Thursday, December 23, 2010

Noel

On this Christmas Eve Eve, I was off work and it was so nice. After a visit to Michael's, I completed two crafts I discovered via the blog world. The first craft was NOEL artwork and the second craft was an ornament tree. The NOEL artwork was inspired by a pricey Pottery Barn piece and was knocked off on the The Steen Style, Frugal with a Flourish, and Thrifty Decor Chick. The ornament tree was also on The Steen Style and Frugal with a Flourish.
Here's the Pottery Barn NOEL:
Here's my NOEL:
The letters are white primed mdf that I spray painted with an oil rubbed bronze spray paint, but it really just looks like I used black spray paint. Not exactly the color I was going for but it looks fine. The background is paintable textured wall covering from Home Depot. I used spray adhesive to attach the wall covering to a cardboard backing. I painted the wall covering background with paints that I already had on hand. The first layer was creme paint I had from my kitchen remodel and the second layer is a glaze made from acrylic burnt umber craft paint that was diluted by a little bit of water. The glaze was painted on and immediately wiped off with a t-shirt. I put the finished back ground in a half priced Michael's frame and then hot glued the letters into place.
I'm really pleased with the outcome of the NOEL artwork. Now the ornament tree is a different story. I have no idea how to glue the ornaments onto the styrofoam cone without numerous gaps with styrofoam showing through. And it took way longer than I would like to admit. Needless to say, I don't love it.
Here's Frugal with a Flourish's ornament tree:
Here's my ornament tree:
It is made using a styrofoam cone, mini ornament balls, and hot glue. I got my ornaments at Dollar General. One package of 15 was $0.50 (they were half off). You can see pictured below that I bought several sizes of cones thinking I would make several ornament trees to group together, but after finishing one, I bagged the rest up and will be returning them to Michael's tomorrow. I don't even want to tackle another one. :/
Since I won't be making any more ornament trees, I have A LOT of mini ornament balls leftover, but I've already found a new purpose for them. Glass vase/jar filler!

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Joy to the World!

I had high hopes for sending cute photo Christmas cards this year. But it just didn't happen. I had arranged for my friend and her fancy-shmancy Canon to snap a few shots of Tom, Ruby, and I in Norman on OU's campus a few Saturdays ago. But I'm not liking my new smile courtesy of the torturous springs connected to my braces. Let's just say my smile is kinda bumpy right now. Plus it was cold and windy all that weekend. So I canceled and gave up b/c I was kinda behind the game on it anyways. So now you get my lazy digital excuse of a Christmas card. But the message is still the same. ;)

Monday, December 20, 2010

Gone in 60 Seconds

I thought I'd share a yummy recipe with you lovelies. If you like cheeseballs, (how could you not) then you will LOVE this one. I was first introduced to it at a friend's surprise birthday party. I won't tell you how many helpings of it I ate. :/ I made it for my small group's Christmas party last night. The recipe is from local caterers, the Prairie Gypsies, who also have their own line of homemade jams, jellies, fruit butters, mustards, and salad dressings. Confession, I didn't use their signature jam. I cheated and used a grocery store brand but it turned out just as yummy (plus it's cheaper).
Here's the recipe:

Gone in 60 Seconds Dip (Cheeseball)
1/2 cup Chopped Green Onions
1/2 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1/2 cup Chopped Pecans
1 8 0z package Cream Cheese
1/4 cup - 1/2 cup Red Hot Pepper Jelly
(I used Reese Hot Pepper Jelly, although recipe calls for PG's Red Hot Lover Pepper Jam)
Crackers of your choice (I used Wheat Thins)
Preparation:
Combine shredded cheddar cheese, pecans, green onion, and cream cheese (it's easier to combine if you set the cream cheese out for 30-45 minutes prior to preparation). Form into flattened ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes and place on serving plate and spoon jam/jelly over the top of the dip just before serving. Serve with crackers.
Because I like pictures to make sure I know what I'm looking for when I'm making a new recipe, here are pictures of the jam and jelly.
PG's Red Hot Lover Pepper Jam
Reese Hot Pepper Jelly
Enjoy!

