tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72488535813493934362024-03-05T08:04:48.002-06:00To Craft is to LiveA blog about a single mom making her way in this world, one misstep adventure at a time!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-28265068681505180512013-08-06T15:37:00.003-05:002013-08-06T15:37:52.549-05:00To New Beginnings<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">“No, this is not the beginning of a new cha<span style="font-size: small;">pter in my life; this is the
beginning of a new book! That first book is already closed, ended, and tossed
into the seas; this new book is newly opened, has just begun! Look, it is the
first page! And it is a beautiful one!” </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">- C. JoyBell C</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-25715454493232761072013-08-02T16:13:00.003-05:002013-08-02T16:14:14.581-05:00A Great Lady is Gone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDntGsvUhUH9HlfYW_cn73jVj8TEu2znqVFut8M69yCHny43-KQZoSukrUdT2VXShZYwX5Dv_qL1ZVpvSoEU0DdZ4Yf-nYylnv52UsLUoOf7EFY2ZE1A88u9AO4Md9_-3O0yc3rQfobD0/s1600/murphys-law.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDntGsvUhUH9HlfYW_cn73jVj8TEu2znqVFut8M69yCHny43-KQZoSukrUdT2VXShZYwX5Dv_qL1ZVpvSoEU0DdZ4Yf-nYylnv52UsLUoOf7EFY2ZE1A88u9AO4Md9_-3O0yc3rQfobD0/s200/murphys-law.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Hello, world! Hope all is well with you on this fine Friday. Good news is that it is payday once again...bad news is that my car is in the shop and it will be a nice $589 to fix it. Yikes! I am a poster child for Murphy's Law. </span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_cmvv-Kd_uydrsPR9dNT3pJULMdijRSAMt4pyfJQyCUlUWvGCK8mG5g_S6fC4Zwq0oiR4FwbdBfLrlhHSgc6BIMAdKdme5cliQ8_4sHABxe7ngumW0JD-FKZ10OBCKnUkzbLjIhOPiMH2/s1600/bc546812-9e17-49aa-9ea7-b147cea4e2a7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_cmvv-Kd_uydrsPR9dNT3pJULMdijRSAMt4pyfJQyCUlUWvGCK8mG5g_S6fC4Zwq0oiR4FwbdBfLrlhHSgc6BIMAdKdme5cliQ8_4sHABxe7ngumW0JD-FKZ10OBCKnUkzbLjIhOPiMH2/s1600/bc546812-9e17-49aa-9ea7-b147cea4e2a7.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lindy Boggs</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Yesterday, the <a href="http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/08/hundreds_honor_lindy_boggs_leg.html#incart_m-rpt-1" target="_blank">funeral services</a> for former congresswoman <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_Boggs" target="_blank">Lindy Boggs</a> took place inside the St. Louis Cathedral here in New Orleans. Ms. Boggs was a forerunner in many ways. She was the first woman elected to congress from Louisiana, she lead the rally for equal rights for women, she was a single parent of three children after her husband disappeared over Alaska in the 70's, she was ambassador to the Vatican under Bill Clinton and she was a damn fine woman...regardless of what your political persuasion.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdj7wOUVQW-7ETVv7bjvRnqviQE0PK4ncubM0trszilOSf6xWm_hbTfIE3uyhRqL7WfSD_NwcVxl-Pw8pWjHF1-BA1iyqb57slTEbE_0WWfQ66qEKOVPTsJpkBUHymYHhEIYUCv1JMg6k/s1600/-e1f1f1b252b52643.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdj7wOUVQW-7ETVv7bjvRnqviQE0PK4ncubM0trszilOSf6xWm_hbTfIE3uyhRqL7WfSD_NwcVxl-Pw8pWjHF1-BA1iyqb57slTEbE_0WWfQ66qEKOVPTsJpkBUHymYHhEIYUCv1JMg6k/s320/-e1f1f1b252b52643.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lindy's French Quarter House</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I had the pleasure of meeting her many years ago down in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_quarter" target="_blank">French Quarter</a>. I was home visiting from college, I think, and as we often did, took a short drive down into the Quarter to walk around, eat, see the sights and do some shopping in the French Market. As we were walking down <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourbon_Street" target="_blank">Bourbon Street</a> who should pop out of her front door but none other than Lindy herself.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My grandmother was the first to recognize her and she proceeded to have a very long conversation with Lindy and even had their photo taken together. She was so gracious and must have spent about 20 minutes just chatting away with my Nana and us. It was about nothing in particular that I can remember but I just remember her being so nice and personable. When we left, she said she was headed down the street to get some groceries from the A&P and wished us all the best.</span><br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgySfiS61ni4D4QJwvd18mMlNxuBbD2QpTjO1HN63j18kOM-uwy7Txv1vcAZ_nf0V5-_S30G13znoeDZvHElBPOwc9OkP4MpfKHg1OCCoTaLXsuY744ixv1QDJl2mMPgxQ_rf9BVeNHUx9x/s1600/old_ladies.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgySfiS61ni4D4QJwvd18mMlNxuBbD2QpTjO1HN63j18kOM-uwy7Txv1vcAZ_nf0V5-_S30G13znoeDZvHElBPOwc9OkP4MpfKHg1OCCoTaLXsuY744ixv1QDJl2mMPgxQ_rf9BVeNHUx9x/s200/old_ladies.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Possible Conversation in Heaven</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It was so strange to meet someone that had been an icon in my state and the entire country and also a great role model. She was so down to earth and kept telling my grandmother that she was just a young thing compared to her. Whenever politics would be talked in her presence, my grandmother would always tell the person about the time she became friends with Lindy!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Two great ladies that are no longer with us but most likely getting reacquainted with each other up above.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Love ya,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kristen</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span>
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<![endif]--><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Hello,
world!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Where ya been?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wait, I’m the one that has been incognito
haven’t I?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let me give you a quick
run-down on what’s been happening in my world lately.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPS3NS2P1hMkav92mR9cndqI8x33jY7WYThamiYX6z3A6JVPz176pSTH6wStQfKjQA1ITYyahz7ybfyJ9FMUpyIvavNZL2I4TSua4EUTC5kWPcDcqcrwgXfij_dUGZTylsxnCZQgUTV-T/s1600/keep-calm-good-luck-in-the-new-job.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPS3NS2P1hMkav92mR9cndqI8x33jY7WYThamiYX6z3A6JVPz176pSTH6wStQfKjQA1ITYyahz7ybfyJ9FMUpyIvavNZL2I4TSua4EUTC5kWPcDcqcrwgXfij_dUGZTylsxnCZQgUTV-T/s200/keep-calm-good-luck-in-the-new-job.png" width="171" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">First, I know I
haven’t mentioned this before but the company I work for is in the process of
being purchased by our largest competitor and because I work in the corporate
office, most likely my services will no longer be needed once the sale is completed
at the end of this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With that said,
I began the job search process about a month ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As you know the economy is in the toilet even
though all the politicians in DC swear it is getting better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, right!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Easy for them to say I guess, with their big salaries, paid benefits and
cost of living stipend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe I should go
into politic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wait, I have morels and
character so I would suck at politics.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Anyway, I
interviewed with a company two Friday’s ago and then re-interviewed last week
and received an offer on Friday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah,
me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So super excited to be doing
something I love again and really excited to be challenged by learning another
industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I promise more details on that
will be coming in the future but for now, that sums up what has been
happening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I am in the process of
finishing up some lose ends here at work before my last day on Friday, August 9<sup>th</sup>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIqkg7JT80qWsJhLlFKDO_lqaqtYLVH0wLmWGIBeWub6_x4EDZSGhwtg_uZxS_2dXqFjb7xPNJt19WfTEE1UJ_-AWRN4r5dr2UGn8Cyk4zQdTKFN_UU4CUk-5orCia36k2fQ3KO5eR9oYL/s1600/th.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIqkg7JT80qWsJhLlFKDO_lqaqtYLVH0wLmWGIBeWub6_x4EDZSGhwtg_uZxS_2dXqFjb7xPNJt19WfTEE1UJ_-AWRN4r5dr2UGn8Cyk4zQdTKFN_UU4CUk-5orCia36k2fQ3KO5eR9oYL/s1600/th.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Happy Dance!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">So, what else
have I been doing lately?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not too
much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Taterbug came home on Saturday
from her week with her dad and all is right in the world now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>{Happy Dance!} Camp finishes up tomorrow and
school starts on August 14.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This weekend
will be filled with school shopping to finish up our last minute supplies,
shoes, uniforms, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good thing
tomorrow is payday!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The Bug wanted
me to do something fancy with her nails because she has been growing them out
all summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She always had beautiful
nails until she started school then she began picking them to death and they
became nubs. With all the swimming and other fun this summer, they really have
gotten quite long and pretty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her
grandmother on her dad’s side has beautiful nails as did my grandmother so I
hope she inherited their genes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I, on
the other hand (pun intended) only have nice nails when I have acrylics!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2cCa1mfLZwt751tvbvWuObpeMFJH8_2Acv5kf7JpBviOwGz-SUdZow-CcheZZnPyJgmFfu_3b77Dr_3xn0yPUndYXH8b8ronHDnPQ4OLFAxUIV62A2uA9nK9aib9MCEYRo6YADY21XlL/s1600/SHCN4408_SE_TR4716_240CHCKPLS_CRTN_SIL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2cCa1mfLZwt751tvbvWuObpeMFJH8_2Acv5kf7JpBviOwGz-SUdZow-CcheZZnPyJgmFfu_3b77Dr_3xn0yPUndYXH8b8ronHDnPQ4OLFAxUIV62A2uA9nK9aib9MCEYRo6YADY21XlL/s1600/SHCN4408_SE_TR4716_240CHCKPLS_CRTN_SIL.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All Types of Styles</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">When I was at
CVS yesterday looking at new polish for her, I saw these cool nail stickers by
<a href="http://www.sallyhansen.com/" target="_blank">Sally Hansen</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After reading the box and
checking out all the cool colors and designs, I decided to get two to try out
on the Taterbug.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I chose the zebra print
and some black and white bones with pink ribbons on their skulls.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>VERY CUTE!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Once we got
home, I had her scrub her hands and put on her jammies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wasn’t sure how well these suckers would
work on her hand since the nail beds are so small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surprisingly enough, Ol’ Sally H. thought of
everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The packet came with 16
strips and I was thinking why not 20?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Well, each strip is two sided so it is like you got 32 and not only
16.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were plenty of strips left to
do both her nails and mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We even have
enough to do one other person or repair any that got ruined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVFEz0G1sBmo1F9MRDsle553MDZEoON2VUqUeKWA7HEZhPgpijylYZR0_PkU7sfrAlZyO4K05bzYU2x9t2pdqiIXon-R8vLhoC83nUdaJKAOSqDswR9kmBkFLM4zP3kCBcw2zNPnCRjNK/s1600/thCA6ZYFBE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVFEz0G1sBmo1F9MRDsle553MDZEoON2VUqUeKWA7HEZhPgpijylYZR0_PkU7sfrAlZyO4K05bzYU2x9t2pdqiIXon-R8vLhoC83nUdaJKAOSqDswR9kmBkFLM4zP3kCBcw2zNPnCRjNK/s1600/thCA6ZYFBE.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is What You Get In a Box</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">You start by
determining which strip size fits your nails best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then you file the nails and the polish them
to make the stickers stick better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did
this on her nails but not to mine and didn’t see any difference in sticking
power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If anything, mine seems to work
