I mentioned a couple of days ago that we had family portraits taken.....thought I would share the link to our photographer's blog post in case anyone would like to see them. I am so excited with the great shots Lauren was able to get - just having a hard time choosing which ones to print because there are so many.
Washburn/Harning Family Portrait Session
I'm off work on Saturday and hoping to maybe be able to do some crafting. I've got so many projects that need attention that I don't know how I'll ever get them all done - it's overwhelming and makes it hard to even get started.
Anyone have any tips on how you stay focused so that you don't get overwhelmed when you have multiple projects that need your attention?
Thanks for stopping by.
Where I shop for SVG Files:
Support Jennifer's Fundraising Efforts for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital!
Click on Jennifer's picture to visit her fundraising page!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Please Forgive my Extended Absence
WOW - been gone too long - the look of Blogger has REALLY changed. Let's see if I can muddle my way through a post!
I apologize for my lengthy absence - no good reason except that life has just been hectic and I haven't time to create and therefore didn't have anything artsy/craftsy to post. I'm hoping to get back to creating in the near future....but in the meantime, I wanted to check in and let everyone know I am still kickin' - and THANK YOU for your continued support!
We just enjoyed a 9 day visit from our daughter Jennifer and her family. They came down the weekend before Easter and went back home the Monday after the holiday. We had a busy week while they were here - we had family portraits taken on Sunday (photos were taken by a wonderful local photographer, Lauren Sanderson - if you live in the Huntsville area and want a great family photo session, check out her blog here.) This is just one of my favorite candids from this session.
On Tuesday, we drove to Chattanooga to visit the Tennessee Aquarium; Jenn had a consult with an oral surgeon on Weds; and of course, we did lots of crafty things with the kids throughout the week. On Saturday, we all got up bright and early to drive to Lynchburg, TN. Jennifer ran the Oak Barrel Half - 13.1 miles of grueling up and down the hilly terrain. After her run, she and I walked up to the Jack Daniels visitor's center and had her medal signed by the master distiller and purchased a couple of bottles of Jack Daniels and had them laser engraved to commemorate the event. Next up was lunch at the BBQ Caboose Cafe.
We concluded our day in Lynchburg with a walking tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery.
Sunday was Easter - the kids received lots of goodies from the Easter Bunny and enjoyed hunting for eggs in Grandma & Grandpa's front yard.
It was a wonderful visit and I am looking forward to their return in May (Jennifer is coming down then to have her wisdom teeth removed - they do not have a local doc who participates in their dental plan so she is going to the one Melissa used a couple of years ago who does.)
If you are still with me, I'd like to share one last bit of news. Those of you who follow my blog will recall that about 18 months ago, Jennifer embarked on a weight loss journey. With dieting and exercise she has lost over 125 lbs. She ran her first 5K about 5 months into her journey and has since completed many 5Ks and next weekend will run her 5th half marathon.
This week, Jennifer made a HUGE commitment - she signed up to run her first FULL marathon - yes, you read that right - she is going to run 26.2 miles! She chose St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital as the charity to run and raise money for. She has commited to raising $2500 for this wonderful cause with a personal goal of $2620 - $100 dollars for each mile she will be running.
To help Jennifer achieve her fundraising goal, I have decided that I will be offering some giveaways on my blog over the next couple of months. The prizes may be scrapbook related, they may be handmade items, there will be a variety! Anyone who is a follower of my blog who donates during the "live dates" of the giveaways will be entered for a chance to win. I hope to have the first giveaway posted before the end of the month so be sure to check back.
Jennifer is also running a giveaway on her blog - Running for my Life
I apologize for my lengthy absence - no good reason except that life has just been hectic and I haven't time to create and therefore didn't have anything artsy/craftsy to post. I'm hoping to get back to creating in the near future....but in the meantime, I wanted to check in and let everyone know I am still kickin' - and THANK YOU for your continued support!
We just enjoyed a 9 day visit from our daughter Jennifer and her family. They came down the weekend before Easter and went back home the Monday after the holiday. We had a busy week while they were here - we had family portraits taken on Sunday (photos were taken by a wonderful local photographer, Lauren Sanderson - if you live in the Huntsville area and want a great family photo session, check out her blog here.) This is just one of my favorite candids from this session.
On Tuesday, we drove to Chattanooga to visit the Tennessee Aquarium; Jenn had a consult with an oral surgeon on Weds; and of course, we did lots of crafty things with the kids throughout the week. On Saturday, we all got up bright and early to drive to Lynchburg, TN. Jennifer ran the Oak Barrel Half - 13.1 miles of grueling up and down the hilly terrain. After her run, she and I walked up to the Jack Daniels visitor's center and had her medal signed by the master distiller and purchased a couple of bottles of Jack Daniels and had them laser engraved to commemorate the event. Next up was lunch at the BBQ Caboose Cafe.
