The Bee Hive Times

What do you get when you.......

2011-11-08T20:10:00.002-05:00

......take a piece of Tin Foil, a scratched CD (I don't even know if there is anything on it), a Cemetery Vase, a bunch of Mini Balls (and 1 regular sized ball ornament), a glue gun and a woman on a mission????

THIS:

Here are the steps in photos. They are pretty self-explanatory but if get lost between step 1 and step 3, Holla!!

(just 1 little tip: remove the tops of the ornaments.)

I gotta get back to Tree-Makin'. I told you it was going to be Tree-pa-looza around here. Just you wait and see.

We've Only just Begun..............

2011-11-05T13:00:00.001-04:00

Ha! Try to get that song out of your head!!! It's gonna take awhile.

As promised last year (sometimes I actually KEEP my promises) I have begun my Christmas decorating. I LOVE how my house looks at Christmas but it is really a lot of work. Being able to enjoy it for only a few weeks is kind of a bummer. So last year I said I was going to start the day ofter (<----typo...but I'm leaving it because it makes me sound like I have an accent) Halloween. I know there is another holiday before Christmas but 1.) I don't need one day a year dedicated to Give Thanks. I do that (and eat, too) repeatedly EVERYDAY! 2.) Hob Lob has had their decorations out since July....so it is definitely OK....right?!?!

Seriously...they came out with guns a-blazin' 5 months before The Season!!!

On with the show here.....

In my last post (found here) I told you about King Bee and I and our little business venture. Since that began, I have been running from my craft room like it was the plague. Not to mention that it resembled The State of Emergency post from the past....found here. Every time I walked into the craft room, I found myself kicking around the all the "stuff" I needed to be making and getting very frustrated. And as the song goes "If your heart ain't in it.....". I'm getting off topic here.

Since I had to go ~~on a shopping spree~~ craft shopping for our craft day last Sunday, I also wanted to pick up a few things I have wanting to add to my Christmas decorations. This year's theme in my house is going to be "Trees". Glitter Trees, Tinsel Trees, Ornament Trees, Big Trees, Little Trees and more Trees.

I grabbed some tinsel garland and poster board from the Dollar Tree and then headed on to the ~~Hob Lob~~ store that celebrates Christmas in July. There I found some mini tree toppers to spruce them up and make them just perfect! You could definitely use an old ornament or make a topper but I was working with limited patience so I just bought a few.

I gathered my goods and hit the floor.

I rolled my cardboard in to a cone shape. Once I got the shape I liked, I taped it. My cones are about 2 ft tall. (I rolled them long ways.)

I did have to trim a little off the bottom so it would sit evenly on a flat surface.

Then, starting at the point of the cone, I put a little bit of Hot Glue at the tip and began winding the tinsel around the cone. When I got to the end of the piece, I dabbed a little bit of hot glue to the cone and pressed the tinsel on. Then I would pick up the next tinsel piece and start where the other one left off. I repeated this until the cone was covered and became a Tree. It took 4 of the 9ft (i really don't think they are 9ft) Dollar Tree garlands to cover 1 cone.

The mini tree toppers I got had a less-than-desirable wire cone at the bottom like the bigger toppers do so you can sit it on the top of a tree limb. (yes the $ says 2.99 but I got them for 50% off.)

That didn't work for me. So I broke that part of, very carefully so I didn't ruin the topper. I glued one of those alligator clips to the back of the topper so I could clip it into the center of the cone so you couldn't see it's attachment.

Viola'...for the living room....

and for the dining room......

At $6 bucks a tree, you better bet I'll have these things everywhere.

I have big plans for the light fixture and those newly made Knock-Off Pottery Barn candle holders (for the cost of 1 in the catalog) you see in the middle of the table.

I also whipped up another Ornament Wreath to match the Silver and Red Dining room theme for this year. ('cuz I've got ornament balls everywhere!!!)

Now it's your turn, little bees. Show me what ya got!!

I crawled out from under my rock....

2011-11-03T23:32:00.002-04:00

Hey y'all. What's been happening? Me? Well, I've been all over the place. King Bee and I started a little business that has completely consumed our life. We both still work full time as well so that has left very little time for anything else. When we do have a free minute it is usually spent grocery shopping or cleaning my house. The latter is usually given up due to lack of energy and sleep deprivation. I'm not complaining. I am incredibly thankful for all that we have been able to accomplish and all of the support we have been given to make this endeavor a success.

Last weekend I took time to get the girls together for a Craft Day. Since KB had to go out of town for work, I thought this would be perfect since several of our crafts had to do with Glitter. (you remember our 1st craft day, right? If not, you can read more about that here.) Thanks to the wonderful invention of Pinterest, the "Crafty Bs" now have access to all sorts of crafty goodness so, long gone are the days of we all do 1 craft for Craft Day!! This past Sunday we had a bunch of excitement.

I didn't get pictures of everyone's individual crafts, well, some I did (I hate it when I do that!!!) so I'll use the photos from Pinterest that we used for inspiration.

First up, The "BeWitchy Jars"

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These cute little things have opened my mind to glitter crafts once again. I loathe nothing more than a glittered up bauble shedding it's sparkles all over the place. This taught me that if you put the shiney little bits INSIDE your bauble, it miraculously stays off my floor!! Hallelujah!!!

Next, the Googly-Eyed EEK Frames!

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Don't let this little booger fool you. This thing SUCKED! Yes, the idea is simple but the logistics are maddening! 250 plastics eyes glued onto a picture frame with HOT GLUE. Save yourself the time and just go ahead squirt the HOT GLUE directly onto your finger tips. There. Now you will have the 60 minutes of my life I'll never get back but with all the war wounds. Done.

Then a few of us whipped up these cute little Shadow Boxes. There are 2 versions:

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via queen bee

I liked these. Supa EASY and Supa FAST! These are not budget friendly. If you catch a sale it will still run you about $20 for this little 8x10 box. But it's different and self contained and I like that!!

One Crafty B decided to try her hand at the Witchy Tulle Wreath but in a Christmas theme. No pictures exist of this attempt. She got a really good start but as a novice with the Beast that is Tulle, she fell victim to over-tulleing and ran short in supplies and was unable to complete her project.

Another Crafty B found a steal of a deal on a faux pumpkin and got her craft on with the Pumpkin Door Decor project.

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These turned out great. This might have been the best craft of the day!!!

WE had a good time. Lots of good food and conversation. Some even got to learn how to use the Cricut. take a look.

It was nice to catch up with y'all. I've missed blogging. I doubt if there are many of you still around but if you hung in there, I've got lots of goodies I've been working on since I'm on home lock-down with STREP throat. Stay Tuned!!!!

Duh!

2011-08-16T20:36:00.002-04:00

Um, yeahh! It's been awhile. So long that when I signed in to write this, EVERYTHING has changed with my BLOGGER. This just looks weird!! What happened??

So, I decided to take the summer off from the Blog. It wasn't really planned. I just finally ran out of things to say. No, REALLY!....I told you miracles happen everyday! :) We spent a lot of time traveling and working our freakin' tales off. I'm exhausted and feel like I need a week in a cabin in the middle of nowhere with no phone or TV and cut off from the world. I'd most likely hibernate and sleep the week away. It's my favorite and given the choice, I'd choose sleeping over eating and reading any day.

Moving on.....................

I don't know if you guys have messed with this stuff much but I have become addicted to it.

What is it??? It's called Geo-Mesh.And it's so freakin' easy to work with!! Seriously. There are some great video tutorials on the web but basically, you just pin sections of this stuff to a wreath form and you get this:

This was my 1st try! No experience necessary!!!

So now I'm on a mission to find a whole bunch of this stuff for cheap(er) and wreath it up!!!

Voluntary Torture, Part II

2011-06-19T13:24:00.000-04:00

That's right. TORTURE! I had my second of TEN tattoo removal appointments last Tuesday. This one hurt worse that the first and has blistered. I am keeping gobs of ointment (say that word 3 times and see if it makes you feel nauseous too) on the area and a bandage over it as directed. Aside from looking "STOOPID", I am OK now. This is the latest treatment in pictures.... Enjoy!

OUCH!

I "SEW" Did It!

2011-06-17T22:17:00.001-04:00

Let me preface this story by admitting that 1) I have never sewn. 2) Owned the sewing machine you are about to see for SIX years before I took it out of the box. 3) Three years later, I had my mother-in-law come from GA and thread the darn thing for me. 4) After staring at it for another year, I finally got up the courage to give it a whirl. And SUCKED at it!!!

Now that you know a little bit 'o history, I can begin my tale.

On my home the other ~~day~~ month, I stopped in Target to see if they had any of those 2-ply placemats with a snazzy little design on them....and they did.

These are part of the Calypso brand they have right now. The bestest part about them, besides from being Aqua, is that these sweet-thangs were only $2.99 ea! That's right. No typo. So, I got two.

I have seen, around BLOG Land, how these incredibly clever women, with sewing abilities, would take these type of placemats home, rip open one side, stuff it with pillow stuffing and sew it back up. CA-uuute! But since I was clueless as to how "drive" my sewing machine, I just kept looking at them with envy and lust. After months of obsessing over the idea, I thought I would at least try to make them myself BUT use my BFF, HEAT BOND, instead.

Once I got home and stared at them for a few weeks, I decided to throw caution to the wind and see if I could do it the RIGHT way...you know, with a real-live sewing machine. So, I searched the house for some pillows to steal the stuffing from:

Sliced the pillow open on the end it was originally stuffed (you can see a definite difference in the seam to know where that is):

Took the adorable placemat of my liking and sliced it open on one end (doesn't matter which one):

Removed the pillow guts and transplanted them into the, now open, placemat cavity:

Held my breath as I approached the dreaded sewing machine....and put the petal to the metal:

Ta-Daaaaaaaa:

Down-right GENIUS, I tell you.

I'll be heading out to Target at 9:00am sharp tomorrow morning to snatch up all I can find. Who wants pillows???? (j/k, ....i'm keeping the pillows for myself. I have a small pillow fetish.)

Scouting for Fellow Blogging Belles

2011-06-11T18:56:00.000-04:00

THE FOLLOWING WAS COPIED FROM The Speckled Dog blog. PLEASE VISIT The Speckled Dog TO LEAVE YOUR COMMENT IF YOU ARE INTERESTED.

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Scouting for Fellow Blogging Belles

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For those who don't know much about me, I'm a Carolina girl. SOUTH Carolinian, to be exact. During my year of blogging, I have run across several, and been lucky enough to actually meet a few other bloggers who live in my state or my neighboring states, NC & GA.

One of these ladies, who I've not yet met in person, is Jen from Scissors & Spatulas. She and I were thinking last week, that we'd like to try and get a group of bloggers from SC, NC, GA, and any other state nearby, together so that we can plan a meet-up and be able to meet each other in person.

I'm pretty sure that Leslie, from Goodbye House, Hello Home, has also discussed this so I think she's on board too.

I know of a few of you that also live around these parts, and I'd planned to send e-mails out to you, but I just didn't get to it. So, this post will hafta do what I didn't. :-)

If you are in this area and are interested in this, please leave a comment with your e-mail address RIGHT HERE. If your e-mail address is available on your profile, I don't need it in the comment. If you're not sure that your e-mail address is available, please go ahead and leave it in your comment. Also, if you would mention what state you're in, that would be great!

Right now, we're basically just trying to compile a list of interested ladies/gentlemen. Once we have that, we start e-mailing to hammer out the details of our first meet-up.

****DO NOT LEAVE YOUR COMMENT HERE.****

I'm alive.....

2011-06-05T22:51:00.001-04:00

I was just enjoying a little bit of paradise last week.

But now I'm digging thru the suitcases, washing clothes and cleaning the dive equipment THAT just makes coming home a little less enjoyable.

I'll live, I guess. Just sooo thankful for the time away and a wonderful anniversary trip back where it all began two years ago!

Happy Anniversary, King Bee! Thank you for our WONDERFUL trip.

A light Bulb went off......

2011-05-20T15:55:00.003-04:00

(you must turn up your volume and play the video below for the full effect of this post)

So I'm on my way to work yesterday and I look over and BAM! IT hit me.

Let's back up a bit......I have been doing some self-reflection work that I picked up in a class I was assigned to a few weeks ago. It's about how your attitude reflects in your work and how it influences the lives of others around you. Not "rocket surgery" by any means and I'm not quite sure why this jack-leg actually got hired to come do this seminar/class...but I went with it for the benefit of missing 1/2 day in the office. So in the mornings, for fun if you will, I ride in silence and try to pep myself up for the attitude I need to reflect to my peers. (ok...not every morning but I was practicing on this particular morning...)

At any rate, since I am quite convincing in talking my day up, I have been wondering why I am still in such a blakkkkkkk mood when I get to work every morning. I mean, I ride down the road with a smile plastered on my face that resembles the Joker's and chant cheers about how great my job is and how lucky I am to have one. My fellow morning commuters have been seen staring at me like I need to be committed.....(seems to be the general consensus around here)

But during a brief pause at the stop light, I look over and THE light bulb went off and IT hits me like a tons of, um, nuggets?......

IT'S THE DAMN CHICKEN TRUCK. Carrying the poor chickens to their demise. With their little chicken feet hanging out of the tiny cages on the chicken truck, flapping in the wind.

And I realize, that I every day, for the past 3.5 years, I have had to ride to work next to the condemned chickens. NO WONDER I am so bummed.

It feels good to have some clarity!

I GOT A BIG GIRL IRON.........FOR REAL!

2011-05-17T21:12:00.003-04:00

After all the HEAT BONDing I did this past weekend, it was more apparent than ever that it was time to give up the prehistoric heat source I called my Iron.

Honey, I've had that thing since I graduated High School, and without divulging too much personal info, that iron was O.L.D! And not to mention it was one of those $10 Wal-Mart specials back in the day. So I have certainly put a lot of miles on that sucker...and it shows!

But since the hottie held up for so long, under such ridicules circumstances, I decided to stay brand loyal, if you will.

Please meet the most fabulous iron I have ever, ever used in my entire life!

The CADILLAC of irons, I tell ya!

Bells and whistles, galore!!!!!!

No more refilling the crappy old spray bottle only to have it leak all over your clothes just so you can get a little steam help with the old dinosaur..... No Way! (enter really cheesy black & white infomercial of woman fighting with iron and spray bottle...making an unnecessary mess and scowling at you......all the while shaking her head and huffing and puffing)

And in 1....yes...O.N.E. swoop of the this baby....

NO MORE WRINKLES! SERIOUSLY!

***Side note: King Bee called during the "filming" of this post. He asked what I was up to since it sounded like I had won the lottery. After I explained, he suggested I seek professional help. MEN....they just don't get it!

No Sew Garden Flag (long tutorial and lots of pictures)

2011-05-14T20:22:00.000-04:00

So, I was sitting in my living room, listening to the lovely afternoon thunderstorms and I suddenly got the CRAFT ITCH. I didn't know what I wanted to craft up but I wanted to do something. The satellite had already gone out and King Bee was snoring to the rhythm of the thunder. I walked out onto the front porch to put my flowers out to get some of this FREE water and....... BAM! There it was. A sun-bleached, ratted old, seen better days Garden Flag. I took it inside and got to work.

Searching thru the Sweat Shop, I found enough fabric in my stash to recover the rocker pillows and whip up a new flag. Whoooo-Hooooo!

