Lists

I make a list for everything.  Mostly because I am a control freak and have this need to be completely organized.  All the time.  I even make a list of  topics that I need to start lists for.  Wait...does that make sense?  It does to me.  I've always been a list maker.   As a matter of fact I think my list making obsession is annoying to those who do not make lists.  Case in point:  my younger sister.  Ever since we were young girls, she mocked my list making.   Not much has changed, she still rolls her eyes at me when I start a new list in her presence.

My two favorite apps for list making are the ones that come automatically loaded onto the iPhone that I access through iCloud.  There is the "Reminder" list.  The reminder list allows me to set actual reminders with alerts (which I love) and I also use it to keep basic lists.   I have a list for EVERYTHING on my Reminder app.  I have a list for:  grocery, Target, Sprouts, Costco, Ulta, Coupons, Beauty supplies, Projects, Books, etc.  The list goes on and on.  What I love most about it is that I can update my list from my desktop, iPhone or iPad.    When I'm at work I can pull my list on my desktop, when I'm at home I can use my iPad and when  I'm out and about I access my list on my iPhone.

Here's the Reminder List.  I like that I can click on the box and the item is removed from the active list and moved to a "completed" list.  So if I accidentally click the wrong box, I can find it in the "completed" area (it's sorted by date) and move it back.

 My other favorite on iCloud is Notes.  Notes looks like a yellow legal pad.  I use this list for projects and for when I need to take detailed notes.  Like when I'm out shopping and I want to do price comparisons or when I am brainstorming ideas:

Yes, I make a schedule for when I plan on putting out my holiday decor

Speaking of lists......

While I was at work today I had a panic attack because I realized I didn't have a list put together for all that was about to start.  September through December is a very busy time of the year for us.   We have Cardinals football games (including tailgating), family birthdays (seven total within a two month period), Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas decor, handcrafted Christmas cards and what ever else gets tossed at us.  On top of that, we are expecting out of town guests in early December so we have a guest bedroom that I am redecorating.   So I immediately started a list of things I needed to start lists on. 

When I got home, I took my list of lists (stay with me, it will start to make sense soon) and created a book to keep me organized.  Organization will be critical these next few months so I needed to make sure I was prepared.   I know this sounds weird, but this is how my brain works.  I've said it before, it's not easy being me.  And although I am normally all about electronic lists, sometimes I need to go old school. 

My topics are:  Guest Room, Visit To Do, Tailgate, Christmas and Weekend:

What is alarming to some is that I always keep these supplies on hand in case of an emergency.

In the Guest Room section I'll be able to keep ideas (that I usually get out of magazines), receipts (so I stay on budget), checklists so I get everything I need.  Basically, everything I'll need to have a successful outcome:

In my Visit To Do section, I can keep a checklist of items we need to take care of before our guests arrive. Tailgating warrants a section because tailgating is no joke.  There's a slew of things that need to happen to make sure the tailgate is smooth.  The Christmas section will include shopping lists, decor and card making, parties, etc.  Weekly will handle what needs to be done on a weekly basis to keep the household running smoothly through this very anticipated hectic time.  I feel that being organized during the chaos will allow us to still enjoy the moment.  Which is really what it's all about, yes?

Luckily, Sweetheart is a list maker so I don't drive him completely crazy with this.  At least not all the time.  Well, I'm off to make another list.

Happy Anniversary

My Sweetheart and I will celebrate six years tomorrow.   It has been an amazing six years -- the best of my life.  My Sweetheart is my best friend.  He is always there to encourage me, support me, love me and take care of me.  I am so very blessed to have him in my life.  He is a very special person and I thank God everyday that He brought him into my life.  

I love you Sweetheart with all my heart and soul!  

Because we will be taking a vacation at the end of May, we decided to hold off on exchanging gifts now.  So I was very surprised when I got this at work today:

Isn't he adorable?  Roses, a HUGE teddy bear and candy.  What a sweetheart!

