These are a few of my favorite things...

Because I am a bit brain challenged from last week's vacation, the loooong drive home (summer traffic on I-95 on a Sunday is totally not fun) and working for way too many hours this week processing orders, I have decided to have a blog update full of fluff. That fluff consisting of some of my favorite things that I have been enjoying over the last 2 weeks. In no particular order...

Aren't these the absolute cutest?
These are Japanese erasers that I found in New England.
The hamster is my favorite.

Steven turned me onto this. It's really yummy and mix in some granola and woo hoo, it's a party in your mouth! It has Bifidus Regularis so you know it is good.

My girlfriend MaryAnn showered me (no pun intended) with all sorts of lavender goodies for my birthday. The above shampoo is fabulous and if we had smello-net you could smell for yourself just how heavenly the lavender soap is. ahhh....

Any trip to the Cape is not complete unless a stop to the Christmas Tree Shops is planned. They have all sorts of cool stuff at great prices. Case in point, this plant stand (that I put together all by myself) was just $20.00. I haven't officially decided where I am going to put it but I really love it!

I bought this print in Chatham at a juried craft festival. It is of a photograph of a local house that has incredible gardens. The artist used a technique called glicee to make it look like it was painted. It will always remind me of our fabulous time in Chatham.

New bookmarks from Tickle Bellies!! I love them and I am adding new design choices this week.
They have been selling really well and I am very happy with them.

Another Birthday present, this one from my girlfriend Laurel. I collect Williraye folkart and this is a great new addition to my collection. I haven't seen my mom yet since my birthday and I know she has presents and I do believe more Williraye awaits me in the future. These chicks are hanging out in my kitchen now. Love them!

A CLEAN and GROOMED Tucker! He came back from the kennel all prettied up and smelling good. Not as good as my lavender soaps but better then when we left before vacation.

Lastly...one of my favorite shows returns. Project Runway airs tomorrow at 10pm on Lifetime! "Make it work people...."

True and Undeniable Love!

Our vacation is over, my birthday has passed and summer is coming to an end. It all went by too quickly but I enjoyed every minute of it. What a wonderful time we had in Cape Cod. It was really perfect. I am so much more aware now. Aware of life and living. To be able to look over and acknowledge my girls smiling, laughing, and enjoying the moment and to really fully understand in my soul how blessed we all are to be here...does it get any better than that? Thank you God for giving me these days and for giving us the gift that cancer has brought us. The gift of appreciation. This wonderful reward brings tears to my eyes when I see and feel all of the many blessings we have been granted and allowed to experience. Thank you Jesus.

Our trip to Cape Cod was fabulous and I am now head over heals in love with Chatham, Massachusetts. Since I was in my 20s I have always wanted to have a summer home in Madison, Connecticut. I grew up in a neighboring town and Madison is one of the prettiest towns in New England. There have been many happy memories for me in this town and I always find myself drawn back there in my mind. In fact to prove my love of this little town, Ellie's middle name is Madison, so there you go, I am like a town stalker or something. The shoreline there is beautiful and the downtown in quaint and inviting and you can leisurely stroll in and out of shops and stop for a coffee (or a diet coke) and pass by fellow Main Street shoppers and say hello and they say hello back... it's all so wonderful. There is old New England charm with a fast forward lifestyle. This was always the place I would daydream of summering at and possibly living year round should we ever make the move back north...that is until now. OMG (can I say that now that I am 40? Should any adult say that?) I am totally infatuated with Chatham, MA! It is so perfect. Really, really perfect. I know if I drove up there in January when it was snowy and cold, I would totally feel different and the romance may be over but from May to September I am in love. It was like Madison but multiplied by 100. The houses were all immaculate in their cottage ocean scene vibe and there were flowers...EVERYWHERE. Black eyed Susans, Impatiens, Hydrangea and so many roses tumbling over fences. There were glimpses of the ocean and boats from so many view points. Boats anchored by the shore just bobbing on the current waiting to be released and taken for a spin. The sky was crystal clear and so blue, the sand was warm and soft, the dunes were so Cape Cod perfect and the feel of being in one of God's favorite places was evident. I still love Madison but Chatham is my new muse and I will be dreaming about our time together for a long, long time.

Here are a few photos from our trip. There are more over on my flickr account to the right. I honestly didn't get to take as many photos as I would have liked. I am sure if you polled Steven or the girls they would totally disagree but this place is just so special and I came no where even close to capturing it but someday I will return with camera in hand to properly capture the essence that is Cape Cod.

