Harris II

Just want to include some of these darling family photos of Chris & Nathalie's brood so they'll be here on my blog. Love every one of these peeps! (well, not sure yet on the new puppy, "Bolt," but I'm sure he's great)

Out on the North Carolina property

With the new puppy, "BOLT" -- those kids (all 4 of them) aren't excited, are they?!

Cuter than cute! Addie, Colton & Rogan

So-Long, Curly Top!

I remember watching Shirley Temple movies as a kid, and thinking she was adorable then. Now looking back at those movies, she seriously was adorable -- and incredibly talented for a 3-4-5 year old! My favorite movies of hers were the ones where she was really young, like "Curly Top" and "Bright Eyes," (remember "Good Ship Lollipop?).  Coached? Yes. Choreographed? Yes. A little "too cute" sometimes? Yes. But sweet and enjoyable still...

I don't remember much about the movies, just that she was in them, they were cute, she brought sunshine wherever she went, I liked watching them, and they always had a happy ending. My kind of movie!

AND...another notable thing about her, is that she 'RETIRED' at 22 from show business. She was married to Mr. Black for 55 years, she was a mother of three...and she was a U.S. Ambassador twice. I didn't follow her life closely, but looking back at it now, I can't think of many other child stars who 'turned out so well' -- actually, can't think of ANY.

She passed away yesterday, at 85 years old.

Hats off to Shirley Temple -- may she rest in peace.

Slanted View

I wanted to try a new recipe Saturday night. It sounded good, I had all the ingredients, it uses one of my favorite things (Diet Dr. Pepper), and I'm still in my temporary state of eating less healthy than my new years resolutions require. [Yes, that phase is quickly coming to an end, but that's another blog post...]



So, I made this delicious recipe:

Diet Dr. Pepper Cake
1 box yellow cake mix with pudding in the mix
1 box of instant vanilla pudding (or 4 packets MF vanilla pudding, which is what I used)
4 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 can Diet Dr. Pepper (DDP)
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Mix liquids together, then add dry stuff. Blend with beaters until smooth. Add nuts, stir.
Bake for 40 min. at 350. Cool. Top with cream cheese frosting, or make this Glaze: 1 c. powdered sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, enough DDP to make a thin glaze. Drizzle over cake.

So I baked it, it turned out fabulous, EXCEPT it came out of the oven looking SLANTED like this: (!)

WHO KNEW my oven had a slant? When did that happen?

Later, when Sam saw the cake and I told him something was 'with' the oven he opened and looked in. He grabbed my phone, and took this photo:

And said, "Hey, mom. I found the big problem with your oven..."

Okay, I don't want to hear it! I was putting the cake in the oven (and taking it out) from the side, not looking directly into the oven, not seeing the rack in full view, blazing heat hitting me in the face...I didn't notice, okay? And I didn't take the time to look in there afterward, either, okay?!

It wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't posted the cake photo on Facebook, then I had to post the stove photo and take all the brutal comments about me being a dumb blonde or something. Sheesh.

It's a moist, dense cake that has those yummy walnuts which make it even fabulous-er. So I frosted what was left of it this morning, sliced it into small pieces, and took it to work. They loved it and it disappeared! Like I said, it is a delicious recipe!

Bag Lady

I remember when I was growing up that my mom used to have SOOOO many purses! It seemed like she had lots of different colors, but all similar in style in the top of her closet. And she was always looking at purses at stores. I remember thinking, "Sheesh, mom, how many purses does a girl need?!"

I found these random purses online, and they all remind me of her olden-day purses. Seriously, I can see her carrying any one of these circa 1975...

Well....I have realized recently that I've become a bit of a purse girl myself! Not quite sure how it happened, because forever I've been like BUY A PRACTICAL PURSE, USE IT TILL IT RIPS APART, BUY A NEW PURSE, REPEAT, WHO CARES?

But over the past few years, something about having the 'right' purse has become desirable. I like lots of pockets, and everything in it's place. It makes me feel organized, even though I'm not. But I'm NOT one of those who changes purses DAILY to match an outfit...that's a bit much. I go in phases. I use them for 2-3 weeks and then change out.

Here are some my 'current' purses... They all have a story or a purpose, or something that made me get them!

 1 - This is an awesome, large BLACK purse with no interior divider, but a couple of pockets. And...SCORE...Jennie Latimer at work GAVE it to me because "it's a cheap Target purse" and she only got it because she didn't want to take one of her $300-$400 purses with her on vacation where it might get damaged. HA!

