Scrapbooking my life...one page at a time

Just Pottering around ...

I guess this isn't news at all to you Harry Potter fans out there but .... (drum roll ....) today is the release of the much anticipated ... HARRY POTTER and THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE!!!   I believe that this is the last book in the much-loved series so I can imagine that for all the die-hard Potters fans this is BIG and the excitement has certainly been building around our house all summer.  Admittedly, Mike & I are not exactly what you would call Harry Potter fans as neither of us has ever read any of the books but we have seen several of the movie HOWEVER ... 

MEET ONE OF HARRY'S BIGGEST FANS ... Katy!   She is a major fan! Both her and Jessica are BIG BIG BIG BIG FANS!!!   Katy has spent the whole summer re-reading every book in the series of  Potter books getting ready for this movies release.  She asked Mike & I if we wanted to go see it with her so we went online Monday to Fandango and pre-bought tickets for today at 7pm.  All the movie theaters around us are pre-selling tickets for days out - I have heard good things about this movie but good or bad ... I think it is going to make a TON of Galleon.

 

So tonight we will grab our Butter-Beer & Popcorn and settle in along with all the other muggles to see where Harry & the Gang lead us now ....

Have a great day

Smile

- N -

A Breakdown, 10 Shades of Grateful, & A B-Day Celebration ...

The Breakdown

My computer took ill last Friday and had a massive BREAKDOWN.  Yikes, I have had to limp along with only my laptop, I really don't know how people use them as their one-and-only machines because typing on them drives me mad,  but anyway, it's what I had to use while my Mr. Fix-It was/is working on fixing my beloved 'puter.

It appears I may have picked up some kind of nasty virus during my internet travels.  The virus struck very quickly - paralyzing my machine and setting off all my anti-virus programs!!!   Everything started going haywire ... So Mike & I headed down to Fry's for some 'puter parts and he has been working on it the whole weekend.  Apparently, if I didn't have some many &^5#*! pictures, games & graphics on my machine it wouldn't take 1/2 as long to fix & reinstall everything.  I say .... such is life!

So anyway, I kinda have my big computer back but not entirely - I am not sure how long it will take but at least I am able to get on the internet to play & post.

10 Shades of Grateful

 

10 Things I am Grateful for this weekend:

1. A good friend's nephew finally got a new {heart} & the transplant went well ...
2. A Happy Birthday Celebration for Mike ...
3. A wonderfully relaxing weekend ...
4. Sunshine - glorious sunshine ...
5. A moving & thoughtful Service this weekend ...
6. My family & friends ...
7. A Great Lunch with some friends we hadn't seen in a while ...
8. Mike is really enjoying his new job ...
9. Making outstanding choices this weekend & being happy with them all ...
10. Having 2 very nice chats with Dad ....

A B-Day Celebration

 

Friday was Mike's 47th B-day and we had a kinda mixed-up backwards birthday!    Not sure why we did ... it just worked out that way.  Gifts, Cake then Dinner!

The backwards birthday began on Thursday when Mike opened one of his presents from me - a year's worth of DEXTER (aka:Showtime).  We are now watching season 3 on Showtime OnDemand and will then be able to catch Season 4 on regular Showtime - it just began airing. I am so happy because I was able to get a SUCH a GREAT deal on it when I called to order.  It is usually $18.00/month in addition to regular cable costs but I got it for FREE for the first 6 months (because I'd just switched from Vonage phone service to Comcast and they were happy about that) and then it will only be $10.00/month for as long as we have Showtime continuous service - which will probably be for as long as DEXTER is around.

We ended up switching a lot of Comcast (our cable company) services recently because of that whole switch over to Digital cable - not sure if you guys in Canada were subjected to this but ... what a boondoggle it turned out to be ...

Anyways - it was the death of Rabbit Ears!  An icon of my childhood was disappearing - never to be seen or used again.  So, I bought Mike an old pair of rabbit ears from the 1940's for posterity ...

You know I swear we had a pair just like this when I was little - I am sure they had the little dial and twisty space-age looking wire in the middle ... anyone else remember?

 

Kate bought Mike a growler of porter from a small micro-brewery just down the way from us called Mac&Jack's.  She is going to take him on a brewery tour when they have time before she leaves to go back to school.

Then before we left for dinner Mike wanted to eat his cake which was really a cupcake from the New York Cupcake shop.  Yum!  They do make a mean cupcake! 

 

After gifts & cupcakes we took Mike out to dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ.  Mike & I first went to a Famous Dave's when we were out at Mariner's Spring Training in Arizona a couple of years back.  We loved it and were excited when they opened one up in our neck of woods.

