A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS . . .

Remember that wonderful song from The Sound of Music - "These Are a Few of My Favorite Things" - made popular by the wonderful Julie Andrews? I found myself humming along to that song as I made a DIY (Do it yourself) project that I saw on blog recently - a book wreath! It made me think about some of my favorite things, so I thought I would share a few. I love making things by hand, so I decided to start with my newest favorite project - the book wreath that I completed this afternoon. I even made the felt flowers that I found on Pinterest!

Another favorite is my red Kitchen Aid Mixer. I could bake every day with this baby!
A huge favorite of mine are Tastefully Simple products. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't use one or more of their seasonings and several times a week I make one of their soups, breads, desserts, or casseroles and crockpot meals using their awesome products. Tonight I made a taco lasagna with the Corn and Black Bean Salsa! Easy, low fat, low calories, and high in flavor! So glad all three daughters are Tastefully Simple Consultants!
Several years ago I fell in love with Polish pottery. When I was in Poland I missed the chance to bring back these beautiful pieces, so I started collecting by checking Ebay, Marshalls, and other places for good buys. I now have a complete dinnerware service for 10 and lots of serving pieces - all different patterns- love it!
Love making meals using Temptations cookware from QVC. This stuff is amazing! You can cook, freeze, and microwave it and it cleans so easily. Thanks QVC!
About ten years ago I started collecting Judaic art prints. I found this signed and numbered piece in Hell's Kitchen, NYC, at a flea market. It features an 18th Century Jewish wedding and is simply beautiful!
What English teacher doesn't love to read! I treasure my books, especially my autographed ones. These are just a few of my autographed books.
It's always nice to curl up with a good book and a good cup of coffee or tea. Keurig to the rescue! Love being able to make one fresh cup at a time!
A year and a half ago when I was in New York City, I discovered this wonderful fragrance, "Lola" by Marc Jacobs. My daughter got it for me for my birthday and I am on my second bottle!
Several years ago, Oprah listed Korres Guava body butter and shower gelon her list of favorite things. I stumbled upon it at Sephora in NYC and it has been a favorite of mine ever since! Lusciously wonderful!
So, what are some of YOUR favorite things? This was fun! Maybe I will do another list soon!

Grandkids Are Fun!

Jim and I had four of the eight grandkids this weekend while their moms and dads (Annisa & Cory and Becky and Barry) traveled to southern Maryland to celebrate Jennifer's Tastefully Simple team promotion. The kids had a great time playing outside in the beautiful balmy January weather. Clara helped Emme learn how to make the bike go.

She was a great teacher because it wasn't long that Emme's little legs were powering the bike and she was up and down the driveway!

We love doing crafts together, so out came the glue and we made cupcake clips. They were so cute and I got to make one too! Can't leave Nana out of the fun!
Dixon didn't want to be left out, so watercolor paints were just the project for him! I will say that his interest in painting didn't last long. He would rather play with cars!
We spent quite a bit of time both days making jewelry. Michael's had many of their kids' craft kits on sale so I snatched up the jewelry making kit. Sasha proudly shows off just some of her creations.
Later in the day, we found Dixon fast asleep on the bean bag chair. Neither he nor Emme would take a nap. Emme isn't quite sure what to do when she spots him asleep, so . . . . . . . . .. . .
She gave him a loving snuggle and hug. I love these "kissing cousin" moments!
All of the grandkids love books. I caught the girls sharing a reading moment together. Check out the jewelry on Emme! Sasha made those pieces for her.
Love spending time with the munchkins. They bring such joy into our lives.

RESOLUTION TIME or NOT!

It's that time of year again when it seems as if EVERYONE is making New Year's Resolutions. The last two years I posted my resolutions and the results at year's end. This year I have resolved NOT to make resolutions. It's not that I can't keep them because I usually accomplish 85 - 90% of them. I just don't feel like it this year! It seems that each year it's the same ol' same ol' resolutions that we make and then hope like heck that we don't break! Usually those resolutions center around how much weight we are going to lose, how many books we will read, how much time we will spend with family and friends, where we will travel - you get the idea.

If I had some unique resolution like bungy jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge, I would share it. If I HAD to make a resolution for 2012, it would simply be to embrace and enjoy every day to its fullest, even when it may just be an ordinary day. Each day is a blessing and I am going practice the adage from one of my favorite films, Dead Poet's Society, - Carpe Diem! Seize the Day!

In the meantime, if anyone has a great resolution to share other than bungy jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge (never gonna happen!), let me know! Maybe I'll add it to my "Bucket List"! Oh, wait! I don't have a "Bucket List!" Carpe Diem!

The Holiday Continues!

