IBOL

Drop what you are doing and go HERE now!!! Go support this beautiful, beautiful project, pack up a big old box of goodness and get to the post office!

Seriously, what are you still doing here??

Saturday

No photos today cause I am abso-tooting-lutley exhausted. My day went a little like this:

10 am to 12:30 - birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese
12:30 to 1:00 pm - motherload rummage sale at a church by the house. You will not believe everything I bought! (More to come on that shortly)
2:00 to 3:30 pm - Miss S to a church party - me to Joann's fabric store:)
4:00 to 4:45 pm - last minute trip to Target
5:00 to 8:30 pm - pool party/birthday party at my new boss's house

I could barely keep my eyes open driving home. So I am heading to bed!

The Over 30 Crowd

My friend sent this to me today and it made me laugh and laugh and laugh!!!

THE SPOILED UNDER-30 CROWD!!!
If you are 30 or older you will think this is hilarious!!!!

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears
with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking Twenty-five miles to school every morning

Uphill.... barefoot...

BOTH ways

Yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up,
there was no way in hell I was going to lay
a bunch of crap like that on kids about how hard I had it
and how easy they've got it!

But now that... I'm over the ripe old age of
thirty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today.

You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my
childhood, you live in a damn Utopia!

And I hate to say it but you kids today you
don't know how good you've got it!

I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have The Internet. If we wanted to know something, We had to go to the damn library and
look it up ourselves, in the card catalogue!!

There was no email!! We had to actually write
somebody a letter, with a pen!

Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our ass! No where was safe!

There were no MP3' s or Napsters! You wanted to
steal music, you had to hitchhike to the damn record store and shoplift it yourself!
Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio and the DJ'd usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up!
There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished and the tape would come undone. cause that's how we rolled dig?

We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you
were on the phone and somebody else called they got a busy signal, that's it!

And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either!
When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your mom, your boss, your Bookie, your drug dealer, a collections agent, you
just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!

We didn't have any fancy Sony Playstation video
games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! We had the Atari 2600! With games like 'Space Invaders' and 'asteroids'. Your guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen
forever!

And you could never win. The game just kept getting
harder and harder and
faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your ass and walk over to the TV to change the channel! There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying!?! We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you spoiled
little rat-bastards!

And we didn't have microwaves, if we wanted to heat
something up we had to use the stove ... Imagine that!

That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids
today have got it too easy.
You're spoiled. You guys wouldn't have lasted
five minutes back in 1980 or before!

Regards,
The over 30 Crowd
(Send this to someone you'd like to make smile,
Whether they are under 30 or not.)

My New Digs

Well, it's still kind of a mess and I have piles everywhere....but here is my new office!!!! I love love love it. Bright and airy and big:) Lots of room for all my little lovelies.

The view from my window...isn't it gorgeous!

Take a HIke

Yesterday we packed up and drove to the Sandias for a picnic dinner and a hike. Only 40 minutes from home and it totally felt like we were in Durango, or WA, or anywhere but the desert:)

As we drove home, we all promised we had to do this more often.

Happy Anniversary to Us!!

Yesterday we celebrated 16 years of marriage....

Geez louise we were babies when we got married! Both barely 21, and we joke that I was skinny and Hubby had hair. A lot has changed in 16 years:) I hid 16 little love notes for Hubby to find - one for each year of marriage. We tried a "new to us" restaurant for dinner and it was delicious! It's been forever since we had a date night and it was really nice to just relax and enjoy each other's company.

Changes

The times they are a changin....I tell ya....really changin. This has been a summer of change around our little house.

Miss S starts third grade in three days
My brother and his family moved back to New Mexico
Hubby submitted his application to start working on his Master's degree at UNM
My sabbatical ended
A big yard sale and 7 garbage bags went to Goodwill helped us lighten the load a little
My dad turned 60
I started a new job today
Our 16th anniversary is Friday
AND I got new shoes:)

Aren't they cute?? They have just a little wedge heel and just a little peep toe (note to self - time for a pedicure!)

