WARNING: Rebecca D. shows flagrant disregard for the rules of punctuation... She uses ellipsis with wild abandon... Punctuation interventions have been done to no avail... If you are offended by such irreverence to the rules of grammar... The very glue that holds our society together... STOP READING NOW... Move on... There is a little button at the top that says "next blog"... You would be well advised to use it... You were warned...

And The Winner Is...

Friday, February 21, 2014

My first Mary & Martha Giveaway is officially closed...

To determine the winner I assigned each entry a number based on the order they entered in... I then took those numbers and used the random number generator... It came up with the number 11...


Congratulations Conny from "The Live of an Ordinary Hausfrau"
Conny, Go to www.RebeccasBlessedHome.com and pick your coffee blend. 
Next email me your choice, shipping address and email at highmaintenanceaspirations@yahoo.com & I will get your coffee and mug on it's way! 

Now for a some pictures of my sweet Grand baby who turns 8 months old today!!! 


These were taken by Allison the other day when she spent the night at Katy's house... Apparently this sweet baby was thrilled to see her Auntie in the morning...

Doesn't that face make you smile!


Thanks for listening,


Brain Dump...

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

So I just have a lot of random thoughts and such floating around in my brain so here is where I air them out a little...

Cabo may not happen... I know... I worked SO HARD to earn that trip, but here is the thing, I made a rookie mistake. I didn't earn it at a high enough level for Paul to go for free so I need to pay $800 for him to go... By FRIDAY!!! Unless the Lord works an amazing miracle in the next 48 hours it's not going to happen... That's the bad news, the good news is I can take a cash payout instead of the trip and with that, the $800 we were planning to use (but just won't have in time) and the cost of the airfare we can go on a really nice trip in April by ourselves... In fact I have been pricing trips and we can go just about anywhere on what we have... So now's the hard part... Where do we go? (Suggestions of nice places to visit in April would be VERY WELCOME! We have batted around Seattle, London, Ireland, Hawaii, Texas, a cruse... When you can choose nearly anything it can be overwhelming! 

Apparently people do not want free stuff from me... I am doing a giveaway here on my blog for some free Mary & Martha Coffee & a mug and hardly anyone wants it... As of typing this my stats say over 200 people have viewed that post (I promoted on FB too) but only 6 people have commented... I must not be a very good sales person if I can't GIVE stuff away! 

We are cleaning out from our THIRD snowstorm in the past week!  It was only about 6 inches this time but being the third time in a week I have awaken to this is getting a bit much:


It is pretty though...


But since both the previous storms were so hyped to be HUGE and were both less then forecast I am afraid I am starting to get "Media Blizzard Fatigue"... It's a new ailment that came out with the naming of winter storms! 

I have been having a lot of migraines lately and they are really starting to impede my productivity... I don't know why I can't just get one at a time, why I have to get them in clusters but such is life. I have so many "identified possible triggers" I would have to live in a bubble to avoid them! Thankfully I have an amazing husband and daughters and they frequently pick up the slack for me!

I need to do another sort and clutter reduction... Aghhhhh... Those of you who have been reading my blog awhile remember just about two years ago I did one! So what happened? Well, working outside the house I got lazy about staying on top of clutter... It's the typical story, we have been bringing in more stuff then we have been taking out! Last spring we did a whole house spruce up... We had every room painted and new flooring in every room... I used that opportunity to make a bunch of changes... New furniture in the living room, kitchen & our bedroom... We did give Katy & Jed a lot of our hand me downs furniture wise but since the paint, carpet and flooring guys were here back to back and over a short period of time so EVERYTHING had to be packed and moved to the basement. My parents have definite pack-rat type habits... The room they used as a den and their bedroom were so over filled the boxed contents literally filled half the basement. Since my step dad could only take limited "stuff" with him to the nursing home and since my mother's room has to be wheelchair accessible 85% of it remains down there... Add to that all the stuff that I didn't have room for with the new furniture and/or I just didn't want in my new spaces you have an overload... The big stuff I think I can sort through quickly once I get down there... It's all the bits & bobs and such that you need but don't always have a spot for that are the most challenging... I need to get some shelves down there and some bins but in order to make room for them I need to move the stuff that needs to be sorted... Aghhh... Vicious cycle! 

I need to go start dinner... Another vicious cycle! 



Thanks for listening,

Break The Winter Time "Blahs" Giveaway...

Monday, February 17, 2014

So this week I am really trying to break out of my mid-winter doldrums and one way I am doing this is by trying to make a coffee date with several friends... My goal is to catch up with at least 10 people for "coffee" before the end of the month! (So far I have one set up... But I just started today!) 

