The BIG 3-0 Weekend

Yes, I am officially old. But, I have had a pretty fantastic birthday weekend!

On Friday Jeff, some dear friends, and I started the night off with dinner at Simply Fondue. It was fabulous.

I have really been wanting to go to a fondue restaurant so this was quite a treat. The atmosphere is very inviting and you could tell everyone there was having a great time. I think it is nearly impossible not to enjoy yourself while eating fondue!

After dinner we went to Lola's to see our friend's Pablo and the Hemphill 7.

Jeff surprised me with red roses and diamond earrings for my birthday. He said that 30 is a classic birthday and since roses and diamonds are classic, that is what he wanted to give to me. It was a fantastic surprise that I was not expecting at all.

On Saturday, my actual birthday day, I lounged about the house and then went to the birthday party that my parents had for me. It was really nice. We had a New Mexican theme and everything was decorated so cute! I can't believe I did not take any pictures of it! My mom cooked Pinon Chile Beans and Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas for dinner. Both were recipes from our Culinary tour. It was delish (I am channeling Rachel Ray)! She even made guacamole like they do at Gabriel's! I also just realized that it is only 4 months until our return to Santa Fe! Wah Hoo! I can feel that desert mountain air now!

For dessert we had chocolate fondue which kept with my theme for the weekend. Also, my dear friends gave me an electric fondue pot for my birthday. I think a fondue party is in the works soon!

My mother is very in tune with my new found passion for Pyrex and gave me some of my grandmother's old Pyrex. I absolutely love it and it is very special to me.

On Sunday, I slept in, until about 10:45 which I never ever do because I am an early riser. Jeff made me my very first fried egg for breakfast. This is pretty miraculous because the boy does not cook. I usually like my eggs scrambled but I have to admit, a fried egg is not half bad, especially when you enjoy it with your 4th cup of morning coffee!

I lounged around the house and worked on knitting my socks. I got a load of progress done on these socks during the drive home from Arkansas last Monday. I conquered the heel flap and heel gusset!! I am very proud!

It was such a beautiful day today so I cracked open a few windows. While I was knitting, Ziggy was busy trying to figure out a way to make the great escape. We caught him climbing on the window!

Now, for the socks, I am working on shaping the toe and I will be done with my very first pair of hand knit socks.

Yes, it has been a great Birthday weekend.

You know, I have to admit, I kinda like being 30. :-)

Cheers.

The New Year

Well, it has been a bit since I posted. I hope everyone had a lovely holiday. I had a wonderful time filled with family and friends. It is hard to believe it is 2008! There is alot I want to accomplish this next year. I have never really made a New Year resolution. I am the kind of person that makes several goals for myself throughout the year. I think I am a pretty driven ambitious person most of the time so, instead of a New Year resolution list, I have a things to accomplish this year list. It is a list of things to accomplish for the house, career, and personal..with some other random things thrown in. For starters, I have wanted to make curtains for my breakfast nook in the kitchen for the longest time. I bought my house about 2 and a half years ago and have slowly been decorating the house the way I would like. I say slowly, partly because I did not really know how long I would live here because Jeff wanted to be a Veterinarian and go to school in Fort Collins, Colorado to get his Vet degree. Since I thought we were going to move, I did not invest too much time and money into decorating etc. Recently, he has taken a shine to Genetics, better him than me. I will just stick to Social Work for now. Anyhoo, he can go to school for his Master's and Doctorate in Genetics right here in Fort Worth! Which means for me, I will not be moving any time soon and can start doing things around the house that I want! Okay, back to the curtains...this seemed like a simple place to start on my list of things to do so...here you go:

Before:

(I hate those nasty plastic mini blinds. Animal hair sticks to them and will not come off. I have 5 animals...which boils down to a metric TON of animal hair).

After:

I am not sure if I will keep these curtains. I am still deciding if I like them or not. It did not turn out exactly as I had envisioned it too but, they will do for now. I think I am going to go on a estate sale hunt for a vintage kitchen table cloth and turn that into curtains at some point.

I think the kitty liked them. I guess now the curtains will have cat hair all over them now. Well, at least they are washable.

I really cannot remember how long it has been since I wanted Fiesta Ware dishes. I am certain, however, it is when my mom bought the dishes for her kitchen. I just cannot recall when that was. Well...let's just say it was a very long time ago. I love all the vibrant colors of the dishes. You can mix and match them all. Having these dishes has been on my list of things to purchase. Sure enough, Ol' Saint Nick knew exactly what it was I wanted and I was very very surprised (I am sooooooo excited about this).











My sister also made me fantastic dish towels for my kitchen too. It seems as though my kitchen is off on a good start this year! There are a few more things I would like for the kitchen such as a pot rack for my pots and pans. I would also like to give it a fresh coat of paint. I am not certain of the color just yet.

Oh, and I cannot forget the most important thing my kitchen got for Christmas! This is also something I have wanted for a very very long time. A bright blue Kitchen Aid Mixer! Oh, it is so fantastic! I do not know how long I have managed to live without one for all these years. It has a splash guard too. I am quite the neat freak so I was pleased to find out if came with a splash guard. It is beautiful. I feel like an official baker now.

I am not sure what next I will do on my list of things to accomplish...

*New couch for living room

*Organize bills/paperwork

*Go to a concert (well, maybe more than just one)

*Start studying/training for my LCSW

*Participate in the Play Therapy Conference in October

*New, non pet hair stickin' mini blinds for the bedrooms, bathroom, and office

*Purchase a spinning wheel

*Spin wool on the newly purchased spinning wheel

*Re-vamp and work harder at the Etsy site.

*Renew membership to NASW

*Make a headboard for the bed

*Hanging pot rack for the kitchen

*Paint rooms that need painting

*Exercise more

*Visit/write to my Grandparents more





I am sure the list will continue to grow but that is all I have for now.



I hope everyone has a wonderful year in 2008!

Cheers