Springtime at Susan's!

I have the greatest job ever!...

Not only do I get to work with flowers, but I get to brainstorm, create and laugh with my sweet friend, Susan!

A breath of spring starts right at the front window at Black-eyed Susan...

Around every corner, you'll see things like this...

this...

and this...

Bunnies and chicks and eggs...oh my! (who couldn't resist a chick with a party hat?!)

the goodness continues with bursts of springtime colors...





perfection!




a cloched nest--so simple and sweet




I'm loving this collie...
(Is it possible to have one of these carrying contraptions made for my kids?!)

I think the only thing that would make my life more perfect would be if Susan got a shop cat!

Until then, I'll settle for this guy, instead!

Happy Spring!!

Frontal nudity Friday...

I took Ellie to the nudist colony-er-- umm... I mean library this morning.

Look what statues were in the courtyard leading up to entrance...

Where in the world would this ever occur? Is she maybe waiting in line at the post office?

She just heard that Wegman's had a sale on frozen yogurt?

"Just a minute, honey, it's almost our turn to make a return at Kohl's."

Participating at a Mommy and Me class, perhaps?! Yikes!

Here's what I say about the whole thing--"Quit letting that kid crawl all over you and put some clothes on already!"

For Hell's sake, people! This is a public library!

Here's the big question of the day: Does this mean I'm a prude because I don't like interacting with my kids while in the nude?

Tubing on Blue Mountain

Two weeks ago, we told the kids to gather their snow gear together because we were going to help someone shovel their driveway...

Brian and I had secretly planned to take them tubing to Blue Mountain in the Poconos...

As far as the weather went, the day seemed picture perfect when we started out. But the farther north we went, it got progressively gloomier and colder...

It took us a half an hour just to find a parking spot! The lines were soooo long and that was frustrating. I should have taken a picture of the sign that said there was an hour wait.

We had a blast! How is it that in all my 40 years, I have never gone tubing?

I never managed to get a self portrait with anyone but Jake! The wind and cold kind of made us all a little discombobulated...

We left around 6:30pm and stopped at a Denny's for dinner...but ended up not staying due to the 1/2 hour wait, (what the?!---it's DENNY'S, people! Could this really be THAT in demand?!)

We finally ended up at Panera Bread for hot soup and their signature mac and cheese...ahhh....pure bliss! This was my pick from the beginning, but had gotten out voted...

This day was definitely a fun memory for our family....

Troubled...

This is driving me bananas!!

But not as much as THIS is!!!

Please pick a season to celebrate already!! (preferably a current one!)

Sincerely,

Bugged on Anvil Lane

Goodbye, old friend

Two weeks ago, without much warning, our dear cat, Mr. Boone, died unexpectantly.

I don't know if it would have been easier to have seen signs that he had a heart condition, and therefore, we would have been able to prepare ourselves that he might not make it...



Regardless of that, he will surely be missed. He was like the "cat-triarch" (the ruler, or head of our family's cat clan). We got him from the Humane Society shortly after we moved to Doylestown. He was almost a year old at the time and already had the makings of being a character...

He was a good egg, through and through...

Case in point--Several years ago, Ellie trimmed the tips of his ears off!!!! I didn't realize this had happened until I came into her room and discovered blood everywhere. I began to "piece" things together (no pun intended) when I found one of the tips of his ears laying on the floor.

I called him, and he came walking in the room like nothing had happend. After some coderizing
and a bit of pain medicine, he was as good as new. (From then on, his one ear was in the shape of a trapezoid).



Although he didn't make many appearances when guests were around, he made up for that when we had family gatherings...


One or two of our Christmas morning pictures usually had one with Mr. Boone in it...He loved checking things out...


No matter what, whenever we read bedtime stories, he would come in the room and hang out with us. I don't know if it was the soothing tones of our voices as we read that attracted him but he rarely missed out on story time.



Whenever a puzzle was being done, or floor project, he liked to be right in the in the middle of the action...




He loved all of us, but had a special bond with Jake. Sometimes, he would wait on the bench in Jake's room until he got home from school. He also slept in his bed most nights...



It's so hard to loose a pet, especially since they become such a part of our family. I wouldn't dream of not having pets, though, just to avoid the pain of losing them when they die. They bring such a richness to our lives, and I grateful for every minute we have with them...

Thanks, buddy, for being such a good friend to us...We love and miss you....

Five for Friday--back in the saddle edition

It feels so good to be blogging again...and you know what else feels good?--

1 . THIS!! Yes! It's true. Signs of impending spring are popping up. This is the definition of delight!

2. On Tuesday morning, at 5:30 am, I awoke to my cat, Charlie, making weird noises that sounded like chirping. It actually woke me up, and that's saying a lot because I'm a super sound sleeper! I opened my eyes, and saw him laying at the end of the bed and noticed that something lay at his feet that measured about 3 inches!!!! It was the ultimate WHAT THE! moment. I totally freaked when I realized it was a dead mouse. Thanks for the gesture, my friend, I don't know how to tell you this, but I don't eat mice. I woke Brian up and insisted that he dispose of it. I wouldn't dream of touching it because I've got this weird phobia of touching things once their dead.

Isn't it ironic that I can't stand the thought of touching this mouse when just a few years ago, I actually rescued a baby field mouse? What is my reasoning, I ask you?!

Edit note: this isn't the actual photo of the mouse, but a picture I found, rather.

