[ crafty update ]

I have visions of crafts dancing in my head...

Here's a scrapbook layout in progress:

And remember the project that Jennifer and I are challenging ourselves with in 2009? Here's the link to refresh your memory:

http://triplethescraps.blogspot.com/2009/01/scripture-challenge-2009-weeks-1-2.html

Basically, we get a word every week that we are supposed to ponder, find Bible passages about, study, and then choose a scripture or two that illustrates that word for you. Then - (the fun part) - we create an ATC (a 4" x 2" card) with the word on one side and the scripture on the other side. Then, we put them on this:

So - that's what it looks like empty. I'll post pictures periodically throughout the year to show you how it progresses. I'm excited about the possibilities of this challenge and for the fact that it will force me to study the Bible more...something that I, unfortunately, put on the back burner too often. That's a whole other post.

(But see those pink buttons behind it? Visions of a pink Valentine tree...Can you see it?!)

Onto my new obsession...collecting products relating to sewing! :) If only I was as successful actually sewing as I am collecting products!

My new library of books (which contain many many projects just waiting to be created!):

My sewing basket that I salvaged from my pile of extra Longaberger...who knew you could have extra Longaberger? It is possible. What is great about this basket is that it spins! Can you get a more perfect sewing basket?
Fabulous fabric that I picked up in Chelan at Woven Memories and at Craft Warehouse in Kennewick:

I got these cut off the bolt for $2.25/yard. That's good, right?

These are awesome precut squares...I think they're called a charm pack?!

Aren't these packaged so adorably?

Does the fabric above look at all similar to the fabric below?

Huh. Guess I really like it?! :)

I picked out the fabric above in Chelan...then came home with the fabric below from Craft Warehouse. I had no idea they were the same until I saw them next to each other.

Whoops!

I really like these colors! They're so unlike me, yet so complimentary to my personality, I think! How is that possible?!

I have visions of pin cushions galore!

My fabulous sale find at Target on Sunday - I love these wire tiered baskets (I had a cream one in this one's place that I relocated to my bathroom). This basket was $17.99 marked down to $8.98. Love love love Target!

Anyway - I thought it was perfect to display my fabric. And all those stamps on the bottom shelf were previously housed in the three tiers of the cream basket that had been located in this space. Much better.

So...now that I have the supplies and the inspiration...I need the skillz.

Anyone know of any classes around the Tri-Cities?

[ day #37 - journal your christmas ]

Today's journal is the last one...and am I proud of myself for sticking through the entire 37 days! There were just a few days that I missed and had to make up them up a few days later. But that's ok!! I have never done anything like this, so I'm excited that I have a finished product. Although it's not the type of journal the designer probably envision, it's my version and I love it!

The prompts really made me think and reflect on the differenct aspects of the holiday season. I hope it has been as much of a joy to you as it's been to me.

If you're interested in participating in 2009...here's the link: http://www.shimelle.com/classes/389/journal-your-christmas/

[ check it ]

I made Sour Cream Banana Bread tonight...yum!

Here's the recipe from chow.com:

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 very ripe medium bananas, mashed (about 1 1/4 cups)
1/2 cup sour cream
INSTRUCTIONS
Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange the rack in the middle. Butter a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan and dust it with flour, tapping out excess. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon in a large bowl to aerate and break up any lumps.
Combine sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes. Add bananas and sour cream, and mix until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add flour mixture, and mix until just combined.
Turn batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, the top is golden brown, and the bread is pulling away from the sides of the pan, about 1 hour.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Slide a knife around the perimeter of the pan, invert to release the bread, and cool completely on the wire rack before serving.

Enjoy!

[ Celebrating Life ]

I haven't had the opportunity to write about the loss of some important people around Connell...

Rep. Steve Hailey

Steve was one of the most upstanding men in Franklin County, ultimately being chosen to represent this area as a Representative in Olympia. He lost his battle with colon cancer last week. His life was celebrated on Saturday with a wonderful service recognizing his lifetime achievements, deep devotion to his family, and friendship to all. As it was said on Saturday, Steve had a footprint that extended across the nation and it will be impossible to fill.

Sandy Engelhard

Sandy babysat Melissa and I when we were kids...she passed away on Friday of an apparent heart attack. The loss of Sandy is sudden and so sad - but she was in so much pain that it is a comfort to know she does not have to deal with that anymore. I have many great memories of time spent at the Engelhard's. Sandy was the beloved wife of Mr. E. (a favorite math teacher at CHS).