We concluded our day in Lynchburg with a walking tour of the Jack Daniels Distillery.
Sunday was Easter - the kids received lots of goodies from the Easter Bunny and enjoyed hunting for eggs in Grandma & Grandpa's front yard.
It was a wonderful visit and I am looking forward to their return in May (Jennifer is coming down then to have her wisdom teeth removed - they do not have a local doc who participates in their dental plan so she is going to the one Melissa used a couple of years ago who does.)
If you are still with me, I'd like to share one last bit of news. Those of you who follow my blog will recall that about 18 months ago, Jennifer embarked on a weight loss journey. With dieting and exercise she has lost over 125 lbs. She ran her first 5K about 5 months into her journey and has since completed many 5Ks and next weekend will run her 5th half marathon.
This week, Jennifer made a HUGE commitment - she signed up to run her first FULL marathon - yes, you read that right - she is going to run 26.2 miles! She chose St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital as the charity to run and raise money for. She has commited to raising $2500 for this wonderful cause with a personal goal of $2620 - $100 dollars for each mile she will be running.
To help Jennifer achieve her fundraising goal, I have decided that I will be offering some giveaways on my blog over the next couple of months. The prizes may be scrapbook related, they may be handmade items, there will be a variety! Anyone who is a follower of my blog who donates during the "live dates" of the giveaways will be entered for a chance to win. I hope to have the first giveaway posted before the end of the month so be sure to check back.
Jennifer is also running a giveaway on her blog - Running for my Life
Here is the link to Jennifer's St. Jude fundraising page - please visit and read her story!
Thanks so much for stopping by - I've really missed hearing from all of you!Thursday, January 12, 2012
Another food post - homemade granola bars!
Today I decided to attempt to make homemade granola bars - in an effort to make something that does not contain sugar alcohols and various chemicals.
I've seen many recipes on-line for granola bars but the one that most interested me was one for chewy granola bars - (like the Quaker brand ones). Here's the link to the blog where I found the recipe: http://backtothecuttingboard.com/dessert/no-bake-chewy-granola-bars/
I'm obviously not a food blogger but thought I would share pics of the bars I made - they look almost like bars you would buy! I made 3 batches but only photographed two of them. The first batch I made used some purchased Raspberry Vanilla flavored granola. I simply used 2 cups of that, 1 cup of rice krispies, and the brown sugar, butter, honey syrup. They turned out great so I was encouraged to go one step further - I made my own granola for the next two batches. I used the recipe from the link above. Once the granola was finished, I made a batch of s'more bars - following the directions exactly.
The last batch I made was a peanut butter bar with peanut butter and chocolate chips. To create this bar, I wanted to add peanut butter to the peanut butter/chocolate recipe on the blog listed above. I made the following modifications and it seemed to work out perfect: increase the brown sugar to 3/8 cup and once the syrup has cooked for the 2 minutes, stir in 1/4 cup peanut butter.
All 3 flavors are YUMMY and a hit with the family. Going to check out the granola selection at Earth Fare next time I go in - see what other flavors I can create!
Let me know if you try this recipe - I was so excited at how they turned out.
I've seen many recipes on-line for granola bars but the one that most interested me was one for chewy granola bars - (like the Quaker brand ones). Here's the link to the blog where I found the recipe: http://backtothecuttingboard.com/dessert/no-bake-chewy-granola-bars/
I'm obviously not a food blogger but thought I would share pics of the bars I made - they look almost like bars you would buy! I made 3 batches but only photographed two of them. The first batch I made used some purchased Raspberry Vanilla flavored granola. I simply used 2 cups of that, 1 cup of rice krispies, and the brown sugar, butter, honey syrup. They turned out great so I was encouraged to go one step further - I made my own granola for the next two batches. I used the recipe from the link above. Once the granola was finished, I made a batch of s'more bars - following the directions exactly.
Let me know if you try this recipe - I was so excited at how they turned out.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Happy New Year!
First, an apology for being a bad blogger. It's been a typical holiday season for me - custom framing gets a bit crazy during the holiday season and entails lots of long hours and abnormal shifts. Once that kicks in, I have a hard time just getting through the days and doing the things that have to be done - so the blog suffers yet again.
On a totally unrelated note, I took the tree down this morning. And, spent a couple of hours photographing and inventorying all of the ornaments. I typed the inventory sheets into spreadsheets on google docs and will be uploading my photos to an online storage site. After the 2011 tornados that barely missed us, I have thought quite a bit about the fact that we have no detailed list of our belongings. And, a list won't do you much good if it is blown away by a tornado, burnt by a fire, etc - so online storage of the list and photo documentation seems a good way to go.
