Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Becca Back in the USA

Becca is back.  
We met at the airport at 6 PM.  
We had to wait awhile but when she got through customs, time stood still.  
 Waiting, waiting, waiting!  Where is she?
 Claire and Megan surprise Becca
 Coffee for Becca
 All happy to have Becca in the USA
I'm happy too

 Twins united again
She's here!

Welcome back, Becca
A toast with a margarita!

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Moving Events

The end of the month can be a busy time for moving.
This July
Sarah is moving out of her apartment.
My friend Ryn is moving out of her Lake Harriet Condo and into a house with a backyard.

Me - I'm helping where I can!

At the Holman townhouse in Savage:
Step 1: Crafts out of the guest room and into the Master.
Getting there but still more to purge.  I think a garage sale is in order soon.
This isn't bad but the closet is too full........

Our book shelves are now more for craft storage and not so much for books.
I gave away some books and moved a lot of closet storage to the garage.
The best part, Carol helped me hang up all my clothes and now I can find outfits by color - amazing.

In the process I was able to clear out the guest room, and
Step 2: Sarah moved in on Saturday.


She has a few days before Becca gets back from France and then they will be sharing that room for a month.
From two people to 4 people to make a full house for the Holmans in one easy week.

On Sunday
Across town in Minneapolis:

Packing up a condo.  We helped pack up the kitchen in no time.


Cards for Christmas in July

Ryn, Carol and I started our Christmas cards early this year with Christmas in July in Pine City.
Here are the results (Designs by Jessica):


A treat and an ornament too.


I came home with a bag full of kits for my Minneapolis friends that missed the class.

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Decisions. Decisions.

Sarah and Becca will be home in about 10 days.  I have this weekend and next to prepare the bedrooms  for all the people. What to do?

I am in the process of cleaning out the guest room for the girls and rearranging the master bedroom so hopefully I can work on craft projects there.

While doing all of this I find that I have a problem - where do I put all my wonderful stuff.
Currently both rooms are a work in progress.

The guest room still needs to be cleaned out more.


And the master bedroom - I'm not really sure what to do here.
It really doesn't have room for anything more.

It would be nice to have another bedroom but we don't so I'll be putting things in storage, closets or the trash.  
Any suggestions?  
I'm going to sleep on that thought and try to come with Plan C tomorrow.  
I'll let you know when and if I figure something out.

Guess Where We Had Lunch?

Bill and I had lunch at Noodles and Co. today.   We thought of Lucy and Megan and how they love Noodles too.  Wish they can have joined us.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

School Supplies 2012

It's that time of year.  It's time to buy school supplies.  Actually it is a little early.  But the stores are starting to stock up with all of your favorite paper, pencils, pens, and notebook supplies.

Even though it's been awhile since our children were home and needing supplies for the new school year, I still enjoy checking out the bargains.

It's quiet in the supply aisle since it's still a couple weeks or more before the 'back to school' panic.  Especially here in Minnesota where the state dictates that we have until the day after Labor Day and the cabins are ready for winter before school starts in the Fall.  This is only in Minnesota!
Where are all the frantic parents and their children?
Yes, that's my cart and I have the place to myself.

Just look at the bargains I found this week.  Everything was a $1.00 or less.  Great time to stock up on notebooks to journal in for the next year.  I threw in a pencil case - also for only a dollar.

Cute? Right!

Although I hate to see the summer coming to an end, I do love great deals on cute, colorful notebooks.

Sunday, July 15, 2012

More Jessica Card Designs


 Adorable overalls.  Can't wait to create in pink for little girls.


 Love the tile effect of this one!  Easy to do with scoring tool.
Beautiful strawberry paper.  It's great when paired with strawberries in the jar.

Brave Movie

My granddaughters saw the movie 'Brave' over the weekend.
Can't wait to visit Will and his girls in Little Rock in August.
Maybe they would like to go see 'Brave' again!  I would.

