Artificial Christmas Trees

When I was very young...around 3 or 4 years old...I had a serious allergic reaction to our family's real Christmas tree. I have a very vague recollection of waking in the middle of the night struggling to breath. The next thing I recall I was sitting in the emergency room with my parents. I remember being very scared. Thankfully my parents got me to the hospital in time, the allergy shots quickly went into gear and I was fine.

Having this allergic reaction resulted in our family having to get an artificial tree. To this day I have never had a real tree in any of my homes. But I don't regret it. I do enjoy how a real tree can look...we have many friends who trek out every year to the tree farm and get these sweet, sometimes 'Charlie Brownish' looking trees. They look very sweet. But as for my family we have the good, old fashioned fake tree. But I truly don't mind!

My daughter and I get into the holiday decorating mode the day after Thanksgiving. My husband and our two sons go up to their friends' hunting camp for a couple of days while we stay home and set the stage for the upcoming holidays. We don't need to rely on any man's muscle to stuff the tree into our van, drag the tree home, carry it into our house and complain as they set it up. We simply go down to our basement, unpack it piece by piece and get it done on our own! Yes, we are women...here us roar!

Over the years my kids have complained about having an artificial tree exclaiming that they'd like a real one. But honestly, once we get our tree up it looks so beautiful! Here's a photo from Christmas a couple of years ago:

Ahhh! I just love looking at that picture! In my opinion it oozes the essence of this sweet and wonderful season!

Aside from the fact that I'm never in the mood to deal with a serious allergic reaction I really do love artificial Christmas trees. I've heard people complain that they can be a bit pricey when you first purchase one, but over time they definitely pay off. Plus they are beautifully shaped and the size is included on the box and, if you prepare yourself, you figure out what size will fit your home. Our friends always guess at what size they need and, over the years, they've gotten a few that we were too tall and they ended up having to cut off the tree tops. Another positive point in favor of an artifical tree is you don't have to worry about watering it. Needles don't fall all over the place as the tree dries out. And one year I recall another family we are friends with brought a few bugs in with ther tree! Yuck!

We've had prelit trees since they came out with them a few years ago. One year we pulled our tree out, put it together and plugged it in. And guess what? The lights didn't work! Now mind you, I was all snuggled up at home and wasn't about to run to the store and try to find a new tree after putting this one up. So I went down to our basement found a couple strings of old lights and put them on the tree. Voila! We were set!

In my opinion there are many more positives to having an artificial tree. They're always gorgeous, less expensive in the long run, safer from fire hazards and we don't need any men around to help us carry it home and set it up!

So as the days get shorter, the nights get longer and the weather starts to get much cooler my excitement starts to rev up. Halloween is right around the corner and then Thanksgiving. Before we blink it will be that time again and I can hardly wait!

But okay...I've been focusing lately in living in the present moment! I'll try to enjoy the here and now and not get too far ahead of myself. But every once in a while I can daydream about what's ahead, right?

Well, I better get in gear as I have a busy day. I'm sure I'll have more to share soon. Until then,

Skin Care

Not to brag, but one trait that was handed down to me through my genetic coding was good skin. My dad always looked younger than he was and he had very few wrinkles as he aged. I have a few wrinkles such as the typical crows feet around my eyes and I know my skin is showing it's age in some respects for sure. But every now and then I unexpectedly run into some of my classmates or friends from years ago and I see a big difference between the amount of wrinkles they have and the amount I have.

Fortunately I've been blessed with healthy skin but I also take care of it. I don't go crazy like some people and buy every new skincare product that comes down the pike that's touted as the next best thing. But I do try products that are recommended to me by family and friends. Over the past few years I've built up a list of some of my favorites.

I've purchased the products I like at different retail brick and mortar stores and I've also bought some products online. I'm sure some people are hesitant to purchase these types of products on the Internet, but there are a variety of reputable skin care retailers online such as beautybridge.com that have a solid reputation and many devoted customers. I can say with confidence that buying skin care products online is a safe bet as long as you are familiar with the retailer.

Not only can you buy skin care products online, but you can also buy your favorite brand of cosmetics, bath and body products, hair care products, nail care and more. Just make sure to do your homework so you know that you are buying from an authorized merchant.

As I'm sure you're aware a big issue now a days is being more conscious about our environment. I have to admit I can be a bit of a 'green mom'...not quite what you'd call 'crunchy'...but 'green' yes. I try to pay attention and use products that are friendly to nature. And that includes some of my skin care products as well.

G.M. Collin Products fall into the niche of skin care that are rooted in nature and will help your skin to look great from the inside out. Their products are created from natural plant and marine extracts so you can feel confident that you're getting products derived from nature.

