Nov 30th 2008 11:14:53 pm

For my last NaBloPoMo post I wanted to do something fun and I love online window shopping when I should be doing work… I have been browsing all of the many holiday gift guides out there and have been slowly putting together my own “best of the gift guides” guide. These gifts would all be a hit with me and hopefully they could please lots of folks on your gift lists.

• I really like this Hawaii or Bust ski hat from Kate Spade. It is too expensive, but I think it is funny and cute.
• Dish soap does not sound like an exciting gift, but I purchased this William-Sonoma Pumpkin Spice Cleaning Caddy last month and I love it! It smells like the holidays and it contains everything you need for cleaning in the kitchen. (Everyone needs to clean their kitchen, right?) Pumpkin Spice is one of the new scents in William-Sonoma’s new Pure & Green line — they also have Winter Forest and Peppermint Snow scents that I would like to try. The cleaning products are all biodegradable and made from plant-derived, natural ingredients.
• Eco-friendly peeps can always use (and re-use) cool aluminum bottles from SIGG. They come in all sorts of colors and designs.
• Another environmentally sound choice: Not a Paper Cup from paper source. It is a porcelain and silicone coffee cup that only looks disposable. I think it is silly-cool.
• For the ladies, Fresh Firebird Mascara. Fresh makes the best mascara, plus it is all natural and comes in a pretty container.
• Kids, pets, fun-loving adults — I think they would all love an Ugly Doll. We got Crusher one of these dolls and he loves it. They are cute, quirky, soft and cuddly.
• Who doesn’t know someone who loves Starbucks? The Starbucks Gold Card is an indulgence that I can’t justify for myself, but I think it would make a nice gift. The card holder gets 10% off everything from Starbucks, plus a few other goodies like free wi-fi and flavored syrups.
• For some reason I really love these simple Night Owl Paper Goods notepads. They are just so lovely and everyone needs a place to write their to-do lists.
• Ok, this last one may seem boring, but just trust me. Everyone loves J.Crew’s sherpa-lined hoodies (for women and men). I promise. They are comfy, warm, machine-washable, and pretty much indestructible — plus they are currently on sale! You really can’t go wrong giving one as a gift.

Good luck with your holiday gift giving! I know it can be tough to find the perfect thing for everyone you care about… If you really get stuck coming up with gift ideas, I would suggest writing a nice, heart-felt note and/or taking the gift recipient out to a nice dinner. It really is the thought (and the love) that counts, and with the economy in such a sorry state this year I think everyone will understand (and enjoy it) if gifts are a little less commercial and a little more expressive.

No Comments » Categories: Christmas, Just for Fun, holidays

Nov 29th 2008 11:30:54 pm

Welp. I have been just squeaking by on getting all of my NaBloPoMo posts completed each day. I wanted to do better this year, but I am not going to beat myself up over it… In fact, I have decided to try not to beat myself up over anything anymore. That is going to be one of my new year’s resolutions (along with having more patience). No more saying, “I SHOULD be doing this or that.” It is too exhausting. I am going to try to just live and not second-guess myself and not be so judgmental all the time. Wish me luck. It is more difficult than it sounds…

3 Comments » Categories: Thinking

Nov 28th 2008 11:35:11 pm

Check it! Finally got my mount! (Well, actually my second mount, but still an exciting achievement.) I really should not play anymore this weekend because I have a lot of Swap-bot to do (what’s new) and Travis and I have started watching Heroes Season 1. Maybe I can fit in a little more WOW time…

This weekend I also need to: do lots of laundry, do dishes, figure out what gifts to give to certain family members (throw me a bone, people!), go to the gym, make a gingerbread house, make chili, cut crusher’s nails, mend some pants, take clothes to the dry cleaners, stop by the post office, and work on some swap items. Not a bad list. What should I do first?

2 Comments » Categories: Just for Fun

Nov 27th 2008 09:05:55 pm

I hope everyone had a wonderful day. It was just the three of us at the Johnson household, but I went ahead and cooked a full meal and turkey just for fun. It all turned out pretty good. I used this Domino magazine recipe. The stuffing required roasted chestnuts and this was my first time making those. They were a pain to peel after roasting, but Travis turned out to be quite good at it which really helped. The recipe also called for butternut squash (I think in place of yams). They were not my favorite part of the meal. I don’t think I would prepare them again. They just weren’t very tasty — even with maple syrup. The turkey was great. Crusher had his fair share and now he is napping in my lap. It was a nice meal… with plenty of left-overs for tomorrow!

