June in Review

So, here's how June went down .... (Hah, sounds ominous, but it's not. Oh, I guess I ruined it for you, huh? ^_-)

Some months back a Trader Joe's opened up near us. We were told it was crazy busy when it first opened. So, we waited to see what all the fuss was about. And, the first week in June, we went. It was pretty neat, and had some cool stuff, but ... it's kind of small.

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Second week in June I finally broke down and upgraded my phone, and with Brian going to school this fall, we thought it would a good idea for him to have one, too. SO, we got His (black) and Hers (white)  iPhones. We had gift cards and gift money to use, plus their trade-in program, we paid less than half what one would have cost, for both of them. (It would have been nothing out of pocket, but one of our gift cards wasn't working. Boo.) They're so pretty!

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Halfway through the month I went to one of my favorite stores for costume jewelry -- Charming Charlie! SO much cute stuff! I love that they have color-coded sections, so if you want a certain color item, you just go to that section and don't have to wade through unwanted colors. Sadly, the black/white bracelet broke, so I returned it (they didn't have any others there). The others are necklaces.

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And last, but certainly not least, it was mine and Brian's 7th Wedding Anniversary on June 23. Seven! Brian was a dear and sent flower to my office the next day. I have never seen flowers like this. I especially like the "male dog's" top hat. So cute!

So, that was June! Of course, we did a few other fun things, like a family get-together, lunch with my parents, lovely dinners out for our anniversary, etc.

And, now that summer is upon us, do you have any fun plans? We're planning a trip to Kansas City, MO in late July, but that'll probably be it for us. Want to go to the beach again, but ... that'll probably have to wait.

I Won! Totes Adorbs!

So, I don't win anything. Ever. I think the last thing I ever won was a cake on a Cake Walk at an elementary school fair (when I was in elementary school).

So, over the years I don't usually enter many things, because, well, I don't win. (I know, perhaps my logic is flawed. Perhaps if I enter more, I will win more. But I digress.)

A few weeks ago I entered a contest on Catster.com and won this cute tote!!

The contest was pretty easy. All they asked one to do is comment on the post on their site with the answer to what our cat's dream vacation would be.

And this is what I said:

My cats would both like vacations . . . from each other! Yanni would like an abundance of cat trees, and cat treats, with someone ever ready to pet him. (He LOVES attention.) Ideally, that person would be me. But he'll take my husband, too. ^_- And, no Yuki (his sister) around. He's bothered by her.

Yuki would also like lots of pets and cuddles, and a place with lots of cubbies to hide in for naps, and as a special treat, a trip to the shaky mice factory, where ideally, someone would play fetch with her constantly, and she could take home some swag. (But, really, who am I kidding--she's terrified of leaving the house. Oh, well, maybe just the swag, then.) =^_^=

 So excited that I won!

And in other Project 52 goings on ...

I teach the 8-year-old class at church with the hubs, and here I am prepping a lesson:

And Brian and I splurged the other day and stopped off near our home after work, and got a bunch of food -- sandwiches, kimchee fries, and gourmet ice cream! Yum!

The Last Few Weeks

Lots of things going on, and I have not posted photos, but will do that now! ^_^

First off: good news! Brian got a job. It's a temporary/seasonal job with full-time hours working at the same company I work at. They expect to possibly offer him a permanent position in the next few months, but nothing is ever certain. Also, he had to take quite a substantial pay cut, since they claimed that was all they had in the budget right now. They also said that if/when they offer him a permanent position, it would come with a pay increase. Although, we don't know what that really mens in terms of dollars. Also, Brian had planned to go back to school this fall, and that's still the plan, so we'll see if this job will fit in with that.

Second: stupid news! Someone hit my car twice over the last two weeks. Brian and I have been carpooling and leaving my car parked near out apartment. We came home one day to see a scrape and a slight dent on my read driver's side. Not happy, but somewhat excusable, as the spaces are quite narrow. But last Wednesday I came home to very noticeable damage over my read driver's side tire. And, I am not happy. BUT, we believe we have a suspect. We even took photos and everything and they seem to match up. Thing is, I don't know how we go about even getting this person to admit what they did (if they even noticed, but how could they not?). Anyway, it's aggravating.

