Friday, October 5, 2012

Golden Thread

One of my favorite places to shop is Golden Thread Needle Arts in East Rochester.  Andrea, the owner, is just wonderful.  What other shop can you take your 3 year old to and let her run?  What other shop owner sets your child up with a little tea party every time we're there, and even participates in said tea party while Mommy shops?  Any time I stop in without Brynn, Andrea asks about her.  I discovered this shop several years ago while searching for a specific color fabric and now visit on a fairly regular basis.  Andrea knows my taste in patterns and always points out anything new she's gotten in since my last visit.  Gotta love people like her! 

Thursday, October 4, 2012

38 at 38

Today is my 38th birthday, so I thought I'd make a list of 38 random things about me that people may or may not know. 
  1. I love having long hair, but I hate the time it takes to actually do something with it, so it's usually in a ponytail or a messy bun.
  2. I highly dislike politics.
  3. I am on medication for high blood pressure...thanks, Dad!
  4. I love mashed potatoes.
  5. Counted cross stitch and scrapbooking are my favorite hobbies, although I haven't done much scrapbooking in the past few years.  I have more supplies for both than I will ever be able to use in my lifetime.
  6. I love to make lists, any kind of lists.  Grocery, inventory, to-do....
  7. I still call Argyle "home," even though I haven't lived there since 1996.
  8. I can't remember the last time I slept through the night.
  9. I have 3 tattoos and want at least 2 more.  I want a Celtic Tree of Life and a ladybug.
  10. I would much rather text people than actually talk on the phone.
  11. I love flannel sheets.
  12. I love Coke, especially from McDonald's.
  13. I wish I was a better photographer.
  14. I am addicted to reality television.  And not just the game-show types.  I like ones like American Pickers, Flip Men, and Auction Hunters too.
  15. I cry over stupid commercials and TV shows.
  16. I hate being cold, but I dislike being hot even more.
  17. I take super-hot, extra-long showers.
  18. I am a huge procrastinator.
  19. I hate wearing shoes.
  20. I believe in psychic mediums.
  21. I am in the process of starting my own business, Personally Yours by Tasha.
  22. Target and Wegmans are my favorite stores.
  23. I don't go anywhere without my cell phone.
  24. I listen to talk radio all the time.
  25. I eat some kind of chocolate almost every day.
  26. I have to most amazing best friend, and even though we live over 400 miles apart, we talk (via text) pretty much every day.
  27. My toenails must be painted at all times, usually some bright, crazy color that I wouldn't dare wear on my fingernails.
  28. I wear contacts, and have for 20 years.  I'd love to have laser vision correction done, but I'm too chicken!
  29. I make a wish when I see that it's 11:11 on the clock.
  30. I can't watch scary movies.
  31. I love the sights and smells of fall.
  32. I need to lose about 25 pounds.
  33. Purple tulips are my favorite flowers.
  34. I wish I could bake like my Gramma Sibyl.
  35. I have a horrible singing voice, so I only sing in the car when I'm alone or when I'm with Brynn.
  36. I am a very disorganized person.
  37. The sound of someone grinding their teeth is equivalent to nails on a chalkboard to me.
  38. When I was younger, 38 seemed old.  Now that I'm 38, it doesn't seem so bad.  I am blessed with a wonderful daughter, a great family, and amazing friends.  I can't wait to see what this year has in store for me!

Me at 38, hair up (see #1)

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Conversations

When I'm at work, many of my conversations are one-sided.  Most of the people I work with on a daily basis are, for the most part, non-verbal or have limited conversational skills.  That's not to say that they don't communicate though!  Many of them have learned various ways of letting me know their desires or getting my attention (like banging on a desk every time I walk by so he can wave hello to me).  Several have some knowledge of sign language, some speak in one-word or short, familiar phrases, and some don't speak at all.  We manage to get through our days together just fine.

However, my conversations completely change once I pick Brynn up from pre-school.  How did I get such a chatty child?  Talk, talk, talk, talk, talk....chat, chat, chat, chat, chat....talk, talk, talk, talk, talk.  And there's always some singing in between the talking!  It amazes me how verbal Brynn has become and some of the language she uses...appropriately!  There's never a dull moment when she's around, and I never know what or whom we'll end up talking about.  All I know is that this child loves to talk, and the teacher and speech pathologist in me can't bear to tell her to be quiet! 

Here are a few of out recent conversations....

"Mama, can we get a kangaroo?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because they don't belong in the house and would make a mess."
"But Mama, they hop!"

Gotta love the logic behind that one!

"Mama, my tummy hurts."
"I'm sorry, Brynn."
"Don't be sorry, Mama.  You didn't do anything wrong."



She even loves to talk on the phone!


Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Out and About

I decided to keep Brynn home from pre-school today and spend the day doing fun things with her instead.  We started our day at the Rochester Museum and Science Center.  It was a really quiet morning there, which was great, because she could run around and explore without crashing into everyone.  And when I say run, I mean run!  This child does not know the meaning of the word walk.  It's no wonder she gains weight so slowly!!!  Anyways, the museum was nice.  She's been a few times before, but hadn't really gotten up the courage to really explore and try out new things.  Today, she stood on the earthquake simulator, rode on the submarine (which simulates going under Lake Ontario), and dug for fossils. 


Digging for fossils

Don't you just love the look?

            

After lunch, we made a quick stop at Nazareth to pay a surprise visit to Mana.  Brynn loves to visit her at work and draw pictures at her desk. 
Finally, it was off to lunch at Bill Gray's.  I love their cheeseburgers, and they have a mac & cheese kid's meal, so it's a win for both of us! 



I love being able to spend extra time with my favorite girl! 

On a side note, this makes 2 days in a row I've posted....off to a good start for the Ultimate Blog Challenge!  Let's see if I can keep this up for the entire month!  Also, doing something fun with Brynn was on my list of goals for my week off.  I try to do fun things with her every day, but for the week, I wanted to spend the day with her doing things we don't normally have time to do.  One thing checked off my list of goals!  I attempted to scrapbook yesterday afternoon, but I took one look at my craft room and decided it needed an overhaul, so instead of actually getting pages done, I cleaned and did some organizing instead.  Hopefully now I'll be able to find things a little easier and actually get something accomplished! 

Hope everyone has a great day!!!




Monday, October 1, 2012

Goals

I am on vacation this week.  Not a "go somewhere fun, sit on a beach" vacation, but just some time off from work and some much-needed mental recuperation.  Last week was a rough week, so this couldn't have come at a better time.  I don't generally go away on vacation, and I usually make a "to-do" list, things I'd like to get done while I'm home, and I've done a list again for this week. 

One of my goals is to blog every day.  Actually, one of my goals is to blog every day this month!  I joined a blog challenge, in hopes that it would keep me motivated and give me something to write about on days when my mind goes blank (which seems to happen quite frequently lately).  So far, so good....it's Day #1 and here's my post!!! 

Here's a list of my goals for the week.  I'll post later in the week with an update as to how much I've actually crossed off my list.
  • clean the closet in the den
  • sort out the Christmas gifts I've already purchased and make a list of what I still need to buy (for those that don't know me very well, I like to have all my shopping done by Thanksgiving!)
  • scrapbook 10 complete layouts (I'm waaaaay behind!)
  • spend a day doing something fun with Brynn
  • steam clean the basement carpet
  • get my car inspected
  • frame 5 finished cross stitch pieces
  • set up facebook and etsy pages for my business (more to come on that later)
I'm off to tackle one of these items, just not sure which one yet!  Wish me luck!!!