Saturday Morning Breakfast....

Using some of the master dough recipe from the Artisian Bread in Five Minutes a Day -- I made cinnamon rolls.


My cream cheese frosting didn't turn out as well as I would like but the rolls tasted so delish!


I do think that the master dough recipe is a keeper. I made a couple loaves of bread this week from it and then the cinnamon rolls. And everything turned out great. Really good flavor, color and texture.

Book Review: By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept: A Novel of Forgiveness by Paulo Coelho

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
The heroine is Pilar a young woman who is resigned that her life will not have anything extrodinary in it - it will be working, coming home to a marriage of companionship more then love and just doing what society expects of her. Her former childhood friend contacts her and together on a short journey they experience a spiritual path through admiting their love of each other and letting go of fears. I was caught up in the characters and their journey that carried me through the great Pyrenees. The book reminded me of the triumphs, fears, joy and pain associated with love as well as religion and our spiritual journey. It is often critized that Coehlo isn't writing "real" literture. But of course I disagree as he is my favorite author. His stories might have simiple life lessons but he often tells it in ways that seem to touch many people -- and I am one of those people. They are good simple lessons that come from Coehlo's heart so it is hard not to react to them. I am usually one turned off by overt conservative religous tones in books but Coehlo always has a twist on those religious themes that makes them far from being conservative. His words often make me look at my life -- my spiritual path, my life journey and the love in my life.
View all my reviews.

Gratitude Friday

1. Obama's speech last night moved me
2. That although the bread loaf that I made the other day was smaller then I thought it would be -- it worked, it looked good and most importantly it tasted good!
3. A really good DNC -- renewed hope in democrates for me
4. For several good chats this week with friends
5. For naps in the middle of the afternoon...sun streaming in the window

Blog Hopping

I blog hop quite a bit. I go to one person's blog and hop from a link there to a blog and then hop from there to another and so on. I can really lose lots of time that way. But in the process I laugh, I find inspiration, I find touching stories of love and life challenges.

So I thought I would start sharing some blog hopping finds....

Pretty Paper Blog posted an entry for a project to help jump start those projects we all want to do...she created a Creative Juice jar. Read more about it here.

The Happiness Project - I have only read a handful for entries but several messages that spoke to me.

In my blog hopping someone linked to this...

Hope Revolution -- I would really love to participate in it. From the website: "When I hid my hope notes around the city and documented it online, my inbox was flooded with messages from people who were inspired to do the same in their communities. I was bewildered, but I guess word of mouth is powerful! It propagated through the Internet like wildfire. So, I decided to develop this website to continue the hope revolution."

I wish I wanted to....

In Elizabeth Gilbert's book Eat Pray Love, she was telling one of her friends that she was going to go India in search for divinity, the friend said "Oh there is a part of me that so wishes I wanted to do that....but I really no desire whatsoever."

I have a friend who inspires me in more ways then she probably realizes and her blog and most of the links on her blog are for homesteading and going back to doing things more naturally, having food stores, reusing/recycling and cutting back on spending. I LOVE LOVE LOVE reading her blog and the other blogs similar to hers. I love all the challenges and beautiful meanings of life they come across in their journey. They are all so inspiring, creative and extraordinary. But....that line that Elizabeth Gilbert's friend said to her when she was going to India is the line I think of when I read some of the homesteading blogs -- how I wish I really wanted to do it.

I picked up a book a the library Loving and Leaving the Good Life by Helen Nearing. The book synopsis from goodreads.com: "Helen and Scott Nearing wrote Living the Good Life and many other best-selling books about working hard, living simply and self-sufficiently while saving time for fun and pursuits of the intellect. This is a book written by Helen after Scott died (at 100 years old!) and is a story of love and living....Inspiring and moving, this is a "how-to" book about facing life with delight and with eyes open." I am really enjoying it. I think anyone who does homesteading really would enjoy this book and get a lot from it. I believe the Nearing's other books on homesteading/living off the land came before this one but this is the one I found at my library. I enjoy reading of different experiences and life journeys and the Nearing's is very different from my own but very touching and thoughtful.

