~~~~ Sew, help me... A bittersweet "Epic Girls Trip"... January 2018! ~~~~ UPDATE 1/7!!~~

I am going to have to rip apart my suitcase again, LOL... I feel like I have too much in there and need to weed it out a bit. Not only that, but I am seriously debating ordering new luggage... :scratchin If I do - I need to order it soon, so I can get it in time to repack for our trip. ::yes::
My husband bought a three piece set of luggage two years ago. It is the kind with the zipper in the middle and the two sides open like a clam, with the clothes divided in half. I find this kind of suitcase to be very annoying. You have to have a big space to lay it out. And it is very hard to slip things in at the last minute unless you plan ahead and leave space in the one side. I would love to buy a suitcase with a normal lid, like the older suitcases have. But I can't justify it.

Until then, I am not supposed to let anyone ride in my passenger seat - if the airbag deploys, schards of metal come flying out with the airbag, causing great injury or death. :eek: :(
That is rather scary. It seems a little negligent of the manufacturer to not have a fix for it yet. What if that was your only car?

I tend to be a "glass half full" girl - which annoys my family sometimes. ::yes::
They would be more annoyed if you were like Eeyore and gloomy all the time. ::yes::

So happy to hear that you had a nice Christmas! Did you have to travel at all?
We had to go to the in-laws on Christmas Day, a 90 mile drive one way. But it was sunny and no snow, which was good.

Thanks! I don't think we are meeting up that day? Though it was an option... I'll definitely have pictures of me wearing it though.
We need to revisit the plans. I finally have time this weekend since it will be the first time in weeks that we aren't busy. I just have a mountain of laundry to tackle and a Star Wars movie to go see. And then there is the $60 in Kohl's bucks to spend. We did a lot of Christmas shopping at Kohl's this year. ;)

It is very cold here right now... To the point in winter where it's just SO COLD that you can't even be cold anymore. LOL I will say that my long black EB parka is getting a lot of use right now - and I LOVE it so much! ::yes:: I am sure hoping that Florida is warmer while we are there.
My EB parka has been perfect for my downtown commute in this cold weather. The only part of me that has gotten cold on my 12 minute walk to and from the train has been my legs. I love my coat. :)

We hit Target first and purchased all of our Disney GCs that we needed for dining for our trip. :woohoo:
DH and I received a lot of Disney gift cards for both Christmas and for my birthday, so we have a few meals paid for during our upcoming trip. :)

I walked up to my car and REALLY LOOKED at it - I could see the scarcest of dings - but the dent itself was gone! He takes such great care of us. We walked into the shop, and he was on the phone, so all 3 of us stood there with smiles... he told the person on the phone "I've gotta go - I swear I am looking at triplets that just walked into the shop" LOL... he cracks me up! Anyways... Not only did I get all new belts on my car - but he fixed my dent - no charge for that part. Just an awesome guy!
He sounds like a great guy. I love his comment about seeing triplets. ::yes::

Therefore... The girls are going to Universal Studios by themselves and I get to go see a dear friend! :lovestruc
That sounds like a good plan. You've been to Universal more than the girls have, haven't you? And they will have fun together. Do both girls have a wand?

So, not only did she get it off - but this is her first official PAID vacation. :woohoo: Super proud of this girl!
That is great that they gave her a paid vacation. :)

I have a trip to look good for approaching quickly - so that is good motivation. ::yes:: And another trip after that now - which has more swimsuit potential than the first. LOL
You did really good at Christmas. :) The February trip will be motivation to be careful during the January trip. ::yes::

Meanwhile... I will be wearing this:
I love that outfit. :)

I am meeting Cindy for breakfast at one of my favorite restaurants...
After hearing rave reviews of the breakfast buffet at the Wave, we finally made it over there during our November trip. I loved that they brought me freshly made French toast. :) Our favorite breakfast buffet is still at Trail's End, though. But it is really hard to get there for breakfast.
 
It must be nice to have 2 Florida trips to look forward to and get away from this cold. I caught the flu right after Christmas even though I got a flu shot. I saw an article about how rampant it is right now in Minnesota. It also said the flu shot is only about 50% effective but may minimize the effects if you get it. I told my husband if this is minimized I'd hate to see what full blown is as I've been miserable for 4 days and am just starting to feel a little better. So far he's trying to stay away from me as I have coughed so much I'm sore.

I was able to do a little after Christmas shopping with my daughter and grandson before I got sick. We quit after 5 Targets and 3 Hallmark stores because it was just too cold and so windy. I did get a new tree for my Disney ornaments and I think it will hold quite a few, so I bought a couple more. Hallmark had a cute ornament of Gringott's Bank with the dragon. I really love Universal. It will go on my regular tree though I think. Then my grandson stopped yesterday and found the angel I wanted for my outside lights for 70% off. He was so excited he found it for me and I was too as it's originally $98.

Your Santa Hawaiian shirts are very nice. Is yours a men's shirt? I thought maybe that's why you felt it was a little big as the fit is diffferent. The sleeves just look a little bigger than a woman's shirt would have. I still think it looks very cute though.

My husband has 2 sisters that now spend the winter in Mesa, AZ. When they heard we weren't going to Disney one invited us to come down. She has a spare room and said they'd love to have us. So we're thinking about that. They both live in 55 plus mobile home communities with lots of amenities. So we are considering it. It would be a very inexpensive way to get somewhere warm and I've always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. Right now it's just a thought.
 
Hi!!! I’m so glad you had such a lovely Christmas! I love the slippers josh gave you - so cute! And how exciting that V has a boyfriend and that Josh tolerated him. :-)

Your Christmas dinner sounds amazing. I’ve never had Yorkshire pudding but you’re the second of my friends to serve it for Christmas so I think i need to try it.

I wondered if the girls would try to squeeze in a trip to US while you were down there. They’ll have a lovely day together and you’ll have fun with your friend. It sounds like everything fell quite neatly into place!

I know what you mean about good car guys - alyssa’s car has been in the shop and I’m so grateful for a reliable, honest, trustworthy car repair shop.

Mark gave me a pandora bracelet last year for our anniversary and I love it. I have a few disney charms (Cinderella’s carriage, two swirl mickey head charms, a Spaceship Earth abdminirail charm, and the girls’ initials. I love wearing it. I love you AnA bracelet collection!

We had a nice Christmas although it was different not being in our own home and without Alyssa. It was hard for my MIL but I hope we made things a bit brighter for her. Brie left today to go visit two of her teammates for several days and I think she’ll have a great time. Andrew and Alyssa get home Monday and I can’t wait.

