2016 is Almost Here!

It’s hard to believe New Year’s Eve is here and 2016 is ready to burst in!!  The holiday season is flying by and it’s hard to believe I’ll be turning 52 in January.  Wasn’t it just yesterday that I was 16?  25?  Even 40?

As always the Shepard Family Christmas party, held at younger sis Erin’s abode, was a blast.  It was Steve’s second year so he was much more relaxed and knew what to expect.  Jordan’s wife Candy was the newbie so it was her turn to take in the food, the family, the questions, and the noise.  She had a fantastic time and enjoyed being part of a big family gathering.  Sam actually attended the party this year and he wound up having a fantastic time, bonding with cousin Maressa’s boyfriend James and Erin’s boyfriend Josh.  The gift game continued to be fun and I ended up with an awesome bag filled to the brim with items to be used in a car emergency.  Steve wound up with LED candles and a “52 Things to Do While You Poop” book; he conveniently left both at my house and ended up giving them to me.  The candles – yay!  The poop book will definitely be regifted.

We also had the annual girl’s sharing of shoes, clothes, makeup, etc. during the Shepard party.  I off-loaded a ton of shoes and makeup and wound up taking home a cute pair of beige boots, some black thigh high boots, a Spritz cookie press, and a few other odds and ends.  In addition, sis Eilene made me a fabulous high heel shoe wreath that I immediately hung up on my porch.  Thankfully it is fake so I can use it every year!!!

There is definitely never enough time to get caught up with each family member during the annual party.  We need to have gatherings more often so we can spend time sharing our lives with each other.

I took December 23 off from work so I could finish my Christmas shopping.  I was gone from 8:30am to 3pm at the stores getting gifts and then getting groceries.  My feet were sore at the end of the day!!!  Next year I will plan better and get my shopping done early!!

Christmas Eve found me celebrating at Steve’s house with his family.  This year I was included in the gift drawing and it was my task to purchase for his sister-in-law Michelle.  Along with a long-sleeve tee and fleece vest, I also made her a beaded bracelet, including charms with pictures of her family.  She unwrapped the bracelet and immediately began crying she was so touched by it.  Made my heart warm.

Steve gifted me a beautiful diamond and garnet ring and necklace along with another funky set of earrings and necklace which are similar to the bracelet I received last year from him.  I surprised him with a Black Sabbath tee, a hotel night, and tickets to see Black Sabbath in Tacoma on February 6.  He was beyond happy with his gift and immediately began humming some Ozzy song and rocking out.  Of course I’m going with him – in no way for the music but for the experience.  Right now I’m trying to figure out what rock-n-roll outfit to wear for the heavy metal shindig.

Christmas morning I drove home and watched Sam open his gifts.  Later, I cruised to Jordan and Candy’s for dinner and watched them open their gifts.  We also watched the thirties version of A Christmas Carol, one of my favorites.

The rest of the holiday weekend flew by, including Sunday when I took down all the Christmas decorations and changed up some of the pictures on the living and family room walls.  Sam has been frequently gone to his buddy’s house so Casa Diva has been unusually quiet lately.  No plans other than work for New Year’s Eve, although I received an invite to my friend Jan’s house.  Still up in the air as to if I want to be out on the road in the cold with a bunch of drunkards.

Happy New Year’s everyone!!!  Here’s to a fabulous 2016!!!

 

Cranberries and Commodores

Thanksgiving was a success, spent with Sam, Jordan and Candy, her sons and granddaughter.  Yes, Jordan has become a grandparent before me, which is mind-bending.

Friday I drove to Vancouver to hit a few Black Friday sales.  Then Friday night I headed up to Lucky Eagle casino with my friends Stan and Susan to see the Commodores concert.  It was awesome!  At one point at the end I made my way to the front stage, jumping around in hopes of scoring a t-shirt or drumsticks.  Definitely a high energy event!!

