Hurrah!

Maybe I'm 49 and holding... or 39? It's just a number, right? Pick a number, any number. Actually, I'm proud to be fifty. Fifty is a nice round number, and it's easy to remember. 

I awoke this morning to find a zit on my face, so OBVIOUSLY fifty is NOT old. I feel like a kid again. Where's the Clearasil, Stridex, Proactive Solutions, or Windex? I'll try anything.

Although the picture below has been edited, it's amusing. This is the control panel of the time machine in the movie Back to the Future. This photo was posted on several social media outlets today. The picture leads one to believe that Marty McFly traveled to the future date of June 27, 2012, via his flux capacitor-powered DeLorean. The date used in the movie was actually October 21, 2015, not today's date. 

Great Scott! I don't care if it's fake; it's still pretty cool that this hoax happened on my birthday. 


Why June 27, 2012? The official word is that this was merely a clever promotion stunt used to garner attention for sales of the Blue-ray three pack of BTTF.  


I'd prefer to think that this was in honor of MY day.

June 27th also marks the 294th monthiversary of marital bliss for Mr. and Mrs. Smith, so this has been an especially special day for celebrations. Our big #300 is a mere six months away!

My family decided to give me the night off from slaving in the kitchen, so we opted for dining out at a Tex-Mex restaurant. After VERY yummy fajitas with Uncle Julio and the rest o' the fam, we headed home for cake and presents. But instead of traditional birthday cake, I had requested fruit pizza. (Thanks, Liesey Lou, for the delicious dessert!)


The youngest Smithling created a most excellent treasure hunt for the occasion. The clues had me looking inside, outdoors in the 100º heat, upstairs, downstairs, in the garage, and finally in Narnia. Well, maybe not Narnia, but the the final clue DID lead to the wardrobe in the master bedroom. I found two gifts hidden along the way, but inside the wardrobe, there were four boxes all wrapped up waiting for me!

Here are some of the goodies I received:

 Beautiful baubles -- some handmade, some purchased 

Thank you, Daughters!

Liesey gave me Dolce & Gabbana's Light Blue fragrance, which is my favorite scent, especially for summer.

This is a very cool bracelet crafted by Millie. :-)

In addition to all of the jewelry that my Millie Girl made, she also gave me a case for my iPhone that looks like it could be Barbie's camera. She thinks that I need to change things up a bit. My regular everyday phone case is just too plain and boring, I guess.

These flip flops are definitely not in the "plain and boring" category.

I received scandalous sandals (Scandalous Designs, that is) from my son. He has been working at the Scandalous Designs warehouse for several months, so he had these beauties custom made for me! My boy (the King of Bling?!) selected Meridian Blue Swarovski crystals as well as the design pattern. The crystals are soooo sparkly! No, M. didn't hand craft these himself. He doesn't get into the production process; he's more in the shipping and receiving end of the business. Each sandal has 204 crystals, and I hope I don't lose a single one of 'em. 


After looking at my tootsies in that photo, I think I am in need of a pedicure.


Oh, did I happen to mention that I also was given an iPad & accessories from Mr. Smith? I have apparently been a good girl.


This getting older stuff is pretty fantabulous, as I've been pampered all week. The day before my official b-day, I was taken out to lunch and given a gift bag brimming with olive oils, and kitchen gadgets from my friend Barb. (She knows me well!) I also have received lots of phone calls, text messages, e-mails, FB greetings, and cards to add to the merriment. I am blessed.


Next up? There will be a belated b-day celebration with my relatives over the Fourth of July holiday. I have it on good authority that there will be homemade German Chocolate Cake at that gathering. And fireworks. Sounds like a party!

I'm thinkin' that this birthday celebration stuff may need to go on for a few more weeks, just so I can get used to this "new decade" and all that goes with this new chapter of life. Fifty sounds so respectable and grown up. Mature, even. 


I still feel like a spring chicken, I'm not doddery, and I don't think I'm long in the tooth yet; however, I received my invitation into AARP, and that made me stop and reflect -- for at least 20 seconds, any way. Does finding this little gem inside my mailbox mean I've arrived? Am I now mature? Probably not.

I am not going to be a card-carrying member. I shredded the invitation after I took this picture. I think I'll always be too young for this...

If it's all downhill from here, this aging business should be a piece o' cake. I sure hope it's German Chocolate.

 Wheeeee!

Three 3s

All of the Smith cars were washed and spit-shined this past weekend. Don't worry, no spit was actually used in the shining of these vehicles.

I've heard it said that a clean car is a happy car, or something like that. Cleanliness also makes for happy car owners. With all of this happiness going around, it seemed as if a photo op was presenting itself. 

No other autos of German heritage were invited to the photo shoot; however, the resident Audi owner was asked to take the picture with her Japanese camera. We are oh, so multicultural...

