:: giveaway! ::

Last night I decided to make a camera strap cover, which I've wanted to do for a while.

Here's what I ended up with:

And here's the best part...

I made two, so I could give the other one away here on my blog!

Simply leave a comment to this post, and I'll use the random number generator to pick a winner this coming Sunday, Jan. 4th.

The strap fits my Canon Rebel strap, covering the portion that goes around the neck. The actual dimensions are 1 5.8" X 20 1/2", so you can compare it to your camera strap to see if it will fit.

Self Portrait Challenge - Slow { mobius }

slow is a perspective

when I was pregnant, it seemed the due date came so slowly...
now it seems like it went by so fast

when I get off a highway going 75mph and have to slow down to 35mph,
it feels so slow... but it a school zone, it's too fast

when I hand craft a scarf for a gift or for myself, it is a slower process
than the speedy "pick something up at the store"...
yet it is worth the result...

for more "slow" self portraits, click here

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I was inspired to make myself this mobius scarf yesterday after creating this
Treasury over on etsy... click here to see it for the next 2 days...

Technically, it's not a true mobius, because it's created as a rectangle and then sewn together, end to end, with a half-twist added before sewing - you could call it a faux-bius.

It was extremely easy to make, so if you crochet and are feeling inspired yourself (or perhaps just cold and bored!) here are my directions for crocheting it.

~~~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~~~

Crochet Mobius Scarf

Use a chunky, boucle' texture yarn, such as this one, and a size K (10 1/2) crochet hook

When crocheting each row, catch only the front half of the "v" of the stitch you are about to crochet into. This technique, when repeated across each row, creates a subtle ribbed effect throughout the piece, giving a bit of stretch and texture.

Chain 18, turn

Double crochet (DC) in the 4th chain from hook, DC in each of the remaining chains across (15 DC total), chain 2 and turn

DC in each stitch across (15 DC total) catching only the front half of the "v" as described above, chain 2 and turn
(repeat this step until the scarf is as long as you would like it to be - mine pictured above is 35 rows total)

Cut an 18" long tail, knot off the final stitch loop.

Lay the scarf ends together, then flip one end to add a half-twist to the scarf, with the ends meeting together again after twisting. Sew the two ends together, knot off, then weave the tail in before cutting off the excess.


If you have any questions about following these directions, feel free to leave a comment with your email & I'll do my best to help you out!

we wish you a

It's Christmas Eve, and I still have so much to do before tomorrow! Ack! Our whole family is coming to our home tomorrow for dinner, and I've been obsessed with getting stuff put up where it belongs, like pictures and paint and other stuff like that. As if I needed more to do, with a pile of presents that haven't been wrapped yet! Somehow I'll get it all done, perhaps with the enlisted (possibly begrudging) assistance from my kids.

I'm planning to make this soup tonight for dinner. I have a big meal planned for tomorrow, as well, which includes Tuscan Roast Turkey Breast, Stuffed Beef Tenderloin, and lots of other yummy things. Thank goodness my family is bringing food, or I would be stuck in the kitchen all day today, too!

And many thanks to Jennifer at Nounces for the card design above! I won a drawing over on Take A Bow's blog for a design & cards from Nounces, which you can find here on etsy - she does beautiful work.

Signing off - the next time I see you, I'll be knee deep in wrapping paper and photos that need to be edited!

Self Portrait Challenge { slow }

:: slow down ::

to remember the reason for the season

for more "slow" self portraits, click here

just one of those moments

when she didn't realize the camera was trained on her...

Fingerprint Friday { God's Word }

The most obvious place to find God's fingerprints is in His Word - the Bible.

I have just started reading a wonderful little daily devotional by Catherine Marshall, Moments That Matter. The first day that I read it, she gave this wonderful idea to create "vitamin cards" - cards with Bible verses about food, water, hunger, thirst, etc. - one card to be read at each dinner, feeding our spirits at the same time as we feed our bodies.

I created them using a name-badge template in MSWord, so all the cards are the same size, but I printed them on various colored cardstock sheets. They fit nicely in a business card holder.

If you would like to have the Word document I created, to use for your own family, leave a comment with your email address & I'll email it to you.