Third: fun news!! This past weekend, I got tickets to go see The Little Mermaid musical in Kansas City, Missouri. The Little Mermaid is my favorite movie, and I had wanted to see the musical while it was on Broadway, but it only lasted about a year, which made me sad. Since then, I have watched our local theaters to see if it was coming, but no such luck. Then, a random bit of events led me to discover that it was showing in 3 cities this summer, one of which is Missouri. I knew it would be a great little trip to go see the show, but also, Brian has lots of family up there (and his grandparents are only about half an hour away from Kansas City), so we thought it'd be nice to visit them too. We are also going to go with his dad and stepmom, so it should be a fun little vacay. We had thought, that with him not having a job and starting school soon we might not be able to have a vacay this year, but this will fit the bill nicely (and will probably be the last one we have for a few years, but that's okay). SO, I'm very excited about that!! ^_^ (And in a few weeks, I get to go see Wicked!)

And last, but not least, pictures!!


Went to a seminar where I learned about storm spotting. Now I'm an official Storm Spotter!

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Twice a year, my church puts on a worldwide conference that we can watch from the comfort of our home. I usually take this time to work on a cross stitch project; it helps me stay awake. ^_^

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While we enjoy the Kindle, there's nothing like a haul of free books from the library!

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The youth at church were having a silent auction to help pay for their summer programs, and I donated some handmade/designed cards.

Spring is Here!

Although you wouldn't know it with this cold, rainy weather!

But, I did manage to get out and get this week's picture of an Oklahoma Redbud, with it's lovely purply-red-pink blooms. I want some of these around my one-day home!

I especially love the drops of water still on it from an earlier rainstorm

How is spring where you are? What's your favorite part about spring?

Love & Helping Hands

A smidge behind on showing some Project 52 photos, but you'll forgive, right? ^_^

Week 6 involved a project for Brother Bill's Helping Hand, a non-profit organization that helps those in need in their area of the city (including a food pantry, low-cost medical services, employment services, and much more).

Our team at work volunteered there last November, mostly helping with the food pantry, but also with some things for their upcoming Christmas celebration.

We definitely wanted to do something for them again, so this time, we decided to help out with the "birthday bags." About once a quarter, Brother Bill's has the children from the are come in and pick out a birthday bag so they can celebrate their upcoming birthday. Bags have party supplies in a theme, including a cake mix and frosting. While items like this might seem commonplace to us, for many of these children, getting something like this is a luxury, as their families can barely afford food for their birthdays, much less extras like cake and party supplies.

So our team decided to get together and do two bags, one each for a boy and girl.

As you can see, we had fun picking out these cool themes: Pirate and Rock Star.

Week 7 had Valentine's Day in it, so how could this week's photo NOT be about that, right? I decided to finally break in the Silhouette Cameo that Brian got me for Christmas. It's this nifty cutting machine that can cut anything from paper to fabric to vinyl and lots in between. It's like my only little person die-cut machine!

Since so many people give candy for VDay, I decided to go a slightly different route, and took an idea I found via Pinterest, for decorated soda bottles, and made it my own.

Aren't they cute? The paper hearts were cut with the Cameo, and I used my ribbon punch to make holes to thread the ribbon through on each side of the hearts. Then just added some twine and a fun straw.

But, of course, you can't have the day without a card, and this is where my machine really did some hard work! I downloaded a card template from the Silhouette store and this came out:

I just added some of the same paper to the backing. Isn't it cute? Looks like I worked so hard on it! Some of the gals at work even thought I actually cut that all out by hand. Hah! As if.

So, that's my Heart Day! (Oh, and Brian got me Season 2 of Downton Abbey—I already had 1 & 3, so now my set is complete!)

How about yours? Was it a good one?

P52 Week 5: Mickey Antenna Ball

A long time ago, I had a Mickey antenna ball that matched my fuzzy dice.

But then, someone stole it. :( Evil people!

And then, Brian got me a new one ... but I just barely put it out, because I'm afraid it shall get stolen again.

