MelaniePenelope

Saturday 9: Stop! In The Name Of Love

Link up here if you're playing along today!

Saturday 9: Stop! In the Name of Love (1965)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) When this song was popular, the Supremes were known for their long gloves and full-length gowns. When was the last time you got dressed up?

Well, I wear a skirt or dress almost every day lately. I don't know why, since I used to hate them. I got dressed up yesterday for fancy lunch (mystery) shop, and I'll be dressed up for another fancy shop tonight for dinner. Fancy-pants, me! ;)

2) With a record 12 #1 hits, the Supremes remain America's best-selling vocal group. This must have been hard for Betty McGlown, the fourth Supreme, who left the group before they recorded their first song. Can you think of an opportunity you missed?

Of course. Last weekend in Orlando, when we were at my JAFRA conference, I showed up way underdressed to the awards dinner. I had no idea that it was supposed to be a formal event. So I walked in, saw all these ladies in evening gowns and men in tuxes, freaked out and left! I lack so much confidence, it's depressing. Definitely something I need to work on as I build my leadership skills this year. I want to be a District Manager by Christmas. Anyway, I'm babbling...

3) When "the girls" (Diana Ross, Mary Wilson and Flo Ballard) first started hanging around Motown, founder Berry Gordy was reluctant to let them record. After all, they were still in high school. They refused to give up and eventually convinced him to let them add hand claps and finally back up vocals to recordings by other Motown artists. Tell us about a time when your persistence paid off.

I'll have to get back to you on that one. I just got AWESOME news about something I went after, and got it... but I don't know if I'm at liberty to share it just yet! ;) Definitely will be a big deal here at Ye Olde-Fashioned Smelly Blahg...

4) 50 years after its release, "Stop! In the Name of Love" is one of the most popular karaoke songs. Do you know the lyrics?

Those are pretty much all the lyrics I know, along with "Before you break my heart... think it oh-oh-ver..."

5) There's a children's playground named in Diana Ross' honor within New York's Central Park. It includes swings, slides, rope bridges and a fountain. When you played in the park, what did you run to first?

I used to love the swings, especially the tire swings. Back in college, my friend Kristal and I used to drive out to the park in South Beach in the middle of the night and go on the swings together. I still think of that whenever I go to SoBe!

6) Diana stumbled in her high heels and broke her ankle as she left the stage after a November 2012 concert. What do you have on your feet right now?

My toenails are painted red. Other than that, not a thing on my feet. I love being barefoot! Of course, I live in a house full of LEGO bricks, so it's not always awesome.

7) Ever the trooper, she honored her commitment to perform at a White House-sponsored Christmas concert just weeks later, even though her leg was still in a cast. Tell us about a time when you "played hurt."

I'm not so good at that. I'm a big weenie wimp. But mostly I get migraines, which I don't play around with. I don't take pain medicine for much else at all, and I'm at about a 7-8 for other issues right now, so I guess that is my answer. Headaches, though, cripple me. 

8) Young Diana Ross was a good student and a tough competitor who made her school's swim team. Are you a good swimmer?

I can swim, but not really fast. I can tread water like a champ, however!

9) Diana's older sister, Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee, was the first African American woman to be appointed dean of an American medical school. Decades ago, Barbara juggled post-graduate studies and raising small children. Are you good at multi-tasking?

 I never stop! I don't know how to do just one thing. Forget relaxing. Not me; I can never relax.

Thanks for stopping by!

Fin.

2015 JAFRA National Conference - Orlando

I've mentioned a few times now that we went up to the Orlando area this past few days so that I could attend the 2015 JAFRA National Conference. There, many new things were revealed to us, and it was fabulous and exciting in so many ways! The logo above ("JAFRA" is really in purple, but it didn't Instaphoto well), in our new colors and proprietary fonts, was among them. This sign was actually on the ground in several places throughout the property where the conference was held.

The conference was held at Orlando's LOEWS Royal Pacific Resort near Universal. After Rob, who drove me there from our Kissimmee hotel on Friday morning, dropped me off, I walked from the valet area to the lobby. This was the first view I had of the Royal Pacific. I think I literally said out loud, "Wow, we should have stayed here!"

Stepping into the lobby, I found several different displays of parasols in an Oriental style. There were gift shops in the sprawling lobby as well as an abundance of other candy. It was truly beautiful. I couldn't wait to show the children, which I was finally able to do on Sunday before we departed for Homestead.

Elephants are my favorite land animal, so of course I had to photograph the beautiful fountain full of them out in the lobby center. The pictures just don't do this hotel justice. It was a sight to behold.

JAFRA really went all out in decorating our area of the conference center for this event. There was signage, there were banners, there were ... ahh. Parts of it were truly breathtaking. Unfortunately, I left my Nikon's SD card back at our hotel on Friday and some of the displays were only available that day, so I missed out on a lot of potential.

