life

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

life

Christmas is upon us and I am sending you Holiday Greetings. No matter what you celebrate this season, let it be full of joy. I for one and hoping the New Year brings much happiness. This year has been a dilly and I am ready to let it go. I have let the blog go for a couple of reasons. One… my pictures have filled up and I have to delete photos in order to add new. This seems a lot of work. Two… I suffered a concussion that left me unable to use the computer for many months. Perhaps, the New Year will be a good reason to tiddy-up my blog and get back into it.

The photo above was taken on a recent trip to Germany . A beautiful, fresh snowfall covering the path and filling the trees. A magical event for this SoCal gal. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! The next morning, the scene was washed away with a light rain. This reminds me to enjoy things while they last and cherish the memories.

Happy Holidays and See you Next Year!

A Little Something That Made Me Chuckle

life

I ordered a package and it came in the standard brown cardboard box, or so I thought. I did not notice anything odd about the box until I was getting ready to dispose of it. When I turned the box over, I had quite a chuckle.

This box had quite the personality. Written on the outside of the box was the following…”I want to be a pizza box. Recycle me. ” How funny. These words somehow made my box come alive. I said to the box, “Don’t worry, you’ll be recycled.” I really do hope the box gets it’s wish and becomes a pizza box. Hopefully, the workers at the recycle plant will get the message…

As always, Find Humor in the Small Things!

Time to Celebrate!

life

As my followers know, I like to celebrate the milestones of my blog with a little cake. I checked the other day to see if I was anywhere near a milestone number. I was at 348 followers. Close but no cigar as they say. So I waited…

Finally the day arrived! 350 followers. Time to make a cake. I chose to make a “healthy” cake. It would be a flourless chocolate cake. Instead of flour, the recipe called for almond meal. The cake was a single layer eight inch with powdered sugar sprinkled on top. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I was all for having a lower carb version of a celebration cake. My family, however, had other ideas…

The husband was let-down by the frosting-less cake. My daughter agreed with him. Neither thought my “healthy” cake was any healthier and my husband set out to remedy the situation. His solution was to add a dalop of raspberry jam on top. My daughter followed suit. I was more than happy with my heavily-sprinkled powdered sugar topping.

In the end, we all enjoyed the celebration. I asked my husband when I should set the next milestone. He thought 360 might be a good number. I guess he doesn’t want to wait too long for another cake. LOL. Next time, I guess I will top the cake with some frosting.

A shout-out to all my followers. Thanks for following my blog. I hope that you are still enjoying Another Day With Julie. I love to hear your comments.

As always, Find Time to Celebrate!

That Mailbox is a Real Character!

life

I have come across some interesting mailboxes when out and about. Some look as though they might barely hold the mail. Some mailboxes are shiney and new. Some are wimsical. Some are bright, others dull. But it’s these latest characters that have caught my eye.

Minions! Not one, but two minion mailboxes standing side by side along the roadside in Maine. Needless to say, my husband turned around so that I could get pictures. Yes, I crossed the busy road and got my legs bitten-up by misquitos, while standing in the grass to get my picture beside these cuties. Of course, it was worth it. Love, love, love the Minions.

As always, Enjoy the Scenery!

Two and a Half Pies for Four People

life

No matter how large or small the Thanksgiving gathering, it is truely about who you share the holiday with. Oh, and the food. And what is Thanksgiving without pie.

There were four of us this Thanksgiving and we did not need a full size turkey. My first time cooking just a turkey breast for the holiday. Should have tried this one sooner! How easy and quick it was. It came out nice and moist and we still had some leftovers for dinner and lunch tomorrow as well.

But the one thing we did not cut down on was the pie. Oh, I tried…but honestly it was very difficult. Which one would get the boot? We just could not compromise. So, I tried to be good and made half a recipe for the chocolate pie, making them into single serving mini pies. I almost cut the recipe in half for the pumpkin as well, however, they somehow seemed too small. So I made two 6 inch pies that are essentially the same as one regular pie. And then there was the apple-cranberry, new to the repertoire this year. Oh well…none will go to waste.

Maybe next year we will have more restraint or have more people around the table. In any case, we were thankful for the food on the table and the people around it.

