Have You Ever Done This?!

 (Low Heel Pumps Shoes by Nicolery)

      Since it's my 'Virtual Friday' date day with my hubby, I thought I'd just keep it kinda light here until I have to go and get packed for my trip. I thought I could just do a little chatting! ^_^ And since you and I are just chatting, I thought I'd chat about a few things that I've done lately, and see if I'm the only 'nutty girl' around here! LOL

      Of course, none of my 'nuttiness' has anything to do with those cute shoes in the header photo. I shared the cute shoes because....because.....because it's my 'Virtual Friday' date day!...and I wanted to!...So there!! ^_^ 

      But on the subject of 'have you ever done this', let me ask you...have you ever bought an anniversary gift for your husband?!...Okay, that was a dumb question. :-)) I'm sure all of you have probably bought anniversary gifts for your spouses! :-)

     So here's the real question: Have you ever bought an anniversary gift for your spouse and then completely forgot you bought it?! O_O ...Case in point!...

      ...Say hello to what I just found in the bottom of a stored bin in the back of my closet!! :-O ...
 

      It's an NFL football blanket!!!...A very soft, cuddle-under-it-for-the-football-game blanket! O_O Apparently I bought it a while ago, before one of our many anniversaries,...I'm talking YEARS ago!!... and then proceeded to hide it...from myself!! LOL
      Here's the funny part: I only have a vague recollection of buying it...but I distinctly remember the anxiety I had over trying to hide it from him, so that he'd be surprised on our anniversary! LOL Now I don't even remember if I bought him another gift, or if we went somewhere, or if friends invited us somewhere...or WHAT happened! O_O It has completely slipped my mind!!!! ^_^
      The only thing I remember is that his team was...and still is...the St Louis Rams! :-) And that's what made me remember that I had bought this for him!! LOL On the flip side of the blanket is the name 'St Louis Rams, with their logo and everything!!...*shaking my head* ^_^ ...

      The blanket was sealed in plastic packaging, all neatly folded, and tucked under an old dress and an extra guest blanket! Ha! Ha! It had never been opened!! ^_^ But you should've seen the big smile on hubby's face when he asked me what it was! :-) We had been looking for my lost pair of red Levi's, and instead found a gift for him!! ^_^
      I'm still not sure he's convinced it wasn't a 'plant'!...as in, 'you planted that there for me to find it, didn't you?!' Ha! Ha! I assured him, and I assure YOU, it was not a plant!! In fact, I 'wish' my planting skills were that good!! Maybe then I would be able to plant something somewhere for our upcoming anniversary! Blink! Blink!! O_O
      Why couldn't I have found this blanket this coming July!! Ha! Ha! It could've saved me some thinking cells, and some money!! ^_^ Oh Well, just think of the fun he'll have between now and then anticipating the hunt he's gonna have to do!!! LOL And if he doesn't find an anniversary gift planted somewhere.....I  may still have 'cred'!! LOL
     At any rate, it's a great 'virtual date day' already!! ^_^ Now I have to go and pack! ♥ See you later!! ^_^

All With You!

If money could take me anywhere,
where would I go? What would I do?
I could walk down sandy beaches
as long as it's done with you?

I could paint on the French Riviera,
and on the cliffs of Dover too.
I could dance to the wee wee hours.
As long as it's done with you.

I could write my first true novel,
with every where, when, what or who.
And if well received...or not,
I'd be fine as long as I'm with you.

I could travel to Hawaii,
and ride horseback through the crystal blue.
I could hula and eat, and hula some more,
as long as it's done with you.

I could make a lot of friend's lives better,
pay their bills and buy them something new.
But it wouldn't be nearly as much fun
as spending all my time with you!

So if money could take me anywhere,
what would I want to see and do?
Exactly what I see and do right now,
because I get to do it all with you!

Is The Television Putting Off A Gravitational Pull?

