My goodness! Life at Adrian's Crazy Life is just as crazy as usual. Even though I've been on "vacation" for the last couple of days, I've been working a To Do list that would choke a horse! I haven't even wrapped a single present for my kids and I NEVER leave my wrapping for this late.

What have I been doing you ask? Well, I'll tell you. I'll even show you some pictures. First of all, I put out a record number of cards - about 80 this year. Not all of them were home made, but about half were. The rest were very cute photo cards I put together using these pictures.



















I hadn't made photo cards before, but my niece always sends me photo cards of her family and I really enjoy seeing the kids grow each year. So I decided to try it this year. But of course, I had to include our kitties in the pictures. That is why the caption said "Meowy Christmas". They were very cute.

Blake had his Christmas program which was really cute. They have had a recorder class and his group got to play their recorders instead of singing. I was quite impressed. I thought they did extremely well with as little time as they had to practice. He's been really into it. I think he's picked up some of my musical abilities. I was a music major in college and at different times I have played five different instruments (none very well, sadly!). I also sing in the church choir and will be singing at both Christmas Eve services tomorrow night.



Here's Blake with his Rudolph nose and his Santa hat and of course his beloved Utes sweatshirt! Cute boy!



Last night we went to our friend's home for a combination Christmas/birthday party. We had such a fun time with them and didn't get home until after midnight. After a few of Pat's patented Tom and Jerrys, I slept like a rock! Poor Blake was so tired after staying up so late, he fell asleep in front of the TV this afternoon and he almost never does that. See what I mean about a busy week?



Tonight we had our family Christmas party. My sister has recently moved out of the area, so I decided to pitch in and invite everyone to my new house for Christmas this year. It was a good test to see how many people my house could hold. I had about 40 for Matt's graduation party, but that was in the summer, so I could have people outside. This time we ended up with 25 including kids and a couple of our good friends from church. It was a tight squeeze and some of them ended up having to eat off TV trays in the living room, but it all worked and we had a simply wonderful time!

My family is such fun when they all get together. My mom always had a tradition that she would always try to find a really cool and unusual gift for each family every year. One year it was something called a "bang-twister" - some kind of a hammer/pliers combination. Another year it was hand-held collanders that were shaped kind of like lacrosse racquets. The last year it was special kitchen scissors with a magnetic holder that sticks on your fridge. We all still have ours and use them to death!

I can't ever manage to top Mom, but I do try to find something fun and interesting for the herd of little boys we have. This year it was Snow Throwers. It's a long plastic tube and you stick it in the snow and pick up a snowball and then you can fling it clear down the street. I got 5 of them for all my little great-nephews plus Matt and Blake - but I wished I bought an even dozen or so of them because immediately all of my big nephews in their 30's and 40's decided that they wanted to get in on the fun. The little ones were happy after about 10 minutes, but the big guys were out there for about an hour flinging snowballs at everything that moved. Fun stuff.
I wish I'd gotten some decent pictures, but I was so darn busy. Usually I try to keep dinners like this pretty easy, but I got it into my head that I needed to cook a big turkey and that was our big downfall. I was worried about having room in the oven for the side dishes, so we borrowed an electric turkey broiler from some friends.

Unfortunately, it didn't work as well as we had hoped and we ended up with a living room full of hungry people and a decidedly unbrowned turkey. 

So we made a hasty transfer to the oven and put out more chips and Christmas candy. Eventually, it all got done and we had a delicious dinner. (This is a picture of Blake's nutcracker collection. He wanted me to add it in "just because".)

Whew! I am one tired cookie after all that. And I still have three presents to buy (the mall on Christmas Eve - ugh) and about a zillion gifts to wrap, plus singing at the two services. Hey, we don't call it Adrian's Crazy Life for nothin'! 

Oh well, I have some great books set aside and after Christmas morning, I am going to park my butt on the couch and tear up all my to-do lists and get down to the business of enjoying my Christmas vacation.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

I heard some very sad news yesterday. One of the families in our church lost their husband and father yesterday. He was only 48 and left behind two boys aged about 10 and 12 or so. How sad! I knew he had been sick for a while, but it didn't seem to be anything imminent, but I guess he had a sudden complication that took him very quickly.

