Gettin' By

Guess which kid will be a card-carrying PETA member.

Riely:  Mama!  Today at school, guess what I saw!
Me:  What?!?
Riely:  A FIDER!  A creepy FIDER!
Me:  A spider, huh?  Inside or outside?
Riely:  INFIDE!  Infide my school!
Me:  And what did you do?
Riely:  I twied to SMOOSH it with my shoe!  But it ran into a cwack on the floor!
Me:  Why did you try to smoosh it?  It wasn't hurting you.
Riely:  BUT MAMA.  One time at school, a FIDER TWIED TO BITE ME!
Hayden:  Maybe that's because you smooshed his friend.

Have a wonderful weekend people!

The envelope, please...

Thanks so much to everyone who stopped by yesterday and joined in the mini festivities!  These days I'm beginning to appreciate more and more little unplanned celebrations like this one. Our daily lives, especially lately, are full of reminders of that our world can downright suck.  So sometimes you just have to grab on to the happy moments, and remind yourself that, Hey, today I had a reason to smile, a reason to celebrate!  So thanks for indulging me.

And now onto the winner of the RAK.  I randomly drew a name from the comments and the gift certificate goes to Amy G:

I'll drink a margarita tonight! And one tomorrow too if I will this drawing!

Posted by: Amy G | February 25, 2009 at 01:26 PM

Yay Amy!  Email me and I'll get you your prize!

Here's hoping you all have a reason to celebrate today!

A Little Pea Love.

So I was settling in at the computer this morning, armed with a hot latte, when it came to my attention that I had been named Pubster of the Day over at Two Peas in a Bucket. And if that's not a fitting reason to enjoy a margarita this evening, I don't know what is!  I first stumbled upon Two Peas back in 2000, when I was desperately trying to find inspiration to scrap my wedding photos.  Needless to say, I found it, and my scrapbooking was never the same.  Not only has Two Peas provided endless inspiration over the years, it's also been the place I've met some pretty cool people that are just as obsessed with this hobby as I am.

So in honor of Pubsters, Two Peas and crazy scrappers everywhere, I wanted to offer up a little RAK.  Leave me a comment here and first thing on Thursday morning, I'll pull a name to receive a $15 gift certificate to Two Peas. And if you want to join me in a virtual toast tonight, by all means, lift a glass!  Happy Wednesday!

[comments are now closed]

The Overlooked Oscars.

Unless you're living under a rock, by now you've heard that Slumdog swept the night with eight awards, Sean Penn gave an impassioned plea for gay marriage during his acceptance speech, and Ben Stiller proved his comic genius with a dead-on portrayal of the (not an actor) Joaquin Phoenix.  But what you might not know is that there are still more awards to be handed out.  And that's where I come in. Without further ado, I give you the Gettin' By 2009 Overlooked Oscar Awards.  Your naked gold statues are in the mail!

The Best Impression of A Golf Ball Award
OK, so I can't insert a photo on this one, but you can see him here:  Jay Manuel.  His polka-dot white dinner coat so closely resembled the dimples on a golf ball you almost could overlook his blindingly white teeth and overly plucked browns.  Almost.  I'd be willing to bet he spent more time in the makeup chair than most of our ladies this evening.

The Award for Most Closely Matching Skin & Hair Color:

Someone really should tell Sophia Loren that the Oompa Loompa tan is so 2007.  Or maybe she thought the abundance of chiffon ruffles would balance her orange glow?  Makes me wonder if she's got a roll of toilet paper under that skirt:
 

Moving on.....

The "I Wrapped Myself In Red Butcher Paper and Hope to Distract You With Lots of Tacky Jewels and Baubles" Award:

I can hear the Project Runway rejects gasping now.  The dress alone might have been alright.  The jewelry with a simpler dress could have worked.  But together?  It looks like a sixth grade Home Ec/Origami project gone way wrong.

The "I Am A Serious Artist Who Cannot Be Bothered To Wash My Hair for This Event" Award:

Ok, we get it Philip.  You're serious about your acting.  But a black ski cap?  Is the economy really so bad that you can't afford a bottle of shampoo?  Or maybe you are planning to rob the nearest convenience store after the ceremony?  Well, swipe some hair product while you're there.