The first exciting workshop I entered was about our new online platforms. It was awesome and contained lots of information about our ability to reach various social media audiences, often at the click of a button. For instance, you can now shop online with me right on my JAFRA Facebook page, pay for your order, and have it shipped directly to you. This is wonderful because, until now, my clients had to wait for me to place their orders, receive them, ship them out myself, and risk damage. I am loving this!

If you'd like, you can also sign up for my JAFRA newsletter here, or you can read my JAFRA blog here!

In my next workshop, I learned so much about new products that will be revealed - soon! We took a skin age test, and I discovered that my skin age is about the same or maybe a few years younger than my chronological age of 38. Yay, thanks JAFRA!

I gave the skin age test to Hubs later and, since he hasn't really used all the JAFRA products I've given him while dealing with his brain tumor saga, understandably his skin age was about a decade or so older than his real age. But no worries! We have several options to treat that, and now that he's in full-on recovery mode, we're going to get him looking younger and healthier than he has been, too. ;)

We had two professional makeup artists come in next to show us a few tips and demonstrate a day and night look on a couple of Consultants in the audience. One of my favorite tips was that you should air-dry your mascara before each application to prevent clumping. My favorite product, which I wear almost every single day, is our Black Lash Maximizing Mascara. It really makes my eyes pop, but I often glop it up and have to re-do parts of my eyes! I tried drying out the wand for a minute or so before applying mine the next morning, and lo and behold, it worked like a dream! Let me know if you try it.

I also learned that for every night you go to bed without taking off your makeup and cleansing, toning, and moisturizing your face (something I'm often guilty of - 'til now), you age your skin five extra days. Eek! I shared that with my girls that night; Sophie, who is notorious for not wanting to wash her face and hands, asked me immediately to help her with some cleansing and moisturizing. Hee. Of course, I was happy to obliged. (Chloë already uses our teen line of skin care; she has beautiful skin.)

In our Fragrance training, I learned so much more about perfumes, colognes, and such. For instance, you know about those people with the best noses in the world, who can perfectly distinguish scents from a complex mixture? Kinda like musicians with perfect pitch? Well, there are only 31 of these perfumers in the whole world, and JAFRA works with them right along with Christian Dior, Ralph Lauren, Chanel, and all of the other fragrance designers. We use the top three fragrance houses to compose our extensive line of fragrances with the help of these perfumers. I am so impressed by this; I had no idea!

* * *

I learned a lot about Leadership Development that day and Saturday, too. I am super excited about this and want to become a third-level manager by Christmas. I'm looking to build a team of motivated people who want to come right along with me into leadership! Comment below with your email address for more information on this fantastic opportunity, and I'll get right back to you. I'm so stoked!

* * *

Friday night, I arrived at our big Freedom Party a tiny bit late, just as stilt-walkers and other performers were dancing down the center aisle of the huge Pacifica Ballroom. They moved too fast for me to get any great pictures, but I snagged this shot from the big screens showing the action:

Some of the dancers coming down the aisle were dancing with the Consultants, and they were so fun! What an energizing event. I loved it!

A couple of the stilts performers posed for me. I love this snap!

Everyone was wearing purple. I didn't know that I was supposed to wear purple until I checked in at the event - a bone of contention for me - but I happened to be wearing something passably close anyway, so I fit in. Phew!

It was great listening to our Ambassadors - the top-level Consultants in JAFRA - be introduced. I knew a lot of the names already, but some were new to me. One day, maybe I'll be up there...

The lady with the microphone - in the reddest of the dresses - was Vickie Hacking. I've known about Vickie since I joined JAFRA 16 years ago, but I've never had the courage to go meet her. She's amazing, earning an average of $22,000 per month with her business! Nothing to sneeze at, eh?

On Saturday morning, during our General Session for training, I took this picture with my Manager, Priscilla [LEFT] and my District Manager, Martha. Lovely ladies, and I adore Priscilla with all my heart. I hadn't seen her in some 13 years!

Our JAFRA USA President, Paolo Moledo, took the stage again during this session. He's such a character! He wants us all to walk and talk about Jafra with serious swagger, because we deserve to. You may not have heard of our company yet, but you should. Our products are of unbelievably high quality, and our opportunity is amazing. I love, love, love it - and this is THE year to join us!

We were given a great deal of information by our Marketing, Sales, Sponsoring, and other executives, but I really loved listening to our Chief Scientific Officer, Pragna Chakravarti. She's extremely intelligent and has developed a line of skin care for JAFRA that is as good as any you'll find in the top department stores. It is as good as any out there. We even have a line of skin care in which every product contains 24-karat gold! All of our products meet and exceed all of our performance tests, dermatological, allergy, and clinical tests. She has high standards - as do I.

Overall, it was a fun, exciting, and informative event, and I'm so glad I was able to go to my first JAFRA event in well over a decade. This year, 2015, is a great year to be in JAFRA, and I'm so glad to be a part of it. Thanks for stopping by!

