Friday, November 30, 2012

Just a Quote for Friday


"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world,
and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful."

~ Norman Vincent Peale

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Right now I am...

My sister {Valerie}, me, and my girl C at my nephew's wedding.
Selfie taken by Carrie, and that little light between us? Mom.

Looking forward to seeing Donny Osmond {oh, and Marie} on Sunday with Carrie.

Wearing sweaters to work because it's chilly in the morning, and then

Sweating in said sweater because it warms up during the day.

Planning a Christmas luncheon for the employees where I work, and

Feeling so happy that duty falls under my job description!

Making lists of stuff to do for Christmas.

Trying to figure out a Christmas card design that will be quick and easy to replicate.

Enjoying our baby turtles and

Wishing Rexy would freaking hibernate already! He's making us so nervous.

Waiting for our birth certificates so Carrie and I can get our passports.

Missing my mom so much, and

Wishing I'd done a better job getting my hands on her recipes while she was still here.

And, finally, feeling super happy inside for no particular reason. {Maybe it's the Christmas spirit...}

What are you up to right now?

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

It's Wednesday, and I want to make these...

Good morning, friends.
Slowly but surely, I'm moving into Christmas mode. I've been feeling a bit uninspired, so last night I thought I'd poke around in my Pinterest pins and see what happened. Next thing you know {bam!} - I'm in the mood! I even went so far as to change my blog banner to fit the season. :o)

Today I'm sharing five items that are on the top of my list to put together this year.

These cute treat holders found here.

These adorable little treat boxes found here.

I can't wait to make this party mix with those cute little Santa hats! Seen here.

Carrie and I have made something similar for several years, but I love
that these are done with round pretzels and Hershey's kisses. Seen here.

I'll be baking little loaves of bread to give to friends, and I love this idea for
wrapping: punched heart shapes (I plan to use my snowflake punch) ironed
between sheets of waxed paper. Seen here.

So, how about you?
Do you have some new things to try this year?
Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Team Teal Tuesday ~ Bread and Aprons

This Thanksgiving was tough without my mom.
Today I'd like to share a couple of things
that we did to honor her throughout the day.

My 16-year old nephew was particularly concerned about bread for the day. His Grandma Marti made yeast rolls for every holiday dinner, and it turns out that was always his favorite part of the meal. I had made them once before, and I had seen my mom make them soooo many times, so I asked if he'd like to give the recipe a try.

My mom would have been so proud of us, working together to make her bread recipe. And I'm happy to report that Tyler did such a great job with the rolls! He'll definitely do it again, and I'm hoping he'll become the next family bread maker.


On Friday morning I uploaded my photos and this shot of Tyler's hands, kneading dough while wearing a teal band on his wrist, brought forth tears I had been able to hold back the day before. I felt so proud of him in that moment, and so honored to have had that time with him. I'll never forget it.


Part two of how we remembered my mom:
A few years ago, before Mom got sick, she made us all aprons for Christmas. I never fully appreciated that feat until I saw us all lined up on Thanksgiving day, each of us in aprons she had made that year. I love that she took Tyler's apron to have "Chef Tyler" embroidered on the front.

Tyler, Savannah, Liz, Ryann, Valerie, Britny,
Carrie, me, and Presley.

So, we survived our first Thanksgiving without Mom, but as you can see,
her love is still so tightly wrapped around us. I'm pretty sure that we have
just set some new traditions in place: making Mom's bread recipe while
wearing aprons she made is something we will definitely do again.

Monday, November 26, 2012

Thanksgiving Weekend Recap

Hello, friends.
And happy Monday morning to you!

The past five days were filled with fun, food, laughter, wine, desserts, washing dishes, music, cleaning up messes, hugging family, and very little sleep. I'm not sure if I want to go back to work for the routine, or if I'd rather just crawl back in bed and rest for the day. {I know what my body would choose if I wasn't such a responsible employee!}

As I searched through my photos this morning for a few to post here on my blog, I realized that the majority are family shots, so I'll just share a few of those and then be off to tackle my day.


