Motivation

Another weekend, another project. I made another wreath! And now I'm selling them! I got my first order last night and I and taking more! The one I made this weekend was very simple, but its cute! If anyone wants one, let me know! You get to choose colors and how many flowers you want. I can even do argyle.

I was painting our upstairs hallway this weekend and I never know why I volunteer to help on things that need to look nice. There were a few close calls to the newly painted white doors with yellow hand prints. There are lovely white splatters on the floor, {Thank the good lord that we are ripping that up next} and there is also a dog foot print since dog #1 felt like exploring the paint. But it was nice to have two friends keeping me company and a watchful eye out for me while I worked.

Kelso {dog #2} & Payton {dog #1}

I finished Week one of Couch to 5K on Saturday!! Today I got the bright idea during short circuit {8 stations-3 minutes at each station} to see how long I could run during the whole 3 minutes. Surprising to me, I ran the whole 3 minutes. Week 2 starts tomorrow and it sounds like a fun time!

"The longest journey begins with a small step taken by a brave person."  

Never underestimate a hot glue gun...

As I sit here watching Teen Mom 2 (Can you tell I like reality TV yet?) I realized that I still have a Christmas tree up in my room. Craaap. I didn't leave it up because I'm one of those people that love Christmas trees, no, it's up because I forgot about it and don't feel like putting it away. Maybe tomorrow.

Today was the first day of Couch to 5K. And I must say....I rocked it!! As much as I hate running, it didn't bother me today. I tried this once in the summer, but the humidity of Southern Illinois got the best of me and I quit. But my cousin's Brian and Jamie won't let me quit this time! Ask me how I feel tomorrow.

I am really becoming quite the crafter this past week and it's a bit strange. I finished a wreath that I started last night. I worked on it for about 3 hours last night and fought with the yarn for about a good hour of that 3. Then I finished it today and it took probably an hour or less. I got the idea from pinterest yet again. But more specifically http://thirtyhandmadedays.com/2011/03/yarn-wreath-tutorial-from-angel-face-designs/
The process started with taking a trip to Hobby Lobby. So tough right? I should never be allowed in Hobby Lobby. My mother realized after walking through with me the other day, that she now knows where I decorated my apartment from. It's not my fault that they support my "Live Laugh Love" and Fleur de lis obsession. :)  I bought I Love This Yarn- yarn and felt and Styrofoam circles. Once I got home I hot glued the beginning of the yarn to the circle.

  Then I wrapped the yarn around the whole thing.

 Once it was done, it looked like this:

Then I got to make the flowers! I burnt my finger making the circle gray ones. That was fun.

When I was done it now looks like this:

I was pretty proud of it. 

My brother laughed at me and asked why I would make that. 

And why would someone want that.

Loving sibling.

I found another quote that I just LOVE and I feel like it fits me perfectly. Hang in there, its a long one.

"This is your life. Do what you love and do it often.

If you don't like something, change it.

If you don't like your job, quit.

If you don't have enough time, stop watching TV.

If you are looking for the love of your life, stop;

They will be waiting for you when you

start doing things you love.

Stop over-analyzing, life is simple.

All emotions are beautiful.

When you eat, appreciate every last bite.

Open your mind, arms, and heart to new things.

And people, we are united in our differences.

Ask the next person you see what their passion is,

and share your inspiring dream with them.

Travel often; Getting lost will help you find yourself.

Some opportunities only come once, seize them.

Life is about the people you meet, 

and the good things you create with them. 

So go out and start creating.

Life is short.

Live your dream,

And wear your passion."

Weekend is over?

This weekend has been an interesting one for sure. But if you all know me by now, you will know that it is Kardashian Sunday!! 30 minutes until the show begins and I can't wait. It might be sad to some but everyone has their quirks! I've been tested this weekend in a few different ways. One, was an actual fit test that I think I sorta rocked! Except for one item...which my abs still hurt from. The second, is that people like to use words to hurt your soul. It wouldn't bother me as much if it wasn't family using the words. But I stumbled upon a few quotes on my favorite website today {pinterest} and I think they best fit my weekend. The first is:

"Just keep moving forward and don't give a shit about what anybody thinks.

Do what you have to do for you." ~Johnny Depp.

