Year in Review

Year in Review


What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before? Been tougher with my adult children to (hopefully) help them become independent adults

Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I did a 101 in 1001 days a few months ago. I have chiseled away on some of the items on the list but I have a LONG way to go.

Did anyone close to you give birth? Nope.

Did anyone close to you die? Yes, sadly we lost Dave's Mom Rosemary in November.

What countries did you spend time in this year? Just the good ole' US of A

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? More family dinners with Dave at home, money to put in savings.

What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? July 31st - Bailey's 1st birthday, November 20th - the day Rosemary passed away, December 3rd - the day my Mom had her surgery.

What was your biggest achievement(s) of the year? Finding a job in less than two weeks in this economy.

What was your biggest failure? Not being as understanding as I should have been in a couple of difficult situations.

Did you suffer any serious injury or illness? Myself - no. My Mom was diagnosed with colon cancer and had surgery. My Grandmother fell and hurt her back.

What was the best thing you bought? I really don't know - my Sony eReader my rate pretty high.

Whose behaviour merited celebration? My son Brent is working really hard at doing better at school and trying to become a better individual.

Whose behaviour made you appalled and/or depressed? I really wish it still weren't true but after six years my ex's behavior still appalls me at times.

Where did most of your money go? House payments, car payment.

Compared to this time last year, are you,a) happier or sadder? Probably a bit sadder, it's been a tough year. b) thinner or fatter? Sadly, about the same c) richer or poorer? Much poorer.

What did you get really, really excited about? Spending time with Bailey.

What do you wish you'd done more of? Take more pictures, crafting.

Did you fall in love in 2008? No, I have been in love with the most wonderful guy for over five years.

How many one-night stands? Duh..see answer above, none!

Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? No

What was the best book you read? I read so many books I don't know what the best book I read was. I read Stephenie Meyer's books and they were good and I am reading True Evil by Greg Isle right now that is really interesting.

What did you want and not get? Financial security.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I was 46 and I had two celebrations with family.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Less stress.

What political issue stirred you the most? I am just glad the election is over and I look forward to seeing what Barack can accomplish.

Who did you miss? I can't think of anyone other than Dave's mom.

Who was the best new person you met? I met a couple of awesome people this year. Gail, the lady who runs the Curves by my house is a great person, I just wish I had the time to continue to go. My boss and his wife are great people as well.

Tell us a valuable life lesson(s) you learned in 2008. You don't know how much you can handle until you are faced with it. This year, I learned I love someone more than I even thought I could.

What sums up this year? (a word, a quote... ?) We are truly blessed.

Fun, Good News and More Simple Cards

Tonight we are going to see Jay Leno at Hard Rock. I am looking forward to a night out with Dave and some laughter. And I can deal with a night of little sleep for some fun.

I had some good news yesterday. I got a raise and a decent one at that. With the economy being what it is I took this job since it was offered. It has turned into a blessing. It is a family run business and since their family is important to them, my family is also important to them. I have no trouble taking time off for doctor's appt and have even had my youngest at my office for a few hours with me. I enjoy what I am doing and I guess I am doing a good job.

Here are some simple cards I worked on last night and yesterday morning when I was up at 3 a.m. They are from a Close to My Heart kit that includes everything to make two of each card show, including the stamp set. A little different than the cards from last week since there is actually rubber stamping on these. I thought they turned out really cute.



I am working on another Close to My Heart kit with big floral stamps and they are turning out rather cute too. Should be posting them after the new year. I am off at noon Wednesday and have the rest of the week off so I should be able to get my house back in order and do some crafting.

Happy Tuesday!

Family Christmas Get Together

We had an awesome day yesterday. This picture is of me, my sister, my Mom and Dad. Funny we are all in red and didn't plan it. My Mom looks so good other than being thin. She has lost 26 pounds since she got sick. I would like to loose that but not by being sick!

My sister got Bailey this round Christmas canister filled with miniture Ty Beanie Baby Christmas ornaments. She loves it. She pulled them out, threw then around, put them back in the container and then started over. She was finally getting the hang of unwrapping presents and she was going around trying to unwrap everyone else's presents.

I got some of the coolest stuff for Christmas this year. Dave got me my iPhone and my Ebook reader, and my Mom and Dad got me a fuzzy black comforter for my bed, some cool african wall art, knitting needles to make these, an outdoor plaque with my house number on it, a paper towel holder that you can change the holidays on, a cool dress, a pair of pj's, and bras and undies.

The food was great, the company was even better. Now that the holidays are over I am kind of sad. There is so much getting ready and it seems the actual time spent celebrating is short. We have no plans for the new year but Tuesday night we are going to see Jay Leno at Hard Rock. Should be fun other than having to be a work the next morning. I am off at noon on Wednesday and have Thursday and Friday off. I am hoping to get my house back in order and do some more crafting.

