2010 in Review

(Warning: LONG POST!)
What a year this has been! I knew it had been busy and crazy at times, but when I actually sat down and took an inventory of what happened this year even I'm surprised! Of course, I can't include everything but here is some of what went on in our world this year:
(Remember, you can click on the highlighted links to take you to the posts I've previously done or click on the pictures to make them larger)
Brave Girls:

What an experience this was. Something my soul so desperately needed - time to be still, time to think, and time to meet a group of amazing, like-minded women. I came back from Idaho with a new perspective and new friends.
At Brave Girls I met Rachel - and what a great year we've had! We signed up and traveled to multiple crafty venues this year. Looking forward to more in 2011!

Mary Englebreit Conference:

I traveled to St. Louis where I met up with Rachel and met her sweet friend Kara. We had such a fun time together on this trip! Creating, eating, sharing stories. It was great!

Craft Room Organization (Almost):

In 2010 I wanted to get my craft room in shape. At one point early in the year I literally couldn't walk around in there. I hired a personal organizer to come help me because yes, I was *that* overwhelmed with what I was facing. The organizer came and we worked for several days sorting, purging, planning - and things were coming along pretty well. However, I think I totally overwhelmed her because she had a minor accident on her bike and needed to take a break until she healed. I've tried to contact her and haven't heard another word. Guess I'm on my own to finish. I'm GOING TO COMPLETE this project in 2011. When I do, I will post before pictures (they will remind you of Hoarders) and afters. It's going to be good!
I left my consulting gig. Yep ~ unemployed. I had been feeling that it was time to move on but that is always a scary proposition especially when you don't know what is next. I took a leap of faith and decided I would take a month off and figure out what I would do after our trip. Well - a month has now turned into 7 months and I'm praying for work in the new year. No regrets though as to leaving - it was definitely time.

Our trip of a lifetime to Rome:

What a time we had!

I loved that Doug enjoyed himself so much on that trip. I did too but it made it even better for me that he loved Rome!

We ate and drank and totally absorbed the Italian culture. The food ruined us for food back home. Everything in Rome is so fresh and so flavorful and simple! We got home to tasteless garbage. What a bummer!
We took a trip back East that got cut short. While in NYC, before we could see my family in Connecticut, we got word that Doug's mom was very sick and we needed to get home right away. It wasn't good.
In September, we lost Doug's Mom. We miss you Carol...

Creative Connection:
Another *amazing* event! Rachel and I signed up for this one and could barely wait to attend! We can't wait for the announcement of the dates for 2011 because we are all over it!

What a surprise for us when we ran into our fellow Brave Girls Melody and Margie.

I went to Las Vegas for Inspiration Unlimited. It was my first trip ever to Vegas and I didn't really even get to see anything! I went straight to the hotel and attended the scrappy conference. I met some really nice ladies there and clicked with Collette (not pictured). I enjoyed the projects although, like usual I didn't get to finish them. Overall though, honestly, I didn't enjoy the event itself. The people were "different" - no where near as friendly as the women I've met at Mary Englebreit, Creative Connection and Silver Bella.

Silver Bella - This was my first year to attend and definitely NOT my last. I drove to Omaha and roomed with Rachel. Met some new friends, saw some "old" friends and took a handful of fun classes. Again - didn't get much completed but had such fun. That is what matters, right?

Just back from Omaha, Doug and I made the trip to Connecticut to meet my sweet new nephew Joao (pictured below). During our whirlwind trip we took a day trip to New York with Bobby & Jess.

We also had a baby shower for my sister January during that visit. It was a quick trip but so great to finally see my family - especially since the trip in August didn't quite work out.
We got to meet Baby Joao. I love my sweet nephew!

The day after Christmas Baby Garrett was born to my sister January. Can't wait to get to meet him!

Looking forward to a great 2011 - Happy New Year Everyone!

End of November...

This month has been so crazy for me and I can hardly believe that today is the last day of November!
I still haven't finished my Silver Bella projects - I went upstairs to work on one of them last night and I just couldn't get my act together so I worked on cleaning up a little bit of the mess I've got going on. No crafting today - just too busy~
I'm in the middle of decorating the Christmas Tree - usually it is up and done in an evening or so. Hopefully tomorrow I can get it finished.

I did manage to take 5 huge boxes and 2 bags of Christmas decorations to the Animal Aid store for a donation. That felt really good.
I also took Niles to the Vet for a recheck today and he got his staples and stitches removed and had his pain patch changed to an oral pain medication. We still need to keep him separated from the other dogs until Friday or so but he is coming along so I am pleased about that.


