Hospitals are Fun - Who Knew?

In my small town, there are not many things to do on a sweltering end-of-July day. So, where do my boys like to hang out on a day such as this? Our new hospital, of course! Why? "They have free wi-fi and good coffee!" they will tell you.

Is there a career in medicine in their future? More likely, video game design.

The wi-fi is for them, and the coffee is for me. They have learned that, if they mention coffee, it increases the chance that I'll take them where they want to go. And, by the way, I don't care if there is a heat index of 109 outside. I love my coffee! Inside the hospital it's quite cool, so I can sit and drink away while the boys play games at lego.com  or www.spongebobwhatever until my computer battery runs out. As an added bonus, I always run into someone I know (from church usually - we are good presbyterians) who works there, so I get the chance to do some "visiting."

Would you like to take a guess at how we rounded out our Friday?

Yes, we went to a bull riding tournament/contest (or whatever it's called). A first for all four of us. The event was a fundraiser for a local medical clinic, and Mr. Perfect was a sponsor. It was actually pretty entertaining - the crowd as much as the contestants. (Why, young "country girls" do you need to wear boots when it is 96 and humid at 8:00 in the evening? I guess they do look better with your Daisy Dukes than a comfortable pair of flip flops would.) Sorry, I have no pictures of the actual bull riding as I was too busy swatting killer gnats to take more than this one photo.

Mr. Perfect, is it just me, or is your neck turning a peculiar shade of red?


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I miss Williams-Sonoma + a Giveaway

I did not realize how much I miss Williams-Sonoma until this Christmas season. Mr. Perfect and I always went there and picked up some treats for our kitchen around this time of the year. Their products are not the least expensive ones around. However, any time we had a problem with something we bought there, they made it right. Also, whenever you go into a W-S store between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, there is something yummy baking or brewing. It smells so good there!

We gave this to our moms last year. I hope they are using them. If not, they should feel free to send it my way. LOL

I LOVE nutcrackers. I'd like to have a Christmas table set with this one day.

I'm afraid that if I had a box of these right now I'd eat the whole thing!

I'm thinking about trying to make this at home this year. Anyone have a good recipe?

We buy these to use December 26th after our Boxing Day dinner.

If you like to make espresso drinks at home, I recommend giving Illy a try.

In previous years, we've stocked up on mulling spices once they go on sale near Christmas. I cannot find them on the website now. I also can't find any cocktail mixers. I used to buy one each year to put in Mr. Perfect's stocking - kind of a joke since he didn't drink them, but just mixed them for me. I don't see them either. I wonder what happened? Maybe they are still in the stores. I think I'll take a drive to Augusta this weekend to check it out...


Now, for some fun: monogramchick has a super giveaway going right now. Drop on by her blog to check it out. Winners will be announced Sunday, so hurry!  Don't you love these cut travel mugs?

¡Feliz Navidad, amigas bonitas!

Committing Commerce

   Hi, there. As of last night, I absolutely could not stand the thought of sitting in this house one more day. There isn't a lot to do here in our new town that does not involve being outside. And, since it's so hot, we have pretty much been sitting in the house doing nothing but watching tv and playing with Legos.  Here are a few of the boys' creations:

A Lego City

A Lego Helicopter and Helo-pad  

   I decided that the boys and I needed a day trip to Savannah to do some shopping. I hit Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Sam's Club and Toys 'r Us (or "Toys for Us" as Boy 2 calls it). We even went to Chick-fil-A - twice! Oh, how I miss CFA! I could have literally spent all day looking around in BB&B. I went there to buy some T-discs for my new Tassimo coffee maker my in-laws gave me for my birthday. 

Image via Wikipedia

I think I actually stopped in mid-sentence in awe as I walked in the door and saw HOW MUCH STUFF was in that store. I've forgotten what it's like to have a selection. Of course I had a fist-full of those 20% off coupons I'm constantly receiving in the mail. They are worth saving.


   Adjusting to the limited number of quality buying opportunities that a small town offers has been tough. (Now, if you're looking for something made in China that only costs $1, we have 4 different stores for that.) I haven't needed to do a lot of shopping, but it was nice in our former town to be able to run out and get whatever I needed whenever I needed it. Plus, I LOVE shopping and have really missed  it. Savannah is 90 miles away, and I can drive there in about 90 minutes. It's not too far if I have the better part of the day to spend, but I definitely can't just go whenever I feel like it. 


   I'm thinking that I need to do a couple of things when it comes to the shopping transition into my new surroundings. First, I need to do a better job of keeping track of what we need so that I can take care of all of it in one big day trip to Savannah. I'm the queen of lists, so this won't be a problem. Second, I need to become the master of on-line shopping.  I'm a long-time Land's End customer, but I need to expand my horizons.  Any suggestions? 


   The upside of all of this is that we have been spending WAY less money since we moved than we used to, which is nice. I plan to keep it that way. You just don't need as much "stuff" in a small town - less pressure and simpler living.


   Any-hoo. Time to tuck in the boys (45 minutes late). I hope that wherever you are, you're keeping cool. And, let me know if you have any on-line stores that you recommend.

Good night, ya'll.