How long will this one last? (Seeing as my fuzzy dice are on now on their third incarnation!) But, at least Julian looks complete now. (Yes, Julian is my car's name. Surely I've mentioned that before?) ^_^

How about you? Do you have an antenna ball? Fuzzy dice? Funny bumper sticker? And car name?

Project 52: Week 4

Yesterday we went and saw another Pegasus Theatre production of their Living Black and White plays, called "XSR: Die!" As always, we love going to these! So cheesy and funny. And I especially love that you can meet and greet the cast.

So, that's my picture for the week!



I love that they're in character, even for these pictures!

Usually, I rather spend the money to go see a musical, but I love these plays. I try to go see them every time they perform, which is usually once a year. (Which, frankly, given that the writer also stars in them, it's quite the production!)

Do you like the theater?

Project 52: Week 3

20 Years of Memories

Can one call "memories" as they pertain to fiction?

This week I read (and finished today), the last book in The Wheel of Time series. I have invested over 20 years of my life into this series, and it's kind of sad to let it go!

Was I satisfied with the ending? Not really. But, then, I would have to say, that books such as these, where an amazing world has been created, where you meet SO many characters and SO many questions get asked, that you couldn't really have the perfect resolution with all questions answered. It just doesn't happen.

Although, I wish the battle scenes wouldn't have been so ... well, so. (I really dislike reading battle scenes!) But, overall, I loved this series. AND, if you've been waiting to read the series until all came out, well then, there you are!

First Weeks of Project 52

Over a week ago, Brian and I went to the Chinese Lantern Festival being held in the heart of Dallas. It was the second to last night that it was in town, and I had purchased a Groupon earlier in December, so I knew this would be perfect for a Project 52 picture.

Instead of driving, as we hate Dallas traffic, we decided to take the DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit) rail. It was nice to be able to talk and play a game (on our phone) while not having to worry about driving and crazy Texas drivers. There's a stop right at Fair Park, where the Festival was being held, so it was but a short distance away.

Luckily, we got there pretty much as it opened. And boy, was it busy! (As we left later, there were some long lines. Glad we got there early!)

It was really neat, and I posted the pictures I took on my Flickr page. But, one of my favorites, and the one I chose as my Project 52 picture for the week, was of the "Fairy Temple."

It was bright, colorful, and there was even some happy music playing! ^_^

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Week 2's picture is a little more somber, but very close to my heart. I remember being stunned, shocked, and brought to tears by the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary just a few weeks back. As the news unfolded, I could not hold back the tears of grief (because, yes, even though I didn't know a single person involved, I still felt this unjustice and the tear through humanity).

Shortly after, I heard of a project, a request, if you will, from this school's PTSA, for snowflakes to donate the new school that the children would be going to. This school had no decorations, nothing to welcome them back as best they could from this horrible thing that happened in their life. So, I knew that this was something I could do. And, while I didn't get to make as many as I wanted, I still made a few. Here they are, right before I packaged and mailed them off.

~*~

This year's photo project is hopefully a more thought-out documentation of my life. I remember my Project 365 was filled with photos of food. I will try my best to not have as many photos of food. Just because my life is more than that. ^_^

What about you? Are you doing anything to document more of your life this year?

Random New Things

The new year brings the new little things we got for Christmas, and those after-Christmas sales where we spend the gift cards we received.

So, I wanted to share a few things with you, somewhat random, but hey, that's how things sometimes go. ^_^

First off, we got a new little camera! We had a little point-and-shoot camera on our list, because, while I love my camera, sometimes it's so bulky to carry around. We wanted something small and portable. So, we put a little Canon Powershot on our wish list, and Brian's dad and stepmom got it for us. I had not idea it was so small! It's smaller (a little thicker, though), than my iPhone!

