Shazam! Mayberry Days 2009

I am so frustrated this week. I've been trying to post this post for days and I'm finally getting a minute to do it. I had such a great time on my trip and I've wanted to share it.

As I mentioned in my post on Friday, Friday afternoon DH and I took off for an adventure, minus the babies, to Mt. Airy, North Carolina which is the birth place of Andy Griffith. Mt. Airy aka "Mayberry" is the town that The Andy Griffith Show is based on.

Every year the town has what is known as "Mayberry Days". This week I'm going to be sharing pictures and observations about our trip to Mayberry Days. I have so much information to share I quickly realized that I just can't do it justice to post all of this in one post. It would be a novel.

We got to Mt. Airy late Friday. We checked into our hotel and then went and grabbed a quick bite. When we got back to our hotel, there were people playing music in the lobby. It was one of the groups that used to play with Andy Griffith in the show. It was neat to see so many people hanging out listening to the music and many of them had t-shirts with the Andy Griffith show.

The next morning we got up and went to the Mayberry Days parade. As you can see below, These are some of the "tribute artistis" (I love how they call themselves that, it is so sweet) that we met.

Here I am with Barney Fife.

We can't forget Aunt Bee.

And Ernest T. Bass. Fortunately he was well behaved and didn't throw any rocks.































I've gotta run out this morning, but I will post more on this trip. We had a blast!

Happy Tuesday!

Gotta run out the door this a.m., but I will be posting later about my trip to Mayberry Days. Hope you are having a great day!

In leu of Fabulous Favorite Friday, Gomer says hey!

Well, today is the big day. DH and I are leaving town for an overnight trip without the kids. My parents are coming to babysit/house sit/dog sit. We are headed to Mt. Airy, NC to visit the hometown of Andy Griffith for their annual Mayberry Days celebration. DH found out about this over the summer and said we were going. We are big fans of the Andy Griffith show and we watch it whenever it comes on TV Land.

I'm nervous about leaving the kids for the first time, but I am hoping we will have a good time. My understanding is that the biggest star of the show that will be attending is the actress who played Barnie's girl friend, Thelma Lou. There are supposed to be some other folks who were on the show as well. It should be an interesting adventure. I don't know anything about Mt. Airy, but I'm looking forward to exploring the area.

Unfortunately we've looked at the weather forecast and they are calling for rain. I am hoping that it doesn't rain the whole time we are there. I don't look forward to trudging around in my Wellies.

So, because I'm headed out of town I'm taking this Friday off from my Fabulous Favorite Friday post. Next week I hope to have some fun pictures and stories to share from the road trip. So, y'all have a great weekend. And I'll tell Gomer y'all said "Hey". LOL

Chic on the Cheap

I've been having a great time lately looking at magazines and on websites at the latest fashion trends. With the weather changing it has inspired me to add some new things to my wardrobe, but I haven't wanted to put out a lot of money.

I love it that leggings and scarves are in this fall. So, I decided to take the plunge and get two new scarves yesterday when I had change to stop by a Forever 21 store. If you don't have a Forever 21 in your area then you can check them out on the web. They sell some great accessories that are reasonably priced if you are looking to get something chic on the cheap. http://forever21.com

I am such a fan of traditional colors and patterns. So when I saw this red plaid scarf I knew I had to get it. I can see this pop of red brightening up my fall and winter outfits. I love the long scarves like this because they can be worn long or easily shortened.

This scarf is called the plaid fleece crinkled scarf. Not only will this be fashionable, but it will help keep my neck warm. Fasionable and functional. You've gotta love that.

The next scarf I bought was this Houndstooth triangle scarf. I have to admit that triangle scarves scare me a bit because I never feel like I can wear them right, but I love, love, love the black and white houndstooth pattern so I decided to throw caution to the wind and give it a try. I really like how this scarf has the little tassel detailing around the edge of it. I find myself wearing a lot of black t-shirts with jeans in the winter, so I thought this shot of white and black would be a nice way to spruce up my t-shirts.