Collaborate

Hubby worked late last night so Miss S and I had a little girl's nite all to ourselves. We took a quick trip to Barnes & Noble and each got a few new books. Miss S picked out a "learn to draw" book and when we got home we tried it out. I drew the dancing woman and Miss S colored her in. I think she turned out pretty cool, don't you?

Woodstock

40 years ago today....holy cow what I wouldn't give to have been there. The majority of the musicians that performed are some of my favorites, and I've even had the opportunity to see many of them perform live. But Woodstock....three days of peace, love and music...so cool. I'm such a hippie at heart - minus the drugs:)

Woodstock Performers

Richie Havens
Country Joe McDonald
John B. Sebastian
Incredible String Band
Sweetwater
Bert Sommer
Tim Hardin
Ravi Shankar
Melanie
Arlo Guthrie
Joan Baez
Quill
Keef Hartly
Santana
Canned Heat
Mountain
Janis Joplin
Sly & The Family Stone
Grateful Dead
Creedence Clearwater Revival
The Who
Jefferson Airplane
Joe Cocker
Country Joe & The Fish
Ten Years After
The Band
Blood Sweet And Tears
Johnny Winter
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Paul Butterfield Blues Band
Sha-Na-Na
Jimi Hendrix

Strutting Our Stuff

Finally got the chance to do a little sewing today...finished up another shirt and shortened a pair of pants that I found at the thrift store, or maybe Target 75% off, that were way too long. These poor pants have been sitting in my sewing pile for at least six months. Finished them both up in time to wear out to dinner with my sister in law and her family at the new restaurant my brother is working for - Blue Cactus Grill - it's a local place and if you are local you should go check it out:) Tell them Shay's sister sent you:) Yummy, yummy, New Mexican food at good prices.

I had Miss S take a couple pictures of me and then she wanted to pose too:)

Vegas Goodies

I let loose and did a little shopping in Vegas - got most of Miss S's school clothes so hopefully she's not wearing the same thing every other 8 1/2 year old girl in Albuquerque is wearing, and I bought some goodies that I have been wanting for quite a while.

I found some awesome Re-ment sets at Urban Outfitters - I have been gaga over these little miniatures since I first saw them popping up on Flickr not too long ago - the detail is amazing. Holy crap they are darling - I bought two little animal sets and a little donut set:



A quick stop at Quiltique for new fabrics, a Heather Bailey pattern and a pin topper by my friend Gigi (My sister, brother in law and 6 kids waited patiently in the car while I shopped like a madwoman):

(sorry - I was too lazy to load this photo to flickr to turn it right side up:))


And a little shopping at the Beatles LOVE shop at the Mirage - I have been wanting this messenger bag FOREVER!!! But with it's $68 price tag it was quite a splurge. Imagine my surprise when I got to the register and it had been marked down to $32!!!! That totally made my day. And the wallet that was regularly $30 something was marked down to $18!!!! NICE!!!!!!!

Beef...it's What's for Dinner....

actually ground beef and zucchini and a whole lot of other yumminess...look at all those beautiful colors! And the zucchini is from my very own little garden of three whopping zucchini plants!!! How cool is that!!!!

GROUND BEEF AND ZUCCHINI SKILLET

1 pound ground beef 1 tablespoon dried minced onion 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 medium zucchini, halved and sliced 1 (4.5 ounce) jar sliced mushrooms, drained 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a skillet, cook the beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the corn, tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until heated through and zucchini is tender. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

I didn't have any parmesan cheese so we used mozzarella instead. Also, if I make this recipe again I will add a can of green chile. It was good, but needed just a little more zip if you know what I mean:)

Crafting Mojo

My little break in work has slowly helped my crafting mojo return.

I actually made some ATCs yesterday!!! These are for Mary Ann's Red White and Blue ATC Swap - totally late - I was supposed to have mailed them to her last week but I completely forgot about it. I was inspired though and whipped these out while watching Californication on the computer. I'm halfway through the first season and loving it! David Duchovny is one of my all time favorite actors. I also started knitting a scraf last night and I'm itching to get some scrapbooking done.

