The end of November

Man, this long weekend sure went by fast. It's ending now that means that November is ending too. (sigh) Now, my birthday month is ending and I have to go back to work tomorrow. (double sigh). That's OK though, cause now I get to start MY CHRISTMAS MONTH! LOL!

I've already pulled out my favorite book How Murray Saved Christmas by Mike Reiss to take to school tomorrow. Do you know this book? Santa gets hurt and Murray, the Jewish diner owner, has to deliver the Christmas presents. LOL!

We also have to start planning for our annual trip on The Polar Express. That means we put the chairs in aisles like a train and read the book to the kids while they drink hot chocolate and eat cookies. LOL!

A couple of years ago I had a student that insisted to his mother that we REALLY were going on the REAL Polar Express. He told her all about how I had gone online and bought the tickets. LOL! (I designed and printed them ) This year I have his little brother. Somehow, I don't think he will be as easily fooled.

I finally got the new tags put on my car this morning. The old ones expired on the 15th. LOL! I had been riding around with the new one on the seat beside me in case I got pulled over. LOL! Trust me, with the way I drive, it's a miracle I didn't get pulled over! Anyway, I went out this morning determined to get the new tags on. I took two different screwdrivers and a butter knife with me cause I couldn't remember what I used the last time I had to change the tags. LOL! (It's so much easier when they just give you the little stickers!) It turns out the the screwdriver I threw into my purse at the last minute "just in case" was the one I needed.

It's supposed to rain so I pulled the car up to the top of the parking garage so that it would be outside and the rain could help wash some of the dirt off of it. LOL! Yeah, lets see how much luck I have remembering that when I go out in the morning and can't find my car! So far no rain, just lots of clouds and wind. The sky is getting darker though I sure hope it's not raining when I have to go to work in the morning!

Today's wordart is for everyone (like me) that needs to explain to Santa why they just couldn't be good this year. You can get it here

Now, I need to go concentrate on the football game. Miami is currently beating St. Louis 13 -9!

Football

Well, I just watched Miami lose to NC State. BOO! Sorry, NC people, but even when I lived there I didn't pull for NC State.

Have you been hitting the sells this weekend? I haven't. haha! Miami is crowded enough on a normal day, I have no desire to fight even bigger crowds at the mall. I usually do most of my shopping online anyway. It may not be as exciting as the Black Friday sells, but it's much easier!

When Miami hosted the Superbowl in 2007, the traffic was horrible. Everyone came for the game and wanted to stay on the beach. They all arrived by the Friday before the game and the traffic was horrible! It took me forever just to get home from work that day and I made sure I walked anywhere else I needed to go! I was happy that it rained on everyone during the game. LOL!

I said then that when the Superbowl came back to Miami I would be taking a vacation somewhere else that week. LOL! Looks like I've got until 2010 to plan that trip. LOL!

Anyway, today's word art is for all the shoppers out there. You can pick it up here

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

The morning after

Well, after too much food, too many bottles of wine, a sunset sail around the bay and a very late night I had painters outside my window at 8:30 this morning. As soon as they break for lunch I'm going back to bed. LOL!

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving surrounded by the best friends a person can have. There weren't even any major food disasters. The smoke alarm only went off once. LOL!

Years ago, when I still lived in North Carolina, one of my friends decided she was going to cook dinner for four of us. Since I am totally hopeless near kitchen appliances, I watched football with the guys while she worked in the kitchen. She was so proud of herself for planning a special meal and wanted so badly for everything to be perfect. She searched for the perfect recipes and set a beautiful table. Most of the recipes she found served 8 people and there were only four of us. So, she very cleverly cut all the ingredients in half and then proceeded to cook the meal at half the temperature for half the time. I'm not kidding! It was way worse than any thing I've ever tried to cook. We ended up ordering pizza.

I hope that your Thanksgiving was as wonderful as mine was and that you've added more special memories into your book of life. Have a great "day after" and make sure you pick up today's wordart here

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you are all having a wonderful day! It's a beautiful day here! I'm about to head out to spend the day with my wonderful rag-tag group of friends that serve as my extended family. It should be an interesting day! Fortunately, everyone knew better than to ask me to cook something!

