For Mom

This post is for my super sweet Mom. She cares what my Halloween decorations look like.   

This is Uncle George.   Bj invented him back in MI, but this is his first appearance in our current house.  He is seriously creepy, but the kids love him. 

Our Front Door.  Highly exciting!

I loved working on this project.  Wool felt is so fun!

Here is pumpkin land.  There used to be tons of little cups of m&m's all over, but alas they are all in our belly's now. 

How do you do it?

Bacon?  How do you cook it?

I came upon this method of cooking bacon from watching the food network.  I have been cooking my bacon like this for sometime, and loving it I might add, but realized last night I have forgotten to share the love.  So, to be real, I must say, this is not my pic, I stole it.  I do that!  And, I don't use real bacon, I love Turkey bacon you can buy from Costco (I know, anyone who knows me at all has to know I got it from Costco).  Anyway, on with the goods.  So, turn your oven onto broil.  As it is heating up, line your cookie sheet with foil (you don't have to do this, I just like to) space out your bacon like the picture above (I overlap a little),  and then put the cookie sheet on the 2nd rack of the oven (or top if you really want to watch it super carefully).  Then, just wait.  Mine takes about 5 minutes, or a little longer, it depends on how you like your bacon.  I like mine crispy!!!  I would be really careful the first time you do it, and figure out your oven.  

My favorite recipe for using bacon is Pasta Carbonara.  I absolutely love it.  This is a doubled recipe.

1 package of noodles (I use spaghetti or linguine)

2 cups of half and half

2 eggs

1/4 cup butter

1 cup parmesan cheese

1/4 parsley dried (1/2 cup fresh)

12 or more strips of bacon 

Cook noodles according to directions.  For sauce.  Melt butter in sauce pan over medium heat, then add half and half and beaten eggs.  Continue to cook on medium heat until sauce thickens.  Do not boil.  Continue to stir while it is cooking.  If you must walk away, try to stir at least once every minute. It is done when it coats the spoon thickly (about 6 minutes).  (***sometimes you overcook it, don't worry, it won't be perfect, but life isn't perfect and it still tastes good, it just isn't as creamy and smooth).  After sauce and pasta are cooked, mix together, then add parsley and parmesan cheese.  You are done, and you have a dish to please the masses.

My kids absolutely love this dish.  I serve this often with grilled chicken and grilled veges.  Super yummy.  Or, just add a side salad and you are done (you have your protein in the bacon, so it is all good).

Warm Fuzzies

My kids had Fall Break this week.  We had a lot of our friends go out of town, but with Bj's work situation (meaning no vacation days left), I didn't want to tackle a vacation by myself.  However, I did want them to have a great fall break, and do "out of the ordinary" things.  So, I invited myself to my cousins house and my friends house.  They were both so hospitable, and took my family in.  They both fed us well, and I felt very spoiled.  I am very blessed to have such great family and friends.  Wednesday we went to visit my cousin Penny and her cute family.  Thursday we went to Ikea and to visit my friend Katie who I was an Academy for Girls counselor with.  

I was a little nervous as I began the trip.  I was driving to Phoenix all by myself (I never do that kind of stuff).  I am always nervous when I leave Bj, I just don't like being away......I am afraid something bad will happen to one of us.  A silly fear, but one that is well embedded in my psyche.  However, after I got to my cousins house, all of it melted away.  It was so great to see her and her cute little family.  I loved spending time with them all.  The kids had a great time chasing each other with grasshoppers, being wild, and staying up 2 hours past their bedtime.  Poor Penny's kids had school the next morning, and  we did not make things easier for her.  As we left her house, I felt so many warm fuzzies.  Why didn't we do this more often?  It has been about 2.5 years since we got together last.  Why in the world does it take that long?  We only live 2 hours away from each other.  I wished we had more time with them....but I made a little commitment to myself that I wouldn't let time slip by again like that.

Here's little Penny...oh I mean Hannah!  She is so super cute.

Hey Mitch (who now goes by the name of Crash).  He started the morning off early with much hoola hooping....and counting.  Penny is a Saint to listen with a smile to this all morning.

Here's Zach!  What a fun kid.  He has a new lizard, he and Crash spent a lot of time feeding him and chasing the girls with grasshoppers.

Here's my Penny.  She is such babe!  She got up early this morning and made us fantastic French Toast and homemade special syrup.  Yes, she does take after her fabulous mother.