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next you peel off the clear
cover off the sticker then you peel off the white back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then you stick the paint sticker to your nail
starting from the cuticle to the end of your nail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The trick is to try and stretch the sticker
before you actually finish applying it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It is really easy to reposition before you actually stick it so don’t
worry about not having it right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once it
is in place, you just stretch it to the very end and your nail will actually
cut the sticker off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flip the sticker
around and repeat on the same nail but on the other hand since chances are they
are all the same size.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once they are all
on, you use the nail file included in the box to file any excess sticker parts
still on your nail to make it smooth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
also used the wooded stick they included to push out any bubbles or to better
adhere the sticker to your nail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
pointed end of the stick also works great to cut off excess pieces of stickers
around your cuticle or fingers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Want to know
what was freaky?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As soon as you opened
the package, it smelled just like you opened a bottle of polish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is so cool how it is actually polish on
sticker that are as thin as skin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I say
it was super easy and took about 15 minutes to do a whole set of nails.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are much faster than painting them and
waiting to have one coat dry before adding a second coat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, there are so many styles and colors
that it would be very easy to find something fun for a quick change.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9n-E3pPd7JJ3kZiuH6sgEqyQDCGpWMBpkYZipCUyfzkv32iFxzsfpHpMiqP_ybq23NF5W4iDu5lePHw14_ZfGsL7rchC3BlDyg9d5594sI8oq_WeB0Qa_HxdYdZ6mpdQdO8rS-WuJn17/s1600/2013-08-01_11-21-15_390.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9n-E3pPd7JJ3kZiuH6sgEqyQDCGpWMBpkYZipCUyfzkv32iFxzsfpHpMiqP_ybq23NF5W4iDu5lePHw14_ZfGsL7rchC3BlDyg9d5594sI8oq_WeB0Qa_HxdYdZ6mpdQdO8rS-WuJn17/s320/2013-08-01_11-21-15_390.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">My Fat Fingers!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">The package says
that it will last about 2 weeks so we will see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So far, it appears that the stickers have “cured” overnight because they
are much firmer this morning than they were last night.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was kind of scared to wash my hair this morning
because I thought they would wash off in the shower but if anything, they got
even firmer.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">I typically don’t
wear polish on my fingers because it never lasts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am curious as to how this holds up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I am ready to remove it, the box said
you just wipe off with polish remover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
will let you know how it did.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Moral of the
story:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometime you have to let your
wild side show and try something different!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Love ya,</span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">Kristen</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Georgia","serif";">PS: Today is our 1 month anniversary of blogging together. Where are you taking me to dinner? :) </span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-79696796288058820832013-07-25T13:56:00.001-05:002013-07-25T15:59:02.302-05:00School Days<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Hello, world! Yesterday was a really fun night. I had the honor of having dinner with some of my most favorite moms (and grandmom) from the Bug's school. These ladies are funny, smart, beautiful and a hoot! After much laughing, smiling and complaining, we all found out that we aren't that much different. We have kids that don't pick-up after themselves, we have kids that either won't stop eating or won't eat anyting at all, our kids are getting too big for their britches and we love them unconditional!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />A few tidbits that was uncovered last night:</span></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kids have an uncanny ability to remove all their clothes in one fell swoop that results in the underwear and pants/shorts being merged into one unrecognizable twist;</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">When you have multiple children it is strange how vastly different the personalities and mannerisms are from each other even though they have the exact same DNA makeup and have the same upbringing;</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If our kids don't hurry up and read their summer reading books and do their book reports, someone is going to die; and</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you hear your mischievous kid snicker, she most likely locked the bathroom door locked all of you either outside of it or inside it in which case you have to call your mother who lives 30 minutes away to come and release you from inside the bathroom. (Note to self: if you turn the locks around to teach said child not to lock the door you can't get in, make sure she doesn't lock it before you all get stuck inside...oh, and have a cell phone handy -- <i>thanks, NS for the helpful hint.</i>)</span></span></li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpSF1BEyqXJeGMbyb2Z8pRe_XTeoC4jzyckl2h4nRuk5WbwHQCewzuVjLSZkk2wLmioJOMtzB4F-oHR4G3_qfmHs0435PMQNqkRVGZrzm5NwzOPJt_G6M1rEjfJX2tnmLAlaxUnmJV1yj/s1600/index.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlpSF1BEyqXJeGMbyb2Z8pRe_XTeoC4jzyckl2h4nRuk5WbwHQCewzuVjLSZkk2wLmioJOMtzB4F-oHR4G3_qfmHs0435PMQNqkRVGZrzm5NwzOPJt_G6M1rEjfJX2tnmLAlaxUnmJV1yj/s1600/index.jpg" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I think the best part about Taterbug's school is that, while it is kind of small (only one class per grade up to 8th grade), we have been together, for the most par, since kindergarten. Her class is made up of mostly girls and I always said that the guys will grow up to be very well adjusted husbands and be great dads to their daughters because they all know how to play dress-up and house and are very used to being bossed around by girls. I fell for those poor guys!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Since they have been together for so long, it is so cute to see how they protect each other and are so caring of each other almost like a family. For example, it is perfectly fine for them to pick on each other but don't let someone from outside of the class dare to pick on one of their own. They will close ranks and circle around the "outsider" to make sure that they leave their bud alone. Got to love playground politics!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />I had a very unique school experience. I went to public school and we were co-ed until 4th grade and then once we hit middle school, we were separated by sex. We were the only public school system in the US that was set up like that and it lasted until my junior year when in 1988 someone finally sued the school board to force them to go co-ed. The reason behind that suit was that they claimed that it was unfair because the girl schools had home economics and the guys had shop class.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />I had <a href="http://www.universitylanguage.com/guides/co-ed-single-sex-schools/" target="_blank">mixed views</a> on this change. I was a typical teenage girl and would love to be exposed to guys day in and day out at school rather than just weekends. On the other hand, we had a good thing going at school. Because we didn't have those stinky boys next to us, girls didn't worry about their hair and make-up all the time. Granted, we did do our share of primping but not nearly as much if we would have had a hunky guys sitting next to us in class.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicCLAK00ldWAlzAVAAPSBBH7YpSHeNvp4DkX6DZ1Mnd487NK2Qnh-jjlcmWFaVLO7eRPk414O709ytXeXYMw_vQS9nWUM8UUavqkCbvJdBT5_da6ZbrSk5CThnENJ0FIYJX7hKVmowJwjA/s1600/index.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicCLAK00ldWAlzAVAAPSBBH7YpSHeNvp4DkX6DZ1Mnd487NK2Qnh-jjlcmWFaVLO7eRPk414O709ytXeXYMw_vQS9nWUM8UUavqkCbvJdBT5_da6ZbrSk5CThnENJ0FIYJX7hKVmowJwjA/s1600/index.jpg" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Also, because we were all girls, it help instill leadership skills because we were the presidents of the organizations, we were the ones that made the decisions on class projects and events, we were the ones providing feedback to school leadership on service projects and such. We didn't have a boyfriend influencing our decisions on things at school.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So the time came to decide if I would stay at my existing high school my junior year. This school was being turned from an all-girl high school to a parish-wide magnet high school and the boys would be outnumbered 30 to 1. This school was less than two miles from my house and in walking distance. My other choice was to go to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chalmette_High_School" target="_blank">boys' high school</a> where I would have to take a school buss (cringe) to and from school and where the girls were outnumbered 15 to 1.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />What did I decide to do? Me, who was very active in school. Me, who was into playing sports. Me, who wasn't going to let some guy make the decisions for me. Well, I did what every 15 year old girl would do who was fiercely independent...I went to the boys school because, let's face it, boys are cute and who didn't want to sneak a kiss in the halls between classes? Screw making a difference and leading the next generation to greatness!</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCR0dVGU0RCKdL-pVdjBVi_3OobRuGx-KLfbB0o4_BzkVijnix2ir-NDkFKEU0QwhjkGZolcbuhVDFijWWCM5RnMTf4Dkkkz8pYlGufxWuYqR2sW2RVui9YohwK0-cgJvHN6v0XQz1Qsta/s1600/_facebook_1563718258_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCR0dVGU0RCKdL-pVdjBVi_3OobRuGx-KLfbB0o4_BzkVijnix2ir-NDkFKEU0QwhjkGZolcbuhVDFijWWCM5RnMTf4Dkkkz8pYlGufxWuYqR2sW2RVui9YohwK0-cgJvHN6v0XQz1Qsta/s320/_facebook_1563718258_.jpg" width="232" /></a></span></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My High School Love!</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br /></span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />You know what the funny part in all this ended up being? Low and behold, the boys were even more wowed and intimidated by us girls then we were of them and they were more than willing to move out of the way and let us rule the school. We continued to be the leaders. We continued to make the decisions on where we saw our class headed. We continued to wrap the guys around our little fingers!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Lessons learned:</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">School buses suck so make friends with someone who drives in your neighborhood so you can give them gas money to avoid the stigma of riding on the bus.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Being outnumbered is a good thing when it comes to a boy/girl ratios.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Leaders are born, not made. </span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Change is not always a bad thing.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Girls learn early on how to get their way around a guy.</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I loved my last two years at the boys' high school. To this day, I feel closer to that school than I did at the other high school, event though I spent an equal number of years at each. There was something cool about being at the same school that my dad and uncles went. There was something special about being a part of history by being the second co-ed class.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkN1-q_YyDpkINwPM1rQi0f80LL4Edg2FH534iKaB6EPqk3tzdz7fVOX4TYIty0yF1ITDBQHfR8Jr2fBCq0kOA96TlgnMVYWgaQNgRXyXfOJ7S5Hj8FlAHUstiWnLV9Tg5TBiz4WlLNdM/s1600/Chalmette+Owl+Logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTkN1-q_YyDpkINwPM1rQi0f80LL4Edg2FH534iKaB6EPqk3tzdz7fVOX4TYIty0yF1ITDBQHfR8Jr2fBCq0kOA96TlgnMVYWgaQNgRXyXfOJ7S5Hj8FlAHUstiWnLV9Tg5TBiz4WlLNdM/s1600/Chalmette+Owl+Logo.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fighting Owls!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The school is still there but it has changed a lot since <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina" target="_blank">Hurricane Katrina</a> wiped it out. Some of it was rebuilt better and more modern then it could have been back in 1954 when it opened. Heck, when I graduated back in 1990, we didn't event have air conditioning and only had just gotten ceiling fans. No matter what, I will always bleed maroon and white...go, Owls!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Love ya,</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Kristen</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-56670507466584384612013-07-24T15:39:00.000-05:002013-07-24T15:39:39.078-05:00That's How We Roll!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicx19CdE66cdc3_VtPqHlAZ2d-sxcC1YVxNEVehoJ5_CCIrC1793hz29cUoxOa7J6MF0ibpdbd5gEa-J6kcDdWKHzvTIbRxn6lBi-sT4pU_j-MNiZDUlK8MoK0_SSxDVQA_brLj2av_ft/s1600/family.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img bba="true" border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicx19CdE66cdc3_VtPqHlAZ2d-sxcC1YVxNEVehoJ5_CCIrC1793hz29cUoxOa7J6MF0ibpdbd5gEa-J6kcDdWKHzvTIbRxn6lBi-sT4pU_j-MNiZDUlK8MoK0_SSxDVQA_brLj2av_ft/s640/family.jpg" width="403" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-70805179974268217882013-07-23T12:32:00.005-05:002013-07-23T12:43:53.688-05:00Times Have Changed<h2 align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