3. Ellie has been doing hippotherapy at a local equestrian center for the past few months. It's costing us a butt load of money, but this kind of therapy is great at strengthening her core, which she desperately needs. Her smile is this big each week at her sessions with "Bear".


4. I recently went to a Chinese New Year party at my friend Olivia's house. Don't ask me why I'm totally on the Asian invite circuit, but I'm thrilled to have friends who know how to cook authentic Asian cuisine.
.
This was the hostess gift I brought with me. I wanted to incorporate oranges because they signify good luck and prosperity. What's even better is that I got that square vase at a thrift store for next to nothing!

5. Aren't we all searching for sunbeams? This picture just soothes my soul.

...And then I turned 40!

To celebrate my 40th birthday this year, (Feb 2), I got by with a little help from my friends!

Since Rob (Heather's husband) and I share the same birthday, it has become our tradition to celebrate our birthdays doing something special as couples...and this year was no exception!

My mom was able to come and watch the kids for us so we could go to NYC overnight...

We went to Pongsri Thai (that and Rain are my favorite thai restaurants in the city)

Check out this great window seat we got!

Then it was on to see Memphis on Broadway...I was a little skeptical (even though Memphis has earned a few Tony's) because I'm not a big rhythm and blues kind of gal...but it turned out to be one heck of a show...

I love going to Broadway shows! It never gets boring for me...I think being part of a broadway company would be the coolest thing EVER!!!

This review for Montego Glover is smack on!


Times Square at night...




It was so much fun walking around after the show...Heather and I kept getting silly with these self portraits...I'm not sure why it is that we always hunch down but this picture is the best one of the bunch. At one point, I was laughing so hard that you couldn't even detect that I had eyes!

We stopped at Starbucks for hot chocolate and ended up staying for over an hour talking about everything under the sun from books we've read to crazy, co-joined twins and stuff like weird obsessions people have...(I.E. people who eat their own hair follicles, toilet paper)...Good times!


The two employees that worked there found out it was my birthday and gave me a free hot chocolate and cupcakes...It was such a sweet gesture...Who says New Yorkers are jerks?

We stayed overnight in the Crown Plaza and woke up to this rain/ice/sleet storm. (P.S. the ground hog DID NOT see his shadow!) Our kids ended up having a snow day back home because the roads were so treacherous. Fortunately for us, by the time we were ready to drive home, it was starting to melt.

We did a session at the Manhattan temple which was really nice, especially since my dear friend, Angela, who still lives in the city, was able to join us.

Dang it! Why didn't I get a picture of us outside of the temple?! grrrrrrr

We had a family birthday party the next day, since we didn't get home until fairly late on Wednesday.

My mom made a delicious dinner of steak and roasted potatoes and fired up the candles on this bonfire er...um...I mean cake. That's 40 big ones, folks, in case you were wondering! I think the heat singed my nose hairs!

When I asked my mom what kind of cake it was before I cut into it. She

said it was just "some store bought cake". Then she handed me a box and said that if there was any left over, I could store it in that. Printed on the box was "Smith Island Bakery"...which has a special meaning to us. She and I had this cake when we went on our trip to Virginia this past year. This is the 9 layer cake that we loved....It was such a wonderful surprise that she made arrangements to have one made for me and delivered....I've got a great mom!


So there you have it! I've entered into a new club...(not sure I'm loving saying I'm forty something, now...)

New York Trade Show

I was so excited when Susan told me a few months ago that she usually takes someone from her staff with her to the New York Trade Show. Being that I'm now one of her staff peeps, I invited myself.. er um...I mean, agreed to go with her.


Since Heather was already planning to fly out to Philadelphia for a visit anyway, when she found out that she could go to the show as well, she flew out a day earlier so she could attend.



We met at Susan's house at 7:15am on Monday, Feb 1 (with plans to drive into the city--thanks to my insisting that 'tis less of a hassle to drive in than take the train). I'm usually only the passenger when Brian and I drive in, and it always seems so effortless and easy. Go figure!

When we finally made it through the Lincoln Tunnel, we had already been on the road for about 3 1/2 hours! (taking 2 wrong turns, and traffic put us majorly behind schedule!) This trip should take 1 hour 45 minutes TOPS!

Can you tell in the picture that Susan is giving me the stink eye?

Here's what time it was as we were walking into the show....

(Alright, so maybe driving in wasn't such a swell idea)

But Oh!--the day we had!! There were so many fabulous things to see...Like these coffee sack covered chairs for starters!! Could you just die?! I love things made out of old feed sacks, too...

I think it was at this moment that the official case of the greeds set in!

This booth was one of my favorites...I love all the details they used to merchandise their products such as the paperwhites and fresh quince branches...

This booth was another one of our favorites...

These tee towels just scream HAPPY! Look at those gorgeous colors and prints?!

I found more than a few things to gush over...

This table cloth was one of them...

When did I officially become the poultry guru?

I love the way this miniature dress form has a skirt made from vintage receipts...

This container booth was such a breath of fresh air...Just to see how these vibrant flowers were displayed was a gift to the eyes...

This unusual variety of dianthus was too cute for words!

And this is so simple yet sweet...

One final self portrait and we were on our way back to the suburbs...

Fortunately, we had better luck on our drive back and made good time...

It was fun to recap all the sights and sounds from the day together as we were heading home...
I have such fun with these two kindred friends!

Thanks for letting us tag along, Susan!