In laws & out laws

We headed to CR today to have a Thanksgiving lunch with Boyds sister & brother. We love to visit their house. It's like going on a mini vacation!

Black Friday

On Friday morning as Boyd was getting ready for work at 5 AM I decided that I wanted to go shopping. I waited until 6 to call my mom. She was up and ready to go. =)

We headed to the CF Younkers - I have a thing for Fiestaware and their door buster sale was too good to pass up. We had to park in one of the furthest spots but there wasn't really a line anywhere. People were still friendly and smiling. Plus they had 'bag' boys to help hold product and carry it out to your car. I love that!

Then Mom and I headed out to breakfast - we need to do that more often! And of course ended up at Hobby Lobby. I shocked myself by only getting glue dots and some fall flowers that were 90% off. Love those sales!

27th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for family. The in-laws, the out-laws, the family that God gave me and the family that I've created for myself. I love you all and I hope that you have a happy and safe Thanksgiving Day!

26th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for the law enforcement officers who patrol our highways and roadways. Along with me making it home safely.

I travel part of the Avenue of the Saints (highway that connects St. Louis, Missouri and St. Paul, Minnesota) everyday on my way to work and on my way home. There is an alternate route but the Ave is the quickest.

Tonight on my way home there was so much traffic, generally there are pockets of cars but mostly the two lanes going in my direction are clear. Tonight there were very few open pockets and most of the two lanes were full. With most of the license plates from out of state it was a little stressful for me. They tend to be the worst drivers going 10-15 mph over the speed limits.

I have driven in San Fransisco when there was a transit strike and while it made me uncomfortable it was OK. I hope that someday I can get back to that level of confidence. While I loved working from home, I regret that I basically stopped driving. When we traveled Boyd would drive and if I had errands I tended to wait until he could take me. Don't get me wrong I still drove but it was once a week or every couple of weeks compared to everyday.

I wish everyone safe travels and good times tomorrow!

Sunrise, Sunset

Just for Desiree ;)

Sunrise

Boyd took me to work today so I could safely take pictures.

This pictures don't do the sunrise justice. The blue was much bolder, plus it wasn't blurry IRL. ;) It would help if the car wasn't moving.





Sunset

We saw this on the way home. Boyd was getting ready to turn down the river road and I barely got him to go straight to city hall.

This is my favorite.


This is Boyds favorite down by the river bend close to our house.


I really like this one too.

24th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for...the little things that make me smile.

Today it's been
* having Boyd drive me to work just because and having Buddie come along for the ride.
* listening to Christmas Carols - with Boyd and at work
* having Boyd slip a chocolate chip cookie in my bag.
* seeing the sea shell on my work desk that I found on the beach the day of Dad's funeral. It reminds me that he's always with me.
* getting an email from a friend
* seeing my favorite ornaments on 3 of my trees
* having Boyd call me as he's coming home from getting coffee and telling me I need to come out so we can go for a ride to see the Christmas lights down town.
* talking to my mom
* having Buddie give me kisses when they picked me up from work. He rides strapped in the back seat, standing up with his head between us. Every time I leaned into him he would give me kisses. I love my Bubba!
* reading my favorite blogs and being inspired
* seeing my friends online.
* looking at my wedding ring & thinking of Boyd or our wedding day or our tree.
* thinking about Thanksgiving and seeing my family
* thinking of my Christmas List
* hearing Boyd tell me he loves me.
* feeling the softness of Buddies ears under my fingers.
* the taste of the fries we backed in the toaster oven for supper.
* the smell of the Christmas mix I have cooking on the stove - cinnamon, chives, bay leaf.

23rd Day of Thanksgiving

Today I'm thankful for .... stealing Martha's idea ...... a short work week. I am so in need of a vacation, time spent with family and time to hang out in my craft area to work on one of many projects. Plus getting all the decorating done.

22nd day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for religion and that we have the freedom to believe and practice what we want.

I am also thankful that my mom taught me how to sew. I've been sewing off and on since I was 7 or 8. Lately I've only been making curtains but in the past I've made 3 flower girl dresses.

Today I made a simple curtain for the kitchen window.

Our Tree

This is 'Our Tree' or the story of us tree.

It is decorated with the 9 'our first Christmas' ornaments that we received/I bought. My dad died just after Christmas and I guess I was a little confused about what I had and what I needed. The glass ball with the painting is my favorite. It has our names and our wedding date.

