Single-Wide Cottage

Been a long time

2010-11-09T09:49:00.000-08:00

So slowly I will catch up on whats happened lately. For today friends and family that we went to go see months ago! I am a total slacker!!!
Corney fake smiles seem to run in the family lol!

Henry, the huge lap dog that belongs to our friends Brian and Missy
See beautiful fake smile like uncle like niece I guess

W.I.P. wednesday

2010-09-15T09:27:00.001-07:00

The love of my life fixed my computer! Going to try to get back to regular posts.
Here's a project I just started, I have a few new babies coming into my life so I'm not sure which one this is for, guess it will depend on when I finish it ;o). When I do finish it I think I might be ready to move on to knitting. We visited some friends and family over the labor day weekend and our friend M. was teaching herself and her daughter how to knit and I think I caught the fever!

Please Hold

2010-08-16T17:18:00.000-07:00

We are experiencing some technical difficulty due to my computer crashing. Hopefully the wonderful husband can fix it soon.

Please stand by

This Moment

2010-08-13T08:35:00.000-07:00

A single moment, inspired by http://www.soulemama.com/. No words just a time to pause. (And perhaps think before you leap)

This week I'm thankful for:
- A husband who can communicate
-People in the blog world answering my questions
-Early mornings (crazy right?)
-Long walks with my best furry friend

(Inspired by Shelley over at http://waldorfmama.typepad.com)

Thrift Share Monday

2010-08-09T10:17:00.001-07:00

I picked this up a few weeks ago and I'm not sure what it is? I has writing around the edges that is hard to decipher except of one part that says King Aurther. It's really cool though and just sits on a table with some other Autherian themed things.
More Thrift Share Monday over @ http://apronthriftgirl.typepad.com/

weekend camping

2010-08-09T09:51:00.000-07:00

New Bike!

2010-07-13T10:41:00.000-07:00

Thrift Share Moday

2010-06-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

Thrift Share Monday is going on over at Apron Thrift Girl ( link at right). My treasures are not exactly thrifted but finds from a garage sale that my mother in law was helping with this weekend.

First a few yards of some lovely wool fabric that will make some warm backings for winter quilts.

I really got lucky with storage jars, these on top will store the herbs from our garden when they're ready to dry and put up for the winter. The ones on the bottom will go good use though I'm not sure what they will store yet.
The book may have been the best find of the trip, full of useful information on throwing parties and good recopies for potlucks and informal dinners.

Check out Apron Thrift Girl for more links to other peoples lovely thrift finds!

A Finished Project

2010-06-04T08:52:00.001-07:00

I finally finished a project! It always seems like I have over a dozen in progress and they never get finished... This one is a child size messenger bag, I used the pattern found in "One Yard Wonders" by Rebecca Yaker and Patricia Haskins. I have a feeling I will be using this book to make a lot of presents over the next year. It was easier then I thought it would be and I am very happy at the way it turned out. ( I filled it with pirate books)

Every pirate needs a treasure chest right? I picked this one up at Michels and burned his name into it with my handy wood burner tool, then finished it with some natural beeswax polish that I purchased from Just Hatched @ Etsy.com. The gems are also form an Etsy seller, Glimmering Gems. Going to drop them off tomorrow hope he likes them.

If only the weather would cooperate!

2010-05-29T18:56:00.000-07:00

We've been working on the garden a bit lately(by "we've" I mostly mean J.). We had some plants in the ground a while back, but it proved to be too early for the unpredictable Nevada weather. Though we lost a few plants to a late frost he didn't lose enthusiasm and put some more into the earth this morning, before scumming to the stomach flu... sorry think one was my fault. I really do feel bad, he nursed me and everything and this is his payment, really not fair! So I'll sing his praise a little and show what a wonderful job he is doing trying to cultivate our little patch of earth.
The last post was when we had just started so here's a bit of a progression:

There's been a lot of progress made and more to come if it would just stop snowing randomly!

spring/summer project #1

2010-04-14T15:19:00.000-07:00

This is how it all starts... mild insanity to insue... The begginings of our garden
J.'s mom's birthday was this past weekend, I really got lucky in the mother in law department, she's amazing!
Happy spring! (finally!)

weekending

2010-03-15T09:29:00.001-07:00

Weekend's go by way too fast. Oh, how I wish I could pull a 4 ten work week, wouldn't that be nice. So here's this weekend:
1. dryer fire, no actual flames but a lot of smoke, now residing outside until I can get a repair man to look at it.
2. lots of time on the couch with the hubby watching Firefly (again) and other various movies
3. A bunny for baby D.'s Easter basket
4. Rice crispy treats for J.'s work and cookies for mine
5. Dinner with V. on Sunday chicken for the boys and yummy tofu for me
Seems like a pretty productive weekend except for the fact that I have a midterm on Wednesday and I didn't crack my book once!

To Do:
1. Study for midterm!
2. New drivers license
3. Finish bunny facial expressions
4. Write g-pa about change in plans
5. Make D.'s letter wrap so she has no excuse not to keep in touch
6. Finish Pride and Prejudice

addiction

2010-03-09T10:12:00.001-08:00

I I think I might have a bit of a problem...