So that book along with my friends blog and other similar blogs creates my little fantasy of homesteading but then reality hits me. I am not a homesteading type person. I can't imagine milking a goat to have our own milk and make cheese - it just isn't something I could do. I had a flower garden and herb garden when I lived in Topeka and enjoyed both. I loved feeling the earth in my hands as I planted the bulbs and seeds. And seeing the life of the plants and flowers spring through and grow. But it was really hard for me to keep up with it because of my allergies. After I go out to spray weeds in our yard, it takes me a day to get back to breathing normally. So it isn't something I can have here in Grand Junction as it isn't fair to want it and ask Michael to do the up keep work for it. I don't can because I don't have a garden which I guess shouldn't stop me if I just go to the farmers market. There are so many things homesteaders write about that I am amazed how well they just seem to work through it -- where I would be panicked or give up.

But of course some of the ideas I read, I am trying to implement. Such as I am trying my hand at making my own bread verse buying it as it would be cheaper/healtheir. It is always easier to have flour, yeast and salt to make bread then actually stock up on store bought bread. Food storing is something I hope to do more of when we get a bigger home so I can have a freezer. But for now doing the things I can do -- such as making my own bread. (Though my first loaf isn't going well this morning -- not raising -- but not giving up).

I also try to reuse things -- round oatmeal containers become containers for ribbon in my studio. Many things I recycle for art -- the foil seals on cans of peanuts -- I have used in art many times, the mesh bags that veggies come in, the crates berries and cherry tomato come make great patterns on paper. We get a big big can of peanuts at Sam's. And I trying to think of ways to use those cans. They are bigger then coffee cans. I am hoping to utilize a few for storage in my studio - always can use storage in there. But looking to see if there are other ways I can use them in our house. I know I could even decorate the outsides of them if I didn't want them to just look like a tin can. There are many little things I do but I am sure there are other things I could do that aren't living off the land but that could help in creating a "good life" for Michael and I.

I think we get so used to running through drive through instead of making lunch or picking up a new item when an old item isn't quite working right. We see a hole in a shirt and throw it out instead of repairing it and getting a little more life out of it. We upgrade and upscale instead of using things until they don't work anymore. It is easy to think of going to Wal-Mart or Target before going to a thrift store to see if you could find something to reuse instead of buying new. There are so many things everyday we could do to help in not making a lasting imprint on the world. There are so many things we could do to cut spending and have more room in our budget to get to our goals. There are so many things we could do to appreciate all that we have available to us. So the blogs inspire me to think outside the box. I dream of homesteading -- all the way but I know the reality of me. There are some modern conveniences I don't want to give up. But all that said the blogs do remind me I do have options that I can apply to my life. I am thankful for being able to get a glimpse into their journey and that they inspire me in mine.

Here is a link to my friend Kathie's blog-- be sure to check out her links also. Her and those she links to are amazing people doing extraordinary work on making a good life.

Hillary hit it out of the park and it is still going....

Oh my....Hillary Clinton did an AMAZING job tonight! She really pumped up the energy of the DNC. We watch MSNBC and the crowd outside with Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews were even more energized. I feel she did a great job at UNITY.

A few favorite lines...

"No Way, No How, No McCain!" -- Great line and sound bite!

"John McCain says the economy is fundamentally sound. He doesn’t think there’s a health care crisis, and wants to privatize Social Security, and thinks it’s OK for women to receive unequal pay for equal work. It's fitting that George Bush and John McCain will be appearing together in the Twin Cities because it's awfully hard to tell them apart." -- GREAT GREAT line! I was laughing. And with family in the Twin Cities, you know I feel for them having the twins there for the Republican Convention.

"To my supporters, the Sisters of the Traveling Pantsuits, thank you." -- Very cute line. The audience laughed and cheered.