“You need a little bit of insanity to do great things.”<o:p></o:p></h2>
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&<o:p></o:p></h2>
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“My optimism wears heavy boots and is loud.”</h2>
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- Henry Rollins </h2>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Can I Call You Hank?</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Hi, ya world! I felt like today was a good day for another quote but couldn't find one that fit my mood. When I ran across these two, I knew they were meant to be shared. They are by musician, writer, jouralist, publisher, actor, radio host, comedian and acitivist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Rollins" target="_blank">Henry Rollins</a>. If you are a fan of the TV show, <a href="http://www.fxnetworks.com/soa" target="_blank">Sons of Anacrary</a>, you may recognize him.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">You might remember him from his first stab at mainstream music back in the 80’s when he was the front man for the punk rock band, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Flag_(band)" target="_blank">Black Flag</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After they broke up, he started <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollins_Band" target="_blank">Rollins Band</a> and they got pretty popular in the mid-90’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though neither band were my cup of tea, I lean more toward top 40, classic country or whatever the Bug lets me listen to, I knew him by site but not by name.</span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p> </o:p></span> </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Henry with the Rollins Band</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">After picking these two quotes, I wanted to see who the heck Henry Rollins was before I link his name with mine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean, what if he was some Nazi General that was found hording millions of stolen artifacts from the war.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not an association I would want, I tell ya!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">So, what is a girl to do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go to </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Wikipedia</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> of course!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just love Wiki, but who doesn’t, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am that girl that used to love reading the encyclopedia that my mother bought one volume at a time at Winn-Dixie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These puppies would site on a treasured spot high above it all in my sister’s room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would have to climb on her bed to get the volume I wanted to read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep in mind, I don’t think we ever got an entire set because we missed a week’s because we went on vacation or shopped at another grocery store.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think it was V that we were missing and who wants to know anything about volcanos, Vermont or vasectomies anyway.</span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who Didn't Have a Set of These?</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I never considered myself a nerd but I did love to read the encyclopedia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also loved to read the new phonebook when it came out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that I think about, I might have been a slight nerd after all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was always fun to look of the names of people you knew or boys you liked in addition to see if there were any new people in the book with your same last name. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe my fascination with the phonebook is because we never had our number published so we were never in the book.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I can’t tell you the last time I used a printed copy of an encyclopedia or phonebook.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wonder what libraries did with all their old tomes?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Love ya,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Kristen</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-16193450507711043832013-07-22T09:42:00.006-05:002013-07-22T09:43:17.583-05:00Long, Lazy Weekend<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am so lazy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Typically, I am running non-stop all the time with little to no down time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a running joke around the office that when I am asked how my weekend was, I typically can list about a dozen things that were done or accomplished in two short days.</span><o:p><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Not this weekend!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Taterbug is spending the week with her dad and left Saturday morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s just say that I was not a happy camper to be without her for any extended period of time so you could say I was a little blue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What did I do?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I stayed in my jammies from Friday night until 2pm Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yep, you read that right…me, stayed home and just vegged in front of the TV watching the <a href="http://hallmarkchannel.com/schedule/default.html" target="_blank">Hallmark channel</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know what that is, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the single woman’s worst enemy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plot: Every leading lady faces some tragedy or adversity, loses the guy, meets a (long-lost boyfriend/new guy in town/well to do business man) and lives happily ever after.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, right!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYeqnCGf-rG6-G4d-gKAY-7MG5-aaV10sulqBU3pHS5kGhldk5D_PQknso5AGVPsLmksXb8HUuXfzxEvqRZccUdwXOsjL3_HoZA9kir0GXeFcyn_OX1HyKJ2Z0Jf1iJ6XyGLSpUMaBVmbv/s1600/thCAC854E2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img bba="true" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYeqnCGf-rG6-G4d-gKAY-7MG5-aaV10sulqBU3pHS5kGhldk5D_PQknso5AGVPsLmksXb8HUuXfzxEvqRZccUdwXOsjL3_HoZA9kir0GXeFcyn_OX1HyKJ2Z0Jf1iJ6XyGLSpUMaBVmbv/s1600/thCAC854E2.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I didn’t feel like running out to get groceries until Sunday afternoon so I didn’t eat much on Saturday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I decided I wanted some comfort food but didn’t want to make anything too exciting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had some leftover hot dog buns, milk and eggs so I decided to make bread pudding. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I typically like to have raisins in it but didn’t have any so I improvised.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is what I used to make the bread pudding:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">2 cups milk<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">3 large eggs<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">3 tablespoons cinnamon<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">1 cup sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">1 cup sliced almonds<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">6 hot dog buns<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Course sugar<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Butter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Preheat oven to 350<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif';">°</span>, spray baking dish with Pam and set aside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Beat milk, eggs, cinnamon and sugar together well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add torn up buns to the mixture, stirring often.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add in almonds then pour into prepared baking dish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sprinkle a generous coating of course sugar then add a couple dabs of butter to the top of the dish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place in pre-heated oven for 45 minutes and that’s about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It should be very soupy when you put it in the oven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, add more milk and make sure all the bread has absorbed the egg mixture.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSYX8FBrqdD3BJVdehhItvuegl-APSZzUWN6r2cdBbXxwc6MzvumnE-cFdYQjoXsoGtEsnNiMu-vtXY4aIF4bxB1LW6SsEkdbPaZrl1QzmRK_3OO1H_Rh_-jnSDGqTVrkIFEmgfFtyxnAS/s1600/thCACUF0PB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img bba="true" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSYX8FBrqdD3BJVdehhItvuegl-APSZzUWN6r2cdBbXxwc6MzvumnE-cFdYQjoXsoGtEsnNiMu-vtXY4aIF4bxB1LW6SsEkdbPaZrl1QzmRK_3OO1H_Rh_-jnSDGqTVrkIFEmgfFtyxnAS/s1600/thCACUF0PB.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colored Sugar</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I had this for lunch and dinner on Saturday and again for breakfast Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not proud.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was good, though. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looked good too because the only course sugar I could find was rainbow colored and it added a happy color to an otherwise drab dessert.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I promise to do a much better job of taking photos of my adventures. I didn't even think of snapping any of this...sorry! </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">What types of goodies do you like to eat when you are feeling a little blue?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess bread pudding always reminds me of my grandmother because when she wasn’t bringing a pie to Sunday dinner, you could bet she would have either bread pudding or fig squares in the back of her van.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would love to have her recipe for fig squares.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were so good and she would get the fresh figs when she went to visit her in-laws in the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They would melt in your mouth they were so good!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Kitty had a lazy weekend, too </span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Love ya,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Kristen<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-12670526898691539382013-07-19T15:27:00.000-05:002013-07-19T16:25:13.830-05:00Where Does it Go?<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hi, ya, world! Happy Friday! Know what makes it event better...today is payday! I have to ask myself, though, where does all the money go? I got paid via direct deposit this morning and logged into my checking account to pay some bills and after it was all done, I spent 72% of my salary?!?!? The sad part is that I just paid stuff two weeks ago when I got paid.