Code Names

Getting the evaporated cooler up and running for spring/summer is much more fun while being silly and using code names over walkie talkies.  I love these kind of moments where we are silly doing mundane tasks as it just makes things calmer and without so much stress.  Today's code name for me was mermaid. Michael told me I should have given multiple choice: Princess Leia, Snow White, mermaid and Ralph. 

Dreamy Idealist

I took a Personality Test...here are the results...

Dreamy Idealists are very cautious and therefore often appear shy and reserved to others. They share their rich emotional life and their passionate convictions with very few people. But one would be very much mistaken to judge them to be cool and reserved. They have a pronounced inner system of values and clear, honourable principles for which they are willing to sacrifice a great deal.

Joan of Arc or Sir Galahad would have been good examples of this personality type. Dreamy Idealists are always at great pains to improve the world. They can be very considerate towards others and do a lot to support them and stand up for them. They are interested in their fellow beings, attentive and generous towards them. Once their enthusiasm for an issue or person is aroused, they can become tireless fighters.

For Dreamy Idealists, practical things are not really so important. They only busy themselves with mundane everyday demands when absolutely necessary. They tend to live according to the motto “the genius controls the chaos” - which is normally the case so that they often have a very successful academic career. They are less interested in details; they prefer to look at something as a whole. This means that they still have a good overview even when things start to become hectic. However, as a result, it can occasionally happen that Dreamy Idealists overlook something important. As they are very peace-loving, they tend not to openly show their dissatisfaction or annoyance but to bottle it up. Assertiveness is not one of their strong points; they hate conflicts and competition. Dreamy Idealists prefer to motivate others with their amicable and enthusiastic nature. Whoever has them as superior will never have to complain about not being given enough praise.

Much of it sounds like me.

Flowers

I woke up to my favorite flowers. I am a lucky woman!

Favorite iPhone Apps

The end of February Michael upgraded our phone plan and with it came new free phones. I upgraded from a little flip phone to an iPhone. I fell in love with my iPhone from just moments of using it.  Really I know it sounds silly to say that, but it has given me so much.

It has given new me ways in being connected with friends and family besides email and phone - now I have texting and facetime.  I have the camera - which I hate saying - I use more than my little camera Michael got me for my birthday, but I love the apps that I can use on the photos and so that is why I use it more.

It is has kept me more organized - I have a shopping list, reminders, calendars and lists. I now have lists for items we are needing for our home that I am always looking for a good deal.  I have measurements stored on my phone for windows and areas that I am looking for organization.  I have addresses to mail out cards and snail mail on the fly now. I have lists of meds and keeping track of my health so that I can have on hand at my next check up.

Add in all the fun stuff apps for photos - I am just blown away what I can do with photos. Before with my little digital camera I would have to download my photos, open photoshop to edit and then upload on the web - facebook and blog. Now I can do all that on my phone in one place and post easily to the web.

There are also apps for my interests and just things that match my lifestyle.  I have a couple apps for meditation and poetry.  I don't have any cooking apps on my phone, but we do have them on the iPad which I find easier for recipes and using in the kitchen then my little phone.

So thought I would share my top 10 favorite apps....

Photo Edited with Wood Camera 

1. Instagram - along with the Facebook app - Instagram is one of those thing I check right away and often throughout my day. I just love the photos. I love seeing little moments in people's lives from all across the world.

2. Wood Camera - this is one I paid for and it is my favorite photo editing app for iPhone that is very easy to use. I love it. I love the filters, textures and how it crops and then I can post straight from the app to Instagram or many other options really easily.

3. A Beautiful Mess  - I just downloaded this one recently and it is a paid app also. I think it will really be wonderful for adding lines of poetry to a photo. The features I love on it - you can add text, doodles and preset words. My problem with this app is that they have lots of paid add-ons and I think they lack filters also. But I do like the doodles and the fonts included and know I will enjoy it without adding on any of the others so that is why it still makes my top 10.

4. Grocery IQ  - I use this for my grocery list.  You can scan items in which I did when I first downloaded it - I went through my pantry and fridge to add things to it. It syncs with other's so Michael has it on his phone so if I need something on the way home I just add it to a list and have him look on it.

Photo edited with A Beautiful Mess - added a line from
one of my poems

5. Springpad - I have used it on the web for several years, but really like it on my phone too. It has "notebooks" so I have notebooks for several topics and projects. I can add photos, recordings, notes, task lists to each notebook. It is really nice way to keep things organized. I have home projects, poetry notebook so I can save words for a word toolbox,  I have art projects - for ideas and inspiration for things I want to create. Just all sorts of notebooks for each project and topic in my life.

