A NEW YEAR ON THE HORIZON

Another new year is on the horizon and at this point, my new calendar is blank. A. big. blank. slate!

I am amazed at how fast each year goes. I was talking to my boss the other day and I asked him if he made New Year's Resolutions. He does not ... and neither do I. It's funny how the majority of us see the new year as the time to make changes, when we can make those same changes when the sun comes up on each new day (I'm sort of one of those people) Each new day brings new possibilities ... get organized, start losing that last 20 pounds (me!!!), etc.

Although I do not make resolutions, I do make lists/goals. I am such a list person ... I write lists at home, at work, everywhere! I love having a long list and at the end of each day, most everything is crossed off. Satisfaction! On my list so far for the year is:

• To blog at least every other day and to figure out how to make my blog look better with a cute header and background.
• To organize that recipe cabinet (remember those pictures from an earlier post?).
• To regularly sell on ETSY
• I also want to become better at technical stuff .... like figuring out how to use the IPOD Shuffle my hubby got me for Christmas.
• I want to be walking five miles a day by April.
• And to just become a better person all around (this is definitely a daily process)!

Now see how I just made a list?? And just so we're all clear ... these are not resolutions ... they are goals!! LOL

I have been checking most of your blogs regularly and I sounds like everyone had a really nice Christmas. Mine was nice, too!! Big Christmas Eve dinner with whole family at my Mom's and then quieter/relaxing Christmas Day at home with hubby and son. I got a lot of gift cards and money ... love that!!!! I also got a nice bonus at work! Yippee!!!!

I have to show you what I got with some birthday money that I still had from October. Isn't this too cute? And unusual ... I've never seen another one ...

It is a wood cookbook holder with two birds on either side. The birds look like big, fat quail (or partridges) to me. It's a fun item for my kitchen counter. Everyone have a safe New Year's tonight!!! See you in 2010! :-)

IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE AT YELLOW BEACH DOG

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Hope all of your shopping is done ... mine is ... finally! Whew! Just finished up yesterday. My Christmas Brunch was very fun but alot of work. On the menu was: Holiday Chicken Salad on Croissants, Egg Salad on white bread, Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake, Yummy Breakfast Pastry, Chile Cheese Pinwheels (got this recipe off of My Romantic Home last week. Cindy made them for a party ... they are a winner!), and a very new recipe ... Artichoke Quiche. Everything was yummy! And I made chocolate dipped pretzel sticks tied with a ribbon and cookie cutter for all the ladies to take home as their memento of the day. I have also been doing so much baking ... sugar cookies, thumbprint cookies, peanut butter balls, Chocolate Christmas Bark, etc. Now all I have to do is make the lasagna for dinner tonight at my Mom's and for dessert ... The Pioneer Woman's Bread Pudding with Whiskey sauce. This is the BEST bread pudding I have ever had. I will leave you with some pictures of my Christmas Brunch (click on picture for full view).

THE WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS!!!

Boy ... I have been so busy ... between work and getting ready for my brunch

on Saturday ... but I did take time to take some pics of my house all spruced

up for the holidays! And I wanted to stop in and say hi to all of you!! Thank you

to all of you that faithfully read my very insignificant blog! I feel as though we

are all friends! Here are the pics (don't forget ... if any is cut off, click on them

for a full view):

I love old Shiny Brite ornaments!! I have a ton of boxes of them!

I save vintage bottle brush trees ... here are a

few:

Here is one of my brothers and myself (I was

about 15 months old) on Santa's lap in 1961:

Here are all three of my brothers

(before I was born) on Santa's lap in the 50's:

This one you will definitely need to click

on for a full view -- I didn't want to take

too much of the right side of it because

that where our paper shredder is.

I mentioned in my last post that I had a

funny story about one of the brunch gifts

I gave to the girls. About 10 years ago,

I did a garden brunch and for the favor

for them to take home, I purchased herbs

and little terra cotta plants. I was going

to replant them into the little pots. Well,

my Dad was a master gardener and he

sweetly volunteered to replant them all

for me. Once he got them done,

he brought them by my house. I set

them on the entry table the morning

of the tea. Well, once the tea was over

and I start to let everyone take

their herb, we notice there are ants

everywhere ... in the plants, on the table,

everywhere! I found out my Dad had

used soil that he had outside that

had ants in it and he never even noticed.

My Dad has now been gone for 7 years

so this is just another one of those fond

memories that I have of him! :-)

Next post I will be sharing my brunch

photos and menu!!!

OH MY ... IT'S ALMOST DECEMBER!!!

