Reflecting...

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This upcoming month's topic at SFTIO is Reflection. After seeing the sneak peek, I started to think back on this year, two thousand ten.  I thought on this day, the last day of 2010, before I start looking forward to all of the opportunities in the brand new year, I would share with you some of the best (and worst) happenings/memories of my 2010, as shared here on my blog.

I have to say, that as much as it means I'm somewhat "bashing" The Hubs, this video was one of my all-time favorites that I found this year.  It so perfectly describes how he acts when green vegetables are in front of him.  But I also have to mention that the Lady Gaga Acapella Dudes (they won on a show recently, I think) topped my list of favorite videos as well.

My favorite accomplishment this year?  Finishing my scrapbook room.  I didn't use it nearly as much as I had hoped, but I was down there much more frequently than when I just had a little corner of my bedroom to use.  I still love it!

2010 was a "year of numbers" for me.  I turned forty, celebrated my fifteen-year anniversary at my job and The Hubs and I marked our 10-year anniversary.  And all of that happened within a 17-day time period!!

Somewhere in there, I participated in a blog hop that was all about me, was enslaved by a new book series, walked a 5k (again) and had time to catch a flick at the theater... or two, actually.  I even started a new craft obsession by taking a quilting class!  (No, I haven't finished the quilt... just the top, as seen on my blog... grrr!) 

I participated more in SFTIO's challenges, espeically the month of nostalgia.  And I took a few online classes, one of which was a gift to me by someone who remains anonymous but nevertheless is very kind, generous and sweet. 

We learned that I have a quirk about drinking things, and a quirk about Christmas trees, and that I emphatically believe that I am Stan (from South Park) when it comes to Facebook, although I admit I'm on it quite often nowadays.  I guess I caved to the pressure.  But I still wholeheartedly believe in real mail, and I'm not alone!

Nature was a bit part of my world, from these flowers The Hubs gave to me, to these plants that were or weren't blooming at the right time.  Oh, and remember that walk you went on with me?  That's one of my very favorite memories!

I was a winner, thanks to my dad and enjoyed some family time on top of it all with a quick visit with one of my sisters and a great, but fast, trip "home" on my own.  Alone time can be refreshing.  I played with my new camera and attempted some shots I'd never done before, and learned a few things in the process.

And even though The Hubs got really sick and we're very sad about the condition of our cocker spaniel, we know that things will work out just the way they should in the end.  After all, if there were no rain, there'd be no flowers.  So I will move through these hardships knowing that they are happening for a reason and all will "work out" in the end.  Even if someone we know and love likes to play dirty tricks on me.

Ah, despite the hardship of the past few months, this year really has been full of blessings and fun.  I need to get some photos developed quick so I can do some layouts on Reflection.  How about you?  Are you thinking back at all?  Or just thinking forward to 2011?

Dirty Little Trick...

So, Christmas morning had me wondering what was in the Big Box?  It was a really big box!  I had asked for a maid service, but I didn't see any air holes, so that couldn't have been it.  I asked for a bunch of smaller things... maybe they were all in the one Big Box.  Hmmmm....

So there I am, opening gifts as The Girl hands them out.  I received a couple of fun Wii games, some scented lotion, lots of snacky-goodies that are bad for my waistline.  And then The Hubs says, "yes, she can open that."  It was NOT the Big Box.  It was a littler box, but still pretty good-sized.  I ripped the paper away to reveal the Gypsy. 

Astonished, I looked at The Hubs, knowing exactly what was in the Big Box now and said, "YOU got me a CRICUT?".  Because, you can't have a Gypsy without a Cricut.  It just doesn't work that way! 

I'm still not allowed to open the Big Box.  A few more little gifts come my way... a Cricut cartridge, a Gypsy carrying case. 

FINALLY!  I get to open the Big Box!

It was lighter than I expected... but I quickly rip into it.  I open the tape on the top, open the box, look in and....

....

....

it was a Wishblade.

