Latest Endeavor

BLOG TRANSITION!

2011-06-23T14:25:00.000-07:00

Ok! It's up and running!

I have a blog that I am posting on for the year and a half that I am serving the Lord in the Tennessee Nashville Mission!

(click click click!!!)

So come follow this new blog for regular uplifting posts. I hope it will be a spot of sunshine in your day!

Dearest Followers

2011-05-22T01:29:00.000-07:00

My dear friends and family of blogworld,

I have loved sharing so much silliness, craftiness, seriousness, and whatever else spills out of my brain through my fingers on this blog. I'll be leaving this week to serve the Lord on an 18 month mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and not posting to this blog during that time.

Good news: I will be serving in the Tennessee Nashville Mission where there is a blogging pilot being tested right now, so there is a chance that I will still be writing! If I am selected to participate I will share a link here on Latest Endeavor so you can keep following me if you like.

If I am not then please don't give up hope on this little space in the internet. I'll be back. I just have bigger and more important things to do and turn my attention to for the time being. I love you all and I have been so uplifted by your comments! Seriously, comments are the little bursts of energy that make blogging exciting sometimes. Its nice to know there are eyes out there and I'm not just chattering off to myself (although that might be safer sometimes.)

If you'd like to write me a letter or you know, send me this hoodie (jk) you can find my address under "contact". Please keep in touch friends!

November 2012 will be here before we know it and I'll be back!

Love love love,
Elle

Cross My Heart

2011-05-20T16:30:00.000-07:00

In February I tackled the world of cross-stitch. Here are the results of my effort!

Little deery turned out the most like the pattern that I was working from

This one was inspired by an image that I found on Pinterest. I loved the simplicity of the outline but I had a lot of fun playing around with the colors!

♥

Oh please please please don't judge me by the left side of this heart!!! I have no idea what happened! Somewhere in there I must have gotten off on a row and never found my way back! This was the first one that I did so that's a good enough excuse. I think. A purist/perfectionist would go back and unpick and fix it. But have those words ever been used to describe me?

And some embroidery for good measure.

This pattern is from Sublime Stitching. (Sexy Librarians/Secretaries)

Strip Pictures!!!

2011-05-20T12:44:00.001-07:00

Fiction Is My Friend: Part IV

2011-05-15T00:34:00.000-07:00

Allons-Y!
(This post is bigger on the inside)

Currently I'm obsessing over Doctor Who. Obsesses is an understatement.
The aliens can be kind of dumb (they remind me of the idiot bad guys on Power Rangers) and the graphics aren't that great, but I love the idea of a time traveler that goes around making all of the wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff work out the way its supposed to.

I think the big reason that I love the show so much is because of all the figuring out that has to happen. Its a constant mystery of what is going on. Everything is always changing. And its not just in the story that has twists and turns. The show has been on for 32 seasons and I only started watching it on the 27th. But it works. Ok, well I'm not here to rattle on about how the show itself works, but more to proclaim my love of it. And what better way than with things I've collected on Pinterest.

"There's a plan?"-River Song
"I don't know yet. I haven't finished talking."-Doctor

"That's a fairytale"-Doctor
"Aren't we all?"-River Song

Eccleston was a good intro Doctor, but it was really David Tennant that made the show fun. He's a ball of energy that just feeds off of ridiculous situations. Regeneration is a great part of the show because it's about self discovery. Tennants entrance was

"An amalgam of the races they've conquered"
Yay! Use of the word amalgam!

"Go sit in the back of the class with the safety scissors and glitter"-Mickey Smith

"Expelliarmus! Good old JK!" (silly doctor going ahead in in time to read book 7)

The 11th Doctor has my favorite fashion sense. But I'm sick of all of the hipster crap about him. Except that Matt Smith is totally a hipster.

This genius kicking around in a Cyberman swimming cap.

DELETE!

Remember what I was saying about Tennant? It's necessary to enjoy his silliness and the evolution of the show. I'm really soaking up how Series 5 has a distinct plotline, but its kind of like Smallville, how you have to enjoy some of the stupid nemesis episodes of seasons 1-3 before the serious stuff kicks in and ruins the fun. Oh wait. What TV doesn't do that? Chuck sure has. Getting off topic.

When the new theme song plays it makes me want to dance like this. I LOVE the updated theme song!