I also add our yearly Hallmark ornaments, we've been getting the one with two animals. I didn't notice one in the book this year so I'm not sure what we'll do. I love that Hallmark makes it easy, pick a theme and buy the ornament. No going everywhere to find something that will fit.

When we adopted Buddie I found a picture frame ornament with a blue bootie that said First Christmas. It was too cute to pass up so that's on the tree. Last year we did the Pluto frame from Hallmark. This year I got a simple silver frame with 2008.

My mom taught me that every tree needs a bird. It's something she was taught by her German grandma. The bird on this tree is very special to me (it's just above the big ball ornament). Mom gave it to me when I put up my first tree at college and my great grandma had given it to her. I've also added a pickle ornament which has become a tradition in our family. And a gold key, since we don't have a fire place Santa needs a magic key to get inside.

This is also my messy tree with lots of beads, ribbons and garlands. I am still looking for the perfect tree topper, right now it's just a big ribbon.

22nd Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for Boyd for making my heart warm. As he was getting ready for work at 5 AM he looked at me and said I love it when you decorate for Christmas. It makes our house feel homey and reminds me of being a kid.

LOL! I love to hear that! Ever since we've moved here and I've gotten settled I've decorate the whole house for the holidays. At first I was worried it was too much, then he started telling me he likes it. It doesn't matter that we've been here....wow 4 years coming up in a few weeks. Every year he tells me this - and he repeats it through out the season and I never get tired of hearing it.

This year I have the Western tree up and decorated. The traditional tree with all my different ornaments is up and has lights but no ornaments yet. I also have 'Our' tree setup in our bedroom with all of our first Christmas ornaments and our yearly ornaments. I've also started adding Buddies yearly photo ornament. :)

I need to figure out where my Disney tree will go since I'm not working out of my home office anymore. That's on my list for later today.

Things I've done

I found this on Lee's blog . If you want to play along, just copy the list and highlight all the things you've done.

1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyland/world

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
- Grandma lived in the house where Mom was born until she went to the nursing home.
- Visited the house where my Grandpa was born

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt - well I've done a couple of squares.

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job -does being layed off count?

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone - cracked my thumb where it connects to the wrist in 6th grade.

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person - does flying over it on the way to CA or home count?

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

21st Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for the cabinet makers IT/IS (Information Technology/Information Software) Thanksgiving dinner.

At work we collect all of our pop cans and use the $$ to buy a full Thanksgiving dinner. Complete with turkey, ham, stuffing, potato's, gravy, corn, pasta salad, pecan and pumpkin pie with whipped topping.

I thought it would be a long afternoon after the big lunch but it went surprisingly fast. I was struggling for a little bit and then set a goal to finish the report I was coding before the end of the day. I ended up finishing the report and have a few tweak to get everything lined up correctly.

And TGIF! No big plans for the weekend, I'll probably end up doing more decorating and cleaning. I need to decide if I'm decking the kitchen out in the snowman collection like I did a few years ago or keeping it simple again.

20th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for the beautiful sunrise I saw as I was driving to work. Over the last 120 days I've come to enjoy the quiet drive in the morning and being able to see the sunrise. Now anyone who knows me knows that this is so not typical of me. When I worked from home I think I got up 5 mins before I started work.

Over the last few weeks I've been noticing and enjoying the colors in the sunrise. The bright orange or pink strokes across the sky, it starts so small and turns out so big and magnificent. Each day is so incredibly different.

The sad part is at this time of year, I see the sunrise going to work and the sunset on the drive home. Makes for a short day!

19th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I'm grateful for music.

The last two weeks have been filled with Christmas music. I listen to it on the way to work and I've ripped my favorite albums to my PC at work so I can listen to it there too.

It seems like music has always been part of my life. Mom loved to listen to her 78 records - and the Sunday morning/afternoon music hour when they played songs from the 1950-70s. Mom always did the washing and Tom and I shared the drying. We had to finish the Sunday dinner dishes before we could go out to play or sit down and watch the Minnesota Vikings game.

Back to the music, I tried out for band at the end of fourth grade. I sat down with Miss. Blake and said I wanted to play the flute. She said, "But you have nice fat fingers. They are the best for playing the clarinet." And that's where my career began. I stayed with it through college and played in a couple of summer bands. Over time it was one of the things I let go. Some days I miss it - I tried out for the summer band 4 years ago and realized I've forgotten 3/4 of what I ever knew. Maybe someday I'll make it back to playing.