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBcGZLoPqgOYsJXnZqnJvqHofv0t0g_cyTiGjuvjvuy4hADWDAWoFkMC6emkwJTakMXSlI2EIyh-5RNMXmt3VGGy9pKdI5bCzdS8Z88W9vns_9I7VjRYkejHiylKFfj36Amq09tbqPgWW/s1600/thCAQJ25PJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img bba="true" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBcGZLoPqgOYsJXnZqnJvqHofv0t0g_cyTiGjuvjvuy4hADWDAWoFkMC6emkwJTakMXSlI2EIyh-5RNMXmt3VGGy9pKdI5bCzdS8Z88W9vns_9I7VjRYkejHiylKFfj36Amq09tbqPgWW/s1600/thCAQJ25PJ.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Throwin' It Away!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I don't consider myself a spendthrift or even an extravagant person. In fact, I am down right cheap at times. I just amazes me how fast money can go out the window. Talking about windows, about a year ago I had to get a new A/C unit shortly after I bought the house. Good news is that when I bought the house it came with a home warranty as an inclusion and was paid by the seller. So very happy about that because the unit only cost me $75 and the old one was over 18 years old.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Shortly after that, I heard a radio spot for a local company that said they would do a free home energy audit for your house. Now I know there is no such thing as a free lunch. Heck, I work in marketing for pity sake! But I figured I would have them come out and check things out and then I would just say no to everything they tried to sell me. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJIlz5iSytyFRI_Za4s_uUsovZX6AproWPLBrmvuL5eg6XLWWf2gro8rMtCTuD-bvBGdDv0iYsjh8LZF47o5DtNXQKs2MqgrDL8BHNmwGT1tGTlW06kWFxHabAFRz5kckej_9wKQjIYdGP/s1600/thCA7WPST4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img bba="true" border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJIlz5iSytyFRI_Za4s_uUsovZX6AproWPLBrmvuL5eg6XLWWf2gro8rMtCTuD-bvBGdDv0iYsjh8LZF47o5DtNXQKs2MqgrDL8BHNmwGT1tGTlW06kWFxHabAFRz5kckej_9wKQjIYdGP/s320/thCA7WPST4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample of Paper Backed Insulation</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">This company was really different in that the guy was willing to come over at night after I got off work so it was very convenient to my schedule. He was also the owner of the company who just happened to be over my way because he was leaving on vacation the next morning and needed to do a Sam's run to fill up on food before leaving for the beach. He also was not really trying to sell me anything. He said that my windows were great (newly installed when I bought the house), my A/C was great, my doors and sills were tight (sounds kind of kinky, doesn't it?!?!) and for the most part everything was in great shape. Unfortunately, my insulation in the attic was kind of deflated, which I knew from the home inspection.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-b9SE-GR0UV2h-lvECyzgY8oR_OovQui9MjyA0bqdn0jKwww-kS3TEFss9CEYdlD1NDHLKf6S76MgFwgxMONv71oqavmMd0H1WiaOW5yvgeCHK4wI2LFhW-hqm2VjP1Ay_88s7DDx3xw/s1600/thCASU34G8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img bba="true" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM-b9SE-GR0UV2h-lvECyzgY8oR_OovQui9MjyA0bqdn0jKwww-kS3TEFss9CEYdlD1NDHLKf6S76MgFwgxMONv71oqavmMd0H1WiaOW5yvgeCHK4wI2LFhW-hqm2VjP1Ay_88s7DDx3xw/s320/thCASU34G8.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sample of Pumped Insulation</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So, I asked for him to give it to me straight...how much was he going to try to milk me to fix it. Surprising, he said that he would recommend doing the spray insulation and not the foam spray because it is cheaper, quicker and for the size of my house and all the other good points he found, would make more sense. After some measuring and some counting, he came back to me with a figure of less then $500 and he would throw in some other things like boxes over my lights, etc. that would run about $200 more. I asked when they could do it and how long it would take before I signed on the dotted line.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Now before you accuse me of jumping the gun, I had already gotten a price from someone else to do paper insulation and it would have run about $750 and spray foam would have run about $1,800. This was sounding too good to be true and I was cautiously optimistic. He asked how did Saturday sound and I said, "Book it, Dan-O!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Two guys showed up on Saturday on-time and were very clean and professional. They got down to work right away and were done in less then two hours. Additionally, they swept up after themselves and even asked if they should take their shoes off before entering the house. Who does that? </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNUafF2QQjjGzUmt6xiCG6PBTpDc6CpjM5SXBSWaTrAwUEbbiiHE2ZG_sFZuk8QIj1OH6FfOAogKGHhwCJ4tyQvDLMdKevPQHOKs8FFJbaZLgNwbWtOV_llg84TNX5wgOVt8R4xYS0bN1/s1600/electric-meter-slow-down-cut-electricity-bill-energy-crisis-solution-save-solar-power-kwh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img bba="true" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwNUafF2QQjjGzUmt6xiCG6PBTpDc6CpjM5SXBSWaTrAwUEbbiiHE2ZG_sFZuk8QIj1OH6FfOAogKGHhwCJ4tyQvDLMdKevPQHOKs8FFJbaZLgNwbWtOV_llg84TNX5wgOVt8R4xYS0bN1/s320/electric-meter-slow-down-cut-electricity-bill-energy-crisis-solution-save-solar-power-kwh.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Round and Round, the Dials Spin!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">The guys said that I should see a noticeable difference in my electric bill and it should be reduced by at least 25%. That would a nice since I was running close to $200 a month in electric in the summer months and about $120 in the winter. Low and behold, it was a big difference between the combination of a new A/C unit and the insulation. This month's bill was the highest it has been since last June. Ready for this....<strong>$60.21</strong>! Yep, you read that right! I have A/C set on 72 when we are home and 75 when we are gone, all last month I had the pool pump running 24/7 and the Bug has a terrible habit of leaving every light on in the house. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Let's face it, it is hotter then you know what in Louisiana in June-August. Heck, it can be pretty darn hot in December! I have been super pleased with my $500 investment because it has saved me 300%. I know that the improvement is not entirely from the insulation and that the A/C had a lot to do with that but I have to think that even if I only did the insulation it would have been a major improvement.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Why do I tell you all this? 1) I needed something to write about, 2) you must hear the same ads on your radio because everyone is going green and 3) don't come in with a preconceived notion that you aren't going to buy and then feel guilty because you do "cave."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-90814731385118619182013-07-18T09:40:00.000-05:002013-07-18T09:41:23.780-05:00Just a Simple Quote<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuWX6_uQUnIPmjdKv2osdVGzslFncIqFtAZFaCTa8bTLx19ZmwlENPo4pNpt5Ynje1CQyBAV2Sk9OcTazvHxVHlODi8MISmNDnTFczMYaW_mJuY0rHnOqnWDI8zUKt9JyfIAsMQyeCm_r/s1600/door.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img bba="true" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuWX6_uQUnIPmjdKv2osdVGzslFncIqFtAZFaCTa8bTLx19ZmwlENPo4pNpt5Ynje1CQyBAV2Sk9OcTazvHxVHlODi8MISmNDnTFczMYaW_mJuY0rHnOqnWDI8zUKt9JyfIAsMQyeCm_r/s400/door.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-17031527696603388302013-07-17T10:21:00.003-05:002013-07-18T09:45:13.838-05:00Humping Day<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world! Happy humping day! What?!?!? Did she just type that? Yep! A few years back, on a Wednesday morning, the Taterbug told me happy humping day. When I explained that it is "hump" day and not "humping" she proceeded to tell me that it makes more sense to say humping since you are jumping to the next day. Can't argue with that I guess.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx5HUgXxfu-KIfaGwiToiZcnN86k186CmX7Y4WWIOJQm8Z7AA77a3LoQVU18z_oiwOVDeNVoDzBFHPFxfpcoy1w8_iUFADdBKpjSxAml7kNdzmHU_bt1b-MxUVLOn9Aarbts934jY3C0gd/s1600/2013-07-17_07-00-12_464.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><img border="0" height="320" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx5HUgXxfu-KIfaGwiToiZcnN86k186CmX7Y4WWIOJQm8Z7AA77a3LoQVU18z_oiwOVDeNVoDzBFHPFxfpcoy1w8_iUFADdBKpjSxAml7kNdzmHU_bt1b-MxUVLOn9Aarbts934jY3C0gd/s320/2013-07-17_07-00-12_464.jpg" width="256" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">My Leah</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">As I mentioned before, I have have a second daughter, Leah. She joined our family back in May of this year and I don't know how we lived without her. Anyone that knows me knows that I'm not much of an animal person. Well, I am, but not one that thinks they are human and should wear stupid outfits or go to the store with you. I mean, really folks, get a friend if you need that kind of relationship. Anyway, I digress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Bug likes to go to the poor people zoo AKA <a href="http://www.petco.com/petco_Page_PC_petadoptionshome.aspx" target="_blank">Petco</a> and look at the animals. We usually spend about 20 minutes there and leave knowing that we can always come back tomorrow to visit. This one Monday we went into the store and stopped at the cats to say hi and make meowing sounds to them. There had to be about 5 cats in various colors and ages including a little kitten that had obviously hit the catnip a little too much. Leah was the cutest and nicest one there. She just wanted us to love on her through the cage and her fur was soooooo soft! She was a little over a year old and the paper said that she doesn't like to be with other animals. Me neither!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSEbkSfOgOz86rlZlMqHqL193f3QYF27P24IU899H44poc2Fgk_Zf_SF96bBoT20ktLG5hqLopEaZTR8cQol6zHjtDwsCl-TUiL1ah4df28OEOGV88ba-LGSc2n2QKnT_B565Z11kL8Uu5/s1600/2013-06-01_12-03-50_113-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSEbkSfOgOz86rlZlMqHqL193f3QYF27P24IU899H44poc2Fgk_Zf_SF96bBoT20ktLG5hqLopEaZTR8cQol6zHjtDwsCl-TUiL1ah4df28OEOGV88ba-LGSc2n2QKnT_B565Z11kL8Uu5/s320/2013-06-01_12-03-50_113-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Her Favorite Thing To Do - Sleep!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Anyhow, the Bug started her typical pleading for us to get an animal and I said no as usual. You see, Taterbug is scared of dust bunnies so I knew she would freak out and die if we brought an animal into the house. Fish are a big step for her! After telling her no, no, no a thousand times, I told her that we couldn't have an animal anyway because of the motion detectors on our home security system. She said I needed to call "the man" to find out if there was a way to turn them off. I said fine, I will tomorrow.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Next day, she was still harping on getting Leah and demanded once again that I call "the man" to find out about the alarms. I did the typical scare tactics by saying that if we got Leah she would be responsible for cleaning the litter box and feeding her each day. Of course the answer was a big, "YES!"</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So that kitty really was so cute and I really was starting to wiggle once I got to the office. I forgot all about calling "the man" about the alarm but I did call Petco to see if Leah was still available. I spoke to a really nice lady and she said that she was available but that she had been there for awhile and she was afraid that the LASPCA would take her back. You see she was a rescue that Petco houses for the humane society. I didn't know that and that helped make my decision a little easier. I didn't want to just buy a pet from the pet store. I figured that if we were going to get one, I wanted it to be a rescue. Come to find out, that is all their dogs and cats. Cool. Best part was she was all fixed and had a microchip. Needless to say I asked the lady if it was possible to hold her until I could come that evening to pick her up. She said most definitely.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpjJJkTs4kz1JA64lrgqFNfHtqTDm9B_fsWqhJbpFgGBiSdymRljMHrjDLDPsBcc5S9bT0cTGHCSwHpOHU94iUiuWBlrIPN3fsMEtpOcWlCKxnhqCLoSuVeDxj_QbD7rJ8sQsAU2hOBZu/s1600/2013-05-28_19-01-34_999.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpjJJkTs4kz1JA64lrgqFNfHtqTDm9B_fsWqhJbpFgGBiSdymRljMHrjDLDPsBcc5S9bT0cTGHCSwHpOHU94iUiuWBlrIPN3fsMEtpOcWlCKxnhqCLoSuVeDxj_QbD7rJ8sQsAU2hOBZu/s320/2013-05-28_19-01-34_999.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Night Home</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So after a quick run to Walmart at lunch to buy a carrier, I go and get the Bug from her dad and the first thing she asks me is if I call "the man." First, who the heck is "the man" she keeps talking about?!?!? I was honest and told her that no, I forgot and needless to say, she starts a major meltdown. I'm talking snot bubbles, tears streaming, face red meltdown. I told her that we would have to wait a few days and she starts crying that Leah will go to another family if we don't get her. I ask her if she would like to go visit her, all the while knowing that the carrier is in the back of the SUV and she hasn't seen it. She said yes so we drive up to Petco and I ask her if she could carry something for me. I open up the back of the SUV and hand her the carrier. She looks at it funny, trying to figure out what it is when all of a sudden I see the light bulb go off and I go from being the worst mother on earth to the rock star that I am!