Day 14

I'm almost too embarrassed to post this photo!

Tonight Rob and I were invited over to Billie's for dinner and games with her and Keith, and Shauna and Osanin. We had a great manicotti dinner, a couple rounds of dominoes, and a lot of good conversation.

It was a really nice evening with good friends, but do you think I remembered to break out the camera for even one photo? No, I did not!! I could have taken a picture of us girls, a fun girlfriends shot...I could have taken a picture of the great meal, or even one of us playing dominoes...all great photo opportunities...but this photographer left the camera in her purse the entire night!! Lame!! But, I guess there is something to be said for actually enjoying yourself and getting lost in the moment.

So as it turns out, my 365 photo is a shot of the girls, who were so excited to see us when we got home. But more importantly, reported directly to the pantry in order to 'ask' for treats...for what reason, I'm not entirely sure. Not chewing up the furniture while we away, I guess??

Day 13

Here's my latest Hobby Lobby Score!

Tonight after work I swung by the house to pick up the Hobby Lobby gift card I got for Christmas, and Rob. For some reason I thought it was necessary to drag him through the largest hobby, holiday and home decor store in town. He was a trooper though, and didn't really complain at all. I think he was a bit surprised by the sheer volume of 'stuff', especially in the Scrapbooking section. It's been quite some time since I've had the itch to scrap, and this little visit sure made me want to scratch that itch. It made me so happy to go up and down the aisles...paper and ribbons and stickers, oh my!!

So...my treasures were a Paper Studio hearts embossing folder, a pack of 7 Gypsies mini calendar cards and the latest Scrapbooks, Etc. magazine. I will now be inspired!

I also picked up a pack of cute floral mini baking cups, and just for fun...some Valentine Conversation Hearts for the candy dishes at home.

Just a few little items to end my Friday the 13th on a good note!!

Day 12

Today I didn't have to struggle to find something to photograph, and actually had a dilemma on which picture to use, and what to write about.

I choose both.

First, I had a really enjoyable lunch today with one of my oldest and dearest Mel, at the new Twigs Bistro. Thanks to one of my Battalion Chiefs I had a gift card, and since neither one of us had tried it out yet, we decided to meet there for what turned out to be a rather extended and enjoyable lunch. It's always good to catch up...we just need to do it more often!

For the Project 365 photo, however, I was won over by this picture...I mean who doesn't love red and pink, M&M's, and brownies...or in this case blondies??? After work I ran to Target to return a Christmas gift, and in its stead picked up this very cute Valentine place mat. I also wanted to try out this easy peasy Brown Sugar Blondie recipe I had pinned on Pinterest, and thankfully Target also had the main ingredient, the Valentine M&M's, so all was good.

I headed home, made a quick dinner, and got these blondies in the oven. They turned out so festive...and they tasted pretty darn good too.

Can't wait to try more Pinterest recipes!

Day 11

Ahhhh...Happiness is...in this case, a clean desk!! Here is a continuation of those clean slate, fresh start ideas of the New Year.

I took some time this morning to clean off my desk at work. I tidied up a bit, purged old files, threw out unnecessary items, gathered up things that needed to be taken back home, and then actually dusted and scrubbed up the desk and everything on it.

Now for some of you super-neat freaks, this may not even look clean to you...too much going on on the desktop, but trust me, this is a tremendous improvement. I mean there's actually a little room to do some work now, as opposed to the sea of papers formerly occupying the space! And, hopefully this is just the beginning...the clean(er) slate I needed to keep organizing, purging, and updating!

Day 10

Just like usual, I'm a day late (and generally a dollar short). This is not a flashlight, street light, or headlight...yes, it's the light of our moon. This was the glow as seen from my front porch tonight. I say I'm a day late because although it looks like it's entirely full, technically last night was our full moon. I just wish I was less of a novice photographer, or at least knew how to operate my camera on a higher level to capture these type of outdoor, or night time shots more vividly.

I realize this is not a very exciting photo for today's Project 365, but it sort of follows the theme of my day...not too exciting, not much to photograph today.

Day 9

I did some FAC'ing shopping today. No, that's not a metaphor, or a euphemism... it's just me, doing a little shopping for the office - the FAC. As you can see by the looks of my trunk, we are a thirsty group, and a group needing a bit of variety... here's a dozen half-cases to prove it! For us, stocking the fridge with just one or two kinds of soda will simply not do. But that's alright...to each his own. And besides, if we were all the same it would be awful boring, right?

This was just the load from the grocery store with soda, coffee creamer and ice cream bars. Another day this week will be the Costco run for coffee, bottled water and some additional tasty (and yes, unnecessary) snacks foods.

Day 8

This is the day the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24

It's Sunday; A day of rest, A day of worship. And that's exactly what I did...just not in that order. Mom, Rob and I started our day off by attending church service at Faith Assembly. It was the first in a four-part series about living life with God. I hope that I am up (that's figuratively and literally - 6:30 am on Sunday comes mighty early) for the challenge of hearing the other three parts in the series.

