happy new year

I hope that 2008 will bring us lots of good things.

we made it through a rough year- from last Nov 2006 to now, but I am glad to report that god has been there for us.... and has provided a good job that I really like. S is doing well at his job and SSD1 is doing well too, making his way to graduation. Hh is the light in our lives and shines brightly. SSD2 is doing well and actually maturing and learning to maneuver some new challenges. J is better with ex-J these days and as much as I loath the thought it is probably for the best, it is sometimes hard to see the forest for the trees- tough love has been very hard- but again I have asked for strength and receive it daily.

I have decided to keep my senior warden position, and committed to trying to dedicate more time to my scout crew, ( geo caching) , there seems to be lots to fill my waking time. I look forward to planning some trips to see a few more folks this year. We will have a little time off in the spring I hope and maybe we can go west this year. Though we will miss our annual spring break with the " girls" of Nebraska if we swap a trip. I am looking forward to a raise, and the 1st thing I will replace is a maid service - this has been the thing I have totally missed the most from my loss of employment last November.

so there you have it a mini review and a mini hopes for the coming year. Sometimes it is the little things in life that are the best.

trouble with a big T

well for christmas S got me a cool new gadget as you can see it is a Sportline pedometer watch!

Well I really am not to hard to please and I would say I have some good intuitveness with most electronic type of things. I am being challenged by this big time.

It seems like it would be great if I could just understand what I need to do to get it to work?? It looks really pretty on and it beeps on command and off when I least expect it. like in the ladies room at work ( my neighbor in the next stall thought it might be a bomb) yikes!!

Today I think I actually got it to countsteps, buit I am not sure if it really was doing it. Apparently it does things like count calories and time spent and steps taken, though I have no idea how to get it to actaully DO all this stuff.

I have read the above pictured manual three times already, but as I told S it is just not that intuitve. hmmmnnn well Love it anyway maybe someone who has one will help me out?? you never know in the blog world.

recipe for Me?

The Recipe For queue_t

3 parts Inspiration2 parts Wit1 part Vitality Splash of Nonconformity Finish off with whipped cream

What's" the Recipe for Your Personality?

Christmas has come and gone

we waited a while for everyone to arrive and open presents- with this blended family we sometimes have to wait until after , sometimes we have to do it ahead of time, over the last ten years we have adapted. This is our tradition, a santa on top of our tree, you will see him there everyyear. S tried to find an angel one year, but no such luck so this guy has been our combined tradition since we got together.
This year's tree was silver and red! it is gorgous and I have enjoyed having it up for a while. Hh and I had fun decorating it.





We did lots of shopping at Thanksgiving. The kids got a couple of extreme rockers for video and music listening and game playing. They all got a little mp3 player with 2 gig hard drives. these were the most coveted of the gifts this year.





I got a cool box of goodies from my Husker PAL- K8 ( I won't be taking these in to the university!!) these are meltaways in a Nebraska huskers box!!
then there was this cool ornament a coffee tree from Hallmark - it is so darn cute.....
it is not going on my tree it is going downstairs to be with the good Cuppa I got last year.

Real Life

"One's real life is often the life that one does not lead." Oscar Wilde

Jamie - who is in my side bar contributes to another Blog called Skulls, find it here - she asks us to really enjoy the holiday this weekend.

Well in my Real life maybe that would be the ideal thing to do, along with contribute my 1000 dollars to my church for the holiday, buy the presents and have them professionally wrapped already.... feel satisfied that my peeps were going to receive the best christmas cards ever ( not!) and that my sparkling house would be inviting all my neighbors and friends for a little party. Oh yes Oscar has hit me over the head with this quote today... well it is the small things that make the season and the real reason, so celebrate what you have and say thanks for all the blessings we really do have in real life.

Reading through my bloglines Blogroll, this is an older post from killer hobbies, Joanna has an interseting take on the holidays. Thanks for sharing thoughts on real life and the choices we make.

Puppy Crack?

About a month ago I bought some "organic" puppy Cookies at Costco.... well the dogs are addicted and pester me non stop until I give them at least one ! I am not sure what is in them but it is totally addicting to the dogs.

This is from the three dog bakery
All Natural Ingredients.

