What Is Right In Our World

Once again we are unfortunately drawn together as another unspeakable act changes lives at random. Lives, limbs, families, hopes and dreams are forever altered. Even when those responsible are caught and punished, it does not change or take away what was lost. As a nation, once again we are proving why we are strong. It is not because of retaliation, although An Eye For An Eye is one of my favorite parts of the bible. It is because we come together and we take care of our own and most of the world when needed. As horrified as I was yesterday as I watched the events unfold, I was equally amazed as I watched the heroes that rushed to save lives, to offer comfort, to put themselves at risk unselfishly.

 I saw an amazing quote today on Facebook by Mr. Rogers. His mother told him when he was a child and frightened by bad things going on in his world to always look for the helpers. I just loved that and  know I'm not the first to praise our heroes/helpers yesterday but in the midst of terror it is no small feat that there are helpers that run toward the trouble. It renews my faith in mankind, even when cowards hiding behind some misguided sense of righteousness try to take it away.

My goal behind this blog is to share the good stuff in life. Yesterday made that goal a little harder until I focused on the Helpers. We can all be helpers everyday in our own lives. We don't even have to rush towards danger to accomplish this. We can live our lives with faith, hope and love for one another. It shouldn't take an act of violence to remind us of this but, it doesn't hurt to renew our focus on what is really important. Let your loved ones know how much you love them. Everyday. Keep in touch with your friends near and far. Even if it is a quick hit on Face Book, text, twitter, or email. Smile at a stranger. Be positive. Encourage others. Share. Be Helpers. Mr. Rogers, we miss you.

Dallas is Back

I'm sure I'm not the only one that grew up on Dallas. The TV show. JR, Sue Ellen, Bobby, Pam, Lucy and Cliff to name a few...Miss Ellie and Jock. Before U-verse, Direct TV and a few others, including big clunky VCR tapes, there were the good ole days, when you had to actually show up at the right time and WATCH your favorite show on live tv. AND only one show - so you had to pick which one it was going to be. And sit through all the commercials. I'll be the first to say those were NOT the good ole days. Great TV - but, a pain in the ass to watch that way.

Flash forward a few years - more than 25 (so I've been told) and some of us are still watching Dallas.  What an inspiring testament to great TV. Those that remember it when, are watching it now. And it has three original cast members bringing it back. Sue Ellen, Bobby and J.R.- How lucky are we? For a few episodes longer...And as much as we love the cast from the past - let's take a moment to praise the ones that will be carrying Dallas into the future. Hats off to John Ross for delivering the best opening line in a long time..."Love is for P*SS&@s"! LOVED IT!! But, true Southern Girl that I am - I can say and write a LOT of ugly/curse/bad words, but the P word is not one of them. Just a personal girl thing. But, John Ross can say that all day long :)))

Anyhoo!! Back to tonight - cause I'm catching up on my time with the awesome AT&T U-verse and as a former Direct TV customer I can only say,  NO COMPLAINTS  with AT&T - John Ross set the tone and it was a fun two hour opener with the younger cast holding their own while Bobby, Sue Ellen and J.R. reminded us all why we are still watching. One of my favorite moments was when Sue Ellen*, who owed J.R. big time for saving her, gave him a sweet kiss on the cheek and said, "And THAT is all you are going to get". And he, ever the gentleman, said, "There is the Gal I know". Got to love that. And the really freaking hot off the elevator scene with John Ross and Pamela/Rebecca...have I mentioned how wonderful John Ross is??? Dallas is going to be just fine - keep watching!