Fin.

Sundays In My City: Kiss Me In Kissimmee

Link up here if you want to join Unknown Mami in this fun blog hop this week!

 We spent this past Thursday through Sunday in Kissimmee and Orlando, Florida. Our hotel was the Champions World Resort in Kissimmee, on which I got a great rate from Expedia. It was an okay hotel, nothing really wrong with it, but next time I'll take JAFRA's recommendation (we were there for the National Conference) on accommodations. Now that resort was amazing!

I took a few snaps of Rob - who has dropped the puffy weight he gained from being on steroids from his brain tumor saga nearly overnight, and I am so not jealous - and Paco on the bed one night we were there. Paco actually cooperated! I had to turn off the flash, because he blinked every time, and then he just looked and posed for me. What a love. He sorely needs a bath, though, whew! Definitely going to do that later today...

These three nincompoops more or less cooperated for a quickie snap or two. Sophie is almost always the one to do "bunny ears," and as you can see, she is completely incorrigible. I love this picture of my three, because for once I think it's easy to see the resemblance among all the babes!

Speaking of incorrigible, I had told the children that it would be cold on Thursday and Friday, but they should bring their bathing suits anyway, because they could swim all day Saturday when it warmed up again.

Sure enough, Friday came, and it was only 44°F out (as I mentioned in the previous Sunday Stealing post). They begged and inveigled and cajoled and all of that, and I finally caved, telling them we could go to the heated pool only, dip their feeties in only, and if they absolutely MUST jump full-bodily into the water, I would be waiting there with towels for them to come right back out and get dry.

Yeah, they didn't really hear that. They heard, "You can jump right in." And so, that is pretty much what all three of them did.

Jack is my edge-clinger. He stays in the shallow end, always always always. He can swim for short distances, pretty much underwater, but he knows how tall he is and doesn't like to go in water deeper than that!

Sophia, on the other hand, swims like a fish. She's been swimming since she was two or three - and she's the baby of the lot! She lives in the deep end. It's next to impossible to get this child out of the water, and just as soon as you do, she's begging for the next swimming occasion already. She sets random athletic goals for herself, but she has reiterated several times her desire to be an Olympic swimmer. I really need to look into getting her on some kind of team.

Chloë, who is braver than Jack in that she will go to the deep end but still only against the wall, is very timid about learning to swim. She's just afraid. She was afraid to walk - as was Jack - and she's afraid to let go and just swim already. So she's 13½ and still clinging to the wall. It took her until last year just to jump in!  But as you can see, she loves it, so maybe one day she'll get brave and go for a real swim.

Jack loves to do a cannonball and the Dead Man's Float. I told him he's not allowed to do the float unless he tells me first, lest I jump in with all my clothes on - and my Nikon - to rescue him! He's good about following this rule.

And like I said, there is just no stopping Sophia! She walked at seven months without a fear in the world, and she is still fearless and full of non-stop energy. She doesn't even stop moving in her sleep, often hopping from bed to bed to bed while she's half-unconscious. She did this several times in the hotel this weekend, which was nothing unusual. Oy vey, this girl!!

Chloë, who has the least amount of insulating body fat, was the first to get out of the water. While the other two swam and then dried off, she danced to the calypso music being piped out over the pools at our resort. Girl loves to get down! ;)

I'll have more pictures from the JAFRA conference - and the resort where it was held - later. We drove home from about noon to 4:30 on Sunday afternoon, and there were two packages on our porch when we got there. (I never held the mail - oops! - and our box was quite full, too.) Anyway, my Crazy 8 clothing order for the kids had arrived, so I had them all bathe and try on everything. They all looked too cute! I gave the girls each a kitty-eared headband, and Sophia was quick to don this adorable red outfit and then go paint a cat face on herself. She's always drawing, whether it be on paper, the sidewalk (I can never keep enough chalk!), or her own body.

More to come from the conference...!

Fin.

Sunday Stealing: Colorful Meme

 

Link up here if you're playing along this week!

Colorful Meme

Stolen from: Survey Haven

Could you tell me please, what color each of these things are?
~ Your hair: 

Well, I was born a blond and had blond hair until I was five or so. Then it turned mousy-brown. I color it auburn, though; I've done so since May 1995!

~ Your eyes: 

 

My sister is always telling me she misses my "shit-brown eyes." (Hers are blue. Hmph.)

~ Your shirt: 

I just got back from the 2015 JAFRA National Conference in Orlando, and my shirt is exactly this color purple, with exactly this logo.

~ Your socks: 

I wear socks extremely rarely. I'm not wearing any now.

~ Your shoes: 

I rarely wear shoes in the house, either...