No news right now on the house, although Brie wants us to stop the plans and buy existing construction. We actually saw a couple of new houses online that we liked, and it would be less expensive. So that would be good, especially as we may be taking in a major monthly expense we hadn’t planned on...on the flip side, if we stick with the building plan it looks like I could have a solid chunk of debt paid off by summer and that would offset it. So I don’t know what to do.

Hugs to you!
 
Hi there, that is ok that you don't remember me, it has been a few years, I bought your Toy Story bag, it was a larger one and you had said one of your favorites, it has Buzz and Woody on the front and Slink is on the back, I just love it!!!!

The pictures finally came up for me, what a lovely family and it looks like you had a great Christmas, beautiful gifts. Love the Pandora collection.

Looking forward to hearing all about your trip and seeing the photos.

Happy New Year!!!!!
 


We got our first snowfall of the season here in my part of Ohio. I dreaded the drive home this morning all night and even packed a day bag Incase I was snowed in at work. It has happened before lol. But thankfully the roads weren’t too bad. I hate driving in the snow.

Chris returned the 2 extra wine coolers, mine is out full of wine. Waiting for me to have a day off lol. I put it on the craft area chris built me in the new garage and Carson said it was he perfect spot bc I could now drink wine and craft. Lol
That child of mine.

Sounds like quite an adventure at the MOA I will make it there one day too. We live near Pittsburgh PA and hey have some awesome malls there so we go there to hit our shopping and we have some outlets near by.

My sister gave me the Deathly hallows AnA for Christmas. I was so excited to
Get it.

Sounds the boyfriend is off to a good start at least if Josh can tolerate him. That will be me with Carson’s girl friends.

Yay for the extra trip. Florida in February sounds much better than Maine in February although I’m sure it’s beautiful!!

Happy New Year!!!

Glad you made it home safely... I don't mind driving in the snow very much anymore - I have 25 years experience and counting, LOL... I just hate the cold... Or when it's both. LOL

Awesome!!! Drinking wine and crafting... :scratchin For me - that would be disastrous. LOL I must be sober to work.

It is very nice to be so close to the MOA - we do go often, but I avoid it as much as possible between November and early January - if I have to go during that time, it's a random Tuesday or Wednesday morning at opening - and i get out of there fast! LOL It's terrifying driving there with all of the people who don't go there often. ::yes::

That is AWESOME!!! I have none of the HP AnA bracelets - I love the sorting hat, but I am totally OK with getting none of them - as my collection is so huge, I've started to wear it in "themes" because there is no way I can wear them all at once. ::yes::

He's OK... believe me - we've had worse for dinner. :scratchin

Yes - I am super excited to see Suzi again! :lovestruc

Thank you - same to you! :)

We love dinner at The Wave and scheduled a breakfast this trip. Can’t wait to hear how it is. Enjoy your day with Cindy!!! How fun!!

It's wonderful! I've had to stop talking about it on my PTRs/TRs - as I was worried I'd never get another reservation there. :lmao: I try not to brag it up too much - but it is a favorite and a must-do several times on one trip... I've never done any meal other than breakfast. ::yes::

It must be a weird feeling having your last work day at Target.

Sounds like you got a lot done on Thursday and had a good time while doing it as well

How fun that you are able to meet Suzi again. I'm sure you guys will have a lot of fun.

Congratulations to Allison for getting her first paid vacation

How great that your eating has gone well during Christmas. It's not easy eating well during Christmas.

I imagine that the girls will have a lot of fun at Universal. How nice that you will be able to spend the day with Cindy while the girls are at Universal.


It has been 19.4ºF here yesterday (Friday) and today. That is cold for Tromsø.
Yesterday I was at a geocaching event in town meeting good geocaching friends. It was nice meeting them and hear what they have been up to during December.
Today I've just been at home. I had to charge the battery on my car and today was a good time to do it since I didn't have any plans for today.
Tomorrow on New Years Eve there is a short geocaching event in town that I will attend and later in the evening Ulf and I are going to my parents house to celebrate New Years Eve.

Happy New Year to you

It is strange - though I am technically an employee until our doors close. I did request to work that last week, so hopefully I get one last shift... And I know it's a little weird - I still hate my job there - I still dread every shift, even though I know my time is ending. LOL So maybe this really is a good thing? :scratchin

We did have a lot of fun - our count down for our trip is getting so close and we are all so excited... Thursday was likely the last day we will get to spend together until we leave on our trip. ::yes::

I am very excited to see Suzi again! :woohoo:

Yes - my eating has been almost perfect. I've gone back to my strict "no snacking" and that really helps a lot. ::yes:: I know I will likely gain while in Disney, but hopefully I'll be able to keep that manageable.

They are more excited about Universal, I think - than Disney. LOL They both love HP so much! They actually fight often over which of them loves it more. :lmao:

It sounds like you have had a busy few days and a nice time to celebrate the New Year too! Have a great celebration! :)

My husband bought a three piece set of luggage two years ago. It is the kind with the zipper in the middle and the two sides open like a clam, with the clothes divided in half. I find this kind of suitcase to be very annoying. You have to have a big space to lay it out. And it is very hard to slip things in at the last minute unless you plan ahead and leave space in the one side. I would love to buy a suitcase with a normal lid, like the older suitcases have. But I can't justify it.

That is rather scary. It seems a little negligent of the manufacturer to not have a fix for it yet. What if that was your only car?

They would be more annoyed if you were like Eeyore and gloomy all the time.

We had to go to the in-laws on Christmas Day, a 90 mile drive one way. But it was sunny and no snow, which was good.

We need to revisit the plans. I finally have time this weekend since it will be the first time in weeks that we aren't busy. I just have a mountain of laundry to tackle and a Star Wars movie to go see. And then there is the $60 in Kohl's bucks to spend. We did a lot of Christmas shopping at Kohl's this year.

My EB parka has been perfect for my downtown commute in this cold weather. The only part of me that has gotten cold on my 12 minute walk to and from the train has been my legs. I love my coat.

DH and I received a lot of Disney gift cards for both Christmas and for my birthday, so we have a few meals paid for during our upcoming trip.

He sounds like a great guy. I love his comment about seeing triplets.

That sounds like a good plan. You've been to Universal more than the girls have, haven't you? And they will have fun together. Do both girls have a wand?

That is great that they gave her a paid vacation.

You did really good at Christmas. The February trip will be motivation to be careful during the January trip.

I love that outfit.

After hearing rave reviews of the breakfast buffet at the Wave, we finally made it over there during our November trip. I loved that they brought me freshly made French toast. Our favorite breakfast buffet is still at Trail's End, though. But it is really hard to get there for breakfast.