It was not only a good way to start the day, by recharging my spiritual batteries so to speak, but also a really good way to start the week...with a positive message, that I'm hoping will help creative a positive attitude the whole week through.

Day 7

Pink sky at night...sailor's delight??

Well, there was definitely pink in the sky tonight. I just happened to pass by the sliding glass door in time to catch a glimpse of this sunset. I didn't know if I could capture how pretty it was with the camera, but thought I would gave it a try. I'm still not sure the picture does it justice, but at least you can really make out the contrast of the colors on the skyline.

Day 6

Boy how times have changed...home on a Friday night, making muffins! I decided to do a little baking after first making a pretty darn good dinner of Chicken Marsala, brussel sprouts and bread sticks...yes, I cheated - the Marsala was a boxed kit from Macaroni Grill, but none the less I cooked it and it was good...and yes - this was the very first time in my life I had brussel sprouts. I have to admit I liked them, but put butter on just about anything and it's edible though!

Anyway, I had a couple VERY ripe bananas and those new muffin tins I have been looking for any excuse to use...so a quick look on the internet for an Banana Oat Muffin recipe, and voila...six delicious muffins...baked on a Friday night!

Day 5

Here she is...my sweet Baylee girl. This is when she is sweetest...just chillin'! This is her nightly ritual, hopping up on the love seat which she believes is her own personal over sized dog bed! I know, I know, she only thinks that because I let her...one spoiled little girl she is!

She is definitely an old girl, set in her ways that's for sure. Bringing Lucy into the house didn't seem to add any spunk to her Eeyore-like attitude. Instead it seems only to be making her fatter, as she tries to constantly steal Lucy's food. She is quite successful at it too...so stealthy, lurking around until she makes her move and then sucks down a dish of food like a Hoover!

Day 4

Or should I say Night 4...Here is what has become our evening ritual. Sometime shortly after dinner, Rob and I slip into our jammies and slippers for a little TV time on the couch...and yes, maybe even a little snuggling.

Both of these particular slippers featured here, as well as Rob's PJ's, are courtesy of Mom...thanks Mom for the cozy Christmas gifts!!

Day 3

Cupcakes, Cupcakes!

For Christmas this year, Mom gave me both a mini muffin pan and a jumbo muffin pan, with some liners. And Billie (shoot, actually Molly...she's such a good shopper) got me a cute little cupcake party set with festive liners and and picks.

I can't wait to get started and try out my new pans. This too is something I want to get back to doing again...not that anyone needs the added calories...but it is a creative outlet, and I love making cupcakes...and they are so delicious. And now thanks to Pinterest, I have lots of new and interesting recipes to try out!!

Day 2

Meet Lucy the Pug. She's a sweet little 4 year old, full of spunk. She's a little bitty runt of a dog, but makes monstrous noises - you would think a St. Bernard was sleeping with us at night! Rob says she's a humble little dog, and I guess she is...doesn't want, or need, or 'ask' for much at all. She's pretty content to just be in your presence, and maybe play with a toy or chew a bone from time to time.

So, for today's Project 365, it's all about our little Lu...

Day 1

So, here it is. Day 1 of {2012} Project 365 + 1. I'm guessing that like last year, I will struggle with what to photograph each day. But that's part of the fun and challenge...looking at life through different eyes, and trying to capture the beauty in the simple or seemingly mundane.

Today is New Year's Day, and Christmas is officially over. Yesterday all of the Christmas decorations were put away, with the exception of the tree...and today the tree came down. These few items are all that remain of Christmas 2011.

Happy New Year

Happy 2012! It's another year, and not to sound cliché, or even like a broken record (see New Year's 2011 Post), it is in fact a clean slate and a fresh start and I plan to make the most of it. With the holidays now in the rearview mirror, I have discovered that I have that yearning again...that yearning to be creative. I wouldn't call them resolutions, but with this fresh start of the new year, there are some things I would like to do, to rediscover, or to put more effort into.

I want to...

♥ Try my hand at Project 365 again for 2012...a picture every day for the entire year. And this year, because it is leap year is actually dubbed Project 365 + 1!

♥ Organize my scrapbooking clutter in order to return to the land of creativity, finishing some outstanding projects, making some cards and scrapbooking new memories.

♥ Blog more often...maybe even every day. This medium puts it all together; the ability to share the pictures that I take, chronicle life for myself as a diary of sorts, as well as for others, and not to mention taking advantage of another outlet for creativity.

♥ Take better care of myself, which means physically, mentally and spiritually. I started down this path at the beginning of 2011, and some pretty amazing things happened. Hopefully 2012 will be a continuation of that journey, but with even more promising results!!

Sadly, I have not blogged in almost an entire year, and so much has happened in my life since then. But there is really no point in looking back, only forward...

So...Welcome 2012...I look forward to all 366 days of you!!