By now many of you know I started a new direct sales business called Mary & Martha... Their tag line is "Meaningful Entertaining... Made Simple" and that perfectly describes the coffee date! 

Here's where you come in... I kinda feel like my little blog here is my coffee date with each of you... The only problem with that is since most of you never comment it is a totally one-sided conversation & I am a horrible host who makes you bring your own coffee! 


No more! This week I shall fix that with a little giveaway! 
For one lucky reader I will bring the coffee!!


Comment below how you take your coffee and you will be entered to win a bag of Mary & Martha Coffee and one of our Beautiful Heirloom Coffee Mugs... A $30 value! 



Really want it?

1. Go to my website and comment what your favorite Mary & Martha item is and I'll give you another entry.
2. Like my Facebook page and come back here and comment again and you will get another entry.
3. Share or Tweet about this giveaway, come back and comment that you did and I'll give you and entry for each! 

Just be sure EACH entry is in a SEPARATE  comment or it only counts as one!

Winner will be announced this Friday (Feb. 21st)


Of course you can purchase these items for yourself on my website or if you contact me and book a catalog/online party with me I will send you the coffee & mug for free! Plus you will earn a bunch of other free & half-priced items!! Yes the coffee & mug will be in addition to more FREE stuff! 


Thanks for listening,

Meatball Soup... Fake It...

Sunday, February 16, 2014


Want a super easy soup recipe for a cold day? 
Want to literally spend moments in the kitchen?
Want to remember I am NOT a food blogger...

Any how... Here is my very own fake it recipe for Meatball Soup...


Grab a bag of  these at the store...


For a pot the size of the one I did I put in about 2/3 of the bag or about 40 meatballs...

Next dump in two boxes of low sodium chicken broth...


Two bags of this cheater short cut... 
(BTW, I am totally addicted to these recipe ready frozen veggies... I may never dice another onion again!)  
Anyhow, bring all that to a boil then reduce to simmer adding salt, pepper and seasoning to taste. 

In a separate pot boil 1/2 a box of these cute little pastas until the are just shy of done...
(aka al dente)
In fact, I do this first the put them aside since the soup cooks up so quick.


Once everything is hot (in other words, the frozen meatballs are no longer cold in the center) I stir in the pasta then I heap an entire container of either baby spinach or baby kale on top of the hot pot and just stir it in until it is slightly wilted.


Then take it off the heat and serve..
Yes, it's THAT easy! 

And here it is done again... It also reheats well too! 


I have been cooking soup all winter and playing around with it, but came up with this one when I was sick back in January and didn't feel like doing any prep at all... I had all these ingredients on hand and threw it together and everyone loved it... My family has asked me to make it twice since! 
Of course you can do it the long, all done by hand way if that's how you roll! 

Check back Monday afternoon for a little surprise!


Thanks for listening,

Snow Day... Grown-Up Style...

As you know I am in full-on hibernation mode... We had a storm Thursday... Another is on for tonight... It is time for a SNOW DAY post!

A good snow day requires preparation... You have to go out into the world to get supplies. Now I know this is unappealing to those of us who are currently hibernating, but once you have braved the crowds and fought a senior citizen to the ground for the last loaf of bread you can reward your efforts... This particular snow storm came at a good time of year as I discovered this clearly health filled goody on the menu at the local Mc you know where... 


As we all know GREEN is a color that signifies healthy and all natural, so I am sure this particular seasonal treat is all of the above! 
BTW... If we were real friends you would ignore the wet mess my hubs made by the back door and the cluttered side table... Just sayin!

With all preparations made, and knowing I would get to sleep in I stayed up extra late watching Olympic coverage... Actually I played Candy Crush on my laptop and every time something clearly exciting happened on the TV I missed it and prayed for an instant replay... Then went right back to that stupid but addictive game... 

LET THE SNOW BEGIN... 

I started Thursday right... I crawled out of bed at the crack of 10 AM and made my favorite breakfast...
COFFEE! 

Followed by a second cup of coffee and some oatmeal... I like oatmeal fine, but don't usually have it for breakfast as I usually stick to fruit if anything but Paul had been wanting some and it is a snow day after all!

I settled in to watch morning TV since apparently little snippets of weather people standing out in the storm that I can clearly see out my window become all important on such days... 

Pretty soon a show named "today" had eaten up most of the morning... I saw some irony there... Okay, maybe it's just me.

Any how come lunch time it was time for my current favorite "fake it" recipe...


What is a "fake it" recipe you ask? Well, it's one that seems homemade and labor intensive but is actually super easy because of short cuts! 
I'll share the "fake it" with you in a separate post tomorrow...