I bet someone will have holiday pictures that match this wordart and I would love to see them! You can download the wordart here...

http://www.mediafire.com/?mctymgygfxn

The fun weather is back!

The cold days have gone and the beautiful warm weather has returned. The last two days we've had highs in the 70's. Tonight it was warm enough to walk to Oliver's an enjoy sitting at an outside table with my friends. We talked about everything and nothing at the same time. Those are always the best conversations!

It was while laughing about everyone's Christmas plans that I decided to share today's wordart. It's funny how "going home" can still bring out the child and our childhood insecurities in all of us.

Problems with the 4shared link so let's try getting it here....

http://www.mediafire.com/?undxy6m122m

We had our Thanksgiving lunch at school and it was a big hit. I took in the candy bars I made using the wrapper I shared with you and they were a big hit. If you didn't get the wrapper you can still download it here. Big thanks to April for the great Thanksgiving kit I used to make it!

Speaking of April...She's got a great sale on her graphics from now to the end of November. Her kits are all 35% off at Scrap It Sassy Head over there and check it out!

Today you get the fourth and final Thanksgiving Bragbook page. I hope you've enjoyed these and are able to use them for your pictures. I would love to see what you do with them and I know April would too. Grab the BB page here



Here's another page I made using April's Seashore Wedding Kit. Doesn't it make all of you that are having cold winter weather wish you were in Miami? LOL!



**SAMMY**
I'm really sorry you had trouble downloading yesterday's wordart. Try this link and let me know if it still doesn't work for you...

http://www.mediafire.com/?1xrzymtdyx9

OK, I have to go and I can't make any promises about what or when I'll post over the next couple of days so stay safe and enjoy your holiday!

Mondays -YUCK!

As if Mondays aren't bad enough---this was a Monday before a holiday. The kids were all excited because they know it's a short week and we aren't really sticking to schedule. On Wednesday, we're going out to the courtyard to dazzle the other grade levels and teachers with our beautiful singing. We've been practicing 5 Thanksgiving songs for a couple of weeks now and they know the songs, BUT when we actually walked out to the courtyard to practice they just stood there and forgot to sing. Then they all forgot their left from their right during the "Turkey Trot" song and put the wrong wing in. The "Turkey Trot" song is the hokey pokey with turkey parts. LOL!

Tomorrow we are having a special luncheon for the the teachers in my building and that should be fun. Afterward, we're having a tasting party for the kids in my class. I had one pie---the only pie that was donated in the frig and someone STOLE it. I shouldn't be too surprised, it's not the first time something like this has happened. It's still sad though.

My day was the inspiration for today's wordart and you can download it here...Crazy

It's also time for the third Happy Thanksgiving Kit free Bragbook page. Hope you like it!

Pick it up here...Thanksgiving BB part 3
Come by tomorrow for the last page.

Monday

This is a three day work week for me and I am so happy about that. My friend Susan called to say that she won't be at school tomorrow because she is in the hospital. She has an infection and it looks like they just want to keep her over night to make sure the medicines are working. So, today's wordart is being given in her honor. She is a BIG animal lover! The cat and dog version are in the same file and you can download them here...

Dog/Cat hug

It's also day two of the four day Thanksgiving bragbook download. Hope you're enjoying these pages! April's Thanksgiving graphics are so cute! I think this is my favorite page you can pick it up here...

Thanksgiving BB page 2


I thought you might also like to see another page I made using April's Seashore Wedding Kit. It's the walkway to the pool area where I live.



Have a great day!

Scary Times

My friend, Betty, got home from work the other day to find her husband waiting for her outside. He told her that their house had been broken into and they needed to wait there for the police. It turns out, that he had gotten a phone call from the alarm company letting him know that the alarm in their house was going off. He went home to check it out and found a bike on the carport that didn't belong to them and a window screen off the the window. Then he saw someone inside the house move past the window. He called the police.