6. Dropbox  - I use Dropbox for backing up my photos from my phone.  I also like that if I need a document or pdf  I can put it in dropbox and then know I can access on my phone or another computer easily.

7.  Pinterest - I love Pinterest in general so having on my phone was a must.  It is a great way to sit and waste time when sitting in a waiting room.

8. Good Reads  - I have used Goodreads.com on the web for years and I am so thankful to have it on my phone.  I can scan the barcode on the books and have it added to my book list so easily. It is also nice to have when at the library or a bookstore so if I can't remember if  I read a book or not I can pull out my phone and look at Good Reads to see all the books I have read or also look at my to-read book so I can find something I have been meaning to read before.

Screen Cap of  entry page of Flava.
It shows several journal entries with
the photos I used in the entries.

9. Flava  - I love to document my life so this is a journal.  You can add photos, recordings, music, what movie you are watching or book you are reading, location, add links, tags and it automatically adds in the weather. I just like the interface and how it looks.

10.  Poetry Slam - This app will give you the first line if you want to create a poem. Then you can add your own words, but also has buttons to give you nouns, verbs, adjectives and so on if you want help.  It allows you to save your poem after you are done with it. It is just been fun to play with when I feel a little creative, but need a little help with words.

It's a Tiara

Michael and I have been on a Big Bang Theory marathon lately and this is a clip that I loved from on of the episodes we watched today.  Michael said it reminded him of me.  And I admit it reminded me of me too. :)

Ellen and Bic Pens for Women

Geeky Soul Mates

The proof that we are soulmates from Emanuele Colombo on Vimeo.

Cute video and reminds me of Michael and I.

Prank

We don't have regular tv. We use the Roku for watching movies and content that can be streamed through the Roku. So I don't watch Ellen but think she is a fabulous person!  Anyway I like Kristin Chenoweth too and this little prank is just funny that she doesn't get what is going on behind her. 

Story Cubes

Source: storycubes.com via Darby on Pinterest

I was reading this curated list of books for TED Bookstore....and on it was this game called Story Cubes. It looks like a lot of fun and would be great to help kids use their imagination.

Today

Sesame Street Spoof

Michael and I like the Old Spice commercial and this is spoof of it by Sesame Street! So FUNNY!

What's that you hear?

It was the week before Christmas,
And all through the house,
Ribbons, boxes scattered like a madhouse.
The girl has been bustling to the point of despair,
In hopes to reach the post office with moments to spare.

Packages and treats and wondrous spreads
All await their delivery down everyone's homesteads.
So maybe today we can sneak in a catnap,
But not before realizing everything has been ASAP.

So if you've been wondering where we've been,
And why we've been out of sight,
We haven't gone anywhere,
Just staying up late every night.

Nothing is wrong,
We haven't forgotten,
The things that we've done
Simply made us exhausted.

Soon it will be Christmas and we will be rolling,
We just hope for good weather and wind that's not blowing.
But we'll be back here with updates and glee,
To tell you our tales and things that go squee!

And if we don't get a chance to wish you cheer before then,
Let the wishes of safe journeys be spread for everyone, amen.
May you have a wondrous and happy holiday,
And we'll be back to blogging again soon - someday.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Recent Obsessions

I am becoming obsessed with this fashion blog. She has incredible style. And her ideas for Halloween are FTW! The picture is from her costume idea for being the mad hatter....LOVE LOVE Alice in Wonderland and the Mad Hatter is one of my favorite characters in it.

My other obsession is on Facebook....I don't play games normally. I don't play computer games, PlayStation games or online games. But one on Facebook has sucked me in....Farmville. I have so much fun deciding what crops to plant and how to arrange and decorate my farm. Michael kind of rolled his eyes at me when I first started to play it but.....but....guess who now is just as obsessed - probably more obsessed then I am. When my Grandma called me for my birthday, I told her about the farming and told her she should get a computer as I am sure she would enjoy Farmville and many other aspects of being online.

100 Things | Socks

19. I love socks.

My feet are almost always cold. Walking around the house, I don't like shoes but I do wear socks during the fall and winter. And sometimes into the spring. And so with the fall coming on, I can't wait to wear socks.
























These are fun and cute socks that were given to me by my good friend Mandy. She found them at a place called the Sock Market.





One of my favorite places to get socks is TJMaxx because I can get good quality socks at a very low price. I got 3 pairs of ragwool socks - black and white, navy and white, khaki and white - for $2 a piece in 1991. And they still are in great condition.




