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Friday Favorites Workplace Edition

I haven’t had the energy or the creativity to post this week because we have been under an overtime mandate at work due to excessive call volume.  Happily, one of our production agents sits in a cubicle on the other side of mine and I get to listen to her all day long.

It’s Mary Ann

and she hopes “to ensure to provide you an excellent customer experience” if she happens to take your call.

With very clear and precise annunciation, Mary Ann adds cheerfulness to her calls and provides a bit of entertainment to those of us nearby.

This morning I heard her exclaim to a customer:

“I’m great, IT’S FRIDAY!  Who could not be great on a Friday?”

She is an exceptional agent and at times will say things that make me drop my jaw, but given the subject matter, that is understandable.

She will not hesitate to declare her competence by informing her customer that she has “been with the company for eleven years”.

Of course there is no one who can better help the customer because [as she puts it] “we are the last… call center left in the United States”

Mary Ann will even provide her customers with her contact email sweetly advising “if you don’t use it, it’s your own fault”… “Darlin’.”

Today she is my

Favorite # ONE

She brightened my day today!

For my Friday favorites I have decided to make proverbial lemonade out of our workplace lemons and accentuate the positive!

 

Here goes:

 

 

Favorite # TWO

Dunkin’ Donuts

from Derek.

The new guy on the block decided to treat the team this morning.

What a nice gesture!

 

According to MyFitnessPal this Boston Kreme Donut contains 445 calories and 67 grams of carbs.I don’t want to talk about it.

 

Favorite # THREE

As I mentioned in this post Wendy has lost a lot of weight.

Today marked

 A Pivotal Moment

as she walked into the office wearing a dress.

For the first time since 2002, Wendy donned a dress and ventured into the great outdoors… or at least to work.

Her dress is very cute and at $17.99 what a great deal!

AELSON Womens Summer Casual Sleeveless Mini Printed Vest Dresses

 

 

Favorite # FOUR

Wendy’s Electric Kettle

I use Wendy’s kettle most mornings to brew several (4) cups of green tea.

Green tea is loaded with antioxidants and nutrients that have powerful effects on the body. These include improved brain function, fat loss, a lower risk of cancer and many other impressive benefits (source).

It keeps me out of the junk food!

Thanks Wendy!

 

 

Favorite # FIVE

Currently the company is encouraging that we participate in supporting

I couldn’t agree more!

Click on the picture to access the website for more information!

It is a precious story!

 

 

 

In addition to what I have mentioned, there are other workplace positives:

  • The BENEFITS.  I won’t divulge the name of the company I work for, but I can’t complain about the benefits.
  • The OPPORTUNITY to be part of a specialty team working Presidential Escalations and hard to resolve cases.
  • The BLESSING that several of my college courses have been paid in full.  And they haven’t seen the last of me.

 

 

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

It is incredible that this is the

Last Friday in July!

Happy No Problem GIF by Jonas Mosesson

We are prancing along through the summer and it will be autumn in no time!

 

 

And now:

Friday Favorites!

Favorite # ONE

Have you tried the Pasta alternative veggie products?

This one is my favoriteThere are several varieties by Birdseye and Green Giant.

I’ve wanted to try the new marinara sauce (that I mentioned in this post) so I made Rigatoni for LB.

Sadly, there are 220 calories in 1 cup of cooked Rigatoni.

Calorie breakdown: 5% fat, 80% carbs, 15% protein.

Since I’m not about to eat real pasta, I sampled my marinara sauce atop these carrot spirals.

Calorie breakdown: 0% fat, 3% carbs, 1 gram protein.

Not bad at all!

 

 

Favorite # TWO

Surprises on Back Order!

LB checked the mail this week and told me that I had a package.  My response: I didn’t order anything!

Apparently I had an item on back-order from a Venus order that I placed in JANUARY!

 Mini Jean Skirt in Indigo Blue

At least THEY remembered!

