Wow! What a crazy adventure. I'm sure not one you'll soon like to repeat. Holy cow!

I'm moving....

over to my own domain. 
www.halleshobbies.com

I hope you'll update your blogroll, links, etc and visit me at my new home.
 

Birthday cake

Let me just start by saying, I am not a baker. I'm not good at it nor do I enjoy it. But my kiddos think that mom's homemade cakes and especially my frosting are the best.

My cakes are generally lopsided. I blame the oven, but it's very likely my fault.

This cake came to be because the first one I made broke into about 7 pieces when I was taking it out of the pan.  I nearly cried...



Did I mention I don't like baking...?
I made a whole new cake this morning. I left it in the pan until I was sure it had "set" so to speak.
This one came out in one piece..thank goodness.

I decided to use some of the chunks of cake to create a hill for the freshly washed Army men to make their stand upon.

This was also good to help camouflage the lopsidedness of the cake.
Since I was adding crumbly cake to the top and trying to frost it as well I needed something to cover my mistakes. Crushed up graham crackers fit the bill.  It looks a bit like sand or at least some rugged terrain if you use your imagination.

I hope he likes it...

I do know that it tastes better than it looks. :)

 

Don't worry...it's a gift

No, I haven't changed my allegiance...

I'm still a Vikings fan.  

Little J had a birthday party to go to today for a neighborhood friend. 

The Packer fans on the block.

It seemed fitting that her American Girl doll would be a Green Bay fan as well. 

The gifts should have been opened by now so I think it's safe to post this. 

If not...hey, what are you doing browsing the internet while the party is going on?!?!

Put that smart phone away.

 

I do...for ever and ever

Just a page in another art journal. 

I didn't have any idea where I was going with it until it all came together. 

I'm finding that I'm working more and more that way lately. 

As an aside...I'm looking at moving my blog to Wordpress to actually USE the domain Mr. G bought for me a while back. 

I'm having anxiety about making the move since I've been with Blogger for so long.

When I make the move I hope you will come visit me there....

I'll definitely keep you posted...

 

Three ATC's

Was feeling artsy...

 Using up scraps....

Grateful blessings

Expressing feelings of gratitude...

I have been attending a MOMSnext class since September. 

The new session will being next week. 

It has been good for my heart, mind and soul.

 

Baby, it's cold outside...

So glad the kids don't have school today!! 

We can stay in and stay warm.

Although the cold is doing it's best to try to get in...

That is ice on the inside of the front door. I even made a draft stop but the cold is persistent.

Anybody needs me...I'll be under a blanket, drinking tea.

 

Quiet Memory

A second page in my new journal. 

Remembering the day I took hundred's of nature photos and collected seeds with an old friend.

 

Clever kid

I've been sorting beads and making a few more wine charms lately. 

Little J always wants to get in on the act with me. This morning she comes up with this wine glass charm! 

It's my new favorite of all time.

I never would have seen that in those beads. 

Her mind works so much differently than mine. That's why she's a master Lego builder too.

Me...not so much.

 

Art Journal

Putting paint to pages of a book is very freeing.

This was a cookbook I never used. 

All it did was take up space,

 so...

a new journal is born.

Little bits of this and that hoarded over time. 

Such as the paint strip. 

Bayou blue is the color Big J picked for his room. 

It reminds me of medical scrubs but whatever...he likes it.

Pieces of projects and experiments.

Like bits of rusted fabric.

Polymer clay leaves from the one and only time I crafted with it. Yuck! Hate the smell of that stuff.

As well as a deconstructed silk flower that I used a script rubber stamp across for interest.

 

Wish Jar

No, this isn't a work of art...
it's just something I did quickly to cover a hot cocoa container. I may pretty it up more...or not.

I read about a great way to painlessly save for Christmas all year long and thought....hmmm...

We have our 20th wedding anniversary coming up in a little over 15 months. We've always talked about going someplace special for each of our "big number" anniversaries but never have. Mostly because we had little kids at the time. Now that they are older, I think it's time.

So I've decided that every $5 bill that crosses my path goes directly through the slot I cut in the lid. I'm not going to look, count, or in anyway keep track until it's time to open it to pay for our trip.


Mr. G is on board the our savings plan. We are both excited to see how much we can save. Since cash isn't a commodity we use a lot, it could be slow going. When I told my mom about what we were doing and she sweetly slipped me the $5 bills she had on hand.

What do you think of our plan??

 

I've been featured

again at Going Green Crafters and Artists. 

This time for my "Dr. Suess tree" made from book pages.

Check it out!

Thank you so much Monica!

Summer Breeze

 

I got up early...well, early for the weekend...and  this is what poured out of me.

The cold weather has me dreaming of summer now that the Holiday season is over. 

 

Happy New Year 2013

First of all....

Hope you all had a wonderful New years eve!!  

Best wishes to all in 2013.

I have decided to pick a word for the year once again.

This year I have chosen  "Simplify" .  

I'll use this word as a guide in the year to come.

Thank you so much for continuing to read and follow my blog. 

 

A look back at 2012

The candle is burning down...it's time for some reflection.

Last year I claimed the word "reduce" for my word of the year. I need to ponder my thoughts on my goals and expectations of that word.

• I have made a small dent in my art and sewing supplies over the course of the year. 
• I've lost 9 inches across my body according to the measurements at Curves but only 1lb on the scale. I guess that proves that muscle weighs more than fat.
• I'm on the fence with reducing the "stuff" in our house. We've gotten rid of some but added others. I think it's a wash.
• I continue to look for ways to reduce the chemical load in our house as well as reduce our waste. "Bigbox" mentality is hard to fight against while trying to stay budget friendly. I'd say we are definitely still a work in progress with this one.

Overall I feel positive about my goal "word" of the year. I think it helped me to have a self-commitment ideal in mind...not just some arbitrary goal that I set when I'm feeling big change is needed...then poop out a few weeks into it.  It could be said that "she's got a lot of quit in her".

All that's left to do is kiss my sweetheart at midnight...or at least before bed since I'm sure I won't last that long.

Have a safe and happy New Years Eve everyone!

 

10 years ago....

We welcomed our baby girl 

into the world. 

Welcome to double digits sweetie!

 

Sit down...

...and stay a while.

Well, only if you're less than 3 inches tall. 

I made this little chair from the wire cage on top of an ale cork. A champagne cage would also work.

I saw a photo of a mini chair such as this a long time ago...put it in my memory...and it finally re-surfaced. 

I love creating miniatures.

 

Blessings

We had a wonderful Christmas! 

Family over for both Christmas Eve and Day.

Laughed lots, ate too much, made a mess opening gifts, played games and visited until my throat was scratchy.

I had to  show you one of the centerpieces from our table. I saw this on Pinterest and loved it. So bright and early Christmas morning I stepped outside to trim some greens from the bushes. I'm sure any neighbors that spotted me though I was nuts. It was 0°F at the time.

Greens in a mason jar...add water and fresh cranberries which are ever so kind to float. 

Drop in a floating candle. Ta-da...

Simple and festive.

 

Bugle Bells

I know I don't usually offer recipes but I am just in love with these. They wouldn't be considered a "work of art" but they definitely look as good as they taste.

Ingredients:
Bugles
almond bark
M&M's

Directions:
Melt almond bark
Dip end of Bugle
place M&M into bark
set on wax paper on other non-stick surface to harden.
That's it!!

Sweet and salty all in one. YUM!!