I am very thankful for so many things, including (in no particular order): Travis, my amazing and fun family, little Crusher, our home, our jobs, Obama being elected president, the internet, Swap-bot users, coffee, Jr. Mints, funny TV, the sun, the moon, the stars… you know, everything! And thanks to you for reading this crazy, little website. Happy thanksgiving!

2 Comments » Categories: Crusher, Feeling Happy, Food, Travis, holidays

Nov 27th 2008 12:43:13 am

1 Comment » Categories: Crusher, holidays

Nov 26th 2008 12:16:29 am

I heard about The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family on the radio a while ago and recently saw that it won the National Book Award for nonfiction. The book, by Annette Gordon-Reed, is about Thomas Jefferson and his house slave Sally Hemings. From the publisher:

“This epic work tells the story of the Hemingses, whose close blood ties to our third president had been systematically expunged from American history until very recently. Now, historian and legal scholar Annette Gordon-Reed traces the Hemings family from its origins in Virginia in the 1700s to the family’s dispersal after Jefferson’s death in 1826. It brings to life not only Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson but also their children and Hemings’s siblings, who shared a father with Jefferson’s wife, Martha. The Hemingses of Monticello sets the family’s compelling saga against the backdrop of Revolutionary America, Paris on the eve of its own revolution, 1790s Philadelphia, and plantation life at Monticello. Much anticipated, this book promises to be the most important history of an American slave family ever written.”

It sounds very interesting – an account of American history from a female perspective and a deep, honest, human look at slavery. I hope to read the book soon… Sadly, I am still not done with Guns, Germs and Steel, and I am also trying to finish The Audacity of Hope. I better hit the books!

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Some pretty sweet news: Swap-bot was featured today on Mashable.com as one of the top five sites for Secret Santa gift exchanges. Mashable is a big deal tech blog, so I am excited we were mentioned…. and without ever having to send a single press release! Too great!

3 Comments » Categories: Books, Swap-bot

Nov 25th 2008 12:39:40 am

I saw this dog on The Soup and I am kinda in love. I am trying to teach Crusher to say Ar-rar-rar-mar-rar.

4 Comments » Categories: Just for Fun, Puppies

Nov 24th 2008 12:39:55 am

That is a photo of crusher riding around in my puffy vest today. He was really sick all day, but didn’t throw up again like yesterday. He likes snuggling with me when he is sick. It is sweet, but I was really worried about him. In the afternoon he started eating and was little more like himself. I think he will be near 100% tomorrow. I work from home tomorrow, so I can keep an eye on him and try to get him to drink lots of water to rehydrate.

Other than caring for a sick pup, I played some WOW and worked on Swap-bot today. Travis did a lot of work on the ‘bot. He created a new chat room! It still has some issues and it is not totally released to the public yet, but it will be a lot of fun once it gets going! We’ve got all sorts of fun things planned for that little website… stay tuned!

3 Comments » Categories: Crusher, Swap-bot, Travis, Work

Nov 23rd 2008 12:35:36 am

Forgive my late and short post today. Crusher has been feeling sick all day. He has been all cuddly and quiet, and tonight he has been throwing up a lot. I am not sure what brought it on, but if he doesn’t get better soon we may need to take him to the vet. I am worried. I’ll let you know how he is doing in the morning…

UPDATE: Crusher is doing a little better this morning. He is still in bed and I think he is dehydrated, but he will probably make a full recovery.

4 Comments » Categories: Crusher, Feeling Sad

Nov 21st 2008 02:38:23 pm

My two guys. So cute. Crusher kinda looks like he has laser beam eyes, but in person he is just as cute as can be! I am glad it is Friday because on the weekends the three of us just hang out. Usually we spend our time working on the ‘bot and eating yummy food. Crusher likes it when the whole family pack is together.

Most of the rest of my life is spent answering emails, which is ok, but in my spare moments I do things like design more postcards for Swap-bot. I did the design below because Overnight Prints was offering a deal of 4×6 postcards.

The design is probably too busy, but I like to just get things done and out the door. I am horrible about checking over my work. I have been that way my whole life. In high school I would never re-check my test answers before handing them in. I have this weird, pretty harsh attitude that if you can’t do it right the first time you really don’t know what you are doing. It is not a wise attitude. I just have a super-hard time with patience. The really odd thing is that I have held a lot of editor positions, but I absolutely hate proofreading. A professional weakness, I suppose. Hmmmm… I will try work on my impatience problem. Maybe it can be a new year’s resolution.

1 Comment » Categories: Crusher, Family, Swap-bot, Thinking, Travis, design