Proud to be an American

I am so proud to be an American!

As I look at this picture of my nephew (who wants to be just like his dad, the Air Force pilot), my heart fills with gratitude and love for all those, like my brother, who serve our country.

Today marks the 7th anniversary of 9-11. What a life-changing that day was in all of our lives. And yet, how quickly that day is becoming part of the historic past.

Today at an inservice, it was noted that the freshman in high school this year were 5 years old when the attacks of 9-11 occurred. It makes me feel old to think that an event so deeply etched in my personal memory is already considered "history" to the next generation.

And yet, seven years later, one important thing is the same: those who serve our country still stand at their posts.

The firefighters, police officers, health officials, and those in the military continue to do what they did so willingly that day seven years ago when, as Alan Jackson notes, "the world stopped turning"... they put their lives on the line just...in...case.

Thank you. It's not enough, but thank you.

It's a P.O.O.P.I.E. Party

That's right, I said a P.O.O.P.I.E. party!

What's a P.O.O.P.I.E. party you ask? It's where "People Opposing Objectionable Pretend plants in the Environment" come together and link up to show how fake plants have been used in their homes.

At a P.O.O.P.I.E. party you see the good, the bad, and the ugly of using fake greenery to decorate. Unfortunately it has come to my attention that I have way too many of the bad and the ugly in my house - a situation that caused hives to break out across my body and impacted my ability to breathe correctly - but I'm good now!

The party is being hosted over at Nesting Place so head over and check out all the P.O.O.P.I.E.s (you might find that you're one too!)

I joined the party after I dropped in (aka: "blog stalked") the Nesting Place and visited the sites of many other P.O.O.P.I.E.s, where I saw many people bravely make their fake plant decorating ideas available for public comment.

As I was zipping in and out of blogs, I decided to get up and take a tour of my own home. I began with great confidence that I had surely not committed the fake plant faux pas that has been the topic of debate.

Of course, through the lens of the camera, my sight became much more clear (that ALWAYS happens!) and my confidence level began to wax cold, no wait... my confidence level was gone. Clearly my ability to use fake plants appropriately is a bit shaky. See for yourself (scroll over each picture for my commentary)...

And now... some better choices (at least I think so):

These examples follow the rules of being simple and using things that are real. Thus the look is much better.

I definitely see some decor changes coming soon. But now I wonder... what to do with all that greenery that's coming down...

There's a chill in the air!

Have you noticed? The temperature is just slightly cooler and the wind is blowing a tad bit more! So... Fall must be getting closer! I love the Fall!

A few things I love about the Fall...

changing leaves (even in Texas!)

pumpkins!

and the fabulous fall scents of
Yankee Candles!

I am hoping to have my Fall decor up earlier this year so that I can enjoy it longer AND so I can participate in the Fall Nesting Party over at The Inspired Room.

Stay tuned to see if I can actually pull it off!

The Fab Four

The Fab Four!
Back = Kirsten, Charla
Front = Amy, Lisa

The FAB FOUR was formed several years ago when we all worked together at Coder Elementary in Aledo, TX. The FAB FOUR is a support team, an idea network, a comedy club, a sounding board, a therapy group, and most of all...good friends! Each of us has our own traits and characteristics, our own strengths and weaknesses, and our own life experiences that we bring to the friendship, and we all benefit from these unique and personal gifts.

Some of the qualities I see in each of the FAB FOUR:

CHARLA is...
cheerful, kind, dependable, concerned about others

AMY is...
considerate, thoughtful, loving, aware of how others feel

LISA is...
generous, compassionate, hospitable, organized

KIRSTEN is...
dependable, energetic, supportive, helpful

We recently got together for a "girls night" at Lisa's beautiful new home down in Corsicana and although we are all in different places, doing different things, we picked up (as usual) right where we left off the last time we were all together. The result was a fun night filled with lots of yummy food (Lisa is an amazing chef!), lots of laughs, and a relaxing time that we all needed.

DAYTIME FUN...

Food...

Drama...

Heading to the lake, and...

Laughing!

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT...

Chatting...

Dancing chickens, and...

more laughing!

I love these friends of mine and I am so grateful that I have been blessed to have them walk into my life and leave their footprints on my heart!

A problem

I have a problem. Well, I have lots of problems (no commentary on that from any members of the peanut gallery) but this is a problem that distracts me from family, friends, and life when it takes over. The problem I have? Books.

How can books be a problem? Well, for me the problem is that when I have a good book waiting to be read, I have to finish it. No closing it up for the night and coming back to it tomorrow. No bookmarks to keep my place. Nope, if it's good and I like it, I have to get to the end right away. It's a problem! But not necessarily a bad problem, right (no comment, Brian!).

The problem recently surfaced with a newly published book called Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer. It's the most recent book in the Twilight saga, which is about true love and oh yeah, vampires (you should read it, mom!).

In all honesty, it took me awhile to get into the whole vampire saga that enflamed the literary world with the publication of Twilight, but once I cracked the spine I too became hypnotized and found myself unable to do anything but read until it was over. Since then I have "devoured" each book in the series as it has been published. (Obviously this post calls for "vampire" related terminology!).

This book has been sitting on my table waiting and waiting for me to open it up so that I could be swept back into the world of Bella, Edward, and Jake. My literary friends, who have found themselves "sinking" into the pages of this book, have been waiting for me to get it read.

However, being the responsible grown-up that I am (or at least that I'm supposed to be), I actually ignored the book for days because I had so many things that had to be done. Reality check: being responsible was "draining" because all I wanted to do was curl up and read.

So last night, that's what I did. I opened the book at 5:30 pm (have you ever noticed that a new book smells good when you open it!) and that was it, Breaking Dawn had a hold of my literary "jugular!" I moved from room to room, from one spot to another around the house until finally, I closed it at 3:30 am with a tremendous sense of satisfaction that it was all good!

What a marvelous way to spend a Friday night (or any night when there are no other distractions or responsibilities). But now you can see that books really can be a problem - at least for me! Thank goodness Brian loves me despite my problem!