brrrr...

yoga leggings - $19.99
jeans - $39.99
tank top #1 - $9.99
tank top #2 - $9.99
fleece hoodie - $19.99
pair of socks #1 - $3
pair of socks #2 - $3
solid shoes with good tread - $24.99
down jacket - $69.99
chenille earband - $4.99
wool hat - $15
little scarf - (handmade gift)
big scarf - $20
really bad hat hair - (free)

barely noticing that it's 18 degrees out as i hoof it to and from bus stops: priceless.

{oh, and lest you think we're just a bunch of wusses - that photo was taken sunday, shortly after it started snowing. there's far more accumulation now!!}

speaking of snowflakes...

last tuesday, i planned to make snowflakes with the kids at my husband's family's thanksgiving dinner. not only was it a hit among those old enough to hold scissors (and as you can see, those too young for scissors held cookies instead), but the adults got in on the action too.

{click to make bigger}

and speaking of snowflakes, it snowed out at my dad's on thanksgiving day. it didn't really stick, but big, juicy flakes fell in a real hurry from the cloudy sky. and that, folks, is something else. it never snows this time of year in Seattle. i can count on one hand the number of Christmases during which i've seen snowfall, and you can't sing "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" without somebody making a comment. and to make matters more interesting, it wasn't a freak accident - late yesterday afternoon, we watched a good four inches accumulate on our porch. and now they're threatening that a little more may be on it's way. amazing.

so maybe we'll have a white Christmas this year, after all. but just in case our cutting up paper snowflakes had anything to do with recent precipitative events, you can bet we'll be making more in time for Christmas. ;)

nothing much to say...

just popping in to share a photo i love...

so technically imperfect, but so real.

thankful for...

{click to make bigger}

this year, i'm thankful for:

1. a God who loves me so much that He sent His Son to die in my place.
   
2. a husband who loves Jesus.
   
3. the most supportive and loving parents.
   
4. marrying into the big family that i always wished for when i was little.
   
5. chocolate.
   
6. being a part of a wonderful church family that values, encourages and prays for us.
   
7. having (most of) my whole life ahead of me.
   
8. living my life, mostly, without regrets.
   
9. starbucks.
   
10. the friends that delight in my triumphs and support me in my trials.
    
11. hobbies that grow and change and evolve, and always leave me excited for more.
    
12. the divine blessing that brought us to achieving goals we didn't think we could achieve this year.
    
13. the celebration of Christ's birth that is upon us again.
    
14. hope for eternity.

getting ready to head out for the holiday. we're off to visit my dad and share Thanksgiving with that side of my family. totally looking forward to a few days out in the middle of nowhere.

the closest i can get to snow in november...

lately, i've been itching to make snowflakes - for no applicable reason, given that it surely won't snow here - if it does at all - until late January. but in spite of that, i'm going to teach my nephew how to make paper snowflakes tonight. who knows, maybe i can get the adults to play with us too.

until then, i've been spending an inordinate amount of time making snowflakes here. go to "make my own"... then use the scissor cursor to cut away pieces of the paper. when you're satisfied with your cuts, click "preview"... it's fun. and boy, does it suck away time. (note, you really need a mouse to play with this - don't bother trying with a laptop's touchpad.)

celebrating thanksgiving tonight with matt's family... i can't wait for the turkey and the cranberry sauce - the best salty/sweet combination i can think of. yum. i'm trying not to think about it too much, because i don't want to set myself up for obvious overeating...

so i'll go make virtual snowflakes instead...

monday...

and gearing up for the holidays ahead. tomorrow is the start of my "busy season". between tomorrow and january 8th, i will:

• attend two thanksgiving dinners.
  
• devote an entire weekend to volunteering, photographing and filming my mom's choir's annual christmas concert.
  
• buy stuff for 5 more christmas gifts - and then make them!
  
• celebrate 5 birthdays, including my own.
  
• buy christmas gifts for my husband.
  
• bake two batches of magic bars, one batch of rice crispy treats, and at least one other edible goodie to round out the remaining gifts.
  
• wrap and assemble all gifts and goodie baskets.
  