The second is from the bible: 

"How can I say "I can't" when the Bible says, "I can do anything through him who gives me strength."

Philippians 4:13

I've realized that you really do make your own family as you grow. But I'm moving on from this experience and going to continue to enjoy my life and the gifts God has given me lately.  My trust factor in people may be low again but I'm sure I will bring it back up in due time.

I kinda stumbled upon a side job this weekend and I'm kinda excited about it. I started making some canvas art for fun.

I started by gluing crayons to a canvas. 

Then I took a blow dryer to the crayons and melted them.

They turned out like this:

It was super easy to do. It did stink up the kitchen. I would advise to do it when no one is home other than you and that way no one can complain about the smell! :)

I ended up posting this picture on facebook and a friend ended up wanting to buy them from me. I've decided that I'm going to start selling my home-made items on etsy.

I'm working on making wreaths. Here is a sneak peek of what I'm working on now:

I would also advise any one who decides to use glue adhesive to use it in a well ventilated area...

Hopefully this will be done soon! It's taking longer than I thought!

Well, its about that time for the Kardashian sisters to grace my TV screen. Have a great week friends! 

SNOW!

I used to hate snow. Hated everything about it. The cold, driving in it, ice. I did like to watch it fall tho. Snow days were a plus. I think the reason I hated it so much was due to the fact that I had a paper route for 4 years and had to be out in the cold for an hour or less each day after school. I remember coming home and my legs being so red I thought I was dying. I think I was also looking for an excuse to quit having a paper route. Today I realized that I don't hate the snow anymore! Maybe it's because I have this huge car that can crush the snow and barely fish tail like my old car. I keep getting the urge to text my cousin to see if I can steal her kids again and play in the snow. Then I think twice and realize that's taking it a step too far and I should ease into this new love of snow slowly. One plus of having this new car is that when I warm it up in the morning, it grows a mustache and makes me laugh each morning. Who else would this happen too?

Have you ever been so excited for getting new toys donated for you to use for work? I think I mentioned the other day about getting three large trash bags filled with blocks. Well I finally got to take them into the church and opened the bag and couldn't believe my eyes. They came in different shapes! Octagons, triangles, bridges, rectangles, and squares! My brother doesn't understand my job at all and would probably think I've lost my mind by being so excited over toys. I was just expecting the normal blocks not super shapes!

Seriously, would you be excited?

I know Emily Rancuret would be :)

I realized how far behind I am on my Photo-A-Day Challenge. I think I did the first 3 days and its now the 13th day of the month. So I decided I would catch up a little today. I'm going out of order but I figured that doesn't matter! So for day 4 it is supposed to be a {Letterbox}

This is my letterbox. It has cards in there from at least the last 4 years. They are from everyone who means something to me. My grandparents, my aunts (Linda, Pati, Krista, and Jill), I have pictures from different occasions that I either attended or missed. Oh and a pair of old glasses. I probably could get rid of those.

Day 11 {Where you sleep}

This would be my bed. Pretty big, pretty comfy. Hopefully you can't see the holes in the wall. If you can, please ignore them. I was told I could re-paint the room. Then my father changed his mind and said just to patch the holes. If you know anything about patching holes, you would understand how crappy my wall will look. It might not be that big of a deal, but I have a few holes that have been patched already and I think its ugly and something needs to be hung over them asap.

Day 14 {Something you are reading}

My great friend Shannon is letting me borrow the last two books of the Twilight series. I started this in November. I would read it during our lunch breaks and talk about what I just read. She gave me the movie for Christmas and my goal is to read the book and then watch the movie. I'm on page 239 out of 629 pages. I'm getting no where.

Day 25 {Something you made}

This is the chalkboard I made last week put to the test. It worked great! It sat perfectly on the floor and the kids can draw on it and it barely moved.

I'm finding more reasons to use my Chalkboard spray paint.

Day 30 {Nature}

This is a picture of our street today. I love the winding road, the trees, and the snow.

I always love taking pictures of this road.

Well that brings me up to day 9. Maybe I can catch up more this weekend and take more pictures! Enjoy your weekend friends!

Baker...Crafter...all in one day.

