And The Winner Is.....

First I have to apologize for being a day late with this. I got the smackdown a few days ago from a pukey, feverish, flu-like, bronchitis crud that has made this a not so pleasant week. But moving on to the important stuff....

I had so much fun picking the winner that I decided to grab another name out of the hat and have a runner up prize. Sorry no video of that due to the above mentioned crud. Trust me ... I couldn't subject y'all to that wild looking woman with the death rattle in her chest. Thank goodness it seems to have run it's course cuz I'm feeling much perkier today. So here we go...

The first name I drew was "M". Her blog is called Deep Tangents. Congrats "M"! Wanna know whatcha won?
A gorgeous wide band sterling silver ring! I love this ring and actually own one myself that I wear on my middle finger. Which is how I came to have this extra one. This ring wouldn't fit my middle finger so I ordered a size up and just never got around to returning it. So "M"... you get to benefit from my procrastination. LOL!
I get so many compliments every time I wear this. I hope you love it as much as I do! I'm also including this cute crayon roll for "A". It's great to throw in your purse for those moments when you're out and just need something to occupy the kid. If anyone is interested in this sweet little find, they're at this Etsy site.
My runner up is Lisa (aka Half Gaelic Half Garlic) from The Long Road To China. Congrats Lisa! Since she has a log in date of May 12, 2006, I thought I'd include some items for the baby. A brand new Fisher Price "Sonya Lee" doll and a sweet little long sleeved onesie from Baby Gap. With penguins on it, of course.Lisa... I didn't want to have your other "baby" feeling left out so I included a cozy pair of footed penguin pj's for Sarah in a size 3T. I sure hope they fit. With those frigid Pennsylvania winters, she'll need them. Unfortunately, I don't have a pair big enough for Nick. I hope he doesn't get his feelings hurt. LOL!
Congratulations again to "M" and Lisa! Just e-mail me your addresses so I can get these out in the mail to you both. (I know I had your addy, "M".... but seem to have misplaced it.) Thanks to all who left comments and participated in my 500th post giveaway. This was fun!

500 ** update

I just realized I was stuck at 499 posts. So this makes the 500th! You'd think with blogging since summer of 2006, I'd be further along. But nope. Just at 500. I guess that's because I've been such a blog slacker over the last 3 years.

And to add to that... I haven't been in the mood to blog here lately at all. I have too many things weighing heavy on me right now. A family member with a serious health problem, an immense amount of job stress, the devastation that my adoption might be over (but after many sleepless nights, back and forth debate with my agency, and maybe buying myself an ulcer with the worrying... that issue has been resolved and all is okay), surgery in 3 weeks (which is freaking me out so bad the doctor has to sedate me.... to be able to sedate me), and a major life change that I certainly never predicted for my future.

Sorry to be so cryptic but I just don't even have the mental energy to explain it all. So bear with me as I work through as much of this as I can.... and I'll be back.

To bring a little positivity to this downer post and to somehow mark the big 500 number, I've decided to give something away. I've seen other people do it and it seems like a fun distraction that I could use right about now. What am I giving away? Well, I don't know yet. I haven't thought that far ahead with this idea. LOL! But I can guarantee it'll be something very cool. A mystery surprise.If you're interested in winning, just leave a comment on this post. If you don't have a blog for me to track back to, make sure you leave your email address. Maybe this will encourage some of those lurkers to pop out and say hello, too. I'll draw a name on Weds Oct 28th and post the winner and what the prize is the next day. Good luck!

** I figured out what the mystery prize is gonna be. It's still a secret... but I'll tell you that it's a brand new piece of jewelry. What girl doesn't like jewelry, right? And I'll also include something baby related if you have one, are waiting for one, or just want something to re-gift down the road. LOL!

Deja Vu *Update

*Update- I was still trying to decide if I was going to contact her about copying my blog. Even though I hold no copyright here, it still is a little aggravating when your thoughts are plagiarized. Had she not been right in the middle of her referral bliss, I certainly would have said something. But I didn't want to ruin her moment. It seems that I don't have to say a word...... because she's changed it. She must read here and saw this post. So I just want to publicly say thank you to her for changing it. There are no hard feelings. And congratulations on your referral. I hope you continue to blog because I'd love to follow your journey as you travel to get your daughter. :)


So I was drooling over all the new baby referral pics on Rumor Queen when I came across an interesting blog. It seemed VERY familiar to me. Very very familiar, in fact. Check it out here.

Interesting, no?

Here's the wording in her blog header.....
"Actually it's about eight thousand miles from Alabama To Guangzhou, China but it seems like a million. This is the story of my journey to China to adopt a precious baby girl. Somewhere halfway around the world....she waits for me to bring her home."