Every time I look at Benjamin I see my Aunt Diane in his eyes.  It brings me so much joy to see her fire shining in his eyes.

Thursday we went to visit my friend Katie.  She has been a dear friend since we were counselors together at AFG.  I was always impressed by her for so many reasons.  1....she is super creative.  2....she has such a gentle way about her  (I love people with gentle ways, I think it is because I am still working on that skill, and I haven't yet achieved that) 3.....in all of life's craziness, she takes opportunities to remember and reflect on the Spirit.  4.  She is such a giving person....I am always put to shame when I see the gifts of love she prepares for me and others.  She is amazing.   

Poor Katie.  She had a baby 4 weeks ago (C-section), went to Las Vegas for a convention for her company last week...and here I am showing up ready to be entertained.  What a sweetheart to even let me in the door.  It was so fun to see her little bundle of joy, and see all her little ones.  Katie and I spent the day talking of quilts, rug hooking, crafts, business opportunities, preparing for Christmas, and life!  Our kids spent the day playing webkinz, making up dances, and eating yummy cookies.  Thanks Katie for such a great time.  

Here's the Elizabeth's (Liz and Betsy) playing with their playdough.

Here's Madeline and Ruby, and the dance they made up.  This is not a short video, but one that brings warmth to my heart.

Proposition 102

After talking to my hubby, I realized I didn't put the actual Proposition on my original post.  Proposition 102 states:  "Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state."   I love how simple this is.  This proposition does nothing to change anything in the state of AZ, all it does is protect it from judges overturning our laws.  We the people, get to decide, and add this simple statement to the constitution.  Who knew we would ever get to the day when we actually had to define something so simple.

In AZ we get to vote on Prop. 102 in November. Why do we need this if we already have a law saying marriage is between and man and woman? California! They also had a law, and their supreme court overturned it. I would rather have the people choose, than the judges of our country. Contrary to popular "anti-102" belief, my desire to protect marriage doesn't stem from anything other than a desire to protect my freedoms. I still want the freedom of religion. In MA where gay marriage was legalized, a Catholic adoption agency had to close their doors because it was close it, or allow adoption to gay couples. You can prosecute a church for refusing to perform a gay marriage. I am just not okay with that. It is one thing to allow it, it is a whole other thing to require church's to go against their religious beliefs.

Also, the video below talks about how legalizing gay marriage can affect children's schooling. All I want to do is to protect my children, protect this country we live in, and make it a good place for everyone. Hopefully, we can make a solution that will be good for everyone.  

Sewing Room

Before:  

The sewing "room" was actually in my bedroom before.  I have a fairly large master bedroom, so I thought it would work out.  After 3 years of sewing in my room, I realized...I really do "need" my own little space.  I love working on about 15 projects at the same time, and leaving all my stuff out while I work on it was getting in the way of me feeling comfortable and at ease in my room.  I would stay up and "stew" about quilt designs, how to use that fabric better, etc.. So, now I can go in my room, and have very little to spark my creativity...and hopefully, help me sleep better at night.

As you can see, it got kinda messy in the last little while.  I have been trying to get quilts done at a feverish pace, which is seriously cutting into my cleaning up time. 

My fabric shelf before.  So much to do...so little time.
You might be thinking....this is not the sewing room.  Ahhhh, it is now!  This is Mitchell's room before.  Nice big red stripe.  See, I really did love stripes.   Painting over that was quite an adventure.  Okay, it wasn't that bad, thank goodness for primer.

After:  Here's the scoop.  This is what the sewing room looks like right now.  I have started going for it again, so fabric is out, and we are moving along.  Also, there are no decorations up, as of yet.  Maybe someday, but it seems like time  stops for no woman...so maybe someday it will get "really" finished.  Maybe not, you never know!

This time I organized my fabrics by ROYGBIV.  Loved doing it.  Loved going through my fabrics again.  Ahhh, I love you MODA.
There's a closer look.  
Love you Bernina.   
It is not that easy to get a great picture of drapes.  That darn light keeps trying to interfere with the picture.  

Not like there is going to be any sleeping in here, but I have a bed, and I am not getting rid of it.  So, to all of you friends out there who want to come and visit.  This is it.  This is where you will be sleeping.  And, it doesn't stop there, it is a trundle bed, for double the fun!   Okay, so for the 4 people that come, this bed's for you.

