There's a Reason They Call Me Sugar

Today was a wonderful day as I enjoyed my 50th birthday.  Many good wishes on Facebook, tons of cards and text, and at work they overdosed me with sugar upon sugar upon sugar!  First up was two cups of frosting (my weakness), then Starbucks and scone, then lunch followed by a birthday song, ice cream and cupcake.  My love for sugar is obviously notorious!  Tonight I spent the evening enjoying a memorable celebration dinner with my love Michael.  Finally, it's time to kick back, take off my bra, and relax. Awwww......perhaps my fifties won't be so bad after all!

Fifty and Fabulous!!!

Happy 50th birthday to me and my twin brother Todd today!  Wow....50.  I can remember being an early teen and thinking about what it would be like to turn 30, thinking that was ancient.  And now I'm 50!  Kind of hard to wrap my head around my new age and entering this new decade of life.  The only thought I have is......toast to my blessings, say goodbye to any regrets, and celebrate today!!!

Tuesday This and That

Here's a picture of my view as I drove to work yesterday morning.  Wonderful sky as the sun rose.

Loving this quote!

Grocery shopping on Sunday I picked up two packages of this pasta that was in the refrigerated produce section.  At first I thought it was derived from tofu or mushrooms but it's not.  It only has 15 calories per serving and, if you eat the whole package, it's only 30 calories.  No fat. No carbs.  Last night I whipped up curried chicken then tossed this miracle pasta in to heat.  It tasted great!  Right now it only appears to come in spaghetti and fettuccine but if it was in additional shapes this would be a regular on my table.

Sad Little Cake

My birthday has not even arrived yet and here lies the remains of my cake.  Arlene sent us home with the left-overs; after snacking on it I decided the rest of the cake had to be tossed or else my hips would be double-layered!  And here lies the remains of the decoration....poor little Diva, tossed out like yesterday's trash.  Here's hoping my 50th year has a better outcome than my cake!!

Hello 50!

Celebrating my 50th birthday with friends and family was a blast!  Yesterday my stepmom Arlene and sister Julie hosted a taco luncheon so twin Todd and I could usher in our fifties early (I'm still 49 for a few more days.)  Most of my brothers and sisters were there along with my aunt and uncle, several friends and of course my Michael.  I wish there had been time to have more one-on-one visits with each other but it's hard to do that when there are so many people.

The food was great and the cake, decorated with our childhood faces, was divine.  Thank you to everyone who attended and shared with us the passing of our youth!!!

Bulls, Bandannas, and Barbecue

This year marked the 25th time I've attended an annual company party.  In years past I've been responsible for planning and organizing it; now, I pitch in but the responsibility for the party belongs to others.  Makes it so much easier for me to enjoy the occasion!

Yesterday Sam dropped me off to work so Michael could drive up in the afternoon to attend the party with me and ride home together.  It was western-themed, filled with mason jars, bandannas, cardboard bulls and boots.  Barbecue dinner was tasty, awards were entertaining, and the photo booth was a hit like always.  I dug out my brown suede fringed jacket to sport along with a cowboy hat; Michael sported his brim, which looked fabulous like always.

We arrived home around 10pm; Michael went straight to bed but, due to the very large cup of coffee after dinner, I was wide awake.  Instead of sleeping, I proceeded to watch Captain Phillips, finally turning off the TV around midnight, thus 5am arrived very quickly this morning!

Wise Words from a Wise Man

Flowers, Football, and Fun

This weekend was full of relaxation and I loved every minute of it!  Spent Saturday morning cleaning the kitchen and downstairs then kicked it into high gear to clean my room.  It was an unholy mess full of clothing all over.  I was trying to find a tee-shirt packed away in a four-drawer plastic shelving unit in my closet.  Couldn't find it so proceeded to drag out all of the shirts and set them on the floor.  This was a week ago and that tee-shirt pile was haunting me all week long.  On top of that was a basket of laundry to be put away. So spent Saturday morning getting sweaty organizing my clothes, cleaning, and vacuuming  . It felt good to finally take a shower!