Steve and I on the sand dunes.

View of the grasses facing Nantucket Sound in Chatham

Chatham house off of Main Street

We had a great time and cannot wait to return!

New England getaway

We are on day three of our vacation. We drove on Sunday and were in Connecticut on Monday and drove up to Yarmouth, MA on Cape Cod yesterday. The drive wasn't bad and so far the weather is OK. It was great Monday and Tuesday but today was a bit overcast and cloudy but no rain so I am not complaining. It was only about 70 degrees today and a welcome change from the 90 degree weather we were experiencing back home. Emma is the only one that complained she was cold and missed the warm weather.

On Monday we drove around to some favorite spots on the shoreline and that night my girlfriend Laurel had a little birthday party for me in anticipation of my big 4-0 birthday this Friday. It was wonderful and so sweet. Here are some photos.

the flowers are from my girlfriend MaryAnn's garden. So pretty.
The gifts are from Laurel and MaryAnn. There are streamers and balloons on the walls.

Opening gifts... boy do I love to do that!!!

Pretty presents
photo by Emma

Ellie helps me blow out the candles and make a wish!

The girls and I spent the day along Long Island Sound and the Connecticut River. It was a bit on the hot side but we still found lots of ways to have fun by shopping and hanging out. Here are the highlights.

Sailboats in Essex on the river

Hanging out on the dock by the river in Essex. It was a beautiful day.

Emma & Ellie get their groove on while rocking the dock.

We all sat on the dock and plopped our toes in the river. It was heavenly...until Ellie saw a fish.

Along the shoreline in my favorite town, Madison.

Me and Ellie in Chatfield Hollow park in Killingworth

The girls hang out at Chatfield Hollow.

Vacation Bound

I am working today to finish up orders and then tomorrow the girls and I head up to New England. Steve will join us on Thursday in Chatham, MA for the remainder of our trip. I haven't been to Cape Cod in about 17 years and I am so excited to go. I checked out the 10 day forecast and the temperatures will be in the mid to high 70s with partly to sunny skies. I will take it! It was a beautiful day here today but I believe a heat wave is on the horizon for us. It has been rather humid lately so 70 degree weather sounds fabulous! It'll be nice to put a sweatshirt on at night while we take our walks. Pretty soon these will be the sights before us! Woo Hoo!

Idol Madness

Last night I took the girls and Emma's friend Allie up to DC to see the American Idols concert. Emma and I have watched American Idol together for the last 3 years. It's one of our things we do together. Ellie watches on occasion but the show cuts into her bedtime so she watches on a limited basis. This year, Allie and Emma both have cell phones and would text each other a gazillion times during the show. Emma's top choice quickly became Adam Lambert and Allie liked Kris Allen. I preferred Danny Gokey... those glasses are just too cute and his raspy voice was awesome. We had pretty good seats at the concert and it was clear early on that even though Kris Allen was voted in as this year's winner, this crowd was here to see Adam. Every time his photo appeared on the jumbotron, the audience shrieked. Emma convinced her sister to join in with the yells of appreciation for Adam. Allie and I could only cover our ears in fear of rupturing an eardrum.

The concert was good. Lots of different styles of singing but thankfully there was just one or two group songs. I am not a fan of the theatrical style dancing and singing that American Idol is known for when it's group song time. I could handle one or two. After the concert we noticed that in the section next to us, people with backstage 'meet and greet' access were assembling. I thought hmmmm.... how can I get the girls passes. It really wasn't too hard. I saw an important looking gentleman with a kind face walk by and I positioned the girls and asked if there were any extra passes. He was so nice. He told me he had posters. He could get us posters and a key chain but he didn't have any passes. He worked for the Verizon Center and wasn't affiliated with the tour. I told him that was fine that I just had to ask. He came back with merchandise and then told us to wait right where we were, he had a plan. During our wait time, one of the Idols aunts came over to give us a pass. Anoop is a performer on the tour and his aunt had one pass and wanted us to have it. I was so thankful but it was all or nothing for our party of 4. In a few minutes, our night in shining armour returned with 4 backstage passes. The girls were beyond thrilled. That was quite easy. Ask and you shall receive. Thank you unknown, kind faced gentleman for the meet and greet hook-up. I will let the photos tell the story as they always are the best way to go.

The girls are ready to go. Emma wore blue in her hair in honor of Adam Lambert

Miss Ellie is ready to party wearing her AI t-shirt and rock attitude

Look at my cool Adam Lambert shirt!!!

Ellie gets her groove on.

