Happy Anniversary III

It's official, Sir Luke and I have been married for three years! I know in the scheme of things that's not very long.

Once Sir Luke has opened his gifty I'll be happy to share it since it's pretty much the best gift ever. We like to give each other gifts based off of the traditional anniversary gift suggestions. This year it's leather... believe me, my gift to him is totally appropriate for viewers, plus my dad has already seen it and loved it.

Thanks for a marvelous three years, Lovey, you are the best!

 Love you most!

Christmas Star

Capree was here last week. It was such a wonderful surprise and we had so much fun! Since I love thrifting so much we made our way to Good Will after our luncheon at the posh In-N-Out. I found a vase exactly like the two I had previously thrifted at DI approx. nine months ago. SCORE!

But then....oh then, whilst I was staking our claim in line, Capree made her way through the shelves of Christmas decor. That's when it happened. She found the gloriously retro Christmas Star!!!!! I've been dreaming of one for ages, especially since I saw a beautiful one on Isabella & Max Rooms. Heaven only knows why because we won't be decorating this year.

Can you even believe the beauty of this piece?

And are you ready for how much I paid for it....$1.49! Bananas! That wouldn't have covered half the shipping of one bought on ebay, which would have been my last resort.

Thanks for having an eye like an eagle, Caps! You're my new hero.

Thanksgiving

What? "That was so last month," you say? Well, I didn't take many photos this year as I was cooking up a storm and apparently I'm the only one who cares about documenting said storm.

So here's a look at the best turkey I've had in my whole life. Remember all those tasty recipes? Uh yeah, the turkey stole the show, as it should. Smoke from midnight to 3pm by the amazing Sir Luke. I am dreaming about next year already. SO GOOD!

Clothes

I've started, for realz, my battle to lose weight. I've been consistently working our and eating better for the past couple months and have seen a difference in my body. I'm super excited about it!

But then life threw me a curve-ball as it often does and handed me a UTI... And what pray-tell did the Dr. prescribe along with antibiotics? Dr. Pepper. He actually said to drink Dr. Pepper. I was super thrilled and then upset. Because I've been working so hard and the super sweet beverage is not so great for weightloss. I had five! in a day. I felt pretty gross the next day and I can feel my body changing back. ::angry fist::

But I re-found the blog Melancholy Smile today and was overjoyed by this quote from her mother on bodies and shopping "When you feel the worst about your body is when it's time to spend the most on fabulous clothes." I loved it so much I had to share.

And if I did have the monies for spending on fabulous clothes I would head back over to Anthropologie and purchase some things I loved so much last night while Capree and I were dreaming bigger than our pocket books. 

Vitalize Blouse

 Show Jumping Boots

Foliage Finder Jacket

Jo's Muse

I really feel like I need to dress more like a grown-up. It's about dang time.

Nick Names

I have had many nick-names and given many over the years. I've never met someone with as many as me.

Mego
Fleo
Mego-Potato
Punkin
Nichol (Nickel)
Nick
Snick
Pinky
Manny
Megsagain
Meganopolis
Lady
Megany
Megs
Meggie (there are a select few that get away with calling me this and you are probably not one of them)
Mega-lou
Mega-toots (thank you, sister, thank you)
Ladybug
Querida
Boobs McGee, Hooty McBoob, Chesty Larou (all courtesy of The Simpsons)
Waffle
Mama


Nick-names I've given others:
Kear Bear
Mama-lou
The Rents
Popsicle
Beastie
Leather
Mister
Pickachu
Pookah
Pickalo
Poodle
Lisa-face
Christina-head
Hillstriff
K-John
Falafel
Manny
Stinks
Waffle
The Man
Papa

The Menu

This will be my second year  cooking Thanksgiving dinner. I am much better prepared this go around and am so looking forward to entertaining thirteen people. Being a child that grew up completely averse to cooking anything it still amazes me that this is something I enjoy doing.

