Tuesday, December 09, 2008

For my best friend

"When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us."
– Helen Keller


It is now time for you to turn away from the closed door and go through the open one.

Friday, December 05, 2008

Random Caroling...

'Tis the season to be jolly...
Caroling starts before Thanksgiving
It makes my heart sing
Why not share with friends
My karaoke style of song
On their voicemail when not at their desk
SURPRISE!
It's a feeling I need to share
My most favorite time of the year

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

History in the making

I was part of a historical event last night! I helped to elect the first African-American President of the United States. A man who, I am confident, will bring great change to our wonderful country. To my democrat friends - WE DID IT!! To my republican friends, sorry but it was the right choice for all of us. I felt relieved and truly blessed - not just that the candidate I wanted to have was elected, but that we live in a great country that allows everyone to make that choice. Even Nicholas was excited about the election which was fantastic.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Flea Market Finds are great!

Ahhhh, the best thing to do on a beautiful Sunday is go to a Flea Market. This one, at the Marshfield Fairground this past Sunday, offered so many different vendors. Yes, I did score on a number of things



First, a cute machine pieced, hand quilted quilt. The guy gave it to me for $10 if I bought it before his wife came back! All it needed was a wash - the hand quilting is really nice to look at.








Here is a great buy - for $10 I got this Vera Bradley bag - it was never used, clean and in perfect condition. Even if it is not a true Vera Bradley bag, it is still my bag (and I needed a winter bag)






A couple of beautiful pieces of fabric - the colors are fantastic. Not sure what I will be making with them.






Now, I have been into costume jewlery. I saw something on Martha Stewart where the old costume jewlery earings were repurposed into magnets - so cool. So I got to thinking how much, as a kid, I loved wearing my grandmothers jewlery. I thought she was so rich - she had so many sparkly items and I could wear the clip-on earings! So, I have been on the hunt to craft with (if I find mismatches) and to create a dress up box for a Christmas gift (I think Meaghan is a good candidate for it).

I love to find treasures...

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Beauty right in our backyard

OK, not really in our backyard but close - only 8 minutes away. We decided to go camping (since it was guaranteed nice weather) so we headed to Myles Standish State Park. Here are just some amazing pictures to share with everyone - enjoy.








Friday, September 19, 2008

Quilt for a great cause

Here it is - the quilt I made for the Relay for Life. I wanted to make sure that it went to a cancer survivor or one who is in the process of being a survivor. My pal, Lisa, pulled through and made the quilt part of a survivor raffle. Kathy Wickert was the winner and sent a very nice thank you card.



This was one of the hardest types of quilts I could have made (being only my 2nd one) but I am glad I did it. It came out better than I expected. I cannot wait for next year and what I will create for this great cause.

Ben is having a baby!

Well, more like Emelia is having a baby. We cannot wait for Kamryn to come and it will be soon - Oct

Erica and Thaissa coordinated the baby shower and it was at my house. It turned out great.

My brother looked so happy and Emelia looked fantastic.



The 'mommy' chair with the clothes line decoration - turned out really cute.





Here is the mommy


And here is the daddy (playing with Meaghan)





The cake was the cutest! The baby had a real pacifier in its mouth!!





Thaissa made the favors - vanilla fudge yummy








And the games - Name the baby food and Measure the mummy's tummy













Congratulations to Ben and Emelia with all the love and happiness a new family can have.

So close to goal!

Well, I am now 5 lbs. away from my goal of 155! This has been such a long road to get to this point. My goal is to hit my goal weight and become a WW lifetime member (so I don't have to pay anymore). I am deciding how my 'after' picture will look so I can show the difference. So, watch...

Monday, July 28, 2008

Hello from North Carolina!

Nick and I are on vacation - visiting David and Carrie in Lillington NC. Amtrak was our mode of transportation - very long ride but cost effective.

We went out on the boat yesterday and had a blast.

I will add pics when I can.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Here is your post Margaret

I've been called on it - why aren't I out there??? Well, this ones for you Margaret - my bestest pal!!

