A wonderful place to work

Have I told you about how much I love where I work?  I think I’ve mentioned it before in a previous post.  Three plus years ago I decided to volunteer some time at our church.  I was placed as a volunteer doing some data entry for the newly opened Kids at the Creek preschool.  A few months later I was asked if I was interested in actually working part time for the preschool.  What? Get paid instead of volunteering?  Sure!

I started out working 2 half days a week.  Now I’m working 2+ full days a week.  I love my job!  I went from being a volunteer for the church to being the part time bookkeeper for the preschool.  I have two wonderful bosses, exceptional co-workers, and I’ve gotten to know our church staff a little bit better.

Today, we had our preschool staff Christmas Party.  We enjoyed a delicious breakfast provided by the directors, we had an awesome gift exchange, made Christmas wreaths, created hand made thank you cards and tags, decorated cookies, and just enjoyed each others company and fellowship.  It was truly a very fun day! 

At our gift exchange, you can “steal” an item from someone else up to 2 different times.  I had my first gift “stolen” but ended up with this wonderfully smelling candle and this awesome Jar Wrap.  What a very unique idea!

Look at this adorable gift card holder I made!  What a great idea!  It’s made with an envelope with the squared off flap, instead of the triangle one.  Note to Eve:  You need to make these!

These are the cute Thank You Cards I made.  So easy.  Made me wonder why I don’t make hand made cards more often.

This is the wreath I made.  The Wreath is real and we had tons of embellishments to add to it.  My bow is a little dorky, but Hey!  No one will notice since the wreath will sit behind the screen door.  I love getting a fresh wreath.  The smell is wonderful!  And since we have a fake tree, the real wreath kind of compensates.  (Or so I’m telling myself.)

The cookie decorating tips we got from my friend Sara were very cool!  We learned things like “flooding”, and adding water to the Wilton decorator icing to thin it out. 

 

And then, who doesn’t enjoy a cookie exchange?  I can’t wait to try one of each of these yummy looking cookies!  I know they won’t last long, so I better get some while I can!  ha ha

Today was a great start to the holiday season for me.  I haven’t been “feeling it” yet.  I’ve decorated the tree and the house, I’ve done the crazy Black Friday shopping, I’ve ordered and received our Christmas cards, and I’ve even wore my Christmas socks and Christmas earrings.  But today, with all the good fellowship with the women I work with, I think I’m finally getting in the Spirit of the Holiday Season!  Yay!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Friday Favorite Five – 11/20/2009

It’s been awhile since I’ve done my FFF – again!  So without further  ado, here are my FFF for this week:

1) Make Believe – Today after school, Sarah and her friends made a space ship out of a shower door box.  They had great fun drawing on the box with markers, using tissue boxes to hold up the wings, using inserts from a wine shipment as seats, and Tupperware bowls as helmets. How awesome in this day and age of video games, computers and IPods, that kids still remember how to play make believe!

2) My Book Holder – This one has been one of my FFF before, but this week I was able to use my book holder in a whole new way!  I was tired of having our (Bob’s) elliptical trainer be a dust collector, so have been trying to use it on the days I can’t get to the gym (which have been a lot lately).  However, there is no motivation to use it when a) it’s in the cold garage and b) it faces a shelf that needs organized.  That’s all I see when I’m out there working my butt off – all this crap that needs to have something done with it!  So, yesterday (after being house-bound for 3 days due to contractors and sick kids) I was ingenious and velcro’d my book holder to the elliptical so that I can read while working out!  Woot!  Is that awesome or what???

3) Clean closets – Another one from a previous FFF, clean closets make me happy!  As I was house bound this week, I decided that our closet needed organized and cleaned out.  My side wasn’t so bad, but our walk-in-closet had become a barely-get-in-the-door closet.  Bob’s side needed cleaned out in a major way, and boxes needed to be put up on shelves instead of on the floor where things got piled on them.  So, that’s what I did this week.  I know you didn’t see the before pictures (and believe me, I NEVER would’ve shown them), but I’m happy to post my after picture! 