What horrible timing. I just keep thinking of those boys and his wife and how sad they must be, right at a time of the year that is supposed to be so happy. They are having the memorial service on Saturday at the church and I thought how wrong it will seem to be having a funeral service in a sanctuary that is all decorated up for Christmas with the manger scene and all. Every time those boys see a nativity set, it's going to remind them of their father's funeral. That's so rough - it just breaks my heart.

Nothing you can really do but offer your condolences and whatever little bit of help you can and just keep them in your prayers. And hug your own loved ones SO tight! You just never know when something awful like this can happen.

Yay! I've you've been watching my little exercise tracker down at the bottom of the page, you'll see that I have now reached 10% of my goal of walking 500 miles! Whew! Who would have ever thought that I would manage to walk 50 miles? Not me!

This is the first time I've ever stuck with an exercise program for more than a week and I am so proud of myself. I've "walked" at least a mile a day since the 1st of November. The only day I missed was Black Friday when I got up at 4:00 in the morning to hit the stores. I cut myself a break on that day.

I'll tell you, these Walk Away the Pounds tapes really work for me. I like it because I can exercise, in my pajamas right in my own little living room. Of course, the kids have to poke their heads in a million times to pester me, but at least I'm not out trying to exercise in the ice and snow, or having to pack myself off to a gym somewhere. And I do feel a lot better. I'm not seeing a lot of results on the scale (sigh), but I do sleep better and I feel a bit better when I go up and down the stairs. I think the results will be gradual, but hey, it took a few years to pile the pounds on, so it may take a few months to get them back off.

I was fortunate to be involved in a conference call this week with our Stampin' Up! founder, Shelli Gardiner. I guess they have these every quarter, but usually they are for the higher levels in the company. However, this time, she decided to open it up to all demonstrators.

I was quite impressed. I've always loved Shelli as do many of our demonstrators. She's a very warm and genuine person and you can really tell that she puts her heart and soul into this company. She started this tiny company with her sister 20 years ago and now it's a huge international company with thousands of demonstrators all around the world. I think it's quite amazing.

Every year during Convention, we get a chance to tour the Riverton facility and you can see that it has her personal and elegant touch all over it. Look at this gorgeous rock waterfall in the atrium. You can't see it, but at the bottom level, there are chairs and tables all around so the employees can look at it while they have their lunches. What a neat touch!




Anyway, during this conference call, Shelli restated her commitment to Stampin' Up! and to our demonstrators and helped explain some hard decisions that have been made in the past. I guess there have been complaints from some demonstrators over some recent policy changes and it's nice that they really take our comments to heart. They can't always change the policy due to business necessity, but it's nice to know that you've been heard and acknowledged.

She also shared her excitement over the upcoming new catalog. She had just gotten her own copy just that day and she said she is very excited about the beautiful new catalog and all the new products that are coming up in 2008. She did share a few tidbits of information with us about the new catalog. She told us that the stamps were unfortunately, not die-cut yet, but that the stamps in the mini catalogs throughout the year would be die-cut, so I think we are gradually heading in that direction - yay!

She also told us that any new sets that were introduced in the 2008 catalog would be available for at least a year, so that was good news for us demos. It's hard to keep a supply of current sets on hand when they retire so fast.

Shelli also shared with us that the long-awaited personal websites update is coming up very soon. She wouldn't commit to a specific date, but I think she was hinting at some time in January. Whoohoo! I've been waiting for that one for YEARS, so I am very excited. I am the Website Coordinator for my Utah Divas group, so I'm sure I'll be busy as a one-armed paper hanger trying to help our Divas get their new websites up and running.

So, all in all, it was a very enjoyable call - even if I did have to take it on the freeway on my way home from work! I hope I'll be invited to participate in more of these calls. It's really nice to have a brief time with Shelli and kind of get my batteries recharged a bit and build some new excitement for our company!

Remember when I did my Supercraft Saturday event at our church last month? Well, I finally got the pictures from it. Our historian was having problems with her computer, so she ended up having to burn a disk for me.