That is good to know! The set I am looking at is a rolling duffle... It has good reviews and a lifetime warranty. The only reason I am looking at those is because Jan and Machteld do a LOT of traveling and these are the ones they recommend - I'd love to get one before we leave for Disney to try it out - but it's looking like they are all back ordered until after we get back - so I may have to wait. I might try to run to the outlet today - if V and I have time - to see if they sell them there? I've never seen them, so I don't think they do? But that would be the only way I'd get one before our trip - is if I can find it local. ::yes::

Exactly - it's very scary!

Glad you had good traveling weather on Christmas - that is quite rare, it seems there is always something when everyone is trying to travel at the same time. ::yes::

Let me know if anything changes... I already have an alarm set on my phone to contact you that day, so I'll need to change my alarm. :)

I agree - I have not worn my white EB jacket in a few weeks... It's been parka weather all the way - I am SO GLAD I kept the parka too! I am never cold - except for below my knees. LOL

That is awesome! No one ever gives me Disney GCs for any holiday... I do get cash though - once in a while - and I've been known to turn that into a Disney GC a time or two. ::yes::

"Technically" - Yes, I've been to Universal twice - once with each girl. ::yes:: V didn't purchase a wand last time - I think we brought Allison's with us? I can't remember now? Allison is planning to bring her wand though... However, the other day, she was rethinking that, because she doesn't want to have to get lockers all the time, and if she brings her wand, she will have to get a locker... They are both thinking of traveling "light" that day and just wearing a lanyard/wallet combo. We'll see. ::yes::

Yes - Allison has been banking her vacation time since she started there... That was also an issue - because I guess they won't give you any time off unless you have vacation time to support it... So, we had to calculate whether she would even have enough time saved to take this time off or not... Where Josh - he can "borrow" his vacation time if he needs to - they frown upon it, but he could - though he never has. We are just glad that Allison doesn't have to worry about that part of it and she can just go and have a good time - and get paid to do it... I plan to remind her while we are down there, that she is getting paid to be there... I think it will be a great feeling for her - I know my first paid vacation was very nice. ::yes::

Thank you - yes I am super motivated to stay on track! I have so much going on over the coming weeks - I can't afford to be naughty right now. LOL

Thank you - I am so excited to wear my new SBW set - I am just sad that I won't be wearing it in a park... Oh well - then I will have a "new" park set to wear next time. ::yes::

I have not been to Trails End yet... I've heard great things about it - but I always avoid it, like you say, it's so hard to get to. ::yes:: Maybe one day I"ll be rich and get to stay at WL? LOL

It must be nice to have 2 Florida trips to look forward to and get away from this cold. I caught the flu right after Christmas even though I got a flu shot. I saw an article about how rampant it is right now in Minnesota. It also said the flu shot is only about 50% effective but may minimize the effects if you get it. I told my husband if this is minimized I'd hate to see what full blown is as I've been miserable for 4 days and am just starting to feel a little better. So far he's trying to stay away from me as I have coughed so much I'm sore.

I was able to do a little after Christmas shopping with my daughter and grandson before I got sick. We quit after 5 Targets and 3 Hallmark stores because it was just too cold and so windy. I did get a new tree for my Disney ornaments and I think it will hold quite a few, so I bought a couple more. Hallmark had a cute ornament of Gringott's Bank with the dragon. I really love Universal. It will go on my regular tree though I think. Then my grandson stopped yesterday and found the angel I wanted for my outside lights for 70% off. He was so excited he found it for me and I was too as it's originally $98.

Your Santa Hawaiian shirts are very nice. Is yours a men's shirt? I thought maybe that's why you felt it was a little big as the fit is diffferent. The sleeves just look a little bigger than a woman's shirt would have. I still think it looks very cute though.

My husband has 2 sisters that now spend the winter in Mesa, AZ. When they heard we weren't going to Disney one invited us to come down. She has a spare room and said they'd love to have us. So we're thinking about that. They both live in 55 plus mobile home communities with lots of amenities. So we are considering it. It would be a very inexpensive way to get somewhere warm and I've always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. Right now it's just a thought.

Oh no!!! I hope you are all feeling better soon! Yes, Allison and I were just talking about that the other day... My entire family has had the flu shot, except for me... ::yes::

WOW! It sounds like you did great with your after Christmas shopping! :woohoo: And that sounds like an awesome ornament! I never did see that one - though I didn't look either. LOL

Yes - it's a men's shirt... I thought about taking it in on the sides a little bit... but, like you said, the sleeves are enormous too - so it would have to be totally redrafted. It looks OK with leggings, and as long as I put my hand on my waist for pictures - that gives me a bit of shape - instead of it just hanging there. Maybe next year I'll tackle that project? :scratchin

There you go! That sounds like an awesome way to get warm, and inexpensive too! I hope you can make it happen!

Happy New Year!

Hi!!! I’m so glad you had such a lovely Christmas! I love the slippers josh gave you - so cute! And how exciting that V has a boyfriend and that Josh tolerated him.

Your Christmas dinner sounds amazing. I’ve never had Yorkshire pudding but you’re the second of my friends to serve it for Christmas so I think i need to try it.

I wondered if the girls would try to squeeze in a trip to US while you were down there. They’ll have a lovely day together and you’ll have fun with your friend. It sounds like everything fell quite neatly into place!

I know what you mean about good car guys - alyssa’s car has been in the shop and I’m so grateful for a reliable, honest, trustworthy car repair shop.

Mark gave me a pandora bracelet last year for our anniversary and I love it. I have a few disney charms (Cinderella’s carriage, two swirl mickey head charms, a Spaceship Earth abdminirail charm, and the girls’ initials. I love wearing it. I love you AnA bracelet collection!

We had a nice Christmas although it was different not being in our own home and without Alyssa. It was hard for my MIL but I hope we made things a bit brighter for her. Brie left today to go visit two of her teammates for several days and I think she’ll have a great time. Andrew and Alyssa get home Monday and I can’t wait.

No news right now on the house, although Brie wants us to stop the plans and buy existing construction. We actually saw a couple of new houses online that we liked, and it would be less expensive. So that would be good, especially as we may be taking in a major monthly expense we hadn’t planned on...on the flip side, if we stick with the building plan it looks like I could have a solid chunk of debt paid off by summer and that would offset it. So I don’t know what to do.

Hugs to you!

Hey you!!! I know you have been so busy - I am glad we are FB friends so I can keep tabs on you. LOL

Thank you - yes we had a very nice Christmas and I was able to give and receive a lot of very nice things!

Yes - I hope they can get along long enough for a full day at U/S. LOL That will be the part I worry about most.