Today I get to celebrate Stan and Susan's 25th wedding anniversary.  I was one of their witnesses when they were married and I can't believe it's been 25 years!!  Those two were definitely made for each other!

Sending out good vibes to Steve, who has been fighting a cold all week.  Sore throat, no voice and he had to miss turkey day!!

From Studmuffin to Scruffin!

I was watching the movie "The Kidnapping of Heineken" with Anthony Hopkins.  Sam mentioned that one of the stars was Jim Sturgess, the guy who was in the movie "21".  I thought there was no way.  In 21 he was a good looking dark haired guy; in this movie, the guy was scruffy, blonde, and skinny.  Of course I had to Google the actor to see if it was indeed him.  You betcha....same actor.  What a difference!!   Look at the comparison below:

Way Too Early To Rise!

Woke up at 4:30am today and could not fall back asleep so gave in and got up.  Still can't believe it is November and we are inching our way to another Christmas.  This past weekend I actually stood in the garage and thought about dragging out the holiday decorations.  Came to my senses and decided it was just too darn early.

Here's to having a very long day today!!

Cough, Colonoscopy, and Candy!!

October has come to a close and November is upon us.  Next thing it will be Christmas! 

October was a month of medical episodes.  Battling a cough that refuses to go away, the doctor put me on prednisone – yes, the stuff that makes you cranky, hungry, unable to sleep, and is simply a pain in the rear.  Counting down the days when I’m done with that treatment!

October also included my first colonoscopy!  I heard stories of the prep being the worst and I pooh-poohed them. C’mon – I drink water all the time so guzzling a few liters will be no problem!  To all of those people I ridiculed, let me be the first to say I’m sorry!!!  It wasn’t the water – it was the medicine.  You go all day drinking clear liquids, then at 6pm you mix the liquid (which was clear so it fools you into thinking it will be no problem) into 16oz of water and drink it down.  Yuck!  Then followed with two more 16oz containers of water.  My gut was sloshing like a waterlogged basketball! 

An hour after the drinking the intestinal expulsion begins.  Yes, every 30 minutes or so I was in the bathroom.  Releasing every bit of substance that may have been left in my colon.  The only other time I’ve had this type of situation is when I’ve been down with the flu so this process tricks you into thinking you are sick.  But you aren’t – just preparing for the inevitable.

Thankfully I was only up twice that night before arising at 4:30am to once again drink the nasty substance followed by 32 more ounces of water.  Once again I was back in the bathroom but, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to keep that much liquid down so back up it went.  Ick.

Once the water treatment was done, son Sam dropped me off at the hospital where I changed into my gown, got the IV hooked up, and was ready to rumble (or be sucked dry.)  The doctor stopped by and let me know that, because I was on the steroids, I could reschedule the colonoscopy for another day.  WHAT ARE YOU HIGH MAN??  This procedure was going to happen come hell or high water!!! 

Soon I was wheeled into the procedure room, sedative pumped into my veins, and a nice little twilight took over my mind as the doctor began the anal probing.  Thankfully, my colon was in tip top shape and only one little polyp had to be removed. 

The best part of the procedure?  Eating chicken fried steak for breakfast with son Sam after he picked me up from the hospital!!

October also brought another Halloween, which meant a record 500 kids knocking on my door for candy.  Sam’s friend Aaron, dressed in a creepy clown costume, ended up handing out candy to the kiddies, several whom had to be scarred by Aaron’s appearance. 

 

Each year following Halloween brings a melancholy reminder that my mom is gone.  Her birthday is November 1 - Happy Birthday in heaven, Mom!!!  It's been 19 years since you've been gone and I still think of you and miss you every single day.

 

 

The Great Pumpkin, Pete Carroll!!

I was fairly productive this past weekend.  On Saturday I cruised to T-Mobile in Vancouver to replace Sam's phone, which he had accidentally set in a glass of water.  Picked him up a new phone (on his dime) then browsed around the mall before heading back home.  Saturday evening I simply relaxed, read, then hit the hay.

