DKNY & Barbie

DKNY has added a new version to its Be Delicious line! This fragrance is Fresh Bloom. Apparently there is a scent sample in the March 2009 issue of Glamour. I can't wait to give this a whiff. I've always liked more fruity citrus scents, but the DKNY Be Delicious has always been a personal favorite. Since I just used up my last bottle I've got a tough decision ahead of me. Do I Be Delicious or Be Delicious Fresh Bloom?
According to Sephora, this fragrance has notes of grapefruit, cassis, apricot, muget, rose, jasmine, apple, blond wooods, and smooth skin accord (whatever that is). Its style is bright, alluring, and sophisticated.

Perfect. I aspire to be all three.

Now, on to one more somewhat entertaining thought. Who didn't have a Barbie growing up? I had an insane Barbie family with dolls ranging from Kelly, Skipper, Stacie to a knock off with chopped hair that the neighbor girl dubbed Shanae O'Connor. Well, as Barbie celebrates her fabulous fiftieth, she helped to inspire fashion icons like Bob Mackie, Calvin Klein, Christian Louboutin, Betsey Johnson and Vera Wang at the 2009 Mercedes Benz Fasion Week. If you have a chance to watch the show featuring fifty well known designers know it will be worth your time. Barbie Loves Stila is also available at Sephora. Four sets featuring Ponytail Barbie (1959 - this is the one that started it all ladies), Malibu Barbie (1971), Foxy Barbie (1980), and Jewel Barbie (2000 - this looks like a Britney Spears knock-off). Which one do you choose? I like the classic Ponytail Barbie, but Malibu Barbie is just too fun.

Party Planning vs. Homework

Greetings on this lovely Sunday evening. I started to watch the Oscars, but as soon as Hugh Jackman failed miserably at being funny I had to forgo the fashion and film for a healthy dose of C.O.P.S. In fact, a dude just got picked up for soliciting an undercover prostitute. I bet his wife is going to be mad.

I spent this weekend Goodwill, Salvation, and antique mall shopping with my lovely mother who had come to visit me in Ames this weekend. I discovered an amazing antique mall in downtown Ames with three levels of all sorts of beautiful relics from the past. I can't wait to go back and browse. I found a few pieces of vintage jewelery that I absolutely don't think I can live without. My mom and I were in search of inexpensive crystal, lace, and other baubles to accent a party I am hosting for one of my co-workers. The theme is soft pinks accented with a touch of Victorian elegance, on a budget. Here is a sample of what I've come up with so far. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Creature!

Meet Leo!

I am cat sitting this creature for my friends this week. One minute Leo is like a mogwai, and the next she is like a vampire cat. Yes, she has alrady bit me. She defenitely has a slight cat-titude. Yikes! I just couldn't resist.
The fastest way to this feline's heart is through salmon snacks. Yummy, salmon.

A Wake for Fred and His Friend, Fish Doe

The neighbor ladies' purchased two glow-in-the dark gold fish. Unfortunately, the lil' guys didn't make it. In honor of the lost souls we toasted to their short, twenty minute existence. While the neighbor ladies return the fish for a frog I'm settled in for another episode of my favorite show, Nip Tuck, while I await their return. I can't wait to meet the new addition.

Shade

Five years ago today, I lost my best friend. What a miserable memory. I can honestly say that I have not been the same since.
Shade. She came from a less than savory breeder somewhere north of Iowa. She was shipped via an airplane and became another member of our family. Her hunting days eventually came to a halt after an especially difficult season. Once she officially retired, Shade became my best friend. She slept on my bed. The softness of my ears soothed my bad days. She was intense in her loyalty towards me. She loved nothing more than being with me. She was my constant companion. She was my shadow.
Her favorite task was retrieving, stick mostly. She'd roll in dirt and lay in the sun. When it was time for her to be heard she'd softly yip. It sounded like water dripping from a faucet.
Shade developed bone cancer. My dad brought her to Ames, Iowa to be treated by the veterinary staff at I.S.U. Since treatment would only endure the inevitable, I ended up spending the next three months as close to my companion as possible.
The one evening my friend finally talked me into going out with her was the last night I could have spent with Shade. Instead I went to a sleep over and upon returning home the following morning had to hear that a difficult decision had been made. Our veterinarian was going to wait for our family after his office closed. On the ride to his office, I sat with Shade's head on my lap. Stroking her ears, tears welled up in my eyes and my chin quivered. Her passing has been the saddest memory in my life. I've never witnessed life slip away, so easily.
Today, I can only vaguely remember how happy she made me. I know the feeling was there, and I can't say I have felt something as strong as it since.

The Rainbow Bridge poem is meant to give our beloved friends a safe place to wait for us.

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....