Thursday, November 26, 2015

Sunday, November 8, 2015

The Mysterious Benedict Society



Whenever I move house the first things I do is establish the locations of the essentials:: banks, grocery stores, coffee houses, movie theaters, nearest route to IKEA (I do love IKEA .. LOL) and also the nearest libraries. Yes I still go .. I can not fathom a life without the library .. I have heard people say that they haven't gone in X amount of time and I can not imagine a life that would include me not going to the library. I just can't .. it seems weird to me. I just like how in a world of electronic devices where Google reigns supreme there is still a place where slowing down and reading in quiet is embraced. This newest one is pretty cool .. it might not be as large as my old one but it is next to a HUGE kids' park and inside the kids' zone is a small play area for the tots. One afternoon we took our Grand Angel and she had a blast .. she has such a great imagination .. it is so awesome to watch her play. When I was walking around looking for books for her this little treasure caught my eye. I know what you are thinking .. a kid's book! But the sheer size of is what I first noticed .. it is 484 pages .. my first thought is any book that can keep a kid's interest for that long has to be pretty cool. I opened it up and read ''Miss Perumal sat across the table from him, but Reynie, who had no trouble reading upside down, quickly scanned the advertisement's bold-printed words? "ARE YOU A GIFTED CHILD LOOKING FOR SPECIAL OPPORTUNITIES?'' ADVERTISEMENTS! OPPORTUNITES!! 484 PAGES WITH SMALL LETTERS!!!  This doesn't seem like a kiddies book ... it might be worth trying. Well I will let you know in a month if my first instinct was right. 

Sunday, November 1, 2015

Update .. The Desert Dragonfly Has Moved


No not from blogger .. we built a house WOW I can't believe it. This year has been so incredibly exciting and amazing. We are defiantly feeling blessed. We were too absorbed with the whole process that we didn't have much time for anything else. Also during this time .. my camera stopped working - ended up just needing a new battery  and my laptop is starting to act up - I have cleaned it up but I think I am going to need a new one .. hopefully Santa is reading this post  .. hint hint. LOL But we are now in and somewhat settled in a routine that I think I can get back to sharing with you. And do I have A LOT to share.

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Happy Birthday Eldest Princess!!


WOW .. time flies when we surround ourselves with those we love
25 years of your spunk and funny personality is just the beginning
gosh .. just think in another 25 years you will be 50 and
Baby Princess will be 25 and that means I will be ...
... well let's not get too carried away  =D
 


Monday, February 9, 2015

Grand-Angel #3 Is Finally Here!


Coming in at 7lbs 10oz and 19.5" long
Welcome to the world
Jeffrey Thomas

Sunday, January 25, 2015

A Biography For A Change of Pace ..


The biography chosen was 'Six Tires No Plan' by Michael Rosenbaum . It is about the life and philosophy of Bruce Halle the sole owner of Discount Tire/Americas Tire. If you haven't read it .. you must.

This book is so refreshing .. in a world that tells you that to be successful you have to be 'hard nosed' or 'micromanage ' or 'cut-throat' - here is a person that shows you that having a servants heart is not a weakness but a large part of a strong base to everything in your life .. ESPECIALLY in business. Now if you are looking more for a "how to" manual .. it's not here. What is here is a story about one man's journey that led him to build a company and how his ideas of taking care of people .. not just customers but everyone around him .. affect every aspect of his company. I was going to share some wonderful little stories but you won't grasp its full context unless you read the book. So .. go read the book and ask 'am I a lost boy (or girl)'?

Monday, January 19, 2015

Happy First Birthday Madalynne!!

 
1st Birthday - rocking the Batman shoes and the frilly dress look

Has it been a year already? WOW!!! I remember storming the hospital looking for your Mommy walking up and down restricted hallways (in my defense the doors were open and I didn't know it was restricted) and when I found her you just got here. You were so alert and moving your eyes to follow your Daddy's voice (NO REALLY YOU WERE!!) I almost forgot how tiny newborns are. Side note :: you were born the day the Broncos won the AFC Championship.

just learned to wink - getting ready for the Bronco game

You and I have gotten to spend sooooo much time together and I have gotten to see you grow up and develop your wonderful personality. Living so close has allowed GrandPa (or Pop-Pop) and I to be there for A LOT of your 'first' moments ~ your first time outside and seeing nature, smelling flowers, understanding wind chimes, first words, first time holding your bottle alone, learning to sit up, watching you learn to navigate your walker was precious, learning to walk with assistance and your first solo steps (which was during this years Super Bowl ~ when others were rooting for their team we were rooting you).

enjoying the outdoors

You are amazing, funny, brilliant, kind and just simply adorable. I .. we .. feel blessed to have you in our lives. I can't wait to see all the things you will learn this coming year.

playing with the camera = )

Thank you .. thank you .. thank you Jehovah God for blessing our family with these beautiful grandchildren.


Sunday, January 11, 2015

Bloody Mary .. No Not The Drink


I am talking about the book 'Bloody Mary' by J.A. Konrath. I already know that the pattern of books I tend to enjoy reading are mystery but I am noticing a pattern of a secondary type of mystery books I tend to lean to (or may I say I have been reading lately) are those that the 'villain' and the 'hero' are revealed very early in the book and the whole basis is how the two will collide; rather than a story that has some plot twists and the 'villain' is revealed at the very end. I know it took me forever to finish reading this book but it mainly because I am reading another book at the same time. But overall I really liked this book. 

Broncos Toes ~ Play Offs



With last week being a bye week I had a bit of extra time to do a fun design but instead of coming up with a new one I did the toes from week 12. I was trying to use my camera phone but the pictures were coming out kinda pink (I can't figure out how to use the silly thing LOL) I used the same picture from the original post. Anyhow ... here is the color combination :: the orange combo is two coats of Pure Ice # 1029 'Drive Me Crazy' and the third coat is Sinful Colors # 853 Cloud 9. The blue combo is one coat of Pure Ice # 1094 'Teal Appeal' and a coat of NYC # 140 'Empire State Blue'.  On the big toes .. I started with doing 1/2 the nail with orange then taping it off-centered and swiped the blue ~ I did wait until this morning to add the dots. And that was done by using my trusty bobby pin (which I have one specifically for nail art and I keep it with my polishes) and the Apple Barrel # 20503 White and just dotted 5 small dots along the line. So far it is one of my all time favorite designs (along with the cupcake). LET'S GO TEAM!!!! One step closer to the Super Bowl!!!