After a quick trip to the store, I arrived back just in time to meet Michael pulling up. We spent the afternoon relaxing and catching up with each other while waiting for the Lifetime remake of "Flowers in the Attic" movie to come on.  The remake starred Ellen Burstyn and Heather Graham and seemed promising. Unfortunately, the remake was not as good as the original and doesn't bode well for the upcoming Saturday Lifetime remake of Lizzie Borden with Christina Ricci.  Anyone else remember the Elizabeth Montgomery movie?  Hard to beat that one!  

Sunday was Seahawks day!  It seems that I have become a downright football fan; we spent part of the day surfing between the Bronco/Patriots game and the Food Network as we waited for the Hawks game to come on.  Finally 3:30 arrived and the game was on!  Michael has been teaching me the rules and jargon used in football and I believe I'm getting the hang of it.  I even remember some of the key players - Tom Brady, Russell Wilson, Payton Manning, Golden Tate, Colin Kaepernick, Richard Sherman - all from memory!!  At several points during the game you could actually see me whooping, hollering, and clapping. So exciting for us Washingtonians that the Seahawks won and even better is that I understood how they did it.

After the game we ended our Sunday by watching the original Flowers in the Attic with Victoria Tennant and Louise Fletcher.  So creepy!  Skip the remake and watch this one!

This week is going to be busy.  Company party on Wednesday then a big 50 birthday get together on Saturday with friends and family.  Here's to a week filled with good memories!!

Hello Friday!!!

Friday has finally arrived.....yaaa hooo!!!  Here's to everyone having a wonderful weekend!!  I'm looking forward to this Sunday being snuggled up with my man to watch the Seahawks kick the Niner's butt!  Cheers to the 12th Man!!!!

Waking Up to the Oscar Nominations!

Since I'm up every morning at this time, I can't make the excuse that I got up special just to watch the Oscar nominations today.  How exciting!!  There's nothing I like more than the Academy Awards and all the fuss leading up to it.  Here's a link to the nominations.  Of course Meryl Streep has been nominated again.  My predictions:

Best Supporting Actor - Jared Leto
Best Supporting Actress - Lupita N'yongo
Best Actor - Matthew McConaughey
Best Actress - Cate Blanchett
Director - Steve McQueen
Best Picture - 12 Years a Slave

Let's see how close I get on March 2, 2014!!!

Signs You Are Nearing 50!

I don’t need the date on the calendar to tell me I’m nearing 50 because the signs are all there.  Here are a few recent incidents I’ve recently encountered:

• You become so bloated you actually take a pregnancy test.  However, it’s not a baby you are giving birth to – it’s menopause!

• You enter on-line sweepstakes and, during the point you must enter your birth year, instead of picking toward the top of the list, you are now scrolling down, and down, and down to find your birth year;

• Cosmopolitan, your once go-to magazine for trends and articles, now seems so embarrassingly juvenile;

• Getting up early used to mean 6am.  This has now morphed into regularly waking at 4:30am….just because;

• The only time you can enjoy chocolate in the evening is when you follow it with an antacid chaser;

• You refer to staying up until 11pm as “having a really late night”;

• You’ve traded your birth control container for an AM/PM pillbox;

• The word “comfortable” has passed your lips when referring to shoes (gasp!);

• Your bad hair days are not just bad, but BAAADDD!!!!

Bad Morning Hair Come to Life!!

To Take Nothing for Granted

There comes a time when you meet someone, you spend time getting to know them, and you begin to discover you have a magical connection.  You enjoy listening to their stories and sharing your own, you trade sarcastic and humorous insider jokes with one another, and you begin creating your own memories with dinners, trips, and events.  Then comes a time when they hold you up when you are down, provide a shoulder upon which you can cry, and not only give you pep talks but build up your confidence so you can handle the good, the bad, and the ugly in your life.  In between all of this they whisper uplifting compliments and disperse heartfelt romantic gesture simply to make you happy, because that is their driving force in life.  They keep you safe, they are your protector, and you share a love together you never thought you would find in this lifetime.  Of course, for all of this and more I speak of my Michael.

This last week has been a hard one.  My Michael spent almost a week in the hospital, dealing with some unexpected health issues along with receiving surgery in order that his dialysis can begin.  He received a kidney transplant over ten years ago and now that little bugger is failing.  So dialysis three times a week is the answer, at least for another six months when he can be once again listed for a new transplant.  Thankfully, each day in the hospital Michael called me to fill me in on his progress along with the daily entertainment of hospital life.  Family visitors.  Oddball roommates.  Disappearing nurses.  Failure of food delivery.  All in all, Michael weathered it well.

