Too Early For Xmas Movies? Never.

It is fast approaching my favorite time of year, and I'm getting into the spirit with movies! (I haven't started with the music yet, but that will be coming very soon--sorry Justin.) I bought Love Actually at Target today for $6.50! Bargain. It's one of my favorite anytime movies, but it's especially good around the holidays.

I also bought The 12 Dogs of Christmas for Lila. It's so cute! I mean, it's predictable and fluffy, but it's also sweet and warm and happy, which makes for a perfect Christmas movie. Plus, it has all sorts of doggies in it...how could I resist?

Happy Early Merry!

My kid is crazy smart.

I had my first parent/teacher conference for L-Dawg yesterday! Basically, she's a genius. ;) Seriously though, her teacher explained that L's very advanced in math and language, farther ahead than kids that are a year older and that have been in pre-school a year longer. Her teacher said she'd been doing this for 10 years, and she didn't often have a kid that made her sit back and go "wow", but that L is one of those kids. She also said that L is very sweet, and puts all her toys and gear away without being told. So of course I'm wondering why that kid doesn't come home with me! All I'm getting is attitude these days.

Good job, baby! You're awesome.

Also, Happy Birthday to Justin! You'll be a crotchety old man in no time.

We did it.

And it's a wonderful, hopeful day for America. I believe that after 8 looong years, we are finally on the right track.

And it heartens me to know that a fundamentalist, intolerant "Christian", hateful, fearful America is NOT the real, true America. They may be loud, but they aren't the majority. (And the Christian is in quotes because a loud, vocal segment of those folks proclaim as hotly as they can that they are followers of what Jesus taught,that they are the only true Christians: but in practice, in their actions.....not so much.) Where's the tolerance, love, peace, the hope for equality, for ALL of our brothers and sisters? Stinginess, exclusion, hate, bigotry....is that their idea of Christianity? How can that be justified? Is that really what they think Jesus was all about? In their heart of hearts, do they truly believe they are following Jesus' example?

--Let me be clear that I'm not saying that if you didn't vote for Obama, it automatically makes you any of the stuff above. I know people, am friends with people, who had legitimate policy issues and that's why they voted for McCain. My comments are about a specific subset of "Christians" who have done, said, and posted some of the most vile, hateful things I've seen in a long time. And now I'm done talking about that, because it isn't healthy, and it isn't the way our President Elect would want us to behave. --

Onward. Onward and upward. Tomorrow is waiting.

The Happy Artist

Bearface: "Mama! Mama, I drew a happy face! Come look!"

Me: "Really, baby? That's great! Hold on, I'm coming over."

Bearface: "I drew hair! Here is his smile!"

Me: "That's wonderful! That is so good! Let me go get my camera so I can take a picture."

Hurry up and wait.

Well, I did it! This afternoon, I proudly cast my vote for our next president, Barack Obama. Early voting and no lines made the process a breeze.

Alright November 4th, get here already!

I *heart* Turner Classic Movies

I'm on a classic movie kick right now, and Turner Classic Movies is just what the t.v. doctor ordered. They always have the best stuff playing around Halloween, and this year is no exception.
The Devil Doll? Mad Love? Yes, please!

Right now I have Peyton Place on, and have The Big Sleep and Funny Face set up to record later this week. Citizen Kane is going to be on Wednesday night. Good stuff!

The only thing that would make this better is if Gaslight (pictured above) was going to be on. That's one of my all time favorites--I can watch it again and again. Ingrid Bergman, woo! (I also really like the 1940's version, but it's lesser known and doesn't play as often).

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama

Wow. I have always had great admiration for Colin Powell, and I think many Americans share that feeling...he is one of the most popular, above-the-fray political figures of our time. This is big. He clearly spells out all the reasons why he is endorsing Obama--he makes some great points, which I just happen to agree with (lol, go figure).

Part 2 of the McCain-Palin Ohio rally INSANITY

Wait for the part where the kid says "you need gloves to touch him". I hope these people's brains explode when Obama wins.

I just.....WTF? Please, idiots, I can't take this anymore.

Hate mongering said what?

