My Opinion Counts

What a great Sunday this has been. I have been working on organizing some projects and getting rid of some clutter. Hubby made chili so that meant no cooking for me! I looked in the sewing room and decided to just close that door. It needs some major re-organizing. It will take more than one day to get it into shape. Maybe I will get the kids to help me while they are home. I need to ask Greg if it is ok to make the room completely mine. He has stuff in there from when he graduated from high school! These are bags of mementos like old napkins and paper parasols. I think he will agree that it is time to purge.

We are enjoying the Colts win in Baltimore tonight. Kinda funny that Baltimore won't put "Colts" on the reader board. They call the team Indy. It's been over 20 years since the Colts packed the moving van and headed to Indianapolis. It is time to get over it Baltimore!

Oh wow! The stores were crowded today. Lynn dropped me off at one store because he couldn't find a place to park. I tried to get in and out but the lines at the checkout were long. Everyone seemed happy and helpful. I hope that doesn't change the closer to Christmas we get. I am convinced that gift cards are the way to go.

Why search and search for the perfect gift just to find that it doesn't fit or isn't the right color? You can put a picture on the gift cards from giftcardlab.com and personalize them! These cards are better received than anything you could buy at a brick and mortar store. Gift Certificate's from www.giftcardlab.com are special because you can make them fit the occasion. Take a picture of your sister's new baby and put it on a gift card. Can you imagine the smile she will have when she opens that envelope? You might decide to find a sentimental picture of you and your grandmother. A gift card with that picture will be special!

Do yourself a favor, order gift cards from www.giftcardlab.com. Aren't you glad I saved you from having to enter a mall?

Have you been watching all the Hallmark movies that have been on television? I love them. During the holiday season, Hallmark shows great movies. The other night we watched Hannah's Pictures or something like that. It was about a little girl in the foster care system. It also emphasized how Alzheimer's disease can mess up one's life. Sissy Spacek was in the movie.

I took Stacy to the airport and I got her there on time! Yay!(Yay about getting her there on time, not on her leaving.) This has been a problem. LOL So, I am about 40 minutes away and she calls to let me know she is on the plane and they said they will depart in an hour. What the heck! Why do they have to get them on the plane and then tell them? My mom said it is because they can push the airplane back and the FAA considers that they left on time. That stinks.

I think the reason the flight was delayed was because of the icy runway. The roads began to get very icy as I drove home. There was an accident that had traffic backed up. I took a country road detour and avoided the mess. I had to go very slow because my car fishtailed every time I tried to go faster. I crossed a bridge and the back end of my car started to go around. That is an awful feeling.

If you are trying to decide on a place of travel, you need to check out all the possibilities that Hotel Reservations.com has to offer. Their website is full of fun destinations. Hotel Reservations knows how to find the best prices for you. You will have more money to spend on excursions when you use Hotel Reservations to book your next vacation.

If you know that our daughter is home then you know we have been watching movies! We have watched Drew Barrymore in Ever After and Nicholas Cage in Next. Last night, we went to the theater and saw Enchanted. It was an adorable movie. I recommend it to everyone. Your kids will love it. Your husbands will tolerate it. The story is about a fairytale princess from the past who is thrust into present-day by an evil queen.

Susan Sarandon makes a believable evil queen. It was fun to watch her in this part. I'll bet she had so much fun with the role. The costume she wore was amazing! You will have to check out the shoes. Amy Adams, the actress who played Giselle, has the most beautiful skin. Looking at her made me want to go home and get out all my cleansing products!

The thing that I miss when winter hits here in Indiana is the chance to swim. All the pools close up over labor day weekend. I know that it is a good thing that it gets cold here because we don't get all the critters that you see in the south. I'm not sure that I could live where there are lizards!

My sister lives in Texas and I know that she loves being able to use her pool most of the year. There is a website that is fun for all those Texans to design their pools. Many customers of this pool builders league city texas have come up with some unique and beautiful pools through Decorativepools.com.

While they can have fun designing a beautiful pool, I can dream while I am wearing my parka!

Today, Taryn and Stacy went with me to run a few errands. I returned dishes to my sister in-law that I didn't want to have sitting around my house all winter. They go to Arizona in the winter and if I didn't get her dishes (that she brought food over in for Thanksgiving dinner) back, they would be put out of sight until spring.

