Delivering my Dad's Christmas gift today was like taking a sleigh ride. Oklahoma received more snow in the last 24 hours than I have seen since the snow storm in the early 80's. A 'state of emergency' has been declared for Oklahoma because of the Christmas Eve blizzard.

I prefer staying in the house by the warm fire and enjoying the view from the inside out. I slept in this morning and then we made Crate & Barrel's Holiday Pancake Mix. Oh yum....were they good. We decided we wouldn't mind having those again next year. Opened our gifts to each other and then later dug out food prepared for guest that did not show up last night. So we slept and ate alot today. All and all we both enjoyed our day together. I hope you and your family had a wonderful day.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays &

Happy New Year!

At the end of this year, I would like to wish all of you, and especially all of you bloggers out there who inspire me, a wonderful holiday season!

Holiday Time

Not to get off on a sad note here at the holiday time....but, it is especially sad when we are going through loss of those we love at the holiday times. So, often we take life for granted.
My father-nl-law is going through terminal cancer. Enough said for that subject. It is so hard watching those around him, watching him slip away from their lives. We leave in two days to be with them. It will be tough to see him like this. It keeps bringing back memories of my Mother going through cancer. Death is never a pretty site.
So, take time this holiday season to remember those that have lost someone in their life and are going through this holiday season alone. Or maybe someone that is going through a terminal illness and suffering at this time. Stop and pick up the phone and tell them you are thinking about them. They will appreciate it. They will feel better. And so will you.

God bless you and may we all be thankful for our health.

Watch this, it did my heart good to see it!

I love decorating for Christmas. Here is a photo of the dining room with some of the holiday trim that I have added. I have stuck to the red, white & silver theme the past few years and I shop all year long for items that will fit into this color scheme.
The winter has turned cold, we have the lights hung outside and the fireplace is burning. It gets me in the mood for Christmas. No really big plans, some gatherings with friends and family members are generally the highlights for us. We love the fellowship of a good meal with those we love. I remember the most cherished times when raising my children, was when we would sit down for an evening meal and talked about our day. Never thought much about it at the time...but, later in the years, I realized that was when some of our best conversations took place.
We have so much to be thankful for that we can do for those we love, have been blessed with good health, and have our family and friends in our lives.

Its Cold Outside

Its cold outside and I really love our new Kurig.....not only does it make coffee but it makes hot tea and hots chocolate. There are numerous k-cup flavors to choose from. Dave's favorite is the Newman's Organic Blends.  We decided that the kcups may be a little higher than regular coffice, but you don't waste as much pouring out what you don't drink. And it is fantastic for when someone drops in and just would like just one cup.

Just returned from San Diego at the National REALTOR(R) Conf. for 4 days. Packed full of classes, lots of social media & marketing and trade show that offers tons of new products to make REALTOR(R) lives easier and more productive. I feel a bit overwhelmed at the list of to do's and with work piled up from being gone...its pretty busy around here. I have a stack of new tech ideas to try out, to learn and to put in motion. On another note, this was my first trip to San Diego in 15 years. The city is so clean and the climate is perfect. We stayed in a wonderful downtown hotel by the name, Hotel Solamar. Located in the heart of the Gaslamp District. I highly recommend it, if you are going there in the future. Very chic and updated rooms, excellent service, and good location. It was a convenient location that we could walk to the convention center, resturants and some shopping. Thought I would share some of my photos of San Diego….

For me, decorating for Autumn comes in the form of using nature to reflect the change in season. Pumpkins, gourds, pinecones, leaves...

Its hard to believe tomorrow is Halloween.....

We made this cute pair last year and dug them out of the attic again this year.

Its fun changing up the wrought iron planter for Fall...

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Neighbors Helping Neighbors

Just a note to all my Duncan area friends...

This is the "Shed" alias, my stepson, Ryan....a fun guy with tons of talent, senior at Owasso High School and a all round good kid. Lucky me and his Dad! He has this thing for Sperry shoes. Seems like no matter where we go, he needs a new pair. I'm not one to talk ...a woman with a closet full of shoes. My theory is if you find a shoe you like....buy it in every color!