I then hunkered down with Allison to watch hours of BBC crime dramas and stupid sitcoms on Netflix... Ignoring the GIANT mountain of dirty laundry in the basement. You simply can not do housework on a snow day...

The rest of the day went pretty much this way with the addition of copious amounts of hot cocoa & freezer pizza for dinner... (Hey breakfast & lunch were healthy-ish...)

We had a break in the snow yesterday which was the day dedicated to buying over-priced greeting cards and chocolates to prove your love for your family... 
I had not thought of this in the preparation for the storm so out into the world I dragged myself. I got some of the last "affordable" a fore mentioned chocolates x6 for everyone and a cute toy & book for my sweet grand baby. I got my husband something he's been wanting but it's way too boring to mention here and he got me the Vera Bradly wallet that matches the pattern I am currently obsessed with...
(photo from google)

Actually, I also grabbed this while I was out because he was still shoveling the driveway and then trying to repair the mailbox the snow plow clobbered... The one I just got in October! Ughhh... So he got a pass on actual shopping.

Poor Paul...

The kids (aka Katy, Jed & Baby) came over for dinner so Katy & I whipped up the household favorite, carbonara for dinner. Allison did not join us as she had a date, but that is her story to tell so I will leave it at that for now... 

Today the snow wasn't supposed to start until about 5 PM so the girlies & I decided to sneak out for some mother/daughter time... We started at lunch at my current favorite casual place Archer's On The Pier... 

(photo from google... Obviously not taken today as there is no snow!!)
Which in the summer time is fun to eat outside on the pier but since it is not summer we were inside by the wood stove!

Next we did a little sale shopping at JC Penney's, hit a local favorite The Grasshopper Shop for their President's Day Sale, and finally the bookstore next door to it...

(image from google)

I would show you the book store and add a link but as they were rude to us as usual so I will refrain from promoting them... All I have to say is my Kindle does not give me attitude when I shop on it... Just saying that if your particular business is in trouble and in constant fear of not existing you should probably be just a tiny bit nice to the few patrons who still come in your door! 

At this point the snow was starting we called it a day, dropped Katy off at home and proceeded to head home for our next snow day!! 

Come back later on for that recipe and a little surprise... 



Thanks for listening,

That Escalated Quickly...

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Look who's crawling... I mean cruising... I mean standing... 
Wait... What!?!?!?!


A week ago this little girl was just getting up on her knees but could not manage forward locomotion....

Sunday that changed... She was rolling around, playing on our living room floor and got up on her knees for the millionth time BUT this time she made her first tentative moves forward...


Within 24 hours she was crawling like a pro...
But it turns out her only goal from crawling was to get over to things she could pull herself up on...

Within another 48 hours she was pulling herself up on EVERYTHING...
See that cute little bug rocking toy back there? Adorable baby toy in her Gigi's living room or weapon of mass destruction? You guessed it... She pulls up on it and pushes it around like a snow plow! 


Then last night she was again pulling up on everything and repeatedly letting go! (Totally freaking out her first time parents!) She did this over and over until she was able to stand for a couple brief seconds...
We are expecting a blizzard today through tomorrow so we won't see this sweet baby until Saturday at the earliest... I am pretty sure she will drive herself over! 


Oh yeah, look who is eating real food too! She will let you feed her about once a day but she can do it herself and does not want your help! See how happy she was when her mom fed her some cheese ravioli yesterday for lunch! (Photo shamelessly stolen from Katy's FB page!) 

I would be remiss if I didn't tell you about that BEAUTIFUL quilt up there...
Julie from Herding Grasshoppers makes the most amazing quilts that I have admired from afar for as long as I can remember, so when she said she might be willing to sell a couple baby quilts she made I did not hesitate to snag one! It is even more beautiful in person then it is in photos...
I would STRONGLY encourage you to snag one too! (If she has any more!) 
This one lives at Gigi's house for her to snuggle with when she is here... I envision many stories read snuggled up on the sofa with her own quilt. 



Thanks for listening,

Isn't She Lovely...

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

My adorable younger girlie has a new YouTube channel where she plans to share beauty & lifestyle tips... Whatever that means... But she is super cute and her makeup is always perfect so I am glad she has decided to finally share her secrets with the rest of us mere mortals...


But not only is she sharing her tips and tricks, but she is super cute and it really shows her fun, bubbly personality in the one I posted! 
(I know I am biased... I guess I am unapologetic about it too!)

