August is a busy month. August 1st is Isaac's and my one year anniversary! Time has flown by. And speaking of time flying by, that brings me to the birth of my first niece. The past nine months have FLOWN! Cora is due August 13th, but I have a feeling she will be here before we know it, maybe even before her parent’s anniversary. That is right, another anniversary. My sister and her husband will be celebrating their 7th anniversary August 9th. And at the end of the month, on the 22nd, my cousin turns the big 21!, and on the 28th, my sister will be turning 27! In other wedding/anniversary news my cousin will be getting married at the end of the month and my aunt and uncle will celebrate their 27th anniversary!




So, cheers! I can't wait for all of the reasons to celebrate!

"...so I can feel the rain."

My husband surprised me with Dave Matthews tickets on Valentine's Day.  I had about four months of waiting but the concert finally came.  The weather was beautiful...until Dave came out.  Then, it poured (did I mention we had lawn seats?).  Not just for a few minutes, but almost consistently for three hours.  The winds kicked up to 60 mph and there was a beautiful lights display in the sky.  But, despite that, the concert was great. Dave played an excellent show with most songs seeming to have something to do with "rain".  It was a great time, minus being freezing and wet. Here is a picture of Isaac and I (before we looked like we went swimming in our clothes).

Tennis Anyone?

Tennis has always been my favorite hobby and it is shared by most everyone in my family. When I got married I decided to share the hobby with my hubby :) Being a natural athlete, he picked up on it rather quickly. Here is a picture of us before a morning date on the courts.

Trying to be like Dorothy

For those of you reading my blog that don't know my grandma, well you are missing out.  You are not only missing out on knowing such a lovely woman but you are being deprived of some of the most wonderful taste treats.  She is known for her delicious cookies, cinnamon rolls, chicken and noodles and her BREAD.   

Not too long ago, I decided to try my hand at my grandmas bread. I called her for the recipe, and not to my surprise, she didn't really have one.  She said, " A little of this, a little of that." So, going by her "recipe", I attempted the great feat.  It turned out to be quite delectable, but it still was not as good as hers.  One of these days I will get it right.  Here is a pictures of the loaf I made.

Occupying My Time...

I have taken up a part-time job and I love it. I work between 14 and 24 hours a week at Merchants of German Village, a furniture consignment shop. Since the shop isn't busy constantly, I needed to find something to do during down times. My wonderful husband, who loves to read (currently, he is reading ALL of the Star Wars series...), suggested that I take a book with me to work to occupy my time. I, never being much of a reader, reluctantly agreed.

Isaac (that is my husband's name) decided to make a trip to the library, to see if he could find any of his series there. Before he left I asked him to pick up Pride and Prejudice for me (my sister has been telling me to read this for several years now). When Isaac returned from the library he handed me a book, not the one I requested. He said, "The library didn't have Pride and Prejudice, but they had this one by Jane Austen, Persuasion."

So, the next day I was to work I began to read it. That was Tuesday. Today is Thursday, and I finished the book this morning. I loved it. I cannot wait to read the other Austen books. Which one should I read next

'Tis The Season

April 1st marks street cleaning here in our wonderful village.  I'm not sure why they choose to do it during the spring and summer and not the fall or winter. Nor do I understand why they chose to do this on the 2nd Tuesday and Wednesday of each month from 8am to 10am.  Isaac and I did come up with some reasons to explain the strange schedule this morning when we had to take a trip to the impound lot to pick up our car. Good-bye $200.00, hello writing on our windows...

Pollen Forecast High

Apparently, it is allergy season.  Allergies are something I never had a problem with until this past fall.  Growing up, my sister always had the worst allergies.  She practically lived off Benadryl.  I never understood...until now.  The past two out of three days I have taken Benadryl.  I hate taking any medication, but without this magical drug, I end up sneezing constantly, having itchy watery eyes, and an itchy throat. 

Is there anything that can make these symptoms go away other than Benadryl?  My sister has moved out to Arizona and isn't having major allergy problems...maybe I should consider a move?

Motivation

A few weeks ago, on one of my husbands and my many trips back to Cincinnati to visit our families, my mom and I went shopping. While shopping at my favorite store (Dillards at Kenwood), I found the most beautiful dresses and they were all 70% off, great huh? The catch was they were all size 2. After being in Cincinnati for a week, enjoying loads of home cooked meals and delicious desserts, compliments of my mother-in-law, I wasn't very confident in my ability to fit into the dresses. But, my mom talked me into trying them on. As I am trying them on, I am pleasantly surprised that indeed they do fit...just a little snug around my hips. My mom, always full of wonderful ideas, offers up the suggestion that buying the dress would be a great motivational piece to get back in shape. I completely agreed with her...the question was if my husband thought so too.

After the successful shopping trip (thanks for the new shoes mom!), I told my hubby about the gorgeous dresses and how there was one that especially struck my fancy. I went on to explain the brilliant idea my mom had. He agreed, and decided to head to the mall to check out the dresses.

We walked into the mall and the dresses were all exactly where I had left them. I went into the dressing room and to model for my husband. He liked all of them, surprisingly, but one especially...my second choice dress. So, then the question became which one to get: my first choice dress (the motivational dress) or my second choice, the one my hubby picked.

It was impossible to decide between the two, so I got both :) Since the purchase, I have taken up a daily run, watching my calories, doing sit ups and cutting way back on TV. The dress almost fits perfectly...I am hoping by the end of week, I can wear it on a date with my wonderful husband.

Green SUV

Today, I decided I was going to meet my husband for lunch on campus for the first time. (I know, about time since he is almost 2/3s of the way through with this year.) I got ready, grabbed my coat and purse and went out the door. Unlocked my car, got in, buckled up, turned the car on, and was on my way to lunch.
A few blocks into my drive (a long time, I know, to not have noticed something directly in front of me), I realize there is a piece of paper under my windshield wiper. Since I live in the city (literally, right downtown), I thought to myself, well this might be something about snow removal or parking. So, I pull over, grab the paper and get back in the car, all without getting hit by my fellow motorists (very impressive). I open up the folded paper to find that, yes, it was about parking...here is what the typed note said:

Hi Neighbor

Parking is tight would you be polite and try to take only one space for your Green SUV Instead of two?

Thanks

My reaction...Are you kidding me? First of all, we have no parking lines on our street. Who is to say I was double parked? Secondly, if anyone was double parked it was the car behind me. Next, you typed the note? Really? Thirdly? You couldn't sign it? If you had signed it, my reaction would have probably been to bake you a batch of my fabulous cookies (doesn't matter what kind, all cookies I make are fabulous), take them over to you, and apologize for accidentally "taking up more than one spot". Finally...I don't need any more reasons. GET OVER IT!

Here is my suggestion if you are someone who feels that a neighbor has taken up more than their fair share of parking area, let it go. But, if you are one of those people who feels the need to say something through a note under the windshield wiper, try something like this (handwritten of course), instead of the one I received.

Hi Neighbor,

I know you probably didn't mean to, but you seem to have taken up more than one parking spot. We all do it one time or another. But, with parking being so tight on our street, I would appreciate it you could try to be more aware of where you are parking. I will work on it too, because like I said, we all do it one time or another.

Thanks,

Your Neighbor at 1234 Main St

Now isn't that better?