Neon Lights

A smile can't always express the abundance of emotions that fill up inside me when I'm with my family. Yesterday, I went to a county fair with my nieces and nephew. My 16 year old niece drove halfway there, crazy!
It's like I blinked my eyes and they all grew up.

They also batted their lashes to get me on a couple rides.

My niece performed in the talent contest... the reason for going in the first place.
With a lump in my throat I watched Paige
strum her guitar and sing like no one was watching.



Videos...from another performance by Paige Maree.
(Go to Youtube for more.)

When is the last time you went to a fair? Do you go on rides?

Tuesday: The Burning Question

Simple and Sweet....
Here are a few things for you to answer:

Favorite color
Salt or Sugar
Your best time of day
Drive or Fly
Mountains or Ocean
Email or Handwritten


Me:
Color-Black, but mostly I'm a neutral color girl
Both
Morning
Drive
Mountains
Handwritten

Have a great day....I'm getting on the plane in a matter of moments. Michigan here I come!

Up..up and away

It's one of those things that you read about in books or magazine articles when a group of friends set out for a weekend away. Away from husbands and kids...away from responsibilities...a weekend just for girlfriends. As I sit here tonight I can see my bag packed full of swim suits (not my favorite article of clothing) and cottage clothing for our second annual "girls weekend". I am flying to Michigan tomorrow! Within days I will be sitting around a camp fire drinking wine, eating smores and catching up with my best friends. What could be better?
Photos from last "girls weekend"...




My first few days will be with my family, but I'll be posting throughout the week.

Do you ever have "girls weekends"?

The September Issue... Strike a pose

Am I a walking contradiction or just eclectic? Perhaps that should be a rhetorical questions. I might be saddened by public opinions.

Within minutes of watching The September Issue... I threw on some wedged heels and headed to the store. Not just any store, I was going to a wedge worthy drug store.(You can roll your eyes or laugh here...it's meant to be silly.) Unlike the states they sell Chanel, Lancome, Dior, etc ....makeup and fragrances. Still this wasn't really a note worthy outing because I wasn't in search of the next fad or trend I was getting Coke (the liquid) for my husband. That didn't stop me from pretending that I was on Karl Lagerfelds runway wearing a size 2 or is it a -0 these days?
Then I got to thinking....I don't want to be a 2 or -0. I'm not saying the 8/10 that I'm sporting right now is on the top of my comfort meter, but you understand....right. (Did I just admit that?) For the most part that isn't what makes fashion so beautiful to me. Here is where my contradiction starts....
I love high fashion, but I most likely won't ever wear it. I'm not even sure if anyone wears it. It's the fabric, the cut, the skills, the photos that make me dreamy.
I love Coco Chanel fragrance, but I also love the smell of horses.
I love the idea of being a skinny (er) person, but I love pizza, desserts and wine. I'm terrible when it comes to self doubt, but it's not enough to make me commit to an exercise routine. (If you know me that is 100% not my forte. I am the most consistently inconsistent person who ever tried to be consistent.... I love that sentence.)

So, I'd reached the end of my runway career and decided to stop and take a break to enjoy one of summers finest, crème glacée of the creamiest kind. (Ice cream)

Thoughts while trying to slowly eat my ice cream cone:

I thank you Anna Wintour for allowing this documentary to be made. I think your world is fascinating. Your lack of verbal sunshine perplexes me. You actually have one of the coolest jobs and I can't understand why you don't have a smile from ear to ear everyday of the year. If you are ever feeling generous (note personality description above...the likely hood is slim) I would gladly and graciously accept your hand-me-down accessories...the clothing wouldn't fit. I appreciated the little makeup wearing- real women and men of all sizes that work for you. Being able to escape into a world I once thought I could live in, if only for just a few hours, was fun.

Have you seen The September Issue? When is the last time you read Vogue?

Wordless Wednesday...Puppy Love

My neighbor got a new puppy......I got a new friend!