Way To Go, Bill!

My father-in-law is the Director Of Community Care for the Los Angeles VA Department--part of his duties include being in charge of all the homeless programs for veterans, among many other things. A few weeks ago, a bunch of military muckety mucks came out for a conference on health care and other programs for veterans. Bill, my FIL, gave a presentation, and afterward, Mike Mullen the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff pulled him aside and told him that he thought Bill was doing REALLY good things, and that he had been looking forward to speaking with him. He then gave him an officer's coin (military coin) for a job well done--a big deal, I guess--if Bill ever goes to a military bar, he can pull that out and earn the respect of everyone there (plus free drinks). The higher rank of the officer that gives it to you, the more it means....so this one's a biggie.

Here's an article about the visit.

Congratulations, Bill!

Bittersweet.

My baby had her first day of pre-school today! She, of course, loved it completely and can't wait to go back tomorrow--in fact, I pretty much had to drag her out of the sand box when I came to pick her up. For me, though, this is totally bittersweet. I'm so proud of her and how independent and "grown up" she is, but at the same time....my baby! She's my baby! *dramatic sobs*

Favorite things about today, according to Miss Thang:

~doing dog puzzles
~doing some sort of scoop thing with beans (and rocks? that wasn't clear)
~sitting on a rug and eating an apple for snack
~some girl that wore a shirt with a watermelon on it
~playing with beads
~walking in line along a yellow line on the floor



First day of school pics:

George R.R. Martin, I *heart* you!

One of my very favorite authors, George R.R. Martin, is contributing books to Books 4 Barack, which is such an exciting idea and makes me REALLY REALLY wish that I had $250 to contribute. Here's the gist:



From George R.R. Martin's blog:

Just go to http://my.barackobama.com/page/outreach/view/main/ayelet and make a donation of $250 (or more) to the Obama Victory Fund, and you'll receive a canvas tote bag imprinted with the BOOKS FOR OBAMA logo and stuffed with ten (10, count 'em, 10) autographed books.

The contents of each tote bag will be randomly selected from the books donated by a huge list of participating writers, so there's no knowing what titles you may get. There will be hardcovers, first editions, mass market paperbacks, maybe some art books, graphic novels, and who knows what else... but all of them will be signed by the authors, and all the money will go to help elect Barack Obama as our next president.

Hundreds of writers have already signed up and sent books. Stephen King, Judy Blume, Michael Chabon, Nora Ephron, Alan Furst, Garrison Keillor, Lemony Snicket, Amy Tan, Steve Martin, Ursula K. Le Guin, Jonathan Lethem, Dennis Lehane, Ann Tyler, and many, many, many more have donated to the cause, and more writers are being heard from every day.

For full details on the program and how it works, and a (partial) list of particpating writers, check out the Books 4 Barack website at http://books4barack.com/

I have a big box of twenty-odd books here that will be on its way tomorrow. Some old stuff, some new stuff, some hardcovers, some paperbacks, some common, some rare and collectible. Maybe you'll get one of them. Or maybe you'll be the lucky one who gets a signed Stephen King first in your mystery bag.

I am so in love with this idea, and I really hope someone I know does this, so I can get all excited about seeing what books they receive. So awesome!

Your attention needed in matter of utmost urgency!

I wish I knew where to credit this~I poached it from someone who poached it from somewhere else, you know the drill. Anyhausen:

Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of 800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transaction is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury Paulson

And another place to make a good buck: http://www.buymyshitpile.com/

Sarsaparilla Skirt & Vest on Grosgrain Fabulous

Sarsaparilla Skirt & Vest GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

I so want to win this--can you imagine Bear all decked out in this outfit?! I'd have to find some cute boots or something, though. Shoe shopping? Don't mind if I do!

The Time Traveler's Wife~

I just finished reading The Time Traveler's Wife, and...I didn't like this book. I disliked it quite a bit, truth be told. I picked it for our book club, and I can't wait to get there on Thursday so I can apologize to everyone for this round. I'm very surprised, because I've heard such good things about this book, plus I'm not very picky when it comes to reading. I enjoy all sorts of different genres and can usually find something to like about most everything I read. If you haven't read the book and don't want to be spoiled, stop reading, because there are major spoilers following.