 1995  325iS / 2000  323i / 2003  330i

Aside from Liesey's lil' white car being dubbed the Beaker, the guys' cars tend to be called by their obvious paint colors -- Blackie and Blue. Original, huh? 

Perhaps this trio needs good Germanic monikers like Hans, Fritz, and Otto. 

Otto Mobile? Hmmmm... Probably not.

Although our German fleet may be aged, all of the vehicles still look great and run really well.

Das ist gut!

Oh, Boy! Oh, Buoy?

I teamed up with my two neighbors/friends, Judy and Barb, to host a baby shower for our neighbors, the Harris family. The Harrises will be adding another boy to their adorable family in a little over a month. Hooray! 


We chose to do a nautical theme for the party. We were inspired by the fact that the newest Harris family member will have a navy blue, nautical-themed nursery. Too cute! There were so many options for decorating, so our party planning was easy. Dare I say that we had smooth sailing as we navigated the party planning waters?

We purchased cute "Captain's wheel" napkins, a fisherman's net, sailboat votive candle holders, an anchor decoration, and pretty much made the rest of the decorations out of scrapbooking paper. And glue. And toothpicks. And ribbon! After adding a few sea shells, helium balloons, and LOTS of good eats, the stage was set for a ship-shape party.


The fact that several people canceled at the last minute did not take the wind out of our sails... We maintained an even keel, and carried on! We still ended up with about a dozen attendees, so it was a very nice gathering.


I'll try to let the photos do the talking from here on out; however, I'll likely have to add an additional explanation here and there. I wouldn't want to leave you adrift, trying to figure out what the pictures represent. 


Okay, okay. I'll throw the puns overboard. 

 Party favors -- thank you, Pinterest.

Bundtinis provided just the right amount of sweetness to the party.

For entertainment, we played a few traditional baby shower games. The activity that was the most entertaining required all hands on deck to get dirty with PlayDoh as we made babies!

 The winning baby somewhat resembled a blue Buddha. ;-)

Ahoy! It's a boy!

A Midsummer Night's Dream - TX Edition

Just as in ballet, where no words are used to tell a story, this blog entry will rely on photos to tell the tale. Oh! You know me too well. I cannot just use pictures -- I simply have to get a few words in! ;-)

North Central Ballet performed this Balanchine classic as their end of the year performance. I suppose it's safe to refer to a fifty-year-old ballet as a classic. The original Shakespeare play would definitely fall into the classic category, as it was believed to have been written sometime around 1595. 

Flash photography during ballet performances is strictly prohibited, but I was able to get some nice pictures without flashing anyone as I was exposed to the arts. (Hmmmm... Is that sentence awkwardly worded?) The stage lighting was rather dim, but it adds an interesting, almost ethereal quality, to the photos. I am still learning what settings work the best, but overall, I am pleased with how these images turned out. 

It's a good thing I've got the perfect camera for shooting under these conditions. Ain't she a beauty?

There were sooo many little children in this performance, as it was the summer recital for the dance studio. Although I did not take photos of every single group, I still ended up taking over 300 photos. The frequent click, click, click sounds likely annoyed the gentleman sitting next to me. Then again, the fidgety youngster squirming on his lap was keeping him occupied, so he may not have even noticed my camera's rhythmic clicks.

 Titania (Kaytlynn) -- Queen of the Faeries

I have no idea who these children are, but they looked adorable, so I'm adding them to the blog. ;-)

I do recognize one of these faces! Our neighbor girl danced in this piece.

 Olivia, a.k.a. Hippolyta

 Puck, that merry wanderer of the night, is feisty with a foil.

 Hippolyta, the flying Amazonian Queen

After the show, one of the dancer dads told me that he thought our faerie ballerinas looked like giant gnats or mosquitoes dancing on the stage. If gnats they be, then they are the most lovely and graceful winged pests ever.

They look like faeries to me.

 Shhhh! Titania is sleeping.

"I know a bank where the wild thyme blows, 

Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows, 
 Quite over-canopied with luscious woodbine, 

With sweet musk-roses and with eglantine:"

 Three smiling faeries

 Our neighbor girlies posed with Liesey.

 Titania and my favorite Mustard Seed Faerie 




"First, rehearse your song by rote
To each word a warbling note:
Hand in hand, with fairy grace,
Will we sing, and bless this place."

 Well done, Ladies! It was a magical evening.

Totally Unrelated

It's been quite a few months since I have blogged about the photos that get taken with my cell phone. It's always interesting to see what I've got. WARNING: There's a lot!

You must remember that I am not the only one who takes photos with my phone. I often have NO IDEA how, when, or where some of these pictures come from, but I'll do my best to give you an explanation of the photos you are about to see. 

Before I even take a peek, I know there will be images of Bartholomew and Jemima, food pics, hairstyle creations à la Millie, smiling faces, and who-knows-what-else! 