I am a little sad that the other original Ewing brother is missing - Gary. Remember him? If you were a Knot's Landing Fan like myself you would. He was the black sheep that got his own spin off show - my favorite of all time - Knot's Landing....Every Thursday night at 10:00 there was only one place I wanted to be. In Front Of A TV Watching Knot's Landing. 25 1/2 Years ago  my first date with Wonderman happened to be on a Thursday night. And yes, I was a little nervous. It was going great - He was as cute and charming as I thought he was the Friday night before when I met him. He called me on Wednesday and we talked for an hour and made plans for Thursday night. Dinner at what happened to be my favorite restaurant in Atlanta, Indigo's.  He loves to tell everyone that I ate every single thing in front of me that night. Like I had not eaten lunch, breakfast or dinner for a week before that night. The real story is that it was getting closer to 10:00 and time was a ticking. He had one last test to pass for a second date. Would he pass the Knot's Landing Test??? Fast forward - we'll go into details of first date in April when we celebrate our 25th Anniversary...yes, He got an A+ on the first date test. Not only did I get to see Knot's...he had me in front of a tv putting his arm around me during Hotel. A slightly cheesy show that came on at 9:00...during which he got a few pecks on the cheek - Sue Ellen is not the only girl that knows how to get a man :) By 10:00,  WE were watching KL and I knew without a doubt, he was a keeper. Sorry, John Ross - Love is not for Pu#$%@s...But, you keep being a very bad boy and we will keep watching you and missing J.R.too.

*Sue Ellen - Wow! She looks awesome this season and I'm JUST SAYING - I'LL DO WHATEVER SHE DID...and I'm guessing it was not all that filler crap that makes faces look fat. And Old. I'm thinking a good ole fashion face lift is still the way to go. One Day. You go girlfriend. Amazing!

P.S.....how funny is it that this born & bred Atlanta (by way of Thomaston) gal now lives in Texas!! And just last week we were lucky enough to be at a party at the former Hunt home, known as Mt. Vernon for a pre party for the Cotes du Coeur, supporting the American Heart Association. This beautiful private home was the first home in Dallas to have air conditioning and a swimming pool. Think about that - today it also has the world's largest private bowling alley - the very one that was featured in the world famous Neiman Marcus Christmas catalog as a his and her gift....this little girl growing up watching Dallas - J.R., Sue Ellen and Bobby - never saw that coming. Life is good. God is great.

New Year New Tricks

Happy New Year! We will pretend that I had a fabulous post at Christmas that included pictures, videos and how to lessons on Christmas decor as well as mouth watering recipes. Let's just come clean and confess I was just to busy enjoying all that to actually take the time to sit down on my snail mail computer and share all that. I am sure we all had a wonderful Christmas - especially those of us that had a very special Christmas Day snow delivery that turned our world into a winter wonderland. But, by now that is all old news and today's topic is New Tricks!!! 

*NEW TRICKS DISCLAIMER* By sharing the following I do not intend to steal credit for these tricks. Due to my love of beauty products and my magazine addiction there is usually a REALLY good chance that I will not be able to give credit where credit is due. I apologize to any that may be offended. I repeat your ideas in the spirit of sharing with all. Here are my latest favorite things....

1. Newest Nail technology - NEXGEN NAILS!! I love mine and I got them from Tony at Serenity Nails on Eldorado...If you live in McKinney you know where to go - if not check out the website nexgenails.com  to find a location near you that is up to date on these nails. Mine look and feel natural - so much better than traditional acrylics and pink & whites...And they are better for your natural nail beds. LOVE THEM!!

2. Chewy Vitamins - seriously! Genius idea - especially for those of us that hate to swallow...a lot of supplements every morning...I have found chewy multivitamins (Alive ), B12(Vitafusion) and Fiber Well (Vitafusion) I save them for last and it's a treat to take them - almost as good as Swedish Fish. Almost. I even saw a chewy fish oil supplement today but, I think I'll pass on that one. I finally found one that goes down and stays down. Nordic Naturals Omega - 3 is the one for me.