Tuesday: The Burning Question

It has been so hot and humid here...having to cook dinner seems like a cruel punishment. The only benefit I can find from roasting myself as I cook is the possible weight loss due to sweating.
If that didn't make you throw up in your mouth just a little you're one tough cookie. (Smile)

Today's question:
If you could go anywhere for dinner tonight...where would you go?
Why did you pick this restaurant? Do you have a favorite dish there?
Money is not an issue.

Me: I just finished talking to my mom about what she had for dinner last night. That got me thinking just how nice it would be to have a home cooked meal plus she has air conditioning. While I'm in town (I live 15 hours from my parents.) I would go to Rose's. It's a great restaurant on a lake that has really good fire roasted pizza and so many appetizers that I have a hard time choosing one. In the fall they have butternut squash soup and fresh bread that is to die for.

(Photos from our visit there last summer.)

It's your turn....where would you like to go for dinner tonight?

Fergalicious ...

Another great concert at....

For one week every summer Quebec City hosts a grand concert series. Each night there is a "big name" artist on the main stage with many smaller venues throughout the old city. Passes sell for around $55.oo which is good for all shows. This is the first year they sold out. Luckily for my husband and I, we were able to use passes purchased by friends (who were not going to see the same shows that we wanted to see). Their generosity allowed us to have a lot of free fun.

I never imagined that we would be grooving to the Black Eyed Peas on the Plains of Abraham in Quebec City, but we were. I had swollen feet and a soar throat the next day to prove it. There were over 110,000 people inside of the gates and another 50,000+ people gathered outside of the gate....that's a lot of Black Eyed Peas fans. Despite the masses of people, all concert goers were under control and we never felt like sardines as one might suspect with that many people. I wouldn't consider myself a "concert goer", but it was a really fun week of musical entertainment... I'm already looking forward to next year.

What's the last concert you went to?

Cherry, I mean Cherries

Life is a bowl of cherries, but in this case
I got a two for one special.
(Sometimes the silliest things make me laugh and laugh.)



Where did this saying come from:
It came from a song in the 1930's, lyrics:

Life is just a bowl of cherries;
Don't make it serious;
Life's too mysterious.
You work, you save, you worry so,
But you can't take your dough when you go, go, go.
So keep repeating it's the berries;
The strongest oak must fall.
The sweet things in life
To you were just loaned,
So how can you lose what you've never owned?
Life is just a bowl of cherries,
So live and laugh at it all.

"Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries" is a popular song with music by Ray Henderson and lyrics by Buddy G. DeSylva and Lew Brown, published in 1931. The song was revived in 1953 by Jaye P. Morgan. (Wiki)

What are some of the sweetest things in your life?

Wordless Wednesday...

We got passes to the Festival d' Ete de Quebec from a student for last nights show...
He played through a thunder storm for hours in front of 250,000+ people.

It was a remarkable show.

He really didn't need lyrics... his guitar spoke to us in volumes.

(Some photos were taken off the big screens.)
Happy not so wordless Wednesday.

39 is oh so fine....

As the sun nestles into the evening sky, on a wonderfully
quiet beach along the St.Lawrence...

my husband, some friends and I sprawled out on
blankets to celebrate my 39th birthday.

Freshly baked breads still warm to the touch coupled with delectable cheese
made from neighboring hands danced on each taste bud while the tide splashed at our feet.

I blew out the candles, but didn't make a wish...
I had a lot to be thankful for at that very moment.

For me, each birthday is a memory to cherish. I'm thankful for each
day that I get to spend with loved ones. As my mother would say "life is good".

Tuesday: The Burning Question

I had a wonderful birthday! Thank you for all the kind greetings.
It's one of those feelings that are indescribable....people I've never "met", taking time out of their day to wish me a Happy Birthday. I'm still smiling today,but not too big I've got crows feet to worry about now that I'm almost 40. (Oh who cares...I'm still sporting a big toothy grin.)

So, a birthday related question seems fitting....
What is one of your favorite birthday memories?

(I'll answer in my next post.)

39

I celebrate 39 years of life today.
Here are a few of my favorite things....

Once I got started I found it very difficult to stop.

There are so many simple pleasures in life.

Things not people...that list would be way too long.

What are a few of your favorite things?

Thank you for stopping by today...I really do appreciate it.