Yes - good mechanics are so hard to find! I am so thankful for ours... Unfortunately - I think he is getting close to retirement... Hopefully he can recommend us (and put in a good word) to someone reliable, when the time comes.

I really love wearing my AnA and Pandora bracelets together. I also have one that is exclusively available only in Holland - it's called Biba - and it has all Holland themed charms (tulips, houses, cows... Very cute) - I wear that one often too. ::yes::

I am glad you were able to spend time with the girls over the holidays! Did Brie ever get the "guest room"? I hope so. I am glad you get to spend time with Alyssa and Andrew for the holidays too! :hug:

It sounds like you are making some headway on such a big decision... Something will work out - I know it. Sending you big hugs and Pixie Dust for clarity when the time comes. :hug:

Happy New Year Stephanie!

Hi there, that is ok that you don't remember me, it has been a few years, I bought your Toy Story bag, it was a larger one and you had said one of your favorites, it has Buzz and Woody on the front and Slink is on the back, I just love it!!!!

The pictures finally came up for me, what a lovely family and it looks like you had a great Christmas, beautiful gifts. Love the Pandora collection.

Looking forward to hearing all about your trip and seeing the photos.

Happy New Year!!!!!

I knew I'd remember you if you told me who you were. LOL Yup - I remember you... I think of you often and wonder how your health is doing? I am glad you are enjoying your bag as well - it is one of my favorites and it matches the UPB set I just sent off to my friend Jackie... She is actually in WDW at this moment wearing it. :lovestruc

I am glad you were able to see the pictures. :lovestruc

Thanks - I am looking forward to sharing it... I have a lot of trips to look forward to in the beginning of 2018. ::yes::

Thank you, Happy New Year to you too! :hug:

**************************************************************************************************************

I wish I could say that I did something productive yesterday - but I didn't. LOL

It was so COLD here, we didn't want to leave the house...

In the morning, I finished up a book we received from Josh's Dad for Christmas called A Year In The Wilderness; Bearing Witness in the Boundary Waters by Dave and Amy Freeman... It was a very good book and a quick read... If you have any interest in nature or the BWCA, I recommend it. :) They also have a website/blog https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/dave-and-amy-freeman

Then I had lunch... Back to salads - and man I missed them... I kind of got away from them between Thanksgiving and Christmas, while I was shopping at Aldi the other day - they had decent prices on berries again, so I grabbed a couple - I've missed my berries! LOL Though this salad was overly large - I need to tone them down a little bit, LOL... I get to making them though - adding a little of this and a little of that, and before I know it - they are gigantic. ::yes::

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After lunch - Josh was already sleeping on the couch (he has my former cold)...

So I went upstairs to take a nap... and I actually did nap. :scratchin

2 hours later, I got up and started sorting through what I'd already packed... Pulling things out and adding things in... Trying really hard to bring an assortment - yet not overload myself - it's a difficult task. I am getting close.

Josh and I decided to walk down to our local bar/restaurant for dinner last night... I was OK with another salad, and Josh told me he "wasn't hungry" at 4 when I asked him what he wanted me to make for dinner... Then an hour later, he was hungry and I wasn't cooking anything. :scratchin So we went down there, sadly we were seated right after a very large group of 16... We ended up waiting an hour for our food - and to be honest, we were getting very annoyed by it... I mean, I get that we got there behind a large group... but waiting for them to get all of their food + dessert before we even get anything - all we ordered was a wrap and a sandwich (I didn't eat the bread)... We eat there all the time and this has never happened to us before - but it's still annoying and frustrating. Oh well - I just needed to complain about it... The owner DID give us our drinks for free to compensate, and we didn't even have to ask... But man - I had a decaf coffee with Bailey's and Josh wasn't feeling well - so he had a 7up - our bar tab was very small.... Had I known - I might have ordered another drink. LOL

When we got home... We came in on this... LOL - I got the boys enormous pillow pets the other day at Aldi, I've been watching them all Christmas season, and thought they would be cute... Finally, they were half off, so I grabbed them... Cooper got a Monkey and MM got a bear. :lovestruc

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Today... I am going to town with V... She is getting her nails done - and I plan to go with to make our nail appointments for our trip. I think I have decided to get mine done the day before we leave... I was going to do it the day of, but none of us will let anyone else in that shop touch our nails - except for the owner - and it takes him like 3 hours to do my Disney nails... There just won't be enough time in our day the morning we leave for all of us - so I am going to do mine the day before and let the girls do theirs the morning of. ::yes::

Depending on when she works... I may try to talk her into going to the outlet mall to see if the EB outlet carries the luggage I want to get, since it's back ordered online until after we leave on our trip. :scratchin Otherwise - if they don't, I will just order it and use my current luggage for Disney - it's not the end of the world - it's not as if it isn't usable. Maybe that's a sign? LOL

We really shouldn't be going anywhere - as it's beyond cold out there right now. ::yes::

I have no plans for tonight - I'll probably not even drink... I don't like that V is working late on NYE, and has to drive... :( I'll probably stay up and fret most of the night... ::yes::

Tomorrow, everyone is off of work... I'll likely get started on this weeks' work schedule - just so I can have a jump start on it. ::yes::

I'll also do my final official PTR update sometime this week - I hope. ::yes::

Wishing you all a Happy New Year! Safe travels and Pixie Dust to all! :grouphug:

D~
 
That salad looks really good. I love strawberries.
I didn't know that A&a had Harry Potter ones, not that I need any more. My collection is getting up there like yours. I have a Pandora bracelet, too but it's gotten too heavy to wear much.
I hope you can find the suitecase you're looking for. I've been using my Vera weekender and Grand Traveler.
We've has horrible weather here ever since Christmas. Yesterday I had to shovel my car out so I could get to work. The morning was very slow but when it stopped snow for a little while it got busy. Of course, we don't have the tv's people want because Christmas was last week and we're still getting stock in.
It's also been really cold.
Congrats on a second trip to Florida. Maybe your girls will surprise you and get along for the day. My sister and I didn't get along until we were older. We're too much alike and that caused a lot of problems.
Happy New Year
Liz
 
That salad looks fabulous! What all is in it and what dressing did you use? I’m sad that there are no Aldi stores in Utah. I miss Aldi.

Brie did not end up in the guest room. My MIL said she could use it but that’s her “office” and she uses it everyday...one day she had a meeting in there and moved all of Brie’s stuff downstairs. Brie never slept in there once. She alternates between sleeping with me or on the sofa downstairs. *sigh* I guess Mark didn’t clearly convey our request about the room to his Mom. Our request was that she be able to use it exclusively while she was home. MIL has a laptop in addition to her desktop computer...but that just didn’t happen. It made me sad and frustrated Brie.

