I'm taking inventory of all that has happened in 2008...a review, a nostalgic glance of it all. In 2008, there were a few gains....some wanted and some unwanted. I gained a few more pounds (ugh). Gained a marriage proposal and engagement ring with my sweet love, Boo. Gained a job promotion. Gained awareness that I am not my hair, my skin, my weight, my clothes. Gained the courage to get my mammogram done (yuck). Gained the joy of having my daughter come home from Texas and home to live with me! (Yayyyyy) Gained the title of children's book author by completing the first book in our (my twin and I) children's series. Gained laughter. I laughed more than I cried in 2008. My cup overflowed with puppy licks, baby mischief (thanks to Baby Boo), dance parties (thanks to Teen Boo), being like a kid again with my Boo. Gained wonderful, new friends from everywhere in the form of blogging. Gained awareness of letting go of the ex and still holding on to the memories. Gained new tradi...

I never thought I'd say that or be a grump on Christmas but I am. I guess I expected and anticipated too much from Boo and should've known better after he told me that he doesn't "do Christmas". It was our "turn" to have the baby with us for the Christmas holiday but Baby Mama Drama Queen screwed up our plans when she announced that we can have her for Christmas day but she would be picking her up at 9:00 in the evening. That morning, Boo was no way thrilled and excited about the day and it showed. I really tried to make it special by buying him things that he had hinted at for a long time. He didn't seem into it and less than thrilled. Even when Baby Boo was opening up her gifts and saying, "Oooooo", he was missing it completely. I didn't get anything from him which really shouldn't surprise me but I had hoped (and boy did I hope). Teen Boo and Married Boo got me gifts based on my loud hints so I am so very grateful that they didn...

When I was little, there was a Christmas album that we loved. We would play it over and over again. It was called Christmas for Children. The simplicity of Christmas back then rings over and over again when I listen to the album. On the album is a song called, "18 Cents". The kid singing the song is reflecting on what to buy with her 18 cents for her family. This is what she chooses: 1) Two books of matches for Daddy's cigarettes 2) a handkerchief for Mommy 3) doll shoes for her sister's doll 4. ruler for the teacher 5) a bone for Rover and finally... a nickel left over to buy the Christmas tree a silver star. What happened to those simple times? Can you imagine buying so much with just 18 cents now? I think the gifts that mean the most now are those that from the heart, whether homemade or purchased. Spending time together is the greatest gift that anyone can give to someone. Even if it's just time spent in the nursing home, holding someone's hand or deliveri...

It started out with an office party at a spa resort but there wasn't any spa-ing or resorting. It was at an exquisite place but the food was questionable. Usually, the company gives pretty good gifts but with the economy being a bummer, we all got coffee mugs with our names etched on them. Nice but the green would've been even nicer!!! Saturday, my ex came up to have dinner with our daughter. He came a bit on the early side since her lunch break wasn't for another 3 hours. (How did he become an early bird???) Since he had my puppy with him, he came here for me to spend time with her. Funny, the little poopsie totally dissed me! She has fallen in love with him and trotted in with her head held high and when it was time to leave, climbed in her "spot" on his lap in his Corvette. He and I went out for drinks and to talk. Thankfully, the conversation was pleasant and nothing about our marriage or relationships now. I didn't want to go there. He did slip and called...

for my daughter. She is featured in a fashion magazine online and has the ability to win some pretty great prizes. The voting closes today so if you'd like, you can vote for her. You would need to register to be able to vote though. Her name is Ev'Yan Nasman. Here is the link: http://www.thesupermelon.com/juicy/2008-real-style-contest/ Thanks!!

I don't know what it is about getting into trouble but I seem to be very good at it. I feel like there's a hidden camera somewhere and my life is a real life sitcom. I'm beginning to think that Lucy on I Love Lucy has met her match. My department moved into new offices this past week...swanky and very nice. With that came new office furniture. The maintenance manager purchased chairs that were ergonomically designed for extreme comfort and for the tune of $800.00 apiece. I spent a whole day pushing buttons and trying to figure it out and yep, it was pretty comfy! Yesterday, I slid under the desk a bit too much and pulled the chair back out to discover a large hole/rip on the leather armrest. I was devastated and broke out into a sweat. So, I did the best thing I could think to do and that was to bring in some leather repair glue. While my co-workers were away from the office, I attempted to cover the ergonomic guts coming out of it. I tested out my glue job and then did wha...

Actually, I wish I could forget but it is etched deeply in my mind. My twin sister and I had a cat that we were greatly attached to. His name was Charlie. He wasn't just any cat but a kindred spirit of sorts. There were a few problems with having Charlie. For one, I was allergic to him but my sister and I had this unspoken rule that I would never sneeze, sniff or itch when I was holding Charlie in front of my parents. Also, our grandmother lived with us and she hated cats. She had complained so often about Charlie being in the house that my parents had agreed that he should sleep outside in the garage. Little did they know that we snuck him in when no one was looking. One night, Grandmother was on her knees praying when Charlie ran into her room and said, "Meeeeooooowww"! Not only did he interrupt her prayers but she screamed for us to get "that nasty cat" out of her room. Needless to say, she complained so much that my mom decided that Charlie had to go. Charli...