Sunday I got ready to begin my new project - decorated pumpkin for the contest at work.  I originally was going to have Sam paint Batman on my pumpkin but then I decided to go for a Seahawks theme. This would obtain the guest votes from not only athletic kids but parents as well.

I stopped by Michael's to see what called to me in the craft aisles.  Not much so headed over to Walmart to pick up some craft supplies.  I must have wandered for two hours, digging through the craft, sports, and fabric aisles.  When done, I headed home with my bag of goodies to begin creating a masterpiece (in my mind anyway!)

I painted the pumpkin dark blue with glitter spray on top.  I had originally picked up a Seahawks painted face mask for humans that seemed to be easy to use on the pumpkin. Well, that didn't really happen. The face kind of blended in with the blue paint so it was carefully removed in order that the logo could still be used; unfortunately, some of the blue paint came off so I decided to slap some lime green on the front to cover the bits of orange pumpkin poking through.

Next, the Seahawks emblem were placed on the front of the pumpkin.  Digging into my favorite paint box - my nail polish - I painted around the emblem area with silver and glitter paint.  I then painted a 12 with green paint and dotted it with glitter polish before skewering it with a dowell.  My next step was to paint a silver and glitter 12 on top of the lime green mini-football from Walmart. 

Taking a break from painting, I then sewed a Seahawks flag and secured it to a dowell, inserting the 12 dowell next to it. 

Getting close to being done, a silver stadium wig was attached to my pumpkin before plunging the flag dowell into the skin and gluing the football to the top.

This whole pumpkin decorating contest took a few hours but it is looking pretty good - perhaps even contest winning.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!!!

 

 



After finishing up Mr. Seahawks Pumpkin, I then moved on to my bedroom.  Arrggg....so many clean clothes that I had been ignoring, piled onto the loveseat in my room.  Watching a movie, I made my way through the clothes to put them away, hang them up, and be done with it!. 

That was the extent of my weekend! 

Experience in the Plains

Wednesday was a very long day but it was successful in bringing me to one of Steve's favorite places in the world -North Dakota.

We boarded the flight to Denver with his parents at 3pm.  Smooth flight; however, when we arrived we learned the connecting flight to Minot was cancelled.  The airline quickly said it was "not their fault"; we suspect it was due to such a small number of passengers.  We ended up detouring to Willingston, two hours from Minot.  Steve's uncle picked us up and we finally tumbled into bed around 1am.

Thursday I was invited to have lunch at the country club with the girls.  These gals were a close knit group of friends of Steve's mom Kathy (who goes by Kiki in ND) and her sister Ann.  All ten of us had lunch, where I learned that most everyone in the small community were related to one another.  One married one's brother, another's son had married one's daughter, and so on.  It was a lunch full of stories, remembrances, and laughs.

After lunch we rode over to Velva to watch second cousins Maddie and Libby play volleyball at the school.  Meaning the school where all kids, kindergarten to senior, take classes.  Following that, Steve took me on a tour of Velva, where his mom grew up and where he spent many summers as a child.  Our evening ended up meeting his parents, aunt, uncle, and cousin for dinner before heading to Aunt Ann's to stay for the night.

Friday we slept in then later in the day we cruised to Strawberry Lake, a community of cabins surrounding a lake that is a summertime getaway for Steve's relatives.  We stopped at Uncle Mike's cabin to relax and enjoy the sights before making our way to the Burns ranch for dinner.

Steve's second cousin is getting married at the Burns ranch so we were invited to the rehearsal dinner.  A big tent was up and the decorating was being fine-tuned when we arrived.  Today at 6pm the wedding will be held and we are looking forward to the big party to follow.

This morning Steve met up with another cousin and friends to go duck hunting.  They ended up getting 10 ducks and 10 geese and a barrel of laughs.

A few things I've learned so far on my trip - ND is very windy, there's always a patch of hay to be found, and everyone is friendly.

