Out with the old and in with the new

Good bye 2011 don't let the door hit you on the way out!
As we sit around a fire pit tonight talking about this year the majority of us agree this was not a great year, we all hold out hope that 2012 will be a much better year.

I am going to work on some goals for this year, I am hoping that whatever job I am suppose to be doing will come to me (as I know it will), I am excited to see where 2012 takes me. How about you?

So long 2011

As we get ready to say good bye to 2011 it is a good time to remember all the blessing we have in our lives. I feel so blessed that this year my son still enjoys me being around and helping out his FIRST robotics team. In love that we can hang out, he is such a great teenager.
Today I will spend the day cleaning so we can bring in the new year in a clean and purged place. I am all about minimizing today. So I want to have it carry over into 2012.
What are you doing today to bring in the new year?

Glass sea star

I got this beautiful hand blown sea star for Christmas and I love it. Can you see the bubbles in it? It is meant to be a candle but I do not know if I want to pour oil on it, I like it just as it is.

New red tea kettle

I love my new red tea kettle I got for Christmas. It is very unique and looks great in my kitchen.

Cookie decorating

The difference between girls decorating and boys decorating cookies. . . Boys pour every container of candy on the squeezed out frosting, no spreading or resemblance of a gingerbread man. . . Girls carefully spread frosting, think out where to place a few candies then eat the rest of the candy.

Here it is

Well I just knew I was going to get that ring for Christmas and I did! I thought you would like to see it. . . I know it's beautiful!

Cookie decorating kits

I made these fun cookie decorating kits for Wyatt's friends and the neighbor kids. They all enjoyed them and had fun last night decorating them.

Mini lemon tarts

Last night I made these cute little lemon tarts to take down to the neighborhood luminaries party. They were yummy and a big hit.

Merry Christmooows!

Today when I got home this giant cow was on the roof! I am sure Santa will want to stop when a cow is dressed up as him.

I need a haircut sometime

All I want for Christmas. . .

I know this is mine, it just sold for ONLY for 8.8 million. I know it was purchased for me!
It is the ring Richard Burton gave Liz Taylor for their wedding and it is 33.19 carats.

Great blog find. . .

I found this great blog today and had to share this with you since the new year is upon us.

1. Start spending time with the right people. – These are the people you enjoy, who love and appreciate you, and who encourage you to improve in healthy and exciting ways. They are the ones who make you feel more alive, and not only embrace who you are now, but also embrace and embody who you want to be, unconditionally.
2. Start facing your problems head on. – It isn’t your problems that define you, but how you react to them and recover from them. Problems will not disappear unless you take action. Do what you can, when you can, and acknowledge what you’ve done. It’s all about taking baby steps in the right direction, inch by inch. These inches count, they add up to yards and miles in the long run.
3. Start being honest with yourself about everything. – Be honest about what’s right, as well as what needs to be changed. Be honest about what you want to achieve and who you want to become. Be honest with every aspect of your life, always. Because you are the one person you can forever count on. Search your soul, for the truth, so that you truly know who you are. Once you do, you’ll have a better understanding of where you are now and how you got here, and you’ll be better equipped to identify where you want to go and how to get there. Read The Road Less Traveled.
4. Start making your own happiness a priority. – Your needs matter. If you don’t value yourself, look out for yourself, and stick up for yourself, you’re sabotaging yourself. Remember, it IS possible to take care of your own needs while simultaneously caring for those around you. And once your needs are met, you will likely be far more capable of helping those who need you most.
5. Start being yourself, genuinely and proudly. – Trying to be anyone else is a waste of the person you are. Be yourself. Embrace that individual inside you that has ideas, strengths and beauty like no one else. Be the person you know yourself to be – the best version of you – on your terms. Above all, be true to YOU, and if you cannot put your heart in it, take yourself out of it.
6. Start noticing and living in the present. – Right now is a miracle. Right now is the only moment guaranteed to you. Right now is life. So stop thinking about how great things will be in the future. Stop dwelling on what did or didn’t happen in the past. Learn to be in the ‘here and now’ and experience life as it’s happening. Appreciate the world for the beauty that it holds, right now.
7. Start valuing the lessons your mistakes teach you. – Mistakes are okay; they’re the stepping stones of progress. If you’re not failing from time to time, you’re not trying hard enough and you’re not learning. Take risks, stumble, fall, and then get up and try again. Appreciate that you are pushing yourself, learning, growing and improving. Significant achievements are almost invariably realized at the end of a long road of failures. One of the ‘mistakes’ you fear might just be the link to your greatest achievement yet.
8. Start being more polite to yourself. – If you had a friend who spoke to you in the same way that you sometimes speak to yourself, how long would you allow that person to be your friend? The way you treat yourself sets the standard for others. You must love who you are or no one else will.
9. Start enjoying the things you already have. – The problem with many of us is that we think we’ll be happy when we reach a certain level in life – a level we see others operating at – your boss with her corner office, that friend of a friend who owns a mansion on the beach, etc. Unfortunately, it takes awhile before you get there, and when you get there you’ll likely have a new destination in mind. You’ll end up spending your whole life working towards something new without ever stopping to enjoy the things you have now. So take a quiet moment every morning when you first awake to appreciate where you are and what you already have.
10. Start creating your own happiness. – If you are waiting for someone else to make you happy, you’re missing out. Smile because you can. Choose happiness. Be the change you want to see in the world. Be happy with who you are now, and let your positivity inspire your journey into tomorrow. Happiness is often found when and where you decide to seek it. If you look for happiness within the opportunities you have, you will eventually find it. But if you constantly look for something else, unfortunately, you’ll find that too. Read Stumbling on Happiness.
11. Start giving your ideas and dreams a chance. – In life, it’s rarely about getting a chance; it’s about taking a chance. You’ll never be 100% sure it will work, but you can always be 100% sure doing nothing won’t work. Most of the time you just have to go for it! And no matter how it turns out, it always ends up just the way it should be. Either you succeed or you learn something. Win-Win.
12. Start believing that you’re ready for the next step. – You are ready! Think about it. You have everything you need right now to take the next small, realistic step forward. So embrace the opportunities that come your way, and accept the challenges – they’re gifts that will help you to grow.
13. Start entering new relationships for the right reasons. – Enter new relationships with dependable, honest people who reflect the person you are and the person you want to be. Choose friends you are proud to know, people you admire, who show you love and respect – people who reciprocate your kindness and commitment. And pay attention to what people do, because a person’s actions are much more important than their words or how others represent them.
14. Start giving new people you meet a chance. – It sounds harsh, but you cannot keep every friend you’ve ever made. People and priorities change. As some relationships fade others will grow. Appreciate the possibility of new relationships as you naturally let go of old ones that no longer work. Trust your judgment. Embrace new relationships, knowing that you are entering into unfamiliar territory. Be ready to learn, be ready for a challenge, and be ready to meet someone that might just change your life forever.
15. Start competing against an earlier version of yourself. – Be inspired by others, appreciate others, learn from others, but know that competing against them is a waste of time. You are in competition with one person and one person only – yourself. You are competing to be the best you can be. Aim to break your own personal records.
16. Start cheering for other people’s victories. – Start noticing what you like about others and tell them. Having an appreciation for how amazing the people around you are leads to good places – productive, fulfilling, peaceful places. So be happy for those who are making progress. Cheer for their victories. Be thankful for their blessings, openly. What goes around comes around, and sooner or later the people you’re cheering for will start cheering for you.