We also got some ribbon to finish a purse I made. I made 2 purses this weekend and I got mom's and my snowman wall hangings ready to put on the binding.

We watched Live Free or Die Hard tonight. It was very good. I am leery of Bruce Willis movies because I usually don't like them. This one was action packed and had a lot of humor in it.

When it comes to our vehicles, we only want the best service. That is why we rely on AAMCO for quality service. They have been around for years and I know that it is because of their dedication to quality service and their commitment to their customers.

AAMCO is offering a fun Drive Hard / Die Hard Hollywood promotion. I would love to win the chance to win a four-day trip to Hollywood and spend a day with the Live Free or Die Hard movie stunt man. I entered my name on the website that tells about the promotion so I sure hope I'm the one they pick! I'd love to learn how they do all the stunts and how they make it look so easy. I want to find out what they do to stay in shape and how they deal with injuries. A trip to Hollywood sounds like a lot of fun!

AAMCO offers great deals on their services. They offer free towing when you need a major repair. That will save you a ton of money! All of their technicians are certified so you can be sure you will receive the best work on your car. They have over 800 locations in the US and Canada.

Check out AAMCO and sign up for a chance to win a trip to Hollywood!

When we came out of the bookstore on Sunday, something struck me so funny. The dog in my picture is wearing sunglasses! At first glance, I thought the dog was a dummy or decoy to keep people from bothering the car he was in. As I neared the car he moved. He was real, in the car alone and was wearing sunglasses! I've never seen a dog leave glasses on for more than a few minutes. This dog was so cool!

As a somewhat "crafty" person, I am always looking for ways to make my things look different from everyone else's things. I like to put a little bling on my jeans or on a chambray shirt. Bling makes the ordinary become special!

It is so easy to play with Bling and spice up your things by visiting the blingitoneverything.com website where you can choose from all the Bling pattern kits. BLING pattern kits contain over 500 crystals per kit. Imagine all the fun you will have. You can put bling on your cell phone, notebook, and anything you want to spice up.



This is the time of year when teens dread visiting the relatives. They think it will be boring to sit around with people they hardly know. Now, you can engage them in a fun activity! Everyone will want to join in on the fun when you start playing with your Bling kit! The teenagers will no longer be bored and they will think you are so cool!



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Get over to blingitoneverything.com and get your Bling kits ordered!

I met some wonderful ladies while in Vegas. I have blogged with Robyn and Peggy for a while now and I am thrilled that we were able to meet. They are as nice in person as they come across in their blogs. Now, I can hear their voices when I read their blogs.

From the left: Robyn, Peggy and me.

While visiting Las Vegas, I noticed that where the hotels had water fountains it gave an aura of tranquility. The flowing water muffled out sounds of people and machines and so it was easy to relax where the fountain was. There is something about a beautiful fountain that adds beauty to a foyer or family room in a home setting. They offer mind soothing tranquility in the waiting area of a business where a hectic atmosphere is the norm. Wall Fountains are easy to maintain and add so much to the atmosphere of a business or home. Wall Fountains from Garden-Fountains.com are very easy to maintain. They require no special plumbing so it is an easy task to intregate a beautiful foundatin in your home or office. You simply hang the fountain on your wall in the same way you would hang a picture! Add water to the fountain and you have a beautiful addition to your room. There are many types to choose from so check them out as you prepare your gift list. They make wonderful gifts!

Las Vegas is a place that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime. I don't even gamble and I enjoy Las Vegas. The hotels are spectacular. Lynn and I spent a whole day going in and out of the hotels just so we could look at how they were decorated. I think it would be fun to be the decorator who got to choose the wall paper, paintings and vases etc. that made the hotel theme what it was. To start with a blank slate would be so much fun.

The flowers at each hotel was another wonderful sight to see. The Mirage Hotel even had orchids in their walkway. I would thing they would need a large team of landscaping specialists to water and care for all the plants in each hotel. I think that would be a fun job.

Las Vegas is more than a gambling site.

My kids are getting to the age where they want the "really cool stuff." They pick out their own clothes. I have attempted to buy clothes for them but I never get it quite right. They aren't that particular but they know what they like. I think something looks the same as what they have picked before but there is a small detail that makes the difference. So, I don't even go that route any longer. I would rather look for "really cool stuff."

