Sweeping Through Life

As we get ready to go in 2010, I began thinking about what I wanted to accomplish in 2010. I know all I wanted to do for 2009 was get married. I really do not want to make resolutions since so many of us break them, some of us break them within minutes of taking them. I much rather make a to do list, so that I can check off things as I accomplish them. I think that 10 is a good number to start with and as situations or my needs change I can update my list. At the beginning of the year I will add my list to the side of my blog and will occasionally update you on my progress. Well, here is my list, in no particular order: Read 10 books. Try at least 5 new baking and cooking recipes. Save at least $500.00 before the end of 2010.  I am really bad at saving, but I got better when planning for my wedding. Try to keep my closet together. I love to shop so I have lots of clothes, coats and shoes that I need to keep organized. Lots of times my closet just seems to exploded.  My...

Merry Christmas . ..I hope that all your Christmas wishes come true.

Did you know that song "White Christmas" was sung in the movies,"Holiday Inn" and "White Christmas". Another fact about both of these movies is that Irving Berlin wrote the music for both of them and Bing Crosby starred in both movies.  I enjoy watching both of these movies during the holidays. Just a few of the many useless facts that I have floating around in my brain. What are some of your favorite holiday movies?

Here are a few thoughts I have about the holiday season...... Do you always feel like you always have to place money in the "red kettle" from the Salvation Army? Since they are outside so many stores, I always feel bad when I walk past the attendant and don't put money  in the "red kettle" because the last store I was at I put money in there. I always feel like the person  ringing the bell is always giving me the evil eye and that I need to offer an explaination as to why I am not putting money in their kettle. What did we do before dollar stores carried wrapping paper? I  know what we did ....was paid alot more money for something that people ripped apart within 5 seconds. Why do co-workers who do not normally cook always decide that the office holiday party will be the time to start? It is is suppose to be a joyous occassion, not one that ends up with everyone going to the ER later that evening. My advice is that  if you do not normally cook..do not start u...

Happy Monday ......... .5 days until Christmas.

" There is no ideal Christmas;  only the one Christmas you decide  to make as a reflection of your values,  desires, affections, traditions." -----Bill McKibben quote found here 

I love decorating for the holidays and am always interested in seeing how others decorate their homes. I always get some great ideas.  Below are a few of the decorations that I have in my home. This is a table that is located in the foyer as you enter our house.I just took one of the vases from my wedding and filled it with ornaments and place a poinsettia garland around it. I took one of my stockings that some made for me and placed to hang from the table. This is my dining room table. I found these mirrored trees and clear snowman at my local dollar store. I was given this Martha Stewart tablecloth last Christmas. It is pretty and has silver snowflakes around the edge of the tablecloth. I then took the fake snow and cut it to make it into a table runner. I took various snow flake ornaments and hung them from our light fixture above our dining room table. It gives the room a little sparkle. This is the largest tree in the house. It sits in our living ro...

I do not know why I feel the need to do something special this holiday, especially since Mr. J and I had been together for a while before getting married. Maybe it because I can get the Hallmark card that says," Merry Christmas, to My Husband"  this Christmas. One the new traditions that we did start was that, we are going to be purchasing a new ornament just for us each year. The first ornament we actually bought on our honeymoon. I made sure that I wrote the year on the bottom of it so that when we are putting up the Christmas tree when are 80 years old and can not remember where and when we got the ornament from  the date would jog our memory. We also got one with a gingerbread girl and boy with our names on it and one that is like a picture frame that we put one of our wedding pictures in. I have been looking for one that says first Christmas together, but I have not found one that I like. I think that I am going to make us a special meal on Christmas Eve, since we ...

My husband had a wonderful birthday celebration this past weekend. On Friday, I had a small gathering of friends to surprise him at a local resturant for dinner. For an extra special surprise I made him a birthday cake shaped like a car. I had the cake hid at one of my friends homes until the party. He loves cars  and everything doing with cars and even used to have a little yellow sports car. He loved it and so did everyone else. No one really seemed to believe me that I had made this cake. I made it and I have the two days of being tired to prove it. I used the Wilton 3-D car cake pan for the car shape and used a regular rectangle pan for the bottom of the cake. I made buttercream icing, that I learned to make from the cake decorating class that I took this past summer. In decorating the cake, I used the star tip for the car and wheels and the grass tip for the grass. For a the actual cake I made a pound cake recipe for the car and a yellow cake for the bottom. The rocks and ...

