Follow-Up Friday - With Photos

I'm not sure I'm going to keep doing Follow-Up Fridays. Not because they haven't been great (because I've really enjoyed doing them and catching up on comments, etc.) but because it feels like a cop-out during NaBloPoMo to use a day to just post a follow-up on other days' posts. (did that make sense out here as much as it did in my head?)

Anyway, I'm going to make a real effort to reply to comments in the actual post they are left, and see how that works. I'm more likely to get a real conversation going if I reply on the same day you leave a comment anyway, aren't I? I'm also looking into e-mailing commenters with specific questions directly to answer their questions, as some bloggers have been doing with my comments, and I've found I really appreciate that effort and the "personal" response.

But I'm saying all this on the second day of NaBloPoMo and NaNoWriMo, so don't hold me to it! hahaha...

That said, this week you still get a Follow-Up Friday.

So, without further ado...

Monday was a FUN one indeed. I got to host Fun Monday, and I had SO MUCH FUN visiting everyone (and I do mean everyone, I visited you all) who participated. In response to my own entry, almost everyone wanted to know about this:




The lip balm holder on my keychain. Yep, I love it too. This was actually something my mom got as a freebie recently for doing a "Heart Walk" and she gave it to me (I believe she got two, and gave me one). It is my new favorite thing, because being as addicted as I am to chapstick, how much do I love having one right on my keys?? LOTS that's how much. I have no idea what I'll do if it ever breaks, because I have no idea where I could find another one. Maybe I should start researching now.


There were also quite a few comments about how light I travel, or how clean my purse must be. UH...okay, confession time, I DO NOT travel light, EVER and my purse is NOT clean...uh, pretty much EVER. But we were talking about security blankets and things we just NEVER leave the house without...we weren't talking about "all that other junk you carry in your purse, and move from purse to purse, but don't need, don't use, don't even look at and can't even remember is in there", right? Right. So, uh...yeah...


OH, one more thing...thanks for the compliments on my new cell phone, I do love it...but I have to add that it also has three other faceplates that I can change, so the phone can also be green and white (a really cool lime green color), black and white (which looks really sleek) and blue and white (as in a patriotic looking blue). And yes, I do change it according to my outfits...I'm quirky like that.


And as to whether I actually use all the "bells and whistles"...I intend to. I've only had the phone a few weeks, so I'm still learning how to use some of it, and I need to buy a bigger memory card for it, but I do plan on using the MP3 Player portion of it, as well as the GPS (I just have to sign up for the plan that comes with GPS, which I have not yet done). I love gadgets!


On Tuesday I asked for your help in asking me questions, so I can work on answering them throughout the month...some fodder to get me through NaBloPoMo. You did NOT disappoint. There are some great questions there, and I do plan on answering them all...I can't wait to dig into some of them...boy are you all a creative bunch! I'm still taking questions too...ask away!


My Wordless Wednesday was a collection of photos taken of little "critters" around my house Saturday night. I had my little "Halloween" party then, and even though it wasn't much of a party, I went a little nuts buying decorations. I love Halloween, and don't really get to celebrate it now that I'm an adult and don't have kids of my own, so I really enjoyed dressing up the house. Here are some more pictures from that night:

Some of the goodies on the table (if you look closely, in the left hand corner you can see my phone, with the black faceplate on).

Some Witch's Brew and a little Vampire wine.
What's Witch's Brew you ask? Well, here's how I made mine:

1 cup lemon aid
¼ cup orange juice
Juice of half a lime or 1 tablespoon of concentrated lime juice.
2 cups apple juice or non alcoholic apple cider
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon non alcoholic rum flavour
Combine all ingredients. If they like it hot just heat it up and use a cinnamon sticks to stir it with. If they would prefer a punch, chill it and add orange slices.
For adults: add rum.
(I quadrupled the recipe to have enough for everyone at the party, and as far as how much rum to add...I put in about a cup...give or take). I did not heat it up, I used the orange slices. It was yummy and tasted like home made apple pie.

I think I've mentioned before that because I am single, my parties are usually "girls' nights"...I figure if I don't have a significant other, then I don't want my friends cuddling up with their significant others at my parties either. HEY, it's my party, I get to decide! ;-) Anyway, here are the girls:

From left to right we have: New Mom with her daughter Strawberry (she had a little hat too, but it was hot in my apartment that night), Double D, Fred, Shoppaholic, Me (and yes, those are ears I'm wearing), Kitty, Candid Momma (that's my mommy, who stopped by for a little while), and my cousin M&M (who was the only one who came in costume, as a piratess). Yes, there is a mirror on the table in front of us, the party started off as a jewelry party, and then moved onto the gabbing and drinking fun.

Here's a close-up of Strawberry. How cute is she?

Moving on:

Yesterday I just kind of rambled on a bit in my Thursday Thirteen about why I'm doing both NaNoWriMo and NaBloPoMo...but your comments were both funny and encouraging. THanks! And yes, I will be posting excerps of my novel as I go along...although I think I'll post them at my other blog Creative Karina...but I'll let you all know when I do.

So, that's the week wrap-up...onto other things...