But can you ever really have too many hats?

emma

2010-03-02T08:52:00.000-08:00

It's going to be a busy week, overtime at work and a paper due in geology. The paper is on the Naica caves, goggle it, the pictures are amazing! Most of you out there already know that PBS is remaking Jane Austin's Emma, in preparation for this I have been listening to the audio book at work. I love Jane Austin's writings, but in all fairness this book isn't exactly keeping me awake. I love the language and setting, and the plot is a good one, just not the riveting adventure needed to keep me productive for 10+ hours. Never the less I will persevere. I started watching the PBS version last night and am totally in love with it! The acting is wonderful and has some of my favorite actors in it. As long as I don't get ahead of myself and watch further then I have read then it's not cheating right? You can find Emma on audio free @ librivox.org

extended weekend fun

2010-02-15T20:11:00.000-08:00

Some Valentine's Treats

My love took us to our favorite restaurant to celebrate

And this little fellow stopped by for a visit and to poke a few holes in our trees

weekending

2010-02-06T16:01:00.000-08:00

This weekend's to do list:

1. First attempt at home made bread

2. Two W.I.P's ( more pictures to follow)
3. Lots of geology homework and a quiz
4. Work on J.'s valentines present
5. Dinner with my brother and his family
6. "Big Game" party with friends

The wind...

2010-02-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

(mmcullen@ etsy)

In the Willows...

Been listing to this on audio book at work so it's inspired this post.

Here's a few etsy finds inspired by the book:

Map of mole's travels

(Pinkpainter @ etsy)

Beautiful Badger

(makeit @ etsy)

Would love to have a pair of these beautiful earings

(Terrakengo @ etsy)

I can imagin Mole running into these cuties while staying with Badger

(imaginationkids @ etsy)

Valentines cookies

2010-01-31T20:32:00.001-08:00

I've been experimenting with some sugar cookie recipes this weekend and finally found one that suites my needs perfectly.

(check out my cool new notebook in the back!)

Ingredients

1 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
FROSTING:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon milk
Food coloring

Cream together sugar and butter until combined then add milk, egg, and almond extract. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in separate bowl. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture slowly, mixing between each addition. Form into a ball with your hands and kneed until thoroughly mixed. Roll out between two sheets of waxed paper. Dip cookie cutters in flour and cut out desired shapes. Bake at 375 for about 5 minutes per batch. Let cool on wire rack. For the icing sift the powder sugar into a bowl and whisk all other ingredients in with the powder sugar, add more powder sugar or milk to get the desired consistency. Dip cookies into icing and dust with sprinkles or colored sugar and place on wax paper until icing sets. Enjoy!

false spring

2010-01-31T20:23:00.000-08:00

Is it spring already?

The weather is fooling with us in these parts. If you remember from one of my recent posts we received a lot of snow in the past weeks, today though you would never have guessed that it was nearly a white out just a few days ago. It looks like spring, a very early spring, has come round. Don't believe it though, Nevada weather is know for it's unpredictability and I wouldn't be suprised if we get two feet of snow next week.

Book Review #2

2010-01-26T09:09:00.000-08:00

So I do read more then one book a year and listen to a plethora of audio books while at work, I just forget to post them.

The book I read last week came to me via the book donation shelf at my work, located in the cafeteria, this shelf has saved me from many a dull lunch period!

This one sucked me in from chapter 1. Written by Alexander McCall Smith, this book is the first in a series of six describes the life of Precious Ramotswe. It tells of her father and what led her to become the only lady detective in Botswana. You follow her as she solves crimes that range from an unfaithful husband to a kidnapped boy! I found this book to be a quick read and because of the way it's set up it would be great for an airplane flight or a lunch hour.

Right now I'm listening to the 5th book in Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series. All of the books so far in this set have been wonderful and really helpful in passing the time at work. If you're a fantasy-suspence lover these would be right up you're alley. I don't think I'll write a real review on these books becuse I would have to start from the begening and I read the frist book severel years ago. Take my word for it though they are well worth the read and if you get a chance to listen to them on audio the readers have the most wonderful voices ( I believe Mr. King even narates a few of them himself).

A little late W.I.P.

2010-01-21T11:36:00.000-08:00

I get the pleasure of attending a baby shower this sunday. The lucky new mom to be is my friend and coworker. I felt like getting a little creative and here's what I came up with:

My first crayon roll! I've been wanting to make one of these for a while and I got the instructions from: http://www.skiptomylou.org/2008/09/09/keep-on-rollin/
The little felt block is actually a rattle, I got the idea form Amanda Soule's book: The Creative Family.

These embroidery patterns where too cute to pass on and I've been looking for a way to use them for a while. Patterns: http://www.sublimestitching.com/

And the end product some stuff for baby and some stuff for big sis as well. It feels good to be crafting!

White!

2010-01-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

So this morning I forgo my usual bowl of cereal for this little bit of warm yummy goodness:

Why? Well for the past few days old man winter has decided it was past time for us to get a little snow, wait did I say a little snow?

O.K., so it's not the massive amounts that some are use to experiencing in other parts of the world, but it's enough for me... no really enough already, I miss warmer days!

a new addition

2009-12-20T21:35:00.000-08:00

So we have a new addition to our little family, in the shape and size of a VW Bug! We went to Nevada City to pick it up a few weeks ago, but with finals, and... well... life, I hadn't had the chance to post about it.

The trip started out lovely...
and soon there were chains required!
He was sooo excited to finally be getting his Bug, the weather didn't even phase him =o)
And of course, my best friend in the world, who proved his awesomeness by coming along so I wouldn't have to drive back.
Here's the new baby! A 73 VW Beetle! Isn't she a beauty? We (or I guess I should say I =o) named her Bobbi.
Her previous owener was a sport and posed with Sophia for me.

The ride home was an event. It snowed most of the way (thank you so much V. you're my hero for driving!) and the Bug had no wipers. Wish I could have gotten a picture of J. with his arm out the window wiping the snow off the window. We made it home thought and he's been working on her ever since. He's so happy and thus so am I =o)

holiday wish list

2009-11-16T09:35:00.000-08:00

So J. got off pretty easy with my birthday, it being so close to the wedding we didn't really do anything. Just dinner with some friends and a small amount of thrift store shopping. Don't think you can play it off next year though buddy. So to give him a little help for the holidays he asked for some ideas. This was a good plan on his part considering last year I got a toaster oven and he has yet to live it down lol! So just a few ideas for my love to consider:

new watch, started wearing one lately and I need one that will go better with more outfits
link:
http://www.fossil.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product____22085389_211504?departmentCategoryId=30000&N=0&No=0&Ns=p_subcategory_sequence%257c0%257c%257cp_weight%257c0&rec=10&pn=c&imagePath=JR9977

A green pair of chucks courtesy of :
http://store.delias.com/item.do?itemID=49910&categoryID=1922&sizeFilter=&colorFilter=&brandFilter=

so far thats all sure there's more but those are the major things I'm hoping for =o)

End of our first week

2009-11-13T13:21:00.000-08:00

I am so glad it's Friday! I had a day off in the middle of the week, and not that I'm complaining about getting a free day, but it really threw off the rest of my week. J's been having a tough week as well, I could not imagine working with only women, what drama! Here's a few more pics still haven't got the rest from the various people who were taking pics at the wedding, but rumor is that they're on the way =o)

All Done!!!

2009-11-09T09:03:00.000-08:00

It's all said and done as soon as the name change papers go through I will officially be Mrs. Callaway! More pics to come soon and so happy to be back blogging!

Enjoying Summer & W.I.P.

2009-09-16T09:59:00.001-07:00

Only a few more days left of summer and though Autumn is my favorite season, I'm going to miss summer.

I wasn't the only one enjoying the fading warmth, it's already getting colder at night. I had to put an extra blanket on the bed.
W.I.P.
Finished Ms. Librarian, she's going to be part of a book bag, now I just need to find some fabric.

24 more candles for the wedding, just waiting for A. to wake up to get a start on these ( all the candle making paraphernalia is in his room).
Yours in a constant state of motion ,
T.

55 days and counting

2009-09-14T12:02:00.000-07:00

With the wedding near at hand, school, & work my postings are getting few and far between! Soo many things to do with so little time:\

-50 more baby food jars
-25 + 50 more candles
-30 center pieces
-Wedding license
- thank you gifts for friends that are helping
-collect all the projects others are helping with
- weekly homework for both classes including reading a 650pg book in 24 days with ch. summerys!
-work wanting over time
-Camping trip next weekend

All this and still trying to remember to thank the powers that be every day for giving me such a wonderful partner and love.

W.I.P. Wednesday ... Sort of

2009-09-09T09:05:00.000-07:00

Here's my W.I.P., except it's done so I guess it's not in progress =o)

A present for a friend, made with love, hope she likes it. Neck pillow and rainbow catcher made by me.

Acid!

2009-09-04T08:37:00.000-07:00

Sorry been out for the past few days with an upset stomach. Really sucks but hopefully I've found out how to deal with it. I spent Wednesday in the E.R., the acid was so bad I though for sure I had a ulcer or something! Well they didn't check for that, so I need to make an appt. with my actual Dr. if this persists. They just took a blood test, gave me a really nasty tasting G.I. cocktail, and sent me home with a note for my boss and an order to take prylosec. I felt better yesterday, but then again I didn't eat much yesterday. Today will be the real test. Let you know how it goes.

Fudge & sexy librarians

2009-09-02T08:31:00.000-07:00

I've been promising A. that I would make fudge for weeks, months even. This morning I felt ambitious and with our weekly employee meeting at work tomorrow I thought I would finally come through. The recipie is one my mother use to make when I was a little girl and it was one of the first things I remember helping her make ( the pot requires a lot of stirring perfect for little ones that want to help). I think my mom told me it was a family recipie but I'm not sure.
So to turn this:Into this:
Just do this:

Mom's Fudge

4cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup coco
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
a pinch of salt

Sift all dry ingredients together. Melt butter in a double boiler and slowly add dry ingredients with a whisk, stirring regularly to keep fudge smooth. About half way through add the milk. When all ingredients are combined pour onto a buttered or wax paper covered plate and refrigerate. Let the fudge cool for a few hours ( you can put it in the frezzer if you want to speed the process along, but it sets a little funny).
Enjoy!

W.I.P. Wednesday

I've been working on a solstice present for a friend of mine, who I'm pretty sure doesn't read this blog. She works in a Library so when I found this pattern,http://sublimestitching.com/sexylibrarians.html, from Sublime Stitching, I though it would be perfect for a new book bag!

living

2009-08-31T09:49:00.001-07:00

The hardest thing I've ever had to do is live with someone. Cohabitation is not easy! J. & I have lived together for about a year and we're still working out the kinks. This weekend was a little hard, we had a new roommate move in and we're still adjusting to his new schedule. We got through it though and I think we're a little stronger for it. We just had to lay down a guide lines for weekend living, the major one being no bringing work home on the weekends. With opposite schedules we don't get to see each other during the week so weekends are now for "us" time. Lucky for me we don't really argue, we discuss ( at least that's how we put it ). We don't get angry just frustrated, but this thing called a marriage is a process and a lot of work. I know we're not technically married yet, but making a commitment to be with someone whether in a romantic way or not is an agreement to take the good with the bad and work out your differences. It didn't help that I'm about to get a visit from my monthly friend, so I was a little sensitive, poor guy! Anyway, the new roommate is moved in, more on that later, sending out the last of the invitations that need to be mailed today, school starts today, and all is good (if not a little hetict) in my little portion of the world.

A.'s Room

2009-08-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

A.s room is done! Well for the most part, we still have a little work to do in the bathroom, but the room itself is done! Have I ever mentioned how much I hate painting walls!

That little black spot in the right hand corner is the dog, ever present and always underfoot =o)

The sconce was given to us by J.&D. for helping them move. It's meant to be outside on a porch or something but we're weird like that and think it looks awesome in the room!The mint in the window box outside the small window smells lovely!
And the view from the big windows is pretty amazing.

You're going to drink that?!?

2009-08-25T10:11:00.000-07:00

I've started my new schedule today. Up at 7:30 and ready to go by 9. At least that's the plan. My class at the college doesn't start until 9:30, but I like to get there early to walk around a bit. Now these early mornings are a bitch and I am not use to them, I need a little something to get me going. I've decided to give up coffee during the week and have switched to green tea to cut back on some calories for the wedding, for a little extra kick in my diet though I've started making these:
Yummy green smoothies! I've already had a few people look at them with disgust, but they taste rather good! The thing that makes them green is just a little spinach and some Romain. You can't even taste that just the fruit. May look rather gross, but they taste delicious!

Porch Time

2009-08-24T09:23:00.001-07:00

A slow weekend at home. A little painting, a little shopping, a little help moving some friends, and a lot of down time with my love.

So Sleepy!

2009-08-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

They ( you know the ever present but never visible "they"), are planing inventory at my work and thus want us out of the way by 2 on Friday. Since night shift starts at 2 that pretty much means that "they" don't want us there at all. So me and my fellow vampires have been pulling 10 hour days all week. Now when getting paid overtime you won't hear me complain, but right now I have no energy. This really sucks since A. is moving in next weekend and his room needs to be finished. That means waking up, taking the dog for his walk and painting. So yes I am really tired!!

Dinner with friends

2009-08-17T09:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Bench Monday!

So this weekend was a slightly productive one, with a lot of movie watching and working around the house. We started painting in A.'s room as well as cleaning up his bathroom. There was some grocery shopping and some house cleaning. There was mom's weekly Sunday visit (which I look forward to every week). There was also dinner with my best friend and his new girlfriend. I think I might have went a little overboard for such a simple dinner among friends, but it's rare that I get the chance to entertain so I took full advantage. I unfortunately did not take any pictures, but let me tell you I impressed my self. Since there isn't enough room for four to eat comfortably in the house yet I set up the picnic table outside. It had the whole nine yards, flowers, candles, place mats with napkins (and napkin rings!), bread basket, everything. Like I said I went a little overboard Dinner was sheperds pie, with cheesecake and strawberrys for desert. The night was a hit and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. V.'s new girlfriend K. seems like quite the catch and I hope she sticks around for a little while.
She even brought me flowers!

Beer, Beer, & more Beer

2009-08-13T09:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a somewhat uneventful day. Woke up, went for my walk with Ra, chore, a little sewing, then work. When I was cleaning out the back room for A., our soon to be new roommate I came across my old body pillow from before J. and I got together. Now rather then throwing it away, which is what most would do considering it's sad state, I decided to make a new cover and put it to use again. For some reason I always think I have more fabric around the house then I actually do. I ended up using some chart fabric that I had originally purchased with a quilt in mind. I also found an old pillow case that we had never used and that added just enough length and I didn't have to hem the top, easy!

The fabric is really awesome, it looks like an old star chart, might need to buy more in case I ever get around to that quilt I want to make.

The best part about yesterday happened a little while after I got home from work. Our cat, who has been enjoying a little freedom out of doors lately, decided to abuse that privilege and wander off last night. Now I know cats are meant to wander, but we live on the edge of BLM property that is undeveloped and full of predators that would love to make a nice midnight snack outta my little Calcifer! Sorry a little off subject there for a sec. So J. asks me if I want a beer to calm me down a little before I go to bed. I say yes (of course!). He goes out onto the porch and then silently calls me over. Here I am thinking that he had found the cat in some strange place and didn't want to startle him. I was wrong! This is what he wanted to show me:
He recieved his last paycheck from his previous job yesterday and decided that for once he wanted his beer fridge full! Now he already has found a new job so he wasn't being irresponsible, just indulging a little lol! He even got three of my favorite choices, hes so considerate!

Also a special HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! to A., he's finally outta of his teens. 20 yrs old today!! Tonight we're going to the casino for breakfast after work to celebrate ( yeah were strange people who love breakfast food at 10:30 @ night).

Happy Birthday A.!!!!

Wordless wednesday

2009-08-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

Busy Day

2009-08-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a very busy day. First there was a trip to the gyno. That was an event what Dr. in his right mind stocks his waiting room with sports illustrated and golf weekly? Having to wait 30 mins with only this sort of reading material was not fun! Next came home to a shed that need to be organized, should have taken pictures of all the spiderwebs! I felt kinda bad for ruining their home, but with a roommate on the way I need more storage space! Then back to cleaning out the guest room for said roommate. Everything is cleared out soon on to the painting. I actually remembered to take a before pic:

Next we went to Target to register for the wedding. O.K. that was kinda fun. J. even got to register for the flat screen that he really wants, not that I think anyone's going to buy it. If anyone reading this is going to the wedding I really need new towels and not the flat screen lol!
When sorting out the guest room we found a need for a new storage system for our D.V.D's. Heres what we came up with:
From this:
To this:

And for today's to-do:
1. Finish Addressing Invites
2. Clean Porch
3. Dust House
Not a very long list for today

weekend recipe

2009-08-10T09:36:00.000-07:00

So a few of our friends had a BBQ this past weekend. I really thought I was going to get away with just bringing a simple salad or perhaps some drinks... nope I jinx myself. I am now know for my deserts. No more easy throw it together salads for me. After some careful deliberation and a little bit of surfing on my favorite recipe website, http://allrecipes.com, here's what I came up with:

Glazed Almond Bundt Cake
It's nice and light which makes it a perfect summer treat, espically when you mix it with berries!
Here's the recipie:

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1 2/3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup ground almonds
1 cup milk
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup toasted sliced almonds

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and ground almonds. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract and vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with 1 cup milk, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes and invert on a wire rack. Cool 10 minutes longer. Place rack on waxed paper. Combine 1/4 cup milk, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 teaspoon almond extract and toasted sliced almonds; pour over warm cake.

I also added some strawberries, I thought it could use some color. Just slice strawberries, in a bowl combine them with enough sugar to coat and let sit covered in the fridge for about 30 mins. The sugar dissolves and makes a nice syrup. Fill the center of the bundt cake and enjoy! Lasted just long enough to get the plates passed out and got rave reviews. This one is going to stay in the recipe rotation for a while.

My Love

2009-08-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

O.K. to get a little personal today, ( not that anyone reads this anyway). Things have been pretty tense around here lately. J.'s job has been dicking him around for the past two weeks, leaving us hanging as to whether or not he actually has a job. This morning to top everything off the HR rep for the company he works for calls at 6 o'clock! Yeah that 6 o'clock a.m. and for two night shift people that's just not cool! I've been trying my hardest to be there for him and put on a happy face so that he doesn't have to worry about me as well, but my smile is starting to wear a little thin. We're to the point that even though there's a good chance that his job is going to pull through and he'll still have a position he's looking daily at job postings for other places. Today's blog is dedicated to him and the wonderful man that he is. I love you so much and no matter what happens we'll pull through and come out the other side better for the experience.

The man of my dreams! My very own Dread Pirate Roberts

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-05T09:52:00.000-07:00

Garden Gnomes!

2009-08-04T09:29:00.000-07:00

I love garden gnomes! I have a bit of a collection and during this time of the year it seems to expand! My grandpa had gnomes in his yard in Hawthorne. Every year when my mom and dad would have a drill on the same weekend my grandma would pack my brother Tye and I into here car and we would drive down there to take a mini vacation and swim in the pool that my uncles had dug out when they were teens. My grandpa passed a while ago and one of the things I remember about his house was the gnomes in his front yard. One in particular was mooning anyone who bothered to look. Growing up in a very conservative house I found this a little shocking when I was little and now I just laugh at the memory. Last year I started my own collection and today in memory of my grandpa Steve and just to document them for my own failing memory here they are:

This one is David, he was my first, something about a book toting gnome makes me smile.
(I heard somewhere if you don't name your gnomes right away its bad luck so all my gnomes have names)

These two are Steve and Percy, ( Pam if your reading this... Really Percy!)
This one was given to me in a recent swap and was made in Ireland so I named him Sean Patrick.
And here we have Fredrick and last but not least...

Hash
I tried to load this yesterday and it wouldn't work so here it is for today's post.

A year in pictures

2009-08-02T11:48:00.000-07:00

8-1-08 to 8-1-09
Forever and a day I will wait for you, be there for you, love you...

One year and counting!

Green

2009-07-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

Things are getting a little happier around here. So today my favorite color!
Green!

Orange, Yellow, and some changes

2009-07-29T09:17:00.000-07:00

It always seems that once you get use to something or the idea of something it changes. We're not sure yet, we'll know by the end of the week, but J. might be in search of a new job. He loved this one but some of the people seem to have gone above and beyond the usual office gossip and J. is the one who gets to pay the price for their pettiness. The drama that this produced is the reason for no post yesterday. Rumors are the poison of any environment.
To make up for it a double dose of color today:

My kitchen is yellow, orange, and blue, so this was a little easier then the red post.
Have a wonderful day!

Rainbow week: red

2009-07-27T09:51:00.000-07:00

So Shelly over @ waldorfmama.typepad.com is doing a rainbow week. I looked around my house and there is a real lack of rainbows, so I decided to do a different color of the spectrum each day as a compromise.
First color... RED!

A lack of red around my house as well this was about all I could find.

On another note baby C.'s birthday was a smash hit! Party went great and so many people showed up. Good times all around!

thursday thrift

2009-07-23T11:32:00.000-07:00

Had time for a quick trip to the thrift store this morning. Good thing since I'm late on a swap I'm doing. So a few finds:

Painting that I've been looking at for weeks finally came home today, along with some glass cats for my swap partner.

A new chair for J.

Lots of presents. Two birthdays and a swap to send out. Good thing I like to wrap =o)
Have a spadoinkal day all you people out there in blog land!

wordless wednesday

2009-07-22T09:45:00.000-07:00

Books and a goodbye

2009-07-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

Bye Bye Tweeker Lights! (D yells as I open up this post lol!). So today is a sad day because Z. our neighbor roommate is leaving today to go and live with his mother in New Mexico. He's been a daily part of our lives for the past 6 months and he will be missed!
Goodbye for now Z.
On a slightly lighter note I got my books!! My work does a little incentive program so you don't call in sick. If you get perfect attendance for the quarter you get $50 to spend on gift cards. If you're anything like me this doesn't happen very often so when it does... Happy book time!
I'm already deep into "Homemade Life" and can't wait to get to the others.

Bench Monday

2009-07-20T10:24:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! Finally back on my proper schedule!

Thrift Store Maddness!!

2009-07-18T15:17:00.000-07:00

I got the chance to do a little retail therapy this morning, lucky for the pocketbook I'm a thrift store junkie. Major finds this time and hopefully something I can wear when we do our engagement pictures tomorrow.

Lots of clothes!

Including a kimono with this beautiful embroidery on the back:
Two new pairs of boots ( why am I buying boots when it's 99°!):

And some random things for around the house:
Have a wonderful weekend!!

99°

2009-07-17T16:24:00.000-07:00

Thats right 99 degrees farenhight! J. refuses to even leave the house. Think we might blow a breaker with the two swamp coolers working. Overkill you think? If you ever saw the single wide cottage you would understand. Think tin can in the middle of a desert, and J. is not a hot wether person.

My neighbors had the right idea:
Blew up their kiddie pool ( pretty decent sized one at that), filled it and jumped in. D. even had the forethought to put their camping canape over it.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-07-15T17:48:00.000-07:00

comfort food

2009-07-14T19:00:00.000-07:00

I unfortunately am a person who suffers from acid stomach on a regular basis you know what works?
A little butter, a little English muffin, a few free range organic eggs
One cure for most every ailment. Comfort food is awesome!

Day shift and the results

2009-07-13T17:49:00.000-07:00

First and foremost day shift is soooo not for me! So instead of complaining I really need a bit of cheering up so here are a few things that make me happy:

The view from my back porch:

A loving dog

Blue eyes on my favorite feline

Sun on my kitchen table

Happy Monday!

Blog, Blog, Blog!

2009-07-09T11:00:00.000-07:00

O.K. I suppose if I'm going to be a blogger I should post more often instead of spending all my time looking at other people's blogs. Lucky for me I just figured out that our new wireless, now that we've worked out all the bugs, reaches all the way outside to my new picnic table! Which means mornings outside! I love summer mornings, and sometimes I actually wish I still got up early enough to really enjoy them. Be careful what you wish for! Next week my night shift body has to adjust to a whole week of day shift!! That is going to be painful, just have to keep repeating my new mantra, "positive thinking makes life better," or when I'm not feeling so peppy and optimistic " Ireland, your doing this for Ireland!" I've had so much to post about over the past few weeks, I think I may need to stretch it out over a few days. First things first :

A beautiful new handmade picnic table courtsey of the wonderful Bevon and his beautiful wife Danni ( who only had to remind him a few times that he said he was going to make it lol). Made for J's birthday a few weeks ago. Pictures of the birthday are still in Danni's camera so they will have to come later. Next:

Family, we went to California for a little holiday last week and I got the chance to meet J's sister as well as his wonderfully cute niece:

Then it was the Berkley Rose Gardens:
and this one because I'm pretty sure J. dosen't read my blog:
He was just standing there so I told him to do something, goofy man!
A self portriate of the two of us:
And to save the best for last our gracious hosts , as well as the best man at our wedding, J's best friend and his wife. Thank you so much for welcoming us into your house. They have four wonderful children that I feel blessed to have met and gotten the chance to hang out with.

Life is all about surrounding your self with good people and enjoying ever moment that you get together. I think sometimes I get caught up in the hype and it's so good to be able to take a break and get a little reminder.

Award!

2009-06-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

I recieved the "Most Wonderful FAVORITE" award from Jo over at http://acesmommy.blogspot.com/ A.K.A The A priori Mommy the other day. It was so thoughtful and kind of here and now it's my turn to pass it along=o). The rules are that you give this award to 8 bloggers who must then give the award to 8 more bloggers. Now I'm new to the blog world and I don't think I know 8 bloggers. So here are the top ones on my list:
http://andbabymakesfourperrine.blogspot.com/ AKA Country girl city life, who hosted the first swap that I perticipated in.
http://acesmommy.blogspot.com/ AKA A priori Mommy who was my swap partner and kind enough to give me the award
My sister in law @ http://tammyanderic.blogspot.com/ her blog makes it so easy to check up on my wonderful niece and nephew!
and my fav right no is:http://apronthriftgirl.typepad.com/apron_thrift_girl/ whos blog I love and check daily!
"These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers."
Thats you guys!!!

Wedding Dress!!! (J. no peekin!)

2009-05-22T19:20:00.000-07:00

So I finally did it! I ordered the dress I'm going to wear for my wedding in November! Now that school is over for the semester I have more time on my hands for planning our upcoming nuptials. So far we have the venue for the wedding (outside in November, cold but beautiful), the cake maker ( a very good friend/ ex pastry chef!), the guest list ( still needs some tweaking due to the small venue), and now the dress which should arrive some time next week. This leaves me plenty of time for alterations. So things are coming together, next the invites need to be constructed. No idea what we're going to do for that yet, but some wandering in Michael's should be inspiring. On another not I aced my math class!!! It's raining out right now and I wish I was home and not at work. The view from here is lovely though, wish I had my camera!

Beltane & Blog Swap Goodies!!

2009-05-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BELTANE/MAYDAY!!!!!!
I wish I had today off so I could celebrate in style. I finally live in a place where I can have an outdoor fire and I'll be at work untill 11:30 and won't get home untill around midnight. I'll keep a candle burning all day though, a little homage to the gods, (J. has the day off so he'll make sure the house doesn't burn down). I recieved my blog swap goodies the other day and I was so excited I couldn't wait to get home to open it. I hurried into the house and grabed the sissors, almost forgetting to take a picture first!
What a pretty bag! Ohh and it gets better, wait till you see what was inside!!

O.K. for some reason no matter how I rotate this pic it keeps loading sideways so I'm done trying to fix it! So many nice things! She sent a pretty sachet that smelled of lavender (one of my fav sents as well as one of hers!), an awsome stamp that says "once apon a time" in lovely script, which I think is my fav because I've been stamping up a storm lately & I'm a sucker for fairy tale endings. Also she sent some cool note cards, and some girly kitchen sponges ( she wrote that she loves how they brighten up her kitchen). Also two gift cards, one for Borders & one for Starbucks ( we are both big fans of Chai tea lattes!). And for the best part...A very cute apron that my honey volenteered to modle!! I love this man sooo much!
Thank you so much Jo from The A-Priori Mommy @ http://acesmommy.blogspot.com/!
If you want to see what I sent her check out her posting @ http://acesmommy.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-04-27T22%3A29%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=5.
Thanks again!

Also on the same day I recieved a suprise goodie bag from my sister in Utah! It was like solstice in April!!!Wax lips and a wind up tin frog!!! Not to mention the beautiful braclet and a letter from my sister! What a good day!

Pictures from Santa Cruz

2009-04-21T16:01:00.000-07:00

Hung out with my buddy this weekend, even went as far as to make the boys dinner... including a little meat! Yuck! The things you do for love! He brought the pictures from our trip with them, I'll try to keep them in order:

The Winchester Mystery House. Actially not in Santa Cruz, but we stoped on our way. It was beautiful, all the details kept me rivited. Vance kept trying to wander off, I wanted to hear the history so I tried to keep up. After the tour was done the guid mentioned that nobody had ever gotten lost in the house, I wish I had wandered off!

Here's the campsite, complete with xtera. We were right next to a family with a bunch of kids. I love kids, but a 6 o'clock wake-up call on a saturday morning after about 3 hours of sleep is not something I'm ready for yet. I'm sure that will all change when we have ours, but for now I will covet my sleep for as long as I can.

The Best Pizza Ever! I can't even remember what was on it, something with artichoke hearts and feta chease! The best part was that we ate it for breakfast! Sometimes I really love being an "adult," other time not so much.

Sophia, my constant travel companion. She spent most of the trip soaking up the sun on the dash, seemed to be really enjoying herself!

Cold Toes! Freazing ocean! Thats all didn't want to overload with the pictures. The trip was just what I needed, though I missed my love so much. This weekend was the first sunny one we've had in a while and to think we had snow just last week! I took some more pictures of course so I'll post them soon.

I'm Back!!

2009-04-14T17:32:00.000-07:00

Back from Santa Cruz on Sunday, then I preceded to sleep all day. I haven't gotten any pictures yet, since I forgot my camera. I'm waiting to get the pictures from my fellow traveler. I had a great time even though the weather was a little gloomy and very windy. Sunday provided the best weather, but it was, of course, the day we left. I'll post more about the trip when I have the pictures to go along with the commentary. I did finish a good book while I was gone though and thought it might be fun to review it.

The book was titled: French Milk

Author: Lucy Kinsley

It's part book, part travel journal, illustrated in almost comic book fashion. The book follows the author and her mother on their month long trip to Paris. The book is very witty at times and you find it very easy to put yourself in her place as she wanders the streets and visits the art gallery's. The book can be informative and the drawings are cute and well done. It was a quick read and perfect for the trip. Parts made me giggle out loud and I felt her loneliness when she talks about missing her boyfriend. Just because I was only gone a few days and not a month doesn't mean that I can't sympathize. I would recommend this book to any french enthusiast, and most of my friends, even those that don't read much can appreciate the humor and artistic talent that the book contains.

2009-04-08T10:37:00.000-07:00

I got my swap buddy! http://acesmommy.blogspot.com is my swap buddy and I can't wait to get her package put together and of course get the one she's sending me! J. had his first day at his new job yesterday. He loves it which makes me happy, and I'm kinda jealous, the way he explains it, the job is amazing! I'm dealing with my job at the moment but I'm hoping for something better to come along. For now though with the economy being in the state it is I'm lucky to have this job, no matter how much it drives me crazy. I'm not exactly the coporate type. Leaving for Santa Cruz tomorrow morning! I could really use the break , but J.'s gotta stay home, which sucks. V. agreed to drink with me this time though so at least I won't be sitting around the campfire drinking by myself. Weather won't be exactly prime, suppose to be windy and overcast, this means I'll get more wandering in so I guess thats a good thing. Was hoping for sunny skies and tanktops though.
This is a pic from last years trip. Twilrling on the beach at Half Moon bay. We usualy go to this spot every year and camp for at least a day, we decided we wanted more time in Santa Cruz this time so were not going there. I don't know why this just started underlining everything, guess I'll just go with the flow. Going to leave you with a very spring picture. Have a wonderful day!

Country Girl, City Life: Sign Up: Favorite Things Swap

2009-04-04T20:11:00.000-07:00

Country Girl, City Life: Sign Up: Favorite Things Swap

Busy Saturday

2009-04-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

J.'s first weekend off in forever! He starts his new job on Tuesday so he's taking a little mini vacation. We spent the day thrifting and grocery shopping. He's not much of a thrifter but we did manage a few good finds. The glass thermometer was only $2.50! In all I think I spent $20 in total. I've started going grocery shopping by myself, for some reason it saves us a lot of money ;O). We're going to a movie tomorow and he's going to suprise his mom when she shows up in the morning (she thinks he has to work). I still have so much on my todo list hope I can shorten it a little tomorrow. Four day until I leave for Santa Cruz!

First time for everything!

2009-04-02T16:53:00.000-07:00

So here it is, my first attempt at doing the "blog" thing. I'm somewhat excited to see where it may lead. I'm an avid thrifter and crafter and have lately been searching related blogs. Most of the blogs that I've found are wonderful! Very interesting posts about life, great new projects to try out, and awesome finds from the vintage/thrift perspective. I guess I should take this opportunity to tell all those out there who don't know me a little bit about myself. Now this is the hard part... I don't want to tell too much because like most I don't want the intimate details of my personal life floating around on the Internet. So here are the basics: I'm a student who works full time so if there is a laps in posts you'll have to forgive me. I'm getting married to the most wonderful man in the world this fall, so expect to see some wedding related posts and if you have any advice on planing of wedding related projects please send them this way :o)! Those are the main things going on right now, I am also working on making my single wide trailer more livable, which can be a task considering we're renters, and trying to stay social and not become a hermit. I'm an aunt to two wonderful (and adorable) kids, and a pseudo aunt to two other beautiful girls who are my best friends kids, with one more on the way(just found out today!!!). I have two furry kids of my own, one dog who thinks he's a person, and one cat who knows he is. Most of my posts will probably relate to projects, finds, and hopefully I can get in on some of the swaps I've been reading about! That's it for now more to come so stay tuned!