I’m off work until the 8th but Mark goes back to work on the 2nd, as do alyssa and Andrew. And Brie is gone until the 5th, then goes back to school on the 7th. I’m trying to figure out what to do with myself on my days off with no one to entertain me. Lol. I have a couple of projects I want to work on and will meet some friends for lunch one or two days.

I hope you are able to get the luggage you want. I kno what you mean about hoping the girls get along on their US day....I’m sure they’ll be fine.

We discovered our bank account was hacked yesterday afternoon and of course it was after our bank closed for the day and they’re closed until Tuesday. Ugh. Stress! Fortunately DH doesn’t share my banking phobia so he noticed it when he checked the account for something else. But it looks like there have been some other irregularities over the last few months that he didn’t notice so I need to comb through the account for the last four months. This is definitely reminding me that I have to get over this ridiculous phobia....

We’ll be having a quiet NYE here - honestly, I’m usually in bed by 10:30 or so. It will just be Mark, MIL, and me. Not much partying going on here!

Happy New Year to you and your family!!
 


Sorry I haven’t checked in for a bit. I read but I get distracted and don’t comment. I’m excited for your upcoming trip. I would love to take a trip with just me and my little girl. My sister had to change her plans so she and I aren’t going to universal in January like we had planned but I still had the time off and booked a short 2 night solo trip at Disney. However I’m back and forth on whether or not I should go. I have to drive but it’s a 7 hour drive by myself. I’m worried I’ll be overly tired and won’t enjoy it as much. But I told my husband this may be my only chance to meet D!! So as of now I’m planning on being at Disney at least 1 day of your trip. I’ll message you and maybe we can work something out to meet up.
 
So glad you remembered me!!!! Oh I just love that bag so no worries, hoping that I will have a chance to take it to Toy Story Land at some point but we shall see. My health is so so. Have to have a few tests done over the next few months so praying for good results. But all in all feeling pretty good, just hoping I can d0 another Disney trip again.
 
That salad looks fabulous, that's what I plan to start making to bring to work with me, because I can roast chicken and such to put on it.

I'm working tonight for NYE, yay lol :jester: Carson had a friend stay over and my niece and nephew came home to play games with them so they look like they are having fun lol. whether anyone other than the boys make it to midnight will be surprising.

I think I am going to have gel nails done for Disney, I go through periods where nail polish doesn't want to stick to my nails and I have brands from dollar store to opi. I am getting my hair cut and colored right before we go that way I have fresh cut and color for the pictures lol.

That stinks about your dinner experience, I waitressed for years so I get irritated with crappy service.

You can talk "The Wave" all you want to me lol, we love it although we've only ever had dinner. I'm excited to try breakfast.

I love the dogs and their stuffed animals. How cute is that!!!
 
First things first...

It's January!!!

And we are going to WDW this month!!!!

Our count down is under 30 days!!!

OK, now I can do replies. :woohoo:

That salad looks really good. I love strawberries.
I didn't know that A&a had Harry Potter ones, not that I need any more. My collection is getting up there like yours. I have a Pandora bracelet, too but it's gotten too heavy to wear much.
I hope you can find the suitecase you're looking for. I've been using my Vera weekender and Grand Traveler.
We've has horrible weather here ever since Christmas. Yesterday I had to shovel my car out so I could get to work. The morning was very slow but when it stopped snow for a little while it got busy. Of course, we don't have the tv's people want because Christmas was last week and we're still getting stock in.
It's also been really cold.
Congrats on a second trip to Florida. Maybe your girls will surprise you and get along for the day. My sister and I didn't get along until we were older. We're too much alike and that caused a lot of problems.
Happy New Year
Liz

It is very good - I lived on a similar salad all summer/fall for lunch... And then berries became very expensive - so I switched to apples - it was still good, but not nearly as good. I was excited to find berries at a reasonable price when I was shopping. ::yes::

Yes - they just came out with the HP bracelets this last fall... I got the first two releases for the girls - not knowing they were going to come out with more and perhaps better ones staggered before Christmas... I feel like they may end up with a pretty big collection of HP bracelets. Now, if Pandora would come out with a few HP beads, that would be awesome too! ::yes::

I use my VB luggage for the lake and local travel - and I even use my Vera tote and campus backpack as my carry-ons... but for my checked luggage, I am too nervous that the airline would wreck my VB stuff - so I prefer something a little more - um - durable? Maybe is the word I am looking for? Something that can get dirty, and I won't care as much. LOL

Us too - but we didn't get much snow, just cold. We just have to get through January and February - then it gets better. This is always a hard time of year for me - I don't struggle with seasonal depression - but I just don't enjoy the cold at all. ::yes::

Thanks - I hope they get along... They are now adults, so if they don't, they'll likely get arrested. :lmao:

Happy New Year Liz!

That salad looks fabulous! What all is in it and what dressing did you use? I’m sad that there are no Aldi stores in Utah. I miss Aldi.

Brie did not end up in the guest room. My MIL said she could use it but that’s her “office” and she uses it everyday...one day she had a meeting in there and moved all of Brie’s stuff downstairs. Brie never slept in there once. She alternates between sleeping with me or on the sofa downstairs. *sigh* I guess Mark didn’t clearly convey our request about the room to his Mom. Our request was that she be able to use it exclusively while she was home. MIL has a laptop in addition to her desktop computer...but that just didn’t happen. It made me sad and frustrated Brie.

I’m off work until the 8th but Mark goes back to work on the 2nd, as do alyssa and Andrew. And Brie is gone until the 5th, then goes back to school on the 7th. I’m trying to figure out what to do with myself on my days off with no one to entertain me. Lol. I have a couple of projects I want to work on and will meet some friends for lunch one or two days.

I hope you are able to get the luggage you want. I kno what you mean about hoping the girls get along on their US day....I’m sure they’ll be fine.

We discovered our bank account was hacked yesterday afternoon and of course it was after our bank closed for the day and they’re closed until Tuesday. Ugh. Stress! Fortunately DH doesn’t share my banking phobia so he noticed it when he checked the account for something else. But it looks like there have been some other irregularities over the last few months that he didn’t notice so I need to comb through the account for the last four months. This is definitely reminding me that I have to get over this ridiculous phobia....

We’ll be having a quiet NYE here - honestly, I’m usually in bed by 10:30 or so. It will just be Mark, MIL, and me. Not much partying going on here!

Happy New Year to you and your family!!