This is the first Thanksgiving in a very long time that all of us were together - every sibling, spouse, niece, and nephew. We thought of my mom all day, and mentioned her many times. One of her very favorite things was having us all together, so I know she was smiling right along with us all day!

After the "serious" group shot, there's always a silly one too...

My mom called these kids her "grands" - and I call them nieces and nephews. Hearing the words "Aunt Deb" so many times over the past week has been music to my ears, and I miss these guys already.

The day after Thanksgiving is always a chance for my sister to take some of the kids out shopping for Black Friday. That's not my bag, so I took the opportunity to spend some time with my 7-year old niece, Presley while the others were tearing up the mall. We made a quick trip to a scrapbook store, a pet store, and this really cool candy store. The best part of our day was a little crafting time when we got back to my house. I love this kid!

Saturday night we went downtown to see my nephew Ryne play with his band Downing Street. We are so proud of this kid, and how appropriate to end our time together with one last shot of music.

But wait, we aren't done! Yesterday we had another Thanksgiving gathering with Doug's family - more food, laughter, family hugs, and this time: babies!

and a pup.
 and some more love...
♥
Now it's time to switch gears and start wrapping my head around Christmas.
I need to shake off this food coma and get my jolly on!
Are you there yet?

Thursday, November 22, 2012

So Grateful for You

Thanksgiving this year will be bittersweet for my family.
We are oh so happy to be spending the holiday together,
but we will sure be missing our mom in the mix.
 

I printed and framed one of my favorite photos of Mom, and this will be a centerpiece among our activities for the rest of the week/weekend. We're going to keep a candle burning by it every day.

We'll be making Mom's signature dishes this holiday and in years to come, and we're all going to be wearing the aprons she made for us a couple of years ago as we cook our meal.


So, my mom won't be here in person,
but she will sure be with us in spirit!
 Wishing all of my U.S. friends a very happy Thanksgiving holiday!
I'm just so grateful for your lovely hearts and friendship.
{And for my International friends, even though you may not be
eating turkey today, I'm super grateful for each of you as well!}

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Snacks in a Bottle

I have been thinking about these little treat holders for a while now,
and I'm so excited to set them out on Thanksgiving!
* * * * * * *
I can't remember where I saw this idea, so my apologies if I'm not giving credit where credit is due, but I loved this idea for serving snacks in carafes instead of open bowls. The idea is that guests pour some of the treats into their hand, rather than reaching into the bowl. "A bit more sanitary," I thought, "and besides, it's a cute idea."


I bought these little wine carafes at a restaurant supply store for cheap {Local friends, you have to go there!!! It's on Main just west of Alma School in Mesa...} and I think they'll be great to have around for future events at our house. I want to get a few taller versions for varied height next time.



I printed some Thanksgiving words onto cardstock and used a couple of punches to make the tags, and the ribbon is some that I had in my stash.


And with that, I am officially ready for Thanksgiving company.
Wishing my U.S. friends a very safe and happy holiday,
and my International's a very lovely week!

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Team Teal Tuesday - Behind the Smiles


After a trip to visit my mom last August, I was working on some Project Life pages and I was struck by all of the genuinely happy faces in the photos of the people I love. If anyone were to look at those photos, they'd swear we were on top of the world with happiness. I knew better.


I wanted to document just how we were all dealing with Mom's cancer, so I created a little fold-over page with some other photos that needed to be included, but that I didn't necessarily want on a main page.


My journaling reads:

August 3 - 6, 2012 ~ It's such a blessing to have a family that enjoys time together. My siblings and I can't help but share a few laughs on those occasions. But now, in between moments of joy, are moments of cancer. Those moments of worry, suffering, and the unknown - the heartbreaking sadness in the faces of the ones we love.

There are moments of gratitude, of love and devotion, and of sorrow like I have never known before. My mom's cancer has changed everything; has changed each of us.