~ Your purse: 

I have this 31 Gifts teeny-tiny crossbody, which I wear every single day, except when I use the brown one. The black one recently broke on me, though, but I love it so much I'm going to have it fixed by a seamstress soon. Should cost less than $10, so it's worth it. I'd like ten more, one in every color! They are so small but fit everything I need - except my phone.

~ Your wallet: 

The only wallet I own, separate from my crossbody, is my mom's vintage orange leather one. My dad gave it to me when I was a wee lass, after she died. The only thing I keep in it is a vintage handkerchief, hand embroidered and given to me by a dear friend of my grandmother. 

~ Your phone: 

My Samsung Galaxy S5 is better than the iPhone 5S, from which I upgraded. I'm completely enamored with it. And I have exactly that color of Otterbox Defender protecting it.

~ Your computer/laptop: 

 

I have an HP desktop and printer. I adore them both. The desktop is super-duper fast, which I need. On the contrary, my husband has a Panasonic Toughbook laptop, and it's the slowest processor on the planet. I use it when we travel, and it drives me apeshit. I could seriously write a whole novel in the time it takes that thing to load one page.

~ Your earphones: 

 

I hate earphones and earbuds, partly because I like my music on the loud side and don't want to go deaf, partly because I like to hear what else is going on around me, and partly because I find them uncomfortable!

~ Your best friend’s hair: 

I remember when "Dr. Lisa" got The Rachel Haircut while we were in college. It looked so good on her. She has it a little different now, but I still thing she's a beautiful woman.

~ Your best friend’s eyes: 

 

They're a lovely shade of dark blue.

~ Your sky today:

When we were in Orlando, and it was 44°F on Friday, the kids wanted to go swimming something awful. So, I let them! But we didn't stay long. They pouted, and I promised we'd go to our pool back here at home on any day this week that it's warm enough and doesn't rain. Guess we'll be living at the pool all week! 

Thanks for visiting!

Fin.

Saturday 9: Freeway of Love

So, we were out of town in Orlando since Thursday morning and didn't get home until Sunday afternoon. Here I am, late as usual! Link up here if you're playing along this week.

Saturday 9: Freeway of Love (1985)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Aretha's ideal car is a pink Caddy. What's your dream vehicle?

I would like a Smart car, or a little red Mazda Miata convertible. Something itty-bitty and too cute.

2) Have you ever owned a convertible?

No, but I used to take my dad's for joyrides around his small town! ;)

3) Aretha longs to "drop the pedal and go." Are you a careful, conservative driver? Or do you enjoy going fast? 

You can be careful and fast, right? (I guess that answers that.)

4) Aretha's grandmother Rachel helped raise her. Tell us about one of your grandparents.

My grandmother was amazing. Despite her many health problems, she cared more about my sister and me than I could ever begin to guess. She always - always - had our best interests at heart. Between her and Grandpa, they pretty much made all of my good childhood memories after Mom died. They were the best.

5) Aretha played a waitress in the 1980 movie, The Blues Brothers. Have you ever worked in food service?

There used to be a resort called The Colony Beach and Tennis Resort on Longboat Key off Sarasota, Florida. I worked in catering on the side there, while I did my internship at Mote Marine Lab. And I tell you what, being a server is hard work - and I was pretty awful at it.

6) Aretha was a chain smoker for decades and had a terrible time giving up cigarettes. What habit do you wish you could break?

I wish I could quit drinking Diet Coke, once and for all! I drink many gallons per day. :/

7) A sculpture of Aretha is at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New York City. What's the last museum you visited?

Hmm, it's been a while since I've been to a museum. I'm not sure?!

8) Since Aretha has many honorary degrees, it would be appropriate to refer to her as Dr. Franklin. Who is the last person you addressed by his or her title (Officer, Father, Pastor, Dr., etc.)?

That would be the doctor at the emergency room I visited in Orlando on Saturday night. He was pretty awesome.

9) The daughter of a minister, Aretha enjoys singing "church music" and her 1972 CD Amazing Grace is one of the best sellers in gospel music history. Do you have any gospel music on your phone, iPod or MP3 player?

Nope. I like it once in a great while, in small doses, but not enough to download onto a device, I guess.

Thanks for stopping by!

Fin.

The 2015 Miami Boat Show #Workflow

Of course, I can't tell you exactly what I was doing there, but on Sunday, I had a day-long mystery shop in downtown Miami (at Bayside Mall) and at the Miami Beach Convention Center. We were there for me to "work" at the Miami Boat Show.

Like I said, I can't say why I needed to attend, but I can tell you this: the hosts of the show itself, the sponsors (Progressive Insurance, innumerable boat-related companies, and more), and the hundreds of exhibitors spent beaucoup bucks putting on an extremely impressive event. I've been to other major conventions before, but this one was, by far, the most fantastic.

After we bought our tickets, donned our wristbands, and filled out various and sundry papers to enter the first Exhibition Tent, we meandered around looking at all the sailing-related boats and accessories. We found these awesome Spinlock Deckvests, and the kids went crazy for them. 

