Year In Review - 2012

I guess it is that time of the year for a review.  I went back in my blogging this year to January 1, 2012.  The entry was 366 Days  and in it I wrote about:

Blog every single day of 2012

Read as many books in 2012 that I did in 2011 (56 books)

Start the eating thing and tracking my food (smaller plate)

Ramp up exercise

Continue the painting and prepare for my own show this spring!!!!!

I have to admit that I didn't do all of them and that is kind of sad.  The first one I was pretty faithful until about October and November when I just kind of lost my writing mojo.  I think I did fairly well in my endeavour, but still, I didn't accomplish the task I put forth in front of me. 

Books, yes I did finish that task by reading 60 books, surpassing my 2011 total of 56. 

Eating, well, like nearly everyone who sets those lose weight goals I kind of fudged (LOL) on that one.  I did start eating a lot better and have stopped buying diet pop by the caseload and only one when I have a desire or eat out.  I am eating smaller portions but the tracking thing, ick...not happening.  I am just not that disciplined for that task. 

The exercise I have continued my 3 days a week but haven't added anymore but it's mainly because of the knee and now that I've had the surgery and am mending...let that goal roll forward.

The painting, yes, I have done that but my own show...NOT!  I've kind of veered from that by focusing on a, well, "focus" in my art and a couple of weeks I sent a packet to my first gallery for admission.  Now I am waiting to hear but won't be disappointed too much if they turn me down.  I think it was pretty brave for me to apply in the first place.  Now we wait. 

Now I will  work on the new 2013 list. 

2012...It's Been A VERY Good Year

Merry Christmas

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

TO ONE AND ALL.........

 

I promise I will return.  I'm just taking a break from blogging for a few weeks.  Things will be back to normal by the first of the year.

Mum's The Word

I'm still here I promise.  For some reason I have been quite mum with my writing lately.  I haven't even written in my hand journals.  I kind of blame it on my need to pull into myself this time of year, a form of hibernating when it turns winter.  The feeling is trying to take hold of me this year harder than the past few years.  It is so important for me to keep with my exercise routine and stay busy or I can get really depressed.  I HATE the cold and winter.  I HATE when the trees look like skeletons in the dark and grey sky.  So depressing for me.  

I do love Christmas music playing in the stores and enjoy singing along as I do my shopping, that is grocery shopping.  I have not been to the big mall one time this season!  Most of my Christmas shopping as been online, smaller Mom-n-Pop stores, and of course The Alliday Show.  Gift cards are the bulk of my presents this year too.  A isn't coming home for Christmas this year and as of today have still not put anything in the mail to her.  I'm so bad.  

Since before Thanksgiving and my knee surgery I've been off, real off.  The holidays seem to have just flown by and left me no time to think.  Didn't help we had our HUGE party and then The Alliday Show to occupy most of my time.  Next year, no party and I'm going to actually do Christmas cards again.  For years I had my cards ready before Thanksgiving, and sent tons of them.  The past couple of years the task has fallen by the wayside.  This is just not like me but I can't seem to get motivated.  Oh I can't let the dreary season called winter to get hold of me.  

Jingle bells, jingle bells...

Music Is Truly A Miracle

The Alliday Show - The Day After

Yesterday was a big day.  It was the 3rd Annual Alliday Show that B produces.  It was a rousing success for all involved.  The Friday before we spent setting up and helping all the other vendors find their places and get set up.  Rio was a huge help in showing them her precious bright eyes and not hardly making a peep.  She endured two days of constant strangers smiling at her and oooing and awwing at her.  This poor little girl was a trooper and I'm sure this morning is still napping and resting. 

 

The publicity was awesome for the show with B on television several times, in local magazines and even in the Tulsa World newspaper Saturday morning!  Turn out was consistent and steady and I think everyone did well.  We are all exhausted but it is a good tired after a successful event.  Now on to next year.

 

Here's to Alliday 2013!

