2005 in Review

Loved this idea when another friend posted it on her blog... and she borrowed it from a different friends blog too. Looks like a great way to wrap up 2005!

JANUARY
1. Did you have a new year's resolution this year?: I had several - job, art, personal - and I managed to fulfill most of them.
2. Who kissed you at midnight?: No one... I was actually at home with my roommate (Steve had to work!).
3. Did it snow where you live?: I can't remember - I think it was cold though.
4. Have you ever been to Times Square to watch the ball drop?: No, but it's officially become one of my "dreams".

FEBRUARY
1. Who was your valentine?: Steve!
2. What did your valentine get you?: Nada! Well, he did take me to dinner, I guess that will have to count. (He has been instructed that going forward, SOME sign of preparation and valentine-y action IS required)
3. When you were little, did you buy valentines for your whole class?: Yep... but I think they required us to give one to everyone!

MARCH
1. Are you Irish? I think I am partially!
2. Did you wear green on St. Patty's Day?: Of course! I bruise way too easily to worry about getting pinched!
3. What did you do for St. Patty's Day?: I don't think I did anything special.

APRIL
1. Do you like the rain?: If I have someone fun to stay indoors with!
2. Did you play an April Fool's joke on anyone this year?: Hmmm I don't think so. If anything it would probably have been a prank on my mother.
3. Did you get tons of candy on Easter?: No... I ate lots of sugar free jello though!

MAY
1. What's your favorite kind of flower?: Pink Stargazer Lilies (but I love almost all flowers!)
2. Do you like the spring? Loooooove it! There's just something about everything starting new, flowers popping up, everything coming out green - gives me major mojo and SERIOUS energy!
3. Finish the phrase: "April showers bring...": seasonal allergies. (Thank you - Thank you very much!)
4. What would you think of as a spring color?: Pinks, Yellows, Blues

JUNE
1. What year did you graduate from school?: 1993 for High School.
2. Did you go on any vacations last June?: I think thats when Steve took me to California. I also went to a few scrapbooking conventions to teach at... not really vacation but definitely not work either

JULY
1. What did you do on the 4th of july? Went with Steve to JoAnne & Ken's house for a cookout with friends.
2. Did you go on any vacations during this month?: A few scrapbooking conventions to teach at... not really vacation but definitely not work either.

AUGUST
1. Did you do anything special to end off your summer?: Nope!
2. What was your favorite summer memory of '05?: Spending time with Steve and losing weight.
3. Did you go swimming a lot in the summer?: Not once!
4. Did you go to the beach a lot?: Ummmm I went to the beach in California, but it wasn't the typical beach! It was COLD!

SEPTEMBER
1. Did you attend school/college in '05?: Nope. Not unless you count CKU-A!
2. Who is/was your favorite teacher?: Loved my high school english/literature teacher Mr. Rubberneck Roberts. He taught me so much and was very influential.
3. Did you like fall better than summer?: Yes... I HATE summer. It's freakin' hot in Texas!

OCTOBER
1. What was your favorite halloween costume ever?: All the cool ones my mom would make for me.
2. What's your favorite candy?: Sweedish Fish and Haribo Gummy Bears
3. What did you dress up like this year? Nothing! Wait! I went to work as a hockey fan (any excuse to wear jeans on a non-Friday!)

NOVEMBER
1. Whose house did you go to for Thanksgiving?: No where! I stayed home and cooked an entire Thankgiving meal for our guests!
2. Do you like stuffing?: Mmmmm... YES!
3. What are you thankful for?: My health, my family, my friends, HUSBAND!!

DECEMBER
1. Do you celebrate Christmas?: YES!!! Christmas Day though is always very low-key. It's a casual day, focus is on comfort, family, and the reason for Christmas!
2. Have you ever been kissed under mistletoe?: Yes.
3. What did you want this year for christmas?: :-) Lets just say Santa delivered!4. What's the best present you ever got for christmas?: My husband, Steve!
5. Do you like cold weather?: It's better than HOT weather, but it seems like I'm ALWAYS cold! ALWAYS!
6. How would you rate your year on a scale of 1-10?: Started out with my birthday as about a 6, wrapping up as a perfect 10.

Two Months Down.... Eternity to Go!

I can’t believe we’ve only been married for two months! It seems like so much longer! Maybe it’s because I’ve been SO busy. I don’t know. Wow... two months though! Here are a few of the lessons I’ve already learned.