On the menu:

Breakfast
Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls

Pre-dinner snacks
Smitten Kitchen Sweet Potato Coins (sans pecans for my Pops and Sir Luke)
Our classic family Stuffed Mushrooms

Dinner at three
Martha's Winter Squash and Apple Soup
Pioneer Woman's Creamy Mashed Potatoes (with a heart attack on the side)
BBQ U's Maple Red Eye Gravy
Martha's Gingerbread
Classic family Sweet Potatoes
Martha's Roasted Maple Pumpkin Salad (with bib lettuce instead of arugula for Sir Luke)
Pioneer Woman's Cornbread Dressing
America's Test Kitchen's Green Beans Almondine
Melissa Boswell's Tasty Rolls (I don't even have to make them!)

For the Turkey
Pioneer Woman's Brine
BBQ U's Rub
Smoked with Hickory for twelve hours

Dessert
Stay family classic Pumpkin Chiffon
Costco's Pecan Pie
Betty Crocker's Lemon Meringue Pie

So looking forward to so much family coming to town! You'll get the low-down on the hits and misses post Thanksgiving. We've got a picky bunch getting together...so it could get interesting.

Fall Wreath

I never feel like it's fall until I need to wear my slippers. And last week it began. So to comemorate the beginning of my fall season I made a cute wreath to adorn our front door. I'm kinda in love with it.

 

You can make one too! Just go to this link for an easy how to. I will admit that wrapping the wreath in yarn took, what felt like, ten years and a day but was so worth it in the end. Total spent: $10.

The future

A family friend passed away this week. She found out she had lukemia while giving birth to her first child. It definitely put a lot of things in my life in perspective. I'm continually praying and thinking of the families affected by this tragedy.

Today I am thankful to still have these things to look forward to in the future.

Hiking to Machu Pichu
Learning to sail
Owning a bakery
Living in Texas
Going to the Almeda Flea Market
Scuba diving in Hawaii
Making cheese
Learning to play the banjo
Being a mother
Making a book of my photographs
Having a fine art show with my work
Inventing something new
Sewing a dress
Taking a boat ride down the Nile
Writing a short story
Publishing a children's book
Flying kites in Japan
Traveling the entire length of route 66
Going to the World's Largest Yard Sale
Taking ballroom lessons with Sir Luke
Getting over my fear of flying
Sky diving (I can't even think about this without being gripped with fear, at the moment)
Conquering depression
Running a marathon
Building a house I designed
Owning dogs
Spending Christmas with my whole family without fights or hurt feelings (dreams can come true!)
Water skiing
Owning an evening gown
Taking my kids to The Nutcracker
Baking a successful souffle
Reading the Harry Potter Series
Re-learning to play piano
Find treasure
Attend an opera in Sydney

That's all I got for now! What do you look forward to doing in your life? There are SO many possibilities.

Upular

Capree shared a video by Pogo with a remix of Snow White. So awesome. I remembered seeing Alice years ago and loving it. It seems that Disney has embraced these remixes because they promoted Toy Story 3 with them and also...this:



Is it weird that these all make me want to go running? I hate running. I love them all. BANGARANG

Halloween Haircut

Borrowing a Cruella DeVil and Dalmation costume from a friend for Halloween was deemed "out of the question" by Sir Luke. Being that I didn't want to buy anything and only use what we had he suggested Peter Parker and Mary Jane of Spiderman fame.

Thus I had to figure out how best to look like a comic book character and not Kirsten Dunst.

 

I think I did pretty decent considering all it took was a bottle of red dye and some scissors. Yes, my friends. I cut my bangs...again. I look like a cartoon character. But that was kind of the point.

**I did not use my fabric scissors I instead chose tiny eyebrow scissors that were barely sharp. I will next time use Luke's actual hair trimming scissors he has with his kit...oh hindsight.

Today

I decided I need to be more positive. It's funny what a small thing will set thoughts in motion that are destructive. I was watching In Plain Sight in marathon fashion while working on a project and I heard this song by Patty Grittin.



It was so beautiful that I bought it on iTunes. I knew it was her. I listened to her a lot in high school. Flaming Red was a favorite album at the time. Strong, beautiful and powerful. You should listen to her more.

