These Are a Few of My Favorite Things - July 2013 Installment

Can I start this post off by saying that I constantly think it's August?

Wrote an email today at work and asked someone to have something done by 8/26. Oops...sorry...I meant 7/26, which is actually tomorrow, so due to my time/space error, you can have a few extra days.

I don't know why I think it's August. Nothing special is happening in August, although there are a LOT of friend/family birthdays in August -- it's the most written on month of my calendar.

I digress!

Here are a few of my latest fave things:

Essie Angora Cardi nail polish:

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Cliffs by White Mountain Carnation sandals from Famous Footwear:

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Kate Spade Verandah Stevie bag (retired so I lust after on eBay):

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Brigham's Outta the Park Coffee ice cream:

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Starbucks Very Berry Hibiscus Cooler:

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Cocoppa iPhone app for wallpaper (thanks to Holly or Michelle for turning me on to this -- can't remember which one!):



Pet Books

Monday night means volunteer time at my local public library. (At some point, I'll devote a blog post to volunteering because I truly believe everyone should try it.)

Tonight I was putting barcodes on books and specifically, those in the PETS section. (My library uses BISAC subject headings instead of the traditional Dewey Decimal System.)

I came across some books that made me smile and some that made me chuckle.

This last one is specifically for my Mom.

Today Is a Good Day

I'm back in the saddle again!

 

(public domain image)

OK...not THAT saddle. (The horseback riding fad is over.) 

  

I'm referring to the Weight Watchers saddle! After six months or so of not tracking, today is Day 1...of the rest of my Weight Watchers life!

It's amazing how great I already feel. I use food to soothe stress and there's been a lot of that lately, but I started hating how I felt after I ate a steak and cheese sub. It was soooo good...and then a half hour later, I hate the way my office smelled and the way I felt (like I'd just bathed in grease.)

Last night I decided that today was the day. Tracking would start again. No excuses.

Here was today's breakfast:

Breakfast has always been REALLY tough for me. Historically, I just haven't eaten it. I'm never usually hungry when I wake up. The one thing Weight Watchers has done is force me to jump start my metabolism by eating breakfast.

Lunch was a sandwich and dinner was a half size Baja salad from Wendy's.

It's 8PM and I still have 3 points to "spend!"

In addition...

It's a good day because a jewelry box that I've been looking for is available on eBay and I'll order it right after I finish writing this.

It's a good day because John, Grace, and I went to the track tonight and we walked and jogged in the beautiful evening.

It's a good day because I can watch Mad Men On Demand while I write this.

It's a good day because I get to start Mary Kay Andrews' new book tonight.

I can only hope tomorrow is just as good.

Wish It Were Sunday, 'Cuz That's My Fun Day!

Oh wait...no need for wishing...today was Sunday and it was a fun day!

Our first trip to the beach for the season...hopefully it won't be our last!

(In case you're wondering, we took a left...to Hampton Beach State Park.)

"The View from My Seat" ala Sabine. (Sabine's a friend and former co-worker who posts photos on Facebook that are the "view from her seat.")



Good grief Charlie Brown -- fake smiles from both of us!

Much better!

 :)

Crazy hair on me, but cute.

Pretty much my favorite photo of the day. Father/daughter love.

"Do I look tough in Katie's sunglasses?"

"OK...here's the real me. I'd never make it as a gangsta."

There were some awesome kites out today.

Does it get any better? Nope.

Latest & Greatest/Not So Greatest

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Greatest:
1. My Mom was just here for a visit!
2. John and I have had lobster twice in the past month!
3. The Boston Bruins are in the Stanley Cup Finals!
4. It's been raining for a looooong time here in New England -- I haven't had to water the flowers or herbs!
5. I'm on level 132 of Candy Crush Saga!

6. I have a Coach coupon just waiting to be used!
7. I've been volunteering at my public library and I LOVE it!
8. I just finished watching season 2 of "Mad Men."
9. I just savored an order of crispy Pad Thai, which I hadn't had in a long time.


Not So Greatest:
1. My sinuses have been BRUTAL.
2. I had a migraine last night that brought me to tears.
3. We're out of soda and I have no inclination to go to the store tonight.
4. It's been raining for a looooong time here in New England -- lack of sun is bumming me out!
5. I'm on level 132 of Candy Crush Saga!
6. I have a Coach coupon just waiting to be used!


The greatest outweights the not so greatest -- wahoo!

Forgotten Treasures

It's amazing what you find when you "clean out" your basement. (I say "clean out" in quotation marks, as what we did over the past few weekends can't be considered a "clean out" in the strictest sense of the phrase. Yes, we did get rid of stuff and therefore, "clean out," but we also just shuffled a lot of stuff from one room to another in the basement.)

Now that I've cleared that up...

Here are the forgotten treasures we discovered in our basement.

One of John's co-workers gave us this for our wedding:

TEN years ago.

Better late than never???


I'd always loved this violet vase that my friend Nancy had given me as a gift for being in her wedding.

That was more than 15 years ago!!!

Glad I went out in the beautiful weather to pick some (haggard looking) violets to display in it. It makes me smile!


Just in time for Memorial Day!

A gift from Grace to John from a few Father's Days ago. (Yes, only a "few" ago!)


I'm not usually big on lawn-type animals, but I was fond of this one that my mother-in-law gave us a few years ago.

Glad I saved it...and found it!


This gem either came from my in-laws or my grandparents' house.

No home is complete without the Moo Cow Creamer!

What exciting finds are in your basement? (Besides creepy crawly things!)

"A Lady Had a Baby In a Tree...What Have You Got?"

You know how you just happen to hear a phrase and it stays with you?

"A Lady Had a Baby In a Tree...What Have You Got?"

 

Prime example right there.

 

Probably six months or so ago, I was home sick from work and was flipping through the channels. It was news to me that Katie Couric had her own talk show (aptly named, "Katie"), so I decided to check it out.

 

She was interviewing Michael J. Fox, who I've always really liked as an actor. I also have always been interested in his work with Parkinson's Disease, as my maternal grandmother lived it with for many years.

 

Katie asked him about his family and how he interacts with them, which led to the above quote.

 

You can view the video directly on Katie Couric's site. (The quote doesn't come until the end, but the beginning is pretty good, too, and worth watching.)

 

In a nutshell, he says he drives his kids crazy with optimism. When they come to him to complain or are down, he'll say to them, "A Lady Had a Baby In a Tree...What Have You Got?"

 

I know if someone said that to me, I'd stop dead in my tracks and think, "Huh?"

 

Which is exactly what I did. And then I did the next natural thing. I Googled it.

 

Haven't heard the story? Here you go.

 

Yes, a woman really had a baby in a tree and was rescued minutes later by helicopter.

 

Can you imagine? (I can't even imagine giving birth in a "comfortable" hospital bed.)

 

 

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Everyone has a right to complain about things they don't like.

I do it frequently, but since seeing the Michael J. Fox interview, I *try* to do it a little less frequently, because really -- is 99% of what I complain about tougher than having a baby in a tree?

No.

Thankfully.