Happy New Year!

2008 was pretty tough on all of us...in just about every way!
I, for one, am very glad to see it go.
Here's to the BEST in 2009

Live, love, laugh and enjoy each day.
You are loved and life, no matter what,
is still good.

This was sent to me...and I'm passing it to you. I gotta admit, there are quite a few good tips here...(and I fixed a few of them too...)

1. Take a walk every day. And while you walk, smile.
2. Be silent for 10 minutes each day.
3. Get more sleep.
4. Pick a sport, a team and start following them!
5. Live with Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
6. Play more games and read more books than you did in 2008.
7. Make time to practice meditation and prayer.
8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of six.
9. Dream more while you are awake.
10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants. Eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
11. Drink green tea and lots of water. Eat berries, fish, vegetables and nuts.
12. Make at least three people smile each day.
13. Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new energy into your life.
14. Donʼt waste your precious energy on gossip, or issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like history class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.
17. Smile and laugh more!
18. Life isnʼt fair, but itʼs still good.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
20. Donʼt take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
21. You donʼt have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
22. Make peace with your past so it wonʼt spoil the present.
23. Donʼt compare your life to othersʼ. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you!!
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?ʼ
26. Be forgiving.
27. What other people think of you is none of your business.
28. REMEMBER 'this too shall pass.'
29. However good or bad a situation is...life will go on!
30. Stay in touch with friends and family!
31. Get rid of anything that isnʼt useful, beautiful or joyful.
32. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
33. The best is yet to come.
34. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
35. Do the right thing!
36. Return calls, emails, texts and, once in a while, go ahead and 'chat' with that old friend on Facebook...
37. Each night before you go to bed think of three things you are grateful for.
38. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
39. You only have one life---make the most of it.

40. Stay curious about the future!

Thoughts for my next tattoo...

Before you laugh, please know that I DO have a tattoo.
And, if I had a dime for every time I have thought about having it removed...well, I would have had it removed...Ugh!

If only I had gone to this place...
Oh yes, I am sure my regrets would be fewer!

How great would THAT look on me!
(Especially love the LA on the middle finger!)

Seriously, why didn't I go with something more like this?

Or even this one! Classic...how come I didn't think of a Fernando LBT?!

Honestly, I would freaking LOVE if this (above) was my tattoo!

Probably NOT gonna get another one...
but I might just go hang out at this place one day.
I think I would like these people.
And they'd probably even like my tattoo.

http://www.truebluetattoola.com/shop.html

My favorite epsiode of friends

Just getting home from our FIRST annual "pajamas & wine night" at Sharel's house!
(Hmm...kinda like EVERY night at MY house!)

These are my BEST friends....from HIGH SCHOOL!
Sharel, Elisa and Kelly...

My GREAT apron was a gift from my sister, Gina, for Christmas!
Yes, we definitely poured our dinner tonight!I LOVE these people! I am my BEST with these people!
And, damn, do these people love me!Twelve pictures later...Oh goodness...if you could see the pictures that DIDN'T make the blog!
(Nope, you'll never see them!)
Delicious food, incredible wines, and
AMAZING friends I've known since I was 14! Seriously...life is OH SO good!! I am the happiest girl in the whole USA!

Note to Self

Each year, as I put away Christmas, I write myself a little note. I jot down what I am feeling or what's going on in my life, and I usually write down WHO I am thinking about (read: obsessing over) at that very moment. It's just a "here's where I am today" kind of note. I always end it with, "So...how are things now?" and then, I pack it away in one of the boxes of Christmas ornaments.