Here's the wording in my original 2006 blog header before I had the template custom designed by the amazing Danielle.....
"Actually it's a little less than eight thousand miles from D-----* to Guangzhou but it seems like a million. This is the story of my journey to China to adopt a baby girl as a single mom. Somewhere halfway around the world... she waits for me to bring her home."

Seriously?!

And for the record, her blog did start before mine. But I'm sure she's re-designed it since it's beginning. Because I can assure you these words and this blog title came straight outta my own head. I mean, really.... A Million Miles To Ansley?! What's catchy about that title?

Maybe "Acres And Acres To Ansley".
Or even something like "Across The Atmosphere To Ansley"?
Hey... it's the best I could do right off the top of my head. LOL! But it's still catchier than ripping off my title. And I'll have y'all know that I actually go0gled one of those "how many miles between cities" sites so that I was accurate on my 8,000 miles bit.
Geesh....

Well, I guess they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
But I'm still a little perturbed by it all.

I will give her some credit for the cute kid though.....

* In my blogger virginity, I was naive enough to actually list the city I lived in right in the blog header. For everyone to see everyday as the first thing when they clicked on my blog. Yeah... it was my own personal invitation to all the serial killers, psychos and freaks to just show up on my doorstep. After awhile I realized that probably wasn't the smartest decision and removed it.

Lordy Lordy

Look who's LID is 40!
40 months that is.
Please China...
don't let it hit 50!

PS. My absence has been noted. Just have a lot on my plate right now.
Be back soon.

I Heart My Porch

Wanna see my new favorite spot in the house? Finally, right? I know, I know. You've all been dying to know which rug I chose. LOL! Well, for those who were wondering... here it is. I chose the one that looks like a wrought iron fence design. It's really very pretty and goes perfectly with the new chairs. The rug makes this space feel so much more like just another room in my house.... instead of "outside".I love sitting out here now. The chairs are so comfortable. The perfect spot for reading a book. I added a few new things to make the space even more relaxing. A little side table to hold my cocktail.Some candle light for those romantic evenings. I mean, who wants to have that bright glaring porch light on? Attracting moths to circle your head. Plus we all look way hotter in candle light, right? LOL! The blue tile in this votive holder matches my new mosaic house number plaque.Which I love love love! The pic doesn't even do it justice. It's really gorgeous. I found a wonderful artist on Etsy who custom made this plaque. I can't say enough great things about her! If anyone is interested, you can find Kristin's shop, Pear Tree Mosaics, through the link. She was so easy to work with and will design your plaque in the color of your choosing. Tell her Krista sent ya. It's a great investment and adds some major curb appeal.A new lemon leaf wreath for the front door. Fake, of course.But my flowers are real. And still hanging in there considering it's so late in the season.I'm kinda surprised I still have so much color. Even with the new blue theme I had to get some hot pink in there somehow. The rockers ended up over on the end of the porch. I just don't have a spot for them anywhere else and I didn't want to get rid of them. Luckily, there's just enough room for them to not be in the traffic path of the front door. And it'll be nice to have the extra seating when friends come by. Especially since Griffey has claimed this chair as his.

Sucky McSuck Fest

Pardon me while I whine.

It seems the "ruin my weekend" fairies are at it again. Last weekend I spent laid up on the couch with a pinched nerve in my back. Not sure how I did it but there I lay. I ended up taking Monday and Tuesday off work since I couldn't stand up straight until sometime mid-afternoon Tuesday. The only thing I achieved during my 4 days on the couch was an unhealthy addiction to "Real Housewives~of~Atlanta". The TV choices were slim and Brav0 had a marathon going.... what can I say? LOL!

Well, Saturday morning I woke up with a throat so swollen that my uvula was laying on my tongue. And yes... I had to look up the word for that little thing that hangs down between your tonsils.It's not a pleasant feeling. I've had to fight the urge to constantly gag over it. Lovely, no? Do you know that when I g0ogled for an image of "uvula" I found that there are people in the world who actually pierce theirs? Seriously. G0ogle it for yourself. I can't even imagine how a person could think a piece of metal constantly tickling the back of their throat sounds like a good idea. WTF?

I was awakened several times last night probably with some type of "my uvula is choking me" sleep apnea thing. And every time I woke up I realized that the mere act of swallowing my own saliva felt like someone had poured broken glass down my throat. Niiii-ce.

So yeah... the last 2 weekends have pretty much sucked for me. But it could always be worse, right? Not that I'm tempting fate or anything. Hopefully, things will be back to normal in a few days.