You're not a miracle worker because you too, were created by God but I do believe that you are a wish granter...so I have a few wishes that I'd like granted. 1) Please give my girls a wonderful Christmas to remember for years to come. They are so deserving of feeling loved, treasured and valued on Christmas day and every day. 2) I'm dreaming not of a white Christmas but of a green one...all I'm asking for is for it to rain money. You got it...money. It seems like that would be the tops on so many people's Christmas wish list. Even if it rains for only 5 minutes, that would be okay too, Santa. 3) This is a next to impossible request but you can make it happen. Please freeze up every utility company's computer and every bill collector's phone list so that we can have a pleasant relaxful Christmas without the worries of bills coming due. Better yet, can you just allow the slate to be wiped clean completely so we can all start over again at the beginning of the ...

The Christmas holiday gives me an opportunity to get extremely traditional, yet, very sentimental. I am a creature of habit and out of that habit comes a few of my favorite things....weird, sentimental..however it can be defined.... 1) The smell of wood burning in the fireplace. 2) Christmas carols playing over and over again until New years day. 3) Grits, ham and biscuits on Christmas morning. 4) The look of surprise on the faces of my loved ones. 5) Merry Christmas Charlie Brown and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. 6) Homemade ornaments and baked goods to give to friends and family. 7) My Teen Boo's cry of "Santa Claus has been here! Santa Claus has been here!" on Christmas morning. 8) Seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child. 9) A color wheel. I'd give anything to have one again. The list goes on and on...but one of my biggest favorites is the song, "O Come All Ye Faithful!" For those of you asking what a color wheel is...I give you...

Since I'm the over the top kind of girl, I tend to over do it on quite a few things...food, puppies, shoes, books...you get the picture. Problem is, I run out of space to hide place things. So, Teen Boo and I decided to have a little party…you know, make a few ornaments, eat, listen to Christmas carols. Problem is, the list of things to make grew and grew. Before long, $40.00 later , we had about 15 types of ornaments to make. It may end up being an all nighter. But, one plus to all of this is if by chance there’s a job layoff, I may be a shoe in for one of Santa’s elves. Ho Ho Ho and all that jazz!!

A Child... To find happiness in the simple things in life like.... eating Oreo cookies and not caring whether I have it on my face or not. Laugh at silly things like farts, burps, dogs barking, peek a boo and making funny faces. Coloring a page in a coloring book with not a care of staying within the lines. Looking at lights and thinking it's the coolest thing. Eating french fries and not worrying about how many calories they are. Walking in someone else's shoes and loving every minute of it! Learning something new like drinking out of a water bottle and thinking it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. Having a word of the day that is said every day, all day and loving it. Words like, "no", "like this?" "light" "see". If I had my way, my words of the day would go something like, "wait" "not now" "I don't want to". I wouldn't worry about how much money I had instead I would look forward to watc...

Forgive me for being in a sappy mood but I am. I have had a rough weekend and for that, I'm a bit emotional. It all started when I made the decision to foster care my two dogs (babies) out for a bit because Boo was having issues with them. He never said, "It's me or the dogs" but we had butted heads so many times over them that I finally said, "Enough!" The first angel was my daughter, Married Boo. Her and her sweet husband offered to take Sam. Sam adores MB and sticks close to her when she is here visiting so I knew that he'd be well loved and a little spoiled. There's no better person to care for him the way I would, than her. The second angel came in the form of my ex husband. Yes, you read right. My ex! He chose to take Selah since he had bonded with the both of them when we were married and has missed them both since the divorce. I met him at his job to drop Selah off and Sam and Selah went nuts trying to smother him with kisses. I didn't re...

I've decided to scout out some unique gifts and the more homemade the better. The very first one I give 5 stars is Nikki Makes Scents . Nikki makes high quality, homemade candles, body oils (that smell and last a long time)incense, kids fragrances, lotions and aromatherapy. I have purchased the body oils and it never fails, I get tons of compliments on smelling good. Another great site for handmade items is Etsy . They have unique items that are one of a kind...even baked goods, aprons, toys, vintage clothing...the list goes on and on. Buyhandmade.com is another place to find unusual items but great quality. My ultimate chocolate fix comes in the form of See's candy . Mary Sees sure knew how to whip up a bite of not just ordinary chocolate but eat piece after piece chocolate. Mail orders are a must! Among some of my favorite goodies catalogs, I love shopping at LTD Commodities That's it for now! Happy shopping online!!!