Friday's Feast #1

This is my first Friday's Feast. I've wanted to try this meme for a while, so here I go!

Appetizer
What is your favorite carnival/amusement park ride?

It used to be one called the Zipper, but as I have gotten older, it tends to make me sick. I like some roller coasters, if they're smooth, and I like loops in them, but I don't like the ones like the new one built at Kemah. It's a wooden one set in a very compact location with lots of steep drops.

Soup
How do you react in uncomfortable social situations?

I usually ending up saying something really stupid or talking too much from nervousness.

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy discussing deep, philosophical topics?

I enjoy it quite a bit, so I'd give myself an 8 or 9. It's hard to disagree with people sometimes, so if the discussion gets too heated, it becomes a bit like beating my head on a brick wall. But I enjoy discussions such as this with thoughtful, open-minded people who will listen as well as talk.

Main Course
Did you get a flu shot this year? If not, do you plan to?

Absolutely! I work around children, so it was a must.

Dessert
Approximately how many hours per week do you spend watching television?

Hmmmm. 10-20 a week. I am so busy helping kids with homework and taking them to their activities, that the only TV I watch is either late at night when I should be in bed (like now) or on the weekend using the DVD or the DVR.

Organization Challenge Completion Whole Room

I have completed the whole room phase of the competition sponsored by Organizing Junkie. Now... on to the big space category... my dining room.




Before..................................... and........................ After
My filing cabinet that sits in a corner of the dining room. No more stacks of papers and files on top. Everything is filed in its place.

The corner of my dining room:

Before .............................. and.................... After
All the junk in the basket has been put away (actaully, both baskets, the small one on the table and the large one of the floor) and the tote on the floor as well. The table and plant have been dusted, and it now looks clean and tidy.



My curio cabinet:
Before ............................ and............ After............... and ................ After

The CD player went to my son's room where it belongs. The curio cabinet was completely cleaned, dusted, windexed, including each piece in it. Then, I did some rearranging. It was over-crowded. Some items came out completely. For the rest, I have the china on the bottom, my pretty bowls and snowglobe on the next shelf, my Christmas pretties above that. The top two shelves are designated for my Dreamsicles and other keepsakes such as crystal candlesticks, a crystal vase, and porcelain booties with my twins' names on them.



The bookcase:


Before.................. and......................... After
Lots of extra junk here! The poster behind the bookcase was put up, the camcorder box was stored, the wrapping paper thrown away, and the plastic rolling cart was relocated to a niche in the corner of my kitchen (after I cleaned it out). I removed all the items from the bookcase, dusted, and replaced them in a manner that I think is more pleasing to the eye. I took the pictures from the top and hung them in the staircase hall. I dusted the chess set, my dad's old pipe holder, and replaced the battery in the clock so that it works now.
My dining room looks better now!



Before.............................................................................. and......................... After


The finishing touch was a pretty tablecloth and centerpiece for the table. It came together nicely, and I am proud of the way it looks.

1. What was the hardest part of the challenge for you and were you able to overcome it?

The hardest part – no - make that the harest parts – were the bookshelf and the baskets that had been on the floor. Most of the things in the baskets went to my scrapbooking containers, which I also managed to organize. I gave a few of those things to my daughter. Finding a place and a use for the large basket was difficult, but I did it. It is in the downstairs closet holding blankets we use when we are cold. The bookcase – well, hanging the pictures on the staircase wall took some time, as did dusting each piece. But I also had to purge a great deal of books which have already been taken to half price books to sell. Then, straightening them and ordering them by size was time-consuming. Come to think of it, maybe cleaing out the file cabinet was the hardest.

2. Tell us what kind of changes/habits you have put into place in order for your area/room to maintain its new order?

No scrapbooking supplies in the dining room unless they are in my containers and are being used at that moment. Also, simply finding homes for the things I needed to remove will help maintain order.

3. What did you do with the “stuff” you were able to purge out of your newly organized space?

As I mentioned, some went to my daughter, some went to half price books, homes were found for the rolling cart, DV camcorder, and CD player. Most of it went in the trash. Papers that were purged from the file cabinet were recycled.

4. Now that you have completed the challenge, do you think having and keeping your space organized will make a difference in your life?

Without a doubt. I just have to make sure that it never gets that unorganized again. It is so much prettier to look at now, and it’s simple and clean looking.