• Although Steve can manage to put the remote control in the same place when he’s finished watching TV, he can’t remember that the bowls do not go with the pots and pans.
• If I need Steve to fill my gas tank, make him drive when I know the “get gas” light goes on. That’s my signal that I need gas. His signal is when it gets to a ¼ tank.
• It’s easier to procrastinate when there are two of you.
• While I love the snooze button, Steve hates it.
• It’s not always a bad thing when the bed frame breaks (see yesterday’s post). I actually like having the bed not on a frame at all (Steve does too)!
• He may tease me incessantly about it, but Steve loves my woobie too.
• If I’m freezing (95% of the time) Steve is comfortable. If I’m hot – I must be sleeping.
• Brussels sprouts (Steve’s favorite vegi) aren’t so bad.
• PMS is not a good thing. I really have been getting MOODY!
• My idea of organized is totally different from Steve’s.
• Steve’s idea of budgeting is totally different from mine (but we’re working on it)!
  

I’m sure there are lots of other things I’ve learned over the last 60 or so days. But, for some reason, I can’t remember them.

Steve is a fantastic man! Each day, I realize something else that I love about him. He’s just so darn fantastic! I’m a lucky girl!

Love,
Heather (& Steve)

Newlyweds, Beds, and Temper Tantrums

It happened. It finally freaking happened. Steve broke our bed.

I know what you’re thinking.

Dang newlyweds. Don’t be hatin’. You were there once too.

But, no.

It didn’t break during a wild, passionate, torrid, sweaty night of horizontal monkey jumbo.

It didn’t even happen during a WWE wrestling match.

It happened when my husband, in the fit of a temper tantrum because I didn’t want to fix waffles, eggs benedict, hickory smoked imported bacon, and freshly squeezed orange juice for dinner. I know it’s hard to imagine that I wouldn’t have the zing of energy come to me when he suggested this BASIC meal for dinner.

Apparently, homemade waffles and eggs (easy side up for Steve) just isn’t enough.

So, he thrust himself upon our bed with such gusto that the middle arm of the steel bed frame folded like a pocket knife.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen our bed is broken. Guess what we're getting for Christmas? Let the laughter begin…

Love,
~heather (and Steve too…)

P.S. The whole temper tantrum thing is a made up story. I don’t think either of us have ever had eggs benedict, or imported bacon. If he had the nerve to request such a meal after me working – we would MOST definitely be having a WWE wrestling throwdown. I doubt he would win.

But, the bed is broken. Steve was being silly and ….. the rest of the story is right.

32 Years to Celebrate!

Countless disagreements
Moves - 26+
Automobiles (not including kid cars) - 18
Years of living overseas (15 of living in the US) - 17
Kids (Heather, Bekki, Robert & Scott + Donna & Cindy) - 6
Grandchildren (Arissa, Dylan, Michael, Rose, Alex & Ainsley) - 6
Son-in-Laws (Steve, Wes, Shaun & another Steve) - 4
32 Years of incredible happiness…… Priceless.

Today marks my parent’s 32nd wedding anniversary. Wouldn’t you know it’s on the 14th (my all-time favorite number)? Sadly, in our society, that’s a REALLY long time. From my view, my parents have on heck of a fantastic marriage. I know there have been times they didn’t get along, and that they didn’t want to be around each other (for a few hours anyway), but they’ve always been a team. They’re partners. They don’t make big changes without discussing it amongst themselves. The set the example for each other (sometimes that’s a good thing). They are each others support system. They each have their own roles, and independent duties, but they realize and recognize that each of them is half of their relationship. It doesn’t work if one is missing, you need both halves to have a whole - and that's how it should be. They really do love and respect each other. I think that's the key - Love & Respect.

I’m so grateful for my parents. Seriously grateful. As a teenager, I really despised my parents at times. When I matured, I realized that I was being stupid – my mom and dad rock. I am so blessed that they chose to add me to their family (I was the miracle child! Mom suddenly got pregnant after adopting me! Ha ha ha), and have treated me as one of their own. I was never treated any differently than any of the other kids (well, unless I deserved to be punished – and boy did I ever deserve it at times). I count my parents among my very best friends. If our (Steve &I) marriage is half as good as my parents – we’ll be incredibly happy and enormously successful.

Congratulations Mom & Dad! I love you both more than I can possibly share!

Love,
Heather (& Steve)

Christmas Time....

I love Christmas time! I love the lights, the decorations, the general all around great holiday spirit. I love doing Secret Santa's for those in need, and Secret Santa Exchanges with friends and coworkers. I love putting up the Christmas Tree, watching Christmas movies (Love Actually, A Christmas Carol, etc, etc, etc) and listening to Christmas music! I love holiday baking, and the fun of holiday eating! I LOVE Christmas shopping for my family and friends - and I absolutely love making handmade gifts (but am absolutely wretched at actually finishing/mailing them out). I love making my own Christmas cards each year, and I love getting cards in return (they don't have to be handmade.

Here are a few glimpses of the Christmas spirit at our home. The three stockings hung on our mantel belong to (in order of appearance.. and age... ha ha ha) Steve, Heather, and Thomas (Steve's brother).

