Hoo Are You???? St.Patrick's Edition

1. What are a couple of your favorite green foods? I'm a big veggie eater, so pretty much any green veggie! I also love mint chip icecream!!!

2. Do you decorate for St. Patrick's Day? Yep, just posted about it! I just love my new mantel-all decked out!

3. Do you have Irish in you? Not that I know of.
4. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day? When the kids were little, I always made sure they wore green on St. Patrick's Day. I still try to wear green! :O)

5.Use one word that represents each letter in the word LUCK in your life! L-ove
U-nderstanding
C-aring
K-indness

                                                           Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

St. Patrick's Day Mantel

I picked up a little more molding for the DIY mantel project and Dad came by earlier this week and put the finishing touches on it. I LOVE it!!! Of course, I couldn't wait to get it decorated for St. Patrick's Day.

I also framed this St. Patrick's Day printable from Pinterest to put in the kitchen.

52 Photos/ Work

Week #9- WORK {our most recent fundraiser}

I'm a bit behind again this week, why is life so busy????? I had a little trouble coming up with a "work" photo as I am off from work until next month {ugh, next month, that sounds so close!}, but I've been off since October so I really shouldn't complain should I?
Since fundraising for Nathan's Senior Trip is taking up alot of my time these days, I decided to combine this post as my photo of the week, and show what our latest fundraiser was. We took orders for pizzas, and yesterday, we assembled and delived 130 pizzas {in 2 hours I might add!}. We were too busy to stop for pictures, but I did manage to get this one. Fundraising is hard 'WORK"....but what a great cause. They did really well on this pizza bake- a little closer to Disney!

Weekend Catch-Up March 06

Peter and I decided on a whim to go to MD for the weekend, so after work on Saturday, we hit the road. We met Logan at his apartment, and after getting caught up a bit, we headed to Outback for dinner. Unfortunately, Logan's GF Lindsey was working her last night at her old job, so she couldn't join us. We did get to see her the next day before we headed home though. We stopped by our hotel to check in first. I got a great deal on our room at the Courtyard Marriott using Priceline. We had a bit of a wait at the restaurant, so we were starving by the time we were seated! Logan & Peter got the seared tuna app.....Nathan usually orders this too, they love that stuff....me...not so much! It looks kind of yucky to me! I ordered an app too, but as my entree. Have you had Outback's Coconut Shrimp??

YUM!!!!

I also had a Caesar salad...and they both got steak....yum as well!!

It was nice to spend a little time with Logan. Even though we talk on the phone everyday, I still miss him, especially our family dinners. Dinnertime is big at our house. It's those few minutes in our day when we turn off the phone and the tv, and spend a little quality time with each other. It was a big deal at my house when I was growing up too. Mom always had a good home cooked meal every evening. I looked forward to our dinnertime, even though back then, life didn't seem as quite as hectic as it is now. And after dinner, we would linger at the table and just talk and laugh. I have such good memories of that time! Peter grew up with the same great home cooked meals, but his family just ate whenever they wanted to, not always gathering at a certain time. When we got married, even before we had the boys, we started the tradition of dinner time at the table. We've continued this tradition over the years {almost 29 to be exact}, even though our family has gone through many different stages. We do occasionally have dinner in front of the tv, if one of us can't make dinner due to work or some other activity, or if we are having something quick for dinner, but for the most part you'll find us gathered around the table. I hope the boys will carry on this tradition, but somehow I think they probably won't. It is definitely a different time, everyone seems busier, and families seem to be more disconnected, it's a shame really, what could possibly be more important than time spent with those you love the most?
Geesh....did I get sidetracked or what? Sorry!
That brings me back to dinner, everything was delicious, and it was really nice to spend time with Logan.

I only managed to get a few pictures. My family hates having their picture taken {me included}, but I've told them when I get my new camera...look out!!!They will pose for pictures...or else!
Peter and I had planned to see "The Vow" at the movies, but since Logan could join us for the movie too, I asked if they'd like to see "Act of Valor". We made a good choice.

We dropped Logan off at his apartment and then headed to Walmart to pick up a few things before calling it a night.

The next day we did some shopping and had lunch. We stopped by to see Logan and Lindsey before we headed back home. She started her new job on Monday and was a little nervous/excited. I know she'll do just fine! Logan heads back to work on Wednesday for 3 weeks...ugh! so, I'm glad we got to see them this weekend.

I picked up a few things for some projects I want to do...so check back soon to see what I'm working on!!!