6. Why do you think you should win the challenge?

Because I worked so hard! And organizing the dining room also led to organizing the kitchen, the downstairs closet, my scrapbooking supplies, and my photos, so other rooms in the house benefited as well.

Organizational Challenge Small Space Completion

I have completed the Organizational Challenge sponsored by Organizing Junkie!
My "small space" category is a "junk" drawer in our kitchen.

Before................................ and.......................After
1. What was the hardest part of the challenge for you and were you able to overcome it?

The hardest part was sorting the items and untangling all the wires. I was able to do it, though.

2. Tell us what kind of changes/habits you have put into place in order for your area/room to maintain its new order?

I have three baskets in the front of the drawer. One is for office supplies. One is for chargers and electronic pieces. The third basket is for the mp3 players and arm bands my husband and daughter use frequently when they run along with the pedometer. The decks of cards are in baggies to keep them together.

3. What did you do with the “stuff” you were able to purge out of your newly organized space?

Most of it went in the trash. There is a drawer by the computer for all of the user manuals for various electronic pieces that were in there. Some of it went up to my children’s rooms where it belonged in the first place.

4. Now that you have completed the challenge, do you think having and keeping your space organized will make a difference in your life?

Absolutely! I like to be able to find things, and I think each item should have a designated place. And if you take something out, put it back where it belongs when you’re finished using it.

6. Why do you think you should win the challenge?

I worked hard, and I am pleased with the new appearance of my “junk” drawer. I can actually see the bottom of it!

Getting in the Spirit

I am so ready to start decorating for Christmas, like Snoopy in the picture! My step-daughter's birthday is December 8th, and my husband insists that we not decorate until AFTER her birthday. I just don't understand! She's not a kid anymore, so I can't fathom why it would bother her. If Christmas were near my birthday, I think the decor would make things more festive. But how do I know since my birthday will never be near Christmas? Actually, I think it's more his idea than hers to wait to decorate. She's been taught to want it that way. I can't really blame her.

To make matters worse, out of the five houses at the end of our street, ours is the only one with no sign of the holidays yet. And if I know my husband, and I do, we probably won't have much in the way of lights or lawn ornaments this year, while the other homes have those huge outdoor snowglobes, carousels, and Santas, not to mention lights, candy canes, and wreaths.

I have spent the last couple of hours looking for free clip art for my blog and getting some ideas to brighten up the house, just to satisfy my need to play Marth Stewart. It's so much fun, I can't contain myself! I really should be working right now, after having to stay home with a sick child two days this week (and I think he gave me strep, but that's another post for later), but I am ready for some holiday spirit!

Thursday Thirteen #8

Pet Peeves Around the House

(The last three are the worst!)
1. Not flushing the toilet. Nuff said!
2. Leaving cans, uneaten food, beverages, cups, bowls, and utensils in the bedrooms.
3. Taking said cans, food, beverages, cups, bowls, and utensils to the bedroom in the first place.
4. Leaving just-used bath towels on a filthy bedroom floor.
5. Toilet seats left up.
6. Not replacing the bread tie on the bread.
7. Dripping fried egg (or any gooey food) on the counter and leaving it for someone else to scrape up when it dries.
8. Walking on the clean floors while they are still damp.
9. Throwing clean clothes on a dirty floor.
10. Leaving shoes and dirty socks by the couch downstairs.
11. When a female takes a bath, shaves her legs, and doesn’t wash out the tub for the next person leaving dirt and hair for someone else to clean. Yuk!
12. When someone takes off their underwear and jeans in one motion leaving the items stuck together inside out!!!!!!!!!!!!! It grosses me out.
13. Text messaging at the dinner table!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wordless Wednesday

This is my 9th WW!
Our dog Rocky, all wrapped up. Brrrr! It's cold in here!

The Breakfast Area - Finished Now!

I am going to tackle my breakfast area! I just finished my junk drawer and my dining room for the organization challenge sponsored by Organizing Junkie, and now I have also cleaned out cabinets and closets, and it all ended up in the breakfast room.

Here's the before photo AND AFTER

Working left to right... we have a 3M box with my sons ingredients for his science project. We also have a host of electronic pieces and remotes and batteries to items I'm not even sure we have. The chair facing out has all of the records I kept as treasurer for the football league. There is a big toy box full of items from upstairs that we no longer need. Why was the box left in the breakfast room. On top is a smaller box for the remotes and wires we do need, and that box already has a home when I figure out what can be thrown away. On the far side of the computer, we have some ebay items that either need to be mailed or are for sale at this time. The computer area seems a bit cluttered as well. So, this is my project for Tuesday. I will come back and post an after picture later. Much later.



