It's You ~n~ Me Baby!! lol... cute huh? saw these and thought, omg how fun are these s&p shakers?!? they may not be news worthy to anyone, but for the hubby and I... it represents our new life together. Our quiet and peaceful new life in our new home. Recently we went to NY for my familys annual early Thanksgiving. A fun time was had by all. Everyone for the most part behaved themselves. Our next venture to LI is in July for my sister Kellys wedding. soooooo for now
                                                                     x0's to all...  

It's that time of year again! Halloween, Dia de Los Muertos, Day Light Savings Time Ends...sooo much going on. Hurling towards yet another holiday season. A season of warmth and friends and family. I am curious how others will spend their days? what kinds of gifts are you givig this year? Or will this be a somewhat quiet, slow season? for us it will be starting this weekend. We go to LI for an early thanksgiving Dinner. This way we can all go to the outlaws on the actual day. For us, we will be in our new home!!! Soooo excited! We might have neighbors or friends over, but we know for sure we will be together, in our new house!!
          I had been hoping to have the apartment decorated for Halloween...however, things being what they are here I decided not to. I will save my creative juices till then ;) Thanksgiving and Christmas are a whoooooole nother ball game!! I cannot wait! We are going to get an actual 6 ft tree! One that I can wrap lights around and hang balls from :P  Not just the sad little charlie brown tree ( which we love btw ) but an actual tree. Then it will be 2012 before we all know it. Not that I am rushing the days you see, I am just mentioning this all outloud in an effort to keep some sort of itinerary in mind. We all do, we all think " I better write this down and keep track" the holidays is no exception. I hope that everyone enjoys their tricks or treats! don't forget to watch all your classic Halloween shows, I myself have already seem Halloween ( I forget which one lol ) and Its the Great Pumkin Charlie Brown. So, try not to get too scared and share your candy ;) till next time,
                                                                X0's to all , 

                                                          Annie ~

Looking Around...

South of the Border!... a place to stop and buy some really cool little dust collectors. For me, this was a must on our trip down south this last month. I first visited this place 21 years ago on my way to Florida. I was moving there with one of many mistakes. The place still looks as it did 21 years ago. Sad, yet comforting. They still have a  million billboards advertising the place, both north and south bound on I 95. They still have the iconic bumperstickers and the sleeping mexican figurines. Oh and my husband decided to try an enchilada, and we are still alive lol So all in all, a good stop. We went off season. Or should I say  its just before the start of the Season in the South East. Florida is on a different seasonal schedule that we are further north in the yankee territory. Stay tuned for more adventures of the wacky retireds ( hmmm I dunno bout the title lol )
                                                                                    X0's to all~
                                                                                                           Annie

Ehhhh... how Time Flys~

Well, Well, Well...it's October! nearly Halloween! ( One of~ if not the favorite Holiday) The summer has come and gone and once again, I have not had time to keep up with me let alone the blog :( We remodeled the apartment we are in. Had some leisurely summer soaks in the pool. Attempted to but never made it fishing :/ all in all, we got readjusted to being out of the hell house and back in De. We were intending on staying in the apartment for a while. Though it is small for us we were making the best of it and hoping to save some money while here. The universe had other plans though and we are now in the process of buying our, well  my first home! Sooo exciting! We have an acre of land and are in a really lovely, quiet community. Still in our same town, we are now 4.5 miles closer to the beach! It is going to be marvelous to have space to live. Being in a one bedroom apartment is just too cozy. Its a great place, now made much better due to our improvements but we just need more space. We also need our own TV! lol our own bathrooms dont hurt either ;) Believe me ladies, I love the man dearly and yet I have a need to have time to do my own thing. When yer both home, it gets tricky no matter how marvelously we get along :) Well... time to cook some dinner. I will try to be back soon to write some more. Till then, check out the new digs. x0's to all ~

                                                                                                  Annie

A whole new world!...

