Guess where I'm going tomorrow???

Tonight was my 20th Wreath Making Party!

WOW! What a great night! [It was worth all the frustration of the last few days. I'll spare you the details.] This is a tradition that has been a part of the Boston/Cambridge Stakes for 40+ years. We had a terrific crowd of women there. We had dedicated co-chairs (thank you Sherene and Darcy). We had beautiful decorations (Jenn is a rock star!). We had delicious food (will you cater my wedding, Brittany?). We had a wonderful musical program (Linda=maestra). We had rows of bows (Elisabeth orchestrated the making of 200 bows!). We had lots and lots of helpers with set-up, clean-up, registration, food, decorations, buying supplies, participating in the program and making bows. Everything turned out GREAT!!! I was so glad to have so many of my friends there. And Shelly and Shelley came all the way from Utah!

Twenty Wreath Making Parties ago the chairwoman asked if I'd be in charge of food. I said "sure" and had no clue what the party entailed. Her instructions were, "The food needs to be really nice, try not to spend a lot of money, and we have to have carrot soup." Carrot soup? I didn't know nothin' about makin' no carrot soup. Well, I made gallons of carrot soup (and followed her other instructions) and was totally blown away when I got to the church and saw what a Wreath Making Party was all about! Since that first year I've been in charge of something almost every year (chair/co-chair/set-up/clean-up). This year I was an unpaid consultant. The party is a BIG deal. It's a wonderful tradition. Some women have brought their same friends for 15 or 20 years. You walk in the building and can smell the boughs (it's better than a Yankee candle!). I think the party is worth every ounce of effort that goes into it. The Wreath Making Party is one of my very favorite New England traditions and it really is a wonderful way to start the Christmas season even if it's not December yet!

It's beginning to look a lot like Wreath Making

A Christmas classic

I watched "Charlie Brown's Christmas" tonight; I think I can honestly say it's my favorite Christmas movie.

#18

I met my friend Katie for dinner tonight at Emma's Pizza in Kendall Square. I went there a few months ago with a few coworkers and had the yummiest pizza. Emma's is thin crust pizza so I can pound down 4 slices instead of my usual 2. I'd been thinking about the pizza I had with sweet potatoes, spinach, artichoke hearts and mozzarella. It was #18 on their menu and it was good!

the Dinner Party Project

I wish this had been around when I was in 5th grade.

Merry Tuba Christmas

I went to the Tuba Concert at Fanueil Hall this afternoon. It was really cool. There were lots of baritone and tuba players -- the youngest was 11 and the oldest was 72! And, one guy had been performing at the concert for 22 years! My niece plays the tuba so at one point I called their number, held up my cell phone, and left a voice mail message of tubas playing "Drummer Boy" so she could enjoy it! I LOVE being downtown at Christmastime; I love the decorations and all the hustle and bustle of the holidays. I saw the sister missionaries there (they got the idea from my holiday list -- yeah!) and had a nice visit with them. I had pizza from Pizzeria Regina and then stopped at Starbucks for peppermint hot chocolate which I sipped as I was riding the subway back. It was really cold (30's) but worth it! I do something new each year for the holidays and this year it was the Tuba Concert!

I've experienced...

...walking on the Great Wall of China, winning a shopping spree, riding the Chinatown bus to New York City, viewing Paris from the Eiffel Tower, working for a Governor, sleeping out at the Rose Parade, hiking to the top of the Statue of Liberty, playing my clarinet at the L.A. Coliseum, seeing Niagara Falls, and now...shopping on Black Friday! I woke up at 4:00am (after very little sleep), met my friend at 4:30am and we were at Best Buy at 5:00am! From there we went to the Square One Mall and then to Target. She is at the Burlington Mall now and I'm going to stumble to my bed and hopefully get a few more hours of sleep. I'm exhausted , but hey, I can say I've experienced Black Friday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I had Thanksgiving dinner with the LaPierres (for the 16th year!) and took my traditional items: cranberry/raspberry jell-O, rolls and games. We played spoons and then the M&M game. There were 29 there and it was very noisy and very fun. I went to the Truscotts after for a slice of Julie's delicious chocolate mousse pie. Now I'm home. I'm going to tidy up the place, go to bed at a decent hour, and meet my friend at 4:30am to do some early morning Black Friday shopping (a first for me).

Tradition...Tradition!

One Thanksgiving holiday my mom took two of us ("the reds"?) to Sacramento to visit her cousin and our SLC grandparents who were visiting her, and my dad stayed home with the other two kids. I remember getting a phone call on Thanksgiving day at Cousin Isabelle's house and it was my dad and brothers calling from DISNEYLAND! They went to Disneyland without us--on Thanksgiving Day! And, they said it wasn't even crowded! So for years after that, it was our Thanksgiving tradition. I think our friends the Eccles went with us a few times. This picture was taken on Thanksgiving as a possible Christmas card photo.
















My parents would give us money for lunch and point us in the direction of the stand that sold hot dogs and hamburgers and they would eat somewhere else (a nice turkey dinner) and we'd meet up after. It didn't take us long to realize we should ask to eat with them and then we all enjoyed a Thanksgiving meal!

It was fun to spend Thanksgiving at an un-crowded Disneyland!

One winter glove

It's getting cold in Boston. This morning I dumped out a garbage bag of winter items (coats, scarves, hats, etc.) and only one glove fell out.

Only one glove? I thought of Michael Jackson.

