this little life of mine

So, I've been doing this End-of-the-Year Meme for several years now. I almost didn't bother with it this year, since the questions are the same each year, and for the most part, so are my answers. However, it's become a tradition, and it's fairly easy, so I figured why not! (Also, if anyone knows of a newer or different End-of-the-Year questionnaire type of thing, let me know in the comments! I wouldn't mind trying something different next year!)

• What did you do in 2016 that you’d never done before?

Visited the International Rose Test Garden and the Japanese Garden with Darlene in Portland, OR, and visited the city of Cincinnati, OH with Julie, and saw Impressionist paintings from Daubigny, Monet, Van Gogh, and Pissarro at the wonderful Taft Museum of Art.

• Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? 

 I don't even remember what I resolved to do, so probably not! As for 2017, I haven't decided yet.

• Did anyone close to you give birth?

 No.

• Did anyone close to you die? 

No, thank God!

• What countries did you visit? 

None this year.

• What would you like to have in 2017 that you lacked in 2016?

Gumption.

• What dates from 2016 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? 

Early March when I went to Weetacon then got to hang out with Julie in Cincinnati, and mid-August when I visited Darlene in Portland.

• What was your biggest achievement of the year?

I can't think of a single thing I achieved this year.

• What was your biggest failure?

 Not selling any of my perfectly nice things on eBay.

• Did you suffer illness or injury? 

Nothing new, no.

• What was the best thing you bought?
My Kia Soul (I named her Roxanne, or Roxy for short.)
• Whose behavior merited celebration?
• Pretty much everyone I work with. We have a difficult job, yet everyone stays upbeat, positive, and continues to provide great customer service even to the most difficult customers!
• Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? 

All the whiney, fragile snowflakes who freaked out after Donald Trump won the election and had to pet "comfort animals" and play with Play-Doh because they were so "traumatized", and all the Universities who coddled those worthless wimps.

• Where did most of your money go? 

My totally awesome, super fun vacations to Green Bay, WI, Cincinnati, OH, and Portland, OR, and to my new car!

• What did you get really, really, really excited about.

See above...

• What song will always remind you of 2016? 

"Priceless" by For King and Country. It seemed to be playing on all my favourite radio stations at least once every day for months! But, that's okay, it's a fantastic song!

• Compared to this time last year, are you:
• a) happier or sadder

about the same.

• b) thinner or fatter?

about the same.

• c) richer or poorer?  
•  poorer.
• What do you wish you’d done more of? 

Going to the beach, sightseeing locally. (Those might be my 2017 New Year's Resolutions!)

• What do you wish you’d done less of? 

Watching TV, sleeping.

• How did you spend Christmas? 

Relaxing with my mom, eating chips, salsa, and guacamole, and chicken enchiladas while drinking margaritas and watching "It's a Wonderful Life".

• Did you fall in love in 2016? 

No.

• What was your favorite TV program? 

Designated Survivor - awesome show!!

• Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? 

Yes.

• What was the best book you read? 

I didn't really read much this year, but I did enjoy The Scene of the Climb by Kate Dyer-Seeley.

• What was your greatest musical discovery? 

Jordan Feliz

• What did you want and get? 

A new car.

• What did you want and not get? 

A peaceful election.

• What was your favorite film of this year?

I just saw Rogue One, and it's amazing!

• What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? 

I don't remember what I did on my birthday, so I probably just stayed home and relaxed!

• What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? 
• If people had not been such assholes to each other during the election
•  How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2016?

I bought whatever was cute, comfortable, and affordable.

• What kept you sane? 
Staying off social media during the election!
• Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? 

 Hmm. I can't really think of anyone special this year.

• What political issue stirred you the most?

The election this year stirred everyone up this year, I think. We lost, yes, but I wish people would calm down, because it's all going to be okay. It's only 4 years after all!

• Who did you miss? 

My grandparents and my dad.

• Who was the best new person you met? 

No one that I can recall. I pretty much hung out with the same folks.

• Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2016. 

Follow your heart and beliefs regardless of what other people - even your closest family and best friends - tell you to think.

Last weekend I finished up my hand-stamped Christmas cards for family, friends, and the Christmas Card Exchange I participate in almost every year. It felt good to get them all done! Unfortunately, I was too pooped to do any more cards, so my co-workers will end up with store bought cards. Hopefully they won't mind! (Also, hopefully next year I'll a) start on these cards earlier, and b) come up with an easier, assembly-line-style design!) Anyway, here's the rest of the card designs I came up with:

(Deer in woods stamp from Hero Arts)

(Sentiment and individual snowflakes from Jingle All the Way stamp set)

(Christmas tree stamp from Hero Arts)

(Truck w/ tree, and sentiment from Jingle All the Way stamp set)

So, my Christmas cards this year were a mixed bag of just about everything: extra hand-made cards I had left over from previous years, newly hand-made cards, and store-bought cards both old and new. I managed to use up all my old hand-made cards (except the really nice ones I'm just keeping for my collection), AND all my old store-bought cards, and am currently on a 100% clean slate with about 20 to 30 names on my Christmas card list. My plan is to complete and mail out all those cards this weekend, and just have the few I'll be handing out to co-workers the Friday before the holiday weekend.  I'm still not sure if I'll make all these cards or just buy a box. I've gotten some really great ideas from stampers on YouTube, so I might try a few of those ideas before deciding for sure. But, for now, here are a few of the cards I made so far this year. Enjoy!

