Everything looks different!

I'm feeling my bout of writers block may be coming to an end...  We'll see.  :) 

Merry Christmas

Blessings to all of you! May the new year bring you a fresh start and a clean slate.

xoxox Amy

Glad Tidings!

The Christmas Tree is up and glowing. It smells wonderful, but I have yet to just sit on the couch in a darkened room and just look at it.

I will put it on my list of things to be done.

I actually have a few gifts already that I'm pleased with and a few more to get, but it seems like I'm doing better in that area this year. I have ideas.

I am running the secret santa program at work, and it seems to be increasing the holiday spirit in the place. That is pleasant.

I have just enough time logged that I can take a full week off at Christmas and I need it so. I'm so happy about it. I need time to sit and think and do a few things around the house.

Christmas-time is here! It makes me happy.

Yay for December

I'm thankful that November is over.

It seemed like a really long month and I am happy that December is here. We have birthdays, and an anniversary and Christmas, of course!

I have decided that my greeting of choice for this year will be... "Glad Tidings"!!

Doesn't that have a nice ring to it? Last year it was Happy Christmas, like in Harry Potter.

Today I am enjoying:

I little sneaky fifteen minute date with my husband, who came back to work to run me to another building and gave me some hugs and kisses in between.

Heavy whipping cream in my coffee.

A 100% thrifted outfit. I think I am successful in goodwill shopping without looking like a total over-aged hipster. I am mixing stripes and plaids, though, so maybe I'm not as successful as I think I am.

Gel eyeliner. Who knew! I love it. And I love to apply it with the little tiny brush.

A clear conscience. Another perk of the 15 minute sneaky date. Confession is good for the soul, eh?

New material for a new show. I get to wear a waitress get-up!

Being the administer of our Secret Santa program at work.

Foundation underwear - NOT thrifted!

And... That's about it. You?

I need...

A pair of black cigarette pants, a la Audrey.

Anybody know where I can find a pair of those?

Dear Alma L. Tompsett

Dear Alma,

May I call you Alma? I feel as if I can, now that we have shared clothing.

You see, at my local Goodwill I found a beautifully hand knit sweater. Very intricate and in good condition. And perfectly sized just for me.

On the inside tag is says, Hand Knit by Alma L. Tompsett.

I googled you. You made a charitable contribution in 2009 the University of Nebraska School of Nursing. It looks like you graduated there in 1944.

I fear you may have died since then, dear Alma. Normally when I find labeled clothing in the goodwill it usually means that the nursing home where you lived just donated all your clothing since you won't be needing them anymore.

I hope that's not the case, and that somehow you find this note of thanks for your hand made goodness and know that someone out here appreciates your skill and is wearing your lovely work of art.

God Bless you, Alma

Love,

Amy

I'm on a roll

Look! I've typed something here three days in a row.

I might just become a blogger, yet!

I have tomorrow off! I'm going to a conference and I get to stay in a very nice hotel. I may even take my swim suit. :) Well, I take that back. I just had my hair colored. Don't want to wreck that!

I have a new eating philosophy. I will eat it or not, but I'm not going to anguish over every food choice and feel guilty about the not so great choices. I've decided to be healthy and exercise and choose well and just live... without weird food thoughts. If I stay 20 pounds over weight, then so be it. But I have a feeling this just might the cure I've been waiting for.

I'm going to attempt NaNoWriMo. We'll see how that goes.

I've just looked down to see that I am wearing 100% thrifted, garage saled or hand-me-down clothing. Except for my tights and undies, which probably cost three times as much as my actual outfit.

Here's the run down...

Crocheted Cardigan - $1.00
Skirt - $1.29 - It's a long skirt from the 80's that I chopped off and hemmed.
Black Gap long sleeve T - Free from a friend
Cute, sort of man shoes with a heel - (for lack of a better description) $3.99

Target Tights $7.99

Is it weird that my leg wear costs more than my whole outfit? Maybe I should start one of those what I'm wearing blogs. I'm totally addicted to those! If you go here, here, here and here (and this one is just fabulous!) you will see what I look at almost everyday! I have more, but this is just a little taste.

Tonight, I have a date with hubby which will include yet another trip to the Goodwill (I need jeans), dinner out - I'm thinking it's a clam chowder type of day, and we will conclude with seeing a free show. Dress rehearsals are always free and I totally invite myself to everyone I can get to. Nothing like making the actors feel nervous when another actor crashes their final dress rehearsal! But I am so encouraging and grateful for the free show that I think it evens it all out!

Boy, I am chatty today!

Dream Job...

Could this be it?

Pretty amazing, no?

Iowa

I don't really miss it...

but I miss my friends.

my raspberry colored kitchen.

my job at the library.

my job at the coffee shop.

Sometimes I miss the prairie, but I mostly prefer here.

What's happening right now

My husband yelling, "stupid, stupid, stupid" in my ear. He is watching football.

My MIL yelling, "that is just dumb". She's watching football.

My son saying, "You should put ads on your blog and make some money."

I changed my boring template to another canned boring template. Maybe one day I'll learn how to spruce this place up.

My day is lovely. I have watched my daughter sing in the choir, had lunch 'out', knitted a little, read facebook, and found out the sorting hat sorted me into hufflepuff. (I took it again and was a Gryffindor, but kept the first one).