This past weekend, the Shed come to visit! I love him being around. Since my own children are grown, I had forgot the convenience of having someone who can drive around to run your errands. And he likes doing it! He good does that get? Its amazing, he does that boring run I hate, WalMart, the cleaners, picking up real estate signs, distruting brochures, just many of the mundane things that go with my job as a Realtor.  This past weekend he brought his senior project to make a scrapbook. I loved offering advice, sharing my scrapbook supplies and seeing this project come together. Here are some of the pages he finished. I think he did quite well... don't you think he should get an A? Besides he actually added his step Monster in it.

this one kept turning on me!

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Its a Woman Thing

Guess no matter what age you are...you have got to love Micheal Buble!

It's been a whirlwind this past few weeks and I have SO much to share but don't know where to

begin. ... between work being incredibly busy with real estate,

taking a vacation in August, then again in September, designing a new work website, and trying

to make some time with Dave...there is not enough hours in the day. I am going to share some of

my pics from my past vacations. Several of you have mentioned you wanted to see my pics.

Fall harvests of apples, pumpkins, and gourds take center stage along with turning leaves and

the promise of hot cider and simmering soups. What could be better? Nature in all it's glory,

inspiring us all to feel renewed and refreshed. Isn't it amazing?.

You can see touches of the beginning of fall in my pics of New Mexico and Colorado.

Here we are on the hiking trail just outside Pagosa Springs, CO.

What a beautiful day....the aspens were just starting to change to their

golden color for fall. I love Aspen trees.

We walked alongside a stream all the way to the top of the

mountain. There was a beautiful waterfall when we reached the top. Just to

stop and listen to the rustling of the leaves and the sound of the water.

It is pure tranquility.

I will try and post some new updates and photos soon. Been traveling the last few days.
Spent a day in Santa Fe and the next in Taos. Now have landed in Pogosa Springs for a few days 0f r&r. Be back soon.

Seems like when I get the busiest in my work, I have a million projects around the house I want to complete. I am in this organizing, re-organizing, and cleaning mode. Dave sais I organize to re-organize. And I have more work and projects than hours in the day.

• Needed some new art for the dining room - got that done. (Posted the art in an earlier post)


• The messy garage was driving me crazy...I hated when the garage door was open and people looked in our garage and saw nothing but a hug mess. Made a huge dent in that. Removed all the objects from the wall facing the road, painted it and did a little decorating. So many visitors come to this door.

• I have been cleaning out my closet and making a stack of clothes that I never wear to sell on ebay or take to the resale shop. I would be happy dumping the entire closet and starting over. Just wish they were a size smaller.


• Started cleaning my hobby room tonight. I bought a new cabinet for my wood stamps and ink. Wow, this made a wonderful difference in getting everything in one place. I really love stamping the more I learn about it.


• Been listening to my real estate cd's in my car on marketing, listing and selling. These are tapes that we picked up at last years National Realtor Conference. It is getting me in the mode for this years conference in San Diego.


• Feeling truly blessed for my life, my family and health.

Rainy Saturday Morning

Nothing is better than a rainy Saturday morning and just being lazy. As you can see....my cat agrees! We don't often take the time to enjoy the simple moments in life. Not usually by choice, but more because of family needs, work, and matters that required being done right now. You can thank me for the rain....we started painted the exterior of our house LOL! I love spending a Sat. morning in my jammies, wondering around my patio enjoying the beautiful vegetation in my courtyard and reading my favorite blogs. Blogs people ask me...I sometimes think I am hooked on these things. I have several decorating, scrapbooking, and artist blogs bookmarked that I like to read through from time to time. Hey! I have a real estate blog that I write.... http://isellduncan.typepad.com/

As I was reading through some blogs this morning, I discovered a new blog with a great fall wreath idea for the front door. This would be great for the fall and can be made from things around the house or for very little cost. Fall is just around the corner...and with Oklahoma weather it can go from summer to fall in the matter of a day. You can find the direction's at Morning T if you would like to make one of these wreathers. Hope you have a good weekend!