We had already been listening to various "Oh, we're gonna need that!" claims from the children over a WiFi-boosting antenna company, life rafts, all kinds of anchors, engines, ropes, and other necessary components of liveaboard boating, so this wasn't a surprise. However, we chose to stop and talk to the Spinlock folks, variously out of the UK and Rhode Island, about their safety vests' designs for children.

The kids were all about 'em. We asked a ton of questions. I picked up a big ol' fatty brochure. We promised to be in touch. And Sophia, naturally, wanted a pink one (which they have). Moving on...

In the same tent, the kids were captivated by this engine-in-a-tank demo set up by one of the companies on the sailboat side of things. They each got to pull the throttle and make it go, and of course we had to worry about Sophia going full-tilt and making it burst. She's always going full-tilt. Our adventurous little wild child, that one...!

I had to admit, it was definitely an effective demonstration.

This woman, talking to the girls about where to jump on the trampoline aft of one of "her" luxury TradeWinds yachts, was April. April was super-nice, pleasant, professional, and helpful - I even admitted to her exactly what we were doing there. I never do that.

April recognized Sophia for the party animal she is, and she remarked that she'll join us on our $10-15,000 TradeWinds cruises and jump with Sophia on the trampoline - and off, into "the drink" (as my beloved Grandpa always called it).

Chloë preferred to lounge on one of the adjustable pads a bit forward of the trampolines, but April persuaded her to do a smidgen of jumping, too. There was quite a bit of cajoling and hand-holding involved in that scenario.

Jack, ever the chicken (like his Mama!), could neither be persuaded to jump nor to completely relaxed. As you can see from my shadow, I stuck by him. Heh.

Paco joined us on this venture. He's a seven-month-old weenie when it comes to us leaving him at home, which is fine for short escapes. However, he has had severe separation anxiety since we adopted him, and if we leave him alone for a lengthy amount of time, he freaks out and tears up his wee little nosy! :( So we brought him with us.

"Pax" was invited up onto all the kabillion-dollar yachts we toured, in and out of exhibition tents and buildings, onto the shuttle bus to ride between the two major sites, and everywhere else. Of course, Rob pointed out that no one batted an eye primarily because one of us carried us the entire time. He was the hit of the show! Everyone wanted to know him. Indeed, he was the key to our introduction to April and her cohorts at the TradeWinds booth. Several folks nominated him "most spoiled dog of the boat show," and I could not disagree. He has us wrapped around his tiny paw.

Anyway, we couldn't find what we were looking for at the sailboat side of things, and then April looked it up on her handy-dandy laptop for me and realized that we were supposed to be in Miami Beach, not downtown Miami. D'oh! She promptly sat us down and, teamed up with her fiancé-partner, gave us a very hard sell on the cruise of a lifetime. Uh. It was then that I realized exactly why she was being so helpful: huge commissions were in her mind from our booking!

I would love - LOVE! - to take the whole fam-damily on a beautiful TradeWinds cruise to St. Maarten, St. Barts, and wherever else that itinerary goes, but it's just not in the budget right now. I told a little white lie to let April know this wasn't going to happen right now, and she and the beau exchanged a deadly glance. Boom. Friendliness gone, class dismissed.

I still feel awful about wasting her time, but c'mon, she knew why we were there! Gah. Anyway.

Sophia and I sat together on the shuttle bus over to the Convention Center, which turned out to be a good half-hour ride. All of Team Odette fell asleep except for moi, and even I started nodding just before we reached our destination.

(Chloë picked out my sunglasses, by the by. Do they look okay? She said I definitely had to get the silver ones to match my nose ring, haha!) (Also, if you look closely at the side of Sophie's hair, you can see the pink streaks she put in it earlier in the morning. She wants you to see that. You can, yes?)

We toured several boat brands on the powerboat side of things. The Everglades 30' we visited was quite nice. Jack spent most of his time playing captain, "steering" her around aggressively. He plays so many different flight/driving/boating simulators on his Kindle, he is probably already a better driver than I'll ever be! (Shh, please don't tell him that. For a little guy, he sure has a big ego about his 'skillz.')

We also toured a 50' NO SHOES ALLOWED! yacht by Intrepid. Rob estimated its worth at $1.5 million. It was, in a word, gorgeous. When we went below decks to look at the cabins and other living spaces, the kids breathed in unison, "It's beautiful...!" Sophie begged and begged for us to buy it. She pouted when Daddy asked her if she was writing the check. Seriously, kiddo?! Your 'rents aren't Bill and Melinda Gates, darlin'!

Lastly, we visited an unnamed (by me) boat that was nice and all, but the least impressive of the bunch. The kids were nonplussed. Jack continued "driving" and working the controls, and Chloë pulled up a bench to lie down.

Sophia joined her sister on the port side of the boat. I think this one actually did fall asleep. I know we all wanted to!

