Memories Are Held In The Wedding Guest Book

One special place for many people to look back at the memory of their wedding is in their wedding guest book. Wedding guest books are a place for people to make comments to the bride and groom and leave them with a special message or warm wishes. It also acts as a roll call or list of everyone that attended the wedding.

Guest books are no longer just a book or register in which people write their names. There are other more modern options out there. A large photograph of the bride and groom with a framed mat is a nice alternative to the standard book. Guests can sign the mat and leave a personal note. The happy couple can then display this photo of them in their home and remember everyone and be reminded of what they wished upon them every time they look at the picture.

If an actual book is more your style and taste there are many types to choose from. Custom wedding guest books can be made to fit your theme and bridal party colors. You can go from simple and elegant to modern and sleek. There is something out there for every couple. It all depends on what you want.

Single and Not Minding That

Yes, I’m single and I’m OK with it on Valentine’s Day. In some ways, it is better to be single and dating several guys – you get more gifts! I resent a Facebook friend’s comment that I should be eating ice cream and crying tonight.

The guy is a family friend is serving in the Navy and he recently got engaged. Of course, I am happy for him and his fiance, but I do wonder if this is going to be a long term, successful relationship. Almost all of their communication has been long distance phone calls, which have to be short because of the expense, and emails. I do not think that you really get to know someone well after less than a year’s emails and short phone calls. I hope they don’t get married right away – in my opinion they should wait until he is out of the Navy and they have more time together in person.

One of the fun things about being single is getting to know other people. I have found that it takes time to get past the fake bravado and extra efforts that people make for their first impressions. I want to know what the guy is like when real life happens, not just dates. How does he handle an emergency? How does he act when he doesn’t get his way? What does he do when he is not with you? How does he interact with children and senior citizens? All of these things have to do with character and values. If his values are far different from yours, you need to know that before going deeper into a relationship.

Anyway, I’m dating three different guys right now. I am not looking for a husband as much as someone to spend time with doing fun things. I am very happy being single and I loved getting roses, candy and a beautiful necklace from the guys in my life. I can assure my FB friend in the Navy that were no tears and ice cream for me tonight.

Assisted Living: Pros and Cons

There comes a point in life when many people have to decide on whether to continue living independently, or transitioning to an assisted living facility. Each has its own advantages and disadvantages, and it’s best to consider these before making what can be a life changing decision. Weighing the pros and cons is important.

Assisted living services for seniors can provide a number of benefits. One of those is flexibility. As we age, our bodies change, and so do our needs. Properly staffed facilities can help us at any stage of life. These facilities often have staff on hand that can make expert decisions on our health and give proper advice on conditions that could be considered ‘red flags.’ This staff is available full time, which means in emergencies, people can trust that they will receive critical attention.

There are a few cons, of course. The biggest concern people have is costs. Assisted living requires early planning on the part of a person so that they can afford the month to month costs. These costs can also increase as a person’s needs increase with age. For these reasons, it’s best to start making economic preparations sooner rather than later.

Talula does the Hula?

Did you hear about that judge in New Zealand that has gotten sick of all the stupid names parents are putting on their children. It seems some parents thought ‘Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii’ was a good name for their daughter. Well it has caused this poor little girl all sorts of embarrassment and she never even told her closest friends what her real name was. When someone asked her name, she would just say ‘K’. The judge changed her name and it has not been released what her name was changed to so they could protect the little girls identity.

Don’t parents even consider what consequences a stupid name like that does to a child? I thought Frank Zappa was the only idiot that would name a child something stupid like Motorhead, Dweezle and Moon Unit. Guess he’s not the only one.

Popular Attraction in NYC You Don’t Want to Miss

Among all the cities across the globe, New York City is among the most famous, and for good reason. If you plan on taking a trip to this eclectic city, be sure to catch these attractions!

Times Square

There is absolutely no way you can go to New York City and skip over Times Square. This iconic area in the city features constant excitement around the clock. From the dazzling lights, to the eclectic shops and eateries, to the dynamic array of people constantly making their way around, Times Square is definitely not a spot in NYC to be missed. There’s really never a dull moment there!

Empire State Building

Another iconic landmark in New York City, the Empire State Building is open to tourists 18 hours a day. You can take a guided audio tour if you want in order to learn more about the things you’ll be seeing from the top of the city. You can even take a bus tour of popular attractions in NYC!

Central Park

This lush area of greenery is spectacular all year round. It offers the ideal getaway from the concrete jungle of the city, and features 50 fountains, 21 playgrounds, bike paths and rentals, and 36 bridges.