4) Tastefully Simple—Have you heard of this company?  They make food products that only require 1 to 2 ingredients.  Everything from them is sooo yummy!  From their beer bread to their dips - I love it all!  I hate cooking, so having simple and easy things to make for dinner or to bring to a party is right up my alley!   A few weeks ago I hosted a TS party and received over $100 in free product!  I am so excited to get all my products so that I can be prepared for all the holiday festivities!

5) Surprise Trips – My husband, God love ‘im, surprised US ALL with a trip to Disneyland this past weekend.  He had to be in LA for a conference and decided that we should take the kids to The Happiest Place on Earth for the weekend.  Crazy man!  He had to convince me pretty hard – I am the planner in the family.  I don’t do well with spur of the moment trips.  I have to say though, we had a fantastic time!  The kids hadn’t been in about 5 years, and Sarah didn’t even remember ever having been there!  We enjoy 1-1/2 days of The Magic Kingdom and California Adventure.  Thank you honey!

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With Thanksgiving approaching next week, I hope everyone takes a minute to think about your Friday Favorite Five.  It’s always good to be thankful for the little things in life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Friday Favorite Five – October 23, 2009

What a week!  Lots of FFF discovered this week. Check ‘em out!

1) New T.V. shows – I have discovered two new comedy’s this season!  Glee and Modern Family.  These shows are great! 

Glee is about a high school Glee Club and the teacher who wants to make it hip.  The episode I just watched this week was about some star football players joining the club but getting razzed by their fellow teammates.  What was so funny is that they kept getting grape slushiess thrown in their faces by their teammates.  They have some great songs and the singers are amazing.  This is definitely being added to my DVR!

Modern Family is about three families who are all related.  Dad has married the younger, hot Columbian wife; daughter is married with a dorky husband and 3 kids; son has a life partner and they just adopted a baby girl from Vietnam.  Super hilarious!  Another great show to DVR!  The episode I just watched this week is where the daughter calls the new step mom a gold digger and the life partner of the son bonds with dad over football.  It was Laugh Out Loud funny!

Only bummer about these two show – both on at the same time/same night. Which brings me to my #2 FFF.

2) My DVR – I LOVE being able to record my favorite shows – Desperate Housewives, The Office, 30 Rock, Jon and Kate, Private Practice, Glee, Modern Family….  Now if only my Showtime and HBO shows would come back on!  Nothing better than folding laundry while catching up on that week’s shows.  And what’s even better, I can record them downstairs and watch them upstairs.  Sweet!

3)  Bottle Cap Necklaces by M3 Girl Designs – I just discovered these at a little toy store in downtown Snohomish.  They are interchangeable bottle caps used for necklaces, designed by this 12 year old girl, and her little sister, when she was in 5th grade.  They are so cute and trendy!  They come in several different designs, and I think you can even do a custom order.  These are perfect for the pre-teen girls.  Sarah and I bought 2 for a couple of her friends’ birthday’s.  I’m gonna HAVE to get Sarah one for Christmas.  These are just too super cute!!

4) Bobby’s Senior Pictures – Have you seen them on facebook yet?  He looks so grown up and handsome!  They turned out amazing and I can’t wait to see my final copies and my photo book!  Ellen at Beautiful You Portraits did a fantastic job!

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5) A Clean House – As usual this is ALWAYS a favorite of mine!   This week my house got cleaned, the laundry was all done, and even Sarah’s room was cleaned and organized!  Out with Polly Pockets, several bags of trash, and several more bags in the donation pile! Yes!  It’s such a nice feeling to know that at least one child’s room has been de-cluttered before the holidays begin!

Happy Friday everyone!