Hello there!
It has been a long time since my last post.(wow,sounds like I am making an act of contricition) I suppose in a way I am. When I started blogging, I promised myself that I would stay true to writing and to blogging with more regularity. That has proved to be challenging to say the least. Since my last post...we have gotten married, sold our house, moved to Delaware and loads of stuff has happens in between. Much of it has been good, some not so good. The journey from start to present is and has been a rough one. Through it all, we have persevered and even grown more together as people and as a, now happily married couple.
Our new life is progressing in a way we never thought possible. Now that we are more settled, I will be able to write and take better care of me...ttys :)
X0's all ~ Annie

OOoooh Shiney!!

Mandy Moore - 4theloveofbeadswv on www.Etsy.com, Who is a talented jewlery designer has created a lovely Necklace that Melita Mollahan Author of gussyingupthetuttle.blogspot.com   is giving away a beautiful necklace         Gussying Up The Tuttle: handmade necklace giveaway

Please take some time to check out Mandys beautiful work! I myself and partial to the Turquoise and Swarovski Crystal Dangly earrings she has made. Also please don't forget to stop by Melitas page and enter her giveaway. Details Are located at her blog spot :) Good Luck and enjoy your shopping! X0's to all!                                     Annie

 

 

Picture credit www.Etsy.com
4theloveofbeadswv

Love Letter to Yourself...

To my Dearest Annie,

     I just had to tell you how much I enjoy being in your company. You are a beautiful and funny lady. You are a talented writer, cook and crafter. A pretty smile and a contagious laugh; you make everyone around you feel at ease. You have a love for life and are always trying your best to be positive. Don’t let how people feel about you hinder your growth! Life is too short to keep looking back and wondering why?!? Sometimes things just are! Life happens and it will happen without you if you let it.  Love yourself for who you are NOW!! Love yourself for the WAY you are NOW!   Be Happy! Life is too short not to make the most of each moment. Don’t let how others perceive you stop you from living your life the way you want to. Be the Fun-loving and Happy woman you are at this moment and show those around you how you feel about them. Show them you love them and keep being true to yourself and your needs. Believe that though things may not be the way you want them right now, they are how they are supposed to be. Carpe’ Diem my friend! Right now is all we have and we are not promised a future and we are certainly not promised happiness. We as humans have free will, some of us use it to ridicule and hurt others. Some of us spend our time lifting people up and making them and ourselves feel good. You are one of the ones who try to make people laugh and have a better day.  Be kind and considerate to yourself as you would anyone else. Be slow to criticize and slow to punish yourself. We all make mistakes and we all deserve to have those margins of error. Have a guideline and not “the Plan” cuz we both know that the God/ the Universe have its own plans for all of us and those plans will be executed with or without our consent. Let your past and people in it, including but not limited to your family, feel the way they do. There is nothing that can be done to change how people view us. We do our best but some are so mired down in the past. They are not willing to give themselves credit for changing, much less give us the benefit of the doubt for doing so. That is ok… it’s just the way it is. Remember the good and discard the bad. You may only ever lose a few pounds or get only so far into yoga… you are at least trying to better yourself. Don’t keep saying “when I do this, then I can do that!” THAT will never happen! All kinds of other shit will happen first lol and then you will be like Damn it! I wish I had just lived! I wish I had just done what I wanted without being worried what someone thought or how someone thought about how I looked! Take time to care for you and your health. Feel the freedom of letting go! Out with the Old, in with the NEW! And you have a whole new life…. So LIVE IT!! Cuz tomorrow might never happen! But now is upon us! Stay who you are inside! Because she is something special!