Wishing you a happy Thanksgiving!

Sunshine Blogger Award

life

A HUGE thank-you to Derrick at https://healthcheck.health.blog/author/ogaraderrick/ for nominating me for my second Sunshine Blogger Award. I am thrilled! I am especially happy that Derrick nominated me because I was thinking just the other day that he really did deserve this award. He is a young man, but I find that we share many of the same views on topics that he posts in his blog. He is wise beyond his years. In any case, blogging can connect people who share common interests. A great way to grow as a person and learn from others.

So, “What is this Sunshine Blogger Award?” you might ask. Read on and find out…

What is the Sunshine Blogger award? The award is a peer recognition of the inspiring, creative and motivational work done by bloggers. It is given by bloggers to bloggers who inspire positivity and creativity in the blogging community. By accepting the award nomination, there are certain rules to be followed:

Rules:

1. Thank the blogger who nominated you and link back to their blog. 2. Answer the 11 questions sent by the person who nominated you. 3. Nominate 11 bloggers to receive the award and write them 11 new questions. 4. List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or your blog.

Derrick’s Questions For Me and My Answers…

  1. Who do you look up to? Iris Apfel for living a full life (She turned 100 this year!), and not letting others dictate her style. Goldie Hawn for being such a free spirit and energetic and her support to helping children through meditation.
  2. How do you want your blog to be like 5 years from now? Another Day With Julie is about things I do, am interested in. So in another 5 years, I hope I will continue to learn new things and share them with you.
  3. How did you come up with your domain & site title? I did not want to have a blog dedicated to just one thing. That’s not who I am. I have many interests and did not want to limit myself.
  4. Which would you prefer: poems or fiction tales all day? Fiction! I love books!
  5. What do you love most about the wordpress community? I love getting comments from readers. I really like it when the “regulars” stop by and like my site and give me a comment. It feels like making friends.
  6. Likes or comments? Both, but I love a good comment.
  7. What’s that one thing you knew about blogging earlier? I didn’t know much about blogging when I started. I learned along the way.
  8. What’s your greatest life lesson? You’re never too old to follow your dreams. Take good care of yourself so you can.
  9. What’s you dream destination for a vacation? Greece
  10. Are you a cat person or a dog person? Dog
  11. What’s your favourite food? I love food…let me see…lasagna, pizza, baked potatoes, I can’t decide…it depends on my mood.

Now for my nominees...

  1. https://creatologyblog.com/ (This is my 2nd nomination to this blog and they are still going strong.)
  2. https://twotrailsoneroad.com/ (This is my 2nd nomination to this blog and they are still going strong.)
  3. https://maisonbentleystyle.com/ (This is my 2nd nomination to this blog and they are still going strong.)
  4. https://adventuresofsweetmonday.wordpress.com/
  5. https://denisebushphoto.wordpress.com/
  6. https://marisasitaliankitchen.com/
  7. https://northerndesertphotography.com/
  8. https://harleyte.wordpress.com/
  9. https://christophermartinphotography.com/
  10. https://lovetravellingblog.com/
  11. https://sketchaway.wordpress.com/

My Questions for you…

  1. What is your favorite time of year?
  2. What have you learned from blogging?
  3. What do you enjoy most about the blog you have created?
  4. If you could invite 5 well known people (dead or alive) to dinner, who would you invite?
  5. Are you an indoor or outdoor person?
  6. What is your favorite post on your blog? (include the link please)
  7. Why is this your favorite post?
  8. What is your favorite movie?
  9. What is your favorite thing about the WordPress community?
  10. Do you prefer cats, dogs, or another animal?
  11. What is the last good book you read?

I can not wait to read your answers. Congratulations to all of you and thanks for filling my in-box with your wonderful posts.

As always, Happy Blogging!

300 Reasons to Celebrate!

life

Another Day With Julie just reached another milestone, 300 followers. That’s reason to celebrate if I do say so myself. And what’s a celebration without a cake.

