Today's dream: an Etsy store.
Technically, I already have one. There just aren't any items in it yet.
Monday morning dreams are always a little wishy-washy. I come in to work after the weekend, coffee in hand, music playing, right after having worshipped my guts out at church the night before, and i'm just so ready for dreaming and scheming. Monday morning dreams tend to be forgotten by the time Tuesday rolls around. But having my own Etsy store is something i've been dreaming of much more frequently than just on Monday mornings.
Am I crafty and creative? Heck yes.
Do I have any idea what i'd like to sell in said Etsy store? Nope.
Do I have lots of extra time to make lovely things and post them and ship them to people who are silly enough to purchase them? In your dreams.
But as I came in to work today and checked in on my favorite blogs, I was re-inspired by my friend Megan's store....(She has some of the best looking models on the whole site.) Here is my store. Why don't you hop on over and take a look for some inspiration? Maybe take a moment to imagine what kind of lovely things could be there. Lovely things you would like to purchased for yourself and your loved ones.
I'm also dreaming and scheming about other things that can't quite be discussed fully at this time, but I could definitely use prayer for them. I know, I know - way to be vague. I just want to keep you coming back...I look forward to your Etsy ideas.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Friday, January 7, 2011
having my cake.
Let me tell you - this is a good moment. I am officially caught up. There is nothing in my inbox that I can do right now without some info that I awaiting. This is a good feeling. Since returning from the break, I have had an overflowing amount of work. It hasn't been stressful, per say, because it's J-term and most students aren't around, so the window hasn't been crazy. But there hasn't been a break. But I have overcome the overflow. And am now feeling uber-accomplished. It only took 3.5 days.
I surprised myself, though - I was dreading the first day back to work like anyone else after the break. I had gotten so lazy - I was staying up late and sleeping in even later, so I knew Monday morning would be quite the task. But as soon as I got to work, I instantly dove right into the pile of stuff on my desk. My co-workers were all chatting about their breaks, travelling, spending time with family, opening presents, etc, and i'm over here in my little corner slamming away on this ridiculous pile of work. I realized that my brain had been so shut off to anything task-oriented or detail-oriented over the break - I had gotten into a rut of being so lazy and watching so much tv - that it was seriously craving something tangible and administrative to accomplish. But now i'm exhausted. Now it feels good for that pile to be gone and to feel more relaxed about the average amount of things to get done.
In addition to feeling caught up, I have also tackled the feat of covering a cake in fondant. (At home, though, not at work) I definitely have a lot to learn, but I am also very pleased with how it turned out for my first try. I brought it to work today so everyone could make oooohs and ahhhs and yummy noises, so we'll see if it actually holds up or tastes good. But how could it not? It's a cake. Covered in icing. And then covered in a layer of sugar and marshmallow playdough.
Come on, people. What's not to love?
I surprised myself, though - I was dreading the first day back to work like anyone else after the break. I had gotten so lazy - I was staying up late and sleeping in even later, so I knew Monday morning would be quite the task. But as soon as I got to work, I instantly dove right into the pile of stuff on my desk. My co-workers were all chatting about their breaks, travelling, spending time with family, opening presents, etc, and i'm over here in my little corner slamming away on this ridiculous pile of work. I realized that my brain had been so shut off to anything task-oriented or detail-oriented over the break - I had gotten into a rut of being so lazy and watching so much tv - that it was seriously craving something tangible and administrative to accomplish. But now i'm exhausted. Now it feels good for that pile to be gone and to feel more relaxed about the average amount of things to get done.
In addition to feeling caught up, I have also tackled the feat of covering a cake in fondant. (At home, though, not at work) I definitely have a lot to learn, but I am also very pleased with how it turned out for my first try. I brought it to work today so everyone could make oooohs and ahhhs and yummy noises, so we'll see if it actually holds up or tastes good. But how could it not? It's a cake. Covered in icing. And then covered in a layer of sugar and marshmallow playdough.
Come on, people. What's not to love?
Saturday, January 1, 2011
holiday pics.
holidays are crazy, but i have some updates. mostly in picture form. enjoy!
Lights on the bay with my dad.
Zac the rockstar at our St Mary's mini reunion.
i have beautiful friends.
we had lunch and sat for a while.
then we got coffee and sat for a while.
perfection.