First I started with the flag.I took the old one and used it as a template, since I liked the shape of it. I also added 2" to the top for the fold-over that will become the rod pocket.

Then I took it to my temporary ironing station and applied my MAGIC....HEAT BOND!! (I love this stuff!) I applied a strip down each side and a few pieces in the middle of the backside of one of the pieces I cut and then I placed the other piece right side up onto the backside with the HEAT BOND and applied the iron to fuse them together. Once that was done, I applied a strip to the top of the fabric and folded it down and made the rod pocket.

Once it was a flag, I trimmed up the sides to appease my OCD.

I knew I wanted to put the dreaded "D" on it but the more I looked at it, it was goona need something more......

Ohhhh! I know. I could do a trim around the edge with fabric paint. BUT...hmmmm...how was I gonna get that straight?? DING, DING, DING...the old wax paper trick! (Stay with me here....you will be glad you did!) I rolled out the wax paper and lined it up with the edge of the fabric, leaving about 1/2 inch fabric showing...all the way around.

Once I got it right where I wanted it (and as even as I could on all sides), I took it back to the ironing station and, with the iron on a low setting, ironed the wax paper onto the fabric. In case you didn't know, wax paper makes an AWESOME stencil.

I got my fabric paint and foam brush out and painted the edges. This turned out to be a great fix for the fraying edges.

Since I am one for instant gratification, I did not wait as the directions on the fabric paint bottle says. I yanked the wax paper stencil off to reap my rewards...... OOPS...some of the paint ran...

The I repeated the wax paper steps with the "D" I cut with my Cricut........ Then iron.

Run it back to the Sweat Shop.

Paint.

Peel.

V'iola!!! I L.O.V.E it so much!!!!

Then I set it by the fan while I started on my pillows.

I went to the porch to grab the dirty pillows and brought them upstairs to dismantle. There were a million safety pins holding the fabric on. (again....I don't sew!!) Plus, this way, I can throw the fabric in the wash and use it for something else.

I found where the front of the pillow would end up and marked the space. I wanted to paint the fabric BEFORE I wrapped the pillows in it so the paint wouldn't bleed thru.

I began the whole wax paper stencil iron-on method again......Here are the next 15 minutes of my life:

Once the painted had dried, I flipped the fabric over and wrapped the pillows like a present.

Using all those safety pins as my "tape".

And there you have 'em. I love how easy this was!

I gathered my pillows, flag, camera and diet coke and headed back to the front porch. Of course, as soon as I opened the door, I realized my neighbors were out again.....and for a brief second, I thought about waiting for them to go inside. I know they think I'm the crazy camera lady that takes pictures of EVERYTHING she does..... but I pressed on. There was another storm coming.

There you have it. A new NO-SEW FRONT PORCH ENSEMBLE.

Our 8th Annual Derby Party.....Kentucky style

2011-05-09T19:19:00.002-04:00

I just love this time of year. With our Annual Derby Party behind us, I can relax! No more ~~baking or cleaning or decorating~~ running around like a mad woman. I tell ya, some crazy lady takes over my body and goes bazerk! Don't get me wrong....I do love a good dress up party and reasons to decorate.....the cooking/baking, I can certainly do without!

The baking began Thursday night with the Derby Pies. Have I ever mentioned that I don't read recipes very well...or directions, but I'm sure that will come up in another post. I can say to you without a lie in my statement that NO TWO DERBY PIES ARE EVER MADE THE SAME if they are made by me!

Looks yummy, right? Somehow, they still turn out edible and some people even offer to buy them from me. Maybe I just got it like that??!?!?!?? Or maybe I just wait until everyone has had enough Mint Juleps to cut into them. Nahhhhhhh.

Friday, after 5 hours of sleep, I began again but this time with cakes for Cake Balls, 225 little Piggys in Blankets, Bacon Wrapped Bread Sticks, Dill Dip and Onion Dip. (wiping my brow) This all happened while I had the Electrician, Bug Man, and A/C Man roaming the place. All asked to stay for the party.... unfortunately, none of them looked the "derby type".

I did take pictures...mostly of the party in full swing, but I do have a few of the tablescapes BEFORE the above mentioned food was in place.

I know, I stink at taking good BLOG pictures.

Here is King Bee preparing his famous batch of Mint Juleps

Figuring out ratios for the concoction...aka battle of the iphones

The INCREDIBLE Derby Cookies I won: (You may remember me begging for help in this post)

Then we have some of the lovely ladies of the day

And this years WINNER of BEST DERBY HAT 2011

And then the wagering began...(i look like a carni)

And here is my official Derby "Self Portrait" 2011

We had a great time. The food, the company and the race was fantastic! Already looking forward to next year!!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

2011-05-05T12:16:00.000-04:00

If you've been around this BLOG for 5 minutes, you know about my recent obsession with decorated cookies.....

Well, here I go again!

This one is courtesy of the talented Oh Sugar! Events!

Man, I gotta figure this out!

Or maybe it's best for "my figure" if I don't..........................

Wall Art on the CHEAP

2011-04-28T18:57:00.000-04:00

I can't believe I forgot to share this with y'all. This is one of my most favorite DIY decor projects, yet!

When we were building our house, I would imagine my living room with large, unframed paintings full of color on my walls. Something "better than a framed picture". (No offense, KB, I still love your photo of Palmetto Bluff.) But once I got to pricing those large, unframed paintings, I almost had a heart attack. Dude, those things are STOOPID EXPENSIVE! So, I got to thinking.......

I hopped over to Art.com and found a poster, I'm sorry..."Art Print", I liked with a good size and good price. It was $21.99. SOLD!!

Then, I headed out to the big blue store for a piece of MDF and a picture hanging kit and then hit up my Hob Lob for this stuff.

Since the original "Art Print" was 27x27 and the largest MDF board I could find was 24x24 without having to buy an entire wall size one, I trimmed down the "print". Then I sprayed the MDF with some spray adhesive I had on hand and stuck the ~~poster~~ "Art Print" to the MDF and smoothed out any bubbles with an old insurance card. Then I painted the edges of the board with some brown acrylic paint. This all really took 5 minutes.

I took the Brushstroke Mod Podge and a brush and got my Van Gogh on. This is what it looks like now....

A "Painting"!!!

I just attached the tiny screws that came with the picture hanging kits to the back of the MDF and wrapped the wire so I could hang it. In case you are new to MDF, it is HEAVY! I was nervous it would pull out those tiny screws, but as of today, it hasn't.

I loved the way this turned out so much that I bought 2 more ~~posters~~ "Art Prints" from Art.com and adhered them to 2 random canvases I had for some art for my dining room.

So there you have it. Champagne taste on a beer budget!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-26T18:49:00.001-04:00

Ok...maybe 1 word....

OUCH!!!!

My Tattoo Removal 4.26.11: Treatment 1 of 10

Linking up with:

2011-04-25T18:13:00.000-04:00

Hope y’all had a wonderful Easter!

We invited the family over for the 1st Annual Easter Egg Hunt. The kids were ADORABLE!! And it was the best Easter Bunny gift I could have received.

I stuffed 138 plastic eggs full of candy and $! Don’t get too excited. I only used quarters. Then I headed out to dump them in the yard. Really! We still have “new house” landscaping in the back yard so there wasn’t much else to do with them. I did place some along the fence so it looked like I actually tried. Once I was done and came back inside, King Bee asked me if this was an Easter Egg Hunt for Slow Kids. I’m not sure where he wanted me to hide those eggs…..well, I kind of know where he wanted me to put them…but that’s another story!

After the eggs were all hunted, we came in for Easter “Linner” . You know, Lunch/Dinner. Hey, makes just as much sense as “Brunch”. And then afterwards, we headed to the park to let the kids run off some more energy.

And scrape some knees

And shed a few tears

And get a little brave

And sneak in a sweet moment

I hope your Easter was as good as mine!

Count Down to the Greatest 2 Minutes in Sports......

2011-04-22T19:29:00.002-04:00

And it takes me 6 weeks to prepare for it. No joke!! ...........More on that in a minute.

This year, King Bee and I will be celebrating our 8th Annual Derby Party. 8 years of one of the most talked about parties...for various reasons. We have HATS and DRESSES and SEERSUCKER and ROSES and BETTING and FOOD and MINT JULEPS and usually ONE or TWO people who loose their invitation to next years party. We've thinned out quite a bit from the original guest list, but we have added additional invitees as well. The party has calmed down quite a bit since it's inaugural affair and seems to wrap up by 10 or 11 instead of 5am. (thank goodness) Last year I was lucky enough to have Worker Bee stay over and we did a massive tear down and clean up before we went to bed. I can't tell you how AMAZING it was to wake up the next morning and not have to clean up that mess. And there is usually a mess. I have learned that OTHER people do not care about keeping your home clean. Spilled drinks, food smashed in the floor, cans on the front lawn...etc.

Back to the 6 wks of preparation. After 7 years of this, you'd think I would have this down to a science. I guess I do, for the most part but I always get a little anxious right about a week before. There is A LOT of cooking to be done and I tend to FREAK OUT about the fact that this has to be done between the hours of 6pm Friday night and 1pm Saturday afternoon...with some sleep added in there for good measure. Throw in the fact that I am neither a baker or cook and you can see my problem.

This years menu will consist of the following:

10 pounds of BBQ for BBQ Sliders
Bacon Wrapped Breadstixx
Cheese Wafers
Dill Dip Bread Bowl
3 of my famous Derby Pies
Cake Balls
Derby Cookies
Deviled Eggs

Chips and Dip

Veggie Tray

and whatever else shows up!

The only thing on the above list I am NOT making is the BBQ and Derby Cookies I won from back HERE. ****Enter panic attack.****

So in far, I have gotten together my serving trays and table cloths, hunted down some "decorations", ordered and received the Derby cups and Banner, and spruced up my front porch- so it looks a little more inviting. (I change up the front porch like I change up my hair...what gives??)

I have also shopped, found and bought my Derby Dress ('cuz you can't wear the same one EVA again...like the Oscars.).

Acquired my HAT and made it beautiful. I mean, this is my favoritest Hat yet...

and purchased me some Horse Watching Shoes; well, for as long as I can stand them, anyways.

The invitations were made and mailed.

And I just figured out what to do for the table centerpieces...more on that when I get them done.

All that's left to do is make the said centerpieces, order the BBQ, pick up the cookies, clean up the house, ready the guest rooms, cook all the OTHER food and assemble the party tent. Then, I can take a shower and enjoy my party.WAIT....did I really just say "ready the guest rooms". I crack me up!

I can't wait!! I LOVE Derby Day!

Fact: King Bee and I were officially married on Derby Day in 2009, though we didn't actually say "I Do" until June in Cozumel..aka our little piece of heaven.

Lessons and Confessions

2011-04-21T15:15:00.004-04:00

Don’t play “chicken” with a pigeon unless you want to get pooped on.

Naturally Skinny people have no right to tell you that “you don’t need to be on a diet…just watch what you eat” (insert eye roll and a loud lesson on M.Y.O.B.)

The more water I drink, the thirstier I am. I smell a CONSPIRACY!!

To get a Tattoo removed will cost you 8x what it cost you to get one put on. F.Y.I.

All clothes sizes are NOT created equal………….and it ticks me off!

I suffer from CBF……Chronic B*#$h Face. While I may look like this

I feel like this….

I apologize for the confusion. (ignore the no-make-up face...i'm working on a new skin regimen)

My Inside Voice is the SAME as my Outside Voice. Don’t tell me to “Shhhhhhh”.

Whatever plans you make or promise to do while drinking, follow thru with when you’re sober. It will teach you a lesson!

I am a BIG KID! If there is a trampoline, I’ll jump on it. If there is a swing, count me in. If there is a wakeboard sitting all alone in the grass, I’ll run up a hill with it and slide down the pine straw bedding. It’s just what I do. And I hope that never changes.

I have a BLACK thumb. Seriously. Hence all the Fake Foliage around my house.

Lately I have worn many hats…..Psychotic Get-Your-Dogs-Poop-Out-Of-My-Yard Lady

(seriously my NEXT step)

Elderly Internet Assistance Technician (my mom got a new computer...)

and my fav, Who’s-Dumb-Enough-To-Pull-Out-In-Front-Of-Me-I Want-a-New-Car Predator

I went to Hob Lob yesterday. It’s where I go to decompress. This is newsworthy because for the 1st time EVER, I walked out of there WITHOUT buying a single thing. Nadda. Zilch. Nothing. (I know, I’m still in shock!!)

I get BLOG envy. More specifically, houses seen on BLOGs. I would love to be daring enough to paint my brand new $15000 kitchen cabinets white or black. Or Stencil an entire wall without the fear of repainting it because it turned out ridicules. Or throw wood on a ceiling for FUN. Or makeover my pathetic dining room table. I blame this all on King Bee. He’s weird. And opinionated. And bossy. And not so supportive of my creative visions.

My name is Queen Bee, and I’m a Coffee-w/ 3 Equals-and ¼ Cup Sugar Free Vanilla Coffeemate Creamer-in a travel mug-aholic. It’s only gotten worse lately. Now I have to have it before bed, too. Makes my sleeping pill kick in quicker. HA!

When I Grow Up.....

2011-04-15T10:05:00.002-04:00

One thing I love about BLOG land, besides my wonderful and awesome fans, is the talented people you come across. Since I started the “Please-Follow-Me-So-I-Don’t-Look-So-Pathetic Campaign, I have discovered lots of new places to visit to kill several hours. I make it a point to “Follow” you all back (if I’m not on your list, let me know, some of you have been in my reader forever and I have trouble sometimes determining how I follow you). In doing so, I somehow ran across this A-M-A-Z-I-N-G BLOG about Cookies!

Let me say, I am in no-way being paid, liked, entering a give-away or any other such of compensation for this. I am simply in AWE over this.

SweetSugarBelle makes me want to quit my j.o.b .and become a baker. But not just any baker…a Cute Cookie Baker. Well, first, I’d have to stalk her to learn all her tricks and skillz …and Oh Yeah!...bake. But other than that, I think it’s really do-able. I mean, I’m sure the cookies have to actually be edible…or maybe not, like in those food styling books. Half that crap is fake, fake, fake….Did you know that? Like those gorgeous Thanksgiving Turkeys in magazines are frozen still and spray painted and deadly. And I thought I was a bad cook??

Any who, here’s my gift to you all this Friday. EYE CANDY….or EYE COOKIES. I apologize in advance for ruining your diet today.

(all pictures are property of SweetSugarBelle, I’m just borrowing them)

She had me at Dr. Seuss!! Seriously!

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR...THERE IS SO MUCH MORE TO SEE. Go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And we are back....

2011-04-14T22:33:00.000-04:00

Power and sanity have been restored at The Bee Hive and Queen Bee is reporting that working conditions are back to normal.

The following photos speak for themselves:

P.S.
My mother called the other night to "make sure" there was no REAL explosion....and to tell me that the previous pictures reminded her of how my bedroom used to look when I was younger. WHAAAAT???? ME???!?!?!?

My how times have changed!!

State of Emergency

2011-04-12T12:37:00.002-04:00

BREAKING NEWS:

This just in.......Queen Bee of The Bee Hive Times has confirmed that at around 6:45 pm on Monday, April 11, 2011, The ~~Crap~~ Craft Room a.k.a Sweat Shop, EXPLODED.