But Matt Smith your Doctor is just so picky and hilarious!

Can you see my internal struggle yet?

Trust me. If you start you'll never want to stop.

[Insert the rest of these quotes now]

Life Goes On

2011-05-14T01:36:00.000-07:00

Life has been hard this week.

Nasty not fun hard.

But the Earth keeps spinning.

And I've thrown myself back into action.

Remember this toadstool quilt that I crafted up a few months ago? Raya was the perfect girl for it! I was finishing up the ragging on a little blankie for Marshall and she gave me this sad look and said, "Why does Marshall get so many blankets?" She's been really great at sharing attention with him, hard when you've been the queen bee for your whole life. So I treated her with some cozy quilt loving.

She made up a song about it.

And that made my day.

I Love You Kitty Boy

2011-05-08T23:51:00.000-07:00

Our sweet kitty boy passed away today. We noticed a few weeks ago that he was looking thinner and getting a bit lethargic, more than normal for a house cat, but didn't think much of it. He was happy and getting along great with our older cat Niles. We only had adopted him in mid February and wondered if maybe the weight loss was from adapting to a new environment.

We took him to the vet when we realized just how significant his problem seemed to be. The result was that he had a fatty liver and his muscles were deteriorating because he was too nauseous to eat. He was also severely dehydrated. He was given lots of fluids and after an ultrasound revealed no tumor or anything funky like that it was suggested that we take him home, force feed him until he started eating again on his own, and bring him back if nothing was improving. When the vet shaved his belly for the ultrasound we saw just how jaundiced his poor little body was. So yellow.

He spent a few days at home over the heater vent licking up a teaspoon or two of water, but it was obvious that things were getting worse. He went back in to the kitty doctor the next day and a biopsy of his liver was taken and more fluids were injected. That was on Friday and Saturday afternoon he hid under the far corner of my bed, something he has never done before. He finally was coaxed out by lots of cozy hot air coming out of the heater vent. I gave him lots of loves and had a little talk with him that if he was ready to go home we didn't want him to suffer any more.

Sunday he was breathing fast shallow breaths and not moving. It was the saddest thing I've ever seen. It was like all of the life was sucked out of him and he was just breathing out of habit. His sweet playful personality was long gone at this point. We called the vet and she agreed that the most humane thing to do was to put him to sleep so he wouldn't have to suffer through the rest of the night, or who knows how many more days. She did an x-ray of him and will tell us the results of the biopsy tomorrow so we may know what took our sweet boy from us. She said that the rapid decay of his back leg muscles and lack of reflex response signal that something neurological was going on as well.

Whatever the cause may have been we know that he was a wonderful, loving, playful little boy (only about 6 years old) and that the 3 months we had with him were well worth it. I miss my little furry guy more than I can even express.
I love you Tosh Guster Chocolate Moose Colombo ♥

Traditional Blocks

2011-05-08T00:24:00.000-07:00

I have branched out into the hard stuff! Here are my first 3 traditional pieced quilt blocks! I have finished one more but it isn't pictured. My flying geese points get better with each one! I love that each block has a slight flaw and that they are obvious representations of my learning curve. If you can spot them keep it to yourself and just give me some motivating praise ok? :)

I don't remember the name of this one

Christmas Star

Waterwheel

Dumps Like A Truck, Truck, Truck

2011-05-07T23:53:00.000-07:00

Phone pictures that have just been lying around collecting virtual dust

Not long after I went red. And apparently the rest of the world did too.

Urban Outfitters has some pretty bomb sweatshirts.

Salty plum candy in Japantown. I needed Sarah to tell me which one to get.

"World's Most Perfectly Developed Man"

Fiction Is My Friend: Part III

2011-05-06T00:57:00.000-07:00

Harry Potter was a majorly influential chunk of my childhood

We must have been about 9 and 10 (and 10) on a visit to Charly's parents in Eugene. Read: 6 hour drive to hang out in the chilly mold spore infested basement with The Jetsons and a dollhouse with no dolls. Ok it wasn't really that bad but the cold basement will always be a vivid memory. Grandma and Grandpa Van gave us each a book in a series that was getting popular fast. Since there were 3 books and 3 kids, we each got the one that matched our birth order, meaning I was thrown right into the action of Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets.