OK, as I re-read that last paragraph I realize that it sounds kinda cuckoo. But, I gotta admit, it's very interesting to find and read these year-old notes as I prepare to decorate the following Christmas. I always laugh out loud when I read it....I laugh at what I was worried about a year ago and, over the last few years, I am truly amazed at the WHO I was so concerned with one year earlier! Sometimes, even the paper the note is written on has a special meaning at the time of its writing, which I find hysterical (read: ridiculous) the next year. But it reminds me of where I've been and the progress I've made and how life just keeps getting better.
Actually, more than anything else, each note is a great little lesson in perspective. The things I am so concerned about today are very rarely a concern at all a year later. And, that person who took up so much of my time, thoughts, feelings and energy--yeah, a year later I realize I haven't really thought of him for months.
Life went on. And, year after year, my notes are reminders--or proof--of just that.
So I just finished putting away this year's Christmas...and tucked my little note inside one of the boxes to be found and read as I decorate for Christmas 2009. Where will I be next year at this time? What will I be concerned with and worried about then? And WHO will I be with (or be obsessing over) at that point?
Not gonna worry about it right now. The house is clean and quiet.
Christmas 2008 was wonderful and life is really good.
Actually, that's exactly what I wrote on the note...

Some of the greatest people I've never known...

I love to blog and I definitely feel like I have to blog every day. Yep, my name is Julie and...well, I love to write. I love to share, not just my life, but all the JOY I have for life! Blogging has been the perfect outlet/hobby/pastime (whatever) for me over the last few years...it has fulfilled me, and enriched my world in so many ways! It has also brought with it one surprisingly satisfying bonus which was completely unexpected--the amazing people I have "met" along the way! The other people who love to write and who share their joy through blogging. These folks have been an especially enjoyable addition to my life that maybe only other bloggers can really understand. All week I look forward to seeing new pictures of Sarah's children and reading about their adventures. I love to see where Shannon's photo shoots have taken her and enjoying her unique style! I anticipate Trevor's next YouTube discovery and value his opinion on baseball trades. And I SO enjoy Dick's memories (especially the photographs!) from the good old days.

Oh, by the way, I've never actually seen or talked to any of these people. We only know each other through the Internet, through blogging, through comments to one another. But I gotta tell you--they are some of the kindest, most loving people I've never met. Reading and keeping up with their blogs has invited me into their life! I care about these people and, over the years, they have become genuine friends. They have encouraged me. They have supported me. They have been happy for me! They have not only shared my joy, they have become part of it. Each day I look forward to reading their blogs and sharing their joy and returning their love and encouragement...be it ever so virtually.

Here are a few of my favorite people that I have never met.
Love you guys.
(Click on their name so you can share in their joy too...)Shannon

Sarah

Dick
Trevor (TS) Harrison

Christmas past

Gotta admit...
it used to be a lot more fun to get up on Christmas morning...

It's December 25th!

Merry Christmas to all...
and to all a good life!

Afternoon Delight

Today was the annual "Hibbard Christmas Luncheon" with my favorite nieces and nephew and sister in law! I met Tiffany and her kids (in order above) Collette, Shane, Chantel and Kori at Olive Garden for a gift exchange, time to relax and catch up a bit, to eat a little and laugh a lot!

Though technically we are no longer sisters in law, Tiffany and I have remained very close friends these last few years and have been a great support to one another for the last 20!
(Don't you love the guy over our head??)

I am SO very proud of these girls! Kori will graduate from Cal Baptist in May with a degree in Psychology and will start her Masters soon after. (I told her I could be her first patient!) Chantel is a freshman at UC Davis--there on a gymnastics scholarship--and also studying psychology! Each of these girls is so full of love and life as well!
Gosh I admire them!

Collette and Shane provided the laughter and the ever re-appearing pepperoncinis in my salad.
They love sports and video games and their dog, Jake.
And each of them is so fun to spend time with!

I am not sure what this was called...Delicious? Amazing? Incredible?
Something like that. Yes, we needed two of them...

Each time I am with these people I am revitalized! They encourage me, lift my spirits and I am reminded of how happy and blessed I am to be part of their lives!
We missed you Allison...we each ate a pepperoncini in your honor!

So...are you ready for Christmas?