Uhmmmmmmmmm.....

I already HAVE a Wishblade (a whole other story)!  Then it dawned on me... I looked at The Hubs and said, "You already set it up, that's so cool!"  He looked at me, confused, and said, "No, that's the Cricut.".  I said, "No, THIS is a Wishblade."  He said, "That's not possible!  I bought you a Cricut!"  I said, "This is JUST LIKE the Wishblade I already have downstairs. 

He looks in the box, "How am I supposed to know what it looks like?" and then he proceeds to get furiously angry.  He pulls out the packing list, and it says "Cricut" on it.  But it really was just a Wishblade all shrinkwrapped and packed in foam in the box. 

*sigh*

"Well," I said, "we can call or email them and figure it out next week.  I was disappointed but hey... I was getting a Cricut!  Even if I couldn't have it on Christmas morning.  The Hubs angrily took the box and "tossed" it on the kitchen table.  He was grumpy and said, "I don't want to open any more gifts" even though there were still plenty there for him.  I told him to suck it up, that it was fine, I could wait and he would just have to open his gifts and enjoy the rest of his bounty. 

So he did.

Packages were all opened (we were all very spoiled)... and I went over to the Wishblade and looked at the Packing list.  There was an email and an 800#, so I pointed that out to The Hubs and he said he'd take care of it.

Then The Girl came up to me and said, "We found another gift for you... it's downstairs." 

I KNEW IT!  The Cricut was there all along.  I ran down to my scrapbook room and there it was, on my scrapbook table all wrapped up!  I was so excited. 

Until I realized what a dirty trick that was.  I looked up at my kids and husband who were all there grinning at me (and all of them were in on it) and ...

... got so angry I punched each one of them in the face and gave them all bloody noses!

No, not really.  Although, I did smack my husband's arm (several times) for the dirty trick. 

The Wishblade?  He'd taken mine apart, wrapped it in Saran wrap, then packed it in the foam the Cricut came in.   AND he put fake objects under the towel I keep over my Wishblade to keep dust away... in case I came down and looked in that area.  He's so damn sneaky!

"Santa" was good to me.  How about you?

Belated

I just wanted to wish all of my peeps out in blog-land a (belated) very Merry Christmas and very Happy Holidays.  It was a very bountiful Christmas at our house... lots of wishes come true.  We are grateful for the surprise (and somewhat planned) ability to do some splurging this year.  I will come back to share some highlights later...

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with many blessings of every kind!!

xx

Christmas Cat Attack!

This little kitty was fiesty on Saturday.  Started racing around the house like her tail was on fire.  Then she dove into a pile of garland The Hubs had temporarily dumped on the floor.  Her tail was a twitching and we kept waiting to see if she'd attack the shiny new "toy".

Instead, she made herself quite at home.

She let me take a bunch of photos of her.  This is a Big Deal because she doesn't typically let me get near her.

Then her tail stopped twitching and she really settled in.  If The Hubs had let her...I think she was going to take a nap!

Mystery Solved...

Yesterday, see original post below or click here, I asked you to guess what this photo was:

I had some good guesses... alcohol inks, a melon, some fun fabric or the inside of an eye.  All really interesting guesses!

If I show you this photo, now what do you think?

Yes, it is the pattern of lights from our Christmas tree on our ceiling.  I thought it was so cool, and even more exciting that I could capture it in such a decent manner with my camera.    I thought it would be fun to crop out the tree and make it a guessing game.  It was fun!

So, our tree was decorated last weekend.  It was probably the quickest turnaround for us from the time we got the tree until the time we completed decorating it.

Of course, no Christmas tree is ever completed until you lay under the tree and gaze up into the branches, as demonstrated here by Boy and Girl:

It really is a great perspective.  You should try it sometime!

What's This?

Can anyone hazard a guess? I'll be back later to solve the mystery if someone else doesn't...

What's Wrong With These Pictures?