</span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifB68GI-GEeJJfaAAXl_ccHBh7arlF3P961-desvuvBfpZ-ZzKUBLkreeYugfQA8LzQweVL5n95IgoTb5nOiuthNcqg0YuxEg0r8bRQ8tfQNjjJw95ke1uWCcCynTt6uIs3BUhZcmqoIyE/s1600/2013-06-08_17-46-35_327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifB68GI-GEeJJfaAAXl_ccHBh7arlF3P961-desvuvBfpZ-ZzKUBLkreeYugfQA8LzQweVL5n95IgoTb5nOiuthNcqg0YuxEg0r8bRQ8tfQNjjJw95ke1uWCcCynTt6uIs3BUhZcmqoIyE/s320/2013-06-08_17-46-35_327.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stinky Kitty</td></tr>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Skip forward a few months and Leah has become my other daughter. Not sure how we lived without her but glad to have her. It took a couple of weeks before Taterbug worked up the courage to hold her and now they are best buds.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Couple problem we had at first was that the food they said to give her gave her some serious gas and she smelled awful! I switched her food and it is much better now. She is finally getting over her urge to wake me at 3a.m. by meowing into my face. She does, however, love to invade your personal space and sit directly on your chest if you are laying down. And those little paws can grind into your chest so hard that it makes you wonder how on earth something so small can hurt so much. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Her favorite thing to do is sleep and her favorite toy is my slipper. I swear that girl has a foot fetish because she loves sticking her face into shoes. My girls are best friends and I love them dearly. Glad to have my second daughter to keep me company when the Bug is away.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">PS: Can't wait to come up with a great costume for Halloween! NOT!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-85111611932053718282013-07-16T11:10:00.000-05:002013-07-16T11:24:19.927-05:00Life's a Bench and then You Sit On It!<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hi, ya, world! Hope you all survived Monday and are rearing to go for a terrific Tuesday. Yeah, doing much better today then this time yesterday. Actually woke up on time and even managed to shave my legs for the first time since the beach trip, where they got scorched and blistered. Looking good and the redness is disappearing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So, as promised yesterday, I will share with you a craft or home improvement addition I recently completed for the Taterbug's birthday luau. As I mentioned previously, I always do a luau theme and try to add something new each year. Last year it was the house, pool and trampoline. This year was a much smaller addition, a cinder block bench with cushions.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK04AGn71ZWOR4Z3CcqTaMhlnka6Pgm-lkM0c2Y_OQHtc9LvN5ji2qVm79RZ53k6joXATLwouwWxOJv0BRhf4QcUlYzlNU5XbLuqOEJ_BnOHYXGurAz-CAvRQYoH_9Km2LPDCXygg5ok0d/s1600/2013-07-16_07-38-44_980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK04AGn71ZWOR4Z3CcqTaMhlnka6Pgm-lkM0c2Y_OQHtc9LvN5ji2qVm79RZ53k6joXATLwouwWxOJv0BRhf4QcUlYzlNU5XbLuqOEJ_BnOHYXGurAz-CAvRQYoH_9Km2LPDCXygg5ok0d/s400/2013-07-16_07-38-44_980.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The (Almost) Finished Product</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>What you will need to make the bench:</strong></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">24 - 8" x 16" Cinder Blocks</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">4 - 1" x 6' Boards</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">3 Tubes of Liquid Nails for Tile, Cement and Wood Applications</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">2 - 24" x 16" Tiles</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Measuring Tape</span></li>
<li>3 - 12" x 12" Slate Tiles cut into 2-up rows (Optional)</li>
<li>2 Quarts of Paint (Optional)</li>
<li>Paint Brushes (Optional)</li>
</span></ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">It was really easy and an inexpensive piece of furniture to add under the carport. I even drew some plans to help figure out what all I needed to get started. Here you go with step by step instructions:</span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYB-hf7cz_h-TpTCq4H3b5rvAnMSMhh8eD-_OtyHyJDRtglC_D_bqPNHjemdrN8mhbK5w-m2SJq5CTe2u49Wb8VStzMwXL5LQV0FfVB6lDjUeP9IfOeG9ecTjMMyYR4g6OQjJrpGPTC62b/s1600/Bench.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYB-hf7cz_h-TpTCq4H3b5rvAnMSMhh8eD-_OtyHyJDRtglC_D_bqPNHjemdrN8mhbK5w-m2SJq5CTe2u49Wb8VStzMwXL5LQV0FfVB6lDjUeP9IfOeG9ecTjMMyYR4g6OQjJrpGPTC62b/s640/Bench.png" width="576" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Step 1:</strong> Paint your cinder blocks and boards and let dry completely. I didn't do this first and learned it is a heck of a lot easier to paint them before assembling unless you are a contortionist and enjoy sweating and bending. I used a good semi-gloss paint and put on 3 coats because it really sucked up the paint into the grooves of the blocks. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 2:</strong> Measure the space where you want the bench to go. The finished bench is approximately 8'8" in length so you need a good open spot to build this bench. I centered mine under two windows that look out onto my carport from my kitchen. If you are planning to put this on grass or dirt, make sure your location is as level as possible so that your structure is stable. Because we are not putting mortar between the blocks, they could technically move as the ground shifts. Keep this in mind when scoping out your area.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 3:</strong> Think Lego's only heavier and not as easy to move! That's right, start stacking your blocks starting with the base set of 4 blocks on the bottom. These are represented above in row 1 of the diagram. Once they are in place, put a second set of 4 blocks on top but make sure that your seams don't match up. We want to do a criss-cross pattern, just like you do when building a wall with Lego's. Once these look right, take off the top layer and squirt a generous helping of liquid nails onto all the tops of the bottom row of blocks being careful not to get any on the outside. We want this to be hidden. Now, re-add in your second layer.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRg3ZCblgCVHvQa7OcRofklr95xwVGq6L9P0XwOXBjm9TkqiTxohvgedP7erJZjdLS_jSxtSazkd7FGWibcoFjdiVZ3gq8JzgV90yL5nmx9y81ybjAF8JL5BN0NqN3LWGBI3JQw0qqToSv/s1600/2013-07-16_07-39-01_506.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRg3ZCblgCVHvQa7OcRofklr95xwVGq6L9P0XwOXBjm9TkqiTxohvgedP7erJZjdLS_jSxtSazkd7FGWibcoFjdiVZ3gq8JzgV90yL5nmx9y81ybjAF8JL5BN0NqN3LWGBI3JQw0qqToSv/s400/2013-07-16_07-39-01_506.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sorry, No Progress Pics</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 4:</strong> Next you will use only 3 blocks as represented in row 2 above. Once you have your pattern right, remove the 3 blocks and add your liquid nails and replace the 3 blocks on both ends. Almost done!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 5:</strong> To help support the boards, place 2 blocks in the center between your to bases. They won't entirely hold all the boards but will have a portion of each one. Hope that make sense.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 6: </strong> Add your 4 wooden boards to your base. I made sure that the first and the last board were all the way on the end and then added the middle boards, leaving a slight gap so that dirt and water could run off. Once these were in the correct place, I took them off, one at a time, and added liquid nails to attached them to the block bases and support. Make sure you glue the one in the back first and work your way out or else you will get glue all over you. (Voice of experience speaking!). When this is all done, put something heavy evenly across on top of the boards so that they can dry overnight and not popup. I put a bunch of umbrella chairs on them to hold them down. If you have some leftover blocks, that would work great.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXAiq38EZ0I3ifl8LseasEWc8MWx6EnHa-EPRqRC8ed-cvifC7_-ESnRHOnbHR-_lKmf6mWYlI8zcqgnmNR5FR7EBkrkaLmW75dp9B6gLY5VhOFs_Fg98cGvP4AX5WsbOrFwL8hZZnkT5o/s1600/2013-07-16_07-39-21_54.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXAiq38EZ0I3ifl8LseasEWc8MWx6EnHa-EPRqRC8ed-cvifC7_-ESnRHOnbHR-_lKmf6mWYlI8zcqgnmNR5FR7EBkrkaLmW75dp9B6gLY5VhOFs_Fg98cGvP4AX5WsbOrFwL8hZZnkT5o/s400/2013-07-16_07-39-21_54.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See the Lego pattern?</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 7:</strong> Now is the time to get creative. I added two cap tiles to the two bases using liquid nails to give it a more finished touch. I lucked up and found <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_480798-88283-76969541246_0__?productId=4741057&Ntt=24+x+16+tile&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNtt%3D24%2Bx%2B16%2Btile&facetInfo=" target="_blank">these on-line at Lowe's</a> and had them shipped to the store for pick-up. They also come in all kinds of colors. I originally planned to use individual tiles but then I would have had to worry about grouting it and that was just a heck of a lot more work then I planned to do! These babies were less then $2 each and in one solid piece of tile. I also wanted a way to tie in the green bases with the pink boards and red brick of the house. I found these <a href="http://www.lowes.com/pd_44749-13397-SLATESL06MC1212MOS_0__?productId=3551320&Ntt=slate+tile" target="_blank">slate tiles</a> at Lowe's as well and cut them into 2" strips. Add a little liquid nails and stick to the bottoms and you have a great accent piece. It took 3 - 12" square tiles at about $2.50 each to do the accents.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Lessons Learned:</strong></span><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Paint the blocks first</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Wear gloves when handling unpainted blocks or else you will get a blister on your thumb</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Bench will safely hold 4 adults and won't break or cause any issues</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">You can make a shorter bench by using only 4' boards instead of 6'. This puppy is really big but not overwhelming.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Ask around, someone may have some cinder blocks they are willing to give to you or sell to you for less then you can buy at Lowe's or Home Depot</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>TOTAL COST: $56!</strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">So you may have noticed my very colorful cushions on the bench. After building it I realized that it was pretty deep and the brick wall was not comfortable. I also wanted something that could get wet and not disintegrate the moment it did. I started pricing 6' chaise lounge cushions and they were either too small (56"), too thin (1") or too expensive ($50+). What is a girl to do? Improvise!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4jYg9vZUOrCKT-34kWSzvvCpW8fB86MsqBvcmYlZXFfegnwHK9Y9CjpEjxUA4Qfo_YMJQgmhF7hYOZBStfcVklM_u8fqHE0wtWG9ZwUky_L1eQM2tQ_kePNLabEsqBDvFpRWZny2nn_3V/s1600/2013-07-16_07-39-11_980.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4jYg9vZUOrCKT-34kWSzvvCpW8fB86MsqBvcmYlZXFfegnwHK9Y9CjpEjxUA4Qfo_YMJQgmhF7hYOZBStfcVklM_u8fqHE0wtWG9ZwUky_L1eQM2tQ_kePNLabEsqBDvFpRWZny2nn_3V/s400/2013-07-16_07-39-11_980.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>What you will need to make the cushions:</strong></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">2 Large Beach Towels or Bath Towels</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">3 Standard Pillows or 2 King Pillows</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">4 Hand Towels</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">2 Travel Pillows</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Ribbons</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Scissors</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Step 1:</strong> Take your ribbon and cut it into 6" strips that will be used to bind the towels together. You need quite a lot of these so recruit your helper(s) to do the cutting while you do step 2. I was lucky enough to have the ribbon left over from another project so it cost me nothing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Step 2: </strong>Take 2 hand towels and fold them in half and then in half again and then in half again. This will give you equal points to cut slits 1" from the ends. Once they are both cut, match up the corners and start tying the two together. When 3 sides are bonded to together, add your travel pillow and close up the remaining holes of the opening. Kmart had a great sale on pillows and towels around this time so I was able to get them pretty cheap.