Weddings and Wisconsin

Diva, Candy, Jordan, Sam and Grandma Arlene

Candy and Jordan

Big and Little Bro

First off, congratulations to my son Jordan and his new wife Candy, who were married on September 4, 2015.  It was a sunny wedding on the banks of Lake Sacajawea where they were surrounded by flowers with the lake fountain in the background.  I've never seen Jordan so happy and I wish both of them many blessings for a loving and long marriage.

On Tuesday, September 8 I departed bright and early for my work trip to Madison, Wisconsin.  Upon arrival, the team met up at home-grown Streckers for dinner, which included a Bloody Boot for me, filled with bloody mary mix and garnished with cheese curds, pepperoni, and pickle, plus I got to keep the boot!!

Bloody Boot

Wednesday brought the group of us together for all day training followed by a big barbecue dinner at the former CEO's house.  There was lobster, grilled ham, chicken, corn, and an abundance of cheese curds! 


Thursday was the golf tournament for our scholarship participants.  Unfortunately the day started off with rain but burned off and became hot enough that our many trips to the margarita and shot holes were worth it.  We drove the cart around to each hole to hob nob with the players then enjoyed a nice dinner buffet before heading back to the hotel that evening.

I made my way home Friday evening, where I was promptly picked up at the airport by Steve who then whisked me off to Cannon Beach to spend time with his family.  I met his aunt, a cousin and her husband, and his sister and her husband - all very friendly and welcoming.  It was a great weekend to kick back, read, and nap.  Steve made salmon chowder for dinner Saturday then on Sunday we had mussels straight from the surf along with halibut fish for dinner.



Now here it is Tuesday and I'm counting the days until my next trip on the 23rd to visit North Dakota with Steve and his parents.  Never been there so looking forward to marking that state off my list!

Boston, Bugs, and Birthday

August has flown by and my September will be even busier! 

 

New England - My recent trip to New England was a success – made it home in one piece and recovered that weekend from the time change. My flight home left me with a four hour wait at the Boston airport so I filled my time reading, surfing the web, and (unfortunately) getting my nails filled.  That was a mistake!

Boston Nails - I knew I had time so I searched out a hair/nail salon at the airport.  The woman, a nice Italian lady in her late 30’s with a very strong Boston accent, said she had time to fill my nails.  Do you ever have those moments when you know something is going to be a disaster but you decided to plow ahead, hoping for the best?  That’s what happened in this case.

Instead of using a file drill, she grabbed the nail file old school and, after removing my polish, she began lighting filing the tops of my nails.  She then laid out her brush and the fill material. Initially layering on the filler, she realized she had the wrong kind so she wiped my nail and grabbed the correct bottle.  Uh oh.

She dipped the brush haphazardly into the solution then the dry filler powder before placing it on top of my nails.  She tried to be neat and tidy but she was not blessed with the ability to create a natural looking fake nail.  The filler on my nails began to resemble lumpy piles of mashed potatoes – ridges, bumps, and waves.  She then attacked the filler with a buffing file which did nothing to smooth my now pathetic digits.  Even slapping on polish and top coat did nothing to improve the site of my nails.

I sadly paid for my fill.  The poor nail lady was just so pleased with her efforts that I couldn’t ask for a refund.  However, my first appointment when I returned home was to get the entire mess stripped off and a new set put into place.

Jordan's new tattoo

Jordan and Candy - Fit in a nice Chinese dinner with Jordan and his now fiancé, which was an enjoyable time catching up with each other and learning more about his girlfriend. 

Flu Bug - Hit the ground running back at work then screech….wound up with the flu bug, which I always attribute to any return flights from the East Coast.  The Wednesday evening following my return my stomach just wasn’t feeling right.  In fact, it felt very wrong, up to the point I began barfing every hour upon the hour through the evening.  Ugh.  Been a long time since I’ve had the flu.  Ended up staying home Thursday to recover, returned to work Friday, which was a mistake, and left early to continue my recuperation.

