A friend of mine recently hit a milestone birthday. We decided that the group of us friends should go out to celebrate her birthday. She informed us that it wasn't for her birthday and it should be for all of our birthdays. So it affectionately became called NRB (not (her first name)'s birthday). So we emailed all the gals and found a date and time that worked for everyone and that was last night.
So last night we went to a somewhat local Mexican restaurant and enjoyed our food and visiting. Then we decided to have a little dessert (we shared fried ice cream). We had been lingering at our table and didn't realize the large amount of people waiting to be seated, so we quickly left our table and decided to continue our evening elsewhere. We spent probably another hour there, discussing a myriad of things (even I was amazed at the variety of things we discussed) and arrived home in time for the 10:00 news.
We need to do this more often. It was so nice to just visit and laugh and not be in the middle of doing something while we were visiting. We decided that we need to bring our husbands next time too and go a fancier restaurant. That was they can't wiggle out of going (and it would be nice to do this again). We never make time and we are all busy raising kids from preschool to college, doing our jobs, running businesses and get caught up in the daily busyness.
Thanks gals and you know who you are. Yes I have pictures and no I won't post them anywhere.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
Building a Better Mousetrap (or Learning about Steve Jobs)
Based on a recommendation by my friend Glenda and my father-in-law, I checked out the biography of Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson from the library. The book is fascinating and takes you step by step through various things that happened in his life (which I found cumbersome to begin with, considering the book is 571 pages long). I quickly learned, after reading a few chapters, how Isaacson, wove this all together to really tell the background of Steve Jobs quirky personality and quest to do things differently, better and more uniquely than anyone ever has. I now, appreciate the detail that Isaacson used in the early chapters to lay the foundation for explaining what made Steve Jobs who he was.
He set out to create a different product and company than anyone has ever seen or experienced. Along the way, he has pushed people's creative limits to new heights, creating things that didn't seem possible. He also created a loyal, almost cult-like following for Apple's innovative products. The MacIntosh computer, the iPhone and the iPad have revolutionized the world in many ways.
Yes, there are people who hate Macs or feel more comfortable with their PCs. My husband had a MacIntosh computer when we got engaged, but sold it as he began using PCs for work. About five years ago he bought a MacBook laptop. I wasn't ready, but eventually I came around and bought one 2 years ago. I kick myself for waiting for so long. Everything you do with them is intuitive. And you avoid nearly all the virus problems you have with PCs.
Our kids have only used a Mac and have easily picked up how to do anything they need to do on it. Our oldest daughter attended a technology workshop that the 4H Youth Council was hosting. Others were signed up to help with Mac products, so she ended up helping someone with their PC. She was able to pick up easily what needed to be done, I believe because of the ease of learning her way around the computer on the Mac.
I still have about 400 pages of the book left and am trying to read about 50-70 pages per night if possible, in order to get it finished by the time it is due back at the library in 2 weeks. It was a good book to start back into trying to read regularly. It has kept my interest. I don't think it is because I like Macs, but because the book is well written.
I see this has gotten extremely long, so I have kept you long enough (if you are still reading).
He set out to create a different product and company than anyone has ever seen or experienced. Along the way, he has pushed people's creative limits to new heights, creating things that didn't seem possible. He also created a loyal, almost cult-like following for Apple's innovative products. The MacIntosh computer, the iPhone and the iPad have revolutionized the world in many ways.
Yes, there are people who hate Macs or feel more comfortable with their PCs. My husband had a MacIntosh computer when we got engaged, but sold it as he began using PCs for work. About five years ago he bought a MacBook laptop. I wasn't ready, but eventually I came around and bought one 2 years ago. I kick myself for waiting for so long. Everything you do with them is intuitive. And you avoid nearly all the virus problems you have with PCs.
