Category: Random Thoughts

Christmas Ornaments – a little bit of history on a tree

I love decorating my Christmas tree each year.  We have ornaments that date back to when I was a little girl and I love pulling the ornaments one by one out of the box.  As I pull each one out, I remember a little piece of my history.  Ornaments I used to put on our family tree as a girl, ornaments I made myself when SuperMan and I were first married (and I had time to hand-craft things like that!), ornaments I've received as gifts from family and friends…

But some of my most favorite ornaments are the ones that my girls have made for us – and the ones that I have picked up through the years on our travels.  Instead of other souvenirs, I always try to pick up a Christmas ornament when we make a journey somewhere.

There's the one I got at the Tower of London:

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I went to London for business and my mom tagged along that year. We had so much fun picking out ornaments to decorate our trees. Now, I see those ornaments each Christmas and remember that trip – and all the fun times we had together. (like trying to drive a stick shift sitting on the "wrong" side of the car and driving on the "wrong" side of the road)

 And this ornament that SuperMan and I got when we went to Hawaii one year (another business trip – that was a good company to work for!)

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The one in the background is an ornament I had engraved for my labrador's first Christmas (he was my 18th birthday present to myself)  He is gone to puppy heaven now, but I remember him every year when I put this ornament on the tree – I remember when he was my only baby – and these babies I have now were not even glimmers in my eye.

Christmas, for me, is a time of remembering, celebrating, and hoping.  Remembering things past, celebrating and being thankful for the bounty of the present, and hoping for the future.

MckLinky Blog Hop

I’m back! (did you miss me?)

Hi, everyone!

I'm back!  I hope you didn't miss me too much while I was gone. I decided to take the week of Thanksgiving as a personal holiday from my computer.  Other than to check email occasionally, I did not log in to anything for one solid week.  I thought it would be hard to do, but with the kids home for the holiday and travel to see family, it was pretty easy to accomplish. 

I was pretty proud of myself because normally I'm sneaking off to check email, blogs, scrapbook, etc.    This year, I decided to focus on my family and enjoying the moments we had together. I wasn't idle, however, and you will see soon.

I have some really neat things to share with you this week, so I hope you will come back and visit me tomorrow… Here's a sneak peek:

Blogpost

Also, I will be part of a Cookie Swap Blog Hop this week! Join me on December 1st and you can hop from blog to blog to get some new recipe ideas for your holiday baking.

Until tomorrow, my friends!

RSS Feeds to your Inbox. Cool.

I love reading my list of blogs I've subscribed to. They are how I start my day – slowly kick-starting my brain with all the interesting tidbits from the writers.  Some are crafty. Some are political. Some are about faith. Some are just plain silly.  But all of them are cherished by me.

And now I'm really happy.

I have found this: Feed my Inbox.  It's a service that automatically sends your RSS feeds directly to your email. I don't have to hop from blog to blog, or use a reader service like Google (which I'm not too fond of). I can be lazy and just check my email each morning.

Feed my inbox

How cool is that?

Give it a try… let me know what you think.  All you have to do is add the link to the blog you read and your email address. It's easy peasy, as my girls would say.

Blog is moving

Hi, everyone – my blog is moving….

Come and visit me here: http://loishouston.typepad.com/thoughts-along-lifes-highway/

I’m looking forward to your visit!

These are a few of my favorite things…

Remember the song from The Sound of Music?

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens;

Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens;

Brown paper packages tied up with strings;

These are a few of my favorite things.

Well, here are a few of my favorite things (this week)

  1. See's Candies
    Have you tried their chocolate?  It's a west-coast thing and I would've never known about it except that my mom introduced me to them last winter. (which is weird because she is as far east as you can get, but that's another story)  ANYWAY,  they are good. I mean, REALLY good.  I am a chocolate snob.  I don't eat "regular" chocolates, unless there is a chocolate emergency, of course.  But the chocolates at See's are to-die-for. 

    I actually ordered myself a box a couple of months ago. I have it stashed on a shelf in my office and when I am having a bad day, I enjoy a piece (no one knows the box is there- it's my secret treasure – and that is why it has lasted so long. If the kids or the hubby knew it was there they would've gobbled it up already)

    They have this thing called a Scotchmallow. 
    Scotchmallow

    YUM.  It's got a base layer of caramel, homemade honey marshmallow on top of that and then it is enrobed in dark chocolate.  All I can say is when I die, I hope there are unlimited scotchmallows in heaven.  Because there should be.

  2. the MyBook Adaptable Planner
    This is the coolest idea. I saw one that a friend had a couple years ago and I have been wanting one ever since. I finally found out where the planner came from in September (I'm lame, I know) and ordered one. Actually, I ordered four. 
    MyBook

    They have a small size (4×6) that is perfect for slipping into your purse or tote and you can put all sorts of decorations in the photo sleeves. I got one of these for my mom and I'm going to decorate it with pictures of the grandkids for her. 

    The larger size (6×8) is good if you need more space to write.  I am going to use one of those as a journal next year. I've already started decorating it.  Once I get it finished, I'll post some pictures so you can see what it looks like.

  3. The Couch to 5k Running Plan
    Well, I don't actually love this yet. I love the idea of it, though.  And, I'm seriously thinking I'm going to give it a whirl.  What do I have to lose?  I have always wanted to be a runner (something about the sweating part always got in the way, though) and maybe this will help me achieve my goals.  I'll have to keep you posted on this one. 

