Christmas With The Hoovers

Here is a little pictorial of Christmas at our tiny apartment.














Here is our Expedit bookcase turned Christmas hearth.














These are the shiny ornament tea lights that I got from Grandma Dorothy this year. Pay no attention to my goofy reflection.














This is my Santa mug. My brother and I have each had one since we were babies. I don't drink out of him anymore, although I have once or twice. Now I just set him out to bring back happy memories.





















Here are our Christmas stockings. We use the stockings we've had since we were little, instead of getting new matching ones. I like it much better this way. Besides, where am I gonna find a new stocking with a pocket for my little stuffed Santa like this one?














I set the table for Christmas breakfast the night before so I wouldn't have to get up as early the next morning. I love the look of a just-set table. It gleams with anticipation of the food and conversation to come.














And here's a little close up of a salty Santa Clause peeking around the centerpiece.














Here's our somewhat dismal Christmas tree. By Christmas morning it was one dirty look away from bursting into flames. And half of the colored lights burned out two days before. Not the best looking tree we've ever had, but it still made us happy to look at. The giant safety hazard went out the day after. We realized why our tree wasn't fairing so well though, so next year we can avoid the mistakes.














Here are my gifts to Josh right before he tore into them with glee.














And here are Josh's gifts to me, so well wrapped and with his ever clever tags. Every year it's a surprise what he might write on them.














And here we have our delicious Christmas morning breakfast. If you want to see and read more about what he had you should head on over to Small Time Cooks.

The Day After

I know I should have wished everyone a Merry Christmas. Instead of leaving my little blog out in the cold for a week. But things were busy. I left work Thursday evening to start my Christmas vacation, but at times it seemed as if I had left for a holiday interment camp. I had a lot of fun, but I also did a lot of work, and there were moments where I wanted to just collapse. But I watched a lot of holiday movies, wrapped a bazillion gifts, and was lucky enough to even squeeze in some cuddly couch time with Josh. Not enough of it, but some is better than none for sure. So it most definitely wasn't all bad. And then of course I got totally spoiled with gifts. I got the Astaire & Rogers box set, Woody Allen's new book, and Radio Days, along with a plethora of other items. Josh got me Clotilde Dusoulier's latest book, one of my favorite MST3K movies, Help!, the three season Good Neighbors set, Ghost Hunters Season 3 Part 1 dvd set, my favorite Barbra Streisand movie- What's Up, Doc, and Dial M For Murder. I told you, spoiled. I also got a knife sharpener, a cookie scoop, and Born Yesterday, from my mom, in addition to the Astaire & Rogers box set. And my bro, his wife, and my niece got me French Women For All Seasons, Team of Rivals, and Broadway Danny Rose. That means I've moved past the halfway point in my goal of owning all Woody Allen's movies. We went to see Josh's brother, Alec and his wife Kim along with their new little baby boy Griffin, on Christmas Eve. They ended up having to go to the hospital the day we were supposed to do our gift exchange, so we were finally able to do that. They got us this awesome set of soup & sandwich trays. I've got at least 2 soups on my recipe to-do list, so these are gonna be so useful. The biggest surprise gift this year though was the iPod shuffle that my cousin Mike got for me. It was especially surprising because I had no clue who got my name in the Christmas exchange, and as the gift pile dwindled and my name hadn't been called, I began to worry that I'd been forgotten completely- not an impossible thing in my big family. But then I finally got a package and instead of being overlooked I was spoiled once again!

Of course the best part of Christmas was spending time with all of our family. And getting to see the look on people's faces when they opened the gifts I had chosen especially for them. And I will think of everyone and how much they love me while I enjoy my new toys, and I hope they do the same with their gifts.

Christmas Wishlist No. 5

I'm in a slightly more chipper mood after a successful dinner last night and some Christmas decorating. Still have a trillion chores, but they don't seem so overwhelming now. It must be the twinkle lights. Anyway, now that I'm in a more seasonal mood here's another item from my wishlist.













