I am a MESSY Person!


There.

 

I said it.

 

I am a MESSY PERSON.

I’ve always been messy.  Organization never came easy to me.  The average person would take a bookcase and make it somewhat presentable.  Whenever I’d receive the same bookcase, no matter what, it would come back not nearly as organized or nice looking.

Today, however.

Something came over me, and I tore apart our bedroom closet, and reorganized everything.  His dresser has his socks, and his boxers all neatly stacked together.  The baskets in which my undergarments were located in were altogether in a variety of baskets, now each basket has one item in it: socks, underwear, lingerie, bras, etc.

Every hanger had clothes hung on it, and shoes were neatly stowed away in their correct areas.  Clothes were refolded into their apartment compartments, and in my folding area, I organized it into 3 areas: t-shirts, shirts I could wear for work, and then shorts, dresses, and anything else that didn’t fit in the above categories.

I then moved to the bed area.  I cleaned around my half of the bed where books were scattered all over.  I cleaned, and finished by making the bed.

And then I moved to the Christmas boxes that were stacked on the floor and the desk areas.  I gathered all the books around, put all my art supplies and scrapbooking supplies together, and began to organize the desk.  One drawer was all art supplies, the other drawer was computer related and battery related items.

It was a good start.  I’m just thankful I only live in a Studio Apartment.  Although it’s a HUGE studio that feels more like a 1 bedroom apartment, it was a mess, and it was NEEDED.

But one thing I truly walked away from is the feeling of accomplishment, and the feeling of how things are so much easier when everything has a home to go to.

Now, I just hope I can get the other half to keep this neatness thing going for awhile 😉

The kitchen and bookshelf area will be tackled later on this week.  I have to keep this motivation going and this new found cleanliness up.  Once you start, it’s easy to maintain.   *crosses fingers* I don’t end up lazy again.

 

Categories: Life | Tags: , , , | 12 Comments

Going Home!


I went home last week for the Holidays! It was the warmest December I remember ever having there in years.  It was in the 40’s, literally no snow on the ground, and the lakes were barely frozen over.   It was kind of a disappointment not having the snow on the ground to show my love, but well, needless to say, I kind of enjoyed it too 😉

This is my favorite Christmas decoration in my mom’s house.  She made this in a ceramic class.  One thing she said she forgot to add to it were his eyelashes, but still it’s my favorite.  I think I ask to have it every time I visit 😉 lol

So, of course I had to take a picture of it to share it with all of you!

When it comes to decorations, my mom is very good at using all avenues of space.  When you enter her home, you are drawn to how much is on the walls, and how much is on the shelves, but yet, it is organized, and looks very awesome!

I like how she utilizes the space, and how she is very creative with the space she uses.  For example, the basket below filled with ornaments.  It’s so simple, but it really made for a great centerpiece on the table below.


Is it like this at your home where the animals just love laying under that Christmas tree?  The cat loved being under there watching everyone around her.

And then at my dad’s house, the adorable dog Riley found their way under the Christmas tree, and it made for a great picture opportunity!  They sure look adorable under there, don’t they? 
On Christmas Day, my dad and stepmom took the family bowling. It was a ton of fun. It had been ages since I went bowling, and got some great pictures along the way.

I never pose like I did below.  The bowling brought out the silliness in me, and it felt good.  I rarely let myself loose, and I need to learn how to do that more!

These are my fraternal twin sisters.  They’re 16 this year, and are adorable.  It’s been amazing watching them come into their own, and for them to show more personality than ever with this last visit to see them.

And below is another one of my sister’s.  It is her birthday tomorrow.  Happy Birthday MacKenzie!

And below is my little brother.  I found out he didn’t like getting his picture taken 😉 He’s going to kill me for sharing this one!

He is the sports fanatic around town! He plays football and showed us his awesome football video that was put together during the last season. And he showed us some funny videos while visiting via youtube.

And here you have my silliness at best.  One of my photography groups gave us an assignment of coming up with a self portrait so while I was home I was taking a  lot of silly self portraits that didn’t turn out all that great.  This wasn’t the one I went with, but I like how this one turned out.  I’m not even looking at the camera, but it is a GREAT environmental shot!

The holidays were good, although, there wasn’t much sight seeing that happened while home, it was truly a wonderful feeling being around family, and that was what I needed more than anything.

 

Categories: Life | Tags: , , , , , | 10 Comments

Amusement Parks, here I come!


This past year I stayed away from all the Amusement Parks in the LA area because there were so many other things to experience and enjoy.

However, 2012, I made a resolution to try out a few.  I began to research the cost of annual passes and this is what I found out:

Knott’s Berry Farm:

Daily Admission: 46.99

Kids ages 3-11: 24.99

Seniors: 62+: 24.99

Annual Pass: 

Platinum: 165 dollars (includes Parking)

Gold: 89.99 (includes Soak City)

Season Pass: 64.99

The winner for me was the Gold Season Pass.  Between Soak City and Knott’s Berry Farm, that’s enough to keep me happy.  And since Knott’s is the Original Amusement Park, I must check it out!

Universal Studios:

Daily Admission: 77.99

Under 48″: 69.99

Annual Pass:

Premium: 144.99 (includes Parking)

No Black Out Pass: 104.99

Buy a Day at 77.99, get 2012 FREE is still happening!

The winner for me was the Buy a Day at 77.99, get the rest of 2012 FREE!

Six Flags Magic Mountain

Daily Admission: 61.99

Buying Online: 36.99

Child under 48″: 36.99

2 and Under: Free

Annual Pass:

Thrill Pass: 61.99 (Same as Daily Admission!)

Combo Pass: (Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor) 89.99

Xtreme Pass: 125.00 (Free Parking and No Black Out Dates)

The winner for me is the COMBO pass.  2 parks for that price, I’ll take it.  Individual Parking each visit is 15 dollars! *as a heads up*

DisneyLand

Daily Admission: (1o+) 80.00

Ages 3 to 9: 74.00

1 Day Park Hopper: 3 to 9: 99.00 (10+) 105.00

They also have 2 to 5 day Admission and Park Hopper Tickets Available!

Annual Pass:

Premium Passport: 499.00  (Free Parking, No Black Out Dates)

Deluxe Annual Passport: 379.00 (315 days of use)

Southern California Annual Pass: 269.00 (215 days of use)

Southern California Select Annual Pass: 199.00 (170 days of use)

If you’re in California, you also have the option of doing a monthly payment with any of the passes purchased.  A down payment of 80.00 is required!

The winner for me was the Select Annual Pass.  170 days is enough for me!  I know I wouldn’t be going ALL the time, but more than 2 times, the cost of two admission tickets, so it’s completely worth it to me!  

This is the information I found as I was doing my research on Annual Passes towards the Amusement Parks close to the LA area.  Now I just have to decide which ones are worth the investment!

 

 

 

Categories: Fun Stuff | Tags: , , , , , | 7 Comments