But for today I have to complete these four items on my to do list before any more crafting or Duchovny lusting:
Clean the Fridge
Clean the Freezer
Clean and Defrost the Outside Freezer
Organize the Canned Food Storage in the Garage

I'll let you know how I do:)

Viva Las Vegas

Holy heck - Vegas was so much fun!!!! A very intense and fun filled week with family....we loved it!!!! Here's just a few snippets of what we did:

Lunch at Joe's Crab Shack - yummy:

Touring the Coca Cola and M&M Factories. We tried the Cokes Around the World sampler try - what an experience!!! Some of them were horrible and some were amazing:


The water show at Bellagio:


Me and my dad at LOVE: Please excuse my double chin:)

With two of the meter maids after the show: Holy CRAP the show was amazing!!! It was completely breathtaking, fantastic, almost unreal and wonderful. I loved loved loved it. And how appropriate that my very first ever Vegas show was this! We scored an amazing deal on tickets and amazing seats. Nevada locals (my dad:)) get 40% off tickets and we were in the 16th row!!! Completely perfect.


Hanging out for a day with my mom and a bunch of nieces and nephews:

At the Bellagio Botanical Gardens - that froggy is made completely of flowers:

My dad's surprise party - and he WAS totally surprised. He had NO idea!!!:

Someone said "Make a funny face" and I was the only one that dad. Woohoo!!! The party was at Bahama Breeze so we wore fun tropical attire: Only one sister is missing from this photo - there's Ryalin, Shay, Me, Dad, Ian and Chad. Dang I love my family:)


Miss S amused herself on the drive home by taking a ton of pictures in the backseat. These were two of the fun ones that I found when I was going through them:):


And we stopped at Meteor Crater in Arizona - I've been wanting to stop here for 16 years and we finally did.....wow what a site!!! It was amazing and a fun little stop on our drive home:

Bingo

What a great Summertime idea for the kiddos!! Check it out:
Summer Bingo

Home

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.....I LOVE vacations but I LOVE coming home just as much. Miss S and I got home from Vegas last night and we both slept like the dead....in fact Miss S is STILL asleep at 11:03 am:) The drive home was awesome. Our week in Vegas was amazing and I'll share it with you all shortly.

Vegas

The cat's out of the bag! I'm in Las Vegas for the week for my Dad's 60th birthday surprise party! And BOY was he surprised:):) The party was Saturday night and it was SO MUCH FUN!!! Pictures and more to follow when I get home on Friday. As for now we are spending the week playing, shopping, swimming, eating way too much and sleeping late. AND Thursday night my Dad and I are going to go see The Beatles LOVE.....holy crap I can't wait!!!!!!

Sabbatical

I've started the first two days of my month off running a gazillion errands and getting ready to leave for out of town in the morning. My plan for this month is a little cleaning, a little catching up, a little organizing and a little crafting each day. I scored 100% on this for yesterday and today:) Hopefully my momentum will keep up:):)

Monique came over yesterday and did some photos of Miss S as part of the fundraiser she is doing. As always, all the shots came out fantastic. Here are a few of my favorites:

Freedom

As of 5:42 p.m. today I am officially OFF of work until August 24!!!! WOO HOO!!!! I have a to do list a mile long and I'm so looking forward to everything on it:)

Gammy

My heart has been so heavy this week as Tuesday morning we had to put our pug, Gammy, to sleep. She was our "old lady" dog....at almost 15 years old, and almost completely deaf and blind. Her poor little body started to shut down on Friday and by Monday I knew it was time. I held her at the vet's office as we put her to sleep and just cried and cried. She didn't flinch, or struggle or whimper...she just laid her sweet little head down and she was gone. My heart aches each day when I come home and only two dogs are here to greet me instead of three and her dog bowl sits empty on the counter.

This is the poem on the urn where we will keep her ashes:

"Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge. When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to the Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor, those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing: They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly, stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; his eager body begins to quiver. Suddenly he breaks from the group, flying over the green grass, faster and faster. You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into those trusting eyes, so long from you life, but never absent from your heart.
Then you cross the Rainbow Bridge together..."