Eye witnesses report activity began around 5:15 pm accompanied by a sudden temper tantrum and a large mass being thrown into the air. The destruction continued for several hours with reports of loud banging noises, items which appeared to be levitating in the window repeatedly throughout the night and the flickering of lights in various parts of the area.

Neighbors say that the height of the devastation occurred right about 8:00 pm. That was when the final BOOM! followed by a man's voice, later identified as King Bee also of The Bee Hive Times, was heard asking if the structure was still sound.

Work is in progress to remove the devastation and Queen Bee is hopeful the clean up will be completed sometime this week. (wishful thinking)

As of now, it appears no one was injured in the wreckage.

Stay tuned for updates as they become available.

(no actual explosion occurred, though you wouldn't believe that by the pictures.)

GIVE AWAY WINNER

2011-04-05T16:22:00.001-04:00

The time has come to announce the BIG winner of the $50 Target Gift Card!!!

I wanted to make this as fair as I would like a drawing to be, so, I printed out ALL the comments (and I enjoyed reading every single one of them.) and then cut them into strips.

I folded each one of them

and dropped in the the trusty "business" envelope.

Gave it a good shake....and dug in.

The WINNER of this fabulous contest is:

Binge Crafter said...
I'm a new follower! I found you through Someday Crafts. Come visit my blog too!
bingecrafter.blogspot.com
March 31, 2011 11:46 AM

YAY Bingecrafter!!!!! Please send me an email ASAP @ QueenBeeofTheBeeHiveTimes at gmail dot com so that I can e-mail you your $50 gift code!! I tried to find your e-mail on your BLOG but I didn't see it. ***If I do not hear from BINGECRAFTER with in 48 hrs, I will re-draw a winner!!**

THANK YOU all who entered and decided to follow along with me. It really is nice to have some company. As I said, I read each and every one of your comments and replied to all of those that had a reply e-mail address. I also "Followed" you back!! ;)

And we have progress!

2011-04-05T12:30:00.013-04:00

In the annoying words and decibel of Vicki Gunvalson (from my Sunday night guilty pleasure: Real Housewives of Orange County) "WhhooooooooHOOOOOOO!!!"

I'll get right to it. I know I can be rather long winded at times.......

I finally have something(s) on the wall in our MBR!! Crazy, right? Oh yeah...and don't miss that headboard I promised you about 11 months ago.

and another

and a "REAL" version of that it looked like before I threw all the stuff out of the way.

My mom is saying..."That looks more like it".

Whew! That little project took forever to finish. Mainly because I couldn't decide WHAT to put in each of those frames. I wanted there to be things that meant something to us. I think it's good, for now. King Bee isn't crazy about the "D". He says I'm about to be on "D"restriction...like I was put on "No More Turquoise In The Living Room" restriction.

Always something buzzing around the hive.

Total breakdown for the Gallery Wall:
9 picture frames- $6.99 Target Clearance...yes, only 8 are pictured. I used 1 for something else.
"D"- FREE from my days as a Thirty-One consultant. I just recovered it with scraps.
Mirrors- $29.99 each Super-Duper score from Target, too.
Lamps- $12.99 each From...you guessed it. Tar-zhay
Bedding and Pillows- $100. Target stepped up again. Did you know there are 7 shades of Purples and 5 shades of Browns in this room? Of course you didn't. You can't possibly be a neurotic as me and want to actually COUNT them!
Headboard- Gift from Nana and Pudding.
All Art and Pictures in frames- FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Grand Total- $192.95 + tax

2011-04-05T08:46:00.000-04:00

THE GIVE AWAY FOR THE $50 TARGET GIFT CARD HAS ENDED.

Please stay tuned for the Randomly Drawn Winner to be announced a little later on. I promise not to make you wait too long but I am functioning on about 2 hours sleep, thanks to Safety Sam's (King Bee) weather alert radio that went off all night long. We had some awful storms come thru in the early morning that has knocked over every stand alone tree on my route to work. Needless to say, I suffer from Irritabilty and Bad Attitude this morning. And there is not enough coffee to fix these problems.

Thanks for your patience!!

Easter Decoration or an offering to the Fertility Gods....YOU be the judge.

2011-04-04T19:42:00.003-04:00

We can't win them all, I say. Well, I wasn't saying that until last night; after all my "crafting buddies" made fun of my spur-of-the-moment-i-have-people-coming-over-and-my-front-door-is-NOT-nakid door decor.

This spring decor change-up has perplexed (word of the day) me for quite awhile. I am not a fan of anything pastel or bunny related to begin with. So, once St. Pats was over, I just try to ignore the big black door for as long as possible. That was this past Friday. I came to terms with removing the festive Shamrock Feather Wreath from the front door, mainly so we wouldn't attract intruders who thought we haven't been home since March 17th, and also because we were having our monthly craft day and I didn't want my girls to think I had failed them. This quickly became a bigger pain in the a$$ then I ever thought possible.

First off, when I took the St. Pats wreath down, I saw that the paint on the door had been scratched off from all the other decoration it's been battered with. Trying to get this repaired before King Bee saw what has happened, I grabbed the spray paint without thinking it through. I didn't think about the fact that it was a little windy and I also didn't take into consideration that covering the window with, oh, ANYTHING would have been better than NOT covering it at all. DUH! NOT WINNING! (still shaking my head!!) No pictures = No evidence it ever happened!!

Once she was all cleaned up, 45 minutes and a few cuts later, I had NO FREAKING IDEA what I was gonna do with 'er. I was kicking around the mess in the ~~Crap~~ Craft Room when I kicked over one of those vine wreaths. Hmmm. And when that fell over, it knocked loose the pile of tissue paper that was resting on another pile of boxes. DING! DING! DING! I know! I'll make one of those tissue paper pom-pom thingys and tie it onto the wreath and wrap some ribbon on it and maybe make a bow.

FAIL! Maybe if I had enough ribbon for a bow(?) it would have been better? Nah! Who am I kidding.

So Saturday I went over to the $ store and spotted some of those plastic eggs that were NOT pastel. And they had a funky little hole in the top and bottom as if someone would use them to put a living thing in them (????). Since they had holes in them, I thought they would be cute all strung together, kind of like a garland.

I should have gone with a garland. One thing lead to another and before I knew it I had this.

(stop staring at the spots I missed on the door) Whatever. All Easter decorations are weird, and cheesy anyways.... So I went with it. I went with it PROUDLY!!

And these were the actual comments from the ladies yesterday:

"Wow. Easter Huh? That's an interesting, um, effect on your door out there. Where ever did you get that daisy embedded see thru purple ribbon?...and mesh stuff? And is that rope?"

"So. Are the eggs supposed to hang like that or all they all hung up on each other from the wind?"

"I like your fertility offering on your front door."

"Ummmmm. No."

I tried to ignore them. Thought I'd stick to my guns and leave it and show them!! But it bothered me all day. It glared at me when I left for work this morning. And by time I got home today, it HAD to come down.

Fertility offering, Sheesh!!

She HAS to be my long lost sister!!

2011-04-01T14:55:00.000-04:00

Y'all have all heard me talk about Rebecca @ Older and Wisor and how much she cracks me up! I have taken it upon myself to make everyone think we are like this

though in reality, I've never met her. And she probably thinks I'm a bit stalker-ish...but in my defense, I make my presence known when I'm there......so it's should only be a mild discomfort when I'm around. :)

So, imagine my excitement when I opened up my Reader this morning and I saw THIS. (SERIOUSLY, CLICK ON THAT AND CK IT OUT!!)

I :heart: her!

Man, I wish I had time to do this and leave it in King Bee's Office chair!!!! AHAHAHAHAHAH!

Happy April Fool's Day, everyone.

I NEED COOKIES!!

2011-04-01T10:17:00.001-04:00

********UPDATE************
I WON!!! WhoooooHoooooo (with my best Rebel Yell impersonation)
Thanks so much to those who helped!!

Asking a favor....

Head over to M Bees Cookies on Facebook and like thier page for me! Then post on their wall that I sent you. I need Cookies for my Derby Party!!

GO NOW!!! PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSEE!?!?!?!?!?!?

and thank you.

The things we do for kids......

2011-03-31T13:41:00.000-04:00

That about says it all, huh?

Mini Bee 1 turned 4 recently. Her mom threw her a "Princess-Tea-Party-Alice-In-Wonderland- Fairy-Godmother-Royal-Ball Birthday Party". Yep. A little bit of everything all rolled into one fine time. The shame was that it was mainly adults. Oh! the stuff we do to make kids happy??

Hope you had a fabulous Birthday, Mini! Love you to pieces and back together again!!

ANOTHER Giveaway!!! WHaaaaaaaaaaat?!?!?!

2011-03-30T14:35:00.000-04:00

That's right, ladies and gentleman (since there is only 1 man who reads this...or so it looks).

It's time, friends! Calling all Bee Hive Times LURKERS out there!! This one's for you!

Do you regularly read this blog or are you just stopping by? How did you find this blog? Did a less-than-hilarious Google search send you my way...only to be disappointed that I am not the Bee Hive you were looking for? Did you click through from a mutual friend or a facebook post? Are you an ex-boyfriend's brother's mother's aunts' cousin's sister's friend? Or someone I see everyday?

Now is your chance to come clean. Let the world (and more importantly, me) know that you're reading this blog.

To make revealing yourself a little easier...
I am giving away a $50 TARGET Gift Card! (I wonder if I can win?? I kid.)

And it's all in effort to draw my faithful LURKERS out of the shadows!! (How awesome am I?)

How to enter the drawing:
1. To be in the drawing for the $50.00 Target Gift Card, all you have to do is click on FOLLOW over there on the right...where it says "My Devoted Fans". You can sign in with your current Google, Yahoo! or Twitter account. Don't have one? NO PROBLEM. Create one...for FREE! Only takes 45 seconds...I know. I did it!

If you are already a "Devoted Fan" via the Google Friend Connect, skip to #2.

2. Leave me a comment on this post. It can be about anything.... a link to your BLOG (so I can lurk at you), a quirky tip, words of motivation, etc.

****If you want mutiple entries, you can tell others about my giveaway, BLOG about it, TWEET it, Sky-Write it (you would get like a biljillion entries for this), take aout a billboard.....etc. IF YOU DO THESE, LEAVE ME A COMMENT FOR EACH ONE YOU DID.

Rules:
You have to be a Google Friend Connect FOLLOWER(that thing over to the right)! Period. No RSS, no e-mail subscriptions, no Reader Feeds. Following via Google Friend Connect is mandantory.

Deadline for entries will be MIDNIGHT, Monday, April 4th.

Now get to clicking!!

P.S.
On a side note, I've got a million 1/2 posts to share with you. Just haven't been able to get them up since I misplaced my camera. BUT, I found her this morning and we will be back in sharing business by tomorrow night. I already have an "Elderly Internet Assistance Call" (my mom) this evening so that scratches getting anything finished tonight; except the Fried Pork Chops, Rice and Gravy and Maccoroni and Cheese she's making me. I KNOW I can finish that!

Mom and Russ' Wedding

2011-03-27T13:08:00.000-04:00

It was a gorgeous day. You couldn't have asked for anything better.

My Mom and Russell were finally married at their home on February 26th, 2011. It was a very sweet and intimate ceremony with my Mom's brother, Gilly, officiating. The only guests in attendance were (most) of the immediate family and two of their very good friends. You can definitely see the happiness and love in the photos.

The cake topper I made for them. It is lightly etched so they can put one of the wedding photos in it for a keepsake.

This picture says it all!

GREAT picture!

They look so happy!

Uncle Gilly, Mom and Russ

The WHOLE new blended family!

Just because I love this picture!Although, Big B looks soo uncomfortable.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! WE LOVE Y'ALL SO MUCH!

A Littel Bit O'Fun

2011-03-25T18:34:00.002-04:00

Last night, Worker Bee and I attended a fundraising event for the Palmetto Place Children's Emergency Shelter. It's an annual event hosted by the Junior Women's Club of Columbia. There was tons of food, a DJ, silent auction and a "Diamond Drop"; where you purchase a glass of champagne for a chance to win a diamond necklace. We had a fun time. They even had a photo booth so we could capture the moment.

And while neither of use won the 1st place Diamond Solitaire necklace, I did win the next best thing. Seriously. The 2nd place prize was this Cartier inspired circle necklace....

And it's all mine!!

What's the luck??

And the WINNER is..................

2011-03-16T14:50:00.000-04:00

By random drawing, I have determined the winner of the CSN $20 give away.

SHANNON! (I will email you the information on your Gift)

Thank you all for following along. I am so glad to have some company!!

GIVE AWAY

2011-03-09T21:52:00.007-05:00

Have you guys ever heard of CSN? Well, when KB and I were looking for LCD TV STANDS when we first moved in last year, CSN caught my eye. Not only because I found TV stands, but I found a ton of other things, too.

You all knowI have been looking all over the place for things for my master bath. And I finally found a treasure to begin the end of that decorating adventure. Look at my side table......

Side Table to go beside the tub, near the faucets for our essentials.

But enough rambling.....
I am so excited because CSN Stores is offering to giveaway a $20 gift code to one of you! Yes, YOU!!! Pretty great right!?! You can put it towards any item from any of the 200+ CSN sites. That is over 200 different sites to look through! And they offer FREE SHIPPING.

Do you want to win it?
Here is what you will need to do:

Be a follower through Google Follower Connect (on my right side bar) That's it. I'm simple like that!!

The Giveaway will end on March 15th at midnight EST.
One Lucky winner will be selected.

**PLEASE CONNECT YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO YOUR FOLLOWER ACCOUNT SO I CAN GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU AFTER THE DRAWING, IF YOU ARE THE WINNER. IF NOT CONTACT CAN BE MADE WITH THE WINNER WITHIN 72 HOURS, ANOTHER WINNER WILL BE DRAWN***

***CSN only ships to the US and Canada so this giveaway is only open to those residing in the US or Canada. There may be international shipping taxes to Canada that the gift code cannot cover.

One more try.....

2011-03-05T16:00:00.000-05:00

Remember the AWESOMELY FANTASTIC BROKEN MIRROR I told you about last year from Rebekah at PotHolesandPantyHose? This one:

And remember last year when I gave it whirl and, according to King Bee, I failed miserably?? Well, I am determined to get it right this time. King Bee said that he actually liked the idea but because I had mindlessly mounted it on particle board, he thought it looked, well, like crap (though I thought it looked fine, especially after the 2 wks I devoted to it).

See:

So, I am off to find another Ginormous, cheap mirror- since Worker Bee sold the one I got for her at a garage sale...and then pocketed the $...and didn't bother to tell me until I asked about it...(A-hemmmm)- and a nice respectable smooth piece of wood. I will tackle this solo.

This will take awhile. Don't wait up.

***Don't forget to click the FOLLOW button over to the right! You don't want to miss out!!****

The Bleek Zone

2011-03-04T16:00:00.001-05:00

So, it's been almost a year since we have moved in and I still got nothing. Nadda. Zip. Zilch for the "waste of good space" in our bathroom. I have tried to figure out something that wasn't bathroom cliche but I am stumped. I have scoured my resources and I still keep coming up empty handed.

