beSomething...beDazzling

New craft for you and all your best girls to try! Though, it's my understanding that girls' guys can get pretty into this craft too.

For awhile now, my mother has wanted to make the glass memory charms and, lucky her, a church activity at my sister's congregation arose where someone would be teaching the class. She kinda crashed it and finally learned. And now she's passed the knowledge onto the rest of our family.

And thank you, Mom! How fun they are! They are totally customizable for whatever your fancy can devise. We spent a couple hours last Friday night (after a YUMMY dinner at Virgilio's Pizzeria Napoletana's new location), making a couple of these charms.

And here's where the men get hooked. There's all the designing and selecting papers and cute images, adding glitter and glitz, etc, but then come.....TOOLS. Yes, that's right. This project requires a tool. A soldering iron -- or several -- to be exact. And soldering is pretty darn fun.

It's not a craft for the faint of heart though. There can be some frustration involved -- trying to center the copper tape, solder that doesn't go exactly where you want it, and DEFINITELY the darn jump rings! -- but, once you get the hang of it, it's not too bad. And they turn out SOOO cute (though I do say so myself!).

Just look at these cutie ones I made!




See? Aren't they fab?

Anyway, there will be more to come, I'm sure, because we're a little bit hooked right now. Now you all know what you're getting for Christmas! :)

Oh, and for those of you who want to try some REALLY, REALLY good garlic knots and pizza, here's the link to Vergilio's:

http://www.virgiliospizzeria.com/

You won't be disappointed. My fav pizza is the pesto and Italian sausage.

Once a month, I meet with an amazing group of women for book club. And what do we do? Yes, there is some gossip. Yes, there is eating. Yes, there is laughter. But more importantly, we actually discuss our book!

It has been brought to my attention that many book clubs never actually discuss their books. Now, don't get me wrong, I see absolutely nothing wrong with getting together with your girlfriends for a gab fest and to escape your house for the evening. However, the best part of our book club is the book! (And possibly Elizabeth's fantastic cooking -- it may be a toss-up.)

We've actually had a couple women defect to our book club, surprised and thrilled that there is discussion of the book taking place. One newbie was almost in raptures when she heard that several of us had written down discussion questions and brought them along. Maybe we're a bunch of crazies, but we LOVE it!

And those discussions have been terrific. It's a great way to stimulate your mind, keep it fresh and active. And it's a great way to gain different insights into what you've read. The women in our club are all different -- we come from various backgrounds, cross from one end of the political spectrum to the other, different professions and religions -- but we all have in common our love of the written word and the effect it can have on one's life.

And we've read some great books too (and some not so great ones).

We recently read and discussed Beneath a Marble Sky.



This is a beautiful historical fiction novel about the building of the Taj Mahal, written by John Shors. You can look up this book and his other works at his website:

http://www.johnshors.com/

What was so different -- and brilliant -- about this particular selection, was the author's willingness to talk to a book club about his book. Mr. Shors supplies his email in a letter at the end of each of his novels, thanking you for reading his book and offering to talk to your book club. So, we emailed him and invited him to talk to ours. He graciously accepted and called into our book club for about 20 minutes, allowing us to chat and ask questions. It was a wonderful experience for us and we were truly appreciative of his willingness to make himself available to his fans.

And smart of him too, since he was able to promote his other novels and upcoming projects, and it surely made me want to read some more of his work. Great self-promotion without being domineering.

If you have a REAL book club -- and I'm truly not knocking those clubs that get together in the guise of a book club in order to escape for the night, because we all need that too! -- however, if you have a club that truly enjoys the discussion of a novel, I'd highly recommend reading one of John Shors's books and having him talk to your group. You won't regret it!

Well, it certainly wasn't everything we hoped it could be, but we had a ball anyway.

"It" being the launch of Brook's and my new company and product; SnoeyBrook Baby and Sox-Lox, respectively.




