Crafty Christmas!

So I've had this crafting bug lately. I'm sure it has to do with my mass amount of time spent on crafting websites : p

Any who, I made this wreath (out of a wreath form and garland)

and this wrapping paper (out of stamps, a pencil eraser, a red felt pen, and a brown paper bag)

Amber and I also made Mom an advent calendar. It was kind of annoying to figure out how to fit all the paper on there when we hadn't thought of that when we were cutting and coloring on it : / Oh well it looks great IMO. Oh, the box is for her "go-alongs".

Pretty sweet, huh?

Christmas, Christmas, Time is here...

So It's Christmas time and I could not be happier.

Amber and I have been getting into the Christmas spirit.

We made a Ginger Bread House...that is Amber's side of the roof. Mine was just scary!

And we decorated the apartment.

This is my table setting, I have Christmas and Hanukkah. Love it!

There is lots more stuff I just don't have pictures of it yet! Amber, the amazing planner that she is, has found something awesome and fun to do each weekend. Plus we made Advent calendars for each other so every night holds something awesome.

I love the holidays...

It makes me want to be a craftier person. I've been scouring DIY websites for cute ideas on how to spruce up my house. I have a wreath I'm going to try and make and a few other shh shh projects. For now I'll show you my little pennant banner. I had this sort done before but I found a paper puncher for $1 at Michael's so I couldn't resist making a real one. I love it!

Also, remember how I said that Amber and I went to St. Andrew's UMC and it was so pretty? This is behind the church. How could you not feel closer to God when looking at that? I don't know if you can tell but there is a trail leading to the cross and some benches. I just love this picture.

Look! First lit up Christmas tree : ) I love it!

Weekend Fun times

I had a fantastic weekend. I spent the majority of it with Amber and Matt, dotted with a few other friends here and there. I really enjoyed myself and on Sunday Amber and I went to St. Andrews UMC. I love that church, it is so pretty. It's super close to our house so I think I'm going to start going on a regular basis.

Anyway, Saturday Amber and I got up and went out to my Mom's house for TV watching / Monster loving times. I ended up making pancakes for myself and Pam, but I added a little something special. Cinnamon! Woo hoo! I know that isn't really "exciting" per say but I thought my little addition made me them quite tasty.

Then yesterday I finally checked my mail (I never do this) and I had a package from Dedire! So exciting. Inside was a beautiful hat that she made just for me. See hat below. I'm not looking so hot but the hat it.

This week is going to be fun and busy for sure. Today I have sorting and cleaning to finish up, then tomorrow I go see Allie to help her get ready for the parental invasion, then I have to finish up Christmas shopping! This up coming weekend is going to a trip to see Kathy (we think) so yeah, lot of stuff to do and I love it.

Crafty times

So I've decided to become a craftier person. I'm not sure how that's going to turn out since I have no patience whatsoever but we'll see. For Christmas I decided to use a bunch of bags for sack lunches as my "wrapping paper". I went to a craft fair with my mom and sister about a month ago and found some Stampin Up stamps in a clearance bin for $13 that were all Christmas so I bought them with the idea of using them on the bags.

I tried this last night with some cheap clearance ink I found at Michael's. First thing I learned, only buy acid free ink, as non acid free will stain your stamps. Found this out the hard way. But my tester bag was cute enough so once I get better red and green ink we'll be in business.

I did get gold and silver and they don't really show up. I'm thinking they'll make cute snow flakes though.

Attempting to bake while sick...

I took a sick day yesterday and used that time to sleep, watch amazing daytime TV, and make Chocolate Peanut Butter cupcakes.





They were a box recipe but I still somehow managed to jack up the icing. I think I added too much milk. It said to add the milk one tablespoon at a time until i was light and fluffy. Well, I'm lazy and I don't like idea so I added it as I wanted too. Thus I ended up with a really thick, heavy icing that wanted to fall off the cupcake. So I refrigerated them. Hooray for good ideas!

Maybe next time I'll follow directions? Maybe not : p I think time I'll try a pie, or a super fun new way to do Mac N Cheese.

Halloween!

Our work had a Halloween contest and a Halloween spread. I made this for our spread. I don't remember where I got the idea for the witch hats or wands but I know the marshmallow faces were from ColormeKatie. We dressed like "the 80's". Pictures below!