Alliday is Everyday

Saturday is the B's big day.  The Alliday Show that she has been working on all year long, that and having a baby!!!!!  I will be there with a few of my paintings, note cards and prints.  Come on by and say hello if you are around! 

We welcome you to the third annual Alliday Show on Saturday, December 15th at the Tulsa Fairgrounds from 9-5! The first 50 people in the door will receive swag bags filled with surprises from the artists! This event is FREE to attend and will be full of unique, handmade goods to help finish (or begin) your holiday shopping! To entice you further, little Rio, the granddaughter will be in attendance lending her sweet smile!

Post Party

This is just a quick update and I'm so sorry but a camera was not even used last night to document the FABULOUS Party that happened here.   My feet, my aching feet!  After nearly 2 hours in my pumps, my pretty shoes, I ditched them for barefoot then out came the house shoes.  My guests by that time didn't mind as they all knew that I had recent surgery.  About 5:15 the wait staff I hired arrived and what I can say is WOW!  Best decision I ever made for sure and well worth any money to help.  They started in getting the drink area going and my food table set up, especially when the food arrived at 6 and some early guests that arrived (party started at 6:30.)  My Daddy even arrived at 4:30, before it was dark.  He stayed about 15 minutes and then was on his way back home.  The drive this time made him very nervous.  So even though I needed to pay attention to the food set up I had to attend to guests earlier than expected, but that was okay. I checked my list this morning and there were a total of 86 guest in attendance.  I planned on 150 on food and beverages and you know what, there is not much food left.  The caterer I use has great food and the amount eaten is testament to that.  It seemed that everyone arrived at once with a trickle throughout the evening but it was pretty much done by 10 pm.  We had a few stragglers coming after that and we welcomed them by the fire pit with a glass of wine and lots of chit-chat.  It was a glorious evening, made even better is that the wait staff put all the leftovers in the fridge, washed my dishes used and took away their plates and wine glasses that I didn't have to wash!  Big plus on all the decisions we made.  The last of the guests finally headed home at one in the morning as I was changing into something much more comfortable and getting my bed ready.  It was guy time by the fire and I was done!

Good stuff happened though as there was a kind of bidding war on some of my paintings and I may have sold some.  People were whispering so their spouses or partners would not hear for Christmas presents!  SCORE!  Also, I may have a commission piece to do, and it's for a gift for a world renowned designer!!!!! SCORE!  Couldn't have been a better evening.

I got to introduce my Now best friend to my old high school best friend that I have reconnected with.  It is was a wonderful feeling to have some of my favorite people meet and be one place together, with me!  Actually, our home was full of best friends and our life is full of riches of the love our friends showed us and hopefully we show them.  Life is good!

Today is REST day and I may have The Hubby to take me to dinner tonight!

Party-Time

Tis the season to stay really, really busy.  Today is our huge party and I'm so excited that of course I couldn't sleep in.  My mind starts going off about 4:30 a.m., just about the time Clayton starts waking up for his 5 am feeding.  Once the mind starts whirring I'm done for and just have to get up.  Especially today as the day for our Christmas Extravaganza has come.  I sent out 92 invitations and as of yesterday am still receiving RSVP's, but that is okay.  I've booked for for 150 with the caterer.  The Hubby and I went to the liquor store and purchase a sizeable amount of beverages, nearly $500 worth but we think we might need more.  I have wait staff hired to help.  Finally, yesterday the wonderful brother-in-law came over with boxes of decor to add to my stuff.  He hung wreaths, swags and set sweet little white baby reindeer (pictures later) around to enhance the feel of Christmas.  The Hubby has gone overboard, when he said he wouldn't, and hung lights on the front of the house and around the backyard on the new landscaping.  It's so pretty.  I think the weather is going to hold out one day for us and stay fairly nice, nice enough that we can leave the doors open and have a nice fire in the fire pit, plus we have the heater outside.  I think we will have slightly over a hundred people in attendance but as it is a drop in kind of thing I don't think it will be all at once but we can handle it.

