Happy High School Graduation Taylor!!! And best of luck as you head off to college! So excited to see where you go from here. Have a great time at the University of Missouri… Go Tigers!!!… and best of luck to our very own Little Miss Mizzou!!!

Yesterday afternoon was a party to celebrate my niece Taylor before she heads-off to the University of Missouri for a degree in Special Education!!! It’s hard to believe that she’s all grown-up & ready for college… in my head she’s still about six or seven?! Many of you have watched her grow-up at some of my art fairs. But in case you missed that… scroll through the photos to see her over the years. The cutest!!!

Her Dad printed all of these photos as large posters that lined the driveway as people entered the party! One for each year… so adorable!!!

Okay, so this was all my niece Taylor’s idea…
but I’ve made a bundle of fun for our Christmas gathering. Over a hundred pieces packed inside, some good, some not… all wrapped up in 800-feet of cling wrap! My family will pass around the ball unwrapping & discovering some gifts along the way! Might not be the best gift ever… but it promises to deliver tons of entertainment for ME!!!

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!

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!

I’ve been on a quest… searching for the new Brookie-O OREO‘s here in Chicago. No success yet. Luckily my niece Taylor had a package and was willing to share… from a safe distance of course.

Were they worth the wait?… Yummy, but not amazing.
Would I eat more? Yes.
Would I finish a whole package? Most likely.

Would I rather have that wonderful-gooey-pile-of-goodness as seen on the center of the package?

MOST DEFINITELY!!!

After a long day at the art fair Saturday, I met my sister Jen & niece Taylor for dinner… and then we went to see HAMILTON!! Our friend Tracy has started hosting “Movie Night” in her backyard every Saturday night. Sure, I was kind of exhausted after a long art fair day… but who can pass up a good dinner with family, a great movie musical and time with King George & The Schuyler Sisters?!!! Not me… I’m in!!!

We celebrated the Fourth of July on the sofa watching HAMILTON on the TV with my niece Taylor & family. With all of the craziness going on in the world, it just seemed “safer” and oddly “appropriate” to be watching HAMILTON to learn a bit of history on The Fourth… and not dealing with the crowds celebrating everywhere without masks or social distancing!!!

And for the record… it was my first time seeing HAMILTON. I know, how did that happen?!… or NOT happen in this case?!

But THIS time… I WAS in the room where it happened!!!

And to make the evening even more “fun”… I decided to bring a little childhood flashback memory to the party. Mostly because it made me giggle every time I thought about it… and the fact that it was now referred to as SPAMILTON.

Yes, we had Spam Loaf for dinner!!!
Basically slices of SPAM alternated with slices of mozzerella cheese, and then topped with tomato sauce and baked. It was better in my memory of when Mom made it for us… but Taylor made it this time and it was good for the joke! And that was about it. Not too tasty… a little slimy… and still very SPAMmy!!!

Yesterday, my niece Taylor & sister Jen tackled a plain gray wall in their basement… with some painter’s tape and paint… and made this amazing mural on the wall of their new “office & art area.” Who knew that that chalk drawing was just the beginning! I love it… as these desperate times call for creative measures!