Brief synopsis: The Time Traveler's Wife is about Henry, a "chronically-displaced person" who unwillingly travels through time. He cannot control when and where he travels, but his time shifts are mainly focused around his specific past and his specific future. Henry is in love with Clare, a person he starts visiting when she's 6 (and he's 30 something) and who later becomes his wife. (it's a very chicken or the egg thing, because when he starts visiting Clare he is already married to her in their future) It's meant to be a grand, epic love story, I think, but it really missed the mark for me on that level.

My main problem: The characters are incredibly narcissistic and unlikeable. They are completely selfish and self-centered, and yet people adore them, and love them (both Henry and Clare have people that are obsessed with them for many many years) beyond any reasonable measure, given how flat and shallow and small they are as characters. Their entire world exists only for them, and no one else seems to matter—even their daughter is secondary to their “great love”. Clare goes through 6 miscarriages in a row before she can conceive and carry their daughter to term, and actually says out loud that she doesn't want to adopt because it won't be “real”. After Henry dies, Clare is nothing without him --not that she was all that great with him, anyway. 2 years later, she can't even pull it together to be a good mother to her daughter....it's still all about Henry, all the time. She ends up waiting for one last hurrah with him when she's 82 (I think he's...43 at the time? it doesn't matter, these characters have sex with each other all along their age spectrums)...the book ends on this vignette, and I think it's supposed to be romantic but I found it sad and pathetic. I would have felt sorry for both their characters if I didn't find them to be so loathsome.

My other big problem: I think it's creepy in the extreme that Henry time travels to spend time with Clare as a little girl, starting when she's six years old, and pretty much ruins her for any other relationship from that point on. He drops little tidbits to her, but never too much...”we'll be together doing xyz in the future, we'll be married, you love me, etc...” He ends up sleeping with her on her 18th birthday, when he's 41--but he's lusted after her younger self for years before that. Well, gee, discussions of determinism, fatalism, free will aside, of course her world will be built around Henry---he structured it that way from the very beginning. That poor kid never had a chance.

I did find the concept intriguing, and I wish it had been executed by a better author. The time travel stuff was interesting, and I did stay up late last night reading, so there is some redeemable stuff in there. Not enough to make me like the book, though.

Trouble in a coffee mug

A friend of mine sent this to me, and she got it from a message board...I have no idea who original credit goes to--all I know is that whoever they are, I hate them and love them. I seriously should not have access to a "chocolate cake in 5 minutes!" recipe.

This is crazy easy to make, and it's perfect for kids to help with. Plus the fun factor is high! One tip--we cooked ours for 2 1/2 minutes and it came out perfectly--3 minutes would have fried it.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE


4 tablespoons cake flour (That's plain flour, not self-rising.)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla essence
1 coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug and mix well.
Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla essence and mix again.

Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!

Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT! (This can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous.)

Is it Fall yet?

I'm ready! I'm ready for crisp, cool weather and crunching leaves and apple cider and sweaters. Autumn is my favorite season, followed by winter. It's in my super pale, white girl genes, I think. I love curling up with a mug of tea on cold evenings, I love having simmering pots of various sauces and stews on the stove, I love the way the air smells when homes have wood fires burning, I love crunching leaves with my kiddo, I love anticipating the first snowfall of the season.....sigh. I'm feeling all warm and cozy and happy already. Yay Fall!

A visual aid

Here's an interesting graph comparing McCain's and Obama's tax plans. I do better with charts and graphs because math makes my head hurt. ;)

Chart courtesy of:
http://chartjunk.karmanaut.com/taxplans/

Go Obama!

Edited to add: direct link to his plan on his website:

http://my.barackobama.com/page/s/economyplan

Drum Roll Please.....

Here they are! Our tats! Thanks so much to Cory @ The Blue Door....he was so patient with our talking and laughing and shenanigans, and we ended up with some wonderful permanent artwork on our bods. And we had a great time doing it, too...my stomach hurt from laughing so hard throughout the day. Thanks Cory!