Birthday Wishlist

MARCH: It's my birthday month!!! Not only that, but it's March 20th- the first day of SPRING! How cool is that? The older I get though, the less fuss I like done for my birthday {shhhhh! I'll be 47...UGH!} I am thankful though, that I do have lots of family & friends who always remember my birthday and make me feel special. My birthday wishlist is very short this year........I really, really want a new camera! I currently have a Nikon Coolpix point & shoot, and while it takes a decent picture for the average picture taking person, it doesn't quite do the job for a blogger! I love blogging and I love reading other blogs as well. I'm especially drawn to blogs that are full of awesome photos. So, I've been doing my homework. What type of camera am I looking for??? When I first started researching, I immediately went to a Nikon - D3100 14.2-Megapixel Digital SLR Camera

Then I kept reading about "bridge" cameras. The camera that takes high quality pictures like the one above, but is easier to use for a beginner like me, and the price is much lower. I've been looking at this one.

Olympus 14MP 36x Optical Zoom Digital Camera

Description: Up close and personal. Ready to see your favorite subjects in a whole new way? Reach for the SP-810UZ digital camera. Its incredible 36X optical zoom lets you get closer, more detailed shots than ever before. All in bright, beautiful 14 megapixel detail for photos so realistic that they seem to jump off the screen.

Make the most out of every shot. From a Beauty mode that removes unwanted wrinkles and blemishes, to a Pet mode that automatically tracks even the peskiest of critters, the SP-810UZ gives every subject the attention they deserve. It even captures wide-reaching panoramas with in-camera stitching, and full 720p HD video for memories in motion.

Picture-perfect gift. The SP-810UZ puts the control, precision, and pure photo power of a DSLR camera in your hands--or the hands of your favorite shutterbug. You'll be giving the ultimate lightweight, user-friendly, point-and-shoot experience. This complete kit--featuring a 4GB SD memory card, camera case, computer software, and more--includes everything a photographer of any level needs to get started. And it's all at price that's easy to adore!

I'm seriously thinking about getting the bridge camera, since I will be able to use it and hopefully, learn more about photography without getting frustrated. I still haven't ruled out the SLR, I don't want to be sorry that I just didn't go ahead and get the nicer camera. I could probably learn to use it right? Hmmm....what to do....okay photographers out there { or even new camera owners that are still learning} I would appreciate any input on this before I buy. Thanks!!!

P.S. As I am writing about my spring birthday coming up in a few weeks, I'm looking out the window at a light snowfall. :O( It looks very wet, so I'm hoping it doesn't stick....NO SNOW IN MARCH pleeeeasssssee!!?

Monogram Monday: Giveaway Link

Hop on over to the life of rylie for a giveaway!!! Check it out & enter now!!


Giveaway~*~A $50 Giftcard to Initials, inc.!~*~

52 Weeks of Organinizing: Closets/Spring Cleaning

LET'S GET ORGANIZED!!!
Week #4: Closet Organization & Spring Cleaning
A couple of years ago, I decided to finally get rid of our clunky, matchy bedroom furniture. I didn't like the look, yet I didn't know what I wanted to replace it with either. Another problem in our bedroom was, while we had a double closet, it had a tiny single door that hindered finding anything and was extremely difficult to organize. One day, I realized it was finally time for a new look. I donated our bed, mattresses, dresser w/ mirror "hutch" {yep, very 80's to say the least}, and the matching nightstand, to the b&b where I work. This left us with the tall dresser {pictures of this project will show up in a future blog post}, just big enough to hold Peter's clothes. It was also time to "expand" the closet-well, add double doors anyway. Our bedroom is on the small side, so of course I'll do anything to make it look bigger-hence our addition of sliding mirrored doors. Now before you roll your eyes, cut me a little slack, I do know that mirrored closet doors are on the "don't" list of most decorators these days, but for our bedroom, they did just the trick....our room looks so much bigger now! I also added a closet organizer that holds all of my clothes nicely, but unfortunately, it has gotten way out of hand over the winter and had become a cluttered mess. I brought it to bear this week and finally got it organized {again}. I also decided to "spring clean" a little differently this year by doing one room per week. I've spent this week in our bedroom, working a few hours each day, but I finished it today, and it looks so good and was much easier doing it this way. Here's a look:

before

after

before

after

after

I used a pants hanger for my purses

the not-so-chic mirrored closet

 Still no headboard...see my headboard ideas here

 bought this Martha Stewart bedding at KMart a few years ago...love the mocha & jade

 for now, this metal grill and sconces are filling in for the future headboard.....

more to come.................