Sickness

So I'm sick. I have the stuffed nose, sore throat, all over blahs. But, that's not what I came here to talk about today!

The holidays are almost here! Hooray! Because of that, and because I really want to learn how to cook / bake Amber and I have been pouring over recipes trying to figure out easy, tasty things to cook.

Yesterday Amber and I made this braided Apple tart thing. It was really pretty easy to do. Well, I made the first one on my own and it looked like crap and then Amber helped with the second one and it looked a TON better so hooray!

So here was the first one:

And here was the one Amber helped me with:

My plan is to make an Advent Wreath one for Christmas. Who knows if that will turn out or not. Oh! And I made Amber help me high jack the pies for Thanksgiving. WHAT WAS I THINKING?!

Weekend Update

This weekend was a lot of fun and more productive than usual. Friday Amber and I made a birthday dinner for our Uncle. Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls and my Mom's home made cake filled us up until we were about to burst. Then we all watched Pineapple Express, very inappropriate but very funny. We all retired early, which was nice because I was about to be in a food coma.

Saturday was lots of family time, we went shopping with Mom (never a good idea). I did get a lot of Christmas gifts out of the way for the people I "have" to buy for aka work folks. I have to figure out what I'm going to get my Dad. This is year number two and it's no easier than last year. (He wants to "spend more time together" and I just don't know how to say 'sorry dad, you broke my heart. You get three days a year') ANYWAY Saturday was shopping and then lunch at Mom's. Later was when the real fun kicked in and Amber, Allie and I went out. Hooray for Allie driving so we could drink : ) I need to learn that eating massive amounts of grease and cheese is not a good idea.

Sunday was upset tummies for everyone, even the puppies. We had a very relaxing day and helped Mom decorate for Halloween, and then Amber and I decorated our places and picked out our 80s costumes for work. I'll start taking more pictures so this blog is less boring : p

Vacation

Starting Friday the 10th we're going on vacation! I am so excited. We're going to Nebraska! Woot. I know that Nebraska seems like an odd spot for a vacation but it has a lot of amazingly fun things to offer.

-Pumpkin Farms
-Arbor Day Farm
-Giant Tree House
-World's Largest Front Porch Swing
-BBQ Cook Off Between Local Firemen and Police Officers

That's just a few of things that drew us to Nebraska. I am very, very excited. We haven't been on a vacation that didn't involve going East in a long time. I'll update when we get back. Hopefully after four days we can rest a few more. We're hoping that maybe Al will let us have lunch with them on Lee's birthday since we should be back by then. If not, some time later next week so he can get his birthday presents.

That's all for now!

Long Time...sort of new update?

So I have a new couch! I bought it off Craigslist for $75. Woot. Here is Quinn modeling it.

I'm pretty sure that I found a new self that I want for my living room but I don't want to spend $100 on it. Poop. It's at the Container Store and it's super sleek and Mid Modish...I don't know. I just need to figure out what I'm going to do.

See, I have this problem. I have a freakish love for all things mid century. I'm also just tacky enough to love cheetah print and rockabilly designs. I'm torn between making my bedroom a trashy girls haven or something light in color and feminine.

All I have decided right now is that I want my main colors to be white, teal, and yellow with splashes of red.

I'll go home tonight and take more picture so you can see how everything is set up now. I gave in and bought a DVD player so my home will no longer be TV free. I'm kind of sad about this but also kind of excited.

Love, love me do!

Amanda

Spring Cleaning

So I've decided that I need to do some revamping of my apartment. Yes I know I might only be there another 5 months but still, I need a change. So, thus far I have sold my couch, and got a new (old) one. My plan is to rearrange my living room so not everything is at that 3 ft "hip height". Right now everything I have is the same height, it is very annoying.





So here is my plan, remove one of my bookshelves and use it in the bathroom as a towel holder, for now anyway. Purchase a tall, open bookcase (on a side note I fount one at target that is almost as tall as I am and only $80). I'm keeping my color coded books, but on a larger scale.