My Christmas Miracle! I finally got my kitchen aid mixer - get pumped for lots of pics of new recipes and experiments.
I made a chocolate peanut butter cake for New Years / Kait's birthday. This is the extra chocolate I added to the batter.
My awesome orange spatula in peanut butter frosting.
messy cake.
Delish.
After digging in...
This was poor Amadeus when I got back from Maryland...
But Elisa is my hero and we knocked it out in no time.
Friends make me happy.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
A Christmas Gift for You
For all of you who read my blog, I wanted to show my appreciation.
This is my Christmas gift to you, from one blogger to another.
I hope you enjoy.
Go big or go home.
Sometimes you have to go big or go home.
Each department at work was given an ugly brown paper cutout of a christmas tree to decorate and post on the door. I don't get to use my creative side very much at worked, so I immediately started scheming big for the contest, and definitely encouraged some friendly competition amongst the other departments.
We decided to go with a music theme because so many people in my office have a musical background. For the tree, I decoupaged the background in sheetmusic and cutout little music notes for ornaments. I also strung ribbon across it, and made a big star out of pretty paper for the top. There are also christmas lights poking through. It's hanging from the door, which we wrapped in red wrapping paper. All of this is in addition to the Christmas decorations my office puts up every year: a tree, some garland, some lights, etc. If that wasn't enough, I brought in a red cozy chair, and next to it I strategically placed a bowl of candy. My laptop is also sitting next to the tree with a looping video of a crackling fire. And i'm of course listening to Christmas music.
So we unveiled our cozy winter wonderland this morning, and the judging is tomorrow. The best part is that I have a front row seat to see people's reactions as they walk by. Some of them are hilarious. I've had people say they're gonna come back with their laptop to sit down and study for finals. Some people laugh. Others just stand in awe. We're only supposed to be judged on the tree itself, but when you create an atmosphere like this, how can you lose?
I'll keep you updated tomorrow after they vote.
These are dark and difficult to see because they were taken with my phone, but this is the view from my desk. Plus, we have overhead lights off to help set the atmosphere. (We're pretty serious.)
This past weekend was fun - busy, but fun. Narnia, lunch with Stella and the girls, Sturgeon's Christmas party, Prickett's college study break party, and worship worship worship and church. I'm excited for our Indian dinner with Navigate tomorrow night to get us pumped for our trip this summer. Also, I could eat Chicken Tikka Masala from Anmol all day every day - but I have a sneaky suspicion it will not taste the same, and definitely 100x more spicy when we're actually there.
Each department at work was given an ugly brown paper cutout of a christmas tree to decorate and post on the door. I don't get to use my creative side very much at worked, so I immediately started scheming big for the contest, and definitely encouraged some friendly competition amongst the other departments.
We decided to go with a music theme because so many people in my office have a musical background. For the tree, I decoupaged the background in sheetmusic and cutout little music notes for ornaments. I also strung ribbon across it, and made a big star out of pretty paper for the top. There are also christmas lights poking through. It's hanging from the door, which we wrapped in red wrapping paper. All of this is in addition to the Christmas decorations my office puts up every year: a tree, some garland, some lights, etc. If that wasn't enough, I brought in a red cozy chair, and next to it I strategically placed a bowl of candy. My laptop is also sitting next to the tree with a looping video of a crackling fire. And i'm of course listening to Christmas music.
So we unveiled our cozy winter wonderland this morning, and the judging is tomorrow. The best part is that I have a front row seat to see people's reactions as they walk by. Some of them are hilarious. I've had people say they're gonna come back with their laptop to sit down and study for finals. Some people laugh. Others just stand in awe. We're only supposed to be judged on the tree itself, but when you create an atmosphere like this, how can you lose?
I'll keep you updated tomorrow after they vote.
These are dark and difficult to see because they were taken with my phone, but this is the view from my desk. Plus, we have overhead lights off to help set the atmosphere. (We're pretty serious.)
From left to right: tree, crackling fireplace on my laptop, and decorated paper tree.
a sideways pic of the tree.
The sitting corner with chair and candy.
Friday, December 10, 2010
musings on creation.
yesterday was pretty fabulous.
