Nantucket Continued....

Yesterday we took some pics all dressed up in our white and denim.  This was our favorite group shot.

Then we spent the afternoon shopping in the quaint little town of nantucket.  I love how all the buildings have so much charm and history.  
The streets in the main part of town are made of cobblestone.  It's all the original cobblestone from over 200 years.
Then we went to dinner at this amazing restaurant called The Company of the Cauldron.  It was seriously one of the most fabulous meals I've ever had.  We started off with Salmon Fritters and I was adventerous and tried cavier.  Didn't like it...too fishy.  Then it was on to the salad a brushcetta course and then the main course of Beef Wellington.  I've never had that before either and it was to die for!!!  The beef literally melted in your mouth and we were cutting it EASILY with our butter knives.  Fabulous!  We topped the night off with this amazing chocolate mousse.  It couldn't have been any better!!  YUM!
Today we headed out to the beach to spend the day just hanging out, having fun, and playing some games.  We spent some time taking pictures too!  We got some fun group shots!



Tonight we are looking forward to a lobster dinner at my family's home.  It's gonna be the kind where the whole lobster is sitting on your plate.  Can't wait!  Tomorrow we are going on a tour of the island!  More pics and updates to come tomorrow!!!

Fun Day in Nantucket - GGW Day 2

Well, I guess I lied about the pictures.  I was able to download them to my cousins computer.  So I will be doing updates WITH pictures!

Like I said we had a treasure hunt this morning.  The prize.....My Nanny's Freedom!  My cousin Allison had taken Nanny prisoner and we had to follow the clues and answer the questions to free her!  Here is my Nanny being held "prisoner"......

Doesn't she look "really" distressed! LOL!  It was lots of fun and .....MY team won! Wahoo!  Nanny was free!

Then we went sailing in the afternoon.  I've never been sailing and it was fun!  I didn't get sick at all...nobody did!  Here we all are on the boat just after getting back from the hour and a half trip....

My sister and I helped hoist the sail....or something like that!
This is a picture I took from the boat of the Brandt Point Lighthouse

And this is the pic I took of John Kerry's House....well actually it's his wife's family's house.

The day was filled with fun and laughter!  We ended it at the house with a fabulous meal of freshly harpooned swordfish with this amazing mango salsa that my cousins prepared!  Then we all sat around and cried for a half hour.....why.....

because before the weekend we had all written out some of our favorite memories of our Nanny.  My cousin Allison made a beautiful scrapbook of pictures and our writings.  She presented it to my Nanny and we all read our letters out loud to her!  It was a precious moment in life where we told how much we love her and what she means to us!  She will be 86 in a few weeks!  She felt VERY loved!

Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!  We hear it is bringing LOTS of RAIN!  I will keep you posted!

Nantucket.....it's so quaint

I'm in Nantucket!!! This year my family's Girls Getaway Weekend is being hosted by my family that has a summer home in Nantucket. Oh my goodness the house....the neighborhood....it's picturesque! I will post tons of pictures when i get home!!
Today we did this little scavenger hunt in the neighborhood and it was lots of fun. This afternoon we are all going sailing!!! Yes, sailing! I hope I don't puke! I've never been on a sailboat! It's a weekend of firsts! I went on a little 10 passenger plane to get here...that was a first! I was super nervous (I don't like heights) and it took some intense focus, prayer and singing the praise song "you are my hiding place" over and over in my head! 15 minutes into the flight I was doing much better! Thank you God for your peace and comfort! (Um I'll take a little for the sailboat too!)

I will try to keep you updated on my trip...but no pics until I get home!

Fireproof....

Influence

I'm headed off to a retreat this weekend about Becoming a Woman of Influence.

No, this isn't the Hillary Clinton kind of influence.....I'm talking about influencing the lives, hearts and soles here....not worldly power! I mentor a young woman and this retreat will be speaking to that.

My hope in mentoring her is to develop a strong relationship with her. To give her one more person in her life that she can trust. To be one more person in her life who shows her love. To be one more person in her life who will speak truth in love. To be one more person in her life who will encourage her. To be one more person in her life who will help her grow in her relationship with the Lord. I just want to "do life" with her....and along the way I pray that I will influence her in such a way that will draw her nearer to God and encourage her to keep striving to live in accordance to His Word and will.

I'm excited to see what the weekend has to offer!

Free at last!

I go my freedom back today. Spent it getting rid of my gray hairs............ Wahoo!!! I love feeling fresh and new!

Day 3 of Captivity.....

I'm still here. And I think I might be getting a fumes headache!
I'm no longer the only thing being held captive....my kitchen is being held captive too! My fridge is not accessible today. All that I have available is my pantry...which only seems to contain things like vanilla wafers and fruit snacks. Obviously it has other things like rice, pasta, etc...but I can't get to my stove either.
So, I'm here...still...and I'm HUNGRY!

You would think I could be getting a lot of stuff done, but not really. The fumes are way too bad out in the main part of the house. So, again, I'm trapped in my office. Which means I can get work done, but the headache and the computer screen aren't mixing well for me!

So, let's take a look to the brighter side of life shall we! I need to stop complaining! So...How about 8 great things about my life!

1. I have a hubby who truly does love me and cherishes me!

2. I have two children who by nature are good, sweet, and loving!

3. I am blessed to have two parents who are still married and have modeled what it means to stick it out through the tough times.

