BLee

UPDATE: 7/23 I am back... Fully recovered from the accident and working like crazy to catch up on all of my swaps. Motor skills are back - well maybe a little bit slower - but functioning... Therepy sucks!!! But worth it... Like mini bootcamp!!! I know that I am way behind, but I am going to catch up with each and every one you. I'll be contacting you each individually as I mail things out... Take care everyone... -b

I am a (happily divorced) mother of 4, grandmother of 5. I live in San Diego, California. I just sort of landed here when I got out of the Marine Corps in 1992. Plus I took the first job I was offered and have been working within the Marine Corps as a "Civilian Marine" ever since. I could't imagine being anywhere else. For relaxation (and self satisfaction) I knit and crochet lapghans for a nearby hospice. I do this with a dear friend of mine and her mom. Otherwise, depending on my mood, I love to make nice things, all types of needlework, sewing, beading, woodburning, whatever intrigues or challenges me... I love to cook also. I seldom keep the things I make, it's fun to create something for someone I care about or think highly of and surprise them with a little something.

Many years ago one of my Marines got me listening to Country Music... Love it... Faves are Billy Dean, George Strait (he sings to me) and Reba... Otherwise I love music from the Big Band era, I adore the Ames Brothers (especially Ed Ames) and the Mills Brothers... Early Rock 'n Roll, good Broadway music, anything that evokes emotion - laughter or tears... My kids think I'm nuts, but my youngest son Joey who's 18 and I are currently obsessed with Sweeney Todd. Gotta love it... Also love Nickelback (thank you Joey and Angel)... To say my taste is eclectic is an understatement...

I love to read. I don't have as much time as I used to, but I love my books. Almost anything goes... My dad got me into Detective novels, my mom the classics. A good romance is hard to beat. Love short stories, biographies, history, mystries, poetry... Whatever strikes me as interesting. Favorite books: Portrait of Dorian Gray, Scarlett Pimpernel, Devil Wears Prada, to many to list... Authors: Kellerman (Jonathan or Faye), Dumas, Stuart Woods, Maupassant, Steele, Higgins Clark (mother and daughter), Grace Livington Hill, and bunches of others. Love going to Thrift Stores and buying books... Books are my friends...

Anything with Barbara Stanwyck. She does it all. Julie Andrews, Audrey Hepburn, Meryl Streep, Debbie Reynolds, Jane Wyman. Also especially adore Thelma Ritter and Eve Arden - highlight of any movie they are in. Actors, Sidney Poitier, Gary Cooper, Jack Lemon, Johnny Depp, Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman and so many others depending on movie... Movies - Oh my goodness, My Fair Lady, Marty, Touch of Blue, Shawshank Redemption, Ball of Fire, Christmas in Conneticut (Stanwyck version), The Bishops Wife, Sweeney Todd, The Long Long Trailor, All that Heaven Allows, Now Voyager, Magnificent Obsession, the list goes on and on... I love movies and collecting them has become a minor passion. Used to be VHS, now DVD's. I love to be entertained, transported, taken to another place and time. I love to laugh or cry, or both... Movies can be such a wonderful adventure...

First and formost my children, Charles 33 (his loving heart),Trish 22 (her love of life and creativity), Angel 20 (her spirit and determination and strength of character), and Joey 18 (his amazing and often surprising mind - he constantly astonishes me) - I call them my Oreo Cookie - with the girls in the middle. They are also my "Prayer Purposes." All my amazing and wonderful grandchildren. Mercedes, Alex, Andrew, Aiden, and Dominic. Another Grandson is on the way!!! Charles and his lovely bride are expecting on "tax day" of all things... This will be there first baby and I'm so happy for them... They moved to Iowa just before Christmas and are enduring some very serious climate changes - from sunshine to snow in a matter of hours... Can't wait to visit them... My mom who watches over us all and sends me whiffs of roses as a reminder. My fantastic dad who has become one of my best friends ever (besides being a fantastic chef, great wit, he has more patience than anyone I've ever known)... My best friends Lorrie, Ron, Sherry (who somehow put up with me and my eccentricities), and Bonnie (whom I haven't seen in years, but I treasure always). My absolutly amazing brother George and his wonderful wife Tamara (the sister I always wanted)and my precious neices... I can't forget Joey's cat David Pepsi Lopez, Esquire (he is 9 and a constant source of entertainment and chaos) How blessed am I!!!

I love a good pot of tea, a new recipe, laughter, and starting a new day. I love to craft, I see potential in so many things, a piece of ribbon, a tiny flower, a pretty stone, I think I'm part magpie, I love bits and pieces... I adore unicorns and castles, swans, pretty eggs, glass baskets, and seashells. A friendly greeting, a smile and positive word or two... My favorite colors are colors of the ocean, purples, rich shades of pink, apricot or peach... I like to make smaller things, painting or woodburning eggs, making small boxes and covering with bits of moire and lace and bits of pretty things. Dressing little teddy bears with ribbons and such (I'm having problems finding the little bears any more they are about 2 to 3 inches tall in white and tan - used to get find them everywhere for about a dollar), I call them my Little Hussies. My friend Sherry and her mom started me on making lap robes for a hospice, they are narrow and long for the wheelchair bound. It was great therepy after my mom died and it's something that I have continued doing. The hospice we donate them to gives them to the patients as part of their orientation. As a result I have become an avid yarn collector. Sometimes people give me yarn that they have sitting around unused. That is a certainly a blessing shared... My favorite flowers are lilacs, daisy's, roses and sweet peas.