It is my goal in life to own all of Woody Allen's movies on DVD. I'm about halfway there, but this little gem has yet to make it into my collection. This movie is really quite sweet, a lovely nostalgic look at the growth of a little boy and his family when big radio was big entertainment. This is a movie I can easily watch over and over. I hope this flick will be nestled next to my other Allen movies this holiday season. And I couldn't help but share one of my favorite scenes from the movie. Diane Keaton's singing is simply divine!

Chores

I really wish I hadn't gotten sick when I have so many things I need to get done. I'm feeling mostly better now, but the overwhelming amount of chores to be done in such a short amount of time is making me feel a bit queasy. Tonight we have Christmas with Josh's dad's family, which doesn't leave too much time for tasks. But no matter what I have to get some gifts wrapped to mail out tomorrow. Just a few of the 30 gifts I have left to wrap. Oh jeez. And then there's the laundry. And the cleaning- made extra difficult due to the broken vacuum. Don't forget all the double cooking I've signed myself up for to help stock Alec & Kim's freezer for the impending baby days. Hopefully that won't be as hard as it feels like, since I'm just doubling everything I'm making for our dinner and popping it in the freezer. And I really, really, really want to get some cookies made. I realize that's not quite a chore, but gosh darnit, I'm determined to get it done. And at some point I should probably bathe. I think everyone would appreciate me crossing that one off my list each day. Josh is being a very sweet boy and going to Target when he leaves work to get a cheese tray for tonight, along with laundry detergent and stopping to get the Chili's GC my sister requested for Christmas. He offered to do more, but I don't know when/how he can do much more than me, since he's got drum lessons T-Th. I'm staying home Friday, and we don't have any plans yet for Saturday, so I'm hoping to get most of the laundry and gift wrapping done then. I'm sure everything will be A-OK. I just felt like some frazzled venting was necessary. I'll stop whining now since I brought this all on myself and it's not like some great tragedy is playing out over here. Oh jeez, I have to wrap gifts and make cookies and do my normal chores too, ha.

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Wake up early
-Unload dishwasher
-Sit on couch and watch TV
-Eat chicken noodle soup
-Sit on couch some more
-Sleep on couch
-Wake up just before Josh gets home
-Get dressed
-Go to store for sick supplies
-Eat Chipotle
-Decorate Christmas tree
-Go to bed

Saturday:
-Sleep in
-Lay in bed watching 30 Rock
-Eat chicken pot pie, chicken noodle soup, strawberry ice cream and gold fish crackers through the course of the day
-Shower
-Get ready
-Head to Dallas for Chemistry Set show
-Hang out with Diggy, Steve & Meri
-Eat a crappy grilled cheese sandwich and fries
-Visit with the Sea Lion boys
-Enjoy the show with Diggy
-Say our goodbyes and head home
-Go to bed super late- 3:00 AM!

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Make grocery list
-Shower
-Rush to get ready
-Head to YWCA for Carrie & Casey's wedding
-Enjoy the ceremony
-Hang out at the reception with Spencer & Deb discussing their wedding plans, wedding #3 in the trilogy, ha
-Head home
-Change clothes and go grocery shopping, despite still being a little drunk from the reception :)
-Eat a frozen pizza
-Wrap Ann & Kim's gifts for Hoover family Christmas
-Hit the hay
-Have very fitful night of sleeping, resulting in me sleeping in going in to work late this morning

Blech

Dudes. I'm sick again. What the H. I'm hoping it will pass quickly. Maybe it's sinus problems from the weather shifts. Yeah, it was hot last Friday. And then cold on Sunday. And then this morning we had freezing fog. I had no idea what freezing fog was, and until the nice man on television finally explained it to me I refused to open my door for fear I would walk directly into a cloud of solid ice. Once my fears were laid to rest and we established that Josh's way to work was more or less free of accidents we left for work. I was planning on working tomorrow, but now that I feel totally yucky I'm think maybe not. I've got about a trillion things to get done around the apartment too, so either way I'll be busy, but at least I can be busy in my pajamas if at home. Am I right? What, you don't walk to the laundry room in your pajamas? Stop trying to make me feel bad.