Can you all believe that it's December 1st tomorrow??? I hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving. Mine was nice ... most of my family (some could not make it) had dinner at my Mom's. She lives here in town close to me. I have officially started all of my Christmas decorating! I usually start the day after Thanksgiving. I am just about done with everything ... except we need to get the tree, which we will do sometime this week. Here are a few pictures. I will post lots more once I am all done!

Do you see the picture above? That's a cardboard Nativity set from the 40s. My Mom found it while she was working at the library doing book sorting. Isn't it cool? My hubby found Fletcher chewing on the star yesterday ... bad kitty!!!!

I think I told all of you that I was going to be hosting a Christmas Brunch in a few weeks? I love to give a brunch for my friends & cousins at least twice a year. I do not let them bring anything and they always go home very full and happy! And they always take away a little memory of the day ... in the past, they have left with: a metal bird, a vintage Christmas brooch, an potted herb (I have a funny story about this gift!), a vintage Christmas hanky, a teacup, and the list goes on. This is always my special gift to my special friends!! I like to pamper them for a day. This year, I am invited four friends and three of my cousins ... they have not all met but I really think they will get along fabulously!!! So ... anyhoo ... I am planning out the brunch menu and I go to my recipe cabinet and this is what I found:

Isn't that pathetic? I am actually a very organized person but apparently, each time I've used a recipe, I haven't put it back where it goes. It will be a miracle if I can find the recipes I am needing for the brunch. Wish me luck!!!! :-) Organizing this cabinet is first on my "To Do" list for the New Year!!!!

AND THE WINNER IS ...

Happy Monday to everyone!! I had a good shopping weekend! I stopped by the store close to my home that is open just once a month and look at what I got ... (click on picture to see fully)

Everything was a steal ... I collect vintage bottle brush trees and one of these has fruit on it ... I don't have one like that. Aren't those napkin rings so cute??!! I got the silver platter, two metal flying reindeer, four (yes, four!) boxes of vintage Shiny Brite ornaments (all original boxes), a vintage Christmas corsage and some 1950s Gurley candles. I'm not sure yet what I will be keeping for myself or selling on eBay.

And now ... drum roll please ... the winner of the book and birds is ...

Michelle from Chocolate & Marmalade Tea!! Michelle's kitty's are pretty sick right now so if you could send up some kitty prayers, I know she would appreciate it!! Thank you to all of you that entered my giveaway and for all your nice comments. I hope you continue to visit me at Yellow Beach Dog!

IT'S A GIVEAWAY!!!

Time for another giveaway! Cindy over at My Romantic Home is hosting it. Make sure you check out her blog to see who else is a part of the giveaway.

I'm giving away to one lucky winner a Mary Englebreit Gardening Journal, plus two cute wooden, hand-painted birds. To enter, just leave a comment. If you would like your name entered twice, please put a link on your blog telling about my giveaway. Let me know if you do this so I can put your name in the "hat" twice. :-) I will be picking the winner on Sunday evening, November 15. No entries after 6 p.m. PST Sunday.

HALLOWEEN AND SUGAR COOKIES!

How was your Halloween? Did you stay home and pass out candy? Or go to a party? My hubby and I were wishing we had a party to go to but no one we knew was having one. Guess we should have had one! Well I got the pumpkin carved in the afternoon and all the goodie bags made up to hand out and waited for that first knock on the door!

I also made Sugar Cookies earlier in the day...pumpkins and cats. I iced one cat cookie in orange in honor of Fletcher! :-) Normally I ice these cookies with Betty Crocker Creamy Classic Vanilla Frosting but since I didn't have any, I made a frosting, which actually was better in that it hardened faster so I was able to stack the cookies easier. These are the BEST sugar cookies I have ever had. I got this recipe from one of my oldest and dearest friends. We have been friends since we were teens!

Here are a few more pictures of my porch and Fall decorating! See the cool yellow chair (you will have to click on the photo to see it)? I have three of those. I got them at a garage sale for $2 each ... can you believe that? Wasn't that a steal????!!!! I thought so!

SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup butter, softened

1 8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 cups sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. baking power

3 1/2 cups flour

Cream together butter and cream cheese. Add sugar and egg - blend. Add vanilla and almond extract - blend well. Mix in baking powder and flour. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes. Mix a little flour and powered sugar together and spread on counter. Roll out dough on floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Sugar Cookie Frosting

4 cups powered sugar

1/2 cup shortening

5 tablespoons milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

food coloring

Cream shortening in a large bowl. Add powered sugar and blend until smooth. Gradually add the milk and vanilla, mixing well until smooth and stiff ... about 5 minutes. Color with food coloring as desired. (I cut this recipe in half and had enough for all my cookies).