  4. My digital camera 
    We treated ourselves to a new camera last year as our Christmas gift (there wasn't really anything my husband I wanted or needed so we got that instead of a bunch of other stuff)  I LOVE IT.  It's a Pentax DSLR and I just love the crispness of the pictures and the vibrancy of the colors.  I carry it everywhere and I'm always snapping pictures (like this one)  of the family and day-to-day happenings. 
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    My camera makes me happy.

  5. Friday Night Mexican
    This has become a standard tradition in our house.  Mom's too tired to cook, everyone is fried, so off we go to the local Mexican joint (we frequent several around here) and indulge in copious amounts of queso dip, fajitas, tacos, quesadillas and margaritas (for Mom & Dad, of course) 
    It's a great wind-down to the week and it's so nice to not have a messy kitchen to clean up afterward.

What are your favorites this week?  Any favorite traditions your family has?  Leave me a comment and let me know…

Oh, and have a great weekend.  I'll see you Sunday over on The Lady's page with my weekly scrapbooking post.


William Tell Momisms

I just watched this video and I have to say I wonder if this woman was watching my house when she got the idea to write this!?!  This is motherhood in 3 minutes and 25 seconds.  Take a few to watch this… too funny.

And thanks to BJ's Scraps, where I found the video in the first place.

Today…

Monday, 9 Nov 2009

Outside my window… my yard is covered in a blanket of leaves… that seems to have no end.

I am thinking…about what I’d rather be doing instead of what I should be doing (work).

I am thankful for…my friends’ love, support and encouragement.

From the kitchen…Salisbury steak & mashed potatoes, homemade apple cake.

I am wearing…jeans, slippers, blouse.

I am creating…2010 calendars.

I am going…to try to stay focused today.

I am reading…The White Queen (Phillipa Gregory)

I am hoping…work comes quickly for my husband. Layoffs are no fun.

On my mind…my friends- each of them going through different trials right now and yet so willing to be there for others.

Around the house…sleeping kitties.

One of my favorite things…warm slippers and a hot fire.

A few plans for the rest of the week…organizing, planning and cleaning.

Thanks to The Simple Woman’s Daybook for the inspiration.

Today: 09 NOV 09

Outside my window… my yard is covered in a blanket of leaves… that seems to have no end.

I am thinking…about what I'd rather be doing instead of what I should be doing (work).

I am thankful for…my friends' love, support and encouragement.

From the kitchen…Salisbury steak & mashed potatoes, homemade apple cake.

I am wearing…jeans, slippers, blouse.

I am creating…2010 calendars.

I am going…to try to stay focused today.

I am reading…The White Queen (Phillipa Gregory)

I am hoping…work comes quickly for my husband. Layoffs are no fun.

On my mind…my friends- each of them going through different trials right now and yet so willing to be there for others.

Around the house…sleeping kitties.

One of my favorite things…warm slippers and a hot fire.

A few plans for the rest of the week…organizing, planning and cleaning.

Thanks to The Simple Woman’s Daybook for the inspiration.

I have a new addiction

I have never been a coffee drinker.  Never.  Not even in college. Didn’t like the bitterness it had.  I’ve always loved the way it smelled, though.  I often wished coffee tasted as good as it smelled, but for me it didn’t.

So, I was quite happy with my tea each morning, and being the outcast whenever we’d meet people at a coffee shop for a chat.IMGP1468_0001

“Nope, nothing for me, thank you.” I’d always say.

And then it happened.

It began all so innocently… a trip to Oregon (coffee drinking capital of the world, I think) with my mom.  My sister-in-law introduces Mom to a Starbucks Hazelnut Latte.  No, thank you, I said. I don’t drink coffee.

Mom insisted I take a sip. I said no. She offered again.  Finally, I succumbed.  And it was ok.  Not bitter, not scalding hot, but not something I really cared to taste again.

But something must’ve happened on that trip.  Maybe it was the passive exposure to all the coffee everyone else consumed.  Maybe that one little sip awakened tastebuds in my mouth that I never used before.  I don’t know.

What I do know is this.  I have become a coffee addict.  Slowly, surely, and in a good part thanks to Starbucks.

First it was the Hazelnut Lattes.  Now, I’ve branched out – Mocha something-or-others… and some awesome concoction the barista at the Macon Starbucks made for me.  It’s got toffee nut syrup, mocha syrup, espresso, and I don’t know what else. It’s probably eight million calories, so I only indulge in one occasionally, but it is good.  Kind of like drinking a turtle candy in your coffee. Yummy.

I have been rationing myself, due to the exhorbitant prices for my favorite Starbucks drinks.  Hard to justify $4 for a coffee drink when I supposedly don’t like coffee.sinfuldelight

And then I found Joffrey’s Coffee.  Oh. My. Goodness.

They have a flavor called “Sinful Delight.”  It’s description on the bag reads thusly: “Chocolate Butterscotch with Nut Overtones.”  I saw that in the Publix and thought, “Ok, that sounds really good.”  I bought it, thinking if I didn’t like it I would give it my mom.

Sorry, Mom, you’re not going to get this bag.  It is soooo good!

Now, I’m dreaming about coffee.  Sitting at my desk thinking about coffee. When the cravings come I can taste it before I even have a sip.  Mind you, I’m not into all that plain coffee junk.  Give me the good stuff.  The sweet, flavored coffees that I can doctor up with some half and half and pretend like I’ve got a high-dollar latte from ‘bucks.

And I have invested in a coffee press.  I was told I’d get better flavor from the beans that way. (Am I becoming a coffee snob?) I don’t know if that is true (the flavor part, and the snob part) but I do know I like the fact that I can brew only one or two cups in my cute little press.  And, no hulking coffee maker taking up space on my counter.IMGP1469_0001

I never, ever, in a million years thought I would like coffee.  Who knew? I guess I like coffee after all!