OK - the salad... Well, it sort of morphs depending on what I have on hand... Romaine lettuce, onions, tomatoes (if I have them, they aren't my favorite), fruit (I prefer berries, but I've done apples too, I also have pears for later in the week), blue cheese crumbles, protein (mostly chicken, but this week I was also putting the leftover prime rib on it), walnuts (for crunch to replace croutons), I prefer to use the Tessemae's Ranch dressing - but they were out of ranch the last time I stocked up - so I did the Caesar, and finally Balsamic glaze - I purchased that for our wedge salads that we never did get to eat - so now I am using it up on my salads... I am not certain that it's 100% Paleo compliant, but it's not terrible either. These salads are GIANT and keep me satisfied until dinner time. ::yes::

I am truly sad that Brie didn't have her own space... I feel like that was just rude... Maybe I am out of place saying that - but man - she was there for several days and it doesn't seem like it would have been too much of an inconvenience for her to have that space. It sure will be nice when you all have your own home! :hug:

I am sure you will be able to find something to do while the others are working? Me, personally - I really NEED to clean my sewing room... If you want to do that for me... :scratchin ::yes:: LOL

We will see about the luggage - it was too cold and we didn't have much time yesterday... So we didn't even venture out that far. I don't think I will get to go today either, as V has my car and I don't think I want to take her car? Though it is fun to drive and it has heated seats. ::yes::

Oh NO!!! Ok - think good things... If the bank is closed this weekend - at least they won't be able to do more damage before you can get in there to straighten it out... I mean, they can, but it will be "pending" charges and they should be able to deny anything over the weekend before it hits your account. And you are protected if they used your debit card - it may take some time, but those charges will eventually be reversed back to you too. :hug: It's a terrible time to have to deal with this!

I was in bed early last night too - though later than usual... I haven't stayed up for New Years in almost a decade. It's just really not that exciting for me. LOL

Thank you Stephanie! Same to you and yours!

Sorry I haven’t checked in for a bit. I read but I get distracted and don’t comment. I’m excited for your upcoming trip. I would love to take a trip with just me and my little girl. My sister had to change her plans so she and I aren’t going to universal in January like we had planned but I still had the time off and booked a short 2 night solo trip at Disney. However I’m back and forth on whether or not I should go. I have to drive but it’s a 7 hour drive by myself. I’m worried I’ll be overly tired and won’t enjoy it as much. But I told my husband this may be my only chance to meet D!! So as of now I’m planning on being at Disney at least 1 day of your trip. I’ll message you and maybe we can work something out to meet up.

Hahaha - it's OK, LOL... Welcome back!

I hope you get to do that one day - it has been a lot of fun for us over the years!

Bummer for your change in plans... I hope you are able to make it - but I totally understand if you can't... I am flattered that you would want to meet me, though I promise I am NOT worth the 7 hour drive. :lmao: I did reply to your message yesterday to let you know what our plans are... It looks like we might be able to work some sort of timing out, and sadly - I am so deep into our plans that I can't change them again, so I am not as flexible as i would like to be.... Hopefully we can work something out though. :)

Happy New Year Lisa! :lovestruc

So glad you remembered me!!!! Oh I just love that bag so no worries, hoping that I will have a chance to take it to Toy Story Land at some point but we shall see. My health is so so. Have to have a few tests done over the next few months so praying for good results. But all in all feeling pretty good, just hoping I can d0 another Disney trip again.

Of course - I just need a little reminding. LOL Glad you like that bag - it was one of my first and so fun to plan!

Sending you Pixie Dust for good test results over the coming months! Glad to hear that you are feeling pretty well and hopefully you can make it back to Disney soon! :hug:

That salad looks fabulous, that's what I plan to start making to bring to work with me, because I can roast chicken and such to put on it.

I'm working tonight for NYE, yay lol :jester: Carson had a friend stay over and my niece and nephew came home to play games with them so they look like they are having fun lol. whether anyone other than the boys make it to midnight will be surprising.

I think I am going to have gel nails done for Disney, I go through periods where nail polish doesn't want to stick to my nails and I have brands from dollar store to opi. I am getting my hair cut and colored right before we go that way I have fresh cut and color for the pictures lol.

That stinks about your dinner experience, I waitressed for years so I get irritated with crappy service.

You can talk "The Wave" all you want to me lol, we love it although we've only ever had dinner. I'm excited to try breakfast.

I love the dogs and their stuffed animals. How cute is that!!!

Yes - it's pretty easy - that's why I do it too. I roast a few servings of chicken one day and then I use it on my salads for a few days - it works out well. I posted the salad "recipe" above in my reply to Stephanie if you want to know what I all put in mine. ::yes::

Sounds like they are having a good NYE. ::yes::

I will be doing a LONG talk about my Disney nails below...

Yah - it was a bummer, but it won't keep us away... We eat there a few times per month, it's close and easy. ::yes::

Hahhaha... I'll never talk about how much I love The Wave publicly... but everyone here just *knows* I love it. :lovestruc

Spoiled rotten, LOL - for sure. They are like little kids after Christmas... I clean up their toys and they drag them all out again, leaving a mess all over the living room floor... Brings me instantly back to when the girls were little. :lovestruc

Happy New Years!

**************************************************************************************************************

Yesterday was pretty low key for us...

I did end up going to town with V... She had her nails done. While we were there, I made appointments for all of us to have our nails done for Disney... I am still debating between red with dots or black with dots? I love them all so much that I may even do some combo of both? :scratchin I've decided - since we all only let the owner do our nails - I will have mine done the day before we leave, and then the girls will have theirs done the morning of... Otherwise he just won't have enough time to get us all done before we need to be home to load up.

Here is what I have had done in the past... The group photo is our 2014 Sweet 16 trip with BFF (mine are the red/white dots)... And the other one is Allison's grad trip in 2016... I"ve had some combo of either of these nails done for every trip since 2013 - I try to alternate, but this time I may do one accent nail of the other - just to give me the best of both worlds since I can't decide? LOL

0D9C5493-557F-4A93-AB2D-5909AE6443C1.jpg


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I've already decided though - since my nails are so dry at this time of year, I will be doing acrylics and gel - I pay a lot more for it, but it lasts so much longer. I've also decided that I will keep them and have them filled at least once for when I go down to Suzi's in February. ::yes:: I am truly looking forward to this... I gave up having my nails done when we started Dave Ramsey - I miss them a lot though I don't think I will maintain them after my Feb trip??? I might??? Since we leave for Europe in May... :scratchin We'll see... I know I will give them up again at some point until we finish paying off debt. ::yes::

Anyways... After the nail salon, we went to Target... Boy is it getting to be a sad place...

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We weren't there long, I just had to grab one thing.

We came home and I took another short nap - I got up just as V was leaving for work.