Of course, a couple of boxes of Christmas stuff is only a tiny drop in the bucket, but there's a reason I started there. This year, when we went to put up the tree, Harvey went to the attic and brought down a tree and ornaments - but not the ones I wanted. See, we have two trees and two completely different sets of ornaments. One tree is huge and the ornaments that go on it are ones we have collected in our 30+ years of married life together - we call it the MEMORY tree. The other tree is one of the slim trees and the ornaments that decorate it are color themed to coordinate with our home. To make a long story short - Harvey spent an hour going through every storage container in the attic TWICE to find the box I was looking for. I vowed then and there that I would get the stuff up there sorted and inventoried, labeled with numbers that correspond to inventory spreadsheets. Next year I can just tell him which box numbers to bring down.
So, 2 boxes of ornaments and one tree down - the rest is going to wait until we have a nice day and Harvey can bring it all down to the garage.
My questions today are - how many of you have a COMPLETE household inventory? What format have you used - written lists, computer software, online storage, photos? And, how thorough have you been - do you itemize book and movie titles, etc? Or just count 30 paperbacks, 20 dvds, etc?
And, last but not least, have you inventoried your craft room? (I don't want to know how much money sits in this room, LOL)
On a totally unrelated note, I took the tree down this morning. And, spent a couple of hours photographing and inventorying all of the ornaments. I typed the inventory sheets into spreadsheets on google docs and will be uploading my photos to an online storage site. After the 2011 tornados that barely missed us, I have thought quite a bit about the fact that we have no detailed list of our belongings. And, a list won't do you much good if it is blown away by a tornado, burnt by a fire, etc - so online storage of the list and photo documentation seems a good way to go.
Of course, a couple of boxes of Christmas stuff is only a tiny drop in the bucket, but there's a reason I started there. This year, when we went to put up the tree, Harvey went to the attic and brought down a tree and ornaments - but not the ones I wanted. See, we have two trees and two completely different sets of ornaments. One tree is huge and the ornaments that go on it are ones we have collected in our 30+ years of married life together - we call it the MEMORY tree. The other tree is one of the slim trees and the ornaments that decorate it are color themed to coordinate with our home. To make a long story short - Harvey spent an hour going through every storage container in the attic TWICE to find the box I was looking for. I vowed then and there that I would get the stuff up there sorted and inventoried, labeled with numbers that correspond to inventory spreadsheets. Next year I can just tell him which box numbers to bring down.
So, 2 boxes of ornaments and one tree down - the rest is going to wait until we have a nice day and Harvey can bring it all down to the garage.
My questions today are - how many of you have a COMPLETE household inventory? What format have you used - written lists, computer software, online storage, photos? And, how thorough have you been - do you itemize book and movie titles, etc? Or just count 30 paperbacks, 20 dvds, etc?
And, last but not least, have you inventoried your craft room? (I don't want to know how much money sits in this room, LOL)
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Off Topic - Cooking is another of favorite activities
Due to our varied schedules, I've been doing a lot of cook-ahead things for the freezer. One of our favorites so far is a recipe I found at Taste of Home for Bacon Cheeseburger Buns:
Today, I used the yeast dough portion of this recipe and made them into pizza style rolls - I just combined a can of pizza sauce, one pound of mozzarella cheese, diced ham, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, and green peppers for the filling. After baking, I brushed the rolls with butter and sprinkled with some parmesan cheese. YUM!
Since I was doing the whole waiting on the dough to rise thing, I decided I would also try out a recipe that Melissa found for Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls - these are outstanding!
I've made a lot of soups and meals for the freezer - if anyone is interested, check out the blog: Once A Month Mom. There are some awesome recipes and they all include instructions for make ahead cooking. As we try some of them, I'll share results if anyone is interested.
That's it for today - closing tonight so have to head to work now.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Today, I used the yeast dough portion of this recipe and made them into pizza style rolls - I just combined a can of pizza sauce, one pound of mozzarella cheese, diced ham, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, and green peppers for the filling. After baking, I brushed the rolls with butter and sprinkled with some parmesan cheese. YUM!
Since I was doing the whole waiting on the dough to rise thing, I decided I would also try out a recipe that Melissa found for Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls - these are outstanding!
I've made a lot of soups and meals for the freezer - if anyone is interested, check out the blog: Once A Month Mom. There are some awesome recipes and they all include instructions for make ahead cooking. As we try some of them, I'll share results if anyone is interested.