Here's mine:

And here is Tab's, which is a quote from The Awakening:

So much fun.

We had sooooooo much fun! But now she's gone. Sigh.

I need to upload my tattoo pics....T has them on her camera, and I'll get them once she gets home and sends them. I got it on my FOOT and OMG that hurt. But it was totally worth it. I'll talk more about our ink once I get the pics. T's turned out...amazing.

T and I met Trish at Osteria Marco, which was wonderful, and Trish brought our old friend Liz to surprise me! Liz was in town for a few days for business. I haven't seen Liz in years, and it was fantastic to catch up. She currently lives in Berlin, but has been on extended stay in London. Among her many other globe-trotting and connections-having exploits, she gets her hair cut by Natalie Imbruglia's hairstylist, she's considering dating one of Lily Allen's exes, oh and she's met Chris Martin (Coldplay). It's fun to get some vicarious star-sighting and glamour through her! After Osteria Marco, we went to Beatrice & Woodsley for drinks. That place is seriously lovely. And the drinks are so fanciful and yummy!

The rest of the time, T and I hung out. We did hit Manitou Springs for a day. We watched a lot of movies, and ate a lot of fudge. T bought Bear a ton of presents--Bribes! We cried copious amounts of tears during Steel Magnolias. I introduced her to Good Times custard, which she now hates me for. It was wonderful. You know, we've been to Paris together and Seattle together, but this was the best time we've had, I think. It was just so chill and relaxing and awesome.

Can't wait 'til next time!

Eeee!

My bestie is coming tomorrow! I can't wait. She lives too far away, and we see each other too infrequently, so when we do get together in person it's extra special. I'm sure I'll get to the airport all extra early just because I'll be Miss Antsy Pants.

I'm so excited! I set up Steel Magnolias to record for tomorrow, so we can watch that tomorrow night. I love Dolly Parton so much; she's totally one of my heroines. She just so cool and smart and funny and successful (on her own terms, too--she owns the rights to so many of the songs she's written! she's a very prolific song writer). And Steel Magnolias is, like, the epitome of "chick flick." My poor husband; I'm sure he'll have to go find something else to keep him busy tomorrow night. I seriously doubt that he'll be in a SM mood. ;)

On Wednesday we have something extra special planned. I'll update w/ pics after.

On Thursday, I think we'll take the lightrail and head downtown. I'm excited to show her The Tattered Cover and bum around LoDo for a little bit. One of my other friends' husband, (Trish--my girlie girl that I went to see Obama with!), is a partial owner of Osteria Marco (in Larimer Square), and we're meeting Trish there for dinner and drinks.

After that, it's open-ended! I might take her down to Garden of the Gods one day, because that's not to be missed. Otherwise, we're taking it completely by ear.

God Help Us All.

Joe Biden gives a racist a kiss.

In a corner booth, Biden sat down and, after a moment's conversation, planted a kiss on the forehead of Carolyn Bauer, age 89. Bauer explained afterward it wasn't such a friendly encounter.

"I told him I'm not going to vote for him," Bauer said. "Anybody who runs with a guy with a name like that is not going to get my vote. It'd be disgusting to get a man named Barack Obama as president of the United States. No way. I mean it . . . I'm going to vote for McCain and the lady."

"[Obama's] a Muslim," Bauer added. "He pretends to be a Christian, and he isn't, he's a Muslim."

Please reassure me that Obama will win! I am getting scared. :(

Spain has a pretty good educational system, right? Bear would like it there, I bet. Or Portugal. Portugal would be good, too. Sigh.

Georgia Congressman Westmoreland calls Obama "uppity"

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/westmoreland-calls-obama-uppity-2008-09-04.html

"Just from what little I’ve seen of her and Mr. Obama, Sen. Obama, they're a member of an elitist-class individual that thinks that they're uppity," Westmoreland said.

Asked to clarify that he used the word “uppity,” Westmoreland said, “Uppity, yeah.”

Is he insane? Or does he just not care that the whole world knows he's racist? Beyond belief. Please go donate to Obama's campaign fund. Let your money and/or your vote show that this is unacceptable in America today.