Then, I have rehearsal for Willie Wonka, and we do our last show for Drop Dead. I will miss it.

This week, I look forward to using my new exercise tape, in which I will build a Brazilian butt. I'll let you know how that turns out.

Would you like a before and after picture? I think not. :)

Thrifting

I've had very much good luck at the goodwill lately.

I found a pair of naturalizer boots that were 12.99. I googled them and they are 169.00 new! They are so comfy and wonderfully fall-ish.

I have taken to buying old, long, flowery 1980's skirts and cutting them off at a more appropriate 2010 length. They look great with the boots.

I found a pair of tap shoes today for 6.99. Now I can really learn to tap!

I have very many fine gauge cardigans that go well with skirts and boots.

My husband found a very nice suit jacket for 2.95. It was for a costume for the theater, but, hey, he bought it, so he gets to keep it. It looks great on him.

$4.95 got me a pair of blue coveralls. I plan to be Rosie the Riveter for Halloween, and then use them for every home improvement job I have.

I can barely bring myself to purchase new from the store anymore. Although, target had skirts on sale for $4.98 and that is as good as goodwill, so I snatched those right up.

Maybe I'll have to start up on of those "what I wore today" blogs.

Next on my hunt: A pair of authentic mocassins!

Let me tell you a little something...

about my husband.

*This is where I would insert a cute picture of us, but because my picasa is full and they want more money for more storage and I haven't gone back and deleted old pictures, you get this very long run on sentence!

So, my husband...

If I say, "Farm Boy", he always says, "As you wish". Which I find very charming.

He knows lines and titles and plots and tons of info about tons of movie trivia. He is a virtual imdb.

He loves me.

He likes to take me out to eat. Yesterday I wanted pie for dinner, so we ditched the kids and had pie. $11.00 worth of bad pie = true love.

He said I could quit my job if I wanted to. I would, but then where would we be? It's nice to know he cares that I don't like my job, though.

He is super smart.

He is patient, and kind, and loving and a good dad. He is ever faithful, ever true.

He is encouraging to me in my endeavors.

We go together.

It's not that I'm mean...

What I meant to say, I guess, is that I had a hard day and wasn't very nice to some people.

I was sarcastic, and a little rude, and huffy. Not like me, really.

My husband woke me up in the night because he was worried about me after he read my little post about not being nice any more. He thought I was making a statement of sorts.

So, no. I haven't turned to the dark side, honey.

I think I'm frustrated about my work. I don't hate it, but it's not really my cup of tea. I would much rather be doing something else, and I'm trying to figure out how to do something else soon, but it's not happening for me soon enough.

Also, my house is a wreck, my kids are starting school soon and I missed most of their summer because I was at work. And I have so many other fun things I would rather do for these 9 or so hours a day that I am here. :)

(A side note: I am very grateful to have work when so many others don't).

Ah well, life moves forward and I will endeavor to not let the hard days make me hard.

I used to be nice...

And that's all I have to say about that. For now...

The sun arrived!!

I thought you should know.

Shivers

Everyday, for a short moment, I get a feeling.

I see something or hear something or feel something and I am overcome by a sense of possibility. Like I can create a special thing or compose a song or write something good.

But it is fleeting.

Because the reality is that I am sitting in front of a computer for most of my day and trying to live life in the other parts and trying to get some sort of sleep at night...

I just wonder, what would I have written, made, sung? What could I have accomplished if I had seized the moment?

I hope it was something good.

Will the sun never shine again?

It's gray... Gray, gray, gray.

We have had maybe two moments (I would say days, but they were really only moments) of time above the 70's here.

I like 68. 68 is the perfect temperature for me, but we haven't even had that.

I might have to write a really sad song. Or a SAD (that disorder that comes for seasonal distress due to bad weather) song.

I'm wearing yellow to try to combat the grayness, and it is helping about 2%.

I might have to eat a popsicle in rebellion. In fact, why don't you eat one, too?

Come on, world... Help me stick it to the (weather)man and eat a popsicle in solidarity and show our disapproval of fall time weather during the spring season!

It's almost summer, for pete's sake!

Opening Night!!

Here is the link to our newspaper preview!

Opening night is so exciting. Usually you have a full house and you get to hear the full bodied laughter for the first time.

I'm excited to be in a new playhouse, we have the coolest set.

I can't believe it's here already. Time sure flies.

Words of Wisdom for Today

Always plan the last cherry you intend to eat, to ensure your last one is not a mushy one.

I know this by years of cherry eating experience!

Yay for Bings.

It's a day... and it's only 11:30

My girls had two performances of their choir group. They both had big parts and solos.

My options were 8:30 and 10:00. But I already had a meeting scheduled from 9:00 - 10:00 so I thought I could get there by 10:11 and see most of it.

Well, meeting went long, and a motorcycle cop pulled me over.

$154.oo and ten minutes later, I get to see the very last song.

I go to hug my kids and break out in tears in the school gymnasium, causing my older daughter to cry, my son to look stricken and my young ones to reassure me that I am not the terrible mother that I was feeling like right at that moment.

Also, I'm dressed too fall-ish and I'm hot. I saw abandoned underwear in the ladies room at work and my make up is all wonky.

But in a few minutes, there will be lunch with a co-worker, in which I will eat delicious blue cheese dressing and then all will be right again.

But I'll still be out $154.00.