thursday. spring fever.

gosh, on the bright side, me not writing a single post since november means that it's now february ... and spring is just around the corner. forgive me.

with the end of winter, comes garden-planning, 7-year old girly birthday parties, and the hope that my yard won't look the way it currently does for very much longer ... however, it needs to snow at LEAST one more time so i can get my winter family pictures taken ... and then it can be summer.

that being said, several spring ideas are on the horizon. with a charged camera battery, and a list of things to do, there will be more posts than recently. heck, there already are with a total of just one!

these will be included in my first project for this weekend ... arancello.

monday. baby shower preview.

well, the breakfast at tiffany's themed shower for my little sister, steph, was a blast! everyone showed up in their little black dresses, complete with pearls and costume jewelry! awesome food, thanks to one of her girls, jolene; and mimosa's courtesy of amy! i have about 500 photos to sort through, but until then, these will have to tide you over ...
mama-to-be in all her glory ... steph and her 'girls' ... 'special' sisters ... lucky duck first-time grandma ...
veteran grandma jilly bean ...



my baby girl ... looking like she's 20 ...

monday. hot butter rum.

it's that time of year. cold, windy, the promise of that swirly, whirly white fluffy stuff. what better way to get warm than rum? i mean, really? is there any better drink this time of year than hot butter rum? nope. at least not for me!

p.s. this picture isn't what it actually looks like, but apple cider butter rum looked dang good, too! i was lazy and didn't take pictures this weekend. might have to post this recipe later this week!

the husband left on another hunting excursion friday, and i thought i'd make a batch to have ready for his homecoming! have the fire blazing in the living room, steaming hot butter rum, lights turned down ... and the two crazies building a fort right in the middle of it, squealing and running around like little loons. Who wouldn't want to come home to that?!

anyway, hot butter rum batter is way easy to make, and so good. buy extra rum ... this batch makes enough for 100 servings, but stores in the freezer quite nicely for up to six months (recipe from allrecipes.com)!

ingredients.

1 lb. butter
1 lb. brown sugar
1 lb. confectioners' sugar
1 qt. vanilla ice cream, softened
1 TBS ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg

how-to.

1. melt butter in a large pot over medium heat.
   
2. blend in brown sugar and confectioners' sugar. remove from heat, and whisk in the ice cream, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
   
3. pour mixture into a plastic container, seal, and freeze.
   

later in the day ...

1. measure 1 TBS Hot Buttered Rum Batter and 1 oz. of rum (or more depending on the day you've had) into your favorite mug.
   
2. fill your cup with boiling water, stir, and sprinkle top of drink with nutmeg and/or cinnamon.

friday. the long winter.

winter's on it's way. i even heard the 's' word on the weather this morning.

but, apparently, snow's been on my brain for a week now. i started reading, 'the long winter' ... yes, the little house on the prairie book. and i had forgotten how truly great it is. and no, i can't even blame me reading it on my daughter. i stayed up reading in bed last night until midnight ... all by my lonesome.

such a classic. no matter how many times i read those books, which, mind you has been several (thousand), it makes me realize i was born in the wrong era. granted, i don't think pioneer life was really for me, but definitely a time when things were so much less complicated in a different way than they are now.

bundling in for the winter and making do with what you had, spending the days with family, baking EVERYTHING from scratch, working hard for what you have, but also enjoying it just as much because of it. maybe i'm idealizing some of it. and yes, there are beauties to modern life, things i often feel i couldn't live without. and less of a lot of the hardships, but, so much of the things we have today seem to be just because "we can."

so, when i feel like things are just a little too complicated, i turn on my electric fireplace and cozy up after the kids go to bed, and read about laura ingalls wilder. somehow, it makes me feel a little bit better.

wednesday. knitting nell.

nell knits, like, a lot. you name it, she knits it. blankets for new babies, socks and hats and mittens for the children’s home, and scarves for everyone in her family.

i love this book and the fact that it introduces the idea of servicing others. it oozes generosity, and putting others before yourself. nell is super quiet which is a nice change from a lot of characters out there today ... especially when you have a little girl like i do that has a hard time branching out and meeting new friends sometimes.

super lovely illustrations and a super lovely story. only issue? taylor wants me to teach her to knit ... if only i knew more than one stitch!

tuesday. one-freaking-hundred.

holy wow. i looked at my post count this morning and realized that this is my 100th post. who'd have thought i'd have that much to say?

to celebrate, here are 100 answers to 100 random questions.