Then, not necessarily something we got as a gift, nor with gift cards, but part of my word HEALTHY for the year, is ... a scale. Gasp! I know. How did we not have one? Well, denial isn't just a river in Egypt, is it? I would just get weighed at my annual physical and let it be. But, if I really AM serious about losing weight (and Brian too), then this is a good gauge. (AND, I am happy to report that, while I think I might have lost a little weight toward the end of last summer, but maybe gained some back during the holidays, I weigh exactly the same as I did when I went to the doctor almost a year ago. SO, that's a decent step, right? Oh, it's still a yucky number, but at least I know where I stand. ^_^)

And, to end on a fun note, I got some Barnes and Noble gift cards and went shopping online. I've been wanting small little notepads to carry in my purse, because sometimes I get ideas, or thoughts, or even things I want to remember, like when I see on FB, for instance, that someone's struggling and I say I'll send thoughts and prayers their way, but sometimes forget, or forget who it was, so ... that way, I have a handy little place to jot those thoughts down quickly. So, I found these little notepads on clearance. They are notepads that resemble dance cards, like those that might have been used in Austen's balls. The inside cover, as you see, has the actual dance card part, but the rest is just a blank little notepad. (Click on the pic to take you to where you can view the larger and more clear image -- it looks so blurry and yucky here! Ugh!) Such a cute, cute idea. And on clearance, to boot! Score! Shall we dance? ^_^

How about you? What fun gifts did you get this past Christmas, or what did you buy yourself with gift money/cards?

Day 27 - Pets

As you know, I currently have two cats. They are both Siamese, and they are brother and sister. Yuki is the female, and Yanni is the male.

I found them on Petfinder.com, and they were exactly what I was looking for -- they were rescues, kittens, Siamese and siblings. Sadly, I missed most of their kittenhood, because they were still quite feral when we got them and so we had to work with them a lot. But, I was told that they might never be lap kitties, or that affectionate.

But thankfully, even though it took awhile, both cats are VERY affectionate in their own way. Yuki isn't a lap kitty, but she likes to sleep with me in bed. She's also incredibly sweet.

Yanni is a lap kitty, and he's extremely vocal, and he has the biggest personality.

They bring so much joy to our lives, and I hope I have them for many years to come.

Here is a favorite picture of each of them (you may have seen these already):

Yuki

Yanni

Day 26 - Picture of My Family

Since I don't have kids, I guess I still think of "my family" as my parents and brothers and sister. However, I have also come to think of it as including my nieces and nephews. So, here is the most recent picture of us all together.

This was actually taken over 2 years ago, and the only person missing is my brother Michael (the one who has chosen to have nothing to do with us).

Day 21 - Picture of Me

Since the first post of the 30 days had me include a recent picture, I decided that today's picture of me would be a fun one from the past. This was taken on September 24, 2004, at the Texas State Fair. I went that day on a bureau outing with my coworkers, and they saw this face-painting booth and they dared me to get my face painted. Hello! This is totally my thing! Sure, I was the tallest person in line by about 2-3 feet, but I had a blast. The French Canadian girls that were doing the makeup were really good, even working around my glasses. I also like how they incorporated my favorite color with the color I was wearing. Meow! =^_^=

Day 14 - A Picture I Love

Happy Valentine's Day! I love that this post which was from a list that was randomly created (not by me), has SOMETHING to do with love.

This is a picture I love:

This is Brian and his Great-Grandma Osborne. Yes, it's another picture from our wedding day, but there were just so many great pictures from it! ^_^  It's just an amazing picture of both of them, and even though his great-grandma was out of it a lot, she was still a sweet lady and understood that she was at a wedding -- even if she didn't remember it was for family. I also love the blue of her dress.

One of the other reasons I love this picture is because it was one of the last ones taken with Brian and his great-grandma. She passed away in 2009.

Day 9 - A Picture of My Friends

Well, this is a toughie. To begin with, I don't have a lot of really good friends -- the kind that you're always around and take silly pictures and tell everyone to gather around and snap a pic of the group and you remember the good times.

I have pictures of me with friends through the years, but not ONE picture with all of them.

I do have a lot in storage somewhere (hard copies), of the many friends I've had over the years, but one that came to mind was this one, that a friend posted on FB. This just came to my mind quickly, and it has more than just ME and one other person. (This by no means indicate a lack of current friends, just of pictures of them! *LOL*)

This is Emily, Christie, me and Laura, at Emily's parent's house in California. We were all mostly roommates (Christie wasn't, but she was at our house all the time) in Texas, and Em had us over for Spring Break that year (gosh, when was that? 2001?). We had SO much fun! This is one of our first nights there, I think. Maybe THE first night there. We were going to a dance, and it happened to be St. Patrick's Day, so we all stuck clovers in our hair. That was SUCH a fun week!