The card that was attached was very touching and special:

Although my Sweetheart is very sweet every day, today was extra special and I loved every minute of it.


Oh, and here's the teddy bear and roses in transit....

 

Quail

I looked out the bedroom window one morning as I was getting dressed for work and I saw this HUGE quail hanging out in the yard. He was perched on top of the trellis that sits over St. Francis. He was what I considered to be really big. I know very little about birds, but compared to the quail I've seen in the past, this guy was huge!

Notice the lovely smog that sits over the city. The picture is a bit fuzzy because it was taken from afar and through the window. Still, it's the epitome of city air. HA!

Costco and my new lamps

Anyone else go to Costco and end up with a LOT of stuff? HA! I stopped by on Saturday and stocked up on everything. I love their fruit and veggies. I bought a box of oranges -- they are delicious -- and didn't have anywhere to put them so I arranged them on a platter. I warned my Sweetheart not to pull an orange from the bottom layer:


I bought chocolate Cheerios (for me), Quaker Oats (for my Sweetheart), some Wheat Thins and some Triscuits:


I bought fruit and fresh veggies. I also bought chicken, turkey and pork. The fridge is full:

My Sweetheart loves it when I go to Costco and stock up. I love it because it makes me feel like my kitchen is a well oiled machine: I have all I need to take care of my Sweetheart!

On another note, I found these cool lamps to place atop of the media center. This little nook that houses the media center doesn't have any type of lighting. Although it's just a small area (in relation to the room), I always felt it should have some type of lighting....to make it more inviting. I thought these "uplights" would do the trick:

I love they way they look! They add just the right amount of light!

p.s. That's Judd Nelson on the screen. I had DVR'd the 1989 film "Relentless" and was watching it last night when I decided to take photos of my new lamps. My Sweetheart will never understand my love of 80's flicks -- he thinks I'm weird!

Happy New Year and Kitchen Curtains

Happy New Year! Wow, 2011 already! I can't believe a whole year has passed. So much happened that I am in some ways glad to see it over and in another just sad that it has all come and gone. I know that 2011 will be better!~


I have been off of work for the past 5 days. That is the most time off I have had since 2009. I used all my vacation time to help care for my dad in Tucson so I never took consecutive days off. It was much needed time off. My Sweetheart also had the time off so we spent quality time together....it was very nice.


We spent today taking down all of the Christmas decorations. It took most of the morning, but we watched a movie during the first part so it was a nice, relaxing time. After we took everything down, the rooms seemed very plain to me. Since October we have had decorations in the kitchen, living room, dining area and entrance way. To go back to the normal stuff is hard to handle. My Sweetheart even made a comment about it....he notices these things?? Anyway, at this point I became very ambitious. I decided to make new curtains for the kitchen. I was tired of these yellow ones I made last year here in July. So I decided to tackle the job.


I bought new fabric a couple of weeks ago when I saw it on sale at Joanne's. I was thinking kitchen curtains but wasn't sure. I decided tonight that kitchen curtains it would be. So here's my finished product:

I like them so much better than the yellow ones. I am aware that they are not the most elaborate of curtains. Nonetheless, I like them. They are simple. And I like simple.

After I did that, Vodka Cranberry in hand, I thought the entrance table looked drab. So I decided to embellish the plain cream candles I had on the table with some jute string. I used a thumb tack to secure the string. I didn't want to commit to using glue on the entire candle since I didn't know how it would look:



It turned out better than I thought it would. I even got the thumbs up from My Sweetheart:

Oh and this last picture is one of my fav's. It's My Sweetheart, aka My Grisly Bear. His Fantasy Football team made it to the playoffs so he didn't want to shave until the end so he wouldn't jinx it. I'm totally serious.

Looking forward to 2011!~

Package at the front door....

It was from COACH! I can't wait to open it!!!!

Coach Site DOWN!