 

We visited, laughed & enjoyed each others company ...

Drank some fruity drinks (well, Kate did & gave Mike to try) ...

Shared a giant plate of BBQ ...

 

- And then went home to watch some Dexter -

A great B-Day!

Happy Birthday Sandra

I hope the B-Day fairies were good to you!

Hope everyone has a great Monday

- N -

This I Now Know ...

"Precious, precious, precious!" Gollum cried. "My Precious! O my Precious!"  And with that, even as his eyes were lifted up to gloat on his prize, he stepped too far, toppled, wavered for a moment on the brink,and then with a shriek he fell.  Out of the depths came his last wail Precious, and he was gone."
  -  JR Tolkien -

I know that, in the past, I was often prone to this particular human frailty and perhaps - 'often' is an understatement.  I had always considered my 'justification' of needing to control everything in my life as simply a bad habit.  A survival tool.  A excusable method of maintaining order.  A part of my nature.  But I now know this belief, is for me, as in the case of Gollum, just a tragedy the human nature.  This belief that we can control the world around us , this belief that we need to control the world around us and that nothing should ever be left  to fate, faith or the whimsy of time ...

Taking control of your life is not entirely a bad thing, however, this much I now know ... the only thing in my life that I can ever really control is the choices I make.  I now believe that any attempt at control is usually to just an attempt to manipulate or subvert others & events to ensure the overcome you desire. Trying to control life is much like trying to avoid or ignore events or circumstance in of your life - neither one will allow you to live life to the fullest. 

I now know that a life well lived is about the choices you make and making the most of your choices.  It has little or nothing to do with control.  The need to control will only consume you as it did Gollum and ultimately steal from you - everything that is precious  ...

Making the hard choices in life is difficult and living with the consequences of those choices is often even more so.  This morning as I wrote in my journal I realized that I was at a point in my life where I needed to make some very personal & very tough choices.  I was horrified to realize that I had been trying to control the thoughts and choices of others to help me avoid dealing with some issues that I would rather not face.   But, as I wrote I realized that avoidance is not a choice - it is a passive attempt at control.

So, while it may be human nature to always want to control everything - today I prayed that my faith would fill me with the strength & wisdom to help me make these difficult & uncomfortable choices and be ever mindful of the consequences they may wield  ...

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

- N -

Sequim ...

Happy Belated July 4th

Mike & I were lucky enough to be invited to spend the 4th of July with our friends Dave & Dana, their family and other friends over in Sequim Wa.  Dave's family has owned a cabin overlooking the Dungeness Spit, Puget Sound & Victoria, B.C. (which you can see lit up at night from their front lawn).  We had such a GREAT time and Dave & Dana were wonderful hosts.  Thanks guys for such a memorable July 4th!

A Little Blue Pail in Sequim ...

We headed over to Sequim (pronounced: "s'kwim" the e is silent) early Friday morning - we left the house around 9:30am.  Drive time to Sequim is quite variable because there is a ferry ride involved (ferry ride is only 25 minutes) - the drive itself is about a 2 hours but because it was a long weekend we were hit with a 2 hour ferry wait so it took awhile to get there. We were starving by the time we got to Sequim so we decided the first order of business was to go to lunch.  Mike had read online that the '3 Crabs' restaurant was very good so we decided to head over to it since it was near the cottage that we had rented.  The food was great and the view was breathtaking.  If you ever find yourself starving & in Sequim, Wa then I would recommend seeking out The 3 Crabs ...

Restaurant & view

After lunch we headed over the cottage we'd rented.  It was called the 'Tea House' and while it was very cute it was not on the waterfront and didn't have a water view.  A shame when you are so close to the water.

***************
All the waterfront view cabins, cottages & houses were long ago rented.   You didn't have to look very hard to tell that this place was once someone's much loved Japanese house & garden which had been sold into  the vacation property slavery trade.  So sadly neglected.   

I loved the big covered deck ...

The garden reminded me of an old - long forgotten love story.  At one time ... someone's heart raced as they gazed at it's beauty and they smiled to themselves ... knowing all it's secrets and possibilities.

I must admit that as I prowled around the overgrown & dying gardens - I had to fight off the urge to begin weeding & watering.  To lure it back into the life it had once known ...

The thing I love about nature is that no matter how tangly, messy, overgrown or neglected it becomes it is always hiding something beautiful and if you are very patient and look hard enough and long enough  - you can always find it ...

Sometimes the beautiful is hiding in amongst the overgrown plants & shrubs - disguised as old & beaten remains of the day ....

 

And sometimes Mother Nature just tosses them out to you  ...

