preppy junior league treats

I have been in the Junior League for nearly a dozen years and I have always enjoyed swapping League items with other JL members. As a TV broadcaster, I was moving almost every two years, which landed me in several different leagues over time, including JL Washington DC, Dallas, Houston, Chicago & JL Evanston-North Shore. I joined the Junior League when I was living in Tallahassee, FL and was co-chair of my provisional class. My amazing friend & Phi Mu sister, Amanda, is slated to be the next JL Tallahassee president & she greeted me with some very preppy Junior League goodies when I visited her in Florida’s capital city. Who can resist the adorable pink & green Junior League magnet (above) and baseball hat, which is perfect even when I am not having a bad hair day.

A Snowy Spring Comes to Chicago's North Shore

Welcome to the Windy City in the Springtime! Can you believe this is Spring? Despite my pink Junior League hat & the pretty spring colors in my scarf, it is obviously the giant snowball in my hand & my coat that really gives the season away =)

This young lady is standing on the corner of a street near our home & you can see that she, too, is appropriately dressed for our wonderful spring weather!

Another quiet street near our home getting a fresh blanket of snow Sunday afternoon.

Snow continues to fall on the trees. April is just THREE days away!!

Hello FLOTO-the perfect weekender bag

I have had many of weekender bags, but my newest trumps them all-my Floto bag! I honestly cannot take any credit for it though. A few months ago, Cory bought one for himself for our bi-weekly jaunts between Chicago & Dallas, as well as other trips. I admit that I grew envious of his fashionable carry-on and suddenly *voila* he surprised me with my own Floto in a darker color. Now we have twins-albeit fraternal twins. Ours are just a few shades apart from each other.

Floto bags are made from Italian polished calf-skin leather and are VERY roomy and durable. I am a very heavy packer (what gal isn’t) and I am able to pack enough clothes for four or five days! Not to be outdone by the weekender bag, Floto's handbags are ultra chic, as are their briefcases and resort bags. Floto makes the perfect traveling companion.

Where did the love go?

Thankfully my dating days are behind me, but I honestly feel for my many friends who are still searching for "the one". In this day & age when strangers can instantly connect through the magic of internet sites like eHarmonyand jdate, or face-to face dating opportunities, including It's Just Lunch and Hurry Date speed dating, one would think that a love connection would be made among more couples.

What is the deal? There are so many intelligent, attractive professionals who simply keeping missing the Love Boat. It is literally like ships passing in the night. I have listened to countless friends, both men & women, who are frustrated that they cannot find someone to settle down with, much less someone worthy enough of a third date. I am running out of advice to give.

Oy Vey! Jewpardy

These are Shabbat candles given to me by my brother & sister-in-law many years ago, depicting Jerusalem's Wailing Wall and Temple.

Passover (Pesach) is just 14 days away, Oy Vey!! Families everywhere are preparing for Seders where 10-20 people will cram around a dinner table to answer our traditional Four Questions, especially “Why is this night different from all other nights?” In the meantime, children will wonder where the Afikoman will be hidden & who will be the first to find the treasured matzoh?! I have always enjoyed the 2nd Night Pesach Seders in my Temple, where a mix of very young & old come together to participate in our age-old traditions and the children learn new things from the elders about Jewish history. Jewpardy is a great game for kids to play online to get them ready for Passover. It is a Jewish-style Jeopardy game where kids (of all ages) can answer questions like “How many days was the plague of darkness?” Or “How many days are we commanded not to eat leavened food?” I admit that I have become an addict and I am sure to be ready this Pesach with inquiries that extend beyond the Four Questions this holiday.

BTW, the answers to the above questions are: the plague of darkness was three days & we must abstain from leavened bread & food for seven days.

Prepping up the office

I've decided to prep up my office a bit. Although I have had a few preppy notepads and folders on my desk, the trickle has become a flood and I didn't even realize it. My colleague, Amy, walked into my office & the pink and green just jumped out and sucked her right in! Ironically, I hadn't even noticed how much of it was now siting on my desk, including my new "preppy debutante" mug that my sister & I made while painting ceramics with my niece, Alex. By the week's end, I think some of the guys will be donning the preppy colors in their offices too! The biggest eye-catcher is my Mac Book Pro, which is pink with my monogram. For most, the preppy laptop is hard to miss.

I don't even have a basement!

This is my TV commercial for Owens Corning basement refinishing-

No Comment!!

Special thanks to those of you who have been following my blog for the past year. As you can see, it has now been transferred to the blogspot, which caused a bit of a glitch. I could not transfer any of the comments in the archived blogs & some of the previous blog entries were lost-actually about a dozen entries didn't make the transfer :( Needless to say, now that I have a new home here, I look forward to reading your remarks.

Les Soeurs Fideles

Today Phi Mu Fraternity chapters across the country celebrated Founder’s Day, honoring our three founding sisters, Mary Ann Dupont, Mary Elizabeth Myrick, and Martha Bibb Hardaway. Our organization is 157 years-old -this year. Founded at Wesleyan College in 1852 as the Philomathean Society, we have more than 150, 000 initiated sisters. I have never met so many incredibly accomplished women in one place. It is amazing how one can travel anywhere in the country and run into a fabulous Phi Mu sister! I have a Phi Mu castle That's filled with treasures old Of days I've spent with you my dear Phi Mu. I would not trade my castle for a million filled with gold For mine is far the richest of them all. Its windows sparkle and reflect The sunshine from within Each doors wide open to each true Phi Mu And if you have seen it too, then may I walk with you, Up the trail To my castle Of Phi Mu.