Danny was fabulous. He is a genuienly nice guy too. He should have won.
I hope Emma doesn't read this.... hee

Kris Allen, the winner, was very good but not quite as good as....

Adam! The crowd was absolutely crazy for him. Emma said the college girls in front of us almost passed out. Really?

I love this shot. Ellie just makes me smile. She is headbanging or vibing or something rock-n-roll related.

I don't think Emma will ever be the same again. She kind of color coordinated with him.

Ellie and Danny - so cute together. :)
Even though in this photo, Danny reminds me of Jimmy Neutron from Nickelodeon.
sssh.... don't tell him I said that.

Allie shares the spotlight with her favorite, Kris.

There are more photos of the remaining Idols on my flickr account. We didn't get home until 2am but the girls, especially the older ones, had a night they soon won't forget.

I ♥ Faces - 'Summer Series'

I ♥ Faces has a new challenge this week. Normally, it's just one photo that they allow you to submit that sums up that weeks theme. This week however, they are looking for a series of photos that tally up your summertime experience. That's tough to do because so many themes are running wild this summer for us. I have to pick a direction to go in so I am portraying a slice of the nature that we have experienced over the last 2 months in our backyard. Enjoy!

Early summer and the Chickadees are singing loudly wooing their mates.

Technically, this is not in my backyard but it is down the road at the lake that our neighborhood borders. Close enough in my book.

This is our pet Crayfish. He lives in our garden and comes out at night looking for frogs and bugs.
He is nameless but if he did have a name it would be Clive or Otis or Manuel

Daddy Bluebird covered in spider webbing brings breakfast for his kids.

We don't just take photos of birds.

a beautiful butterfly came to visit one day.

Even though we have a love/hate relationship, I thought I would include Mr. Squirrel. His 85 other friends that like to visit too, well, I am drawing the line.

This is the wildest thing I have seen in my yard all summer.
Quick run and take cover! aaa....there's another one on the chair!

Bloods, Crypts and Walmart

We have been enjoying a pretty low key weekend. It's been a bit on the humid side and not really too sunny. Your typical August weather for central Virginia. It's better to stay in for us on these days then to venture out. We do have vacation coming up starting next Saturday and we will be heading to Cape Cod. Hopefully it won't be as hot and the sun will be a participant in the weeks fun. Another reason I have been staying in is a sinus infection. I normally can count on one good cold a year. This is it. I am such a baby when I don't feel well. I really cannot believe I have a 6 year old daughter who endured weeks of chemotherapy without one complaint and I cannot even stand a little sinus pressure in my head. Ellie still amazes me each day and she took good care of me while I didn't feel well. I think the worst of the sinus infection is over but now my nose and face hurt from all the nose blowing... see... I am still complaining.

Yesterday Steve took the girls to see G-Force. Ellie wanted to see the little hamsters. She cracks up at the commercial each time they say in unison 'poop in his hand, poop in his hand!'. 6 year olds. I am actually pretty sure, Steve found that funny as well. Unfortunately, I think the hamster scene was the highlight for them and the movie didn't receive rave reviews. They stopped at Target on the way home to buy Nerf bullets for their guns. Yes, the girls have nerf guns. I think we got them 2 years ago but they haven't surfaced until last week when they decided to hold Kanye for ransom and needed a weapon. So yesterday we got to play gangland war. They had to wear glasses and were not allowed to shoot at faces. They are nerf bullets after all and probably couldn't do any damage but it's better to be safe then sorry. They had such fun. Emma really loved the shoot-outs and said she had a dream of being in the Army. (OK...mental note to self, take the guns away before daughter enlists)








Ellie does take her warfare very seriously. I couldn't get her to smile while her finger was on the trigger. We also have learned that Kanye (the cat) loves to be shot. He also enjoys picking up the bullets in his mouth and running off. We have to find him a little pair of protective goggles.

Last night we ventured out to Walmart, and yes that is quite the adventure here. Not one of my favorite stores to patronize but they had some really good back to college type stuff and we are in the middle of redoing Emma's room. Last week while Ellie and I were in Memphis, Steve and Emma painted her room a slate blue color. It looks really great. We went last night to get some new accessories and actually found some bedding she liked. It was really affordable, so I was fine with that. She is not into the Pottery Barn Kids stuff anymore which is good I suppose since it is pricey so I was thrilled when she found a comforter and pillow shams for $38.00. We stopped at Friendlys for butter crunch ice cream cones on the drive home and as the new comforter washed, we watched the X-Files movie. Can't complain about that. I certainly love my Mulder.