I'm finished! It's a little after 1PM. It's not exactly the way I want it, but it is so much better. I tackled it!



Have you checked out Tackle it Tuesday at 5 Minutes for Mom?
Organizing Junkie and 5 Minutes for Mom are motivating me big time!

This week's dinner plans

For the week of November 26th:

Monday – Soft tacos – flour tortillas, beef, onion, bell pepper, cheese, picante sauce, and sour cream
Tuesday – Rosemary Pasta in Roasted Garlic Sauce, salad, bread
Wednesday – Whatever is served at church this week
Thursday – Guys Night Out – Girls fend for themselves. Probably Jason’s Deli.
Friday – Chicken, rice, and green beans

Here is a cookie recipe I am going to try for our annual cookie exchange this Sunday. Caramel-filled chocolate cookies.

Organizing Challenge Update #2

I have done a lot of work on the right side of my dining room now. I focused on the left side first. Below is a picture of how the right side looks.



There was a lot of dusting and glass cleaning involved. Getting rid of junk on the floor, which is also organized in its proper place now.



I rearranged my cabinet above. I dusted the plant and table below and got rid of the catch-all baskets on the floor. Cleaned them out and organized them into their new, more appropriate home.





All I have left is to organize the book case a little better and focus on the middle of the dining room, which is the table. Hopefully, in a couple of days, I will be finished and be able to post side-by-side before and after pictures.

And... They're Off! (The Shoppers, That Is)

Time to throw away the thick stack of advertisements. Black Friday is coming to a close, the day after Thanksgiving, the traditional kick-off of the Christmas season, the busiest shopping day of the year, at least in 2003 and 2005. In 1993 and 2001, Black Friday ranked as the second busiest shopping day of the year, but it usually ranks between fifth and tenth. It may be the busiest in terms of crowds, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into the greatest amount of dollars spent on one day.

Accountants supposedly coined the day after Thanksgiving Black Friday because it is the day when retailers are once again “in the black.” (In less modern times, red was used to denote negative amounts, black to denote positive amounts.) This theory would assume that most stores take a loss for 11 months of the year, but in reality, most stores are already in the black by the end of the first quarter each year.

Perhaps it is known as Black Friday due to the sheer chaos that sometimes erupts when shoppers push, shove, or argue over who was there first, and perhaps because some people actually camp out all night waiting for the doorbuster sales.

The use of the term Black Friday alludes to the famous stock market crash of 1929. The day the market crashed was termed Black Tuesday. However, rather than sending the entire country into a depression, Black Friday actually boosts the US economy.

The first use of the term Black Friday was in an article entitled "Army vs. Navy: A Dimming Splendor," in The New York Times on November 29, 1975. The article has a Philadelphia dateline which implies that the term originated in that vicinity.

My mother, sister, and I used to go shopping every Friday after Thanksgiving. In recent years, we haven’t done so, until today. My mom and I went to Kohl’s, Target, Michael’s, and Bed Bath and Beyond. Kohl’s was a complete and total mess. There were too many people in the store (they were probably in violation of the fire code) so that the aisles were jammed rendering it virtually impossible to get anywhere in the store. The lines to check out wrapped completely around the store twice. Luckily, I didn’t really need anything from Kohl’s, although they had good sales. Target, while being crowded, was not nearly so hectic. Electronics and Toys, obviously, were the most crowded areas of the store, but shoppers were friendly and polite. I didn’t camp out, so I wasn’t able to get one of the items I was looking for, but I have plenty of time to get it, and I was able to buy everything else. Target had security staff in place, though there were no incidents, and they had associates available throughout the store to help customers find products. I didn’t have to wait very long to check out, so the biggest bother was the volume of people. Michael’s and Bed Bath and Beyond were both accommodating to shoppers. Advertised items were readily available, and check out lines were reasonable.

All in all, it was not a bad experience, and I do feel like I saved money on the items I purchased. BUT… I doubt I will venture out on Black Friday again next year.


For more on Black Friday, check out Wikipedia and Snopes.