Doug and I had lunch at the Polo Grill - it was fabulous even if the atmosphere is kind of pretentious. I prefer to live so much more down to earth - life is so much more fun that way!
Tonight I went to an Open House/ Pot Luck Dinner Party with my friend Kathy and enjoyed good food and pleasant company.
My only real annoyance of the day was at the Post Office - but I'll spare you the details as I'm sure you can just imagine...
I had wanted to keep December's calendar fairly empty so I can just enjoy the season but somehow I'm managing to fill it up very quickly!
Plans so far:
3 Monday nights: Knitting class at Loops
Christmas Dinner theater with my friend Kathy
A paper clay doll sculpting class at The Paper Crown
A Christmas Ornament Exchange Party
My investment club Christmas Party

Looks like the month is shaping up to be a fun one and I'm happy for mostly informal stuff to do and no "stuffy" parties to attend.

I found out that I was the winner of Elizabeth's Christmas Banner! I just love her blog and was jumping up and down to find out that I won! I will post pictures of it as soon as it arrives. If you just can't wait to see it, pop over to her site and see all the beautiful things she makes. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Okay, enough rambling for tonight. I'm over tired and it's time for bed. Good Night!

Hello November!

Well - there were definitely fewer trick or treaters this year and the bunch I did get seemed grumpy. It was like pulling teeth to get them to even mutter "Trick or Treat" despite my enthusiastic "Happy Halloween!" and my AWESOME candy bags. Oh well - I think the kids of today are just bombarded with too much Halloween and the fact that maybe candy isn't that much of a treat anymore. I had fun and I'm happy so good for me!
I'm so looking forward to this month and all that is in store for me. I'm heading off to Silver Bella in Omaha next week and as a bonus my friend Wendy is coming to Omaha to meet me for brunch before I head back to Oklahoma. Then, I'm headed home to Connecticut to meet my sweet new nephew and have a baby shower for my sister who is due with her baby boy in January! Plus, we have the Thanksgiving holiday in there and lots of crafting to be done. Whew!

Actually tonight, my girls are coming over for another crafting night. I have no idea what I will work on but I have plenty of projects to choose from.

I have a nephew!

He's finally here and what a cutie he is! Baby Joao - that's John to those of us who don't speak Portugese - was born on October 19th. What a sweet little angel! Manda says he is such a good baby and we are all thankful for that.
My friend Elena pointed out that the blanket in the picture makes him look like he has wings.


I'm so wishing I could be in Connecticut right now cuddling on my sweet little angel. I'll see him next month though when Doug and I go home for January's shower. Can't wait!

Remember when I said I broke the glass on my craft table - Yep - here's the damage:


I was a nervous wreck taking that glass off the table and getting it downstairs loaded in the car and off to the dumpster. As we loaded it in the car a huge jagged chunk broke off - just what I was afraid of. Thank goodness it didn't slice us into bits. We got it thrown away and a new piece of glass is upstairs waiting to be put on my craft table - once I clear off all the scrappy supplies.

Dangerous Crafting

Still feeling a little under the weather but definitely better than earlier this week.

I'm *so mad* at myself right now - I broke the glass that was protecting the top of my craft table. Ugh! I was making some banners for a banner swap that I'm participating in next month at Silver Bella. I was ironing some fabric on top of a pad and the glass just "popped". Scared the life out of me but thankfully I had so much fabric and stuff on the table that only a couple little pieces went flying. Hopefully I will find them before I get cut on them and tomorrow I'll call the glass company for a new piece of glass. I feel like an idiot though - I should have known better but honestly it never crossed my mind that the glass would shatter. So - be forewarned!

Keeping Busy

I've been thoroughly enjoying my time off from work and trying to get my huge list of stuff accomplished this month. Is it bad to say that I don't miss work at all?
I'm making progress although maybe a little slower than I had hoped. I'm going to go easy on myself and allow myself to enjoy life a little.
We've been trying to eat a little healthier so on Sunday, Doug grilled some veggies and made absolutely *DELICIOUS* portabello mushrooms on the grill. Oh, the flavor! They were fabulous. Doug is a very good cook and I love when he cooks for me.

I've been working hard at putting a garden in the backyard. It's alot of work to start a garden from scratch but it is coming along. The problem is that is has been so incredibly hot here the last week or so and it has made it a little difficult to work outside for too long but I'm getting there. You can see one of the bags of dirt in the picture. The soil in the back yard is kind of compact and clay like so we actually have to go and buy garden soil. Hopefully my plants are going to grow - that would be awful to do all that work and then have everything die.
I've also picked out mostly plants that butterflies and hummingbirds love. I've had a few hummingbirds at my feeders already and I've spotted on butterfly. Once word gets out about my flowers I'm sure they will start flocking to my backyard. ;)


I've got myself a little helper. He provides moral support, company and he even helps me with digging. Good Boy!