Christmas Wishlist No. 4

This year I asked for a few kitchen tools that I've been meaning to buy, but just haven't gotten around to. I didn't ask for this specific citrus press, but I wouldn't be sad if I saw it's cheery color peeking out at me when I unwrapped a gift.

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Work, blech
-Run errands to Target and Pier 1
-Grab a few groceries at Central Market
-Get dinner from Chipotle
-Eat and watch 30 Rock, hilarious!
-Grocery shopping
-Watch TV and tidy up
-Go night-night

Saturday:
-Wake up and make coffee
-Get Beef Stew ingredients into Crock Pot
-Make Beer Bread
-Clean living room while doing laundry, 6 loads!
-Make bed and put clean cover back on couch
-Prep salad
-Eat Chipotle leftovers
-Send Josh to store for salad dressing
-Shower
-Start on dessert
-Start over on dessert, sigh.
-Welcome Spencer & Deb with congratulations on their engagement!
-Spend a lovely evening enjoying good food and pleasant conversation
-Leave the dishes to Josh
-Watch MST3K: The Giant Gila Monster
-Hit the Hay

Sunday:
-Wake up
-Watch Graham Norton
-Eat cheese toast for breakfast, best ever!
-Finish getting ready
-Head to Stephanie's
-Hang out while she finishes cupcakes for Ryan's birthday
-Play with Rylee
-Head out to Grapevine Mills
-Buy some super cute things at Forever 21, Steve & Barry's, and Banana Republic Outlet.
-Grab some grub at Chili's and chat old school while we eat
-Hit Old Navy and Target for some Christmas gifts
-Head back to the DeMeglio casa
-Go home
-Show Josh all my new clothes, yay!
-Crash into bed

First Official Christmas Gift

Last night we got our first Christmas gift in the mail from Grandpa Jack, the step-mom-in-law's dad. Grandpa Jack likes to send useful items. Especially if they happen to be sitting around his house. Things can be hit or miss. Josh has gotten several shirts that he likes. But then one year there was the ice scraper from a Kansas City TV station. Jack lives in Rochester, New York, so we never really figured out why he even had that to send to us. Usually he sends things to the In-law's house, but this year he sent it direct, so it was my first time opening the package and seeing the wide array of items all at once. Our first gift of the season consisted of:

Matching argyle hat and scarf
2 pounds of Heluva Good Extra-Sharp Cheddar
2 4 watt night light bulbs
2 pens
2 expired coupons for Swanson chicken broth
1 pair of men's work gloves
Large Ziploc bag of mixed nuts
Small Ziploc bag of rubber bands
2007 American Eagle silver coin
Christmas wrap and gift labels
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund 2008 calendar

For the most part a nice way to start off the season. We'll definitely enjoy the cheese and nuts. I put the silver coin with the one's we got for 2005 and 2006. The expired coupons have gone the way of the trash can and the work gloves are in the goodwill pile cause they smelled a bit mildewy. Josh likes the scarf and hat though. We might each wear one so we can be sickeningly cute and matchy. I might give the Christmas wrap away, as I've been planning on a more cohesive theme for my gifts this year. Pens, light bulbs, and rubber bands are always useful, right? And the calendar has some really lovely pictures, although it's alongside the morbid law enforcement death totals for each state. All in all not a bad package this year. I'll send Grandpa Jack a thank you note and a separate Christmas card because he likes getting mail. Sending him anything else would rather defeat the purpose of his packages though, don't ya think?