 

 

 

Favorite # THREE

Natalie Tuman

Health and Fitness Coach

This is a real life Wonder Woman and I follow her on Instagram.

This week I attempted to complete a workout she shared on Instagram.

 

 

Nope.

I couldn’t do it!

Her websites can be found here and here.

 

 

Favorite # FOUR

Good News!

I attended college at FCCJ (now FSCJ) off and on after high school and between babies.  Since achieving success earning an AA degree and an AS in Interior Design Technology several years ago, I have attempted to earn a Bachelor’s degree from Liberty University online.  This week I reached out to the admissions department for advice on wrapping this up!

I’m FINALLY seeing light at the end of the tunnel!  I’m so excited and looking forward to sharing news of a graduation sooner than later!

 

 

 

Favorite # FIVE

Kathy

She who took me under her wing and has looked out for me since I came to her team seven years ago!

Kathy is a dear friend and trusted colleague who is celebrating a milestone this week!

Happy Birthday Kathy!

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog!

Aclamaciones!

Aclamaciones is Spanish for

CHEERS!

It’s always nice to learn something new.

Aclamaciones to a controversial day in the bible belt, for it is

National Tequila Day!

 drunk fun GIF by Mauro Gatti I’m pretty sure these are happy beers as opposed to happy shots of tequila, but you get the idea!

Instead of celebrating National Tequila Day, LB and I decided to celebrate Taco Tuesday with dinner at

El Potro Mexican Restaurant

I am not even telling the truth.  We did go to El Potro, but not to celebrate Taco Tuesday.

Fajitas were on the menu and LB ate his like a taco.

Maybe that isn’t too far from the truth.  Wikipedia describes Taco Tuesday as  “a custom in many US cities of going out to eat tacos or in some cases select Mexican dishes typically served in a tortilla on Tuesday nights.  Restaurants will often offer special prices, for example, “$1 fish tacos every Tuesday night”.  It is popular in many big cities across the nation and especially popular in the beach cities of Southern California.  Legally, “Taco Tuesday” is a trademark of Taco John’s and other restaurants are prohibited from using that term.” (source).

Now you know.

 

It isn’t often that we go out to dinner during on a week night, but the day has been overwhelming and some mental repose and unwinding was necessary.  Also the fajitas were delish!

I thoroughly enjoyed it!

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

From the time I left work last Friday afternoon until Sunday night, last weekend blew by so fast that I had no time to post!  No Friday Favorites! From cupcake creation on Friday night, to Lydia’s mermaid birthday party on Saturday, to celebration of another birthday out with friends Sunday night, I found myself in need of another day off to recuperate!  But alas, Monday came and the workweek ensued.

Now it is Finally Friday again and I WILL share my weekly favorites!

Favorite # ONE

Mermaids of course…

I spent most of last week studying mermaid cupcakes and creating a cupcake design of my own for a birthday celebration.

I hope my first attempt was acceptable to my 3 year old customer!

Mermaid Tail Cupcakes by Kim

 

 

Favorite # TWO

Mermaid Birthday Girls

This one in particularTired and Soaking Wet from a Water Wonder World Birthday Celebration!  She is so pretty.

Happy Birthday Little Mermaid!

 

 

Favorite # THREE

Corn Nuggets

This tasty treat was recently introduced by a co-worker whom I’ve begun referring to as Corn Nugget.  Maria thinks they are the greatest thing since sliced bread.  Today the Triple J’s Seafood Truck came to our parking lot to provide the company with all the fried food our hearts desired.  And apparently they supplied the company with all the fried food aboard, as they sold out.  Juenic purchased a container of Corn Nuggets and offered one to me.These are delish.

One is all I needed to let me know that I love them and DO NOT NEED any more!

