{ January 26th, 2011 -- 26/365 } -- No, I'm Not a Bootlegger

{ January 26th, 2011 }

26/365

I almost got myself in trouble today. No, this is NOT a bottle of hooch--it's not even alcohol! It's a bottle of Vanilla coffee syrup that I got from Starbuck's this weekend.

But you couldn't convince that people I passed at work today! When I carried the bottle in, people asked, "Whiskey? At work?"

Leaving for the day, I got stares like I was a crazy person and "Alcohol? At work?"

Oi.

I think that Starbucks might need to change their bottle design or else I might get myself into trouble, Ha!

I actually thought twice and hid it underneath my purse while I was driving this morning, "just in case" a cop happened to see it and mistook it for an open bottle of alcohol too.

I promise I'm not a bootlegger. ; )

{ January 25, 2011 -- 25/365 } -- What I'm Reading

{ January 25th, 2011 }

25/365

I can almost never sit through reading just one book. I've always got at least two going at one time, reading little bits of each one here and there.

I'm currently reading John C. Maxwell's, "Make Today Count--The Secret of Your Success Is Determined By Your Daily Agenda" and Donna Partow's, "Making Money From Home--How to Run a Successful Home-Based Business."

One of my favorite sections from Maxwell's book says:

"The greatest handicap a person has is not realizing his potential. What dreams do you have that are just waiting to be fulfilled? What gifts and talents are insdie you that are dying to be drawn out and developed? The gap between your vision and your present reality can only be filled through a commitment to maximize your potential."

One of my favorites from Partow's book says:

"The level of success you can hope to achieve is proportional to the amount of risk you are willing to handle."

Both books have dog-eared pages and are full of highlighting and notes written down in the margins. One has potential ideas scribbled at the front as they come to mind.

Are there any favorite books that YOU have that you'd like to share?

{ January 24th, 2011 } -- 24/365

{ January 24, 2011 }

24/365

When life hands you lemons, make lemonade....or at least a really good lemon meringue pie. ; )

I've been guilty of doing it--lamenting over troublesome circumstances when they come my way. I just did that this weekend. But how much more sweet to turn a bad situation around and make it into something good.

I had to stop and refocus myself this weekend and tell myself that it's often not the circumstance in my life that needs changed, but my attitude towards it.

So, when life hands you those puckery little handfuls of sour, find a way to glean something good from it and turn the negative into something positive.

Or you could eat the lemon if you wanted to....but I don't recommend it. ; )

Here's to creating a positive outcome in the midst of a bad one!

{ January 23rd, 2011 -- 23/365 } -- Beauty All Around Me

{ January 23rd, 2011  }

23/365

Nature.

So basic and simple and yet so beautiful and full of detail and wonder.

I was busy rushing about my day as I'm accustomed to doing day in and day out, when the sound of something stopped me dead in my tracks.

It was the sound of a little tiny sparrow belting out a hearty melody of chirp-filled music. I didn't dare open the wooden blinds on the windows so as not to stir him, but I stopped what I was doing and leaned over to hear him singing.

I've been so busy lately that I haven't been stopping to notice the little things like that in nature. Things so tiny, seemingly insignificant and yet so powerful in their repose.

I haven't noticed for a long time.

But, today I did.

I made sure that I did.

And I loved the beauty of detail that I saw around me. I felt the warmth of the sun on my neck. I saw the textures in a tree's sturdy trunk. My eyes delighted in seeing the whimsical little tendrils of a simple bush.

Today, I saw beauty all around me.

♥

{ January 21st, 2011 -- 21/365 } -- When Time Stood Still

{ January 21st, 2011 }

21/365

This evening I saw the most glorious sunset across an open field. I love how the sun dances golden streams of light through the leaves and almost seems to fill the air itself with hues of gold and amber.

Something about it is so rich in remenisence and memories. Something about sunsets like this reminds me of the echoes of my past of people who were very close to me and stirs my heart within me.