Color

For all of you want to be quilters out there (I know the world is overflowing with you), I want to share something I think is invaluable to making a great quilt.  COLOR.  You can have a beautiful pattern, a great concept, but if you don't understand color....your quilt will be less than it could be.

So, what do you need to know to understand color better?   There are many different aspects to color choices.  So, today I'll focus on something small.  The color wheel.  Colors have an opposite, and opposites attract.   Or I should say, opposites are attractive.  When you are planning a quilt, or a scrapbook page, or decorating a room, think about color.    You can do various things with the color wheel.  Pick a color, and go straight straight across the color wheel, and that is the color that will make the original color POP! This is called the complementary color. 

Red and Green are complements, and nature has tons of great examples.

Now, there are various shades within these colors, so you don't have to be bright...you can go dark and light.  

You can also do analogous colors.  This is any three colors next to each other on the color wheel.  You'll find this often in nature.  Look at greenery for a great example.

Yellow, Orange, and Red are all next to each other on the color wheel.  And, as you can see, when they are used together, it is very striking.

Now there are many different color harmonies to choose from.  In addition to complementary, and analogous, there are the following: triadic, split complementary, rectangular,  and square.  To read more about these go to the following website....www.tigercolor.com/color-lab/color-theory/color-harmonies.htm

Now, comes your assignment, (I know, who knew bloggers started giving people assignments)...look at the world around you.  But, this time really look.  Look at the colors God has put together.  Nature is amazing, and once you pay attention, your understanding of color will deepen.  Also, pay attention to magazine adds, cereal boxes, fabric, designer paper, everything around you.  Note the colors used!    See if you can identify what the color scheme is.

Alright, enough of color for today.  If you want me to explain about value, fabric selection, etc.... let me know with a little comment.   Happy Weekend. 

Urgent care rocks.

Thought I would put pictures of the Lizard with her nebulizer.  After visiting urgent care for hours on Saturday, and visiting the Dr. on Tuesday we are unsure of her diagnosis.  Sweet Lizard may have asthma.  We are just watching her to make sure she keeps breathing well.  Luckily, again, we have great insurance.  I am feeling more and more blessed to have good health insurance.

Kids Before, during, and after

So, this is the room while I was cleaning out the closet so I could make room for 2 kids in the same room.  Isn't is clean, bright, and shiny?  After taking 17 bags and 8 boxes of baby stuff away, we are finally cleaned out.  Cleaning all that out has seriously given me a surge of purging.  I think presents for Christmas are OUT, maybe we can just give each other notes of love?  Okay, I might be going overboard, but we don't need all this stuff.  I am sure, in time, I will change my tune, and I will want to acquire "stuff" again.
Here is the room before.  I loved the stripes, I loved the colors.  But, alas, a boy and girl are going to share this room.  So, say goodbye to the stripes.
Here it is after.  It looks like I just painted it white, but it is a little tan.  Honestly, I love the paint color, I love how clean it looks, no more dirty hand prints on the flat paint that came with the house. I wish I could say it only took a day to clean it out, paint it, and put it back all together.  But 5 days later this is what it looks like.  I am still planning on some accent paint, but that will have to come later....  Maybe next week.  Stayed tuned, I am sure you are on the edge of your seat. ha!
My kids are taking turns sharing the top of the bunk beds.  One week on, one week off.  I never knew the top bunk was so super fun.  I am glad they are having fun sharing their room.

Stay tuned for the new sewing room.  I know, I know, you can hardly hold back all of your excitement.

blogging

So much to do.. 

Last week I decided to rearrange our rooms a bit.  We are moving Mitch and Lizard into the same room, so I can take Mitch's room as my sewing room. Things went well, I started working on Wednesday to get it all ready to do.  After painting both rooms, and gutting both of them as well, I thought we were on track to finishing them.  Alas, Liz spent Saturday morning in urgent care with breathing issues.  Dr.'s and parents (that's us) alike thought it was pneumonia at first, but we think it is just bronchitis (we'll find out more tomorrow at her ped's appointment).  anyway, our weekend slowed to a stop.  So, now I have 2 unfinished rooms with toys to go to good will all over the floor of the kids room.  I had hoped to have beautiful pictures to show for it.  But, and here's the kicker, I am sick (again....AGAIN!) too.  So, now I have no energy to do anything really, let alone find the camera to take a picture of 2 rooms I am trying to avoid.   Do me a favor.... pretend I have great pictures, witty words, and a happy attitude and this blog will be perfect.