3. Thanks to Wonderman flipping late night channels one night I have a new skin care line that I really love...even if I'm not crazy about the name...Meaningful Beauty by Cindy Crawford. Personally, I'd have left off the Meaningful. Anyway, he was watching the infomercial and before I knew it, I was receiving my Mean Beauty Products in the mail. I admire Cindy and all she has accomplished and I know she has been a patient of the Doctor behind the line for many years. I really like it and it's easy to follow.  Yes, Wonderman got bonus points for encouraging my beauty quest.

4.  My new best friends at Neiman's Willowbend gave me and my partner in Beauty Crime a really fun day of beauty....of course this is all my Beauty Crime Partner's fault. She and many unnamed others love the La Mer line of skincare. She has been sharing and raving about the eye cream for awhile. And I have been avoiding this line of skin care for the last 30 years. Why? Cause I am a cheap beauty whore. I have been telling myself for years that Ponds is THE MIRACLE CREAM. And it is a really good one even if it falls into the less pricey category. There has never ever been any doubt in my mind that I wouldn't absolutely love and look amazing if I too used the La Mer line of skin care. I've just been waiting to win the lottery in order to do so. Fast forward to our day of beauty. She signed us up /twisted my arm, drugged me & dragged me - for a facial from La Mer last week. Now due to the drugs and arm twisting I agreed to go and let the wonderful ladies work their magic. And yes, it was heaven. So here is the skinny - I'm happy with my Mean Girls Beauty stuff from Cindy. I can get a shipment of about 10 beauty products every 3 months for less than one La Mer product. However, I was interested in their BODY product. Now I read, that Mariah Carey uses La Mer on her babies bottoms. That is CRAY CRAY.  But, I am always looking for something to help the skin I have stupidly ignored the last twenty years. Pretty much everything from the chin down. If only I had taken the time to protect my neck, chest, arms, hands and knees. I could pass for 49!!!Since I kinda didn't - I just tell everyone I'm 79 and I LOOK AWESOME FOR THAT! But, even 79 year old women are still hoping for something to help and that is why I am telling you about La Mer's Reparative Body Lotion. It is so good for anti-aging powers that they tell you NOT to use it everyday. WHAT?? Either brilliant marketing or ....THIS STUFF MIGHT WORK!! I'm hoping it's not just marketing. I figure if I use it once a year this bottle will last me forever. Got to be less than a penny a day. SCORE. CHEAP BEAUTY WHORE IS HAPPY....Okay, every other day or so and here's the best part...these wonderful ladies load you up with ALL KINDS of samples!! I now have eye creams and face creams and if I'm really careful I can make these samples last awhile!! Now I'm not going to being slapping it on any babies bottoms that is for freakin sure. But, I'll be using a touch of La Mer at night over my Mean Beauty Stuff. JACKPOT!!

5.  After my La Mer facial my new best friend at the YSL counter graciously offered to give me a makeup touchup... I kinda looked like a drowned rat. Now I have been using YSL's - for beauty newbies that is Yves Saint Laurent -Touche Eclat. That is fancy smancy for beauty junkies illuminating magic beauty wand. It pretty much erases all signs of ugly. You just use it anywhere you are not happy with on your face. How's that for awesome marketing? That was all me - I really should have majored in marketing. Guess what -  now they have a foundation - Le Teint Touche Eclat Illuminating Foundation.....Still thinking not bad for 79??? Girlfriend has lots of tricks you don't even want to know :))  Anyhoo,  I just asked for a little Touche Eclat touch up and she gave me the works, without any pressure to buy anything. Very nice. And probably the only time I have ever liked what someone else has done with my makeup. Now she did try - even knowing I'd hate it, and I did - a bright teal liner on my eyes. And Graciously changed it back to dark brown, when I was honest. I prefer to see my eye color over eye makeup color. Big difference. She did amazing things with my eyebrows - who knew- I'd been doing it all wrong. Thanks to Latisse I now have eyebrows and now I know how to make them look better. Eyebrow pencil #3 on TOP edge of them. Loved the foundation/base - it covers without looking heavy and yes, age spots and veins need covering. The really fun thing she showed me was with lip liners - always kinda thought they were pointless and unnecessary -  they give you a color base to hold the lipstick or gloss and they can make different color combinations. Now - this is probably better for make up junkies but let's say you buy a lipstick and get home and it just isn't quite right. Been there? Okay, liners can bring it back to where you want it. Just know if you like more pink or orange base colors on you. Use the liner to get you there. I like more pink usually, so with that liner even an orange or peach lipstick will look better on me. Glosses work the same way. And my new fav YSL product is without a doubt the mascara - Volume Effet Faux Cils Noir Radical...key word RADICAL...as with all lines there are several and they may all be fab but I have used this one and LOVE IT...sorry Stilletto's by Maybelline...I'm moving on :) She also told me that anytime a mascara gets too thick and this has always been my pet peeve with pricey mascara's - Just run really hot water over the outside of the tube (not into the tube) and it will heat up and liquify the product again. Air causes it to get thick and clumpy. I hate clumpy.