Wishy-Washy Weather

Sometimes I wish that what they taught me in school about there being four seasons were apparent in my surroundings. After it snowed on Thanksgiving I figured I had better get my sweaters pulled out and my t-shirts stowed away for the next few months. Last week it was cloudy and grey out, while being comfortably warm. Sunday it was bright and sunshiny while there was a nip in the windy air. And now they tell me that it's going to be 80 degrees this weekend? I guess I shouldn't be bothered. I'm sure I can manage with the uni-seasonal items in my closet until it's in the 40's on Monday.

Wedding Wears

Josh and I have a wedding to go to in a week and a half and I've been having trouble figuring out what to wear. Emily came to my rescue with some great advice though. I'll be going shopping this weekend with Steph, so I'll be looking for a little something like this. Thanks again Emily!

Christmas Wishlist No. 3

I am currently obsessed with ballroom dancing. This isn't a new obsession by any means, but is currently moving full throttle thanks to the finale of Dancing With the Stars last week. And is also being helped along by my purchase of the dance game inspired by the show. And constantly watching videos on youtube. I've been fascinated with the idea of dancing ever since I fell for Fred Astaire as a kid. And I think if I found this gem under my Christmas tree that my ballroom obsession would probably last right through till the next season of DWTS, and beyond.

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Sleep in
-Clean house
-Run errands to Walgreens and Target
-Eat Chipotle and watch 30 Rock
-Watch What A Girl Wants
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep in
-Pick up prescriptions
-Get PS2 to PS3 controller converters for dance pads and Dancing With The Stars game
-Figure out that PS3 & Dancing With The Stars won't recognize dance pads properly
-Watch some WKRP In Cincinatti
-Stop by Justin's new casa to borrow PS2
-Play Dancing With the Stars
-Shower
-Get ready
-Head to 6th Street Live for Professional Juice and That1Guy show
-Enjoy show with Josh, Matt, Randy, and Steve. Spot Chris & Heather, OP and Gretchen, and Sea Lion boys.
-Play more Dancing With The Stars
-Eat late night Whataburger
-Go night-night

Sunday:
-Sleep In
-Play Dancing With the Stars- so hard!
-Watch rest WKRP In Cincinatti dvd
-Get ready
-Run to grocery store for salad ingredients
-Make salad for dinner at Mom-In-Law's
-Make menu plan and grocery list for week
-Finish getting ready
-Head to Mom-In-Law's for post-Thanksgiving dinner
-Watch Casablanca and eat fried chicken, dumplings, and peach cobbler
-Head home
-Attempt to sleep

Monday:
-Stay home with headache and stomachache and total lack of sleep
-Watch White Christmas while tidying apartment
-Grocery shop
-Make dinner and eat
-Clean kitchen
-Clean bathroom
-Shower
-Work on party ideas
-Fall asleep watching Dinner At Eight

What Did I Do With My Saturday Night?

Rock out to the stylings of Professional Juice and That1Guy, of course.

My Christmas Wishlist No. 2

I foolishly ask for books every year. Why is this a foolish act? Have you seen my To-Read list to the right down there? I seriously have over 2 dozen books waiting to be read, and yet I buy and ask for more. But how can I not request this new(ish) book from one of my favorite people on the planet?

Oh I Wish

Why am I not currently dressed like any of these ladies? I need to get some of the cheaper versions recommended by the Frugal-Fashionista. The past few days have been nothing but drool inspiring over there.

My Christmas Wishlist No. 1

It's the time of year that you're thinking of all the goodies you hope to find under the tree. This year I'm hoping to unwrap this 36 piece set of markers from Martha Stewart. What are you wishing for?

Weekend Roundup?