Despite the heat, I have been slowly working on cleaning out the garage - again - it is so hot I have to take it a little at a time. Plus, there are these huge red and black wasps that keep trying to dive bomb me so that kind of slows me down since I have to keep running out of the garage like a crazy lady.
Next Friday night I'm having some friends over for a craft night so the pressure is on to get my craft room finished. The last two days I have been painting shelves for that room and I'm getting excited to get everything in place. I need to ask Doug to hang one of my ribbon shelves and put my TV on the wall. The reveal is coming soon! Yay!!

Long time no post...Easter and Miscellaneous Goings on

So, I sat down several times trying to write a post but ended up each time just deleting my text. I was having a problem "finding" the pictures I wanted to post and I didn't want to post without them. Turns out all I needed to do was to reboot my computer and the pictures magically appeared!
it has been a crazy month around here but a good month.
Hope everyone had a nice Easter! It was a quiet day for us and it was very nice. I had originally invited Doug's family for dinner but they couldn't make it. So instead, Doug and I decided to just cook a small dinner here at home. For lunch we went to Wholefoods in Midtown. After lunch we went over to Woodward Park and the Tulsa Garden Center. The spring flowers were starting to bloom and there were a bunch of families taking pictures and having picnics. The weather was beautiful but really windy. Par for the course here in Tulsa.


Great place to take pictures - I need to go there with my camera more often!

Here is our self portrait of the day! Sitting in front of the conservatory where there is a pretty fountain and walled gardens.

Inside the conservatory there were some beautiful flowers - orchids, hibiscus and all sorts of plants. Here is a hibiscus with a bloom that was bigger than my head!

The day before Easter my sweet husband drove me to Frisco, Texas so we could go to Ikea. As I've mentioned in an earlier post I am working with a professional organizer to get my craft room into shape. Boy, what a task that has been but it is going to be soooooo worth it when it is all done. Stay tuned for before and after pictures! Coming soon, I promise.

At the end of March, we went to Tulsa's largest roll of duct tape: the BOK center to see the Black Eyed Peas. We had seen them with U2 in Norman in October but they were here with Ludicris and LMFAO. Yeah - that just about says it all! It was funny to watch the shocked looks on the parent's faces when the two warm-up bands were performing. There was some pretty colorful language used and I have to admit, I learned a few new phrases that night! We saw a bunch of parents ushering their kids out to the concession stands until it was "safe" to come back for the Black Eyed Peas.

Clinton and Mindy Baird:

Doug and Me:

It was fun and the BOK center is a great venue for concerts.

In a nutshell, the other stuff going on around here:
1. Working on cleaning the garage (so I can finally park my car inside!)
2. I *am* going to finish my craft room soon and I will post pictures.
3. Upcoming class with Cheryl Mezzetti at A Memory to Scrap - can't wait! We are creating a travel journal which will be perfect for our upcoming trip to Italy!
4. We had Phoebe's blood work done which showed us that her hormones were a little out of whack (which we already knew) and we had a melatonin injection done this past week. Hopefully that will get her feeling better real soon.
5. I've been doing open houses trying to ramp up my Real Estate Career. I just love real estate and looking at houses. Fun!
6. At the end of the month I'm going to St. Louis to attend the Mary Englebreit conference and tour her studio! I can't wait for that either!
7. I've signed up for Silver Bella and Inspiration Unlimited which both take place in the fall. I'm contemplating a couple other creative conferences - I just love the inspiration I get from being around other creative and talented people..

Well - I think that is enough for now.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

No, I'm not wearing green today and luckily, I haven't been pinched for it ;)

Dr. Webb has been in Florida for Spring Break and I was hoping for a slow week to try to get some extra stuff taken care of but no such luck...The phones have still been ringing and there is so much to catch up on that I didn't realize how far behind I had gotten. The practice has gotten so much busier than it was when I first started a year an a half ago.

So, what else has been going on?


I have hired a professional organizer come in to help me organize my craft studio. Her name is Terri Sullivan and can I just say, what a gift to have her here! I have been trying for the longest time to get things organized so I can have friends over to create and perhaps pursue some type of crafty business. My problem is that I get so far and then get stuck. I can't figure out exactly how the space can work best for me. Plus, I start pulling out all my paints, beads, paper and instead of organizing, I want to play! Then the space ends up a huge mess again and I'm back to square one. So far we have managed to sort things into categories and I'm trying to go through and purge things I don't need, don't want or don't work any more. That is going to take a little time but I am totally committed! I can hardly wait until it is finished. And yes, I will show pictures when it is done.