18th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for books and living in a country where for the most part books aren't banned.

I enjoy reading and I love going to my local library. Along with the books they have some good eye candy behind the desk. ;)

I tend to read a lot of romance and every once in awhile I try to branch out. Sometimes it works well and others not so good. My biggest problem is getting so interested in a book that I forget about life outside the book. Buddie has had to growl and bark many times to draw my attention away so that he can eat, go outside or play. I am doing better about not staying up all night reading. Last week I was up until midnight and finally put the book down.

Some of my favorite authors are (in no particular order):
- Janet Evanovich
- Sandra Brown
- Jennifer Cruise
- Susan Elizabeth Phillips
- Susan Mallory - new find
- Debbie Macomber
- the food based mysteries
- Janet Dailey
- Rita Mae Brown
- Jennifer (?) Anderson
- Rachel Gibson

17th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for easy recipes. I made chicken cordon bleu from a recipe on the Kraft Foods website I varied it by pounding out the chicken and making a roll. Took about an hour to prep, pound and cook. :D

Boyd gave it a 5 on our 5 point scale. double thumbs up!

16th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for .....

hmmm it's been a quiet day at home. I got to sleep in...love the electric mattress pad cover that keeps the bed toasty warm. Buddie spent some time cuddling with me that's always nice.

Watched the pregame and put up my Western Christmas tree. Organized some of the decoration boxes in the car side of the garage since that door isn't opening anytime soon. :(

Had to sit through watching the Vikings loose and put up the tree in our bedroom. Now there's a three way tie for first place in the NFC Central division. Of course it's the Packer, Vikings and Bears. There goes the stress level in our house for the next few weeks.

Got a call from my mom that we're now doing Thanksgiving at my brothers with his in-laws. Boyd works so it will be nice to get out for awhile.

Ending the day relaxing with the laptop, watching TV and enjoying the lights on the tree.

15th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for my home.

When we decided to start looking into moving here I kept coming across this house. Every time I would read the description and think that's not what we're looking for. Around Mother's Day we were in town and drove past the 'not right for us' house and there was an open house. The minute we opened the door I *knew* this was the house for us. I saw past the dated wallpaper, old neutral paint and knew I could make this into my home.

Only thing was it was really out of our price range. Mom really wanted us to move here and every few weeks she would call and say the house dropped to xyz price. I called a cousin and set up a viewing to make sure we weren't buying a lemon - only there was a crisis at work and I couldn't go. Boyd drove up and went to the viewing. They said it was a great house.

In October I walked into our trailer and listened to a message on the answering machine that a woman wanted to interview Boyd for a job at a non local hospital. I turned and looked at him and asked what this was about. Without me knowing he had applied for a job in the area we wanted to move. I was sooooo incredibly happy.

Then Mom called to say the house price had dropped again. It was finally in our price range. I called the realtor and talked about making an offer. I'd only been in the house once and decided I should probably look at it again. Didn't matter that I already had paint colors picked out for all of the main rooms.

So one Friday afternoon we drove up to see the house and after 3 hours in the house we ended up making an offer. I was so excited. We scrambled to get all of the paper work done, talked to my boss to switch to a telecommuter.

Needless to say we got everything done and purchased our first home in Nov 2004. We spent weeks pulling wallpaper and painting. My mom and aunt weren't too sure of the crazy colors I was using but they helped me out anyway. My brother tells me all the time that my living room is Harvest Gold. The tag says Arizona Tan and that's the story I'm sticking to. My kitchen is Liberty Blue - medium on the color scale but kind of bold - perfect for my Americana theme and my snowman collection in the winter. :D

We can't believe it's already been 4 years! So much done and so much left to do. From the beginning of the first project we knew in our heart that this was home.

14th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful that my mom has a key to our house and lives close by.

I got home from work and put the car in the garage. Decided to head out and see about meeting friends for drinks. Decided not to stop for drinks since the Goat's parking lot was full. Came home and attempted to open the door...nothing. Tried the keypad and it just flashed red at me.

So I called mom to see about getting her key and was so happy to remember the screen door was unlocked. Otherwise I would have been totally locked out of the house and wouldn't had to wait for Boyd to get home with the other garage remote and hope that that door still opened.