These golden rays whisper contentment and peace to me. It quiets the inside of me, makes me take a moment and pause...and be grateful for all that I am blessed with. ♥ : )

PS: Here is another picture from yesterday. It's not part of my 365, but it was too pretty to resist posting!

{ January 20th, 2011 -- 20/365 } -- Every Girl Loves a Pair of Cute Shoes

{ January 20th, 2011 }

20/365

I am a total girly-girl. { Sorry for all you guys reading this--this is probably going to be reaaally boring--but for all of you girls with a shoe fetish, you'll understand my post and love me for it, ha! }

I'm also a girl that loves a good bargain. I found these adorable black wedges (they're a good 3" tall) with cork bottoms at Payless! They have been carrying American Eagle for awhile now and I love buying their shoes because they last for a long time (at least for Payless shoes).

Right now Payless is having their BOGO special--buy 1 get 1 free and I was in terrible need of new shoes (not just wistful buying, which it often is) and I found these cute springy wedges.

Anyone else like buying shoes too? ; )

{ January 19th, 2011 -- 19/365 } -- Luv My Bling!

{ January 19th, 2011 }

19/365

Today I saw "MY" store at the San Tan Mall.

Filled with rhinestones galore and amazing sparkly designs, this place was my dream store. There are custom shirts and jeans, blingly jewelry and watches, decorative picture frames and everything a girlie-girl could ever want...and the prices are AMAZING! ♥ ♥ ♥ Quickly falling in love with this store!

http://www.luvmybling.com/

I will be writing a blog about their grand opening sometime this week, so STAY POSTED! : )

{ January 18th, 2011 -- 18/365 } -- Living On Starbucks

{ January 18th, 2011 }

18/365

I have been quite the tired chica lately. I work a full day of work during the daytime and then almost a full night of work during the night time each night after coming home.

I find myself living off of Starbucks sometimes...

...and loving it!

Yum.

My newest favorite drink is a hot white chocoloate mocha with a squirt of toffee nut (no whipped cream).

I can see first hand how easy it is to become addicted to coffee!!

I love how the one side of my cup seemed to be calling me:

"YOU."

Almost like it was pointing a finger at me and saying, "YOU need a cup of coffee tonight. YOU look might tired. YOU need some Starbucks."

Yeah, I hear you Starbucks and I soo needed you tonight. Thank you for the temporary wake-me-up.

{ January 17, 2011 -- 17/365 } -- Learning More Photoshop Techniques

{ January 17th, 2011 }

17/365

Sitting at my computer learning new Photoshoshop techniques. Yes, we all learn step by step by step. : ) Learning some of the more advanced techniques that I wasn't aware of.

{ January 16th, 2011 -- 16/365 } -- Spring Is Here!

{ January 16th, 2011 }

16/365

Spring is here!

Well, at least it seems to be that way. We still have awhile to go with winter, but Spring is already giving a dress rehearsal and is showing up in many ways.

There are shoots of bright green grass coming up through the dead stuff that dries up every winter, the sun is starting to shine warmer, fruit is starting to grow on the trees and there are doves cooing on our fences again.

Less than a week ago, I wanted winter to hang around for awhile. But now that I've seen some of the beauty of Spring, I want it to come quickly. It is so beautiful and the warm air has been leaving me chipper and bouncy on the inside.

A co-worker of mine commented the other day that I seemed to be really happy because I was smiling a lot and I think that Spring has something to do with it. I feel so happy and light when the sun is shining bright and can't help but smiling. It has a way of making you feel all happy and sparkly on the inside. : )

So, I'm welcoming it with a big embrace--can't wait for it to make its grand entrance and put on its full production in all its glory! : )

{ January 15th, 2011 -- 15/365 } -- "Little Roscoe"

{ January 15th, 2011 }

15/365

"Little" Roscoe.

He's *almost* 9 months old. I also can't believe that he's as big as he is for still being less than a year old!

I have to stop and remind myself of that when he's "behaving like a puppy".

I have to remind myself that he's still a baby in dog years. A BIG puppy, but still a puppy.

