Celine Dion eat's Hamburger Helper?

As I was sitting in my cozy home enjoying a few moments of mid-morning tv, there was a commercial for Celine Dion's new CD. (BTW-Go Ellen & the View.) I know nobody who will buy that CD. I know nobody who likes Celine Dion. It made me wonder...who are all of these other Celine Dion lovin' people & where do they live?

Who are the people who listen to her? Love her?
And for that matter, who are the people who buy Hamburger Helper?(my mom would never let us have it)
Who are the adults who buy seasonally themed socks? (Why buy witch socks, you can only wear 1 day per year? Unless you are a witch like me, then it is o.k.)
Who are the people who still have time to watch afternoon soap operas?
Who are the people that buy all the clothes I want in the store before I get there? (I never see them wearing them - Don't hoard them in your closets!)
Who are the people that have fuzzy toilet seat covers?

Not that there is anything wrong with these people. I just do not know 1 of them. Do they live in another town? Do they just avoid me? I mean seriously who are the Celine Dion fans? Is it random women between the ages of 50 & 52. Where does she draw from? Do they have the fuzzy toilet seat covers? Do they all live in Vegas & eat Hamburger Helper?

Are you one of them & I just do not know?

Most Excellent

I can't say enough about these great clothes. They are fashion forward & trendy.
The coats are to die for.

http://www.tulle4us.com/

I first found this line of clothing at 1 of my favorite gift shops in the world. It is Catching Fireflies in Berkley. Every time I walk in this shop which is not that big, I spend hours looking in every nook and cranny. Sadly, they no longer carry clothes but I have bought many gifts there. My last purchase was for my anniversary. I bought a wallet & change holder for my uber-organized husband.

http://www.catchingfireflies.com/

Waiting on my nightstand is the new Real Simple magazine for November. I happen to like this magazine, not to mention my sis used to work there. They have some great tips & excellent photos.

http://www.realsimple.com

I loves Cooks.com too. It always has good recipes plus on the side is a little bar of recently searched recipes. Yes, I am a huge snoop. I love to even see what random people are cooking. And sometimes I get inspired.

www.cooks.com

Finally, I liked all of these mommy tips from parenting.com but I do most of them already. I need more time or better tips.

http://parenting.ivillage.com/mom/organization/0,,428f-3,00.html


My biggest tip is condense all of your errands in 1 trip & try to map it out before you go!
What are some of your time savers?

The best intentions

I do have the best intentions for today. I am going to run but it so windy. I am going to make dinner but they are giving away free tacos at Taco Bell. I am going to get the rest of my son's Halloween party together but I going to forget the contact phone numbers again. I am going to smile at my students but the dog kept me awake from 2-4:30sh. (the pain pills hardly worked at all last night): ) I have to get everybody everywhere but my husband is not here. I will spell check & read this blog.

I can do this. I am taking the kids to Starbucks for breakfast. I am massaging the dog's legs so he can relax plus 1 more pain pill. The kids will love Taco Bell for dinner. (2 times out in 1 day - unheard of) I will crack a smile today when somebody says something nice or funny. I will run tonight while my son is at practice - less wind. I have the best intentions for today. Oh yeah, where is that bottle of whine? Whoops, I mean wine that I cracked open earlier this weekend & make some phone calls when I get home.

Not much of a weekend

Yeah, I slept through the new Indiana Jones DVD but Run, Fatboy, Run was soooo funny. I also opened a great bottle of wine & had a few glasses. Cheers! We got the Halloween thing done - my son is going to be a nerd then an alien at night with glow in the dark make-up. My daughter is furiously writing a report that takes 2 poster boards but did not miss the new High School Musical movie. My son has been hanging with us but we did get this awesome quote up on his wall. He has the perseverance of his dad & I love to see it in action. Whew. Hope your weekend was just as good.

Luxuries

I was inspired by an article a design magazine called Dominoes that I read about what is a luxury to me. My life has small luxuries but I do love them. Here is list of my top 10 luxuries

1. Someone else unloading the dishwasher
2. Tiramisu from the Astoria Bakery in Royal Oak
3. Having my hair blown out. I have a lot of it & I always give up.
4. Paris, Paris, Paris, Paris.
5. Having a day with my kids with nothing to do & the sun is shining
6. Dinner out with my husband at a really nice restaurant. I feel like I am playing grown up. I especially like it when they sweep the crumbs off my table with a mini-broomlike thing. Fancy!
7. A sweet pair of jeans that fits no matter what.
8. A pair of shoes that I love & buy w/o looking at the price tag. Or any other clothes for that matter. I am a clothing fiend!
9. Las Olas in Mexico - my dream spot!
10. A stack of magazines that I have not read yet & I read & re-read them over & over again.