My final purchase at Forever 21 was this necklace and two pair of earrings set. I have to say that this picture that I got off the website does not do this little necklace justice. This little owl really looks better in person. It comes in silver, which I purchased, as well as gold. I find myself wearing more silver jewelry so I thought this would go with more of my outfits. The earrings are a pair of silver balls and phaux diamonds.

I haven't decided what outfit I'm wearing this owl necklace with, but I can't wait to put it on and agive it a try. I thought this little guy was so cute.



As far as leggings go, I have one pair of plain black leggings I got at Target last year, but I'd love to find something new that could be paired with a jean skirt I own. I think leggings are so great for fall. You never know how the weather is going to be so leggings are a comfortable way to keep warm if necssary, or feel like you can breathe.

So, that is what is going on in my neck of the woods. Hope you are having a great day!

MOPS Life on Planet Mom Space Decorations

Since my life has been all consumed with MOPS lately, I thought it would be fun to post pictures of the awesome decorations that we have for our "Life on Planet Mom" theme this year. The ladies in my group have done an awesome job.

Back during the summer our Wal Mart did away with their fabric section. I was able to find this awesome planet fabric and star fabric marked down. I bought a bunch of it thinking we would use it for something. One of the girls in our group is awesome at sewing and made great table runners for all of our tables with it.

I also hit the jackpot at the Target dollar spot because they had inflatable aliens, planets and space shuttles. I got those for use to use as well.

Our handy hospital gal did the centerpieces and did a fabulous job with them. She was so nervous, but they turned out great. Planet centerpieces certainly aren't easy. We have four different tables for each of our groups. The little sticks with the cards on them are the names of our four different discussion groups.

So, that is what is going on in my neck of the woods today. Hope you are having a great day!

Fabulous Favorite Friday

Happy Friday everyone. Oh my, I am so tired it is hard to even type. I have been stressed and tired this week. Today was the first day meeting since I have taken over my Mother's of Preschooler's (MOPS) group. The meeting was a success and we are looking forward to a fun year. If you aren't familiar with MOPS, please check them out and find a group in your area. It is so much fun and a wonderful resource for mom's.

After having a long week, the thing I want is a nice hot bubble bath and a good bottle of wine to sip on. So today I thought I'd feature this wine as my Fabulous Favorite Friday pick.

About a month or two ago I was in Target and decided to get a bottle of wine. It was the first time I was going to have alcohol since I'd had the baby because I'd stopped nursing. As I was looking at the available wines in the wine section I saw this one. It was priced under ten dollars and seemed to have a description I would like. So, I bought a bottle and gave it a try.

Now I'm not going to tell you this has a wonderful bouquet and earthy aromas, or that the berries are grown by monks in the south of France. Or that you need to go out and buy it because Oprah drink this wine. Hmm, maybe something cool like that would be good for this post. LOL

I liked this wine because I am a red wine drinker and I found this a great wine to have a glass in the evening. It was an easy red wine to sip while you are watching tv. I know there are a lot of folks that don't care for red wine but if you do then you might want to give this one a try.

I thought you might want to hear the description give to this wine. "The 2007 Red Bicyclette Merlot showcases aromas and flavors of red fruit jam with blackberry and cherry and a smooth mid-palate. This medium-bodied wine has a good depth and finishes strong with a light vanilla flavor from the oak aging."

It is suggested that you can pair this wine with "a variety of meat and seafood dishes, from roast beef and stew to grilled salmon." I could definitley see this wine complimenting any of those meals. With fall coming and folks cooking things that are hearty, this would be a great wine to try.

If you are looking to try a new wine I'd suggest checking out this one. There is a place on their website where you can plug in your zip code to find out a place near you where it is sold. http://www.redbicyclette.com/index.asp

So, that is all from my neck of the woods. Hope you have a great weekend!

Later Gator

Have a big MOPS meeting this a.m. and will post later today. Happy Friday everyone!

Motorola,you are dead to me. Samsung, here I come!

I am so excited that after two years of cell phone hell, I can now bury my Pink Motorola Razor cell phone. Dh has also had a Razor (not pink of course) and they have hands down been the worst cell phones we've ever owned. They have the worst batteries I've ever seen. And for the last three months dh's phone has been dying on him at random times. Ithas been so frustrating dealing with these phones. So, so long Motorola. I don't think we will ever own another one of your phones again.

