Saturday

Snow Mickey


My youngest daughter and I made a "Snow Mickey"...after shoveling out my car, of course! Tomorrow I'd like to attempt a snow fort. With all the drifts it shouldn't be too hard. I'm learning to roll with the punches, or at least roll with the snowflakes!

Thursday

Make it stop, make it stop, make it stop...

View from the Children's Room in the Library...overlooking Slocum Park.
It does look pretty, all this snow, but between working full time, mothering 3 teenaged girls and life in general, I have no time for snow. I hate the time it takes to clean my car, shovel it out and drive on slippery roads! With crazy Jersey drivers! It makes everything more difficult. Please, Spring, come soon! Please?
If anyone is in the mood for a quirky, funny, touching book, pick up Merrill Markoe's "Walking In Circles Before Lying Down". I'm loving it!

Wednesday

Beautiful Blog...



OK, one of the magical "Shutters Sisters" has started a blog and it is beyond lovely. She has an eye which is just incredible! The "Pink" picture is one of the invitations to her daughter's first birthday party...and of course I love the mini motel chair in the other photo. After looking at Jill's blog I'm going to have to put in some time tonight and do some plastic surgery on this one. Take a peek...you won't be disappointed!
www.bennettandcompany.blogspot.com

Sunday

Charcoal Ceiling...


These are the "Ralph" colors, suggested by the Rain Man of decorating herself. I think they would look great touched off by a charcoal ceiling...




I am obsessing over the charcoal ceiling in the above dining room shot...we are having our living room and dining room ceilings repaired after an absolutely disastrous go-round with some grant money we were eligible for and the contractor the city picked to do the work. He opened the roof then LEFT IT UNTARPED WHILE THERE WAS A VERITABLE MONSOON HAPPENING. If only someone had taken photos of me DANGLING CHRISSY, BEST FRIEND EVER, BY HER ANKLES OUT AN ATTIC WINDOW AS SHE ATTEMPTED TO SECURE A TARP OVER THE OPEN MAW OF MY ROOF!!! Not a bright spot in our home-owning history. It's funny how I have absolute guilt attacks if someone asks me to re-new a book for them (while I'm perusing the grocery store shelves) and I don't do it right away upon returning to work, yet there are people in this world who will leave your roof open to the tune of flooding your home from attic to cellar and not think twice about it.

In any case, I've been trying to figure out an appropriate design plan to tie in a charcoal ceiling to our Craftsman Bungalow dining room...it will come to me eventually. Perhaps even in time to have the ceiling guy do it! Along with having the ceilings patched and plastered I need to paint the dining room walls.

While hosting the delightful Sandra for dinner last night (homemade chicken enchiladas for her, veggie enchiladas for me thanks to genius chef 15 year old daughter) she, who eschews all talk/dreaming/planning of decorating, suggested the Ralph Lauren suede-finish paint in a perfect color. (see swatches above) She acted, afterward, as if she'd been struck by lightning. "What just happened? I don't even care about paint color. I didn't even KNOW about Ralph Lauren suede paint, I swear. What the hell was in that enchilada?". Delightful. She then said, "Well, you're not actually going to take my advice, are you? YOU'RE the one who likes to decorate. YOU'RE the one with 'the eye'". This all just proves that inspiration strikes where it likes, not where it's sought. That or there really was some magic in those enchiladas.

Friday

I'm not going to be in today...


Pop in a video and call it "Toddler Time"...

Sick Day Procedural:

Last evening: Got into bed early (had to catch up on the Real Housewives from last week so as to know what's the what this week). Fell asleep before new episode even hit the screen. Yay...sleeping, sleeping.

2:37 a.m. Middle daughter awakens me. Seems youngest daughter is sick. Like already thrown up in her bed sick.

2:42 Stripping bed, comforting upset, vomit laden child who is hugging the bowl like a frat boy.

2:58 Have re-settled puker, know there's no way I'll be falling back to sleep so traipse down to hang out with cat and watch "Snapped" a show which my family loathes - are they afraid I'll be next to Snap???

3:47 Up. Murder show. Cat ditched me.

4:07 Yay. "How Clean is Your House"!!! I feel like Martha Freaking Stewart after watching the filth people have surrounded themselves in. My personal faves broadcast on this show are overflowing cat boxes, overflowing ashtrays and overflowing stretch pants.

5:34 Check facebook. See some friends are actually awake and on. Leave sad status update about puke a thon. Receive instant sympathy and offers of "if there's anything I can do". How I love facebook.

6:07 Begin obsessing about calling out sick from work. KEEP IN MIND: 2 weeks ago I was sick, fever and all, went to work because that is a less stressful proposition than calling out sick, and my house got robbed. While I was at work. Sick.

Can't leave sick child home alone. Robbers may come back and steal her. Hate calling out sick because it's always fraught with drama. There's no one else to do Toddler Time. How will we do Toddler Time? Oh my God, how can there not be a Toddler Time? My suggestion would be to put out a box of wine and paper cups, turn the hokey pokey up as loud as it goes and have the best Toddler Time ever.

Speaking of calling out sick, can someone please tell me isn't it typical to call one's place of employment and not have to track your supervisor down at home to let it be known there will be no Toddler Time today??? Our (totally made-up) official policy is to call our supervisors before 8:00 a.m. Even though they don't come to work till 10. I've never had a job where you have to first try the cell phone (off) of supervisor, then talk to supervisor's adult son on their house phone (pleasantry, pleasantry, is your mom up and about?) then finally get supervisor out of shower just to say, UM, So very sorry but I won't be in today.
Allright, all, do have a wonderful day.

Monday

Ugly brown shelves no more...





We have a set of shelves in our kitchen which, for the past few years have annoyed me every time I walked past them. They were a really homely mud brown and seemed to be a catch-all for all sorts of detritus...now, freshened with a coat of white paint, they are quite cute if I say so myself.

Sunday

Does it make the world go round?






Happy Valentine's Day...may your day be brightened by love in some form...the love of wonderful friends, the uncompromising love of parents, the unconditional love of a child...the absolutely necessary but so often neglected love of ourselves. Do something nice for yourself today. You deserve it. You are loved.

Wednesday

Blizzard 2010






Well, it seems a state of emergency was prematurely called for our area. All that drama for a slow, drizzly sleet. THEN it started snowing...so now, we'll probably be out in it tomorrow when the roads and walkways are actually going to be far worse than today. My teen-chef daughter made a wonderful "Widow Tweed's Cheddar Soup" which we enjoyed throughout the day, so it was a cozy day spent with the family. Not a bad way to pass time. Though this weather makes me absolutely crave summer.
On top of being "sleeted in" today, a high school friend somehow (after two years of batting the idea around) got me to agree to do the Danskin Triathlon with her on Sandy Hook in September. I told her I am hers for the next six months, she must be in charge of training, motivating and coaching me through to September 11, the date of this event. So, we shall see how this all pans out! I'm pretty psyched to have a fitness goal as lofty as this one, hope the swimming doesn't "sink" me!

Blanca






Mmmmmm....white, soothing white. I have just got to get the mojo going to learn to make slipcovers. I will be slipcovering everything...