There were two houses on the property ... the big house with the view ... and the sad little Tea House and both houses were allowed to use the dock and go down to the beach.  Mike & I decided to stroll down to the shore when we first got there before we headed over to Dave & Dana's place  ...

After playing on the beach for a while and checking out the dock we decided to head over to Dana's ....

Dave & Dana's cottage

Mike enjoying the view ...

There is no doubt about it ... Dave & Dana's place has one heck of view ...  You can see Mt. Baker, the Puget Sound, the Dungeness Spit, and Victoria lit up at night!!  It is so nice ...

The Dungeness Spit ...

Dave has a boat and likes to set out crab pots and catch fresh Dungeness Crabs - which we had for dinner on the 1st night we were there.  I think Dave caught 7 that day ...

Dave & back with the World's Deadliest Catch ...

Can you just imagine how great it must be to go down, bring home your fresh caught crab, smash em, cook em and then eat em.  They were very Yummy!! 
 Seriously, does life get any better ...

Dave smashing & cleaning the crab

Shoebox sporting a new lavender scarf ...

As you can imagine, the sunsets from their bluff are incredible ...

The next morning (July 4th) Mike & I decided to go and check out the sights in the town of Sequim ...

4th of Julyier's putting their freedom to work and protesting our impending conversion to 'socialism' & over taxation [humm ... maybe next year they will celebrating on July 1st as Canada's 11th province OR my-oh-my - maybe the 4th territory]  ....

An oh-so-cute bird house ...

An even-cuter woodpecker screen door and OH YES, I do need one of those for my front door!
 

After touring town Mike wanted to get some BIG BOOM, BOOM, BANG works and so we headed over the Jamestown Firework Stand on Sklallam Reservation (um, I'm sorry but is that the sign PC?).  They had a whole building dedicated to the selling of fireworks and you probably won't be surprised to learn that the place had quite a crowd surrounding it ...

Now - I have never really seen the attraction to fireworks.  Yes, they are pretty to watch on TV but in real life they are expensive, noisy, dangerous, scare the local wildlife, start fires and usually leave a mess.  Mike had his heart set on some blasting so we ended up with rather large variety pack ...

Okay, I confess, I bought 3 little chicken firecrackers (they are very small - each chicken is only about 2 inches long).  They are called ... 'Hen Laying Egg" and in theory, they are supposed to shoot fire out their butts and look like they are laying eggs.  I say 'in theory' because I forgot them on top of Dana's fridge and so I never did light them off ...

When we got Dana's house we found two deer resting in the shade of the house. 

They were so adorable but as soon as we got there they decided to 'mozy' on home to their neck of the woods (which, BTW, is right next door at the Wildlife Preserve)...
********************
Kirsten, a good friend of Dana's, and her two children came to join the celebration.  We enjoyed a FEAST of crab, BBQ burgers & hot dogs, various salads and other yummies  ...

The Boybarians hanging around BBQ ...

Dana looking so cute in her 4th of July festive in her flag shirt ...
***************

After dinner they put the tent up for the kids to sleep in ...

Then we had a smore's party down at the fire pit while we waited for night to fall ...
And then my camera battery died so that's end of the pictures.
***************
We lit up the sky with fireworks and everyone had such a good time.  I can't thank Dave & Dana enough for the wonderful weekend.


I hope everyone had a happy & safe July 1st or 4th whichever the case may be  ...

- N -

Broken Pillars ...

Our current Bookclub selection is Ken Follett's, 'The Pillars of the Earth' - Beautiful book & captivating story!  If anyone is looking for a good summertime-by-the-pool read I would highly recommend that you take a look at this book.  

Here is what Kristin Dreyer Kramer, a reviewer has to say about the book,

"The Pillars of the Earth is a fascinating historical novel -- one that captured me right from the beginning and refused to let go until I’d turned the last page. Follett weaves believable fictional characters and the occasional bit of fact into one of the most captivating books I’ve read in a long time. If you’re the least bit intrigued by English history -- by the castles and the cathedrals and the civil wars for the monarchy -- you’ll enjoy every page of this book (even the gruesome battle scenes). And if you never gave a second thought to English history -- to the castles and cathedrals and the civil wars for the monarchy -- you definitely will after reading this book."

The only caveat I would add to her review is that this book is massive ... as in - HUGE ... it is almost 1000 pages of very fine print.   And, I only mention this because, depending on what type of reader you are, you may have to adjust either your reading style or the book itself. 

Now, I am no 'book sissy' - but if you are like me and do most of your reading in bed - watch out!  Reading this well endowed book while lying in bed  might be / could be / will be hazardous to your health!  As I said, I do about 90% of my reading in bed and so holding up this heavy book for prolonged periods of time ... hurts!  Also,  and I'm speaking from experience here, when you start getting tired & begin nodding off .... well, the book is gonna slip, bo_nk you on the head - and, Ouch!  So ...

