Eye-Fi With my Little Eye ...

I'm still alive. Just been too busy to scrap (still) or blog (blah). Hope that changes soon!

I recently came across an ad for a wireless camera card in one of my scrap magazines (yes, I've started buying scrap mags again - but that's a topic for another blog post!). I thought it was an April's Fools or something. Because they said that this camera card automatically uploads your pictures to your computer whenever you walk by your computer with your camera ... without connecting your camera to your computer ... and furthermore, automatically uploads them to a photo sharing site too (photobucket, facebook, etc.) if you set it up that way.

So I thought I'd do a bit of research, and lo and behold, it's true. Meet the Eye-Fi. I have no idea how much this little wonder costs, and it doesn't appear to be sold in any stores I've ever heard of (although it is sold at many stores online, such as Costco and Wal-Mart).

Given that one of the things I hate to do the most, is plug in a usb cable into my camera and my computer and download pictures, this seems like a miracle solution. Guess I'll be keeping my eyes open for this to hit the stores in my area. I just hope there's some sort of security in place so that my pics don't download to every computer I walk by!

Happy Wednesday, everyone...!

Tagged Again!

Well thank goodness - I've been tagged by Barb! Otherwise, I wouldn't have anything to post on the blog ... no scrapping going on lately, and no major news to share. Just busy, busy, busy, catching up with life (ok, mostly work) after being downed by a cold for most of last week.

** Two (nick)names I've gone by: Eggie, Mou (both used exclusively by dh)

** Two things I'm wearing right now: black capris, and a black and white shirt

** Two of my favorite things to do: scrapbook and sleep (lol)

** Two favorite drinks: non-fat latte, white wine

** Two movies I could watch over and over: Dirty Dancing, My Big Fat Greek Wedding

** Typically, what time do you wake up? 5:30 a.m. on weekdays, around 7:00 on weekends

** On a good night, what time are your kids in bed? The 16 y.o. goes to bed whenever she wants - depends on level of homework etc. - I think she's usually in bed by 11 or 12 (way after me!). The 12 y.o. is in bed by about 8:45 and reads until 9:00 (or later if I don't catch him in the act).

** What is your favorite kids show/movie? I love Malcolm in the Middle. Does that count as a kids show?

** What is your favorite chore? Ironing. Because I can watch the hockey game guilt-free when I'm ironing!

** What is your favorite quality about your mom? Sigh. I miss my Mom. It's hard to pick one favorite thing. I love how she had a touch of class and a lifelong yearning for learning ... she was always reading, all kinds of things, and watching documentaries on all kinds of things. She didn't have preconceived notions, she was open to new experiences and new ideas. She was always seeking to better herself. She didn't have much education and came from a relatively poor family but you wouldn't have guessed it.

Let's see, who to tag ... well I would've tagged Robyn, but she lifted the tag off Barb's blog and beat me to the punch! How about: Stef, Stef, Mellisa, Rachel, and Katie? I wouldn't normally tag a gal who just gave birth, but given that Katie's actually churned out some awesome scrapbook layouts since she got home with her brand new baby girl Kasey this week, I think she's good for it, lol!!

Don't Blink!

At the end of each day I think, "where has this day gone?". There are so many things to do every day, each day whizzes by, and next thing you know, days grow into weeks, weeks grow into months, and months grow into years. Some days I still think of myself as being 22 years old. Then I look in the mirror, and the face staring back at me is 40. Ok, 41. Pretty good for almost 42 (actually), but still. Some days I still think of dh and I as newlyweds, but this year will be our 20th wedding anniversary. I still think of my kids as my babies, but they are growing up fast, and university looms near for the girl; high school only a couple of years away for the boy.

Last summer, my friend Carrie and I took our kids go-karting on a hot summer day. Just something fun to do. I stood at the fence surrounding the go-kart lanes and made many attempts at taking pictures of ds as he zoomed by. It was next to impossible. That's how I feel about life most days; it's impossible to savour, to slow it down, to live it, it's going by so fast! I feel as though, if I blink, I'll miss life as it goes by.


Supplies:

Patterned Paper: Scenic Route
Black alpha stickers: Making Memories
Alpha sticker squares: Scenic Route
Buttons/Brad: Miscellaneous
Rub-on alpha: American Crafts

A pretty simple layout to put together; and even though the pictures aren't that good - the go kart is barely in the frame! - the pictures actually illustrate the thought.