You can also purchase Babor merchandise at BeautyBridge.com which are produced in an environmentally friendly manner. Not only is the product created in a way to protect the environment, but their packaging is as well. That's something that a 'green' mom like me likes to hear.

So, while I'm a 'green' mom who's been blessed with decent skin I do work at taking care of it. I don't spend hours and hours of the day basking in the sun. And if I am going to be in the sun I make sure to use a good sunscreen. I also use moisturizers every morning and night. I was my face before bed and again in the morning. And I use good quality skin care products. Plus I also exercise daily.

Speaking of which, I'd better get moving now. I have to take my nightly walk and it's getting a bit late in the day. I don't want to be walking the dog in the dark!

I'll have more fun to share soon...until then,

Crystal Nail Files

I don't spend much time keeping my finger nails painted simply because I have paint all over my hands almost everyday. I'm sure I'd chip off or mess up any manicure in about 2 hours after I had one done.

I do however try to keep my toenails in good shape. I keep them painted, clipped and filed down to a nice length. I love to wear flip flops all summer long so having my toenails look nice is important to me. But as luck would have it I recently took a spill in our driveway and the toenail on my left big toe ripped back! UGH!! It was a mess and weeks later it still looks ugly. I've been traipsing around all summer with a band aid covering my ugly big toenail. What else could I do??

Well, the universe conspired and gave me what I needed. A friend of mine asked me to paint something for her. As her payment she got me a gift certificate for a pedicure. How perfect! I am so looking forward to getting my toes cleaned up once again.

The girl who does my pedicures is new to the salon scene having only just graduated from high school a year ago. But she does a great job none the less. I can't wait to sit down and have my feet taken care of again! I love pedicures!

I recall a few years ago I was out of town and patronized a salon that used crystal nail files. It was a gorgeous nail file adorned with Swarovski crystals. Talk about classy! It was a very high end spa and salon that I went to with my girlfriends when we turned "the big 40". We definitely spoiled ourselves that year!

I won't be able to spoil myself to another high class salon just yet, but someday I will! That's my goal! Work hard and then spoil myself to pieces!

Okay, I'd better get to work...I have a busy day ahead of me!

More fun on the way...until then,

Back from vacation

We got back from our family vacation a couple of days ago and now I'm ready to roll. There's a lot to be said about getting away from your regular humdrum days.

We vacation in North Carolina every summer staying in different cottages with family and friends. This year we had a great view of the ocean right out our front door...

Once we crossed over the dunes this was ours all day everyday...

One morning we woke up to this stunning view...

Ahhh...it doesn't get any better than that!

While on vacation I had several customers call and email but I had limited internet access and my cell reception wasn't great. I got a bit nervous when I couldn't get back to my customers and thought, "I hope I don't lose my customer base while I'm on vacation!" A couple of them are repeat customers and I'd hate to lose this precious asset.

Thankfully everyone that I put off for a few days completely understood. The common thought was that everyone needs a vacation from the hectic days of life!

So now I'm back in full swing, revitalized and completely grateful that I have a job that I love!

More fun and sharing on the way...until then,

The Garden Gates - Bella Notte Linens & Bedding

My oldest son is heading off to college in about a month so I've been doing a bit of online shopping to gather all of his bedding needs along with the rest of his dorm room necessities.

I love to shop and buy things for my home and as I was surfing the web for my son I couldn't help but take a few detours and do a bit of online window shopping for myself. Along the way I found a gorgeous website called The Garden Gates that offers a large variety of luxurious home and garden decor items.

Since I was already looking for bedding I thought I'd take a look at the beautiful custom made Bella Notte Linens that are sold through their website.

Talk about gorgeous! All I kept thinking was, "Wow! Maybe someday I can get these gorgeous and luxurious bed sheets, pillow shams, window curtains and more for my bedroom!" They have 28 fabric choices in 17 different colors and each piece of bedding is made to order so you make all the decisions about how your bedding will look from start to finish. Use your imagination and create your own unique and one-of-a-kind bedding set.

And I have to mention that even though the luxurious fabrics that are used in creating each piece are linen, satin and velvet they are all machine washable. So you don't have to worry about any dry cleaning. Another huge plus for me!

Located in Louisiana the Garden Gates is a brick and mortar store that is open 7 days a week. If you're fortunate enough to live in the area you can see for yourself all the beautiful home and garden decor they offer. But if you live too far away as I do, don't fret! You can shop 24 hours a day on their website and drool over all of the stunning home decor items. Oh and I almost forgot to mention that they also offer free shipping!