"I want you to ask yourselves, were you in this campaign just for me? Or were you in it for that young Marine and others like it? Or were you in it for that mom struggling with cancer? Were you in it for that young boy and his mom surviving on the minimum wage? Were you in it for all the invisible people?" --- Personally I think this is the much needed line as it really asks if her followers if they were just voting for her or the issues. If it is the issues then vote Obama -- and if it was just for her then she believes in Obama so vote for Obama.

"By following the example of a brave New Yorker, a woman who risked her life to shepherd slaves along the Underground Railroad. On that path to freedom, Harriet Tubman had one piece of advice:

If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If they're shouting after you, keep going. Don't ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going. And even in the darkest of moments, that is what Americans have done — we have found the faith to keep going.

I've seen it in you. I've seen it in our teachers and firefighters, nurses and police officers, small business owners and union workers, the men and women of our military you always keep going.

We are Americans. We're not big on quitting. But remember, before we can keep going, we've got to get going by electing Barack Obama the next president of the United States." -- This for me was another one of those Yes we can moments...where I felt like yes...lets not give up our freedom and lets not give up hope and keep fighting the good fight....and elect Obama.

"Nothing less than the fate of our nation and the future of our children hang in the balance. I want you to think about your children and grandchildren come Election Day. And think about the choices your parents and grandparents made that had such a big impact on your life and on the life of our nation. We've got to ensure that the choice we make in this election honors the sacrifices of all who came before us, and will fill the lives of our children with possibility and hope." -- And then this line I think rung true for me too...I do feel our fate as a nation hangs in the balance because we have had such a horrible 8 years and I just can't imagine another 4 of it with McCain. It make me feel so sad for us as nation.

I think she did a great job at doing what she needed to for this speech tonight. The energy was amazing and I look forward to roll call tomorrow as well as President Clinton's speech and Joe Biden's too. I suspect it will be an evening in front of the TV tomorrow night.


(Full transcript of speech)

Doing Not Thinking Challenge - Update

Here are my Goals for the Doing Not Thinking Challenge:
1. I had a goal of 50 books for this year and passed it so to myself I had quietly said 100. So now outloud I say I want to get 100 books read this year.
2. Bake more bread instead of buying — I always have back up bought loaves in the freezer and somehow they always get used and then I get another. So I want to committ to making my own bread more often.
3. Which leads to this one — learning how to make buns — hamburger and hotdog buns. We eat brats and hot dogs quite a bit during the summer and although it is ending soon I have been wanting to make buns for a while. So maybe I can have them mastered by next summer. I found some good instructions in a Beth Hensperger book and setting this goal I believe will help me just do it!


So an update on my progress:
1. I am up to 82 books and at this moment reading 3 so hopefully by next Monday will be at 85 books. I might post a list of the 82 books I have read tomorrow. (link goes to my 2008 list of books read on goodreads.com)
2. One of the books I finished last week is Artisian Bread in Five Minutes a Day. Basically it is a book that tell you how to mix up a BIG batch of bread dough that you store in your fridge and pull from over a 2 week period. I got ingredients for it last week so I am set to try it out. I am going to mix up a batch today so hopefully I will have an update on how it tastes, looks and if it is a viable option for keeping bread on hand instead of buying it.
3. I haven't started this goal yet but hope to tackle that this week sometime too as I would really like to have homemade buns for Labor Day weekend - when we grill brats.

I might add a 4th goal along the same lines of baking bread -- but I will wait to see how things go with the other two baking goals.

Now going over to the Doing Not Thinking Challenge page on Two Frogs Home to check out how the others are doing with the challenge!

Birthday Wishes....

Wishing my beautiful sister a VERY Happy Birthday! Michael and I hope your day is filled with celebration of YOU! You are an amazing woman and I truly blessed to call you my sister! I love YOU!