I was in the middle of a world I had never imagined. It helped me conquer ridiculous fears. I was afraid of everything as a little girl and I felt brave if I was able to read about giant serpents who turned people to stone and werewolves with no self control. (How cool is that comic??)
I have heard some people say that they don't like how "dark" the story gets as it progresses. When watching the first half of the 7th movie I realized that I'd honestly forgotten that Harry even lived in the cupboard under the stairs. Although the plot thickens, becomes complicated, and in the end seems nothing like the simple book that it all began with, isn't that like life? As we read along with Harry and Co. growing up his challenges must get deeper and complex. And just how boring would 7 years of same old school get?
Perhaps it is because I grew up with Harry and had to wait for each book release that the story became age appropriate with me. My 10 year old sister read the whole series within a month and I think although she may have enjoyed them and the thrill of such an accomplishment she missed so much material that will make more sense in 10 years.

We didn't just read the books though, we lived them. Kristin and I made spell books and school uniforms (although they were nothing as cute as that apron), wrote editions of The Daily Prophet, and even made our own concoctions of butterbeer.
Summer of 2007 I was working at Border's when The Deathly Hallows was released and the party was a lovely moment of my summer. We all dressed up as Hogwarts students and other characters. I fancied myself a Luna Lovegood dopleganger, radish earrings and all! Wouldn't you know it that the pictures from that night also died in the computer crash of 2010? Hopefully I can dig up all of these nerdalicious goodies that have disappeared.

I truly believe that a tiny idea sparked in JK Rowling's head has changed a generation. And it won't stop with us. Her writing is exquisite and captivating, a true piece of literature that will be classic and relevant years to come. As this little poster says, Harry Potter is a gateway drug to hard literature. It teaches those who find no enjoyment in reading that it can be an adventure and a lifelong journey that will become a necessary addiction.

Now for a little joy that I found on the interwebs:

If a man proposed to me like this I would undoubtedly say yes.

Seriously. Beyond awesome.

(click through for 18 more!)

Bonus Goodies!

2011-05-02T00:56:00.000-07:00

Well my goodness this liberation of my nerdyness is just making me want to share all kinds of awesome things! Like this "Geek Zodiak" chart that I just stumbledupon via pinterest (open it in a new tab for full viewing fascination.) I'm an Undead and I'm not sure if it aligns right with my personality. Although it is 1am and I should be dead asleep. Braaaaaains! Give me braaaaains!!! Oh no! Did I type that? It must be true!!!

♥

Fiction Is My Friend: Part II

2011-05-01T21:35:00.000-07:00

Yep. It's essential.

In 6th grade Star Wars Episode I was about to be released and all of the boys in my class were talking about it. One knew that I liked to draw and asked if I would sketch a picture of Darth Maul for him. When I brought it back the next day a few of the other boys wanted drawings as well. I figured I better see what all the fuss was about so I convinced my family into taking me to see the movie. It was love. From then on I was a Star Wars fan. In high school Abby, Brittany and I made this little video mocking the "spectacular" acting in Episode III. No matter how cheesy the films may be there's something about them that just makes an excellent story.

I learned what that was years later in a Humanities class in college while we were studying the hero's journey and Greek literature. I aced an assignment by writing a comparison of Anakin Skywalker and Oedipus. It was awesome. Thanks to the great harddrive wipe of 2010 it's not on the lappy, but I have a printed copy of it somewhere that I should track down so I can share my thrilling work.

Well At Least I've Got A Second Chance!

2011-04-29T00:19:00.001-07:00

Fiction Is My Friend

2011-04-28T22:27:00.000-07:00

Intro:
I am a Sci-fi and fantasy nerd.

♥

It was actually made official when I was four years old and I would curl up on the couch with my grandpa to watch Star Trek. I'm going to do a little series of posts on this obsession featuring books and movies that have fueled my imagination and development.

The first little thing I want to cover though is the difference between science fiction and fantasy.
(I did a whole presentation on the subject in YA Literature but of course that's missing)

When in doubt of a book or movie's genre use this simple rule to decide;

♥

Rivets and Planets=Science Fiction
Generally sci-fi is fiction that is about space, aliens, and scientific progress

Roots and Trees=Fantasy
Fantasy literature is typically magic based rather than science and most settings are somewhat historical

Keep in mind that these are my generalizations, and personally, I don't care much about genre when I'm choosing something to read (although I will admit that I pick ones with interesting looking covers).