I think I am going to try and go back to sleep. I fell asleep early last night but not early enough to be up at 3:30 a.m.

Sunday Scrappin'

Sunday Scrappin' December 28, 2008

At least this week I got some crafting done. I have been off work since Wednesday at noon so I had some extra time. Here are my ta-da's this week. First is a digital scrapbook page:

Next are a bunch of card kits from Close to My Heart. I was going through a box of scrapbook supplies and found all these kits. These are really easy to put together - just stickers on cards. Each kit come with at least 12 cards (there is one kit with gift cards and there are more cards in that kit) and envelopes. I had fun putting these together and watching season 2 of Ugly Betty.

Unusual Christmas colors - blue, purple, burgundy.

Red and green Christmas cards.

I think this one of my favorite kits. Bumblebees and flowers in pastels.

Another odd color combination - these are the gift cards.

This is a unique card with a tag. Pretty purple, yellow, olive green and light blue.

Great, brightly colored Birthday cards. You can never have enough birthday card.

And another great kit with bright floral. These cards have a unique fold.

I also got my 2005 albums put together this week. I had to put all the pages in page protectors and put the albums together.

I started working on a gift album for either Valentine's Day or our Anniversary. It is a Greatest Love Story Ever Told album in a tin. I bought this some time ago and never got it together. I worked on it last night and now I need to find pictures for it. There is a lot of journaling to go into this album but I am looking forward to it.

For my to-do's this week:

Work on my Love Story album

Decide what Challenges I am going to follow for 2009

Do a few digital scrapbook pages. I made my goal this year to do 365 pages. I didn't quite make my goal this year but I hope to do better in 2009.

I hope everyone has a great Sunday. I am cooking for our family Christmas celebration. I haven't seen my mom since she was in the hospital so it will be nice to see her and everyone else.

Day After Christmas

I was home from work today and had decided that I was not going to be domestic but do some crafting. I took my new TV up to my craft room and started to decide what to do. After considerable thought and a couple of trips downstairs to check the computer, I decided that I would put together my 2005 albums. I had to put all the pages in page protectors, find the extender posts for the albums and put the pages in the albums. But, it is done and I have one more box of stuff put away. I need to complete about six set of pictures to be done with my 2006 pages and then I can get them put away as well.

I also loaded some free ebooks on my new Sony Portable Reader. I hope I can find more free books to download as I really don't want to pay too much to have books on my reader. I can find real books at Goodwill and other thrift stores for $1.00 or less.

Off to start dinner.

Christmas Pics

Ok, so I was Bah Humbugging it a few days ago but as always Christmas came together beautifully and everyone had a great time. I go off work at noon on Christmas Eve, went and picked up a present I had ordered earlier in the week, and then go to go shopping for a present for myself. Dave wanted to get me an I Phone but I had to sign a new two year contract with A T & T since the phone is in my name. So I went down to the A T & T store got my phone, got it activated and was home by 1:30. I took a short nap and spent the rest of the afternoon wrapping presents. I tried a new recipe with salmon and it turned out awesome. Everyone loved it.
Brent was up at 7 on Christmas Day and the boys got lots of great stuff. Their big present was a shared present, they got a Wii. Brandon got Brent an XBox 360 so after presents were opened we didn't see them all afternoon until time to eat.

Brandon got me a 19" flat screen tv for my craft room. What a great kid!

Nicole and Bailey came over around noon. Nicole got a digital camera and a gift card for the mall so she was really happy. She lost her other digitial camera quite a while ago and I know she missed not being able to take pictures of Boo.

Brent helped Bailey open her presents but she was getting the hang of it. Grandma got her a dollhouse and all the pieces that went with it.

But Boo's favorite present wasn't one of her presents. It was this little leopard print handbag trimmed in pink patent leather that Nicole got me! She carried it around with her the rest of the afternoon. First she held it in her hand, then she had it in the crook of her elbow and then later on in the day she had it over her shoulder. She went down for a nap and as soon as she got up she had her purse again. No young lady should be without a purse!

We had an awesome dinner and I made Cuban Cheese Pudding for desert. All in all a wonderful day and we get to celebrate again on Sunday when my Mom, Dad, sister and nieces and nephew come over. I am looking forward to that.

Today I am not doing anything domestic. I am off work and I am taking my new TV upstairs and I am working in my craft room. I don't know if I will organize or actually do some crafting. I did one digital scrapbook page last night while we watched Deal or No Deal.

