recipe friday.

Apple Sauce

One bag of Granny Smith apples
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water

Peel and cut the apples into chunks. I used my William Sonoma apple peeler. Whatever peel was left on after being peeled got left on. A little peel is always good. Throw everything in a crockpot and set on high for 3-4 hours. Do not open that lid...I promise it WILL do what it's supposed to do. It doesn't look like it for a few hours, then POOF...applesauce. Seriously amazing. :)



Today, I am going to focus on enjoying the day. Not being productive, even though I might be. Not being amazing cleaning woman, even though some cleaning may happen. Not being efficient, even though I will try to use my time wisely. When I base my life on how I PERFORM, I always miss the joys along the way. Happy Friday everyone.

happy...

1. That I have a new Starbucks mug that has orange flowers in it, and it reminds me of my friend Alison.
2. That I got some good sleep last night.
3. That someone out there made a wonderful drug called Zantac and now my stomach is no longer cramping so much and I am no longer burping up everything I eat.
4. That I have so many friends that have offered to help while I have been sick.
5. That I can sit at my computer without feeling the need to be in a fetal position.
6. That my husband stayed home from Bible study this morning, just in case I needed him. How sweet is that!
7. That the nurse yesterday did not laugh at me when I started crying while getting my blood drawn. I was so embarrassed that I did that, but once the tears started, there was no stopping them.
8. That Diet Ginger Ale tastes so good when you are sick.
9. That spell check in now working!
10. (you fill in #10...what are YOU happy about today?)

sick...again.

Hi all!
Today was going to be filled with html and revamping my website.
But, alas, it is not meant to be.
I am sick. Again. More yucky intestinal stuff. More laying on the couch. More being freezing under covers. A shower would be good.
This always happens...I am always sick in Jan and Feb.

Anyway, I have a quick question before I go...I have become obsessed with the idea of getting a garment steamer. I HATE ironing. And my mom has been doing it for me (thanks mom!...even though it makes me feel like a complete weeny that I cannot stay on top of the ironing...I know you that YOU do not see me as a weeny, and that's really nice)...but I'd really like to get back to taking care of our clothes myself. Does anyone out there have a steamer that they would recommend?

more business card angst...

I have been working and thinking about logos and my website and my identity since the beginning of the year. I was totally inspired by Helena Rutan's logo and thought I'd have a play at it. (Helena, I hope you don't mind!) Didn't copy it exactly, but I loved how the letters changed colors. I love color. and I just can't seem to identify with any of the graphics that I've used on the previous tries. What do you all think? On the right track?
This week, I'm gonna totally update and change my website (with the very limited amount of html that I know. lol!), so check it out later for fantastic updates. I've had the most wonderful clients and I cannot wait to put some of their images up.
btw, yesterday's yoga was everything a yoga class should be...absolutely wonderful, plus, I'm a wee bit sore today, which I love. Love being aware of my body. And then I had lunch with a friend and went shopping at macy's and actually found 3 shirts I feel FANTASTIC in AND a blue HUGE purse. completely on sale. perfection. off to clean, drink a diet root beer, and check on my family. happy weekend!

jumpin and jivin

blech...a post with no pictures. I hate that. but I'm off to yoga in a few minutes. This is my first class in YEARS. But I was thinking the other day...if I could live my perfect life, what would it look like? and yoga once a week popped up. So, here I go.

If you could live your perfect life, what would YOU include? and what can you start doing TODAY? leave it in the comments. I'm going for 5 comments today. come on...we can do it! :)

btw, I've had 2 cups of coffee so far...I'm not sure how I'm gonna do yoga with all this twitchy energy. lol!

chirp

Hi everyone! So after a few complaints that I haven't blogged, here I am. lol! what have I been doing? life, cleaning, errands (we actually have food in our house...a very good thing), and getting caught up in inspiring ideas, blogs, magazines, books, etc. My mind was swirling, and I was feeling overwhelmed at all the posibilities of art and life and my work (and I obviously have too much time on my hands!) and I just couldn't get going on anything.

Then I read a quote at the top of my Franklin Covey planner yesterday (and I NEVER read those quotes...I usually just see "blah blah blah", but yesterday, God made me look...

"We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action." -Frank Tibolt

Yup. It hit me in the head. Told me a thing or two. I was so obsessed and overwhelmed with ideas and inspiration, that I didn't take a step back and ask myself "what does my heart tell me to do? what's in my soul? what do I need to do?" You can't just follow fads, it will always end in a dead end road. You must follow what your soul is telling you to do.

SO...I'm gonna start listening and acting and listening again.

Today, laundry, making something, and I'm gonna finally clean my desk and organize files. Seriously, it's a disaster area, but I have Project Runway on in the background, so I'm OKAY.