My prayers are with both the Hailey's and the Englehard's as they endure these significant losses.

[ day #36 - journal your christmas ]

Today's journaling is about putting away Christmas decorations...which we haven't done yet! :) It takes so much time & energy to unpack the decorations and to put them up - it's such a shame that they're only out to enjoy for such a short period of time.

We enjoy our Christmas tree so much...I love the bright white lights illuminating the living room in the morning dusk. We usually leave our tree up well into January...knowing full well Christmas is over. It makes me sad that our lives are so date oriented that it seems to be "socially unacceptable" to leave a Christmas Tree up and Christmas lights on the house. It's always "onto the next thing..."

Just yesterday, some friends of Melissa's stopped by the house and they all made a comment about our tree:

"Oh wow! Your tree is still up...well, it's pretty."

"Isn't Christmas over?"

Yes! Christmas is over.

Yes! Every other American has taken down their tree.

But we haven't.

Deal.

We like it like that!!

As for the other Christmas decorations...we tend to enjoy snowmen because it is socially acceptable for them to stay up well into February or as long as there is snow on the ground. Which may be for a long time. (We received at least 3 inches last night which resulted in a welcomed 2-hour delay today!)

Oh - and for the record - our stockings are still up too.

[ Chelan and more ]

I haven't written about Chelan yet, but since school is starting tomorrow (boo hoo hoo), I'd better get my blog on. :)

Chelan was fun. Period.

Ha.

No really, it was really fun.

As we were preparing to go, Mom and I were talking about how it would be so nice to just stay home...but when we were preparing to come home, we both decided we were very glad we went.

I read a book. We watched a movie. We played Rumoli...and "May I" (the Heiders call it Progressive Rummy)...and "Trains" (the Heiders call it Mexican Dominoes). We shopped. We went wine tasting. We rang in 2009. We read magazines...drank coffee...talked with friends. We hung out by the fire. We went to the casino and played the slot machines (I won $12!). We bowled on the Wii. Mattie Jean KO'd me when we played boxing on the Wii. We frequented Starbucks. We watched it snow...and snow...and snow.

Love it. We have reservations to do it all again for New Year's 2010. Wow. 2010. Can you believe it?!

Wine Tasting:

Zeke & Melissa

Mom & Karen

Zeke and Larry

Christine & I

Travis, Jamie, Aubri, and Michael

New Year's Eve Dinner @ Campbell's:

Mom & Dad

Corky, Kara, & I

Eric, Corky, & Kyle

The lucky (and nasty smoky) casino:

RUMOLI!!!!

Kara with all her winnings...she was on a roll!

Mattie Jean and Karen

Mattie Jean, Anna, & Emma with Kleinbach's new dog Twizzler

Kara & Emma

[ day #35 - journal your christmas ]

Today's journal is about what I want to remember for next year.

Let's see...we've got the baking thing down to the bare minimum and we could reduce even that. One cheesecake instead of two.

Forego Secret Santa at work again (it made life a lot easier!).

Decide whether or not to exchange gifts at work earlier than the week before Christmas.

Buy a gift certificate for Family Gift Exchange - huge hit!

Commit to making homemade Christmas gifts and actually follow through with it.

Begin shopping in October and actually finish by the beginning of December. For real.

Focus more on the meaning of Christmas.

Spend more time with family.

Relax...breathe...take everything in.

[ day #34 - journal your christmas ]

day #34 - your single most favorite moment of this holiday season

I have a lot of favorites during the Christmas season that I've shared previously.

For example, I love singing Christmas hymns in church and the first sight of red Starbucks cups excites me to no end.

But, I think my favorite tradition that adds up to many moments is getting coffee and driving around looking at Christmas lights while listening to Christmas music. I did this a lot in college when I needed to get away from my dorm room or take a break from studying for finals. I have great memories of finding new neighborhoods in Spokane, dragging friends along, and discovering the tackiest of all tacky decorated homes (envision lots of blow up decorations in the front yard, millions of strings of lights in all different colors, wooden cut out reindeer and Santas next to a wooden cut out Nativity...those are the hidden jewels of Christmas light looking).

Something like this, perhaps. (I got this randomly from Google, but it's a great example of what I'm talking about!)