 

 

Favorite # FOUR

Super deals from LOFT

LOFT has a special of some sort every day.  Whether it be 50% off everything for card members or 30% off all dresses or 50% off Sale on Sale items… something is sure to be happening.  This week I used birthday $$$ from Mama to take advantage of a LOFT sale and found these deals:

Top // Shorts // Tee // Shell

Favorite # FIVE

Lunchbox Notes

LB leaves notes in my lunchbox every day.

Today he left a note that, when read, brought a song to my lips:When I showed my note to Wendy, she started singing it too…

My Girl

The Temptations

I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day

When it’s cold outside I’ve got the month of May

Well I guess you’d say

What can make me feel this way?

My girl (my girl, my girl)

Talkin’ ’bout my girl (my girl)

I’ve got so much honey the bees envy me

I’ve got a sweeter song than the birds in the trees

Well I guess you’d say

What can make me feel this way?

My girl (my girl, my girl)

Talkin’ ’bout my girl (my girl ooh)

Hey hey hey

Hey hey hey

Ooh yeah

I don’t need no money, fortune, or fame (ooh hey hey hey)

I’ve got all the riches baby one man can claim (oh yes I do)

I guess you’d say

What can make me feel this way?

My girl (my girl, my girl)

Talkin’ ’bout my girl (my girl)

I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day

With my girl (My girl)

(Talkin’ ’bout my girl my girl) I’ve even got the month of May

With my girl (My girl, woah)

She’s all I can think (my girl)

(Talkin’ ’bout my girl my girl)

Talkin’ ’bout, talkin’ ’bout my girl (my girl, woah)

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

What’s Up

Wednesday

Because I like this kind of post…

What’s Up Wednesday!

Here goes:

What We’re Eating This Week

Or rather:

What I’M Eating This Week.

One of my VICES is mixed nuts.

These are my favorite:

Gold Emblem Abound Unsalted Deluxe Mixed Nuts

What I’m Reminiscing About

Pool party time with Glammy’s Girls

Summer time is the best time to have fun in the pool!  I’m hoping we’ll have more pool time soon!

What I’m Loving

My new hair cut.Although I’m undecided as to whether or not to keep it this way.

It’s growing on me.

What We’ve Been Up To

This past Saturday was not an average Saturday.

Saturday morning LB and I attended the HOME-GOING Service for the mother of LB’s good friend David.

David’s mother was 93 years old.

When we left I made the comment that I felt like I had

BEEN TO CHURCH!

 

Afterward there were a few errands to run which coincided with a visit to Hobby Lobby.  Among the items purchased were candy wafers, sprinkles, and cupcake cups for…

What I’m Working On

Creating

MERMAID CUPCAKES

for Lydia’s birthday party this coming Saturday.

It all started with this text from Mama:

 

(careful what you text me… it may appear in my blog)

I’ve begun work on mermaid tails and I’ve looked at several websites for inspiration.

These are a few of my favorites.

which brings me to…

 

 

What I’m Excited About

The Mermaid themed birthday party celebrating Lydia’s 3rd birthday is this Saturday.  There will be a big slide to enjoy and lots of presents to open. I’m hoping she will be well rested for the event!

What I’m Dreading

Familiar story:

Going to work.

Every.

Day.

 

What I’m Watching/Reading

As I’ve mentioned before, there isn’t a TV show or series that I follow or feel compelled to watch.  However since it is among the programs that LB records, I will occasionally watch CBS Sunday Morning.  In last week’s episode the New York’s Times Best Seller’s list was revealed.  The President is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson is currently and has been #1 for four weeks.  Reviews designate it to be a very fascinating read.  LB and I are both thinking about trying to fit this book into our schedules.

What I’m Listening To

At the moment I am hearing I’ve Got You Under My Skin by Frank Sinatra.

What I’m Wearing

Blue and white seem to be a favorite combination these days.

 

What I’m Doing This Weekend

As I mentioned previously, we are celebrating Lydia’s 3rd birthday is this Saturday.

Saturday evening plans are undecided.

Sunday plans will likely include a trip to the beach because the weather is predicted to be perfect.

