l

l is for...

...limes. real limes. fake limes. lime green. limes in margaritas. limes in corona. lime sorbet. a bowl of limes on the table instead of flowers. lime green paint on the wall. lime green bells of ireland.

...late. i'm always late. late to everything. and if i'm not late i'm way early. but that rarely happens.

...light. i love day light savings time. i love it when it stays light longer. that the kids can play outside longer. that it's not dark by 6:00. that we can be outside in the light until 8 or 9.

...lipstick. my little one loves lipstick as much as i do. shiny pink lipfusion is our current favorite.

k

k is for...

...kids. i adore my sweet sweet little ones.

...king. that's what madeline calls alex. "i will be the princess and you can be my king." i guess it fits.

...kfc. yes. kfc. i am still sick and when i am sick i want kfc mashed potatoes. not chicken. nothing else. just kfc mashed potatoes. don't ask why. it's just one of those things that only sounds good when you're sick.

...kansas. the place i've spent most of my life. not a bad place. just not a very interesting place.

...king tut. i was fascinated by king tut when i was a kid. made me want to be an archaeologist. clearly my path didn't take me that way, but it inspired me to learn and explore.

j

j is for...

...jinxed. exactly how i feel today. i jinxed myself. said just the other day how i hadn't been sick all winter and what happens on the first day of spring? i wake up with the flu. jinxed people. jinxed.

...julie. not only my name, but my best friend's name, too. hence the name twoyulies. she is bright and witty. and listens to me. we've been friends since college and we'll be friends forever. we've been through good and bad together. ups and downs. fun and no fun. land and sea. she's a part of the family.

...jeanne. smart, sassy jeanne. my austin friend who loves the good things and a day at the spa as much as i do. she's savy and silly and independent and successful and a great mom. i love that she owns her own business has interests and thinks big. she does cool things like surf camp and has grea ideas. she lives in a cool place and best of all she's a great listener.

...jamie. sweet silly jamie. jamie who always sees the good through the clouds. jamie who

loves to shop like I do, jamie who endured the utter ridiculousness and ignorance of gd with me, jamie who my kids adore, jamie who always has a smile and witty word, jamie who's crazy fun life inspires me to be young.

...jam. on toast, as cake filling raspberry, peach, blueberry. summer mornings. bread and jam for francis one of my most favorite kid's books.

...java. oh how i love the stuff. i've been trying to cut back, but i love nothing more than a good cup of java in my hand in the a.m.

...jealous. oh i can get pretty good and green with envy. people who are living my life with lots of wide open spaces, beautiful scenery and creative minds. i am blessed with what i have, but somedays i do get a little green.

...just. just because. i seem to say that alot these days to my four year old.

i

i is for...

...icecream. neapolitan is my current favorite. But a vanilla dipped cone from dairy queen is always perfect.

...indecisive. probably the best word to describe me.

...imagination. people with imaginations amaze me. i get alot of energy from mine.

...installation. yeah! new countertops installed yesterday! our semi-remodel of our kitchen is coming together.

h

h is for...

...hello kitty. such a happy little creature. have you seen the hello kitty vw bug cruising around town? perfect.











...hyacinths - mine are starting to poke their little faces through the frozen ground. I hope the
snow that's predicted for Easter morning
doesn't get to them.

...hair. i just chopped nine inches off of mine for pantene beautiful lengths. it was time.

...house. i loved to play house as a kid. now that i'm sort of all grown up, and play house for real, the game is different. somedays it's more fun than others.

...holiday. i love holidays. all the planning and preparing. the wonder and excitement. it's especially fun to watch holidays unfold through my little's eyes.

...health. something i'm working on improving this year.

g

g is for...

...girl. my little one, is the girliest girl i know. all about pink, princesses and perfect (her new favorite word).

...glee. pure unadulterated fun silly full of laughs glee. like running into the ocean on a chilly december day.

...greece. somewhere i've always wanted to visit. specifically santorini. someday.

...good. i try to be good. think good thoughts, do good deeds, be good to myself and others. sometimes it's harder than others, but i try.

...gossip. yes a guilty pleasure. celebrity gossip and all the craziness that goes along with it.

...gap trash. sounds crazy. but I love to get floor displays and marketing material that is destined for the trash. you never know what cool stuff you'll come across.

...gummy bears. i've loved little squishy bears since i was little.

f

f is for...