Oven-Baked Flavor

tail-wag as you walk in the door. A constant cuddle companion. A big, slobbery smooch. Our four-legged friends give us so much everyday – of course we want to give back to them the very best we can! If there’s one thing we’ve learned it’s that the best way to reach your pup is through their belly – either with food or a good, old-fashioned tummy rub. Since drool-worthy, all-natural, oven-baked doggie delicacies are our specialty – the tummy rubbing is up to you. In putting together the best, all-natural ingredients we admit, we had a little help. Our team consulted with vets, breeders, pet shop owners, pet lovers and even held our own in-house focus groups (the girls loved every minute of it). The results were conclusive. The ingredients make the difference – using healthier ingredients means healthier, more energetic dogs.

We do want to warn you, there may come a time when you get a little jealous of your dog. Who wouldn’t? Just a whiff of our rich and nutty peanut butter and you might find yourself drooling too. The thought of our sweet and delectable carob chip cookies has been known to set our legs kicking with delight. And that’s just scratching the surface of the ingredients we offer in our all-natural, oven-baked goodies. Take a minute to read some more about our individual ingredients and learn how they lead to happier, healthier dogs (and jealous owners).

Sing Hh Sing

Hh had her singing Christmas program tonight, it was at the middle school with a few other elementary schools and the middle school participating.
The kids were good, the place was packed and parking was non-existant! The program was alot of " christmasy" toons, with a disclaimer in the program about making sure that the public notes that the school district doesn't really support the theme, but doesn't want to offend anyone!!

I wish they would just get over it.....

Merry Christmas- happy Hanuka and whatever else comes to mind.

Party hardy

We went to the University of Colorado's Party last night at the museum of nature and science. Hh came with us and she an I wore our santa hats ( festive was the dress code) the museum was open with some exibits so we went to see Titanic... S said it was sad to see this at christmas time, but facinating none the less. The preservation and recovery of the items on board was fantastic, the displays and layout were creative ( like you were touring in parts of the ship) . Hh already had been one time with her classmates and had a unit in school studying this event in our life history. it was interesting and informative. Here is a link to the exibit.

Tonight it is off to the Downtown Denver Broker, it is located in the bottom of the bank building and inside a vault. here is the link

Built in 1903 and set in an original bank vault, The Broker Restaurant is one of Denver's most unique dining experiences.

Our dinner menu features dry-aged, prime cuts of beef, fresh Alaskan seafood, Colorado lamb, pork tenderloin, and many other wonderful gourmet entrees. Dinners may be accompanied by an appetizer, soup, salad, vegetables or potato selection from our a la carte menu

rocky mountain ringers

Check these folks out! we went to a handbell concert last night... given by the Rocky mountain ringers. Fabulous - this is definatley the way to get in the mood for the christmas season.

S's boss Bob pays for tickets, this is the 3 year we have had the privilage of hearing this fantastic musical group .

It was good fun and uplifting music.

snow, snow and more snow

it's begining to look alot like christmas around town. It snowed all day in Boulder and the buses ran slow, but I am thankful for someone else doing the driving, I can't believe what a stress reducer that is. I actually get some unwind time. I have read more books in the last 5 months than in about a year too:) I am currently reading an innocent man by John Grisham, and just finished Playing for Pizza by him as well. I am happy to read authors I like.

I am contemplating the return to education, possibly my Master's degree, The U provides us with the opportunity to take some credit hours in our " field" this could be a very good thing.


The video clips below take a while to load, but they are fun and worth veiwing and listening too, I am so proud of Hh and all the good things she is accomplishing. She takes pride and satisfaction in the goals too.

J is at his Dad's currently we had a falling out, and he did a few things that I don't agree with or want to condone, it is a hard line to take- but I am a parent and not a friend, is a mantra I have to take as a parent. Though love is hard. It is hard to explain that I love him, but don't want the bad behavior and I have rules and expectations to live by in my house. His indiscresions, lead to a suspention from school and a ticket- maybe time one on one with Dad is what he needs... it is hard

Working on some projects and will be scanning in my Woodbadge Scrapbook soon, for all to enjoy. I want to put together a digital version for distrubution to my patrol mates and some friends. It was a great project to put together. so be looking forward to that soon I hope.

I also want to get back to my regular blogging schedule. So don't hold my feet to the fire, but I will try to be a better blooger.

last but not least - save the last dance for me

watch this to the end, HH smiles and is very satisfied with her performance of Ancient city of Stone.

Next piece please, take two percussion Princess

Montazoa's Castle sees her on the snare drums. look at her count! :)

Percussion Princess plays

this was advance band in concert with the Princess HH on cow bell here the piece is Magnificant Seven