Happy Monday !! 11 more days until Christmas.

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Today is my husbands' birthday. Happy Birthday, Mr. J.   I can not wait until he sees what I have planned for him this weekend. It is going to be so much fun. I will update my blogger friends next week about all fun we had.  Hope you have a  great weekend!!!

My mom collects hippos, so this Christmas song goes out to her. I hope that you have a Happy Monday with 19 more days until Christmas.

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Today is a short post. My mom and I are hitting the slots and going on a casino trip today.  I have my limit set and will not be gambling over it. I already know what I will be doing as soon as I get to the casino, looking for the slot machines that I  like to play. I only like to play certain ones, maybe because I think that they will bring me luck.  I am sure no matter how much we win or lose my mom and I will have fun together. Wish us luck!! image found here

I completed the NaBloPoMo challenge. I completed 30 post within 30 days. I thought it was going to hard to thing of things to post about (I must admit sometimes it was), but I always found something to talk about. I think it is a good accomplishment, especially since my blogging had kinda of slacked off. It has totally motivated me. I may even take the challenge again at some point. Now, I can not promise that I will be posting everyday now that the challenge is over for me, but I know I will be posting more frequently than I was before the challenge. If you want to complete the challenge you can go to the NaBloPoMo site for more information. The best thing about the challenge was that I have gotten to know some of my fellow bloggers. That is the whole reason that I started blogging, besides recording my wedding planning process. I have really enjoyed the conversations that have taken place and hope they continue. I thank you all for reading my little old blog and hope that you...

I am still looking for an ornament ideas for the craft party that I will be attending later on this month. When searching the web I found this idea and wanted to share it. Here is what you need: -Various colors of paper or cardstock, cut into 1″ x 11″ strips. We used 5 colors of cardstock plus silver and gold gift wrap. -X-acto blade -Metal ruler -Cutting Mat -Stapler -Thread or monofilament for hanging Using your X-acto blade and straight edge, cut a few sheets of each color paper into strips that measure 1″ wide by 11″ long. Lay out your color combinations. We used 3 colors per ornament, repeating the middle color on the outside of each one. Cut the center strip down to 6″ long. The following concentric layers will consist of 2 pieces, each measuring 7″, 9″ and 11″, respectively. Make sure the tops of all the strips are flush, and then staple them together. Then line up the bottom edges on the opposite side, so that they are flush, and place a staple on that end. We ...

Here are a few thoughts.... Well, I had previously talked about the big game between OSU and Michigan. I am happy to announce that the Buckeyes won the game. In winning the game, they became the Big Ten Champs and have secured a spot to play in the  Rose Bowl. The hubby and I went to a OSU/Michigan party..but with a twist. Mr. J's friend is a huge Michigan fan. I enjoyed heckling the Michigan fans as the game with south. I was proud to be wearing my scarlet and grey. Go Bucks!!! This year was the first year that I was Mr. J's wife at Thanksgiving time. I have had Thanksgiving with his family before, but this year as a little different. I made green beans and was a little nerves about taking them. His sisters, all 5 of them,  all have cooking talents and I wanted to make sure that my creation was up to standard. My nervousness began to fade when talking to one of his sisters, she stated that she was nerves about cooking food for her family since they were such food critics. ...

Today is December 1st, which means that there are 24 days until Christmas day. This upcoming weekend I am planning on putting up my Christmas decorations. I have already started by putting up my Christmas flag on my flag pole, hanging up the wreath and changing the outdoor bulbs to red and green. I have some thoughts about the what I want to do this year and am excited about it. I bought some new ornanments during my Black Friday shopping and at a craft show that I attended this past weekend. I really enjoy all the Christmas lights and decorations. I will make sure that I post some pictures of my decorations next week. How are you decorating your home for the holidays? image found here