Hello, and Happy Monday! Or something like that. Anyway, after last Friday's double to-do list, I thought I'd check in and see how many items I actually accomplished. First I had a list of things I hoped to get done over the weekend, and then I added a list of things that were more likely to get done! Here's the first list with the results:

1. Sell some stamps. Not done! Actually I was so busy stamping and cooking, I completely forgot about this one!

2. Clean out my closet. Not done! I didn't even look in my closet this weekend except to pick out what I was going to wear to work today!

3. Finish/Purchase/Mail Christmas cards.  Almost done! I was able to get a lot of cards stamped yesterday, and used up all my previously purchased cards. Honestly I don't know how many cards I have left to make/buy, but I actually feel very good about this one!

4. Mow the lawn. DONE!

5.  Work on my End-of the-Year blog stuff. Not done! I didn't even get started on this in any way, shape, or form. Maybe next weekend!

Okay, so I pretty much sucked on that list, let's see how I did on the next one:

1. Meal prep and cooking for the week. Done! I did a pretty easy recipe this week, so it didn't take as much time, but it will still be super healthy and delicious!

2. Napping. Not (really) done! I was successful on Saturday, but I tried to take a nap yesterday afternoon, and couldn't fall asleep.

3. Catching up on all the TV shows I missed this week. Not done! I completely forgot about two favourites: Designated Survivor and Timeless, and I wanted to watch Hairspray! Live, but never had enough time.

4. Mow the lawn.  Done! The weather held out just long enough, so I'm good to go on that for a few more weeks!

5. Take a walk. Done! It's had to get up and go for a walk after relaxing, especially when the weather's not that great, but we did it anyway, and it felt fantastic!

So, by the looks of it my weekend was a total fail, but I really got so much done, that I feel really good about it, and not at all guilty or bad for the things I didn't get done. There's always next weekend, right?!? Have a terrific week, everyone! Cheers!

TGIF and Happy Friday! I forgot to do a Friday Five last week, so this week will be a 2-fo-1:  my first five items will be stuff I'd LIKE to accomplish over this coming weekend, and my next five items will be stuff I probably WILL accomplish! Most of the stuff from the first list WON'T be on the second list! Ha! I know myself TOO well!

First up my "Wishful Thinking To-Do List":

1. Sell some stamps. I have a small box of wood-mounted rubber stamps I need to get photographed and put on eBay to sell. It actually hurts me to part with them, but I'm not using them, and after 10 or 15 years, I probably WON'T be using them, plus I watched a Hoarding: Buried Alive marathon last weekend, and am very inspired to get rid of stuff!

2. Speaking of hoarding ... I'd also like to go through my closet  and dressers sometime this weekend and pull the stuff I saved 6 months ago that I still haven't worn or used. I've bee trying to stick to that 6 month schedule, and so far it's been working! Also, getting rid of old, useless, unused items seems like a great way to end 2016, and therefore begin 2017 with a (mostly) clean slate!

3. Finish/Purchase/Mail Christmas cards. It is with deep regret I admit I will not be able to hand-stamp ALL the cards I need to mail out this year. I had the best of intentions and the highest of hopes, but in the end realized it was not going to happen. I will still try to get a bunch of cards made this weekend, but I think I'll have to go purchase a box to cover everyone on my lists. Apologies in advance!

4. If at all possible I'd love to get my lawn mowed this weekend. I didn't do it last weekend, and it's already rained once this week, and is supposed to rain a few days more.

5.  Work on my End-of the-Year stuff - best/fave photos, End-of-the-Year-Meme, 2017 resolutions, etc. Try to get a jump on all that good stuff before the holidays really hit and I'm too busy to blog!

And now, here's the more realistic list - stuff I probably WILL get done this weekend:

1. Meal prep and cooking for the week. I've been doing this a few weeks now, and it's working out really well! It's so nice to come home to an already prepared, healthy meal that just needs to be heated up. Though, I must say, this is part of the reason nothing else gets done, because doing so much cooking, especially from scratch, take A LOT of time!

2. Napping. A weekend staple!

3. Catching up on all the TV shows I missed this week.

4. Mow the lawn. This one really depends on the weather, but if it's nice enough, it HAS to be done whether I like it or not!