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

Bah Humbug! Well Almost

With all the stuff that has been going on in my life lately I have not had much holiday spirit. I went shopping with my mom weeks before Thanksgiving and got most of my shopping done. Which is a good thing since I haven't been shopping since. Brandon put the Christmas tree up before Thanksgiving and it is still without ornaments. I did make my Christmas cards but I haven't finished my holiday newsletter so they are still sitting on my dining room table. I did spend part of the day yesterday cleaning my house and I sent Dave grocery shopping so I have groceries for all the holiday meals. I started wrapping gifts tonight so hopefully that will get me in the spirit. I AM looking forward to my family coming on Sunday.

Stuff

Let me start this post with the fact that I know I have been abundantly blessed by God with an awesome life partner, three fab kids, the cutest grandbaby ever and family and friends who I love and love me back. I also have a job, a beautiful home and plenty to eat. What I am struggling with is the "drama" of life.

Last night my daughter's boyfriend got arrested for battery. on.my.daughter. NOT cool! Now, Nicole can be a pain in the ass but to send my daughter to the hospital for x-rays is not right. She is fine, she had a muscle strain in her neck. She has a bad back from cheerleading and her boyfriend knows this and proceeded to push on the side of her head while she was in her seat belt in her car trying to go see her dad.

Then today I find out my boss's wife is going to be taking medication that will make her sicker than she already is. She starts this after the first of the year and will be on the meds anywhere from 3-6 months. This is a lady that already has a full plate.

And then my Dad calls me to tell me my Grandmother is not doing well. This is my 93 year old grandmother who I share a birthday with, one of the most special women in my life. She had hit herself in the face with the medicine cabinet door and fell. This happened in the middle of the night and when my Uncle went to check on her the next morning, she was asleep with blood on her face. They went to the ER and got stitches. Now, this was a week or so ago. Since, she had been complaining about her back and they found out that she did something to two vertabre and there is nothing they can do, they will heal on their own. But at 93 how long will it take to heal? She doesn't feel like cooking and is feeling really down.

I know that God doesn't give you more than you can handle but I am not sure what message he is trying to get across to me. He usually needs to get the baseball bat out for me and I am hoping I get the message soon.

My Christmas Elves

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Jeff Dunham

On Thursday night we had the priviledge of seeing Jeff Dunham live at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, FL. This guy is awesome! We laughed so hard our stomachs hurt when we left. If you don't know who Jeff Dunham is - he is a comedian who is a ventriloquist. You can check him out on Comedy Central or You Tube. He is amazingly talented. This picture is of Peanut, Jeff and Guitar Man. Funny and well worth getting less than five hours sleep for work on Friday!

Update

Our prayers have been answered! My Mom's lymph nodes test came back and there is no sign of cancer. She will not need to have chemo or radiation! I feel as if an elephant has been lifted from my back. I can only image my parent's relief.

Mom Update

Monday December 8, 2008

My Mom is home! She got released from the hospital around 2:30 this afternoon and she is resting at home. I just talked to her and she sounds a bit tired but she talked to Nicole, Brent, Bailey and me so she must be feeling somewhat ok. She goes back to the Doctor's on Monday and is still waiting for the results of the lymph nodes test.

Secret Santa Soiree

I signed up for the Secret Santa Soiree over at Georgie's blog. I am such a slacker since I haven't put my gift together for my Secret Santa. But my Secret Santa is awesome! Here is the picture of all the goodies I got:
I got scrapbook supplies, tea, bath oil, kitchen towels, a super cute snowman magnet, other Christmas stuff, a keychain, a bookmark and the coolest leopard print plate and hanger. This gift was so much fun to open and unwrap. Thank you so much to my Secret Santa. This was just what I needed after the stuff that is going on in my life right now.

Sunday Scrappin'

Sunday Scrappin' 12/7/08

My ta-da list is very short this week, but I did manage to accomplish two digital layouts. I took a class at Big Picture Scrapbooking called Journey to Perpetual Happiness. I didn't get time during the class to do the assignments so am trying to work on them now. They are based on a great book I read a few months ago Excuse Me, Your Life is Waiting by Lynn Grabhorn. It is a book about making choices for happiness and satisfaction in life. The first assignment was to create a plaque with the quote on it. I didn't want to make a plaque so I just did a 12"x12" scrapbook page with it on.

The second assignment was to create a list for the prompt of "I am somewho who..." This is the layout I made of a few of the things on my list.

I am not sure what I will get done this week craft wise. I will be lucky to get my Christmas tree decorated.

Happy Sunday!

Mom Update

I left work at 3:30 on Friday and drove to Winter Haven to see my Mom. She is still in SICU but she is not there because she needs to be, they don't have a bed elsewhere for her. She looks tired but seems to be doing well. We will know more after the first of the week when the test results come back. Please continue to keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she goes through a 6-8 week recovery process.