• get a christmas tree.
  
• decorate the house.
• write out, address & mail christmas cards. (luckily, i've already made them all!)
  
• visit matt's family once a week.
  
• teach sunday school (though just once).
  
• celebrate christmas three times - with three different "sets" of family.
  
• finish a handful of projects for upcoming wedding.
  
• attend, photograph and execute said wedding.
  
• help plan & execute company holiday luncheon.
  
• shop with donations for a family our company will adopt via salvation army for the holidays.
  
• proof countless holiday & wedding photos.
  
• strive to squeeze in as much girltime with my best friend, who will be home from school, as is possible.
  
• spend a little time each day working on my christmas art journal.
  
• celebrate the new year.
  
• turn 24.
  
• pack up christmas decoration and do my best to return to life as normal, without feeling that post-holiday slump.
  

and yet, i still love this season. i love the busy-ness, and for the most part, i don't terribly mind the craziness - as long as it's buffered with plenty of no-pressure enjoyment of the sights and sounds of the season. i'm ready for it all to begin.

saturday, i got a wild hair and did my annual pre-holiday deep cleaning. i don't do spring cleaning - instead, i spend a few hours just before the christmas decorations go up. i scrub windows, inside and out (yes, in november, at 8pm, in my pyjamas), i vaccum the dust and grit from the fine crevices of my coffee table, i damp-mop the wood floors to collect any extra dust that my vaccum missed, and i pull out my favorite high-powered cleaner - vinegar - for windowsills and ledges. i get a little crazy, locked up in my 852 square feet by myself with all of those lovely fumes, and when everything is sparkling, my husband returns home with an oreo mcflurry - extra, extra, extra oreo. yep, i love my little holiday cleaning tradition. and when we get home next weekend from our thanksgiving away, we can put away the autumn decorations and pull out the christmas stuff - no deep-cleaning necessary. because that's one thing i've already crossed off my list. nothing like starting the season ahead of the curve.

not much to say today, so i'll share a layout... from the photos of quaint little port townsend, which we dropped in to explore one fall afternoon in october.

it feels like friday, which makes the fact that it's really thursday especially unpalatable. get to see my sister-in-law & neices tonight, and itching to bust out my camera...

missing:

one white gold shaped wedding band. one of a kind. worth next to nothing, and yet absolutely priceless. last seen 11/13. no reward to give, except my undying gratefulness for it's safe return. :(

groomsmen antics...

matt & i had the pleasure of seeing his best friend married this last weekend. matt stood up in attendance as a groomsman, and i contentedly snapped away from the crowd. the ceremony was beautiful, but leave it to the groom's older brother to throw in a little twist.

having no ring bearer, it was the best man's responsibility to guard the rings with his life. as the pastor turned to brian and requested the rings, he and the groomsmen put on a great show. first, he panicked - patting himself down, checking his pockets, from which he promptly produced a golf club (yes, a gold club!) from his right pantleg. he threw it aside and then he turned to the next groomsman, the bride's little brother, and started checking *his* pockets, locating a scarf, tied to another scarf, tied to another scarf, etc. they went down the row, each panicking a little bit - one had a frying pan in his jacket, one had the spinner to "naked twister" up the back of his jacket. the bride & groom laughed and the crowd ate it up. the boys carried this gag on for a good minute and a half until finally, brian produced the rings at the end of the line of scarves being retrieved from the pocket of his neighboring groomsman.

when matt told me after the rehearsal dinner that they'd be doing this, i was sure something would go wrong or that the bride would be less than amused. (ladies, you can identify with that, right?? this is not the day to toy with a girl.) i'm simply amazed that they pulled it off - especially the golf club and the frying pan.

a few more...

{i absolutely love his expression here...}

today i'm thinking about...

• a christmas journal. i took an online class last year by the rediculously talented shimelle laine called "journaling your christmas". i followed along with the journaling prompts, but never really got to putting anything into an art journal. i'd like to do that this year, so i'm thinking about details now.
  