This red pair of wool socks is again a pair I got at TJMaxx and bought them when I was in college. So a LONG LONG time ago. And they are just staring to wear through the bottom and I know I will cry big crocodile tears when I lose them. As they are my FAVORITE pair of socks. They are so warm and comfy!








Stripy Socks who doesn't like stripey socks! They are warm and fuzzy too.








One of my favorite places to get socks is SockDreams.com One thing I really like about them is that I wear skirts and dresses mostly and during winter I wear lots of tights. But when I discovered Sock Dreams I found they have warm over the knee or socks that come up on thighs. I have several pairs. This pair in the picture is like wearing leg warmers but connected to socks. I have a sweater that has that purple color in it and wear them with a jean skirt. It is very comfy and warm.





The packaging on these said "cloud socks." Very soft and warm. I participated in a sock exchange between friends a couple years ago and got these from my friend Angie. There were 3 pairs in the package - pink, light blue and lavender. And I wear them a lot during the winter and especially to bed as my feet usually are their coldest right before bed.






These are hand-knitted slippers made for me by my friend Kaylee. They are beautiful. She hand-dyed the yarn, felted and made to fit me. They are the thickest and the warmest slipper socks. I am very thankful to my friend for giving me such a beautiful gift.

Time Travelers Unite on Facebook

So last night when we went to bed, I picked up my book to read a bit. And Michael asked me what book I was reading. I told him that it was a series I read before but there is a new one coming out in the fall so I wanted to reread them all again. Now I talk to Michael about almost all the books I read. He has heard about Eat Pray Love so much I think he can quote lines and he didn't even read it. (BTW lala - I think you should read that book.) He has heard about Lovely Bones where the little girl is watching everything and everyone from "heaven." He has heard about artist wife that goes back home to help her Mom and has an affair (The Mermaid Chair.) And he has heard about Henry from The Time Traveler's Wife and Claire from the Outlander series who also time travels. It is the series I am rereading. I am on book 2 The Dragonfly in the Amber.

So anyway...I told him I was rereading the Outlander series. I told him that it was the one about the woman that time travels to Scotland 1745. And he asked if that was The Time Traveler's Wife. I said no different time traveling book. He replied that the time travelers should make a facebook page. And they could swap time traveling tips. They could also send each other drinks and yankee candles*.

And of course being tired - that set me off into a fit of giggles where the cats were looking at me like I lost my mind. I just had this image of Henry from The Time Traveler's Wife and Claire from Outlander sending each other yankee candles.

* if you don't have facebook - they have applications on there like meme, quizzes and then some that you can give virtual gifts. And drinks and yankee candles are just a couple things you can give.

Shoes First

Note from the Universe that I got last week...
Happiness comes first, Darby. Partners, abundance, and cool shoes come later.
Or at least this is how I'd line up my duckies.

Ungawa -
The Universe


ps: No, Darby, cool shoes never came first.

I thought the shoes always came first....

Like these....
Sweet Life By Dolce Vita Lace Heel

You see I got side tracked looking for flat sandals that I can run through an airport in. I just don't think those are it but they are lovely!

Blog Hopping

These are all things I found via blog hopping...but aren't blogs...

Acts of Kindness

Paper Source Accordian Book with pockets

And Colorscope via Papersource to see what colors reveail about you.

Blog Hopping

Tablescaping - a blog dedicated to different tablescapes (deocrating the table basically with dishes, tablecloth, centerpiece and so on - someone asked me what tablescape means)

Felt Votive Centerpiece on Design Sponge - so cute in its simplicity. (I love the website design of Design Sponge - wish I would have done it!)

And because Design Sponge is up for a design award for the bloggies listing the link to vote in the 2009 Weblog Awards

Christmas Q&A

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? both -- I use some of each

2. Tree: real or artificial? growing up it was always a real tree in the living room and then sometimes an artificial in the family room. Michael and I have an artificial because of the cats. We think a real one would make them investigate it more. I do have to say I have some really good memories from my past - going to a tree farm where we got to go pick out our tree. Walking in the snow out through the farm was just really a nice memory.

3. When do you put up the tree? Usually after Dec. 6th. Because of Michael's birthday.

4. When do you take the tree down? Around the 6th of January

5. Do you like eggnog? No and Michael's Dad I believe thinks that is a sin against Christmas. :)

6. Favourite gift received:
Really there have been so many wonderful gifts over the years...just a few coming to mind when I was a little girl a doll named Stephanie and when I was a teenager a pink long wool coat....favorite gift from Michael is these the little drawers...