I had myself a good cry on the way home (it's almost a three hour ride) wondering why my Mom would get cancer. Until you are faced with the reality of something like this you just can't understand. My Mom eats healthy, is not overweight, is fairly active, has never smoked or drank and here she is battling something like this? Why? I know that losing Dave's Mom two weeks ago is a wound that is still not healed and I have residual sadness from that loss, but I am an emotional mess about this thing with my Mom.

Update on Mom

My Mom's surgery went well yesterday. They took approx 6-8" of her colon and are doing a biopsy on her lymph nodes. My Dad planned to stay with her through the night and I am sure I will hear from him this morning.

Mom's Surgery

Please keep my mom in your prayers as she goes in for surgery to remove the cancer from the colon. Her surgery is today at 1:15 p.m. I will be going up to see her Friday after work.

Weird...

We have internet but the phone is not working. How weird is that? I will have to call my parents from work today since I was not able to call them yesterday. I am sure they are thinking something horrible has happened since I didn't call on Sunday either. Bad daughter!

Sunday Scrappin'

Sunday Scrappin' November 30, 2008

This has been a crazy week and although I had three days off work I didn't get a whole lot of crafting done. I am working on another plastic canvas tissue cover but it's not done. So, I am going to show some of my bead work. This is the link for my Etsy shop that I have been working on to list all the crystal jewelry I made awhile ago along with my beaded ornament covers.

My to-do's this week are the same things I have had on here the past couple of weeks:

1. The boxes still need to be emptied outside of my craft room. I did work on these a bit this week but they are far from done.
2. Possibly get some scrapbooking done? Either paper or digital will be fine.
3. I have a number of classes that I took online that I either didn't finish or never started (other than getting the instructions or materials). So, I would like to work on some classes. I have vowed not to take any more classes until I finish up some of the ones I have already taken.
4. Continue working on my tissue box cover.

I did not do any challenge this week. NEXT WEEK'S CHALLENGE: Complete a gift item for someone else (card, page, whatever) and share the pattern/ details with us along with your finished project, just in case we're inspired to try your project ourselves.

I am glad that today is day 30 of NaBloPoMo. I posted 29 out of 30 days!

Happy Sunday!

Saturday 11/29/08

This is a picture from Thanksgiving of my sister, my mom and I.

Yesterday I took Brent and Bailey to see Madagascar 2 and then to lunch at Miller's Ale House. I tried to get some nylon yarn to finish a project but neither JoAnn's or Micheal's had what I needed. I will try Wally World some time this weekend and hopefully find what I need.

Today I am going to work on getting some of my Christmas decorations out and put up. I took down all the Thanksgiving stuff yesterday.

Day 28 of 30 of NaBloPoMo.

Friday Fill-Ins

Friday Fill-Ins November 28, 2008

1. My stomach is too fluffy.

2. Turkey and sweet potato casserole is what I ate the most of on Thursday.

3. The yard is something I don't worry about since we have a lawn maintenance service.

4. Home is where I'd rather be at any given time.

5. The smell of L'Air de Temps reminds me of my Mom.

6. Some focus is what I need right now!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to a nice, quite dinner at home with Dave, tomorrow my plans include taking Brent to a movie and doing some crafting and Sunday, I want to go to church and maybe organize the gifts I have bought for Christmas!

Day 27 of 28 for NaBloPoMo.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! I am busy cooking and cleaning this morning. And looking forward to spending the day with my family eating good food!

Day 26 of 27 of NaBloPoMo.

I Forgot...

to post last night and messed up my run for NaBloPoMo. I got home from bowling and was just so tired I never even got on the computer. Oh well.

Today Brent had his psych eval and it was determined he will try a medication to see if it will help with his concentration. He was to see his counselor but she had a family emergency and we didn't get to see her today. We went and had breakfast and then come home. He is with the youth group on a hayride and a bonfire.

We are expecting big crowd for Thanksgiving tomorrow. My mom and dad are driving down and my sister and two of her kids will be here. Brandon invited his girlfriend and his best friend. I am looking forward to great company and great food.

Day 25 of 26 of NaBloPoMo.

Monday Stuff

Another Monday done. I really don't like Mondays, especially when I am working. I was so tired this morning but couldn't sleep past 5:30. We were really busy at work. Everyone trying to get things fixed before Thanksgiving. I am off Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Brent has his psych eval and an appt with Ms Bonnie Wednesday morning, then we are going to lunch and the movies.

Dave gets home tomorrow evening. He has had a couple of rough days. I will be happy to have him home and have things back to normal.

Day 24 of NaBloPoMo.