Foodstuff:

Liesey's Fruit 'za

 Out to dinner? Or more likely out to lunch!

There's no doubt that this girl's got mad skills.

 Mom's Day treat from my favorite son

What can I say about this tortilla-faced child o' mine? 

I'm overcome with pride.

 This pepper is confused...pretty, but confused.

Only in Oklahoma

 No need to cry...

Actually it's not milk, it's heavy whipping cream, so Jemima was in kitty heaven. Bartholomew was asleep, so he missed out on the cleanup effort.

Napkin art

This is an example of what I included in Millie Girl's lunch bag every day this past school year. To be honest, I only doodled on 179 Vanity Fair napkins, not 180. Millie missed one day of school, due to a temp. of 103ºF. 


I tried my best to embarrass my youngest, but she actually liked having a message in her lunch. It's kind of like a fortune cookie, only better. Some napkins had Scripture verses or other words of encouragement written on them; sometimes I'd just do artwork like Snoopy, Hello Kitty, Angry Birds, and other cartoon characters. Images of Bartholomew and Jemima were frequently drawn since they could be drawn in a minute or less. Millie's friends got to the point where they were more eager to see what was on the napkin than she was. My Sharpie supply probably needs to be replenished before the new semester begins this fall.




Felines come, felines go: 

I am not sure where to begin to try to describe this image.

Kitty Girl will sit/lie/recline on the countertop and wait for the bathroom faucet to be turned on so she can get a drink. I think she was really posing for a picture. Yep, I'm probably already turning into a crazy cat lady who imagines that her pets are asking for things that they are not really asking for.

"Fur-fully" and wonderfully made?

Bart -- doing what Barts do best

Natural Beauties:

Hi, Hibiscus!

I cannot see this plant in my backyard without being reminded of the Beverly Hillbillies episode where Mrs. Drysdale is having trouble with her Hibiscus plant. Granny mistakenly thinks that her neighbor is having "female" health problems and tries to help with her "ailin' Hibiscus." My Hibiscus ain't ailin', as you can plainly see. :-)

My Bleeding Heart ain't ailin' either!

These "flutterbys" were migrating, but they stopped long enough so I could take their picture.

Career Daze:

My oldest daughter was asked to participate in Career Day at one of the Ft. Worth Schools. She got to speak to six different groups of 1st grade students about dance and dance-related careers. Of course, there was an emphasis on ballet.

Each presentation lasted 25 minutes, and she did a great job holding the students' attention. 

The real kicker was watching her teach the children the basic ballet positions. In every single group there were at least three boys who were too cool to participate, but after a minute, they all joined in on the fun.

Each one of the sessions ended with the students giving her hugs, high-fives, and asking for her autograph. It was precious! 


I was merely a fly on the wall, as I went along to help her carry all of her props -- additional tutus, costumes, various types of dance shoes, tiaras, swords, and books. 


Several days after the presentation, a delivery was made to the ballet studio on behalf of one of the classes at the elementary school. Our ballerina received a packet with thank you notes and artwork to show the students' appreciation. They've even invited her back for next year's event.




All Smiles:

Our sweet neighbor-girlie invited us to her school's musical program. Her group did a musical twist on the Three Little Pigs. She got to play the part of a pizza delivery man. Too cute!

This boy is smiling because he got to vote in his first presidential primary race. He really is into Paul-itics this season!

I don't think Bart'd fit, but he might have a fit if Millie tried to squeeze him in the basket. Thankfully, the maximum weight load on the bike's basket is 11 pounds. Bartholomew is smiling (on the inside, any way) because he knows he weighs twice that number.

Someone's looking like a Texan.

My tootsies are smiling because my friend Barb treated me to a pedicure to celebrate the start of sandal season. Hooray for RED toenails! The nail technician put the left flip flop on my right foot and vice versa, which made it challenging to walk.

Signs of the times:

This sticky note was on the door from the garage to the laundry room one afternoon. The door was locked. It made me laugh. I knew that Bartholomew was the "washee" and that Millie was the "washer." Poor, wet, miserable kitty. 

I love this! The lyrics to one of my favorite NEEDTOBREATHE songs was colorfully and artfully written on the whiteboard one day. :-)

Stylish Indeed:

I get to be the model for many of Millie's hairstyle creations. I truly enjoy having her mess with my hair, as it is so relaxing. Yes, I have actually fallen asleep in the chair. My stylist usually shakes me to wake me, so the slumber doesn't last that long. Forty winks?

That girlie will even "fix" my hair as we are riding in the car!

My personal stylist intended to do an updo; however, it morphed into a downdo. We need more bobby pins!

After the "downdo" was complete, Millie added a light touch of make-up as the finishing touch. I was ready to go! Sadly, I had no place to go to, except to the laundry room to fold laundry. Ah, what a glamorous life I lead!