How is it December 15th and I have a bloom on my African Violet and nary a bud on my Christmas Cactus?  Can someone help me out with that?  It just doesn't make sense to me...

Hunter... an update

As a family, we decided we wanted to get the surgery for Hunter, to remove his cancer.   If you missed my previous post, you can read about him and how we found out about the cancer here.  He went in last Thursday.  The surgeon called after it was over to let us know he had done well and that the mass in his lymph node was much larger than he'd expected after seeing the x-ray (or whatever they'd done before).  Thursday night, Hunter collapsed when they were taking him outside to go to the bathroom. He was bleeding internally, but the emergency vet got him fixed back up.

Because of that, though, he had to stay at the hospital for much longer than we anticipated. 

Thankfully, he's home as of this afternoon.  He's not a pretty puppy... shaved in places that aren't nice places to be shaved... especially since we've gotten several inches of snow today.  Poor puppy.  And when we can't watch him, he has to wear one of those silly inverted lampshades on his head.  Poor puppy.  We've got two weeks of recovery now... medicines and massages and hot compresses and cleaning and neosporin-ing...

But he's home.

That's what matters right now.

Fourteen

Fourteen.

As in, fourteen more days until Christmas.

The pressure is on!

My list of things to get done is ever-growing.  We will be decorating the house today, as well as picking up a Christmas tree and getting that up.  That also means, in order to get the tree, that at least a part of my house has to be cleaned and furniture rearranged to fit the monster into the house.  Cleaning that room will lead me to the laundry and the dishes that also need to be done which also leads me to my "clean sweep" project which stalled back in October and has my bedroom looking like a complete disaster area.

But I digress... then there is still the shopping to be done for gifts.  The returns (already) for exchanges.  The cookies and treats to be made.  The cards to be sent (!) how behind on those am I??  What else can I pile onto my list?  Oh... I desperately need a hair cut.  Like, I'm ready to put my hair in a pony tail and lop it off.

Perhaps, that is just the frustration of the growing list speaking.  Perhaps it wouldn't be such a good idea to cut my hair off at the crown. 

*breathe*

So, for those of you out there celebrating Christmas, how does that fourteen sound to you?

Crafty Bits...

Time is so fleeting... I talk about it often.  We so often are bombarded with all the things we have to do.  We forget that to achieve balance in our lives, we also have to make the time - not just wait to find the time - to do the things we like to do.

Last night, even though I was over-tired, stressed and generally distracted, even though I worked until 10pm... I made the time to sit down and "play" a little.

Isn't it a cute little ornament?  It's my official "partridge" for this season. 

Making the time is not a priority.  But it should be.  Because even though this is little (less than 4 inches tall), and it took me brief bits of time (compared to a scrapbook layout), it was honest and truly, absolutely, positively, oh-so SATISFYING.

Are you making time to do those things you like to do?  If you aren't, please do.  It's really awesome. 

I Just Don't Want to Hate

It’s all in your perspective.

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I don’t consider myself to be an optimist or a pessimist, although I have had various people tell me I see things on the negative side. I have honest and truly sat back and listened to them.  At times in my life, I was very negative.  But I don't believe all of the time. 

I really believe I’m closer to a "realist". Some bad things just do happen, and why should I ignore it or pretend it isn’t there just to be “positive”. I don’t find acceptance of the negative things in the world a negative action. On the flip side, I don’t believe I go looking for, and giving power to, the negative in things.

However, as I’ve grown older, I have shifted my perspective to find the positive in more things. That doesn’t make me an optimist, still, in my opinion. I still feel I’m firmly in the stance of being a realist. But it does change my emotions and attitude when seeking out the silver lining, even while still acknowledging the cloud.

