Boob tube returns

347/365
The new light bulb for the TV arrived today.  YAY, big screen is back in biz-a-ness.

First pressie under the tree...

...is Robert's.

346/365
I came home from the grocery store tonight and found that his present had been delivered AND the box said what it was!  In GIANT letters. On each side. With a picture and description with measurements and weight and GRRRR!!!!

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO PLAIN UNMARKED BOXES PEOPLE?!*

He has assured me that he didn't hear the bell ring and that he didn't see it sitting out there - and the kids backed him up.  I really hope not.  I don't need another surprise ruined (see *) this year.

I didn't trust him to not go looking for it if I just hid it, plus it's not exactly small so it's hard to hide well, so I had to wrap it.

If he, the cats, or the puppy mess with that wrapping, they will be in so much trouble!



He just tried to snoop at it and I had to cover all my bases, "You may not touch, shake, kick, poke, peak, lick, sniff, or otherwise try to figure out what is in that box. Walk away and you won't get hurt."

*I have more for this rant, but can't express that right now in the rare case that one of my children reads my blog.  I don't think they do, but you never know.

Garage shelf

345/365 - Robert's finished project (mentioned in this post) - already with stuff stored.  So far, our camping gear and my quilting fabric have been banished to the shelf, which is about 10 feet off the ground.

After the holidays all of the decoration boxes will go up there too (and get them out of my dining room).

Outside Christmas Lights!

334/365 - The last of my outside Christmas lights are hung.  We didn't do a lot this year.  Robert didn't want to climb up on a ladder again to line the gutters, and I'm a bit klutzy so I know better than to push my luck.  I don't need a broken bone.  Maybe next year he'll be easier to convince.

I made those little trees on either side of the garage by using tomato cages (inverted) and covering with garland and a couple strings of lights.


At night.


The lights around the window (which you can't really see) - and Simba


I was boring him


My little Japanese maple all festive with lights and balls


Japanese maple at night

Guilty pleasures

Reverbs prompt day 12:
Name and explain the one guilty pleasure you can't live without.  ie: that cupcake shop you visit weekly, a book you repeatedly read to find solace in, etc).  Then explore the idea of how you would feel if you gave that thing up for a year.   
~Neha at http://whereyouarehere.blogspot.com/

I have several guilty pleasures.

Like... My occasional coffee shop coffee.  I prefer my small in town coffee shop, but will take Starbucks anytime.  I try to limit myself to only once in awhile because I know they are high in sugar and fat and blah blah blah GOOD STUFF! Which is why I feel guilty about it.  That and it costs money which I could save if I just drank my regular coffee from home.  But I enjoy coffee shop coffee so very much when I do get it.  I usually order the white chocolate mocha, no whip cream, and the largest size.  If extra sleepy, I'll throw in a couple extra shots of espresso.  It's good hot or iced.  My second cold favorite is the coconut mocha frap. That one comes with whip cream and toasted coconut.  Mmmmm

I also enjoy my daily, at home, no frills, with French Vanilla Coffeemate creamer (liquid only, not the powdered crap) (very large cup) cuppa coffee and don't really feel guilty about that one.

My other guilty pleasure - except I don't feel guilty about it - my TV shows.  I especially enjoy my "chick shows" so deemed by Robert, which tend to be drama shows that he doesn't find interesting.  I think he does find them interesting, he just doesn't want to be sucked into the story.  He particularly likes to tease me for Vampire Diaries, Desperate Housewives, Once Upon a Time and Secret Life of an American Teenager.  That's just recent tease-worthy shows, there are more.

I'm getting him hooked on more and more shows though, it's all good.

I'd list all my current favorites, but I don't want to leave out older favorites because you can still see them in reruns or elsewhere (i.e. Scrubs and Friends) but then I'd forget one and then have to come back and add it and then remember another and come back and add it and... you get the idea. And besides, the list is probably too long anyways.

Let's just say, I'm easy to amuse and as such can find amusement in almost anything.  (I say almost because I didn't find amusement in, and apparently I'm the only one, Napoleon Dynamite. I nearly fell asleep and was only able to get through 20 minutes of that movie before shutting it off. I'm annoyed they are making a cartoon about it. Also, Will Farrell is not funny.)

Now as to the exploring the idea of giving up my guilty pleasures for a year.