Decisions Decisions

Saturday I attempted to find the just right painting for my dining room wall. I painted the wall chocolate brown a few months ago and the painting that had hung there on the red wall just seemed to not be the same on a brown background. I had bought a beautiful print at Kirklands but it seemed to get lost on the brown wall. It was apparent that I needed something with a lighter background. I bought two totally different prints and both looked good. Not fabulous...just good. So...I am trying them both out. My last pic was of a cat and here I am with another cat print. Is it obvious I like black cats?

I kinda like this one hanging over the door going into the laundry room....I might just keep it too!

Portland

I have never posted some of the other photos of vacation....work has been crazy busy since we arrived home along with a million other projects. We are painting the house and I have been trying to decide on a new color. I have wanted a green and been working on some samples. Gotta decide soon since Dave is already scraping and priming! Here are the pics! Train ride from Seattle to Porland was beautiful. The train station in Seattle was going through a complete remodel and they were restoring many of the original features of the station's architecture. Most of the route is along the Puget Sound leaving Seattle, then along the Columbia River and the Cascade Mountains in the background. Went past Mt. Ranier but couldn't get a good photo because of the trees in the foreground. The train ride was quite pleasant, very comfortable, had a resturant on board, and was a wonderful way to travel. I highly recommend this to anyone wanting a relaxing and comfortable way of travel. The train went all the way to San Francisco. Wouldn't that be a fun thing to do? Leisurely travel down the Pacific coastline this way! The train stations in both Portland and Seattle were very clean and it was obvious it was a very popular way of travel in that area of the country. It was easy catching a cab outside the terminal for the hotel once we arrived to our destination. I will post some photos of Portland later. I must say....Portland continues to be one of my most favorite places to visit.

Few Things To Remember… 

• Faith is the ability to not panic.  
  
• Do the math.  Count your blessings. 
  
• Silence is often misinterpreted, but never misquoted. 
  
• Laugh every day - it's like inner jogging. 
  
• The most important things in your home are the people. 
  
• Growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional.
  
• There is no key to happiness.  
  
• The door is always open.  Come on in. 
  
• A grudge is a heavy thing to carry. 
  
• He who dies with the most toys is still dead. 
  
• We do not remember days but moments.                 
  
• Life moves too fast so enjoy your precious moments. 
  
• Nothing is real to you until you experience it; otherwise it's just hearsay. 
  
• It's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again.  
  
• Just be sure to flush when you are done. 
  
• Surviving and living your life successfully requires courage. 
  
• The goals and dreams you're seeking require courage and risk-taking.
  
• Learn from the turtle, it only makes progress when it sticks out its neck. 
  
• Be more concerned with your character than your reputation.  
  
• Your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.
  
• Leave gentle fingerprints on the soul of another for the angels to read. 
  
• Don't discover at the end of your life that you have lived just the length of it. 
  
• Live the width of it as well.
  

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Its Late and Time to Sleep

Seems like every night this week I have been up late working on paperwork. And as I sit here tonight, finishing up some work, reading some blogs and laying out plans for tomorrow....my Burmese cat, Butch, is a constant companion at my side. He has crawled on the desk, layed his head on top of my notes for tomorrow & my paperwork and his head propped on my planner. I love that old cat. Goodnight and Sweet Dreams to all!

Seattle Pike Market

GGot some fantastic photos from our trip last week. We traveled to Seattle for three days, then by train to Portland for three day. What fun it is to explore a totally different part of the country. We left the sultry heat of the 100's to temps in the 70's. What a nice relief. Seattle's public market has to be one of the best markets as far as produce and florals are concerned. I have never seen, or tasted fresh fruit and vegetables like the market had available. The flowers are grown in wide open pastures like the pic I have and then they sell them in the market place all bundled up with perfect groupings for a small price. I will be posting more photos and comments in the next few days.