And then a good friend's lady love left a comment on my blog and I went scoping out her blog and found these gems. And they are so different from Patty Griffin and instantly made me happy, just like she said they would.

Little Owl

My friend Sarah is having a baby (slated for Christmas day!) and she's been making oodles of beautiful things for her little bundle. I thought her owl was so darling I decided to take on the task of making one for my friend's little girl for her second birthday.

I went to etsy.com and hunted around for ideas and combined a few to make one. I loved the idea of the legs so Izzie couple drag him around the house if she wanted. Sir Luke, thought they were a little silly, but what do boys know anyway! Paula said that Izzie was toting him around all day yesterday so that made me happy!

I was a little concerned she would be afraid of his giant eyes and talons. What? The owl has to be a little realistic, right?

Craftable

My niece, Kahla (pronounced Kayla), called me her "craftable aunt" when I was young. She and I are closer in age than me and my siblings. It was a charming comment at the time that I still grasp to when I try and explain to people why I like to do so many things.

I hate the phrase "Jack or all trades, master of none" because I think I'm becoming a master of a few and enjoy scads more. I grew up watching "I Love Lucy." And being totally enamored of her world. Unlike me she could hardly do anything at home. Her cooking had issues, she over spent her money, couldn't sing and was always causing shenanigans. But I idolized her and still do to an extent. She did something new and exciting each episode (day) and even if it didn't go well she tried it.

My mom has been a big part of my education in crafts. We had an entire craft closet where I could delve into all the pom poms and clay to produce tiny birds' nests or broaches. Half the time I just found something at my favorite craft store, Grason's (since put out of business by Michael's), decided I liked it and tried to figure out what I could do with it. Whenever my mom and I would go shopping I would see something that I liked and point it out to her. Her inevitable response was, "You can make that." Which would send me into a huff because I didn't want to make, it I wanted to buy it! But what it really did was force me to investigate how most everything is made so I could indeed make it myself.

I took oil painting starting at age five and continue with drawing, singing, piano, 4-H, softball, soccer, Brownies, swim team, sewing, and the like. looking back on it I had total activity ADD. To be honest, I still do. If I got bored with any one thing I had ten others I could dive into head first.

This has definitely carried over into my adult life. Sometimes I see an item that I absolutely love and think about how I could manufacture it myself. This is probably what possessed me to reupholster a wingback chair. And what will make me take up metal works at some point so I can cast jewelry (yep, something I've been dreaming about for a long time). One of my favorite shows, aside from Martha Stewart, as a kid was the Style channel's Runway show. All it was were the fashion shows from Paris, Milan, New York one after the other. The creation of garments got me excited. Really, the creation of anything.

I just really like to create things! Sitting here sick on my couch, wrapped in my first quilt I think it's served me well over the years. I love to try new things, learn another trade and attempt to master it. My mom totally shocked me today in an email saying she wanted to get X.Y and Z done before she got over her quilting fetish. She's been making over 30 quilts a year for the last few years and I was stunned to think she might be toying with the idea that she didn't want to do it anymore. But I guess that's one plus of attempting to do so many things, I don't have to be 100% devoted to one area of interest. I can take a book binding class, keep my equipment together and make a book ten years after or sew the curtains for my bedroom to keep the nasty morning light from waking me up at dawn.

Creating and making are my favorite things to do. I've always got a to-do list ten miles long. But I don't mind. There's always something to look forward to. I'm not entirely sure why I felt like I needed to get this out, but I did.

P.S. I so didn't proofread this. Pardon my typos.

Wingback: Reupholstered

My mom has been reupholstering couches and chairs for ages. She's had the same couch in her house since 1976 and it's taken on countless forms. Most recently she lobbed off the arms and put mission style arms instead. The last time she bought fabric for reupholstery she bought about 27 yards of it...so every time she reupholsters it these days it's with the same fabric. Haha!

I've been pining for a wingback chair in our living room for ages. When Britta told me she didn't want the wingback chairs in her house anymore I begged them off her. Lucky for me she let them go.My mom came up from Los Angeles this past weekend and helped me figure out how to get the thing in the shape I wanted it. I have to say the hardest part of reupholstery is taking the thing apart.

