Christmas Christmas Time Is Here

I've been working on mini books for all my nieces and sister in laws. I'll also include a gift card to somewhere, I haven't quite decided yet. Also, I've bought some wonderful Christmas tea packaged just beautifully from my favorite boutique here in Redlands - Mozarts. They are just exquisite as far as making you feel like you are just in a wonderful place as you shop. The store smells delightful with potpourri and it is decorated just beautifully! It is a treat for your senses. Anywho, those teas will go with my sis in laws books and I probably will pick up some other little diddies for the nieces there as well.

Here are pics of the book's covers. The girls who will get these are my nieces Samantha and Nicolle, who are two of the most beautiful girls you ever laid eyes on and I absoultely adore!

In case you can't read it well it says, The Beautiful Fairy Cast Her Spell. I have a bunch of pics of the inside that I will slide show for ease of looking.

I hope you like them. With my new puter, I can no longer get audio up, don't know why, it was driving me bonkers but I need to let it go. So if you want to pick a song you like go to my playlist and choose. The one I wanted to put with it is called Savior by Lights. It's airy and fun.

Now I need to get cracking on the rest. I love doing this and I could look through them over and over and hope that all my nieces and sisters-in-law feel the same way about them too!

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? Well get going so you can enjoy the month with family and friends instead of stressing about what needs to get done ; )!

I'm Back!!

And what a great time I had in Biloxi and Nola!! It took a little longer to post, our old computer finally breathed it's last and was crashing 3-4 x's a day. All set up with a new one. The weather held up nicely, which was wonderful. It was on the warm side when I arrived in Biloxi on Friday morning. After everyone else made it, we headed out to my Uncle's brother's house and had a southern fish fry with cheese grits, and squash casserole. What a great treat! Leonard and BaBa (baybay) truly embodied southern hopitality!

Saturday we spent the day jumping to different places. We went to the hard rock, then we went to do some shopping, and before you know it it was time to go to dinner at Emirels restaurant that was located in another casino. I won $600, yay for me.

Here are pics from Biloxi -

Self explanatory

My two Godmother's Aunt Toni on the left and Aunt MaryAnne on the right



It was Cruise the Coast weekend so a lot of sweet old cars to see

Sunday we went to Nola, what a dream. The French Quarter was fantastic. The architecture was just phenomenal. We went to Mass at St. Louis Cathedral. What a gorgeous church. Breakfast at Cafe DuMond for some cafe au lait and beingets. They where incredible. Like little clouds covered in a mountain of powdered sugar! For lunch we went to Mother's for some po'boys. I had catfish, some had oyster, or the Ferdie special. We had hurricanes at Pat O'Brians. Those were some LOADED drinks!!

Making the benny's

The beautiful quarter, love the architecture!

St. Louis Cathedral

My Uncle drove us down St. Charles Ave. where the most beautiful homes are located. I could live there in a heart beat. You know whats coming,

*SLIDE SHOW!!*

following this post of all the gorgeous houses.

Ya know Katrina was a real shame. Biloxi got hit so terribly, but you'd never know, yet in Nola, there were empty lots piled with wood debris and junk. Such a shame. Show's what happens when you have crooks running a state sticking their hands in the till.

In the casino while in Biloxi myself, Mom and Aunts went to get a bite late, in the restaraunt there. The waiter was a HOOT! My aunt said "I'm going to take you home with me." and he said, "Well I'd be of no use to you, darlin." We were hysterical. Then he came back and asked wasn't that your husband who just left. She said yes, and he says "Oh you just want to dress me up in a butlers uniform and have me mow your lawn and stuff." He was real funny, gave us all hugs and a good laugh.

I told my husband that the two of us need to go for a 4 dayer and just enjoy Nola, and maybe a bit of Louisianna. This was truly a wonderful gift he gave me. He treats me so very well, and I hope he feels I do the same for him. It's almost 29 yrs that we're together, and he is my everything. Imagine, I've been with this man since I'm 15 and he still is the love of my life.

Here is the show, remember to shut the playlist at the bottom of my blog if you want to hear the music here.

I Told You

That my daughter Desirae was, like my husband, an artist. I am going to post a few pics of her drawings. They are of Superman and Jim Morrison of The Doors and the tattoo she designed in honor of my Father and my Mother in Law. Also, my son's drawing of Bizarro. Most of them are artists of some form or another. Either with pencil and prose or drawing, or with a camera.

My Dad was in the Navy, and my Mother-in-Law loved roses, hence the combo -

Jim Morrison


needs no introduction -

Sophia took a boat load of photo's that had my daughter and I hysterical, and that is going to be a slide show. These were just too funny! She has quite an eye, and can look at something that may seem ordinary to us, but for her it has some "quality" to it that when you see it in pic form, you go aaahhhhh.

On another subject, Santino received his very first award at school on Friday!! We were so very proud of him. It was the Golden Cub award given for his eagerness to participate, following the rules, and trying his hardest. He has really taken to school and that makes me so happy. As soon as he comes home, out comes the homework and he is sitting and getting busy. Here are a couple of pics of him on his happy day -

I anm sooooooo excited! On Friday, I will be going to Biloxi to meet my Mother, Aunt MaryAnne and Aunt Toni, Uncle Peter and my cousins Alicia and Peter. It is my birthday on Friday and my wonderful hubby gave me this as a gift. My Mom was going down with her sisters. So when he heard about it, he thought that would be nice. I agree! We'll be gambling in Biloxi, but the big treat is going to be on Sunday when we go to NEW ORLEANS!!!! I have been dying to go to NO forever. I can't wait and will take tons of pics. Cafe DuMond and beignets and coffee, hhhmmmm. The Cathedral, French Quarter, muffaletta's, crawfish and catfish poboys! Oooooo wee, simmuh don nuh (as said by Cheri Oteri from a Sat night live skit).

Can you all believe that it is October already?! Time is waiting for no one, not man, woman, or beast! In honor of the month I have put up a Halloween background, it's cute. I need to get my decorations out, my neighbor was asking and so was Sophia ;) . I have also been working on my lunch bag mini albums that I am making for my nieces this Christmas. They are coming great, and I will put pics of them in as well, when they're done. Inside one of the pockets, I will put a gift card in a homemade gift card holder as well.

I have come to the conclusion, or should I say stage in my life, where I feel that barring hitting the lottery and walking in with a set of car keys or a box from Tiffany's, there isn't anything that any of us really need. We all are actually quite spoiled and I think something made by hand that has taken me days to make shows how much care and love I have for the person, vs a blouse, cd or body lotion. Now before I get burned for saying this, I understand that not everyone can do stuff like this, I appreciate the gifts that I get from everyone, but this is something that is heartfelt from me and gives me great joy. I don't care about getting gifts, I love giving them. I love seeing someone's face light up as they look through the photos I picked out of them and the papers and embellishments that adorn the pages. Nuff said on that subject :) .

As promised here is the slide show, turn off the playlist so you can here the song Sophia picked, enjoy -