From Mess to Success

I am just finishing up getting the insides of my new binder together today. (So excited about the system and think it will work well for me!) Here is how the outside and dividers turned out :)

10 Things - "T"

My friend Lee posted a writing-prompt and I asked to play along so she sent me the letter "T" - I am just now getting to this but it was fun so thanks Lee!

The rules of the game are simple. Once assigned a letter you are to post 10 things that you love which begin with that letter. (If you want to play, leave me a message saying you want to play in my comment area. I’ll assign a random letter and on and on it goes.)



Here goes - in no particular order!

1.) Travel - I absolutely love to travel. From planning the trip to scrapbooking about it afterwards and everything in between. I honestly feel that every trip I take stretches who I am and broadens my horizons.
2.) Thai food - yum. My favorite take out item - the spicier the better.
3.) Trader Joe's - I feel healthier just walking in the place. I like the fact that I can get "different" items there then the normal grocery store and everyone is always so friendly - workers and shoppers alike.
4.) Trees - I knew the minute I saw Omaha that no matter what I would grow to love about it - I would never love the lack of trees. I am trilled to be in Virginia now with trees galore! I can still see house but I see a nice gathering of large trees out of every window. Ahhhhh.....
5.) Treats - I love to give my dog Zoe her treats. She is very food motivated and therefore easy to train - she will do anything for a good treat. (Heck! She is not the only one :wink:)
6.) Touring - I really enjoy going on all those tours of old homes and historic sites. You can learn so much about the way people lived and I always find it fascinating.
7.) Teasing - one way I show my love it by teasing someone - ask my kids - I tease them all the time.
8.) Teeth - my teeth to be exact. There are not a great many things I like about my physical appearance but I do like my teeth. Never had to have braces - they came in nice and straight just like my Mom's. Thanks Mom!
9.) Thunder - nothing like a good thunder storm when you and those you love are safe and sound in the cozy house. Perfect for a good read!
10.) Teddy Bears - although I don't believe in having a ton of stuffed animals - I do think everyone need one good teddy bear. (Plus I love the story of how Teddy Bears came about!)

Friday Fill Ins

1. Oh, I am so happy it is Friday! No nagging the kids about homework!

2. My life is full of changes, big and little.

3. During February, I hope to get back to scrapping.

4. A crazy science project due Monday; are you kidding me???

5. Right now I'd like to be right where I am!

6. My camera is my favorite gadget.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to Thai take-outs, tomorrow my plans include helping Don put together shelves and hanging some pictures and Sunday, I want to have some good family time and a big Sunday dinner!

Grocery Shopping

With a family of five and the fact that I cook a lot - I spend lots of time and money at the grocery store. Let me just say, I had the best grocery store in Omaha. Our Hy-Vee was brand new, huge and clean. It had a post office, pharmacy, dry cleaners, Starbucks, restaurant, gas station, a big meat/seafood counter, organic/health food section and fantastic assortment of every kind of food. So it has been a bit of a shock to find that to grocery stores near my home here in Richmond are rather small (even though the population is much larger), dirty, and have a poor selection. I am still trying to find a good one but the two I have tried have gotten a thumbs down from me!

On a bright note - I have a Trader Joe's and Whole Foods within minutes of my house and I love those stores. I can not do my regular weekly grocery shopping there due to cost and selection but I do enjoy getting special little touches for my cooking at both of these stores.

History in the Making

I will be the first to admit that I am not that "into" politics. It is not that I do not care - I do. It is that (without going into great detail) I generally think that by the time someone is running for the Presidency they have made so many promises that there is no way they can keep them all. And frankly, I get disgusted with all the negative political ads during the race - didn't they ever learn if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all?

That being said I recognize that today is a day of celebration and hope for our country. Whether you voted for Obama or not is not important at this point - what is important is that we band together and take an interest in what is happening around us.

This is no doubt a historic day in our great country. Only time will tell if Obama will be a great leader but he is a figurehead that has brought hope to many people and for that I am grateful.

Seven Words

I found this on Lee's blog today and thought it was fun :)Can you describe yourself in Seven Words? Here are mine off the top of my head...

creative

planner

helpful

explorer

caring

organized

changing

What are your seven words?

New tunes...

Abbie got Kenny Chesney's new CD for Christmas and I really like it (I have manged to steal it and have it in my car CD play -shhhhh!) I really enjoy the tone of his voice and like both his slow and faster beat songs.

This week was spent unpacking and organizing some more (bug surprise there huh?!) Still a long ways to go but it is starting to come together! The kids are looking forward to a three day weekend and I am trying to stay warm in what everyone tells me is "the coldest winter they can remember" (figures :dry: I must have brought it with me!)

And...here is my Friday Fill-in...

1. Enough with the cold already!
2. Not much causes me to be conflicted.
3. I've been craving sweets of any kind.
4. Calvin and Hobbes makes me laugh.
5. I wish I could go to a scrap retreat next week.
6. Nikki and her daughter Ellie have been on my mind lately.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to snuggling up with the kids for a movie at home, tomorrow my plans include going to IKEA (maybe) and Sunday, I want to scrapbook!

Have a great Friday!

A visit to DC!

For Don's birthday yesterday we drove into Washington DC. We didn't leave home until 11:00 am and it took us an hour and a half to get there. Not bad! It was cold out - about 35 degrees but we managed to walk to see the Washington monument, the reflecting pool, the Lincoln memorial, The World War II memorial and the Vietnam memorial before heading back to the metro to get to our car. All around were workers getting ready for the big day - Obama's inauguration. It was a great day - we are all thrilled to be living so close to our nation's capital and can't wait to go back - we have a big list of things we want to do there!

After we got back to Richmond, we went out to dinner at a Japanese Steak House to celebrate Don's birthday. Yum!

Friday Already!

Wow - it is Friday already! I spent the week unpacking and have lots of empty boxes to show for it! It is always nice to see the bottom of the box. I am still at it today (along with laundry!) and am sure I will be for several more weeks.

The kids all seem to have done well this week at school. They got through the first few days of nervousness. I know it was a tough week for them and I am glad it is over - down hill from here right? :o)

And now for a quick Friday fill-in:

1. It's January; and once again I am amazed at how time just moves by so quickly!

2. An organized home is what I crave most right now.

3. Cork and wine go together like bread and butter.

4. Cream of wheat is so nourishing. (A least it makes me feel warm on a winter morning!)

5. Let us dare to make new friends.

6. Loving my home!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to seeing Don (who has been in Florida all week, tomorrow my plans include exploring a park with the family and Sunday, I want to stay home and have a nice Sunday dinner!

A New Year's Hike!

On New Year's day we drove over to the mountains (about an hour and 20 minutes away) to take a drive down Skyline drive and to go for a hike. It was a beautiful day - cold but sunny and we really enjoyed getting out and exploring the area a bit. We are all really excited about being so close to both the mountains and the ocean and look forward to spending lots of time at both! Here are a few pictures from our day:

The kids start back to school tomorrow. They are nervous to be the "new kids" but excited to meet some new people. I feel bad that they have to go through it but I know from experience (we moved when I was in 7th grade) that they will adjust quickly enough. I am looking forward to having a little time to get some things done around here during the day then maybe I can finally get a little time to scrapbook too - feels like it has been forever!

Speaking of scrapbooking - here are a few things for you to check out. My friend Amy is having an awesome RAK giveaway on her blog and you have until the 5th to sign up for a chance to win. Feeling Scrappy has a great new class "From Mess to Success" starting on the 15th of January - you can check out all the details on the Feeling Scrappy blog. And I am sorry I missed telling you about a RAK my friend Megan was offering but you should check out her blog just the same :o)