My Two Cents | Bead Happily Ever After

A Winter’s Tale

Posted on December 21, 2009 by crystal

Today may be the first day of winter, but since when did Mother Nature ever pay attention to the calendar? 😉

Here in New England, winter arrived early and with a wallop! We’re still digging our way out of 18 inches of snow that began late Saturday night and continued for much of Sunday. It’s absolutely beautiful, though! We feel as if we are living in a giant snow globe – one that someone keeps picking up and shaking every so often! 😀

Can we really be just a couple of days away from Christmas? I have a few more things to cross off my list, but all in all, I’m feeling good about my chances of finishing on schedule (thank goodness!).

My blogging may be a little sporadic over the next week or so, as I take some time to make Christmas special for my family. I know that you will be very busy, too!!!

I’ll still be popping in to comment or post a photo though – so I hope you’ll check back when you can.

The weekly giveaways will resume during the first week in January and I am planning some very special things for 2010!

Thank you all so much for your loyal support, your very thoughtful comments, and your kind friendship. I’m so very fortunate to have the best readers in the world!!! 😀

Hugs to all,

Fun at the Mall

Posted on November 4, 2009 by crystal

Sir Beads and I have been trying to add some regular exercise into our schedule. Health experts seem to agree that walking is very beneficial so, about a month ago, we began to walk a few times per week.

Winter is fast approaching, and because that means snow, ice and freezing temperatures, we’ve decided to walk at the shopping mall where the weather is always good! 😉 There are several malls in our area and we figure we can alternate among them so as not to get too bored. We’re not attached to any walking group. We just try to go during off-peak hours. Each mall has previously been measured for walkers so we know how many times around equals a mile or more.

People have asked if we feel extra tempted to shop and spend money with all this mall exposure. But honestly, that has not been the case. We’re pretty focused on walking and if we shop at all, it’s after our walk. By then we’re usually a little tired and don’t want to stay much longer.

Last night, however, I needed some shampoo and toothpaste so we popped into the Walmart. As I went off in search of the hair care aisle, Sir Beads headed over to electronics (which is to him as the crafts department is to me – a fun place to browse!) Anyway, as I was glancing at the shampoo, he came up behind me with a DVD in his hand.

“Do you think you’d be interested in THIS?” he said with a knowing smile.

My eyes lit up. It was one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time: The House Without A Christmas Tree. Up until now, all I had was a scratchy homemade videotape that I’ve been babying since the 80’s! I was thrilled to see it on DVD and for only FIVE dollars!

Originally a 1972 made-for-TV special, this heartwarming story takes place during the 1946 Christmas season. It’s a tale of a young girl who has lost her mother and is being raised by her grandmother and her aloof father. It was a small budget film so it has the feel of a stage play with sets and scenery that evoke the atmosphere of an age-gone-by. The acting is superb – especially that of Mildred Natwick who portrays the grandmother. I found a short collage of scenes from the movie on youtube and I’ve included the link below.

Run; don’t walk, to Walmart and try to get your copy! (It’s also available on amazon for $8.99 where it received 148 reviews, 137 of which are five stars!!!) Then, some day before Christmas, make yourself a nice cup of cocoa and snuggle up to watch a story that might just become part of your holiday traditions. 🙂

Questions x2

Posted on September 16, 2009 by crystal

Sometimes, you may be thinking . . .

“Hey Crystal – let’s hear YOUR answers to these darn questions!”

The truth is I do get requests for that from time to time, so here are my answers for this week. 😀

1. Do you remember the first movie that you ever saw in a theater? What was it?

Yes! It was Cinderella and it’s been my favorite children’s movie ever since. I was probably in kindergarten at the time and my father took me to see it. Mum was home with a couple of babies. I do remember that she and I went to the theater another time, so they must have taken turns babysitting.

As many of you have mentioned, “the movies” were such a big deal back then! When I was in grade school, my sisters and I would often spend a whole Saturday afternoon at the local theater, where for 35 cents you could see two full-length movies and a few cartoons. And you didn’t need to take out a mortgage to buy candy or popcorn!

2. Describe the set of dishes that you use everyday. What color are they? Do they have a design on them? Do you like them?

I’ve been through a few sets of dishes since I first got married, but the ones I use right now are by Corelle in the “French Lilacs” pattern. I love the fact that they’re durable, yet lightweight.

Asking this question has reminded me that I have 4 place settings of stoneware that I loved at first, but have since let stay at the back of the cupboard. They’re very heavy to handle when you’re lugging several of them at once from table to dishwasher to cabinet.

The pattern is “Garden Party” by Pfaltzgraff. They really are very pretty . . . maybe I’ll switch to them again for a while! It will be good for my biceps! 😉

Just Call Me Martha!

Posted on September 10, 2009 by crystal

Martha’s not the only one with a list of “good things”! 😉 Here are a few of my choices. . .

1. Curling up with a brand new magazine

2. An after-dinner cup of tea with my guy

3. Browsing the aisles of a craft store

4. Pumpkin pie

5. Going out for breakfast on a Saturday!

What has you saying: “It’s a good thing?” 😉

Would I like some cheese with my whine?

Posted on August 11, 2009 by crystal

Whew, it’s hot! If it were any muggier, we’d need an umbrella here. And to think I loved the summer when I was a kid!

Dear Husband says that talking about it makes you hotter. Maybe so, but it’s hard to ignore!

It’s been such a crazy busy week with a bonus of high humidity and some lost sleep.

On a nearby farm, there’s a rooster who must be drinking too much coffee! Several mornings he woke us long before dawn, not with just a few good crows – but dozens of them! We’ve decided it’s either too much caffeine or he’s auditioning for community theater. 😉

Then in the middle of the night on Saturday, one of our smoke detectors began to chirp. It’s electric but has a battery backup. I suppose it must be Murphy’ s Law that it can’t signal its departure at a decent time of the day???

After all, we’d been up for 16 hrs on Saturday!!! There was ample opportunity for it to chirp if desired. Instead, we’d only been asleep for a couple of hours when it began – every . . . forty . . . seconds!!!

After a bleary-eyed look at the manual, we discovered that if not stopped, it was prepared to chirp every 40 seconds for a WEEK!

But you don’t want to hear me whine. I should just answer the weekly questions, right? 😀

Ok, Favorite birthday memory . . .

I think I’d have to say it was my 13th birthday. I was happy to finally be a teenager and delighted that my friends (already teens) got together and planned a little party for me.

Frosting roses; Love them or hate them?

Absolutely loved them as a kid!!!! Now? Well, as Carol says, it depends on where they come from. A real buttercream frosting rose is so good, but save me from those sugared lard imposter roses!

Stay cool wherever you are!

Wish I could just reach out and offer you a nice frosty glass of lemonade!