What are some of your luxuries in life?

There is nothing....

Yes, the economy sucks. Yes, my life sucks. Yes, there is nothing on t.v. What happened? I need some diversion, some entertainment, something. I have to say I do not like any new tv shows. What is there to like?

First, it seems like there are hardly any new shows. And the ones that have been on for a year or two are just old & tired. I do enjoy 1 or 2 shows. The Office is good but the new plot is pretty weak. Old Christine is funny. I love her sidekick but I find myself switching to reruns of Friends. Gotta love Joey & coffee shops are still in.

I am a tv-aholic & I can't feed my addiction. There isn't even anything to Tivo. I try to catch as much House as I can. I have also seen every Law & Order rerun at least 3x. Du-du-dun!!! I hate to say but it is a crime.

A tree & a memory

I drove up on this tree and looked at its beautiful colors and smiled. I drive past it at least once if not twice per day. I do not think about it often but today I did. My sister said the tree was a friend's favorite tree in the fall. She passed away a few years ago. I saw the colors and the beautiful day & thought of how great and bright this person was. She lit up a room wherever she went. So thanks to this tree, I had a moment full of good memories.

Fabulous & Most Excellent

There are a few cool things that I found this week.

I went to a Cabi party last night. The clothes were great. They were a little too worky for me but the shirts, casual jackets & sweaters were nice. Plus they have these great blouses made of t-shirt material. I am sure many of you like me have that peek-a-boo effect with the buttons that just do not seem to close in the chest area. These shirts do not button but cleverly zipper! The clothes were classic and comfortable. That is a great fit for anyone. I bought a great black shirt for going out. I also loved the shoes but guess what, they were not part of the line. Darn!

www.cabionline.com

Guess who is planning the 5th grade Halloween party at my son's school? You!! You are awfully generous. No, it is moi. I have done a few of these and my go-to web site for ideas is the Family Fun website. They have great recipes, games & party ideas. I can't say enough about this web site & magazine. It has been a great help to me with ideas to entertain and excite my kids on sunny & rainy days, any holiday and anything in between.

Plus I was there yesterday looking for recipe ideas for dinner. They have a whole month of recipe ideas. I am going with the baked ziti - what about you?

www.familyfun.com

Have you been to the E.L.Johnson Nature Center yet? My kids & I went this summer. They loved it. Plus what an inexpensive outing for a family, It has an old-fashioned cabin with a working swing. The walkway over the small lake is fun too. They also have some animals to visit. My neighbor told me all about this great place. Go & enjoy the quiet time with your own family.

E. L. Johnson Nature Center
3325 Franklin Road
Bloomfield Township, MI
48302

www.friendsofjohnsonnaturecenter.org

Don't wear the Cabi clothes to the nature center. Save those for dinner out! Enjoy the weekend.

Nie Nie

These next few blogs are going to be sad. Caution stop here if you do not have kleenex close by. I happened upon NieNie's blog about a month ago as a link through other blogs. Her pics are stunning, her family is beautiful and her life is full. It is all wrapped up in a great blog. She also was involved in a plane crash with her husband. Her family has stepped in to help with her children. She and her husband are recuperating and her family is continuing the blog.

So if you have a moment to visit and then say a prayer for her and her family, please do

http://www.nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/

Homework

Last night I sat on the couch with my 2 kids. We were all doing homework. I could not help but think how crazy that is. I am trying to write in Spanish, my son is trying to add numbers & my daughter is asking for help with French. They have been so good with me back at school. I keep looking for signs of neglect in either of them but so far, it seems we are all scraping by. Their smiles are still planted on their faces. The only things really neglected in my house are the floors. So please do not look down! Thank God there is not a college degree in scullery! I really think I would rather do the academic homework than that kind of home-work.

Where did the weekend go?

It was a busy weekend and I even went out! My friend invited me to go out Friday night. That turned out to be fun. My daughter had a tennis match. My son had a football game. I looked at tiles. Hopefully we are going to get the bathroom redone. My dad had a birthday. I took 1 nap. I ran my 6 miles fluidly but now my knees ache just a touch. I think I am going to need the week to rest up!