SnoeyBrook Baby

We launched at the Denver Junior League's Holiday Mart. It's a traditional holiday shopping fest for the area that also has a charitable aspect. Their motto is "Fabulous Shopping for a Fantastic Cause" and what woman can't put herself behind that idea? Right?

JLD Holiday Mart 2010

Unfortunately, the gorgeous (and unseasonal) autumn weather combined with the downtrodden economy seemed to affect the attendance this year and things never quite got as busy as we had hoped.

Now, the upsides -- and there were many, to be sure:

1.  We made some new friends and met some amazingly talented, friendly and wonderful people. Lisa Massey of Haute Bows makes the best tutus! Justin was a charming (but not funny, right) author of some great children's books. The Mud Girls, who I think may have shopped more than they sold, were fantastic neighbors, and Angela of Inspirational Story Beads, we love you, girl!

2. We learned some great tips and information from Brook's talent as a social butterfly.

3. We had A LOT (and I mean A LOT ) of people think our idea was ingenious; they just wished we had been around 5 or 10 years ago when their kids were babies! Well, we know we have a niche product, we just need to get the word out.

4. Brook, Kira and I had some good sister bonding, which you can never get too much of.

5. It's resulted in some really great brainstorming by the family about what we can do next to promote and market our product.

There is SOOOOO much to learn about starting a new business and getting market share. And me just being a regular ole dental hygienist and Brook and Kira pretty much being stay-at-home moms these days, we have quite the learning curve. But the curve seems to be less curvy than before.

So, that all being said, what is next up for Sox-Lox?

We'll keep you posted for sure because we still plan on making it big. And I mean BIG.

~

Fourth of July. Independence Day. Our nation's birthday.

And what a GREAT nation it is!!!

We live in the best country in the entire world. Probably the entire universe (especially since we don't know of any other planets that have lifeforms and therefore countries). I've become a little bit disgusted with the political correctness of our society. When something is great, let's have no shame in admitting it's great! And I say, "AMERICA IS THE GREATEST COUNTRY. EVER!" Now, despise me if you dare.

I know that eating corn dogs and frozen bananas and seeing fireworks with the family isn't the most reverent way to show appreciation for the blessings our tremendous nation provides us with. However, it is because of the amazing liberties and freedoms that are so inherent in this nation's foundation, that have been preserved through great personal sacrifice on behalf of the members of our military and concerned and involved citizens, that allow me to eat a corn dog and a frozen banana and watch fireworks with my family; in peace, in prosperity, in safety. I'm very grateful for all the men and women throughout the ages whom have fought, in word and deed, for the freedom that we enjoy.

So I raise my corn dog up high, I place my hand on my heart and belt out "The Star-Spangled Banner" as a collision of light and sound fills the sky in firework finale, and thank my Heavenly Father for the blessing of living in this great nation. May it be preserved. May those who help to govern do so in wisdom. May her citizens be filled with gratitude and humility.

God bless America! (Isn't she great?!?!)

5 days and counting til I leave for a two-week vacation in Italy, Greece, the French Riviera, and even a quick stop in Turkey. And what's in the news, but that stupid volcano in stupid Iceland! No one can even pronounce the silly thing -- Eyjafjallajokul (pronounced ay-yah-FYAH-lah-yer-kuhl) -- and it is wreaking havoc again. I know it may be just a tad selfish, but I'm going to be offering copious prayers that the prevailing Atlantic winds start blowing to the northeast, thereby blowing that ash cloud up into the Arctic. I apologize to any Eskimos or other inhabitants, but I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY don't want to cancel this trip.

Keeping my fingers crossed that Delta keeps flying into Paris...and I'll see this

and not this!!

I'm one of the fortunate employed people who has every Friday off. Yep, that's right, every week I have a three-day weekend. It's not fair, I know, but I certainly enjoy them.