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

How time flies - especially 25 years


June 13, 1983 - that was the day I began my career with BCBSMA and still going strong today. The celebration the company gave was awesome.
I celebrated with 77 other folks who have been with the company 25+ years. The picture is of me with my IT crew - Ellen Curley, Joanne McManus, Kevin Campbell, David Palubicki and our interim CIO Ed Esposito.

Mark, Sydney and Nick were there with me which made me very happy. I will have to wait another 5 years to get a party like that again!

Monday, June 09, 2008

WW Update - 41 lbs!!

Yes, I hit a total loss of 41 pounds last week - very exciting! I am hoping to do an after photo to show the difference.

Bunnies make me laugh

Angry Alien has a new 30 second short for Sixteen Candles - enjoy
http://www.starz.com/bunnies

Find other funny shorts at www.angryalien.com

Saturday, April 05, 2008

Sewing project updates




Here are just a few things I have completed so far:

Sleep pants for me (no pic)
Placemats (showing the front and back)
Nick's cool Yoda sleep pants

I also made a cute tote bag and I am on the finishing stages of a twin size quilt! My next project is to try and make myself a skirt - we shall see!

Guess who talked to Martha?


YES, it was me, talking to Martha Stewart on her radio show Wednesday!!! I knew Martha could help me out on how to remove the smell from my vintage dress form - I will be trying it out today to see how it works. I even got to hear myself cause there was a slight delay from me talking and hearing it on the radio.

My family thinks I am obsessed but I am truly not. I just find that this is a mentor. Someone who has great working ethics and talent that I inpire to be like. Great minds think alike!

Here is my dress form that I got for Christmas - solution to remove the mustiness? Baking soda - how simple is that?

Thursday, April 03, 2008

Weight watchers update... and the number is????

35.4 lbs! That is right my friends - and this last 5 lbs took forever!! Yipee...

Friday, March 14, 2008

What inspires you?

I have been reading a book to organize my scrapbook/craft area (The organized and inspired scrapbooker by Wendy Smedley & Aby Garvey). It contains a workbook to start you thinking about different things in preparation for creating your workspace. One of the sections on Inspiration has you asking yourself: What inspires me? You have 4 categories to list people or things:

Creatively
Emotionally or spiritually
Visually
To scrapbook

It really made me think about what inspires me - here are a few for me. I have a list and everyday seem to be adding more and more to it. How about you?

Songs (makes me happy and sad)
Colors
Fabrics
Flowers
Nature

Sunday, January 27, 2008

I am loving Heather Bailey's Blog

I have the shortcut in my favorites. Her site is so beautiful and she gives some fun ideas. I cannot wait to create some yoyo's (she has instructions on the site).
Click onto her link and take a peek!

Sewing



I have begun sewing classes. Yes, me, sewing! My grandmother was such a great seamstress. I wish I could have learned from her (there are so many things I wish I learned from her).

So, my first lesson was Saturday, January 19. I learned some basics about a sewing machine - how to thread, how to make a bobbin - then I was ready to create my first project which was a zippered case to carry my 'soon to get' sewing supplies. It was made out of some extra fabric that Linda had around.


This is the inside with the zipper I put in! It felt so good making something that I could bring home that day and use.

I am now working on a pair of pajama pants, which I am almost done with. Then onto placemats. I will post the pics when they are done.

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Weight Watchers - Round Two

Ding, ding, ding!!! I started WW the end of August 2007 at a wonderful weight of 207 lbs.!! Yes, my weight got way out of hand for sure. Fitting into a size 18 is not my idea of sexy for sure.

So, I got my mind in place and was determined to becoming healthier - loose the weight, move more, make better decisions about my health. So here I am, just signed up for round two (next 19 weeks) and my weight is at 180... Yes, I have lost 27 lbs so far (the equivalent of a small child or thanksgiving turkey). I am feeling good and hoping to keep the momentum going.

My overall goal?? It is not necessarily weight as it is size. To fit in a size 12-14 again. To have underwear that fit! To be able to fit in my ski boots without my 'cankles' getting pinched. To be able to do a two mile walk without being winded in the first 5 minutes. It goes way beyond just the number on the scale.

For anyone who is starting a program - awesome for you! Be sure you are doing it for the right reasons and stick to it! Here's to a healthy happy 2008!!