• thanksgiving. coming up in just two weeks - hard to believe it's already here. loving the idea of a four day weekend - two days with family, two days with me. ;)
  
• my business. how to make it really work for me.
  
• christmas shopping, but only because i'm about 2/3 done. :) disgusting, isn't it? that's ok - while you all are racing around finishing off your lists, you can delight in knowing that i'll be up to my eyeballs finishing off the last of my handmade gifts. it doesn't matter how on top of everything else i am, i'm always behind in that arena.
  
• fudge. i made fudge last weekend - irish cream fudge, to be precise. and it's a good thing i'm not heading directly home tonight, because right now, the huge batch in my freezer - intended for christmas gifts - is all i can think about. it turned out fabulously, and the best thing about it - it's made from chocolate chips, so it's nearly foolproof. i was even able to futz with the recipe - a general no-no in candying - and still succeed. for fun, i'll share the recipe:

Irish Cream "Fake" Fudge

Fudge Ingredients:
* 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
* 1 cup white chocolate chips
* 1/4 cup butter
* 3 cups confectioners' sugar
* 1 cup Irish cream liqueur
* 1 1/2 cups chopped nuts

Topping Ingredients:
* 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
* 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
* 4 tablespoons Irish cream liqueur
* 2 tablespoons butter

Instructions

1. Butter a 8x8 inch pan, or press wax paper into the form of the pan. (I buttered and had a heck of a time getting it out. I'd bet wax paper would be easier.)
2. Make fudge: Over medium-low heat, melt the 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, 1 cup white chocolate chips and 1/4 cup butter until soft enough to stir. Mix well.
3. Stir in the confectioner's sugar and Irish cream until mixture is smooth. Stir in nuts. Place mixture in the prepared pan, evenly spreading it into the corners.
4. Make topping: Over medium-low heat, melt remaining chocolate until soft. Remove from heat and with a fork beat in the butter and Irish cream until smooth. (Note: don't try to melt butter and mix it in - it doesn't work. Whip room-temperature butter into the chocolate instead.) Spread topping over fudge with a knife. Refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours at least. This fudge can be easily frozen.

happy tuesday!

rain, rain, go away...

i think cats & dogs are actively falling from the sky. this weather is downright insane... and walking to work in it is less than exciting. (though, i dunno - chasing your favorite wool hat down battery street might be considered exciting!) i've always thought battery street, which runs perpendicular to the water, was something of a wind tunnel, but i was just shocked at how hard my 1-block walk from the bus stop to work was this morning. the wind blew against me, naturally, removing my hat and threatening to steal my umbrella. the rain pelted down from the sky, and up from the street, leaving my jeans soaked in the front, and dry in the back. that was two hours ago and i'm still damp & soggy. that's fall for ya, huh?

matt went camping this weekend (despite the weather) with some buddies for a bachelor party for his best friend, who's getting hitched next weekend. i was left to my own devices and accomplished a ton in the way of christmas, crafts and domesticity, and even got to have a "girl's night" with my sister-in-law and neices. great fun. but i'm glad he's home (as is he, since the waterproofed tent he borrowed from my mom wasn't as waterproofed as she thought it was.)

other than that, the highlight of my weekend was trying on a new pair of jeans, in the next-smaller size and finding that not only did they fit - they were a bit big. :) i think i won't bother buying them - i'll just wait a bit longer and buy the next-smaller size. :D yay!!

too early?

each year, i strive to make the holiday season a little more meaningful, relaxed and enjoyable. there is nothing more stressful than having too many things to do, and not enough time to do them, so my number one key to success during the holiday season is to start early.

the definition of early varies from year to year. this year, i briefly considered some ideas in March, and actually created my first planning spreadsheet in July. i usually won't act on anything until September at the earliest, and that's when i begin playing with ideas for handmade gifts.

my first official gift purchase this year occurred on or about October 13th, when i was birthday shopping for my neice. i stumbled across the perfect gift for my littlest nephew and it was on sale (my second key to success!) so i bought it and stashed it away in my hiding place where christmas gifts will live in secret until the tree is up and wrapping begins.