I mostly want to write these posts so that I have a record of why I love make-believe and imaginary worlds but I would love feedback and suggestions of other shows and books to discover!

I'd like to add that I've never read Dune. I just really liked that picture of it and it conveys my point.

Some day I may get around to watching the movie with the giant sandworm and all.

But probably only because Chuck and Morgan dressed up as one...

Dear Bloggy Friends

2011-04-28T01:44:00.001-07:00

I'm working on a little mini-series of blog posts about a topic that is very close to my heart (but in a silly fantastical fun way) and I hope to have the first part finished by this weekend.

I love it when an idea strikes and I really take the time to figure out what I want to say rather than blurting out the first sentences that come to mind, so you'll just have to wait until I get it all right.

I hope at least one or two people enjoy what is to come!

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

Interwebbing

2011-04-21T01:44:00.000-07:00

I wish all of my shorts were digital

♥

I want to live in a cottage

♥

"Who needs a brush when you have charisma"

♥

Not that I would, I'd just like to.

♥

This website has so many adorable little girl ruffles, dresses, and rompers. Someday I hope to have a darling little girl to make clothes for.

♥

Deep breath and leap!

♥

I love love love Day of the Dead makeup! Post-mission I am so going to rock a look like this on November 2nd

♥

Bacon, cheddar, and chive scones. Yes please.

I hate Twilight.

♥

I love finding my name pop up in French phrases.

This translates to "she loves life"

♥

To Kill A Mockingbird is one of the best books I've ever read.

Confession

2011-04-20T01:26:00.000-07:00

I don't think I'll ever be a fashion blogger.

Here are a few reasons why:

1. I don't feel like anyone would be inspired by my outfits no matter how much I love them.

2. I'm not comfortable spending someone else's time taking pictures of me in said comfy but cute outfits.

3. Fashion blogs are booooooring! Not all, but if that's all they talk about, yes.

4. The duck face. It seems to be mandatory.

5. Uploading photos is not a hobby of mine.

6. There are more interesting things in the world to talk about than clothes.

Not that I talk about fascinating world subjects that often.

But I do feel that I write about things with a little more depth than heels and cardigans at least once a week.

I think what made me consider if I would ever do this is this button

I think the badge is a great idea to connect women who want modest fashion advice and ideas from each other. But sometimes I feel left out. To me it's a little online clique for girls that fit a certain style. I know that there are few limitations and the widget is freely shared with whomever wishes to participate.

My hope is that the badge never becomes a way to say "Hey I'm Mormon and I do this because it's cool" . I respect people who are willing to share their testimony much more than a knee length skirt or a cap sleeve tee. Now if there were more posts about why modest fashion is so important as a symbol of respect to our bodies and divine creation I would support that. Sadly that is not what I find from many blogs.

I'll be the first one to state that I love clothes. I really really really love clothes. My focus in school was Clothing Construction. But too much attention on clothing becomes a major distraction for me. Do you remember my post about my hunt for mission clothing? I'm realizing more and more that paying so much attention to my wardrobe is a waste of time. I love to dress up and I want to look nice and presentable, but that doesn't mean I have to spend a lot. And thank goodness I'm losing that desire to have brand names emblazoned across my chest.

I don't want this to sound like I'm hating on well dressed women. And yes, I adore designer things, I just don't buy them! I think this issue hits close to home because it is a weakness of mine that I will probably have to always work on.

I just want to be better at being like the Saints in Alma's time who "did not wear costly apparel, yet they were neat and comely" (Alma 1:27)

Therefore, I don't think I'll ever be a fashion blogger because it would just give me more reason to live with my head in the closet when it should be doing more productive things.

Tell me what your thoughts are on Fashion Blogging/self labeled Mormon fashion bloggers

Is It A Baby? Or Is It A Snail...

2011-04-16T10:56:00.000-07:00

Last night for Stephanie's birthday party we all dressed up as Nerd Herders! (Have you not seen Chuck? Best awkward spying show ever.) Sarah and I specifically dressed up as Jeff and Lester because she will always been the Lester to my Jeff. Kristin assumed the role of one of the many Greta's, and Richard was probably the closest to being Chuck himself. Enjoy our wacked out on Jelly Belly's pictures and here's a reference picture.

We're spot on. Really, dead look a likes.