</span> <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGCGZrQ8Dvx_OtORUf1BapGmz6g_Egs6X7qXJW76pZ8Vhe4GNtyzq1BJza3Qua-1BFx2TsN1me3z2343LOFjTB_UTzIBB0sQlvcBCQFrPhCEkpY0TomEeG1Wnd8W6zOzjA7BKjUFu2pU38/s1600/towel.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="177" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGCGZrQ8Dvx_OtORUf1BapGmz6g_Egs6X7qXJW76pZ8Vhe4GNtyzq1BJza3Qua-1BFx2TsN1me3z2343LOFjTB_UTzIBB0sQlvcBCQFrPhCEkpY0TomEeG1Wnd8W6zOzjA7BKjUFu2pU38/s320/towel.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hand Towel Showing Where to Cut</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Step 3:</strong> Do the same thing you did for the hand towels but now do for beach towel. You will need to adjust where the holes are based on your pillows and towel size. Again, Kmart had a sale and these guys were only $8. Because I bought such a big towel, it was too large for the pillows. I went ahead and rolled the towel before I tied it. This gave it a really nice look and I was so glad I did it! After you have added in the first pillow, cut 2 holes in the center near the end of the pillow so that you can keep it from shifting. Add the next pillow and then holes again. Finally, add in the last pillow and finish off the opening.</span> <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTEiMoS1lr3u67SGEK7ucEVMlbwjoUqDURG6pyRPrYg8wSksVIXx84mQAnFCfwaJsiTanrKshJN0L_grXtPZZHJi4v4EoB33zXl7J1JqLwrLJfEPBtl3dM-OvmuLAdjt1ZLhIt6tnfVjPb/s1600/2013-07-16_07-39-08_913.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTEiMoS1lr3u67SGEK7ucEVMlbwjoUqDURG6pyRPrYg8wSksVIXx84mQAnFCfwaJsiTanrKshJN0L_grXtPZZHJi4v4EoB33zXl7J1JqLwrLJfEPBtl3dM-OvmuLAdjt1ZLhIt6tnfVjPb/s640/2013-07-16_07-39-08_913.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here is the Finished Products After Surviving the Party</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>Lessons Learned:</strong></span><br />
<ol>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Sharp scissors are a must</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">When you think you have enough ribbon cut, cut more</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Leave the plastic on the pillows so that you won't have to worry if they get wet since they are outdoors</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Georgia;">By using ribbon and not sewing the towels together, you can remove the towels and throw them into the washer if cleaning is needed.</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong>TOTAL COST: $30!</strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Okay, not as cheap as it could have been. I did have some pillows in the house I could have used but I wanted the plastic over them to protect them. I also could have used some towels I already had but these were so darn cute and they tied all the colors together.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I hope this gives your some ideas to noodle around and maybe modify for your own use. Please drop me a line or send me pictures of what you came up with.</span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-49622577870858259122013-07-15T10:06:00.001-05:002013-07-15T10:06:10.031-05:00Happy Monday (NOT!)<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world! Happy Monday or as I like to call it, Happy "got to get up and go to work but I don't want to but have to so I don't live in a cardboard box under the interstate" day! <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DV84V-YnCfBgiYmW6MgpTzE68b0uac96RVu0UGMR7iEIY4zcpBVgFSWJXO9l_Kg93YCEHvJmGNY7lh_aDrnNrMYi0R4y6-io4OVarnGW7zsh2wRGp-hIdCtEbqOH3nsf5A7iNC0dJ7XK/s1600/serious_case_of_the_mondays.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><img border="0" height="165" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1DV84V-YnCfBgiYmW6MgpTzE68b0uac96RVu0UGMR7iEIY4zcpBVgFSWJXO9l_Kg93YCEHvJmGNY7lh_aDrnNrMYi0R4y6-io4OVarnGW7zsh2wRGp-hIdCtEbqOH3nsf5A7iNC0dJ7XK/s320/serious_case_of_the_mondays.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Office Space is a great movie, See it if you haven't already!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Plus, in typical Monday fashion, my alarm went off at 6:30am as usual and I hit the snooze button and seven minutes later, I apparently hit the off button and didn't wake up until 7:15am. Needless to say the Bug and I had to put it in high gear in order to get to work and camp by 8am.<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
</div>
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">We had a good weekend that started with bowling with my co-workers Friday night at a local icon, <a href="http://www.rocknbowl.com/" target="_blank">Rockin' Bowl</a>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Uwv60sr-gUud-jnZfM2QV5H-vXGjEHIk6aCxsTr9emzrc6OAATnr2soSfUUoBrtklgiZ9xw69PNCGGvLZxqGEEHYUWeiEXcv88O09ziQGxF-lv-RY6Qcoa66KwZxOYN43vtQMwmow2Gk/s1600/2013-07-12_17-23-30_193.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><img border="0" height="179" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Uwv60sr-gUud-jnZfM2QV5H-vXGjEHIk6aCxsTr9emzrc6OAATnr2soSfUUoBrtklgiZ9xw69PNCGGvLZxqGEEHYUWeiEXcv88O09ziQGxF-lv-RY6Qcoa66KwZxOYN43vtQMwmow2Gk/s320/2013-07-12_17-23-30_193.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: center;">The Master Bowler!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">
Then on Saturday, we did absolutely nothing until we went to church then the Taterbug had her first sleep away at a non-relative's house. She said it was fun but she likes it better when everyone stays at her house. I like it best when she is with me, too! I was kind of lonely without her hanging around watching the Disney channel.</div>
<br />
Sunday brought the Taterbug home and with her the family she stayed with on Saturday. They swam in and out of the rain, ate popsicles and then we crashed after they left. Shortly afterwards, my other child, Leah, began sneezing and sneezing and sneezing. She is not very dainty when she does it and it sound so funny. I tried to offer her a tissue but she just looked at me kind of funny. Anyone know how to stop her from sneezing?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXPMe14RAjsW0JAHl-s_4lZSbcP2gqJMYzIJkF3MDLVlAdZgCS3DRQgbcCDCFYDlhz1XU5HzDWLxEj3cbOF6xUIa69lE070u_1CrndNYqwOxUjwYk3srt8YQTsxELbTgR4_DWWM4Wv9cv0/s1600/2013-07-13_15-47-10_965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="199" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXPMe14RAjsW0JAHl-s_4lZSbcP2gqJMYzIJkF3MDLVlAdZgCS3DRQgbcCDCFYDlhz1XU5HzDWLxEj3cbOF6xUIa69lE070u_1CrndNYqwOxUjwYk3srt8YQTsxELbTgR4_DWWM4Wv9cv0/s320/2013-07-13_15-47-10_965.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Girls: Taterbug and Leah</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I looked it up on-line to see why a cat would sneeze and it really freaked me out. Now I'm worried that she has some crazy disease! I had this one friend when I worked in Cherokee, NC that swore by what <a href="http://www.webmd.com/" target="_blank">webMD</a> told her. This one time she would plugged in all her symptoms and then come to work hysterical because webMD told her she had testicular cancer. After explaining that she didn't have testicals, she finally agreed that she would live but she didn't seem very convinced.<br />
<br />
I know the title of this blog is "To Craft is to Live" and I haven't put too many crafting ideas on this site yet but I promise, I will do it tomorrow. I will do my best to not bore you with all my random posts and actually make it a productive site. Until then, keep on counting the minutes until Monday is over and I hope your week is good! Also, feel free to leave a comment or just say hey. We are, afterall, friends by now!<br />
<br />
Love ya,<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
Kristen</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-73414748120434087942013-07-12T14:20:00.001-05:002013-07-25T16:25:42.198-05:00Sad Day To Lose an Angel<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hi, ya, world! What's new with you on this pretty Friday? I am back to work after my short but sweet vacation and it feels like the day is dragging by one minute at a time.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WbRqt_TDdRcgMbtQ0JJMc4sD0eCiZ081rnHKUBlxT15BTw__hqZnTcR2xXFs-JEMLydP-dLUfpe3hRE8yNuQxMs7OSmQFtUg_NWTPmjdoNKa6M2_67zmiT50n6NVcFRQyJxpZO9rYG3N/s1600/07092013_0001316977_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0WbRqt_TDdRcgMbtQ0JJMc4sD0eCiZ081rnHKUBlxT15BTw__hqZnTcR2xXFs-JEMLydP-dLUfpe3hRE8yNuQxMs7OSmQFtUg_NWTPmjdoNKa6M2_67zmiT50n6NVcFRQyJxpZO9rYG3N/s1600/07092013_0001316977_1.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Miss Ann</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Unfortunately, yesterday was kind of sad for me. Background: I am the middle child of three with a 5 year older sister and a 9 year younger brother. I call him "Baby Jesus" because my mother thinks he can walk on water! Our dad is the oldest of three boys and his middle brother died prematurely in 2003. His wife had an older sister that we buried yesterday. Her name was Miss Ann and I have so many fond memories from childhood that involve her.</span><br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYmzZw4eVZwGMOuNc0Jf3zYJHU_yPIynOKt6980VqKHBlzYRe3X3qEqHpOAQsvVPs22g0BttHfdiDm7euDNj_lpUIyZRCX-jZqxvFSH2K4AXhfsPBwF5RF5SCET3I0tYcUCmwBUYfydE0n/s1600/mardi-gras-universal-09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="230" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYmzZw4eVZwGMOuNc0Jf3zYJHU_yPIynOKt6980VqKHBlzYRe3X3qEqHpOAQsvVPs22g0BttHfdiDm7euDNj_lpUIyZRCX-jZqxvFSH2K4AXhfsPBwF5RF5SCET3I0tYcUCmwBUYfydE0n/s320/mardi-gras-universal-09.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Throw Me Somethin' Mista!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">She never married and had tons of medical problems from birth but she never let that stop her. She mothered all us kids and then when we had kids, she did the same to them. Miss Ann was the one to show us the best way to catch beads at Mardi Gras parades and how not to get run over by the floats. As we got older, we had to watch out for her to make sure she wasn't the one to get run over! She loved her some Mardi Gras!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">My Aunt's parents had a big above ground pool and from Memorial Day to Labor Day, we would be over there almost every weekend. Miss Ann lived in the apartment in the backyard that they built for her. After we would go swimming we had to line up to have her pour rubbing alcohol into our ears but she always said that you had to prime the ear first so the alcohol can get in there well. To this day, I do the same thing to the Bug after she goes swimming!</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh68fVIaCwvKEkuH_0_ZcKq1615IS4RTH3t2uysIgQAgW4KL0Ir6w9X3ShvT2W1itvc7lOZFrbOLNbBHwcpVLpU7qsoGAW6HRL28KxPYTvFRADDGiK3VG_MOVnO3FmxkWTEzG62bT22hyxa/s1600/thCAI7JJWX.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="156" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh68fVIaCwvKEkuH_0_ZcKq1615IS4RTH3t2uysIgQAgW4KL0Ir6w9X3ShvT2W1itvc7lOZFrbOLNbBHwcpVLpU7qsoGAW6HRL28KxPYTvFRADDGiK3VG_MOVnO3FmxkWTEzG62bT22hyxa/s320/thCAI7JJWX.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prime the Ear First!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Miss Ann never learned to drive and worked for over 30years for the Department of Health and Human Resources downtown. She couldn't hear well and had hearing aids from birth but if you said something that you shouldn't have like a cuss word or something, she could always hear just fine.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">She was one of those angels on earth in my opinion and I know I am better for having had her in my life. I know she is up in heaven right now mothering all of our loved ones that have gone on before her and making sure that they are lined up just right to catch the best beads and doubloons that are thrown from the big parade in the sky.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya and miss ya, Miss Ann. Give my love to Uncle Ronnie, Nana, Pawpaw, Miss Lorraine and Mr. Frank. Save some beads for us!</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-25272618140125830842013-07-11T09:23:00.000-05:002013-07-12T15:09:24.874-05:00Life's a Beach!<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world! Hope you are doing well. I am happy to say that we had a marvelous trip to <a href="http://www.visitpensacolabeach.com/" target="_blank">Pensacola Beach, Florida</a> and I am ready to face life newly refreshed and rejuvenated.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwT8ul7vgoOO898OV6sXVCnk0fDLEb7BZd7btW2saRsqnpind-_FSb0UTBnpf4rC_CO42y0jfSlUOk5LcG8VXkEVYrxBv7lp_3OSWclNUKN-avuMmHD6Quz3RdPl7X5UXZNPl4i7356YSi/s1600/2013-07-08_19-56-01_924.