If you're anything like me and you love to shop for your home then you simply must take a look at this stunning website! It's beautiful!

Now I have to get back to shopping for my son and his dorm room! Not nearly as much fun but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?

Okay, I'll have more to share soon...until then,

Bizzarro weather today!

Just this morning I wrote a post about SAD and included a photo of our backyard today compared to last year at the same time. We had tons of snow last winter and this year we've had very little.

Lo and behold, after a mostly sunny day the clouds got very dark around 4:00 p.m. and it became very windy. A few minutes later I looked outside and it was almost a whiteout...snowing like crazy. It looked so bad I even sent a quick text to my husband who is working that he needs to be careful on his drive home...I wasn't even sure if he realized the weather had changed. Then literally 15 minutes later I looked out the window and saw the sun shining again.

I thought, "What the heck is going on?!?!" It was so strange but beautiful at the same time. The sun was shining and reflecting brightly off the top half of the snow covered trees while the bottom half of the trees and everything else was gray and dismal! I took a few pictures to share...

  

  

  

I guess it's not entirely 'bizzarro' as I titled my post, but this has been such a strange winter for us here in PA. As I said in my post from this morning I'm much rather have it be muddy rather than snowy. But I have to say that the snow can be so beautiful at times!

Okay...more to come soon...until then,



"Happy"

Gotta love John Lennon!

More on the way soon...until then,

Wordless Wednesday

My first day of participation in Wordless Wednesday...

My daughter and I walked almost every night this past summer. We live directly across the street from our community park. Buhl Farm Park ...it's the crown jewel of the Shenango Valley.

Every night--as long as we had clear weather that day--we got to see these glorious sunsets. And almost every night I'd kick myself because I always forgot to take my camera with us. FINALLY I remembered and got these beautiful shots!

I still walk at the park eveyday by myself while my kids are in school, but it's too cold to go at sunset. So for now I'll have to enjoy these beautiful photos.

More fun on the way...until then,

Busy summer days are passing by quickly!

I have been VERY out of touch with my blog the past few months. But it's all for a good reason...I'm spending my time focusing on my family this summer. My oldest son will be heading to college this time next year so I'm trying to soak up as much time as I can with my children. I can't believe how fast the years have gone by!

Meanwhile, we spent the afternoon at a family picnic. My daughter tends to have an 'old soul' view of life and I spotted her taking a picture of a gorgeous butterfly on the edge of the woods. I grabbed my camera and raced over there to try and catch a quick picture...here it is:

It came out so clear and I'm so glad I got such a good shot of it!

Well, I'm going back to spend time with my clan! I hope you're all enjoying these glorious...and very HOT...summer days!

Hopefully I'll have more fun to share soon! Until then...

My First ETSY Treasury - Purple Passion Day

I had so much fun...I created my very first Etsy treasury! I was in the mood for exploring Etsy for some purple artworks this afternoon so I decided to call it 'Purple Passion Day'.

All of the artists are members of the Etsy Ugly Cute Team. Here's a photo...

We went to mass this morning and since it's Lent the altar is draped in a lot of dark purple. So that must have put me in the mood for one of my favorite colors. Plus I have a paint color called Passion Purple and it's very similar to the colors they use in the church...hence the name of my treasury!

Okay...now I plan to chill out for a bit...

More fun to come...until then,

On this cold winter morning...

I, like most everyone else in the country, am sick and tired of this stinkin' cold and snowy weather.

BUT...

...it does have it's moments...

The way the sun was hitting the pines trees this morning was breath-taking and I simply HAD to go outside and snap a few photos.

I am missing my mom a lot lately and it seems the mornings are the hardest. Probably because it's when the house is the quietest. But when I looked out the front window and saw this beauty out in nature my spirits were lifted.

Every once in awhile I see something outside that brings me back to the state of appreciation...this image was my medicine today.

More on the way...until then,



Etsy Treasury...Itty Bitty Art

I woke up to a sweet surprise this morning...my Fairy 'n Flowers ACEO Print was included in this fabulous treasury curated by Jennizart!

Itty Bitty Art Treasury on Etsy by Jennizart
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4c589f0bc25c6d914fec1a1b/itty-bitty-art



Wow! A blast of color and inspiration that brightened my day!

Thanks Jennifer!!

More fun on the way...until then,

Pretty Pinks and Purples!

Sharing some pretty pink and purple flowers...

It was a glorious morning yesterday and I couldn't help myself...I HAD to take pictures of the 'oh so pretty flowers' blooming in my mom's yard! So glad I had my camera with me...









Enjoy!

More goodies to come...until then,