Here is the space, with the area(s) clearly marked:

And another view:

I have thought about a nice chandelier above the soaking tub, only to be told that wasn't gonna happen since Safety Sam (aka King Bee) is afraid I would get electrocuted if it fell out of the ceiling (really? fall out of the ceiling? Whatever!!) So then I considered a DIY kind of candle chandi so, that if said contraption did happen to freakishly fall from the ceiling, I would just catch afire. I have decided against that only because I don't think it really fits the mood of rest of the bathroom. I know that the mood of my bathroom right now is screaming "BLAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH" but the mood it should have is relaxing and clean.

With that being said, I DO NOT want the Spa motif or a plethora of candles to dust, either.

Anybody got any suggestions? I would like something that is maybe functional (since I firmly believe that this was a complete waste of space) but not a cabinet or shelves. Maybe something over sized, since it's a large ~~waste of~~ space. Something feminine and clean looking. Something that makes me want to take a bath??

Here's the deal....
Whoever comes up with a solution wins a PRIZE! Seriously!

****Don't forget to click the FOLLOW button over on the right! You don't want to miss out. TRUST ME!****

HEADS UP!!!

2011-03-03T12:02:00.001-05:00

YOU! Yes YOU, reading this here BLOG.

If you haven't already, click on that "FOLLOW" button over there on the right side. You may have to fill out a registration form, but I promise, it will be worth it.(and you will be listed as one of my devoted fans)

Don't ask why. I cannot disclose that information just yet.Though, I want to really, really bad!

C'mon, Trust me. You will be glad you did.

Ok, go ahead, click it.

THANKS!!!!!

Only after.........

2011-03-02T20:23:00.001-05:00

9 months and 27 days.........

THE PICTURE APPEARED!
above the fireplace
(clouds parting and angels singing)

And it just makes the room feel a little more "finished".

What's the Buzz? (WARNING: a really long post with lots of pictures)

2011-02-28T21:43:00.004-05:00

Whew weeee. I am so glad this month is ova! Saying it has been bananas doesn't begin to describe it. And my irrational mood swings didn't help, either. But I'm here...no worse for the wear.

A few weeks ago, I threw King Bee a SURPRISE! Birthday Par-tay. I still can't believe I was able to pull it off. He always ruins a surprise. This time around, though, I got a little smarter. I knew he would think something was up when I went on a cleaning blitz, so I invited his BFF and wife up for the weekend and didn't tell him about that, either. So when they arrived on Saturday afternoon, he thought that was what all the fuss was about. Heeeeheeee. I managed to get him and Energy Bee (the BFF) out of the house for a few hours while us girls worked our magic. (Thanks again, Worker Bee and Mrs. Energy Bee.) By time the boys arrived back home to "go out to dinner", I had 30 people waiting to to help him kiss his 30's good-bye. It was a great night. And he was humbled that all of these people had come just for him.

This was the Birthday Cake.

I had the cake made a the bakery but had it left "nakid" and i collected a bunch of doo-dads that had some sort of meaning to KB and decorated his cake. He was quite impressed...and it looked so good.

While on Cleaning Pa-Looza 2011, I started to get a little of my crafty-mojo back. I finished the embellished monogram I told you about a few weeks ago. I l.o.v.e. how it turned out.

And I have begun drawing on the walls. Usually not a good idea, I know. But considering how it turned out LAST TIME, I figured my track record for this kind of stuff was pretty good. Besides, I "practiced" in an inconspicuous place...The Sweat Shop.

The idea is to do this on the wall in my Master Bedroom, to add some Umph!!

The Mini-Bees came over and I delivered the Bag O'Jewels that Nana sent. Mini Bee was H.E.A.V.E.N! Check out this get up!!

We have taken to referring to her as Punky Brewster & Mini Cyndi (Lauper). I tell her all the time that she has "Step-Sister" hair. (as in the ugly step-sisters from Cinderella) That usually gets her to brush it since she is sooo into the princess thing.

She wanted to try on each pair of earrings. (There were only 40 pair). Here she is begging me to help her.

Mini Bee2 even got in on the deal and scored herself some beads. At least she can color-coordinate her accessories with her outfit. She is sooo ca-ute!

In other news (I told you it was a busy month).....
My Mom got married this past weekend. I don't have any pictures yet. King bee took them and he's working on them. But I do have a picture of the cake topper I made her. I etched their names and date so they can put a nice picture of the day in there for a keepsake.

It looked really lovely on the top of her cake. I also dressed up the cake with ribbon the color of the blue insert. It was beautiful. The ceremony was so sweet. It was immediate family. My brother and his family, KB and me, Russell's daughter and her family, his son and his family, mom's brother and his wife, her sister and her husband, and Russell's 2 brothers and 2 of mom's close friends. The weather couldn't have been more perfect for the day.

After wards, I got to play with my niece and nephew. I LOVE playing with them. We played hide and seek, repaired the jaw on the cement alligator (using rocks we all collected from the driveway to lift the jaw back in place), chased each other around the yard and played several rounds of "pull up my tights" and "I Spy". I really wanted to take them home with me when it was time to leave, but I had a wedding shower to attend.

The shower was for a good friend of mine. I've known her for about 6 years. We met through New Orleans. She is one of the sweetest people I have ever known. I am so excited for her. At her shower, it dawned on me that I am a closet hoarder (no, not whorer....as it sounded when I said it aloud). All of her gifts (except mine. I STINK at wrapping) were wrapped in these beautiful wrapping papers. I was eyeballing the stash cuz I wanted them for my "projects". I admitted that out loud and from the look "SS Bee" (you got your own Bee name!!) gave me, I realized I had a problem. (either that or I had 2 heads.) I behaved and left without the paper. (Only to find out that she ended up throwing it away..uugh!)

Last but not least, we had Craft Day yesterday. I saw these adorable blocks here and so a group of us got together and made these "LUCKY" blocks for St. Patrick's Day.

(except these weren't blocks b/c the big blue store wouldn't cut the wood for me)

And then we made these adorable candy dishes I saw here.

I think it is just perfect for my desk at work!!

Well, that's it for now. As soon as there is something to report, I'll be back. Thanks for still checking in on me.

Save my place......

2011-02-10T13:27:00.000-05:00

Last night, as I was going to bed, I walked into our room and saw this:

HYSTERICAL!! King Bee apparently felt he needed to "save his place" in the bed. I died laughing and HAD to take a picture to share.

Doug would be so proud!!

Much betta'

2011-02-01T20:09:00.004-05:00

After cleaning up the outdoor holiday ~~madness~~ decorations, I decided my front porch rockers needed some "umph!" The old pillow covers looked wretched and I couldn't take it anymore. I took them in and pulled the covers off and they sat on my washer...for-eva. But after I made a new door decoration, my sweet rockers were looking neglected. So I got to work.

Using the same method from the previous covers, I created these beauties:

...and then I went a step further and whipped up a few monoletters (like a monogram, but not) and slapped them on for some extra somethin'-somethin'.

It was really easy and took all of 5 minutes. I just found a font I liked and printed it out on regular paper. Then I cut it out and flipped it backwards and traced it on some felt I had ~~crammed~~ in The Sweat Shop. Then cut the felt out and hot glued it on the pillows. Easy, peasy!

(Never mind the filth on my chairs...that's not why were are here!)

And all together now:

I like 'em. For now. In a few weeks, the sun will have these all bleached out and it will be time for new ones. At least it will be time for SPRING pillows. (I'm a glass-half-full kind of gal)

Since I didn't go blind... UPDATED

2011-01-26T12:00:00.006-05:00

I thought I'd pop in a minute and give you a quick update on the goins-on around here.

I had my eye surgery last Thursday (20th) and I am happy to announce I am not blind. (duh! I'm typing) Seriously though, I could not be happier with the outcome. On my check up visit the day after, I was seeing 20/15 in my right eye and 20/20 in my left. And Doc says it will get a little better by time I visit them again this week. I had Lasik done. No astigmatism or other issues to complicate matters. I wish I could have done this years ago!! This was the best thing I have ever done for myself. And just in case you are curious, like me, I found this little video of the procedure. It took all of 3 minutes per eye. But **WARNING** this is not for the squeamish. And in all honesty, if I had seen this BEFORE my surgery, I would have NEVER done it.

I have also been neglectful on here with my DIY projects. Honestly, I just don't feel IT right now. Not feeling like blogging or crafting or washing dishes or dusting or doing laundry...etc. I'm in a funk. I think it is the usual Holiday Aftermath but I really feel like I lost my FUN mojo. I hope this passes soon because the funk hasn't stopped me from visiting the craft stores. (and I think I saw the application for Hoarders on King Bee's desk!!)

I did get a really old rusty tin full of VERY old buttons from Nana when we went to Atlanta a few weekends ago. I think she told me they were King Bee's Dad's Great Grandmother's(?).

Some are your run-of-the-mill buttons but some of them are quite nice. I sat down with the tin last night and started picking thru them. And then I sorted the metal ones from the NOT metals ones. I took the NOT metal ones to the sink for a good scrubbing and to remove any thread that was still attached.

Button Bath

They cleaned up nicely and I only lost 1 or 2 down the drain. I got a MDF letter at the craft store the other day. I wanted to put the buttons on the letter so that I could put them out for others to see. I am sure that is more visually appealing than leaving them in a rusty old tin. So, I sat down and painted my MDF and then got to gluing the buttons on, one by one.

I L.O.V.E. the way this turned out. I'm going to pick up an over sized frame and mount it and then hang it on the wall. I got the idea from this post I saw awhile back. While I would have loved to have made one out of old handed-down broken costume jewelry, I didn't have any. And the thought of buying some just to tear apart and make this didn't really seem like it would "mean" all that much. So when Nana offered me the Tin O' Buttons, I got really excited. I had something "handed-down" to use for my project. (and Nana, if I understood you wrong about how theses buttons came to be, just keep it to yourself. That's the story I'm sticking with.) So I'm going to purchase an over-sized frame and mount it and hang it in my Dining Room.

I think it will look lovely and add a little character to the family space.

***UPDATE: Click HERE to see the finished and framed monogram. L.O.V.E!!

I linked this up to:

Bookworm

2011-01-25T18:04:00.002-05:00

Good grief! I have rediscovered my LOVE of reading lately...hence my long absence.

I got one of these for Christmas.

Kindle

And I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Seriously, LOVE! I have always enjoyed reading but since I opened this Christmas morning, I haven't really been able to put it down. So far, I've read The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, The Girl That Kicked The Hornet's Nest and Her Last Letter. Last night wrapped up Water for Elephants, which is going down as an all time FAV!

And since I have been so engrossed in these books, I forgot to water our " Love Palm" (the one we bought with our Wedding Shower $) and it's now a sad, sad sight.

I am terrible at keeping plants alive in the 1st place. The fact that this thing has survived for almost 2 years is a record for me. But add in the mix of Reading-Pa-Looza 2011, our "Love Palm" didn't stand a chance.

This is why King Bee says we can't get a dog.

I kind of see his point.

Getting back at IT

2011-01-04T18:19:00.001-05:00

What is IT, you ask??

IT is the dreaded, lifelong DIET! I started back on the MMC diet program the Monday after Christmas. And as much as I don't like this, it is working. I weighed in today and I am down 8lbs. In ONE week. Let me explain that it is because I am on the Fasting program at this moment. That is where you forgo any solid food and supplement 5 meals a day with the programs protein shakes. It's hard. It makes my head hurt. I get tired easily. And I am really moody. BUT...all that goes away. I am feeling better today. I have a little more energy and I don't feel like I am gonna go into a 'roid rage at any given moment. I am going for 1 more week on the Fast and then I will switch over to the 3 and 1 program.

With the 3 and 1 program, you substitute 3 meals for the protein shakes and you have 1 meal with TONS of veggies (non-starch) and a hunk of meat. The whole program is Low-Carb, High-Protein based. It has been one of the easiest things I have done....once you get past the first 4-5 days. THOSE days SUCK! Ask King Bee.

I did this same program 2.5 years ago and lost 80lbs. in 6 months.

I was also dedicated enough back then to stay on the fast for 3 straight weeks before switching over. I don't know if I can do that again, but I do know I can stick to this plan. So hopefully, I'll be at my goal in no time. I have only gained back 10 lbs since that "after" picture....and that even fluctuates. I think it's mostly water.

So, by April, I hope to reach my goal of 40 lbs. I am already 8 lbs. closer!!! 32 more to go!

The season of Maintenance...

2011-01-03T14:33:00.000-05:00

I have to return to work tomorrow. I have been on "holiday" every since Christmas Eve. I am so dreading the return. I could really get used to being a house-wife. This has been really nice.

We are now entering the months of nothing. Nothing to look forward to, nothing to do, nothing planned, nothing at all. So, I scheduled eye surgery. Why not. Seems like that would surely break up the monotony. Seriously though, it's just Lasix. I cannot wait to have this done! I have been a lens wearer for 22 years and the thought of not having to deal with contacts, the solutions, the cleaning, the irritation, glasses..etc. is so exciting that I might just burst!! The bonus here is that I will get 3 more days OFF, with a few Ambien. Translation: Not even King Bee's snoring could interrupt THAT recovery.

But, that's all I got.

The months following Christmas seem to be so......blahhhh. I hate taking down my decorations. I'm not a fan of the Winter Clean. All I want to do is escape to a tropical island with a fruity umbrella drink in my hand.

Unfortunately, I have to return to work tomorrow so that dream, for now, gets put on hold. Until I get my 3 day Mini-Vacay with a side of Ambien. Then, I can go anywhere I want.

What's Happening at the HIVE

2011-01-01T08:00:00.019-05:00

I was lucky enough to be on holiday for the past week. It has been incredible and I could really get used to not having to go to work. But I certainly have been busy in my down time.

Project #1
THE STAIRS...FINALLY!

That is right. No, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. I DID start the stair process...and I am in love with them! They aren't done yet, though my father-in-law, Puddin', had expected them to be completed the night I started. Pa-HAAAA. I have 3 more flights to go. Two of them need to be stripped of the paint over spray and sanded. It will be awhile. But I am on my way!!

Project #2
GLAM GLOVES

I saw these at a little boutique and loved them. It is as simple as taking a pair of gloves and adding something sparkly to a finger or two. They were a huge hit for little gifts this year!

Project #3
USC Wreath

I finally finished my USC wreath! This thing has been hanging on my wall for 3 months. I took a feather boa and wrapped it around a coat hanger. Then I got some wooden letters and painted and glittered them and attached them in the center. And then I was STUCK. I had no idea what else to do to the thing. So it sat. It was so plain and sorry looking. But then I was getting out my Christmas wrapping crap and came across a pack of sparkly red pipe cleaners...and V'IOLA! I LOVE IT! And I've had a few compliments from the neighbors already. It's much awesomer (<---new word) in person.

We had a wonderful Christmas with our families. Hope you all did, too.

My ELEVEN for 2011

2010-12-31T15:33:00.001-05:00

It seems to be a "thing" around BLOG-land to post your New Years Resolutions. And far be it form me to not follow along. So here are mine, in no particular order:

It's time for a BABY
Put 10% more $ in savings each paycheck
Exercise regularly...and learn to like it. (i doubt i will ever like it)
De-clutter
Stop smoking (if #1 happens, there is no choice!)
Slow down and learn patience (<---yeah, right!)
Lose another 30lbs before said baby
Spend more time with my family
Work up a manageable cleaning schedule for this house and stick to it
Learn more about photography
Make it to Church more often

That's it. Let's see how many of these I will actually accomplish!!