As for Hubs, he did very well at the boat show, but it definitely tired him out more than he's been used to. There was a lot of walking involved, not to mention all the climbing and maneuvering around the boats and docks. He's not the spry ninja he once was pre-tumor, but he's getting there! And rapidly, I would say; however, he walked a lot more slowly and carefully by the end of the day than he did fresh out of the box. I'm proud of where he was a year ago and where he is now, but I told him not to overdo the efforts to the detriment of his recovery.

Anyhoo... it was a great, big, fun day. We didn't spend a dime on the many food and beverage offerings there, much as I'd have loved to, because we brought our own food. Probably saved us many dollars, so I'm glad we did that...  The Boat Show ended today, but there is always next year if you wanna go!

Fin.

Sunday Stealing: Love Is In The Air Meme

 

We had a busy weekend, so I'm all late and stuff. If you're later than even I am, link up here to play along!

Love Is In The Air Meme
Stolen from: The Archives

Love, to you. Define love in your own words. 

Well, then! Love is when you care more about the other person's wants, needs, hopes and dreams than your own, even when they don't mesh. True love is when you're willing to share a pizza and pick off his disgusting mushrooms instead of insisting he doesn't order any to begin with. 

What do you want in a relationship? 

I want to be valued, supported, and most crucially, understood. Even when none of those things seems possible.

What do you contribute to a relationship?

I contribute the zany, wild, crazy antics that no one but Hubs truly appreciates, other than myself and The Littles we created together. And some other cool stuff, I hope...

Currently..... 
Do you have a Valentine? 

My funny Valentine... sweet, comic Valentine... {HUBS}

If not, are you happy being single? 

Describe the perfect Valentine's Day date in your opinion: 

I have no such concept, because of all the "holidays," Valentine's Day is probably the least important to me. I am loved and adored by a flock of gents Hubs every single day, and I don't need a Hallmark occasion to get the goods. And for the love, please don't give me flowers, chocolates, a card, or jewelry to prove your love for me, y'all. (Why? They die, they make me fat, they waste paper, and I've got enough. Plant a tree, take me somewhere cool, make a memory, maybe, but none of that cliché stuff pour moi.)

Dream Date? 

I don't have a singular concept of an amazing date. Simply pay attention to me as much as I pay attention to you, make me laugh out loud a whole bunch, and make it simply unforgettable in every way. One guy did that. We've been married 14+ years.

What is your crush's name? 

Robert Odette, of course... but I know that Paco (our 7-month-old Chihuahua) has a crush on ME, because he's STILL humping my freakin' leg despite just having gotten neutered! :\

Do you believe in love at first sight? 

 

Absolutely, I do!

This or that:

Chocolates or Flowers....you must pick one! 

Duh. Chocolate, but I've given it up for the time being. Yep, I even walked away from the 50% off Lindt truffles at CVS an hour ago. I know. I know.   

A short kiss or a big hug? 

The long hug often leads to the short kiss, amiright?!

Cute and dim-witted, or Average and brilliant? 

I'll take brilliant over stoopid every day of the week, thanks!

Miscellaneous:

Turn-ons? 

Intellectual conversation. Insane, raucous laughter (mine) caused by smart, funny joke. Buff arms don't hurt...!

Turn-offs? 

Nothing ruins a hot guy more than a pack of cigarettes. Top of my list of turn-offs, followed closely by spitting. There are plenty more.

What thing should a guy never say to you? 

There are plenty of things that would make me turn on my heel, but do not call me a "bitch" unless you want me to instantly become one!

How do you feel about kissing on the first date? 

I have no qualms. My last name is not Duggar. ;P

Stay tuned for photos from our visit to the Miami Boat Show yesterday!

Fin.

Saturday 9: All Dressed In Love

Link up here if you're playing along today. And yes, it's still Saturday, so technically I'm not that late, right??

Saturday 9: All Dressed in Love (2008)

For Valentine's Day, we need a happy love song. Hear it here.

1) In this song, Jennifer sings, "I look good in love …" What about you? When you're happy, or sad, does it show? Or do you keep an even demeanor, no matter what?

I was told today to try to keep an even keel. I haven't stopped laughing... I'm the most emotional whacknut I've ever met! Yes, it shows.

2) This song played over the closing credits of the hit movie, Sex and the City. When you go to the movies, do you visit the concession stand for popcorn, or a soft drink, or candy?

Usually, I get a gigantimus Diet Coke, and then if I have the money, something for each of the kids and me. Jack and Sophia usually want some nachos, Chloë a hot pretzel, and I'll either just nibble a bite or two of the pretzel or get some mozzarella sticks. Hey, a splurge won't kill me. Hubs rarely gets anything, if he even comes along at all.

3) Think of the last movie you watched at home. Was it a DVD, DVR, streamed or cable presentation?