With the kids off to college, we really did not need a regular size cake. No need to fear, the 6 inch cake pan was just what we needed. As a matter of fact, this would give us two nights of celebrating. I found a recipe for a Funfetti Cake (The name sounded perfect for a celebration!) at: https://www.dessertfortwo.com/mini-funfetti-cake/ . The Funfetti Cake was easy to put together and was indeed festive and delicious. I must confess that I used my own frosting recipe, but I can atest that the cake was worth making again.

Speaking of again….I asked my husband what the next milestone should be. He said, “301”. I guess he does not want to wait too long for the next cake.

Thanks again to all who have chosen to follow Another Day With Julie!

As always, Have a Great Day!

Why Do I Keep Stepping on Scorpions?

life

I got up in the middle of the night and felt something under my foot. Since I have stepped on scorpions in the house before, I had my suspisions. I turned on the light. I was correct in the assumption. EEEEEEK!!!!

This is maybe the third time I have stepped on a scorpion. Most times, these things seem to (luckily) be dead (or maybe just playing dead). This one, however, was not. It did not move for a very long time, which was a good thing, as I needed to round-up someone at midnight to help me get rid of it.

My husband was the first person I went to, however, he was sound asleep and not to be waken. Drat! On to my son, who was still awake. My son seems to be the one who winds up helping me in catching animals/insects in the house. Remember when the lizard got inside? (Check-out my post…https://anotherdaywithjulie.home.blog/2020/05/04/friday-was-not-just-another-day-with-julie/) In any case, we were at it again. This time, I dug into the recycle bin for a yogurt container. My son got the yogurt container over the scorpion and then slid a piece of cardstock underneath. I taped the cardstock to the container with a little artist’s tape. My son flipped it over and took it outside.

Needless to say, I did not sleep very well directly after all this excitement. I checked under the sheets before getting in as an added bit of precaution. My foot felt wierd even though I did not get stung. Today, I checked out the internet on scorpions and their stingers. Should not have done that as they can give you all sorts of symptoms and it is more information than I really want to know. I will just be glad it didn’t sting me and that we caught it.

As always, Be Careful Where You Step in the Dark!

Street Skating Competitions – Tokyo Summer Olympics 2021

life

Well, did you catch the street skating competitions at the Tokyo Olympics? I have come to the conclusion that I will never qualify for the olympics. There are several reasons for this.

Of course the biggest reason I will never skate in the olympics is that I was a late starter to the sport. Having said that, I already feel like I won my gold medal when I learned to cruise on my board. A huge accomplishment for me. The next reason I will never skate in the olympics is that I can not do tricks (nor do I want to, to be quite honest).

The street skating at the olympics was amazing. The tricks, in my opinion, seemed a bit dangerous. Every time a skater’s board hit the rail I was like, ‘Does their mother know they’re doing this!?!’. And then there were the falls. Yes, even qualifying olympic skaters fall. When I saw them go down and summersault, I think I held my breath until they got up. One skater was limping afterward, but most just went on like nothing happened. I guess they are used to taking a fall. My goal is not to fall at all, as I don’t want to break anything.

Of course, I was cheering on Team USA. However, I also caught a glimpse of the finals and was wowed by Kelvin Hoefler from Brazil. He did a trick where the nose of his board hit the rail and then he twisted so the other end of the board hit the rail all in the same trick. I was like “Wow! That is amazing!” (There is a name for that trick, probably a fakie something or other.) So Kelvin had a fan from the US as well.

Maybe I should be a skating talent scout. As Kelvin took the Silver in the men’s division, I must have a nose for talent. Way to go Kelvin Hoefler! Team USA’s Jagger Eaton, who also impressed my with his fakie nose grinds, took home the Bronze. Way to go Team USA! Of course, Japan’s Yuto Horigome cleaned up with the Gold medal.

For the women’s skate, Japan also took the Gold Medal as well as the Bronze Medal. Thirteen year old (yes you read that correctly- thirteen year old) Momiji Nishiya took home the Gold. Japan’s Funa Nakayama the Bronze. Brazil’s Rayssa Leal took home the Silver. Team USA’s Alexis Sablone came in 4th place.

If you missed the competition, youtube is bound to have some videos for you to catch-up with. The park skating is still to come. We shall see if Japan and Brazil do as well in the park competition.

As always, Happy Skating!