but yesterday was my first attempt at major gift purchasing - and a few of my own family members have referred to it as "disgusting". that's ok - i can take it. i rest in the peace of knowing that - unlike them - i will not be navigating the chaotic parking lots of local malls, stealing parking spots from little old ladies out of desperation, or ruthlessly picking just any old thing off of shelves just days before Christmas. besides, with or without gift shopping, i have a very busy two months ahead of me, so i might as well accomplish as much now as i possibly can.

together, matt and i crossed off a surprising amount of our list yesterday - namely, the kids - and i'll even do a little more this weekend, when i make my big trip to the area craft stores to stock up on supplies i'll need for finishing touches on handmade gifts.

and i feel quite confident in my planning, especially in knowing that in those final days before Christmas, i'll be kicking my feet up and relishing the joys of the season, which most definitely do not include struggling to find last minute gifts.

that's it for me today. i'm looking forward to a quiet evening at home - in part, figuring out what the heck to do with my growing stash of gifts that will no longer fit in said secret spot. :)

happy thursday!

(wow - i almost said "happy wednesday"! oh well, better a day behind than a day ahead, right??)

they're not fabulous by any stretch of the imagination, but they're definitely good scrapbooking material. i especially love the one of her waiting patiently at the door. but i'm kicking myself today for not getting a photo of them together, in their costumes. and i'm also kicking myself for not turning off my flash the last time i used it, and thus, draining my batteries, and leaving myself in a tight position on halloween night. oh well, at least these have that "dark and spooky" look to them that goes so well with halloween.

i ran to target last night, fully expecting to "clean up" in the seasonal aisle - thinking that all of that lovely halloween home decor would be on a rediculously-inexpensive-can't-pass-that-up sale. i was wrong - someone had clearly beaten me to it. what had occupied 5+ aisles just the day before had been condensed into 2 clearance aisles, consisting mostly of excess halloween candy (no thank you!) and bad generic-brand candy corn. i was quite disappointed, but i'll try joann's this weekend, since they always have a better selection - and more of it.

i usually have no problem marching right onto the celebration of the next holiday - but for some reason, i'm still thinking about halloween. upon reflection, i've realized that this was the first year i went trick-or-treating as the adult supervision, and not the trick-or-treater, yet another notch in the bedpost of adulthood, much like buying your first (non-futon) couch, or raking the leaves in your front yard because it needs to be done and there's no one else to do it. so i guess, you could say, i'm just kinda "stuck on it".

oh, well - onward!

what a night! matt and i donned our "costumes" (cat ears for me - mouse mask for him) and passed out candy to the beggars. i'm simply amazed that today's teenagers don't have any shame in waltzing up to a door - without any costume at all - and asking for candy. i would've rejected them, but i'm always afraid some scorned teen would retaliate and the weeping cherry in my front yard is just too pretty to be desecrated with TP.

we were pretty sure that our plans to go trick-or-treating with the girls had fallen through and i had just recovered from my disappointment, finished handing out candy and turned off my porch light when there was a knock at the door... i assumed it was someone who didn't understand the universal rule that you don't knock on doors with no porch light. after some insistent knocking, i realized it was probably marisa and the girls, so i pried myself off the couch and answered, to find the cutest little cinderella and bumblebee combination i've ever seen! marisa had sensed the dissappointment in my voice when i found out they weren't coming and decided to come after all. they couldn't stay long, and it was well after dark and getting colder by the minute, but we managed to hit 5 houses on our block. becca is old enough to get the idea - but wasn't too keen on the phrase "trick-or-treat" - so she greeted every opening door with "HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!" in the loudest, most gleeful 3-year-old voice she could muster. beth didn't get it at all, and was less than thrilled about having to be carried but her little eyebrows perked up when we got back to the house to sort through our stash. alas, i didn't get any good photos of them in their costume - my flash batteries had died, but i may have gotten a few of them going door-to-door... maybe. so i'll share those tomorrow. (maybe!)

thanks to those of you, friends and family, who have expressed support for matt's family. this is a rough time for them, and matt's handling it well, wisely and patiently - far better than i could if i were in his position.

over & out.