Technology is so......frustrating.

13th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for Buddie!

He has been an amazing addition to our family. I am a calmer & more relaxed person, especially after spending some quality time with him.

He makes me laugh everyday - sometimes it's from the simplest thing.

We have a language all our own and he understands me and knows what I'm talking about. Thankfully he hasn't figured out how to spell yet.

When I'm frustrated with him he looks at me with those sad brown eyes and my frustration quickly leaves.

Momma loves you Bubba and you will always be her baby!

12th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for Technology.


Do I need to say anything else?


OK, I'm thankful for computers, since that's my career. The Internet, google, applets that run on my computer telling me the current temperature and in one click will tell me the forecast for the next 7 days, plus show me a map of the area showing rain/snow showers.

Then there's my car that gets 25 mpg on a regular basis and 27 mpg if I'm careful. The best though is the exterior temperature gage that gives me comfort in knowing how careful I need to drive - 36/37 degrees means there's not much if any ice on the early November roads.

11th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for all of the veterans and all of the men and women who are currently serving in the armed forces.

10th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful for my job. I am working at a company where I can joke around with coworkers, they are open minded and ask for feedback/recommendations and I feel like I'm contributing.

I love to come home and see my boys. They are both very excited to see me each evening. Buddie will follow me around and wait for attention. When I go to pet him he will sit up and wrap his front paws around my arms and stretch so that I can scratch his neck.

9th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful that the Vikings and the Packers are playing on a day that Boyd works. Since I love the Vikings and he loves the Packers it's often a tense day at home.

I am thankful I get to spend the day in the recliner with a comfy blanket, a dog in my lap and playing on the laptop while watching football. It's all the ingredients of a great day minus having Boyd home.

8th day of Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful for......there is so much to choose from

I spent the day shopping with my Flamingo friend. We went to the Barn Happy Christmas open house, listening to Christmas music all the way. We were both ready to go home and decorate for Christmas.

Then we went to do some serious shopping, Hobby Lobby & TJ Max along with a stop for a mid afternoon meal at Olive Garden. We didn't make it home until 6.

Boyd was still working, and I fell asleep on the couch. Barely waking up when he got home, ended up sleeping on the couch till 10 with Buddie curled up in my lap.

I love days like this!

I have to say I am grateful for lazy, relaxing, fun filled, laughter making days!

Edited to clarify....my Flamingo friend is a friend who loves all things Flamingo. She is not involved with the Flamingo scrapbooking message board. Apologies, I forgot there maybe some confusion. LOL!

7th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful that it's Friday and I'll be having a fairly quiet weekend at home....it's been a stressful week at home and at work.

Boyd has been having some eye problems and we found out this week that he has a cataract on his left eye and will need to have it removed. As a result they will surgically insert a lens in his eye which will give him 20/20 vision. Woo hoo!

6th day of Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful for my friends both in real life and the friendships I've built online - both with the women I've meet and those I only 'know' through pictures and comments on message boards.

5th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful that my husband fixes me dinner at least once a week. Of course it usually involves going out and picking something up from a restaurant. At least it's one day I don't need to cook. :D

4th Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful for the right to vote.

My friend Martha summed up my thoughts perfectly...I voted

3rd Day of Thanksgiving

Today I am thankful for the nice warm weather. Over 70 degrees in Iowa in November is pretty rare. I just wish that I had some vacation time so that I could sit in the sun and enjoy a relaxing afternoon.

2nd day of Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful for a quiet Sunday at home with my husband and my dog. As we were unwinding after dinner I told him that it felt like 3 different days rolled into one. I love days like this!

27 days of Gratitude - 1st Day of Thanksgiving

I found this on Jeanette Lynton's blog (the founder of Close to My Heart)

"The words gratitude and grateful are some of my favorite words in the whole world. I love them so much I use them many times throughout my day! The reason I love them is because they describe who I am. I am grateful! And November is the perfect month for counting my blessings! So this month, I’d like to share with you “27 Days of Gratitude.” To count down the days to one of my favorite holidays—Thanksgiving!—I’m going to blog about something that I’m thankful for every day."

And I decided to participate, plus they say if you do something for 27 days it becomes a habit.

Today I am grateful for my mom. That she is still relatively healthy, living in her own home and driving.