Yeah, yeah ...  I know, I can hear all you bibliophiles & librarian's out there cursing me and yelling 'blasphemy' ... but listen - this is the best solution - the only workable solution, for me, anyways. 

And hey, I know I'm not the only book defacer out there.  I'll wager a bet that there are many 'closet' graffiti in the sidebar , spine-bending, folded corner book-marking, blue pen passage underlinering [or, even worse - yellow hiliting] book defacers out there besides me. 

I confess - I cut the book in half to make it more manageable and readable. Not very book friendly, but hey, it worked like a charm! 

This is the first time I have ever resorted to such drastic measures but I must admit I am pleased with the outcome.

I believe that a well loved book is a well worn book ...

Isn't life is funny though, have you ever noticed that whenever you devise a plan to fix a problem ... a new one is usually created as a result.  Think - Cat in Hat!  Because once you have cut the spine of the book in half - the book is more or less ... broken.  The pages will loosen and begin to fall away - hence the ribbon neatly binding Volume Two back together.

I am still reading Volume One but enjoying ever page of it and I would be happy to pass along both volumes of this slightly modified book to anyone out there would like to read it after I am done ...

Smile, Laugh & most importantly
Be Kind to all those around you
- N -

Happy 142nd Birthday Canada!!!!!

I am proud to be a
 CANADIAN!
 
Look else  isn't ... eh?
This is too funny not to watch!

Just Wondering ...

 
If you could bring back ONE TV show from your childhood day what would it be and why?

Humm,  only one eh! 
That's a tough one because I've always liked my TV.   I  mean - I seriously love watching TV  ...

My greatest TV moments involved the introduction of  the Remote . the DVD,  the TIVO and of course, COLOR  and while I don't remember the first time I ever watched TV ... I do remember when I married Mike he had a color Television and Jessica & I were thrilled  because all we had was a small B/W TV.  Ya know, I am not even sure if you could buy a new B/W television set today.  Can you?

Anyways, one of the great things about TV is that every week you get a 'do over' -  Think about it ... you pay $11 bucks to see a movie at the theater and if it's crap ... it stays crap F.O.R.E.V.E.R. (well, okay - until they remake it 10 years later) but on TV if this weeks episode is crap ...well then maybe, just maybe - next week 's episode  might  Great  AND if there are too many crappy episodes in a row ... well, one of two things will happen. 
either:  A) you change the channel and quit watching or B) the show is canceled and another possible hit fills it's time slot!    It's Sheer Genius. - so don't you believe Alex Baldwin when he tells you that TV will, 'soften your  brain like a ripe banana'  because - it's not all giggity goo. 

Okay so now you must somehow block out the fact that we  live in an age of Tivo, TV Land, Itunes,  Hula.com, DVD's, DVR's, and Satellite  Dish TV with 200+  channels ... I know, it hard to imagine that a show you've spent several years loving would ever truly disappear - because it probably no longer ever would, but ...  

... let's pretend that it could happen.  Let's pretend that TV shows from long ago (say  25 - 30 years ago)     were not available ... ANYWHERE, to ANYONE, but for some unknown reason  - and you may need to go beyond the Outer Limits of your imagination for this, but try ... okay, now imagine that  you were offered a chance to bring back only ONE show from your childhood ... one beloved show, which one would it be?  Remember,  just one ...

Would it be The Flying Nun?  Hogan's Hero's?  Northern Exposure?   What about The Odd Couple?   Or how about The Partridge Family, Saved by the Bell or remember One Day at a Time!  Oh or how about  I Dream of Jeannie  and The Carol Burnett Show!  Anyone remember F-Troop or Petticoat Junction?

I know, I know ... it's hard - Television is not just a bunch of random shows ...it helped define your Wonder Years and archived The Facts Of your Life.  And just hearing a couple lines from the theme song of an old TV show can reawaken & open the floodgates of your memories.  All the Good Times - and all the Growing Pains  that you lived through ... EVERYTHING ....

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip ...

It's very hard and I am not sure I can only pick one ... Seriously, I could never pick just one - never!   I'm afraid ... It's hard to admit ... but you see, well um, well yeah *sigh* .. I'm addicted to the box.  There, I've said it!  It's a fact ... 

Hello, My name is Nancy and I'm a idiot box addict!

Okay, Okay ... here is a list of my TOP 10 favorite TV shows from my youth.  Shows that I loved & watched regularly and they are ranked: So I guess the Walton's is the Number One show - who knows maybe it's because I grew up on farm ???

