And so it begins… Happy First Day of December!
Pull out your advent calendars if you’ve got ‘em?! Like this one that my Grandma Kitty made for me many years ago! Such a wonderful yearly tradition filled with great family memories.

Happy Belated Birthday Tina! Looks like you had a yummy birthday cake… errr, cheesecake… presented on a nice stamped & glazed platter! Making every celebration a bit more special… although I don’t see any candles here?! Thanks David for sharing the festivities!

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all the great Moms in the world…
to those still with us, and to those who are not.
Take time. Share stories. Make memories. Life is short.

Looks like Spring has sprung in Crystal Lake where my Cousin Kim has gathered a few flowers from her garden for her Easter centerpiece using one of my ikebana flower vases! So festive. So pretty!

I mean, c’mon…. could these two rascals BE any cuter?!
Best buddies & playmates. Hanging-out playing with my niece Taylor’s two puppies Riley & Shadow!

This past weekend we did a little “celebrating” of my niece
Taylor’s “Sweet 16” birthday… her second Covid birthday!

While we stayed safe in our family bubble, we also tried the new “pandemic trend” of cutting & eating cake with wine glasses! Pretty fun, a little messy and a LOT of yummy chocolate frosting! We all liked it… except maybe my Dad who I think prefers the old-fashioned slice of cake on a plate!

Yesterday I took my niece Taylor and her parents to THE FRIENDS EXPERIENCE downtown. She’s a new FRIENDS fan having recently binged the entire series during the pandemic… so I knew this would be the perfect birthday gift! Especially when your friend Terry is one of the creative masterminds behind the project and gets you free tickets for the exclusive preview event!

So much fun touring through the world of FRIENDS. Central Perk. Monica’s kitchen. The window to poke Ugly Naked Guy. Joey & Chandler’s apartment. Phoebe’s guitar. The wedged sofa. Joey wearing all of his clothes at once… even the fountain & sofa from the opening credits!!! Tons of memorabilia and plenty of photo-ops along the way… PIVOT!!!

Be sure to stop by THE FRIENDS EXPERIENCE on Michigan Avenue as it opens this Wednesday, March 17th. And special thanks again to Terry for hooking us up… I love having talented FRIENDS!!!

Spent a fun afternoon downtown today with my niece Taylor and her parents… their first time seeing the Chicago River dyed green for St. Patrick’s Day. They were all surprised by how vibrant the green color was… eco-friendly of course!!! Good to see the City decided to bring back a little bit of holiday “normal” this year… as we didn’t get to see it last year when the City shutdown just before St. Patrick’s Day!

My cousin David was proudly showing off his blooming amaryllis today! The flowers are GORGEOUS… and I’m “sure” that it’s all due to the “semi-vintage” flowerpot I made for him several years ago! You can see it better if you reverse the calendar a bit to when the bulb was just starting to sprout! Okay, so “maybe” his green thumb helped a bit too?!

With a “Winter Snow Advisory” in effect… it looks like my cousin Kim is getting ready to hunker down for a few days with a crock pot full of hot homemade soup… and a pretty blue bowl!!!