Lets see, what else has been going on?
Doug and I saw "Tuna Does Vegas" at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center with Frank & Tonya last week.
Doug and I set up a meeting between the doctors we both work for and had dinner at In The Raw South. Very productive meeting and everyone left happy so definitely a success.
I went to the CMSA meeting at an event center in Tulsa that had all these old advertisement signs. It was kind of weird, sort of like stepping back in time - the event was great for networking and I met some very interesting people.
I took a drive to Oklahoma City to pick up my Business taxes and to get them filed and to be sure my accountant had all the paperwork he needed to do our personal taxes. I'm glad it is all in his hands now - just hoping that we don't *owe* any money this year. I *HATE* the preparation for taxes. Every year I'm so mad at myself for not staying on top of it all year long so it isn't a huge job come tax time and every year I do the same thing of neglecting it until the very last minute. If I keep doing the same thing I'm going to keep getting the same results - duh!
Finally, I'm seriously contemplating closing my law practice. Yep, just don't enjoy it anymore so I'm thinking of some major changes coming up. I just can't believe how everybody lies! It doesn't matter what type of case it is - people lie. It is amazing to me. It is wearing on my soul and I'm not sure how much more I can take. I'm a happy person and I don't like fighting with people (yeah - I know, then why did I go to Law School?). Let's just say for now, I'm evaluating my options and I'm thinking about moving on from that.

Finally, I'm planning on cooking for Easter this year. Better get to work on the menu. I've invited Doug's mom and sister but nobody has committed to coming so it may be just me & Doug this year.

Thanksgiving and a nice weekend

We had a lovely Thanksgiving with Doug's mom and sister Dee. The turkey was delicious and turned out really nice. Don't mind the mess on the counter or the smirk on my face - Doug likes to have me say funny things while he is taking my picture so I'm pretty sure I'm mid sentence on this one. Just focus in on how delicious the turkey looks.
This year, I even remembered the rolls. Last year, they were purchased and put in the pantry where they stayed until the middle of dinner when somebody said, "Hey! Where are the rolls?" Doug's family has teased me all year about how last Thanksgiving was ruined because I forgot the rolls (didn't forget to buy them, just forgot to bake them. This year, I bought the kind that you have to defrost, let rise and then bake. I managed to remember all the steps and get them defrosted, allowed them to rise and popped 'em into the oven. They were fabulous - all light and fluffy. Yum! You can see them right behind me, all ready to go.

I made pumpkin pie and an apple pie for dessert along with seven layer cookie bars. Ever since the Pumpkin Whoopie Pie Cookie disaster,(not sure if I posted about that one) it seems I'm no longer a fan of pumpkin flavor. I took a couple of bites (yeah- one bite wasn't enough) and decided I'm off pumpkin pie. The pie itself should have tasted good, in fact it tasted like it always does but I'm just not liking that flavor anymore.
Funny thing is I used to be such a good baker but I've had a few mishaps as of late. For one thing, I thought maybe our oven was "off" and it turns out I am right. I bought an oven thermometer so I could check (I didn't want to wreck Thanksgiving) and it is under by 15 degrees! However, I can't really blame the baking disasters on that.

Dee and me. And yes, I know I look chunky. I *AM* chunky. But I'm going to fix that. Doug and I are starting the gym TOMORROW! It is a tough time of year to start but I need to start now before I get any bigger. It is NOT going to be easy because I love cookies, and cake, and holiday food....I'll keep you posted how that goes.

Doug and I like to take a "self" shot so here is our Thanksgiving photo. We have fun, that is all that matters, right?
In other exciting news, Doug bought me a Gypsy for my Cricut. It is an early Christmas present. I haven't had a chance to try it out just yet but I can hardly wait! I spent 13 hours upstairs in my craft room organizing, purging and cleaning. I'm getting ready to do some serious holiday crafting. I'm not going to post any "before" pictures until it is actually all clean and I can post some after pics too.

What a beautiful day!

Don't you just love spring?

These are some of my pretty pansies out front.
The weather today is almost perfect. Warm, slight breeze, in the 80's. Gotta love it! It is spring break here in Oklahoma and so far one of the nicest we have had since I moved here in 2001. Usually it is cloudy and rainy but it looks like we are in for a very nice week. I'm so excited!
This weekend was a productive one. I spent some time in my craft room organizing and cleaning. The room is a great size but my biggest problem is that I have SO MUCH STUFF! Plus, the room has a funny "L" shape with sloped ceilings so it is difficult to decide where to put things. Thankfully Doug put up two of my embellishment centers and a huge bulletin board for me. Thank you Douglasssss!!!

Sorry about the dark picture but the area is tucked away in a little corner away from the light. I'm just so excited to have a place to put some of my stuff. I've got alot more to organize and I will post pictures of that as I go along.

Of course, I can't go up there for one minute without the dogs looking for me. When I look around the corner, this is what I see:

Gotta love it!