Bless Your Heart

Well, another work week begins and we aren’t millionaires. Since my Mom crossed the state line and moved to South Carolina we play the lottery when we go visit her. I checked our Powerball numbers Sunday and it looks like I’ll have to keep getting up at this insane hour to go to work every day.

Oh well, other than watching our millions slip through our fingers, it was a good weekend. I worked a little overtime Saturday then went home and cleaned the house. Then J and I went to my Mom’s for dinner and to connect her dvd player. Sunday I went to the Flea Market and after a mad dash trying to find an ATM before someone swiped my purchase and finally finding one at LOTTO world then running back to the table after making the woman swear she wouldn’t sell it I went home with a full set of the coolest Tupperware canisters and scoops. They are silver with black lids. I’m so organized now. I’ve been eyeing this set on Ebay and the cheapest I could find was $24 plus shipping. I paid $15! After my Flea Market find I met up with my friend Patricia to shop for scrapbook supplies, then we met up with Jade & Julie for cocktails and a late lunch. So much fun. Afterwards I went home and organized all of my flour, sugar etc into my new canisters, made dinner and watched the season finales on Fox with J. I was super productive this weekend. Go me and my time management skills!

When you’re pushing 30, married, and a homeowner, things take on a different meaning for you. Let’s take yesterday’s events for instance. J and I finally made it out of the house at around 4. I swear, no one can piss a day away better than we can. Our first stop was for dinner- yes, at approx. 4:30pm we ate dinner. I tell ya, we’re almost ready for shuffleboard and plaid pants. It was my first time at the Cheesecake Factory. We had a gift card from J’s parents as an Easter gift. I was surprised that at that early hour the place was packed and there was already a wait. Luckily, since there was just the 2 of us we were seated right away. The food was good, and of course the cheesecake was yummy (we had the key lime). While at the mall we stopped in to Bath & Body Works so I could pick up my chosen summer scent: their new Coconut Lime Verbena. It smells really nice. Not as sweet as the Creamy Coconut that I wore last summer, and this one has a little kick from the lime.

After the mall we stopped at Costco for a few things, then Target, then Sam’s. That’s when J says to me “Hey look, it’s Friday night and we’re club hopping. Discount Warehouse Clubs, that is. We are so old and lame.” After all the shopping I asked if he’d like to get a movie but he said “Nah, it’s already almost 9.” I guess I’d better go ahead and put in a call to Shady Acres retirement home!

Stef got her stuff and liked it all. Yay!! I think it’s just as much fun sending a swap box as receiving. I’m always nervous waiting to see if the receiver got it and liked it. She also posted a pic of the Grow Dammit garden stakes I painted. What you can’t see in the pic is that I painted the back of each one differently. One was lady bugs, one was bumble bees, a caterpiller, and a dragonfly completed the set. They’re one of my favorite things to paint. They look really cute in a garden or a plan on the patio.

Well, today J & I are off so we’re taking F. Stan to breakfast (a little late- we slept in) and then a little shopping before coming home to do some yardwork. Ah, domestic bliss right? =)

Last night I came home to two more packages. First, I received my Spring Craft Swap package! Such talented ladies out there. Here’s the pic (sorry, it’s a little blurry) I received a sweet little felted bunny, a lovely pair of Crystal Charm earrings (I’m beginning to feel like the Imelda Marcos of beaded earrings!), a cool, funky spice jar with mosaic top (I’ve always wanted to learn mosaic) and a luxurious lavendar eye pillow. I am in awe of you ladies that sew. I can barely get a button on a shirt! The craft I sent was a hand painted garden stake for each of the participants. I forgot to photograph them of course, so let’s hope one of the other girls will post a pic. Thank you ladies, another successful swap!

The second package included my Chillow! I followed the instructions and added the water, squeezed out the air and had a nice, cool, restful night’s sleep. That thing is awesome! I don’t know how it stays cool, but it sure does. I highly recommend it. And the fine people at drugstore.com sent a cute Burt’s Bees travel pack as a bonus. Between that and my Summer Vacation swap package I am all set for my next vacation!

Here is a picture of the earrings Hovey sent in my swap box: Click here for a close up. And I couldn’t photograph that pair without showing off all the others I’ve bought from Crystal Charm! Click here for a close up.

I just love them all. They’re so pretty and feminine. Hovey does beautiful work!

Yesterday was super fun mail day at my house. I was a winner in Go Fish’s blogaversary contest and for my prize Nicole sent me a beautiful handmade journal: .

I also received my Summer Vacation Swap box from Hovey! It was full of great things: travel sized lotion, foot scrub, leave in conditioner, lip balm, a yummy smelling candle, some sparkly pink lip gloss, jasmine tea (my favorite!), cinnamon flavored cappuccino packs, some See’s candy sticks, and some Crystal Charm earrings that I had been coveting. I hope my partner likes her box as much as I did! She should be getting it soon!