Statue of Liberty

There’s simply nothing that symbolizes NYC more than the Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island. There are a number of city boat tours that go around the island that you can take, in addition to tours offered on the premises that you can reserve in advance.

New York City is definitely a one of a kind place to visit, offering a host of things to see, hear, and do!

Tips for Choosing Quality Bed Linens

If you are ready to change your bedding, you may not know where to look for quality textiles. Some companies plan a New York textile show or have showrooms where you can browse. When you go shopping, here are tips for choosing quality bed linens.

Thread Count

This used to be an indicator of quality linen but that is not true any more. Some companies cheat by twisting the yarn and making the thread count higher. If the thread is softer by nature, then the cloth will be softer than a cloth with the same thread count. For example, you can have a lower thread count of Egyptian cotton and it will feel softer than cloth with a higher thread count made with lower quality thread. In reality, a 1000 count sheet may be rather stiff.

Weave

Some people like crisp sheets, like a percale, and others prefer softness, like sateen. In colder climates, many people prefer the nappy feel and warmth of flannel. This is a matter of personal taste and one weave is not superior to another.

Material

Material is also a personal choice. Here are 4 types:

 

  • Cotton – Cotton is preferred by many because it breathes. The best are Egyptian, Pima and Sea Island.
  • Supima – These sheets are made of pima cotton, known for its softness.
  • Polyblend – Some prefer these because they do not wrinkle easily.
  • Linen – Linen is good for warm climates because it is light and soft.

Storing vinyl records

Guest post by Dianne Trestle

When I split up with my first husband, I let him keep all of my vinyl records. I did that because I had agreed to let him keep the house, and I was having a very hard time getting people to help me move out of the house. I had hundreds of albums – a lot of money was spent on them! Now I have mixed emotions about having let him keep them, and I wonder if he listens to them at all, or if they have all been given away, destroyed, or just taking up space in some vinyl record storage case somewhere. And I know that if I had them now, they would probably just be taking up space in my basement, gathering dust, not being used at all.

I think the reason that I feel so melancholy about this is that those albums represented many years of my youth, and leaving them behind was a lot like leaving my youth behind. And I really don’t like that feeling very much at all!

Clever Street Art

Photo of street art with a mouse watering weeds

I guess that, technically, this is graffiti, but I think it is a cute example of street art that takes something ordinary, like a tiny weed, and turns it into something whimsical. Can you see ordinary things like weeds and get the inspiration to create something like this mouse watering a weed, as if it is her houseplant? I think it is so clever! And I don’t have near the talent to even draw something like this, much less come up with the idea in the first place!

I wonder if the government would get all upset if little drawings like this started showing up on the street curbs. I really think most people would enjoy them, but I bet there would be some jerk who thinks it is destruction of public property or some other stupid crime. And some people do not appreciate art at all – they like things plain, sterile and ordinary. I’m so glad that I am not one of those types!

Thank Goodness for Climate Control

Sometimes I wish that I lived in an area where it was a constant seventy-six degrees out. Someplace that had no natural disasters, and where it only rained at night between the hours of 2am and 4am. Where the economy is good, the government is good, healthcare is good, and people were friendly. I take that back – I don’t wish that sometimes – I wish that always! But I don’t even know if a place like that exists, so here I am, stuck in a location where it gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer. I am lucky to have a furnace to keep me warm when it is cold out, and air conditioning when it is hot out. And if I need a repairman to either the furnace or air conditioning, a phone call to Cary air conditioning takes care of that problem in short order.

Yes, I do love the creature comforts of climate control in my house! I have become quite spoiled!

Saving and Spending

So I decided that I wanted to take the family on a nice vacation this year but, realized I needed to take a look at our finances first. I’ve always had an idea of how much we spend on everything, but never really had a budget that was written down. In order to get a realistic idea of what we’re saving and spending, I thought maybe I should track everything.

I looked up free budget software online to get started. After all, I’m trying to save and I don’t want to shill out more money in all of this. At first I thought I would be overwhelmed. I watched a few video demos on how easy the software programs are to use. Some programs wanted a ton of information and others looked just like a spread sheet. I already have spread sheet software… that’s not what I was looking for.

I looked at reviews for best budgeting sites to get opinions of what other people thought worked and didn’t for them. I’ve narrowed it down to three different sites. I think just to get a good idea of what each site can do for me I’ll use them each for the next two months. At the end of the two months I should be able to tell which software will work best for me in the long run.

I can’t wait to see where our money is actually going. I wonder if I’ll find that it hasn’t been going where I thought it had been this whole time. No matter where it’s going I want to save so that we can afford a nice vacation. Budgeting here we come!