                                                                  Hugs & Kisses,

                                                                 Me, Myself & I  J

Don't forget where you've been

Life moves very fast. Sometimes we are prepared but often times we get knocked out of our shoes. The random and unexpected appear common place, However, We seem to have more tools at our disposal to deal with such occurrances. Thanks to the dawn of the internet and various social media networks, we can reach out 24/7/365 to those near and far. We can also neglect those nearest to us. The ones who live under our roof with us. We can wrap ourselves in technology and tune out the realitys of our human lives. This message is as much a retoracle statement to myself as it is an utterance to be heard by another. Let us celebrate the joys of being with our loved ones and not let the time slip by like sand through our finger tips. Time is not something we can get back. Time is also not something any of us is promised. We are not on this earth for a specified allotment of time. Some of us are here for a few monthes of life and some are here for 100 years. Most of us are somewhere in between those numbers. Don't forget to make yourself happy, live life so that you can live well and sleep well every single day. Be happy and help others to be happy.
     The Love letter that I mentioned in a previous post, is on its way. Life happens and sometimes it delays things. Sooooo not to worry, it is soon to be posted :) have a great day all~
                                                X0's
                                                           

Hello to all The bloggers out there! How is everyone doing? I hope we are all well?! Spring is about to be sprung and we will be in full swing of planning our summers. Wether you will be sitting on a beach somewhere sipping your favorite beverage and reading your favorite book or jetting off to see the sunset of some other shoreline, There will still be those regular days, ya know the ones where we have to go to work. There will also be workouts and yoga classes and we will still be doing our self evals to see how our lives are progressing. Well some of us do that. I have come up with an idea. Some time last year... I decided I needed some encouragement on a daily basis. So I came up with making little colorful and inspiring cards that I pasted on our bedroom closet doors so that I would get up and even periodically through the day see them and be reminded of how good I was doing. Well when your selling your home and ya have to unclutter and depersonalize, those things arent really good to have layin around or sticking on anything. I took them down and my I have noticed since then that they did work for me. I have since come up with the idea to write myself a love letter. Yea I know it may sound narcisitic or just down right nutty. However, this will be something that I can look through and read to myself in my morning routine or any time I feel I need a confidence boost. I think its a hell of an idea myself hehehe. Perhaps some of you could give me your feedback or tell me if you have ever done this or something like it.  I will post my letter soon. Its a long letter because as those who know me know... I am fabulous!! Wow lol swelled head much! but thats the idea of it! cuz we are all fabulous! doesnt matter the size, age, race, religion or whatever, we are fabulous and we need to hear it more and tell it more! so go tell someone they and you are fabulous on your way to write yourself a love letter ;)

                x0's to all
                              ~ANNIE~

Life in General...

Think Beautiful thoughts


Dream Impossible Dreams

Live in each and every Moment


Be who You are

Love yourself

Show Love to all whenever possible

Leave Fear behind!

Leave the Past behind!

Dont be afraid to screw up!


Try new things!

X0's to all...                                   ~Annie~

                                                                               YES~!!
This cake is beautiful but what really caught my ( our) eye is the topper. So cute and it is really us. We chose this one out of so many out there. It will also serve as a beautiful reminder of our special day. I know I am late in posting this... so much happens all at once.
However, on February 14th( valentine's day) 2011, my boyfriend became my Fiance' by asking me to marry him. I of course said yes! We are so excited and have already started planning and talking about the up coming day. There are lots of things going on in between...selling the house we live in and moving back to De to start our new life.
     I am very honored and elated to become Mrs. Bob Stenger :) He is one of the greatest people I have ever met. Together we enjoy life, make each other laugh and just in general have a loving relationship.
Friends for many years now, we never thought that we would be fit together so perfectly. Our level of communication and honesty is that seldom seen in even the most long term marriages/relationships or even within some family's today. The Wedding is going to be fantastic! a dressy casual, jeans kinda event. Some time in the fall of this year...look for some good pics :)
                                          0x's to all...
                                                           