The crook left the house and tried to get away on his bike. Leo followed him in his car while talking to the police on the phone. The guy didn't take much, but he started throwing away what he did have so that he wouldn't have it on him---a laptop, some watches and other jewelry. Apparently, he didn't know the neighborhood very well because he turned down a deadend street and the police were able to catch and arrest him.

Apparently, the guy took his time inside the house even though the alarm was going off because Betty said that he had gone through all of their drawers and cabinets. I'm so glad that things turned out the way they did and that Leo was smart enough not to go inside the house. The world can be a scary place sometimes!

Well, that's enough doom & gloom for now! Let's move on to better things. Today brings the first of four bragbook page downloads using graphics fromApril the Scrapaholic's Happy Thanksgiving Kit. Make sure you come back tomorrow for part 2! Here's the download link...


Thanksgiving BB part 1


You should also check out April's Seashore Wedding Kit. It's adorable! Here's a page I made using a photo I had of one of the lifeguard stands on the beach. I just love those colorful stands!



I've also got today's wordart. It's a request from from Dina who has three boys that are always up to something! LOL! You can pick it up here...

Blame

Disappointment

Well, I saw Twilight and I am so sad. I know that the books are ALWAYS better than the movies, but they really didn't do a very good job with this movie. They left out lots of things and put in things that didn't need to be there. The actors were all too stiff. Of course, Edward did get to say some of the best lines from the book and the theater full of teen girls screamed everytime he did. LOL!

I'm glad I saw the movie and I'm sure I'll go see the others when they come out, but I feel sorry for the guy the went on Ebay and paid $200 for opening night tickets. He got ripped off! I have to say that the best part of the night was dinner at The Cheesecake Factory after the movie. I love their bacon & shrimp club. Yummy!

Now, I guess it's time to move on from Twilight and think about the holidays. Starting tomorrow, you can drop by here and get one of four bragbook pages that I've put together using graphics from April the Scrapolic. Here's a preview for you...



And since we're thinking about Thanksgiving, we have to think about shopping on Black Friday. LOL! So, here's the link to today's wordart for all the Thanksgiving shoppers out there...

Eat & Shop

Now, I'm going to bed. Enjoy your weekend

Friday, payday & Twilight!

I should be sleeping now but I just can't fall asleep for some reason. Maybe I'm excited because not only is it Friday but it's a payday for me and I get to go see Twilight!!! Plus next week is a short week thanks to the Thanksgiving holiday. Does life get better than this?

Speaking of Thanksgiving...we're having a luncheon at school on Tuesday and since I can't cook I'm bringing the candy bars. LOL! I used April the Scrapaholic's Thanksgiving kit to make these. I just love this graphic set! Make sure you stop by Scrap it Sassy and check it out if you haven't already.



Thanks to April, I am able to give this wrapper to you as a freebie. I hope you'll be able to use it. Please stop by April's blog and thank her for the awesome graphics! Here's your download link...

Thanksgiving SOE

I've also got some bragbook pages April is letting me give to you next week so make sure you stop by here on Sunday to pick up the first one!

This is my last pre-Twilight post. The next time I make a post here I will have seen the movie! YIPEE! So here's the last Twilight quote---for now. LOL!

Twilight

Enjoy your day and have a great weekend!

It's cold in Miami!

When I woke up on Wednesday morning it was 58 degrees outside and I don't think it warmed up any higher than 70. I know it sounds silly to complain about that kind of weather, but I gotta tell you---it was cold!

Everyone at school was wearing long sleeves or even sweaters. The kids showed up wearing gloves and winter coats. Again, that may sound silly, but like I said---it was cold! Plus, we don't get to wear the warm fuzzy clothes often down here so we kind of take advantage of the weather when we can and pull out the winter clothes. I even drank some hot chocolate!

It's supposed to get cold again tonight and I've got my long sleeve shirt all ready to wear tomorrow. LOL!

The weekend is getting closer and that means I'm one day closer to seeing Twilight! Here's today's quote...

