Happy New Year!!

I wish everyone a very Happy, Healthy New Year!!  Welcome 2015!!

I am not making resolutions for the new year, but I am making changes!

I make a resolution or two for the new year but this year is different!  I have decided that I am going to make changes in my life.  These are positive changes. 

1.  I am going to lose a large amount of weight.
2.  I am going to sell Mary Kay Cosmetics.  I have already signed up.  The women I have met are so positive and energized!!
3.  I am going to put more money in my savings account.  The other night John and I made an excel spreadsheet to help us achieve this.
4  I am going to worry less about the little things and concentrate on appreciating life.
5.  I am going to surround myself with positive people and things-there is nothing to be gained by negativity!
6.  I am going to plan more fun things with John this year.  We always seem to just work around the house or yard, we need to have fun too!

Basically this is my list for now, but it will be growing.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and amazing new year!!                                                    

I made soap!!!

My daughter, Megan loves anything Irish.  With a name like Megan McDermitt now Nowak how could she not!!  I have always wanted to make soap.  Well before Christmas I bought a kit and guess what the mold was Celtic Knots!!  I thought I would buy a kit first so I would have step by step instructions.  It was very easy and not very time consuming either!  Here is the final results:

Jenny,my other daughter had given me a flower silicone mold for my birthday, so the left over soap mixture I poured into that and made 2 bars of that type soap!  That is the soap on the right.  Megan loved the soap and was really surprised when I told her I made it!!  I gave Jenny bars of the flower soap and she liked that too!

I will definitely be making more!  I have pinned so many recipes off Pinterest that I have alot of recipes to choose from. 

Have an awesome day!

Christmas, Etc.

I must apologize because I never got here before Christmas!  I do hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  I know our household did.  It was glorious with the girls, their hubbies and the grandboys here!  There is just something magical about Christmas when shared with children.  I don't know if it is the anticipation, the squeals of delight when they see what Santa has left them under the tree or just their innocence.  My grandboys, Owen and Jack just enjoyed the holiday season to the fullest!  Christmas Eve John and I went up to Jenny and Kevin's for a casual Christmas Eve dinner.  We came home and then we went with Ken and Megan to the 11:00 candlelight service at church.  It was just beautiful!  I love looking around the church seeing all the candles lit and everyone singing Christmas carols!  Just priceless!

Here are some photos of our Christmas Day:

 Our Christmas Tree

 Auntie Megan helping Owen open a present.

 Jack playing with his farm tractor we gave him.

 Owen playing with Jack's farm tractor and Rescue Paws tower.

Jack and Owen opening gifts with Auntie Megan and Uncle Ken looking on.

Memories were definitely made that day!  

The Tuesday before Christmas I decided to become a Mary Kay consultant.  I went to a makeover with my daughter, Jenny.  I tried the Time Wise Skin Care products and loved the results so much I decided to sell it.  If you want to take a look and purchase something, you can go to my website:  www.marykay.com/cmcdermitt1.  I will ship for free anywhere in the continental US.  No pressure though!!

Yesterday Megan, Jenny and I went to lunch at Hickory Tavern and then we went to the movies.  We went to see "Into the Woods".  It was wonderful and we had a great time!  I love spending time with my girls.  We don't get to do that very often by ourselves, but when we do we have a great time!!

On Christmas Eve Day my boss gave me a AMEX gift card!!  Today John and I went to Best Buy and purchase a Blue-Ray DVD player.  Now we can watch our DVD's in wonderful color and clarity!  It is wireless too!

Tomorrow the grandboys and Jenny will be coming for dinner.  I promised Owen I would make my Mac 'n Cheese, hotdogs and baked beans.  He isn't much of an eater so when we know he will eat, I try to make something he likes!

I think that is about all for now!  I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and Happy New Year to all of you!!

Christmas Tree Time!

This weekend John and I will be picking out our Christmas Tree!  Last year we got it at a tree farm stand and we will probably go back to the same place.  We live in Mint Hill and this little old man has the tree farm stand there.  I love shopping local!  Maybe even the grandboys (and their parents) will want to go with us!

When our girls were little, we would go to the local tree farms for our tree.  We were lucky enough to live in an area that had so many tree farms.  Actually we raised Christmas trees on our own farm but they were to small to harvest when we lived there.  We would go in the morning before the crowds got too bad.  We would traipse all over the farm looking for just the right tree.  My girls would loved "hunting" the perfect tree down.  Then we would come home and warm up in front of the fire drinking hot chocolate.  Then we would bring the tree in, get it in the stand, fill the holder with water.  We wouldn't decorate the tree for a few days, we would let the tree take in water and let its branches come down a bit.  The girls and I actually strung cranberries and popcorn strings for the tree-we had such fun!!

Even though our girls are grown now, I still remember those tree hunting days like they were yesterday!  Great memories!!