7

I drew the following picture in my 7th grade art class.

We had to copy an original and include all the details.

It was like torture.

I wish I still had the original so you could see how spot-on this is.

The perfectionist inside me was constantly taking over and insisting that I erase any little mistake.

I can't remember how long it took, but it was far longer than I was allowed.

Oops.

I still got a perfect score on it though.

It pays to be a suck-up sometimes. :)

Eight Days!

    I've probably mentioned before that I'm a bit obsessive about certain things.  Something I'm particularly obsessive about is day planners/calendars.  I have multiple calendars hanging in my room, and I carry around multiple day planners.  One is used to keep track of my daily tasks, appointments, and general activities.  The other is used to keep track of my health, exercise, and spiritual progress.  I don't know why I feel the need to have multiple places to write these things down, but in my head it's absolutely necessary.  I have a quirk about using pens with fun colors that just happen to match the outer design on my day planners. :)  I'm a weirdo, I know.  Here is a pic of my current planners and super fun pens...

   
    I love the bold colors and awesome designs. :)  It makes it much easier for me to find them when they are deep in my purse, or lost on my desk in a pile.  Hooray for obsessive quirks! :)

Days left: 9

Jessi

She's my lil' angel.

My cuddle buddy.

My bestie.

My lil' sister.

The greatest puppy in the world.

She turns 12 this year, and still looks like a pup.

Incredibly lovable.

More popular than I am.

Amazing beyond words.

I love her.

A lot.

Enjoy just a few of my fave pics of her.

(I have hundreds... literally.)

 Hiding in the bathroom while Momma showers... all because I was in the front room with the hiccups.

 Anxiously awaiting the treats that inevitably come out during vet visits.

The looks this girl gives me just make my heart melt.

So snuggly! 

 This is typically what I see in my bed at bedtime... an unconscious puppy on my pillow.

Holding tightly to her Christmas present a few years ago.

10

    I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine.  A best friend, if you will.  He listens to me without interrupting or judgement.  He always has a smile on his face.  He's always waiting for me with open arms.  He smells like fresh laundry.  He cuddles with me whenever I feel like it.  He's the most loyal friend I've ever had.  Please meet...

Norm the Bear.

    Did I have you fooled?! Muahahahaha!

If not, that's okay... I still crack myself up.  :)

11 days to b-day!!

    I love cookie jars.

Probably because I love cookies.

Whatever the reason, I love them and have a few. 

Yes, a few.

 My first cookie jar.

(Wearing a crown from my ballet days)

 I kinda like monkeys, can you tell?

An adorable DI find that was originally purchased as a white elephant. 

I couldn't let go of it. :) 

I won this at a family raffle.
The cookies are the same kind my Gramma used to have in her cookie jar.

Such good memories.

Twelve

    I have an entire drawer of my filing cabinet dedicated to snacks.  It's a bit stuffed these days.  Take a peek...

   

    Mmm Mmm Mmmmmmm.  I love my snacks! 

* 13 *

13 is my favorite number.

I always pick it during the "Pick a number between 1 & 20" game.

13 is a prime number.

The volume in my car is set to 13.

When things randomly equal 13, it makes me smile.

A bakers dozen.  Need I say more?

2013 is going to be my year. I have high hopes for Lucky '13.

Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number 13.  I don't have it.

Some high rise buildings have no 13th floor, and some airline terminals leave out Gate 13.

I stayed on the 13th floor of a Disneyland resort hotel once.  There was an earthquake during that trip.

When buying many of the same item, I often buy 13.

13 and 30 are often misheard as the other.  Connection between favorite number and birth date... Awesome!

This is the 13th item on this list. :) 

14 days & counting

   In my continuing effort to reach a healthy weight, I bought this last night...

    This evening, my Mother so kindly helped me to assemble it.  It took much longer than anticipated, but it's done!  Hallelujah!

Exercise bike > Treadmill.

15

    I had the absolute pleasure of going to breakfast this morning with my fabulous best friend, Michelle.  She lives much too far away, so whenever she's in town I basically demand that she spend time with me.  :)  We went to Kneaders and had their scrumptious french toast, and talked our lil' hearts out about this and that.

    After breakfast, we headed to her Momma's house where her lil' one was, and I got to enjoy the preciousness that is baby Rachel.  Chubby babies are absolutely the greatest kind of babies ever!  She's got the most squishable cheeks, and you better believe I squished them!  I'm pretty lame for not getting any pictures with Michelle or Rachel, but I was a bit distracted by all the cuteness and chatting.

    There are many reasons why I enjoy going out to eat with Michelle, one of them being that she doesn't judge me for being absolutely stuffed full of food, and yet still getting a treat for later.  I just couldn't resist the yummy treats at Kneaders!  I went with a mint brownie this time.  I didn't eat it until hours later, and it actually ended up being my lunch, but it was oh-so worth it!!

Sidenote:  I LOVE green glass!

16 candles

Monday Matters

    I work at an after school program called ASK (After School Kids).  Each day of the week has it's own purpose, and Mondays are dedicated to character building type lessons and activities.  We call our lessons "Monday Matters".  We're supposed to use a book by the same title to help us come up with our lessons.  When it was my turn last month, I decided to stray from the book and create my own lesson.  I had noticed an unfortunate lack of manners in a lot of the children, and it was not a pleasant experience for me.  I can't stand when people don't use manners!  So of course I took it upon myself to help them learn. :)  I read to them one of my favorite books...

    It's an oldie, but definitely a goodie.  To my surprise, the children were absolutely silent while I read... and not even because they were sleeping!  They were actually paying attention!  Miraculous!  I am happy to say that for most of the children just reading the book actually opened their eyes to how rude they were acting.  Unfortunately, for some of the others it took a stern lecture afterwards.  The lesson seemed to stick for a couple of days.  I was pleased as punch!  Sadly though, a lot of the children returned to their old ways.  If it were up to me, I'd read this story to them every day.  I'd also like to read it to quite a few adults that I know... and some complete strangers too!!  If only I could...  :)

17 days

I have been craving brownies for over a week now.  

The craving usually hits me sometime after 10 pm, which is typically my peak laziness time.

Finally, a craving hit me during the day.

I had to have them.

I had to have them right now.

So I made them.

They were delicious!

The End.

:) 

Eighteen

Snow Day #2

    I cannot fully express how much I love the snow.  It brings me such immense joy to see the world covered in the light fluffy powder.  Waking up this morning and seeing even more snow than yesterday was like a dream come true!  The reality of how difficult snow can be hit me when I went outside to dig my poor lil' car out of it's snow cocoon.

 My car had nearly 15 inches piled on top of it.  

I wonder how much it would have been if I hadn't cleaned it off the night before.

Good thing I chose a bright color so I can recognize it.

It's also a good thing I got those personalized plates. :) 

This is how it looked after a solid 10 minutes of trying to clean it off.

My arms were exhausted!

In case you can't tell, that says nearly 17 inches. Awesome!!

My shy lil' snow buddy.  She wanted to be in on the fun, but not the pics.

Ha!  Got her!  Could she possible be any cuter?  I think not!

Countdown: 19

SNOW DAY!!

    Because of this...

    My morning view looked like this...

    I partook of a lot of this...

    While watching a marathon of this...

    And occasionally doing some of this...

    I'd say it was a Snow Day well spent.  I hope for more of them... especially around the 30th.  :)