[ 2008 in Review ]

2008 in Review

What did you do in 2008 that you had never done before?

go to Las Vegas, spend 34 days at Priest Lake, complete 50+ scrapbook pages, coached basketball cheerleaders, go on a mission trip, played a Wii

Did you keep any New Years resolutions? Are you making any for 2009?

nope and nope.

(See previous post about resoluations and goals for 2009)

Did anyone close to you give birth?

Yes! Todd and Jessica received the beautiful blessing of Emersyn Leigh

Did anyone close to you die?

Unfortunately, many people close to me passed away in 2008. I'd list them here, but I'm afraid I would miss someone. My aunt Vicky's dad Vic passed away, some of my student's parents, some family friends, and a high school classmate

What vacations did you take?

Vegas, baby! and Priest Lake and Chelan and Salt Lake City

What would you like to have in 2009 that you didn't in 2008?

More time to craft. Less obligations.

What date from 2008 will be etched in your mind and why?

Probably November 4th. It was a big day in our family and in our country.

Did you suffer illness or injury?

The stomach flu for three days in December. The typical common cold a time or two. Nothing huge, thankfully!

What was the best thing you bought?

My iPhone!! :)

Whose behavior merited celebration?

My Dad made me proud the way he campaigned during his re-election. When he could have chosen to lower himself to others' standards, he took the high road.

Also - I received the 2007-2008 CHS Teacher of the Year Award!

Whose behavior made you apalled and or depressed?

There are certain people in my life that surprise me by the way they act and treat others. I hope for them that 2009 will bring them more happiness than they have seen in previous years.

Where did most of your money go?

Student Loans. Blah. I am thankful for the education I received, but my monthly reminder hurts a little bit!

What did you get really really really excited about?

Sarah Palin running for VP, Tina Fey playing Sarah Palin on SNL, organizing a scrapbook retreat

What song will always remind you of 2008?

Maybe "Home" by Daughtry.

Compared to last year are you much happier, richer, nicer?

All three? I am happy - my life is good - I am blessed by my job - and I'm nicer because of it. I hope this is true.

What do you wish you'd done more of?

Craft. Spend time with friends.

What do you wish you'd done less of?

Waste time. Be anxious.

How did you spend Christmas?

With family here at home.

Did you fall in love in 2008?

I fell more in love with Priest Lake and Sam-dawg!

What was your favorite tv show?

Unfortunately, I have a lot of favorite TV shows! I'll limit my top three favorites to Grey's Anatomy, The Real Housewives of Orange County, and Private Practice.

What was the best book you read this year?

I just finished "The 19th Wife" and really enjoyed it. I also loved "Eat, Pray, Love."

What was your greatest musical discovery?

Brooke White (well, American Idol discovered her).

What did you want and get?

A sewing machine!

What was your favorite film this year?

Juno

What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?

I worked and had our Youth Group Christmas Party and then went to Michael Jay's with my family. I turned 28. A few days earlier, we celebrated at PF Changs with Nick and Kate.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? What kept you sane?

Not sure what would have made it more satisfying...but I agree with Jamie on blogging keeping me sane. I developed a love for blogging and for reading my friends' blogs.

What political issue stirred you most?

The Presidential Election (go McCain!) and the Franklin County Commissioner Election. It was a tough fall.

Who did you miss?

My friends that live far away from here.

Who was the best new person you met?

Well, not necessarily met - but got reacquainted to - Jennifer B(s)! :)

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.

Don't lower yourself to other people's standards.

Quote a song lyric that sums up 2008.

Oh hot damn! This is my jam!

[ days #30-32 - journal your christmas ]

Day # 30 -

Looking back at 2008. I have a few ideas of how to do this rolling around in my head. I don't think I'm going to do it just right now since this will already be a long post. Watch for my 2008 Wrap-Up tonight or tomorrow.

Day #31 -

New Year's Eve. I typically don't really care much about New Year's Eve. I think there is a lot of pressure to go to a fun party (or host one) or to do something really spectacular. Really. New Year's Eve is just another day. January 1 is just another day. I do love to go to a fun party and for the last two years, we've gotten to do just that. While in Chelan, we go to a fun dinner with the whole Connell crew that is there. It's a lot of fun - we're noisy, rowdy, and having an all around good time.

Day #32 -

Resolutions. I'm not big on resolutions. Again, I think it sets people up for disappointment when they don't follow through on their resolutions. I'd rather list things I want to accomplish...so...

1. Learn to sew.

2. Make a fun project to prove I've learned to sew.

3. Spend time at Priest Lake

4. Be the best I can be