See, my problem is that I love arty, crazy things. I like to collect random bit of things that I think are fun, weird, old or just generally grab my eye. AKA I have a lot of random crap. Right now, said crap is all over the place. So my idea was to buy a curio cabinet and put it in there so that It was still displayable but not all over the place. My only problem was that all of the ones on CL were about $200, if not more. Then yesterday I wander into the CCA and *bam* I find my curio. It was locked, they had no key, and the top piece is off. My uncle assured me that he could get in any lock (kinda weird...) and it was only $40 so I got it. Here is said curio.

I also need to declutter and organize my bedroom. If I would just do this then maybe my mind wouldn't always be thinking about it?!?!

At least I got a good weekend with Amber and Allie down in Galveston before I tackle this!

Chaos Therory

I went with a friend last night to get a tattoo. Part of my really want to jump in there and get inked again with her, the other part of me want to savor the whole experience without getting it done. I went with option #2. I don't know quite what it is but part of me is starting to feel like if I got more tattoos, then I'd be that girl who was too tatted up for a normal guy, but not enough for someone who practically lives in tattoo shops. I dunno, it's like my nerdiness. I'm too nerdy for "normal" guys but not enough for nerdy guys, what is that?

You know what I say? Quinn and I are hoping a VW Micro bus and going to Florida to be beach bums. I just need to find a way to pay for dog food so he doesn't end up snacking on my hand.

On a completely different subject Amber and I went to dinner with my dad and it wasn't too shabby. A little weird towards the end but not too bad. Maybe this is a good road? I guess only time will tell.

I'm off! More adventures later.

Clownin' around for my 25th

I threw myself a circus birthday party! We had duck games, door prizes, and a photo booth.

Balloons! Thank you, http://colormekatie.blogspot.com/ for this wonderful idea.

A clown cake, made by my momma

Amber and I, being adorable.

The best picture of Amber and Matt, ever.

Photo boot fun with Amber, Megan and Austin

Photo booth fun with Megan, Kelsey and Amber

The conjoined Twins - one is a fire breather, one is an acrobat

First, Apartment!!!

Ok, so I only have two on here now because we had a dinner guest who was very demanding so I only go to upload two. Those two, however, are very cute if I do say so myself. So first!

The living room:

And Second, the bedroom!

I'll upload the kitchen and bathroom later.

Tooth Agony!

I have to get a tooth pulled. Well, pulled was my choice. It was pulled or a root canal and I don't have the money or stomach for that. Blah.

On the plus side I had a super awesome weekend. I took some flower pictures in Addison park. Here they are for you to enjoy!

And last but not least...everyone loves sidewalk chalk!

Birthday, Spring Cleaning, LIFE

So my birthday is tomorrow and I will be 25. I'm trying to be excited.

I want to do a spring cleaning though, of my house. There is a lot that still needs to be done and I need to be at home with something to do other than wanting to go out and spend money. So my goal for this week is to finally post pictures of my place and then list out from each room what I want to change or get rid of. I might need your suggestions.

This post isn't going to be very long since I spent a long weekend in the hospital with a friend and an even longer Saturday night with someone who never appreciates anything.

Kind of depressed

So I haven't uploaded the photos of my apartment yet but I will soon, maybe. We shall see.

My 25th birthday is coming up this month and I have mixed emotions about that. Part of me is excited, I get to throw a party and people will dress up and it'll be fun times. Another part of me really want to just shut down and push everyone away. It seems like whenever things finally start going in a direction where I can feel slightly normal and start trying to get over everything that's happened something little comes along and knocks me off my horse. I know I've always had issues with bottling up emotions, which might seem strange to people I know, but I keep so much in. I have so much that I don’t let out that when I do finally let it all go, it goes out in a massive blow out. I need to find a happy medium so I don’t have that problem, but I don’t know how.

So far, in my almost 25 years I can say these few things:
I graduated college.
I took a road trip with my sister from Texas to Seattle, then to San Fransisco, then to LA and then home.
I flew to Boston with my sister as a first real vacation away from the family.
I rescued my dog, and I love him to death.