Uppity? Seriously???

I was there. I saw history happen.

It's the morning after, and the words are hard to find....I feel like I still have so much to process from yesterday. The excitement, the crazy -ass miles long line that we waited in, the speeches and performances and just....the ENERGY. It was amazing and wonderful and powerful and yes, HOPEFUL.

Oh, and we did the wave about a million times. Doin' the wave for change!

It was perfect....until the And Then.

We went camping! It was Chipmunk's first camping trip, which is weird because she loooooves nature and being outside, so I'm not sure exactly why we haven't gone before now. Anyway, all day yesterday, she had a total blast. She held a millipede for about 15 minutes, she went fishing, we went on numerous walks, she saw chipmunks and black squirells, we roasted hot dogs and made smores....I mean, it was a perfect camping trip. Everything I had hoped for and then some, really. (Until we get to the And Then... part)

Lake Wellington is BEAUTIFUL, just a gorgeous area---there were practically no other campers there--it really felt like we had this huge area to ourselves. And the rocks....the rocks were big and pretty and everywhere. We are a rock lovin' family, so this was a very good thing.

So anywho, here's the And Then!!! part. She went to bed without a problem--we cuddled up and made shadow puppets on the tent ceiling and giggled and had a very nice time. Then, for whatever reason, she woke up at about 3 am. I mean, was awake. And behaving awfully: yelling and being super loud and obnoxious, shining the flashlight in my face and in Granny's face, insisting she was hungry and thirsty but wouldn't drink any water when we went and got her some, just....the whole thing was not fun. We kept telling her she had to be quiet so as not to disturb any other campers that might be in the area, which only made her louder. So I took her to the car and sat with her in there, and then my mom came out and took the long shift with her so I could get some sleep back in the tent. At that point, we had decided that we were packing up and leaving pretty much as soon as we could. Which is exactly what we did; packed up and burned rubber home. Not a great ending.

But. I think we'll try again. She just had SUCH a good time the first day, and honestly she was great at the beginning of the night...I don't know what happened later. Maybe she was scared? She wouldn't say, so I don't know for sure.

Here are a few highlights:


Millipede Girl!

Rainbow

Can I Climb It?

4 am. Not Happy.


More pictures can be found here:
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v639/ignoramoose/Camping/

Besties in the making~

These 2 girls are so, so cute together. L-Dawg is about 1 and a half years older than H-Dawg, but they always get along so famously. They totally dig hanging out and playing together. I love them!!

Here they are this past weekend, doing the girl thing. Yay friends!


Cooperative art.

Sidewalk art!


They played in the bath for a long time...



They were so funny about this! They made us leave and close the door; in fact, they demanded it! It was totally hilarious.

Rainy Day Part Two

This is from last week, I'm just late in posting. We had another beautiful, rain-soaked day....and we enjoyed it!

I'll be there.

For Obama's acceptance speech. I can't believe it....I am so excited! Rock on, dad! My dad scored me a ticket, and a ticket for my friend Trish, too (my dad totally has the connections, yo).

We are so so SO excited!

Now, to figure out how the hell we're gonna get there. It's gonna be a logistical nightmare--the highway will be shut down for awhile, there are rumors that the lightrail will have certain stations that won't be running, etc. Yikes!

Garden Party Frock giveaway~

Garden Party Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

This beautiful green dress is lovely....Kathleen at GrosgrainFabulous is so, so talented.

Congratulations, Jason Turner!

Jason Turner wins the bronze!

I've had many a delicious dinner at my cousin John's old house with Jason. John trained at the OTC with Jason for many many years, and they are good friends. Turner's a helluva good guy, and I am so happy for him!

Rainy Days and Sundays.....

are totally wonderful and The Carpenters were completely wrong.

It's a beautiful, rainy, chilly day here...perfect. I adore the rain. Sadly, I live in a state that is not known for its dreary, drizzly days---summer thunderstorms are nice but don't last long, and one of our state's mottos is that we get more than 300 days of sunshine a year. Nice for most people, but I'm not most people. I much prefer dripping, wet, gray days. And when I get them, I savor them...

