misc.

Hang on...this post is all over the place.  I haven't updated in awhile because all I can think to tell you is that I have been spending a lot of time vacuuming.


***


Chuck and I invested our Monday evenings in The Bachelor.  I had read some of the spoiler sites out there so I knew what was coming.  Really it was no surprise.  Courtney couldn't keep her hands off of Ben and Ben couldn't keep his eyes off of her. 

One morning in the store, right after The Final Rose aired....

 a customer yelled out, "IT'S COURTNEY!"

Apparently she wasn't lying when she said she was an international model.
And she found so many ways to tell us...and so many times to insert that in the conversation. 

Next time you're in a store that sells Brighton, check her out. 

I work around this charm bar daily and I never noticed it was Courtney.



***

 

The weather has been perfect a few nights so we've been trying to enjoy some evenings in the back yard.  Harry hangs out with us.  He's funny.  He's huge and destructive, but he's funny.  I keep telling myself that he's still a puppy even though he's 70 pounds.

Half on, half off.


***

Sitting at a stop light near my house I saw 2 bunnies in the clouds. 

They were perfectly formed but by the time I got the cell phone out

and took the picture the clouds were dissipating.

Do you see them? 


***

As I mentioned, I am spending way too much time these days washing muddy towels and vacumming up dog hair.  It's Lab/Border Collie mix shedding season.

 If you're contemplating getting a huge, hairy dog....don't. 
It's no secret that I didn't think this through.
And yes, I'm in love with this dog, but oh, my gosh....I vacuum and by the time I put the vacuum cleaner away, there are more hair bunnies floating around.

Call before you come by so I can vacuum.

It rained for days and days which made for a layer of mud on the kitchen floor.

  Mud dries and turns to dirt. 

Dirt floats and turns to dust. 

 Dust stays put until someone wipes it away.

  Someone is busying vacuuming.

***

Will was home for Spring Break and took this picture of a chewed up basesball

(guess who chewed it?). 

 Will can make the simplest photo look like art. 

 ***



I got all of the Easter stuff out.  Well, not all of it.  I scaled way back. 

There are the cutest Easter decorations at the store, but I only bought one new thing.

It's way easier to dust a glass cloche than to dust little eggs and bunnies...
so there's a great reason to use glass cloches.


***

I spend all my days at work and all my evenings loving on or cleaning up after this....

***

The best part about the last two weeks?

I got to see a new baby girl get her first shampoo.

Addison Kenlie is here and she is perfect.  The mama hens at Magpies are beyond excited to have a new baby to watch grow up. 

I drive right by Addison's house on my way to work...and it's all I can do to NOT stop by and get a quick hold.  I am trying to remember my boundaries.  wink

***

Harry lays by me in the morning while I dry my hair and get my makeup on.  He leaves periodically and brings back a toy.  We play tug-of-war for a few seconds.  Then he'll leave again and get another toy.  This goes on and on as I continue to get ready for work.  The other day, the 3rd toy he brought me to play with was this.......

That would be a sprinkler head.

I thought it was sort of funny.

Chuck didn't think it was funny at all.

How is Harry supposed to know it's a sprinkler head?

It's the same shape as a chew bone and some of his other chew toys.

"whoops"

A New Baby

I have some very good friends in my life that are young enough to be my children.  One in particular, is the manager at my new job.  She is a beautiful, kind and smart 24 year old.  She is pregnant with her first child and it has been fun watching her grow these last few months.

She has allowed all of the mother hens at the store to rub her growing belly and look at pictures of her nursery as it was coming along.  The walls were painted, the bedding was purchased, the crib was delivered, accessories and curtains were gathered. 

She continued to look for some art for the room and couldn't find just what she wanted.  Something shabby chic, maybe cherry blossoms?  Maybe birds?  Her bedding was a khaki color linen with white details...and the walls a soft, soft pink with white bead board. While frustrated one day (and a few hormonal tears on the edge of her sweet brown eyes), I offered to paint her something....she said "please!"....I painted something. 

The quote is from the 1905 hymn, "His Eye Is On The Sparrow"

I decided to make the edges a little whimsical...

and to pull in the brown of the bedding with the pinks in the room.