Today he got all muzzled up to go to puppy class with my Mom who's been taking him and working with him. We've been trying to get him more socialized with other dogs. He went to the dog park the first time ever a few days ago and seemed to be (for the most part) okay with it.

We're also trying to break him of his naughty new sniffing habit with humans. Friends and family have been "violated" a few times by his curiosity and letting his nose go a'sniffing where it shouldn't be going (in the rear).

Oh Roscoe. What am I going to do with you? I have to remind myself that he's still learning and still growing.

He knows how to sit, lay down, shake and "high five", so I'm hoping we can teach him a lot more as he continues to grow and get older.

You may not be able to teach an old dog new tricks, but you sure can still teach the young ones...even if they look older than they are. ; )

{ January 14th, 2011 -- 14/365 } -- Believe In the Beauty Of Your Dreams

{ January 14th, 2011 }

14/365

I'm such an advocate of people following the dreams in their heart and doing what they were created for. I love seeing other people's dreams come true! : )

Don't be afraid to let your dreams soar! Let them fly as high as they will go. Don't be afraid to believe in the beauty of your dream.

Dream it. Believe it. Speak it. Do it. Love it. ♥

{ January 13th, 2011 -- 13/365 } -- Finding the Nerve to Sing....

{January 13th, 2011}

13/365

This is a microphone.....GULP!

One of my biggest fears EVER is singing in front of people. I'm terrified. I can talk to crowds filled with hundreds of people, but ask me to sing for a small crowd of one and I totally panic and freeze up. The words suddenly find a way to escape my mouth and I'm left with a frightened deer-in-the-headlights look.

Not a peep comes out.

Oh my yikes.

One of my goals for this year is to sing in front of someone. I bought my sister and brother-in-law's used karaoke machine and I'm determined to use it....WITH someone. It's time that my I let someone else hear my voice (no matter how warbly or off key) and not just the walls of my car.

But, oh my yikes, how terrified I am!!

I may get brave enough to post a clip of me singing online someday, but for now I just need to get past the part of opening my mouth. Right now it's clamped shut with fear.

I'm even getting tense and stressed WRITING about doing this. How am I ever going to DO it? I guess just like everything else--one baby step at a time. ; )

Okay fear, you better hide! Here I come!

GULP.

{January 12th, 2011 -- 12/365 } -- Wishing That Winter Would Stick Around

{ January 12th, 2011 }

12/365

Wow, I can't believe that it's already the middle of January! This year already feels like it's going by quickly. I want to hold on to winter just a little bit longer! : )

I want a few more weeks of icy chilly air in the morning where you can see your breath in front of you, the smell of pine trees and the coziness of staying inside, sipping on a hot drink while looking out at a landscape that seems to have transformed into muted colors for the season.

Stick around winter...even if just for another week or two. We'll miss you all too soon when summer comes toting its blazing hot heat.

I'll have to give that groundhog a talk when he pops his head out of the ground in a few weeks on Groundhog's Day.....

{January 11th, 2011 -- 11/365 } -- A Bowl of Sugary Goodness

{ January 11th, 2011 }

11/365

No thought provoking writings tonight.

Just an earlier snack attack for some Cocoa Pebbles. I've been trying to be more conscientious of my eating habits by eating healthier and by eating more slowly (paying attention to what I'm eating and taking time to enjoy it, not just wolf it down in a hurry...something I'm notorious for since I'm always on the go). I'm also drinking lots more water. Toting around a bottle of water has become a fashionable thing for me.

I've already lost about 4-5 pounds this week. (Yay, victory!)

One of my guilty pleasures is giving into a bowl of cereal instead of noshing on ice cream or some other higher-calorie treat. I normally eat a healthier cereal, but tonight I was craving le chocolate. I could normally care less about chocolate, but tonight it was calling me. ; )

So, into a bowl of flaky chocolately goodness, my spoon went....and yum, did that ever satisfy my craving.

Now, back to chugging my water and eating healthy goodness. ♥

{January 10th, 2011 -- 10/365 } -- Happily Ever After Begins TODAY

{ January 10th, 2011 }

10/365

Sigh... ♥ I still believe in "Happily Ever Afters," though differently than I used to.