Our kids have only used a Mac and have easily picked up how to do anything they need to do on it. Our oldest daughter attended a technology workshop that the 4H Youth Council was hosting. Others were signed up to help with Mac products, so she ended up helping someone with their PC. She was able to pick up easily what needed to be done, I believe because of the ease of learning her way around the computer on the Mac.
I still have about 400 pages of the book left and am trying to read about 50-70 pages per night if possible, in order to get it finished by the time it is due back at the library in 2 weeks. It was a good book to start back into trying to read regularly. It has kept my interest. I don't think it is because I like Macs, but because the book is well written.
I see this has gotten extremely long, so I have kept you long enough (if you are still reading).
An Empty Weekend, What to Do? What to Do?
I can't remember the last time, we had a weekend with no plans, no commitments (other than church on Sunday) and no place we had to be. That just doesn't happen for us. Well, we plan to enjoy it. Being lazy, watching movies and getting the house back in shape (after lots of running) over the past weekend and week.
Wish I had more motivation to get my house decluttered. I should have. We have a confirmation in our house in 2 months. That should be enough motivation. Guess I better get off the computer and go work on it. Tackling the basement because it is in transition due to a variety of projects and then the office so we can use it more than we do. Both will require a lot of filing, so I suppose I better set up a better filing system for both the household and for our homeschooling. I have bookmarked a lot of sites and ideas, so I need to figure out which ones work best for each system. Unfortunately, my computer just locked up, so I will have to go find them again. Story of my life!
Wish I had more motivation to get my house decluttered. I should have. We have a confirmation in our house in 2 months. That should be enough motivation. Guess I better get off the computer and go work on it. Tackling the basement because it is in transition due to a variety of projects and then the office so we can use it more than we do. Both will require a lot of filing, so I suppose I better set up a better filing system for both the household and for our homeschooling. I have bookmarked a lot of sites and ideas, so I need to figure out which ones work best for each system. Unfortunately, my computer just locked up, so I will have to go find them again. Story of my life!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Blog Redesign
Gave up on trying to get a photo to work on my header of my blog for tonight. While on a trip to Galena for a weekend with friends, I found a chocolate shop whose sign has the very name of my blog. I took several pictures and hope to use one for the header of my blog. So if any of you people out there reading my blog know how I can do that, let me know. I will probably have lots of questions, but am sure that some of you have already done this.
Enjoy the new look. I plan to keep it and just update a bit with the photo, if I can make that work.
Thanks in advance.
Enjoy the new look. I plan to keep it and just update a bit with the photo, if I can make that work.
Thanks in advance.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Did Ya Miss Me?
It has been 13 months since I blogged. How bad is that?
Life gets hectic and while I come up with a lot of blog posts ideas in my mind, I rarely find (I mean make) the time to blog. Probably because I feel it has to be something important or newsworthy or something worthing of making commentary on (ie. a current event).
I do a pretty good job of taking a lot of photos and need to do a better job of sharing them here. Business, homeschooling, church and other commitments keep our family on the go, a lot but we try to do as much as we can as a family. Today, we waited a bit before deciding, but did attend Homeschool Day at the Capitol in Des Moines and listened to several speakers. Bill Federer has an almost encyclopedic knowledge of history and we could have listened to him all day. We also listened to Steve Deace, who challenged us to not become complacent in being active in the political arena and being devoted to protecting our freedoms and not just talking about it once a year and not being eternally vigilant the rest of the time.
I hope to get on a regular schedule for blogging, so perhaps you will see more posts from me.
Life gets hectic and while I come up with a lot of blog posts ideas in my mind, I rarely find (I mean make) the time to blog. Probably because I feel it has to be something important or newsworthy or something worthing of making commentary on (ie. a current event).
I do a pretty good job of taking a lot of photos and need to do a better job of sharing them here. Business, homeschooling, church and other commitments keep our family on the go, a lot but we try to do as much as we can as a family. Today, we waited a bit before deciding, but did attend Homeschool Day at the Capitol in Des Moines and listened to several speakers. Bill Federer has an almost encyclopedic knowledge of history and we could have listened to him all day. We also listened to Steve Deace, who challenged us to not become complacent in being active in the political arena and being devoted to protecting our freedoms and not just talking about it once a year and not being eternally vigilant the rest of the time.