Saturday, July 14, 2012

New Bridge for Hwy 13 in Savage

We have a new interchange for S. Hwy 13 into Savage, MN.  The whole intersection has a new look.  There is still a stop light to get on Hwy 13 but you can exit without stopping.  It's Obama's way to keep our construction workers on a job - our wonderful federal taxes at work for a better world.......
 <----- We are Hwy 13 S
 Hwy 13 N ----->

Fun with Friends in Pine City

 Cindy and Carolyn smile for the camera
Fun card
Today was another Pine City card class Saturday.  We made 8 adorable cards designed by Jessica.
I'll share more cards soon.

Bill Has a Blog

Did you know that Bill Holman has a blog?
http://billholman.wordpress.com/
established: Nov. 2011
Wonderful topics include:
Income Producing Assets
Summer Breeze

So take a look and enjoy the perspective of another Holman.

He is also open to topic suggestions:
'Know the Code'
'Health Care'
Now it's your turn to make some suggestions.
Enjoy.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Looking for a Job

Through an unexpected turn of events (my contract ended in June instead of next April) I have found myself searching for a new job this summer.  Many of you may think that it's nice to have a break and that there is never a better time than summer.  But I'm here to tell you that looking for a job is hard work.  It takes a lot of focus, stamina and many hours of research.  It's exhausting.

-------------HOWEVER I HAVE DISCOVERED-----------
There are a few perks: 
You can surf the internet and fill out applications at the same time.
You don't have to dress up or walk very far to get to the 'office'.
You have a nice view of your neighborhood right out your window.
No one monitors your calls daily and you can take a break whenever you want.

Several things are very important to help reach your goal:
Stay focused on the goal - getting a great job!
You must answer all phone calls with a smile and a cheery voice.
You must be professional when you are taking or making calls.
You need to jump to attention, get into that professional outfit and race to a face-to face interview at the drop of a hat.
You must keep your computer and planner calendars up-to-date at all times.  There's no room for double booking or forgetting any appointments, interviews or classes that are scheduled to help you reach that all important goal.

I have learned a lot and job searching is certainly different in today's technology world compared to the newspaper ad world of the 1980s and 1990s.
Job sightings and tools used are so different today.
1. Networking is becoming one of the best tools for finding and getting a job.
2. The internet is your friend, not only for finding jobs, but for research as well.
3. Learning and Volunteering are great ways to stay busy and they look good on your resume.
4. Linked In is a great tool. You can share references, your resume and find new contacts.
5. Our Minnesota WorkForce Centers have great seminars and offer lots of support and help.

I have a lot more to learn.  And as I do I will try to share here.
I'd love to hear any great job searching ideas you'd like to share too.

Cute Cards

I have a couple new stamp sets and they made the cutest cards.





Monday, July 2, 2012

Naming Our Children

My niece started this topic by discussing how her latest daughter's name was decided.  It's a great story and you can read her story for yourself on her blog.

Our daughter-in-law responded with her thoughts and I thought I'd add mine here.

Will with his twin sisters Sarah and Becca - 1989

Sarah Beverly and Rebecca Catherine:
Bill and I do the same as Will and Liz - first name is a favorite and the middle name is a family name.  Sarah Beverly has my mother's name as her middle and Rebecca Catherine has Bill's grandmother's middle name, hence Catherine with a C.
William Jennings Holman V:
I didn't have a lot of input with Will's name.  He was William Jennings Holman V and we are both very proud to carry on the name.  I did however get to decide what we would call him as he grew up.  I wanted to use William since his father was Bill (Billy to the older generation but I could never see myself calling a grown man Billy) and his grandfather was Bill too.
Will was able to decide on his preference of address when he was old enough to decide and he like Will and so do we.  Rebecca ended up making her choice later and she prefers  Becca.  Sarah is Sarah with an 'h' and proud of it.  Our girls always had middle name options to use if they weren't crazy about their first given name. William on the other hand couldn't see himself as a 'Jennings' so had fewer options.  We have never expected the tradition to continue.  It's the parents choice and they can name their child whatever they like.  Who knows?  It could skip a generation or two and maybe surface again in the future.
Family time:
I am so proud to be a mother and grandmother.  Children keep you young. And grandchildren are so worth waiting for.  Family is the best.  I value every single moment I can spend with them