Man, I can't give you a clear and concise list this week. And really nothing interesting enough happened to go into great detail. I was still sick, so this morning was the first time I left our apartment after getting home Thursday night. Here are some tidbits though:

-watch Thanksgiving Day Parade and dog show
-play Trivial Pursuit with the family and friends
-eat Jack-In-The-Box
-watch some What Not To Wear
-read more from You: Staying Young
-watch A Muppet's Christmas Carol
-research party tips and appetizer ideas
-look through past holiday issues of Martha Stewart Living and Real Simple
-make list of projects
-eat sweet & sour chicken and vegetable fried rice
-try and clean out some of the dvr'd shows
-have a Darcy marathon consisting of Part 2 of Pride & Prejudice and Bridget Jones' Diary
-sleep a whole heck of a lot
-think up some NY resolution ideas
-eat pizza
-watch Dick Tracy

So, as you can see, the past four days consisted of sleeping, eating, and looking at things, be they moving pictures or written words. Yep, that's pretty much all I did. I had a lot of stuff I was planning on getting done this weekend, none of which was accomplished. But I still don't quite feel like I wasted the time. I've been battling back and forth with this cold since the 13th, so I think these few days of rest may have helped me finally work through it. It would have been nice if I had gotten my spices organized. Or pulled out all my sweaters (hello, it SNOWED on Thanksgiving). But Josh took super good care of me and did the dishes through the whole weekend, so there isn't quite as much waiting for me now that I'm back in the land of the chore-doing living.

And now it's the best time of year! Yay for the Christmas season!

Thankful

Just some of the things I'm thankful for right now:

-my husband
-my kitty
-zicam, benadryl, and my vaporizer
-dog shows
-four-day weekends
-best friends
-playing with little ones
-my favorite mustard
-sweaters
-time to bake
-eating well
-inspiration
-my family (even if it is huge and crazy)
-the rest of the holiday season
-wrapping and bows
-martha stewart's craft line
-cheese
-awesome tv shows on dvd
-did I mention my husband?

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Work, blech
-Run to Target for gifts
-Get haircut
-Gather things and head to Steph & Rodney's
-Eat Chipotle with the DeMeglios
-Grocery shop
-Prepare Italian lasagna while Steph makes Mexican lasagna
-Put together birthday banner
-Organize dishes for party buffet
-Play Guitar Hero III
-Go to bed

Saturday:
-Up early
-Shower
-Head to Party City for balloons
-Wash and chop lettuce for salad
-Bake the lasagnas
-Finish getting ready
-Play with Rylee
-Cut the lasagnas just in time
-Celebrate Rylee's 2nd birthday!
-Hang out with everyone afterwards
-Play more Guitar Hero III
-Gab with the girls over beer and pizza
-Play with Hannah, Miles, and Rylee
-Head home and get some shut eye

Sunday:
-Up kind of early
-Get ready and run to Target for new hair dryer and Thanksgiving supplies
-Take old dining room table out to dumpster
-Eat sandwich, yum
-Shower
-Dry and straighten hair
-Make roasted zucchini w/ thyme and garlic-roasted asparagus
-Clean up the ramekins that came crashing down from the cabinet
-Fix Kim & Alec's present very quickly
-Get asparagus out the oven and get out the door
-Have a great evening at the Pop-in-law's, eating turkey, dressing, green beans, zucchini, asparagus, and pumpkin pie.
-Get home and empty the dishwasher while dancing around to Dean Martin
-Put up a post at Small Time Cooks
-Order sis-in-law's Christmas gift
-Hit the hay