So here you have it:

What do you think?

Cupcakes

My friend Melissa is starting her own cupcake business (finally!). I'm working with her on the photos for her website.

I can't wait to share more with you as we build her brand!

Family Tree

My dad turned 75 last week. Clearly a big birthday and I wanted to give him something that was thoughtful and would mean something to him. Even though wall real estate is a rare commodity in my parent's house so I knew what I was planning was a risky move.

The Family Tree idea came to me nearly a year ago when my mom announced our family reunion at Bear Lake that would take place over my dad's birthday. Being the prolific procrastinator that I am I spent an entire day making it the day before Sir Luke and I left. Despite the rushed nature of the project it came out splendidly.

 I used the Martha Stewart leaf punch to make all the leaves and designed the tree's branches and roots with scrapbook paper. The wood grain paper was perfect for the trunk. The background paper is made with an old map of California I got at the BYU library back in 2005. My dad's family has been in California since the 1850s so I thought it was fitting. I wouldn't even have thought of it if Sir Luke hadn't mentioned it.

My dad loved it!

For Amy

Red Sox

We did so many awesome things while we were visiting Sir Luke's family in Boston. One of my faves was going to a Red Sox game.

James didn't get to go but he knew how to suit up.

 I've been wanting to sing Neil Diamond with thousands of people for a long time...dream fulfilled.

This was pre-official Red Sox shirt purchase. I felt a little out of place in the closest thing to a red shirt I had. Ben and Rebekah already had their Sox garb so they fit in with the crowd.

 I was surprised at how small the stadium was compared to Dodger Stadium. This lead to a lengthy debate between Sir Luke and myself about the difference between stadiums, fields, parks etc. Needless to say I won. The point being I thought Fenway Park was so charming. The hot dogs didn't hurt either.

Thanks to Greg and Jennifer for taking us and Ben and Rebekah for joining the festivities.

Homers!

While Sir Luke and I were in Boston working for the man we got to have a lovely dinner with Matt and Christina Homer. They were excellent company. I miss these chaps.  Thanks to Mr. Homer for having long arms and getting us all in this photo together.

Isn't Sir Luke a stud? I think so.

I love him.

Whale Watching

There are SO many things we've done in the last couple months. Incessant traveling got me totally backed up on sharing our awesome adventures.

Life goal: Whale Watching - FULFILLED!

On memorial day we went whale watching with Sir Luke's Dad, Greg, his brother, Ben and Ben's lovely wifey Rebekah. I had SO much fun! They said there weren't a lot of whales to be seen but I begged to differ, granted this was my first adventure, so what do I know. I was super stoked that we saw any at all!

One of our more favorite things from the morning were watching the seals swim around and play at the aquarium there in the harbor. Rebekah said they looking like hot dogs with faces when they came towards uus! I couldn't stop laughing because she was totally right.

Quilting

So this is the final product of my first real size quilt. I love how it turned out! My dad even loved it, he wanted to keep it. Love you dad, but this baby is mine! I used Amy Butler's Aspen Quilt Pattern.

I had some extra fabric so I made a little matching pillow. It's a little wild but I like it, and the pom poms don't hurt.

I promise, quilting isn't as hard as you might think. If you are thinking about it, give it a go!

Thanks for all the help Mom!

Neptune's Net

My friend Keri J and I get together whenever we can. She goes to school for spies in San Bernadino and obvs I live in the LV so it's not super often when we can spend time with each other. But when we do we always have a lot of fun.

This trip we had a lovely lunch in Malibu along the beach at Neptune's Net. If you have never been...GO! It's tasty tasty. I wasn't about to pass up some fried shrimp and ships, a-mazing.

There was also a fat little bird sitting a foot away from me waiting for a morsel of food. I wasn't about to fork over an ounce of my meal, even if he tried to look super pathetic.

 We also went to Malibu Yogurt for a treat and watched the final of the Ghana Uraguay game. The entire store was glued to the TV, especially the guy behind the counter. It was so intense!!

Love you Keri J!