I think the last movie I watched at home was a DVD of The Hunger Games, and then Catching Fire.

4) Jennifer Hudson got good grades in high school and went away to Langston University in Oklahoma. But she was homesick for her family in Chicago and came home after just one semester. Have you ever been homesick?

When I was a little kid, before my mom died, and my sister and I left NY for a while to visit the grandparents in nearby NJ, I got very homesick. Then, when my mom died, my dad sent us away for camp for two weeks, and they wouldn't let me stay with or hardly even SEE my big sister, and that was just horrendously awful. Then my dad married my evil stepmother, and I never got homesick again. More like, sick of home. :/

5) Jennifer received acclaim for her renditions of "The Star Spangled Banner" at the 2008 Democratic Convention and Super Bowl XLIII. Do you agree with critics who say that our National Anthem is hard to sing? 

The critics are right: it's a difficult song, as any singer will tell you. That doesn't negate its worth.

6) Jennifer is a spokesperson for Weight Watchers and, with diet and exercise, went from a size 18 to a size 6. She says that while she's committed to healthy eating, she still enjoys ice cream occasionally. Do you prefer your ice cream in a cone or a cup?

I can't eat ice cream at all since my drastic bypass, so it's a moot point. It's been six years; before that, I'd eat it straight outta the carton! ;) And really, a size 6? I'd have guessed more like a 2-4. Huh.

7) Her fiancé, Daniel Otunga, is a graduate of Harvard Law School. Harvard is the most famous of the eight "Ivy League" schools. Do you know the other seven?

Hmm, without looking them up, nope Princeton, Yale, Penn, and IDGAF. ;) Back in the day, I wanted to apply to ALL of the Ivy Leaguers just to prove that I could get into them. But then I realized it cost a lot of money to do that, so I gave up that short-lived amusement.

8) With a Grammy and an Oscar, Jennifer Hudson is one of the most successful American Idol contestants. Can you name another singer who appeared on AI?

Clay Aiken, my favorite, and Ruben Studdard, to whom he wrongfully lost. Kim Caldwell. Kelly Clarkson, of course, and Pickler, the country gal whose music I neither know nor care to know. Carrie Underwood, the country gal whose music I DO like, but only when it crosses over into my beloved pop realm. Chris Daughtry, whose music I can not STAND and switch away from every time it comes on the radio. I could think of more, but now I'm boring even me. 

9) Last year, Jennifer nearly bought a brand-new Ferrari because it was so great-looking. At the last moment she backed out of the deal because she doesn't drive enough to warrant such an expensive car. What's the last impulse purchase you either made or resisted?

I'm very impulsive. It'd be easier to think of one I made than of one I resisted, so naturally the latter would be more interesting (at least to me)! Probably something stupid like a doughnut or something else that's not good for me. I have a heck of a sweet tooth and lately I've chubbed up a little, so I am having to resist the urge a helluva lot.

* * *

Welp, that's another one down. So much for blogging during the week. Coming up next: Sunday Stealing!

Fin.

 

Sunday Stealing: Why Do You Want To Know THAT Meme

 

Why Do You Want To Know That Meme?

Stolen from: My Random Randomness

1. What TV gameshow/reality show would you like to be on? 

 

I'd LOVE to be on Jeopardy!

2.  What was the first movie you bought in VHS or DVD? 

I have no idea, but I'm sure it was something Disney.

3. If you had one million dollars to spend only on yourself, what would you spend it on?

If I actually had to spend it, not save or invest it, I guess I would buy a house, a boat, a nicer vehicle (or two), a whole buncha yarn, and gosh... can I not buy my kids a college education or three? Sheesh.

4. One place you've visited, can't forget, and want to go back to? 

 

Definitely Venice, Italy... we didn't get to ride in a gondola as planned, because (a) We were short on time, (b) We were short on Euros, and (c) I was way too damn fat to get in!

5. Do you trust easily? 

I trust way too much, way too easily, way too many people who continue to let me down. :/

6. Do you generally think before you act, or act before you think? 

 

Historically, when it has really mattered, I'm a "Think first, worry later, apologize never" kind of person. I plan, and plan, and plan everything out, and then I just do whatever I was going to do anyway. I'm not saying I'm proud of it.

7. Is there anything that has made you unhappy these days? 

Yeah, Hubby pulled a 'sundowner' on me exactly one year to the day after his brain surgery, on Thursday, and I had to rush him back to the hospital. He got released this afternoon and is okay now, except for the broken ribs... Poor guy is in a world of pain. :(

8. Do you have a good body image? 

I wish I did, but no. I have horrible, horrible self-esteem.

9. What is your favorite fruit? 

Like my daughter, Sophia, it's the strawberry. However, unlike Sophia, strawberries are not my absolute most favorite thing on the planet...!