(Large Chalkboard Vinyl Wall Decal by Wilson Graphics)

     Yes, People, it's gonna be one of 'those' conversations!! ^_^ I have to. I just HAVE to!!! It's one of those situations where a certain something has been happening for quite a while in my household, and now is getting worse...and it's starting to happen that my relatives, girlfriends and everybody I know are starting to complain about the same thing happening in their households!!...My girlfriend said: "You should do a blog post about it!"...and here we are! :-]

   What is the 'certain something'?...It's the seeming gravitational pull from the television to my husband's brain!!...And just to be clear, my husband doesn't actually watch that much television. He much prefers to be doing anything else, in fact!...like working in the yard, strolling through the gadget section of any department store, draping himself across the sofa for a nap! LOL...Okay, we have that in common! LOL...But whenever the television is on he becomes ZONED OUT...practically deaf to the world around him!! O_O

     I'm noticing that as the years go by I'm having a harder and harder time getting his attention when the television is on! I literally have to turn it off in order to tell him anything I expect him to remember....or else end up having a half an hour conversation about what he 'knows' I didn't say!....Ugh!

(12x18 Television Pop Art Print Streetart Print Poster from TuristaClothing) 

     With the 'Big Game' coming up on Sunday...I'm talking about the big 'Super bowl game'!...I'm trying to get myself ready to have hours of zoned out time...but this time 'with' him!...in front of the television...*'Virtually' we'll be sitting in the stands right there in New Orleans though..just saying! ^_^ Our weekend continues!! *Wink! Wink!*...At any rate, I know it's not gonna be 'quality' time where we talk about our deepest thoughts, or even chat about foolishness like we usually do! The gravitational pull of the television is not gonna allow for that!! LOL

(Watercolor Painting by idillard)

    It's gonna be us, and San Francisco...

 (San Francisco Ferry Building Art Print from loosepetals)

     ...and the San Francisco 49ers!...

 (8x10 Typographic Art Print from AugustPark)

   ...and us and Baltimore...and the Baltimore Ravens!...

(24x12 Large Custom 3D Baltimore RAVENS Football SIGN Logo Wooden Plaque from WallYumYums)

    I'm gonna be good with that! :-) ...but when there's no more Super Bowl I know I'm gonna be back to having my husband with the brain that's susceptible to the gravitational pull of the television!! LOL

    It's so weird to me! And apparently it's weird to a lot of my female friends too!...No, I'm not 'man-bashing'! I love the men in my life! But this is all about 'truth'....and the truth is: from elderly men, to middle age, to teenagers, to 5 year olds...across the board, in my experience...the males in my life have a problem with attention span when the television is on! What's up with that?! O_O

    Hubby can walk into the room where I am, talking to me about some subject or the other that 'he' wanted to talk about!, and if the television is on...he starts talking in halting sentences....that now make no sense to me!...because he was immediately drawn, and is now staring directly into the lights of the television!!!!!

    I wait....and wait....try to figure out what the rest of the sentence might have been.....get frustrated....and turn off the television!!...Whereupon he says...every time!..."Why did you do that?"...but  then he proceeds to finish the conversation he started...making perfect, and smooth, sense!!! ^_^

     Don't get me wrong, I understand how certain television shows can get you completely zoned in!...For years, when I was doing the 20-minute work-outs along with the people on television, my husband was at a loss as to why I just didn't exercise! He didn't understand why I needed to exercise 'with other people on television'! ^_^

(Vintage 1952 Fit With Television Jello Advertisement from FrenchFrouFrou)

     Between you and I, in that case I think it was the rhythmic steady beat of the music that zoned me in...not the actual exercise! LOL...Whatever! ^_^

     But my husband gets zoned in 'NO MATTER WHAT'S ACTUALLY ON' the television!! He even sits and reads the written 'crawl' that goes across the screen during news shows!...I've found him staring at the television at times when I've turned down the sound to collect a thought while writing my blog!!...He's probably staring at it over my shoulder right now!! LOL

     If I ask: "What's that about?"....he says; "Oh...I don't know."....Huh!? o_O "You mean you're sitting there staring that intensely into the television, and you don't know why?!"....All I get back is blinking!!! LOL...*shaking my head*...All I can say is...I'm glad there are sporting events, and now crocheting, that he and I can share...with our zoned out selves! Otherwise this would be a sad sad 'Ugly Wuglyee' household!! ^_^