Day 6 - A Picture of Something That Makes Me Happy

My "kids" make me happy!

I actually took these Saturday morning. It is VERY rare for them to be even this close together anymore (Yanni -- on the right -- is a bully and Yuki steers clear of him for the most part). But they were all snuggled on our bed, trying to keep warm, and I couldn't resist getting these. I had to, you would almost have to say. ^_^

They bring so much joy to our lives. Last week, we had a scare with Yanni. He got really sick. What really scared me is that this funny cat with so much personality had seemed to lose it all. He wasn't the cat I knew. However, he is on the mend and is back to his crazy ways. It warms my heart. ^_^ And Yuki, on the left, is such a sweet, sweet kitty. I wish Yanni wouldn't bully her!

Day 5 - My Siblings

Noel, my dad, Danny, me and Brian, Michael, my mom, and Nydia

This is all of my family on my wedding day. I posted yesterday about my parents, and today I talk about my siblings.

I know I used a wedding photo yesterday, but there's a reason for this one: this is the last picture I have of all of my immediate family together (will explain why shortly).

Nydia: Is the oldest at 45 (or 46, can't remember). She has mental disabilities and still lives with my parents -- and probably always will. Upon meeting her, you would probably not think she was this way, but she is. When I lived at home, I did NOT get along with her. It's still tough at times, but since I'm older, I try to be a little more sympathetic with her mood swings and odd thoughts. She loves me dearly (as I'm her only sister).

Noel: Is the oldest boy at 44 (or so). He's the father of my niece, Amanda, who just got married. He's definitely the older brother, always trying to give sage advice. He's also extremely funny. My mother tells me that when I was a baby, he was the only one that could get me to go to sleep, so she would hand me off to him. Sweet, eh? I adore his kids! And his wife's pretty nice, too. ^_^

Michael: Ah, my older brother by 4 years. Remember when I mentioned that this is the last picture of all of us together? That's because, about 4 years ago, Michael decided to estrange himself from us. We all wish we knew what happened. There was no family fight or drama. No one said or did anything directly (whether he took something we said wrong, that's a whole other issues and we can't control that). He is the self proclaimed black sheep of the family. He's also a genius (yes, his IQ proves that). Out of all my siblings, he and I used to get into the biggest fights. Not just shouting matches, but physical fights, as well. It didn't help that he is a black belt in karate. Yeah. However, as we got older, he introduced me to the fantasy genre, and would talk a lot about our favorite books. (And, even in college, when he would come home, he would never be above taking his little sis to the mall or to a movie.) Some people think he's into alcohol and/or drugs. I couldn't tell you. We miss him. We try to stay in touch. But, it's very one-sided.

Danny: My little brother and the baby of the family. Growing up, Danny was my partner in crime (and sometimes we were partners with Michael in his hare-brained shenanigans!), and since we're just 2 years apart, we were pretty close for a long time. Danny had a hard time speaking when he was little, so I was his translator. He would babble to my mom and she would ask ME what he said and I would tell her. Such a funny story! He and I were at many of the same schools at the same time and he had many of my teachers -- hah! Of course, now we're grown up and he is married and has a family, but every once in awhile, we can still talk about video games or some Sci-Fi show we both watch.

So, those are my brothers and sister!

Day 4 - My Parents

My dad (Manuel), me, and my mom (Ella Mae).

These are my parents and I on my Wedding Day (this is probably the most recent picture I have of both of them where my dad is looking his best).

My dad's name is Manuel, and my mom's name is Ella Mae (yes, it's all her first name, and yes, it's two words). They're both in their 70s and they've been married 40-some-odd years (I forget exactly, but they're not too too far away from 50).

