Perfection

Yesterday was the most Perfect Day...
it started with my girls at one of the local Sushi places. As we ALL should know by now...Drama Teen is NOT a fan of Sushi....but she's a good sport. Normally I would have taken C0-ed alone....but we planned to hit some Thrift Stores afterward and I didn't want Drama Teen to miss out that part of our plans...so she tagged along...and managed to find something on the menu that was edible to her....


We did talk her into trying a couple Rolls though.....this first one , a Honolulu Roll,she just did NOT want to try....we spent a good 15 minutes talking her into it....

After finally swallowing it down I don't think she totally hated it....she didn't really 'like' it but it wasn't THAT bad.....then we had her Try the Buffalo Roll..this was made with Fillet Minion instead of Fish....she didn't totally hate this one either....we also got her to try one of the appetizers we ordered, Tempura Fried Soft Shell Crab.....she kinda liked that.....

Afterwards we stopped over at Salvation Army where the girls found a few cute outfits and I found some cute Pottery....and linens...

We bought both of these Dresses for Drama Teen.....there will be plenty of opportunities for her to dress up as a Princess...and the next one she actually plans to a New Years Eve Party tonight....

Co-ed likes Vintage Style dresses...especially Shirt dresses...this one was actually pretty cute....cuter in person....

and this was just a cute little Tweed Sheath Dress...it looks cute as a top over jean and will be just as cute worn alone...

and then here is my STASH......found another Pyrex Bowl to add to my collection....I LOOOOVVVVVEEEEE Pyrex.....

and these cute Yellow cups and bowl.......they are much brighter than the picture shows...

and is this not ADORABLE!!! It says Japan on the bottom....they were just too cute to pass up....I'm kind of in a Retro ...Bright Colors Mood lately.....I think I'm finally starting to have withdrawal from all the neutral decorating we've done to try to sell the house.....I need COLOR again!!!

Later we hit another Thrift Store and I found these.....I've been looking for a cute pair of 'nude' colored shoes.....these are perfect!

and some vintage linens....I'm being inspired by Jeks Flickr Group : Making the Bed....she changes her Bedding every month...for a fresh vintagy look.....these will be washed on my Washer's Sanitary Mode...which uses SUPER HOT Water....I think the sheet is twin sized and will be used on C0-eds bed..... the Pillow case is Queen/King....so this one will rotate around thru-out our other beds in the house....2 queens and one king...

I also got this set...I think it's probably a Queen...it will probably go on Drama Teens bed or maybe the Guest bed..

Oh and I got this cute Shower Curtain....I don't really have a use for it yet..but I liked the pattern....It will be nice to have it if I feel like switching the other ones out.

I also found this nice Lands End long Cardigan....it'll be comfy on cold days...
and I've been in a rugged flannel mood...maybe in anticipation of our move to the Frozen Tundra of Wisconsin??? So I got these two men's flannel shirts to wear around the house on cold days...maybe with some wool leggings? and thick wool socks!

After the Thrift shopping we stopped off at the Grocery Store.....Co-ed and I don't really have any GREAT New Years Eve plans...we were invited to a couple of Parties but we really don't feel like going to either...one was the Daughter of one of my Best Friends who moved to NY a couple years ago...she was trying to convince her Parents to come down for her party, and if they had, I would have gone....but alas, they refused....and it's mostly going to be a bunch of REALLY young youth group kids......not really my cup of tea......

the other party was a couple in our neighborhood...and while I DO enjoy hanging with our neighbors....I'm really not into it this year without the Commander, who left for the Frozen Tundra last Sunday....and Co-ed definitely doesn't find the idea of spending New Years with a bunch of old fogies, who are probably older than her mom even, all that Thrilling.....

So we've decided to spend the evening quietly at home.....we have plenty of Champagne( from CDR's Retirement) and stopped off at Farm Fresh to pick up a few New Year Eve Snacks....a cheese log...a beef stick....and a few other items....while we were there she remembered we had some overly ripe bananas at home and thought it would be nice to make Bananas Foster.....we just needed some Vanilla Ice cream so we bought that too....

Here was something funny we came across at our local Farm Fresh!! LOL
Choco Something Body Paint!!

Finally, we got home and after a little Video Game playing( Genius Boy surprised his little sister, the Co-ed, with a New Version of one of her favorite Video games...it just came out yesterday I guess), she broke herself away to make Bananas Foster for us....it's one of her specialties....while attending Va Tech she worked in the Dining Hall and was in charge of the Desserts...Va Tech is known for having a really Great dining hall.....they serve things like Bananas Foster and Cream Brulee( which is another of her favorites to make....she gets to use the Blow Torch.....LOL) come to think of it, both involve 'fire', which is probably why she likes them sooo much....

To Die For........Yumm

This is what I wore on my Perfect Day....I really liked this outfit....it made me feel 'thin"..

NaBloPoMo?

I've seen other bloggers participating in this over the last year or so...and today as I was blog surfing at SITS I came across Joan from Joan of All Trades and she had a post about NaBloPoMo for the month of January so I figured ...why not join her??? NaBloPoMo stands for National Blog Posting Month....The idea behind it is to get bloggers to post everyday for a month...and each month usually has a "theme" ...January's is appropriately CHANGE....

Resolutions

So it's that time of year again....that time when you look to the year ahead as a clean slate and make resolutions to do better, be better....