6. One more thing  now - Latisse vs. RevitaLash....been using Latisse for two years. Due to cost and feeling like it wasn't giving results anymore,  I switched to RevitaLash  and love it. More product for the buck and better lashes. Both work on eyebrows. You can Google it to find sellers.

7. Find a Wonderman - the one that thinks you are so amazing and beautiful even when you know you are probably looking a little old/silly/bare/ natural/happy/sad/tired/ you - one that goes "Wow!" everytime he sees you. And is smart enough not to ask, "What did you buy at Neiman's?" Find that guy. I love you John!!

As usual, I'm all over the place and still have so much soooo much more to share - let's do this again real soon (I promise) ....I can't wait to share my new love for Lush products (OMG - another huge thanks to Beauty in Crime Partner!!) , Coconut Oil - you will love too!!! and Hair Stuff!!! Come back!!!! Please :))) Oh, and for the love of God - DO NOT DRY YOUR LEVI'S MID RISE SKINNY JEANS IN THE DRYER!!! You will lose 1 1/2 inches off the length and forget about the waist!! Next time !!

Just Trust Me...

I can't believe I haven't blogged since October 5th! All my mad blogging skills have gone to waste...I can't remember breakfast much less any mad blogging skills I learned over a month ago. Time to call MH again. Good thing she likes wine too. And yes, I have that blogging bible somewhere but I have been too busy scaring little kids wanting candy and getting ready for Christmas to read that much less blog here....but - I do have some really awesome things to share. I don't even know where to start so this will be all over the place with GOODSTUFF TO SHARE!!

1. Levi's Skinny Mid rise Jeans!! - not your daughters, not your mom's and not your teenager's cute jeans that you need a belt just to sit down in and get back up - without looking like someone on that Cops show with a flashlight in his face and six inches of plaid boxers showing. These jeans are really cute and you can get them at Kohls for under 40$! HOLLAR!!

2. Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Eye Cream - if you are not using a separate moisturizer for your eyes you are an idiot. Face cream does not count. Trust me and just go buy one. And a daily moisturizer for your face WITH a sunscreen in it too. And a BODY moisturizer with sunscreen to use everyday. Even if you are not going outside. And if I hear one more person say, "I didn't put on my sunscreen today because it was cloudy..." - I am going to hurt someone and go straight to jail. Skin cancer is a very serious thing and the sun causes it. So shut up and protect your skin. EVERYDAY. And go get a body scan once a  year. FROM a doctor.