Another Month Rolls By

Time goes by so quickly. Before we know it, another month goes by. It is about to be March of 2011! Wow! Where does it all go? One of the most compelling questions I have is... What have we done with our time? For me I am still trying each day to adopt this new way of life. The healthier and more fit me. I do pretty well but sometimes there are those times and we all know what they are about.... that time of the month when the hormones surge and some of us change completely within our minds, making us feel as if we have lost our minds (giggle). We get more sensitive and feel more vulnerable. Crying over stupid commercials and misplacing important articles of clothing or car keys. I consume more chocolate and salty foods than any other time of the month and invariably beat myself up about the dumbest things. These are all behaviors I am working on. I can endure these major changes by telling myself that it is with one day at a time I will achieve the self I have always been but was afraid to show. That's right! I am and have always been me but afraid to let people see me. It is easier to hide in fear and the past. Let’s face it, life is tough. It is not fair many times. It can be downright cruel most times. We pad ourselves with creature comforts and extra pounds in an effort to escape the world outside. We introvert in order to retreat from a life of past failed marriages, lost loved ones, distant or completely obscure family relationships. We most of all seal away our own feelings about ourselves. Masking hurt and suffering with humor and smiles. We keep people at a distance, even when we really want to have them in our lives. There are a few who penetrate our rhino like skin and remain with us for long periods of time. They can see that we are tough to get through to, but have a surprisingly soft center to us. After a time we let them into our little circle. They remain cherished and true. Our common interests keep us together, we bond. Sometimes we drift when our lives change and invariably they do. We marry, bear children and move away. Other times we just fall out of favor with one another, sometimes we never know what we did, and it isn’t about us. Sometimes people just go their separate ways. We are Unable to communicate for fear of angering or fear of some sort of reprisal. The luckiest of us will be able to mend ourselves, make our life to be one free of fear and cynicism. Those two things can destroy us more completely than almost anything else. With a positive attitude and a renewed sense of self I can continue to get better by the day. Another Month rolls by …  X0's

                                                                        ~ Annie~

Good Morning!! it's Valentine's Eve~!!

Ahhh... you know last year I couldn't have cared less about Valentine's Day! my life was in a complete and total state of upheaval and I didn't know what I was going to do from one moment to the next! This year...WOW!!! a complete 360!! ( I know, I know...The !!! is a bit over the top!!!! LOL, not if you knew me though ;) ) This year I am full of Love and Optimism for myself and my fellow man. Well some of my fellow man, hey I am NOT perfect!! lol.

This year I am focusing  more on what IS important and what IS NOT important! Believe me as someone who used to over analyze ( still does sometimes) everything, this has given me more free time and less sleepless nights. In my experience it is hard for someone who is not semi neurotic to understand those of us who are. The most important lesson that I have learned this year and thus far in my life, is that We have to love ourselves first! This is uber~uber important and basically the foundation to loving those in our lives. Our friends, family's and special someones and even our children. How can we pass love on if we haven't learned to love ourselves?? When we treat ourselves with love and compassion and kindness, then we can really and truly give that to another human being. The genuine exchange between two people who truly love and respect one another is remarkable. It is inspiring and really, really regenerating. I learned to be happy with myself ( remember there are those days where I still stumble, we all do) and since I do love myself I am not longer angry at every living thing! I can be happy for others, even when my life may not be all that.

So, in long...cuz to say in short, well you get the idea lol, If you have a special someone or you are going to be spending V~Day alone... make it special! Pamper yourself or your loved one! Look at things differently. Don't think "Grrrr... why me, and why not me!" . think..." hmmm  I can take myself on a date" Hey don't knock it till you have tried a self date ;) That means, Take yourself out to your fav restaurant or get take out. Rent a movie or go to the movies and buy yourself Flowers!!! there is nothing wrong with supermarket or walmart roses! they smell and look as good as any others and are often less expensive :) there you have  your self date and it will make u feel good! Add some champagne or sparkling cider and a hot bubble bath and wow! When yer single pamper yourself when you can and that doesn't have to mean expensive ;) Ok peoples ... X0's to all~
                                                                                                             Annie~

Still getting the hang of this...

Hello all...