Last year I tried to keep things simple and just concentrate on being Happy...and being myself...being less negative..

I have to say ...this has probably been one of my happiest years ever...and I think alot of that has to do with attitude and choosing to be and do what makes me happy. I still struggle with knowing what I want and following thru...

One thing I want for this coming year is to really take care of myself...take charge of my weight...my health.....my time....my creativity. I need to concentrate on being and doing what "I" feel is important and not let what OTHERS think I should be or do interfere so much.

Update: I was just reading over at HomemakerAngs blog, and she had this quote by Rhonda Jean :

"Imagine your own life, and how you want it to be, then work to make that vision a reality. Don’t be put off, don’t listen to the naysayers, go with your heart and do what is right for you. I’m a non-conformist and I don’t fit in the 60 year old woman pigeonhole. I have always walked to the beat of my own drum and I have never looked to those around me for validation. That has helped me build this life I live. If I’d listened to all the advice I got when I wanted to change, I’d still be running a red hot credit card and wondering “is this all there is?”.One of the great wonders of this world to me is that we’re all the same but all so different. Celebrate your difference and custom-make a life that fits you perfectly. Forget the blathering of women’s magazines, don’t do what your next door neighbour is doing, don’t copy your friends – or me – unless it is exactly what you want and need for yourself. Make your own version of this simple life. Life is never a one-size-fits-all condition, pick and choose the portions of other people lives that suit you and custom make the rest of it so that your life fits you perfectly. If you try something that doesn’t work, don’t be afraid to get rid of it, or modify it to suit yourself. Do it all slowly, take small steps. You will never build a simple life quickly – it’s a slowly evolving process that never ends, but one thing is for sure, if you dare to be different, if you are mindful of your choices, if you downsize, declutter and get back to basics, the rewards are there for the taking."


This is exactly how I want to spend the next year. I want to be true to myself . I feel there are so many different facets of who I am...and I want to find a way to mesh them together into one great ME. So this year I'm goin to start experimenting with who I am and what I like to do and see what works...I'm going to worry less about what I 'should" be or do and just
BE and DO the things I really want.

Coffee Coffee Coffee

Those amazing girls over at SITS are having the most awesome contest.



In January they are giving away :

a Keurig Platinum Brewing System and $50 worth of K- cups





So head on over to SITS and enter to win this amazing Prize!!

Christmas with the Leonhardts

I'm hoping everyone had a Very Merry Christmas this year. Ours turned out to be quite nice. Commander flew in last week for the Co-ed's Graduation Ceremony and had enough vacation days to stay until this coming Sunday! We went to Mass on Christmas Eve and then to our Good Friends the Villorentes for a Christmas Eve party that lasted until Midnight.

On Christmas Morning we( the Parental Figures) woke up too late to open presents before Mass...much to C0-ed's disappointment....she's ALL about Presents..LOL

Mass was pretty empty ..I guess everyone was too busy opening gifts and playing with all their new cool stuff.....or sleeping in.....but we were there! I think there were more people in the Choir than in the Pews..LOL

After we arrived home we wasted NO time in the exchanging of gifts...everyone seemed pleased with their loot.

Big Zelda fan......Co-ed got the same shirt...LOL ( she dressed as Zelda for Halloween this year)As you can see she REALLY needed this Book!!I think she was more excited about recieving this than any other of her gifts...including the DVD of Mama Mia!And Co-ed was absolutely ecstatic about her new Flat Screen LCD TV!! It was too big to wrap and put under the Tree so she had to go Fish it out of the closet in the downstairs bedroom....she was a little worried when all the gifts under the Tree were unwrapped and she was the only one who hadn't recieved a 'big' gift.....Drama Teen had gotten a new I-Pod Classic...Genious Boy a Navigation System..me ,a Laptop and Commander a huge tool Cabinet......her squeals coming from the Closet were priceless!!

I was quite pleased with mine....my family was VERY good to me this year....Commander finally replaced my dead Laptop! I am now the proud owner of a Toshiba Satellite!
Genious Boy got me a game.....

Commander also bought me a few unique jewelry items at a Craft Fair that my SIL dragged him to earlier this month.....THANK-YOU Kathy!!!!!!

He also found this gorgeous and incredibly soft Cashmere Scarf at the Craft Fair......

Co-ed Knows me too well.......LOL
Everyone got these Beautiful FREE T-shirts from VA Tech(the bookstore hands them out Free at the beginning of each semester..LOL..they have tons so she was able to snag enough for all of us and still have a few left...

Co-ed also gave me this pretty sweater....

More gifts from the Co-ed and Drama Teen........hmmmnn Drama Teen has been wanting to read Twilight for a while....ulterior motives????? Co-ed aslo got me some Cute Ankle Boots( I forgot to take a picture)

and....

Finally....Commander got me Tickets to see Wicked!! in February.....this also means I 'll get to fly up to WI for a visit!!

My living room looked like a tornado hit it after the Gift Giving Frenzy was over.....as I began to prepare our Awesome Christmas Dinner the rest of the family took some time to lounge around.....the girls did help out here and there with some cutting a peeling....Christmas Dinner:

Sweet Potato Casserole

Fruit and Wild Rice Dressing

Potatoes Dauphine

Glazed Spiral Ham

and Dinner Rolls....

Lets Eat!!!

And finally I leave you all with another Video of Mary Did You Know with Both girls singing. They sang it for Communion at Christmas Mass.