Sick

Well, here I am, sick again. It's only been 2 months since my last scuffle with cold germs, but thanks to Saturday's Rock School show I'm down and out again. I am almost positive that I caught whatever I have on Saturday, as children are well known harbingers of illness. And Josh and I are both sick, and both started feeling bad at the same time, which means we probably caught it at the same time. We've never been sick at the exact same time before, so we'll see how well we can handle this. Not a very good week for it either- Friday I'll have to leave work a little early so I can get gifts for Rylee and Alec & Kim, get my hair cut, and then head to Steph & Rodney's for party prep. I'm gonna stay the night with them and then Saturday is more prep and the big party. Sunday we're doing an early Thanksgiving dinner with Josh's dad's family and I've got two veg dishes to prepare. I think I've decided on roasted zucchini with thyme and parmesan green beans. Everything else on the menu is meaty or starchy, so I think greens the way to go. As you can see there isn't a lot of room for wallowing in a giant pile of tissues. I've got to do my best battle on. I'm eating my fruits and veg to try and help build up my defenses- apple at breakfast, lentil soup, raw broccoli, celery, carrots, and cucumber at lunch. And a nice glass of cranberry juice in addition to all the water I'm chugging. Before long I'll get to have a comforting cup of peppermint tea. With all that goodness going in me it shouldn't belong before the germs are moving out!

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Work, blah
-Grab Chipotle for dinner
-Eat and watch Simpsons
-See Josh off to the recording studio
-Wash towels and delicates
-Watch What Not to Wear and Clinton Kelly's home renovation
-Finish up some dvr'd Ghost Hunters and Most Haunted and read Newsweek
-Fall asleep on the couch
-Wake up when Josh gets home, brush teeth, and climb in bed

Saturday:
-Rise and shine
-Make a nice fruit smoothie- pineapple juice, banana, bit of yogurt and frozen raspberries
-Watch Rick Steves and Rick Bayless
-Have toast and coffee
-Watch dvr'd Men In Trees- omg wolves!
-Try and learn Hotel California on drums from Josh
-Shower
-Get ready while watching WKRP
-Head to Dallas
-Have a great time at the Rock School show. Josh's students kicked butt!
-Visit with parents and kids
-Head back to Funkytown
-Grab some Jack In The Box
-Eat and freshen up
-Head to the Chat Room for We The Sea Lions show
-Head home and hit the couch
-Watch Graham Norton
-Night-night

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Eat Josh's breakfast of eggs and toast
-Watch dvr'd Celebrity Rides with Burt Reynolds
-Work on weekly menu and grocery list
-Make drop off at Goodwill
-Head to Central Market for, gasp, more white dishes
-Stop off at Borders for the special holiday issue of Everyday Food and You: Staying Young
-Go home and eat Chipotle leftovers
-Watch dvr'd John Edward and Oprah episodes
-Josh gets home from errands
-Go to the grocery store
-Put everything up and order a pizza
-Grab a shower
-Eat and watch Simpsons, mmm chicken, black olives, and green pepper pizza
-Move to the bedroom so Josh can play his new PS3 game
-Watch Take The Lead while looking for Thanksgiving recipes
-Read a little and hit the hay

Confession Time

I've come to the realization that I am addicted to the color white. Particularly when it comes to furniture. Seriously. I can't explain the obsession, but white is what I like. Our current furniture menagerie:




















And I will hopefully soon be welcoming this piece into our abode.




If only this obsession were limited to furniture.



Do you think there is a 12-step program out there for me? While we're at it I probably need to find an Ikea Anonymous group too.

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Sleep In
-Eat breakfast & blog
-Post piano on craigslist again
-Clean bathroom mirror, sink, counter & floor
-Tidy living room
-Tidy bedroom
-Intermittently watch BBC America shows while cleaning
-Do dishes
-Clean kitchen counters, cutting board, and sink
-Shower
-Grab some Chipotle
-Eat dinner and watch Simpsons
-Catch up on dvr'd shows
-Get friend's wedding invitation in the mail
-Start looking for dress to wear
-Put Josh to bed
-Watch a couple episodes of WKRP and read
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep in
-Catch shows on PBS
-Reply to interested piano people
-Search through some gift registries
-Run errands to Target and Central Market
-Eat lunch
-Look through same friend's bridal and engagement pics- so pretty!
-Catch up on more dvr'd shows, yay Ugly Betty & Men In Trees
-Matt comes over to hang out
-Boys work on music while I watch TV
-Run to Rosa's for some dinner
-Watch Graham Norton while we dine
-Prep baked french toast for morning
-Catch up on dvr'd Most Haunted
-Finish reading Newsweek
-Watch some History International
-Hit the hay