In other news... I think I'd like to be agoraphobic... 
You know, the people who are so stricken by anxiety they can't leave their homes. I don't want the anxiety part... Maybe just agoraphobic as a seasonal hobby. I just really, really hate leaving our home these days... I resist it at all costs and when I am out all I can think about is "how much longer until I can go home?" I am not depressed or anything, I just really want to hibernate! Don't get me wrong... I do leave... I just don't want to! 

Speaking of which... I did leave to represent Mary & Martha in my first vendor fair of the "spring" season... 
I did them nearly every weekend from October through the second week in December and I was exhausted... But it was nice to be getting back out there! 

Here was my table...

That's about it for today... 
Now back to my hibernation! 

Thanks for listening,

Before You Feel Bad For Me...

Thursday, February 6, 2014

In my last post I lamented how far we have to drive to do "real" shopping...

In the interest of full disclosure here are some random shots of Downtown Rockland, Maine... The town next to Rockport where we do most of our business...


It is full (even this time of the year) with quaint shops, amazing restaurants, art galleries, a world class museum & a fully restored cinema that has both live performances and shows hard to find indie films. 


Yes all of that, plus a bank where everyone greets me by my first name, a pharmacy where the owner/pharmacist drops off my mother's medications on his way home, a post office where I always run into someone I know and usually meet other interesting people I will be glad to know and a coffee shop where my girlies and I have had many heart to heart talks...


And this is just in the downtown area... There is so much amazing and unique to living in Mid-Coast Maine that makes the "inconvenience" of having to drive to get to most of the chain stores very, very worth it! 

Thanks for listening,



PS. I snagged all these photos from google images... If I was less tired I'd follow links and give the photos credit, but for now I am just letting you know that I am not taking credit for them!

Relax Y'all...

Wednesday, February 5, 2014



The above picture was just us having fun... 
We were unprepared for the controversy that followed!

Let me set it up...

We all drove to Portland for the day to run errands, shop, and I had to meet up with a couple customers so we decided to make a day of it...

The Girlies, Baby face up there and I headed to the mall while the guys headed to Cabellas & Harbor Freight... What's the big deal you ask? Well, we don't have a mall or any of those other things near us... We have to drive 45 minutes to get to a Target and/or Starbucks and make the two hour trek to South Portland to go to a "real" mall...

I don't know about you guys but a two hour each way drive in January is a commitment for us Mainers so usually if we go we make a day of it... We all had Monday off so it became one of those days for us... We loaded all of us up in the mini van and headed off...

Like I said, we girls did the mall first thing... Macy's, Pottery Barn, Sephora, Lush, H&M, Victoria's Secret (since I guess it's impossible for twenty somethings to actually walk past that store) and the Clarks Store for "Little Miss Thing's" first actual shoes! (Plus a few other stores for good measure!) Then we met up with the guys to hit a buffet for lunch... (Yes, we do more shopping before lunch then most ladies do all day!) Then it was off to Nordstrom Rack (quickly becoming my new favorite store) and Target. 

When we were done there we headed across the parking lot to the Starbucks to meet my last customer of the day. She was running late so we were goofing off in the van... When we bought our coffee we asked for a teeny tiny little cup and thought it would be funny to have her pose with it... It never contained coffee... As in clean, new, empty... When we went to take the picture one of the girlies thought giving her the now empty little Sephora bag would be funny too... Hence the above photo. Please keep in mind we were in the van, but not moving, waiting, having fun and keeping a very overtired baby entertained until the "driving" began again and lulled her to sleep... 

I tell you all of that because when Allison posted the above photo on Facebook we got criticism... That we gave her a coffee cup, that she wasn't properly buckled (she wasn't buckled at all... We weren't moving!) and that she was wearing a bulky winter coat... (It is actually one rated safe to wear in a car seat... It looks bulky because the arms on it are long enough for a monkey so they are a bit bunched up on her arms!) 

Why are all these self proclaimed parenting police out there waiting to pounce? I get it if you are concerned for a child's safety, but the baby in the above photo is quite obviously, clean, fed & well taken care of... She is dressed appropriate for the weather and in a top of the line car seat... I would assume from all of the above that the same parents who pulled all of that off so far are fit parents and not be quick to judge.

I love the internet and the Facebook and such most of the time, but I think the semi-anonymity of it has made people a bit more judgmental and opinionated and free to voice both... I makes me glad the web was a new frontier when the girlies were small... Seriously, Katy has gotten criticism for posting a picture of the baby sleeping on her belly... She rolled herself onto her belly... She was rolling over at six weeks... When Katy responded by telling the person that she said it was impossible... Really?!?!?

Join me in reminding the thought/action police on the internet to just relax

On a separate note... How cute is she!?!?!?
 
Thanks for listening,