3. All my friends know that I am a candle fiend and one day may accidentally burn my house down. Can not tell you how excited I am with my newest candle discovery thanks to Amy and Dee....Fake candles have been around for awhile but here is the kicker - these not only flicker like real candles - they have a freakin timer that turns them on for 5 hours and off for for 19 hours!! EVERYDAY...you don't have to do a thing...just sit back and enjoy with no fear of fire :))) These are fantastic for places like my hurricane lamps in high places by my tv...it's a little late but I will try to upload a pic. Okay, that is not happening - I've been trying for 45 minutes to upload from my phone...got Google+ and that should have done it but NO not so much. Just trust me again - these candles are fantastic and you can get them at Hobby Lobby or Home Depot - and they even look like candles!! I still burn my scented ones for the smell but I keep them in easy to reach places. Hopefully, I won't burn my house down with fewer actual flames going.

4. Quick and Easy dinner - all you need is a rotisserie chicken, penne, Knorr Alfredo sauce mix, heavy whipping cream, garlic, mushrooms, broccoli, milk and butter. Heat your chicken up in oven by directions on package. Remove and eat all the crispy skin off while no one is looking. Swear it came skinless if they ask. Don't forget to clean or lick off your greasy fingers. Dead give away. Steam your broccoli and boil your penne. Follow directions on Knorr packet except for use a cup of heavy whipping cream and 3/4 c of milk and butter. Only if you want it to taste good. You already ate the chicken skin so trust me. Use the cream. Add minced garlic clove and mushrooms. Whisk together and bring to boil. Turn to low and keep stirring occasionally while you eat chicken skin bits and pick chicken off the bone. Dump everything into one big pot and keep warm until ready to serve within 10 minutes or pasta will overcook. Yum!!!

5. Seems I wasted a ton of time trying upload frickin picture of candles....so I'm going to go read and will try to learn how to upload pics again.  This will come in handy if I want to show you some fun decorating ideas. Like real bloggers. The kind with pictures and videos. Except I don't plan on videos. I cannot stand to see myself on video. Which explains why I had to give up my acting career.

Notice how I started with skinny jeans and ended with a recipe for chicken skin and heavy cream...well the broccoli is good for you and I did give you a stern warning about skin cancer and why you should wear sunscreen. And how to not burn down your house!!

Who Knew???

How Cool Is This

I now have mad blogging skills!!! I and both of my followers owe a HUGE thank you to my biggest blog fan and now proud blogger of her own amazing blog  http://preppyemptynester.blogspot.com/ ...I'm hoping that I have correctly used her first lesson in how to make a hyper link ...with any luck you can just go to her blog by clicking on that different colored line of words :). If not, I f'ed up and she should not be held responsible. I may still be a work in progress. I know this comes as huge shock and surprise to all who know me, but an evolved person owns her faults.  Also, in case your are wondering I am using the large font key and the centering thingy today. Never knew they existed until my blog lesson yesterday. I'm sorry, I know I am just showing off, but I can't help myself. 

Miss Hammertime also passed on her blogger bible - Blogging for Dummies - to me yesterday....this was beyond exciting for me cause I jokingly said I needed that and had no idea that one actually had already been written. Good to know I am not the only blogger that has been doing this for years with no idea what the hell I'm doing. That seems to happen to me a lot.  Kinda like the amazing salmon dinner I tried to whip up last night. Some things really are just better when ordered in restaurants. 

Back to my new bible....just wait til I actually read it. THEN you will truly be impressed with my new and improved mad blogging skills. I truthfully did not open it last night cause I was running late for happy hour with Wonderman. Which pushed my amazing Salmon dinner back and well, lets just say thank god I raised my boychild to be able to feed himself, while waiting for mommy's amazing dinners. No one went to bed hungry. Really glad I remembered to put the amazing amount of left over salmon in the disposal and not the trash can. Fish and trash cans are never a good idea. This I  know.

For my finale today - I am running off to bookclub this morning...we read Bossypants and it is hilarious. Big fan. Just started reading Where We Belong by Emily Griffin. Can't wait to get back to that. Which leads to my finale....I am now going to add a picture to this blog post. I KNOW!! HOW COOL IS THIS???

