Mini Cuteness

The other day I received my HP Mini! It's perfect for someone like me, who only needs an extra computer for going on the internet, chatting and writing without having to bother someone to get off the main computer (or wait for them to get off the computer). The keyboard is 92% the size of a full one, and I honestly have no problem at all with feeling comfortable typing on it. I got one with the screen size of 8.9" diagonal. And that size is comfortable as well for me.

I love how super portable minis are. And you gotta love how affordable they are too. I got mine in the $280 range, would have been cheaper if I didn't have to pay tax! I took an extra photo of it beside my kindle to better give a perspective of its small size.

My friend Sherry inspired me to get a mini when she mentioned she was thinking of getting one to do her writing on. And that is the main reason why I wanted one but now I am seeing that it's also comfortable for almost everything else I did on the desktop computer.

Getting a mini/netbook was definitely a good buy!

Kindle Kindle Kindle

The Kindle. An amazing reading device. My new best friend. My new obsession. It takes me away to unlimited worlds. It teaches me unlimited things.

So yeah, I pretty much LOVE Amazon's Kindle 2. I think everyone should have one. The e-ink technology is pretty cool with how it's gentle on the eyes and refreshes nicely from page to page and having free wireless service (the same type used for cell phones) to get online right from the device and download books makes one feel like they own the world in one little skinny device.

I recently revamped my Kindle with the Mora skin from decalgirl.com and I also revamped the cover (additional cost) made exclusively by Amazon that takes advantage of the hinge holes on the side of the Kindle. I didn't want any fabric tabs covering the corners on my Kindle. I just don't like the way that looks, so I opted for the Amazon cover instead of the (expensive) Cole Haan.

So this is my bare white Kindle before:


And the cover before:
And this is the Kindle after, with Decal Girl's "Mora" skin applied, along with the revamped cover of red faux crocodile/snake fabric wrapped over the outer shell:

See the hinges that fit in the 2 holes? Love it. That's the only way for me. Velcro or corner tabs just aren't my thing.

It was pretty easy to revamp the cover or rather maybe I just chose to go the easy route. The inner soft part is just glued on so I carefully pulled that apart making sure I didn't bend anything too much. After that I just covered the outer part with my red fabric, using fabric glue and making sure everything was snug and smooth which was really easy to do. Then I reglued the soft inner part back on and voila!, a revamped Kindle case that fits my style more.

I had bought a whole yard of the red faux crocodile/snake fabric so I have plenty left. I may see what kind of handbag I can make with it and be all matchy-matchy with the Kindle case.

Snowy Night In Carolina

We've been waiting all day for the scheduled snow and it is finally here. Gavin's school has already called to inform parents that school is canceled. I am just hoping the UPS man will still be able to deliver me a very special package tomorrow. But for now I will focus on how snowy nights are so beautiful.

Cleopatra Sofa

An absolutely beautiful sofa, available from Victorian Trading Co.

I've always wanted a couch like this, and recently I've become aware that I'm into furniture that has a silver painted over wood look to it so I would definitely want to see how that would turn out on this piece. I am certain it would look stunning.

The price is a bit high on this piece, but I think it's expected for something like this. A little give and take may make the price not seem so bad with getting other pieces to complete a living room with it that are cheaper in prices. I'm on the lookout at gathering up furniture to finally have my dream living room (different from our den which is basically our real living room). If I can acquire this sofa, it would definitely be a great start and set the tone off right for an amazing dramatic look.

No Stress Chess

My son's birthday was on the 28th of January--he is now 7 years old! We gave him a Super Mario Bros. themed birthday party that following Saturday. My parents sent him an Amazon e-gift certificate which part of it I used to order him No Stress Chess. Gavin and I played this together tonight and it is such a neat way to get kids to remember the chess pieces' names and how they move on the board. Gavin was delighted and excited all throughout the game. We played 2 rounds before I noticed it was past his bedtime. He wanted to keep playing.


The game uses cards which show how the pieces move. It is called No Stress because with the beginner style game you just abide by which card you draw. If you draw a knight card, then that is what you must move if you can. The game is still quite exciting even though it allows you to be able to take more risks. And you don't have to use the cards to play but it IS a fun alternative style along with it being a great learning aid for kids (and even for adults!).

Gavin has set his alarm to wake up earlier tomorrow morning because he wants to play when he wakes up before school! I am so happy he is enjoying this chess game so much because he really likes playing Monopoly and I think this outshines Monopoly for him by far. I must say I hate Monopoly so much. To me, having to sit and play Monopoly is like being forced to sit through torture. I just get so bored and restless with that game, so much so that I feel like jumping out of my chair, screaming and running out the door. So I am ecstatic about my boy learning all about chess now! Chess is a game that keeps me engaged.

One day I will buy Gavin a really nice chess set for his room. I still want one of those Alice in Wonderland ones for myself. Brian has one that I bought for him some years back that is really cool. I think everyone should have a chess set that really reflects their own style.

In Carbonation Heaven!

Today I received my main birthday present from the hubby and son (I have to mention Gavin since he makes sure I know that he is included in who got the gift for me). I'm just now receiving my gift because the company was closed for the holidays and New Year inventory. Oh the things I have to deal with in having an early January birthday.