Book Review: The Venetian's Wife

The Venetian's Wife: A Strangely Sensual Tale of a Renaissance Explorer, a Computer, and a Metamorphosis by Nick Bantock

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
The art and the words of this book are beautiful, sensual and captivating. I found myself drawn in - wondering where it would go and what image I would see when I turned the page. As always with Bantock - his collages just amaze and inspire me. It didn't get 5 stars because I didn't like how it ended. It wasn't a neat package that answered questions. Instead it left me with more questions then answers.




View all my reviews.

Dealing with the Unpredictability of Tomorrow

This month has been two years since I started my business.

There have been some definite joys, some eek-moments, and a greater sense of peace as the layers of stress have either abated or they have taken on a much more manageable form. It doesn't always look like it's manageable: a.) I'm working longer hours, b.) I'm taking on bigger projects, c.) there is no such thing as a weekend or vacation and d.) my desk is living proof of things gone amok.

But above everything else that's out there there's but one single thing that I have not been able to fully address: tomorrow. It's elusive. It's the "how are we going to pay next month's bills" or "do we have enough time to tackle yet another project." We've been riding a pretty substantial tidal wave since the spring time -- and yet I get the knots in my stomach when I feel like I can see the end of the projects appearing on the horizon.

Darby keeps my head focused on the: "it'll be fine" mentality because anything less and I'm going to squick myself into a pit of self-doubt.

Ultimately though - she's been right on the money each time. We have been incredibly blessed with a tremendous amount of word-of-mouth marketing -- that we haven't needed to do much in the way of advertising. In fact, we haven't had to advertise -- but we're gearing up to send out our first official advertisement directed at lawyers that can hire me out in a myriad of different ways.

It's scary -- it's exciting -- it's reassuring -- it's humbling.

I recently got a referral from someone who I met only once -- merely just sitting in his conference room talking technology .... passed my name to someone and that will likely garner another unforeseen vein of incoming business. Someone who doesn't really know me from Adam -- and all of a sudden I'm being referred.

Keeping it going in the positive direction is tough .... very tough. There are moments when I feel the tidal waves crashing on us -- but we keep moving forward and the unpredictability of tomorrow fades a bit in that moment. Our September is going to have some incredibly busy times for us. It's positive -- and if it keeps going like it is ... it might be very positive.

So in the meanwhile, we'll keep doing the bucket brigade to get the water out from the bottom of the boat ... and let the waves of stress take us where we need to be.

Lots to do -- signing off for a bit.

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. getting my cookbooks more organized so I can actually get at them easier
2. Brave the Rocks by Sabrina Ward Harrion -- amazing and inspiring
3. seeing sunrise over GJ - from the monument this past week
4. an idea to inexpensively replace all 42 cabinet/drawer handles in our kitchen and dining room
5. hopefully doing weeds for the last time of the summer

Time Lapse

A really good thing that happened this week....One of my very good friend Jessica has been wanting to take a trip so she called together a group of friends (A, C and I) and said lets all get together. So it looks like I am going to have a girls-weekend -- possibly the weekend of my birthday. Jessica is going to fly here and spend 1 or 2 days with Michael and I. And then her and I will drive to C's town since C can't get out of town - we will be having the weekend there. And then A will fly to C. After then Jessica and I will come back here and she will spend a couple days here before going home. So I am really excited about that. I could really use some girl time/friend time.

What else...

We have been up to the Colorado National Monument more lately then we probably went at all last year. Tuesday evening Michael wanted to film a sunset so we went up there to get that. And then Wednesday morning we got up at 4:15 so we could head up there again to film a sunrise. He is going use them as time lapse in a wedding video he is doing.

Tuesday evening before heading up to the Monument we stopped at the library so I could pick up a couple books on hold for me. One really just had me absorbed from the moment I picked it up -- Brave on the Rocks by Sabrina Ward Harrison. I haven't ever read/looked at her first book but of course now want it too. Brave on the Rocks really evoked my emotions, memories and imagination in positive ways. It is a book I would like to own as I am sure it would be a constant source of inspiration through her message and her art.

I finished Breaking Dawn in 2 nights. it is the forth book in the Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyers. I have some issues with Breaking Dawn But I think I will just do a review on good reads since it might have some spoilers. Right now I am reading The Post-Birthday World and I really thought after reading 21 pages that it would be one that ended up on the "didn't finish" list. I then got to a dialog instead of the authors long detailed explanations of things that don't have anything to do with the plot. And helped me plug on. But now is confusing me as the author described one scenario 2 ways. Two different ways it happened, two different sets of feelings and reactions. And the plot seems to go back and forth between the those two scenarios so I am not sure what actually happened. Where I ended off last night seems to have moved past that scenario but the book is still hanging in that....wonder if it will end up on the "didn't finish" list because it is annoying me.

I have been battling with a migraine this week. It started Tuesday evening and still hasn't really let up. I hope to at least get some work done today as I don't feel I have gotten much done this week.

Cookie Bars (aka Blondes with chips)

Cookie Bars or also known as Blonde's with chips

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened (I have used salted too and then omitted the salt in the recipe)
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups chips - your choice - I use a combination depending on my mood. The ones in the picture had milk, butterscotch and semi-sweet -- also could add coconut, white chocolate chips and pecans or combo of chips and walnuts - so many options with this recipe.



1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9 x 13 inch pan.
2. Stir flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
3. Beat together butter and brown sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Mix in vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until well blended. Fold in chips and spread batter evenly in prepared pan.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched with finger tip. Cool pan on rack. Cut and serve.




They are so good....gooey goodness that goes straight to the thighs!

100 Things | Teapots

12. I collected teapots. I don't collect teapots as much now.

When I moved out on my own for the first time I bought a black teapot to sit on a pretty little mat on my dining room table. I didn't at the time drink tea but the thought of drinking tea appealed to me. After that first teapot though, I was hooked on them. I just enjoy all the different looks to each of them. I found so many pretty and interesting ones that I just started collecting them.

Eventually a good friend of mine had a tea party and I had a tea I really enjoyed. And now I enjoy tea often. But I still don't use my teapots for tea very often. But still enjoy seeing them. In our dining room there is a wall of cabinets and space between the top cabinets and ceiling so I have used it as a display for most of my teapots. Some of these pictures are fuzzy as I was standing on a step ladder to get a better view of the teapots on top of the cabinets but I was shaking standing on the little step.

My Mom gave me several of my Grandma's teapots. Some of them my Grandparents got as wedding gifts and never been used. This is one of my favorite. I love the handpainted wispy flowers on it. It again was also my Grandma's.







This teapot with the cornhusks on it is one of those teapots my Grandparents got as a wedding gift. It still has the stickers on it. When my Mom gave me them all she put inside them little tags of when they were given to my Grandma/Grandparents. So inside this one is a tag that has my Grandparent's wedding date on it.








This is one I bought myself -- I like the brass handle but for actually pouring tea out of it -- not very practical.












This teapot was a gift early in my teapot collecting days. It probably isn't one I would have picked out but the person who gave it to me was special to me and I know exactly why he got it for me so it does have meaning.












Last year sometime my Mom sent me a box of things she was storing for me at her house. In the box was this UGLY monky teapot. I asked Mom about it and she said she wasn't sure where it came from and thought since I collected teapots maybe it was mine. I keep intending to put it in a goodwill box but always forget but now after this post hopefully I won't.









This is my favorite teapot that my sisters gave me. I just love the delicate pattern on it. I have actually use it for tea too.









The wicker handle on this teapot makes it hard to pour from also. I think this was one of my Grandmother's again but this came in that box with the monkey teapot so it wasn't clear on where it came from. The teapot has six little teacups with it, but most of the teacups are unfortunately chipped. But I do love the look of it and all the little teacups. I often display it on our table.






This is what I call my everyday teapot. It is one I use more often then others. I got the plate meaning to use it for cookies and such. I picked it up in North Carolina at World Market when I was there on girls weekend. It was on clearance and I just liked the look of it. I got back from the trip and Michael and I went into World Market in Denver as I had told him about the coffee selection they had there. He LOVES coffee so we are always looking for places with good whole bean coffee. And so we went in and of course I went to look at clearance and there was the teapot that matched the plate I picked up just a few days earlier in North Carolina.