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwT8ul7vgoOO898OV6sXVCnk0fDLEb7BZd7btW2saRsqnpind-_FSb0UTBnpf4rC_CO42y0jfSlUOk5LcG8VXkEVYrxBv7lp_3OSWclNUKN-avuMmHD6Quz3RdPl7X5UXZNPl4i7356YSi/s320/2013-07-08_19-56-01_924.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Island Princess</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHwzppHgXTZd9K1OKEU1XUzXWA74iG1gMjOLND8oQeASNqWtsp1_ATjI8han8z12Qqd14s6T_P3oSJoB-CNhv_p9obvOPVOV7nLvlL2EErezglI7k8U5tL57stq2ocNX0I7k1eKIiB8cVw/s1600/2013-07-08_18-04-45_113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHwzppHgXTZd9K1OKEU1XUzXWA74iG1gMjOLND8oQeASNqWtsp1_ATjI8han8z12Qqd14s6T_P3oSJoB-CNhv_p9obvOPVOV7nLvlL2EErezglI7k8U5tL57stq2ocNX0I7k1eKIiB8cVw/s320/2013-07-08_18-04-45_113.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Putt-Putt Queen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Our drive to the beach was full of rain but as soon as we hit the Florida line, the sun came out and dried off the roads. Luckily, we made good time and still had some daylight left when we arrived. The first order of business was to change clothes and hit the mini-golf next door. Let's just say that neither of us will give Tiger a run for his money but we had a blast and met some people from Ohio that were staying in Gulf Shores.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">After a quick 18 holes, we decided to hit the arcade where the Bug won her first toy in a claw game EVER! How pumped were we? Very! She is now the proud owner of a pretty pink bear.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Next we headed over to <a href="http://www.crabswegotem.com/" target="_blank">Crab's</a> for dinner on the beach. The food was delish and the photo ops were plentiful. There is nothing better than sticking your toes in the sane as you eat fresh seafood on the beach.</span><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-mM-SkefjnGbveYC3JY-HTGFgdYvjbytRdMgy7pmb6qJdpJ2wGSaTtwL7J3b4rpjR7fT5cwvW2IQ4JB0JuQy62Kugytquv5xziKgd615blOkgkpvfrSF-QmE20qeiqY6OEVgYPvVT5jr/s1600/2013-07-08_19-30-27_423.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" iya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz-mM-SkefjnGbveYC3JY-HTGFgdYvjbytRdMgy7pmb6qJdpJ2wGSaTtwL7J3b4rpjR7fT5cwvW2IQ4JB0JuQy62Kugytquv5xziKgd615blOkgkpvfrSF-QmE20qeiqY6OEVgYPvVT5jr/s320/2013-07-08_19-30-27_423.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Extra Temples, please!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Taterbug found her new favorite drink, the Shirley Temple with extra Temples, please. By far, Crab's had the best one on the trip and their presentation was awesome!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Highlights from the trip were as follows:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">1. Ate every meal with our toes in the sand and on the beach</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">2. Met some new friends from Missouri</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">3. Snuggled each night with the Taterbug at my side</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">4. Laughed and smiled all the time</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">5. Made some new memories that we will cherish for a long time to come!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I hope each of you has the opportunity to get away this summer and recharge your batteries like we did this past week. It wasn't long, just 3 days and 2 nights but it made a world of difference to both of us. So get out there, even if it is just for the night. Plan a stay-cation in your hometown if nothing else. Be a tourist in the next town over. Go to the movies. Camp out in your backyard. Visit a relative you haven't seen in a long time. Call a friend over for dinner. Unplug or turn off your phone. Just do something to make you relax and forget about reality. Believe me, it is so worth it!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chillaxin' at the pool!</td></tr>
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Kristen</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-82478490767127153752013-07-08T11:41:00.001-05:002013-07-12T15:03:01.141-05:00Golden Birthday!<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Hello, world!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miss me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can you believe that it has been 5 days since last we spoke?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know, I know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been a cleaning fool these last few days in preparation of the Taterbug’s birthday party yesterday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus, the 4<sup>th</sup> of July fell in there as well so we had to get our firecracker on.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">First off I wanted to say a happy 8<sup>th</sup> birthday to my Taterbug.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t believe she is 8 already.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was so excited that today was here golden birthday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is a golden birthday?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is when you turn the age of the numeral you were born.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, she turned 8 today on July 8<sup>th</sup>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My birthday is November 15<sup>th</sup> so I had my golden birthday when I turned 15.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend has a little boy who just turned 1 in October and he has to wait until his 31<sup>st</sup> birthday to celebrate his golden birthday. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Want to know a little about the party yesterday?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Great, cause I planned to tell you one way or another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mailed out the invites 2½ weeks ago and asked that the attendees RSVP just like always.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since her birthday is so close to the 4<sup>th</sup> of July, a lot of people are usually out of town and can’t make it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I received 4 RSVP’s so figured I would have about 12 kids show up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was I wrong!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had 24 kids come to the party and their parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Needless to say, there were quite a few people roaming around my yard, carport, house, driveway, pool and trampoline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I swear, it looked like one of those clown cars with the people piling out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">The word has gotten out about my world-famous rum punch and all the parents that were first time attenders kept saying that they heard about how good the punch was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Guess I know a few things about rum punch!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is the recipe and feel free to modify as needed and make it your own:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>2 cups Malibu Coconut rum or your favorite coconut flavored rum<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 cup Bacardi Select or your favorite dark rum<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 cup of Meyer’s Dark Rum or another of your favorite dark rums<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 gallon of Orange Juice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 large can of Pineapple Juice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 quart of Cranberry Juice<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>1 quart of Cranberry Juice poured into Solo cups and frozen<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>½ bottle of Grenadine Syrup<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Freeze cranberry juice into 5 cups and use to keep punch cold during party. By freezing the juice you don’t dilute the good stuff by using ice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can also freeze it in a Jell-O mold and add fresh fruits or berries to the mold to make it pretty!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next pour all the other ingredients together and enjoy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I use a large lemonade dispenser with a spout to serve this out of but I have use a champagne fountain before and it worked well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only suggestion I would give if using the fountain is use OJ with little to no pulp or else it will be a bear to clean up when it is empty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, if going this route, no need to freeze the cranberry juice, just add it into the mix.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Serves quite a few drinkers especially on a hot July day! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">I think everyone had a good time and I know the Bug did because she kept saying thank you over and over to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once everyone left and we were able to just relax in our jammies, she took the time to go through her loot and did she score!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She got some great outfits, PJs, toys, art supplies, jewelry and a Jerky Gun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">“A jerky gun?” you ask.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yep, my girl loves her some jerky!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day when we were eating breakfast at our favorite neighborhood joint, a guy sitting next to us was bragging about his new jerky gun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This piped the Bug’s interest because she LOVES jerky!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thought of making her own jerky at home was more than she could imagine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So much so she started having a conversation with this guy about the type of jerky he makes and how long it takes and how good it tastes, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You get the picture.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Skip ahead about 3 months and surprise! She is now the proud owner of her own Jerky Gun!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The problem is that when she opened it, she didn’t remember the whole jerky discussion with the guy and didn’t react as excitedly as I figured she would.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Later, after everyone left, I asked her why she didn’t like it and she said that she was afraid of people thinking it was a boy thing and not a girl thing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Huh?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What in the world is she talking about?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess when you are turning 8; it is all about being a pre-teen girl and not being associated with anything babyish or boyish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, when we went to Baton Rouge last weekend, she was totally embarrassed to be seen with her Disney Princess suitcase and made me carry it because she was too old for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She even said that she was old enough to have an adult suitcase and would like to have purple poka-dots on it if at all possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Needless to say, I was scurrying around looking for a suitcase for her birthday and I found this Gloria</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 14.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Vanderbilt set</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 14.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">at Kmart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She loved it, THANK GOD!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">To finish off her birthday extravaganza, we are heading out to Pensacola, Florida for a few days in the sun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hopefully the rain will stay away and we will get to enjoy the pool and beach.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, as long as I am with my Bug, we will have a good time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">I will write about our adventures when I get back on Thursday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Until then, be good and each time you sip a fruity drink….think of me!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Love ya,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif';">Kristen</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-33137434966354862682013-07-03T09:34:00.001-05:002013-07-12T14:56:33.689-05:00Why Not Pie?<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world! How are you this Wednesday morning? I am just peachy because it is my Friday and we are getting off of work at 3pm today in honor of the 4th of July holiday tomorrow.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I love holidays like the 4th of July because there is no expectation of gifts, both given and received, no mandatory dressing up nor any expectations of doing anything but relaxing and eating. My ultimate favorite holiday is Thanksgiving because it is the epitome of eating and lazyness! Plus, it is the kick-off to pie season. Yes, you read that right...pie season!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I am a lover of all things sweet but especially pie. My grandmother didn't cook much because my grandfather was king of the kitchen. He was a little Cajun man from the small town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moreauville,_Louisiana" target="_blank">Moreauville, LA</a> and loved to cook. He won my heart the first time he made me stuffed mushrooms. He had me at mushrooms. Anyway, I digress.</span> <br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">My grandmother could make pies of any persuasion and her crust was extra flaky. I found out that I was allergic to lemons my freshmen year of collage and I was devastated because I loved her lemon meringue pie and knew the days of eating it were over. What did she do? She made me a meringue pie cause that was the part I loved the best. Ever had one? DELISH! Bake a pie crust, fill it with egg whites and bake again. Heaven I tell ya!</span><br />