Early risers

It's a typical weekday morning at my house in the fall. My son pops his head up at any slight noise. He is an early riser like me. Then he goes straight to the tv and chair. My dog enjoys his peanut butter on a spoon with a pain pill mixed in. He is such a polite eater.My daughter now gets up & goes to the shower hence the empty room. My computer and coffee await me for my small amount of me time in the morning. The best part of this particular morning was the spinach pie waiting to be cooked in the fridge. It was not cooked by me but by my daughter who did an awesome job!!!The dark picture is the view of the outside - it was way too early!

I have some $$

First of all, I have some money & I do not know how to spend it. It is a reimbursement check from this summer so technically it is free money for me. It is burning a hole in my pocket and my mind. I need a new purse but do I really need a new purse? I need good make up - the discounted mascara that I bought is horrible! I need a good martini & with this money, I can buy at least 5. (I know, a DUI ticket will cost way more)

Last night I was reading my Reader's Digest. It is the one I frugally recycled from my mom's house. There was a great story about a couple from a rural town in Michigan. When they died, they had savings of 3 million dollars! Nobody in the town knew. They lived frugally and made well-thought out purchases. Then they left their money to various people in their lives. The people that they left money to were not just nieces and nephews but friends and neighbors. Their generosity made me cry and helped more than a few people.

So in the spirit of generosity, maybe I will take half this money and give it away and then with the other half, I can get some better mascara and at least 1 martini. The purse will have to wait because now I have no money to put in it.

Convenience wrapped up in convenience

Ever since I have been trying to be more frugal and we have had our economic downturn, I am not willing to give up so much of my money. Yet, I can't even be half as frugal as most of the people I turn to for frugal help on the internet. However, I am amazed at how much we pay for in little bits of pre-made & pre-packaged groceries that add up.

There is so much wrapping out there. My son wanted this new product called bagel bites. I had a coupon so I bought him a box. There are 4 bagels in a pretty colored box and each is wrapped in plastic. I am sure that all costs me something. I mean, can I not handle all of the bagels toughing each other? This happens with granola bars too. I can't believe they do not do this with Oreos! (No family I am not buying Oreos!)

I also think it is ironic that when our babies our newborns we are buying and making most of their food to keep them safe and ultra-healthy but as time goes on, we rely on the someone else to do that.

Also, does anyone remember that in a pinch or if needed, you can make all kinds of of food that you buy prepackaged like cake, frosting, ketchup, bread, syrup, BBQ sauce and much more? These cost pennies to make but a few dollars to buy pre-packaged at the grocery store. Most people have all the stuff needed to make them right in their pantry. During weeks when the dollar doesn't stretch as far in my budget because someone wants bagel bites, I am not above making a few of these. Did we lose this education somewhere or are we just too busy being busy? Or I do it just to save another trip to the store.

The plus side too is my kids love to do this stuff. We even made peanut butter together just to see if we could. (Well I made it & they tasted it - it was o.k.) I guess the point is that we have become so accustomed to what is offered in all of its fancy packaging that we are forgetting the basics.

I heart Old Navy

I have to say "Score!!!" I love Old Navy's clearance. I just ordered 3 pairs of shorts for my son for $4.99 apiece for next summer online. I also went into the store & bought 1 more pair of plaid shorts for $10 for next year. That is 4 pairs of shorts for about $25! I made an earlier purchase earlier of 2 bathing suits on clearance for him for next year too. Yes!!!

I love the fact that he has not developed discriminating taste yet. I bought him oodles of boxer shorts on clearance too. I mean who really cares at such a young age if your boxers are seasonally appropriate?! Last spring, I also bought his favorite athletic pants on clearance & they sat in the closet all summer waiting for him to grow.

I found baby presents for my friend in Houston at Old Navy. (if this is you, friend in Houston, then stop reading now & do NOT ruin the surprise!!) The baby summer clearance was an additional 50% off. Since she lives in Houston, she does not need winter baby clothing. Perfect!

My former babysitter for my daughter in Cincinnati gave me the best advice of my life for clothing purchases. The advice was buy ahead if anything is dirt cheap & put it in a closet. She ought to know how to get a deal because she had 6 kids & needed to buy things as cheaply as possible. I have been doing this for my kids and myself too. I buy mittens, hats and boots in the spring when I can. I buy bathing suits in the fall. Wait, maybe I do not just heart Old Navy...maybe I heart cheap!