Doing Not Thinking Challenge

My friend Kathie over at Two Frog Home has a challenge that I decided to participate in....

Here is the copy from her blog about it: Want to “do” along with me? Here’s what you need to do: Pick a dream or a goal, any one of your many. Examples might be: exercising 3 days a week, creating a budget to be debt free by 2010, learning to dehydrate, decluttering, etc. Post your dream/goal on your blog or feel free to just play along here in the comments. Let’s start with one dream/goal for now, if you accomplish it before December 15th, you can always pick a new one later. Participants are welcome to join along any time during this challenge, you don’t have to be along from the very beginning to “do” with us.

So here are my goals:
1. I had a goal of 50 books for this year and passed it so to myself I had quietly said 100. So now outloud I say I want to get 100 books read this year.
2. Bake more bread instead of buying -- I always have back up bought loaves in the freezer and somehow they always get used and then I get another. So I want to committ to making my own bread more often.
3. Which leads to this one -- learning how to make buns -- hamburger and hotdog buns. We eat brats and hot dogs quite a bit during the summer and although it is ending soon I have been wanting to make buns for a while. So maybe I can have them mastered by next summer. I found some good instructions in a Beth Hensperger book and setting this goal I believe will help me just do it!

Each Monday I will do an update of how I am doing with these goals.

Describing the psyche of a cat: addendum

I was doing some editing tonight in the office tonight - when Caesar jumps off the small table I have in the office. His toy was in the room as he had brought it to me when I was doing some voice over work. (yes, a little hard to be recording and have a meowing cat in the background...)

I didn't think anything about the toy -- except when he jumped down -- I happened to look over to see if he was still in the room, but he wasn't .... and neither was the yellow toy he usually carries in his mouth around this time of night. At that particular moment I made a mental note because I thought it was strange that here just just *left* the office and took his toy with him.

No sooner that I file that mental note away and here comes the yeowling golden boy with ... the yellow toy in his mouth that was in the office ... meowling along and the spits out the toy nearly to the spot where he had just taken it from.

While all of this might not seem like much to the casual viewer -- it transpired in what couldn't have been more than 30-45 seconds..... Of which gave me quite the chuckle because he was *just* in here along with his toy.....

He and the girl got some treats and they seem content. :)

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...

1. Finishing Breaking Dawn
2. Making lasagna -- I hadn't made it in a long time. It tasted really good and also I froze half of it so we will get a couple meals from it during our busy September
3. Solutions to reorganize some cookbooks, things in the pantry and baking supplies
4. Being able to send out some mail love this week -- I like doing it and forget how fun it is when I haven't done it in a while.
5. Birthdays -- I have several friends celebrating this past week and in the coming week....I wish them all a very happy birthday!

I recognize that I have much more to be thankful for in my life

Kind of a Blur This Week

This week has seemed to fly by...

Tuesday we did lots of errands and were going to go to The Dark Knight but ended up not being at a good time for us. We ended that day out by taking a drive around some neighborhoods near us. We have so many new neighborhoods popping up around us. There used to be a pasture to one side of our neighborhood and now there is a new neighborhood going up. They have a fence all around it but no houses yet. Anyway we drove through this one neighborhood and I was getting hung up on doors. Both Michael and I have a thing about doors. We like big solid looking doors and this neighborhood seemed to have quite a few good looking doors. As we were talking about one we just saw we turned the corner and I think stopped talking I mid-sentence as we were driving past "the" house -- at least it was on the outside. It had the right look. We both really liked it. I want to go past again to get a picture of it. The entrance, the garage doors, the stucco, the door, the sidewalk leading to the door -- all were just perfect for us. It reminded me very clearly of the goals we are working towards....a house like that.