Hello again friends! I've taken a little break from writing this blog all week because of a few reasons. I've realized how many people I can trust and I'm not sure how my words are being translated to other people. But. I've decided that know who I am and what I believe in. If people do not like that then that's their issue and they can deal with it. This is my motto:

No one is control of your happiness but YOU; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or life that you want to change. -Barbara de Angelis

I've changed my life to where I want to be and I love it. So basically, if you are reading this because you support me and just want to, I thank you. If you are reading this for all the wrong reasons, you can stop now.


With that said, lets get on with the show!


I've been so busy today, I don't think I've stopped until now. I helped my mom re-organize cabinets. We received so much food from my grandma's house when she passed, that the cabinets were over flowing and driving me insane! The first thing I stumbled upon was the peanut butter....

Yep...That's five. Two were empty and we decided that my brother just placed them back into the cabinet because "there was just a tiny bit left". One had been missing in all of the mess. So we are now down to three jars. The next thing I stumbled on was the baking soda and powder.

There were 4 baking soda's, 3 baking powders, and 2 Hershey's cocoa. The next thing was four bottles of ketchup. Then 5 boxes of Macaroni and Cheese, and then 4 big boxes of raisins. Now again, I state that most of this was combined between our stash and my grandma's stash. This is what the kitchen looked like while I was re-organizing.

It was a beast but once it was all straightened out, re-figured, and things thrown away, it looked like this:

After I finished my reorganization I had to run to Farm and Fleet to get chalkboard paint for my next project. I decided for dessert, I would make Cake Pops. So, I ran to Wal-Mart also and got the cake mix. I came home and went to work. I started making the cake pops. You start by making a normal cake like usual.

While the cake was baking I finished a few other jobs.

First I finished spray painting one pan and putting chalkboard paint on another pan.

My pink pan has had some issues with the spray paint. Its from Wal-Mart so, of-course, that is why its gross.

I'm going to use this as a magnet board for work. This pan was "practice" pan. 

Then I sprayed the pizza pan with chalkboard paint and it looks awesome! I can wait to bring it to the classrooms!

The grass ended up looking like this...

Whoops.

Yesterday, my second cousin from Peoria sent blocks home with her mom for me. I picked them up and I've never been so excited for three huge black trash bags! My kids are going to LOVE the blocks!

I received two kinds:

The first was a set of wooden ones. I have some already that I can add to it and I now have an awesome set of wooden blocks!

The other set are the cardboard bricks that I love!

Gotta love my family members that have helped me out so much! My aunt gave me three puzzles last night also and I love those! I love having a reason to have toys!

So after the spray painting fun, I still had time before the cake was done baking. My brother has been crying and begging me to make him puppy chow. So I did.

I'm a great sister.

Once it was baked, I let it cool for about 10 minutes.

Once it was cool enough to touch, I started to crumble it into a bowl.

After it was crumbled, I added half a container of frosting. You have to mix it with your hands and then form them into balls and place on a pan. Then freeze the balls for an hour so they form.

I stuck a stick in them hoping they would form to the stick also.

After an hour, I melted semi-sweet chocolate chips and white chocolate chips.

The white chocolate didn't melt normally, so I ended up not using it.

I then dipped the sticks in the chocolate.

Then I added sprinkles.

I froze them for another hour to two hours until we ate them.

3 out of 4 loved them! The one person that thought they were "fine" said they were too rich.

But I disagree.

After my baking extravaganza, I decided to reorganize the hall pantry. It didn't have as many jars of peanut butter but I made it more functional.

This is before: 

 This is after:

After this, I was exhausted and done for the night.

I realized that since I took this little break from writing, that I am far behind in my photo challenge. I figure I will catch up on that tomorrow but I will do the third picture today. It is to be of

 {Something that you adore}

This is Payton. She is attached to my hip this weekend and loves to sleep by me. 

I think she is very happy that I am home again.

I don't know what she will do when/if I move into the new house...

I have been loving my life since I've moved back and this week was even better. I'm a strong believer in "Everything happens for a reason" and I know moving back was the best reason for me.

Well friends, thanks for reading once again, I hope it was worth your time. I'm going to finish watching Kourtney and Kim take New York since this is the episode where things start to go down with Kris. I love the Kardashians! I'm also off to go find my car keys since they have been lost since...oh maybe Monday. Thank goodness that I have a spare key! I hope you all have a great week!