2 - I love the BROWN color of this one, fairly new, and it's basically just a huge hobo bag with one zip pocket inside. I got it because it's great for travel because I can fit my Surface in there with all my 'purse' stuff and all the stuff for the airport, etc. But it's a little floppy, and inconvenient being so unorganized and pocket-challenged.

3 - I've had this RED leather purse for probably 8-10 years, and it's a little small, and just open inside. But the color is great, and it's fun to use for a couple of weeks around the holidays.

4 - This one -- HAA! I got it FREE a couple of years ago at Sally's Beauty Supply with a $25 purchase. It's huge and open and trendy, but not real practical looking and not enough pockets -- none on the outside, and that's deadly. But it's kind of fun and flashy, etc. See it HERE at the Imagine Dragons concert...

5 - I got this BLACK/WHITE 'satchel' at a recent after-Christmas clearance at Belks at the Mall. I hardly ever go in there, and I never buy purses at the mall! But this one screamed out me, and since it was $22 I thought I'd give it a try. It's big, it stands up on its own (which I like) and it has good pockets, looks dressy like an executive bag. I like it! Haven't used it yet, need to!

I have more in my closet -- too many, I'm sure. And for someday down the road, I have my eye on this bag THAT I LOVE...(London Fog):

And these new little purses that look like books are totally cute (Kate Spade and the likes), but not practical for me, size-wise or price-wise. HA!

 

 

I have gotten organized to the point that this is generally all I have in my purse at any given time...plus my phone and car keys. Still wouldn't fit in that book.

1) Zipper pouch with pain relievers, protein bars, mirror, gum, cough drops & dental floss. 2) Wallet. 3) Altoids
4) Frequency cards & travel point cards (hey, there's an app for that now so this may be going by the wayside)
5) Business Cards;  6) Pens; 7) Lip Gloss, chapstick, nail file & tiny clippers

With these bigger purses, I may actually have to start using this handy-dandy thang (below) that Mr. Gadget got me a year or two ago...it's still in the box. But I'm now ready to break it out! You just put all your stuff in it, and lift it all out at once when you change purses! That could make a girl's life very easy, and I may start changing purses with every outfit! (ha)

And another after-Christmas 'find' was this great taupe patent leather bag -- perfect for my CHURCH BAG! My other bag's handles were worn, torn, and coming apart. It gets just a little heavy usage... :) So I was excited to find this cool thang...and only $20!

AND A SIDE NOTE: if Nathalie lived nearby, I know she'd TOTALLY make me a designer bag CAKE for my birthday...in chocolate brown, not purple.

And now...for the BIG KAHUNA OF BAGS...I saw it online several months ago and mentioned to Steve that it would be cool in PINK to match my cell phone and my Surface:

No, my phone is NOT scaled in size to my Surface in this photo...

...and he got it for me for Christmas! It is so cool because it is a large, luxury, LEATHER briefcase travel bag on wheels for convenience at the airport, fully lined with a gazillion pockets -- but when you get where you're going, you just ZIP it off the wheels and use it as a briefcase! WHAAA...? Is that genius or what?! And it's PINK! Coolest. Thing. Ever. Can't wait to use it when I go to New Jersey next week! (You'll probably be treated to some photos of the FAB BAG in action later!)

And I did not appreciate Lori's reference to this looking like a
vacuum cleaner. It is far too cool for that...



Okay, so now I've got to come up with a better way to store all these and the many more bags I have for ease of access and quick-change. I'm getting more excited about more bags the more I blog about them! :) We have a very small walk-in closet, and I'm thinking I may have to resort to something like this:

The pink travel bag definitely WON'T work on the back of the door, though! Haha

Okay, so now my genetic BAG-FETISH is revealed. I'm sure you're tired of hearing about purses, hobo bags, satchels, totes, travel bags and the like. In fact, if you made it through this entire post, you're probably ready to BAG this blog altogether (heh, heh)...

Davy Crockett

I've never quite understood the appeal of CAMPING in the WINTER. But for some reason, the Boy Scouts like to do it. So when Sam went with his troop mid-January, on one of the COLDEST WEEKENDS in recent Tennessee history, I was a little concerned.  I guess I "get" the whole winter survival thing...the hiking 7.5 miles up a mountain trail in cold weather carrying heavy stuff, the fire building, the layering...yada yada yada.

But when he got back, he modeled the HAT Steve had gotten for him, his thick orange coat, and I had already seen him practice putting together the 'waterproof' pup tent. So he assured me that he was toasty warm, most of the time. And he actually had fun -- and got a sunburn! HA!

BOYS.