So today, baby girl, beagle dog and I loaded into the car and drove around, enjoying the rain. I made her a big travel mug of hot chocolate and I made myself a big steaming mug of earl grey. It was a soothing and lovely outing...rainy days (and Sundays, for that matter) rule.

Who's a good beagle dog?

You're a good beagle dog, yes you are! What a good boy! Aw, who's the best doggie? You're the best doggie! Who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?

Those are headbands, not ropes, as my husband first thought!
(She is very proud of her headband handiwork)

Simple Pleasures

A simple dinner on a lovely summer evening is so nice for the spirit.




He could not resist making a silly face.



The wee Cheflet made Judge a grass salad.

What a great little citizen!

She helped me vote in our primaries today! Everyone at the precinct just loved her....she got about a million "I voted!" stickers. She helped me push the buttons, too.

I really want to instill civic responsibility in her, and I'm making it a priority to take her with me to do important things like voting. Apathy is unacceptable, you know?

Yay for wee compatriots!

Bush at the Olympics=Comedy Gold

I can't stop laughing. I love him in the stands with his American flag waving madly, I love him playing volleyball with Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor, I loved him chit-chatting with The Poot (Putin) in the stands during the opening ceremonies. I want him to be the new Olympic mascot.


http://olympics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/09/bush-enjoys-time-with-us-athletes/

Glorious, kind, always on time...pearls on a string

If anyone embodies that Ryan Adams' song, it's my friend Glamorosi. She is truly beautiful, inside and out. And she makes the most fantastic jewelry--she has a real talent. I love her stuff.

She's holding a contest, called Glamorinky Friday, and for this particular contest she will custom design a piece of jewelry based around the winner's answer. Go check it out!

http://glamorosi.blogspot.com/2008/08/glamorinky-friday-18.html

And do poke around and look at her jewelry...it's pretty spectacular.

I used to do a helluva curl!

I worked at a Dairy Queen when I was in high school, and I used to be able to do a pretty darn good curl (you know, the loop-de-loo thingy on the top of the ice cream). I wonder if I could pull one off now? I bet I could. That sort of amazing talent never really leaves you, I reckon.

Anywho! If you are in the mood for a tasty ice cream treat, hit your local Dairy Queen on Thursday, August 7th. DQ is donating the proceeds from all Blizzards sold to the Children's Miracle Network!

http://www.miracletreatday.com/

That should at least, like, halve your guilt from mega yummy Blizzard consumption, right?


Below, an example of a substandard curl. Whoever made this ice cream should be ASHAMED. Awful.

My feet are singing!

I went to a new spa today, Aspen Grove Salon and Spa, and had a sublime foot treatment! Linsey, my nail tech, was fantastic! She did a great job, but beyond that, she was so sweet and personable. She was great to talk to, but she was also in tune to my mood as well--she would quietly go about her work if she could tell I wanted to silently bliss out in the massage chair.

As for the treatment itself....wow. It lasted an hour and 15 minutes! I feel so pampered. I went for the deluxe pedicure, but they also have a basic $35 pedi, too. Next time, I would LOVE to try the ionic foot bath--combine that with some reflexology and OMG you'd have to carry me home.

Part of the allure of this spa is the ambiance; beautiful wood furniture, doors, and chair rails, soothing paint colors on the walls, complimentary wine & beer while you are getting treatments, a nice musical playlist in the background, etc. It looks like a place where you'd expect to drop a lot of dough, but from what I could tell, their prices seem fairly comparable to other places around here.

I have cute purple toesies, which I am sure will make my husband happy since I opted for purple nail polish instead of purple highlights in my hair-- which is what I really want.

Aspen Grove Salon and Spa, thank you for a lovely afternoon.

Paperdoll Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

Paperdoll Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

I love the clean simplicity of this dress....adding fancy schmancy shoes or tights could give it any look you wanted. Super cute!

Popcorn Bloomer and Blouse GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

Popcorn Bloomer and Blouse GIVEAWAY !!!!!!!

