Oh my. Officially over two years since my last post. It is things like this that made me begin this motto in 2011.


I would feel that if I couldn't commit to an entire program or project I didn't even want to attempt it. Well, I need to be creative and this is a great outlet (hence the design above). So, here I am doing something.

Now, I'm wondering what my motto will become in 2012...

The Side of Elves I Never Wanted to See

So, David and I were at Pita Pit the other night and just as I was about to bite into my salad I saw a funny look sneak onto his face.

"The elves aren't wearing pants..."

Now, being the mature, composed person I am I spun around only to crack up laughing and make David take a picture to share with all my faithful readers.



=D Deanna

WHAT?!?!

Apparently coffee is good in a crisis...

A Weekend at the Movies

OK, so we didn't actually go out to the movies this weekend, but we did take in a few. I have to admit that when the weather gets really cold like this (single digits) and there is no snow, there is little motivation to go outside. Saturday we caught up on Survivor since we missed it to go to The Best Christmas Pagent Ever at the Spokane Civic Theater. Then we watched a little Disney short called Prep and Landing. It was pretty cute, although I thought it was going to be longer after seeing a few ads for it. You can watch it on http://www.hulu.com/ by clicking here.

That evening we decided it was time for another Christmas movie. We have a few on our list.

Elf... check.

White Christmas... check.

Die Hard... wait... well, it takes place at Christmas time.

I actually hadn't seen Die Hard in years, so it was fun to watch. After all, it is 40 stories of sheer adventure!

Next, we watched something a little more mellow. Melissa wrote a post about wanting to see the movie Julie and Julia earlier in the year. Today we snuggled up to watch this charming little story. I enjoyed it thoroughly, although, our lunch seemed quite uneventful after watching all the French cuisine being consumed in this movie. I also felt like I may have gained 10 pounds just by watching all the butter and cream teasing me on the screen.

Oddly enough, we were playing 90's Trivial Pursuit later and this question popped up:

What famous cook stated, "giving up butter means that in about two years you will be covered in dandruff."

Once you see the movie, the answer to that question is incredibly obvious. ...so, why did I guess Dom Doluise? I guess I never was one to pick up on the obvious.

~Deanna~

Test Your Christmas Smarts!

I've definately been getting more and more in the Christmas spirit lately. We went to "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" at the Spokane Civic Theater the other night, I finally got my Advent wreath set up (on the second week of Advent *sigh*) and we spent an evening at The Bing Crosby Theater (I live in Bing's hometown) tapping our feet and whispering the lyrics to "Sisters". Inspired, I dug out my Christmas box and began pulling out decorations, dvds and one of my favorite little finds, a box of Christmas trivia. Aaahhh... I love both Christmas and trivia, so I snatched it up when I saw it in a discount bin one year after Christmas. I also found a great site with some fun tidbits at http://christmas.howstuffworks.com/games/christmas-trivia.htm. Now, I would like to bestow some of the enjoyment on you!

Questions:

1. What are the three different colors used for the candles of an Advent wreath?

2. In Miracle on 34th Street, at what store does Doris Walker work?

3. What did General Washington cross on December 25, 1776?

4. What holiday tradition evolved from a large stewing pot set out in the streets of San Francisco in 1891 to collect money to provide Christmas dinner to 1,000 of the city's poorest residents?

5. What does the 'X' stand for when Christmas is abbreviated to Xmas?

6. What colorful tree decoration did Ralph E. Morris, a telephone company employee, contribute?

7. Name the reindeer whose name begins with a 'B'.

8. What Christmas song was first introduced in the movie, Holiday Inn?

9. In Bulgaria, what object is hidden in the ashes of the yule log: a key, coin, or ring?

10. What was the angel's name in It's a Wonderful Life?

11. In what country did the tradition of sending Christmas cards begin in?

12. Do female reindeer have antlers?

Answers:

1. What are the three different colors... Purple, rose and white

2. In Miracle on 34th Street... Macy's

3. What did General Washington cross... The Delaware

4. What holiday tradition evolved from a large stewing pot... The Salvation Army collection kettle

5. What does the 'X' stand for... The first letter of the word Christ in the Greek language is chi, which is identical to the modern Roman alphabet's X

6. What colorful tree decoration... Electric tree lights

7. Name the reindeer... Blitzen

8. What Christmas song was first introduced... White Christmas

9. In Bulgaria, what object is hidden... A coin

10. What was the angel's name... Clarence

11. In what country did the tradition of sending Christmas cards... England

12. Do female reindeer have antlers... Yes, they are the only species of deer that females grow antlers

How'd you do?

:) Deanna

A Christmas Story Worth Reading

"The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lied and stole and smoked cigars (even the girls) and talked dirty and hit little kids and cussed their teachers and took the name of the Lord in vain and set fire to Fred Shoemaker's old broken-down toolhouse."

Thus introduces one of the most hilarious families I ever read about growing up. In one of my favorite Christmas stories this group of rowdy kids, through a series of events, force their way into the church's annual Christmas pageant. The story is narrated by one of the young girls at church whose mother ends up running the pageant. She tells it like a child would... unapologetically honest. The news spreads about the Herdman's playing the main roles and soon the whole town is waiting in anticipation to see what will happen.

The book is a light read of only about 80 pages and is perfect for reading out loud. The author weaves an important lesson through so much fun! I forced David to listen to me read it to him last year. I'm sure he won't be the last one either...
;) Deanna

The Best Things...

If there is something I love it is quality time and things hand-made.

What can I say? My man knows me...

16 origami lilies. I set them on my desk at work so I can brag about him all day. =D

Deanna

A Fair Weekend

Many people feel they come from a small town. Melissa and I (Deanna) know we come from a small town. It definitely had its good points and bad. It was hard being a high schooler living 80 miles from the nearest mall, but we definitely learned how to have fun just about anywhere. I suppose, like all good country songs, we spent our life dreaming about leaving our small town and then once we leave we find ourselves drawn back. One of the best times to be drawn back to the town we grew up in is the county fair. On Labor Day weekend the population swells from 1,000 to about 18,000. The fair has all the things a good small town fair should have. This last weekend was no different. One of my favorites is the exhibit barns:

These three pigs were obviously fans of NCIS:

We were always lucky to live just a few blocks from the fairgrounds. You have to cross the river to get there and lest you underestimate the beauty of the area, I snapped this photo on the way to the rodeo:

The next night was the demolition derby. This is no small event at the fair. The whole thing usually lasts about five hours and is full of crashes, cheering and spray painted logos.

This one was hilarious (nobody was hurt). The car on the bottom actually drove underneath the car on top.

The ironic thing is that as you peer through the exhaust and dust to make out the cars, the announcer reminds you there is no smoking in the grandstands.

This little gal was having way too much fun. She was also making eyes at David the whole time and at one point threw a slurpee straw at me... I don't blame her for being jealous though...

We had a great weekend. As we headed back over the mountains, I snapped this picture of the rain in the valley.

It is Time to Dig Out Another File

It's been a pretty rough week, and there are a lot of transitions happening in my life right now, so I'm feeling off kilter. The good news is that I got a new job and will be starting next week. There has also been alot of tough stuff going on and so it's easy to lose sight of good things happening in the world. This is precisely why I have my Happy Heart File, so I can get a little lift during times like these. Here is one of my favorites. Improv Everywhere decided to make this Little League's game the "best game ever". You won't believe all the things they pull off!

If the video doesn't work, click here.

I always have a smile on my face by the end of this video.

=) Deanna

Is the Grass Greener on That Side?

I keep driving by these sweet sunflowers peeking over the fence. All I had to take a picture with was my phone so I snapped this one. They make me smile and I can't help but wonder what they're looking at.






:) Deanna