Steve – Happy birthday today, 9/1, to my Steve.  He has been busting his butt this summer at the farm but we were finally able to connect last weekend to catch up.  We have tentative plans to go salmon fishing on Buoy 10 this Thursday but I’m waiting to hear confirmation.

Sam and his buds

Wisconsin – I’m off to Wisconsin for work in a week and will return home on 9/11 (of all the crappy dates.)  Steve will pick me up from the airport and we will head straight to Cannon Beach to spend the weekend with some of his out-of-town relatives.

North Dakota – Steve’s family invited me go along with them the end of this month for a cousin’s wedding in North Dakota.  Have never been there so for the experience I immediately said yes. 

Sam – New landscaping job for Sam and he has been rocking it.  Happy he is out there doing something and earning some money!

Hair like this!

New Hair Do – This past weekend I decided to go for the gusto and get a short do.  A couple of weeks ago I got lots of layers in it and was trying for a shag look.  Nope, that wasn’t going to work so decided to get an asymmetrical pixie type cut.  Yep, that short.  Had it done Sunday and decided this morning the longer side was a bit too heavy so wacked some of that off in my bathroom this morning.  Ahhh…much better!!!

That's it for now!!!  Hopefully I'll have a new blog post the end of this week that shows me holding a huge salmon!!!

 

P.S. Only 115 more days until Christmas!!!  Yikes!!!

Work and Wacky Weather!

Here I am an hour out of Boston for work.  Arrived Sunday night and it's been a whirlwind since then.  Meetings, eating, training, eating, talking, eating has been the agenda.  The weather has been fantastic; however, yesterday after a sunny morning, while sitting in the conference room we began to hear the growing rumble of rain.  The noise grew louder and louder, followed by thunder; it was so bad we all had to look outside to see what was happening!  Massive rain pouring outside.  Shortly thereafter, we received the following alert on our phones:

Freaky!!  Didn't realize Mass. was the center of tornado activity!  Thankfully, the rain cleared, no tornado appeared, and the afternoon became sunny once again.

Of course with the time change my sleep patterns are all messed up.  Falling asleep about midnight then dreading the alarm.  Last night drifted off about 12:30 then woke up at 4:30.  What the heck? 

Wednesday is here and my week is halfway over.  Loving the trip but looking forward to returning home and Pacific Coast time!!

Goodwill, Garage Sale, & Grove

My busy life just does not allow me to write on my blog as much as I would like! 

Two weeks ago while I browsed at the local Goodwill, who should approach me but my second husband!  Now, I haven’t seen him for years but thankfully recognized him.  Thinner, different glasses, but still the same.  We talked children and, for him, grandchildren, age, work, and life in general.  It was actually a nice visit.  Most of all I was happy to be looking put together with acceptable make-up and hair.  Nothing worse than running into someone when you happen to be out browsing on a Sunday in sweats, second day hair, and clean-scrubbed face!

Last week son Jordan came home after several days away and announced he was moving in with his new girlfriend.  Candy.  39 years old.  Wow.  However, Jordan is a grown man of 22 and it is his life and his decisions to make.  He knows he always has a home at Mom’s and I wish him good luck and happiness with this new adventure in his life. 

Last Friday I had a wild hair and decided to hold a garage sale Saturday morning.  Thankfully Sam and his buds were available to help me organize the sale and price items.  You never know what kind of treasures may be in store when one is digging through archived odds and ends.  There is a big trunk in the garage which I knew contained a variety of items; however, it had been so long since I had last opened it that what treasures inside were lost in my recesses of my memory.  Carefully opening the lid, an abundance of books appeared – craft and decorating books, makeup and fashion books, and a variety of fictional novels.  There were also some school papers for Sam and Jordan along with a photo album from my second marriage when the kids were young.  Sam ended up at one of the trunk browsing through his school papers while I flipped through the scrapbook, which contained many photos from a Long Beach trip years ago.  We ended up having to shut the trunk because we were getting too far off base digging through pictures and books to focus on the garage sale items.