I always think this kind of a funny question...and people seem to ask it year after year around this time. Um, yeah, I'm ready for Christmas...I've known it was coming all year! Seriously, it's not like Easter which can come on random Sundays from early March to late April. Nope. Christmas is December 25th--on the dot--every single year!Come on, the lights have been up all over the city shopping centers since before Halloween. Christmas cards, decorations, ornaments and trees have been available at the stores for at least six weeks now...did it really sneak up on anyone? Yeah, of course I'm ready! My cards were addressed in late November and mailed out on the 12th. (And I love all the cards I have received!!) My gifts have been wrapped for a couple of weeks and are organized to go out over the next several days. Oh yeah...the stockings are hung by the chimney with care and everything else is set to go!Today I danced around the kitchen to Christmas music as I baked date chocolate chip breads and made my WORLD FAMOUS BTS (arranged it in the eggnog cups above.) As you probably know, BTS is best on day three...which will be Christmas Eve. Yummy!

Everything for my family Christmas Eve dinner has been purchased and is ready to be cooked as soon as I get home from work on Wednesday. We're having Pot Roast (my sister Gina's favorite!), turkey, sweet potatoes, garlic mashed potatoes, home made macaroni and cheese, green beans and Hawaiian bread sweet rolls. There's a bottle of Tommy Lasorda Chianti for me and my dad and a bottle of Good Daughter Chardonnay for Gina and my mom.

And Veuve Clicquot for all!

Am I ready for Christmas...?
Are you kidding...I can't wait!!
Hey everybody else--ready or not...here it comes!

You are always on my mind...

Over my SEVERAL days off this last week, I cleaned out my iPhoto (went from 15,400 pictures to about 8,500!) I could not resist pulling this one out for its yearly publication.
I LOVE this sweater and proudly wore it to the office Christmas party that evening, just a few years back...Allison hated it and I am sure to this day, still thinks it was ridiculous!
Yeah...good times.

I came across this picture a couple of weeks ago. Frank Sinatra in a Dodgers jacket with Tom Lasorda, Steve Yeager and Rick Monday. Wow. How much better does it get? (Help me, who is the other player? The one over Tommy's right shoulder? I think he's a pitcher!)

I like this picture. Yeah, no reason necessary, huh?

I LOVE this bag. It's like $600, but--DAMN!-- it's freaking beautiful!This picture was taken at one of the 'slums' we visited in Kenya...
These people are always on my mind. Always.Eliane posted this photo on her blog this week. Talk about the good old days. This man was one of our regular customers at Coco's for YEARS! So many good memories!

Yep. Lots on my mind...all the time.
My kids, the Dodgers, Frank Sinatra, men, travel bags made of mitt material, the beautiful people of Kenya...my friends, Christmas...OH so much more!!
Oh life...
Thanks for being so full...

Daze of wine and poses...

Tonight was the Sales and Conference Team's annual Christmas Dinner at Salt Creek Grill! It was also somewhat of a going away party for Sarah who is getting married early next year. We're so happy for Sarah and wish her the best...but it's definitely a HUGE loss for the rest of us.

Veronica, Claudia, Bob and Lindsay

Leah and Jaime

And Miss Molly

As we ate our appetizers--crab cakes, seared ahi, spicy tuna rolls, california rolls, ahi poke with wontons...OH SO delicious!

Shadi and Claudia

Casey and I were SO excited when our entrees arrived! She order the steak and lobster--can you believe how beautiful that is?! I had the double cut porkchop. Needless to say, I ate three bites and brought the rest home...I had filled up on ahi and was saving room for....CHOCOLATE SOUFFLE!!

It was spectacular! We played a 'wine gift exchange' game and I ended up with a good Chianti (it will taste so good with those fava beans, right?!) Food and wine and gifts for all...and a night to relax and enjoy each others' company. The whole evening was such a treat and a true reminder, not only of how much I love my job, but of how very much I love the people that I work with.
Life is SO good.

Kenya feel the love?

kenyakenyakenya.blogspot.com

The presence of JOY

Just a few of the generous (and amazing) gifts I have received from the groups who work with the hotel. Yep...life is DAMN good!