Wednesday we ran a few more errands and then went to The Dark Knight. I was a Heather Ledger fan. So I had some mixed feelings about going -- because I was worried I would cry -- while watching a Batman movie. And I did. There were 2 scenes that he just rocked in....he played psycho very good. And he was so good he made me cry. Probably very silly but we are movie people so seeing that kind of performance made me miss what could have been with him. After the movie we picked up Chinese take out and came home to relax. Possibly grossness factor coming up...When I climbed into bed, I noticed something alarming....the bottom of my heel was covered in blood. I remembered instantly what must have caused it. At the movie theater I was walking down the aisle and turned to Michael to see if where I was going to sit was okay with him and I took a step back as I turned. There was this metal and concrete slab that the chairs were bolted too. My heel hit it pretty hard and it hurt but I didn't really think much more of it. During the move I felt something sticky on my shoe but again I thought we are in a movie theater I stepped in some sticky pop. Evidently I bleed quite a lot and it pooled in my sandal so that is why my heel was covered in blood. Michael said he saw it walked out of the theater but he figured I knew about it. I didn't - I mean it hurt but it felt like a stubbed toe -- hurts a lot but my mind didn't go to I actually cut myself...I just banged it. So I cleaned it up before bed, it looked worse then it actually was but it is pretty damn gross that I bleed so much during the movie that my heel was that covered in blood.

Today was just working on a clients logos, doing some housework and I also hope to finish Breaking Dawn. I am liking it but liked the first 3 books better.

Describing the psyche of a cat

Which do you think our cats prefer:

• A $7 toy that you pull the string and it goes walking across the floor

or


• A crumpled up piece of aluminum foil??

Answer: The crumpled up piece of aluminum foil or course....

------------------

• An $8 crumple sack from PetsMart

or


• A sack from WalMart??

Answer: You guessed it -- the WalMart sack...

------------------

• The $12 pet bed

or


• The small box you get from Sam's Club??

Answer: Yep -- the Sam's Club box...

------------------

It has to be a human thing we try to instill on our furry felines: that somehow getting the pretty fancy feathered toy from the PetsMart shelves is going to be better than the dangling shoelace when I take my shoes off.

Nope.

They dive bomb for the shoelace the moment it comes in view.

It doesn't take a lot to entertain them sometimes -- sometimes it merely takes a little creativity and the ability to think like a cat ... which usually means: think small, think quick, think lightweight.

The boy will come to me around 10pm tonight -- we got them some new shoelaces so I think they'll be glad to have more toys to play with ... even though we could conceivably wrap up the same toys they have now and give it to them and they'll act just like they did on Christmas morning.

Bottom line though: cats just love the attention they receive ... regardless of the toy you give them.

We love them!

Book Review: The New Book of Table Settings

The New Book of Table Settings: Creative Ideas for the Way We Gather Today by Chris Bryant

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really liked this book. It wasn't the usual highly formal table decorating that I have seen in other books. This gives fresh ideas that create a very unique look with things that you can get easily or have right in your home.

The book covers the basics: Table setting 101, Dinnerware, glasses and flatware where the author encourages you to mix and match freely and I just love that concept. Table coverings and napkin and then flowers and centerpieces. The book gives charts and quick glance tips

And then the food and how to make the table about the food. Such as if you were going to have a taco buffet -- using terracotta planter saucers for all the toppings.

The next section and biggest part of the book is really is about decorating table for different occasions and seasons. Two of my favorite ideas were turnip candles on a little holder made of nails and raffia that would be wonderful for a fall table giving it that harvest and rustic look. And then ice luminary with cold-weather greens and berries for a winter table.

This book had quick glance tips, lists and step-by-step instructions for some projects. It is a book that I wouldn't mind having on my bookshelf.

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I had the dumb

Today we were out on the Colorado National Monument with the couple whose wedding we are filming. They are a lot of fun so there were many laughs. I still had a little lagging migraine so when we got home I pretty much went to bed. After I got up, I was going to attempt making dinner but thinking wasn't coming so Michael ordered us pizza. Thank goodness because when I came to look up if there were any coupons online - I had to put our zip code in and couldn't even remember it. I had to pull a bill from the stack I had sitting on my desk to input the correct zip code. So I fear what would have happened if I had tried to cook.

