Best Christmas Gift EVER!

My dad was a Marine and he volunteered for the Vietnam War. He was sprayed with Agent Orange and got Leukimia. He came home with it and met me for the first time when I was 6 months old. My Mom was so brave and took such good care of me and then later took such loving good care of Dad. I had 8 years with him before he died. I was lucky....would give anything to have had him longer but the time I had was precious and memorable and a miracle. I was very lucky to have him as my Daddy!

In addition to being a Marine, he was also an accountant and a jeweler / gemologist. He knew how to make jewelry and cut diamonds and any other jewel. I will never forget one night when I was little, Mom and Dad had me come in their room and sit on the bed. Dad had his hand behind his back and he brought it out with the most GINORMOUS bandage on his thumb. He had cut the end of this thumb off while cutting a diamond. They were able to fix it but that has always stuck with me.

In addition to being able to make jewelry, he also had a beautiful eye for other pieces. He bought my Mom a 2 carat tourmaline. So for Christmas, Mom pulled that ring out along with another sapphire ring she had and combined them for my Christmas present. She wanted me to have a piece of both of them. She found a jeweler that made an original piece and can I say how much I cried and how bad my hands were shaking when I opened this gift up.....it means soooo much to have them both on my hand representing the family we had and the relationship I have with my Mom today! I love them both so much and I know that Daddy is smiling with what Mom was able to create.....Love you Mom and Dad!

The center tourmaline and setting is the original that Dad gave Mom and the sapphires were added from her ring. They did an amazing job....WOW!

The Sound of Music

Just had to say how much I love this movie! It is on right now and Maria has just arrived and met the children and they put the frog in her pocket.....why can't they make movies like this anymore?

Gotye

I can't remember where I first saw this video....but it is gaining steam. They are now playing this song on my fave XM stations and then Dooce just posted it too. I love this song. As Dooce said, give it to 1:35 for it to kick in. I like his look and I like his voice very much and want to hear more from him. His name is pronounced "Gore-tee-yeah". The girl in the video is named Kimbra. Love her voice too. I don't have info on her yet and her music but I will be checking it out. New music makes me happy!

Breville Mini-Pie Maker

I can so totally visualize my cousins making mini-pies with their kids and coming up with cool recipes and just having a blast with this! I got my Mom the Breville Mini-Pie Maker for Christmas. Picked it up from Williams-Sonoma with the mini-pie cookbook and pie lifter. She got it early so mini-pies could be made as presents for the neighbors!

We tried it tonight. We made Banana Caramel pies. They turned out great! Pie dough for the bottom and pastry dough on the top. AWESOME and so much fun. We have some tweaking to do but I will be posting pictures next time. I tried to take pics and didn't realize the battery in my camera was dead. UGH!

Here is what it looks like:


It is really neat....you can make savory or sweet with so many toppings and crust cutouts.....they are the perfect size! Super fun for entertaining or just for dinner!

R.I.P. Extreme Makeover-Home Edition

I just read yesterday where they have cancelled the show. That is sad....it's a great family oriented show that should stay on the air. I love it and I have to schedule when I am going to watch it. This show makes me weep....it is the "I am not going to cry, I am not going to cry" show and then I fail miserably. If I have to go to work the next day, then nope...can't watch it. I hate that I am not a graceful cryer....I do not look like this when I cry...not the lonely tear drop with no makeup smudge....nope....not me:

This is pretty much more like it:

I love the joy and happiness and relief these families get. I am going to miss the rallying cry of "MOVE THAT BUS!".

Christmas Potty!!!!

I seriously can't believe I am posting this but I am so happy for Christmas Potty!! Years ago we had to replace the original toilets in the house. They were old and leaky and I replaced more flapper tank balls than I care to remember. Went shopping and found the "pressure assist" toilets. Basically I have called them the "air tank" toilets because instead of water in the back, there are two big air tanks. They have been wonderful for several years now BUT mine died. No pressure in the tanks and of course, the company that made them went out of business years ago so finding replacement tanks....not happening! We had the name of some wonderful plumbers who have done a lot of work in our neighborhood and they replaced the bad. I have had no working bathroom for a week and now all is happy happy joy joy! No traveling downstairs...I am all set! Gotta thank Mom for the Christmas present and the decorations! This is just silly!


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Explain Porcupine Sounds to a Toddler - Good Luck!

Okay.....so I never had a reason to put this thought in my brain...what sound does a porcupine make? Explain that to a toddler....you teach them dog sounds, cat sounds, duck sounds, cow sounds.....now throw porcupine at them and see what happens!

For Mom!

Because she knows why.....love u Mom...so proud of you! Thank You! Love you very much! :o)

Calgary Teddy Bear Toss

This is so cool! This is the annual Teddy Bear Toss at a Calgary Hitmen game.....they scored over 25,000 stuffed animals for children at local hospitals....it was 2,000 more than last year!! How awesome!! I would go to a hockey game to throw a teddy bear for that!