But all is well now because I now have in my hands a soda maker - a lovely beverage carbonator. I got the simple looking one but there are others available like the very sleek penguin styled one. We couldn't justify spending that extra money though, but it really does look nice. What I did do though is make sure I had those beautiful glass carafes that are made for the penguin one. I have 3 in all. You cannot use the glass carafes with the other models during the carbonation process but you can use them to pour your soda or seltzer water in for a more beautiful look. It feels and looks very sophisticated to store and pour from them. But it is good to know that the plastic ones that come with the basic model are BPA-free!



I must admit, I asked for the soda maker in high hopes of being able to make "raw sodas" and carbonated lemon green tea drinks like the expensive ones they sell in stores. You are only suppose to carbonate pure water and then add the flavorings afterwards but I attempted to carbonated a mixed berry juice and it turned out so good! You do have to watch and wait carefully though when carbonating to make sure the juice/foam doesn't expand and spill out. But omg, I made sparkling juice that was so bubbly and nice! I know I need to make sure the juice I'm using is pulp-free since carbonation goes smoothly with pure clear water.

I'm completely loving my new soda maker! I just love devices that help make eating healthier so not a big deal AT ALL whatsoever!

It's been awhile...

So it's been awhile... and I'm not talking about updating my blog but rather it's been awhile since I've worked out with either weights or resistance.

I recently got the Pilates Power Gym which I am completely loving! But oh boy, it has really been awhile. Take heed in starting up a new workout program with ease. I'm starting to think that I may have some strained muscles in my rib cage area! It may be my diaphragm! It's been awhile since I've used lots of pulling twisting motion with those muscles.

But other than that, I'm in total love with the Pilates Power Gym. I call it a girlier version of the Total Gym, which I use to workout on in my late teens. The Pilates Power Gym is also very portable from room to room. I'm really enjoying the convenience of it not being a hassle whatsoever to just roll it into the living room to workout on while watching TV.

But what I love most about the Pilates Power Gym and pilates in general (do I sound like an infomercial?) is that it makes you workout and engage your core and abs in ways that you wouldn't think certain moves would require your abs to become active.

I bought mine from HSN.com with the flexpay, free shipping and a 10% off coupon I got from playing their spin game. As of now, I have a 15% off coupon if anyone is interested. These coupons can be easily won by playing their spin game every so often though.

Dreaming of this bed...

Oh, the wonderful dreams that could be dreamed sleeping on this bed...

Manifesting time!

New Year's Resolutions

So it's about that time again to achieve and stick to some new things to do.

Here's mine:

1. Condition myself to run up to six miles. (This was my resolution last year!)

2. Get highly into reconstructing old clothes into new clothes.

I got these books just for this:

Along with all my old clothes, I think I'm going to find it fun and exciting to find stuff at thrift stores to turn into something new and creative.

3. Eat or drink one chlorophyll rich meal at least once a day. (I've already started and it's way easier and yummier than I thought. Can we say 'kale chips'?)

4. Work more on filling up my Book of Shadows.


5. Spend money more wisely to save more.

I may add to the list if I think of anything else.

"Santa Claus looks different."

This is a photo of my son Gavin at about 11 months - his very first photo with Santa. The other day he found this photo in a drawer and looked at it confused. Recently, his school had Santa Claus visit them for photos. Gavin asked me why the Santa in the photo looked different from the one that visited his school and then continued on to say that this Santa in the photo was not the real Santa. He did say the Santa that visited his school was the real one though.

We have a couple more photos of him with different Santas each year.

Our Golden Yule Tree!

I finally have photos to share of our golden Yule tree. The funny thing is that I had to go really cheap with the ornaments (bought today at the last minute) but hopefully next year I'll have some ornaments that I really like and adore.

I took like 87 photos!!! I didn't know I took so many until I plugged my camera into the computer to upload. It's like a vortex you go into where you just lose time I guess taking photos, because 87 photos of a tree just doesn't make any sense at all! I picked out 8. I think the photos really don't do the tree any justice but here they are:

Fairest by Gail Carson Levine

I'm in love with the book Fairest, by Gail Carson Levine. I am loving reading it. I see now that I must read all the books she's written because her imaginative world is quite lovely. She wrote Ella Enchanted (which was made into a movie starring Anne Hathaway). Fairest is set in that same type of world.

Anyone else prefer to stumble upon books not knowing whatsoever what the book is about? I love total surprises. I remember the very first book I read like that, not knowing anything about the book and how much I loved what a complete adventure it was (The Eyes of the Dragon, by Stephen King). I think it's sort of sad to know what a fiction book is about - everything should be a discovery - it makes picking up the book and reading it all the more fun and exciting. Descriptions totally take away from that. Try it and see what you end up with! Pick up a book on total blind faith without even reading the back cover. Let EVERYTHING be a surprise.

The most recent movie I happened to not know anything about before watching it made for an amazing watch! It was No Country For Old Men. It was only because of Brian that I watched it, and wow, that movie was a total delicious shock.

Play-Doh PacMan

Brian and Gavin made this neat little thing today together: a PacMan game scene out of Play-Doh!

The Vertigo Tarot, Again

I received the new copy/edition of The Vertigo Tarot by Dave McKean. I have an old copy but a few years ago I foolishly believed it was safe in my suitcase on one of my trips to Austin. Airport security managed to make a very prominent bend in one of the cards while they went through the deck. And of course, that bend has always bothered me.

But now I have a new copy and all is well! I'm so glad they decided to publish it again. I thought that would never happen.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Thanksgiving EVERYONE!! I hope your day is filled with lots of love and joy and many reasons to be thankful!!!