Lester, Greta, and Jeff

Add a wannabe Chuck

The Best for Last.

A Little Bit of Concert

2011-04-14T01:49:00.000-07:00

Mattie and I snuck up to HSU a few days ago for a little concert on campus. Helloooooooo Greg Laswell! I was so excited when I found out that he was playing! His song "Sing Theresa" was one of my favorites for a long time and there is something really special about hearing a favorite song performed live.

It's a small tour with Lenka headlining and rather than having a full band he just has a cello/guitar player. The cello parts were just so beautiful! I actually talked to the guy afterwards and he was really nice. Bonus. (When I met one of the guys from Boys Like Girls he was kind of rude to me and it really turned me off to their music). Lenka is a cute girl and has fun music but she was a beezy. Not a fan of her as a person either.

I just think it's sad when performers aren't kind to their fans. They wouldn't have a career if it wasn't for the people in the audience! Be a little gracious please.

Here's a little video I took at the show. I adore cover songs and this one just had me laughing when I realized what it was! Mattie knew after the first line of the song but it took me until the chorus.

Ugly the Pillow Gets Dressed

2011-04-14T01:26:00.000-07:00

We begin with a trip to Disneyland in the spring of 2008. Hannah Montana was super cool then. Miley Cyrus wasn't off being a crazy bird person in a cage. And my little sister and I had matching pink shirts that we wore on the same day once or twice.

But then I got sick of it and turned it into a pillow.

Flash forward um...2 years? Yes. That bright pink thing was around for a long time.

I made this simple knife edge pillowcase in my Home Decor class. I was going through a shabby chic phase then and I just fell in love with this toile. From Walmart. That was $2 a yard. So I have a lot still and don't know what to do with it now.

So I made another pillowcase out of that fabric and this one was too overwhelming to be on the same bed. So I gave it a sweater. One of my friends had done this with her pillowcase project and it looked really cute. I think this one is kind of dumb.

And since it was dumb I started over and made this super cute selvage pillowcase from a free Moda Bake Shop pattern! I just love love love how it turned out and so happy that I could feature my last little strip of Neptune somewhere that it will be enjoyed. I think selvage projects are just so cool because you can use the tiniest little scrap that has always been thrown away in the past. I also love it when there are fun words or the fabric has a silly name.

And this is the back!

A close up so you can enjoy it more :)

Last Week On The Web

2011-04-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

I came upon these great things!

♥

I'll get to see my first fireflies on my mission!

♥

If this worked I'd have gone through a million boyfriends by now

♥

silly :)

♥

The lady who created this fantastic umbrella has a fun story to go along with it. Check it out!

♥

I love Elycia's heart shaped elbow patches. Time to grab one of my many sweaters and make some!

♥

If I have a boy someday I may do this for his room

And finally, if this image is unfamiliar to you, you MUST click on the little heart and find out what it's all about. But maybe run to the bathroom first because you may pee your pants.

♥

I've Been Shot!

2011-04-11T16:25:00.000-07:00

Service project meeting on the boardwalk+
Tetanus shot at the Public Health Building +
Getting tax return+
Only a half hour wait at DMV+
Grilled cheese sandwich=
A great and fulfilling day so far!

Now lets take that and multiply it by singles branch family home evening and divide it by Chuck and add in a little quilting= beyond doubt the best Monday there has been in a long time.

Chocolate + Nutella = Heaven

2011-04-09T21:57:00.000-07:00

These photos made me do it!

tartelette

Art of Two Tarts

I was asked to bring either a salad or a dessert to break the fast tomorrow and my first thought was "Nutella frostinggggggggg!!!" I didn't really like the recipes from either of those links and both cake recipes had coffee in them so I set off to create my own! The last attempt I made at cake from scratch turned out as red velvet playdough so I turned to the always reliable Pioneer Woman. At least I assume she's always reliable since she's so popular. I've never tried any of her recipes before.

Her chocolate sheet cake just came out of the oven in two 9'' cake pans (they took about 40 minutes, she says 20 min when its on a baking sheet). They look divine and probably edible! It's out of the oven and cooled and I will now add that instead of 4 heaping tablespoons of cocoa powder I'd make it an even 6. And a half. Plus a little. But the heaping 4 is really good too!