I feel like I should have more on that list. More places, people, things I've done. I feel like I should have someone in my life who I could see myself with. I would like to be married some day, have kids, but I don’t know if that will ever happen. I was recently in touch with an old friend, one that I always had issues with but was still a friend, and instead of being an honest, adult person and just telling me that they had moved on and were fine with our current not talking states, I was told coffee and things should commence to then be ignored. It shouldn't’t matter, deep down I know that in the long run it doesn’t mater, but how many people do I have from my past that I loved who hate me now? Quite a few. I have never figured that out. I meet these people, I want to have a relationship and a I end up bending over backwards to be friends with them and make them happy. I'm always trying to make someone else happy. Then, when I can't take the stress anymore they freak out and leave and hate me, and make sure that I know how much I'm hated. Granted my life has been better since their departure but part of me can't help but want them to still like me, or at least, not be awkward if I see them in public. I suppose it is my fault, I try so hard to be what they want instead of being who I am. All things I need to work on.

I guess 25 is going to be a year of learning.

I'm kinda proud of my self

I clean my apartment (I'm still behind on my laundry) and made tacos / had people over for dinner. Because my apartment is so small I have no space for a table we put two boxes in the middle of the floor and used them as a table and had a picnic.





Mom is going to come over on Sunday and I'm going to make chili (or at least try) so wish me luck on that. I'll snap some pictures of my place this weekend so I can show you all what's going on with it.





Oh, I did have a small, blank wall that was facing my kitchen that I wasn't sure what to do with. When walking the dogs a few weeks ago I came across a large black picture frame that was missing the glass or any backing. Naturally, I took it home. This is the result of that project.

That's a dinosaur cake pan that I picked up at CCA (community christian action), a discounted charger from world market that I spray painted red, the small circles are coasters that say "book" and then have a picture of a worm, there's a song bird, a trophy wife, and a black sheep. They make me happy.

My next project is my every growing mountain of laundry and putting up my "art" wall. I'm excited about that.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Mucho Love <3

Results so far

I can make spaghetti...woot! But I haven't made anything healthy. In fact I ate an entire package of oreos in four days. Anyway, I'm planning on making tacos and chili this week. Maybe something else if I can figure out something tasty.

Along with cooking, I need to learn how to clean. Or rather, keep my place clean. Because it takes me about a day to ruin all the good I've done. Most of my stuff is clothes and books...and random clutter. But as much as I devise a plan that sneaky little jerk called Nap Time sneaks up on me.

I think I would cook more if I had a cleaner place. So much random mail and things everywhere. Not to mention Quinn chewed up some colored pencils and got them everywhere. YAY. oh wait, BOO! Any way, the plan for tonight because I am not going anywhere or seeing anyone is to clean my kitchen, do three loads of laundry and move my bed. Oh yeah, I moved my bed at an angle to make it more "dramatic" and all I got was a crick in my neck because I lose my pillows every night.

Lent and Learning how to cook

So for Lent my family and I are going to give up going out to eat. This is going to be difficult because I'm at work at 6am so cooking breakfast is a bit hard for me and I normally get food in our cafeteria. Then lunch is getting some thing out about half the time, dinner is the same way. Then, when I do cook something it's super simple. Grilled cheese, mashes potatoes, etc. So for the next 40 days/nights I'm going to be teaching myself to cook.

One of the first things I want to try is hollandaise sauce and artichokes. I've never had either and I think it would be interesting to try that. I'll need to make super tasty dinners so I'll want the left overs at lunch. I also want to try to make mostly healthy things so I don't want to make too many horribly delicious things.

So, the thing is now figuring out what I going to cook!

48 New Year

OK, so, it's 2010 and I'm still trying to figure things out. What I want to do with my life, where I want it to go, etc, etc.

I'm going to be 25 this year and all I have to show for it is a "useless" degree, a dead end job, a messy apartment and one large amazing dog. That's 3-1 and I'm looking to even the odds.

So, things I want this year:

-To learn how to cook. I have grilled cheese down and I believe I could do more.
-To keep my apartment clean. It's really starting to annoy me.
-To craft. Sew, paint, mold, write, I need to do something.
-To meet someone new. I need a snuggle partner, but I could also use some more friends.

I think that's it for right now. I'll let you know how that's coming a long.

PS: I deleted all of my old posts. That's two years of random thoughts, sadness, and angry that I have just gotten rid of and I'm a bit sad. I did that because I didn't want to be stuck there any more. I want to move on.

I'll leave you with a cute picture of my dog.