Where Have I Been?

Hello blog. I apologize for having been AWOL for the last two months. Just busy with everyday life and such.

I've had a nice time though - been to some amazing concerts (Springsteen, Genesis, The Police, Maroon 5) in the past few months and am looking forward to spending next Wednesday evening with my daughter at the Spice Girls concert in LA.

Rain (Finally!)

What a beautiful rainy day. We haven't had rain in so long and it's a nice change. Plus I'm down 14 pounds!



We're off to the Angel game today if it isn't rained out. Today might be the day they clinch the American League West! Let's hope so.

Good Saturday Morning

Good morning! I took this shot from our kitchen window a few days ago. This is a baby dear (fawn) enjoying our green ivy for her breakfast. Isn't she beautiful?

And here she is saying goodbye before she takes off for "greener" pastures. Bye little cutie ....

Just Wanted to Say Goodnight

Hello, it's me, Abby. Just wanted to check in and say goodnight. I had a nice long walk tonight and I'm very tired. I'll be dreaming of chasing rabbits pretty soon. See ya tomorrow.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my....... !

If you look real closely at this first picture, you can see something I never thought I'd be that close to without a zoo enclosure between us. It's a beautiful young male grizzly bear.



We came across this little fella on an excursion in Skagway, Alaska. We were on our way to a dog sledding excursion when the bus driver was informed that there was a grizzly bear between where the bus ride ended and the dog sledding began. We had to wait inside the bus until he finished his lunch of fresh salmon.



. . . And off he goes with a full belly.

Flowers of Alaska

This is just a brief glimps of the beautiful flowers we saw along our land tour of Alaska. I know they have a short growing season there, so that made it all the more special. I just had to take some photos to share.



Also wanted to leave an update on my weight loss journey. I've lost 11 pounds - I gained 2 on the trip but quickly lost it last week :) So 11 down, 39 to go!

Alaska - Unbelievable

This is only one of over 150 photos I took on our trip to Alaska. We were there for 12 days and each day we discovered more beautiful things about this wonderful state.

I will post more about the trip - just wanted to get this picture up to show the amazing Glacier Bay.

Jury Duty ..... No Jury Duty

Well, I got called for Jury Duty today. Spent the better part of 6 hours sitting in a chair in the waiting room and then found out at 3:00 that we could leave for the day and our jury service was over. Good thing since we're leaving on vacation in a few weeks and I wouldn't want to miss the San Diego Comic-Con for anything!

Happy happy happy...

By the way, the picture above is of Wendy the Good Witch and friend of Casper the Friendly Ghost. Isn't she cute?

Happy 4th of July!

Wishing you all a very happy Independence Day. We're staying home today and will be watching the fireworks at the Pasadena Rose Bowl from our house. Have a wonderful day whatever you do.

I Love to Organize

I am a professional organizer by trade. It's something I actually love doing. Below is an example of a school storage room's before and after pictures on a job I did a few months ago.


Before:


After:


Before:


After:



I've been a professional organizer for one year and have had some wonderful organizing experiences. I will post links to my website "Steps to Organization" when it's up and running.

Abby Mae the Scottie Dog

Abby Mae is our beautiful 2-year old scottish terrier. She is our second Scottie - our first Scottie, Sara, lived 13 wonderful years before passing away in 2003. Scottie dogs are loyal, sweet and wonderful companions. We are so lucky to have found a second beautiful soul.



Abby loves to chase lizards around the yard and waits patiently for them to appear.

Summer's Almost Here!!

Wow, it's already June. I can't believe how quickly the year is passing. School is out tomorrow for my darling daughter. We have some wonderful summer plans - our yearly trip to the San Diego Comic-Con and then a two week cruise to Alaska. My professional organizing business is starting to take off and I've been (happily) busy. I'm really enjoying helping others to organize and clear up the clutter. It's nice to see how much they appreciate the efforts.

I'm off to Orange County to "dog sit" my sister's Australian Shepherd, Tyler. We should have a lot of fun!

My Spring Garden

My favorite spring flower is the white hydrangea. I love their big round flowers and that they continuously bloom all summer long.



We recently moved into this house and the garden was missing one thing - the hydrangea. So, we planted 5 of them and they are now in full bloom - looking beautiful.



We are starting to enjoy a mild spring with temperatures in the mid 70's during the day. Perfect weather for sitting outside in the lovely garden.

Bailey Marie

Bailey Marie is our 2 year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Bailey is the sweetest dog. My daughter wanted a Cavy for a long time and we tried to find one locally. Unfortunately, we didn't have much luck until we hit upon a business near our home where they acquired the dog you were looking for.



Bailey arrived in California from Oklahoma in October, 2004 and came to live with us on November 12, 2004. We are very fortunate to have her in our lives. Bailey's favorite thing is to burrow under the covers where she stays looking like a lump in the bed until she's ready to get up in the morning.

Liddle Kiddles

When I was a kid back in the 60's, I used to love playing with Liddle Kiddles which were little dolls made by Mattel. Each doll had a name and character - such as Calamity Jiddle who was an adorable little blonde haired doll who came dressed in a red and white cowboy outfit and white boots. She rode a cute little plastic horse.

Unfortunately, over the years, my collection of Liddle Kiddles was given away. I didn't really think about them again until after I was married and had a little girl of my own. I went to a Barbie doll show in Anaheim and saw a table where the gal was selling Liddle Kiddles. My mind immediately went back to the days when I loved and played with these dolls. So, I ponied up the $40 and bought a new Calamity Jiddle - which cost me about $34 more than I originally paid.


From then, my collection grew to include over 40 dolls, accessories, houses, playsets, puzzles, etc. etc.

Today, I have whittled that collection down to my favorite original Liddle Kiddles that I played with back when I was a child. It's still a nice memory and nice to know you can get some of those memories back even when you're all grown up.

My favorite things

These are pictures showing the cottage style of decorating I love. Some of my favorite magazines that feature this type of style are Country Home, Country Living, and Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion. I love hunting for vintage and country style items at the local flea market near my home.

Blogging Thoughts

My first blog post. I've thought about doing this for awhile now and finally took the plunge.

What a week so far - we lost our dear Mary Lou on Monday. DH is home now and that's nice. We'll go back on the 20th for her memorial service.

Took a trip to Ikea today - hadn't been there in years! Lots of cool storage and organizing stuff. Not as good quality as Container Store but depending on the client's budget, will work for some. I particularly liked the corner desk units and white five-drawer storage unit on casters. Well made and a great place to organize office supplies.

The Angels lost tonight 3-1 to Kansas City. Raining like crazy in KC. Lakers are losing to the Suns in playoff game - this could be it for them if they lose tonight. Ducks are doing great against Vancouver. Yes, I'm a sports fan!

So I guess it's okay to ramble on here.

I just finished reading Mary Higgins Clarks' newest novel "I Heard That Song Before". It was very good. Will start "Bye Bye Black Sheep" by Ayelet Waldman next. I'm looking forward to reading Earlene Fowler's newest mystery - it's out and should come to the library soon. Also want to read Alexander McCall Smith's newest Madame Ramotswe story. I love those books!