5. Take a walk. My mom and I have been trying to go for walks on the weekend to get a little exercise. It's just around the neighbourhood right now, but we're going to try to extend it every other week or so to try to get back in shape!

 Okay, there you have it! Wish me luck! Cheers!

Sorry, I'm a little late with my Favourites this month. I was actually trying to figure out what some of my favourite things for November even were (and weren't)! But, I believe I have finally come up with a pretty good selection, and I hope you enjoy!

1. Roasting veggies and Sunday meal prep. During the month of November, it finally became cold enough for me to be able to use my oven on a regular basis, which meant more roasted veggies for our dinners. I also did a much better job of planning and preparing meals for the week (usually on Sundays) using healthier recipes from my Clean Eating magazines rather than a prepared box mix (like Hamburger Helper - not that there's anything wrong with Hamburger Helper, I'm just trying to eat less processed foods.). The result has been more delicious, healthier meals!
2. Stamping. I finally got back into rubber stamping in a big way in November, and even purchased a device that will make stamping and making cards easier: the Mini MISTI. The MISTI helps you stamp an image more than once if necessary to make a better picture. I also purchased another awesome device - the Big Shot die cutting machine. And, while that doesn't really help me with my older wood-mounted stamps, it's awesome for some of the newer clear stamp sets I've purchased that come with coordinating dies, making it easier to cut out the images for cards.
3. Christmas Decorating. I almost didn't do it, but the Sunday after Thanksgiving, I finally grabbed my two bins of decorations, and my pre-lighted, artificial Christmas tree and did a little decorating. I only put up the tree with some ornaments, and my Nativity, but it's festive!
4. Cancelling my subscription boxes. Yes, I enjoyed the variety of subscription boxes I signed up for over the summer and fall, but they all had so many products in them that after a while I was overwhelmed by the amount of products on my bathroom counter. I used some of them, but a lot of them were either items I would never use, or just didn't like, and eventually I realilzed that I wasn't enjoying getting the boxes in the mail, but was getting stressed out over them. They felt like a burden, and I finally decided to let them just go! Last weekend, I went and tossed all the little sample things, and products Inever used and never wil), and cancelled all but 1 of my boxes. I'm keeping the Sephora Play! box because it's fun, inexpensive, doesn't have a LOT of stuff, and I have actually found products I've liked and eventually purchased the full size of.
5. Our Unconventional Thanksgiving! My mom and I did NOTHING for Thanksgiving but watch the Macy's Parade, take a walk around Atascadero Lake, and enjoyed a lasagna and salad for dinner. It was a perfect, relaxing, no stress day!

And, now here's a couple things I didn't like about November:

1.  The time change. Or did that happen in October? I can't remember now, and it doesn't matter, I don't like it. Sure, that extra hour of snoozing on Sunday morning is nice, but, that Monday morning it's suddenly so light, and that night after work it's pitch black! Yes, I know it's going to grow dark at night eventually, but I'd prefer the nice, gentle, gradual darkening as opposed to the sudden pitch blackness.

Okay, so I guess there was only one thing I didn't like, but really, what's not to like? November is already a short month with two holidays, so it's basically a really fun month! How was your November? Did you do anything fun? Take a trip? Visit family or friends for Thanksgiving? Let me know if the comments, and I hope you have a great day!

Hello, and Happy December! I think I might've forgotten to do my Monthly Resolutions*  in November. I can't remember now, and I don't feel like digging though my November entries (not that there are many, but still ...) to see if I did or not. So never mind, on to December!

1.  I'm participating in both Holidailies and December Reflections this month, and I'm already 1 day behind on Holidailies. While the collective goal is to write an entry every day for the month of December, my personal goal is 20 entries. If I do more, great, if not, I won't beat myself up over it. As for December Reflections, I'm confident I'll be able to post a photo every day for that challenge.

2.  I've recently started stamping again, and have a couple goals regarding that this month: 1) finish my Christmas cards and get them mailed (preferably before December 15th), and 2) start planning and stamping my 2017 calendars. I purchased a couple small calendars from an Etsy shop earlier this week, and plan to make a calendar for myself and one for my mom. They are 6" X 6" which is quite small, yes, but the smaller size will hopefully keep me from getting overwhelmed with lots of blank white paper!

3.  Read a couple books. I haven't done much reading this year, and I would like to change that. I got really sick back in March/April, and reading on the bus made me dizzy, so I just listened to music or watched YouTube videos. Then I started reading a mystery I purchased over the summer which was hard to get into, so it took me literally 3 1/2 months to finish. Now I'm reading a delightful "cozy" mystery I'm really enjoying! I hope to get to my favourite used book store, Buckets of Books, and pick up some more books for the upcoming year!

Well, I think that's enough goals for the already-busy month of December. Do you have any goals, plans, or things to accomplish this month? Let me know in the comments, and have a terrific Friday! 

 *Inspiration for the Monthly Resolutions from Kim at The Kim Challenge. Check her out!