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November 14, 2011

New blog!

I have decided to move all my sewing and crafty related posts to a new blog so that I can focus more on using this blog for family stuff.  There is a link to the new blog to the right and you can also get there by clicking the title here - Journey To "A Longing Fulfilled".

November 10, 2011

Completed Sewing Projects

This is the first burp cloth I've made.  It's headed out to a cousin of a friend who recently had a baby.  


And these are my first monogrammed towels made for someone other than family!  They are for a sweet new bride.


And finally, a lap blanket for Olivia to use in the car this winter.

Wine & Design

A sweet friend contacted me a few weeks ago with the opportunity to go to Wine & Design in downtown Raleigh for the evening.  Wine & Design is relatively new to this area but growing really fast.  A new one has recently opened even closer to me in Wake Forest.  Hopefully I'll get to check it out at some point as well.

Wine & Design is essentially an art studio where you can go empty handed and walk out a couple hours later with a beautiful picture that you have painted yourself.  They obviously encourage bringing WINE also!  I did not have time to pick any up but some other classmates kindly shared with me.

When you look at the calendar to schedule your Wine & Design evening you can actually see a small photo of the planned painting for the night.  On our evening Koi Fish were planned.

This is my canvas with the background completed:

And, here it is with the green lily pads with seaweed effects (yes, I am well aware that my lily pads are gigantic) and beginnings of my Koi fish.  Note, my sweet friend is there behind my canvas checking us in on Facebook!

And, finally my finished product:












Do you notice anything?  Everyone else is GONE!!!  My perfectionist side really came out - I needed MORE WINE!  I just could not get happy with those fish to save my life!  I kept going back and adding more color, making it lighter, darker, etc.  Oy!  Finally, I just gave up!  I am really happy with my painting now but that night I just wanted it to be perfect like the one the artist did (canvas on right is her completed version)!

Disclaimer:  I was provided with free admission to Wine & Design for one evening as part of a Blogger Shout Out but all of the above opinions are mine alone.

November 03, 2011

Works In Progress

When I look around my crafting/sewing area all I see are Works In Progress (WIP) - they are everywhere!!!!!  I see on a lot of blogs that people keep track of their WIP and by golly, they actually finish most of them!  Many of my WIP are surprise gifts so I'm not sure how well this will work for me since I'll be unable to give specifics or post pics until after the gift has been received but I thought I would give it a go!

For the month of November in order to be completed:
(surprise) baby burp cloth
(surprise) set of kitchen towels (one is done already)
(surprise) swap gift for Craftaholics Anonymous Handmade Gift Exchange - mail by Nov 30
(surprise) baby gifts for a December baby

For the month of December in order to be completed:
Applique Christmas shirt for Ariella
(surprise) gifts for 2 Secret Elfters - mail by Dec 15

Christmas gifts:  
hooded towel
(2) aprons
(14) kitchen towels

NEOC: Days 2 and 3

This is the lunch I prepared for Day 2 of the challenge - chicken pasta salad from The Fresh 20:


Did I eat it?  No....why would I do such a thing?  I let my emotions get the best of me and wandered over to McDonalds!  Bad Shannon!

Tonight I prepped a meat and rice mixture for Stuffed Peppers in the Crock Pot and made polenta for the first time.  The polenta will go in a meal I will make for lunch on Friday.


November 01, 2011

November No Eating Out Challenge: Day 1

Along with a group of my June Mommies (ladies I met online through BabyFit who all had babies around the same time I had Olivia), I am participating in a No Eating Out Challenge.  The point of the challenge is to cut back on eating out.  Since Mark has been traveling for work a lot I have been eating out a ton especially breakfast and lunch since those are times when I haven't planned anything and I am often running late for work or out at lunch on errands.  I doubt I will blog all my meals - I am not a food blogger, that is for sure - but I'll try to post a few here and there for those that might be interested and also to keep myself accountable.  My goal is to limit my eating out to one lunch and one dinner during the work week.  The weekends are a little unpredictable but I will be attempting to meal plan for those as well.

Tonight I prepped a lunch for the first time in eons!


This is the innards of Bean Burritos made with tiny bell peppers and cherry tomatoes from our recent Produce Box delivery, onion, Pampered Chef Southwest Seasoning Mix and mashed canned black beans.  I am serving this with whole wheat tortillas, cheese, and sour cream.  I am loosely planning my meals using The Fresh20, a menu planning service that is based on fresh foods, which I've been subscribing to for a couple months.