Ironically, life also has a way of slowing things down when necessary. I've been so busy lately, overwhelmed almost, late, behind ... at home, and at work. Heck, I'm even off my scrapping schedule - a while back I promised myself at least a couple of hours of scrapping a week, and I've barely put in 30 minutes in the last 2 weeks! Well yesterday, life gave me a big sign to SLOW DOWN. Having gotten through the winter season without catching a bad cold (I had a few colds start, but fizzle to nothing within a day), yesterday I felt like I was hit by a mack truck. Sore throat, headache, fever, body aches. I stayed home from work and lay on the couch all day. Hey, did y'all know that Cathie Lee Gifford still does a show on daytime tv? Wow, wonder what she thinks when she sees her face in the mirror. Sorry, don't mean to be catty, but that woman has aged in the last few years! Anyhow, I digress ... the point is, that life slowed down for me yesterday, it had to. And while I went back to the grind this morning, by noon I was down for the count again and I had to come home. So, I think LIFE is sending me a message ... slow down, smell the roses ... or at least, smell the couch pillows!

Hope your lives aren't whooshing by too quickly right now ... I know Robyn is probably wishing for days to go by quickly, so she can get married and go off to Holland and France! Then again, she might want the next eleven days to go by slowly, so she can get everything done that needs to be done! Thinking of ya, Robyn ... good luck with all the preparations!

Catching Up

I've been playing catch-up around the house for 2 weeks now, but I think the dust bunnies are winning. There just aren't enough hours in the day for what needs to be done! And I think I need to play catch-up around here, too, as I haven't been posting much substance on the blog!

First off, our big news. After finishing the season in first place (a spot which eluded the team until the last couple of weeks of the season), ds' hockey team won the league championship yesterday! What a fantabulous end to a super hockey year. This year was everything I was hoping for for ds, and more. He's got his confidence back, as well as his love of the game. He really liked his teammates and his coaches. It was a good bunch of parents. He got tons of ice time, since there were only 12 kids on the team - and therefore really got a chance to improve and shine. He scored, he got assists, he made good plays. He came home with the hard hat more than once (for being the hardest worker) and the coaches often told me that he played his "best game so far" that day. So all that's left now is an end of year hockey party next weekend ... on the one hand, it'll be great not to have hockey on the schedule, on the other hand, I'm going to miss it, and I'm going to miss being part of this particular team of kids and parents. It was neat just being a parent this year, and not the manager ... and though no one ever did step up to be manager, almost every parent (including me) took on a task or two and everything got done.

As for my other hockey boys ... well ... it's been tough the last couple of months and it's just agonizing right now watching them in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. I thought for sure they had it going on on Friday, but in the end, yet another penalty is what lost them the game. I am not a fairweather fan, but, I do think that my boys have golf in their near future and like other Sens fans, I have started saying words like "next season", "rebuilding", and "what the heck are we going to do with Emery". It really is heartbreaking. Sigh.

The other night, I went to a fundraiser for Kenya at dd's school. More specifically, it was a fundraiser for Lwak girls' high school in Kenya. Dd is part of a club which started as a pen pal club a couple of years ago but has mobilized into a "let's do something concrete to help these girls" club. While dd has been telling me all about it for years, the fundraiser night really opened my eyes to the conditions in Kenya and to what a handful of teenagers, with support from some dedicated teachers, can do to improve the lives of real people halfway across the globe. No wonder her school has won awards for its global focus. The fundraiser included dinner and both a live and silent auction. Final tally is not in, but by my calculations they must have made at least $6,000. To put this in perspective, it costs $500 a year in tuition for a girl in Kenya to attend this school; and each girl receives a $17 annual allowance.

Still nothing scrappy to share with you. I hope to spend some time at the scrap desk today, but between groceries, housework, visiting my mother in law, and catching up on day job stuff (I won't even get into how behind I am at work!!), not sure that's gonna happen. Happy Sunday everyone!

Punny Stuff

Still nothing scrappy to share with you, but I thought you might appreciate this list of puns my husband emailed me yesterday. I love a good pun!

1. A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.

2. A will is a dead giveaway.

3. Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.

4. A backward poet writes inverse.

5. In a democracy it's your vote that counts; in feudalism, it's your Count that votes.

6. A chicken crossing the road: poultry in motion.

7. If you don't pay your exorcist you can get repossessed.

8. With her marriage she got a new name and a dress.

9. Show me a piano falling down a mine shaft and I'll show you A-flat miner.

10. When a clock is hungry it goes back four seconds.

11. The guy who fell onto an upholstery machine was fully recovered.

12. A grenade fell onto a kitchen floor in France resulted in Linoleum Blownapart.

13. You are stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.

14. Local Area Network in Australia : The LAN down under.

15. He broke into song because he couldn't find the key.

16. A calendar's days are numbered.

17. A lot of money is tainted: 'Taint yours, and 'taint mine.

18. A boiled egg is hard to beat.

19. He had a photographic memory which was never developed.

20. A plateau is a high form of flattery.

21. The short fortuneteller who escaped from prison: a small medium at large.

22. Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.