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

3 Things

This is my last post on our Christmas decor I promise. I recently ordered 3 things (okay technically 4 because one thing is a pair) online to complete our Christmas decorations and they've all arrived!
1. Monogrammed Tree Skirt:
We've never had a tree skirt, and its not for lack of shopping for one. Because I have, I've just never found one that I loved. And I've always wanted a monogrammed one. In years past I just bunched up gold mesh fabric around the base of the tree and called it good. But now our tree officially has a skirt. I found this tree skirt online at Pottery Barn Kids on sale. And because our tree is skinny, the smaller dimensions of the "kids" tree skirt are fine. I think it will be perfect when we eventually get a bigger tree too because I had to fold the material over at the seam because it's a little too big.
2. Needlepoint stocking for Ruby:
This is our first Christmas with our 8 month old puppy Ruby, so of course I had to get her a stocking of her very own. It is needlepoint, to keep with our tradition. Her name is monogrammed on it and the scene is of 2 dogs sledding. I know she's spoiled...
3. Wreath Stands as Stocking Holders:
The black wreath stands I blogged about here work just great as stocking holders since we don't have a mantle.
I think Ruby is going to get some new toys in her stocking. She's pretty rough on them. According to my mom, she has bionic
jaws. Note the former rope pictured below.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Too Much??

Okay, so I've never loved my star Christmas tree topper. It's cute, but it wasn't exactly what I wanted, but it's what we came home with after shopping for our first Christmas adornments as a married couple. I'm of the mindset that a tree should be topped with a star, symbolizing the star that led the wisemen to Jesus. But this year I was wanting to add a little more 'ummph' to the top of our skinny little tree. So after our tree had been up a few days, I went to Hobby Lobby during one of my lunch hours and purchased a few sprigs of fanciness. And now I think I may have gone over the top. I'm embarrassed that I am even showing you (all five of you who read this). What do you think?? The star is still there, you just can't really see it anymore. Oooh ,that sounds so metaphorical.
When Tom came home and saw it for the first time he said, "it looks like our tree is on fire." A few days later he said, "I know what that reminds me of! Kevin, the bird on Disney Pixar's UP!"
Sheesh!

Monday, November 29, 2010

A Wild Hair...

...a sudden decision that is not expected. I had a wild hair on Thanksgiving night. We spent the day eating and being with my side of the family, then went over to my in-law's house around 8:00pm. After eating desserts and socializing with family and friends, my MIL and I settled in to peruse the Black Friday ads while our guys watched some football. My MIL came across the Wal-Mart circular which advertised a Cricut Expression machine for about $150 less than you can usually find it. She showed me the ad and we both exclaimed what a deal that price was. (A Cricut is an electronic die cutting machine used for paper and fabric crafting.)
I've been wanting a Cricut machine for the better part of a year, ever since I used my friend Allison's machine to make letters and shapes for the baby blocks shown here. I'm not a Black Friday shopper so I totally dismissed this deal, thinking that I would never capitalize on it. UNTIL, my MIL suggested that I try to get one. Ha, yeah right, you see I'd completely dogged the practice of Black Friday shopping all day long when the topic came up in random conversations. But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized I would probably never find one for that price again. But I didn't want to get up at 5:00am to go to Wal-Mart. (Who wants to get up at 5:00am on their day off, much less go to Wal-Mart at that hour?) My MIL pointed out that some of the Wal-Mart sales began at 12:01am on Friday morning and the Cricut was included in that category. It was already around 10:00pm when I decided I was going to go for it. So, Tom and I watched TV and cat napped in my in-law's living room until about 11:45pm after which we got up and went to Wal-Mart so I could start my hunt.
Tom dropped me off at the front door, I went in and nabbed the merchandise, placed it in my shopping cart, and headed to the front of the store. As I approached the line I immediately thought, "you've gotta be kidding me!" The line was forever long and definitely made me 2nd guess my decision. But I was there and the thrill of finding my deal overtook me. I called Tom, who was waiting in the car and told him to go home and come back later to pick me up. At 2:00am, after I had stood in line for nearly 2 hours, I left with my loot. I am now the proud owner of a pretty aqua colored Cricut Expression and a $2.97 2-quart stainless steel Rival crock-pot. I saw the small crock-pot while standing in line, which is what they want to happen. Yeah, I know, I'm a sucker. It was such a good price and I've been wanting a small crock-pot for when I make party food like BBQ little smokies, etc. And it was under $3.00. That's less than a drink at Starbucks!
Hooray for Black Friday success!