That's it for today - closing tonight so have to head to work now.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
My favorite crafty things!
I am working on cleaning my disaster of a scrapbook area this morning and as I was putting things back in their proper places - I noticed that I keep my FAVORITE crafty items right next to me. I'm sure you can guess what they are:
Here's a picture of the inside of my svgcuts binder - I printed all of the .pdf sheets 2 to a page and then used the half size sheet protectors. The binder is my old stamp binder that I outgrew. I now store my stamps in a file box.
These 4 items are ones that I use every single time I sit down at my scrapping desk. What about you - what are your favorite crafty items?
Thanks for stopping by!
- Black Cat Lynx! (if you are wondering about the tape on the Lynx - that is the mark to align my Cricut mat against for perfect positioning.)
- SVGCUTS Binder containing .pdf printouts of all the kits and collections I own - for easy reference!
- Scotch Spray Mount .- the absolute best solution I've found for keeping my mats sticky!
- Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive - the best glue I've ever used for paper crafting!
Here's a picture of the inside of my svgcuts binder - I printed all of the .pdf sheets 2 to a page and then used the half size sheet protectors. The binder is my old stamp binder that I outgrew. I now store my stamps in a file box.
These 4 items are ones that I use every single time I sit down at my scrapping desk. What about you - what are your favorite crafty items?
Thanks for stopping by!
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Epilepsy Awareness Blog Hop
Thank you for joining for our Epilepsy Awareness Blog Hop. You will see great projects and read about some of our personal experiences. There will also be blog candy along the way, so be sure to visit all the stops.
Epilepsy is a medical condition that produces different types of seizures. It affects 50 million people worldwide. If you would like to read more information about Epilepsy you can go to the Epilepsy foundation online at : http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/
Neither I or any of my immediate family members suffer from epilepsy. When my oldest daughter was younger she was evaluated for some seizures she experienced but they did not turn out to be epilepsy. My husband's step-mother has a nephew who has epilepsy and as a result, I've tried to become more active in promoting awareness. I have spent quite a bit of time reading on-line about the disease and I made that the focus of my layout for this blog hop - sites to visit and tidbits of info about events to raise awareness.
I apologize in advance for the quality of this layout - my paper trimmer desperately needs a new blade and I could not get a straight cut no matter how I tried. (On a side note - anyone have a recommendation for a new trimmer? Can't find blades for mine anymore - it's an OLD model.) If you want to read the captions and such - you should be able to click and enlarge the image.
Please begin this hop at Holley's blog: http://www.holleybarnhartsblog.com/
Holley- http://holleybarnhartsblog.blogspot.com/(start hop here)
Ashley - http://www.especiallymade.blogspot.com/
Jessica- http://www.canyoupixelthis.com/
Lora - http://scrpbooklady.blogspot.com/ YOU ARE HERE
Michelle- http://www.craftychelle.blogspot.com/
Rexann- http://ibecircled.blogspot.com/
Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Zenita- http://www.scrappinwithz.blogspot.com/
Sher- http://www.patternsbysher.blogspot.com/ (end of hop)
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Epilepsy is a medical condition that produces different types of seizures. It affects 50 million people worldwide. If you would like to read more information about Epilepsy you can go to the Epilepsy foundation online at : http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/
Neither I or any of my immediate family members suffer from epilepsy. When my oldest daughter was younger she was evaluated for some seizures she experienced but they did not turn out to be epilepsy. My husband's step-mother has a nephew who has epilepsy and as a result, I've tried to become more active in promoting awareness. I have spent quite a bit of time reading on-line about the disease and I made that the focus of my layout for this blog hop - sites to visit and tidbits of info about events to raise awareness.
I apologize in advance for the quality of this layout - my paper trimmer desperately needs a new blade and I could not get a straight cut no matter how I tried. (On a side note - anyone have a recommendation for a new trimmer? Can't find blades for mine anymore - it's an OLD model.) If you want to read the captions and such - you should be able to click and enlarge the image.
Please begin this hop at Holley's blog: http://www.holleybarnhartsblog.com/
Holley- http://holleybarnhartsblog.blogspot.com/(start hop here)
Ashley - http://www.especiallymade.blogspot.com/
Jessica- http://www.canyoupixelthis.com/
Lora - http://scrpbooklady.blogspot.com/ YOU ARE HERE
Michelle- http://www.craftychelle.blogspot.com/
Rexann- http://ibecircled.blogspot.com/
Lisa - http://handmadewithlove-lisa.blogspot.com/
Zenita- http://www.scrappinwithz.blogspot.com/
Sher- http://www.patternsbysher.blogspot.com/ (end of hop)
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)