I came home from work, played a little guitar to plan for Sunday's worship set (I have too many songs, which is the best problem to have), then our first netflix movie had arrived (yayyyyy for netflix), so i had the joy of watching Yentl....after months of talking with Elisa about wanting to watch it. Why do we love the movie so much? I can't quite put my finger on it, but i'm sure it has something to do with Mandy Patinkin. And the best part was that the roommates got sucked in, too. Surprisingly, Sam couldn't get enough. And then we ordered Indian food for roommate Christmas/hangout/Sarah's birthday night. But we didn't do many Christmassy things because it was 24 stinkin degrees outside and no one wants to go get a tree or go to the basement to get decorations in the arctic. So we curled up with Yentl and Chicken Tikka Masala and my heart got really excited to be going to India this summer. And my intestines are praying for the strength to endure the spice. Then Sam and Sarah went off to study and Elisa and I watched White Christmas. I fell asleep, but the good chunk that I watched made my heart even warmer.
Especially this:
This weekend will be filled with Narnia (maybe), lunch with girlfriends and Elisa's grandma Stella (adorable), christmas party at the Sturgeon's (oh how i miss them) and church Sunday. It seems that warm, fuzzy feelings will continue. Which is wonderful, considering the 14 degree weather that greeted me this morning.
Musings on Creation:
I was sitting in bed this morning, reading Acts, and eating a clementine. I love Acts, but kept getting distracted by my clementine. Do you realize how perfect an orange is? It was ideally created for snacking. I was suddenly struck by the fact that there is no way that this orange just existed or evolved on its own.Someone constructed it perfectly - I mean, it has a protective covering, and then each slice is delicately wrapped so that you can peel apart and eat each piece. It leaves the option for sharing, or for saving some for later. AND it's delicious. I used to say that fruit is God's candy. It's beautiful and delicious and perfectly constructed. Look at an orange. How could that just "happen"? Someone designed it, and my tummy delights in His creation.
There is also a paper christmas tree decorating contest at work - each department gets a brown paper christmas tree cutout and you have to decorate it and post it on your door. i dont want to give too much away, but we are so totally gonna win. i'll post pictures next week when it's all ready to be judged. just you wait.
I came home from work, played a little guitar to plan for Sunday's worship set (I have too many songs, which is the best problem to have), then our first netflix movie had arrived (yayyyyy for netflix), so i had the joy of watching Yentl....after months of talking with Elisa about wanting to watch it. Why do we love the movie so much? I can't quite put my finger on it, but i'm sure it has something to do with Mandy Patinkin. And the best part was that the roommates got sucked in, too. Surprisingly, Sam couldn't get enough. And then we ordered Indian food for roommate Christmas/hangout/Sarah's birthday night. But we didn't do many Christmassy things because it was 24 stinkin degrees outside and no one wants to go get a tree or go to the basement to get decorations in the arctic. So we curled up with Yentl and Chicken Tikka Masala and my heart got really excited to be going to India this summer. And my intestines are praying for the strength to endure the spice. Then Sam and Sarah went off to study and Elisa and I watched White Christmas. I fell asleep, but the good chunk that I watched made my heart even warmer.
Especially this:
This weekend will be filled with Narnia (maybe), lunch with girlfriends and Elisa's grandma Stella (adorable), christmas party at the Sturgeon's (oh how i miss them) and church Sunday. It seems that warm, fuzzy feelings will continue. Which is wonderful, considering the 14 degree weather that greeted me this morning.
Musings on Creation:
I was sitting in bed this morning, reading Acts, and eating a clementine. I love Acts, but kept getting distracted by my clementine. Do you realize how perfect an orange is? It was ideally created for snacking. I was suddenly struck by the fact that there is no way that this orange just existed or evolved on its own.Someone constructed it perfectly - I mean, it has a protective covering, and then each slice is delicately wrapped so that you can peel apart and eat each piece. It leaves the option for sharing, or for saving some for later. AND it's delicious. I used to say that fruit is God's candy. It's beautiful and delicious and perfectly constructed. Look at an orange. How could that just "happen"? Someone designed it, and my tummy delights in His creation.
There is also a paper christmas tree decorating contest at work - each department gets a brown paper christmas tree cutout and you have to decorate it and post it on your door. i dont want to give too much away, but we are so totally gonna win. i'll post pictures next week when it's all ready to be judged. just you wait.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
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