Nope.  I've considered it and I don't think so.

Seriously though, I'm sure I could do it.  I might not be too happy about it, but I could do it.  I know I can because I can do anything I put my mind to.

The coffee would be the easiest to give up, I've done it before and while I missed it, I didn't have to have it back.

The TV shows - that's my down time in the evening and on the weekends.  It allows me to shut my brain off, stop thinking and/or stressing about shit and just enjoy the story, the suspense, the drama, the laughs.  I enjoy watching a show and knitting, crotcheting, sewing, quilting, playing on my laptop (Facebooking or messing with photos). Robert and I share a lot of shows and we watch and enjoy those together, and I like that too. Actually, this past week with our living room TV being broken I haven't been watching as much and I'm doing just fine.  (I'm also giddy over getting to watch several episodes in a row to catch up.)

I'm sure I could completely replace that TV watching time with books (stories to shut my brain off of me and my worries) and be just fine (and probably make a dent in my to-read list), but I don't have to.  I like the little arrangement we've got going with a little of both worlds.

What about you? What are your guilty pleasures?  Would you be able to give them up for a year?


This post is brought to you by Reverb Broads.  A group of bloggers encouraging each other to write more throughout December by sharing prompts.  

Menu Monday

Sunday - Chicken strips, baked potatoes, steamed broccoli

 Monday - BBQ pork ribs, salad

 Tuesday - Chili

 Wednesday - FFY

 Thursday - Meatballs (which is meatloaf made into balls instead of a loaf), crash hot potatoes

 Friday - Hot wings (maybe. It sounds good, but I forgot to buy wings at the store and I really don't think I have any in the freezer.  This recipe post is what made me start craving them, and I want to try it.  I might even want to try it enough to go to the store again.)

 Saturday - Pizza (the from the freezer kind, nice and easy so I can get Christmas shopping finished up [which it almost is] and wrapping done and maybe get some baking done.)

 Links to recipes mentioned in my menus can be found here. It's pretty sparse right now, but I will be working on fixin' it up.

Wherein I'm playing catch-up again

You know, if I do decide that my goal for next year would be to upload AND post my 365 photo each and every day, I might be in a bit of trouble.  It hasn't been more than a week since the last time I said I wanted to stop getting so behind and I'm already behind.  UGH! What is wrong with me?!

Okay, enough whining.  ON TO MY 365 catch-up. Again.

337/365 - Christmas tree 2011.  I think I want a new tree topper, but I haven't found anything I really really like yet - so sticking with the all red star for now. What you can't see is all the lights I have in the window behind the blinds.  It's looks pretty from outside and also when the blinds are open.


338/365 - Robert's current project - Shelving in the garage for stuffs so that maybe some day we'll actually be able to, you know, park a car in the garage.  You can't really tell from the angle of this picture, but this was just the 2x4 bracing.  You'll have to wait for the "DONE" photo.


It's done now, but I don't have a picture yet. And I'm not taking one today - or at least right now.  Maybe in a bit when I go off to take my 365 for today.  (SPOILER ALERT: Today's 365 will not be included in this post.)

339/365 - Wilbur kitty. He's so soft and fluffy.  And meow-y.


340/365 - The most exciting photo ever! This 365 is serving as a reminder of what happened that day at its best - the day the TV bulb blew out and we spent a week without a TV in the living room while waiting for the new bulb ordered off the internet to arrive.  It is supposed to get here between Tuesday and Saturday this week.  Technically, we could have a week and a half with no TV! Crazy, right?!  I miss TV, even though we still have one in the bedroom.  And on my laptop.


341/365 - Christmas sunset


342/365 - Cold frosty morning run in the yard with Leia.  You'd think from this picture that we were playing fetch, but no.  She was running back and forth across the yard - past me each direction - with the stick in her mouth.  She can play fetch, but apparently she was okay with cutting out the middle man.


343/365 - Annual Christmas dinner at Multnomah Falls Lodge. This is Multnomah Falls.


This past week, I also realized that I'm a day off in my numbering of 365s.  Going back and going over my numbers I did find an error where I doubled up on a number.  Then later, I skipped a number.  However, after fixing those errors I still end up at this number so... I dunno - I could still end up at 365 at the end of this year, but with the way it counts now it will be 364 on December 31st.

Counting is a strong suit.