Sunny Saturday Out

Michael agreed to do a wedding video. The personal type videos aren't really his main area but he LOVES doing them for the very reason that they are personal -- about people. He likes capturing people. And he has a way that just seems to put everything together to create very beautiful and touching memory.

So today we met with the couple and went through some pictures with them and he asked them some questions to prep for filming them tomorrow. He is doing a pre-wedding interview for the video.

Because it has been raining every afternoon/evening -- we saw clouds forming over the Colorado National Monument -- where we were going to film. So that made us a little nervous that we might get rained out or that one of the areas we were filming would be too muddy to film (coincidentally the place is called Muddy Springs - and even after all the rain it wasn't Muddy). After meeting with the couple we went to check it out and it was fine. It was again nice just to kind of get out of town. I mean it wasn't far -- still in our area but up on the Monument and in Glade Park. But still incredibly beautiful. Always reminding me how lucky we are to live in Colorado.

Unfortunately by the time we got home I had a migraine. So had to take some meds and get into bed with an ice pack. I hope it clears up before tomorrow.

But over all it was a very nice day.

Gratitude Friday

I am thankful for...
1. Girl Scout Thin Mint Blizzard we had yesterday for the Childrens Miracle Network at DQ. We only had 1 DQ participating and from what I heard they were giving not just profits from Blizzards but all profits that day to Children Miracle Network. And it was packed so I am believe they probably raised quite a bit for Children Miracle Network. Plus the girls in there were handling how packed they were -- very well.
2. A Very clean kitchen. I deep cleaned the kitchen today and it looks all sparkly. It felt good to get it done. Been so busy lately things just bare minuim so it was nice to get some real good cleaning done.
3. Impactful Paulo Coehlo book. It was really instersting and impactful.
4. Chatting with a good friend. We hadn't spoke in a while so it was good to chatch up with her.
5. Summer storms - although it was loud and made the lights flicker -- it was a really good rain. And we can always use that kind of moisture. But crossing fingers it doesn't interfer with our plans tomorrow.


(photo Michael took in a storm in 2003 - let me tell you how fun it is to sit in the car while he is standing outside with his camera - we are far away that there is no rain because water and camera not a good mix but you still have the crackling ligtening going off all around. Not fun!)

Charity and Blizzards

100% profits of Blizzards at DQ going to Children's Miracle Network on Thursday August 7th.

http://www.miracletreatday.com/index.cfm

Daily Grind

I have been working hard but usually I am really good at multi-tasking and lately I can only focus on one thing at a time. I have several websites in work but I hope to do some deeper cleaning this week too.

For tonight though I think I am going to go shred as we have a pretty big stack of it. And might watch Project Runway while I do that because I haven't even watched any of them yet. And need to finish up the Design Stars too. Thank goodness for DVR.

I am up to 70 books for the year. I started another Paulo Coehlo book and it is making me feel like the first book I read by him. Just making me think and touching me.

So that is it for an update -- pretty boring.

Book Review: Kitty Takes a Holiday

Kitty Takes a Holiday by Carrie Vaughn

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Kitty decides to take a vacation. After being kidnapped in Washington she just needs to get away. So she goes to a cabin in the mountains - rural Colorado and tries to write her book. But being Kitty trouble always seems to find her. This time in the form of her chosen family showing up on her door step.

It just feels as though the Kitty books are about her feelings with being a werewolf not just the powers that come with it and using them. But more about what happens to her as a person who is a werewolf. Vaughn is really developing the characters better in each book.

I have enjoyed all of Carrie Vaughn's Kitty books but this one was by far my favorite. She just keeps getting better. Cormac and Ben, both play a large part in this story. We also learn more about their pasts and how they got to where they are today. I can't wait for the next Kitty book!

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