Christmas Eve at my mother's house was and is always a fun-filled, lively, and yes - quite boisterous time! My mother (pictured here in the center) had a set of the 12 Days of Christmas glasses that she would put at various people's places and we were expected to sing the song before dinner. One year, the teasing and complaining got to be too much for her (I suppose!) and the glasses did not appear in subsequent years. This year I decided to revive the tradition and since I did not know where the glasses were, I printed pictures and assigned "parts" to everyone and surprised my mom!Sasha and Clara had dibs on "Five Golden Rings" and their little girl voices resonated throughout the house - such joy!
Becky and Emme claimed the the Twelfth Day!
Everyone did a great job of restoring the tradition.
As you can see, laughter abounded as lyrics were "altered" and the song came to a close.
I love Christmas for so many reasons. Children and now grandchildren make my heart sing! Emme was just seven months old last year and now she is into the Christmas spirit with everyone else!
Little (and I say that with a little sarcasm!) Jayce is 11 months old and is a gift to our family in so many ways!
Our evening ended with another tradition - Happy Birthday Jesus cake.
On Christmas morning I was the first up to put the brisket in to cook and turn on the lights. It appears that our cat Legend was fascinated by the Snowman stocking!
We had fun opening gifts and enjoying two different breakfast casseroles. Here are just a few gift pictures . . .
These are airguns, folks! The boys will be learning proper gun safety!
Barbie never goes out of style and Kari is anxious to do some "styling!"
Emme loves soft and cuddly toys and this little doggy moves and barks and snuggles.
Although you can't see it, Dixon loved his remote controlled truck. Trains, trucks, and fast cars and this little guy is happy!
Clara and Sasha love American girl dolls and a bag of clothes and accessories was a hit!
Sashsa is a little fashionista and got some great new outfits. I don't know where she gets her love of clothes and accessories!
Just had to share just a few of the Lego sets Aidan put together. He is known as "Lego-Man!" Amazing what he can do and so quickly.
Jayce loves whatever makes noise and he can manipulate with those big hands of his.
Lunchtime was a feats of brisket cooked with Tastefully Simple's Peach Brandy Glaze - melt in your mouth good - ham, fruited rice pilaf, sweet potatoes, Pioneer Woman's recipe for brussel sprouts, a few other sides and my holiday dessert - Red Velvet Peppermint Trifle!
I love this special time each year with my family. I hope that everyone, regardless of their faith, had a wonderful holiday! Until next year . . .

The Holidays Begin - Day 1

One of our holiday traditions is making placecards for Christmas dinner. Each year we try to find new embellishments for our placecards.

Ryan and Aidan stamped all the names on each card and chose the colors Holiday Red, Star Spangled Blue, and Ponderosa Pine ink.
Kari was in charge of adding the fun foam stickers on each card.
Voila! Our placecards are ready for Christmas Day! Tomorrow we go to my mother's home for Christmas Eve and some fun new surprises to add to our list of "traditions."

FAMILY MATTERS!

I had such good intentions of blogging each week, but have gotten so far behind! Now, it is catch-up time! In early November, Becky and I took the train to New York City to see Chinglish. I won tickets on Backstage Barbie's blog and was excited to spend a day in the Big Apple!

We did some shopping at Sketchers, Swarovski, and American Girl, where Becky got Emme a Bitty Baby to give to her when Emme's little brother or sister is born in July!

We also had to go to Rockefeller Center, where the Christmas Tree was encased in scaffolding, ready for its unveiling. The ice skaters were having fun and it really made it feel like the holiday season!

At Rockefeller Center we made a stop at a wonderful chocolate shop.

The displays inside were gorgeous. The chocolate was pricey, so we settled for just a few goodies.

After the seeing Chinglish, which we really enjoyed, we hung out at the stage door and got the lead actor's autograph.

A trip to New York would not be complete without Crumbs cupcakes! We headed to the new shop in Times Square to see what kind of yummy goodies we would get!

What to choose! What to choose! I could have dived right into this tower of goodness!

Heavenly yumness!

Our day in New York came to an end - one last look at Times Square!

Off to Penn Station where we had an amazingly good meal at Kabooz's in the station concourse. For $14.00 we had melt-in-your-mouth ribs, homemade mashed potatoes and cornbread, green beans, and a huge salad. Obviously, we had to take most of it to-go to enjoy the next day! Delish!

Homeward bound . . .

Over Thanksgiving we celebrated a special birthday! Kari is now 5 years old! She is a little princess through and through! If the crown fits . . . .

Other special events involving my daughter were worthy of a celebration. Jennifer, Annisa, and Becky are all Tastefully Simple Consultants and each one is at different levels on the career ladder. Becky recently recruited her first two consultants, which earned her a promotion. Annisa also realized a goal that she has been working toward and was honored for promoting. She is the one on the far right!
Because her sisters and others on her team hit their promotion goals, Jennifer promoted to a level that less than 1 % of the company achieves. She has worked so hard to attain this goal and her wonderful team celebrated her success by presenting her with a very special bracelet. Company recognition for all these wonderful achievements will occur in January. Tastefully Simple enables my daughters to be stay-at-home moms and have a career! Congratulations!!!!! So proud!!!Over Thanksgiving break when we were all together, Annisa took our Christmas card pictures. She got some great shots of the gang! Jennifer and her family.

Had to get a fun shot in!

Annisa and her family!

Becky and her wee one! Another on the way!

And, Jim and me with all eight grand-kidlets!

Last, but not least, we started the holiday season with the Lion's Club annual Christmas party this week. It has been a tradition since my daughters were babies. It continues . . . We took Sasha and Clara and had a wonderful evening. Santa even made an appearance!

Looking forward to more Christmas and holiday delights! Happy Chanukah and Merry Christmas from my family to yours!