Somebody needs to start saving for BAIL $$

2010-12-31T14:49:00.000-05:00

Her Hooker Handle is "Barbara"

You should have seen the rest of her ensemble. I was laughing so hard, she thought I was crying.

Love you to pieces then back together again, Mini Bee1!

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-23T22:17:00.001-05:00

From our home to yours.....

Remember the Reason for The Season!

I hope you have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

See ya in 2011!

Love,

The Bees

Nothing went as planned...

2010-12-22T12:50:00.000-05:00

Oh my! Last weekend, The WHOLE Bee-clan took a trip north to the lovely town of Spartanburg, SC to see Worker Bee's Dad (my surrogate Dad) coach in the prestigious Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas. And when I say WHOLE Bee-clan, I mean just about EVERYONE!! King Bee, Me, Worker Bee, Electric Bee, BOTH Mini Bees, Grandma Bee, Meeps Bee, Bob Bee, Granny S Bee, Red Bee, MeMe Bee & D Bee. It was Cray-Zay!

I rode up on Friday afternoon with Electric Bee. We had some bonding time. And we got LOST. Between the two of us, a GPS and Cell Phone navigation....we still managed to get lost. Which would have just been a really fun adventure except for the fact that Worker Bee was all bijiggity and frantic. We were late for the awards banquet. Something we should all be used to by now, but none the less, it was still nerve wrecking. Once we arrive at the apartment, we had 0.5 seconds to change into our dinner wear and get out the door. Try as we did, we got lost, AGAIN on the way to the banquet...This time with 3 people, a GPS and Cell Phone Navigation. It was a HOT MESS! Tears included.

Tempers flared. Everyone was mad at someone. Half of us weren't even speaking to each other. The other half thought it was funny. The night was disastrous! We missed the meet and greets and our salads but made it in time for the main course. that is, after Bob Bee paraded us thru the entire function to our seats....that happened to be located right beside a more convenient exit door. Oh MY!

Nick Saban, the Head Coach at Alabama, spoke at the function. He is such a handsome fella. He even spoke to me as he left for his plane. The awards program also consisted of the Shrine Bowl King and Queen, two kids afflicted with various medical conditions that are receiving help through the Shriner's Hospital. That was the moment I realized that all this OTHER crap, the bickering and tempers and aggravation, was STUPID! I was ashamed of my/our behavior. This was supposed to be a fun weekend. And we have so much to be thankful for. So what if we were late!

BUT.....That was short lived....After the program, it happened all over again. Thirty minutes later, we were all smiles tailgating in the parking lot of the hotel with the stash of beer KB brought up. (He was lucky enough to miss the WHOLE debacle from before)

We finally made it back to the apartment without further incident and called it a night.

Saturday morning, we awoke to Mini Bee1 in one of her (what would be MANY) tantrums of the day. She didn't want to wear pants, or a sweater, or a hair bow, or tights, or a shirt, or a coat or mittens... It took us 4 hours to get her dressed. At one point, she even got mad at me for watching her put on her socks.

The kicker was when Grandma Bee suggested we make a pit stop to see SANTA at the mall. What the ...............?!?!?!?!? SO in the midst of the 4 hour temper tantrum, 30* raining weather, trying to coordinate meeting up with another couple and getting to the Football Game ON TIME, we had to go see SANTA. (SHOOT ME NOW!)

And have a Carousel Ride......

The following pictures pretty much sums up the whole weekend:

On a good note, our team WON the game!!

Happy Birthday, Worker Bee!

2010-12-19T11:15:00.099-05:00

My long time BFF's birthday was TODAY. And while I wasn't able to be with her on her actual day of birth, I honored her in other ways. This is how it all went down:

I know how much she L.O.V.E.S. her coffee. At any time of the day. So, the 1st thing i did when I got up this morning was have a good hot cup of coffee in honor of her. Then, knowing how much she dislikes taking a shower, I skipped that, in honor of her, too. I then proceeded to lay on the couch and take a little nap...because there is nothing more this woman likes than a nap. She's a professional napper!! After the Ode to Napping, I asked myself "WWKD"? And like a light, I knew! LUNCH. So I made lunch. She would be so proud. After lunch, I did her FAVORITE task...cleaned the kitchen. I, know, I am a super friend to do so many of her favorite things on her special day...but it doesn't end here.

Once the kitchen was cleaned, I took another nap, just because that is how she rolls! Once I awoke, I enjoyed another cup of coffee, for her, of course. I was starting to get a little bit of energy, so I took out my IPod and found OUR favorite songs and played them one by one. Here they are, in no particular order:

Karma Chameleon
Write This Down (complete with hand motions...)
I'm Carrying Your Love With ME
Wide Open Spaces
Sin Wagon
NKOTB Greatest Hits
Munchies For Your Base

As I listened, I started looking at some old pictures... here's the "Best of K & J" (the edited version)
**warning: these pictures span over 2 decades...keep that in mind**

Summers out at the Lake Murray Beach

A combined BIRTHDAY celebration in our apartment in Virginia

Toni's 21st Birthday (OMG!)

The Dixie Chicks concert (don't even ask about the pleather pants..k?)

Our trip to Washington, DC (the famous MATCHING Anne Heche hair cuts and peg leg pants and the sweatshirt that changes color in the sun....))

Sharing a Fish Bowl at Have A Nice Day Cafe

Hanging out at Blueberry Hill

Tailgating before Beauty and The Beast

Our Shut In trip to Myrtle Beach (watermelon, watermelon)

Breaking it down with the family at my wedding reception

Our Pups were even BFF

My heart was feeling so warm, I wanted to find a sweet poem to sum up our relationship. I searched for hours to find just the right one. But as soon as I saw it, I knew!!

For you my dear friend:

I love you like a fat kids loves cake!! Thanks for hangin' with me all these years! I wouldn't want anyone else by my side!!

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-17T12:26:00.003-05:00

I only hope that one day MY house can be THIS AWESOME!!!!

Getting OLD can be soo much fun!!

2010-12-14T19:01:00.001-05:00

Well, not OLD but older. I celebrated my 35th birthday this past weekend. (still in a bit of shock) I don't feel 35, but then again, What is 35 supposed to feel like?

My morning started off great!! I woke up to Birthday wishes from my brother. Shortly thereafter, everyone else started sounding off. I suspect my brother was 1st this year only because he thinks the elderly rise early. I was snug as a bug in my bed but welcomed the conversation, none the less. King Bee had to work all day so I had several hours to reflect on the past 35 years of my life. But first, I had to get a cup of coffee and the laundry started. (sounds fabulous, right??)

My biggest accomplishment this year would have to be passing my Medical Coding Boards. But I have had a lot of GREAT moments!! Moving into our new house this past summer was one, our trip to Mexico with the other Bees was another and finally stopping this stupid diet was one of the best! Though, the diet is calling my name again after the last few weeks of over indulgence!!

For celebration, King Bee, Worker Bee, Electric Bee and I went to dinner at my favorite place in town, Terra. Worker Bee and I polished off a bottle of wine and told the same old stories we have have telling for years. They are still entertaining to us, though the boys just sit and roll their eyes. The food was yummy as always and we all had a good time.

For my gift this year, King Bee out did himself!

I got my first set of pearls and they are magnificent. It's one of those gifts that can be treasured for a long time to come and one that makes you feel suddenly grown up. All I could think about was passing them onto my daughter or grand daughter one day.

I also hit the the JACKPOT via the US Postal Service. I got a gift card from Nana and Puddin'. Let's just say, I had a great time on a shopping spree at one of my favorite stores...check out my loot:

Yes, I did get a little "outerwear heavy" this time, but it's been 18* here for about a week now. I went with what my bones were telling me. I also realize that I was stuck on a gray and off white color palet, too. It was the weather, I tell ya! Also not pictured here, for obvious reasons, a stock pile of unmentionables, 2 pairs of leggings, a few pieces of jewelry and a LARGE Peppermint Chocolate Milkshake from Chick-Fil-A.

I also hosted my first Craft Day here at the house. We collected unwanted Christmas Ball ornaments from various donors and made 7 wreaths to donate to a nursing home. I thought it would bring a smile to a few faces. It sure did mine. When all was said and done, we had over 5 full boxes of balls and various other decorations. The best part was getting to see the ladies that I haven't seen in almost a year!

The worst part was cleaning up the mess!

Though, I thought all the glitter on the floor looked magical and contemplated leaving it, until King Bee said THIS:

"It looks like 20 strippers just went thru in here!"

Me: "Amazing!! That is EXACTLY what I thought of, when I saw it too, honey!"

>

I have so much to be Thankful for....

2010-12-05T12:50:00.000-05:00

I know this is a little (understatement) late but it's never too late to show how Thankful you are. This year, we celebrated Thanksgiving in our new home, since we had room to actually seat everyone. Both mine and King Bee's immediate families were here with us; 12 in all. And everything was great!

Nana and Puddin' came over on Tuesday and Nana and I made the pilgrimage to the grocery store to stock up for the feast. It was pretty crazy once we got everything in to unload....

But we put on a great spread. Mother Bee made her world famous Macaroni & Cheese (with 4lbs of cheese) and the gotta have Stuffin'. Nana cooked green beans for TWO days and took care of the dumplings and gravy. I made a cheese ball and pumpkin fluff for some munchies and then constructed a peach cobbler and sweet potato casserole that seemed to be a hit. Honey Baked Ham provided one of the demanded stars of the day and King Bee baked us a fantastic 22lb. Turkey! It was a lot of food, as usual. And as usual, I forgot all about the canned cranberry sauce in the pantry. How does that happen EVERY year? Never fear, it has been taken care of since.

Another tradition we have started is doing a Puzzle. Every holiday, July 4th, Christmas, etc.....we get a puzzle and construct it during our visit. This year was no different except KB's brother insisted on a 2000 piece monstrosity to assemble in 2 days. So big it wouldn't fit on a card table and it certainly wasn't gonna take up one of the set tables. So we had to get a little creative. They constructed a make-shift movable table top for the monster with cardboard, plywood and duct tape. Genius!!

My niece and nephew provided lots of entertainment for me. They are just the ca-uuutest kids! I made them Clemson fleece scarves for the Big Game but gave the stipulation that they couldn't wear that god-awful color in my house. Of course, that was ignored and they were soon strutting around with that hideous neck warmer on. Not to mention that when they came back over on Saturday to watch the game with us...it was like a bruised pumpkin exploded on each of them. They were florescent orange and purple from head to toe. How TACKY! (just kidding...sort of)

Speaking of Saturday...the day I have dreaded for 18 weeks. It was the day of my Certification Boards for the AAPC Medical Coding course I have been drudging thru. The moment of truth, if you will. A 6 hour, 150 question exam. It was HARD. I was so nervous. I was more unsure than ever. I finished in 5 hours and 20 minutes with only 1 trip to the bathroom. And when I got to my car, I couldn't decide what I wanted to do more: throw up, cry or take shots of hard liquor. I was DONE. And I didn't necessarily feel good about it either! When asked about it, I would decline to comment. And now, I had 5-7 days to wonder what my fate would be. I was sick all week just thinking about it and dreading the possibility of having to take it all over again!

On Thursday, though, I logged into my AAPC account on a lark and discovered this:

OMG! I PASSED! YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME. I FREAKING PASSED!

I already had so much to be thankful for but this was just the icing on the cake.

All good things must come to an end.......

2010-11-18T19:31:00.002-05:00

Guess what yesterday was????

LAST CLASS DAY! Whooop-Whooop! And Guess what I got?

Well, not really. I am one of those lame people that forget to bring things back to class as instructed so my certificate is being held until said things are returned.

And on Last Class Day our instructor was sweet enough to bring us Ice Cream Cake and Blow Bubbles and Noise Makers and Wind PinWheels. It was a glorious day. She had it down to the smallest detail:

Yes, it says: "Happy Graduation". Pretty sweet, huh?

We even got to play a game. Our own version of Jeopardy. And guess who won????? This Gal right here! (What is up with me winning lately? I need to run out and buy a lottery ticket while I'm still on a roll over here. I swear this never happens!!) So, what did I get for winning?

Yes, I was soooo freaking proud and happy, I went completely Asian Eyed! (no offense!!) The paper I am holding up is my final score. I am telling you, I have no idea what came over me during this game of Jeopardy. It was a game to the death for me. Alas, I did not die.

And here again, proudly displayed on the mantle:

Being so excited, as soon as we were released, I dialed up the digits to King Bee's phone. I couldn't wait to tell him all about my day. So I start telling him how relieved I was and how our instructor had Ice Cream Cake and Blow Bubbles and Noise Makers and Wind Pinwheels and how I WON JEOPARDY and got a Trophy and said a speech....only to get this one, single response:

"What are you? In 3rd grade?"

Shortly there after, my phone seemed to have lost our connection. Hmmm, wonder how that happened?

P.S.
Please excuse the horrendousness of these photos. I somehow forgot to take my camera with me. WHAT??

I feel like I won the Lottery!!

2010-11-16T10:59:00.002-05:00

Unless you have been in a hole, everyone by now is aware of the AWESOME job our Gamecocks did Saturday night!! SEC East Champions!!! The 1st time in FOREVER! We have a had a great Athletic year!! It's still a bit surreal. And I am already sick of everyone trying to get tickets to the game!! It's pretty impossible, unless you are pretty high up in the ranks of the Gamecock Club or you've got an inside connection (as I am hoping I do...somewhere!!), so I am resolved to letting what is to be, just be. Though my connection has never let me down!!!!

And as if my football team winning the SEC East Championship on Saturday wasn't enough, I personally won something too.

Thru this BLOG, even as small as it is, I have met some amazing people. One who just so happens to live in this state with me...about 1.5 hours away. The WWW sure puts everyone right at your front door. I even seem to have one reader from Moscow, I think!! So don't let my "Devoted Fans" section over to the right fool you! A lot of people just add a BLOG into their Google Reader and get the feed from there. I do the same, as it saves me a lot of time from hunting all over the internet to keep up with the latest great craft idea. But I do try to go back and "follow" them on their BLOG page, too.

At any rate, one of my BLOG friends, The Speckled Dog, hosted a give-away. She actually did one on her BLOG and one on her Facebook page too. Since I never win anything on the BLOG give-aways and most of the time it's like a scavenger hunt to even qualify, I didn't enter that one. But the one on Facebook stuck out like a sore thumb and I entered. What was being given away, you ask? Well, a hand made neck warmer, eh, I mean cowl. AND I WON!!

It's the one on the far left

How warm will I be in that at the SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME????? Kristi also has an ETSY shop where he sells her fabulous makes and finds. You should really check it out!

And for the final WIN of the weekend, my Mom is engaged!! Mother Bee and Trucker Bee have been together for about 10 years now. I have long ago accepted him as part of our family, but it is certainly nice that it will be official. He is a great man, makes my mother very happy and has always been so kind and giving to me, as well. I am so thrilled for the both of them and wish them many years of happiness. It is well deserved on both their parts!!

Christmas came early!!!

2010-11-13T17:52:00.001-05:00

Twas the night before Saturday, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The walkway was swept free of leaves with care,
In hopes that my CRICUT soon would be there.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Fed Ex.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called me by name!