Saturday, November 27, 2010

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

It's officially Christmastime in our household. Which means we put up our tree and decorations to the tune of the Carpenter's Christmas Portrait, which by the way happens to be my favorite Christmas album. As a child, I remember my dad playing it every year while my family put up the tree. Listening to that album brings back memories of all my past Christmases. I didn't put quite as many decorations out as I normally do. I decided against putting greenery and berry garland on all my ledge shelves. Here are a few quick phone pictures of what we did today.
Our skinny little tree
Nativity set on the piano
Ornaments in a hurricane
Holly berry plates on kitchen wall
Ornaments in an apothecary jar on kitchen shelf
Ornaments in an Arthur Court bowl on the kitchen island
Berry and snowflake wreath on the front door
Star berry wreath on the back of the front door
Ruby's first experience with Christmas
My "helpers," don't they look thrilled?
Ruby is even ready for Christmas with her new collar
She laid like this literally the whole time we decorated

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Preparations

Well, here we are the weekend before Thanksgiving. And how in the world did that happen? 2010 has literally flown by and it is now ALMOST time to start decorating for the Christmas season. We always put Christmas up the day after Thanksgiving.
We had a busy Saturday yesterday which started for me with an 8:30am choir practice at church, followed by breakfast, lawn mowing, winterizing the flower beds, taking down the fall decor and packing it up, cleaning the house, washing the sheets and towels, getting the cars washed, and getting my front blinker and headlight replaced. Phew! It was nice to get cleaned up after all that and eat some Falcone's pizza while watching the Sooners beat Baylor.
In preparing for my Christmas decorating, I've been thinking about how I am going to hang our stockings this year. We've been in our house for a little over 5 years, and we've never had a fireplace mantle to hang our stockings on. In years past I've hung them on the old glass block divider wall that we once had prior to our kitchen remodel. After the wall came down we hung them on a decorative wall shelf.
But I don't want to do that again this year. I've been thinking an iron stand would be perfect. So, I googled stocking stands, and I didn't love what I saw. They all had something cheesy about them, like a santa or Christmas tree figure at the top.
I decided to go with a telescoping wreath stand with a nice tasteful finial on the top. I ordered two, I'm thinking I can hang two stockings on each stand. And I can use them in all seasons with all types of wreaths and/or hanging decorations. So they're versatile. My favorite trait in a decoration.
We have four needlepoint stockings. Two are monogrammed already with our names. And hopefully, sooner rather than later, we will be able to monogram the other two with our children's names. The stockings my brother and I had growing up were needlepoint, made by my maternal grandmother. I wanted to keep with the needlepoint stocking tradition with our family. I ordered ours from Lands End back in 2006. This Christmas will be our first one with our puppy, Ruby, so I need to find her a stocking as well. So fun! :)

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

...fighting to stay open

Today on my way home from work, Like a Lake by Sarah Groves came on my iPod. Without going into details, let's just say it spoke directly to my heart and where I am right now. Thank you Lord for using music to minister to me.
I tried to find a YouTube video but couldn't. Try going here, to Sara Grove's myspace page. You will have to scroll down the page until you find track no. 9, and you can stream it directly from there.
Like a Lake:
so much hurt and preservation
like a tendril round my soul so much painful information no clear way on how to hold it when everything in me is tightening curling in around this ache I will lay my heart wide open like the surface of a lake wide open like a lake standing at this waters edge looking in at God's own heart I've no idea where to begin to swallow up the way things are everything in me is drawing in closing in around this pain I will lay my heart wide open like the surface of a lake wide open like a lake bring the wind and bring the thunder bring the rain till I am tried when it's over bring me stillness let my face reflect the sky and all the grace and all the wonder of a peace that I can't fake wide open like a lake everything in me is tightening curling in around this ache I am fighting to stay open I am fighting to stay open open open oh wide open open like a lake

Monday, August 30, 2010

Chicago Vacation: Part 4

Saturday, July 24, 2010:
Our last stop before leaving Chicago on our fourth morning there was brunch at Rick Bayless' famous Frontera Grill. I started my brunch with an enticing Grapefruit juice Mimosa (which was one of their specials that day). It was lovely I must say, if you can't tell from my face in the pic below.
For an appetizer we got the Sopes Rancheros: crispy corn masa boats with savory shredded beef, roasted tomatoes, avocado and homemade fresh cheese. Tom's main course was Sapitos: a trio of Xalapa-style gorditas (corn masa cakes) in chipotle-black bean sauce each with its own topping: scrambled eggs, grilled chicken, chorizo and plantains; homemade crema and queso fresco. For my main course I got the Hot Cakes Indgenas: Iroquois white corn pancakes with whipped goat cheese, piloncillo-agave syrup, grilled chorizo and two eggs sunny-side up. The grilled chorizo bacon was so good, I can't even describe it. It was like eating candy. I realize I blogged a lot about food over these past few Chicago Vacation posts, but one of the best parts about going on vacation is the food you get to try while you're visiting a new place!
Plus I'm a chubby kid who likes to eat!