Most Excellent List

I love to explore. I explore the web, places and of course, stores. Here are some things I found this week:

I saw The Duchess this weekend and it was most excellent. I now want to read the book. (in my downtime) We went to the Maple Art Theater where my husband and I were the youngest people by at least 20 years - it was great! I looked positively young. I only had 5 wrinkles compared to the 15-20 wrinkles on most of the women.

http://www.theduchessmovie.com/
http://www.landmarktheatres.com/Market/Detroit/MapleArtTheatre.htm

I will be buying 1 thermal tee at the Gap by next Friday (stay in the budget)(but which color?) http://www.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=17083&pid=581230&scid=581230052

We explored Lake Orion while waiting for my son's football game. I loved it there! Wish I could move there a.s.a.p. I found the best places like Elements with great clothes and Paint Creek Bicycle where my husband finally found a bike! (save gas!!!)

http://www.downtownlakeorion.org/index.html

I also LOVE Shoe Envy on Telegraph in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. They have yellow and orange colored Ugg boots there! Shhh - do not tell my daughter!

http://wdiv.cityvoter.com/shoe-envy/biz/50122

Speaking of my daughter, she has a great nose & eye for chocolate! Her new favorite place is Moonstruck Cafe in Twelve Oaks Mall. Their chocolates are beautiful & yummy. They have little ghosts and bloody fingers made for Halloween made out of skillfully designed chocolate. Yum!

http://www.moonstruckchocolate.com/

My new favorite comic on the web is Stone Soup Comic. It is a light-hearted look at a mom raising teens (such an outrageous concept - I can't relate)

http://news.yahoo.com/comics/stonesoup


Have a great week!

This is for K- just to bug her

This is for all teachers & my friend K. We are experts in crowd control but it only takes a small moment, a slight distraction, an itty-bitty sound to disrupt our students from learning. When I went to K's room today on the THIRD FLOOR of our building, she had the above bug pasted on her window. How & why it got there she does not know.

She believes it is dead. She believes it is frozen to her window...for all eternity. It did not move all day. It only served as a mega disruption. I, myself, frequently checked to see if it would move & even banged on the window. I think she should name it or put a headstone above it so the kids know it is gone from this world. Or maybe frame it with a picture frame...

I have a ladder outside of my window. It stays there. I am on the second floor. It is part of the scenery & not so much of a distraction anymore. However, every once in awhile, just as I am teaching a great lesson, one lone hand is raised & I call on that particular student who then says "Madame, do you know there is a ladder outside your window & you are on the 2nd floor?" Argh!!!!

Have a great weekend & pray a great wind will come sweep this bug away!

Dinner

I have fond memories of my mother making dinner almost every night rain or shine. And I mean almost every night, we rarely went out. She cooked a lot of different things from tacos to goulash to chop suey. On the other hand, many of her friends typically did the same dish 1 night per week. I think she kept herself entertained cooking different & sometimes exotic foods as well as to expose us to new foods. The amazing thing is we almost always ate what was in front of us. (Although I still have a vivid memory of my older sister throwing up quiche because she hated it)

I too have turned into this kind of cook and in the midst of my hectic lifestyle, I am driving myself nuts! Yet I can't just eat the same thing week after week. I do not make everything from scratch but I do often become inspired. I was on a huge baked chicken, potatoes, gravy, stuffing, etc. kick this last week.

My mind is already thinking about what sounds good for next week - spinach pie & Greek salad. If you are good at baking spinach pie then you can get the phyllo dough layers tasty & crunchy with lots of butter! Oh yes, I could go down to Greektown in Detroit but like I said I get inspired. Even if this kind of cooking drives me crazy, it is sooo tasty!

Try it yourself.

http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1618,156186-248195,00.html

Late to the party

I know I was not going to make a million dollars but I had a good idea. Like all good ideas, it has already been marketed. I have been giving people gifts in reusable bags. I was thinking it would be great to make some up for the holidays. Well, here they already are...http://www.delight.com/RuMe-Reusable-Holiday-Gift-Wrap. Like I said I am always late to the party. BUT I will still use them - much cheaper than gift wrap & environmentally friendly.