Valentine's and more

We did a little bowling at the casino on our way to Red Wing.

Our room at Moondance.

O.k. we really have started taking ballroom dancing lessons...just starting...focusing right now on latin rhythm dance (merengue, rhumba, chacha...). So it seemed like a great idea to go watch some professional ballroom dancers as part of our Valentine's celebration. That was my gift to Joel...last Friday we attended a very theatrical ballroom dance performance at the Southern Theatre. It was very romantic, and inspiring...we have no intentions of ever reaching anything close to that level of dancing, but it would be fun to be able to do some real dancing with some level of grace. Joel and I approach the lessons in very different ways. Joel's the extrovert and loves the social aspect. Being the introvert, I definitely prefer not drawing attention to us...at least till we get a little better (and that will be a while). But it's all about having fun...and obviously Joel was having some fun when he put that little video together. (There's another one coming that you'll get a kick out of!)

Monday we enjoyed the second half of our Valentine celebration. Joel booked our honeymoon suite at the Moondance Inn for a night of romance and relaxation. It was a much needed break from our day to day routine. We also enjoyed a nice trip home through Northfield, which included a long rest stop for lunch and some shopping. There's a great bead store in Northfield, so I went home happy.

So now we're back at home and back in our regular routine...and maybe with a little dancing mixed in.

What We've Been Doing Lately

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A relaxing weekend...nice weather included

It has been a great weekend. For the first time in ages, I haven't felt like crap. It's about time.

Friday night, otherwise known as "Date Night" in our home, Joel and I went for dinner at Outback and then a trip to Dick Blick (an art supply store). I bought 20 canvases, mostly small ones, but they're having their semi-annual canvas sale. Dick Blick was followed by a mega-trip to the grocery store. I know, a super-hot date, but it was a good night.

Saturday, aah lovely Saturday, the day the temperature climbed above freezing for the first time in ages. It reached something like 44 or 45 degrees...the warmest we've been since November 6th. I started out the morning in the studio to do a little work. Then in the afternoon I did some running around...driving with the windows down to feel the cool breeze on my face.

Saturday evening we stepped outside our door to watch the Winter Carnival Torchlight parade. St. Paulites like to celebrate winter with not one, but two parades. The first one was last Saturday when it was brutally cold. Ana and I watched that one from the warmth of my 2nd floor studio (which overlooked the parade route). This week it was warm enough to watch the parade outdoors...and Joel & I watched the parade from our doorsteps, along with his 2 kids and my son, Cyrus. It was actually quite fun and hey this particular parade, which is the final event of the Winter Carnival, is supposed to celebrate the end of winter. (We can only wish).

Today was another glorious day. We did not quite reach 44 degrees, but it was still beautiful regardless. Again, I started the day over at the studio. Then this afternoon, Ana and I ran around shopping on Grand Avenue doing as Ana said, "the St. Paul version of Uptown". We hit an antique store, Starbucks, 2 vintage clothing stores, and last, but not least, Cheapo records. I walked out of Cheapo's with a few treasures...including a collection of 70's love songs from Motown. I snatched that CD up once I saw it included the Spinners' One of A Kind (Love Affair). The fact that the CD included 2 Barry White songs was a bonus!

Now we're wrapping up the weekend by watching Mama Mia...I think I might actually end this weekend feeling relaxed. It's about time.

Barack Obama - times they are a changin'

The times are hard and often discouraging. Watch the news and you will hear about companies going under, folks being laid off, food shelves bare from increased numbers of users...Even in my little corner of the world of social work, budgets and services are being cut in a time of greatest needs.

This song has been stuck in my head for the last several days. I can't recollect a time when our country has ever needed change more. Maybe instead of talking bailouts we should be looking at ways to reinvent ourselves. Isn't that what America is all about? We can do things better! "America: New and Improved"...I think that should be our mantra!

And yet, in this time of great despair, there is hope. I look forward to Barack Obama's inauguration with great hope. We won't dig ourselves out of this hole immediately and there will be stumbles along the way...but his presidency is our greatest hope...the times they are a changin' (praise the lord).

(Note: Initially I wanted to find a Bob Dylan version of this song...but then I found this one on YouTube that featured James Taylor, Carly Simon and friends from the No Nukes movie concert that I saw many, many times years ago! Great stuff!)

(Another note for local folks: I'll be watching the Inauguration with other folks at Riverview Theater in south Mpls. Free and open to the public. Doors open at 9:30 with the Inauguration around 10:30! I think it will be a great place to be!!!)

Holiday pics

I know...I haven't done much writing here lately. Here's a few pics from the holidays. (I'm starting to play around a bit with picasa!)

Holiday Blessings

Amazing. As crazy as the time leading up to Christmas seems, it seems to come and go in an instant. December has been a whirlwind...and I lamely offer that as an excuse for not writing more.

The closer it gets to Christmas, the crazier my work becomes. Crazier and harder. As you can imagine, the holidays is a difficult time to be in the line of work of "helping others". Stress piles up for everyone and it's hard not to feel that. I try to bring home with me the good stuff...the joy in helping make the holidays a little easier for families that don't have a lot of resources. Joel and I had a good time playing Mr & Mrs Claus for the families (even if we came home with the flu). It was a tough year for our Holiday Store for our families...donations were down, but we managed to serve all our families.

And while I worked the last few weeks to make the holidays better for others, I was trying hard not to go crazy making Christmas better for my own family. Thankfully I get a 2-week holiday break from my work and starting Friday (when my break began) I was busy running around like every other crazy fool.

And so I celebrated Christmas with my kids and hubby yesterday. "Santa" was very, very good to me (Thank you, honey!) But in the end, it's the combination of all the "little things" that make the holidays complete...the time spent with my kids and husband, listening to the same holiday music, eating the same cookies, decorating the tree with the same ornaments...these are the things that I treasure year after year.

And I know that I am blessed.

The surprise at the end of this post

I was really kicking myself for not making it outside yesterday, so I was determined to venture out today. Not the best move. My daughter Ana was off today, so we headed to downtown Mpls to check out the Dayton's, er Macy's 8th floor display. We took the bus...because of the weather and the fact I hate driving downtown Mpls.

I just have to say that I was a bit disappointed with Macy's this year. The display was about half the size it normally is and there were none of the "illusion" scenes they typically have. It was still beautiful, but didn't quite measure up to past years.

Ana and I did a bit of shopping. I love shopping downtown Mpls, but it was getting colder and windier as the afternoon wore on. Plus I started feeling like crap. I found out a few weeks ago that I have a severe vitamin D deficiency...which explains my severe fatigue and muscle/bone fatigue & weakness. After walking around for a few hours I was done. Actually I was in pain. We headed home, but the 8 block walk home was miserable.

I'm not looking forward to this bout of winter weather that's coming this week. I would love to hibernate!

And now for the surprise at the end of this post: As a means of promoting my Etsy shop and art blog, I am hosting a giveaway on my art blog. It's also a way to show appreciation to those folks who are following my artful adventures. I will be giving away a necklace to one of my viewers. Check out my art blog for details. All you have to do is leave a comment (on my art blog).