I can remember what I perceive to be the first time I ever “did” this. It was during a time when my mom was still alive but fighting her cancer, and it was winter. I was visiting home and they had gotten a LOT of snow before I arrived, and it was still snowing during my visit. My mom was visibly uncomfortable with the weather, and was actually pacing a little. She’d look out the window and she looked so depressed. I asked her what was wrong. She said something to the effect that it was “gloomy” out or that it was cold and miserable out. I looked out the window and then back to her, and all I wanted to do was make her happy. I asked her, “Are you cold?” She said she wasn’t but that it looked so cold outside. I asked her again, “Are you cold?” She again said, “No,” and looked at me like I was going to get ornery with her or something. I said something like, “well, you’re inside and not out there, so why are you upset about it being cold? You’re not cold, so what does it matter if it’s cold outside? You’re not planning on going out any time soon. So why don’t you just enjoy the weather? You’re warm and look. It’s so pretty. The white of the snow looks so clean and it’s sparkly. And everything looks soft. Isn’t it pretty?”

She paused for a bit of time, while looking out the window. Then she said, “You’re right. It’s very pretty outside. I’ll enjoy that.” And I just thought, that was so much better than her being upset that it was cold out when the cold wasn’t even directly affecting her at the time.

I marveled that those few words from me would help someone change their perspective to something a little more positive or at least peaceful. I’ve done it a lot, specifically with winter, and it changes my whole attitude about the cold as well. People grumble all throughout winter… it’s cold, the snow makes driving hard, etc. etc. etc. I just smile and say, “but isn’t it pretty?”

I just don’t want to hate three to four months out of every year. I don’t want to feel miserable because “it’s cold”. I don’t want to spend another month dreading that “it’s coming”. Actually, I’m not a summer person. I don’t like being hot. I don’t like to sweat. So for me, I had to turn that perspective of “I hate summer” into something else. Summer is awesome. The sunshine is great – longer days. I love being able to sit outside in the night and hear the crickets and see the stars. I like the smell and sound of a warm summer rain. And if I’m hot, I’ll go inside to where there is air conditioning. I don’t need to be hot. I have options. So why should I dread how hot it is outside if I’m just going to walk from my air conditioned house to my air conditioned car and drive to my air conditioned office?

It sure makes my heart and soul just that much more at peace and happy to not feel those “bitches and moans” welling up inside of me. That just makes for a happier life.

**edit**  This post isn't particularly about winter, or summer, it was just an example I had floating around in my head.  I just wanted to share that negativity abounds, and recently I've heard more and more of it specifically about winter.  But there are a lot of things I try to change my perspective on:  cranky holiday shoppers, cashiers who look oh-so hateful, someone else's tension & negativity over a looming deadline, those "toxic" personalities who can't say one good thing at the office.  I always try to find something to point out in each of these situations to help change the perspective to a brigher note.  I'm not always successful.  **end edit**

What about you? Do you gravitate toward the negative? Or the positive? Have you ever mindfully altered your perspective? How did that feel?

Hunter

This is Hunter. 

He is my favorite cocker spaniel buddy in the whole wide world. 

Hunter, like most of our pets, found us.  About nine-and-a-half years ago, I was working away at my office one day when a friend of mine buzzed in on my phone.  She said, "please come over (to her office) and adopt this puppy... you KNOW if I bring him home, my husband will divorce me."  She, too, is an accomplished stray-picker-upper.  I said, "I don't want to see him... I don't want him."  She begged and pleaded and, finally, I gave in and went over to see the pup.

He truly was just a baby.  Less than 6 months.  One of her staff had found him wandering around the streets.  I knelt down and was immediately rewarded... when he bit me in my, uh, chest area.  NOT the first impression I was hoping for.  He was cute, though, I'll give him that.  And I told him that it was only because he was so cute that I forgave him the chomp on the... uh... chest area.

Then I got on the phone to The Hubs.  The conversation went something like this:

Me:  Look, P just called me over to her office and there's a stray puppy here and before you say anything, I do NOT want him. Not because I don't think he's cute but I can't handle One.  More.  Animal.  Not without help.  So if you want him, YOU have to be the one to take care of him. That means YOU feed him, YOU walk him, YOU take him to the vet and YOU brush him, because I am NOT brushing this dog!  (Keep in mind we already had 4 cats and one dog at our home.)