Yesterday I cruised to Good Sam to pick up my man.  He was up and almost ready to go.  Getting discharged, I picked him up at the door and we departed the hospital. Michael requested we make one stop before returning home - at Mall 205.  I waited in the car while he ran his errand inside the mall.  Out he came holding a jewelry bag....for me.   After undergoing surgery and having his health upside down for a week, the only thought that was in his mind was an early birthday gift he had waiting for me.

And it was a beautiful gift....a blue topaz and diamond ring for my left hand.  Not as an engagement ring, not as a promise ring, but a ring to cement our love and commitment to each other.  It's a tangible piece of beauty that I can view, look at, and touch which will remind me of my Michael when we are apart.

Thank you my Michael for my early birthday gift.  And for giving me a lifetime of wonderful memories over the last two years - I can't wait to build many more with you!

Lifetime - More Than a Movie!!

This weekend has been busy yet relaxing.  Michael and I were separated by distance this weekend so we could only spend time with each other via text and phone.  However, I found ways to fill up my days!

Friday evening after collaging baby pics together I created a 50th birthday bash invite for twin Todd and my party this month.  Weren't we cute?  My stepmother is kind enough to host a bash for us at the end of this month; she and my sister are conspiring to make it a success and I can't wait to celebrate my 50th birthday with friends and family.  I sent the invite out via text and hope everyone can make it!

Saturday I spent cleaning my room, the kitchen, picked up the downstairs, did a couple loads of laundry, and just simply completed tasks needing to be done.  I took a break in the middle of the day to swing by Target for a prescription and, of course, while I was there I perused the clearance and makeup aisles.  I also carried around in my cart a signed copy of Cameron Diaz' new body book but at the last minute changed my mind.  However, some of the items that came home with me included:

New Cover Girl TruMagic skin perfector balm, which appears to be a knock off from Mally Roncal's "no-powder" powder.  I've been itching to try her product after reading about it and seeing her pitch it on QVC; however, at $30+ it seemed a bit steep as a tester.  The Cover Girl product was more in line with my budget so figured I'd try it out.  After using it today, the jury is still out.....haven't decided if it is quite the "powder" replacement it claims to be.

In the clearance aisle there was a NYX pink-based kit of lip liner, lipstick, plumper, and gloss for $4.  Nice score on my favorite products....lip gloss!!

The score of the day was Holiday Glade - regularly $2.99 for 88 cents!  Smells yummy too!!!

Coming home, I spent Saturday evening coloring my roots along with adding a few reddish-brown streaks to my hair.  Turned out great but come Sunday morning it seemed to need a few more blond streaks so tonight I took care of that issue....all is good in the hair world now!

Also spent part of the day on Saturday watching Man of Steel with Sam.  He had seen it before so he filled me in on the background data.  While it was a good movie, it seemed to go on and on and on.  Over two hours long and there were several climaxes that could have ended the movie appropriately.  However, it was apparent I hadn't fulfilled my movie quotient for the day because Saturday evening I watched a Lifetime movie titled "Blindsided" revolving around a newly blind woman and ruffians coming to her home. Of course during this time I proceeded to describe the movie blow by blow to Michael on the phone.  God bless him for putting up with my ramblings!!!

This morning after changing my sheets and finishing up the last load of laundry, I took a break to browse at Ross.  You would not believe the beyond empty shoe aisles for size 8 to 8.5!!  It was a hoofers ghost town!!! 

On a side note, the last time I was at Goodwill I picked up the book "How to Never Look Fat Again" by Charla Krupp.  I already own her book "How to Never Look Old Again"; this book was also a good read with super tips.  I thought back on the tips in this book as I held a long, hooded zebra print cardigan in my hands at Ross; tempted as I was, I backed away from the animal print then picked up a more flattering alternative of black pants and cardigan for work.  Whew!!

Yeah, maybe not the best look!

Tonight was spent preparing a scrumptious dinner of baked chicken and orzo before painting my nails while watching, yes, another Lifetime movie - The Stepfather.   It just ended and a Sandra Bullock film is coming on next so, to be honest, I have to now admit I'm a Lifetime junkie!!!

Here's to a great rest of Sunday evening and an even better Monday!!!