*clears throat* Oh Christmas tree! Oh Christmas tree! Thy leaves are so unchanging! We bought you, tree, from QVC Thy leaves are so unchanging! We chose you from our comfy chair while shopping in our underwear, Oh Christmas tree! Oh Christmas tree! Delivered in a box, to me! Oh Christmas tree! Oh Christmas tree! Aluminum and plastic! Oh Christmas tree! Oh Christmas tree! Assembly is fantastic! You bring such joy from far and near And look the same from year to year Oh Christmas tree! Oh ...
A grownup Christmas list
Don't worry, it's not the sappy song, although we really could use some more common sense and love and a lot less knee-jerky insanity. *ahem* Hello, family! It has come to my attention that I'm difficult to shop for, even though it seems all I do all year long is point out things I like. So for your convenience, I have created a wish list on Pinterest. Click the "See on Pinterest" part at the bottom to see the whole thing. Follow Kimberly D. Russell's board Kim's Wishlist on Pinterest. If ...
Thankful
For health and home. For family, close and far away. For friends, in-person and in-pixel. For love and life. ...
Halloween: How to be Baby Spice when you're over 40
This year TNP decided that instead of an individual costume contest on Halloween, there would be departmental ones. The stakes, my friends, were upped. I was desperate for a first place win after last year's practically less-than-perfect second place, so I knew I'd be all in. We took a survey of how many in our department wanted to participate. Two coworkers had the day off already, and a third opted out. That left us with five. Four women and our male manager. Since costumes are all ...
Happy Halloween from the Spice Girls!
We had a department Halloween contest at TNP. Baby Spice was an age stretch for me, but I think I did okay. My boots are made of white duct tape and construction paper wrapped around black shoes. The dress was $7.99 at Ross. I made the BABY necklace (hidden from view) from Shrinky Dink paper and the wig was from a costume shop. Zig-a-zig-ahhhhh... ...
Shamrocks and half-birthdays
Other than Christmas, I don't usually decorate for holidays. But WM's mom is a quilter, so in addition to the large snuggly quilts, we have a stack of small, decorative wall hangings. Here's the one she made for March. It's adorable! Baby shower update: Invitations went into the mail, and on Saturday I'll take the invitation to the restaurant so they can coordinate the cake. (Please don't be wrecky.) Then I'll gather supplies for centerpieces and brainstorm favors. At this rate, the favor ...
Stupid beading tricks: Green
Last night, as I sighed dejectedly at a weather forecast that included anywhere from 5 to 14 inches of snow, I decided to pull out my beads. Inspired by St. Patrick's Day and spring in general, I focused on a selection of my green beads. One one hand, it was challenging sticking with just one color. But once I looked at my limited selection of materials, I found it easier to pull ideas together than when I'm faced with my six trays of colors. First, I made these earrings with green beads, ...
Merry Christmas!
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day Their old familiar carols play, And wild and sweet the words repeat Of peace on earth, good will to men. I thought how, as the day had come, The belfries of all Christendom Had rolled along the unbroken song Of peace on earth, good will to men. And in despair I bowed my head: "There is no peace on earth," I said, "For hate is strong and mocks the song Of peace on earth, good will to men." Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: "God is not dead, nor doth ...
Cookie tally & work holiday wrapup
The cookies are done and I sang "O night Diviiiiiiine" as I shoved the cooling racks into the dishwasher and put the mixer back up on top of the fridge. Here's the final tally: Two batches of gingerbread people One batch of peppermint swirl cookies Two batches of sugar cutout cookies, artfully decorated by WM Two batches of peanut butter blossoms One batch of spritz (cookie press) cookies One batch of chocolate chip cookies (I don't like how they came out but others like'em) Two ...
Christmas in the cube city
My desk at TNP faces an aisle, so I get a little bit of eye-level flat area to decorate. I think I have 80% of of it covered. My shopping is done with the exception of the most difficult parents to buy for, Mr. Quiet and Ms. I Only Want a Card. (note to self: buy card.) I did the majority of it online this year, a first for someone who loves going out to shop. It was partially because the Cyber Monday deals were pretty good and partly because regular department stores don't carry cool niche ...
Rabbit Rabbit – December
Apparently on this blog, NoBloPoMo means NO Blog Posting Month. So here's some catchup. I went to New Orleans for a business trip in early November. I ate with wild abandon. Mary Poppins came in second place at the office Halloween party. She decided to celebrate! I'm still with this cute fellow: I started playing Tiny Tower on my phone, and I think it killed the Candy Crush monster. WM is a big Doctor Who fan, so I watched the 50th anniversary show with him. I didn't understand a ...
A practically perfect Halloween costume
For my entire adult life I wanted to be Mary Poppins for Halloween. In 2005, I mentioned it on this blog and variations on "Mary Poppins costume" dominated my incoming search results for months and months. Which was sad for the searchers because I didn't follow through. I was a pirate that year. My big concern in 2005 was that I wouldn't be recognizable. But thanks to the musical stage show, Miss Poppins has seen a resurgence. So this year, I did it. And it was easy! The blouse, black hat ...