There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that says:
I can see the fingerprints of God
When I look at you
I can see the fingerprints of God
And I know its true
You're a masterpiece
That all creation quietly applauds
And you're covered with the fingerprints of God

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Here's how to join in:

1. Blog with your interpretation of God's fingerprints.

2. Be sure to link so others can find the entire list of participants! Go over to PamperingBeki's blog to add your link to the list of participants.

yes, my whole family is creative

Sunday night was the annual family Christmas party for the homeschool group we belong to. One of their fun activities every year is the family gingerbread house contest.

Each family gets exactly the same supplies: one box of graham crackers, a prepared bag of candy, one tub of vanilla frosting, and one knife. We get 20 minutes to make whatever design we can come up with. The judges don't know who made what, because all the houses are assigned numbers. It's so great to see how each house is a reflection of each different family unit's creativity.

Last year, we won 2nd place, edged out by a family that actually made a Nativity scene (entirely from graham crackers and candy! even we had to admit it was very creative) So this year, my kids got out of the van saying, "I hope we win 1st place this year!" and Chad said, "What's the game plan?" while I said, "It's most important that we have fun together."

OK, so I did have a little plan. To catch the judges' attention, we had to do something different. Instead of one big house, we did tiny houses - one red, one green, and one of other varied colors - and a cobblestone path from each to meet in the middle.

There were a lot of creative entries, including one family that made a steamboat! I was blown away by what people can make with graham crackers and candy, and knew there were a lot of deserving entries for winning.

Imagine my surprise, truly, shock, when they announced we had won the 1st place prize. The reward (besides having had a good time, and coming in first!) is a $40 gift card to a local outdoor shopping area, which we are sure to use for a meal out for the whole family.

To all those other contestants, I have to say - well done! You were all just as worthy to win. And next year? Bring it on!

(note: this photo is the morning after - some things have slipped and slid from transport and the soft icing)

Fingerprint Friday { seeds }

A field of grasses gone to seed and browned from late fall's temperatures.

God even made grass seeds beautiful.



Here's a closeup of one of the stalk heads loaded with seeds...

There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that says:
I can see the fingerprints of God
When I look at you
I can see the fingerprints of God
And I know its true
You're a masterpiece
That all creation quietly applauds
And you're covered with the fingerprints of God

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Here's how to join in:

1. Blog with your interpretation of God's fingerprints.

2. Be sure to link so others can find the entire list of participants! Go over to PamperingBeki's blog to add your link to the list of participants.

: : merry and bright : :

Just listed this last holiday set for '08!

Merry and Bright

ten things off the top of your head

Nic's top-ten-off-the-top-of-your-head game has only one rule:
"it HAS to be off the top of your head...no scouring the internet for all-time-best-character lists."
She picked the top ten best male movie characters.

so here we have it - off the top of my head and in no particular order,

top ten memorable child movie characters

Lucy Diamond Dawson (Dakota Fanning) in I Am Sam
Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
David (Ben Tibber) in I Am David
Annie (Aileen Quinn) in Annie
Fern Arable (Dakota Fanning) in Charlotte's Web
Walter (Haley Joel Osment) in Secondhand Lions
Peter Llewelyn Davies (Freddie Highmore) in Finding Neverland
Jo March (Winona Rider) in Little Women (this is a stretch, I know, b/c she's a teen, but she's such a great character)
Nat Cooper (Elijah Wood) in Forever Young
Elliot (Henry Thomas) in E.T.

easy peasy

Jen has tagged me for a very simple meme, so I am happily obliging.

No long lists to conjure up, no attempts at humor, no digging into my past for things that will surprise you.

Just go to your 6th photo folder on your computer (or external hard drive, or memory card - pick one!), post the 6th photo, and hope you can remember the details to share them. Then tag 5 others.

