Kentucky Sky

I got to stay home from work tonight. I could have missed this evening.

But I did't.

Farmboy decided to make a fire outside while I cooked dinner and he called me out to witness this beautiful sky.





I don't think I have ever seen such a completely pink and blue sky before.
 It looked like a drawing out of a children's book.

It fascinates me that Our Creator gives us these things to bring moments of joy to our lives.

What other reason can you think of for making the atmosphere reflect light in such a way?

Psalm 8: 1, 3, 4

                                                 ¹ LORD, our Lord,
                                                   how majestic is your name in all the earth!

                                                  You have set your glory
                                                   in the heavens.

                                               ³ When I consider your heavens,
                                                  the work of your fingers,
                                                  the moon and the stars,
                                                  which you have set in place,
                                               ⁴ what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
                                                  human beings that you care for them?

Aloha cards gift set

I made this note card gift set for my sister-in-law for her birthday. . .like me she is a December birthday, so I wanted to make her something definitely NOT Decemberish. . .

I haven't been so pleased with how a card set came out in a long time. . .they just make me smile!


I used my Silhouette to cut out a box and lid. It was a bit tricky getting it the right size for the cards, but after some trial and error and a few pieces of paper for the trash. . .I was very happy with the end result.




The cards and their envelopes fit perfectly inside!

I made two of each design.

Card 1.

Card 2.

Card 3.

Card 4.

If you look closely you will notice that I cut all of the papers the same size, but just attached them  differently on each card, making each one look unique.

This was such a fun project! I hope she likes it!

Christmas Card Ideas

I would like to announce that the Williams family will not be sending out Christmas cards this year.

Please, don't judge me. . .

It's not nice to judge.

The Crafty Lady of the house made an executive decision and decided that the stamp money would better spent on "we have finally moved" cards to be sent out sometime in February.

In the meantime I couldn't resist busting out some Christmas stamps from my stash and whipping up a few cards to use some other time. . .



For the first card I used a corner rounder with the guard removed to make the ruffles
and colored in the snowman with watercolor pencils.



For the second card I broke out the embossing powder and my heat gun.

I love embossing!!! To quote my daughter, "It's like magic!!!"

It makes this simple card really special. . .

PS. I mooched this idea from a co-worker who brought in a stack of her cards for me to look at. Thanks, Lynna!

Here is a closer look at the clear embossing.

Hope you enjoy! Have wonderful Christmas!!!

One week in. . .

So, a week has gone by in my world and I am on #20 in my list of one thousand gifts.

I am not just sitting down and writing every single thing I can think of that I am thankful for, I am writing things down as they happen. . .that is the key. . . to be in the moment. As I looked back over this week it occurred to me that I have started a journal of sorts. Most of the things there are things that I would have forgotten as soon as the moment passed, but yet, as I read over them my smile returns just as bright as when I penned the words.

I won't sit here and claim to be changed. I think it is (and will be) an ongoing process. . .one that may never be fully completed, but here I am. . .

Enjoying each moment as it comes!

Secret Santa. . .

We drew names at work for a gift exchange and (lucky me) I drew a name that 

I could actually come up with a creative idea for!!!

You see, she has just started remodeling her ENTIRE house. 

The sign up sheet for her prayer list (i.e. sanity) will be circulating soon.

The other thing you should know about her is that she is OBSESSED with the 80's. . .I personally think it is because she didn't have to truly experience that time period. . .

I am pretty sure she was  still in diapers.

Anyway, since I have a hunch that her husband will not let her decorate her house 80's style I decided to inspire her to embrace her wild side and go all out for the one room that is truly and completely is hers alone. . .

Merry Christmas, from Santa!

I Am Ashamed. . .

 .

 .

 

      As I stand on the cusp of living the life I have prayed for for the past 7 years, I am frustrated by my humanity. I have so much. . .so much more than I could have ever dreamed, yet each day I am able to find something to complain about. . .some disappointment to dwell on.


      Perhaps it is because I am still in transition, but I am beginning to wonder if this whining has become a habit for me. I have really been feeling convicted about my attitude. . .it seems that this time of year smacks me in the face with it. . .stuff, stuff and more stuff. . .the quest for more, bigger, better that we American's are known for. . .Santa first on my kid's minds. . . The Nativity an afterthought. . .OUCH!