Image courtesy of www.gadgetell.com/.../11/blackfriday2006.jpg

Thanksgiving Thankful Thursday

But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.
Nehemiah 9:31

On this Thanksgiving day, I am grateful for so much. (in no particular order)
1. God’s graciousness
2. Family – kids, husband, step-kids, step-grandkids, my mom, sister, nephew and in-laws
3. Friends – both online and in reality
4. Freedom
5. My job, home, car
6. The gifts and talents that God has seen fit to bestow on me
7. My church
8. My life.
9. Forgiveness

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

Thirteen Things I Want to Do

This is my 7th edition of Thursday Thirteen!

1. Catch up on my scrapbooking. (yeah, that’ll happen. I’m several YEARS behind!) I would settle for simply having a whole day uninterrupted to work on it.

2. Finish the 30 day organizational challenge sponsored by Organizing Junkie.

3. Connect my video camera to the computer. Since we got Vista, I have to use a different type of connection, which I had to order and finally received, and I had to buy a new version of my favorite video software Studio, by Pinnacle Systems, which is finally installed. Now, to actually get it working…

4. Read! I am loving Stephen White, Robert Crais, and as always, James Patterson, my favorite. I’ve got several books on my list.

5. Make a new picture slideshow – doesn’t matter what subject – I just enjoy doing that.

6. Brush up on my photography skills. Kodak has good tips and tricks. I want to find another site to learn from, too.

7. Learn to play the piano. Ok – I know it’s not going to happen overnight, but two of my daughter’s play, I can read treble clef music, and I used to be able to play an organ and a trumpet when I was little, so I figure there’s a chance that I could actually learn to play something recognizable.

8. Make a new CD of my favorite Christmas songs.

9. Continue my Online Expert classes for work. May seem strange, but I actually would rather do my training from the computer at home, particularly since it is optional training (I get credit for it) that I can use not only for work but also for home applications, so I also enjoy it.

10. Go to the YMCA to use the weight machines, ride the stationery bike, and walk on the treadmill. I can’t stand to exercise outside, and I am really looking forward to having a membership at the Y again. I bought it today. There is a brand-new facility near my house, but being a holiday, I will not be able to go until Friday or Saturday.

11. Clean out my bedroom closet. How do all the Christmas gifts, extra pillows and blankets, outgrown clothes, and miscellaneous items get stuck in my closet? Maybe I should have used that closet for the small space category for the organizational challenge. Nah, my junk drawer is almost cleaned out already.

12. Hang some photographs on the stairwell wall. I hung two yesterday, but I have a couple more.

13. Decorate for Christmas, which I can’t do until after my step-daughter’s birthday on December 8th. My husband won’t let me do it any earlier.

Wordless Wednesday- My 100th Post!!!!!!!

Yep! An actual photo. My great grandpa who I'm sorry I never got to meet. I bet he was a hoot!

This is my 100th post since joining blogger in late 2005. It took me a while to get in the groove, but I finally made it to 100! Where's my party?

Tackle it Tuesday!

This Tuesday, I am tackling another project as part of my 30 Day Organizational Challenge at orgjunkie.com. I plan to tackle the big basket of items in my dining room (that don't belong there), dust the fake plant, and give a good dust/rubbing to the corner table. I also intend to tackle the glass shelves of my curio cabinet and do some reorganizing.

Today I tackled the file cabinet and the book case, also in the dining room, and also part of the "Challenge."

Retro Gift Christmas Giveaway Event

Want to win some great prizes this season? Click here for a retro gift giveaway found on the 5 Minutes for Mom blog. Also, please visit the store that is sponsoring the contest.

Click the button in the sidebar to see some of the other Christmas Giveaway Events sponsored by 5 Minutes for Mom.

Menu Plan Monday

Week of November 19, 2007


Monday
Lunch – ham and provolone sandwiches with my own homemade potato salad
Dinner - out at Texas Roadhouse restaurant

Tuesday
Lunch – ham and American cheese sandwiches, Sun Chips
Dinner - Monte Cristo chicken, green beans, long grain and wild rice

Wednesday
Lunch – LaMadeliene’s tomato basil soup and chicken salad croissants
Dinner - turkey with gravy from Schwan’s, buttered white rice

Thursday
Lunch – Thanksgiving meal at civic center with my mom. It will consist of Turkey, cornbread dressing, green beans, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, rolls, gravy, and dessert. We always help serve before we eat.
Dinner – Whatever my sister-in-law is serving

Friday
Lunch – fast food while we’re out shopping
Dinner – pepperoni and black olive pizza and salad

Saturday
Breakfast – my husband’s famous breakfast sandwiches (ham, American cheese, tomato, and a fried egg on buttered toast)
Lunch – everyone is on their own
Dinner – a nice meal at a restaurant

Menu Plan Monday is brought to you by Organizing Junkie.