Sunday:
-Accidentally wake up an hour earlier, darn time change
-Grab a shower before piano people come, good thing I woke up early in the end
-Help new owners shift piano out to their truck
-Make note to bake cookies for maintenance man Ruben and neighbor Gregory for helping with piano
-Dance with elation at being rid of the behemoth
-Pop french toast in the oven
-Start looking online for new dining room furniture
-Have french toast and coffee, I think I've found the right recipe!
-Convince Josh we should go to Ikea while we've got the big rental car
-Drive out to Ikea
-Work our way through the maze
-Leave with new bedside tables, dining room table, and hamper
-Get home, unload, and get to work
-Eat delicious sandwich Josh prepared to give me strength for furniture construction
-Put together hamper and bedside tables while watching This Old House- I'm so handy!
-Clear out old furniture and put new bedside tables in their place
-Grab some Sonic for dinner
-Throw together a quick menu plan for the week and short grocery list for today
-Retire to the much nicer bedroom and read some more Dorothy Draper before drifting off to sleep

Halloween: A Retrospective, Part I

2004: John & Yoko















Forgive my crooked wig, it was the end of the night and that thing was itchy!

2006: Bonnie & Clyde



























2007: Brad & Janet

Weekend Roundup

I have no idea why I hadn't updated since last Tuesday. I guess I must have been busy, but I couldn't guess what the heck I was busy with.

Friday:
-Sleep in a smidge
-Breakfast while cruising some blogs
-Wash bedding and delicates
-Clean bedroom
-Make bed
-Vacuum
-Dismantle vacuum in search of strange noise
-Put it back together, strange noise gone though I really did nothing
-Clean kitchen counters
-Unload dishwasher & run with white vinegar
-Scrub cutting board & sinks
-Vacuum living room
-Welcome Josh home
-Head to thrift store, Target, and Walgreens to get costume finishing touches
-Hit Chick-fil-a for a quick dinner
-Eat at home
-Catch up on Ugly Betty episodes while working on home filing
-Wait up for Josh to get home from errands
-Head to bed

Saturday:
-Get up and have some breakfast
-Watch some of my PBS shows
-See Josh off to Rock School rehearsals
-Make some pumpkin bread
-Take a shower
-Iron costume clothes and work shirts
-Eat some dinner
-Start getting ready for party
-Stop at store for party supplies
-Have good times with old and new friends
-Head home pretty darn late
-Munch on some tortilla chips and pumpkin bread
-Hit the hay

Sunday:
-Sleep in, of course
-Grab some lunchtime grub
-Catch up on dvr'd shows
-Read some Newsweek
-Work on recipe ideas and menu plan
-Make pizza with Josh
-Eat and watch Mystery Science Theater 3000- The Killer Shrews
-Shower and dry hair
-Read some more Dorothy Draper brilliance in bed
-Attempt tp get some sleep
-Wake up repeatedly cause dumb Aunt Flo is punching me in my uterus

Only In My Dreams

Seems as though I wasn't the only person dreaming about fabulously organized kitchens today. All pics from The Container Store.

Porch Project

Mostly inspired by Mrs. Dorothy Draper's words in this book, but still feeling the after effects of that article in Blueprint, I endeavored to clean up our front porch this weekend. Thursday after work Mom and I went to Home Depot, Target and Michael's. It was too late to start when I got home, so after I had done some of my indoors chores on Friday I got to work. I honestly gave little care to the front porch for quite some time. Here are some before pictures.

Before:

























I trimmed back the viney ground cover that had creeped it's way onto the porch, swept the ceiling, walls, and porch, disposed of the old tennis shoes and towel, washed the front door down, and emptied the pot of it's former contents. Then I put to use some of the things I had picked up on my shopping trip.