There is an online site where everything they have is "really cool stuff." At Cool Stuff Express, they have everything from plasma disks to sand hourglass timers. Plasma disks produce the beautiful lighting effects that we have seen at cool clubs. My kids would love to have one to enjoy when they have their friends over. These disks create awesome lighting effects by carefully combining a mixture of specialized gasses. At the Cool Stuff Express website, I read;

These gasses control the color and effect of the electrical discharge of the plasma effect. By creating a special formulated mixture of argon, krypton, xenon, helium, neon and other inert gases, the effect of a plasma globe is created. This is then sealed typically in a solid clear glass globe.

They have science kits that enable you to learn about space and stars. They are great educational tools to learn about dinosaurs and solar power.This site has all that fun & cool and unusual stuff that you see in museum gift shops. Now you can order that cool stuff online.

There are all sorts of fun things at Cool Stuff Express. There are very funny hitch critters like a bass that shows everyone that you love to fish. There is even a bad dog that looks like it is attacking your hitch. LOL You can add a light to the critter and make your vehicle safer!

Cool Stuff Express is going to help me get my grown kids something that they will truly love for Christmas.

Today we were able to see the classrooms and other areas where Stacy has spent the last eight months learning all sorts of things. She has told me many things that she has been doing but it was hard to comprehend until I could see what she was describing. I am so proud that she received the soldering award. After talking to her instructor today, I realize what an honor that was for her to achieve. He told how it was important to be precise and accurate. He said that others who had soldered before had not done as well as Stacy. It doesn't surprise me since, I know how well she does with intricate things. She wires car radios so I know that she is used to detail work. I sure am proud that she does well at what she likes.

Isn't it cool when you receive flowers? No matter how my day is going, when flowers arrive it perks me up. The Tulsa Flower Shop, Flowers By Sally Ann, has the most beautiful arrangements of flowers I have ever seen. This family owned shop goes the extra mile to make every floral arrangement special. They offer friendly and prompt customer service.

Thanksgiving is approaching and I want to remind everyone to order your table arrangement. Having a beautiful flower arrangement will make your table special and might help when Uncle Harry starts getting on your nerves! Just glance over at your beautiful table arrangement and smile.

I took the dogs to the doggie hotel this morning. We are leaving this afternoon for North Carolina. Stacy is graduating from Petty Officer School on Friday. It will be so good to see her!

Brody was so funny when we got to the kennel. There was a big yellow cat in the office at the kennel. Brody would not go into the office! I suppose he had never seen a cat before! He didn't know what to think and would not go where he needed to go! Mister nosy was playing it safe. LOL

I had an unusual experience yesterday. I was in the fabric store and a lady walked in and was asking the clerk for help. I didn't hear what she was saying until the clerk spoke to her mother. Her mother was waiting on me. It seems as though, the lady was looking for a way to make something out of a picture. I didn't want to appear nosey but I suggested she check online. I got her email address and today I sent her a link to Fotofix.com. Fotofix.com is a wonderful website for working with pictures. Their site allows anyone to do simple things like remove red-eye from a photo. It also allows more involved editing. It is possible to enhance images in ways that make teeth whiter, skin more even and make a body look slimmer! That slimmer part is the one I am interested in.

At Fotofix.com, you can improve on a picture. It is possible to smooth out skin and remove blemishes! High-quality digital enhancing can turn a crappy picture into one that can be displayed with pride. The team of professionals at Fotofix.com are trained to work with photos. They have experience with airbrushing and retouching techniques that make a work of art out of a poor quality picture. It is amazing. The best part about this great photo enhancement service is that it is very affordable!

I have a dorky picture that my husband insists on hanging in our family room. I am holding a big fish. I look so dorky and I have on big 1970 glasses frames. I would love to have those glasses removed from the picture. I am checking to see if they can do that at Fotofix.com.

Sheesh. I did not need a problem this week. I am super busy getting bookwork done ahead so we can head to Vegas tomorrow night. My dog's groomer just called to let me know that Brody has fleas! Ugh. What do I do about that? Will they multiply while we are gone? I don't know what I am supposed to do.