Happy New Year!

It is with a great deal of anticipation and excitement that
 I say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new year.

The past year has been the most awesome in many years
and I have been blessed in so many ways!

It was a year of "firsts" for the Captain and me.  We just
celebrated our first Christmas together and tonight will be
the first New Years Eve we welcome the new year
side by side . . . 

(FYI . . . last year had us on the phone, hundreds

of miles apart with the bluetooth as a connection.)

Long distance relationships do work, although not easy!

In 2009 I started what I thought would be an exciting new
career for me . . . 2010 had me walking out in frustration,
although it was an awesome experience and I absolutely

loved my job and most of the people I worked with.

Before the holidays, I discovered an awesome way to make
new friends online and found a circle of bloggers that spans
the globe and lifestyles.  Blog hops have so enhanced my
blogging experience!

Christmas season was fabulous . . . I enjoyed the company
of friends and family like never before.

The UPS guy has been busy delivering packages . . . the result
 of my giveaway wins . . . it feels like Christmas every day.

After years of prayer, my life has come full circle and most of
my prayers have been answered.  The rest will be answered

in their own time!

Good things come to those who wait . . . they really do!

Happy New Year everybody :)

This post is linked to:

Decorating with red . . . Red Rooms

There is something about the color red!

I love it paired with black and white . . . or black and gold.

Click on the photo to go to a slideshow and article about decorating with red from top designers who share their tips on how to use red and why they love using red in interior decorating.

Put your best face forward

Happy day before Christmas Eve!


We've reached Christmas week . . . plans are finalized, we're checking items off  our lists of last minute stuff to do , it is the time to get really serious about cooking and baking . . . oh, the gift wrapping . . . many of us put our Christmas trees up this week . . . are there enough hours in the day?


On my agenda for today . . . make massive amounts of fudge and decorate the Christmas tree while listening to Christmas music.


What about you?  What is on your last minute agenda?


Have you taken time to pamper yourself?  It is time!!


Searching for a new makeup look or need some tips?  I've put together some videos, articles and blogs to help you put it all together . . . look fabulous and glamourous for the holiday parties!




Videos

Smashbox ~ New Videos


Eye Makeup "Winging It" 


Get Kim Kardashian's Smokey Eye Look


Blogs

Beauty Booty 411


Pretty Holiday Makeup Tips from Allure


Celebrity Makeup Looks


Makeup Guides

Holiday Happenings in Bloggerville

It is really starting to feel like Christmas for me.  

Back in the day all it took was a trip to the mall 

to start getting into the Christmas spirit.  

These days, I stay clear of the malls and all the craziness that goes with it (the parking lots scare me with all the weirdo people begging for money or just straight up want to take your purse).  Call me paranoid . . . I am . . . that's life in the big city!!  This time of year, I totally avoid it as much as I can.  Black Friday is like a nightmare I'll never experience . . . I don't care how good the sale is.

Online shopping is the way to go for me!

As I was cruising the internet this morning, I found an awesome blog

that I must share with you.  If you are a DIYer, crafter, cook . . .
there is something here for everybody.

Allison is an army wife with a creative side and
her blog is a showcase of her projects.


This simple but funky beautiful project caught my eye
since I love sparkly and unusual.  Check out her
blog for a tutorial on how to make these sparkly
thingies with lots of photos showing different
ways to use them.



 



Link up your projects, recipes,
 home decor, thrifty finds and more

If you want more inspiration after checking out

Allison's linky party, here are more holiday happening

events and linkys.

Link up and make new friends or just browse
 around and enjoy some awesome holiday happenings!

  
 


Is it Thursday already?  WOW . . . this week is flying by!


If you are looking for a complete listing of Thursday blog hops and
events, check out my Blog Hop page, located just below the
header at the top of the page.


I'm in the process of updating the list, adding a bunch more
hops and events that I've discovered cruising Bloggerville.


You all have a terrific Thursday!!

The science of organizing clutter

The cold weather is getting on my nerves!  

I'm in Florida . . . it is not supposed to be cold!

We should be warming up by Friday :)

In the meantime, it has been a time of working on all those things I have been putting off since I am finally starting to get rid of this cold that took all my energy.  I'm revisiting the idea of joining up with the Fly Girls again . . . you know, they teach you how to organize your life and put you on somewhat of a schedule to get your housework and clutter under control.  They were starting to help me the last time I tried, but OMG they sent so much emails that I got overwhelmed and quit.

Niecy Nash and the "Clean House" crew would have a really good time with my house.  I can see it now, Niecy with a huge red flower in her hair waving her perfectly manicured finger at me . . . "you should be ashamed of yourself girl . . . how did you let this happen? . . . hmmmmmm?"

Well, clutter just happens if you don't control it effectively.  Moving a pile of stuff from one room to another doesn't help.  It just takes an organized mess, jumbles it up with another mess and then you can't find anything.  We did that . . . took boxes from several rooms into another.  Since two of us were moving the stuff around, I lost track of some of the stuff!

Isn't it funny how cluttered piles end up like an archeological dig or a time capsule of a phase in your life?  One of the hardest things for me to control is paper.  As I gather up and sort everything out, I am finding remnants of the attempt to organize.

This time I mean to finally get organized!  Once organized, it is easy to stay that way if everything has its place.  It is getting the stuff into their place . . . aye!!

I'm starting a page for my website on getting organized . . . in an attempt to organize myself :)  I'd love some feedback on how you managed to get your house organized, links to blogs devoted to getting organized like the Fly girls . . . or are they called the Fly Ladies?

Are you a pack rat like me or a neatnic? 

I totally used the word organized too many times :)

Tuesday Blog Hops

Young looking hands . . . the secret

One of my favorite things to do is make homemade bread and pizza dough.  There is something about getting my hands into the dough and working it that is a great stress reliever.  Make some bread the next time you need to let some frustration out!


What does that have to do with young looking hands?  


I have always shaped my breads with olive oil before rising and love getting my hands into it.  One thing I noticed, aside from the awesome homemade bread, was after making a batch of bread, my hands were soft and pretty.  


Since discovering the softening properties of olive oil on the skin, I have experimented and quit washing off the olive oil from my hands after making bread with awesome results.  It works miracles on elbows.


Going a step further, using the concept of "Satin Hands" from Mary Kay Cosmetics, and adding sugar to olive oil in equal parts is excellent for sloughing off dry or dead skin, leaving hands feeling silky and beautiful.  


A little goes a long way . . . 1/4 teaspoon of each is a good measure.


Try it sometime!

I'm running way behind, but I'm not

 gonna miss blog hopping today!

Monday Blog Hogs