Organizational Challenge Update

I realize I just joined, but I have been working hard! I tackled one side of my dining room. You can see all of my before photos by clicking here.




This is the "after" picture of the file cabinet that sits in a nook in the dining room. It had piles of filing to do (going back almost a year) and other unnecessary papers, folders, and envelopes sitting on top.

1. I took everything off and laid it on my coffee table.
2. I went through every piece of paper, every folder, and tossed what we didn't need.
3. I alphabetized what was left.
4. I put everything in its proper file and cleaned out the files inside as well. I ended up filling a garbage bag full of unneeded paperwork.
5. I dusted the top of the file cabinet, removed the posters that were stuck between the cabinet and the wall, and placed a candle warmer on top.




This is the "after" picture of the bookcase area.
1. I organized the plastic rolling cart that was on the right side of the bookcase and I relocated it to a less visible location in another room. It had boxes and other materials on top of it. Very messy!
2. I took almost everything off the bookcase shelves and gave it a good dusting.
3. I took the pictures that were on top and hung them on the staircase wall. I also removed the markers and trash that had been thrown on the top of the bookcase and forgotten.
4. I cleaned the glass chess set on top as well as my dad's old pipe holder and the picture clock. I also replaced the battery in the picture clock so that it works now.
5. I went through each and every book and made a stack of books to take to Half-Price Books. I lined the rest of the books up on the shelves vertically. Some of them had just been stuck in there. There were also pictures, old Christmas tags, old cards, a metronome, and other things that simply didn't belong on the bookcase.
6. I removed the video camera box and flute from the floor on the left side of the bookcase and gave them more appropriate homes. I removed the posters from behind the bookcase and threw them away.

I feel like I have made major progress! I'm ready to tackle more tomorrow! This works out perfectly for me since I am off work all week.

I'm considering going back to the bookshelf to make sure that the books are lined up logically by size or subject, maybe even alphabetically, so you may see a different "after" picture before this is over. I'm also going to look for a doily or something appropriate to place under the candle warmer on the file cabinet. Now, I will tackle the other side of the room. When I am completely finished, I will re-post the before and after pictures side by side.

Last, but not least, I am going to post a picture of my "small space" to organize. It's a junk drawer, and it's really junky!

I Carry...

My dad always said, “Carry a dime with you in case you need to make a phone call.” That dad! He’s such a card! He knows pay phones went up to a quarter, then thirty-five cents, long ago. And he knows how rare pay phones are. And he knows I carry my cell phone with me everywhere I go. But I’m glad I listened to my dad. He gives good advice.


There was a time I needed that “dime” for a phone call, if only there had been a phone to use. This was before the time that cell phones were common, and I had forgotten to call anyone before I left to make the trip alone. (Notice I am the forgetfulone.) I was traveling home to Houston from Mexia, Texas. You’ve heard of Mexia whether you realize it or not. It was once home to a girl (Vickie Lynn Marshall) who changed her name to Anna Nicole Smith. Really. I’m not making that up! Mexia is near Waco, Texas. You’ve heard of that, too. Remember David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and the famous fire that killed 53 adults and 21 children in 1993?


Anyway… I was traveling down a two lane stretch of road in my 1983 silvery blue Chevy Monza. Billy Ocean was belting out, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Being dusk, the gray seemed to descend from the sky to meet the road. I passed a few farm houses as I drove, but they were few and far between. Most were nondescript, circa 1950, white clapboard, two-story structures with great oak trees towering over them giving them a surreal quality.


Without warning, I heard a thundering sound like a gunshot followed by a hissing noise. I very nearly lost control of the car, but I recovered from my momentary fear in time to realize I’d had my first blowout, and I was able to pull onto the gravel at the side of the road. “Crap! What am I going to do now?” I wondered, more angry than afraid.


I sat in the car for what seemed like hours, but was probably only ten or fifteen minutes. During that time, not one, single, solitary car went by. My impatience was already eating away at me. So, I got out and began walking.