1. Walton's
2. My Three Sons
3. The Andy Griffith Show
4. Bewitched
5. Mary Tyler Moore
6. Gilligan's Island
7. The Brady Bunch
8. All in the Family
9. Knot's Landing

So - now it's your turn... 

If you need help remembering all the shows from your childhood just click on this link for a reminder. www.crazyabouttv.com

What show would you pick?

Have a great day & don't forget to smile!

- N -

A Zoo Run & Day 3 ...

A Zoo Run ...

My neighbor, Ms. B, her son, little A & I all spent most of Tuesday at the Woodland Park Zoo (WPZ).  It was a beautiful sunny day and I LOVE the zoo.  I almost always have a current WPZ membership card in my wallet because ... you never know when you'll be experiencing a "sunny-day-with-nothing-much-to-do"  kinda day and the zoo is always a great place to go.  

If you know me then you know that I am always up for a trip to the zoo - with or without little kids ...  I like to just wander around and get lost for a while.  The animals amaze me, the gardens & plants always bring me a little ... Zen ... it is, for me, an oasis - a paradise lost!  Okay, okay - I know, it's not so much paradise when you're experiencing the zoo from behind bars but that aside - I still love the zoo ...

And hey, it's not all bad!  For example, did you know that most zoo's are now an integral part of worldwide conservation & education efforts and that many species that are now lost in the wild exist today ... only in zoos.  The WPZ currently partners with 38 field conservation projects taking place in more than 50 countries.

Anyhoo - we were there for some FUN!  Nothing more than simple Fun, Fun, fun - not to learn or conservate (I think I just made that word up - if you don't know what it mean ... look it up).  We had come to soak up a little of that not so abundant PNW sunshine, get a little exercise, and have FUN - oh ya, and to wear out the baby so he would sleep well later that night!

We just knew that little A would love seeing all the animals, squeal with delight as they pranced about their naturalistic zoobitats and interacted playfully with their cell mates.  Sometimes It's even hard for me to contain my delight as I watch all the exotic wildlife at the zoo ...

-  little A looks excitedly for the animals -

What did he find ...

-  some lazy goats getting ready for a nap -

-  a flamingo napping -

-  a gorilla napping -

Well, we had obviously arrived at nap time - everyone was asleep so we decided to go to the children's play area which ended up being much more fun 

- little A constructing a little bug at the play table -

Day 3 ...

Here is Day 3 of my 365 days ...

 

If you asked Mike, he would tell you that he is not a caffeine drinker but for those of you who really KNOW Mike you know he is a major caffeine guzzler ... as in he guzzle down about a liter of caffeinated diet Pepsi a day!  I am not sure what you would pay for a 2L bottle of Pepsi in Canada but down here - on a good sale - we can get it for about $1.19 a bottle.  The other day I was at QFC getting some steak to BBQ (yum) and they had it on sale for .83 cents a bottle.  A BOTTLE!  That is a crazy good price but. as you can see, they had a 6 bottle limit per customer. Life is so-da good - isn't it!

An Unexpected Song ...

I found this video clip on Utube and It made me smile.  

It reminded me not to sit on the sidelines - not to stand on the edge of life and watch it passing by but to go ahead and stand up, cheer, clap, sing yourself silly and dance along as the parade passed by. 

Look at the smiles of join on the passenger's faces as they stop and enjoy this piece of magic that has creep unexpectedly into their lives.  I love that so many of them just dropped their bags and joined the dancers!!

365 Days ...

At the Father's Day BBQ this weekend Sarah was telling me about a friend of her's who was participating in a scrapbook/journal challenge called 365 Days!  Sarah said her friend had been faithfully documenting every day since January 1st.

The idea is that you take a photo of just 1 photo everyday that gives a little glance into your life - something that helps describe you, your day or a significant event from that day.  I love the idea that at the end of the year (mine won't be a calendar year) you have this glimpse into the life of ...

I'm not sure how much journaling Sarah's friend does every day but I will probably only do a line or two about the photo that I have taken - just a snapshot into my day.

I have decided that I will probably try to incorporate most days photo's into my blog.  Just a single photo and a line or two about it at the bottom of my entry.  Some days will be missing from my blog but I do intend to try and complete the challenge and take a photo everyday. 

Today, Day No. 1 - I took several photo's but the photo below is the one I will enter into my 365 Day Photo Journal.

Day No. 1

Today I was up at 5am, off to the Y at 6am where I did a weight circuit [13 machines] , walked 1.5 miles and I was home by 8:45am (I stopped at the bank & grocery store on the way home).

Take the time to find the sunny in today

- N -