23. When you've seen one shopping center you've seen a mall.

24. If you jump off a Paris bridge, you are in Seine.

25. When she saw her first strands of gray hair, she thought she'd dye.

26. Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead to know basis.

27. Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.

28. Acupuncture: a jab well done.

29. Marathon runners with bad shoes suffer the agony of de feet.

5 favorites tag

I've been tagged by Jennifer! Here goes:

5 all time favorites:
1 facials
2 pedicures
3 fancy, funky shoes
4 the Ottawa Senators
5 scrapbooking

5 favorite movies
1 Dirty Dancing
2 Harry Potter (all of them)
3 Working Girl
4 Sleepless in Seattle
5 The Exorcist (surprised you with that one, huh?!)

Baby names you love (but aren't planning on using):
5 girl names: Stephanie, Zoe, Melissa, Isabelle, Kanella
5 boy names: Dimitri, Max, Jack, can’t think of any more!

5 songs you could listen to over and over:
1 Space Cowboy (Steve Miller Band)
2 anything by Daughtry (love his voice)
3 early Beatles
4 Purple Rain (Prince)
5 I can't think of anything else. I'm not very good at remembering songs/artists.

5 people who influenced your life in a positive way:
1 My husband
2 My mother
3 My boss from ’88 to ‘98
4 My children
5 My boss from '05 to '07

5 items that stay in your purse all the time:
1 wallet
2 small mirror
3 about 7 different lipsticks
4 my security pass / bus pass
5 my blackberry

5 moments you knew things changed forever:
1 the first morning I woke up in my own apartment (school residence) at age 16
2 when dh proposed
3 when my oldest was born
4 when my youngest was born
5 when my mother was diagnosed with brain cancer

5 obsessions you have right now:
1 Rome Puzzle, a really stupid online game
2 scrapbooking
3 blogs
4 reading forums to see how dumb some people are (same answer as Jennifer’s … she must read Two Peas NSBR too!!!)
5 shoes

5 places you would really like to go:
1 Greece
2 ScotiaBank Place for a playoff game
3 All inclusive resort, anywhere warm
4 Egypt
5 Paris

5 people you'd like to see do their tops 5's:
1 Robyn
2 Stefanie
3 Neisey
4 Rachel
5 The MacDaddy of Scrap (what? I read his blog – maybe he reads mine!)

I've been MIA

I've been missing in action on the internet this week - no time to read my fave blogs, surf the scrapbooking sites, post on my own blog. Dh's aunt (the one with pancreatic cancer) passed away Sunday morning. The wake was Wednesday, the funeral, Thursday. Even though this was expected, dealing with the loss, doing all that needs to be done and being strong through it all takes its toll. I woke up this morning feeling like I hadn't slept at all, and decided to take a day to myself instead of going back to work. So now I'm recharging, and catching up. And trying not to think of all the catching up I'll have to do at work next week!

One of my fave to-dos when I recharge is scrapbook. I just haven't had the energy yet to convert the scraproom back from a guest room - my mother in law stayed over with us (we didn't want to leave her alone) and the sofabed is still all set up, blocking my access to my scrap desk. Therefore, I don't have any new creations to share with you today. But I will surely be packing that bed away before long and pulling out all of my stuff so I can cut and paste my way back to serenity.

I'd love to have a quiet weekend ahead of me but there are a few things on the schedule. Dd's new math tutor ('cause an 85% just isn't good enough, remember?) is coming tomorrow morning. Ds has a hockey game on Sunday. We also have a memorial mass for dh's aunt on Sunday (Greek tradition: memorial mass approx 9 days, 40 days, 6 months, 1 year and 3 years after death). Laundry, groceries. Inviting the dust bunnies to leave my house. Ironing. Catching up, after a weekend and a week of getting nothing done around here. And of course, watching the last Sens game of the regular season tonight, against Boston. My Sens need one more point to clinch a playoff spot for sure. I can't believe it's come down to this!

So I wish you all a great weekend ... I'll recharge and come back to share a creation with you, if something gets created.

Ciao!