Not far from where I had pulled over, there sat one of the farmhouses I mentioned, lonely, isolated, and creepy! There was no sign of life whatsoever. A flatbed truck was parked in the middle of a long, dirt driveway that led to a dilapidated garage-of-sorts. To the left, there was a pen surrounded by a chain link fence. I wondered what kind of creature they kept in there. I trudged through the sparse grass and made my way toward the front door. I kept wondering if the Texas Chainsaw Massacre killer was waiting just inside the door, gas-powered chainsaw poised for the next victim. I stepped on the creaking porch and tentatively knocked on the heavy, oak door.


Well… this story is getting a little too long. Suffice it to say, everything turned out fine. Here I am writing this today! A young sandy-haired freckle-faced teenager reluctantly changed my tire. He put the donut on, and I drove away, thankful to have avoided any other sort of calamity. The point is that I always carry my cell phone and a “dime” ---- except when I forget!

For more Sunday Scribblings, click here!

30 Day Organizational Challenge

I'm joining the challenge a bit late, but thankfully, I am ready! Head over to Organizing Junkie for the details! Basically, the challenge is to organize an entire room of your home. I chose my dining room because it's also a catch-all for books, files, and knick-knacks, and it gets pretty junky at times. I will be posting "before" pictures here.

My strategy it to take one area of the room at a time and totally de-clutter it. I will get rid of what really isn't necessary in that area, and clean and straighten out what we feel is necessary to keep there. I'm really looking forward to it! Here we go!

This is the right side of my dining room. You can see the table, the windows, the candle holder and CD player on the floor, and my huge curio cabinet.

Here is the left side of the dining room. Again, you see the table. You can also see the file cabinet and the bookcase and a box on the floor.

Here is a close-up of the bookcase. See the little plastic bins to the right and the posters sticking out from behind it? Ugh!

Here is a close-up of the file cabinet with at least two month's worth of filing sitting on top.










This is a close-up of the right side corner between the windows and the curio cabinet. It's a catch all for junk and scrapbooking supplies, which obviously don't belong in the dining room! I have a feeling that, in order to organize this room, I will end up organizing a few other places in my home.

There you go! I'm all set.

My Saturday

Today has been a busy day. I started by taking some time for myself. I got my hair highlighted, and I haven't done that in a while. I like the way my hair looks with some blonde highlights, and I'm pleased.

Next, we visited my husband's uncle at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He has had cancer for two years, and none of the chemotherapy or other treatments have worked... until now. It's nothing short of miraculous! He had a very unique surgery, the first of its kind here in the US, although they have done it in Europe. I won't go into details because it would be more graphic than I care to share. Basically, they took all of his organs out and inspected each one, piece by piece, cutting off anything suspicious, no matter how small. After everything was back in place, they lowered his body temperature to 46 degrees and used a 110 degree chemo solution to wash him internally for almost two hours. He was in the OR for 10 hours total. Needless to say, the first week after the procedure was harsh, but he is now cancer free! And he was so lively and talkative today. He looks like the picture of health. We are grateful.

Hubby and I also went to Bayou Place and had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe and took in a movie at the Angelica Theater. We saw the movie No Country for Old People. It was quite interesting. Check it out!

Before we came home, we stopped to see the grand-twins. They are about 7 weeks old now and still at the Woman's Hospital of Texas. They were born at 25 weeks' gestation weighing only 1 lb. and 1 lb. 5 oz. They are both over two pounds now, and improving each day! We're so thankful for that.

Now we're home, and I feel pretty good. I feel like I did something productive as well as something enjoyable. How often do we get to say that? God, thank you for such a great day!

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen things (read - excuses) that have kept me from doing my Thursday Thirteen till now:

1. A full day of work.

2. My daughter's piano lessons.

3. My son's language arts project that is due tomorrow.

4. Making cakes for the luncheon at work tomorrow.

5. Reading the book The Monkey's Raincoat.

6. Updating my benefits plan before the deadline tomorrow.

7. Helping my daughter with homework in math, social studies, and language arts.

8. My husband not being home because he's at his weekly night out with his brothers.

9. Going through the myriad emails I have.

10. Having to fill the tank up with gas.

11. Not having access to the computer because someone else is using it, and I'm too lazy to go upstairs to use the other one.

12. Making copies of my daughter's music to take to her dad's tomorrow.

13. There is no excuse! Thursday Thirteen should come first! Right?