Still got it

Had a fun experience this morning. Last night we had a big storm...one of those storms that comes through and kind of cleans everything up. This morning, I rode in on 1-90 in traffic a little heavier than usual. Making me realize that the summer is slipping away. (For whatever reason, probably kids out of school, vacations, etc) traffic is significantly lighter on my commute during the summer...)ANYWAY.....
So, I was driving in this morning. The sun was trying to shine. I had my coffee and my new Sugarland CD. I'm tooling down the middle lane..and this shiny black mustang convertible drives by with some cool countryish music rocking out...
I turn my head ever so slightly and make eye contact with a dark skinned hottie boy toy...ooh mama! Unfortunately this incident occurred right around Barrington so our little slow down and speed up and look over and check each other out game only lasted for about another 7 or 8 minutes. Mr Hottie COnvertible got off on I-355 heading off to work and probably a hottie girlfriend (or wife and hottie kids for my luck.) Plus he may have been 30 and I know that whole cougarish thing is very cool right now but well, honestly, he was only a dream boy toy...but darn cute and a fab way to start my morning. When he veered off to I-355 he looked over one more time and I coyly waved as I drove on to work, laughing away. Hey...maybe I still do have it (or maybe it was just the SugarLand music and my dirty SUV...
So, here's to the boy in the convertible...thanks for making my day!

The Charm's in the Mail

Woo hoo!! 75+9=2 charms are in the mail!! Pink and green and black and white and ALL DONE! I may never win an award for them but hey I learned things....so......without further ado...here they are!

Charmed I'm Sure,....

I'm a bit of an overachiever. In fact I am essentially a five year old in a 47-year old body (!!!) running around thinking about all of the fabulous options that are open and available to all of us everyday.
So...in that whole..."Won't this be fun!!!" five year old spirit I signed up to do a charm swap for Creative Escape in September. Now, to get this in context, you have to realize that Creative Escape is like the nirvana of over achieving, scrapbook and craft loving five year olds. It's like 600 Martha Stewart five year olds. Or rather 599 Martha Stewarts and me..sort of like Paige from Trading Spaces who tries but does not quite make it...has the vision does not always have the execution.
ANYWAY..I signed up for this charm swap along with 75 of my other best friends and now we are on deadline to make 75 charms + 11 charms for the teachers + 2 for auction, add clasps, bag them, identify them and box them and send them to Phoenix for re-bagging and distribution.
I'm a bit intimidatd (really?!??!? Like I took Pele' around the country for six months and making a charm scares the crap out of me...this makes no sense..but it is me talking..)
So, I am in the final stages of my charm makng and bagging. The end result is...well not Martha Stewart but hey..in the scheme of things...pink and green (Which are the theme colors of Creative Escape and which make all scrappers a bit faint) and well...kind of cute. I'll let you make the final decision. You and 85+11+ 2 of my best friends.

Five on the Fifth

It's been many, many Sundays since I have had the luxury of getting up in my own bed, making coffee and reading the paper with Rita snoozing on the couch beside me..after her paper tearing, nails clicking on the hardwood check of the house walk. Today is delightful. Not that June and being with various sets of family and friends was not delightful. Quiet Sundays at home, though, are what keeps me energized and sane. Lots to do today...just nice to do it at home. First on to our monthly slice of life...five on the fifth. On the fifth I was at my dad and anne's home....

1 - Morning light -- I'm a sucker for early morning light and it's beauty on the side of houses or in the windowns. This morning I had the early morning light filtering through my window and then in the sunroom where Ann and I had our cereal. Awesome start to the morning.
2- Scrapbook happiness -- going home let's me stop in to my favorite scrapbooking stores including Michaels with a 50 percent off coupon. I scored a stamp I was looking for plus some beautiful new Basic Grey and vellum adhesive.
3- Burgers with the Boys -- cheeseburgers and fries with my brother and his son and my dad...and Ann and I as the token girls. Watching everyone laugh and watching bad tv....
4- which turned into an afternoon of Lawn Work -- my dad had surgery on his shoulder so we spent the rest of the afternoon doing lawn work for him, weed wacking, sweeping the deck and admiring Dad's new taped stitches.....
5- Sleeping with my doggie in my own bed - Nothing better than to spend the weekend with family and end up in your own bed with your own doggie snoring by your side.

Life does not get much better than this.

Happy Fouth of July!

Happy Fourth...Hope it was happy and festive for everyone!

Five Things on the Fifth - from the Road

I'm a bit late in posting these five observations..I've been in Texas this past week, travelling and eating and scrapping and hanging out with friends..what could be better than that. I had a really fun fifth to report on:

1- Back in Texas - it's 95 degrees before 9 a.m. but the sun is shining, the Texas flag is flying and I love Texas!
2 - Shingles on the ground - oh yes and the 50 mile an hour winds are here too which means you feel like you are in the whirling inside of a convection oven. Tony and Amy lost about half the shingles on their house and Tony got stranded on the roof when the ladder got knocked down by flying shingles. You can't make this stuff up!
3- Scrapbooking Heaven - in our lives the word "scrapbooking" covers many kinds of evils - cards, stamping, paper, stencils, glue, glitter, embellishments, fabric, photography. Amy & I went to the Great American Scrapbook Convention in Arlington and spent two and a half days walking up nine aisles, SHOPPING till we dropped, doing make and takes, stamping, stenciling, glittering, and then staying up till midnight working on pages and stuff. Utterly relaxing.
4- Chicken Burrito - the Chicken Burrito was actually part of the GASC experience but it deserves mention on it's own. A HUGE chicken (and actually steak too) burrito with chicken that was marinated and cooked in a special broth and had corn, onions, black beans, rice -- OMG. Not quite as good as a Freebird burrito but darn close and available in the Arlington Convention Center. Rock on!
5- "Heavenly" beds at the Arlington Sheraton -- huge, big, fluffy beds with tons of pillows and this amazing comforter which was great because my BFF friend Amy needs the air at 62...two glasses of wine and the comforter and I was out.

Who knew the Fifth could give us so much fun!

I finished

Today we got up -- literally -- before dawn and made our way to Lincoln Park where along with 3999 of my other best friends I did a 5k Run/Walk (some of the more enterprising souls did a 10K). Okay I belong to 2 gyms here but go to neither. I have not taught swim classes in three months. So I am not in shape. I started deliberately at the back of the pack....thinking "do not become absorbed by others...take your pace.....breathe...". A mile in I thought i would die. My ankles started burning. I thought,....there is no shame in doing a mile and turning back...no one knows or cares and you still have the (nice) Nike tshirt. Somehow, someTHING kept me moving forward. And....I FINISHED. Almost nothing in my life is finished right now. Lots of messy, untidy, out of control, unfinished things. (Job, home, life, etc.) So it is was truly validating and fulfilling to finish something. Tomorrow I will likely have difficulty walking. But today...I watched the lions bask in the sun, sipped coffee at dawn with a bus of United people, and ran/walked (much more walking) three miles. Not a bad way to start the week.