7. Do you have a nativity scene set up? yes sort of. It has a manger, angels and sheep and that is it


8. Hardest person to buy for: Michael because most of the time if he wants something he gets it. And although he has interests and hobbies, quite a few of them I have problems buying things for because I have no knowledge of them.

9. Easiest person to buy for: Several of my friends are very easy to buy for - I see things for them all the time. Carolynn - purple, tea and socks. Jessica - dragonflies, lipgloss and bath stuff. Moni - tweetie bird, bath stuff and coffee

10. Worst gift ever received: I have received some clothing items over the years that just haven't seemed like me. Those are probably the worst gift.

11. Christmas cards: I like sending them out and I like getting them.


12. Favorite Christmas movie: Miracle on 34th Street and Polar Express

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I try to start in September or October but mostly it gets done in November and December.

14. Have you ever "recycled" a Christmas present? yes I have when something just didn't fit me but I knew it would fit someone else. I don't want it to go to waste. First I try to return it though. If I can't then I will try to find it a good home.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas: everything sweet! I have a total sweet tooth...sour cream cookies, chocolate caramels, cardamom cookies, my Mom's pecan tarts....and so on and so on

16. Are the tree lights clear, colored, or both? colored but solid colored. We have all red lights on our tree. Someday when we get another house -- I hope to have more then one tree and something else - all white or blue or even the multi-colored lights.

17. Favorite seasonal song: Grown Up Christmas List

This is Kelly Clarkson but really my favorite version is by Amy Grant




Grown - Up Christmas List Lyrics

18. Do you travel or stay home for Christmas? We usually stay home. We went to my parents in 2004 and last year we went to Michael's parents. But this year we are just staying at home and enjoying Christmas with just us.

19. Can you name Santa's reindeer? Blitzen, Donner, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid and Rudolph (are there any I am missing?)

20. Do you have an angel or a star on top of your tree? We have a star. I have a beautiful angel that now sits on our table on a metal charger because there is now way our little tree would have been able to hold it. But more then that we really wanted to have a star. We still haven't found the perfect one. We found one we loved 2 years ago after Christmas but it again was too heavy. This year I found a metal white washed star ornament but fairly large and so Michael drilled some holes in it and we tied it to the top with jute. It works but I think neither of us are totally satisfied with it yet.

21. Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning? Christmas morning. Growing up my family always did gifts on Christmas eve and stockings and gifts from other relatives Christmas day. It always made Christmas very magical for me when we did them on Christmas eve because the candles, the glow of the snow through the windows.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year: the busy and loss of just spirit of Christmas

23. Favorite seasonal tradition: putting up the tree with Michael tied with going out on Christmas Eve looking at lights. We stop at Starbucks and get hot drinks to keep us warm while driving around.

24. Family member you try to stay away from: Not really anyone. I don't get to see my family very often so enjoy all time with them.

25. Do you attend any religious services in celebration? No not really anymore. Except when with family. But Michael and I don't. We just celebrate our beliefs right at home.

ps: Just as I am about to post this Grown Up Christmas List sung by Amy Grant came on XM Holiday Holly channel.

Flickr Mosaic

1. Darby takes a walk., 2. Dinner on the back deck..., 3. 4x400, 4. My purple all star for the first time at the park, 5. Keith Olbermann on TV, 6. Cherry Limeade, 7. Italy / Tuscany - Grosseto: Happy flutter ........ Italien / Toskana: Frohes Flattern ( 1.005☺36 ), 8. Chocolate Chip Cheesecake with Raspberries, 9. Art Journal--No Words, 10. And then there is silence, 11. Curved Sky - Musee d'Art Moderne et d'Art Contemporain Nice, 12. Tap the Maidens
{photo credits are listed above}

Q&A:
1. What is your first name? Darby
2. What is your favorite food? Chinese Food
3. What high school did you attend? Millard North High School
4. What is your favorite color? purple
5. Who is your celebrity crush? (really don't have one but to pick someone Keith Olbermann
6. Favorite drink? Cherry Limeade
7. Dream vacation? Italy
8. Favorite desert? Cheesecake
9. What do you want to be when you grow up? mixed media artist
10. What do you love most in life? quietness
11. One word to descibe you? nice
12. Your flickr name? darbyart

Wanna play? So here's the deal...you answer the 12 questions about yourself. Type your answer to each of the above questions into Flickr's search. Using only the images that appear on the first page, choose your favorite and copy and paste each of the URL's into the Mosaic Maker (or make it yourself in photoshop). Have fun!