Friday Favorite Five – October 16th 2009

Better late than never! Here are my FFF for this week:

1) Candy Corn – Yummmm……  My personal favorite is the original candy corn and the pumpkins from the Harvest Mix.  I find myself eating all the pumpkins first, then all the white tops of the candy corn second.  I’ve made myself sick with eating candy corn!  This is definitely one of the best parts of Fall!

2) My Favorite Halloween Decoration – Thanks go to my Mother-in-Law for sending me this last year.  For as long as I can remember, she put this kitty cat and jack-o-lantern decoration out every Halloween.  Last year she shipped it to me and now it’s MINE!  Woo Hoo!  I love it!

3) Unexpected Flower Deliveries – Aren’t these beautiful?  What a wonderful surprise to open my door last week and find flowers….for me!  And the card is the best.  Thanks honey!  They brought a huge smile to my face!

4) Birthdays – Not just any birthday’s, but my children’s birthdays.  This weekend is Sarah’s 8th birthday!  No one loves birthdays more than Sarah!  It doesn’t matter if it’s her brother’s birthday, my birthday, a friends’ birthday, or especially HER birthday.  She loves them all!  It’s hard to believe that 8 years ago my beautiful baby girl was born.  Happy Birthday, Sarah Elisabeth!

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5) First Dates – This week I have been remembering Bob and my first date.  Why?  Because Bobby is going on his first date this weekend!  Not just any date, but to homecoming!  I’m so excited and nervous for him.  He’s going to have so much fun!

I remember Bob and My first date.  I was studying for my SAT test, and he convinced me to not study but to go to the high school basketball game with him that night. (If you know Bob, of COURSE it was basketball!).  I remember telling my dad “it’s not a date, it’s just Bob from choir”.  Well, 21+ years, 3 kids, 3 houses, 4 states,  a dog and cat, a mini van and a travel trailer later…….here we are anxiously watching our oldest prepare for his first date/dance.  Where have all the years gone?

Do you remember your first date?  Happy Friday everyone!

Scrapbooks

I am so excited!  I just got 11 of my 15 scrapbooks embossed with dates on their spines  This is something I’ve wanted to do…..since I started scrapbooking!

Looking at my bookshelf, I realized that I have completed 11 family albums and 1 album that shows our vacation time with Bob’s side of the family.  That’s a lot!  The family albums I now have titled and they look great.  I didn’t know how to title the vacation one, so it will have to wait.  I also have 1 album that was completed for me (my wedding album – Thanks Aunt Katie!), 1 album that is “in progress” because I’m not sure how to finish it (currently holds our Cancun, Mexico pictures from 2003.  Maybe a beach album?), and 1 album that I gave up on and hope to finish some day (Bobby’s school album). 

This is quite the accomplishment, if I do say so myself!  I remember when I got started scrapbooking.  My friend Kate invited me to this scrapbook “party”.  I remember telling Bob “I’m just going to be nice.  I am SO not creative.  I’m sure this won’t interest me at all!”   Famous last words, as it has been about 9 years and I’m still scrapbooking like crazy.  I have made albums for friends and family members.  I did a stint as a scrapbook product consultant and had my “own business” for awhile.  And, of course, I will be enjoying my 8th annual scrapbook retreat this coming March with My BFF’s!

Take a look at my beautiful album spines.  I just love them!  I will be starting my 12th family album this weekend at my friend and CM Consultant Shelley’s event, and I’m hoping to possibly do some smaller albums as Christmas gifts.

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Friday Favorite Five – Girls Weekend Edition – 9/18/2009

My long time BFF’s, Denise and Eve, came to visit last weekend.

We met about 10 years ago when we were all young/new mommy’s living in California.  We belonged to the Roseville Moms Club, and we were all in a playgroup with babies around the same age.  The first time I met my friend, Denise, playgroup was at my house and both of our babies (Alex and Tarik) were under a year old.