I'm also using a frosting recipe from her website called That's The Best Frosting I've Ever Had. And it's going to be even better because I added about 3/4 of a cup of Nutella during the first step! It's a little odd because it starts like you're mixing a white sauce, milk and flour. Who ever thinks flour when they're making frosting? Not I! Well we'll see if it is just as divine as she claims it is! And hopefully the added hazelnuty chocolate goodness doesn't ruin it!

Might as well have gotten one of these

Some changes when making the frosting:

I used 1 1/2 cups of milk and 7 TBS of flour. I then mixed in 3/4 of a cup of Nutella. I didn't remember to double the butter and sugar but I figured that some of that would be evened out from the Nutella added in. It is a very very very soft frosting! I refrigerated the frosted cake over night before serving it. When it is cold it holds up really well. Oh yeah, and using more milk meant that there was about 2 cups of frosting leftover, so now I'll have to make something else for it to go on! (or use my finger?)

About Time I Made A Playlist

2011-04-01T21:44:00.000-07:00

Songs for Spring

Ok, so not all of them are springing upbeat songs. Some a bit more winter dreary. But it's what I love right now so stop complaining!

Download

I'm always looking for new stuff. What songs are your favorite right now?

Light of the World

2011-04-01T19:05:00.000-07:00

I met a new coworker a few weeks back and as I got a chance to talk to her she just smiled at me and said, "I could tell you ware a Christian." Now think a moment about that. I was just wearing all black and a hairnet like all of my other coworkers. We hadn't spoken a word but to introduce ourselves before, and she knew it. She wasn't surprised in the slightest when I told her of my faith and that I'm going to share my testimony with strangers for a year and a half.

How did she know? How could she tell? What she could see in me is what we call "the light of Christ". There is something special about a person who knows that Jesus Christ has atoned for our sins and that life is more than just a series of mindless obstacles.

The world today is getting darker and more depressing every moment. My parents don't watch the news anymore because it is just a depressing stream of information that they don't want affecting us in our home. What is amazing though is that as times are getting harder more people are turning to the Lord for their strength. His path is the only sure way to eternal happiness. A great quote from the scriptures to share this point is found in Mosiah 16:7-9 "...the sting of death is swallowed up in Christ. He is the light and life of the world; yea, a light that is endless, that can never be darkened".

When we are faithful in our obedience to God's commandments we will have that light of Christ that other's can see and just feel from being with us. Its obvious in our countenance and it is alluring to those that are seeking truth.

I know that many bloggers don't share anything about religion or their faith for any number of reasons. I want all of my blog readers to know that isn't me. I think that holding back from sharing my love of the gospel of Jesus Christ is denying other people the blessing of knowing their Savior and it holds back blessings from me as well. That's a main reason that I am so excited to serve a mission, because that's all I will be doing for a year and a half! Bringing joy into other people's lives! If you want to know more you can go to this website!

The Sibs Quilts

2011-03-31T14:00:00.000-07:00

I don't get to see my Dad's little kids that often and since it will be a year and a half until I can visit again I made them each a quilt to snuggle with if they miss me. Elisabeth immediately ripped her comforter off and carefully straightened out her new bedspread.

I also made her pillowcase for Christmas. I designed this quilt and made it from Bliss by Bonnie and Camille for Moda. The squares are flannel and the sashing, border, and back are quilting cotton. It was really very simple but I love how intricate it looks! I did free motion flowers on the biggest squares and a zig zag around the border.

Lars is undoubtedly THE cutest little boy on the face of the planet. His blankie is a rag quilt. All of the flannel for both projects were scraps that I saved when I was making receiving blanket kits at Porter's, so his was entirely free :)

I don't put batting in my rag quilts. Do you?

Here we are snuggling up for a good-bye hug. Elisabeth exclaimed right before this "I HATE taking pictures!" Of course.

In The City

2011-03-31T13:41:00.000-07:00

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA (Kitty wrote that. And I can't delete his first typed words!)

So as I've mentioned, I went to San Francisco last week to do some shopping for the mission! On the drive down I had with me a friend-of-a-friend's-sister who needed a ride to the airport. Luckily we got along really well, or else it could have been a long 5 hours! (Or 4 and a half...I swear I wasn't speeding!)

Stephanie (she's the tag-a-long) is from North Dakota and she was on her way home from being a nanny in Australia for 10 months (awesome!) but she'd never been anywhere in San Francisco besides the airport! Since her flight wasn't until midnight I tossed my camera at her and we spent an afternoon being as touristy as we wanted to be!

