Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween Weekend! I love Halloween because it seems to kick off the wonderful holiday season, and this year I'll actually have time to enjoy it. It's rainy and chilly here today, though, so I'm not sure how that will affect the trick-or-treaters.

As for me, I am feeling the urge to make some caramel apples - or at least some caramel dip to eat with sliced apples! Have a great weekend, everyone!

You Know You Need These!

So, how many times have you been getting dressed, and looked at your underwear, and thought, "If only they made these for other parts of my body?" Yeah, me neither, but apparently somebody has.

Yep, some enterprising soul has invented Handerpants. The website claims that they are nontoxic (yay!) and suggests all sorts of uses - texting, cooking, cruising and sanitary handshakes. Even night blogging. I don't want to know what that is!

If that doesn't convince you, they are also said to be good for distracting enemies and great for jazz hands! I have to confess that my own jazz hands are a little wan most days and could certainly use some beefing up. And, you, too can have your very own Handerpants for less than twelve bucks. Excluding shipping.

I know you think I made this up, but I assure you that I did not. You can see the advertisement here: http://www.handerpants.com/ and the order button takes you to another site where you can order Handerpants and a set of Remote Control Hopping Yodeling Lederhosen.

So don't say I never gave you any Christmas ideas, my friends, because there are two prime ideas in ONE blog post! You can thank me later!

Catching Up and a Blog Giveaway

I am off work today, because I was on call yesterday, and I'm spending the morning catching up on blogs. When I was in school I only let myself do this every so often, and only for a few blogs at a time. Now that I'm out of school there should be more time, but I still feel that I'm playing catch-up to some extent. So, it may take awhile yet before I get back to normal!

So, I was catching up and came to Karen's blog - Karen is a long-arm quilter and her blog has some lovely quilts featured - see it here: Little Pieces of My Life. Karen has had some health problems recently and has had a long road to recovery, but it looks like she's finally made it, and to celebrate she's hosting a giveaway. Please stop by to congratulate her on her recovery and to wish her continued good health going forward.

And, as I mentioned before, I have decided to work on simplifying my life. My children are grown, I have met my professional goals and now it's time to get some balance back! So, I went to the hairdresser and asked for wash-and-go hair. Short wash-and-go hair. I've thrown in a "before" picture for comparison.


I'm still getting used to the results, but overall I am pleased. There's so much movement to this cut that the messier it is, the better it looks. My hair actually looks better after I've had it under a scrub cap all day! I can't be unhappy about that!

I have a box full of hair products for the Princess to look through - she's a girly-girl and will be delighted to play, I am sure. And I have reclaimed a lot of space in the bathroom - maybe it's time for some redecorating in there!

Taking Time to Breathe!

Well, the last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity! I feel like there hasn't been more than ten minutes to sit and relax for weeks now unless we were in the truck driving somewhere, and that's not exactly relaxing!

Last week was our vacation and we saw the youngest son for a glorious 36 hours. He looked good - he's taller, and heavier, and he's grown up quite a bit. Even his brothers commented on the change. He said he has no regrets about joining the Army or choosing the Infantry. And that's all I needed to hear!

We came home Sunday and I went straight back to work on Monday - and it was a busy week! The oldest son left yesterday to go back to Texas and today I have nothing on the agenda but getting the house back in order. I have this tremendous urge to simplify things - more on that later!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Aquarium Visit

We spent the day at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta today. I've been wanting to go since they acquired the elusive whale shark for their collection, and today we discovered that they actually have FOUR of them.

It is rather expensive to visit, but when you think about their food budget it balances out, I am sure. And look at these two handsome fellows I found hanging out by the tank!

We'll get to see their brother on Saturday!

The whale shark is actually a fish - here you can see them swimming in the tank. They are spotted and enormous, and they swim slowly and gracefully through the water. I could have watched them for hours.

The Georgia Aquarium also has two manta rays - you can see one of them here. They were fascinating, as well, with their underwater acrobatics! They swoop through the water in giant somersaults, their mouths open to scoop up food.

And who doesn't love a lionfish? Except folks who step on them, I imagine - all those lovely spines are venomous!

And, like every good aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium had some educational offerings, too. The one I'd like to share today is the idea of sustainable seafood. Overfishing is causing population collapses among some species, so you can go here and find out how to choose a seafood feast that won't bring a species to extinction. I know I'll be more mindful of sustainability before I make my next seafood purchase.

And we are on vacation, so I'll post again next week when we return - hopefully there will be quite a few more photos! Have a great week, everyone!

The Test is OVER!

Well, I took the board exam this morning. You get preliminary results before you leave the test center. I was absolutely certain I had failed the test - it's crazy that you can work for years for something and have it all come down to one test, isn't it? But, to my surprise, I passed!

Now, it isn't official until I get the score report in, but for the moment I can relax and enjoy my vacation! Thanks to everyone who has given me support and encouragement over the past couple of years - you guys are the greatest! Expect to be seeing a little more of me now!