...All Things Kardashian

I'm watching the Bachelor for some ungodly reason, skyping with my Georgian friend Aimee, and texting non-stop. You would think I would stop multi-tasking at least to sit down and write this. But no. The Bachelor is driving me the nuts and the women are CraZy!

I finished my first book of the new year last night! It was: Kris Jenner...and All Things Kardashian. You will learn that I love the Kardashian/Jenner family. Last Christmas I received "Kardashian Konfidential". This Christmas I received Kris' book and "Dollhouse" written by the 3 Kardashian sisters. A little obsessed? Maybe. Kris' book was amazingly written. She talked about her whole life and even more about O.J. and Nicole Brown Simpson. It was strange to read about Nicole's life and how guilty O.J. looks just by her account. I don't remember much of the murder but from what I do remember is that he was guilty. Kris quoted Nicole in her book, "He is going to kill me and get away with it." and he basically did. But I do believe in karma. Anyway, I would love to meet the Kardashian's and live their life for a few days. Or marry Rob. Which ever comes first.

Today would be day two of the Photo Challenge. Today's photo is of {Breakfast}. This was mine:

Yup. Diet Coke and a Biscotti.

Not the normal breakfast I usually have, but this was today. It was also a late breakfast.

Tomorrow's will be better but the challenge wanted the picture today.

Oh well!!

I wasn't as productive today as I was yesterday and its back to work tomorrow. But a 3 day work week sounds fab! Hope your new year is going great! I gotta get myself squared away before the season premier of Intervention begins in 20 minutes! Anyone else watching? 

Oh hey! It's January!

So I'm sitting here in my half organized room watching Teen Mom 2, waiting for Kourtney and Kim Take New York and I realized that it is January! Happy New Years to everyone that may read this and your family! I've been pretty productive these past two days and its kinda not right!

I was cooking up a storm last night! I made french bread pizza~ complete with sausage, tomatoes, and onions~ for dinner last night. Of course it was amazing! My brother's chipped in and made bean dip and burgers. A strange concoxtion, I know. We were stuffed from dinner and watched the sickest movie of the weekend: Straw Dogs. Just at the point where I couldn't take it anymore, I decided to bake cookies since my mom has a huge stash of white chocolate chips in the pantry. But the movie drew me back in, so I finished watching the movie and then began to bake up the chewiest white chocolate chips I've made to date. I think I added too many white chocolate chips, but thats not a big deal! I swore my brothers to secretcy so that no one knew I cooked a fabulous meal but they don't listen and now the whole family knows I can cook the best pizza.

I've been an organizing fool today also! I organized 2 closets today: the one in my room and the one outside of my bathroom. I've decided to hang new things on my wall and I've started with taking off the shelves I got in high school and replaced them with a large picture that I got from my grandma's. There are some nail holes in the wall still, but those will be fixed at a later date! I also hung a mirror and a picture frame. I tried to display my DVD collection in a different way...but that didn't work out so well. That is my work in progress. I'm really liking this organization that I have right now and I'm hoping that it sticks with me!

I've decided that I'm going to take part in: A Photo a Day Challenge for January 2012. The first photo is {January 1st} A photo of yourself. This is my picture:

This is me and Arden on Christmas Eve.

I've also almost finished my first book of this year today. I'll fill you in on it once I finish the last 3 chapters.

Over this past summer I read the best book "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. I was waiting paitently to go see the movie once it came out in August. My friend Aimee and I wanted to see it but we had a very small problem that she lives in Georgia and I live in Illinois. A few people said they would go with me but it never happened. So while I was at Wal-Mart the other day, I saw the DVD on sale. I bought it, came home and watched it. I loved it! It followed the book as much as possible. A few things were changed but they were changed in the way I thought it should have been written in the first place :)

I am now watching Kourtney and Kim (If you know me, you know how much I love the Kardashian family) and I really want to slap Kris Humphries for being so dumb (Cassie...you would agree).

I'm off to continue organizing, reading or just to watch reality tv to end my first day of 2012! I hope everyone is enjoying the things I have to write! Let me know your feelings! Again, Happy New Year!!