...flip flops. my all time favorite shoes. can't wait to be able to break them out of the closet again. I especially am in love with eliza b. flips. most certainly the best ones. 8 pairs and counting.

...frosting flowers. enough said.

...family. i am blessed with a great family. super duper littles, max and mads, supportive parents and a terrific husband that puts up with my scatter-brainedness.

...french fries. one of the five food groups, right?

...flowers. i adore all kinds of flowers - peonies, tulips, hyacinths, delphinum, gerbera daisies. unexpected flower deliveries from someone is always a treat, but buying a fresh cut garden bunch at the farmer's market is also lovely.

...farmer's market. i love going to the farmer's market in the summer and loading up on fresh veggies and flowers.

...fir trees. yes. fir trees. my favorite for xmas trees. nothing smells better than a fresh christmas tree.

e

e is for...

...egads. it's snowing. AGAIN.

...early. i'm never early to anything. i mean anything. but i do love early morning when everyone is still asleep and the house is still quiet.

...eggs and easter. we're decorating easter eggs today. guess we'll be eating egg salad all week.

...ebay. i have a love/hate relationship with ebay. i love that i can find anything and everything i'm looking for, and that i can turn around and sell the craziest things. i hate the bureaucracy, the slow-canned response answers and the fees. but i still sell and buy like crazy.

d

d is for...

...delightful. one of my most favorite words.

...dog. ours is a shihtzu named twinkle. she's the snuggliest little one. this am i awoke with her asleep on my pillow next to me.

...diorama. i loved building these in grade school.

...delphinium. love love love these flowers.

...delaware. an odd place to visit. but somewhere i've grown to love vacationing at each summer at the shore.

...duh. one of my best words as a kid.

...doughnut. a good indulgence on a sunday morning. we found the best doughnuts this summer at a little place called the fractured prune (cool name, huh?). they make the doughnuts fresh for you and then you get to chose what toppings you want on them. hot gooey and crispy and all served in a frisbee!

c

c is for...

...crabs. delicious and cute little critters.

...cupcake. just a happy little indulgence.

...curls. even though i spend most days fighting them. they do come in handy on those hot humid days when everyone else's hair falls flat.

...coat. although i hate wearing them in the winter, i think nothing is lovelier than a bright pop of color in a rain coat on a rainy day. my current favorite is a bright green.

...catimini. i know a shameless promotion, but i adore this french brand of kid's clothing. so colorful, eclectic, and forward. fabulous.

...craft. i'd like to consider myself crafty - in the arty sense but time is tight these days to actually accomplish much crafting.

...china. not the country, but that's ok, too. but the dishes. as i mentioned yesterday, i love to collect dishes, and china is included. good dishes make event he most humble meal taste better. if there's one thing i've learn - don't scrip on the china.

...collecting. i love to collect. have ever since i was a little kid. everything dishes, jadeite, clothes, jewelry, cookbooks, silverware, flowers, and more.

...coffee. my necessity for starting a day. also discovered to be good in the p.m., too.

b

...is for

...blueberries. I love blueberries, in muffins, pancakes, fresh from the box. One of my favorite memories of summer vacations when I was kid was picking blueberries in northern Minnesota. I don't mean going to a farm and picking. I mean going out in the woods with my tin pail and seeking them out. Remember the book, Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey? That's what it was like. Bears and all.

...baking. A way to clear my mind and create something that makes people happy. I love to bake and create new things. There's something very soothing to me in the measuring and combining that helps me to relax. Who doesn't love a batch a fresh, home-made chocolate chip cookies? Plus, I love it when Madeline refers to me as being a good cooker.

...best friends. My friends all bring different things to my life. They're all an intricate part of who I am. I'll write more about each of them as I go through the alphabet.

...boxes. Yes, crazy, but i love boxes. Not the ugly brown cardboard ones, although these do deserve some respect, but the decorative pretty ones that carry bits of happiness in them. Perhaps a little jewelry box? a tin (yes, I think this falls within the realm of box) with a goodie inside. The box that contains girl scout thin mint cookies, a pizza box, a box of new shoes, a box hidden away in a closet long ago and just discovered with all sorts of treasures and the brown
box that arrives in the mail full of special stuff you've ordered from somewhere.