The "I Have An Amazing Body But I'm Going To Cover It Up With A Nondescript Satin Bow Thingy" Award:

I love you, Jessica, really I do.  And I know you've got Justin waiting for you back home, so tell me, why on earth did you think that dress, with the satin equivalent of a towel rack hanging from your left breast, was doing you any justice?  Do I have to remind you what happened to Cameron when she started dressing like this?

The "We're Too Busy Rebuilding New Orleans and Saving Orphans to Bother With Red Carpet Fashion Statements" Award:

YAWN.  This is the best Hollywood's "power couple" can do?  Angelina, I liked you better when you were wearing vials of blood, channeling Morticia Addams and kissing your brother.  At least it was interesting.  This is just......snore.

The "My Necklace Weighs More Than Me" Award:

I really could've loved this dress, Amy.  It's a stunning color and the fit was perfection.  But the skirt-attached-to-bodice was just distracting.  And the necklace completely overwhelmed you. I don't know where to look, so I'm just going to look away.

The "Wardrobe Malfunction Just Waiting To Happen" Award:

I can only imagine the male onlookers at the red carpet were praying she'd drop an earring and have to bend down.  (And by the smirk on Matthew's face, you know he's thinking it, too.) Free nipple show, anyone?  SJP herself called the dress "barely mint," though I think "barely covering areolas" would have been more appropriate.

The "Madame Tussaud's Life-Like Impersonation" Award:
 
Oh Beyonce.  You're lucky Jay Z already put a ring on it, because with this look you'd still be a single lady.  We all got the memo a few years back that you are bootylicious.  No need to keep reminding us with skin-tight mermaid dresses.  Can you even simulate real-life motion with your knees locked together like that?  Oh, and Elvis called.  He wants his velvet wallpaper back.

So let's wrap this up on a good note, ok? 

The "I Clean Up Damn Good" Award goes to...

Robert Downey, Jr. for his amazing transformation into this clean-cut, healthy, happy version of himself.  I loved every little bit of him.  And the way he kept throwing endearing glances at his gorgeous wife all evening?  Swoon!  You can be my Iron Man any day, RD!

And that, my friends, is my two cents worth on the Oscar Fashions.  So tell me, what were your faves?  And who should be firing their stylist today?  Dish!

TGIF!

Whew, I'm happy it's Friday.  The week after a vacation always sucks.  (I know, poor, poor me.  I'd never let the fact that I've just been spoiled with a 10-day beach vacation prevent me from a little self-centered whining.)  And I've had plenty to keep my busy (and prevent me from blogging).  Namely work projects, household chores, school activities and attempting to eat my body weight in Pop Tarts.  You're beginning to see why I have to run so much, huh?

At any rate, I realized I have never posted some pages I did for the Me & My Big Ideas booth at CHA.  They feature their new line of Soft Spoken stickers, which make it super easy to title (and even journal) your page.

And that, my friends, is about all I can come up with for today.  Enjoy this Oscar weekend (you can print a ballot here) and we'll dish red carpet fashion on Monday, OK?!

Estoy en casa. Y necesito una margarita.

Yep, we're back!  We arrived home late Sunday night and had yesterday to ease back in to real life.  Today, the kids are back in school and Mike's at work; I'm catching up on the home front.  It was a fabulous vacation and I definitely returned home stress-free and margarita-full.  Which is always good.  The biggest adjustment after vacation is the elimination of daily Happy Hour that we enjoy in Mexico.  I just keep humming the tune It's Five O'Clock Somewhere and checking the clock.  Is that a bad thing?

 
Some of the highlights of the trip included Hayden's swim with the dolphins at Xel-Ha, during which he could be heard loudly exclaiming. "OH MY GOSH!  THIS IS JUST CRAZY! THIS DOLPHIN IS TOTALLY INSANE!"  I only wish I'd had a video camera at the time. That kid cracks me up.

And Riely thoroughly enjoyed the ocean, once she got over the girly fear of getting wet. (She gets that from her mama, oh yes she does!) She made a sport of collecting coral pieces, lovingly naming all of them as her "babies." We had to literally drag her out of the water to go the airport on Sunday.  And speaking of water, I once again managed go through an entire beach vacation without actually getting my swimsuit wet.  I'm there for the sun, baby!

