Free stuff!

Check out these DIY Vintage Style Oil and Vinegar labels FREE for download! Speaking of vinegar, I could have used one of these today. I searched high and low in my haphazard pantry for vinegar and found none. That and paprika.

Christmas Idea #1 Custom Modern Oil Painting

I'm going to try and post some DIY Christmas Ideas up until December. Because when you're doing a DIY Christmas, now is the time to start. NOT two weeks before. Trust me, I speak from experience.

Now, before you throw your hands up in the air and say I CAN'T PAINT! Just wait. You really can and I will tell you how. Okay, you might need some artistic ability to do this but, IMHO, only as much as any high school art student....and some knowledge of Photoshop or comparable program.

First create some vector art. Here's a great tutorial on how to easily make your own.

Then take your vector art saved as a jpeg file to an Office Max and have then blow it up to the size of your canvas. You might have to print this out in separate sheets and tape them together but if you can get it in one sheet, it will help you down the road. It is best to print out in color but if that's not an option you can always try it in black and white. But keep in mind, it might be harder for you down the road.

I like to say that the bigger the modern art....the better. Go out and buy the biggest and I mean THE BIGGEST canvas at Michaels. Be sure to bring a coupon with you. Here's a tip, Michaels takes JoAnn Fabric coupons which are a dime a dozen if you pick some up at the store. And they're always 40% off.

Now take your blow up paper and pin it to the back of your canvas. Shine a light on the back and trace your art onto the canvas with a light pencil. You will probably have to move the light as you move draw the canvas. And you might have to use more pins to in the area you are tracing. Remember to pin from back to front of the canvas.

Now just fill in the art like a paint by number with either oil or acrylic paint. Oil takes longer to dry but is best for appearance and correcting mistakes. This project is easy because there is no blending of shades or shadows. It's all very opaque and the lines are sharply defined.

Your recipient will be shocked and amazed by your gift. People will come over and admire your discussion piece. And don't feel bad about not telling them it was traced. A magician never reveals his secrets and neither should an artist:)

If I were rich....

I'd have a personal chef.

Sometimes I wish Brian cooked. Not just once in a while but everyday and in gourmet ways. Like this woman.

Is that so terrible?!

I fantasize of nights when I sit down to a plate of this (above) without having to dig through my cabinets for a single pan.

I'm definitely NOT one of those people who think their food tastes better when they put their blood, sweat and tears into it.

I watch Ina Garten cater to her husband who smiles at the camera in a 'life is good' way and I feel jealousy. He scours the fridge and finds homemade espresso bean coffee ice cream or leftover grilled herb shrimp. I scour my fridge and find expired yogurt and hardened loaves of bread.

I can kinda cook, but I don't have the fortitude to do it well everyday. Where's the time? Where's the excitement? For me, that sort of thing takes literally ALL DAY. To buy all the ingredients, to cook it, to clean up. Can someone share their little tips and tricks on how to be a great cook without having to devote your life to it?

If I had a playroom....

Sometimes I see the cutest toys that I think would look perfect in a playroom. Unfortunately, we don't have enough space for one in our home. But when I saw this in LMNOP it made me want to empty out our guest room/sewing room/exercise room and make one. I've seen rugs like this at IKEA but this danish company has the brilliant idea to leave the roads bare. So creative. But I also loved this because the little houses are from my childhood. I don't know where my mother had got them but I remember them quite well.

If I were more nomadic....

Check out these very chic airstream interiors!
Makes me want to pack up the kids for a month and hike on over to yellowstone.

My first chicken

This is the story of my first chicken. I've always been intimidated by whole birds. When we host Thanksgiving I have my mom come over and cook the turkey. But after watching Ina Garten I thought it was time to take the bull by the horns (or should I say the chicken by the legs) and just do it already. I thought a very small chicken would be the perfect size for our family and the perfect size to experiment with. So I read a few chicken tutorials on cooks.com and watched a few videos on youtube. And in the end, we all gathered around the table and ate this....

I was really beyond pleased with the finished bird. I cooked it for a whole 2 hours! Buttered, brinned and basted. Brian said it was tender while crispy on the outside and I believe his compliments because he'll tell me if I cook something gross.

And no, I didn't leave in the gizzards:)

Molly's Morning Ritual

I was sitting on the sofa when in came Molly with a big, proud, smile and a lot of some strange clay colored smudge on her hands and face. No, it's not what you might first think. But for a second I too was panicked then....oh yes, of course, she got into my purse....again....and broke into my expensive clinic lipstick. You'd be surprise how difficult that stuff is to get off! It's thick and viscous. She cried and cried as I took the washcloth to her face. I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. She was just trying to do it like mommy.

Lily's first day of school

Well, one of life's milestones arrived at my doorstep on Wednesday. Lily had her first day of school. It went pretty well. There were no tears. No tantrums. No problems with enrollment.

I don't really think I'm an emotional person in public. But maybe with age I'm turning into one because when I saw her standing in line I thought about how this was the first day of many many to come. And in thinking that I, in turn, thought that someday would be her 'last day of school' and how I would look back on this 'first day' and be moved. Then I actually was sad. Almost to the point of tears. How embarrassing. I didn't want to be one of those mothers.

After school, Lily came home and was her usual stoic self. She briefly described her day in the 60 second drive to our house. They played on the playground, sat in a circle and someone introduced themselves to her. Despite her shyness, she was so very excited for the next day. Let's hope that enthusiasm keeps for another twelve years:)

Wednesday Thrift Store Find

I think I've mentioned how much I LOVE thrift store shopping. Here's my recent morning find. Brian's parents have a wooden marble chute from when they were kids. Lily and Molly love to play with it when we go to visit. So I wanted to get one for our house too. Living so close to Lancaster County you can find many for about $40 - $50. I had hoped to get one for Christmas or their birthday. Then today, I saw this at the Salvation Army. For....$1.99! No lie. I immediately put it in my cart and congratulated myself on another fine find!

Not too long ago I found this (below) toy at the Salvation Army for $1.99 as well! I don't know how much they go for brand new but it's heavy so I imagine A LOT! This toy is used almost everyday at our home. DEFINITELY worth the 2 bucks!

The sad, sad state of my ipod

For one reason or another I've been neglecting the upkeep of my ipod. About two years ago, someone broke into my car and stole my 30G. More valuable than the cost of the ipod was the cost of the thousands of songs which were irreplaceable simply because I could never have remembered each and every one. I was devastated.

Ever since then I haven't been so good at upkeeping my library. All my will power was lost (along with my wallet and XM radio). I don't think I've added a song since The Fray came up with their last album. But today I took a bath while listening to Snow Patrol's "Lightning Strikes" for the gazillionth time and decided it was time to climb back on the horse to better my ipod.

But I think I need your help. Here are a few songs I've had on my to do list:

Show Me What I'm Looking For- Carolina Liar
9 crimes- Damien Rice
Bitter Heart- Zee Avi
Falling Slowly- Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova
All We Are- Matt Nathanson
Can't Go Back Now- The Weepies
Light as a Feather- Jesse Harris
A Dustland Fairytale- The Killers
Funny the Way It Is- Dave Matthews Band
Falling Apart- Matt Nathanson
You Don't Know Me- Ben Folds Featuring Regina Spektor
You Never Get What You Deserve- Starsailor
Non Dairy Creamer- Third Eye Blind
Bruises- Chairlift

Judging from my previously mentioned favorites, does anyone have any suggestions that they think might make my ipod sing again?