17. Start looking for the silver lining in tough situations. – When things are hard, and you feel down, take a few deep breaths and look for the silver lining – the small glimmers of hope. Remind yourself that you can and will grow stronger from these hard times. And remain conscious of your blessings and victories – all the things in your life that are right. Focus on what you have, not on what you haven’t.
18. Start forgiving yourself and others. – We’ve all been hurt by our own decisions and by others. And while the pain of these experiences is normal, sometimes it lingers for too long. We relive the pain over and over and have a hard time letting go. Forgiveness is the remedy. It doesn’t mean you’re erasing the past, or forgetting what happened. It means you’re letting go of the resentment and pain, and instead choosing to learn from the incident and move on with your life.
19. Start helping those around you. – Care about people. Guide them if you know a better way. The more you help others, the more they will want to help you. Love and kindness begets love and kindness. And so on and so forth.
20. Start listening to your own inner voice. – If it helps, discuss your ideas with those closest to you, but give yourself enough room to follow your own intuition. Be true to yourself. Say what you need to say. Do what you know in your heart is right.
21. Start being attentive to your stress level and take short breaks. – Slow down. Breath. Give yourself permission to pause, regroup and move forward with clarity and purpose. When you’re at your busiest, a brief recess can rejuvenate your mind and increase your productivity. These short breaks will help you regain your sanity and reflect on your recent actions so you can be sure they’re in line with your goals.
22. Start noticing the beauty of small moments. – Instead of waiting for the big things to happen – marriage, kids, big promotion, winning the lottery – find happiness in the small things that happen every day. Little things like having a quiet cup of coffee in the early morning, or the delicious taste and smell of a homemade meal, or the pleasure of sharing something you enjoy with someone else, or holding hands with your partner. Noticing these small pleasures on a daily basis makes a big difference in the quality of your life.
23. Start accepting things when they are less than perfect. – Remember, ‘perfect’ is the enemy of ‘good.’ One of the biggest challenges for people who want to improve themselves and improve the world is learning to accept things as they are. Sometimes it’s better to accept and appreciate the world as it is, and people as they are, rather than to trying to make everything and everyone conform to an impossible ideal. No, you shouldn’t accept a life of mediocrity, but learn to love and value things when they are less than perfect.
24. Start working toward your goals every single day. – Remember, the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. Whatever it is you dream about, start taking small, logical steps every day to make it happen. Get out there and DO something! The harder you work the luckier you will become. While many of us decide at some point during the course of our lives that we want to answer our calling, only an astute few of us actually work on it. By ‘working on it,’ I mean consistently devoting oneself to the end result. Read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
25. Start being more open about how you feel. – If you’re hurting, give yourself the necessary space and time to hurt, but be open about it. Talk to those closest to you. Tell them the truth about how you feel. Let them listen. The simple act of getting things off your chest and into the open is your first step towards feeling good again.
26. Start taking full accountability for your own life. – Own your choices and mistakes, and be willing to take the necessary steps to improve upon them. Either you take accountability for your life or someone else will. And when they do, you’ll become a slave to their ideas and dreams instead of a pioneer of your own. You are the only one who can directly control the outcome of your life. And no, it won’t always be easy. Every person has a stack of obstacles in front of them. But you must take accountability for your situation and overcome these obstacles. Choosing not to is choosing a lifetime of mere existence.
27. Start actively nurturing your most important relationships. – Bring real, honest joy into your life and the lives of those you love by simply telling them how much they mean to you on a regular basis. You can’t be everything to everyone, but you can be everything to a few people. Decide who these people are in your life and treat them like royalty. Remember, you don’t need a certain number of friends, just a number of friends you can be certain of.
28. Start concentrating on the things you can control. – You can’t change everything, but you can always change something. Wasting your time, talent and emotional energy on things that are beyond your control is a recipe for frustration, misery and stagnation. Invest your energy in the things you can control, and act on them now.
29. Start focusing on the possibility of positive outcomes. – The mind must believe it CAN do something before it is capable of actually doing it. The way to overcome negative thoughts and destructive emotions is to develop opposing, positive emotions that are stronger and more powerful. Listen to your self-talk and replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Regardless of how a situation seems, focus on what you DO WANT to happen, and then take the next positive step forward. No, you can’t control everything that happens to you, but you can control how you react to things. Everyone’s life has positive and negative aspects – whether or not you’re happy and successful in the long run depends greatly on which aspects you focus on. Read The How of Happiness.
30. Start noticing how wealthy you are right now. – Henry David Thoreau once said, “Wealth is the ability to fully experience life.” Even when times are tough, it’s always important to keep things in perspective. You didn’t go to sleep hungry last night. You didn’t go to sleep outside. You had a choice of what clothes to wear this morning. You hardly broke a sweat today. You didn’t spend a minute in fear. You have access to clean drinking water. You have access to medical care. You have access to the Internet. You can read. Some might say you are incredibly wealthy, so remember to be grateful for all the things you do have.

