Snow + Scrapbooking + Good Friends

=loads of fun! Woke up this am to several inches of snow, no dogs barking, no kids fighting and no routine to have to get to. Gotta love that!
Love that I got to play with paper and scissors and a bit o glue. Love that I got to fellowship with a great bunch of gals. Love that I am getting a much needed break from the usual routine.

But...
I do miss...
my hubby
my BEBZ
my Hugsley
my Rudy
my Lily

and my little Bella Rose. And, I must confess, despite the great Sleep Number bed I get to share with no one, I do miss my straight-from-China 100% silk comforter! SIGH.

Mancala (aka Man-a-cal-a to some BEBZ)

Tonight was a bit of tae kwon do, book fair planning and organizing, paper grading, texting (a dear friend who is sick at a really fun event; CHA=Craft and Hobby Association) and playing with three puppies. Ok, one true puppy and two very large beasts who just think they are puppies. A batch of chocolate chip cookie dough was made after a game or two of mancala the boys chose to play (on their own-woohoo!) after they had read for thirty minutes. I just love it when technology gets cast aside for a bit and the old fashioned tried and true games of the past meet the minds of present day lads.

Things are finally quiet in the house as I type this. Starting to feel a bit tired-especially knowing all that I accomplished today (feel good about that) but knowing that tomorrow morning is just a blink away, and with it, another large list of things to do. Would I have it any other way??

The answer is yes,

...at times

... I would.

But for NOW, I am content with my crazy blessed life.

Life is Like a Box of Chocolates...

...well you know how the saying goes...

..."You Never know whatch you gonna git!" ( Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump).

A little four-legged sweetheart made it into my 4runner after being spotted by me on Monday evening. She was wandering along in the median of a very busy road that is located close to our house. I had just barely seen her (as it was dusk). I was driving Ian to tae kwon do practice and couldn't stop as we would've been late-but I was oh so worried that she was going to get hit! (Actually I feared she had already been hit as it appeared to me as if she was limping). I was talking to my DH, Mick, at the time I spotted her (who was away on business in Dallas). He said to me, "Do not pick her up. You can't save them all."

Well...

... I couldn't pick her up then-- and didn't...THEN...

but, obviously,

two days later...when I had a chance encounter with her again...

I did.

My niece (who was visiting from FL and who ironically happens to be a vet tech) and I spotted her, in the very same spot, while we were taking Ian to his band class. Of course I had our two big beasties (Rudy and Lily) in the back and knew that it would be a giant vehicle of chaos if I brought her into the 4Runner with them in it. I didn't want to stress her out more. So, I dropped my niece off, with some Quaker Granola bars (to entice the little beauty-it was the only food item I had on hand) while I proceeded to drop Ian off at band and then the big doggies off back home. This all took a mere matter of 5-7 minutes (The blessings of living in a smaller community). When I returned to the spot where I had dropped my niece Andrea off, she had the puppy with her and she was covered in mud from her ankles to her knees. (We had some really mild weather the past few days so everything was spring mush!)

She piled into the 4runner with the pup and we began the trip to my local vet to have her left front leg looked at. As we were driving along, she sat percehd proudly and contentedly atop the lap of my niece. Simultaneously, both my niece and I spoke: "She looks like a "Bella."

And so, dear blog readers, this:

...is Bella.

She had surgery yesterday to remove a metal pellet that had been lodged in the metatarsals of her front left foot for at least a month according to the vet. She is doing well now and has proven herself to be quite the sweet girl and good girl too. She didn't whine or bark all through the night and she didn't mess in her cage. She loves the kids, isn't sure of Hugsley, our orange tabby (but doesn't chase him either) doesn't appear to be startled or afraid of much of anything and loves to be at our feet or by our side. She is a gem. Now... if my DH would just be amenable to letting us keep her. Say a little prayer for us, would ya? ;) TIA.

So, what kind of "life chocolate" do you dare partake of today?

Today Was One of Those Days...

...one of those days where I chide myself for not being prepared. For not having the correct item on hand. For not realizing what beautiful, gorgeous photographic moments I was going to miss capturing on film. Today..on the way to church...was the most spectacular panoramic view of sparkling white trees amidst an ocean of GOR-ge-OUS blue skies! And if missing that photograph wasn't insult enough to my photographic self, on the way home from church we caught the most spectacular view of a stately bald eagle perched atop a tree-we drove right beneath him! If only, I had my camera, and my car (the one with the sunroof)! Anyways, I did manage to capture a pic with my iPhone, but let's face it, Mr. Steve Jobs, you have created a plethora of wonderful gadgets for all of us technologically addicted peeps (even those of us who a tech slow-learners like myself) but your iPhone camera ain't no Canon DSLR. (Not yet anyways!) If any of you out there in blogland happened to capture this beautiful day on film (er...camera sensor) feel free to post a comment with a link to your pics.

Day 2 Frigidity

Embarking on Day 2 of "Inclement Weather" and "no school" for Boo. But, don't let anybody kid you--we are still, most certainly, doing some schooling. We've got Aunt Karen & Cousin Andrea (and Poppa Bear; aka my dad) coming to visit us here for the first time since we've moved from Chicagoland nearly six years ago! We are so stoked and want to enjoy every minute with them while they're here-so we are cramming some hours of school in-in order to fully enjoy their visit.

Here's what's on the agenda today:

• Rivers of the World
• Ancient Civilizations
• Weather Wrap-U
• Writing Persuasively
• Geometry; working with a protractor
• Beginning a new LA novel-perhaps, me thinks Call of the Wild

and...some craftiness tonight!

What's on your TO DO list today?

Project Life

This arrived on my doorstep today and I couldn't be happier to get started documenting LIFE. You can order yours here: http://www.beckyhiggins.com/projectlife/.

Happy New Year 2010!

Check out these "Cool Kickers"!

And just look at the cool Lil Dude to whom they belong to; Light Saber Bearing "Cowboy Ben Kenobi:"
A few riotous rounds of Taboo:

There was quite a bit of intensity involved with the usage of the buzzer!

"Sweet P" (Paula) and me!

The gang...

and a sweet pic of my Scrappin' Ya-Yas: Jules, Barb (Suz)* and Kel **sans Lexi & Paula:(