...beach. ahh how i love the beach. the sand, the surf, the shells, the sights and sounds. i can lose myself at the beach in a book, with my toes in the sand and a cool drink next to me. the noise of the kids running around chasing birds and building sandcastles. the smell of suntan lotion, the spray of the surf and the craziness that overtakes people at the shore. washing the sand and lotion off at the end of the day. and the good night sleep that comes after a day of sun and salt water.

...bowls. yes. bowls. i love to collect dishes. (10 sets and counting). but mostly i love to collect bowls. all shapes and sizes. all colors and patterns. old, new, thrift, ebay, target, williams sonoma. bowls have so many uses. of course holding food, but also storing trinkets, displaying candles, holding knick-knacks, and drinking coffee.

...birds. i love birds. especially in the spring when they are all coming back to nest. this am i was awakened to the sound to the sounds of birds chirping. surely this means that spring must be here....

i've been inspired by an ... A

well, people, i've been inspired. i've seen something called a meme - something that rhymes with dream - basically a list of questions that you see somewhere that you're inspired to answer.

so here's my inspiration - the alphabet. i'm going to take a letter a day and answer "a (and so on) is for..." something that relates to my life. like r is for raspberries...and why i love them. c is for cookie and all the cookies i love....

i think it will be really fun and an interesting commentary on my present life to look back on later. join me!

so here goes...

a is for....

...apple green. my absolutely positively mostest favoritest color. it is bright and cheerful and always makes me feel better when i am blue. if i could paint my house this color i would. instead i just settle for my bright green door and hope of painting my kitchen this color.

...a.m. nothing better than a quiet house, a cup of coffee, my slippers and a day ahead of me.

...amazing. and all the amazing things my littles do each day. max's power of language is growing by leaps and bounds every moment. madeline's inquisitiveness, thoughtfulness and zaninest is a delight.

...audrey. my brother's fiance. she's a delightfully witty, very interesting and terribly creative person. she'll be a fun addition to the family.

...apple. not the fruit. not my favorite. certainly it's good in a crisp or a french apple pie, but it's better when it's glowing on my computer. apple the company. i am amazed by all the cool stuff i learn each day on my apple.

no socks.

i've given up. i've broken out the flip flops inside the house, not outside yet. give me a few more days on that. but what i have affirmatively and decisively decided is that i've decided that i'm done with winter. done with cold. done with bundling up. done with heavy coats and gloves and mittens and scarves. done with the snow and the ice and the slush and the sleet and the overall mess that jack frost sends our way. but mostly, i'm just done with socks.

i know. not much of a stand. but a stand nonetheless. take that winter.

doing it your self.

so the little comment "let's repaint the kitchen cabinets" has now blown three weekends. the kitchen is still a disaster, dust has settled on everything, but i think the end might actually be in site. we finished (well almost) painting the cabinets today - ok so I did. we still have to work on the island, but i'm going to tackle that one with a friend as well as the walls. So much for just redoing the cabinets. the new countertops are coming in a couple of weeks, the new sink is in the garage and i'm desperately seeking a new faucet. how exciting my life has become. ah the excitement.

at least we got in our 45 minute break at Starbucks this am while we ditched the littles at sunday school :).

Doing my civic duty.

yes, I know. People think there is only one election this year. But actually, there are 4 here in this Kansas county. The next one is April 1st. Yes, that's right. April Fool's day. But seriously. There is an election and people should get out and vote. Spent my morning at "refresher" election worker training. The things people get hung up on...cell phones in particular.

Question after question about cell phones and voting...Did you know that while there is no law against talking on your cell phone while voting, it is considered electioneering if you are talking on your phone while voting and in talking you discuss what you are doing. Who would've thought? Now, I think you should probably pay attention while you're perusing those screens and making your selections (so you don't make the wrong choice as other's clearly have in the past), others feel that they can talk and vote at the same time. Just watch out for those election workers!

I appreciated the answer to the question of what if someone gets mad when you ask them to get off their cell phone? Call 911...duh. What a morning.

enough.

march 7 and more snow. surely spring is on its way? where are the birds? I'd stay south, too if I were them.

it's been a long time. a long time.

hair today, gone tomorrow. two long years. ten long inches. all gone in a snip of the scissors. a good deed done, but woefully a bit of regret, too. while it had been driving me crazy for months, i had grown quite attached to it, too. short hair in a matter of an instant. what's next?