     I've heard NUMEROUS similar 'zoned out' stories from my girlfriends about the men...young and old...in their lives!...One of my girlfriend's five year old son stares into the television mindlessly, and every time she cuts it off he says: "Why for you do that, mommy?!"...Sounds familiar! LOL...Does it sound familiar to you?! ^_^

     Okay...off to get my day started. And yes, 'zoned out' crochet will be involved! ^_^ Maybe even something with buttons!! :-) 

(Vintage Football Button from CuriosityCabinet)

    What are you doing this weekend?!....Enjoy! :-)

What-cha Doing With Yourself?!

Are you going for a little walk...
Watching the circles of a hawk?...

Spending time with your grandkids?...
Trying to find your lost jar lids?...

Writing letters to your friends?...
Viewing snowflakes through your lens?...

Cooking breakfast for your love?...
Or crocheting him a manly glove?...

Going out to get a meal?...
Going shopping for a deal?...

Taking care of a friend that's sick?...
Writing poems with your favorite 'Bic'?...

Shortening up that 'To-Do' list?...
Giving your hair a little twist?...

What are 'YOU' doing with yourself today?...
It doesn't matter. It's Saturday!!

Your work week is now all done.
Today just have yourself some fun!!

Food.......Football.......Or A Loooooooooong Nap?!!

(Pastel Macarons with Coffee Watercolor Art Print by jojolarue)

       *Yawn*........*smack, smack, smack*.........I think it's gonna be one of 'those' days! Not for anything bad though. I feel pretty good this morning. I slept really well, and nothing pressing...except crocheting...

         ...which is 'all good!', and not really pressing at all...is on the schedule for the day!

      I 'do' wish I could get a nice hot cup of coffee from the local coffee shop, and maybe a honey-dipped donut! But I won't be able to do that today. People here are celebrating a holiday and a whole lot of places aren't open until later this evening.

    My hubby and I don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but we do have food on the brain this morning. How could we not, with food commercials on all day long for the last week or more?! Seriously!! I haven't had a turkey in.......'forever!'...but that's all I'm craving today! ^_^ I know it's because of my childhood memories though. My family celebrated when I was a kid.

      Even back then I didn't know what Thanksgiving was about. I just looked forward to the FOOD!!! :-) Turkey and my mother's homemade cornbread stuffing, sweet potato pie and peach cobbler. Not to mention the canned cranberry sauce! LOL I LOVED it!!

       In the years after becoming one of Jehovah's Witnesses I never missed celebrating the holiday itself, but thanks to all of the media coverage, I was always aware of it! I always knew that turkey would be on sale around this time, and so would all of the food items to make the 'fixins' out of....So, again, the food was a big focus around this time of year!...A baked turkey leg, with some cornbread stuffing would be good for breakfast right about now...since I can't have my coffee and donut I mean! ^_^ But that's not what I'm having. :-) It's grits and bacon for me....with a green tea chaser!

     Hubby and I are gonna do some studying together, look at some old movies, eat food all day...especially baked ham......something else that was on sale. The BIG baked ham too!...We've had ham two days in a row already.....O_O....And I see ham soup, open-faced ham sandwiches, ham and egg omelets and maybe ham kabobs before we're through with it!! LOL

       Something else that we're definitely gonna do is watch football!! :-) ...

 (Screen Printed T-Shirt by IceCreamTees)

       I haven't watched a full football game all season I don't think! But my 'Dallas Cowboys' are playing today, everything else is closed, and nothing is pressing on my schedule....except my meeting this evening and some crocheting...

         ... :-) neither of which I consider pressing at all. They're both just enjoyable! :-) ...So, 'Dallas Cowboys'...and maybe a bowl of popcorn....HERE I COME!!! ^_^

       So, no! It won't be a big turkey dinner with cornbread stuffing and gravy, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole,  sweet potato pie, and eggnog for me....today. It's gonna be this breakfast that I just got served in bed....

