Julie, Julie Julie, do you love me?

One of my favorite things (ever) is when someone hears my name and
starts singing my song...(and boy, do I LOVE that song...)

Three more days!

Look closely....

Happy Birthday Sarah!

Happy 34th Birthday to my baby sister, Sarah!

Totally awesome!

The 80s music alone is worth the trip...
I don't think I have ever laughed out loud so much in a movie.

Toasted!

I have been on a strict, low-carb diet for two months now. I have lost 13 pounds and feel great! I am able to wear all my size sixes again--skirts and suits and even my size six jeans!
But, I must admit, tonight, I am dying for a big bowl of pasta and a piece of french bread...or maybe a slice of raisin toast with jelly! Oh, French Toast with syrup!! Or a bagel with cinnamon and honey!!!
Nope, I'm not gonna do it. I feel good, I feel healthy and I am finally looking good too.
But, crap...I'm starving!

Happy Birthday Tennessee!

Hope it's amazing!

Spring Roles

Anniversary Party '10

It was a very good evening...

Does it get any better than this?!

One of the best days EVER!
There are (quite) a few more photos on Facebook!

Training for Spring Training...

Let the games begin...

Are you ready for some BASEBALL?

Heading to Camelback...and bringing them all!

Party in the USA

Happy Housewarming Patrick and Mary Ann!

With the work boys--Resty, Patrick and Rio

Meanwhile, back at the Ranch...

Guess where I'm headed this weekend?
Yep, a little baseball, a little time with my favorite cousins and
maybe even a Margarita or two...
Life is (so) good

Nicknames

Different people call me different names. Nicknames.
It's a "term of endearment" and a very special gift, for someone to like you enough--to KNOW you enough--to bestow you with such a name...
Some of mine:
1. Jooper-this is what my parents call me. Always have. Variations include Joop, Joops and, my Uncle Jimmy called me Joopondilay...
2. Julie-Poo-my Grandpa John always called me this.
3. Ju Ju-All of my sisters, nieces and nephews call me Ju Ju. Variations include "jooj" (Sunny and Thatcher ALWAYS call me JOOJ!)
4. Hooly-I worked at my dad's office when I was in high school and the guys who worked with him called me "hooly"...I ran into one of them a few months back and he addressed me this way immediately!
5. Jewels-friends from high school call me Jewels. Variations include Jools, Juls, Jules...I LOVE being called Jewels. Brent and Jana always call me Jewels.
7. Mama-Allison has always called me Mama. I really love that.
8. Seems like a LOT of people call me "Kiddo"...my friend Sarah always does. I like that one a lot too.
We have nicknames for most of the people in my family...Weenie, Cockadoodler, Leese, Sassy, Sun Bun, T-T, Taylor, Thatch, Nosilla, Zackers, Pops and Bumarino.
I really do think it's a very touching way to show you care for someone.
(But, yeah, they sure do sound silly when you write them out.)
What's YOUR nickname?

...and enjoy it!

You have to ask yourself, do I feel lucky?

Today, I feel like the luckiest girl on the face of the earth.

Two tickets to Paradise!

Just got tickets to the Dodgers/Angels game at Anaheim.
(Happy Birthday Dad!)

Hello darkness my old friend...

Spring Forward is no friend to those of us who go to work at 6am.

Saturday Evening Post

Lunch with my family...

Dinner with my friends...
Just like most of them, it was a very good day.

Tonight's the night!

Time and time again...

Sonja, Kelly and me at lunch today...

Sonja, me and Kelly...29 years ago!

These are the good ol' days...

Met my friend, Karen for dinner tonight!
We celebrated her birthday...as well as 40 plus years of friendship!
Yep, we met in first grade...September, 1969.
I think we look better than we did in 1976...
Life is good.

You can do it

I prayed for twenty years but received no answer
until I prayed with my legs.

Frederick Douglass

Journey

COME WITH ME!

It was paradise

(Back to real blogging today...I promise.)

Happy Birthday Cupcake!

I love you!

I gotta feeling...that tonight's gonna be a good night!

Life is Good

...have I mentioned that before??

Movies filmed in Orange County

How cool is this?

Never, never, never give up!

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship is a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. Enjoy each second!
16. Life is too short for long pity parties. Get busy living, or get busy dying.
17. You can get through anything if you stay put in today.
18. If you want to be a writer, write.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. This too, shall pass.
28. Forgive everyone, everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
36. Growing old beats the alternative.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. Read the Psalms. They cover every human emotion.
39. Get outside every day. JOY is waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
42. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
43. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
44. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
45. The best is yet to come.
46. No matter how you feel, get up, get dressed and show up.
47. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
48. If you don't ask, you don't get.
49. Yield
50. Never never never give up.

John Wooden's Strategy to Find Happiness

1. Promise yourself that you will talk health, happiness, and prosperity as often as possible.
2. Promise yourself to make all your friends know there is something in them that is special and that you value.
3. Promise to think only the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best from yourself and others.
4. Promise to be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
5. Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
6. Promise to forget the mistakes of the past and press on to greater achievements in the future.
7. Promise to wear a cheerful appearance at all times and give every person you meet a smile.
8. Promise to give so much time improving yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
9. Promise to be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit trouble to press on you.

(If you don't know who John Wooden is, please do yourself a big favor and Google him.)