Friday night found me unable to fall asleep until 1am; I then woke up at 4:30am.  Ugh.  Roused Sam and his buds at 6:30am to set up the tables on the driveway then proceeded to flop in a picnic chair while I waited for the crowds to show up. 

It ended up being an ebb and flow of customers.  A wave would show up, browse through the items, and then depart, leaving a 15 minute stretch of nothing.  Although it wasn’t labeled for sale, we did get one bite on Sam’s Impala which hopefully will pay off.  The day began getting warmer and warmer and warmer.  I ended up closing the sale at 12:30, moving all of the items back into the garage for perhaps another day.  And my reward?  A whopping $27!!!

After spending my earnings on gas and groceries, all I could think about was a nap.  However, Saturday afternoon I made potato salad and visited with my good friends Stan and Susan, who stopped by about 3pm to view my garage sale items.  Once the salad was done and my friends had departed, a nap on the couch became my next agenda item. 

Sunday morning I again woke up early, this time due to allergies.  It was blue sky and sunny so I grabbed my little Stubbs and we took a road trip to Willow Grove to play on the beach of the Columbia River.  Nobody was around so we took a walk (no leash!) in the sand.  Stubbs was in heaven – plenty of things to sniff, smell, and pee upon.  After gathering up some shells and driftwood, we returned home where I made homemade biscuits for breakfast. 

After mowing the back yard, my Sunday afternoon then became a time of creativity.  I had a framed canvas beach picture that I thought would look cool painted with a neat sea turtle mosaic I found on Pinterest.  After about an hour or so of painting, it became clear there is no Van Gough, Picasso, or Matisse blood flowing in my veins and I was forced to come up with a better idea for the picture.  I ended up gluing several of my plain and painted sand dollars from Cannon Beach onto the picture to provide a 3D effect (but mainly to cover up the hideous turtle.)  I also made a driftwood, bead, and sand dollar wall hanging along with a larger piece of driftwood which I embellished with a clear “Blessings” decal.  The finished items may not be perfect but they definitely provided me with a relaxing outlet for my Sunday afternoon.

Sunday evening found me popping a Benadryl to rid myself of allergies then relaxing on the couch watching the boob tube, preparing for another Monday. 

My upcoming excitement for this week?  I’m looking forward to my annual mammogram Wednesday morning bright and early!  Nothing like having your boobs pressed and flattened to give you an experience to remember!

 

  
 

Cold and Cannon Beach

Time flies when one is sick and on vacation!  Two weeks ago the dreaded cold bug sidelined me for a week. Not only was it a cold but a monstrous cold sore erupted on my lip....ugh!  The timing was off but following my absence from work for being sick, Steve and I went to Cannon Beach for a week.

Our trip was glorious!  Sunny, warm weather, sandy beach, and plenty of time to relax.  We ate salmon and dungenous crab, toured the Oregon  Coast Aquarium, played miniature golf for the first time in my life (and got a hole in one!), bumper cars, kite flying, outlet shopping, and ended our trip visiting with his parents, who arrived the day before our departure.

For the 4th, we first went to the Manzanita viewpoint to watch the fireworks; however, it wasn't that great if a show due to the distance so we returned home.  The neighbors shot off a ton of awesome fireworks and we had a front row seat on the deck.  It was an incredible icing on the cake for our trip.  Also, it was the longest amount of time we spent together and I'm happy to report we are both still alive.

The best part of the trip is the house was still standing when I arrived home!

I also got to visit with my big brother Jay, who was at his shop in Cannon Beach.  It was definitely an awesome trip and I can't wait to return.

Countdown to Vacation!

Two more days until my beach vacation!  And I've been put through the wringer leading up to it.