One thing cancer will never change is our spirits, or our love for our mom and each other. And even though we live in these moments of cancer, we will still find moments of joy.


This week we will enjoy each other's company during our Thanksgiving holiday and I know we will be missing our mom terribly, but there will be lots of joy. It's what she taught us, and it's what we do. {Thanks, Mom! We love you so much! xo}

Monday, November 19, 2012

Weekend-Before-Thanksgiving Recap

Hooray! It's Monday!!!
That means my family will be rolling into town in a couple of days,
and we'll all be together for Thanksgiving this year.

Oh how I love the thought of a work week with two and a half days, then the remainder spent hanging with my family. We were busy this weekend taking care of a few things around the house. Come on over, I'll show you...

When we bought this house a year ago the backyard was a blank slate. Actually, it was worse than a blank slate - it was a mess that needed to be cleaned up to the state of "blank slate" and then made into something awesome. Anyway, there's one last piece of unfinished ground that we still can't decide what to do with, so Doug spent part of his birthday smoothing it out and temporarily covering it with astro-turf.

We went out for a nice birthday dinner for Doug, and afterwards celebrated with Carrie's annual German chocolate birthday cake. Mass amounts of calories were consumed yesterday, and I'm kind of glad I'll be at work all day so I won't be tempted by this again today:

This is my favorite time of year in Arizona, and we really enjoy eating outside on our patio. We had a light lunch of quesadillas outside, and talked about table set-up plans for this Thursday. The forecast is for beautiful weather, so we'll be having our Thanksgiving dinner outdoors. {Please, Mother Nature? Pleeeeease?}

Quick story: A little over seven years ago, just a few weeks before our wedding, Doug and I were in the mountains riding his quad when he spotted an elk antler on the side of the dirt road we were on {elk shed their antlers and grow a new pair every year}. Based on the size of it, I knew the elk would have probably tried to shake the other one off {these things are heavy, and once one falls off the animal will sometimes shake until the other comes off too} and sure enough, not far from the antler that Doug found was the other one that I got to find.
I love the story of these antlers and of our day out riding, and I'm so happy to finally have them displayed in our home. Anyway, there was a particular way I wanted these hung, and this weekend was try-number-two because I wasn't happy with the way they went up last weekend. I know, go ahead and say it, Poor Doug. I'll admit, the man is a saint.

And meanwhile in another nature related saga, is the box turtle who refuses to go to sleep for the winter. We've made every effort to provide a comfortable hibernating environment, some soft dirt to burrow in, and this boy just isn't buying it. I suppose he's confused by the warm days/cold nights.


And because I don't want to end my weekend recap with a photo of our turtle's rear end, here's a little garden shot for you. :o)


And now I'm off to do my best at concentrating at work for the next couple of days! I imagine I'll be somewhat distracted ~ but in a good way. It's going to be such a fun week at our place. Here's wishing each of you a bit of the same.

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Happy Birthday to my Guy

{Carrie's photo}

Happy Birthday to the most awesome husband on the planet.
Today, Doug, it's all about you.
!!!

PS: I love you! xo

Friday, November 16, 2012

Just a Quote for Friday


 {California autumn leaves}

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned,
worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual
experience of living every minute with love,
grace, and gratitude."
~ Denis Waitley

And a personal note because this quote feels so significant for me ~ For years I lived my life feeling sorry for myself and focusing on all the things I didn't have {a great childhood, a happy marriage, a job I liked, a nice car...}. When I started focusing on all the many blessings I had, everything changed for me. I highly recommend an attitude of gratitude as an everyday lifestyle!

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Super Easy, Super Yummy, Homemade Bread

Man, it's been a while since I shared a recipe on my blog.
Here's one for you that will make your house smell amazing,
your mouth super happy, and your body feel like it needs a trip to the gym.
It's that good.