This is our "Sock Puppy" group. You've all seen the little monkeys that people used to make out of woolen socks. These are the same thing, only they're little puppies. Very cute!


This is the Knifty Knitter group. As you can see, this was a popular option with the teenaged girls. After I finished my project, I drifted over and gave it a try myself. I had bought one of the darn things a couple of years ago, but I couldn't figure out how to work it properly. Either I was using the wrong yarn or I wasn't wrapping it right, but I remember throwing it against the wall because I was so frustrated with it. I finally ended up packing up the whole thing, yarn and all and sent it to my penpal in Kenya. I figured she could find a good use for it.

However, with a proper teacher, I was able to master the technique easily and I've made a number of different hats and scarves. In fact, I've made two hats that are exactly like the ones the girls are wearing here. Very cute! I finished another one just this morning in a very pretty lavender for my granddaughter. Can you say hooked???





This is the Wreath making group. I wish we'd gotten a picture of a finished one. Kristin came up with a cute Southwestern design that incorporated chili peppers, raffia, and silver conchos that was really darling.
















This is the Christmas card group. The redhead in the middle is Carron - one of my customers/students/hostesses and she graciously agreed to teach the card class for us. She came up with about six great designs and seemed to have a great time teaching the class.


Here's my class, of course. I focused on gift wrap ideas this time and I've posted pictures previously of all the projects we did. I kept it pretty simple and it was actually very relaxing. Last year, I did a fully stamped birthday calendar and a whole slew of card designs and ended up hauling almost my entire stamp room along and finished up the day totally exhausted. Now my philosophy is "KISS" Keep It Simple, Silly! Much nicer...

I think the nice thing is just to have a great group of ladies together creating lots of fun things. That's what I like best. It's all about the girl power!

I thought this was worth passing on:

You always hear the usual stories of pennies on the sidewalk being good luck, gifts from angels, etc. This is the first time I've ever heard this twist on the story. Gives you something to think about.

Several years ago, a friend of mine and her husband were invited to spend the weekend at the husband's employer's home. My friend, Arlene, was nervous about the weekend. The boss was very wealthy, with a fine home on the waterway, and cars costing more than her house.

The first day and evening went well, and Arlene was delighted to have this rare glimpse into how the very wealthy live. The husband's employer was quite generous as a host, and took them to the finest restaurants. Arlene knew she would never have the opportunity to indulge in this kind of extravagance again, so was enjoying herself immensely.

As the three of them were about to enter an exclusive restaurant that evening, the boss was walking slightly ahead of Arlene and her husband. He stopped suddenly, looking down on the pavement for a long, silent moment. Arlene wondered if she was supposed to pass him. There was nothing on the ground except a single darkened penny that someone had dropped, and a few cigarette butts.

Still silent, the man reached down and picked up the penny. He held it up and smiled, then put it in his pocket as if he had found a great treasure. How absurd! What need did this man have for a single penny? Why would he even take the time to stop and pick it up?

Throughout dinner, the entire scene nagged at her. Finally, she could stand it no longer. She casually mentioned that her daughter once had a coin collection, and asked if the penny he had found had been of some value.

A smile crept across the man's face as he reached into his pocket for the penny and held it out for her to see. She had seen many pennies before! What was the point of this?

"Look at it." He said.

"Read what it says."

She read the words "United States of America"

"No, not that; read further."

"One cent?"

"No, keep reading."

"In God we Trust?"

"Yes!"

"And?"

"And if I trust in God, the name of God is holy, even on a coin. Whenever I find a coin I see that inscription. It is written on every single United States coin, but we never seem to notice it! God drops a message right in front of me telling me to trust Him? Who am I to pass it by? When I see a coin, I pray, I stop to see if my trust IS in God at that moment. I pick the coin up as a response to God; that I do trust in Him. For a short time, at least, I cherish it as if it were gold. I think it is God's way of starting a conversation with me. Lucky for me, God is patient and pennies are plentiful!"

When I was out shopping today, I found a penny on the sidewalk. I stopped and picked it up, and realized that I had been worrying and fretting in my mind about things I cannot change. I read the words, "In God We Trust," and had to laugh.