My knee is so much better and my plan for the evening is to wear this killer cocktail dress I purchased.  I'm so hoping I can wear my pumps, my favorite shoes for most of the evening.  I certainly don't want to be forced to my tennis shoes for comfort.  The one thing I won't be doing this time around is drinking a lot of wine.  Oh my gosh, six years ago, the last time we had this kind of shindig, I was still reeling from the loss of my mother and my best friend Gail and I imbibed a bit too much, a LOT too much.  I spent the night on the bathroom floor sick, SICK I say.  It was just too much after all the loss and I took to the wine to have a release.  2006 was a very hard year for me and 2012, I have healed and moved on and to top it off have reconnected with my high school bestie friend, Sharon.  2011-2012 have been the best for me.  We've completed the house totally.  I found Sharon again.  We had our first grandbaby, granddaughter Rio come into our lives.  And, my art is taking a different direction and given me a new sense of ME!  I'm ready for 2013 and what it holds!

Christmas Memories

Trying to blog everyday till the end of the year I was at a loss for words as usual.  I thought I would find an old picture and try some memories.  Here we go!

This picture was taken at my Grandma's, probably Christmas Eve 1975.  Momma, Daddy, Bro, Sis and I.  I can guess the age because of my hair.  I'm more bleached blonde thanks to my Aunt trying to "paint" my hair.  Remember that technique, where they would paint the blonde in but I had such long hair that she thought she would brush it through.  What we ended up with was bleached hair.  It was the first time that I had done anything to my hair that wasn't a permanent.  She cut the cute little fly bangs and bleached me out and I loved it.  My dress, Momma made.  She made a lot of clothes for Sis and I.  You can't tell in the photo but this maxi dress had a sweet print and the little bows were burgundy velvet.  I think Sis had a matching one.  

Earlier times at home for Christmas.  There is Sis with our beloved Susie.  Susie was Daddy's cat.  She loved my Daddy so much.  Susie gave us several litters of sweet kittens. of which we kept only one of her many kittens.  When we lived in Arkansas briefly Susie got some kind of an abscess in her bottom jaw or worms or something  (memory) and Daddy had to cut it out and (old time vet practices) kept it clean with peroxide.  She ended up losing her bottom teeth but that didn't stop her from bringing field rats to the door for Momma.  Because she had no bottom teeth when she was content and purring her tongue would slid out and she would drool.  She was a great mouser and momma kitty.  

 Awww, there she is.  She had 3 litters of three but the last litter was 5 and Mother said no more and had her fixed.

Check out the PJ's.  Again they were the product of my mother's handiwork on the sewing machine.  They were our Christmas present.  Money was not readily available but fabric was cheap and mother was talented.  We almost always got handmade stuff under the tree and our stockings were filled with nuts, fruit and some hard candy.  They were the best kinds of Christmas memories.

Even older Christmas, there I am on the left.  Bro in on the floor crying and Sis is in Momma's lap with the pacifier.  The rest are aunts and cousins.  Wasn't Mother a beauty!  I was 3 years old, Bro was nearly 2 and Sis 5 months old.  Stairstep kiddos.  

My Aching Feet

Oh my aching feet!  I think I've written a post titled this before but today is for a different reason.  Yesterday I spent the day trying to finish the Christmas decor in the front room with a bit of stuffing junk in various closets.  I was done by about three in the afternoon when my knee said STOP!  This morning I got up about six, read the paper, enjoyed a cup of coffee and my protein bar and then began the task of reorganizing my room, yet again.  Yesterday I brought nearly every painting I have done in here to set up the room as a kind of gallery for the party.  Well, instead I started picking up stuff in one corner and moving it around to a better spot, then more and more and more until I had picked up the entire room and of course stuff some of it in the closet.  My art corner was a total mess with piles of sketches, tracing paper pieces, canvases, paint brushes, just stuff and I organized it.  I've got all kinds of table easels, my painting easel, some TV trays and my desk/table all ready and set up with various paintings around the room.  I've hung three paintings and some are sitting in the windows.  It doesn't look great but is better and at least all the paintings are displayed.  I asked The Hubby to come in a have a look because I was kind of proud of how orderly it looked, to me.  He just kind of shook his head and said, "uh huh."  Well, crap.  It is my space and it's a creative room, my creative room.  At least he didn't give suggestions or ask when I would finish.  He knows better, I think.  LOL!