I have seriously hated this phone so much I told dh that I was going to run it over with my Highlander and put the video on You Tube. He said no. He takes all the fun out of getting a new phone. LOL

So, my new phone is the snazzy Samsung Alias 2. As you can see in the picture, it has a keyboard for texting. I don't text, so that is just a nice, fancy thing to have. If money were no object I'd add that and Internet access, but unfortunately we don't have Bill Gates stash in the bank so no texting for now. But, this phone does act as a flip phone so I'll be using that part of phone mostly.

The thing that is so hard when I get a new phone is learning the new phone rings and who is calling me. I really like having that feature so that I don't miss important calls like when Rachel Zoe calls me to ask me what I think Anne Hathaway should be wearing on the red carpet. Or when the Real Housewives of New York call to say that Kelly just went off again on Bethany. It is the important calls like that I just can't miss.

So, that is what is going on in my neck of the woods. Hope you are having a good hump day.

Mums the word

Well, even though we may not have reached fall on the calendar it certainly feels like fall is here. I'm enjoying the nice days with lo humidity, but it certainly is a challenge to know what to wear.

Mums and pumpkins have started to appear in the stores. I love the colors of fall and the new batches of plants that come out. I've missed having plants outside for the last year, but it has been too tough with the little ones to do anything. I feel like things are finally started to settle in a groove as much as they can. So this weekend I decided to take the plunge and buy some mums for the front porch. I also was so excited to make it to this fabulous garden center near us where I bought a planted I'd been wanting for a while. I love it because it hangs on your mailbox. I'm always wanted to spruce up the mailbox and this seemed like an easy way to do that. I purchased small mums to go in each planter and I hope to add some pansies too. By the way, did you know that pansies are great plants to buy because they can last the winter? If you get a warm spell in your area they will perk right up.

Every time I see pansies I will think fondly of dh's granny who we sadly lost a year ago in August. She loved flowers and a few years ago I went and bought her some pansies to put in her window boxes because she hadn't gotten anything for them. She loved those pansies and was so excited that they lasted all winter long. Even when snow was on the ground those panies were blooming beautifully. The window boxes were protected by the roof over hang so they were very happy in that spot. They were some of the most beautiful pansies and I was so glad they made her happy that winter. Every fall after that she insisted on having pansies in those window boxes. So, I think we will get some pansies in honor of granny.

Have you seen the Halloween pansies you can get? I am hoping that I can track some down. They have black and orange pansies and they are so pretty. They look really great together.

A lot of times I end up buying the yellow pansies and mums because I've found they show up better from the road. But is is hard not to buy one of every color out there.

So, that is all from my neck of the woods. I hope you are having a beautiful fall Monday.

Fabulous Favorite Friday

9/11

I know that for a lot of people, today is a day of rememberance and sadness. It is hard to believe that such an awful thing happened that affected so many lives. My heart goes out to the many families across our nation that were impacted in such a tragic way on 9/11. I know that as long as I will be alive, 9/11 will be a day that my thoughts and prayers will be with those folks. For my generation, it is our "day that will live in infamy". So, I felt it was only right to post a few words on how I'm feeling this 9/11.

Fabulous Favorite Friday

Can I just say it feels so good to be back blogging. I have missed it so much. I've felt great being able to get things posted this week. I've always wanted this blog to be a way to connect with folks about similar interests and to share cool things I find. I felt that a piece of me was missing when I didn't get to post. So happy days are here again!

Today I'm excited to share a new find that I've tried recently that I'm featuring as my Fabulous Favorite Friday pick today.
I think it was about two weeks ago in the Sunday paper there was a coupon for these new Yoplait Delights. They are 100 calories and looked yummy from the picture. I have to admit that I am not a fan of chocolate flavored yogurts, but I was delighted to see that these came in a lemon flavor. I decided to use my coupon to give them a try and I was not disappointed. I felt like I was having dessert for breakfast. As the name aptly says, these are truly delights. The packages have four containers in them. I think next time I may have to buy two or three packs to get me through the week. LOL

I have to admit I'm not a huge milk drinker and so I've been trying to incorporate more yogurt and cheese into my diet. So I'm glad to find these to help me with that.