Twilight

Scarecrow Cookies

So, I was playing with the Thanksgiving kit from April the Scrapaholic again. We made these Scarecrow cookies at school awhile back and they are really cute. April's scarecrow graphics are just as cute. You can pick up the set at Scrap it Sassy




Make sure you check out April's Blog freebies. She's giving away an adorable set in honor of her dog Shaylee's birthday.

I'm so glad the week is half over. I'm tired! The weather has turned colder here and tomorrow's high is only supposed to be 68. It's easy to enjoy the cold weather when you only get a couple days of it every year. LOL!

Here's today's quote...

http://www.4shared.com/file/72144771/4017c8a3/Twilight_11-19-08.html

Back to work

It was hard getting up this moring, but once I got to school and saw my kids I was happy that I did. I missed the little buggers! LOL!

I got a late birthday present today. One of my friends bought me the movie companion for Twilight and a Godiva chocolate bar with the Twilight wrapper. It says, "Can you resist temptation?" So far I have! I love Godiva chocolates but I haven't broken into this one yet. I wonder what's wrong with me! We also went online and bought our movie tickets today. We're all set for Friday now! Can you tell that I'm just a little bit excited?

Did you know that Office Maxhas their Elf Yourself site up already? I must have spent an hour playing there tonight. You can go and see how I turned some of my friends into Disco Elfs...

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/YsLkicUN0x0BwWWGDeJw

You'll also understand why I NEVER let any of them near me with a camera. LOL!

It's because I do things like this to them that I have to wonder if Santa takes bribes! Here's the link to the wordart and today's Twilight quote...




Bribes



Twilight

Enjoy your day!

Home Sweet Home!

As much as I enjoy going away I always enjoy coming home even more. It's true what they say...There's no place like home! Now if only I could get myself excited about going back to work. LOL! I know I shouldn't complain because Monday is bringing us one day closer to Twilight!

I've got two goodies for you today. Once celebrates being home again and one if for the Twilight fans. You can get them here...

Home


Twilight

Now, it's time for me to get some sleep. The alarm clock will be going off before I know it.

I've been playing!

I have been having fun playing with some kits from ApriltheScrapaholic! First, I played with her Halloween Creepy Crawlie Kit. Just look what I've been up to...

These are some of the pictures I took while in Paris last spring. I thought the orange papers were perfect for them. These are the first pictures from that trip that I've done anything with. I'm so bad!

This is my friends daughter and her friends. They decided to dress up as Christmas presents for Halloween, so they went to the dollar store and bought some large gift bags then turned them into dresses. The girls are all students at the University of Miami (Go Canes!) and I really wish my friends and I had thought of this when we were in college. It's much better than the box of Q-tips that we dressed up as. LOL!

I just love the way the moon looks in this picture! Isn't it cool?

After I finished playing with the Creepy Crawlie Kit I pulled out some papers and a frame from her Happy Thanksgiving kit...

Now, I know that's one of Edward's quotes but it also works with this picture. Just think of that one split second of the game when you aren't sure if you're going to make the goal or not and the thoughts that go through your head.

You should really run over to ScrapitSassy and check out April's kits. There's a great sell going on now! Here's the link for you...

ScrapitSassy

If you haven't visited April's blog before you should check it out too! She's really talented! Go ahead...you know you want to visit her...

April the Scrapaholic

Now, it's time for today's Twilight quote. Friday's almost here! Get the quote here...

Twilight Quote

Now, I'm off to catch that plane back home...

Last request

Ok, this is the last request and prepublished post for the week. It's a beautiful quote that was requested by Rhonda. I'd love to see how it gets used.

Today I am headed back home. I hope I've had a fun week! I'm sure I have laundry to do when I get home. LOL!

I'm almost caught up on all the requests I've received so far so if there's something you need or would like to have feel free to send me an email.

http://www.4shared.com/file/70468481/328d0677/Better__Happy_11-16-08.html?

Twilight

Ok, for those of you that have said you aren't familiar with Twilight, it's a novel written by Stephanie Meyer. It is the first of four books in a series about a shy clumsy teenage girl that falls hopelessly in love with a teenage vampire. He's a good vampire though and doesn't feed on humans. LOL! The book has been read by teenagers and their grandmothers and they are all falling in love with the vampire too. Of course, some of my friends have fallen for the werewolf, but not me. LOL! You can read more about it here...