The Hubs:  What kind of dog?

Me:  A cocker spaniel.

The Hubs:  I WANT HIM!

Me:  *pause*  Don't you even want to SEE him before you say you want him?

So, we decided I would bring the pup up to see him at his office on my lunch hour.  I arrived just as The Hubs was walking out of the building and the puppy and I got out of the car to meet him.  Hubs immediately went down on one knee to greet the pup who was jumping all over him and said, "I want him!".

I reiterated exactly what I said about The Hubs' being the primary caretaker for this one.  He made all the promises of a 6 year old boy begging for his newest favorite toy displayed in the store window.

So, Hunter came home with us.  He immediately bonded with our other dog Rocky. 

Photo Op for Rocky

And I became the caretaker.  I was the one who took him to the vet, and took him to puppy preschool (along with the Hubs, I'll admit) and followed up with his homework and taught him not to nip and brushed him (ineptly) and trimmed him (even more ineptly).  He follows me around the house from room to room.  Whenever anyone was looking for Hunter, they knew they just had to find me.

Depending on our grooming care and the time of year, sometimes Hunter looks like this:

And sometimes he is shaved down and scrawny, like this:

Right now he's somewhere in between...in a true "cocker cut".  We want to keep his body warm during the winter and his eyes clear so he can see.

*deep breath*

I'd like to ask everyone out there reading this to please send up a prayer for Hunter.  Last month, among all the other hellacious things going on, I dropped him off one morning at the vet's to get his teeth cleaned.  The Hubs then took Rocky in for a vet visit, later in the morning. When he arrived they told him they couldn't clean Hunter's teeth...

... because he has cancer.

Our whole family is a wreck over this.  We have thought long and hard about what we want to do.  If we do nothing, we have only a couple more months with our little buddy.  We have made a very tough decision to do what it takes to hold on to a healthy-as-possible Hunter, but we really need every prayer and good vibe that are out there for Huntter to have the best possible outcome.

We just aren't ready to give him up yet.

Wonder...

December's emotion at Scrapbooking from the Inside Out is Wonder.  One definition of wonder is  "be amazed at".  Another definition of wonder is "curiosity; a state in which you want to learn more about something".

Tonight, I wanted to share one thing that I am "in wonder" over:
 

Tim Holtz's Twelve Tags of Christmas.  This was today's tag. He never ceases to amaze me.  And... he always satisfies my curiosity about how he did this technique or that technique. 

I'll be back tomorrow with more things that make me... wonder...

What things are making you wonder today?

12 Days of Christmas

Just wanted to share my favorite rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas with you, by Straight No Chaser.  It makes me smile every time I hear it.  Talented and funny guys.

More Cards...

Been kitting for another class.  Tis the season... here are two of the three card designs I'll be teaching tomorrow night and next Wednesday:

Now I need to get inspired to make more of my own to send out!  I think all of my mojo is gone on these cards for the class.  *pout*

What Today Brought Me...

…a great deal of positive feedback on a project I’ve been working on at my day job over the last month.


…Tim Holtz’s first tag in his 12 Tags of Christmas series (how happy am I?!)

…snow. We got snow for the first day of December. It didn’t stick, but it sure was pretty to watch as it came down from the sky.

…a surprise ability to solve someone else’s problem relatively easily.

…the first day of this winter season where I got to wear my black fuzzy gloves with purple fuzzies around the wrists.

…a reminder phone call. Sometimes they are so needed and I am grateful when I get them.

…several items checked off of my “to do” list, both personally, and professionally.

…a moment to just breathe.

…ongoing reminders that I’m doing something to improve my health.

…the ability to breathe just a little bit better (congested due to cold over the past 5 days).

…a yummy scented candle from my business buddy.

...smiles.

I hope today brought you lots of good things ... especially smiles.