My cousin just had a baby girl, and I would LOVE to win this & give it to her! *closes eyes and wishes very hard*

"When I got my library card, that was when my life began"~ Rita Mae Brown ~

So about twice a year or so, maybe a bit less than that, a group of friends and I do a book swap. We each get a buddy and buy them books we think they'd enjoy based on their favorite genres and books they've read & enjoyed in the past. There are usually several different categories, including fiction, nonfiction, wildcard (anything you fancy to buy), wishlist, etc. It's always so much fun to pick out books for someone else that I usually forget to look forward to what I might be getting. So I was pretty floored today when I got the book box to end all book boxes! My book swap buddy went above and beyond. The only "bad" part is trying to decide what to read first.....I'm thinking Myths To Live By, but The Tao Of Willie is calling to me, too. On the other hand, The Good Fairies of New York looks great. Auch, you see my dilemma!

Oh, you're a beauty, aren't you?

I finally have some stuff happenin' in my garden! And hail has not destroyed anything (yet, please knock on wood and throw salt and whatever else you can think of).

I'm going to be overflowing with 'maters and peppers. Which is a good thing, yes? Yes!

Waffle House?

More like Awesome House! Ba dum dum.

Kid Rock may be a douche, but he has great taste in greasy breakfast joints, I'll give him that. I haven't been to a Waffle House in years and years, and I'd been reading some scary things about them on the interwebz, but holy smokes our local Waffle House rules! Full disclosure: I looooove greasy spoons, so I'm predisposed towards the short order cook types of places. If you're looking for asparagus & salmon eggs benedict, you aren't gonna find it at WH. But if you want a fried egg, some bacon & hashbrowns-- look no further! And hey, if you're going.....could you come pick me up?

Yep, she's her daddy's girl alright

"Daddy, can you smell my fart?" *laughs hysterically*

Fields of Gold Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

Fields of Gold Frock GIVEAWAY!!!!

Wow, this dress is super pretty...yellow is a color that looks good on Lila, but we don't have a lot of yellow clothes for her.

Super cute bows, and a giveaway!

Go to this blog to enter:

http://ashmorefamily.blogspot.com/2008/08/back-to-school-free-bloggy-give-away.html

The bows are ADORABLE. I love the camo & the rebel the mostest. Can't you just imagine Lila's cute little head with one of them on it?

It's late, and I'm tired

I should be off in dreamland right now. I'm sleepy and my allergies have been treating me roughly today...my soft pillow is calling my name.

But. But, there's an X-Files rerun on SciFi. And I have a sleeping, snoring beagle on my lap. And tomorrow is Friday, after all, which is practically the weekend and I can catch up on sleep then, right?

What a lovely dilemma to have.

The Olympics are coming, the Olympics are coming!

Poor Justin. I'm sure he's already dreading it. Not that he hates the Olympics....I'm sure he likes them just fine. What he does dread is having 290384323 hours of Olympics' coverage on our DVR. It's gonna be worse than when a tennis Grand Slam is on (he thought Wimbledon lasted a month, I kid you not, because of how much tennis I watched).

I, however, am super duper excited! I love the Olympics. Bring it on!

She's got skillz

We went out for sushi this afternoon and Lila rocked it with the chopsticks. She seemed to like the crab the best, although the avocado roll was a hit, too. I think Justin would be overjoyed if sushi became her favorite food...any excuse for a sushi dinner, right?

Go Rockies!

We went to a baseball game with my dad this Wednesday and had so much fun! Lila ate a ton of peanuts; I think that was totally the best part for her. She was concentrating so hard on shelling them....she's a cheap date.

I have great memories of going to Dodger Stadium with my dad when I was wee, and I hope Lila will make some similar ones. Yay for America's past time!

Bear and Beagle dog go for a hike

Even though it was hotter than Hades today, I thought it would be a good idea to go for a hike. In the sweltering hot weather. When I HATE hate hate being hot. But we had a really good time anyway! I think it helps to know you have a car that will blast wonderful A/C on you when you're done.

L wanted to go down the steepest trail we could find....and she rocked it the whole way. Good job, baby!