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/

They've made a movie based on the book and it comes out on the 21st. I'm just a little excited about that. LOL! Here's today's quote...

http://www.4shared.com/file/71534937/dfdf0103/Twilight11-15-08.html

Now I'm off to enjoy the rest of my birthday and vacation. Have a great day!

It's my actual birthday!

The day has finally arrived! I'm prepublishing this on Monday morning so hopefully as you're reading this, I am in Saint Augustine totally enjoying myself. LOL! Sadly, it also means that my mini vacation is over tomorrow and I must return to work on Monday. Oh well, Thanksgiving vacation isn't that far away. LOL!

This saying is perfect for me. As a teenager, I was my mother's worst nightmare. I don't know how she survived. LOL! Of course, sometimes that rebellious teenager still comes out. She's a lot more fun now!

You guys have celebrated this birthday with me through your kind words and encouragement. I can't thank you enough!

Here's the link for today's wordart...

http://www.4shared.com/file/70465968/2f60d8d3/Rebellion_11-15-08.html?

News to share!

Morning! Can someone please explain to why the days go by so much faster when you're on vacation? LOL! I can't believe it's Friday already.

I wanted to share my good news with you. I've being given the opportunity to work with April the Scrapaholic as part of her creative team. I'm really excited! You can check out April's blog here...

http://aprilsscrapaholic.blogspot.com/2008/11/50-off-sale-at-scrapitsassy-and-holiday.html

And you can check out her sets here...

http://scrapitsassy.com/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=20_64

Here's another Twilight freebie...

http://www.4shared.com/file/71407514/e3b3cdc4/Twilight_11-14-08.html?

Another request

I had never heard this saying before, but I like it! We all should laugh at ourselves more.

http://www.4shared.com/file/70465387/2ccb6d1a/Sanity_11-14-08.html?

Quick post

I just wanted to pop in and share another Twilight qoute. I think I'll add a Twilight quote a day until I get to see the movie. Have a great day!

http://www.4shared.com/file/71249465/1931334c/Twilight_11-13-08.html?

Beach life

OK, so this one wasn't really a request. But, I like it! LOL! It works for me since I live on Miami Beach and am currently at Saint Augustine Beach. Maybe you've still got photos from your summer vacation that you haven't scrapped yet or maybe you're going on a winter beach getaway or maybe you're somewhere covered in snow and thinking that I'm crazy. LOL!

Either way, here you go...

http://www.4shared.com/file/70438784/8841c3d1/Beach_11-13-08.html?

Good morning!

Good morning from Saint Augustine! So far I am really enjoying my vacation. Somehow a vacation is even more fun when you're skipping school. LOL! I just wanted to pop in and share a Twilight goodie with you. I'm so excited that the movie is coming out next weekend! Would you believe that there is a group of teachers from a certain high school that will remain nameless (you know who you are) that have gotten permission to leave early on the 21st to go to the movie? I'm trying to work on that at my school now. LOL!

By the way, I am totally TEAM EDWARD!!

Enjoy your day. I know I'm going to enjoy mine!

http://www.4shared.com/file/71170097/cb92a187/Twilight_11-12-08.html?

Christmas request

Now, this is a motto I can live by! LOL! I'd love to see the photos that get this caption!

http://www.4shared.com/file/70436616/569004b0/Be_naughty_11-12-08.html?

Santa

This is the first of my prepublished posts. By the time this posts I should be at the airport waiting to board my plane. Yes, I'm flying. It was a two hour flight or a five hour drive---EASY decision! LOL!

Here's a goodie I was asked to make for some Christmas pages. Man, you guys are way ahead of me if you're thinking scraping Christmas pages already. Of course, that's nothing new. I'm always behind. LOL!

http://www.4shared.com/file/70426633/29acbb0d/Santa_11-11-08.html?

Packing...