Why should I feel discouraged,why should the shadows come,

Why should my heart be lonely,and long for heav'n and home,

When Jesus is my portion?My constant Friend is He:

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

Refrain:  I sing because I'm happy, I sing because I'm free,

For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

"Let not your heart be troubled, " His tender word I hear,

And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;

Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see;

His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches me;

His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches me.

Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise,

When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies,

I draw closer to Him, from care He sets me free;

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

~Civilla D. Martin, 1905~

Gospel Hymn

She sent this picture of the nursery to me from her cell phone ....the picture isn't hung yet, but it seems to work.   I hope she knows that if she ever tires of it, she can use it for firewood. A lot of love went in to this for that sweet baby girl that's on her way.  I haven't painted in forever and it was nice to have something to paint.  Especially for someone so special to me....and her baby girl.


In fact, that baby girl is being born today. 

Buh Bye

Friday came way too quick.  It was a fast 3 days

and Friday was the day of departure. 

Buh Bye Hotel Room with Room Service.

Buh Bye California and your houses on the hills.

Buh Bye beautiful blue skies and chilly weather in the 50's.

Four days in Newport Beach was not enough time to see and do all I wanted to see and do.  I actually never stepped foot on the beach and it was within eyesight.  I would have loved to have a couple of days to rent a car and just drive up and down Pacific Coast Highway.  But this was a quick trip and I got to spend almost 3 full days with Debbie and that was the best part of the trip for me.  We even departed from the same airport and got to squeeze in one more quick visit with them near our gate.

Chip and Debbie......thanks for making this visit happen

on a very last moment's notice.

 

The sweater I had on had shiny gold metallic thread running through it.  My body scan showed lots of yellow boxes...so I was pulled over and given some physical affection.  The female agent was called over to do my full body pat down.  But that didn't stop the male agent from watching. 

Here's a hint for you travelers out there:  Do not wear anything that has bling or metallic thread running through it.  Unless, you are lonesome and want someone to just touch you. 

And yes, her hands went there.

 

Dear Jen

My last post was about our visit to Balboa Island and dinner at Javiers on the Newport coast of California.  My Silver Bella sister and blogging friend, Jen of The Cottage Nest, expressed some disappointment at not seeing pictures of the cute cottages on the island....and the botox enhanced blondes at Javiers, our dinner spot....as seen in her comment below. 

Jen Mar 5, 2012 03:58 AM

I found myself so disappointed while reading this. How could there be no pictures of the cottages? How? How could there be no pictures of the botox enhanced blondes? How?

I'm glad you had such a wonderful trip. It sounds like it was just what you needed.

I am disappointed, too, Jen.  I am not a real photographer, I just play one on trips.  But the big camera gets so heavy, that I get in a bad mood......and usually I make Chuck carry it...which puts him in a bad mood.  So I ended up on the island with just a cell phone and honestly, never even took that out to take any pictures.  

At dinner, I did take my big camera, but the flash was a little obnoxious. The last thing I needed to do in that place full of botox enhanced blondes was draw attention to myself with a big flash of my camera.  I really didn't need Chuck to look at me, then look at them and realize he is not really married to a bombshell.  Jen, I hope you understand. 

However, I have googled some images for you so you get a feel for what I saw. 

Here a just a few of the cottages for sale right now on Balboa Island....

Some of these are a great deal at just under $3,000,000.  A great deal if you don't mind a stackable washer and dryer in your master bedroom closet that now has no room left because there's a stackable washer and dryer in it.  But let's get real, if you have $3,000,000 to drop on a cottage, you can probably afford to buy new clothes when the others get dirty.

And now for an image of botox enhanced blondes (and to be fair, some brunettes) similar to those I saw in the bar of Javiers.  I was not actually in the bar....but I had to pass through it to get to the Ladies Restroom.  I got through there as quickly as possible, because I know better than to have my backside next to any of those.

This is very similar to what I saw in that bar....only a couple of the girls had on skin tight (duh, of course) leggings with short cropped tops.  Leaving nothing to the imagination.  Where's the fun in that?