"I gotta package fer ya! little lady" he said as he rang,
I dropped my coffee and signed for the dang thing.
As I secured the front door with no time to waste,
I tore open the box to admire post-haste!

There she sat on my kitchen table,
all sparkly and shiny and Oh! so able.
I gushed and I sighed and I shouted with glee,
"I still can't believe it's a Cricut for ME!"

Ya gotta start somewhere....

2010-11-12T17:33:00.004-05:00

And I did. It was a loooong day. But i met lots of really great people and got alot of feedback about our "stuff". Again, this was at a local elementary school so the traffic was as expected and we did really well for the volume.

My booth was adorable! (click the pictures to make them bigger)

I told ya! I can't wait for the website to be up and running.

I was so exhausted when I got home that I was in bed by 9:30 and asleep by 9:40. I didn't wake up until 1pm. I was a bum and it felt sooo good!

On another note, I got a new 'do! Hairdo, that is.

It's short and I love it! (And it is back to my natural color. Well, before I went gray. My hair wizard says I am about 70% gray now.) So much better than fighting the straightener every single morning. Now, I can sleep in until 7:30, to leave by 8, to be at work by 8:30. Oh! Glorious day!!

This will be "A First"

2010-11-10T14:41:00.002-05:00

Well, hello there. Nice to see you all again.

Whew, I am exhausted! I have spent the last few weeks getting ready for my very FIRST craft fair; which is officially known as a "Holiday Extravaganza". Whatever. It's a craft market of sorts...maybe not a fair, since there are no rides...(or are there?...never mind) And Mini Bee 1 probably thinks that when she comes to visit JuJu at the "craft fair" tomorrow, she gets to ride the swings. Boy is she going to be disappointed. However, she is a professional shopper and "needs" one of everything she sees, so maybe it will be fine for her afterall. Luckily, Nanny McBee (ha! I love the names I come up with!!) will be in charge of her and can tell her no.

Anywho...back to the topic at hand...the Extravaganza....

I was able to crank out 4 cases of "Plasses", 3 cases of Glasses, 1 case of platters, 4 casserole dishes, 6 TuTus, 12 prs of TuTu Flip Flops, 6 soap/oil bottles, 2 wreaths. I also have beverage tubs, yard stakes, ornaments, casserole dish holders and ice buckets all for the offering. I'm still saying a prayer the feather Koozies are on my door step tonight, otherwise, I will NOT be reordering from these people EVER again! I am very excited and can't wait to see how it all goes. My favorite part is going to be setting up my booth. I get to decorate it any way I want.

On another note, I had my "practice exam" last Saturday during my "bout of the stomach flu". It was a dreadful 3 hour event and I passed. If you are thinking I do not sound very enthusiastic about that, you would be correct. I barely passed. I will say that it was not my fault I did so poorly. Our test was in A,B,C,D format and the answer key was in 1,2,3,4 format, making it quite confusing for someone as anal as me. Needless to say, I was a tad bit aggravated when I got my booklet and test back only to realize I had more RIGHT answers but the bubbles threw me off! Damn bubbles.

I got an e-mail from Mother Bee that my nephew has invited her (my brother actually called) to Grandparents Day at school. I thought this was the greatest thing...and so did she. She gets to pick him up and take him to school and enjoy breakfast with him that morning. I told her to make sure she takes her camera and takes LOTS of pictures!! She will enjoy that so much! Maybe they will have an Aunts Day???? Maybe?? or maybe I will see if he can have a "sugar-day" and take him to see MegaMind with me at the movies. That would be fun! So, CAN HE???

I have class this afternoon from 4-6:30, then off to set up for tomorrow from 6:30-9:00. WISH me Luck!!! I'll let you know how it goes. And I am planning on taking lots of pictures!!

Quite possibly the MOST traumatic experience...EVER!

2010-10-25T19:16:00.002-04:00

First, let me officially apologize to Worker Bee for ever doubting the pandemonium of taking "the KID" shopping! I completely get it now. I am so sorry I ever thought you may have been exaggerating!! I was wrong!

So, about Saturday. Hmmmmmm, how do I put this? It started out as a perfectly nice day. It really did. Mini Bee 2 was left with us to do her eating, napping and standing thing. KB went out to the grocery store so I didn't have to go. We watched The Magic School Bus......and then.....Mini Bee 1 came back. God love her!

Which was fine at first. But we still had a huge day ahead of us. Worker Bee and I had some shopping to do and we were going to be brave and take both kids with us. After all, we are grown women. We could certainly handle this, RIGHT?

While KB was out at the grocery store, he bought Mini Bee 1 a "prize" at the grocery store (he's a sucker for the toy aisle at grocery stores). She was super excited to get her Dora flashlight. But then she wanted to take it, and her book, and her baby, and her cup with us on the shopping extravaganza. Which, in all honesty, the shopping part wasn't that terrible. I mean, it was bad, but nothing compared to what happened after we left the store!

So WB has Mini 2 and I have Mini 1's hand and we are walking to the car. Mini 1 was "upset" (the word she used) that Grandma had given me a present she picked up for me and didn't have one wrapped for her. She began to melt down in the parking lot. So, we said our goodbyes to Grandma and Mini 1 and I proceeded to the car. As we walked away, Mini 1 flipped out, snatched her hand out of mine and went running into the parking lot, just as I noticed a car coming down the aisle. I swung around and by this time the only thing I could reach before she ran out in front of that car was the back of her hair. So I yanked! She screamed! BUT SHE STOPPED! I was petrified! And shaking! And she was, of course, crying.

I can say, with about 110% certainty, that was the moment I seriously doubted my ability to care for or desire to have children. I was so scared, I could have been sick. It just happened so fast! And then, after finally getting her to the car, we open up the door and out rolls her new Dora Flashlight onto the ground and busts open. BROKEN. So she cried harder.

When Mini 1 was little, I was nervous to drive her in the car for fear of an accident and something happening. I got over that with practice and now having them in the car is no big thing..except my ears are extremely tired by time I get them out. Now since Mini 1 thinks she's grown and knows best, I am terrified of "Miss Big Britches" running into on coming traffic or wondering off in a store. Basically, turning my eye from her for a moment. BOTH of those things she has done in the last week. Luckily only ONE happened on my watch, so it's not just me! Thank you sweet baby Jesus! I just could not handle something ever happening to either one of them. Part of getting over that fear of driving with them in the car was the realization that everything in life is not up to me. But....I'm still thinking......why chance it?

So, when given the choice, I chose to keep the immobile one. The one I can still control the movements of. The one that still understands the word "No". The one that doesn't yet talk...except for a couple, few words.

I'm slowly getting over the trauma-drama from Saturday. Still makes my skin crawl. And I still love her. How could you not?? Though she may not like me too much right now. Oh, who am I kidding?!?!?!?! She was over it 5 minutes after it happened. No concept of it at all...except that I pulled her hair and broke her flashlight.

OH! TO BE A KID AGAIN!!!

Man Down.....sike!

2010-10-22T19:56:00.002-04:00

Yes....I said SIKE! It's been awhile since I've heard that expression. Man, I'm old.

The "Man" that was "Down" was my beloved computer, again.....but even though I've already told you the end of the story, you better believe I'm still going to tell you the WHOLE story. It'll let you know where my head has been for the past several ~~years~~ weeks.

So, I couldn't sleep last night. I know I told you on ~~Wednesday, Thursday~~...crap, that was yesterday, that I have been dog-tired but last night, Mr. Sandman was not gonna pay me a visit. I have so much running through my head that I was having conversations and arguments with myself. I woke up singing some god-awful song and it had gotten down to 67* in the house. Not a good place to be! It wasn't a total loss. I woke up at 3:00am, right as King Bee was turning in for the evening. We like to refer to these types of nights as a round of "Tag-Team Mattress. (and no, not in that bow-chika-wow-wow kind of way! Stay with me here. I swear this is a PG story.)

Anywho, where was I? Oh right, 3:00am. So I just got out of bed and went upstairs to to check on my beloved computer. You see, I sat beside it and held it's hand for 4 hours last night as it "updated" it's Anti-Virus. This may come as a surprise to all of you but I am not the most patient person. I decided the best thing to do for both of "us" would be to leave it alone and go to bed. And I did. So, when I woke up, I went back up to see the progress. To my dismay, this stupid computer crashed. Shut down. Dead. (I guess the anti-virus wasn't all it was cracked up to be, huh?) I then muttered some expletives and spent the next 3.5 hours trying to resuscitate it.

So at 7:00am, I made the executive decision to pack it up and present it to my very own personal computer Guru at work. Yeah, I got it like that.

By lunch, the P.O.S. was all better. For now. End of Story.

On to other things now. Worker Bee is bringing Mini Bee 2 back over while she spends some "mother-daughter QT" with Mini Bee 1 at the corn maze......of all places. (My money says WB will loose MB1 on purpose. Kidding. Just kidding. I kid.) Whatever the reason, I am so excited to have sweet MB2 back tomorrow. And then after the corn maze is over, we are all gonna spend the day together and watch the USC GAMECOCKS, again. I just pray for a much better outcome this week. That's all I got to say about THAT!

I cannot wrap my head around the fact that there are only 9 weeks until Christmas! My Christmas wish is for a Holiday Trip again this year. To a winter wonderland. So Nana can finally get her dream of "Dashing through the Snow". Yep, that's my wish.

But first, I hope we make it through Thanksgiving without an argument over the infamous Ham-Bone. Maybe I should ask Honey Baked Ham for a boneless ham to save us all the fun! (love you, Nana!)

Slacker.....well, kind of.

2010-10-21T12:21:00.003-04:00

I am getting really slack on posting on this BLOG. I do have lots of good excuses...many I have listed before, so I won't bore you with them again. Instead, I will move on and try to do better.

I do have some good (read: weight-off-my-shoulders-news) for everyone. You may (or may not) have noticed the FaceBook Page over to the right (------>). It's for our new Specialty Shop King Bee and I are working on. It's still in the VERY EARLY stages (you can't even find it on the www yet) but we have secured the www. address, applied and received our business license and I have been busy making contacts with vendors. I am so excited about it. I just didn't realized all the tiny, intricate behind the scenes work that went into something like this. So, I've assigned Web-Duties to KB and I'll stick with the fabrication and order fulfillment. (I am also awesome at delegation!) My first outing will be at a local craft fair on Nov. 11, as mentioned before. All prayers are accepted and appreciated! Stayed tuned as The Sassy Palmetto gets underway!

As mentioned last week, our Bee Friends were out of town (for a really crappy USC vs. UK game) and we got the Mini Bees. We had a great time! Even with Mini Bee 1, though I have learned to never let her sleep in the same bed as me ever, ever, ever again! That kid kicks like a mule! And we got Mini Bee 2 for the whole weekend. We went grocery shopping and stroller riding and, to her mother's dismay, I spent several hours with her in the floor teaching her how to pull herself up and stand. She will be walking in no time now. After she left on Sunday, I was immediately missing her. The house was way too quiet! Monday and Tuesday I was really tired. 8pm bed times for me both nights and I am still dragging a bit. Maybe it's the weather changing??? Who knows!

I only have 5 more weeks of class left before the monster exam. On Thanksgiving weekend, no less.

And speaking of Thanksgiving....it will be hosted at our new abode. If you are hungry, come on over. We always have way too much food! This year will be no exception. So far, the Menu looks something like this:

King Bees *newly* Famous Turkey, Alton Brown Style.
Honey Baked Ham
Dumplings
Homemade Macaroni and Cheese
Stuffing
Green Bean Casserole
Yams, with marsh mellows
Mashed Red Potatoes
Broiled Asparagus
Yeast Rolls
Apple Cobbler and Van. Ice Cream

I think we have all the starches covered. HA!

GAME.......COCKS.......

2010-10-14T12:24:00.001-04:00

We are all still on Cloud 9 around here. In case you have been in a hole for a week (like myself, actually...and the miners in Chile'), the USC Gamecocks defeated the #1 Football team Alabama last Saturday with a score of 35-21. That's right.....WE WON!

It was amazing! We didn't make it downtown to the game or to ESPN Game Day that morning since I helped out at the shop and KB had to get my tire fixed (since I like to run over nails). But we enjoyed the game down in the House Poor Lounge with our neighbors, complete with Beer Can Chicken, my famous Pasta Salad and Coleslaw. Yummo.

Sunday was a nice relaxing day, except for the mounds of studying I had to do for another test. I PASSED! again. Thank you sweet-baby Jesus!

I had Monday off, thanks to Christopher Columbus! I spent the day tackling "The Beast"(the huge cabinet do-ma-hickey) and have it all primed and the bottom half is finished. Just need a sweet coat of paint on the top and the doors and then rub it down with glaze and that thing will be slayed!

I have been working on a lot of ~~crap~~ crafts for a Holiday Market in November. I gotta get moving in order to have enough stuff to last the day. The next few spare moments will be churning THAT out. So far, I have Carolina and Clemson TuTus; Carolina and Clemson TuTu Flip-Flops; USC, Clemson and Palmetto Tree Wine Glasses (acrylic) and USC, Clemson and Palmetto Tree Wine Glasses (etched). Worker Bee is making several sets of her serving pieces and I am going to try to mock up a few shirts for the show. Should be interesting!!

The Mini Bees are coming tonight. We get them for the weekend since Worker Bee and Electric Bee are in Kentucky cheering on the Gamecocks!! Well, Mini Bee1 is going to stay with Grandma the weekend and we will then only have Mini Bee2. She's easy! We are looking forward to it.

King Bee's 20 yr High School Reunion is coming up next weekend. 20 YEARS! Oh my! he's been dragging his feet about whether we are going or not. I'm trying to talk him into it. That is a serious milestone. I am sure at one point, it was questionable as to IF he would ever see one of these! All I know is he needs to commit ASAP, because this chick needs to find something to wear!

STOLEN......

2010-10-07T13:46:00.000-04:00

from my S.I.L:

Two REALLY adorable kids....

We've got some good genes in this family!!

BCL- 8 yrs
BML- 2 yrs

Lessons Learned

2010-10-06T10:08:00.003-04:00

1 desk, stacked with work to top of monitor + 1 REALLY mean lady from BCBS of IL + PMS + 3 A/R reports + 4 weeks of appointment verifications = COMPLETE EMOTIONAL BREAKDOWN......AT WORK. (....and then I get really mad for being a stupid girl and crying. Upside: my bosses boss refilled my water for me since he was afraid I'd cry on him if he didn't.)

Yeah, this was totally me yesterday: (including the hair, plus some serious mascara runs!! I know, I looked scary!)

But then THIS happened last night :

1 42*(degree) SC night + bedroom window open + loud crickets + a new fluffy pillow + tired "cry eyes" from the before mentioned "breakdown" + ceiling fan on Mach 10 = (never having to turn the pillow over to find the "cold side" which ultimately makes the) BEST NIGHT'S SLEEP!

And this was totally me last night: (make up and all.....but with the lights off.)

I just might make it today, after all.

I take it back.....

2010-10-04T13:17:00.002-04:00

I know I JUST said Fall was my favorite. I lied. Fall WEATHER is my favorite. Fall sucks!

This time of year is complete chaos at my j.o.b. It is the beginning of Synagis Season in SC and with that, means several hundred (i said hundred...last years clinic was the better part of 500 deep) sick babies all in need of my lovely services at the clinic. No, I am not the doctor or nurse, for that matter. Hell, I don't even greet the babies at the counter when they check in. So WHY am I all bijiggity about this, you ask??