 

What I’m Looking Forward to Next Month

~August~

Currently there is nothing exciting planned for August, but I’m sure LB will come up with something.

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

William Taber Salon

On the afternoon of Friday, June 29th I left work one hour early and drove to the

William Taber Salon

in Fleming Island, Florida.

When I arrived I was greeted by a receptionist clad in black and given a form to complete.

While seated in a waiting area, a ‘Junior Stylist’ approached me and asked if I would come with her to tour the salon.  She showed me the Paul Mitchell products for sale, the clothing boutique, and the ladies room [complete with smocks].

She explained that there was an area for color: and an area for styling:and my Stylist would be with me soon.

 

Then I met

 

Demetra

She was exuberant and personable.

Demetra analyzed my skin tone [she does makeup, too] and although she gave me a choice of hair color, she recommended what she thought would look best.  Demetra made quick work of my color application.  Fast forward to the end of my visit… She was SPOT ON!  Not a sparkle (GREY) in sight!

But before my beautiful color was revealed, I was invited to accompany a young lady who reminded me of Ginger Spice to [what I’m going to name] the Zen Room for an after color shampoo.  The young lady’s name was Velvet and she had been instructed to give me the  shampoo of my life.  I followed Velvet into the ‘Shampoo [Zen] Room’ and took a seat in the most comfortable salon chair I’ve ever experienced.  No neck pain while I reclined into the sink where Velvet would remove my foils, shampoo my hair with a color follow-up shampoo, massage my head, shampoo my hair again with the shampoo my ‘Senior Stylist’  had recommended, then conditioned.  OMG.  I’ve never had a shampoo worthy of discussion before this day.  This is a gift… Velvet is by far, the BEST!

Demetra took over from there.  She and I discussed my style and length again, then she began to cut, but wouldn’t let me see her work.  Next she went on to blow dry my hair, while explaining the proper way to style.  She also gave me tips for adding volume and taming a front and center cowlick.

Then came the big reveal.

 

I loved it.

Although my hair is much shorter than it has been in years, it is stylish and easy to manage.  My color is beautiful!

And my next William Taber Salon appointment is in September!

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

Friday Favorites

I’m not sure if having a holiday on Wednesday is wonderful because I have a midweek day off… or troubling because I get to deal with two Mondays.

Regardless, it has been a tiring workweek and I’m happy to say hello to

FRIDAY!

 

 

As I mentioned, this week included a holiday… one of my favorites!

Favorite # ONE

#IndependenceDay #July4th #4thOfJuly #FourthOfJuly

To celebrate the day, some of my family came over for a cookout and pool party.

 

 

LB did a great job overseeing the grillAnd finished up just before a brief rain shower.

After a few early showers, it turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day… perfect for a swim in the poolAmanda got the party started!

 

 

Favorite # TWO

Having My Hands Full

Although Lydia left her swimsuit and had to wear a Glammy shirt, she still had a good time in the pool.

Favorite #THREE

 

 Baking Skills

Last week in my Friday Favorites I mentioned that Stephanie requested this

Marbled 4th of July ‘Box’ Cake

…so I shifted into baking gear and delivered!There is a story.

 

 

Favorite # FOUR

Last Sunday, LB and I saw Donny and Marie Osmond in concert.  That post can be found here.

Before we left the venue, LB purchased Donny Osmond’s 60th album for me.

I have been enjoying it all week!It has traveled in my car with me this week and I’ve listened to one particular song over and over again…

 

 

Favorite # FIVE

Moon River

Moon river, wider than a mile
I’m crossing you in style some day.
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker
Wherever you’re goin’, I’m goin’ your way.
Two drifters, off to see the world
There’s such a lot of world to see.
We’re after the same rainbow’s end, waitin’ ’round the bend
My huckleberry friend, moon river, and me.

 

 

Thank you for taking time out of your day to stop by my blog.

happy 4th of july Sticker by Meowingtons

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