Sadly, my dad's health has really declined in the last 10 years or so, and most in the last 5-7. He has diabetes, is legally blind, and is on dialysis several times a week. My dad has had a lot of different jobs over the years, the biggest being a manager of a rice and cattle farm in Costa Rica for 18 years. The most recent was as a nursing home administrator (though it's been a few years for that). When he was young, he went to SMU on a full scholarship and graduated in 3 1/2 years (which is why all the kids in my family that could have gotten degrees). I could go on and on about the interesting person that he is, but I don't want this blog post to be so long! ^_^ But, I will say, my dad is a very, very spiritual person. He has had some important positions in our church and is very well respected by many in the church. And out.

I don't have a lot in common with my dad, but I still love him nonetheless. And, cool fact: my dad actually got to marry me and Brian. ^_^

Now, my mom -- she's a saint! I'll tell you why in a moment, but I will say that I am very much like her. When I still lived at home, people would get us confused on the phone. We have many similar mannerisms and say things in a similar way. We also have a similar sense of humor. She sews and plays the piano and she loves cats. She also loves to read (though she hasn't done it as much lately).

Now I will tell you why she's a saint. Not only does my mom still work part time as a physical therapist (which, btw, after we came back to the states, she had to go back to work and got her license again -- after being out of that world for almost 20 years!), but she takes care of my dad. She takes him to his appointments (medical and other) and basically has to do a lot for him since he's almost blind. She has to completely devote her time to him and very rarely gets away. (The last time she had a vacation was probably about 5 years ago, when we all went to Orlando to visit and have Christmas with my oldest brother who was working there at the time. Since then Dad's gone downhill.) But wait, there's more. I have a mentally disabled sister, who is in her 40s, and has lived all her life with my parents. She's mostly a functioning individual, and if you met her briefly, you might think she's almost normal, but, unfortunately, she's not. So, my mom has to take care of her somewhat as well (thankfully, nothing medical yet). So, my mom is a wife, homemaker, breadwinner, caregiver, chauffeur, mother with one that will always be with her (most likely), housekeeper, bill payer, and yet she still finds time to do things at church and go to my younger brother's and babysit his children one day a week while my sis-in-law works. Oh, and remember, she's in her early 70s!

I frankly don't know how she does it. And she's so sweet! And kind. I never hear her complain. And she always does for and gives to her children. She never asks for anything in return, and when she does ask for help, it's usually with a thought that she really doesn't want to bother us. I cannot tell you how much I love her, appreciate her and admire her for the person she is and for how she lives her life. Gah! Now I'm gonna cry. So, it's time to POST. ^_^

Silly Self Portraits

I'm not a fan of having my picture taken -- for various reasons. However, as part of a photography challenge at PeppermintCreative.com this week, I decided that since I AM on the design team, it's probably a good thing to try and participate. So, I decided to have some fun, dig through my costume closet and ... smile/smize for the camera!

I call this series:

Gettin' Wiggy With It*

*Why yes, it is a play on the Will Smith song Gettin' Jiggy With It, thanks for noticing! ^_-

Amanda is Married!

Amanda and Marc

This past Saturday, my oldest niece got married. I can't believe that she's married! Wasn't it just the other day that she was a baby that I took care of, carrying on my hip and getting her bottles of "mok" as she called milk. And wasn't she just a toddler that would ask for "cheput" (ketchup) on her eggs? Or a young girl who would become obsessed with The Little Mermaid, the color purple, and anime because her favorite aunt liked those things?? Wasn't she just graduating from high school and making her way to college? (Granted, this one was just over a year ago, but still....)

Between the two actual photographers and a very insistent family member who fancied themselves a photographer, I managed to snap this picture of the happy bride and her happy groom. My sis-in-law (Amanda's mother) came up to me and asked if I had taken any good picture of them that we could run to a photo place and get it printed and framed to place at the reception later that day. Lucky for her, I had, and instead, ran it home, did a soft filter to it and placed it in one of our frames. Amanda LOVED it, and so did the family.

So, after taking a quick look at iheartfaces today, I knew I had to enter this lovely picture, since this week it's about Smiles. It's my first time entering, and I don't think I'll win, but that's okay. I'm just glad I was able to capture her sweetness, her loveliness and her happiness. And that's what really matters. ^_^