         .....a cup of green tea, a little chocolate...

 (Watercolor Painting Art Print by jojolarue)

         ...and football!...

 (Dallas Cowboy Print Wall Hanging by ZekesAntiqueSigns)

              But all of the leftovers of the food sales are gonna be up after today, so I'm sure I've got a turkey dinner in my future somewhere! ^_^ ....And more than a few naps too, I'm sure!!! :-)

Nostalgic

Why do we get nostalgic
for the places of our past?
For the music and the people
who were in our high school class?

Why do we get nostalgic
for the foods we used to eat?
Like your mom's banana pudding,
boiled pig ears and chicken feet?

Why do we get nostalgic
for old bikes we once rode on?
And for buying penny candy
at a time that's long since gone?

Why do we get nostalgic
for long conversations had
when our cousins used to visit
(That was-til we all got mad)?!

Why do we get nostalgic?
Frankly, I'm  sure I don't  know,
'cause I sat and wrote a poem
like a true nostalgia pro!

If You're Not Into Football...Or Food...LOOK AWAY.....NOW!

 (Super Bowl XLVI Bookmark by Kolormehappy)

       Woohoo! It's Super Bowl time again!! ^_^ ...Let me just say for the record, that I know that if you don't live in the U.S., and if you really don't care about watching American football, the whole 'Super Bowl' fanaticism thing is probably going right over your head right about now! LOL...I get that! And to you I say......WHATEVER....and sorry!!! ^_^

       What can I say...I'm a football fan...Okay, I'm also a tennis fan....and a baseball fan...and a figure-skating......etc. You get the drift. LOL Anyway! :-) The Super Bowl every year isn't just 'a game'. It's an event!...An event of Mega proportions....and with food! ^_^

     For those of you who have been living under a rock the last few weeks (U.S. residents I mean, because other countries haven't been bombarded day in and day out with commercials and conversation about the Super Bowl!), let me just tell you about this year's Super Bowl!....First, the teams that are playing: the New York Giants...

 (Giants Bookmark by kolormehappy)

       ...and the New England Patriots...

(Patriots Bookmark by kolormehappy)

     These two teams have some history...They're both east coast teams. The Patriots (the 'Pats') are based in the greater Boston area. They play their home games in Foxborough Massachusetts...The Giants are based in New Jersey (huh?!...Don't make me try to explain it! LOL) They play their home games in New Jersey at MetLife stadium, which they share with another pro football team, the New York Jets! :-)  

     Truth be told, most New England weekend football fans like me (I'm talking location here, not team) probably would root for either of these teams in a given Super Bowl, if their preferred team wasn't in it!...{Me, I'd root for the Dallas Cowboys! :-) ...Even when they're not in it I'm thinking about them. ^_^ They've won the Super Bowl 5 times over the years!... but they're not in it, so.....! LOL...I digress!} 

      But considering the fact that the New England Patriots consider the New York Giants as the team that stole the 2008 Super Bowl from them...17-14!....Uhhhh....this one is gonna be a doozey of a game!! :-)

(AP Photo/Gene Puskar from 22News WWLP site)

         Football fans up and down the coast are getting all their football paraphernalia set so they can enjoy the football parties, conversation, and razzing of each other! ^_^ Here's a few things I saw on Etsy...

        Here's some cupcake toppers, wrappers, food label tent cards and toothpick flags that you print yourself...

 (SUPERBOWL Printables from partypapercreations)

       ...printable images, tags, mini flags, and centerpieces...

(Printable Super Bowl Package by TweetEvents)

(NFL Football Paracord Bracelets by duckhunter68) 

 (Patriots Super Bowl XLVI Mini Magnets by kolormehappy)

 (Recycled T Shirt Pillow by upcycled2)

           Hubby and I have been known to make our own signs ("Go Team!!"....."S-C-O-R-E!!"), :-) and make up our own foods too! But usually we reserve that kinda effort for friends, when we're going to someone else's house for the Super Bowl, or inviting them to ours...Frankly, I now prefer to invite friends over. I was almost permanently emotionally scarred during a Super Bowl party at one of our friend's homes.