SWF

I have spent the last three days alone in my house. It's been pouring rain and I've been cleaning, organizing, blogging, catching up online and cleaning some more. Oh, I did decorate for Christmas too. And I ventured out to Target one night. I've done a bit of writing and reading and a lot of thinking too. And I've figured out that, actually, I am very happy I am when I am alone. It's just so peaceful! Perhaps those of us who are single after having been married for many years, appreciate singleness just a little more than those of you who have never been married. I just heard that Kate Hudson said she is 'trying to stay single as long as possible.' In many ways, I totally understand that.

Here are a few benefits of being single--for me*:

1. My house is clean. And it stays that way. Everything has a place and it can always be found in that place. On the other hand, if I want to pile dishes up in the sink for a few days before emptying the dishwasher--I do. And there's no one here to complain about it.
2. I can buy anything I want. I can go to Target and TJ Maxx three times a week if I want to! (And I can go at 8pm!) I can buy THREE new sweaters and there's no one to tell me I already have 10 in the closet. No one spends my money but me. And no one KEEPS TRACK of what I spend, except me. So lovely.
3. I sleep so well! No one snoring, hogging covers, or passing gas in my bed. Well, just me.
4. I eat what I want and WHEN I want. Because of my work schedule, I eat breakfast at 5am, lunch at 10am and am ready for dinner by 4pm. Unless I am going out, dinner is often a Lean Cuisine or a bowl of cereal. Usually with a beer. Fabulous.
   
5. I am able to go out with friends frequently and at the spur of the moment. I STAY out without having to call home, check in or ask for permission. There are weeks when I go out four or five times! And, there are some days when I come home at 3 and get in my jammies for the night. So fun.
   
6. I have great friendships and a lot of truly incredible people in my life. I don't rely on one person to meet my needs or to make the plans. I have an amazing support system and an ever-expanding potential of social possibilities. Seriously, it's a whole new world.
   
7. The remote is mine and the TV is rarely on. I can listen to Peter Frampton or Johnny Mathis or Coldplay or Lady Gaga without anyone judging my musical taste! I can sob out loud while watching a movie and never have to watch anything where anyone gets killed.
8. I go to bed at 9 and get up at 4:30. Yes, even on my days off. Sometimes I get up around 2am to check email and bank balances and there's no one to get angry at me for waking them. I can also stay up til 2am watching Will & Grace reruns while blogging and then stay in bed til 9 the next morning...there's no one asking when I'm gonna get up. It is freaking beautiful.
9. The toilet seat is always down and I know where the soap has been.
   
10. I am able to take care of me. Not in a selfish way, but in ways that I was just never able to before. I exercise more, read more and relax more--naps and baths are part of my daily routine! Yes, I now know how to balance a checkbook, check the air in my tires and unplug the kitchen sink. And I also know how great a day at Burke Williams can be.

Life is good.

*Please note that I am NOT advocating BECOMING single. (I once got a call from a friend's husband who told me they were having marital troubles because I made single life sound too attractive!) I am just pointing out the fact that there are good and positive aspects to be found in every season of life. Trust me...I'd love it if next year at this time I could write a list called, "The ten best things about being in love."

I'll have a BLUE Christmas...

One of my favorites...Russell Martin, (a much slimmer) Andruw Jones and Brad Penny (when he wasn't on the DL)...

talk about your collector's items!

Pursuasion, Pride and Sensibility

Excellent!
I actually STOPPED ironing and sat down to watch this movie.
I loved it. I want to read Jane Austen now.
And I want to fall in love.

But first I guess I'll finish the ironing.

Late December back in '63

Yep. That's me.
And, a few years later...

Something's Missing

I just watched A Charlie Brown Christmas and with each little "break" in the show, I could almost hear,
"A Charlie Brown Christmas is brought to you by..."
Anyone else remember the LONG time sponsor of the show?