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</span>I always said that I should petition congress to make a pie appreciation holiday where everyone was required to eat pie in non-pie months. Why is it that people only eat pie in November and December? Why not in April or July? Why is the poor pie neglected and pushed to the side so that other sweets can have their day on the table? I think if we could get all the scientists to back us then we would have it made. You know, a kind of Pi loves Pie kind of a holiday! Let's do it, folks...who's with me?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Okay, I have calmed down a little and will eat a pie for dinner tonight but unfortunately it won't taste as good as the ones my Nana used to make. I can't make the crusts as good as her so I have to use store bought. My decorations are not as cool or the rims are not as pinched but I can't not think of her each time I have a slice of pie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Unfortunately, I lost her when I was pregnant with the Taterbug back in 2005 and I lost my grandfather in 1998. I think of them often and wish they were here to see how big and smart the Bug is but I also would love some stuffed mushrooms with a side of meringue pie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya, Nana and Paw-Paw!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-27416613612671899702013-07-02T08:49:00.001-05:002013-07-12T14:53:23.047-05:00Party Prep<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hey, world! As I mentioned yesterday, each year for the Bug's birthday I throw a luau at my house. It started with her first birthday and then because I had so many decorations left over, it just continued each year. I usually have an ugliest Hawaiian shirt contest for the adults and the kids all get wet and have a blast.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Mini</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The bad part of doing the same theme each year is trying to come up with something new. This year, the "new" is the addition of my <a href="http://www.cricut.com/" target="_blank">Cricut</a>. Now, I'm not a scapebooker nor do I do any of your typical paper crafts like card making, etc. I am, however, a very impulse shopper and I had some points left on one of my hotel loyalty cards and they had a Cricut Mini listed as an item so guess what...I bought it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">What I didn't realize was that the Cricut is very limiting and you have to buy all the cartridges in order to cut paper. There is no free-draw option and the cartridges are very expensive. You can get them on Amazon and eBay but you have to be very careful that if they are used, that they are not linked to an account already. If they are then you won't be able to link to them but you can still use them with the cartridge in the machine.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Also, I had no idea that the mats would not hold up and would lose their stickiness really fast. After doing some research, I learned that you can re-sticky your mat using a <a href="http://www.joann.com/zig-2-way-glue-pen-1pk-chisel-tip/xprd757926/" target="_blank">Zig 2-Way glue stick</a>. To tell the truth, the mats work even better and last a lot longer with this glue then fresh out of the pack.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7AOrg74lY6dE7C1wayFfoFc71mqTHcu-8sW6oymm0mVXN3ojFouWOskSfmsoEEFPnYU3aK9RnuTGA3PJt0guoTF8ebeQG44FbARdmmOGPCpdLm2C6bhyphenhyphenFOOj4ObUx8QcilJfkBdxdr54t/s1600/2013-07-01_18-46-16_590.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="176" oya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7AOrg74lY6dE7C1wayFfoFc71mqTHcu-8sW6oymm0mVXN3ojFouWOskSfmsoEEFPnYU3aK9RnuTGA3PJt0guoTF8ebeQG44FbARdmmOGPCpdLm2C6bhyphenhyphenFOOj4ObUx8QcilJfkBdxdr54t/s320/2013-07-01_18-46-16_590.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gift Bags for the Part-y!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Anyhow, I decided to do some favor bags for the party using the <a href="http://www.cricut.com/shopping/detail--Cricut-Paper-Doll-Dress-Up-Cartridge-0-154.aspx" target="_blank">Paper Doll Dress Up</a> cartridge. Since I expect more girls to come to the party then boys, I made a heck of a lot of girls. The Bug helped to assemble them and put them on the gift bags. How do you like them?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Please ignore the messy background but my dinning room table is also my craft table and my homework station and my just drop it anywhere station!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Paper Lantern</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Each week, the fine folks at Cricut give you a free cut or project that you can do without having to pay a ton of money to buy a cartridge. You can cut as much as you like that week. Because it is 4th of July week, they had some cute paper lanterns that you could make but they didn't give any assembly instructions so it took a lot more work they they should have. I decided to do a couple for the party and used the same colors as the bags to make it fit the theme. Last hurricane season, I bought a ton of the battery operated candles for next to nothing at the Dollar Store. These will look great on the buffet table I think.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So what is my verdict on my Cricut purchase? Not sure if it was a good choice if I had done my research but since the machine was basically free because I used my points and I was able to buy quite a few cartridges for less then $10, overall I think it was an okay purchase. I would give it a B- or a C+.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">By the way, this was not a paid opinion nor did anyone force me at gunpoint to write this post. I just thought I would give my two-cents on it and let you know some pros and cons.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Love ya,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Kristen</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13407638349601575773noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7248853581349393436.post-12069113889062079592013-07-01T10:34:00.000-05:002013-07-12T14:49:34.538-05:00A New Adventure<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Hello, world! How ya doing on this 1st of July? Well it is official...I have finally caved to peer pressure and created a blog of my very own. Over time I hope that we will share a few laughs, gain a few pounds, bridge a few gaps and learn a few things. If not, a long as we had fun a long the way, my job is done! I hope you don't mind but I use a excessive amount of exclamation marks and even more ...'s! Please bear with me.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taterbug in her Easter Finest</td></tr>
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The Taterbug, my cute soon to be 8 year old boss, said that I have a serious problem and need to seek help. Why, you ask? Because I made about 12 deco mesh wreaths in a weekend and they all turned out quite large and loud. She like the first couple I did but after a while she said that I had to stop. Also, becasue I couldn't judge how big these things would be, I bought 18" wire frames and found out 14" is more than enough. Here is an example of an 18" spring wreath, my first attempt!</span></div>
<br />Who knew that they pretty, fluffy wreaths were so darn easy? Not, I! After googling several sites to find out how to make these very expensive wreaths, I tackled one. All you really need a pipe cleaners, deco mesh, a sharp pair of scissors and a clear table. Add in a couple of fancy accessories and you got yourself a cool looking wreath.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easy-Pleasy 4th of July Wreath</td></tr>
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I made this one in honor of 4th of July. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I am all about making it look like a million bucks while only spending a couple AKA champagne taste, beer money! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I used a heart frame that I got on clearance for $.75 from Michael's around Valentine's Day, took off the metallic heart stuff that was on frame and saved for a future project, added half a roll of Red, White & Blue deco mesh that I got at Hobby Lobby for $5 when they had their 50% off sale and added in some assorted patriotic looking stuff I got at Dollar Tree. Top with a bow at the bottom and you have made a cheap wreath to put on your front door!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">The Taterbug or just "Bug" is turning 8 on the July 8th so it is her golden birthday. Is that a thing anywhere else but in New Orleans? Any how, she has always had an annual luau for her birthday because let's face it, it is hotter then you know what in July in New Orleans so any reason to swim and drink fruity drinks is a good idea. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I recently purchased a Cricut Mini and we have been cutting fools! She likes it as much as I do. <span style="font-family: Georgia;">Tomorrow I will post some pics of some of the party favors we made over the weekend after our short trip to Baton Rouge. Too cute!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6gly7Fsd14tHjU8GbrWhG3FkvJ-Wbt7L6fgzvFaTtdHjaMBVpHKswlHtfqQFwKp-Z07h4sJZ1bAGSqHIJBKpQl8ZU-hMd17LMsKcuuXMx3rK-6uBHPM1xi0REuOB1SOV_NBfHN3Av7c8z/s1600/2013-06-29_12-19-35_741.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><img border="0" height="320" oya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6gly7Fsd14tHjU8GbrWhG3FkvJ-Wbt7L6fgzvFaTtdHjaMBVpHKswlHtfqQFwKp-Z07h4sJZ1bAGSqHIJBKpQl8ZU-hMd17LMsKcuuXMx3rK-6uBHPM1xi0REuOB1SOV_NBfHN3Av7c8z/s320/2013-06-29_12-19-35_741.jpg" width="180" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Bug getting her "crack" on at Cracker Barrel</td></tr>
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Now, for some reason, the Bug kept thinking we were in Chicago. Why? I have no idea! I kept correcting her but she kept saying it anyway. She is a seasoned traveler, having taken her first plane ride at 6 weeks of age when we evacuated for Hurricane Katrina. She has been to several state including Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Connecticut. She even has gone to Mexico. Why oh why did she have it in her head that we were in Chicago I don't know. I finally put my hands up and said I love being in Chicago as well. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Anyone that has been to Baton Rouge and Chicago know that the two are no way similar except that you can buy pizza in both places. We shopped, swam and ate. We do that last one a lot. Unfortunately, she stays skinny and I can't fit in any of my clothes.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNIn8UfEEbGlbZ_xJ1zoiZy5RGtZqPCQpFd3Uwfj7Ix_hawuZ8FlYR6mQoWXYOr4lOJunvep9yep-3t_gj8f9c63b1fdr3diNUiYSMOkOdKMXjyBtZiOSfz0GK4KghHYQBxrYf3gqjTPX/s521/1001766_10200510322698612_1997303651_n%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="294" oya="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpNIn8UfEEbGlbZ_xJ1zoiZy5RGtZqPCQpFd3Uwfj7Ix_hawuZ8FlYR6mQoWXYOr4lOJunvep9yep-3t_gj8f9c63b1fdr3diNUiYSMOkOdKMXjyBtZiOSfz0GK4KghHYQBxrYf3gqjTPX/s320/1001766_10200510322698612_1997303651_n%5B1%5D.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">I think that is way more then you ever wanted to know about me for our first "date". I will be back tomorrow and hope you will, too!</span><br />
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Love ya,</div>
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Kristen</div>
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