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4. then he became curious about a small aldabra tortoise in the enclosure, toto.
   

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can, What can you touch? an advil bottle.
   

3. Before you started this survey, what were you doing? running on the treadmill.
   

4. What is the last thing you watched on TV? veronica mars!
   

5. Without looking, guess what time it is. 6:15 a.m.

6. Now look at the clock. What is the actual time? 6:22 a.m.
   

7. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear? the air conditioner in my department.
   

8. When did you last step outside? What were you doing? to get in my car and leave for work.
   

9. Did you dream last night? nope.

10. Do you remember your dreams? most of the time.
    

11. When did you last laugh? about 15 minutes ago.
    

12. Do you remember why / at what? myself. i wore two entirely different running shoes this morning.
    

13. What is on the walls of the room you are in? pictures of my family.
    

14. Seen anything weird lately? several things.
    

15. What do you think of this quiz? so far i'm still doing it, so i guess it's more exciting than what i should be doing.
    

16. What is the last film you saw? iron man 2.
    

17. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live? on a beach by the ocean, in a big farmhouse, with a loft.
    

18. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy? my house. and then i'd remodel it exactly how i want. maybe move it to the beach.
    

19. Tell me something about you that most people don't know. i drink at least four cups of tea a day.
    

20. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do? take away over-processed foods, fire everyone on the fda and start from scratch. victory gardens would make a crazy comeback.
    

21. Do you like to dance? only with my kids.
    

22. Would you ever consider living abroad? yes. although, the only way i could talk the husband into it would be to bribe him with someplace that offers better hunting than idaho.
    

23. Does your name make any interesting anagrams? nope.

24. Who made the last incoming call on your phone? mom.

25. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer? a pdf for work.
    

26. Last time you swam in a pool? july-ish.
    

27. Type of music you like most? country, reggae, rap ... there are no limits.
    

28. Type of music you dislike most? polka?
    

29. Are you listening to music right now? nope.

30. What color is your bedroom carpet? beige-ish.

31. If you could change something about your home, without worry about expense or mess, what would you do? add another bathroom, remodel the one we have, and add a dining room off the kitchen.
    

32. What was the last thing you bought? a hot water bottle.
    

33. Have you ever ridden on a motorbike? yes.

34. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? most likely.
    

35. Do you have a garden? yes.

36. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem? uh, isn't that a requirement for being over the age of 6?
    

37. What is the first thing you think of when you wake up in the morning? crap, it's cold!
    

38. If you could eat lunch with one famous person, who would it be? betty white.
    

39. Who sent the last text message you received? dad.

40. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? anthropologie.
    

41. What time is bed time? 10:30 p.m.-ish.
    

42. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? nope.

43. How many tattoos do you have? none, yet.
    

44. If you don't have any, have you ever thought of getting one? yes, will do so soon.
    

45. What did you do for your last birthday? went to chelan with the husband and went to all the wineries.
    

46. Do you carry a donor card? yes.

47. Who was the last person you ate dinner with? the husband and kiddos.
    

48. Is the glass half empty or half full? half-full today.
    

49. What's the farthest-away place you've been? mexico.

50. When's the last time you ate a homegrown tomato? considering i have hundreds of them in my garden ... pretty darn recently.
    

51. Have you ever won a trophy? in pee-wee soccer, and jr. high track, and high school band. i just got cooler and cooler as the years went on.
    

52. Are you a good cook? i like to think my family doesn't hate it when i cook for them.
    

53. Do you know how to pump your own gas? uh, there are people that don't?!
    

54. If you could meet any one person (from history or currently alive), who would it be? fred flinstone?
    

55. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to school? not unless you count my marching band uniform.
    