Buttery Beer Bread


3 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 12-ounce can/bottle of beer
1/2 cup butter, melted {or less...see note below.*} 
  1. Preheat oven to 375°
  2. Combine all dry ingredients in a medium bowl and stir with a whisk
  3. Add beer and stir with a wooden spoon until incorporated
  4. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and pour beer bread batter into pan
  5. Pour melted butter over the top of the beer bread batter {*whoa ~ that seemed like a LOT of butter, so I only poured half of it on top and the bread was still delicious!}
  6. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes
  7. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan 
{found the recipe here ~ changed it up just a tad}


I found a recipe in my collection {in my mom's handwriting} for beer bread that has only two ingredients:
2-2/3 cup self-rising flour, and one 12-oz can of beer
Mix and bake the same as above, and Mom's recipe has variations with it. One is to add a cup of shredded cheddar cheese to the flour before mixing in the beer, and I know that would be a winner around my house. May have to try that one next time...

Anyway,
I made chili to go with this bread and my hubby was a happy man.
{Oh...plus it was Sunday and he was watching football,
but I think the bread was the highlight...I think...}

Peace, love, and warm bread.
xo

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Looking out my backdoor...

Happy mid-week, friends.

It's been a few weeks since I've done a garden update, and I'm sure there are a few of you wondering how things are growing. Come on out to our backyard and have a look...


I just love this time of year in Arizona - and these flowers do too.


I've been checking on my peppers and was totally surprised the other day when I found that they are turning red! What the...? I've never known a red jalapeno before...


I wonder if this means they are going to be super hot. Anyone a pepper expert?


I have had this turtle planter for years and it's seen its share of plants come and go. Right now he's sporting a healthy bunch of ice plant.


Remember my awesome sunflower crop this year? Here's what's left of them. I need to pull out a few more seeds to save for next years crop, then I'll let the birds finish what they've started.


I'm so happy to have all this awesome color in our backyard to brighten up the space for next week's Thanksgiving dinner that will be served on our patio. We do have a Plan B just in case Mother Nature has other ideas, but I'm counting on sunshine.

Anything growing on your piece of the planet?

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Team Teal Tuesday - The Prayer Shawl

Shortly after my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, she received a beautiful prayer shawl as a gift. The shawl had been crocheted by St. Mark's Catholic Community - Boise Prayer Shawl Ministry. I remember visiting my mom shortly after she had received the shawl - I loved it instantly! It was so soft, and the bright colors were so appealing.

{Mom's living room}
In those 20 months that my mom fought ovarian cancer, she would wrap the shawl around herself when she read her daily devotionals, and I'm assuming she prayed with it as well.

Now that Mom has left, we are faced with the task of distributing her belongings. When I asked my sister for a suggestion on what to do with Mom's prayer shawl, her immediate response was, "How about we give it to Judi?" My sister was so right, Judi was the perfect choice for this special prayer shawl! {You may recall a story I wrote about their wonderful friendship here on my blog - my mom and Judi met while receiving chemo last December.}


My step-dad, Rod brought the shawl to me when we met for my nephew's wedding last weekend, and something happened that I wasn't expecting. The shawl smelled like my mom - her wonderful smell - and I buried my face in it time and time again, inhaling the sweet scent of my mother.

{wrapped around me, one last time...}

As I packaged the prayer shawl up to send to Judi, my emotions got the best of me. I didn't want to let it go! I buried my face in it over and over - savoring the scent and torturing myself.

I really didn't want to keep the shawl myself, and I realize that it won't always smell like my mom {so grateful that Rod hadn't washed it!}. Knowing how honored Judi would be to receive it gave me that extra little push to put it in the box and tape it up. I honestly felt my mom with me at the post office that day. Her love surrounded me and comforted me as I let go of this sweet little piece of her. I knew my mom wanted Judi to have her shawl.

And we were right - Judi loved receiving the prayer shawl. I know in my heart that my mom is smiling down from up above, knowing that her dear friend is wrapped in the warmth and love of her special prayer shawl. It's right where it belongs.

Isn't it awesome the way this universe works?
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