7 day left until Christmas

I finally did it. . . last night in the dark, with only the light of that tree I added all my sweet beachy Christmas ornaments to our Christmas tree. I still have not been able to look at the tree during the day light but the other night I came home and it was all lit up with colored light. As many of you know I prefer white light and it was the year for white light but I didn't even mind this year, they looked fairly ok on this Charlie Brown Tree.
I haven't even had time to do any holiday baking or even much shopping, I am hoping to get this in this week. How about you, what is your favorite things to bake for the holiday season?

2 months later. . .

I know there is no excuse to have been gone for so long but I really have been super busy. I know I am not working this year but I am busier volunteering than I was working.

Christmas is going to be here before we know it and I do not feel ready, I have very little decorations up, I sent someone who shall remain nameless but the initials are JWES out to pick up a tree the other day and he came back with the smallest funkiest tree ever! Wyatt loves it but I am not even motivated to even decorate it or really look at it, I suppose I will get around to doing something to it but for now it in the corner in a tree stand. It is really sad!

Love this new website called alicecorrine it finds great deals and it is super cute. Click on the link and check it out.

Jeff and Sam arrive in the Philippians the other day and are now leaving to go to Thailand Sunday. They are having a good trip so far and I cannot wait to hear all about it.

I am still around

2011 robot Daisy Maize

I may not be working this year but I am keeping super busy with helping planning of Battle at the Border. This is an off season event The Holy Cows are co-hosting Saturday the 15th. I have been keeping extremely busy helping with this event.

In addition to the competition there is also some fund raising that is happening at the event, each team is suppose to bring in a bag of canned food for the San Diego food band and we will also be using PINK ubber tubes during the competition to help raise money for breast Cancer research.

Last weekend, after weeks of experimenting, the PINK tubes were finally painted. I used acrylic paint mixed with a texture medium and rolled on 2 coats of paint front and back on each tube.

Now I have to purchase items for the concession booth, order pizza, pack up my 4 page list of items I need to bring to the event and cheer on my favorite FRC team The Holy Cows.

How I spend my days

Since I do not have a job teaching this year I get to hang out and play wit this cutie sometimes. Today I got to take her to the beach park.

Love this

I am using this picture from the Internet. I love the feel of the military standing under the Stars and Stripes.

9/11 ~ 10 years later

My how far we have traveled in 10 years. Destruction, death, war, natural and other man made catastrophes including economic obliteration of a system we once believed would provide us with security. In the midst of the free-fall many of us found ourselves and decided to land in joy as it is free, always available, non-political and the path of least resistance. Remember to remember where we were and how far we've come.

Sitting in darkness

The power went out today so tonight we are sitting around in the darkness and I am using my hook with a built in light to work in some gifts.
They say the power wont be back on until maybe tomorrow night.

Day 5 favorite flower

Day 4- something new

Day 3 - Someone I love

Day 2 - Clouds

Day 1 self portrait

I am doing a 30 day photo challenge I say on a blog that they did last month but I just found it while blog surfing so I am doing it this month.

Beautiful Sunset

What happened to the sun.

Mt. Soledad

Yesterday Wyatt and I went to Sea Port village and goofed around immune way back I really wanted to go to Mt. Soledad. He was not excited about going to see a giant cross on the hill. Guess what he live it up there the views are amazing and everything looks so tiny except this giant cross that was built to honor all the veterans who lost their lives in all the past wars. If you have never been up there or or has been a while it is a great place to visit in San Diego.