4. I am blessed to have an amazing church family and community of believers in my life.

5. I am blessed by all that God has provided for our family.

6. I'm thankful for my extended family and looking forward to my "Nannual Girls Getaway Weekend" next week (Nantucket Here I come!!)

7. My kids are both in classes with teachers who they really like and seem to be a great fit!

8. I am loved by God and Saved by the death of His Son on the Cross...what can be better than that!!!!

Help, I'm being held captive by my house!

Don't call 911 or anything like that....I just can't ever leave because it seems that there are still contractors who are needing to come to my house to fix what could've been done right in the first place....she said sweetly!

The phone company had better get it right this time. I can't even carry on a conversation because the static in the line is so loud it hurts my ears and I can't hear the other person talking!!

I'm so tired of not being able to go anywhere because I have to be HERE! I'm not a homebody. I like to GO! And I don't like feeling like people are watching me either so I spent most of the day in my office yesterday because I had a sub-contractor here all day...and the same thing will be happening again today! Oh joy!

Oh, and I can't breath because I have a cold...and I can't sleep because I'm trying to sleep sitting up so I don't get so congested. I thought my head was going to explode yesterday! And while we are at it...why not throw in a little visit from Aunt Flow and what little gifts does AF bring whenever she visits....ZITS!

But on a brighter note....I found a good deal on Craigslist today! I love a bargain!

So long and Farewell!

Well, as of today we are no longer the "proud" owners of ANY Quizno's Restaurants!!! YEAH!
Most of you probably don't even know we ever were owners. We jumped into the Quizno's adventure about 8 years ago. We started off with one store and within a few years we had three. Over the last few years they have been a thorn in our side as both my hubby and our business partners had full time jobs as well. Slowly but surely we have sold them off one by one and today we officially closed on the third and final store! My hubby probably woke up this morning and did a little irish jig or something (I don't know because I was asleep!)

I will miss the free food...but that's about it! I still LOVE a good Quizno's sandwich though!! They are toasty good! Subway doesn't even come close!!! My hubby always had this great ad idea that they should spoof the Subway Jared commercial and start off with a skinny person who gets fat and use their old tagline "Quizno's ....It's THAT good!"

Wow, I think it might actually look professional!!!

Well, I've been working on this for awhile now and it's finally ready for the world to see! My new and improved website!!! I really wanted something that looked professional and came across looking like a website rather than a blog. I hope I accomplished that! Take a look and then come back and tell me what you think!

www.eightcrazydesign.com

Drawers and Corners

Just wanted to share this little corner in my home. It is my way of tipping my hat to the 50's when there was only one phone in the house and it was usually in the front hallway with a telephone table. I did my own twist on it. It is in the main hallway of my house right next to a built-in desk. This is where my kiddos will be talking on the phone to their friends! Right out in the middle of the house! Oh I really wish I would've been a teen in the 50's. I was born way too late! (someday this bench will have a pretty padded cushion!)

Here is a great site for replica phones:
http://www.1-noveltyphones.com/index.php/cPath/11/osCsid/14c31b041c86ac32da8e0934a52cac79
I got mine at Target actually for around $45

My Invention: The Appliance Drawer......
It looks like an ordinary drawer that might have tupperware or dishrags in it right?

guess again! It has two appliances in it that are always plugged in! I've got my toaster and my blender base in this drawer and they are always ready to go! I'm tooting my own horn here...but I didn't see this anywhere...I came up with this idea on my own...do you like it?

time for my morning protein shake!

(no mother, your eyes are not failing you....I put a picture of my dirty toaster on my blog!)

At last the school pictures!

First Day of 4th Grade.............



First Day of Kindergarten............He was sooo excited!





this was his look telling me to STOP TAKING PICTURES NOW!!!

school begins....

quick little update: My daughter started school today. 4th grade. Can't believe it. My son starts kindergarten tomorrow. That I can believe. He is soooo ready! I will post pics tomorrow when I've got his shots too! It's a big week for him. First day of school on Thursday and then his b-day on Saturday. No big huge party this year. No time. We just invited some of his friends to meet us at a local school and to bring their bikes. He wants to race and have an obstacle course. Any ideas out there for the obstacle course????

ok...I confess.....

I watched it! 90210...the new 90210 on the CW
Did you? I couldn't resist. I watched the original growing up and to be honest I was a little giddy about this new one. It was weird to see "kelly and brenda" on screen together again. oh and Nat at the updated peach pit.
And when they played the updated version of the intro song how could you not picture "brandon" pretending to punch steve in the jaw on that little part of the song. (yes, I'm officially a total dork now!)

The old characters are not the main characters...the high school kids are....but a few of the original characters are in it....So Kelly is the guidance counselor at her old HS and Brenda is back for a short visit to help with the school musical. Nat still runs the peach pit/coffee house. Kelly's little "baby" sister Eryn is now in HS and one of the main characters. Oh and Andrea Zuckermann's daughter was in it too. Not a main character, but she was there. CRAZY! By the way...yes I know all these people aren't REAL! But it's still kind of fun to find out what has happened to the characters in the last 15 years. (in pretend land) They are only giving us little tid bits right now. I suspect it will stay that way. The question is will I keep watching? It's a bit racier than the previous show. My post is not condoning the show....just an admittance to watching it tonight!
so....did ya? did ya watch?