What's often so terrific about my Fridays is that I get to spend them with my sisters and their cutie kids. Take today for instance. My sister Brook and I have started a business venture. We've actually been accepted as a vendor in the Denver Junior League Holiday Mart. As a result, we have to spend some of our leisure time (not that Brook has much being the mother of four rather rambunctious children) manufacturing our product. We gather our supplies, make a smoothie or gucamole (or both), turn on a Sandra Bullock movie, and produce like crazy.


But then we get to relax. My brother-in-law and the kiddos join us, we cook a couple of frozen pizzas, and turn on an instant play movie from Netflix. Isn't that a fabulous way to spend a Friday?

I'm not much of a TV watcher. In fact, I can't even watch TV at my own house because I have have absolutely no reception. However, I do watch a couple shows. And first and foremost among those is Fox's 24.

Now, many people might not think that the hit show 24 is 'dazzling.' But I cannot disagree more. The storyline keeps you guessing, the action keeps your heart beating, and Jack Bauer can pretty much do anything. Two of my sisters and their friends (for some strange reason) like the tv show Lost. I think they've been suckered into a story that creates more questions than it answers, but that is just a personal opinion. But one day my friend Elisa (she's also a crazy Lost fan) sent me some flair on Facebook and I loved it. It reads as follows:


That's classic!


But what will I do when this fabulous show ends? I'm quite disappointed that it's been officially announced as the last season. What will I turn to for solace?

I know....Glee!!


For those of you have yet to watch this terrific endeavor of Fox's, you are MISSING OUT! This show is pure genius. And it will give me something that my mother can DVR for me and can take the place of our 24 nights. Thank goodness for Fox programming.

It never fails in Colorado. Just as the blooms begin appearing...a spring storm blows through attempting to undo all of Mother Nature's careful artistry.

Luckily these storms are generally over and done in about a day, but my mother fears for her bleeding hearts and tulips.

In the spirit of looking for the silver lining in things:

1. We really do need the precipitation and everything is looking more green.
2. The lovely blooms on the bush in my patio seem to have survived this most recent storm. Isn't it pretty?


3. I have good friends who will cozy up at my house tonight and play some Wii.

It was rather dreary all day, but about 4 o'clock the sun decided to make an appearance. By the time I got home from work there was enough sunlight left to go for a run. I laced up my shoes and headed out for my 4 mile route.

It is definitely springtime in the Rockies. And how do I know? During my run my olfactory was continuously bombarded by the aroma of blossoms! Hurray! Things are starting to green and as I passed the various fruit trees and blossoming ground covers, I filled my lungs with their pleasant scent. True, there is the occasional noxious odor from the exhaust of a passing car, but it is so quickly replaced by something better. And then you hit the jackpot of fragrance...something cooking on the barbecue. I love that we are starting to take our lives back into the outdoors.

So, no need for expensive wall plug-ins to get your quota of aromatherapy; just go for a walk, jog or run. Your nose will thank you.

Well....I finally caved and have decided to start a blog.

And the purpose of such blog will be to share the things that I discover (either through my own luck and resources or through the sound advice of others) that make the world a better place. That make it sparkle, dazzle, enchant...

Clothes, food, music, art, events, products, books, thoughts, everything is game. Nothing is to be excluded.

I'll share my discoveries. So please, share with me.

Let me start off:

Pancakes make me happy. They are absolutely my favorite breakfast food. And I rarely make them for myself, which is why it always feels so decadent when I have them. Probably my favorite place in Denver to get pancakes is Toast. Toast is a fabulous little restaurant at Santa Fe and Littleton Blvd. And their food is to die for!

I highly recommend the Bananas Fosters Pancakes and the Santa Fe French Toast. In fact, it's best if you order these two together. My sisters and best girlfriends and I love to have something sweet and savoury -- this way you get the best of both worlds! I suggest that you go with a group because the portions are generous. And I also suggest that you wear some stretchy pants because you won't be able to leave anything on the plate.

Here's the link to their website: http://www.toastygoodness.com/

If only they had a picture of the pancakes. A picture says a thousand words!