I hope to get on a regular schedule for blogging, so perhaps you will see more posts from me.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Beautiful Sunset
Today was an extremely cold day! It was 10 degrees below when the day started. We went to church this morning and returned home for a couple hours. Later in the afternoon we went bowling with around 50 people from church. On our way home, around 5:30 p.m. I snapped some beautfiul sunset pictures on the gravel road that we drive home on. I just wanted to record this and am thinking of printing this one in a poster or on a canvas.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
My One Little Word - REDUCE
If you are a scrapbooker, then you might have heard of Ali Edwards. Every year she picks one word to be the focus of her year. She even leads an online class to make a little journal about it etc. While I am sure that this helps her and others to focus on their word and what they are trying to do in the lives, I simply don't have the time or the money to take a class so I can refocus my life in that one little area (especially since it isn't even a spiritual focus).
At any rate, in the interest of trying to set some goals for myself (after all, it is January, the time of resolutions), I decided to pick a word and try to apply it to various areas of my life. Hoping, that with focusing on this one word, I will accomplish some (and hopefully several or many) of my goals for the year.
My "One Little Word" is REDUCE. In a culture that tells us, more, more, more, I am hoping to work on less in terms of material things. I have done a ton of decluttering: lots of papers filed, lots of papers recycled, I took 3 old desktop computers to a friend to see if they can be used or possibly used for parts/components. Between Christmas and New Year's we cleaned some more out of my grandparents' house. While we did bring home a few mementos or kitchen items that we could use, we took a ton of stuff to Goodwill.
I continue to work on reducing. My kids are going through clothes to see what they have outgrown and can pass on to others. My husband and I plan to follow suit. Once the taxes are done, we will be continue to declutter the paper that inevitably accumulates on our desks.
There are many more places where a person can reduce. Reduce the amount of gas you use, by combining errands and trips when possible. Reduce outside commitments and spend more time with your family. Reduce the amount of plastic you use. Quit using plastic shopping bags and use a cloth bag instead. Use cloth napkins instead of paper. Same with paper plates and cups.
Reduce the amount of money you spend on things that are not necessities. Reduce your debt. Reduce your grocery bill. Eat out less. Repair items instead of replacing them.
So what would you like to be your one little word? I would love to hear.
At any rate, in the interest of trying to set some goals for myself (after all, it is January, the time of resolutions), I decided to pick a word and try to apply it to various areas of my life. Hoping, that with focusing on this one word, I will accomplish some (and hopefully several or many) of my goals for the year.
My "One Little Word" is REDUCE. In a culture that tells us, more, more, more, I am hoping to work on less in terms of material things. I have done a ton of decluttering: lots of papers filed, lots of papers recycled, I took 3 old desktop computers to a friend to see if they can be used or possibly used for parts/components. Between Christmas and New Year's we cleaned some more out of my grandparents' house. While we did bring home a few mementos or kitchen items that we could use, we took a ton of stuff to Goodwill.
I continue to work on reducing. My kids are going through clothes to see what they have outgrown and can pass on to others. My husband and I plan to follow suit. Once the taxes are done, we will be continue to declutter the paper that inevitably accumulates on our desks.
There are many more places where a person can reduce. Reduce the amount of gas you use, by combining errands and trips when possible. Reduce outside commitments and spend more time with your family. Reduce the amount of plastic you use. Quit using plastic shopping bags and use a cloth bag instead. Use cloth napkins instead of paper. Same with paper plates and cups.
Reduce the amount of money you spend on things that are not necessities. Reduce your debt. Reduce your grocery bill. Eat out less. Repair items instead of replacing them.
So what would you like to be your one little word? I would love to hear.
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