Jen, I hope this helps with the disappointment.  I was disappointed also that I didn't have more pictures.  Now that I've googled images of cute cottages and blonde bombshells,

I've gone from disappointment to depression. 

 

Wilma's Patio, Balboa Island, Please

Thursday was Balboa Island for another Play Date with Debbie.  Chuck...meetings.  Very important meetings.  I asked for a taxi to take me to Balboa Island, Wilma's Patio...where Debbie would meet me for breakfast.  Wilma's Patio has been around since 1975...which isn't forever but it's a very long time.  And Balboa Island is very well known as a tourists' spot. 

I tell you this, because when I got in the taxi outside of my hotel and said...

Me: Wilma's Patio, Balboa Island, please.

Taxi Driver:  Balboa Island?

Me:  Yes.  Wilma's Patio on Balboa Island.

T.D.:  Where is Balboa Island?

Me:  You don't know?  Uh......It's uh.  Balboa Island (saying it louder...because....uh....what else could I do?)  Hang on, let me call my friend.  (I'm thinking what the he$$?)

Me:  Debbie?  My driver needs to know where Balboa Island is....

T.D.  You got address?

Debbie:  What the he&&?  He doesn't know where Balboa Island is?  Does he have a navigation system? 

(good point...she's a smart one)

Me:  Do you have a navigaton system?

(He reaches in his console for a cell phone......looking down at his cell phone......while driving......)

Me, Debbie and the driver are all googling Wilma's Patio....I kept saying Jamboree....I think it's on Jamboree.  I've only been in town 2 1/2 days and I've picked up on this much information. 

Long story, short.  He got me there alive.  But what is it with taxi drivers who live in a tourist hot spot and don't know where places are?  And don't have a navigation system in their car?  Taxi Driver meet 2012.  Even I, who can't remember sh*t...know how to navigate around a strange place.  Move over.

And the taxi fare was $12.00 and I only had 20's so he got a huge tip for not knowing nothing.  It's working for him as Dr. Phil would say.

Debbie and I enjoyed a great breakfast and a long, long conversation about anything and everything.  And yes, it was our third day together.  She's that kind of friend.

For a point of reference, our hotel was near the W in W Coast Hwy by Via Lido Nord.

This is where the taxi driver picked me up. 

Balboa Island was probably only 2 to 3 miles away...if that. 

You could find it, right?

Balboa Island is just that...an island... in the middle of the bay and there is one main drag with shops and small restaurants.  The rest of the island is full of cute cottages where the rich and LUCKY live.  It looks like a movie set.  Adorable.  Unfortunately I took no pictures. 

After another fun day of shopping and eating together, Chip picks us up and returns me to my hotel.  This night we have free to go out with Debbie AND Chip.  Finally, our foursome reunites.  So after Chuck finishes with his meetings we head back out. 

I had an hour to walk around and take a few pictures of the hotel we were staying in...

Swim lessons going on.  I walked past this to get some more pictures and heard the coach ask the kids if they had any questions.  One swimsuit clad girl, in the pool, raised her hand.

She wondered if she could go to the bathroom.

He told her yes, but she had to swim to the other side to get out. 

Probably not the question he was looking for.

Chuck and his very important meeting people.

They were staring at some new meters on a computer screen.

Riveting.

For dinner, Chip takes us to Javiers (http://www.javiers-cantina.com/). Where all the women are blonde, implanted and recently botoxed.  Finally!  A little California people watching.  It reminded me of my clubbing days.....a thousand years ago.  All the women parading around the bar with the men checking them out.  And the lady in the restroom who hands you a towel and then darts her eyes over to the tip jar.  Except we didn't have implants and botox.  We just depended on very dark lighting.  Very dark.

Javiers...to the right is an area with firepits and

seating to wait for a table. 

Straight ahead is the bar where

 implants and botox are required.

Very cool light fixtures....looked like black lace. 

This is taken with a flash.

Taken with no flash.

The flash seemed to bother the Botoxed.

I'm sure they confused me with paparazzi.

Not drunk...just no flash.

I tried a Newport Sunset Martini. 

One older, one younger, same earrings.

From Magpies (shout out!)

On our way back to the hotel.  Last night in California. 

boo hoo