BECAUSE I HAVE 78 NEW BABY REFERRALS ON MY DESK THAT NEED/REQUIRE PREAUTHORIZATION FOR THIS THIS LOVELY PREVENTATIVE SERVICE. AND THIS IS ONLY THE FIRST 3 DAYS, SO FAR.

I'm not yelling. I am freaking out! And my "regular duties" and "other duties as requested" don't just go away......no, I still get them, too.

I'll be calling the doctor shortly for a refill of my crazy-pills.

On a much nicer note, I had a really great weekend. Friday evening turned out to be a great end to a taxing week. The weather cooled down to about 55* that night and I slept with the bedroom windows open. That was the best sleep I have had in a really long time. It also might have had something to do with the fact that I think we finally found the stain for the stairs. (insert clouds parting and angels singing) I hope to begin this process this week. It will be good therapy!

On Saturday, Worker Bee and her BFF from college came over and we had CRAFT DAY!! They made tailgating table cloths, weights for the tablecloths, etched wine glasses and helped me with the "plasses". I was just the supervisor/director. I had a blast. Mini Bee 2 came along, also, and kept King Bee company for the afternoon.

Saturday night our neighbor and his son (who was visiting from out of town) came over for Football and Food. KB make his signature Pork Chops and I whipped up some veggies and stuffing for the sides. It was de-licious! The game...was not so good.

Yesterday was so relaxing. I never made it out of my PJs and I think I only made it off the couch 4 or 5 times. I caught up on my DVR and finally saw The Time Traveler's Wife. (I liked the book sooo much better!!)

I have added Mike & Molly (just 'cuz it's funny) and Boardwalk Empire to my season pass. I am a sucker for HBO Original Series and this one hit the ground running!!! Besides, Jersey Shore is about to wrap up and I needed to find some good filler. (HA!!)

2010-09-29T10:28:00.001-04:00

We had a wonderfully busy weekend! We celebrated two wonderful birthday parties with family and friends. 1st up was Mini Bee 2 Birthday. Worker Bee had a Gamecock Tailgate themed party. It was a great idea since we were playing Auburn that evening. Well, it was all a great idea EXCEPT for the black icing on the birthday cake. Oh MY! This is how it all went down:

Before

During

After...Oh MY!

And my lovely Corn Hole game made an appearance. (FYI: Corn Hole is just a Bean Bag Toss game, for adults because it usually involves lots of beer)

After the early party, I was off to my neice's 2nd Birthday celebration. (KB couldn't come b/c he had to work) She is the cutest little thing. It was a Pink Poodles party. The cake was gorgeous...and delicious and from Publix (my fav!!) And she racked up on the gifts. It was like Christmas!!

(pictures to follow...awaiting e-mail from sister-in-law)

I made her a Clemson TuTu(though I threw up in my mouth several times while making it) and matching Flip Flops (using THIS method). It was a standard No-Sew TuTu. So here's a picture if the tulle Flip Flops:

(yes, that is my gi-normous foot shoved in the tiny Flip Flop)

After the parties, I got the lovely task of grocery shopping for Sunday's Football festivities. We had a great time. The Falcons won! We ordered lots of pizzas. We ate lots of chips and dips and p-nuts and brownies. We drank lots of beer. I slept really well.

Monday came too fast. We finally got rain. It had been like 28 days since we've had any...but now it has rained for 3 days straight. I am not complaining, though...the rain brought MUCH cooler weather and I LOVE that!! Fall is my favorite time of year.

It's a glorious day!!

2010-09-21T12:53:00.000-04:00

Well, some people would beg to differ...like the other 13 people in my class that didn't pass their Mid-Term. Yes, I said OTHER! Not only was I one of 4 who passed, I made the highest score!! YAY ME!! Personally, if I was struggling at this point in the session, I would drop it. It is ridiculously confusing and very intimidating. And if I didn't have a handle on it by now, there would be no way I could come back from that. But some people are just glutton for punishment.

Also in the news, I have tackled a nice portion of my Perhaps list(s). Curtains hemmed...check! Other ART for the Living Room done...check! Unpacked from vacation and Dive Gear put away...check & check! All of the floors were Bisselled, Swiffered and steam mopped! Found the vacuum cleaner and vacuumed!! And last but not least, 3 of 4 TuTus completed. It was a busy weekend.

I also managed to watch Whip It! (the movie) and loved it.

After all of my accomplishments, I decided I needed a little reward. It looks something like THIS:

Kohl's

Aren't they beautiful?? It was love at first sight! Worker Bee called me Sunday on the way to my house to tell me about these AWESOME boots she saw in her Kohl's circular. In the middle of her statement, I stopped her and said I had found some magnificent Grey Ruffle Boots that she must see. At that point, we AGAIN, realized we would be the proud owners of matching shoes. Seriously, we have been friends for so long that I think we share a brain. Our husbands think so. The long-going joke is when King Bee and Electric Bee married Worker Bee and me, they got a 2 for 1 deal. It's pretty true, except for the intimate parts. (ew!)

The Mini-Bees came over on Sunday, too. I have missed their sweet faces! They must have missed us too because when it was time to go home, Mini Bee 1 did NOT want to leave!! :) I think it's 'cuz I'm AWESOME!

Perhaps.....Part Deaux

2010-09-17T11:08:00.003-04:00

So...King Bee has decided he wants to have his man-friends over to christen the Man-Cave (aka House Poor Lounge) next Sunday so they can enjoy 12-14 hours of Football, Football, Football. Me? I am always up for a party and immediately sent out invites to the men in my man's life. I even created an event for it on Facebook. I am a DUMMY!

In retrospect, I have realized my To-Do list is extremely longer than anticipated and really needs to be mostly completely by said EVENT.

Let's begin:
(continued from yesterday)

Perhaps I will finish the OTHER art for the Living Room?
Perhaps I will finally get guest towels for the Man-Cave bathroom?
Perhaps I will find the time to make these yummy Parmesean Popovers for the gathering?
Perhaps I will clean up my Craft Room...so you can tell it is a craft room and not a dump-all?
Perhaps we will unpack from our vacation so we can put up the luggage and you can get in the front door?
Perhaps I can remove all of the Dive gear form the bathroom tub in hopes of cleaning the facilities for all our folks?
Perhaps I can remember where I stored the vaccum cleaner?
Perhaps I can sand the other set of stairs so they don't look totally gross (and to prepare for The Stair Project)?
Perhaps I will get the 6 mini-gamecock cakes made for Mini-Bees 1st B-day and her Party Hat; and 4 TuTus and 2 shirts and 1 pr. of Flip Flops completed as it is all OVER DUE to my clients?
Perhaps the tree in my backyard will begin to sprout $$?
Perhaps I will remember to take pictures of all of this stuff so my BLOG isn't so boring??

I cannot see from the tears in my EYES...

2010-09-16T12:39:00.003-04:00

If you do NOTHING else today (or even if you do)......

Go HERE!

It's HYSTERICAL!!!

You will NOT be disappointed!!

Perhaps.....

2010-09-16T10:30:00.001-04:00

Perhaps I will pass my Mid-Term Exam I took yesterday?
Perhaps WE will finally get started on The Stair Project?
Perhaps I will finish chasing down all the painters OOPS'!
Perhaps I will get the Master Bedroom DONE?
Perhaps I will get my car washed?
Perhaps I will find time to upload the pictures from our Vacation?
Perhaps I will finish the last 5 cases of Plasses.....and I DO mean LAST!
Perhaps I can begin the revamp of The Beast (my gi-normous sideboard)?
Perhaps I can complete The Beast project so we can get BOTH cars back in the garage??
Perhaps King Bee will order my picture for the Living Room...as requested 4 months ago?
Perhaps I can get the breakfast room curtains permanently hemmed?
Perhaps I will give in and buy those dishes from BBB? (the paintmarkers are a pain in the A$$)

Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps!

Project DONE!!

2010-08-30T13:06:00.001-04:00

I got the Corn Hole Boards finished this weekend. They turned out GREAT!!!! Electric Bee will be pleased! I didn't take any Before pictures, as they were quite boring. They were both built but simply primed when he dropped them off to me.

Now I want some for myself......Not that I have any time to play Corn Hole!!

So says the King.......

2010-08-27T15:12:00.006-04:00

I am super excited about my new idea. It's got all the makings of a great "Queen Bee Craft" and I can say I am looking forward to taking the time to get it just how I picture it in my mind. I am can be patient.

King Bee has been grumbling about our dishes; particularly our plates. They are heavy stoneware and sort of deep. However, when we go to put them in the dishwasher, they do not stand up like perfect little soldiers. And King Bee, being the OCD Germaphob he is, almost passes out if he sees the load of dishes in the DW with the plates all touching each other. (You can forget about putting 2 spoons in the same silverware holder bin) He says they look like they are hugging and no matter how great this dishwasher is supposed to be, you can't get them clean if they are cuddling in the clean cycle. (whatever...I shake my head and roll my eyes. WHERE do I find these people???????)

So the King says they gotta go! (again, I shake my head and roll my eyes)

But I love my dishes. There is nothing fancy about them. Just heavy brown stoneware plates from Target. Maybe it's because I fought for so long to get him to let me replace the bachelor-starter-pack-set-with-the-ugly-blue-rim he had when I met him. Those things gave me the hibby-jibbies!! So now I appreciate a nice heavy boring brown plate or two. I dunno.

So I have been trying to find something we can both live with. He wants plain white. I don't.

I did find these!!!! They have some white in them......

Photo Courtesy of Bed Bath & Beyond

And I was instantly in love!! I even like the orange-ish red. But I am sure KB will not be so smitten- with the color. And I wasn't so smitten with the price tag for a setting for 4...$100 smackaroons! Have I ever mentioned how ~~cheap~~ monetarily conscious I am?? Girls gotta pay these horrendous electric bills since the heat won't drop below 100*!! And I could buy another place setting of my China for that! C'mon!

But, as if the heavens heard my cry, I got this delivered into my Google Reader the other morning
(I thank you more than you know!!) :

Photo courtesy of Lemon Tree Creations
MONOGRAM TABLE SETTING AND OTHER IDEAS.......

You may ask what this has to do with that??? But I know you are smarter than that!!

Well, it just so happens I found those paint markers that are safe for surfaces that come in contact with food.....and my Excite-O-Meter went off the charts!!

I hopped on over to my nemesis (only in person-no problems yet online) and purchased two 16 pc sets of PLAIN WHITE dishes for a total of $40-something bucks...with free shipping. Then popped back into the web-site that I found the paint markers on and ordered a few of those. (The markers were about 3-4 bucks a pop) After that, I found a super fabulous pattern that I can make a stencil out of and hand paint onto the plain white plates.......and V'iola!!

KB will, in essence, get his plain white plates...and I will get my "designer" plates. Maybe in a more subdued color, but I am finding myself leaning towards a combination of bright Red and Aqua. So maybe NOT! Ahhhhhhh.

For a Grand Total of $60 for eight 4 piece settings....... not bad. And since i don't need the coffee mugs, I will use those for Christmas Gifts for the Girls in the office. I am such a smarty pant!

I can't wait to show them to you!! Stay Tuned!!

The Find

2010-08-25T13:03:00.003-04:00

**The FIND**
Week of 8.23.10 thru 8.27.10

There are several issues with the following FIND.

Photo Courtsey of WIS-TV

I know you are probably wondering why I am BLOGging about our infamous Senatorial (is that a word?) candidate, Alvin Greene. Just for the record, I am NOT & I do not plan to vote for him but I cannot STOP following this mess much less wait to get the REAL story behind all of his madness. I have a theory, but let's just say, somethings are sometimes best kept to oneself. :)

Back to the FIND. So I went to check my e-mail yesterday and I have one from my mother. My mother and I don't e-mail much unless it's to give her contact information on a trip we are taking or something that would benefit us to print out so we can remember. We'd rather use the phone. (call us old fashioned....) So I get this e-mail with a Subject line of: "see lamps in news article".

Ummmmm K! So I clicked. and looked. and was in utter shock when I saw "lamps in news article".

Focus on the LAMP!!

You gotta be kiddin' me. So then I replied back to my mother: "Oh My! Did you donate those somewhere when you got rid of them????? Surely they did not make 2 sets of those hideous lamps. HAHAHAH! I think he stole your lamps! Or dug them out of our trash pile!!"

Exhibit A:

I know it's a dark photo....and pay no mind to the late 70's early 80's cutting edge macramae circle rug wall thing or what appears to be a watermelon seed on my cheek! FOCUS on the LAMP!!

Exhibit B:

Same as above, however...Is my mother wearing LEATHER pants???? What the........???

Exhibit C:

You can see it better in this picture. Please overlook my "Blagojevich" hairstyle and display of cleavage. And do any of you remember "Adoption Dolls" ? Not to be confused with Cabbage Patch kids.....

My mother's final e-mail reply: "I think we sold them in a yard sale when we got the beautiful blue glass lamps with the white orchids you loved so much. That is too weird. I wouldn’t think there would be more than one set of those ugly lamps." (OK, Mom, for the record, the beautiful blue glass lamps with the white orchids were almost as hideous!!)
And she knew all along how UGLY those lamps were! I knew it. You'd have to be blind or brainwashed to not see it. I always thought there was some sort of life lesson in keeping those hideous lamps. that was the only thing that could have explained it.

.........but then yesterday, while staring at the photo in disbelief, I started to wonder what those lamps would look like with a nice shiny new coat of spray paint???? King Bee has quoted me at saying "Spray Paint can make ANYTHING good". That would certainly be the ultimate TEST!!

You gotta see these

2010-08-24T15:05:00.001-04:00

OH My!! I cannot wait until I have a child and can do this:

PRECIOUS!!

..and I will!!! You mark my words! You think King Bee is bad about taking pictures of the Mini Bees.....our bee won't know what it's father looks like without a camera between them.

I am in complete AWE of her imagination.

So SWEET!

2010-08-17T19:17:00.003-04:00

Hello there! I thought I'd pop in and let you all know that I am still alive. I went MIA after that last rant I went on. Yeah, sorry about that. I had my 1st test for my my coding certification and passed with flying colors. I only missed 2 questions and in hind sight, I am convinced they were trick questions. So I am satisfied with the result. I also spent all day on the couch Saturday working on and finally finishing all of my glasses and "plasses" for a boutique downtown. And my sweet mother has been taking orders for me from her work and I got those done, too. Ahhh. Feeling the noose loosen up a bit it's nice.

We took the pictures for Mini Bee 1 and Mini Bee 2's annual SC Gamecock Schedule and turned out adorable!
(this is a copy of a copy of a copy...not the best quality but I did "borrow it without permission" so that I could show it to you all)

Photo by Larry Donnelly Photography

Mini Bee 1 is getting so BIG! And Mini Bee 2 is getting mobil!
How did Worker Bee get such ca-uuute kids??

I also started "The Stair Project". I need to stop in to pick out the stain ASAP. I've got a good momentum going and don't want to stop now! I sanded each stair last night for the upper level and my back and hips were killing me this morning. Not sure why my hips hurt 'cuz it wasn't like I was thrusting them to the drone of the sander but....this is me we are talking about! HA!