      A friend had posted on facebook about a Jesse Tree and as I was looking into doing this for my own family I stumbled onto a website and in a late night web surfing impulse immediately bought the e-book and started reading. . .it is simple, but heavy stuff. . . Thankfulness. . .Living life fully because you are aware each moment of the gifts God has given you. . .true thankfulness. . .for the little things.

http://onethousandgifts.com/

She started writing a list of 1000 gifts and it changed her perspective and her life. I am only on chapter 4, but I am already excited at how God is going to use this to change my heart.

 My One Thousand Gifts

1. My son's eyes.
2. My daughter's gap toothed smile.
3. Sunlight shadows on my houseplant.
4. The dark and rich smell of coffee.
5. Kittens wrestling.
6. . .

Caramel Apple Squares

I was cruising through Walmart a while back and glanced over and saw these little lovelies. . .

They magically dove straight into my basket. . .seriously, I didn't even blink. . .

First they were on the shelf, and then they were in the basket. I didn't even slow down. . .

I could hear them calling to me!

I had to figure out something to do with them. Here is what I came up with. 

The cast and crew.

Cream the butter and shortening together for about 30 sec on high.

Peel your Granny Smith apple. . .

I will stray from my love afair with Ambrosia apples when it comes to baking. 

Granny Smiths really stand up to the sweetness here. 

*Note: If you don't have one of these peelers, then I have another item for your Christmas list. They are a little awquard at first because you peel towards you, but they are oh-so-awesome and make peeling things a breeze! I even use it to slice thin strips off the end of a block of cheese.
You can order one here . .I digress. . .

Cut the apple into 1/2 inch cubes. For my apple cutting technique see my apple post.

Add the two sugars, the baking powder and baking soda.

Mix well, then add egg and vanilla.

Mix well.

Add flour and mix well.

Add rolled oats and mix well. . .I sense a theme. . .mix well, people!

If you truly want to be like me, then dump some oatmeal on the floor while you are taking pictures.

Mix well.

Add Caramel bits and apples.

Mix well.

I like to leave my mixer unlocked when I put chunky pieces in. 

 It lets the mixer head bounce and it keeps the chunks from getting squwarshed. . .

Dump into a greased (or sprayed) 9x13 pan.

Squwarsh.

Bake at 350 for 22-25 minutes.

Cool completely and then cut into squares.

I think these might need some ice cream. . .just sayin'. . .

You can find my printable recipe here.

Christmas Edition of Crafty Wednesday. . .

Today is the day that the Old School Christmas Tree shall be deemed completed!

I armed myself with some supplies and set out to make an angel tree topper.




First, I impaled a foam ball on a pencil and painted  the front of it. 

Next, I folded a square of felt in half and cut out a dress shape.

See?

Then, I attempted to glue it together with Elmer's (it was the only glue I had with me). . .it didn't work. I resorted to sewing it up the back with good ol' needle and thread.

I bent pipe cleaners into wing shapes.

Glued on some feathers.

Covered the tips with additional feathers.

And repeated. . .

Putting the wings on didn't go as I had hoped. . . it involved sticky fingers, a few sneezes, more needle and thread. . .trying not to use bad words in front of the kids and then remaking one of the wings. . .it wasn't pretty. . .or very "Martha-ish". . .I opted to not take pictures of the event. . .you are on your own earning your own wings. . .

I then finished up the head by gluing on yarn hair, drawing on the face and then I shoved on a halo. . .

It was strangely therapeutic after the "wing incident". . .

On with her head!!!



I used the toilet paper roll to give the inside some stability on the tree. I just kinda stuck it in there.

Ta-Da!!!

Complete!

PS. My amazingly creative 7yo took my leftover supplies and made a bunch of birdies. . .cute!

The End.

Old School Christmas: Part 3

So, with a needle and thread, a bowl of popcorn and some cranberries, and one hour of our time,
we made a beautiful garland for our special tree. . .it actually brought back fond memories from my childhood when I made garlands for the little tree I kept in my room. . .

Now we have to figure our what we are going to do for the top. . .

Does anyone have any suggestions?