I also received Suzie Q’s adorable moving announcement. I didn’t take a picture of it because I don’t want to direct throngs of crazies to Suz’s new digs by providing the address on the internet, but trust me- it’s really cute & sparkly.

In other mail news, my Chillow should be coming soon! I first learned about it from Lisanne, and have been wanting one ever since. Drugstore.com had them on sale so I treated myself. I can’t wait to get it. It’s the most fun product name I’ve heard in quite a while for one, and I’ll be able to put a stop to my pillow flipping to get to the cool spot. And to my delight I saw it the other night on HGTV’s 2003 Houseware’s show. I’m so ahead of the curve. ;)

This was my day yesterday:

8am Breakfast:

9am Work:

10am Visit from my newly engaged friend Michelle:

11am Catching up on my letter writing during a slow period at work:

2pm Slow at work again, cleaning out my purse:

4pm Finished with work, driving home:

5pm Making candles for Mother’s day gifts:

6pm Some quality time with J:

7pm Nelson comes in from playing outside:

8pm Grocery shopping at Sam’s:

9pm Dinner, well- these were for dessert:

10pm Painting candle tins:

11pm Goodnight!:

I’m taking part in the May Day project today. I think it’s a very interesting project. You take at least 6 pictures of what you’re doing today, ideally a picture an hour. We tend to take pictures of the “big” events in our lives, but I think the day to day events are just as interesting, and just as much a part of who we are- these pictures will probably tell us a whole lot about each other. I’m at work until 4 though, so I can’t upload until later. I know the suspense is killing you. ;)

Guess who arrived the other day?? Flat Stanley! He’s so excited to be here. He’s quietly resting right now, gearing up for some big adventures later. I’m sure I’ll get my fair share of strange looks wheeling him through Costco this afternoon. It’s going to be fun taking him all around! We’ll take good care of him Christy!

Yesterday I met my sister and nephew out for lunch at the mall. Jake just gets bigger and cuter every time I see him. Then I finished up my Vacation swap shopping. All I have left to do is my craft, which is tres fabulous I must admit. I hope Stef likes everything! I ordered some earrings from Hovey. I’d like to order the entire site but I have a mortgage to pay. I sent out all of my Mother’s day cards and did up my mother’s day shopping. Mom doesn’t have her computer hooked up yet so I suppose I can spill the beans here about what she’s getting. She’s been eyeing my cross necklace for quite some time and finally came out and said she wanted one for herself, and just in time for mother’s day. Made my shopping easier that’s for sure!Oh, and it’s the silver one, not platinum. I’m on a budget people! So now we just have to figure out the plan for Mother’s day festivities and we’ll be all set. This one is exciting because it’s my sister’s first mother’s day. In other shopping news I dragged poor J out to 3 or 4 different drug stores in search of the new spring colors of Maybelline’s roller color eye shadow. It’s just the best stuff. Very pretty. Found both colors (Firefly and Fairy Pink) at Super Wal-Mart. It’s the little things that make me happy. Oh, and I also finished my shopping for my sister’s (Sara’s) birthday later this month. May is a busy month for me birthday and holiday wise. But it keeps Hallmark and local retailers happy!

Oh, and speaking of spending, if you have kids, or nephews or neices, or if you don’t have any children you’re fond of and would like to benefit the ones I love, you may have heard of this program called U Promise. It’s very cool. You sign up, log your frequent shopper cards, credit cards, etc., and every time you spend $$ at participating retailers & restaurants they contribute a portion of your spending toward the college education for the child of your choice. Right now I’m saving for my littlest sister and my nephew. So if there are no children in your family or circle of friends that you could save for, let me know and you can save for mine! Might as well help someone since you’re spending the money anyway, right? And if you do have a child you can help, sign up!

Sunday we pulled up the old rug in the kitchen to lay down the new one and made a gruesome discovery. While we were shopping at IKEA our kitty girls were apparently stalking and killing a poor innocent little gecko. He was flattened and missing his tail and hidden under the kitchen rug. Killers always get caught though- the body always surfaces at some point! They don’t seem too remorseful though. Cold hearted kitties.

In other murderous news, our family has suffered a small case of mistaken identity. My little sister (the 13 year old) was riding in the car with my mom when they announced on the radio that they had arrested Scott Peterson for the murder of Laci Peterson. Poor Morgan screams “What have they done with my Daddy??” You see, Morgan’s dad’s name is Scott Petersen and she hadn’t heard anything about the Laci Peterson disappearance. It took a lot of explaining on my Mom’s part before poor Morgan calmed down.

In other news, I’m so excited I can’t stand it! I heard a rumor that they are building an IKEA in Atlanta!!! I hope this is true. It would only take us 4 hours to get there vs. the 6.5 hour trip we have to make now. Cross your fingers!