1. Remembering old times – I remember that playgroup.  I was super nervous about having a bunch of women that I barely knew coming to my house where the babies basically just slept or were nursed while the mommy’s carried on conversations.  Back then, I was super shy but was determined to make new friends since I was new to California and living away from family.  I remember Denise being so friendly and supportive and very interested in my thoughts about raising babies.  She knew I had an older child (Bobby was 8 by then) and told me I was the “experienced” one. I remember saying that having Alex was like having a first born all over again and that I didn’t feel very experienced.  Anyway, this weekend we talked about that first playgroup where we bonded as new mothers, helped each other relax about some child rearing issues and take a stand on others.  And how we’re still great friends all these years later.
   
2. Playing tourist  - I was so excited to have the girls visit me!  Denise has been out here before, but this was Eve’s first time visiting me since I had moved from CA.  I fly back every year for our scrapbook weekend in Bodega Bay.  But this was our first girls weekend where we played tourist and didn’t scrapbook one thing!  We started our trip off with the usual Seattle Sites –- Pike Place Market, Original Starbuck’s, Waterfront walk and Harbor Cruise. How fun to share your favorite spots with friends! 
   

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3. Experiencing New Things Together – It was a glorious weekend in Seattle, so we decided to head up to the mountains and take in Leavenworth – a little Bavarian Village in the Cascade Mountains. We stayed at this quaint little hotel right in town.  We had a great time walking through the little shops, eating German food, and laughing until our sides ached!  That night we went to a beer garden and listened to some live music from a great band called “Red Means Go”.  They were awesome!  We each bought one of their cd’s as a souvenir.  It had been a long time since any of us had sat and listened to live music from an up and coming band.  We had a great time!
   
   

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4. Laughing Until Our Sides Ached – There is nothing better than getting together with girlfriends and laughing so hard that you about pee your pants!  And that is just what we did all weekend long!  I swear it fills you up with sunshine and love and happiness when you can laugh that hard with a friend.  Whether we were giggling over text messages, snickering about honey buckets, cracking up about Papa Smurf taking Eve’s chair, or embarrassing ourselves because of the loud laughter over the bathroom locks in the German restaurant, laughter is always the best medicine and a requirement with good friends!
   
   (our nicknames for the weekend – written on the floor of the beer garden)
5. Spending Time With Those You Love – I love these ladies like sisters.  We’ve been through hard times, sad times, and happy times together.  We’ve shared our biggest fears, our greatest weaknesses and our most successful accomplishments.  We’ve scrapbooked together, shared books, cried and laughed together, and scrapbooked some more!  I am so honored that they took time out of their busy lives to come visit me!  With soccer games (3 kids each), girl scout meetings (3 troops between them), house hunting and just being away from family for a whole weekend – it makes me realize even more how important our friendship is.  Thank you gals!  And, Debby?  You’re coming next year for sure!!!!

 

Thanks Girls!  I miss you already!

The 2009/2010 Breakaway Book Club Selections

Here they are -- the new list for my book club!  We are entering our 4th year as a book club and I am so excited to read these new books.  Unfortunately, I have read 4 out of the 10 books.  But that just means I get to look forward to finally discussing them with a great group of women!

Check out our new list of books:

“The Thirteenth Tale: A Novel” by Diane Setterfield (432 pages)

“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows (290 pages)

“The Hour I First Believed: A Novel” by Wally Lamb (768 pages)

“Skylight Confessions” by Alice Hoffman (288 pages)

“Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time” by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin (349 pages)

“Time of My Life: A Novel” by Allison Winn Scotch (304 pages)

“The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins (384 pages)

“Astrid and Veronika” by Linda Olsson (288 pages)

“Firefly Lane” by Kristin Hannah (528 pages)

“The Art of Racing in the Rain: A Novel” by Garth Stein (336 pages)

Makes you want to join my book club, huh?  Feel free to read along with us!  We read 10 books in 12 months – we save the longest books for December and July.

Happy reading everyone!