Josh made an extra-spicy batch of chili for dinner last night - one of my favorites! His hope was that it would kick the last of his cold... That remains to be seen. LOL It was very good though and we have leftovers... Though he did put a bit sugar in it. :eek: Grrr... I was a bit annoyed by that - he knows I am not eating sugar - and any little bit seems to keep me wanting more. Sigh. Hopefully it wasn't enough to affect me much. ::yes::

Then we watched Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and Boss Baby... The first one was pretty good, I enjoyed it - and who doesn't like Grut? He's so cute and lovable! To be honest - I had NO desire to see Boss Baby at all... I grudgingly watched it, and though I didn't like it - I was sorta rooting for the family a the end. ::yes:: Would I recommend it - probably not - but...

I looked down and Cooper was cuddled up with his hippo from Christmas... :lovestruc

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Today - even though it's a holiday - I think I will be working out... I have a trip approaching, so I really should stick to my normal routine. I may even work a little bit this morning? We'll see though - I find it odd and hard to work out and to work with the house full of people - it's hard for me to focus and I always feel the pull of being with them, even if they aren't doing anything.

This week, it a normal work week for me... I didn't get scheduled at Target - so that helps me a lot at home... I *could* technically take today off and be fine because of that. We'll see... :scratchin

I hope you all have a wonderful day and wonderful holiday today! Stay warm out there! Prayers and pixie dust to all! :lovestruc

D~
 
Sounds like you had an relaxing day yesterday.


I celebrated New Years Eve at my parents house with one of my sisters, my brother, Ulf and my parents. So we were 6 people. We had a 3 course dinner and Turkey as the main course.
After dinner there was still 1 hour left until midnight so we played 2 different board games. We didn't finish playing the second game before it was time for the fireworks. So we paused the game and looked at the fireworks and then going back to the game when the firework was done about 20 minutes past midnight. We ended up playing until 2AM. So I didn't get in bed until 2.30AM. Today I slept in. I get a terrible head ache if I don't get the amount of sleep that my body wants. The first time I woke up I had a head ache because of too little sleep. I knew the head ache came from too little sleep because I don't drink alcohol so I knew that wasn't the cause of the head ache. So I just turned around in bed and fell a sleep again. The next time I woke up the head ache was gone and I was ready to get up.

In the evening there was a geocaching event inside that I attended at. It's always nice to meet geocaching friends. People were encouraged to bring leftovers of Christmas cookies and pastries. So we had a nice time eating leftovers and chatting.

Tomorrow it's back to normal. All the stores are up and running again and have normal opening times. I have to go grocery shopping, but other than that I have no plans.
 
Hey D!! I am so excited for your upcoming trip. I love your matching bag/ear sets. I can't wait to see them in action. I can see that you all had a good Christmas! I love the matching shirts from your FIL. I am pretty sure I saw those in a shop in Hawaii! We had a pretty good time in Hawaii. Aulani was amazing. I wish we would have gone at a warmer time of year, because it was a little chilly at times. I still prefer the parks, but it was nice to say we have been there. The second half of our trip was bitter/sweet. I was so happy to be with my family. However, by the first night at our beach house, Emma got sick. Like really sick. I thought it was just something she ate, until Quinn got sick the next day...in the rental car. Then it just spiraled out from there. I got sick at the Polynesian Culture Center which we all were really looking forward to because we were going to the Luau that night. I tried to brave through it, but I got sick until I passed out and they had to cart me to first aid. Some of the family stayed and Emma got to experience the night show. 9 out of 10 of us were sick in one way or another. From there the rest of the week was...well, you know that scene in the movie Bridesmaids where they get sick in the dress shop? That was our week! We had 3 bathrooms between 2 adjoining beach houses and we went through a whole bottle of bleach from cleaning them. I did feel better by Christmas Eve, and we went to Pearl Harbor. That was on my do-or-die list for Hawaii. It was so humbling and a somber experience. I am glad we did it. We definitely made some memories-and I am sure we will be laughing about it for years to come! Anyway, I am sure glad to be caught up with you and am looking forward to experiencing some vicarious Disney Magic from your TR. Happy New Year, D! I truly hope 2018 brings you many blessings and much happiness!
 
I am so beyond late to this PTR, but I'm all caught up! And yes, I may have spend way more time than I care to admit reading through all the updates I've missed. Your plans are great, and your bag/ear combos are so cute! Happy New Year to you and your family! :D
 
Hey D! I missed a ton of updates because my notifications weren't working for some reason :confused3

So glad you are able to fit in another trip to see Suzi! I don't blame you for wanting to go to FL not Maine LOL!

I am planning to get my nails done the day before the trip too. Not sure what I will get.. should start looking into that.

WE GO TO DISNEY THIS MONTH! I am sooo excited I can't even wait!! :dancer:
 
I will be eating all of this...

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All of that looks amazing! Is it a buffet?


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Adorable!

I finally went to my local Aldi's to pick up some stuff for Christmas. My husband didn't want any sweet in his stocking so I bought a few things of nuts at Aldis. I also bought some chocolate for the kids. I'm kicking myself for not going there sooner. The prices on the nuts were great. I didn't have a lot of time to look around but will definitely be back. Possibly this weekend. I need to get some low carb snacks. I know you go there often so I'm wondering what stuff you like to buy there.

Sounds like you all had a great Christmas and your trip is coming up fast! It's really nice that the girls can spend some quality time together in Universal while you get to spend time with your friend.
 
Happy New Year!!!

Either way, your nails will be cute. I wish I could do acrylics but they are a big no no at work. But I’m trying to let them grow a bit and I’ll do gel for Disney.

I went to the store today and restocked The Who fridge and cupboards with healthy food. I decided to try weight watchers freestyle through work. They have really revamped the system and it looks like something I will be able to do, fruits veggies, eggs, lean proteins are all 0 points. So I’m going to give it a shot can’t furt. I was going to go to Zumba tonight but work called and asked me to pick up for a bonus and I thought Disney $$$ lol. So I made a huge pot of turkey chili and it smells wonderful.

We are in a cold spell here -12 today. New Years morning we had something happen to a power grid and we lost power for a while. It was about -10 out so that stunk. We have generators but I really felt bad for those who didn’t. Luckily the power company got right on it and it came back on in a few hours. Brrrrr. I cannot wait to go to Florida. Even if it’s only 60 while we are there. That will feel wonderful.

I think I’m going to change up some of our dining again lol. I wanted to try a few new restuarants but reviews and a pod cast I’ve been listening too have me second guessing.

I wish we could squeeze a day or two into universal this trip but I am
Going to try and talk chris into maybe a quick trip down next fall, but he wants to go on a cruise so maybe we can do a few days pre cruise. I’ll start exploring it after Disney.