I discovered when I was looking for a picture of these that you can print a dollar off coupon from the Yoplait website so if you want to give them a try yourself, go print off a coupon. I believe the were two dollars and some change at Wal Mart. http://www.yoplaitusa.com/

So, that is all from my neck of the woods. Here is wishing you a fun weekend. See ya next week!

Top Chef

So I've started watching this season's Top Chef in Las Vegas. I had never watched a season of Top Chef before, I had only caught reruns on the weekends. This summer I watched the Top Chef Master's the whole way through and I got hooked, so I knew I wanted to watch this season from the beginning.

I just love this show and seeing these chefs go through all the challenges. The thing I like about the show is that these chefs are all very creative and dedicated to their field. I am amazed at how they can whip together meals in such short time frames. My idea of a quick meal is some spaghetti and Ragu sauce thrown together. And if I'm feeling really fancy I'll throw in some oregano and basil.

I'm having a hard time rooting for any one person because there are so many great chefs. I like Kevin, Eli, Jennifer, Bryan, and Michael. Those are the top folks that come to mind. They seem to be performing well consistently.

So are any of you watching Top Chef and if so, who are you cheering on to win?

Back to school tips

Yesterday was a hard day for me because my son Sawyer started his first day of preschool. He did a fabulous job and it made it a little easier for me. I know he is going to love exploring new things and making new friends.

Two things I did to get ready for school were I came up with two unique ways to label his stuff. His teacher asked us to get a notebook in his school supplies. She uses this as a way to communicate with parents and to let us know how his day went and what he did. I decide to decorate his little notebook. Every time we get pictures done at Portrait Innovations, I end up with way too many wallet size pictures. So, I decided to put one of those to good use by using that to decorate the front of the notebook. I figured that would make it easier for the teacher in the beginning as she is learning the names and faces of the kids. Also, if she ever has a substitute that would help them out as well.

The other labeling project I did was to make little tags that would label his lunch box and book bag. I have a Cricut die cut machine and I cut the labels and shapes with that. If you don't have a die cut machine you could easily cut out a square of simple shape to make this. At Wal Mart in the office section they have a small package of laminating sheets that they say you can use to laminate business cards. They don't require a laminating machine and are pretty much peel and stick. I used those to laminate the tags so they would last us. Once I did that I used a hole punch to make a hole in the tag so we could then attach it to the backpack and lunch box.

I hope you are having a great day in your neck of the woods.

Fall is here and my thoughts are random like leaves falling...

Well, today is the official first day of school in our area so I feel that fall is here. I'm sad that fall has come so quickly, but also a little happy about it. I'm hoping that with our scheduling changing it will allow me to start blogging again more frequently.

I believe I've mentioned this before, but I just took over as the coordinator of my Mother's of Preschoolers (MOPS) group. If you don't know about MOPS and you have young children you have to go and find out if there is a group in your area. It is a wonderful resource for young mothers and it has been such a blessing to me. It has taken a lot of my time and a lot of work to get ready for our new year, but I know it will be worth it.

I am enjoying seeing all the great fall decorations and fashions in the stores. If you love Halloween as much as I do, you've got to go into Michael's and check out their Halloween decorations. They have some super cute things and the prices aren't bad. Two things that stuck out to me were a pack of fun wine labels that had spooky sayings on them. The other were some fun stickers that you could put on plastic cups and you could write your name on them. I believe they may have had a pirate theme. I don't know if I"ll do any type of Halloween party, but I am keeping Michael's in mind just in case.

I've also started looking at Halloween costumes for Sawyer. Logan will get to wear Sawyer's pumpkin costume. It is just too cute for him not to wear it. Sawyer is not big on things going on his head, so it should be a challenge. I saw an adorable dinosaur costume, but he wasn't thrilled with the head. So, I will keep my eyes peeled for that.

So, that is what is going on here. I'm excited to share later this week some new things I've recently discovered and tried.

I hope you are having a great day in your neck of the woods!