I am still getting the hang of things on this site and new computer. Loving my new Dell lappy... soooo many gadgets so much fun! There are so many things that are new this year for me. It is a very exciting time for me. I am actually enjoying who I am and being myself. This is something that has never happened before! I am amazed and it is due in very large part to the man I am with, my best friend and my lover, he is so many things to me. He has shared his life with me unselfishly and let me be myself. He knows all my crazy quirts and he still wants to be with me lol. I also have some amazing friends... they are truly a blessing to me and though I may not know why Some of them I do not see or hear from often, they are there like stars. They shine even though it is the most clouded over, darkest of nights. Like the sun, it shines even when we can't see it. More and more I relate things to nature...which we are all made from, part of and will be until the end. Even at our end our remains will be returned to the earth in some form or other.
         It is this new way of looking at things that brings me such calm and peace. Don't misunderstand me, I can still be a crazy bitch sometimes lol I am human and I am a woman who is on the edge of Peri- menopause, so its any ones game some days lol ( ask Bob ) I am finally, hesitantly accepting who I am. Now, I can become well. I can become better and more than I thought or some other people like my parents told me I could be. I can be my true self. It might sound deeply narcissistic ... but I know the real me is powerful and The real me can impact people in a positive way and make a great change if I stay this course. I have done it before and I know it is what I am meant to do. It may not be done on a tremendous scale, but if a few people are touched by things I say or write or do, then it is well worth it. If I can make someone smile, laugh or cry by what I have felt then that is what this life is about. We are all human, our Gods and traditions our customs and beliefs, they are all different and wonderful in their own right.
        So, while I figure out what to Do with myself and finish the projects I started some time ago, I will blog more frequently and Be researching things more in depthly. I wish you all well while we come into Valentine's day... love one another and even if you do not have a someone special in your life, Love yourself and make a change for the good in your life. Look at things in a positive light, maybe now you can do something you always wanted to, take up a sport, a hobby or a volunteer position that you did not have time for previously. Always remember to be positive, positive in gets positive out :)
                                                                     X0's to All....  
                                                                             Namaste,    ~Annie~

A New Year...

Well It has been a while since I posted anything. As usual, things have been in full swing. Some good and some not so good. The one thing I want to say is that This is going to be my 40th year on this planet. I know to most people, especially my adoring boyfriend who is older... 40 is not a big deal. BUT, to me its a WOW factor. I have waxed poetic and waned and whined. All in all it has been a fantastic life. There are things I have wanted and things I have gotten. Yet as I ponder what this year is going to and has meant to me, I think I am very lucky to have survived, mind mostly in tact. I say that in jest because anyone who "knows" me... knows ME lol To date I am much happier and much healthier than I have ever been. That is in mind and spirit and body. Though the body will be under construction for possibly the next 40 years as well. I can finally stop chasing my own tale. Yes I did not speel it correctly, but it is what I meant. I have always been in per suit of...? Now I can finally say, Just for today I am happy, healthy and my needs are attended to. I am a much better girlfriend, sister, daughter, friend and furry dogie mommy than I ever thought I could be. I am happy with who I am and how I turned out. I also realized that our lives are going in a direction that I feel is directly related to our mental states or capacity's. In light of this I can now understand why things are the way they are lol and have been for me. Sigh... I believe we are given what we can handle, some of us are able to tackle tremendous obstacles in life on a regular. Most of us are middle of the road as far as personal triumphs and tragedies. Still some of us are on the low end of the food chain as far as any changes in our life other than the date. I always Thought I should be more and do more and was never enough. Turns out that some very significant people in my life were telling me that. So as a result and in coming up in life, you believe that. Now, I am surrounded by positive people telling me I am doing just great and ya know what? I am!!! I have had the time that I have felt is necessary to heal myself.
To start thinking good thoughts and doing good deeds. So this year I can feel will be my best yet! and I hope it will be yours as well! no matter what age you will be this year, it is not to late to make it fantastic! XO's to All....

~Annie~