A little about our tree... When I lived in Ohio, a friend of mine had spent a Christmas (or two) decorating trees at Elder Beermans (department store like Dillards). He taught all about stringing lights onto each section of each branch so that there was LOTS of light all throughout the tree. He also taught me about filling in the tree with various other stuffers (we used grapevines, natural fronds, scrolly vines, and other natural stuff), and about putting ornaments into the middle of branches so that the tree looks more dimensional. Well, his analness definitely rubbed off on me. I LOVE my Christmas tree! It's loaded with stars of every kind and all sorts of other natural decorations. There are glass balls in red, gold, white, and clear - which are the colors of the tree. I love the various stars - and especially the straw ones. They remind me of the many, MANY Christmases we spent in Germany.

You'll notice that our tree doesn't have a topper. Thats because the one I had broke, and I know what I want, but haven't managed to find it yet. I've been to almost every local store, to every local craft store, and to all of the local home repair shoppes looking for it. Once I find it - I'll share that glorious news with you all. It's driving me crazy!

A few of my friends have shared their favorite tree ornaments. So, following in their footsteps, here are three of mine.

The first one is our "Our First Christmas" Ornament. My grandmother Linette gave it to us. It's beautiful!

The second one is actually two! It's two snowmen that Steve and I found found at a local gardening store. There's actually a third one that has Thomas's name on it, but I couldn't find it on our tree.

The third one is one of my favorite straw stars. I'll post later about why I love stars so much. Needless to say, the tree is loaded with ALL kinds of stars! Check out the fourth picture to catch a glimpse of what I'm talking about!

Here's hoping your home is starting to feel the holiday season!

Love,
Heather (& Steve)

All About Heather...

So many of you have told us how you read our blog, and how you've gotten to know me through it, that I thought it would be fun to post this little questionnaire with my answers. I hope you all enjoy this glimpse into my reality... (or lack of). I'll adjust the questions and try to get Steve to share his information too...

All About Heather

Name: Legal: Heather Lynette Beste Ales. What I use: Heather Lynette Ales
Nicknames/Names you normally go by: Heather, HeatherBear (Steve ONLY!), SweetPea (Mom’s nick name for me), Happy Girl, PrincessDallas

Occupation: By Day: Auditor for Mortgage Company. By Night: Creative Designer / Scrapbooker.
Birth Date: January 14
Height: 5’4”
Weight: Wouldn’t you like to know?? J
Hair Style: Varies! Currently, it’s shorter than I’ve had it for years, and I usually wear it flipped up!
Hair Color: Varies (currently it’s a reddish brown hue). Naturally it’s a dark blonde
Eye Color: Blue and Gold
2 Favorite Colors: Red & Sage Green
2 Parts of your heritage: Biological: German/French/Irish Adopted: German, English, French.
2 Things that scare you: Being homeless, & being alone
2 of your everyday essentials: Burts Bees Lip Balm, Secret Platinum Deodorant!
2 Things that you are wearing right now: Cream Tights & a vintage 1972 skirt (Yeah for eBay!)
2 of your favorite bands or musical artists (at the moment): Bon Jovi (HOTTIE!!) & Allison Krauss (always a favorite!)
2 Favorite Songs at the Moment: “Have a Nice Day” (Bon Jovi) & “Since You Been Gone” (Kelly Clarkson)
2 Things you want in a relationship (other than true love): 1. Honesty 2. Respect
2 Truths: 1. I don’t take very good care of my body. 2. I’m blessed beyond belief.
2 Physical Things that appeal to you (in the opposite sex): Eyes & Smile
2 of your Favorite Hobbies: Paper crafts & cooking
2 Things you want really badly: Nikon D50 SLR Digital Camera & a good health guarantee for everyone I know (and for good measure - to be a better person.)
2 places you want to go on vacation: A tropical Island somewhere, anywhere visiting with family.
2 things you want to do before you die: Live my life as fully as possible & have my family realize how much I love them – and how important they are to me.
2 ways that you are stereotypically a chick: My love of all things sparkly and I love Chick Flicks!
2 Things that you are thinking about now: Man, I am so boring! AND what do I want to do this weekend?
2 Stores you Shop at: Target & Triple X Sex World....(HA! got ya!)
2 Favorite Magazines: Other than paper crafting ones… hmmm Oprah & Martha Stewart Living (or People magazine – I’m such an entertainment whore!)
2 Favorite Food Genres: Mexican and Oriental
2 Favorite Beverages: Water & Grape Isopure Protein
2 Favorite Desserts: Pumpkin Pie Custard from Sheridan’s & Brownies
2 Favorite ways to be Pampered: Pedicures and Massages
2 Favorite Movies: Love Actually and Sweet Home Alabama (told you I loved Chick Flicks!)