       It was the same year Janet Jackson had her unfortunate clothing mishap...which I didn't see, by the way. I was preoccupied at the time....*gulp*...If you wanna know what happened, email me or contact me through my Wuglyees shop on Etsy or Facebook and I'll tell you about it. It may be too much information for a strictly football post...*gulp* O_O

     *cold shiver*......Let's talk about something else....PLEASE!! How about food for the game?!...I've been seeing good recipes all over the place for great food to eat during the Super Bowl. Some of the 'foodies' weren't intending to be giving recipes for the game. I just thought it was good food...but it just so happened to also be the kind of food that would be good for the game! :-)

(Super Bowl Cake Pops by SweetsFairyBakeshop)

         The Pioneer Woman shared her top ten food picks for Super Bowl Sunday...all on the same blog post HERE!...These are my favorites!...

(The Marlboro Man Sandwich) 

(Grilled Chicken and Pineapple Quesadillas)

(Perfect French Fries)

(Sloppy Joes)

      I'm drooling right now!...Maybe I should make a homemade sign for the pioneer woman...."Go, Pioneer Woman!....TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!!" ^_^

       She's not alone though. As a matter of fact, I thought the recipe for how to make the Chex Mix Super Bowl bowl to put your chips in, that was shared on the Framed Cooks blog, was nothing short of genius!!...

 

      And these next two recipes weren't intended for Super Bowl fare, but I think they could work!....I mean who wouldn't wanna eat Shrimp Balls?!...

       The recipe to make them is on Nicole's Homemade Treats blog HERE.

            And for the football fan whose a vegetarian, or just a healthier eater, how about this recipe that I saw on the blog tidbitsparenting, Otto's Mom Blogs? It's for Lima Beans with Artichoke Hearts and Peas...

      

         As you can see, I'm still circling the artichoke wagon. ^_^ I still have never tried them, but I'm becoming more intrigued about them every time I see how easily people are cooking recipes with them...And this recipe has my beloved lima beans...which I called butter beans during my whole growing up period. {And please don't give me the precise reasons for why these are not ACTUALLY butter beans! I've heard it all before. LOL I like the word BUTTER baby!...even when there's no actual butter in them!! ^_^}
       By the way, if you want some more intrigue, check out the converstion Mr. Wug and I had about a little known food called the "Turducken"!!...Click HERE! ^_^

      And last, but certainly not least, after the game we can all drive to New York...which will be within driving distance of where the winning team will be from, no matter who wins! ^_^ ...and get us some dessert...some Coconut Doughnuts from The Doughnut Plant!...

       You can see Ashley's post about them on the Hither & Thither blog HERE! :-)

         So, there it is, in a nutshell...kinda sorta...I mighta talked a little bit more than a nutshell's worth! ^_^ But anyway!.....Football fans, let's get ready to rumble!!!! ^_^ Enjoy the game tomorrow! It's not gonna be a board game...or a boring game!!! ^_^

 (AP Photo/Dave Martin from 22News WWLP site)

           Hubby and I will definitely enjoy it!.....that is, if hubby ever finishes working on the car! UGH! That's a story for another day...maybe tomorrow. Along with some photos of my new pillow covers! :-)

Do You Play?!

I had some 'Play Time' in my youth,
back when my hips could take the heat.
I couldn't wait to find someone
that I could race, chase down, or beat!

How many times did I 'Hopscotch',
play some marbles, skip a rock?
And a game of 'Tag' could go
until you couldn't see the clock!

All my games were very active.
So much energy, people. WOW?!
But things have changed. It's different,
because I'm so much older now!

I still have Play Time at my age,
but the games are slow and rare.
I like board games, playing cards,
things you do right from your chair.

The games I watch can't be too long.
I'll fall asleep! I'm kind of nod-dy.
And I have to use my mind.
No running round now with this body.

Even so, I have to play!
It's my excuse to have a laugh.
I just have to keep it slow.
Don't want a charlie-horse in my calf!