Morning greeter

Every morning when I get up this is what I see out my kitchen window. Patiently he sits there not saying a thing until I get out of the bathroom, then the non stop crazed meowing begins until I let him in to eat. Be chows down on his crunchy food until I can get his canned food out for him.
I do look forward to my adorable view each morning.

Clean closet

I got very productive and cleaned and purged my closet. So I got rid of 2 bags for good will and got everything folded and color coded and sleeve length. Yeah, it is so much better!

Lunch Date

Today I had a lunch date with my 1super wonderful 16 year old son. Yup if it involves food I am great to hang with, if I am sitting around crocheting I am just the old lady mother.
I invited Wyatt for sushi because he and I are the only ones in our house who live it. We tried out a new place in Encinitas and it was pretty good. We shared a couple of rolls then Wyatt wanted some tempura shrimp. We had a great visit, now I know never to take a "lemon/yellow snow cone" from him. It's fun to laugh and joke with him.

Summer reading

Things are calming down a little in my life so I picked up a few books on my summer reading list. Reading is a great way to escape from everything for a little bit. My list has 10 other books on it so as soon as I finish these books I will share some other books.
What is on your summer reading list?

Hot Hot Hot

Today is the first full day in Indiana. It's 110, well that's what the car says and the asphalt in the parking lot is beginning to melt in big spots. Might need to go get an ice cold beer at the bar next door to the hotel.
Keep safe and cool.

Great pastime

Tonight Jeff came down and was asking if I still had his thousands of baseball cards, which of course I did so he and Wyatt started going thru. So much fun listening to them as they look at the cards.

Growing up and moving Forward

Wyatt,
Sometimes it feels like you're slipping away from me, growing up faster than I like.
You joyfully charge forward. Enamored by all that life offers. It is truly wonderful watching you! Yet, here I am watching you step ahead, as I follow behind.
It's all right, you run ahead. I'll take a moment or two to celebrate and cherish the road behind you.
I love you sweet boy.
Mom

Only in California

Beautiful week

It has been a beautiful week here in Encinitas. The weather is perfect and I have been very productive. I hope the weather is perfect for you.
I am getting ready for a quick trip to Indianapolis next week, I am sure it will be so humid and I will melt. . . Yes I am just that sweet.

Dinner out

Tonight I went out to dinner with my dear friend Sally. We were suppose to go to an amazing place in OB but they were having a farmers market and streets were blocked.
We decided to try this sushi place in Old Town called Harneys Sushi and it was amazing. We had roasted garlic edamame, Monkey brains, to start. I had the pink Pussycat drink and it was so yummy, it had champagne, watermelon, and cranberry. Then we are the Rollz Royce (pictured) then The Dank and an Orange Crush. So yummy you can never eat to much sushi.

Back to Children's Hospital

Today Wyatt had a follow up x-ray on his broken collar bone. We had great news the bone has a lot of new growth. He asked what he could do now and he can ride a bike but no skateboard, he can swim but no ocean. He wanted to know if he could throw at IRI. She said he needed to do some exercises so probably not. She had him do little circles bent over, he did them no problem. Circles got bigger and bigger until he was doing complete arm rotations with no problem. Then she made him do spider spider walks up the wall until his arm was way up the wall and his side was touching the wall as well. Again no problem. She said he was healing so well he could try throwing tubes at practice and see how it feels. He cannot lift anything heavier than 15 pounds and still has to be careful not to fall. His spirits were so lifted and he was sooo happy. I love seeing him happy again.

Sunny Day

Today is a beautiful day here in Encinitas! The weather is perfect, sunny, warm and 75. . . Perfect! I hope today is perfect for you too.

Love

Ok, I love these Skinny Girl Margaritas. They are only 35 calories per serving. They are super yummy and very strong but oh so delicious. Of you are looking for a cool low cal beverage this summer try one, or two or three.

Happy 4th of July

Today was the annual 4th of July parade down my street. It is so much fun. We had a giant BBQ and lots of yummy food.
Tonight the marine layer was a little thick so it was not easy to see the fireworks but the neighbor renters brought their own fireworks and did them on their deck. It was fun, illegal here in California but they looked great.