I have my "head in the clouds, with my feet planted firmly on the ground."

I bought this frame years ago in hopes that I'd be able to fill it someday and believe that...*someday*....I will. : )While I'm still a single gal and still haven't found someone who's life is a good complimentary to my own, I've observed something in others that I think it such a key ingredient to succesful marriages.

And that key seems to be giving.

Not monetary.

No, something different. Something more.

It's sacrificial giving.

Loving when the other is acting unloveable.

Forgiving, even when they don't deserve it.

Staying committed no matter what.

Putting each other first and loving out of what's best for each other and focusing on the other person.

I'm going to carefully wrap my frame up and put it back in it's tissue paper filled box, wrapping up my dreams that go with it for now. Until I can unwrap and use it, I'm hoping that my heart is molded and shaped and changed so that I can practice pouring out that love and sacrificial other-people-first stuff right now.

Truly, "Happily Ever After" begins TODAY....before I meet whoever "he" is. : ) ♥

Now is the practice grounds for later.

{ January 9th, 2011 -- 9/365 } -- LIVE!

{ January 9th, 2011 }

9/365

Oops, I am a day behind on my 365. I had this shot in mind last night....as I was drifting off to sleep, that is, zzzz. I had every good intention of shooting this for my 365, but the Sand Man must have conked me on the head because I was out like a light within minutes.

This little wooden plaque that I got yesterday has so much meaning for me. My resolution this year is to embrace life for all that it has to offer and to focus on LIVING, not on dying.

Probably sounds morbid to think and talk about death, doesn't it? I'll give you a little background though: I've been to more funerals in my life than I have fingers and toes and have said goodbye to a great number of family and friends (I think the last count was 32--that's more than my age, not a good ratio, ugh). Because of that, I've often found myself full of worry and fear about my loved ones and friends who are still alive and also about my own life.

But something liberated me at the end of this last December. Actually, two things did--something from the Bible and something from the Beatles! ; )

1st, what Jesus said in the Bible:

"I came that they may have life and have it ABUNDANTLY." (John 10:10, ESV)

2nd, the Beatles:

"......A time to live, a time to die....."

It struck me that, while I'm eventually going to die someday, that NOW is the time for LIVING! I should be focusing on living because death isn't a bridge that I've had to cross yet. That time will come later.

For now, I'm going to focus on living....and living well. : )

I want to LIVE and LIVE ABUNDANTLY, soaking it in for all that it's worth. ♥ ♥ ♥

It's a little plaque with a lot of meaning to me. : )

{ January 8th, 2011 -- 8/365 } -- May All Who Enter As Guests, Leave As Friends

{ January 8th, 2011 }

8/365

So, many of you know that I'm now seriously addicted to Hobby Lobby. I've visited there 3 times already this week. Today, I purchased some beautiful wrought iron pieces for our home. I had this idea to couple them with some wall sconces from Kirklands and some "wall words." The Fam got it put up on the wall today and this is the result. : )

{ January 7th, 2011 -- 7/365 } -- Beautiful Skies Overhead

{ January 7th, 2011 }

7/365

The sky seemed extra beautiful today--blue and filled with grey and white clouds with the sun shining through. I'm exhausted tonight from a long day, but go to bed with a smile on my face, feeling deeply satisfied and thankful for another day to have written another page in my life's story. Tomorrow, I'll pick up the pen and write again.

{ January 6th, 2011 -- 6/365 } -- Hobby Lobby and Shabby Chic Vintage Roses

{ January 6th, 2011 }

6/365

Okay, so it's official:

I'M ADDICTED.....

....to Hobby Lobby that is! ; ) I visited there for the first time a few days ago and guess where I found myself standing again tonight?

I found a ridiculously gorgeous piece of French-chic scroll work for above my desk, some thank you cards and some scrapbook flowers to use for my photography, including these gorgeous-to-die-for vintage roses!

Mmm, there was no chance I was passing these babies up!

 Vintage or Shabby Chic anything and

I'M THERE!