Last week a nasty cold sore sprouted up on my lip. And we aren't talkin baby hive....we are speaking of a full-blown, sock on the mouth, pus-engorged chancor that could not be conquered by any brand of concealer in my makeup arsenal.  Ugh!

Saturday, slathered in Lystine ointment and full of ibuprofen, I tackled the yard, mowing, weeding, arranging, and cleaning. I worked my diva ass off and, for repayment, I stayed in bed all day Sunday with the start of a cold!

Coughing, sneezing, and sniffling, I was only able to work part of the day on Monday, missed Tuesday, then showed up for our company picnic today. Still warm and coughing, I left early. Made a doc appointment for tomorrow morning in order to prevent any future complications that may affect my beach vacation with Steve!!

Here's to no cold, no cold sore, and beach sunshine in my future!!

Lovin the Beach!!

This weekend I got a little taste of what my vacation at the end of this month will be all about!

I took Friday off at the last minute in order to get a head start with Steve on our weekend vacation to his family’s beach house in Cannon Beach, OR.  We ended up leaving about 2pm and met up with his parents, brother and his wife, and niece and her boyfriend at their beach home.  It was lovely outside – sunny, blue sky, and warm.  We spent the evening on the deck catching up and sharing an awesome dinner.  

Saturday after sleeping in (with help from my friend Benadryl due to my allergies) Steve and I took the niece’s dog Sadie to the beach for a stroll.  Steve and the dog ended up packing it in and I continued on, walking a total of three miles on the beach.  It was so gorgeous outside.   Arriving back at the house, Steve worked on nailing new shingles to the house while I sat on the deck and soaked in the rays.

Later in the afternoon, we drove into Cannon Beach proper to check out my brother Jay’s new store Flair.  We walked in and while I started to browse, Steve mentioned to the employee, Shelby, that I was Jay’s sister.  Oh, it was a red letter day for her being able to meet one of Jay’s siblings!!!  She was the sweetest gal; she insisted we take a selfie together so she could send it to Jay.  The store looks fabulous!!!  Lots of unique items.  

After Flair of course we had to stop in his other store.  More items to dig through – there were some mermaid pictures that have my name on them that just might go home with me at the end of the month!  Steve couldn’t resist the huckleberry jam, syrup, and chocolate bar so he grabbed those before we made our way back to the house.

Unfortunately, Steve’s mom, dad, and brother had to leave unexpectedly so we spent Saturday evening with his sister-in-law Michelle, niece Chelsea and her boyfriend Dan.  Michelle made some of the best halibut fish and chips we’ve ever had – coating was perfect!  For the second night in a row we ate strawberry shortcake with berries that Steve had picked himself.

Sunday arrived sooner than expected.  Steve relaxed while the rest of us, along with the dog, took a final stroll on the beach.   Steve and I then made our way into town and had lunch at Bill’s Tavern – service not the greatest but the food was awesome.  
After that it was nap time then final clean up at the house before we departed about 5pm.  Hitting a big traffic jam, along with some side travels through the country, we ended up at Steve’s about 8:30.  I finally made it home about 10pm, chatted with the boys until 11pm, and then went to bed.  Actually, went to bed then struggled to fall asleep due to the two cups of coffee I mistakenly drank at Bill’s during our late lunch.  Five-thirty this morning arrived too soon.

Steve and I easily made it through three days together so our trip back to the beach at the end of the month is looking promising!  We really had a lot of time to visit, share stories, and hanging out with his family was a plus.  Hunting, fishing, and the country is so important to him that it was also a treat on our way home when he showed me places where he hunted, farmland where he worked, the pair of cinnamon teal ducks that return to roost every year, and just both of us talking about life in general.  When you normally get to see each other twice a month, it’s pretty sweet to spend more than one evening together!

Don't Measure A Woman's Worth By Her Clothes

I ran across these pictures awhile back...aren't they thought-provoking?

TGIF!!

