Monthly Archives: December 2012

#26Acts

Posted on December 31, 2012 by empressofaiken

I’ve made and broken more New Years’ resolutions than I can count.   I don’t think it was because I lack resolve but that they probably weren’t worth keeping, after all.   This year I’ve found something that I’m going to try … Continue reading →

Posted in In The News, Making Stall Talk, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

The Real Housewives of Atlanta – History Lessons

Posted on December 30, 2012 by empressofaiken

We’ve seen new Bravo Housewives give all sorts of excuses explanations for joining the casts of the various franchises.  They tell us that they’re bringing awareness to their various causes and foundations, that they want to help people, or that … Continue reading →

Posted in BravoTV, Real Housewives of Atlanta | Tagged , , , | 20 Comments

Christmas Memories

Posted on December 23, 2012 by empressofaiken

When we were growing up, preparations for Christmas began just as soon as the Thanksgiving holiday ended.   Our Mom, with the kind of disciplined effort that would put Martha Stewart to shame,  turned the house into our very own … Continue reading →

Posted in Making Stall Talk, Uncategorized | 30 Comments

Saturday Special – The Greatest Gift

Posted on December 22, 2012 by MelTheHound

Hello everyone. I wrote this last Friday to be posted on the 15th so with everything you read, keep that in mind. Timing of it was important to me but I guess other events took precedence. I hope you’ll enjoy … Continue reading →

Posted in Mel The Hound's Weekend Special | 28 Comments

Book Deal? – Big Deal

Posted on December 20, 2012 by empressofaiken

Kathryn Stockett received 60 rejection letters from agents and publishers before someone finally found  “The Help” worth printing.  It stayed on the New York Times Bestseller List for over 100 weeks.  First time authors know, all too well, the number … Continue reading →

Posted in BravoTV, In The News, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Real Housewives of New Jersey, Real Housewives of New York City | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Comfort and Smiles

Posted on December 17, 2012 by empressofaiken

They have names like Zippy, Ruthie, Chewie and Barnabas.  They’re a group of Golden Retrievers who came to Newtown to help ease the pain of a tragic situation and bring smiles to some children (and adults) simply by being dogs.   … Continue reading →

Posted in In The News, Making Stall Talk, Uncategorized | 22 Comments

The Day After – Evil visited this community today

Posted on December 15, 2012 by empressofaiken

“Evil visited this community today and it’s too early to speak of recovery, but each parent, each sibling, each member of the family has to understand that Connecticut — we’re all in this together. We’ll do whatever we can to … Continue reading →

Posted in In The News | 41 Comments

Bless Those in Newtown

Posted on December 14, 2012 by empressofaiken

My beloved home state has experienced its’ third mass shooting in less than 15 years.  This morning, a stupid, selfish and insane thing happened inside Sandy Hook Elementary School in bucolic Newtown, Connecticut.   One or more men came into the … Continue reading →

Posted in In The News | 28 Comments

Life With The Dingos and All of Our Other Dogs

Posted on December 12, 2012 by empressofaiken

In all of the thousands of words and hundreds of posts that have been published on this blog,  I’ve written very little about two of the friends who have given my husband and me the most love, devotion and life … Continue reading →

Posted in Making Stall Talk | 27 Comments

The Red Line In The Sand

Posted on December 11, 2012 by empressofaiken

Syria, like so many Middle Eastern countries, is in the midst of a civil war.   At the center of the unrest is Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, and his story of power is all too familiar – the son of the … Continue reading →

Posted in In The News, Politics | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments