WhiMSy love

Week in Review: January 23-29

2012-01-30T09:22:00.001-07:00

Last week I...

...went on 2 coffee dates with the Mr.

...ate a toffee almond truffle.

...finished my 13th knitted postcard.

...worked on a secret project. (Sorry, can't tell yet.)

...played Littlest Pet Shops with my girls. (OK, mostly I played.)

...had a jam session with my drummer & bass pals. (I sing & play keyboard.)

...made biscuits & gravy for the first time. (BACON gravy!!!!)

...roasted stove-top s'mores with the little one.

...went to a high school basketball game where I ate nachos & Reese's peanut butter cups for dinner.

...watched Zoey play her 3rd (of 6) basketball game on Saturday. (She's getting so good!)

...almost went coyote hunting.

...wrote.

...dreamed up fun stuff to do with my fam. (Included in the list is a road trip to see a live theater production of something.)

...photographed my youth group playing dodgeball. (I was gonna play, but those boys throw HARD!!)

...ate again at Tacos Mexico. (That place makes bank when my friends, fam & I visit.)

...made meatballs & corn fritters for dinner on Monday.

...made chili, pork-n-beans for dinner on Tuesday.

...clipped all my columns from 2010 & 2011 local newspapers to save in a binder.

...realized the Mr. will be 40 in a couple weeks! Need to start planning a special day for that guy.

Happy Monday!!

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Biscuits & Gravy

2012-01-28T13:05:00.000-07:00

For the last few Saturday mornings I've been making big breakfasts before the fam heads off to Zoey's basketball game. (I'd love to cook big brekkie's every Saturday, but it just doesn't always happen.)

This morning was a first: biscuits & gravy. I know, I know: "WHAT?!"

I'm just not a fan of this meal.

I dislike sausage, which is all I ever see in a traditional 'biscuits & gravy'.

So, I found a recipe to replace the sausage with bacon!

SO AMAZING!!!

I didn't have a chance to get the gravy photographed.

(Hungry guests consumed it very quickly!)

The picture up top is of the leftover biscuits.

I used THIS recipe as a starting point.

I used a whole package of bacon & doubled up on the flour & milk.

♥

It's on!

2012-01-27T15:08:00.002-07:00

Any local peeps that wanna join me & some friends for a good ole Dodgeball competition are more than welcome to play along.

I'll be helping to take my youth group, Connections, to the Prairie Winds Community Center (PWCC), in Bridgeport, NE this Sunday.

(*Crossing my fingers I don't get picked last this time...)

♥

a coffee date

2012-01-25T10:35:00.001-07:00

Not too 'Shabby Apple'

2012-01-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

The lovely folks at Shabby Apple recently sent me a dress to review.

Let me tell you, when I agreed to review a dress, I was SUPER skeptical. I mean, SUPER DUPER skeptical. First of all, I'm a bigger girl. So I just knew that the dress would fit me all wrong. Secondly, the dress I chose was $86: the green floral Mariposa Grove dress from the Yosemite Collection. I would NEVER spend that on a dress for myself. And lastly, I don't usually wear dresses. Seriously, in the last 3 years I have worn a dress 2 times. And once it was to a funeral.

Why don't I wear dresses? Because, like I said before, they usually fit me all wrong.

So, the dress arrived, very neatly packaged in soft-colored tissue paper. I immediatly tried the dress on, ready to be disappointed & give my negative statements. I anticipated the sleeves that would squeeze my arms tight, the waist that would make my figure look all lumpy, the sucking in of the gut, the whole sausage in a tube scenario.

But I was SOOOOO surprised. It fit! And perfectly!

I ran out & purchased a mustard colored belt & tights. I know, crazy color combo. The Mr.'s eyes are still bugging out of his head. But, I like color. It makes me happy.

My friend, Susan, & I went out by the lakes to take pics by the trees. It was SUPER cold, which is why I also added the black cardigan. (Tights, belt, shoes & cardigan are all from Target.)

While browsing the Shabby Apple website, I loved the super detailed pictures. But more than that, I loved that they give you help finding a perfect fit to flatter your shape. Use that tool AND the sizing charts to help you find the perfect women's dresses, little girl's dresses or maternity dresses!

This is my new party dress.

I love it.

Check out the Shabby Apple facebook page & "Like" them in order to get in on special promotions and exclusive discounts. ALSO, if making a purchse, use coupon code "whimsygirl10off" to recieve 10% off your order! (Offer expires in 30 days.)

I will definitely be a repeat customer.

To feel this good in a pretty dress is priceless.

(I finally get to wear dresses! Yay!)

Thank you Shabby Apple!

♥ ♥ ♥

Week in Review: January 16-22

2012-01-23T13:40:00.000-07:00

Last week I...

...attended the Nebraska Minister's Retreat with the fam. It was a GREAT TIME!

...had coffee with my friend Sarah.

...watched the girls swim in the hotel pool.

...knitted some.

...ate, once again, at my favorite Mexican restaurant, Tacos Mexico.

...was pelted by numerous foam balls.

...finally visited a yarn shop I've been dying to go to!

...hippety-hopped in a new dress in the woods.

...enjoyed cooking a big Saturday morning breakfast of French toast. (I'm busy with brekkie in the kitchen for 6 Saturdays in a row to say "thanks" to two young men from our church who are helping the Mr. coach youth basketball.)

...watched Zoey play basketball for her 2nd week in a row.

...enjoyed some inspiring words at the Minister's Retreat.

...took family pics in a photo booth!

...continued a marathon of "Once Upon a Time" with the Mr.

...actually hung out on a couch in a coffee shop. *happy sigh*

...tasted the best potato soup ever.

...caught up on lack of sleepies over the weekend.

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Kearney, NE

2012-01-20T00:22:00.001-07:00

The fam & I just got back from 4 days in Kearney, Nebraska. The reason for our adventure four hours east was so the Mr. & I could partake in the annual NE District Minister's Winter Retreat. The girls got to miss 4 days of school. (Though, their backpacks weighed heavy with all the schoolwork they must do while ON this trip.) When we attended last year, it was a really hard trip. It was a horrible snowy yucky mess. PLUS, we had car problems, which left the girls & I trapped in the hotel room most of our days. This year, we had an excellent time!

The Mr. & I attended morning & evening sessions, engaging in really refreshing worship & listening to the speaker, Pastor Rod Loy, who was very chill & just a regular guy, passionate about God, & full of amazing stories. I felt very encouraged about our own passions in ministry, having a heart for young people & those young at heart. I could have listened to story after story after story. But, really, it just made me excited to tell my own stories someday. Stories of God-appointed moments. Impossible scenarios that cannot be explained without a bit of a miraculous ending. Stuff that makes your skin tingle & your heart thump. Stuff that makes you believe anything is possible, because, really, anything IS possible.

While in the hotel room the girls got to watch a marathon of "The Little House on the Prairie" episodes on television. (Loved it, but sooooo thankful we don't have cable.) We spoiled them with video rentals from Redbox. And they kept themselves quite occupied with the usual hotel pool & hot tub action, along with toys brought from home --& ALL that homework!!!

But this time around, we managed to find things to do OUTSIDE of the hotel as well...

The Big Apple Fun Center

The bestest fun the girls had was right across the street from our hotel, at The Big Apple Fun Center. (Wish someone woulda told us about this last year when we were stranded!) We paid for passes to play at Ballocity. We ran around, mostly with the place to ourselves, having an absolute BLAST! One of my friend's calls Ballocity a "McDonald's play area on crack". That is EXACTLY what it is. You can shoot foam balls from cannons & guns that are set up on any of 3 different levels. (I can attest that getting hit in the face stings a little.) My favorite thing to do was to lie underneath a giant vat of balls that dumps at different intervals. (I'm not so sure Zoey liked it.) The Mr. & I were climbing all over up in that play area too. We all pretty much squealed for 2 1/2 hours straight.
In the arcade, we not only got photo booth pics, but I won the jackpot in the Cyclone game! I was so proud as the machine spit out 140 tickets. (The Cyclone, or possibly called something else in other arcades, is a game of reflex. A light spins around the "board" & you have to tap your "buzzer" in a specific spot in order to win the jackpot.) I got skillz. The girls left with prizes: bottles of disappearing ink, plastic whirlygigs, tubes of green lipgloss, animal pencil toppers & eyeball poppers.
And I left feeling: awesome, & reminding everyone throughout the night how awesome I was.

The Cellar Bar & Grill

We happened to go to dinner on a night when United Way of Kearney volunteers were helping out the servers & hosts/hostesses to raise money. (I can see the Mr.'s blue shirt & blue jeans on the left in one of their facebook photos.) All tips went to the United Way. I thought that was cool! Our host, & UW volunteer, Ken Anderson, was the most jolly & welcoming person I've ever met that "worked" at a restaurant. The Cellar menus are huge & heavy & it was awkward as we sat around our little table with 4 of those wonky & weighted tablets. The onion rings, served with ranch, are yummy. So that slightly made up for the cumbersome restaurant props. This is silly, but I always judge a restaurant on how good their ranch is. The Cellar's ranch is the good kind. Maybe only I know what that means. haha! I shared the 4 cheese (or 5 cheese?) ravioli with Zoey. It was just ok. I think I've watched too many "Kitchen Nightmares" episodes because I kept picking the place apart as Gordon Ramsay might have. (He would have had a FIT with those menus!) I WISHED I had ordered the Western Burger. The Mr. gobbled his up. It was voted the best burger in Nebraska by the Nebraska Beef Council. And it is SOOOOO delicious. I would know. I stole a bite. Pazely had the longest corndog on the planet. And she loved it.

Tru Cafe

My friend Sarah, a former Bridgeport neighbor who recently moved to Kearney, picked me up at my hotel. We ate lunch at a place she'd never been, but heard good things about. Tru Cafe, in downtown Kearney, is AMAZING!! I loved the mismatched table & chair sets scattered about the place. The atmosphere was one of those totally chill hangout places where you can eat lunch & then plant yourself for another hour or so. The whole bring-a-book-or-your-laptop vibe. And they often have live music events. It's just perfection. I enjoyed the best potato soup I've ever eaten, alongside a half chicken salad bagel-wich & iced tea. Yummers to the max. There are also some handmade items in a little room off to the side for sale. Handmade AND the best potato soup in my tummy? Score.

Wooly Mammoth Yarn Shop

My Knit Witz crew have been telling me about this shop for about a year now. I FINALLY got to step foot inside the place! It is so cool. And, it's just a couple blocks from Tru Cafe. I WISH I knew the name of the lady that was working there that day. She was so nice & so helpful. I even brought some Marina yarn from home & had her show me how to knit with it. I left there with some Bazinga yarn, in THIS color palette, & a skein of silk yarn from India, made from recycled sari's. It is so gorgeous!! (Most yarn shops will wind your skein into a ball if you ask!) I have no idea what I'm going to make from either yarn, but I wanted to leave with treats. And I did.

Barista's Daily Grind

Definitely great coffee. Friendly staff. And cozy spaces to sit. (Couch seating in coffee shops get great bonus points in my book. Coffee houses sans sofas are an anomaly.) Sarah & I both sipped on Moosetrack Mochas (chocolate, caramel & toasted marshmallow flavorings), & had a bit of a knit while we wasted away the last of her lunch hour(s) from work before we had to ske-daddle. The coffee was smooth, not like the bitter Starbucks flavor I so dislike. Served with a chocolate covered coffee bean sitting in a wee nest of whipped cream, right on top of the lid, over the sippin' hole. I've been on a spiced chai latte kick forevers. So, it's been a while since I've ordered a drink with any actual coffee in it. I was pleasantly surprised. And wished I lived closer. I'd be a customer for life.

On a side note: Of course, you know me & my camera. Snapping photos everywhere I go. The manager approached me & asked me what I was taking photos for. As I enter different establishments & places of business, I sometimes forget to ask if it's alright to take photos. Like then. I felt like a dork. But Ryan was cool once he found out that I am just a photog nut & a blogger. And not trying to steal their plans for a time travel contraption that is powered by palatable roasted coffee beverages.

(Or am I???)

Pane Bello
We seriously lucked out with most of our eating choices while in Kearney. Pane Bello is an Italian eatery & bakery. They also serve coffees, make fresh breads & pastries daily, &, along with their lunch & dinner menu, serve breakfast all day. I had a halvesies of soup & a panini. The smoked gouda chicken panini was tasty, although the tomato bisque soup was just disgusting. It was watery, not like any bisque I've had & it had a strong taste of ham. Pazely had mac-n-cheese: so happy to see homemade mac-n-cheese served at a restaurant instead of the boxed Kraft kind that we usually see. Her side of choice was a chocolate chip cookie. Zoey chose the pepporoni pizza, which she loved. And we ordered a cookie for her as well. The cookies were SO DELISH! They are giant & soft & a fun after-meal dessert for the kids. Of course the Mr. & I couldn't leave without dessert of our own. We ordered 2 canoli's to go. We could only eat one. We saved the other one for later, inside our mini hotel fridge. (And then, when I felt like it was "later", I ate it. All by myself.)

There is SO much more to do in Kearney. We were sad to not make it the Children's Museum, & wished the weather was warmer for a visit to some of the nice parks in town. I would have loved to walk up & down the shops in downtown. And to have found more "gems" along the way.

I'm so thankful for a refreshing, energizing, inspiring trip.
I'm so thankful for fun with my fam.
Click HERE to view ALL the photos from our trip.
♥

Family Fun + me = love.

2012-01-19T15:24:00.000-07:00

I am SO excited!

My rose celery painting idea is featured in the February 2012 issue of Family Fun magazine!

I have been keeping this a secret for a few months & am SO relieved I finally get to blab about it.

Look!

That's my name!

Inside Family Fun magazine!

SQUEEEE!!!

♥

Week in Review: January 9-15

2012-01-16T17:10:00.000-07:00

•Crafty Night

•chocolate spoons

•coffee cuffs

•cupake making

•coffee date

•pumpkin pie truffle

•Zoey's first basketball game (& a win!)

•custom orders

•cleaning house

•packing for a 4 day trip to Kearney, NE with the fam

•Project Runway All-Stars with the Mr.

•Baking cookie bars with the girls

•Ryan Gosling meme (I cannot stop laughing!)

For a photo play-by-play, click HERE.

♥

i dawdle.

2012-01-13T08:52:00.003-07:00

Nothing really much to say. I'm just procrastinating going to work today.

I do this every Friday. I wait & wait & wait. And wait some more. And then I have, like, 12 minutes to get ready. It's so cold out there. I'd much rather sip some sort of hot yummy drink & stay cozy under these blankets. The first part of my Friday newspaper job involves walking around town (up & down Main Street mostly) & visiting with businesses to collect their ads for next week. If it weren't so cold, maybe I wouldn't be procrastinating so much. (Nah, I still would.) But then the fun begins. I plop down at the computer (with my duo screens & fancy programs that I don't really know much about) & get to create the ads.

That photo up top was taken when the Mr. & I had a coffee date on Wednesday. I LOVE Valentines Day. Like, love-love-love it. 2nd place to Christmas. A CLOSE 2nd. That V-Day installation is simply a groovy branch & cardboard cutouts of hearts & keys. Adorbs. It hangs in a gift shop/flower shop/coffee shop in town called The Tarnished Halo. The only "cool" place to hang out, really. (Besides the library.) If they had a couch & music, it'd be perfection. (Even the library has couches.) The space is amazing. Just look at that old ceiling!

I'm at my 17 minute mark right now.

Random: I think I may have succeeded in getting the Mr. hooked on the show "Once Upon a Time". (I LOVE that show!) The jury is still out, but I'm thinking a weekly TV date may be put into action very soon.

I'm totally excited about the next several days. The fam is headed to Kearney, NE on Monday, to a Pastor's retreat---which is simply 4 days of speakers & worship music & connecting up with other pastoral peeps. We went last year & got the coolest hotel room. It was gi-normous. The hotel is kinda old, but the room was BIG. The girls BOTH built forts with chairs & sheets. The girls will miss 4 days of school & I've already asked their teachers to load 'em up with schoolwork. So, we'll be doing a bit of hotelschooling. It's like homeschooling, only different.

I'm hoping to meet up with a friend there (neighbors who actually moved to Bridgeport mere months before our family arrived). Sarah has already teased me by mentioning a fabulous knitting shop in town & a stop by her favorite coffee hangout. Bring it on!!

Ok, 12 minutes until I have to be at work.

I think I'll wear a hat today...

hey girl.

2012-01-11T14:31:00.002-07:00

I've recently seen this Ryan Gosling meme going around. THIS website is dedicated to "Handmade" Ryan Gosling. It's HILARIOUS!!

I thought I'd try a few of my own. These are all made by moi.

(And maybe a few might be funny only to me.)

♥

Coffee Cuffs & Chocolate Spoons

2012-01-11T09:15:00.000-07:00

For Crafty Night: January we made these SUPER easy coffee cuffs. And, because they were so easy, we had time leftover to whip up some chocolate covered spoons. I thought I'd share...

I found the tutorial to make felt coffee cozies over at The Purl Bee. She has a template you can download. And, oh my goodness, she uses such beautiful wool felt!

After I cut & sewed my cuffs (which took mere minutes), I wanted to dress them up a bit. I pulled out all my felt scraps & buttons & got busy embellishing! I was inspired by THIS ornament kit I purchased during Christmas, so I cut out similar shapes.

I simply stacked the shapes on top of each other, found a pretty button & sewed the button through the shapes, onto the cuff. On one cuff I even pinned one of my vintage fabric buttons made with my button machine.

I didn't have any of those to-go cups with the plastic lids available, so I grabbed some styrofoam cups to model my adorable cuffs. The tutorial for the cuffs are for 16 ounce cups.

Now, onto the spoon treats! (These chocolate dipped spoons can be stirred into coffee, hot chocolate, mocha or any other hot tasty drink.)

I grabbed a bunch of vintage spoons from my stash. I scrubbed & washed them, but left them still looking faded & dark with their vintage patina. You could polish yours up if you wanted. You could also use new spoons, or plastic/wooden spoons.

I melted chocolate bark in a bowl in the microwave. My favorite chocolate to use are those discs of chocolate from Wilton. But, my local store was out. Once dipped, the chocolate spoons were laid to rest (haha! That sounds funny!) on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper. I found it best to prop the spoon handles on the sides of the cookie sheet. Let them set up a bit & then dip again if you want.

Once they set up completely (more or less) I drizzled them with white chocolate. (Again, melted in the microwave in a small mug.)

I let them dry on the counter, but you can also stick them in the freezer for a more speedy process. I wrapped them in cellophane bags & tied them off with vintage rik-rak.

I'm planning on purchasing gift cards at my local coffee shop, & packaging the spoon with the gift card inside an empty to-go cup, which will be wearing its new coffee cuff of course. The girl's will give these to their teachers for Valentines Day!

♥

Week in Review: January 2-8

2012-01-09T10:15:00.000-07:00

Last week I...

...put away Christmas.

...continued doodling in my sketch book. (Maybe I'll post my crappy drawings every week in a collage for you to see.)

...went to the Garden County Invite with Susan & took wrestling pictures. I absolutely LOVE wrestling. And getting to sit so close & take pics is THE BEST. At one point, I was literally sitting on the side of the wrestling mat, press pass around my neck, camera by my side, munching popcorn & watching the action take place just a mere 6 feet away. And I almost died several times. (This is an exaggerated inside joke.)

...went to the girls' school with the Mr. & surprised the girls for lunch. Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, salad, rolls, & corn. Then we played recess outside. Well, the Mr. played while I snapped photos & comforted a crying Pazely who kept getting upset that, while she played basketball with the other kids, they all kept trying to take the ball from her. I explained that those are the rules. If your'e not quick, they'll snatch the ball from you. She refused to believe me & called them all "bullies!" & "mean!".

...purchased pony beads. Never in my life did I think I would. But the girls & I have been having fun searching the internet for patterns & making keychains.

...watched as a beaming Zoey crafted with her dad.

...found nutella to-go snack packs that I kept seeing on the www for MONTHS. (At Walmart!)

...took the youth group to our favorite restaurant in Scottsbluff (Tacos Mexico), before heading to the mall for a Mall Scavenger Hunt I planned. I had them skipping through the mall singing the "Happy Birthday" song, cramming their team inside a hurricane simulator, & finding me hidden somewhere in the mall (I can stay hidden in the back corner of JCPenney pretending to look at the fleece blankets for only so long), among MANY other things.

...had a pumpkin pie milkshake at Sonic. Disappointment.

...got Zoey signed up for youth basketball. Her first game is this Saturday!

...cleaned & purged a bit more. Zoey's closet has never looked better.

...became addicted to MasterChef & watched the first episode of Project Runway All-Stars with the Mr.

...shipped Etsy orders.

...struggled to become adjusted to rising early once again, now that school is back in session.

♥

30 Bags in 30 Days: Day 23: Storage Closet

2012-01-06T00:32:00.000-07:00

(I've got to finish this project! I've just GOT to!)

I've already completed 22 days.

7 more to go...

I'm purging at a snails pace. But still, it's getting done.

Day 23 brought me to the storage closet.

My storage closet houses boxes of holiday decor. It's not a lot of stuff, but it needed organized. It seriously looked like Easter had thrown up all over Christmas.
But, how convenient that Christmas just happened & I had to get all the decor out anyway.
1 bag of donation items & a Christmas tree later, & I was done.
♥

Draw: Day 1

2012-01-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

The Mr. treated me to a brand new set of colored pencils & sketch pads. I'm trying my bestest to doodle or draw every day. I'm already learning that I'm afraid to make mistakes. I'm not very good at filling the page. And I have trouble just letting go. By year's end, I hope to change all that.

I also purchased a really fun book while the fam & I were in Cheyenne last week. It's called Creative Doodling & Beyond. In the front of the book are several creative excercises to get you going, if you're stuck. The girls & I spent a few hours using these prompts & had some great fun! One excercise requires you to list about 40 animals. Then, without looking, pick 2 numbers. You have to create an animal combing the 2 creatures you chose! We had new species like skunk-slugs, turkey-squirrels, & camel-poodles.

Another doodling activity had you make 3 lists. The first list is full of adjectives. The second list consists of verbs ending in "ing". The third list is made up completely of nouns. Without looking, you pick one word from each list. (The girls & I wrote numbers on pieces of paper & picked from a bowl.) Then, draw whatever it is that you chose. We had doodles of a sparkly sleeping gnome, a cozy kissing cupcake, & a wet twirling cookie. (To name a few.)

This is totally turning into a review of the book, which it wasn't meant to be. I'm just happy to have something to push me & motivate me in my drawing journey.

On day one of "Draw" I created some hedgehogs. A mommy & a baby. I wrote a story last year about my adoption, which included hedgehog characters. I'm hoping to illustrate the story fairly soon & so hedgehogs are something I'm always doodling lately.

Later in the day, I found Pazely playing with felt. I looked over her shoulder & look what she created:

Isn't that the sweetest ever?

♥

Year in Review: 2011

2012-01-02T00:45:00.000-07:00

For the 3rd year in a row, I've managed to photograph every passing week.

And the highest point of this project is getting to put together the Year In Review.

I love looking back & remembering.

And I'm so excited for 2012!

I can't wait to see what this year brings.

I just know it's gonna be good.

•Click HERE to see the set: 2011 Week In Review.

•To join the Week in Review flickr group, click HERE.

•I also get lots of questions on how I create my photo collages. The answer is simple! Big Huge Labs Mosaic Maker.

♥

Week in Review: Dec 26-Jan 1

2012-01-02T00:00:00.001-07:00

The Mr. woke me up last Wednesday morning & suggested we spontaneously take a family trip to Cheyenne for the night. It seems we have been a bit stuffed up in this house since Christmas break began &, though I'm perfectly fine {honestly!} being all stuffed up in my cozy house, I agree it's good to escape the norm & get a change of scenery. Even if only for one night.

Our spontaneous day didn't get started until after the Mr. suggested we clean the house first. Everyone went to work doing laundry, vacuuming, scrubbing, wiping, straightening, making beds, etc. In my book, spontaneity doesn't include housework & chores, but I just played along.

The drive is about 2 hours & when we arrived in Cheyenne, we immediately searched the city for a toy store. Sadly, we didn't find much. Pazely is longing for a teddy bear that she didn't get from her Christmas wish list. I didn't realize it would be so difficult to find a stuffed teddy bear. (We are currently without a cuddly bear friend, & may have to order online. Which makes me nervous. Because you want to squish it & hug it & make sure it can fit in the krook of your arm just-so before calling it "keeps". Ya know?) In our teddy bear searching, the girls did manage to find a way to spend some of their Christmas money.

The girls & I drooled over all the crafty loveliness at Michael's. I was super spoiled with a set of Prismacolor colored pencils. I feel so guilty! But the Mr. says I deserve it.

We ate dinner at the Texas Road House. The girls especially love restaurants with a crunchy peanut shell flooring. After stuffing our bellies with ribs & pulled pork & cheeseburgers & salad, we returned to the hotel & headed for the pool. When we walked into the pool area, two gentlemen were hanging out in the hot tub drinking Corona's. They immediately evacuated. Nothing like a couple of squealy hyper little children to kill the buzz. The hot tub was amazing. Me in my swimming suit, not so amazing.

Wow, I've got to do something to get rid of the excess. I killed several pounds this summer, but once the cooler weather hit, I found it hard to maintain a healthy eating habit. I can't help it. Cookies like me. And I hate having to be a part of jumping into the whole New-Year-New-You bandwagon. But I'm jumping this time! I'm jumping BIG.

*sigh*

Anyway, we watched movies all night in our hotel room. In the morning, we woke up &, as often happens on our hotel visits, the Mr. & the girls headed down to breakfast in the lobby. I stayed back to get myself ready & get our things packed away. Then there was the familiar tiny knock on the door. The girls always bring me breakfast & then scurry back to the elevator to take another ride down to finish their morning meal.

We spent a couple hours at Barnes & Noble before heading home. Each of us had a Starbucks drink in hand. Zoey sipped on a gingerbread steamer. Pazely slurped a peppermint hot cocoa. I had an iced chai latte & the Mr. had a regular coffee. The Mr. secured base next to a lady reading her nook & napping at intervals, while the girls & I ran off to gather our things: I loaded my arms with crafty books & magazines, Pazely found joke books & animal puppets, & Zoey plopped at our feet to play with her new toys purchased the day before.

The severely windy ride home was stressful. We passed several accidents, one included an overturned semi truck. Needless to say, we were all anxious to get home. And I admit, when I walked into the house & smelled the lingering scent of Pine-Sol, it made me smile.

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

'12

2012-01-01T01:47:00.000-07:00

Happy New Year!

The Mr. called it a night early.

And the girls BARELY made it.

But I kept them alert by sharing some really fun drawing prompts from my new book, Creative Doodling & Beyond. (Purchased at a Barnes & Noble, on an overnight trip we took to Cheyenne a few days ago.) We doodled for almost 2 hours straight! We also watched movies on the sleeper sofa & played one of my favorite games: Memory Match. (The old school version.) I kept talking to them really loudly to keep them awake, & jiggling them every once in a while to make sure they hadn't faded on me. Eventually, we cuddled on the couch & watched TV. When the clock struck midnight, we drank sparkling grape juice from fancy glasses.

Then, I tucked my sleepy children into bed while they muttered, "I'm so tired mama."

I was happy to have their company.

♥

Gee-tar

2011-12-27T15:32:00.000-07:00

I'm learning to play!

Susan has loaned me her guitar, & for Christmas she got me a "Learn to Play Guitar" book & some guitar picks.

I'm so excited!

I tuned the guitar online with THIS handy-dandy site.

I can't wait to be awesome.

♥

Week in Review: December 19-25

2011-12-27T00:47:00.000-07:00

The fam & I had a super relaxing Christmas.
It was so much fun to watch the girls open their presents, more so this year than any year I remember. The anticipation, the giddiness, & then the ripping & tearing apart & paper everywhere.
Our house stayed a complete mess of paper & boxes & presents all over the floor for the whole day.
It was great!
And then the day after Christmas??
Oh my.
LAZY to the MAX!
It was amazing, really.
But I've eaten way too many cookies.

I'm SO enjoying having the girls home during their school break. And for the next 3 days, I get them, uninterupted!
No work, no appointments, no nuthin'.
Maybe now we'll finally build that gingerbread house we never got around to building.

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Christmas Breakfast

2011-12-25T23:46:00.000-07:00

I first learned about "breakfast in a bag" in the summer of 2008, at a MOPS (Mothers of PreSchoolers) retreat.

The post can be found HERE.

Basically, it's an omelet in a bag, & it has become a Christmas breakfast tradition ever since.

Gather up your eggs, toppings & freezer bags (specifically marked with each breakfast patron's name in permanent marker).

Crack open your eggs into the bags. (We usually do 2-3 eggs per bag.) More eggs means longer cooking time. Then, toss in your desired toppings. Pre-cooked bacon, pre-cooked ham cubes, cheese, onions, green peppers, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes, etc.

Seal the bag shut & then squish it all around to mix it up.

Toss the bags into a large pot of boiling water.

(Make sure the bags are SPECIFIC freezer bags. They are stronger & can handle the boiling water.)

Cook anywhere between 8-15 minutes.

I usually {carefully} remove the bags from the boiling water & use a wooden spoon to smush around the plastic bag & all its ingredients inside & then toss it back in to cook some more. (I do this a few times during the cooking process to guarantee all the eggs have been thoroughly cooked.)

When the omelet has fully cooked, simply toss it onto a plate, sprinkle with more cheese, salt & pepper (if desired) & munch away!! No mess to clean up!!

♥

Santa prep

2011-12-24T11:18:00.001-07:00

The girls & I made our traditional sugar cookies this week.

(Mostly we made a mess.)

It's an all-day project & I'm so glad, as the girls get older, they can be of more help.

♥

Sickie

2011-12-18T19:18:00.001-07:00

I sit here on the couch, feeling like someone punched me in the head, a shooting pain down my neck & back, curtains closed due to my current sensitivity to light, sinus pressure, sore throat, an all-over achiness & a lack of energy. I woke up to all this loveliness. Out of nowhere it hit me.

I'm feeling lonely & sorry for myself due to the fact that the Mr. left with the girls & some friends to go into town for lunch & shopping this afternoon. And 6 hours later, they aren't home yet. I really wanted to go with them. I almost rode along. But then I remember I felt like crap. And, really, it's best I stayed home.

I have set up camp on the couch. I have surrounded myself with knitting but, sadly, feel too weak & uninterested to touch my current hurry-up-you-have-two-days-left-to-finish-this-project project. I have opened the laptop & watched online episodes of The Sing-Off Christmas Special & the latest episope of Project: Accessory. I also finished watching "Mars Needs Moms". (I sometimes feel silly when animation makes me cry.) And then I watched a romantic movie. And now I'm depressed. (Remind me to never watch a movie where one pair of lovers gets hit by a bus. The bus came out of nowhere!!!) *sigh*

I'm listening to Christmas tunes now, munching on a snack of saltine crackers with that creamy laughing cow cheese & Swedish Nuts. (Oh my gosh, the nuts are amazing! I'll share the recipe sometime.) Broken candy canes, still in their wrapper, are scattered about me. I should prolly suck on one because my breath is nasty. I've been in my jammies all day too. I look like extreme poo. My glasses, dumb phone & a pair of remote controls round out my "sick bed" necessities.

I'm trying to take advantage of my alone time, by brainstorming ideas for my next newspaper column, filling pages with short, interupted thoughts. But what I should be doing is researching a few games to play in Pazely's class at school on Tuesday for her party. The Mr. & I are going to lead 15 minutes of games before the children exchange gifts & have snacks. And of course I'll be the embarrassing mom snapping too many photos of her baby. (2 more days until Christmas break! Woot! Woot!)

Aw, how sweet. The Mr. just texted to see if I want a chocolate turnover from Arby's on their way home. Of course I do! Which means they'll be home in approximately 40 minutes. And then I'll reheat the pastry in the microwave. And eat it.

Speaking of microwave, I really should warm up this rice pack & place it on my stiff neck...

♥

My newest preoccupation

2011-12-18T15:56:00.000-07:00

I absolutely LOVE photographing wrestling!

I spent the first part of yesterday with my friend Susan at the Bridgeport Invite, sitting next to the mat, our cameras in hand, snapping away for the newspaper.

I love all the crazy angles & the faces. (Not so much the stinky boy smell. But it wasn't bad that day.)

♥

Last Minute Shopping!

2011-12-15T08:15:00.003-07:00

2 days left to do your holidy shopping at WhiMSy love!

Shop will be closed starting Saturday, December 17th & will re-open on January 2nd.

(And fork easels are back in the shop!)

PSST!!! For all my blog & facebook readers....For the next two days, enter coupon code 15OFF when checking out to receive 15% off your total order!

♥

Crafty Night: December

2011-12-14T11:05:00.001-07:00

Crafty Night: December was a little different than other Crafty Nights in the past. I almost canceled due to the fact that it's almost Christmas & I thought everyone might be busy with all the holiday preparations & shopping & fretting & stuff. (And I was kinda looking forward to taking a break from teaching a craft.) But then I thought how fun it would be to have all my crafty peeps gather for a night of working on our OWN projects. And that's what we did! Everyone brought yummy eats to share, I made wassail, there were holiday tunes aplenty & everyone took home a "dream" owlie ornament that I customized on the back side to read "crafty night".

(One guest brought pumpkin fluff, served with pretzels, graham crackers, & ginger snaps for dipping. How have I never heard of this fluff stuff before?? IT IS AMAZING!!!!)

It was such a relaxing night.

I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY enjoyed it.

Uninterrupted crafting for a solid chunk of time, surrounded by friends, eating delicious food & sipping hot drinks. It really was perfection.

All that said, I've decided to switch up the format of Crafty Night.

Every other month we'll bring our own projects to work on. (FREE!) The other months, I'll continue to teach a craft. (Still only $5!)

Hopefully that won't get too confusing. If it does, I have no problem completely rearranging things once again, so that EVERY month we'll bring our own projects & just hang out to craft.

It's kind of deflating to put all this time & energy into preparing a night of crafting when not too many crafty peoples are showing up. I don't know if that's because I'm in a small town. I don't know if that's because I'm doing a horrible job of getting the word out. I don't know if that's because the number of crafty people per capita is minimal in my vicinity of the world. I don't know why.

Sadly, it's just not worth it. It's just not working out how I dreamed it would.

So, we'll see how the new change goes.

The new "every other" format begins January 2012. I'll kick things off by teaching a craft.

I'll be sending out postcard reminders every month, so if you're thinking of attending, let me know, & I'll put you on the mailing list!

To visit the Crafty Night facebook page, click HERE.

♥

Week in Review: December 5-11

2011-12-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

The weeks keep getting more & more busy, leading up to Christmas...

I LOVE that I get to dive into my Etsy shop. It's been a while since I've gotten to sit & make stuff in such quantities & package them up & ship them off to happy customers. The extra ca$h for Christmas shopping is bonus too! (Although, I'm more likely to buy things like groceries, or even more exciting: gas for the ole ugly van.)

The Mr. & I enjoyed the elementary school children performing their Christmas program. Our little Zoey had some speaking parts.

We enjoyed a splattering of snow. But it's all gone now.

Tacos Mexico, in Scottsbluff, made our week extra happy. Seriously, all I have to do is mention the name of that restaurant & the Mr. lights up. Now, if I can figure out how to stuff some carne asada tacos in his Christmas stocking, I'll be the most awesome wife ever.

This week will be busier than busy-busy, & it includes things like annual Christmas letter-writing & holiday pictures of the girls to photograph. It also includes things like: an ornament exchange & party with the ladies of my church, & some horse-drawn wagon riding, complete with caroling. And then there's a newspaper column to write today, Crafty Night tomorrow, & games to plan for our church Family Fun Night on Wednesday. Finger-foods to make, dishes to bake. Work twice a week, finish holiday shopping, & mail prezzies to family far away. The list goes on...

I'm looking forward to things slowing down after this week. I'm anxious for some fun time with my girls when they get out for Christmas break too. (That's not until NEXT week though...)

For a photo play-by-play, click HERE.

♥

Love is the Way: Winner

2011-12-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

As chosen by The Random Number Generator, here are the winners of the 'Love is the Way' Giveaway...

Renee

Courtney

Congrats to you both! As soon as I get your addresses, I'll send you an autographed copy of Joey McGee's CD! YAY!

Also, if you missed out on the fab interview or would like information on how to get your own music (CD, downloads, etc.), please visit the blog post HERE.

Thanks to all those who played along!

♥

Comments: A Blogger's High

2011-12-09T08:30:00.001-07:00

I wanted to send you all over to the blog "The Real Ninny Muggins" today.

My new blog friends, Madeline & Breanna, are both teenagers, recently starting out in the blog world, & I think they're a hoot.

Their recent blog post is about blog comments. Please visit it HERE & give them LOTS of love!

Madeline says she looks up to me as a blogging mother. {How sweet is that?!} I love to think I've taken those two creative girlies under my blogging wing. When it comes to starting out blogging, it can be a lonely world. My advice to Madeline & Breanna (& to any blogger) has been this: be yourself & you'll find your following.

On their theme of 'commenting', I do remember months of blogging, with each click of the keyboard echoing off the walls of the www. It was painful some days. But I kept blogging because I liked writing. And I liked blabbing about random stuff & pretending it was important. And finally, when I got my first comment, I was left speechless for a moment. I blog for myself, but it sure feels good to get affirmation along the way. A comment can shoot me from here to the stars. A comment fuels the fire. Let's see, how cheesy can I get? Oh, I know: A comment is a warm embrace. Cheesy, but true.

Though I'm definitely guilty of hopping blogs in silence, lately I've been really trying to make an effort to leave a comment on the blogs I visit & peek at, even if just a "Howdy!" or a "You're awesome."

When you leave me a comment, just picture my silly goofy grin & then picture me giving you a giant squeezie hug.
♥

TTV Nature Walk

2011-12-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

My friend & adventure pal, Susan, & I went out to shoot some TTV photos last weekend. She got a Kodak Duaflex II for her birthday & hadn't gotten any practice in using it. So we headed out to the Bridgeport Lakes & basically went on a nature photo walk.

I've discussed TTV Photography before. Click HERE for a simple explanation from photojojo. But to quickly sum it up, TTV means "Through The Viewfinder". You simply look through the viewfinder of your vintage "base" camera & snap a photo of what you see with a digital camera. I used my vintage Anscoflex on this particular adventure. I bought all 3 of my vintage cameras from ebay. We also created funny looking paper tubes to block out the light in order to get a decent picture.

I love the personality that every camera has when taking TTV photos: the graininess, the dark edges, the flecks of dirt, the fuzzy corners, the distorted views.

♥

Love is the Way: Giveaway

2011-12-05T11:45:00.004-07:00

Many moons ago I attended a Discipleship Training School in Dunham, Quebec, Canada with Youth With a Mission (YWAM). This particular school attracted the creative-types: musicians, drama-lovers, singers. On the first day, I was the first student to arrive. Then came Jamie. And then Joey. (And then MUCH later, the others arrived.) I remember the three of us sitting around one of the tables in the cafeteria. My two new friends thought I needed a "J" name as well. So, instead of "Nikki", it was shortened to "Nik" & then the 'N' was replaced with a 'J'. Thus, I became "Jik". It's all very scientific you know.

I lost contact with pretty much all of the students. Until recently. Enter: facebook. (I. LOVE. FACEBOOK.) I think it's pretty much awesome that I get to peek into the lives of lots of my friends from YWAM to see {& sometimes envy} all the creative & amazing things they're doing with their lives. Today I'd like to highlight one outstanding individual, my friend (& one of the original "J" Crew): Joey McGee. He's an accomplished musician of the professional sort these days, what with a CD under his belt & all. I asked Joey for a little Q&A session.

Sit back & enjoy...

Have you always liked singing?

I have! I would sing and make up songs all the time as a kid. I was pretty shy though and I didn't really start to sing in public until I was about 20 years old - can you believe that! Of course I sang in church as a kid, but I could hide among the congregation.

What instruments do you play?
So far I play guitar, drums, bass guitar, harmonica . . . and a pretty mean kazoo!

Use 5 words to describe your music style.
Fun. Folk. Rock. Groove. Healing.

Let's say you're chillin', writing music. What does that sort of environment look like?
If I had my druthers about it, I'd be out in the woods somewhere in a cabin, surrounded by trees, birds singing and a river running nearby - with coffee brewing of course! Usually, though, I'm working on songs in the living room, on drives around town (I keep a digi-recorder with me at ALL times) and coffee shops. Note that coffee plays an important role in songwriting . . . and life!

What inspires you when you write music/lyrics??
Most of my songs come from life experiences. Long before I played guitar, I wrote poetry and I've also been journaling for YEARS now. So a lot of the music comes from reflection and experience. Of course there are some songs like Day In The Life of A Girl and Alien Jive that are pure fun and caffeinated imagination!

Who are your musical role models?
Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, Prince, Rich Mullins, Darrell Evans, Foo Fighters (I love Foo Fighters), and recently Ben Harper. This list goes on and on and on - there are LOTS of influences that go into my music. My recent songs have been very country-esqe (it must be the move back to Texas). As I was wondering where that came from, I see that there's a whole other side of influences on that end: Glenn Campbell, The dudes from Hee Haw and Brad Paisley to name a few.

How awesome is Jik?
Awesome is an inferior word! I think a better word is P-H-E-N-O-M-E-N-A-L . . . and groovy, of course!

Do you have a funny story to share from one of your gigs?
There was this one time I was playing at a fancy restaurant and at the end of each song there came a "wooohooooo!" from a lady cheering me on! It was sooooo funny and very much out of character for the restaurant's vibe. But it was gorgeous . . . and she kept at it! The "vibe" of the restaurant didn't bother her a bit and it actually loosened up things - it was GREAT!

Do you have any other projects you're working on?
Yes, two at present! I'm finishing up an album called Fade To Sun. It's another eclectic mix of songs that includes a bit of country, groove rock, a Bob Marley cover (Redemption Song), and songs that deal with revelation, coming to grips with reality and fading to light - discovering grace, hope and truth. It'll be pretty groovy.

The OTHER album I'll start to work on will have a really country vibe to it - which is CRAZY since I was this kid that grew up in the city surrounded by jazz, hip hop, rhythm and blues and other urban sounds. But what can I say? I write 'em as they come to me . . . and I really do love land and trees and water . . . and a place where you can shoot a shotgun in peace without injuring anyone!

~•~•~•~

Joey's music is just that: Fun, folk, rock, groove, healing. The tunes are the perfect 'relax in a coffeeshop' beat. My favorite track on this album is "Boy Met a Girl". I can't help it, I'm a romantic at heart.

Joey would like to give away TWO autographed copies of his CD "Love is the Way"!

Leave a comment on this post. I'll pick two winners on Sunday, December 11th.

ALSO, if you want to get Joey's music, you can find it on: iTunes, Amazon, & Bandcamp.

Or, send Joey a note at joey@joeymcgeemusic.com

♥

Week in Review: Nov. 28-Dec. 4

2011-12-05T00:40:00.001-07:00

Last week I...

...was consumed with crazy holiday crafting for the shop.

...attended the first high school basketball game of the season!

...played with shrinky dinks.

...went on a TTV photo adventure.

...took a spontaneous 45 minute trip to eat pork tacos at my favorite Mexican restaurant.

...received a Crafty Swap package from Argentina!

...ate Chinese food with the Mr.

...Christmas shopped for the munchkins.

...played a prank on my youth group. (Complete with a video starring me & the Mr. Click HERE to view the "Mash the Mush" video. Read the description next to the video before watching.)

...watched my girls play in the snow.

...made an egg casserole for the first time. (Bacon instead of sausage.)

...hung the advent calendar.

For a photo play-by-play, click HERE.

♥

Shrinky Dinky Circles Rings

2011-12-04T19:06:00.001-07:00

Pazely & I played with shrinky dinks on Saturday & made some fun little rings.

We thought these would make fun little gifts for Christmas, or they're the perfect size for stocking stuffers.

We kept things simple by drawing & coloring 3 different sized circles onto the shrinky dink plastic.

When cutting out the circles for one of the rings, I left a little space around the edges.

We baked the pieces in our oven, according to the directions on the package.

(375 degrees F for 1-3 minutes)

Then, we used E6000 to glue the pieces together & onto a ring blank.

You can find ring blanks on Etsy by clicking HERE.

Pazely made one with different colored rings on each of her circles.

(And you'll notice the middle ring was cut out without a border. It just gives it a little bit different look.)

I stacked my circles off-centered, but Pazely just calls them "crooked".

♥

Stubby Pencil Studio: WINNER!

2011-12-04T16:56:00.000-07:00

Congrats to Mary, the winner of the Stubby Pencil Studio giveaway!!

The girls & I would like to send you 50 Fairy Things to Make & Do AND the gingerbread smencil.

And thanks to everyone who stopped by to take a peek at the review & all

the goodies. Hopefully you've stocked up on flip-tops & smencils for your stockings! If not, head over to the Stubby Pencil Studio & have a looksie.

Stay tuned tomorrow for ANOTHER giveaway, of the musical sort.

♥

Hello December.

2011-12-01T11:21:00.000-07:00

Happy December!

Can you believe it's ALREADY December?

I'm doing breathing exercises to try & keep calm & not panic.

(So many gifts to make, not enough time. Most of you know the drill.)

Guess what's in the shop??

New Vintage Button Rings!!

Check them out HERE.

If you're looking for a super creative & all-around fun gift to give this year, don't forget about the

6-month Vintage Button Ring Club.

Now, back to knitting, stamping, sewing & cutting...

♥

Advent Prize Package Winner!

2011-12-01T07:53:00.001-07:00

I totally forgot to announce the winner of the WhiMSy love Advent Prize Package on my blog.

(24 prezzies handmade by me, valued at $155!)

Congrats to Amber Dyer!!

She's already been contacted & is SO EXCITED. In fact, the package should have made its way from Nebraska to Iowa by now.

(And thanks to everyone who played along & made a purchase in my shop. It means A LOT to me!)

You see, I DID announce the winner on the WhiMSy love facebook page.

Which reminds me, if you've not "Liked" my page already, please do! I'd be so delighted if you did!

You'll receive more behind-the-scenes action, sales announcements (sometimes for facebook fans ONLY!), up-to-the-minute blurbs on newly listed items, & other randomness from the WhiMSy love house.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #30

2011-11-30T23:59:00.000-07:00

Really, 30 days will never be enough to express all that I am thankful for. And this November's thankful list, once again, reminds me to find something, anything, to be thankful for each day, if not simply the day itself. I tried to touch on random things to be thankful for this year: technology, my couch, my co-workers.

It just goes without saying, although I'll say it now, that I am thankful for...

life: for all the adventures I've had & all that are still to come; for my family: which includes two wonderful munchkins that light up my world; for Jesus Christ, my Lord & Saviour: who gives me hope & peace & joy, who died on the cross to save little ole me (& little ole you), who loves me (& you) more than could ever be imagined. He is why I have a happy heart; for my health: though I had some scares this year, I went through crap to gain a new perspective (& that was a good thing)...

I know that goodness & blessing rain down on me every day.

Sometimes, like a giant sponge, I soak up every drop.

But sometimes I may just be in too much of a funk to recognize it.

Or other times I may take it all for granted.

So I will make an effort, every day, to pause & affirm those gifts that are mine.

♥

Stubby Pencil Studio: Review & Giveaway

2011-11-30T09:20:00.006-07:00

I was recently contacted by the nice folks at Stubby Pencil Studio to do a review of some of their products. After one quick glance at their website, I was all in! Stubby Pencil Studio offers eco friendly kids art materials & school supplies. They also offer unique gifts for children: toys, games, books, craft kits. And their site is SUPER easy to manuever around, which is bonus.

This is what SPS sent the girls & I:

Watercolor crayons

We've never used watercolor crayons before. It took some practice getting used to them. But, what fun! The fab thing about this particular brand is that they are triangular in shape, which means they won't constantly roll from the table to the floor!

Watercolor colored pencils

Watercolor pencils were new to us as well. I've always wanted to try them! They come in a metal tin which is nice. Both watercolor pencils & crayons also come with their own brush. And I like the thought of this being one of those portable crafty supplies I can toss in my bag on a trip. No water mess. Just pencils.

Watercolor paper No 4 by Schoellershammer

I pretty much dislike this paper. Not really the paper itself, but the whole darn package. Maybe it was a manufacturing error or maybe I'm an idiot, but the two long parallel side of the paper were sealed/binded. I ripped several pages before deciding to try to carefully slide a knife down one side & cut it free. What a hassle!! The paper itself is nice watercolor paper, but "GRR!" to the rest of it.
UPDATE: Just found out from my lovely friends at SPS that the watercolor paper glued on both sides has a purpose: to prevent the page from buckling when painting. That. Is. Genius. So, it wasn't a manufacturer error. I was an idiot after all. (haha!) But I was correct in separating the sheets with a knife. Couldn't find the paper in the shop, but if I find a link, I'll add it.

Holiday smencils

Oh my goodness! These are AMAZING!! They come in 5 scents: cinnamon, sugar plum, candy cane, gingerbread & sugar cookie. They each come in their own tube & they're made from recycled newspaper. We had fun smelling them. Over & over & over. Really, a unique item! (And a great stocking stuffer!!)

Two Art journal kits

I was tickled that they sent two. The girls picked their favorite journal & ran off with them in their room. The journals vary slightly--the color of the front & back covers are all different--& made from heavy card, & blank for decorating! They all come with 5 pages of decorative paper & 6 pages of heavy cardstock---all in different designs & colors. There is a 14-page section in the front of the journal that explains different creative ideas for attacking your journal---from collage to different drawing techniques to doodling. And then there are 26 (or 52 front & back) quality white heavy pages for creating your masterpieces.

Two Flip tops

Seriously, one of the best inventions EVER! I think this should be at the top of your "stocking stuffer" list. (They're only $1.30 each!!!) We had SO MUCH FUN with these! The top starts off spinning this way:

But then, if you get it spinning fast enough, it actually turns itself upside down & spins this way:

We have spent HOURS playing with these. And sometimes my kids would even walk into the kitchen & see me, by myself, playing with the flip tops on the kitchen floor.

They come in this natural color, but also stained in blue, green or red.

The book: 50 Fairy Things to Make & Do

The girls & I already have the 50 Fairy Things to Make & Do card set, so we've had practice creating some fun fairy crafts in the past. But, I really love the book format!

I have already earmarked Stubby Pencil Studio as a resource for unique gifts I'd like to give. Here are a few of my favorite items:

Animal hands (temporary hand tattoos)

9x12 Cupcake sketchbook

Finger printing art kit

Hedgehog erasers

If ordering from Stubby Pencil Studio, be sure to check out their BONUS & SPECIALS section to see if any of the freebies or specials can be applied to your order.

The girls & I would personally like to mail the 50 Fairy Things to Make & Do AND the Gingerbread scented smencil to one winner! Please leave a comment to enter the drawing. Winner announced this Sunday, December 4th.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #29

2011-11-30T08:05:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a found puppy!!

I know several of you have been asking, & I'm SO happy to report that he has been found!

My friend's puppy, Steev, went missing. And, oh what a horrible feeling that is. I haven't experienced that so-sad-you-feel-sick-in-the-gut feeling in a long time. And he's not even my dog! That must mean I like him or something. It's really hard to see your friend so sad & not be able to do anything about it. We looked & looked & looked but couldn't find the little brown monster.

BUT, a nice lady found him (apparantly not too far from his home, but across Main Street nonetheless) & took him home, with the intent to call the authorities the next morning. And she did. Steev & his mommy master were reunited the next day.

I'm so relieved! And thankful! The day he was gone really was one of the saddest days ever.

I bet he gets a microchip in his stocking this year.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #28

2011-11-29T16:12:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...everyone who came & played along at my Cyber Monday sale. It means so much to me. I had tons of fun! I would make a sale, & then immediately go shopping online for Christmas gifts. And then I'd make another sale & do the same thing. I even went holiday shopping for the girls today, with the Mr. in tow. So, thanks for that! I appreciate you very much!!

♥

CYBER MONDAY SALE!

2011-11-28T00:16:00.000-07:00

Come holiday shop in your jammies & let me ship for free!

(Plus a free gift for you!!)

♥

2011-11-28T00:15:00.000-07:00

Last week I started crafting like crazy, trying to get ready for the holidays & Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. Owlies, owlies & more owlies. I made 22 of them---I know, weird number. And that's all I'll be making this year.

I ate the last of the Thanksgiving leftovers yesterday. It was delicious. If only the pie would've lasted as long...

Pazely & I spent yesterday afternoon setting up the tree. We drank hot cocoa with mini marshmallows & listened to holiday tunes on Pandora. The Mr.'s face lit up when he looked at the tree one last time before heading to bed tonight. It was cute. It wasn't feeling like "the holidays" until the tree went up. And even then, it's taking its time sinking in.

I spent some of Friday shopping online. I LOVE holiday shopping online. And it was all handmade stuff. LOVE that even more. I bought myself THIS print. And THESE tags. I'm planning on doing lots more handmade online shopping today---& taking advantage of Cyber Monday deals.

My iphone broke last week. That's the pits. Not even sure what happened to it. Thinking maybe it got wet? So weird that I don't k now. But it's going all berserk & I just need to get a new phone & fix all this no-phone nonsense.

Sadly, my friend Susan's dog, Steev (as I now spell it) was lost yesterday. He wandered off while Susan & her hubby were in the garage building a doghouse of all things. She walked & drove & walked & drove looking for him. The Mr. & me & the girls & some friends jumped in our van & we drove around town for about an hour looking for him too. It was so dark outside & he's a chocolate lab, so it was difficult to see much at all. I feel so sick inside. I've been praying & I will keep praying that he shows up, or that some kind person has him in their care & will do the right thing & inform the police or the newspaper or SOMEBODY. He is 4 months old & didn't have tags yet & no collar. It's so cold outside & I hope he is warm somewhere. I feel a terrible knot in my tummy & I feel so sad for how sad my friend feels.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #27

2011-11-27T23:41:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a new perspective.

The Mr. made a fort for the girls by tipping our sofas & chairs face-forward & propping pillows & blankets here & there. It was a regular couch castle.

Zoey & Pazely played their hearts out & then it was time for bed. The couches stayed as they were.

And, instead of propping them back to their rightful upright spots, I left them as they were. And I re-propped some pillows, grabbed my crafty supplies, tuned into "The Sing-Off on nbc.com, & had a marvelous time in the leftover fort while the rest of the house snoozed.

♥

Klutz Pom-Pom Monster Salon WINNERS

2011-11-27T09:27:00.001-07:00

Congrats to Jessie & Heidi!!!!

You are the winners of Klutz Pom-Pom Monster Salon!

Please emal me your address so those can be sent your way.
whimsy-girl [at] hotmail [dot] com

Thanks to everyone who entered!

And stay tuned tomorrow for another review & giveaway...

PSST! Don't forget that today is the last day to enter to win the WhiMSy love advent prize package, valued at $155!

(Click HERE for a sneak peek.)

24 little prezzies, handmade by me, will be given to one winner, to be announced TOMORROW, Monday November 28th! Simply make a purchase at WhiMSy love for your chance to be entered in the drawing!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #26

2011-11-26T22:42:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a warm house.

Tonight we went to dinner at some friends' house.

Four hours later, when we scooted outside to get in our van & drive home, it was BITTERLY cold.

I HATE the cold. Like, a lot.

I was so happy when we pulled into our driveway, ran through the opened garage door & up the stairs into the kitchen. It was warm & cozy.

And I am thankful.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #25

2011-11-26T11:06:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a chance at getting to meet new family.

Because, really, I always wondered about them. I didn't wonder to the point of actually making a true effort at finding them though. I was intimidated by the thought of it all. Not sure I wanted to open that door. (It's a big door to open.) But when my sister discovered me via facebook, then I guessed that it was supposed to happen one way or another. Meeting my family last Christmas in Seattle was so thrilling!
And, having a visit from my birth father last month was really neat.
Although I am not the best at keeping up with communicating with my newly found father, & I'm sure he thinks I'm not interested in a relationship, I'm happy inside, though tentative & nervous at the same time. Don't know why, just am.
But either way, I'm thankful to have another part of the "Nikki mystery" solved.
♥

My First Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

Ok, so not my first Thanksgiving. But the first one I ever had to cook alone. And I didn't even HAVE to cook it. The Mr. wanted to eat Chinese, or Mexican or macaroni & cheese or something like that. But I wanted to cook. I wanted to give it a try.

Though I wasn't confident enough to cook a real turkey for the first time, I did make green bean casserole, & twice backed potato casserole, & yams with those yummy marshmallows atop, & rolls, & stuffing, & platters of olives, stuffed celery, cheeses, crackers & veggies, & pumpkin pies. And there was a thick slab of pre-cooked ham present & a Jennie-O turkey breast. The turkey breast was really disappointing. Not that I was totally surprised at that. Next time I've just gotta take on the turkey too!

I'm sorry to turn this into one of those horribly boring family albums that you're being forced to sit through. I just can't help myself. Not that this event was anything extravagant. Because, it wasn't. But it was super special to me.

While the potatoes were simmering for 20 minutes for the casserole, I even made these finger-knitted napkin holders. With time to spare!

For dessert, we munched on pumpkin pie. I made a few "cupcake-style" mini pumpkin pies for the girls with some leftover dough & pie filling. And I even made a teeny-tiny American girl doll sized one.

And now my fridge is super happy!!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #24

2011-11-25T00:15:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...this quiet Thanksgiving.

And, really, it wasn't that quiet. But it was just the 4 of us in the WhiMSy love household.
While I was doing my thang in the kitchen, hubby watched movies. The girls fought half the time & the other half they played in the sunshine, streaming through the kitchen window, right at my feet.

I felt a tiny bit of sorrow for being so far away from my family this holiday, but I was grateful for the chance it gave me to build memories with my own little family.
This was the first year I made Thanksgiving dinner too.
I tried my best. And I'm rather proud of myself.
Though I cooked casseroles & stuffing & a pie, I wimped out & didn't cook a real turkey. We ate Jennie-O pre-cooked turkey breast. NOT the same, let me tell you. It only made me long for the real thing. Hubby & I decided that when I do this again, I've definitely gotta try a real turkey.
It felt like the longest day ever. But in a good way.
And, however silly it sounds: I felt like I grew up today.
♥

BLACK FRIDAY SALE!

2011-11-24T17:48:00.000-07:00

Stop by WhiMSy love all day on Black Friday, November 25th & receive 25% off your entire order!

Just enter the coupon code BF2011 when checking out.

(And don't forget to check out the Cyber Monday sale on November 28th! NEW Vintage Button Rings & NEW Fabric OwlieOornaments will be stocked in the shop by then.)

Happy handmade holiday shopping!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #23

2011-11-24T15:33:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...Zoey & Pazely's teachers.

Every year, I like to gift their teachers. Specifically at holidays. Or on the first day of fall (which really should be a holiday.) Or when the girls & I have made something new & we want to share it. And it's not to gain brownie points or get my kid on the 'teacher's pet' list.

It's because I'm grateful. For nearly 7 1/2 hours a day, 5 days a week, I hand my girls over to teachers, & trust that my munchkins will learn. Teachers are helping to grow knowledge & endow wisdom in those little brains. Teachers are even sometimes the disciplinarian that some of their student's parents fail to be. Teachers train your kids to do their best, to make good with what they have. Teachers help children discover their talents. Teachers help grow those little people into responsible adults. Teachers help to affirm the things I already knew about my children & give me insight about the things I was unaware.

I mean, really....pumpkin butter?

It's the least I can do.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #22

2011-11-23T08:44:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a helpful Mr.

He takes the girls to school every morning.

And helps with the dishes.

And vacuums.

And takes out the trash.

And does his own laundry. (Due to a "pink laundry" incident when we were first married. But, hey, the point is: he does his own laundry.)

And he sometimes helps with the rest of the laundry.

And he takes care of the bills.

And other stuff.

And I don't think I let him know enough how much I appreciate that.

(And the fact that I have no picture to accompany today's post is perfect. On the rare occasion he obliges, but mostly he hates it when I photograph him.)

♥

New in November: Pumpkin Cake Roll

2011-11-23T08:24:00.000-07:00

The Mr. & I had some friends over for dessert last night.

What to make?

Well, I usually make my popular pistachio torte. But I ALWAYS make that & wanted to try something different. I happened to see a facebook friend post a picture of a pumpkin roll she made that morning. And inspiration struck!

I googled pumpkin roll recipes & chose the one with the prettiest picture. (I'm serious! If a recipe doesn't have a picture, I'm less likely to make it.)

I baked the pumpkin roll in my kitchen while skyping with Tia, who was baking snickerdoodle cookies in her kitchen. We were a regular cooking show duo. It was a fantastic morning spent with my faraway friend.

The recipe can be found HERE.

I used a cookie sheet for my "pan", which measured about 11 1/2" x 17" x 1/2" deep. And instead of waxed paper (which seems to always smoke & stink up my kitchen if I use it in the oven) I used parchment paper. ( I LOVE parchment paper.) I read the recipe reviews & a few people said they didn't separate the egg whites & yolks. I DID separate them, since it was my first time making it. I'd never whipped whites until they were stiff. It took a lot longer than I thought.

But it was fun!

When I rolled the cake, it started to split. You can see in the photo at the top. (It kinda looks like stretch marks. haha!) It didn't break all the way through, but it was kind of a bummer. Not sure what I could've done differently.

It tasted yummy though! I mostly tasted the cream cheese filling, which is ok---but I'm a cake girl.

It was nice to mix things up, give my pistachio torte a break & try something new!

As I sliced the cake, wonderful smelling coffee was brewing, tea was steeping, & hot cider was waiting to be poured into happy mugs.

It was a delicious evening indeed!!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #21

2011-11-22T14:45:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...my couch.

Some days it's hard to find something to be thankful for.

Especially when I'm feeling sickly & rather selfish & whiny.

But I love my couch. Particularly on days like this.

It's giant & cushy & cozy & swallows me up.

It's one of the first purchases the Mr. & I made together 12 years ago.

Even Tia, 1200 miles away, misses my couch.

It's a great nappin' couch.

And an excellent ploppin' sofa.

And it's one of my most favorite places to hang out in the house.

♥

Klutz Pom-Pom Monster Salon Review + Giveaway

2011-11-22T08:30:00.002-07:00

The girls & I recently received the Klutz Pom-Pom Monster Salon to review.

I've said this before: WE. LOVE. KLUTZ.

And, I think this is my favorite Klutz book to date.

After school, Zoey & I started playing around with the yarn, making pom-pom monsters. As always, the instructions are super easy to understand & the kit comes with everything you need (minus scissors) to make lots of monsters.

We whipped out 2 pom-pom monsters pretty quickly. I gave mine to a sick little Pazely who was napping in her room.

The kit comes with a handy contraption that easily allows you to make pom-poms. Click HERE to view a 48-second video that shows you how the pom-pom maker works.

Really easy & fun for kids!

I love that you can totally personalize these monsters however you want. The kit comes with all the embellishments you need to craft up your monsters: foam tongues, teeth & fangs, little ribbons, googly eyes, & lots of paper punch-outs in the form of shoes, horns, wings, hair accessories, etc.

(Though not necessasry, I love that I can even grab my own crafty embellishments & other yarn colors if I wanted to!)

Pom-pom monsters with afros, mustaches & mohawks?

The girls & I are SO looking forward to making more monsters over Thanksgiving weekend!

***And guess what?***
Two lucky readers will each receive a book!

Leave a comment on this blog post to enter.

Sorry, U.S. residents only!

Winners announced on Sunday, November 27th!

Wanna do some Klutz Christmas shopping??

Shop Klutz.com and use coupon code KLUTZ4U

for 20% off your entire order!

(Offer expires 12/31/11. Cannot be combined with any other offer.)

Thanks to the folks at Klutz for the books!

♥

Week in Review: November 14-20

2011-11-21T01:22:00.001-07:00

I feel like last week was jam packed full of "firsts".

First time playing with air dry clay.

First time making cabbage burgers.

First time having egg nog {in forevers}.

First time the Mr. & I had a night apart from the girls since we moved to Nebraska 2 years ago.

First time I've ever kept pheasant feet in my fridge.

First time I ate a Mickey D's pumpkin pie.

First time this chilly season that I've gotten a sniffly-sneezy cold.

First time I've ever won a scarecrow-makin' contest.

First time I've ever eaten a candy cane before Thanksgiving.

(Just to name a few.)

It's so close to Thanksgiving & the fam & I still have no idea of our plans.

I'm really wanting to make a traditional meal with the turkey & all the fixings. (For the first time EVER.) But then I get scared.

But then I get un-scared because I'm pretty sure it'll just be a tiny gathering.

And how hard could that be?

But then there's an afternoon Turkey Day Buffet taking place at a local restaurant & I'm sure that'd be just as tasty. (And stressless & messless.)

And then I keep thinking how the holidays are approaching very quickly. And I just wish I were sitting 'round the table at my mom's house with my sister & brother & grandma & parents & nieces & nephew, enjoying our usual Thanksgiving eats. Mom made the turkey, my sis-in-law made the pies, & all I had to do was fill celery with flavored cheeses.

*sigh*

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #20

2011-11-21T00:46:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...free entertainment.

I call this photo "Happy Feet".

The Mr. had helped a friend move furniture earlier in the day & brought home a giant sheet of bubble wrap. Zoey carefully counted the rows of bubbles & split it in two equal parts. I tossed the wrap on the floor & watched the girls, fresh out of the tub & in their jammies, dance.

Oh, here's something else the girls picked up for free over the weekend.

Who needs video games & hours of TV watching when you got stuff like this??

♥

Thankfulness: Day #19

2011-11-21T00:30:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...my thoughtful Zoey.

The other night I went into Zoey's room & saw that she was reading "Ramona the Brave". I suddenly remembered that I am pretty sure I read that book as a kid & thought it would be fun to read again.

So, I asked her: "Zoey, can I borrow that book when you're done?"

She replied, "Well, it's the school's book, mom. I need to bring it back. But I suppose I could ask my teacher if I could just keep it for longer."

"No," I said. "I'll just borrow it from the library sometime."

The girls spent a large part of the weekend with some of my friends. Included in all their fun were things like: a picnic, late night movies, painting pictures, pheasant feather plucking, walky-talky adventures, playing with Steev, visiting goats, seeing bucks in the backyard, spying kitties on the farm, & a visit to the library. When they returned home, Zoey handed me this book.

She had found it for me at the library.

Sweetest, most thoughtful thing ever??

I think so.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #18

2011-11-21T00:13:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...technology.

Mostly 'cause it keeps me "closer" to my family.

I'm a family girl.

Love my family.

Still feel like I sometimes stumble around 'cause I'm so far away from them & without my family I can feel lost & lonley.

I'll never get used to the distance.

Sometimes my heart aches so great.

But the texting, the skyping...

It helps.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #17

2011-11-18T08:10:00.001-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...moments like these.

Last night, Pazely lost another tooth. She wrote a note to the tooth fairy that read:

"From Pazely. Dear Toothfairy, Can I borrow my tooth for show and tell tomarow. pur your anser hear ---->"

Without kids of my own, I wouldn't get very many moments like these. They are priceless. And they definitely fill my joy tank to overflowing.

This is how the Toothfairy responded:

"I suppose that's ok dear. But don't expect extra cash when I get the tooth back for real. Love the Toothfairy."

(Apparantly the Toothfairy has the penmanship of an old lady with a shaky wrist. Or else she wrote the note with her left hand perhaps?)

Pazely ran into my room this morning to show me the dollar she got from the Toothfairy. She was so excited! I asked her, "Well, what did the tooth fairy say about borrowing your tooth?"

She replied, "I couldn't read it. It was in Spanish."

♥

New in November: Cabbage Burgers

2011-11-17T22:08:00.000-07:00

I had my first cabbage burger last year. I had no idea what a cabbage burger was. It sounded nasty. But, they were actually delicious! They were homemade & scrumptious. The 2nd time I ate cabbage burgers was only a couple months ago, when the Mr. & I were out running errands & noticed a bakery serving them for lunch.

I found out that cabbage burgers are popular in the Nebraska & South Dakota area.

I found a recipe HERE.

I'm not going to say they were simple to make. I had to recruit the Mr.'s help because supper guests were arriving soon. The rolling out of the dough took longer than I expected, & the stuffing of the dough was way more frustrating than I anticipated. It was rather messy too. The recipe called for a 3/4 cup of burger/cabbage mixture to be added to a flat 5" square of rolled out dough. And then you're supposed to bring up the edges, pinch them all together, & flip the whole mound (pinched side down) onto a baking sheet. Well, 3/4 cup way too much. Maybe it's because I'm not skilled in the way of the bread dough.

Here's almost a dozen of the 18 burgers waiting to be cooked in the oven. I would have changed only one thing: I would've added more pepper to the burger/cabbage mix. (The ones at the bakery were on the peppery side & so yummy!) I thought mine were a wee bit bland, although my supper guests were happily munching away on their burgers & didn't compain one bit.

Once baked, Zoey helped brush melted butter over the tops.

We froze the leftovers, thinking we'd eat them for a meal next week, but we ended up eating them for lunch the next day. The Mr. LOVED them!
I'm so happy to have learned a new recipe, & a unique one at that!

New in November: Week #1: Caramel Apples
New in November: Week #2: Pumpkin Butter

♥

New in November: Pumpkin Butter

2011-11-17T08:56:00.000-07:00

I've never made "butter" of any kind. But I've always wanted to try apple butter. THEN, I saw this easy recipe on Pinterest for pumpkin butter & had to attempt it. (I swoon for anything pumpkin!)

It's made in a crockpot. You literally dump everything in & let it sit, cooking, for a while.

It was made with canned pumpkin. And it was delicious.

I do want to try it with real pumpkin. I've never cut up a pumpkin before, so I'm a little intimidated.

My mom made some with real pumpkin the same time I made mine with canned pumpkin & she said it was very tasty. She cut up the pumpkin & roasted it in the oven. The skin came off easily. Then she used her blender to mash it all up.

I bought jars &, after returning my GIANT canner, finally got THIS canning set. I am hoping to make a butter of some kind (with real fruit), try my canning set out for the first time, & give cute little jars of butters as Thanksgiving gifts to the girls' teachers before the fast-approaching holiday break begins.

New in November: Week #1: Caramel Apples

New in November: Week #2: Pumpkin Butter

♥

Thankfulness: Day #16

2011-11-17T08:19:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...laughter.

I love to laugh. And I love making other people laugh.

Every week, I talk to my mom on the phone & we laugh. It makes me miss my family. Because we sure know how to laugh when we get together. Oh yes, I do miss them.

Sometimes my friend Tia & I (another one I'm missin') just laugh at the dumbest stuff. Everybody else might not "get it". But we "get it".

And laughter as medicine? Definitely.

When I laugh, I just let it all out. You know how some people muffle their laughter or try to make it sound cute? Not me. I guffaw with the best of them. I chortle & the sound echoes. I tend to be super duper loud when I laugh.

But, you know what? I don't care.

**The photo is from April 2010. Pazely & I are fake laughing. Not even making a sound. HAHA!**

♥

Sneak Peek: Advent Giveaway!

2011-11-15T22:06:00.000-07:00

Though I'm itchin' to show you the whole lot of prezzies, I think it'd be best if I kept it secret.

But, here's a sneaky peeky at FOUR of the TWENTY-FOUR prizes that I'll be giving away on November 28th.

(Enter for a chance to win by making a purchase at WhiMSy love, now through November 27th!!)

One winner will receive this advent prize package, valued at $155!

Who wouldn't love to open one handmade gift a day, from December 1st thru December 24th, leading up to Christmas??

Or, heck, open them all at once & share them with your friends!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #15

2011-11-15T20:48:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...Family Night.

The Mr. & I have really made an effort this past year to dedicate one night a week as "Family Night". We reserve Tuesays for this occasion & the girls look forward to it. In fact, as Pazely was getting ready for school this morning, she asked me, "Mom, what are we going to do tonight?"

Sometimes it's a hot dog weenie roast in the firepit outside. Sometimes it's board games. Sometimes it's dinner out.

Tonight it was lots of things... The girls & I played with some new air-dry clay. Then Pazely & I cleaned up the mess while Zoey & her dad competed in some airplane dogfighting on the Wii. Then, I played with Pazely's hair. Then, I read another chapter of "On the Banks of Plum Creek".

Mostly our plans are on-the-fly. Mostly they are non-extravagant. It's just the fact that we're in the moment with each other. And it makes us all feel good & happy inside.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #14

2011-11-15T08:07:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...my co-workers.

Because they're also my friends.

And one of them was even the girls' elementary principal until he retired & became my boss at the newspaper, while my former boss decided to go serve in the military in Africa. (Show-off. haha!)

They make going to work fun.

Earlier this year we all got to hang out a lot while photographing the Bridgeport Bulldogs high school football games. Away games were the best. More time to goof off & all.

Monday nights, we work from supper time until midnight. And a lot of times Mondays are pretty much laugh fests. We'll even take breaks from working hard on layout or advertising or editing to go outside & fly homemade frisbees or have office chair races down the middle of the street. Or some other silly nonsense.

I mean, I've had some annoying co-workers in my past.

But this is the first time I can say I'm thankful for each & every one.

Was that too mushy?

♥

Week in Review: October 7-13

2011-11-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

Although I missed what sounded like an amazing church service full of gratitude & tears yesterday morning (I needed to stay at home with a sick kidlet), I did get to enjoy a Thanksgiving-style carry-in dinner with my church family. Oh, there were so many yummy foods. For the 2nd time I got to cook THIS twice baked potato casserole & THESE balsamic honey roasted carrots (which I added glazed walnuts to).

The power in our town was scheduled to be turned off for a few hours in the afternoon, so the fam & some friends headed into town to enjoy the electricity. Not so exciting: the Mr. & I purchased a new bathroom scale. But then I got to shop for fun stuff for a crafty swap I'm doing with a friend in Argentina. Then the whole lot of us went to a movie & then out for authentic Mexican tacos at Tacos Mexico.

We drove home, I put the girls to bed & then I cozied on the couch with some chai tea, a red velvet cupcake the girls surprised me with earlier in the day, & my newest favorite show, Project Accessory.

It was a great day. And a great finale to a great week.

Happy Monday!

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #13

2011-11-14T10:52:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a surprise cupcake from my munchkins.
(Because, surprises pretty much rock!)

While out shopping with my fam & some friends yesterday, I escaped to Joanne's while the rest of the group headed to a coffee shop. I gathered the items on my list (& then some, as it usually goes) & waited in line to purchase my crafty bits. While waiting, my girls came inside to surprise me with this cupcake, while Mr. WhiMSy love & our two male friends waited near the holiday fabrics & clearance rack. I was proud of them for even stepping foot inside this place. But they were happy chatting together & sipping their caramel macchiatos.

The girls were so excited as they handed me the boxed treat. They kept saying, "It's red mom!! It's a red cupcake!!"

And that evening, I sliced into my red {velvet} cupcake while sipping chai tea, placing my Scholastic book order for Christmas reads & watching Project Accessory.

I only ate half of the cupcake. I plan on sharing the rest with the girls after school today.
♥

Thankfulness: Day #13

2011-11-13T21:35:00.001-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...meds, portable DVD players & TV trays.
They help me take care of sick kidlets.

Well, one sick Zoey this time.
(And the leaf is a gift from her little sister.)
♥

Thankfulness: Day #12

2011-11-13T21:30:00.000-07:00

I am thankful for...

...pajamas.

Without them, what would I wear all day?

♥

Advent Giveaway!

2011-11-12T16:59:00.001-07:00

HUGE PRIZE GIVEAWAY!!!

Every order purchased at WhiMSy love

will be entered to win a

WhiMSy love advent prize package.

Valid in the month of November, through the 27th.

Twenty-four little prezzies (valued at $155!) will be mailed to the winner on November 28th.

All the packages are numbered (with my old school Dymo label maker) &, in the tradition of advent, are to be opened each day leading up to Christmas, from December 1st thru December 24th.

Whatcha waitin' for??

Go shopping!!

Psst! HERE'S a sneak peek!!

♥

Thankfulness: Day #11

2011-11-11T22:05:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...cupcake-shaped turkeys.

That makes total sense, right? I love crafting with my girls. And when we get to work on a project together, it's just all the sweeter. I'm really thankful for all those moments I get with them. They are inspiring little munchkins. I know they won't want to craft with their mommy forever. I'll be so sad when they grow up big & are too cool for things like cupcake-shaped turkeys. But for now, I'm thankful, thankful, thankful for these creative occasions.

(*This disguise-a-turkey is Pazely's project for her 2nd grade class.)

♥

11's

2011-11-11T20:56:00.000-07:00

What was I doing at 11:11 on 11/11/11?

Oh, you know.

I was at work, & my friend Randy & I scrambled to make a crappy sign & take a cool picture when the clock struck the appropriate elevens.

(I made the crappy sign. He took the cool picture.)

This photo even made it on the flickr blog!!

♥

"Dream" Owlie Ornaments

2011-11-10T19:38:00.001-07:00

New in the shop!

In these colors...

•apple green

•steel grey

•cinnamon

•baby pink

•calypso sky

•bark brown

♥

Thankfulness: Day #10

2011-11-10T18:35:00.000-07:00

I am thankful...

...for happy, colorful messes.

Because that prolly means I've just had a happy, colorful time.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #9

2011-11-10T18:23:00.001-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...pumpkin carving 8 days after Halloween.

What a silly thing to be thankful for.

But it is an example that rules can be broken, traditions must sometimes "give", & life is often unpredictable.

Those are good reminders to have.

I'm thankful that the Mr. helped the girls with this messy task while I was next door with my Crafty Night friends.

(I didn't have to touch one slimy pumpkin gut!)

We put them on the porch last night & lit them.
I'm sure the neighbors think we're nuts.

♥

30 Bags in 30 Days: Day 21 & 22: The Mr.'s closet & his side of the room

2011-11-10T08:00:00.001-07:00

Golly, I'm stretching this 30 Bags in 30 Days Project as far as it can go, huh?

BUT, I'm emphasizing, once again, the fact that I know me. And I know that I would in no way be able to tackle all this in one month. It's getting done in 30 days. Just not 30 consecutive days. And if I tried to get it all done in one month, somewhere along the way I'd be overwhelmed & give up.

Better 30 full bags then a 4 half full.

The Mr. had his turn this time around. His side of the room, as compared to mine, is rather orderly. He is a tidy Mr. So, he had nothing to do there. Easy check off my list. In his closet, he prolly got rid of about 1/3 of his clothes. Gave them to friends. Wasn't that nice?

So, 2 bags gone is a job well done, Mr. WhiMSy love.

♥

It's about time.

2011-11-10T00:00:00.001-07:00

Monogrammed socks.

Ok, so they're not REALLY monogrammed.

I don't know why it took me forever to do this either.

Every week, as I fold the laundry, I get so frustrated with who gets which pair of socks.

We took the girls shopping for undies, socks & shoes just recently. Exciting, I know.

(Which is what started all this monogramming business in the first place.)

My girls, twenty-one-&-a-half months apart to be exact, are beginning to be the same size in the undies department, & well, socks are pretty universal in size. So, I'm changing my game plan.

The Sharpie is my new best friend.

I'm pretty sure I've shaved several minutes off my laundry folding time each month.

And the girls may have marks on the bottom of their socks until they're 18.

(And possibly their undies.)

♥

Thankfulness: Day #8

2011-11-09T14:11:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...Crafty Night.

It's really an excuse for me to try new projects, or give a go at putting the ideas in my head into action. And I thought it'd be fun to share that with whoever wanted to craft along with me. Which is why I started this monthly event in March 2010.

I love the anticipation of searching for crafty projects every month, of making favors for everyone to take home. I love lighting candles on the evening of every Crafty Night, & finding my Billy Holiday station on Pandora to play during the night. I love hanging my handmade sign outside the door. And I love setting the supplies out "just-so".

Though it's a lot of work, I'm grateful for this crafty escape every month, for however long it decides to remain a part of my crafty world.

♥

Tutorial: Clay ornament/tags

2011-11-09T08:58:00.001-07:00

We made these ornament/tags for Crafty Night: November last night.

I LOVE how they turned out. I kept seeing them all over the internet, but mostly made

with porcelein clay, air dry clay, or salt dough. I was like, "Uh, what about plain old polymer clay?"

So I grabbed a big block of Fimo soft. (SUCH an awesome clay compared to my Sculpey III frustration last year!)

First thing I did was lay a piece of parchment paper onto my table. Wax paper would be fine too. Just so your clay doesn't stick to the table. And after warming a small piece of clay in my hands, I rolled it out with a rolling pin. That plastic orb thing in the picture is actually part of a two-inch plastic capsule from a gumball machine. It will be used later to cut out my shape.

Next, grab a doily & press it into your clay by gently rolling the pin over it.

Remove the doily. The cool thing about clay is that if it doesn't come out the way you like it, you can smash it all up & start over.

(This is BEFORE you bake it of course!)

Use your "cookie cutter" of choice.

You can cut out any shape you'd like.

Use rubber alphabet stamps to personalize your clay piece.

These are perfect for gift tags on prezzies if you embellish with someone's name.

And these go from prezzie-to-tree-ornament in a jiffy!

I'm all about the 2-in-1 gifts!

Use a straw to make a hole in the top.

Bake in your oven according to the directions on your specific clay.

Fimo soft is baked at 230 degrees F, for up to 30 minutes. These ornaments were baked for 25 minutes in my oven.

Loop on some string & you're done!
(From the 12.34 oz brick of Fimo soft, we got about 36-40 of these sized ornaments.)

You can paint or seal these if you want. But it's not necessary.

I am going to try "staining" some so the stamping really pops.

I'm totally diggin' the owlie "dream" ornaments & will have some in the shop later this week!

♥

New in November: Caramel Apples!

2011-11-09T08:00:00.004-07:00

I have decided to try something new every week this November.

First on the agenda: caramel apples.

Gourmet caramel apples.

The girls & I had such sticky fun! I admit it was a bit stressful too. Though the recipe said otherwise, I didn't have enough caramel for all my apples. It was a sticky mess, & took MUCH longer than I thought. But, they are DELICOUS!! So, I guess it's worth all the frustration.

We made them for teacher gifts---& they were also the favor for Crafty Night: November.

(Some of the gourmet caramel apples I saw online cost between 12 & 20 dollars!!)

After unwrapping the caramel candies, we poked sticks into the granny smith apples. These tart apples are the perfect choice when making caramel apples.

The sticks I used are actually for making cookie pops. (I found them in the cake decorating section of Walmart.) They're nice & long! The baggies were in the same section too.

We melted caramel & dipped our apples. I mixed two bags of caramel candies with 2 TB of water. Then, the plan was to melt white & milk chocolate wafers & drizzle the chocolate over the caramel. But I couldn't get the chocolate melted to a drizzly consistency, so I ended up spooning chocolate ALL over the caramel. Using the back of the spoon, I smoothed the chocolate evenly, all over the apple. I liked them even better this way. (Yay for perfect blunders!)
Then, we showered the apples with chocolate sprinkles.

I made a few caramel apples that were adorned with glazed walnuts. But I think they were a "fail", since it appears the caramel sagged to the bottom of the apple--maybe due to the heavy walnuts??

Consider these other toppings when making gourment caramel apples: m&m's, crushed Oreos, mini marshamallows, dried fruit, peanuts, cashews, pecans, almonds, macadamia nuts, toffee, crushed candy canes, coconut, & crushed candy bars.
Do you have any other topping ideas?

When the chocolate & caramel on your apples have set, you can package them in clear cellophane bags.

One little trick is to fold the bag down halfway so it's easier (& less messy) to insert the apples.

I used the silver twist ties that came with the bag to close it up. And then I embellished small white office tags with these fall-colored gems.

Funny enough, I packaged up the "fail" caramel apples---& they were the first to go on Crafty Night!

I think an assortment of gourmet caramel apples would make a fun hostess gift for the holidays.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #7

2011-11-08T23:37:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...a roof over my head.

This picture is from two years ago, within a week of moving into a house in

a little town in western Nebraska, 1200 miles away from family & friends back in Washington..

This is where we currently call home.

And I'm so grateful for my creative studio, all the room the girls have to play, my giant kitchen & plenty of space to invite friends over for big ole dinners or crazy game nights.

Earlier this week I was sitting at the dining table, working on the laptop, looking out the front door windows, watching giant snowflakes fall slowly from the sky.

And I was so happy to be inside, under this roof.

♥

Week in Review: October 31-November 6

2011-11-08T22:10:00.001-07:00

For a photo play-by-play, click HERE.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #6

2011-11-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

I'm thankful for...

...that lady right there.

My friend Susan is a friend like no other. I am grateful for her friendship. (More than she'll ever know.) Meeting her 2 years ago has opened up a whole new world of fun.

Sometimes we wear fake eyelashes & can't stop laughing. Sometimes we sit on the back of a pick up truck in the middle of a wheat field & share sad stories. Sometimes we make a campfire & sit in silence. Sometimes we talk in British accents & can't shut up. Sometimes we get in the car & have no idea where we're going. Sometimes we know exactly where we're going, but make detours just for the fun of it.

But we always plan & scheme.

And then make an adventure of it.

♥

Thankful: Day #5

2011-11-05T23:30:00.001-06:00

I'm thankful for...

...my youth group.

The Mr. & I get to work with the youth every week & I'm really grateful for them. They challenge me as a person, help me grow as a leader & keep me young at heart.

I feel priveleged that I get to spend so much time with them. I love that I get to help plan outings & events & activites for them.

And every Wednesday, as I stand up to walk to the front of the group to lead them in games & icebreakers after worship & announcements, they chant my name.

And I think that's pretty cool too.

♥

♫Dupe-Dupe-De-Doo♫

2011-11-04T23:42:00.000-06:00

I just made a silly purchase.

It's big & black & metal & round & sits on the stove & I could prolly bathe one of my children in it.

I bought a canner.

I have NEVER canned in my life.

But I keep seeing these yummy apple & pumpkin butters on pinterest & I think they would make lovely gifts. And I've always wanted to make jams & maybe preserve fruits.

But now I'm regretting my purchase & plan on returning it. First of all, it takes up half the space in my pots & pans cupboard. (Move over fryin' pans! Big Bertha's comin' through...) Secondly, & more practically, I didn't read the label: not recommended for glass top stoves. (And guess who has a glass top stove?) Thirdly, when I open the lid, it's dark & cavernous inside & I can hear my echo. And, fourthly, did I mention it's big enough to bathe a small child in?!?!

I mean, is this just standard size?

I'm totally scared of that thing.

I need to be patient & hold out for THIS next time I go to town. (Or just order it online maybe??) Isn't that neato though?! It's for those just beginning to learn canning. The starter kit comes with a polypropylene rack with separate, fitted lifter that works in your OWN pot, if it's at least 7 1/2" tall & 9 1/2" in diameter. (It also comes with three 1-pint jars & an instruction/recipe booklet.)

And 12 bucks? Totally LOVING it.

In lieu of waiting for the canning kit, I DID make some pumpkin butter. It is delicious. (It currently sits in the fridge in plastic containers.) The girls aren't really a fan of it, though they did try some on a half slice of toast. It's a crockpot recipe I gathered on my "Tasty Eats" pinterest board, found HERE. I will be making some again very soon using real pumpkin this time. I'm acting like it's not big deal, but I'm terrified. The only time I slice pumpkins is for silly face-makin'. I've never actually cooked with a REAL one. Canned pumpkin & I have had a very good relationship. Why ruin a good thing?

I must give it a go though. I'm feeling adventurous.

And then I will seal those jars of pumpkin-y goodness in a hot water bath & spread pumpkin cheer to all I meet. Ok, so maybe just a few people will get a jar.

Now, to return this small tub I duped myself into buying...

♥

Thankfulness: Day #4

2011-11-04T22:34:00.000-06:00

I'm thankful for...

...tiny hands that help.

Yes, they are tiny. But they are really helpful too!

Sometimes mommy does need a hand from her little peoples.

And she appreciates it very much.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #3

2011-11-03T14:00:00.000-06:00

I'm thankful for...

...regular coffee dates.

It seems that it's become a regular thing between me & the Mr. Or between me & the Mr. & friends. Usually on Thursdays. We meet at the diner. Or "The Halo". Or maybe soon, the bakery. (When it reopens.) And I don't even drink coffee. Instead, I'll sip on hot cocoa, or spiced chai lattes, or some other non-coffee-'cause-coffee-hurts-my-tummy drink.

These coffee dates are my adult time.

A chance for me to practice conversation in a grown-up dialect.

And I'm grateful for these moments with friends every week because it gives me balance between mommy world & adult universe.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #2

2011-11-03T09:30:00.000-06:00

I'm thankful for...

...candles.

I absolutely LOVE candles. They make me super happy.

The Mr. & I have one lit ALL the time.

It reminds me of the "little things".

Because, really, it's the "little things" that make me smile, & swoon & feel overcome with giddiness.

It doesn't take much.

Just a candle.

♥

Thankfulness: Day #1

2011-11-03T09:24:00.000-06:00

I'm a couple days behind, but I'll catch up.

I really like doing the "I'm thankful for..." posts in November. Every day this month I'll name something that I'm thankful for.

So here goes...

I'm thankful for...

...lazy days.

I especially discovered how important these sorts of days are just recently. What with recent stress & busy days & heart pains & emotions &... finally a hospital visit. Lazy days are important to me, more now than ever. I sometimes struggle to force myself to settle down & capture a moment of quietude. But I'm getting used to it.

And I like it.

Lazy days mean I can keep a better perspective. It's amazing the view you can get from the couch, wrapped in a cozy quilt, feet up, a movie in the DVD player, while sipping a hot drink.

To me, lazy days are a chance to rejuvenate...to rest...to soothe a tired spirit...to make new again.

♥

Ca-caaaw!

2011-11-03T01:48:00.002-06:00

You may recall the owlie costume I made for Pazely this Halloween.

(See photo below.)

Well, my little munchkin drew the most adorable picture & I had to share.

(Don't you love her claw-hands??)

I surprised Pazely with the finished costume after school last week, the day before her classroom Halloween party. She immediatley put it on & we went outside to snap LOTS of photos. Next thing I know, Pazely's up in the tree shouting

"Ca-caaaaw! Ca-caaaaw!"

I said, "Paze, that's the wrong bird."

She eventually got it right.

(The girls like to play "school", thus the 100% that Pazely got on her drawing from her older sister.)

I'm totally keeping this forevers.

♥

Best. Gift. Ever.

2011-10-31T00:07:00.000-06:00

I'm totally not bragging on myself.

Though it will sound like I am...

I just gave the best gift ever.

It's a birthday prezzie for my friend Susan:

A doodle from the happy & talented Kitty of Kitty Pink Stars on Etsy.

Kitty was so amazing to work with.

And the doodle makes me so happy.

But, more importantly, it makes the birthday girl happy!

Excuse me while I pat myself on the back.

I'm not bragging.

Really.

♥

Week in Review: October 24-30

2011-10-31T00:00:00.001-06:00

Last week was I...

...made a costume for a grumpy pirate.

...stitched up an owlie outfit for a rather giddy girl.

...went bowling.

...made a scarecrow.

...drank lots of caramel apple cider.

...drank lots of spiced chai lattes.

...started working out on my Wii Fit Plus.

...started drinking lots more water.

...realized that it's getting really cold.

...wished I had more time to knit warm things.

...scoured youtube for more knit stitches to try.

...was blessed by my church family.

...ate too much fast food.

...painted my fingernails.

...jumped.

...continued reading "On the Banks of Plum Creek" to the girls.

...made muffins.

Just to name a few.

Click HERE for a photo play-by-play.

♥

Ahoy ye landlubbers!

2011-10-28T17:17:00.000-06:00

Zoey was NOT happy about having to pose for pictures after school today in her pirate costume.

I just know, in that picture up top, she's picturing me walking the plank. Or worse: swabbing the deck!

Zoey's pirate costume turned out pretty easy. She already had the pants & boots. She DESPERATELY wanted a hook for her hand. So, I searched 4 shops until I landed at Target, where I spent $8 for a package that contained a hook, hat, eye patch, sword & round hoop clip-on earring.

I had some super thick gold cording that she tied around her waist. It got lost at school today, so for the photos we raided the girls' dress-up bin & I found a sash, adorned with beads.

The only thing I DIDN'T have was the shirt. And I didn't want to spend a lot of money on costumes. So I started googling "How to make a pirate shirt" & I came across THIS ARTICLE which started me in the right direction.

I found a long sleeved {boys} shirt at Goodwill for $2. And then I gathered white thread (to use on the sewing machine & for some hand stitching), lace (mine was 1 3/4" wide, but I would say anything up to 3" wide would work well), & some black hemp cord (you could also use string or ribbon).

First you'll want to gather 18" of lace for the cuff of one sleeves.

Pin the lace onto the outside of the cuff & sew with a sewing machine.

Repeat this for the other sleeve.

Next, take a long piece of lace & form it into a "v" shape on the front of the shirt.

The lace for my cuffs was different than the lace for my shirt. I found a scrap piece in my stash that I really liked for the front of the shirt.

Pin in place & stitch on with a sewing machine.

Now you can thread your hemp cord onto a fat needle.

As you can see, I just did a VERY basic job of stitching some X's.

I decided not to have a "bow" on the front.

The bow is hidden on the inside. But you can adjust yours so the bow is on the outside. The thick needle creates little holes in the shirt, so you can actually pre-poke the holes & then just thread the cord with your fingers, in & out of the holes.

Another option is gluing ribbon/cord/string in a zig-zag pattern, instead of sewing.

And that's it.

Once all the pieces of the costume are put together, it really looks like a pirate shirt.

Argh!

♥