I've spent most of the night getting my suitcase packed for the week. YUCK! I love to travel, but hate the packing and and unpacking. I usually put it off until the last minute (like I've done tonight) and pack a bunch of stuff I don't need while leaving behind a bunch of stuff that I do need.

Since I'll be gone for the rest of the week, I am going to pre-publish daily entries to the blog with requests that I've completed. If I get a chance I'll post from Saint Augustine, but no promises!

Here's a request for Crystal who asked that I do more with my lack of cooking ability. Hope you like it...

http://www.4shared.com/file/70357511/e04b8d37/Meals_11-10-08.html?

Laughter

I spent several hours on the phone Saturday with an old friend that I hadn't spoken to in years. It was nice to touch base again. We relived our college days and laughted until our sides hurt. It was a great call and I feel just as close to her now as I did back then.

It's true what they say...there is no friend like an old friend!

http://www.4shared.com/file/70357020/baaa2c89/Laughter_11-9-08.html?

Birthday surprise

Well, I'm moving very slow this morning. I will be out of town next weekend when my actual birthday arrives so my friends gave me a surprise party last night. I have the best friends in the whole world!

It really was a surprise too! As a matter of fact, it was such a surprise, I almost didn't go. I was tired and just wanted to go to sleep. I got talked into just showing up long enough to say hi to everyone. Well, I stayed a lot longer than that. LOL!

Want to know something funny? I think they are planning some kind of surprise for me at work on Monday. That's the only day next week that I'm actually showing up to work. LOL! The kids in my class are in on it and they spilled the beans. They told me everything and then told me not to guess. LOL!

Here's to surprise parties...

http://www.4shared.com/file/70268450/267dabb1/Birthdays_11-08-08.html?

Here's a request...

I feel bad about only making small posts this week, but I've got a lot going on right now and I'm getting ready to go out of town next week. I'm going to spend 5 days up in St. Augustine, Florida as a mini vacation. I love St. Augustine! Happy birthday to me!

Here's a request I got from one of my friends. She's making a card for her teenagers. LOL! Hope you can use it too...

http://www.4shared.com/file/70070498/310fccdb/maid_11-7-08.html?

Lie

I'm using this on one of my birthday projects. Hope you can use it too...

http://www.4shared.com/file/69942168/23c8b421/Lie_11-6-08.html?

Destiny

I'm going to make a quick post. I'm having a hard time adjusting to the time change and I am really sleepy now.

Did everyone vote on Tuesday? You have to admit, that no matter who you voted for we're lucky to live in this country. It's going to be very interesting to see how the next four years go.

http://www.4shared.com/file/69808494/fa4cb32f/Destiny_11-5-08.html?

Worries

I have a friend that worries about everything. She worries and stresses the rest of us out. LOL!We can plan the simpliest project and she'll ask several times a day how it's done and request a sample everytime she asks. She was tracing turkey feathers for school the week before Halloween arrived.

She always gets her work done before the rest of us, but we all get it done. Now, which way is better---worrying the whole time or getting it done without the worries? I vote for no worries!

http://www.4shared.com/file/69671059/da63daa8/Worrying11-4-08.html?

Living life

I had a very interesting talk with a friend of mine about life in general. He talked about the things he has done and the things he is waiting to do. Waiting....for kids to get older, for the economy to get better, to drop that 10 pounds he's added, to pay the mortgage off, to get a promtion at work, to get a new truck....Waiting

Now, I know we can't throw our responsibilities out the window, but what happens to our life if we all just sit around and wait? Will we look back and be glad that we waited or will we be sad about the missed adventures? Is there a way to be responsible and still live our dreams?

The dreams I have now are not the dreams of my youth---gave up on that rock star dream a long time ago. LOL! I have seen many of my dreams come true---I have bungee jumped. I have been to Paris. I have loved someone with every ounce of my being and known his love in return. There are more, but those are the biggies!

There are other dreams that I haven't visited in a while and I think it's time that I did. It's time to stop waiting and start living...

http://www.4shared.com/file/69423719/9461efd9/Live_the_Life_11-03-08.html?