Oh, and spellcheck is STILL NOT WERKING!!!!!! I'M ACTUALLY STARTING TO HATE BLOGSPOT.

strong

woke up to a frosty world outside. I love the length of the frost. and how strong the limbs are. strength seems to be a theme of late. that I am stronger than I think I am, that I can do more than I ever dream, that this world of mine is not as small as it feels sometimes. My mind is reeling...I don't know if I'm making sense, but a lot is going on in this wee little brain of mine, and I'm processing. bare with me. [or is it "bear" with me?] ughness.


here is another soldered pendant I made. It is 1x1.5 inches. On the back it says "be an inspiration, fly free, sing, fly free".
I'm loving making these. and I've only burnt myself once so far...a very good sign. :)
Happy Friday everyone! the kids have the day off, so we are off to see the "Spiderwick Chronicles".
Oh, and by the way, thank you to everyone who made me feel better about the M&M's episode. You are all THE BEST I CAN'T EVEN STAND IT YOU ARE SO COOL!!! thanks.

i {heart} lily

I thought that it's been too long since my last Lily picture. This is where she sits while I'm at the computer, on my office futon, on the afghan that my grandma made. I just love that little face. Happy Wednesday everyone!

can there please be an M&M diet?

So, I'm eating my wonderful breakfast of whole wheat english muffin, swiss cheese and tomato (yum and double yum) broiled to perfection, when an out of body experience happened and I reached for the peanut M&M's. Like that was a natural addition to an already perfect breakfast.

I really don't think I'm going to shrink if I eat M&M's with breakfast.

Remember Shrinky-Dinks?...wouldn't that be the coolest thing for people? Back fat would be gone. Poof. I love poof.

Anyway, I'm meeting a client to drop of a GORGEOUS canvas of her family, so I better shower and become presentable. Presentable is good.

PS, my spell check on Blogspot is still not working. Is Blogspot testing my loyalty? cuz I have NO PROBLEM leaving blogspot. DO YOU HEAR ME BLOGSPOT? NO PROBLEM!!!!

I'm diving in...

I have a million things to do today and I'm feeling a bit fragmented...having a hard time focusing...and while I was in the car driving the kids to school, I had this thought that I JUST COULDN'T DO IT ALL...and it's at that point I knew.

I'm pms-ing.

Now that I know where it's coming from, I'm doing better. Just doing one thing at a time, checking things off my list, slow and steady. (BREATHE)

Happy Friday everyone. I am going to clean, call clients, check on an order that is taking FOREVER, do laundry, and MAKE SOMETHING. It's "Make-Something-Friday". If you make something, post the link in today's comments. Ready Set Go!

What I've been working on...

Soldering...my latest obsession. I love doing this. I'm off today to find more fabric, paper, etc to put in these little soldered pendants. They are made with lead-free/part sterling silver solder and comes with a sterling silver 16 inch ball chain. They are $20.00 each. Email me if you are interested in one. :)



and yesterday, I found out about this awesome magazine..."Artful Blogging"...it has AMAZING artists in this book with all their blog addresses, what inspires them, how their blog grew, etc. It really makes the blogging world feel more like a little family than this random big world out there. Love that.

Thanks for all your comments yesterday about birthday forgetfulness. I think that a good friend will hear you when you call her out...and that's exactly what happened with one of my friends yesterday. She owned it, felt horrible, and we moved on. I'm so thankful for the freedom in good friendships. Yay for that.
Now, I'm off to get some major crap accomplished!
PS. My spellcheck isn't working today...ugh. sometimes I hate blogspot. Seriously, I am on my way to typepad. So, if you spot all the spelling errors, it's blogspot's fault, not mine.

quick post

I'm off with tons of 5th graders to an art museum (yay!) and then I'm volunteering in the classroom...busy. (I wonder what we will do for dinner...hmmmm.)

But, before I go, I just have a question to put out there...

What do you do when a good friend forgets your birthday 2 years in a row? Do you say something, let it go, stew until you get an ulcer, eat too many pieces of cake? I would love to get your thoughts. :)

I think heaven will taste like an ice cream cake.

Is this the prettiest cake ever?! Do you think it has enough flowers? lol! I LOVE frozen frosting. Yum. and again...YUM! :)
Yesterday was a great day. My family took care of me, I felt love from friends, and I didn't snack too much on superbowl munchies.
Today, I am dealing with a weird dream hangover and I'm going to tackle a new jewelry item...pictures as soon as I master this new skill.
Blessings everyone! Send some love to someone...it's my favorite month and I'm feeling dreamy.

I found 2 new blogs that everyone needs to see...

I know, I know. I was just preaching about spending less time looking at blogs. BUT. I have some good reasons...here they are...
1. I am waiting for the FedEx guy or UPS guy or whoever will be bringing us our Wii. My incredible brother-in-law bought us one, but there was a shortage, so it's in the mail today. "Wii" are very excited.
2. I need to see other creative people out there. This world is amazing and people are so talented. And I feel a bit alone sometimes in my artistic endeavors. I have creative people in my life...but none who are trying to make a living doing it.
3. We think my little dog hurt her back and she's having a hard time doing stairs and is just a little needy and wants in my lap all day. What does this have to do with looking at blogs?...she loves to sit in my lap while I'm on the computer...so I'm helping HER. :)

So, I found Marisa on etsy.com...her paintings are amazing and sweet and vulnerable and sweet again. LOVE them. :)
And then from that blog, I found Sharon Montrose...who is this INCREDIBLE photographer of dogs and cats. Look at her images...they will make you swoon and want to adopt more animals. I can't get over her xmas pic of the pug. And she thinks that only one person looks at her blog, and I think she's been sick, so let's flood her blog with love. :)

Oh, and Happy February! It's my birthday month and it has my favorite day of the year...Valentine's day.