10. I’m always being asked…

 

Two things: (a) If getting my nose pierced hurt (Yes, yes it did - both times!), and (b) If I am so-and-so's identical twin. Apparently I have a lot of doppelgängers, because I get asked that all. the. time!!!

11. The last big belly laugh I had was…

Oh, this trio keeps me in hysterics every single day of my life. I'm telling you folks, they are FUNNY, funny people. Sophie in particular (the blondie on the left) is quite the amusing little lass!

12. What websites do you visit daily? 

Facebook, naturally, and Hip2Save, because I am a bit of a couponing fiend, y'all.

13. What have you been seriously addicted to lately? 

Well, I'll tell you what I'm not addicted to any longer: Lindt Peanut Butter Truffles. I used to love these things. I could only get them at a select few stores and on the Lindt website, so I usually search for them high and low whenever I go somewhere new. 

Fast-forward to last night, when we stopped in hospital gift shop to get flowers and schtuff for Hubs. We walked out, and I noticed they sold a bunch of Lindt truffles. Um, okay. That got my attention. Upon closer inspection, I counted TWELVE bags of peanut butter ones! Holy cow.

They are thankfully not cheap, or I'd have bought all dozen. The kids were squealing right along with me. I bought two bags. We went upstairs to see Daddy, and once we got all settled in, I opened a bag and distributed a couple each to their waiting hands. Rob wanted none of that. Smart man.

They must have changed their formula?! Because all four of us agreed that these were no better than Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. I haz the sads... until I realized that they make me fat, and then I had no more sads.

14. What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is? 

No one tagged me in this-here meme, and I love that bay-bay!!

15. What's the last song that got stuck in your head? 

I'm loving "FourFiveSeconds" right now. LOVE. 

  16. Favorite clothing? 

I'm loving Superdry right now. Very cool gear.

17. Do you think Rice Krispies are yummy? 

Yeah, but I can't eat that anymore. I love a good ol'-fashioned bowl of cereal, but it's off-limits since my drastic bypass. Soup, too. Them's the breaks!

18. What would you do if you saw $100 lying on the ground? 

Of course, I'd keep that shiznat. Duh.

19. Items you couldn't go without during the day? 

My Samsung Galaxy S5. Take my phone, and I will hunt you down. M'kay?

20. What should you be doing right now?

 

Sleeping, der. It's 12:43 AM. And now that I'm finished with this post, I'm going to check the mail.

Have a lovely!

Fin.

Saturday 9: A Sleepin' Bee

Link up here if you're playing along today!

Saturday 9: A Sleepin' Bee (1957)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song is about the wonder of first love. How would you describe the sensation of falling in love?

That moment when every thought of your future moments includes that other person, and you can't imagine life without them...

2) This 1957 album was the first Diahann Carroll ever recorded. More recently she recorded "A, You're Adorable," a nursery rhyme. (The lyrics are here.) Give us some words to a children's song that remain in your head to this day.

I'd rather repeat the poem my grandpa was so proud I learned from him in an afternoon:

One bright morning, in the middle of the night

Two dead boys got up to fight

Back to back, they faced each other,

Drew their swords and shot each other.

A deaf policeman heard the noise

And came to kill those two dead boys.

3) 1957 was the peak of the Baby Boom (1946 to 1964). Are you a Boomer, a Gen X-er, a Gen Y-er, or a Millennial?

I guess I'm a Gen X-er, but really I don't know. I'm just me.

4) In 1974, Diahann was named to the Best Coiffed Hall of Fame by the Guild of Professional Beauticians. How often do you change your look?

What a silly distinction. Haha! I change it all the time, but I think I still look the same. Huh.

5) Ms. Carroll made history as Julia in the first network TV show to star a black woman. She played a nurse. Do you/have you ever worked in the healthcare profession?

Yes and no. I was a live-in night nurse for a quadriplegic man back in my college days, but... nothing professional.

6) She also played glamorous, scheming Dominique Deveraux on the nighttime soap, Dynasty. Who is the most memorable female villain you've ever seen in a TV show or movie?

Mommy Dearest had the biggest impact on me. Maybe because I lived it!

7) Ms. Carroll began her career as a model. Her height (nearly 6' tall) is an asset in that profession. Are you pleased with your height? Or do you wish you were taller, or shorter?

I'm happy with being 5'2". I just wish I was waif-thin.

8) Now in her 80th year, she keeps on working. Recently she's appeared on TV in Grey's Anatomy and Blue Collar and on the big screen in Tyler Perry Presents Peeples. How do you feel about retirement? Is it something you enjoy or look forward to? Or would you prefer to continue working? 

Work, retire, die... what a thrill. I don't know that I am living that "dream" right now, anyway.

9) In her long movie career, Ms. Carroll has played love scenes with some very good looking men, including Sidney Poitier and Billy Dee Williams. If you could steal a kiss from any actor or actress, who would choose?

Matt Damon!!! Love, love, love that beautiful man...

...on that note! ;)

Fin.