Brush with fame: I went to the Galleria Mall in Sherman Oaks on New Year's Eve back in the early 80's (maybe looking for a last-minute item before going to a church dance...I can't remember). I was in a store, heard some commotion, turned to look, and there he was: Michael Jackson! He was wearing a sparkly jacket, high-water pants, white socks, loafers, and ONE glove (no, I didn't take this photo -- but I guess I could have!). My mom didn't believe me when I said, "That's Michael Jackson!". But, it was him.

San Fernando Valley trivia: If the Jackson Five had gone to public high school, they would have been educated at Birmingham High with the Patton Four.

Back to my one glove saga. I will not survive the winter with only one winter glove so I stopped at the Eddie Bauer Outlet tonight and found a nifty pair of gloves (and a reasonably-priced wool plaid skirt!).

Be thankful

I'm thankful for my family, hundreds of friends, fun hobbies, living my religion every day, my full life, opportunities for service, the four seasons, reproduction fabric, my Canon 10D, a trusty computer, Bluebell (my '94 Honda Civic), living in New England, my very cool condo, a red retro refrigerator, childhood memories and photos, good health, a steady job, life experience, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, growing up in Los Angeles, holidays, independence, a photographic eye, strong ancestors, dessert recipes, postage stamps, faithful blog readers, and this cute turkey I made that reminds me every day to be thankful for my many many blessings.

The list! The list!

No, not the list of 50 qualities I'm looking for in a husband. I have updated my annual list of fun things to do in Boston for the holidays! I try to do something new every year. I'm hoping to get to the Annual Christmas Tuba Concert at Fanueil Hall next Saturday.

Print the list, get out there, and ENJOY!!!

Mall rat

Tonight I went to the mall. I wanted to pick up a few things before the Holiday Shopping Craze begins. I avoid the mall this time of year when--despite the holiday season--people tend to be mean and nasty and would run you over just to get a parking place.

Anyway, enough of that. I love wearing wool plaid skirts, turtlenecks and tights in the winter. I scoured the mall for some new skirts and it didn't take me long to realize that they may not be in fashion anymore. Bummer. And while I went from store-to-store looking, I found lots of clothes that I wouldn't be caught dead in (is it technically a skirt if it's only 16 inches from top to bottom?). I saw a dress in the designer department of Macy's that a) looked like a "house dress", b) was $179 and c) could have been handmade in about three hours.

And, Lucky Jeans. What is all the fuss about? They have their own store and they are expensive. I will never ever (even if I win the lottery) pay that much for a pair of jeans (or "dungarees" as some Bostonians call them). I'm thrilled with my recent hand-me-downs which included a nice pair of jeans that I'm wearing now, even as I blog.

The good news is that I did find a skirt tonight. It was on sale for $19.99 at Eddie Bauer. It's long and it kind of feels like I'm wearing a tent but it fits and the price was right. I think it will look smashing with a black turtleneck and black tights. I'll have to find someone to take my picture!

I've got runners

I have friends that help me pick up supplies for my photocards (from stores that have inconvenient hours for a working gal) and I give them a few cards for their trouble. Today a friend in Utah purchased and delivered these beautiful roses to another friend who lost a family member recently. My friend expressed interest in some of my cards (her stash has dwindled) and I asked if she'd be willing to be my flower delivery person in exchange for some photocards and she went today. Thanks, Amy!

The Notebook

I spent a lot of time at work today preparing "the notebook" (not to be confused with the movie "The Notebook" from 2004 which I didn't like) filled with an itinerary and lots of back-up materials for an international trip. It's almost done (well, it has to be done by tomorrow since that's when the flight is) and I'm proud of how organized it is. I love my job!

Worry doll

My coworker went to Belize and brought me a "worry doll". If you are worried about something you put the doll under your pillow when you go to sleep and the doll worries about your worries. Who doesn't need a redheaded worry doll?!

Cahd Pahty

I'm selling my cards at my annual "cahd pahty" tonight and tomorrow night. I had a great crowd tonight and sold lots of cards! Everyone gets a free card and you can order cards or reprints of any of my photos. I even have a drawing each night for a free 8x10 of your favorite photo (tonight's prize winner was Mary G!). Here are a few photos of my photos.

Thank you, Veterans!

Thoughtful gift

One of my faithful blog readers gave me this gift today.













And, how do I know that she's a faithful reader of my blog? Because she read this post and knew I didn't have Pumpkin Pie Spice.

Thank you, Shauna!!

Turning 50!

This afternoon I went to a surprise 50th birthday party for one of my old coworkers, Sister Falloooooon. Her sister-in-law hosted the party (I used to work with her too) and she's amazing. The decorations, food, favors and everything were so nice. My friend was very surprised and really enjoyed the party. Her husband was there in the beginning and gave her one red rose. How nice! I made her a pouch and put 50 pieces of candy corn in it (she loves candy corn) and gave her one of my 50MPH birthday cards. If my gift wasn't her favorite (hahaha) it ran a close second to the one in the Tiffany's box or the Coach bag!

Diaper fire

I hosted a baby shower at my place tonight. I'm not usually big on shower games but I hadn't played this one so my friend and I thought it would be fun. You melt chocolate bars in diapers and then the party-goers have to guess what kind of candy bar it is. So everyone has their nose in a diaper and the poo look gross (no surprise). In preparing for the game I put a Halloween-size candy bar in diaper #1 and put it in the microwave. It started to smell really bad. Not like a dirty diaper but like melted rubber or something. I took the diaper out and sure enough there were ashes on the bottom of it. I immediately turned the fan over the stove on and melted the rest of the candy bars 8 seconds at a time. The game was a hit.

Photocard party

I'm getting ready for my photocard party next week (Tues/Wed). These are new cards this year.