This is from our field trip to the local apple orchard in September '07. It was about 90°, we were sweaty and tired by the time we got to the part where we each got to pick our own apple, and my girls really did not want to smile for the camera with apple in hand. This is what I got instead.

I'm tagging Mom, Megan, Becca, Beki & Nic, if they are so inclined. If not, I will still visit their blogs on a regular basis because I love them anyway :)

Self Portrait Challenge { slow }

This month's Self Portrait Challenge theme is Slow.

This word evokes thoughts of comfort and relaxation for me.

By nature of my very full life, I do not spend much time lounging around. However, I have been trying more in the last few months to take a few minutes here and there to relax, even if it's only once every two or three days. Reading is my relaxation method of choice.

It feels like a luxury, a real treat, to spend some time reading. When I get back on my feet to continue my day, I can feel a difference. I have enriched my life in a way that sitting in front of the television never does for me.

Classics Bookclub - A Christmas Carol

This month's selection for the Classics Bookclub (hosted by 5 Minutes For Books) was, appropriately, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. I read this once before as a teenager, but didn't appreciate it nearly as much then as I did this time around.

This is a short story, not a full novel, but I don't consider it an easy read due to wading through the somewhat lengthy old English descriptions. Dickens' humor balances his frank look at the human conditions of poverty and heartlessness. I was struck by how, despite all modern advances since this was written, there is still a great need for kindness and generosity, for there is always someone around me in need. Overall, a worthy read this time of year.

When my kids get older, I think reading this aloud at Christmastime would be a nice tradition - it's just too heavy on the old English for me to do that now. In the meantime, I'll pop in this video, which we watch every year:

Some might say that a movie version, especially one starring mostly puppet creatures, would be a close second to reading the book, but I disagree in this case. After reading the book, I am impressed with how much of the original Dickens dialogue makes up the script of the movie. Also, much of the storyline follows very closely. Bits that I thought were Muppet writers' humor were actual lines from the original book.

If you love the Muppets, you'll love Kermit as Bob Crachit, Miss Piggy as Mrs. Crachit, Fozzy Bear as Mr. Fezziwig/Fozzywig! And the delightful Michael Caine gives a talented performance as Mr. Scrooge.

The only things left out are things that are too heavy for children to understand (the dead body of Scrooge on the bed), or some of the longer sections that had to be condensed or eliminated to make the story fit a movie timeline. None of what was left out was, in my opinion, a great loss for children or adults watching this movie.

And to top it off, at the end, one of the characters can be heard saying,
"If you think that was good, you should read the book!"

how sweet

When I arrived home last night,

not only did I find my kids well-fed & ready for bed,

I found my husband with a spatula in hand making these beauties:

I was genuinely surprised and touched. I know he was making them mostly because he and the kids like cookies, but I've never, ever seen him make cookies before. While I'd normally be the one making the cookies, I've had a busy holiday week with a lot of things keeping me out of the house, so something as small as warm homemade cookies from my husband seems like a real treat to me. And he did the dishes, too!

You're the man.

Fingerprint Friday { fingers }

What could be cuter for showing God's creativity than little people fingers? Here's another shot from the time I spent with my nephew at the park two weeks ago.

There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that says:
I can see the fingerprints of God
When I look at you
I can see the fingerprints of God
And I know its true
You're a masterpiece
That all creation quietly applauds
And you're covered with the fingerprints of God

So look around you and see where YOU can see God's fingerprints. Is it in nature? Kids? Animals? Where do you see them? Here's how to join in:

1. Blog with your interpretation of God's fingerprints.

2. Be sure to link so others can find the entire list of participants! Go over to PamperingBeki's blog to add your link to the list of participants.

better late than never...

Some photos from Thanksgiving Day last week...

It is impossible to catch my cousin, Craig, in a candid shot. I tried. He has a sixth sense that knows when a camera is trained on him. And as you can see, my children adored him.

Craig, my sister, and my girls

My grandmother started taking my picture, so I joined her!