 
I know you don't like to tell what dates you'll be in Disney, but have you seen the temperatures now? It's so cold and 41° right now at noon. I bet you are glad you're home in cold Minnesota. We used to go the 3rd week of Jan, and we went the last week of Jan. in 2017. But I don't think we've ever been down when it's that cold, except maybe at night. It does look like it's going to warm after this week thank goodness. I'm content to stay in the house when it's this cold although I did get out shopping yesterday. That was my first day of really doing anything since I got the flu. Today I'm starting to take down my Christmas decorations. It takes me a few days though as I have so much. I will start with the tree today. I still have a few of my heavier Disney ornaments on it so I want to separate them and get them in the box for my new tree next year. I will have so much more room for ornaments and I know it will hold even the heavier ones. I was even tempted to put it up and try it out, but of course I really haven't felt like that so I'm waiting until next year. The good news about feeling ill is I've lost another 6 pounds! I hope to keep going although I haven't exercised again at all.

Looking forward to another picture of all your nails. My nails are so short and break so easy that I never have them done. My granddaughters usually do theirs so cute before we go though and their toes too.
 
Oh my word Dorine; your timing with Florida. I would not want to be there right now. I think it will be better when you and the girls go? Let's hope. I hope everyone is okay in your neck of the woods. We have had some mighty cold temps for Texas. It was 15 Tues morning and 21 Wed morning, with highs in the 30's. Crazy weather right now.

I am so very excited for you to see Suzi in February. What a treat for both of you.

Your salads always make me so hungry Dorine. I need to put out a list of ingredients for me to bring to work. I usually don't have time to make a proper lunch, but if I brought some of the stuff up to work I might be more inclined to eat a salad for lunch. I usually just eat chips and hummus or a boxed soup. I don't have official hours, I am paid hourly, long story. So, I usually come in late around 9:00 and work straight through lunch.

Starting this Saturday I will be house and pet sitting for my SIL and BIL. This always adds a lot to my plate where I will not be able to exercise next week. I try to juggle my house and cats and juggle their house and dog and cat, and work of course. But, it is wonderful to have my SIL pet sit for me when needed. We have been trading off for years. It is so nice to have someone I trust and I know she feels the same way.

I have been so enjoying your ears and bags and all that you have created for this epic mom/daughters trip. I saw V's ears and bags! I am blown away. Disney is right around the corner Dorine! I absolutely loved the HP worlds at US. I know your girls will have a wonderful time. I agree with the lockers, I absolutely hated the locker areas and trying to cram your belongings in those tight spots. I will try something else if we ever go again. Yay for paid time off for Allison! Is Josh going to check in with your Dad when ya'll are gone?

Well, a late happy and blessed New Year Dorine. You have a lot to look forward to this year! Sending a huge squeeze. Have a wonderful weekend.
 
Yes, I was really disappointed that MIL didn't let Brie use the room. I think I mentioned that it's her "office" and her sewing room, and she does use it every day. But she also has a laptop she can use. She uses it for women's auxiliary leadership meetings for church once or twice each month, and she's in there working on her banking stuff, paying bills, etc, etc, etc., during the day. We just wanted Brie to have a place to put her things and to sleep at night and to "retreat" to during the day when she needed some peace and quiet and space of her own. No such luck. MIL means well -- she truly does -- but she is just SO set in her ways, so regimented, and so stuck in her way of doing things. In fact, Mark commented just yesterday that he never really realized before just how regimented and stuck in her ways she is -- I had to laugh at that. I've known it since I met her 26 years ago! LOL Anyway, we would have needed to slightly move the furniture in that room to fold out the sofa sleeper for Brie, and move her work table and sewing table out of the way. Brie tried not to have hurt feelings about it, but I had hurt feelings for her. So Brie ended up sleeping downstairs either on the couch or with me (when she would kick Mark out to the couch, LOL). So I was VERY happy she ended up going to visit her friends in Portland. She got home yesterday and she truly had a wonderful time -- it was so good for her to go, and she has been working through a major decision in the last few weeks and needed some downtime to sort through her thoughts and find some clarity, so it was a good trip for her. Her two friends (also on her lacrosse team at BYU) are really good kids and the three of them have bonded and become quite close, and she had a wonderful time with them sightseeing in Portland and going to see the Pacific Ocean. Anyway...long story short...she and I are both frustrated about the whole thing with the bedroom, but trying to be understanding because this holiday season was so hard on MIL since it's the first Christmas without my FIL and we're coming up on their anniversary later this month and the first anniversary of his death later this month.

I love the two shirts you've made -- they're fabulous! And thanks for the info on the salads. YUM. I love a good salad! I have been able to find Tessamae's dressing much easier out here than I could in Virginia -- which surprised me -- and I'm so glad.

The bank stuff ended up working out fine -- it turns out that it was part of the insurance company check that was on hold through the bank and those holds show up as debits. I never knew that! So it's all good. I still need to comb through the account for the last few months, though. I'm working on being brave enough to do that. I know....it's terrible. LOL

Your nails will be cute no matter how you decide to do them. I think the black and white dots with the thin red line is really cute, but so is the red and white dots. I started having my nails done again when we moved here and I'm glad I did. I love to do fun Disney nails.

So sad that your Target store is emptying...I'm still sad that they're closing it. I found out today that another store where we used to live in Georgia is closing. And a huge Sears store where we live now is closing. I haven't shopped at Sears in years...but it's sad to see these local "institutions" closing down.

House update...We hadn't heard from the builder since 14 Dec and I'm getting nervous. Brie talked me into going to look at two houses today...one of them we ended up not seeing because it went under contract yesterday. The other one (in the neighborhood we want to build in) went under contract this morning but we were still able to look at it. I loved the kitchen and liked most of the rest of it, but there were a few things I didn't like. It's across the street from the lot we want to build on. I don't think we're going to put a back-up offer in on it. There are two other houses in that same neighborhood that just got completed and went on the market so we're scheduled to look at those tomorrow, but I looked at pictures of them online and one of them I know is absolutely not a house I would buy. But I guess we'll look anyway. I texted the builder's brother (a friend of mine) to see if the builder is in town...and he got in touch with his brother and told him that if he didn't contact me ASAP he'd be disowned. LOL! So he texted me this afternoon (after I texted him) and sent me the price build-up...without the changes we discussed. So we need to have him make the changes. if he can commit to having the house done by the end of July we'll proceed with him. Otherwise, we'll have to buy a house and go another route. Financially it would be better for us to build and not have the house done until June/July.....but he has to commit to the end of July or it's absolutely not going to work out. So we shall see...

Have a great weekend!
 

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