Yes, God, I get the message. It seems that I have been finding an inordinate number of pennies in the last few months, but then, pennies are plentiful! And, God is patient..

My friend Carol sent me this. I had seen it before, but it was good for a laugh anyways.

HOLIDAY EATING TIPS

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. It's rare. You can't find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-alcoholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.

Remember this motto to live by: "Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!" Have a great holiday season!

This is an article that I found in my Zig Ziglar newsletter. I'm big on positive thinking and The Secret, Law of Attraction and all that new age stuff, so I really like articles like this:

Talk Yourself Up
By Dr. Lee Colan

Did you know that you talk more to yourself than to anyone else in the world? In the face of challenging situations (and we all have our share), the words you choose for that conversation with yourself will directly impact how long you will find yourself in those situations. Use your words to change your situation, not to describe it. The moment you speak something – good or bad – you give birth to it as an idea, an expectation, a desire. You have planted the seed that will, sooner or later, grow into the results you will reap.

When you're feeling somewhat down-spirited, don't tell people how you feel, tell them how you want to feel. By controlling what you say and how you say it - using positive words with enthusiasm - you help to change your physical and mental state. As George W. Crane said, “Act the way you'd like to be and soon you'll be the way you act.”

I remember the year I started my own business. I jokingly refer to it as “the year I told a million lies”. Let me explain. Like most start-up businesses, I had my share of challenges, disappointments and adjustments. I recall many well-intended friends asking me, “Hey, Lee, how’s your business coming along?” I could have described my situation by saying, “Gee, it’s been a tough year. I have had to really dig into my savings to keep things going and it’s been a lot harder than I thought it would be to convert my existing business relationships into paying customers. To boot, it’s a lot more work than I thought it would be.” Trust me, I had my moments, when that was exactly what I said, but I noticed a trend. That type of response not only dragged my friends down – and no one wants to hang around a downer for too long – it was planting the seeds of doom for my business. So, I decided to use my words to change my situation rather than describe it. I wasn’t telling a lie, I was simply “choosing my view”.

So, I said something like, “I feel good about my prospects and am confident that I am doing the right things that will pay off long-term. Most importantly, I am passionate about my work and that’s a victory in itself.” My words planted the seeds of the success that was to come. The good news was that I only had to tell a half-million “lies” my second year!

Most people enjoy working and living with people who live and work with a positive, upbeat attitude. Tell people how you want to feel and it won't be long before you do. So, the next time you are feeling gloomy and a friend asks you how you are doing….talk yourself up!

Lee J. Colan, Ph.D. is President of The L Group, Inc., a Dallas, Texas-based consulting firm. He is a high-energy executive advisor, author and leadership expert. To learn more about Lee visit his website.

One of the blog candy challenges over on Maria's Card Inspired site is to post a picture of your stamp room. So here are some pictures of my stamp room. It doesn't usually look like this - usually every surface is covered with paper, punches, samples, and just about everything else you can imagine. When I get to the point where I can't see the wood on the table any more, then I take an hour or so and clean it all up.

My very favorite feature is my built-in shelves. The man who sold us the house was quite the handy fellow and he had these marvelous shelves already installed. I love it because I can sit at my table and reach around to get nearly anything I need from the shelves or from the Rubbermaid drawers I keep on my table.


This is the view from the door. I've turned my second table the other way so they are now parallel to each other. That way my customers have a bit more room to work when I have classes.



This is the area that I'm still working on. Lack of storage is my big problem. Last weekend, I had Matt move my Rubbermaid storage tubs out of the closet here so I will have the extra storage space to get this area a bit more organized. I also had Tony paint a shelf that I've had for a long time. I'm going to hang it on the wall and use it to store some of my 3D items. I also found a great magnet board on sale, so I'm going to have him put that up so I can feature my favorite cards and projects on it. It's always a work in progress!





You are also supposed to post a "zen" item that makes me feel peaceful. I don't really have a "zen" item, but I think my favorite item is this clock that was given to me by my "Retreat Sister" Christine R. at our stamping retreat last month. I have it on my wall and it does help me by reminding me of the time and keeping me from staying in there stamping all night. So, it's handy and pretty.