Tag: stores

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The Meaning of the Season

Just a little more than a week until Christmas and the holiday season hustle and bustle in surely in full swing. It came to me today how much Christmas has changed in my lifetime and how commercial it’s all become.

It seems most families spend way too much money for items their friends and loved ones probably don’t really need. Weeks and months of shopping and preparation turns into a few minutes of present opening frenzy. My immediate family takes a laid back approach to the holidays and mostly just enjoy a nice meal and the time together. I’m also sentimental enough to believe that Christmas should be an attitude we have in our hearts all year.

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Pasta Tonight

With this cold weather and all this rain, I have a craving for comfort food. I think I will stop at the grocery on the way home and pick up what I need for a nice pasta dinner.

I especially want to get a loaf of fresh baked Italian bread. My favorite grocery bakes the bread right there at the store and it often goes on sale for 99 cents a loaf. I like to cut thick slices of the Italian bread and spread a garlic butter on it, then pop it under the broiler for about a minute to heat the bread and toast the edges. Sometimes I even toss some grated cheese on top of the bread before broiling it.

That garlic bread plus the pasta and a small green salad make a nice dinner.

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The Best Gifts to Give for Your Anniversary

It’s been years since you first tied the knot with your special somewhere. You’re celebrating your anniversary, and you know you want to show them how much you love them. Choosing a gift can be difficult, however. What type of gift will show them how much you truly care and accurately encapsulate how happy you are to be with them? Fortunately, there are several different types of gifts that have shown time and time again that you really do care.

Anniversary gifts come in many different types. You can give your significant other anything that you wish for your anniversary. The below three gifts have been found to be the most meaningful and well received anniversary gifts.

Jewelry is always an incredible gift. It helps show your loved one that you care enough to spend a significant amount of money to help them look their best. However, a lot of jewelry can end up looking the same. One of the best ways to ensure that you provide a unique piece of jewelry is to purchase handcrafted items. A pair of handcrafted earrings are guaranteed to be one of the best. And if your loved one is or has been in the military one of the wonderful Joy Jewelers military rings would be perfect.

One of the great things about having a long term life partner is that they will appreciate any gift that you give. You do not need to overly stress about what to give them. Simply put a fair amount of thought and effort into it and your gift will be appreciated. It doesn’t hurt to give them something truly unique and unforgettable. Put some time into considering various gifts that will make this anniversary one to remember.

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Pumpkins

While at work today I saw the very first sign for the many pumpkin farms in this area, and I can not wait to take David to let him pick out his pumpkin for our porch jack-o-lantern. It has become a family trip and party to pick the correct pumpkin and to get it carved and set up on the porch, just right.

I like to pick one smaller pumpkin to make us some pies and we will get this done on this trip too. I love this time of year, the weather has cooled off and we have so much to do this time of year.

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Changing Uniform Styles

There are multiple varieties of uniforms in the United States.  One of my favorite types of uniforms are nursing uniforms.  Every time I visit a doctors office or hospital I see the medical staff wearing these and they seem to be quite comfortable in their attire.

The history of medical scrubs and uniforms has changed greatly throughout time.  Forty years ago when my grandmother was a nurse they never would have dreamed of dressing in scrubs.  They wore extremely white uniforms with a cap on their heads.  Today it is an entirely different story.

The part of scrub uniforms that is always the most interesting to look at is the
nursing scrub tops.  There is a large variety of designs to choose from.  From flowers to cartoon characters, almost anything a person is looking for exists in a scrub top pattern. Perhaps the most interesting patterns seen are at pediatrician’s offices.  The pediatric nurses can often be seen wearing children’s designs on there scrub tops.  I think that this is a nice addition to the pediatrician’s office.  These designs can help put the children at ease during their visit.

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So Many Shoes

Shoes have always held a special place in my grandmother’s heart. She is always looking at the newest shoes on the market.  Many of the ones she looks at she would never be able to wear but she still enjoys looking at them.

One type of she really likes is the Minnetonka shoes. They have many styles on moccasins.  All colors are nearly available including with or without fringe. My grandmother isn’t especially concerned with fringe but she does like the color purple.  I am not sure if she has any purple moccasins but I’m sure she will soon.

Frye shoes, I do not believe she would care for as much. I, however, think they look pretty cool. I particularly like the boots. I think I may look into their boots when I get my motorcycle. The other style that I really liked was a pair of sandals from Josef Seibel shoes.  They will be perfect for this summer when I go out on the town!

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Coventry 3′ x 5′ Oval Tawny

Don’t get me wrong, I love my new hard wood floors, but there is something about having some thing nice and warm to step on that a hard wood floor just doesn’t have to offer. I think having a couple of nice area rugs to place strategically in a few key places around the house just might be the best way to handle this.

There used to be a guy that always set up at the Flea Marker down in the city that I used to like doing business with, but I hear that he retired and no one has heard from him since last year. I love going to this up scale Flea Market.  You won’t find any used toys or baby clothes, it is strictly antiques and collectibles and other top quality merchandise. Well worth the trip down into the city on a nice weather day. There is such a variety of merchandise, as well as a variety of customers that it is a great way to spend the day people watching and seeing all the unique dealers that set-up there each weeks. But I have purchased a few items here and there through-out the years.

Thank goodness for the Internet. I found a great selection of that I have seriously been eyeballing the past couple of days. Amazing how many types of rugs are available these days. I think I’ll stick with the classics, now I just need to decide what size will be the best for what I need and want. It could run me anywhere from $40 all the way up to just under a grand.

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Mailbox Battle

Every winter I have to worry about my mail box.  The plowman can be so vicious. I feel as though he really does not care about any one’s mailbox, not just mine. I have to replace my mailbox nearly every year.

One year I actually rebelled and refused to fix my residential mailbox. It was extremely bashed in and did not meet the federal post office box standards. Unfortunately, the post office won and I had to fork out money to replace the box and the post. I was not happy.  What made this worse was that the mailbox I replaced was a decorative one.

I love decorative mailboxes. However, with this situation I am not able to have a pretty mailbox. This upsets me but that is the price I have to pay for country living.  I would not give up country living for the world. I enjoy going out on a daily basis to pick my mail out of my mailbox.  I not only get to pick up my mail but also get to enjoy the birds and flowers in my gardens.

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Communicate Gap

It would have been a lot easier for me to understand what exactly it is that my niece Alice is wanting for her birthday if the email had said “a mouth piece for her saxophone”, instead of “a Vandoren Optimum Series Saxophone Ligature” which are the exact words that my sister wrote. I had asked her what her daughter Alice would want and appreciate for her 13th birthday that is coming up in the middle of July. Thirteen is a very hard age to buy for girls or boys.

There is such a big difference between the way that my sister and I communicate with the world. I am a whole lot more kicked back and straight forward, while she has a much larger vocabulary and has a blog that she has been working on since forever. Just by looking at her blog and then mine you wouldn’t even believe that we are related, much less know each other.

Anyway, back to the vandoren optimum sax. I found one online at the website. Now is a great time to get deals. Memorial Day is a heck of a holiday for consumers so I might as well jump on the bandwagon and save some hard earned $$$ as well.

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Swim Suit Blues

It seems that every year I do battle and a losing battle at that, against weight gain. I know that since I turned 30 it has been an uphill struggle and now that the swim suit season is here it has just become a all out war.

I have dedicated myself to losing weight and fitting into the same swim suit that I wore last year, lets hope that this is a battle that I win this year. The swim suit I wore last year is stunning and I want to be able to fit in it again, soon.