Back to the feet and my calves.  OUCH!  The knee not so much but my feet and legs are killing me.  I know part of the problem is that I have been doing this stuff in my house shoes for two solid days and the feet they are revolting!  I think I'm done for the weekend, really.  I still have the living room and the kitchen but they will be easy.  I'll get those done closer to Friday so the house can get totally cleaned and ready for the party.

I think I'm hitting the hot tub, get my book and sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather.  Awwww, my air chair, book and glass of iced tea!

Party and Garden or Garden Party

Exactly a week from today our party is happening and I have TONS left to do.  It's funny that I have sent nearly 200 invites out and only a handful have bothered to RSVP.  I am going to have to just plan food on the assumption that all will come!?  That is weird but what do you do.  The family helped to get the tree up but I still have boxes and boxes of stuff to put out.  That is really the easy part but I do have to do it.  Then I can tweek the house and shelves and stuff.  I have to make it perfect as it is an open house.  My plan is to also set "my room" up as a kind of gallery and maybe hang a few of my pieces around the house.  What an opportunity for an art show!  Maybe I can sell some stuff.  That would be AWESOME!

My mind is just swimming with stuff this morning.  I was up at five with Clayton and just could not go back to sleep.  The party, and next weekend is B's Alliday Show at the fairgrounds and I have to set up my booth.  That is kind of blowing my mind right now because I'm not really sure I want to do it but I need too.  Last year I had a lot of prints to sell but I'm not going to do that this year.  I just don't want to get into the PRINT stuff.  I just want to paint and sell paintings.  I don't want it to be a "business", I want to create.  I do have note cards and those are easy and sell nicely.

This month, December, I plan on fulfilling the plan to post everyday, I hope.  I did pretty well for posting everyday of the year until about September then I just gave up.  I think because my body was in so much pain that I couldn't write.  The knee thing is a memory, although I still have the arthritis pain some, I am pain free.  I've gone back to the exercise but I don't overdo it because I am still post-surgery and have another 6-7 weeks of healing time internally.  There are times at the end of the day when it is telling me "STOP and rest!"  This week won't be an option for me in that regard.  It is full steam ahead.

The house renovation is complete, inside and out...well, the out is not quite complete but by Tuesday it will be.  The landscaping is done and the new sod will be laid on Tuesday, then we can call it complete, at least till spring when my new vegetable garden will be set up.  I've adjusted where it is and have plans for some of the flowerbeds along with Sue from The Garden Trug.

When we were planning on getting some more landscaping done the guy who did the front yard was a flake and left us with new flowerbeds overrun with the zoysia grass.  We couldn't get him back to replace plants that were the wrong stuff or to fix our problems.  I had HAD it with him and I told The Hubby that I was going to be in charge of the yard stuff.  I love gardening and when I first went to college at the age of 24 my first class was horticulture because that is what I wanted to be briefly.  I knew what I was doing.  He let me, although he couldn't help himself for trying to horn in.  That's okay because I know he is a micro-manager and he needed to be a part.  Anyway, in our little three street area The Garden Trug truck was everywhere at 3 or 4 different houses and I saw that they were doing everything from fences to new flowerbeds.  I contacted Sue and got things going and I am extremely pleased with them.  They will also come out to clean out my beds in the spring and put more annuals, whatever I need!!!!!  I am in control of the yard!