Joy to the whirled

Today was our annual "Breakfast with Santa"
Alfonso, Jhon and Angel (of the morning) arrived around 3:00am
to set everything up. I was a slacker...I rolled in around 5:30!

Laura and Ray were there for the pre-crack of dawn set up too!
Everything was GORGEOUS!

Soon it was time for pictures with Santa and Ms. Claus

Little Jessica

Stacy and Lindsay

With my sweet partner Shadi and our
INCREDIBLE friend, Graham (LOVE him!)

Yes! My parents came by for a picture with Santa and me...

This is AJ! His dad, Adam is a Red Sox fan--
but besides that is a GREAT guy!

The early morning team...Laura and Jose
I SO love the people I work with...today was LONG and CRAZY...
but there is no where I would have rather been!

Besides Santa and a delicious breakfast, there was a magician, face painting, coloring contests and cookie decorating! This cookie weighed about three pounds!
JOY JOY JOY

Ange you glad it's Christmas time?

Another holiday party tonight!
Me and my LOVELY, wine-drinking friend, Ange
(can you believe they served me Chardonnay in that glass? Yikes!)

Ange and her AWESOME dance partner!

...and her other favorite dance partner!
My WONDERFUL friend Christal!!

...and her son, Christopher!
I used to drive Zac and Christopher to Junior High!

The food was SO good...especially the cranberry-apple tart!
And the dancing was a blast!!
(Ange glad I didn't say banana?)

Girls just wanna have fun...

And OH what fun we had! Claudia hosted a Christmas party for the Montage girls tonight! A little champagne, a little food (ok a LOT of food!) and an amazing group of friends...Such a good time!

Windows update

Don't waste a minute being unhappy. If one window closes...run to the next window!
Or break down a door.

Kenya stand it?

She's adorable!

Right?
Check out Allison's Kenya blog HERE

Say Cheese(cake)!

Just got back from dinner--and a GREAT visit--with my friend Jana
at The Cheesecake Factory!

After delicious avocado eggrolls and a couple of great salads, we shared the Cheesecake Factory's 30th anniversary chocolate cake cheesecake!! Absolutely phenomenal!

December in the OC

Yep, a beautiful 72 degrees in Laguna Beach today!

What a catch!

I purchased a beautiful new purse for myself...what a treat!
It's made by Rawlings...yep, it smells just like a baseball mitt!!!
Aaahhh...Merry Christmas to me!
(And I don't even have to put it under my mattress!)
and, I went ahead and bought the matching business card holder...

Ray...a drop of golden sun...

Tonight I attended the 25th wedding anniversary party of my sweet friend Ray and his beautiful wife, Adela! And what a party it was!!
It was truly a celebration--great people, delicious food, fabulous music--and a whole lotta dancing!
Nothing says CELEBRATE like Mariachis!Dancing with Jose to the sounds of the AMAZING Mariachis...so fun!
GOSH, I love dancing!

At table #8 with Laura and Shadi
And Adela...

With Francisco and Pablo...yes, they are twins and, seriously, two of the greatest guys I've ever known!

Joshlyn, Laura, Shadi, Javad and Victor
(It was noted several times that I was the only blonde at the event.)

With my dear friend, Laura...SUCH a fun night. I LOVE these people. And they love me! Life is good.

Family Matters

Yesterday someone asked me, "How is your family?"
Here's the deal--to me--this question means,
"How are your sisters and your parents?"
Is that crazy? I have ALWAYS thought this way.
It is only when someone says, "How are your children?"
that I think they are asking about Allison and Zachary.
Does anyone else (married or with kids) think that way?

Jaime's getting married!

After work this afternoon,
I had the JOY of going to Jaime's wedding shower!
(FYI-She's wearing shoes with at least a four inch heal!)
Yep, that's a real cake!
(And it was spectacular...red velvet with cream cheese filling!)

Jaime and her lovely mother, Margaret! I work with Jaime at Montage and, would you believe, I have known Margaret's identical twin sister, Marla, for about 15 years?! Small world!The arms are inspiring, don't you agree?!