The only real lowlights of the trip involved a bunch of obnoxious American tourists who complained loudly about the quality of the hamburgers at Akumal's local lunch counter (Um, hello?!  You're in Mexico, morons!  How about eating, oh, I dunno, A TACO?!?) and an unidentified Silent Farter on our plane ride home who felt it was acceptable mile-high etiquette to float deadly air biscuits the entire 4-hour flight home.  Lovely.

So anyway.  Today I'm trying to catch up and get back in the swing of things.  I'm giving thanks for my Sleep Number bed, which I missed dearly last week, and daydreaming about soft sand and ocean breezes, which I miss this week.  I plan to sort through the more than 400 photos I took and post some more this week - stay tuned!!

Now, where's that margarita recipe?!? And is it five o'clock yet?!  :)

It's Margarita Time, Baby!

Since it's quite likely that at the current moment, my butt is planted in the sand of some beach in Mexico and I'm sipping my very favorite adult beverage, I thought I'd take this opportunity to share with y'all my very favorite recipe.  For margaritas, naturally.  Try and keep up!

The Very Best Margaritas

1 (big) can Minute Maid Limeaid frozen concentrate
3/4 can tequila
1/4 can Cointreau orange liqueur
1/2 bottle Corona beer
ice
coarse salt
lime wedges

Mix it all in a blender (the limeaid can serves as your measuring cup!)  and serve in a salt-rimmed glass with lime.  ¡Olé!

Reason #53 why Kay Jewelers never employed us as copywriters.

We were watching the Superbowl (well, Mike was watching the game and I was tuning in for the commercials) when the Kay Jewelers ad for Jane Seymour's new Open Hearts Necklace came on.  If you saw the My Name Is Earl episode featuring the necklace, you already know it's destined to become the hot commodity for trailer park moms everywhere.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.  Ahem.

So there's a line in the commercial that just BEGS to be made fun of.  And naturally, we did. :)
Let me set the scene for you:

Jane Seymour:  My mother used to tell me to always keep my heart open.  It's the only way to give and receive love.

Mike:  Her mother told her to always keep her legs open?!?

Me:  No, I think she said, 'Always keep a hard-on.  It's the only way to give and receive love."

Yes, we have the comic maturity of 12-year old boys.  Like you didn't already know that.

Scrap for a Cure!

I was lucky enough to get asked to be the guest designer at Scrap For A Cure kit club this month, and I wanted to share the layouts I made with their main kit, Vintage Flair and the add-on, Timeless Treasures. Even though the kit contains some wonderful vintage pieces like typeset pages, sewing patterns, and lace, I only did one truly "vintage" layout ("This Girl" page featuring pics of my Oma when she was 16).  I even got a Halloween pages out of this stuff - which shows just how versatile it is!  So anyway, here's the finished products:

Thanks, Patti & Diana for the opportunity to work with your great kits!

Procrastination: The uncelebrated talent.

We are leaving (on a jet plane!) for Mexico in the morning.  And before you get any great ideas to come rob our house while we're gone, you should know that our house sitter is a 300-pound ex-Navy Seal with a concealed weapons permit.  And a large pit bull.  That bites.  So don't come crying to me if, while sneaking around our house, you come up with a limb missing.  You had fair warning.

Anyway, despite the face that we depart in the morning, and I have exactly ten million things to do in order to ensure that departure, I am sitting here blogging.  Is blogging on my list of things to do?  Uh, no. Is it the best use of my time this afternoon?  Uh, no again.  But I'm nothing if not an excellent procrastinator. And it takes discipline to get THIS good, people! Besides, it wouldn't really be a true Dickinson family trip if, in the morning approximately 15 minutes before we're supposed to leave for the airport, I didn't do my usual ritual of running around the house screaming WHERE THE HELL ARE THE PASSPORTS?  AND DID YOU PACK THE SUNSCREEN?  WHERE ARE MY DAMN SUNGLASSES??  I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!!  Ah, good times. 

And speaking of being disciplined, I wanted to give you an update on my resolution of running 100 miles a month this year.  The numbers are in for January and I ended up with a total of (gimme the drum roll, baby!)  109.7 MILES!!!  Aw, yeah. No, it wasn't easy.  But the reward was not just in making the miles, it also resulted in my losing 7 pounds.  Which turns out to be a nice little coincidence, since that's exactly the amount of guacamole I plan to consume while we're in Mexico.

I've got a few posts planned during my absence, so check back in every now and again.  Until then, I'll be on the beach, margarita in hand, baby!  Hasta Luego!