Took a couple of days off from work to simply work on household chores and attempt to clean the garage, which I did today. Now I've got a whole pile of stuff for a garage sale. Thought about doing it this weekend but the cleaning wore me out so that idea will be executed on another weekend.

I've also started going back to the gym. Was slacking off for a few months and the lack of exercise made me feel blobby and depressed. Was hard to return but I did it - that first day I almost veered toward home but persevered and went in. Such a good idea now I'm gettin back into the groove!

Tomorrow my nephew Stephen graduates...big kudos to him!  I'm unable to make the trip for his party but lots of hugs and good wishes are sent his way.

Last Sunday I drove to Steve's for dinner with his parents. Steve barbecued bacon wrapped duck breast for dinner and it was divine!  Next weekend we are going to meet his family in Cannon Beach for a work party, although his mom said the guys will be working and the gals will be playing.

At the end of the month Steve and I will be staying a week at Cannon Beach. So looking forward to taking an extended vacation from work.

Here's to everyone enjoying this very sunny weekend!

Friday is Almost Here!!

Happy 22nd Jordan!!!

Happy 22nd birthday today to my first born son Jordan!!  He is a blessing and a treasure and he is wished a magical, memorable birthday today.  Love you Jordan!!

Pizza, Paint, and Peace

It's been a relaxing night at home tonight...no kids, just me and the pooch!  I had to put the hammer down and banish the overflow of young men at the house every night.  It was starting to morph from sanctuary to frat house!

Before the gang of boys left tonight, I did come up with a new recipe...tator tot casserole pizza!  I even made the pizza dough from scratch!  It was the bomb!  And a big hit with the boys that were here...such phrases as "Dank" and "it's an 11 out of 10!"  I think I may just patent it!

Once alone, I then watched The Aviator, which I had never seen in full.  Great movie and it led to me Googling all about Howard Hughes, his empire, and his OCD.  Fascinating!

While watching the movie, I painted my finger and toe nails a lovely shade of silvery purple.  Awww..a productive evening!!  Here's to Monday being over and this workweek flying by quickly!

Mother's Day and Mandalay Bay

First off, Happy Mother's Day to all my friends and family who are moms, to my stepmom, and to my very missed Mom in Heaven.  My Mother's Day weekend included dinner out with Steve along with a beautiful pink orchid in a glass terrarium, a lovely drive around Willow Grove, and dinner cooked tonight by son Sam. The neighborhood crew of boys even brought me cake to enjoy.

As always, the last few weeks have been busy! My Vegas trip was eventful, including dinner at Caesars, ride in the very high gondola on the strip, the Jeff Dunham show, beer pong, karaoke, and, on the final night, appetizers and drinks at the House of Blues Foundation Room on the top floor of Mandalay Bay. Lots of memories were made along with bonding with fellow HR directors and GM's.

Arriving back to work on Monday after the trip last week was spent training my new replacement along with catching up on my missed work. My busy days flew by quickly!

Now I'm looking forward to next real vacation the end of June/early July when I'll be spending a week with Steve at his lake house in Coos Bay.  This trip will include boating on the lake to enjoy the fireworks show.  Can't wait!!

Here's to another productive week which will hopefully include some breathing room.

Lots of Bull This Week!

This past week flew by so fast!  One of the highlights was a manager's outing on Thursday when about 30 of us piled into two limos for a trip to Tacoma. We first had dinner than following that some of us brave souls rode the mechanical bull.  Way fun and it was a work out trying to stay on the bull before being tossed.

After all that bull, we hit the Tacoma Comedy Club.  There were a couple of comics and the headliner was Chris Frangelo from the Chelsea Handler show. Very funny, lots of laughter, and plenty of leader bonding.

This Monday I fly out to Las Vegas for a work summit with fellow HR directors and General Manager. Lots of activities and bonding time before I return home on Friday.

I've also been into Game of Thrones...started watching season one and that has morphed into just finishing up with season two. Addicting!