Patty works with Jaime and me too!
She was on her way to John Mayer tonight! (LUCKY)
Oh, and she reads my blog too...I always have liked that Patty.

Time to smile!

DiLallo is my maiden name!

Shirts for Allison

...and one for Gina's friends at Subway.

You picked a fine time to feed me Lucille...

I met my mom and Kelly (my friend of 30 plus years!)
for dinner at Lucille's tonight!

My mom and I split the sensational pork chops
and applesauce with pumpkin pancakes !!
I think this is my favorite meal in the entire world.
Seriously, these pork chops are magnificent!

Kelly surprised me with two new Dodgers Christmas ornaments!
(I might be able to do my tree entirely DODGERS this year!)

We topped off the evening with Lucille's incredibly fabulous
Jack Daniels bread pudding!
Yep, I might have to say this is my favorite dessert of all too...
I could drink that freaking caramel whiskey sauce with a straw...
DAMN it's good stuff!
Such a great night!!

SoSG

I know, it's silly. But it makes me very happy.
http://www.sonsofstevegarvey.com

Looking forward to that day...

Husband and Life

My neighbor was out front washing his car as I was taking my trash cans out the other night. "Bet you wish you had a husband to do that for you, huh?" he yelled out.

I looked around. "Are you talking to me?" I asked. I continued, "I had a husband for 23 years...I took the trash cans out then too!"
We laughed. Of course, I wasn't kidding. But wheeling the trash bins out once a week is the last thing I need a spouse for! Come on, it takes a total of 12 seconds and requires no strength and/or brain power whatsoever!
But I will say now, after four years of being single, there are a few things I wouldn't mind having a little help with:
1. The remote controls. Seriously, I have three televisions, two DVD players, a DVR, a VCR (and a partridge in a pear tree!) For some reason, I STILL need THREE remotes to watch a freaking movie. I KNOW, right?!
2. My finances. For the love of God, I hate keeping track of money! I hate bills, checkbooks, credit cards, recurring debits, the stock market and all things attached to the word 'account'. I have taken financial education classes, downloaded Suze Orman to my iPod and have spent multiple lunches with my tax man and my investment broker. It's still a struggle. (I will say though, I have succeeded in turning my investment guy into a baseball fan, and he did let me drive his 911 once, so it hasn't been a total loss.)
3. Car maintenance. Oil, water, coolant. Belts, hoses, filters. Fuses, cylinders, spark plugs. Inflated, rotated, balanced. Jesus, Mary and Joseph! Oh, and car insurance, registration and SMOG CHECKS?! Thank God for 'Mac' down at the Jiffy Lube. I stop there once a week or so and he happily fills my tires or changes a fuse. Oh, and he asks me out on a date. Every single time. (PS I always kindly say no. But he keeps asking.)
4. Yeah, you know #4. I would LOVE to have someone to kiss (a lot) and watch baseball with. Yep. THAT I'd like.

But as far as taking the trash cans out...Please! I will gladly take the trash out, make dinner, do laundry, clean the house and call his mother...in exchange for a little help in the other areas.
Especially #4.

Sunny and Share

My niece, Sunny and I shared a WONDERFUL night together...
we went on our annual trek to see Santa Claus!

It must have been a slow night for Santa...
he invited me to have a turn on his lap.
Wait a minute!!!

There were many times when Sunny would not even sit on Santa's lap...she stood next to him for years!!

Sunny sharing a little time with Bum and Papa...
Sunny and her family will be heading back to Hawaii on Wednesday...
Dang I hate that part.

Somewhere, Over the Rainbow...

I absolutely enjoyed every single minute of this nearly three hour long movie...inspirational, encouraging, enlightening, tender, tragic and SO full of hope!

Infused with the spirit of The Wizard of Oz...
I thought it was literally magical!
And, oh, that song..."Somewhere, over the rainbow..." Oh man!
I will sing you to me. And I will find you.