56. Do you touch-type? yes.

57. What's under your bed? books.
    

58. Do you believe in love at first sight? no. real love's way better than that.
    

59. Think fast, what do you like right now? the iced blueberry green tea i'm drinking.
    

60. Where were you on Valentine's day? probably home.
    

61. What time do you get up? 6:30 a.m.-ish.

62. What was the name of your first pet? kiki. she was a black kitten. and didn't last long.
    

63. Who is the second to last person to call you? steph.

64. Is there anything going on this weekend? yes! dad, karlene, and marissa are heading over.
    

65. How are you feeling right now? ready to go home and bake something.
    

66. What do you think about the most? being home.
    

67. What time do you get up in the morning? i believe we've already had that question.
    

68. If you had A Big Win in the Lottery, how long would you wait to tell people? i don't know that i would tell anyone other than immediate family.
    

69. Who would you tell first? my boss. i'd be peacin' out.
    

70. What is the last movie that you saw at the cinema? eat, pray, love.
    

71. Do you sing in the shower? something like that, yes.
    

72. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? again, already had that question.
    

73. What do you do most when you are bored? read, bake, sew, garden.
    

74. What do you do for a living? i'm a technical writer.
    

75. Do you love your job? i love the security of my job.
    

76. What did you want to be when you grew up? music educator.
    

77. If you could have any job, what would you want to do/be? children's book author.
    

78. Which came first the chicken or the egg? egg.

79. How many keys on your key ring? too many, my husband says.
    

80. Where would you retire to? the ocean ... maybe tahiti, or hawaii.
    

81. What kind of car do you drive? toyota yaris.
    

82. What are your best physical features? strong fingernails?
    

83. What are your best characteristics? patience ... holla to my children for that one.
    

84. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation where would you go? tahiti.

85. What kind of books do you like to read? all of them. quite literally.
    

86. Where would you want to retire to? what's with the repeat questions?
    

87. What is your favorite time of the day? early morning, on days i don't have to work.
    

88. Where did you grow up? puyallup, wa ... closely followed by spokane, wa.
    

89. How far away from your birthplace do you live now? 400 miles.
    

90. What are you reading now? re-reading harry potter ... 5 more to go before the movie comes out in november!
    

91. Are you a morning person or a night owl? morning.

92. Can you touch your nose with your tongue? pretty close, but not quite.
    

93. Can you close your eyes and raise your eyebrows? yes, but i'm pretty sure i look like someone scared me in my sleep when i do.

94. Do you have pets? 2 dogs, 2 kids.
    

95. How many rings before you answer the phone? as few as possible.
    

96. What is your best childhood memory? eating grandma's breakfast early in the a.m.—best oatmeal ever.
    

97. What are some of the different jobs that you have had in your life? barista, bookseller, coffee shop manager.
    

98. Any new and exciting things that you would like to share? i'm almost done with these questions!
    

99. What is most important in life? my husband and children.
    

100. What Inspires You? see above answer.

100 posts, and hopefully 100 more!

monday. couch to 5K.

i love to run. i know that for lots of people, that means i'm crazy. but hey, crazy's ok by me! one of the downfalls to running, however, at least if you're me ... i have crap-tastic knees. yes, crap-tastic is one of the nicer things i can say about them.

i was a lazy bum for a year (at least in the running department) after my last pregnancy and fell off the wagon for a bit. but, i don't entirely regret it, as i now have a very close and solid relationship with my yoga mat, and a sick love for P90X. unfortunately, i've started from scratch with the running bit, and it was a bit daunting to tie on the shoes and get moving ... until i found couch to 5K.

step-by-step instructions. structure. do-able for ANYONE ... even miss crap-tastic knees over here! it's fail-safe and let me tell you ... i have missed running so entirely i can't even believe that i ever stopped. you don't just get off the couch and run for miles. this program is perfect for everyone scared to just. go. run. check it out, and start today!

join the crazy-train, people—it's way more fun!