Oh! I almost forgot, I lost another 4.5 lbs at my last visit to the Fat Dr. That is -13 on the 20 I gained back. I am hoping to shed the other 7 by the end of the month. No worries. I haven't had time to eat lately, anyways. (insert eye roll here)

............Or water the flowers, which brings me to THIS:

Faux Fern

I slowly tortured the lovely color-coordinated Gerber Daisies that were on my front porch until they met their demise. I really shouldn't bother with real plants or flowers! So after trashing the daisies, it looked a little lifeless at the front door. I have always wanted a Gi-normous Fern. I don't know why. Maybe because someone once told me they were hard to kill. BUT, knowing my track record with all things living (King Bee has mentioned that we probably shouldn't have a kid until I can keep something alive), I hesitated to get one. But, while I wondering around the craft store, I found a Faux-Fern. GENIUS! So I scooped that sucker up and ran to the check out (so I wouldn't change my mind). And today, it adds a feeling of LIFE and warmth to the front door.

The Faux Fern is simply plopped in the pot. Well, I wanted to weigh it down in case we got a gust of wind or something so I used a Kid Rock t-shirt from King Bee's stash in the garage. (Thanks, Kid Rock!) Just for clarification, King Bee is not a Kid Rock T-Shirt Lover. Just so happens JB is a sponsor for the tour again this year...thus turning my garage into an after-concert t-shirt vendor-place.

And I've had several people asked where I found such a nice looking Fern and how I keep it looking so healthy since most usually turn brownish in our kind of heat. People have been shocked when I whispered that it is Faux. All King Bee said was that he didn't want our yard to look like this:

Photo courtesy of PinkMoose

I guess he thinks that since the 1st Faux attempt went well that I would think all Faux is created equal. I know it's not but sometimes, it just works. Take this one for example:

Click the picture to take you to her tutorial

Rebecca, over at Older and Wisor, does a lovely job with (whatever she touches, really) this number. Genius! I mean, who has the patience to wait for them to bloom OR $10 to replace them every time they die! (especially at the rate mine expire). See, it can be done and it doesn't have to be "tacky".

But one day, I do want to line the yard in Pink Flamingos and bouquets of Dollar Tree roses just to capture the look on King Bee's face!! Fun times, fun times!

I THINK I LOST MY MIND

2010-08-09T10:14:00.001-04:00

****WARNING: you might want to grab some Cheese for this "WHINE"****

Well, that is certainly how it feels! Like I have totally lost my mind. Lately my memory has gone to pot. It was the one thing I could count on...well, that and biting my fingernails. (nope still haven't kicked THAT habit after 33 years!!) And I swear the days are getting shorter and I am not adjusting well, at all.

I have started classes for my Medical Coding Certification. It's tough. I find myself getting really frustrated with it. I have been doing this for 14 years. But I have been doing it MY WAY, not the their way. I am finding it hard to do it "their way". And it is so darn confusing. And time consuming. I have a 2.5 hr class 2 nights a week and then class work normally takes me about 5-7 hours to complete. Which is fine for the Wednesday class since we don't meet again until Monday. But the Monday class, and having to have that THAT much work done by Wednesday, is KILLING me! I really want to do well on this. I want to pass the 1st time. I am trying really hard. But I am soooo tired all the time. Which, in turn, puts me in a terrible mood.

Then, I got a lovely shipment of 9 cases of "plasses" (plastic wine glasses) that I need to do for The SHOP. And I have started etching the real Glass ones. They are lovely. I can usually crank out a case or two of "plasses" a night, depending on if I already have everything cut and ready to go. However, I have not had any time to sit down and do them. OR keep up with this BLOG. I would rather sleep.

And Electric Bee made the boards for his Corn Hole game (they look really good, too) and I offered to do the painting on it. And I want to but WHEN? Not to mention that I still have the gi-normous sideboard in the garage to prime and paint, the stairs in the house to sand and refinish and 2 Tu-Tus, I promised, to make and ship out.

Why do I do this??

NEEDLESS to say, I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO looking forward to our trip to Mexico! It can't come soon enough! King Bee and I stopped in the Dive Shop this past weekend and he actually bought me my very own regulator and dive computer. Now I don't have to use the rented one that a ba-jillion other people have had in their mouths. I was shocked when he said we'd take it! (and super excited and thankful about it) Still am. BUT I have serious buyers remorse! Not to mention that, now, I have to find time to sit down and learn how to work this new dive computer.........

I miss the pool. A LOT.

The Find

2010-07-29T19:06:00.001-04:00

**The FIND**
Week of 7.26.10 thru 7.30.10

As previously mentioned, we spent the greater part of last week right outside of Nashville, TN for our annual Family Reunion. It is almost as good as Christmas! REALLY! I never thought a Family Reunion could be so much fun...until I met King Bee. Long before I "officially" became Mrs. Queen Bee, I was invited to the massive Fam. Reunion with him to meet his extended-extended-extended family. I had no idea what to expect. I just remembered thinking that it was a little weird that this was going to last for 5 whole days. (Side note: The Fam. Reunion used to be an entire week). So here's the break down:

1 house
3 bedrooms
7 beds
3 bathrooms
7 roll-away beds
2 decent cushy pieces of porch furniture
and
70 people (sometimes MORE)

That's right folks! That shower you take right before you leave to embark on Family Weekend is the last one you will have in peace!

But speaking of peace, this is my FIND for the week:

AMAZING! This was the scenery as we pulled into "Camp" (the term we use to refer to the place we meet every year). They let me get right up on them. And they were everywhere! It was a true moment of peace! And the very last one we had for several days!

But, it's only been a week and I can't wait to go again next year!!!
Only 358 days to go!!

A Little Dab Will Do Ya!

2010-07-29T18:21:00.003-04:00

....of color that is! My house, more clearly, the FRONT of my house was in desperate need of some pi-zazz. And since we all now how incredibly impatient I am, I wasn't going the way of a landscape design to full-fill my needs. Not just yet, anyway.

Last week I told you about how I was able to score the last 2 Black Rocking Chairs in the state, remember? And even though that is exactly what I was looking for for the front porch (though I know the likely-hood of them ever really being of use is slim to none) I was feeling a little drab about my lack of color and vivaciousness. Since the house is grey and black, the chairs were lost on the porch. So I headed over to the fabric store. I wanted to find some black and red and yellow fabric and some random somethin' or 'nother to liven up that porch party. The fabric search wasn't so successful. All I could find was Black and White or Black and Red and White or Black and... you get the picture. But then I got to thinking. And I remembered this cute little flower I had spotted on the World Wide Web and I was in business. I settled for a pattern and headed over to the felt area, picked up a few pieces of yellow felt and then marched over to the "crap to make a wreath" aisle. I'm not a huge fan of wreaths but compromise was needed to complete this transformation. In the end, I decided I would make cute little throw pillows for the 2 Rockers, a wreath for the door and a nice Gerber Daisy for some extra ambiance.

Here is how it looks now:

And while you can't really get the whole porch in one single picture that does it any justice, here is the wreath on the front door:

Please be sure to notice that the "D" is done with the same fabric I used to make my pillows out of. The porch still has a ways to go but it will get there. I need to find some stuffs (not a word but I'll take it) for around the door. But it already looks soooooo much better now. And I have had lot of compliments on the Porch Party from my neighbors.

Sorry it has been a bit since I've checked in. We were at our Family Reunion last week in TN. It was HOTTT. But it was so much fun. Yes, our family reunion lasts a whole 5 days!!

Be back soon with this weeks **FIND**.

Toodles.

What's Going On?

2010-07-17T18:23:00.002-04:00

It has been CRAZY around here. Summer Fever has set in and we have been on the go! Though the summer heat has crippled the intensity of the "go" a smidge, we are making do. Last week, before we left to head to Nana and Puddin's for the family 4th of July, we hit the 40th hinge of Hell.

That's right! 126.2*!! Here. Where I live. And the temps have hovered around that since!! (weatherman's prediction of a High of 98*, my foot!!)

So, lucky for us, we had an option and made a run for the lake. Thank Sweet Baby Jesus! The water level is back up and it was a cool 80*. (Which I might add is unlike our pool right now that is hotter than bath water.) Our friends spent the weekend with us, too and it was much enjoyed and a relaxing weekend (even WITH Energy Bee)!

Then last Friday, Nana and Pudding came over to visit and check out the new Casa. We got their stamp of approval, along with a day of shopping and household projects. I discovered a little store called Tuesday Morning. I know, it's been around forever, but I was always afraid to go in b/c I KNEW I would want everything in there. SUCH GREAT DEALS! OMG! I finally found some bath rugs for our Master Bath that I can live with (for now) and the AWESOME GI-NORMOUS hammered silver bowl do-dad for the living room.

Isn't it great!! King Bee even wanted to take it for the HPL.

And then we went to Lowe's (of all places) and I finally found some Lamp Shades for my Pottery Barn Outlet lamps I've been saving for the LR. I got them a few years ago on a trip to the outlet mall, near the lake, with my Sister-In-Law. Nothing special but they certainly make me happier!

We are still working on the wall-art. I have one piece I am in process with and King Bee is ordering me a print of this beautiful picture he took when we went to Palmetto Bluff one year. It's one of my favorite pieces and will look terrific above my fireplace.

I was also able to score the LAST 2 black rocking chairs in the state on Tuesday! It was kinda cray-zay trying to get them in my car to bring home. I know for sure I put on a good show in the parking lot trying to stuff them in my car...and then again in my driveway when I was trying to get the suckers out. But, they are lovely. And I'm happy. I am going to fashion some cute little pillows for them to make them look inviting......but not too inviting, I don't want someone stealing them. And I have an idea for some front door decor.

Have a great weekend, ya'll.

The Find

2010-07-12T12:21:00.002-04:00

**The FIND**
Week of 7.12.10 thru 7.16.10

I would like to dedicate this weeks find to my brother. My baby brother. My ONLY brother. I found these last week and wanted to save them for just one more week (besides I had to find a way to scan them into the computer) in celebration of his BIRTHDAY this week.

On Thursday, Brother Bee will be 32 years old. This makes me feel old. Not that 34 is old. It's not. But the fact that my baby brother is 32 makes me seem OLD. Doctors say that you usually can't remember much before the age of 5 or 6, but I remember the day my brother was born. I was 2.5 yrs old. I remember holding my dad's hand as we rode the elevator at the hospital to go visit my mom and new baby brother. I was in a leotard coming from dance and on the way to stay with my Aunt. I was wearing pig-tails. They were really tight. I looked Asian. (that was the pony-tail/pig-tail trademark in my family.) I remember this because I was petrified. I didn't like hospitals. I spent alot of time there when I was little b/c of my asthma. But I was going to see what came out of my momma's belly.

It was my Bubba.

And I remember THIS moment, too. I was a proud Big Sister. I loved him.....Until I realized he couldn't play with me like I wanted. But once he could move around, I loved him again and we were inseparable.

And adorable.

And there was this one time when our parents were painting the kitchen and thought it would be a good idea to buy us a pouch of Bubba Chew-ing Gum. And I thought it would be a good idea to teach Brother Bee how to blow bubbles with it. NOT!!

He quickly took my hair from this:(hair to my butt)

to This:

My Dad cried. I honestly believe, to this day, that he wanted me to be the next Crystal Gayle.

But we were still the best of buds.

He even completed my outfit, from time to time.

Today, things have changed a little bit. We are older, and gray-er. We (unfortunately) are not as close as we used to be; something I would desperately like to change. Life has taken over and we have jobs and families that demand most of our time.

But he's still my Bubba. And I love him very much!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Brother Bee!

PLEASE STAND BY......

2010-07-08T14:20:00.001-04:00

I know last week I said I would have a weekly post about something I found and that you are on pins and needles over there just waiting to see what I have for this week.

Well folks, I promise not to dissappoint, much!! I have something! Something REALLY good. And I am working on it. But for reasons I cannot disclose, just yet (i.e. permission slips and liability waivers), you will have to wait until next week. Now, I know I can find something dumb to bring to you so that I don't interrupt your weekly routine (and trust me, I thought about it), but this BLOG is about QUALITY (pa-hahahahaah). So, you will just have to wait. (~~~evil laughter ensues~~~)

Ohhh, Oooookay, I will give you a hint:

"It's the ONLY one I have."

Did that clear it up for you?

Meanwhile, I doubt I will be up for entertaining you guys this weekend. (I know how terribly sad you all are) I have some major Dental Demolition happening tomorrow ( I get to undergo anesthesia for) and Nana and Puddin' are coming to visit for a long weekend. I know we just got back from their house on Monday, but I guess they love and missed me so much already that they just had to see me again! Who could blame them????

However, if anything worth telling you about happens, I'll let you know!

Oooh Say Can You See............

2010-07-02T15:53:00.003-04:00

The Bee Hive Times

What do you get when you.......

We've Only just Begun..............

I crawled out from under my rock....

Duh!

Voluntary Torture, Part II

I "SEW" Did It!

Scouting for Fellow Blogging Belles

THE FOLLOWING WAS COPIED FROM The Speckled Dog blog. PLEASE VISIT The Speckled Dog TO LEAVE YOUR COMMENT IF YOU ARE INTERESTED.

************************************************************

Scouting for Fellow Blogging Belles

I'm alive.....

A light Bulb went off......

I GOT A BIG GIRL IRON.........FOR REAL!

No Sew Garden Flag (long tutorial and lots of pictures)

Our 8th Annual Derby Party.....Kentucky style

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

Wall Art on the CHEAP

Wordless Wednesday

Count Down to the Greatest 2 Minutes in Sports......

Lessons and Confessions

When I Grow Up.....

And we are back....

State of Emergency

GIVE AWAY *****WINNER*****

And we have progress!

Easter Decoration or an offering to the Fertility Gods....YOU be the judge.

She HAS to be my long lost sister!!

I NEED COOKIES!!

The things we do for kids......

ANOTHER Giveaway!!! WHaaaaaaaaaaat?!?!?!

Mom and Russ' Wedding

A Littel Bit O'Fun

And the WINNER is..................

*****GIVE AWAY*****

One more try.....

The Bleek Zone

HEADS UP!!!

Only after.........

What's the Buzz? (WARNING: a really long post with lots of pictures)

Save my place......

Much betta'

Since I didn't go blind... **UPDATED**

Bookworm

Getting back at IT

The season of Maintenance...

What's Happening at the HIVE

My ELEVEN for 2011

Somebody needs to start saving for BAIL $$

Merry Christmas!!

Nothing went as planned...

Happy Birthday, Worker Bee!

Merry Christmas!!

Getting OLD can be soo much fun!!

I have so much to be Thankful for....

All good things must come to an end.......

I feel like I won the Lottery!!

Christmas came early!!!

Ya gotta start somewhere....

This will be "A First"

Quite possibly the MOST traumatic experience...EVER!

Man Down.....sike!

Slacker.....well, kind of.

GAME.......COCKS.......

STOLEN......

Lessons Learned

I take it back.....

It's a glorious day!!

Perhaps.....Part Deaux

I cannot see from the tears in my EYES...

Perhaps.....

Project DONE!!

So says the King.......

**The Find**

You gotta see these

I THINK I LOST MY MIND

**The Find**

A Little Dab Will Do Ya!

What's Going On?

**The Find**

GIVE AWAY WINNER

GIVE AWAY

Since I didn't go blind... UPDATED

The Find

The Find

The Find