The answer is that I am very thankful to Miss Hammertime!!! After viewing my preview of this post - that is where I remove all goofs and correct all misspelled words. Usually. - it looks like there is a pretty good chance I f'd up the hyper link thingy. If so, don't forget to check out her blog. http://preppyemptynester.blogspot.com/

Cha Cha Change...

Change is good right? Sometimes as things age they get better, like wine and cheese - two of my favorite things that go together. I've made a few changes to make the blog more viewer friendly to people that are aging and are tired of having to go find a pair of glasses when all ya want to do is read the freakin blog...or write the freakin blog. And as we all - of a certain age - know it is sometimes not only a pain to go get the glasses but to find them and then remember why or where we needed them in the first place. These changes to eyes and memory are not so good. That is where wine and cheese make everything better. Here is where I am crossing my fingers and hoping with all these changes in font size and color, vision, memory, etc. that the ability to post these blogs with paragraphs will magically happen....


This should be a new paragraph or break in body of my rant.


Excellent!! It is working in the preview!! Hopefully, it will still be working in the finished blog post. If so, I think I will go back to previous blogs and try to insert these much needed breaks in non stop ramble. This has bothered me more than it has bothered you.

Next, I need to figure out how to use pictures. I really need need a Blogging For Dummies manual...My friend and biggest fan - MH has started an awesome blog called - PreppyEmptyNester and it puts this one to shame. She has all the bells and whistles. I am sooo jealous. Hoping she will feel sorry for me and share her mad blogging skills with me soon.

So consider this post an experiment post...I won't know until I hit the publish post button if all these changes I've been slaving over are actually going to be applied. Been to this pony show before - hours of playing with font size and color and layout and.....same old blog!! No one ever said change was easy. Cross your fingers for me!!!

My Reality TV

I have confessed to being a TV addict in the past. I admit to taping more TV than I should. People that brag they don't watch TV or DO NOT EVEN OWN A TV - annoy me. Still, I like a few - a very special few. And I find that most of these people actually do watch tv they just for some reason don't want to admit it. Trust me, I've watched plenty of TV that I don't want to admit to either. And most of what I do watch and love gets cancelled - Moonlight, every show Matthew Perry has been in since Friends, Easy Streets, Friday Night Lights (Thank you Direct TV again for bringing that back)...the list goes on. As for reality TV - I'm torn. I have never watched any of the Survivors, Race or Apprentice shows. A couple of episodes of Biggest Loser. I absolutely hate all the House hunting shows....not sure why. Love seeing decorated houses but not people choosing between 3 crap choices. I KNOW I am the only person on the planet that feels this way. I apologize.

In the beginning, I loved the Housewives shows because I did enjoy seeing where and how they all lived in different parts of the country. Until they all evolved into a screaming hot mess of nasty women behaving badly. Middle school was bad enough - reliving mean girls as grown women is not how I want to spend my TV viewing time. So this afternoon, I was enjoying my latest issue of People magazine (another guilty pleasure) when I read the story about Jacqueline Laurita's son and their struggle with his diagnosis of Autism. The unknown and randomness of this disease terrifies us all. Her story was heartbreaking and inspiring just like so many that deal with this reality. She is undecided as to whether she will be back for another season of Housewives. I quit watching her show many seasons ago. The fighting and table throwing and back stabbing is not entertainment to me. I may be an addict but it is for quality TV.

That is when I thought - what if she did a reality show based on her family and their journey with their son's diagnosis and life. They already have let cameras into their world, why not let it be something real that could reach out to other families going through the same ordeal. I'd much rather watch positive family role model shows than TV crap like Honey Boo Boo - do not get me started on that embarrassment of riches. Someone tied me to a chair and forced me to watch ONE episode. TV hell in it's finest hour. I may just be a TV addict but I think the world needs more positive Reality Shows. Good examples of how real people are living and dealing with the realities we all face. That would be my hope for MY Reality TV. And to Jacqueline and her family - I wish them all the best. Thanks for sharing your story in People magazine.