After:

Weekend Roundup

Friday:
-Sleep in
-Have breakfast and read blogs
-Tidy bedroom
-Scrub bathtub & clean sink/counter
-Unload & reload dishwasher
-Clean kitchen counters
-Tidy living room
-Work on front porch
-Work on personal project
-Catch some BBC America TV
-Welcome Josh home
-Watch some Pantry Raid
-Order pizza
-Shower
-Eat while watching What Not To Wear
-Watch most of Most Haunted Live
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Get up
-Watch Rick Steves' Europe
-Make breakfast- turkey bacon and scrambled eggs
-Water plants
-Make smoothies
-Work on personal project
-Post piano on craigslist
-Catch up on some dvr'd shows
-Watch some of season 1, disc 1 of WKRP In Cincinnati- just as funny as I remembered
-Shower
-Get ready
-Head to Dallas
-Load in at Club Dada
-Nice meal at Cafe Brazil, mmmm Spinach Salad and Rosemary Potatoes
-Hang out with Steve & Meri back at Dada
-Enjoy The Hundred Inevitables
-Enjoy the hubster & comrades
-Visit with Toby, Mike, and Taylor
-Head home
-Watch more WKRP & eat chips and salsa
-Hit the hay

Sunday:
-Sleep in a whole lot
-Be very lazy
-Finish WKRP dvd
-Catch up on some dvr'd shows
-Work on weekly menu & grocery list
-Grab some Chipotle
-Eat and watch Transformers, wasn't impressed
-Work on some photo editing
-Piddle around
-Shower
-Read a little and enjoy some Waiting for Guffman commentary
-Go sleepies

I Heart Swap #1

I realize it's taken me kind of forever to post about this, but last week I sent off my package to my I Heart Swap partner, Kristin. When thinking about what I'd like to include in my swap packages I try to do two things- avoid repeating a lot of the same ideas, and have some sort of theme or cohesion to the package so that it is a pretty sight when viewed for the first time. This time since I new I wanted to include the fall season as one of the things I loved, that inspired the colors involved in my choice of items and packaging. Here's a pic I took of the things I heart before I boxed it up to ship off to Kristin. Thanks to Stephanie for hosting a great swap! Look for the follow post with what I received soon.














i heart:
cooking- an issue of everyday food
pancakes- homemade wheat pancake mix and maple syrup
fall- mini pumpkin
lists- orange notepad
photography- black & white disposable camera
memories- magnet refrigerator frame
reese's pieces- self explanatory, i think

Halloween

So, we officially have a Halloween party to attend, which means we have a reason to have costumes. After some deep thought we've settled on dressing up like the two squares pictured here. Josh didn't feel totally comfortable with the idea of wearing underwear as our costumes, so we'll be recreating the above outfits that Brad & Janet are wearing when they arrive on Dr. Frank-N-Furter's doorstep. I can't say I totally disagree with Josh, as Halloween is typically the first cold night of the year here. It just always seems to work that way. We went to a neighborhood thrift store Friday and was able to find a good jacket for Josh that was only $6. He should have pants and a shirt that will work fine, so we just need to find a blue sweater vest and some cheap black glasses that we can pop the lenses out of. I ordered the biggest part of my costume on Saturday. I normally like to put a bit more effort into my costume than just ordering it from a website, but since I can use this costume again for it's original intent I figured it was a good deal. And it will be nice to have a costume I can pull out in case of emergencies. Costume related emergencies, which are obviously a concern for me. So, someday I will be dressed as one of the classiest first ladies, but first I will be Janet Weiss. And now that I'm looking at the dress again, I bet I could probably make a pretty good air stewardess costume out of it eventually. So, what are you going to be this year?

Honeymoon Reminiscing

Nothing dirty, honest, ha. Just wishing I was doing and seeing the same things this year that I was last year.