The Coach website was down this afternoon. My Sweetheart went online to order my Christmas gift and right in the middle of our order, the site went DOWN! So we called the toll free number like the site instructed to do and all the associates were BUSY! We had to leave our name and number and wait for a call back. It turns out that the site was down because today was the last day to use the By Invitation Only 25% off the entire purchase that we got in the mail. It expired today (which is why we were placing our order) and so was the rest of the nation and the entire site freaked out and just shut down. OMS!

We got a call back within 20 minutes only to find the two items that were sitting in our checkout cart were OUT OF STOCK! Can you believe it??? So my Sweetheart, being the sweetheart that he is, asked if the two items were available to place on back order (I REALLY wanted these two items) and they were not. So then he asked if any of the local stores had the items in stock. They did not. Bummer. Then he asked if any stores had them. They found one in Southern California! We called to find they had just run out. Double bummer. But my Sweetheart, he's a persistent one, he called another store in Southern California and they had both items in stock! YAY!!!

He's been on the phone for the past hour trying to order 2 items for me. What a Sweetheart indeed. He makes me feel like the most special person in the entire world. xxxooo

"The Aerial Assault"

Meet "The Aerial Assault"! He is the newest member of our family. He is a male Betta fish. He lives in the hall in his own little bowl with rocks and a tiny tree. He is very happy here!

He is named after Kurt Warner...#13.....the Aerial Assault!

I've never had a fish before but I'm really loving having him here. :)

It's been a while.......

It's been too long. Over a month, I think. There is so much that I have been wanting to post about but my laptop got another virus and was down! Thankfully, My Sweetheart fixed it for me. He had to remove everything from my laptop and re-install everything. When he finished that he was supposed to re-connect (for lack of better terms) my laptop to my docking station. Still not done. :(

But we have so much going on. I have great pictures to post of things that I have been doing around the house. BUT, I can't download my pictures because everything is connected to my docking station that I can't use. Aughhhh.

I was tired of looking at my same post from last month so I decided to jump on and add this post.

OH, I won an award at work. I received the Manager's Choice Excellence Award Q4. I was so excited when I found out I won. I've waited 2 years for this....actually have worked really hard for 2 years waiting for this! Yeah!!!!

Anyway, maybe sometime soon I'll be back up and running. Ta Ta for now...

Cowboys and Random Stuff

GO COWBOYS!!!

Boy, my Sweetheart is on cloud nine! The Cowboys have advanced and are on their way to Minnesota to visit the Vikings!

Moving on. I've got my eye on the bookcase below. I am in the hunt for a bookcase to place in our media center. Currently I have a ladder shelf that holds all our our electronics (dvd player, wii, xbox, surround sound stuff). It was intended for another room but at the time we needed something to house the electronics so I placed it there. It has worked really well, it has five shelves so there is enough room to hold picture and candles in addition to the rest. Since it does work well, I am thinking of replacing it with a really nice shelf. $699 is a bit steep. So now I am on the hunt for some thing similar with a cheaper price tag...

Courtesy of Ballard Designs

The search is on.

Happy New Year!

Go Cards!!!!

We went to the football game this Sunday. Although the game was a bust, we (I) got really good shots of my fav Cards player: K.urt W.arner......Ahhhhhhh.....

We were on the 11th row so we had great picture opportunities. My Sweetheart took lots of good shots. I was upset that they took Kurt out in the first quarter and replaced him with #7. I refused to take any more shots after that. Well....I did get some shots of Kurt on the side lines but they were a bit fuzzy. In any case, this is the best shot. My favorite shot. Oh yeah.

p.s. I am a Cowboys fan by default. My Sweetheart if the BIGGEST cowboy fan ever and I am a convert. I should post pictures of our office, it's blue and silver. He does give me the okay to root for the Cards since we live in Arizona and we attend the games and we will be season ticket holders this year. Just thought I should mention that so I don't jinx them. Playoffs and all, you know. Go COWBOYS!!