I love seeing this view after coming out of the rainbow tunnel!

Bread sculptures at the Boudin Bakery

I haven't been down to this part of the city in years and I went twice this week.

I tried to get my flip-flopped foot up into the picture but I just tumbled backwards and almost fell over an old guy. Whoops!

I hate seagulls. And I've never been to Alcatraz. Or as Stephanie said, "Is that Azkaban??"

Sometimes taking pictures through windshields turns out pretty!

Understatement of the year. If Charly hadn't put new roters and brake pads on my car we would have died. Really.

I saw this idea on pinterest and had to try it for myself!

There are no pictures of us because we looked like poop. Well at least I did.

Three Sizes That Day

2011-03-30T01:18:00.000-07:00

My heart is growing bigger and bigger and stretching across the states.

There will always be a piece of it at home in California with my family and the streets I've seen since birth. The road to my Grandparent's house that I walked up after school every day. Slugs from Los Bagels (it's always the food that we miss the most). The passion that most everyone has for protecting the environment. The smell of ocean and redwoods and marijuana....(oh wait. I don't care for that part much).

But this girl can't be tied down to one place forever.

Idaho took a chuck and it won't let go. When I checked up on Brandilyn's blog the other day the glimpses of Main Street just made me want one more day having lunch at Great Harvest and a day of work cutting fabric at Porter's. One more afternoon in the Smith building watching snow fall instead of listening to a rhetoric lecture. One more spur of the moment trip to the hot springs in packed cars and good friends. Don't cry for me Madison county. I bet i'll find my way back to you in the future.

And now as I am preparing for my mission I can't wait to meet the Paula Deen's that are waiting for me in Tennessee and Kentucky. I get mixed responses from people when I tell them I am moving there in just 2 months. Most are shocked that I'll be going so far and tell me how hard it will be (they have NO idea) and then of course they say something about Southern hospitality and that the people are so nice. It's amazing to me that I love the people I am going to serve without knowing anyone yet or anything about them. They are in my prayers and always on my mind. I wish these few months could just fly by!

Be prepared for future hearts to pop up on this map because I know there is so much more out there for me to explore and I plan on getting to it!

The Costco Demo Diaries

2011-03-30T00:48:00.000-07:00

I've had this post title floating around in my head for the past month or so that I've been cooking up little samples of delicious treats and snacks for the past month and a half. It isn't the most mentally stimulating job I've ever had, but it pays well enough for just standing there shelling out the goods. Yesterday I grilled tri-tip and came home smelling like a giant steak. Today was this ramen-esque shrimp soup. Not so good.

We don't technically work for Costco, but for an independent company called Warehouse Demo Services. I feel a little awkward when Costco employees are all busy around me getting their work done. We don't ever talk and I know very few of them by name. Its odd to me that we can be around each other all of the time and not take the time to know each other at all. We co-habitate but never mix.

I do observe though. There are two employees (that I know of) who are deaf. I can't imagine life without sound and finding work is one of the last things I would think about having to tackle with a disability like that! I think it's fantastic that the warehouse is somewhere that is open to all people for employment. Good job Costco. You make me proud to work for your sub company.

Seeing coworkers talk in sign language is pretty cool. All languages are cool really. I'm intrigued by the way we get what's going on inside our heads into the minds of who we are communicating with. Face to face is obviously my favorite form, but I'm a phone talker too. Texting is a little light in my day because it's a fast way to tell someone, "I'm thinking about you and I want you to know that".

I hope that in my few weeks left of work at Costco I can pick up a little bit of sign language to be more outgoing in a new social sphere. I want into that secret silent world.

Right Now

2011-03-30T00:34:00.000-07:00

This is what my heart is singing over and over again.
Curling up with the cat will have to suffice.
Don't mind the dumb pictures please.

Oh, and this is post #200!

Shopping

2011-03-27T23:45:00.000-07:00

Sucks.

All of the energy out of me.

But I have a lot of great clothes for my mission now!

I took a trip down to San Francisco last week to stock up on past the knee length skirts and conservative but cute and comfy tops. It was nice to not feel guilty for just shopping all day because I really need almost a whole new wardrobe for the next year and a half. As I looked over the checklist before I went I really only had one gray skirt, one dress, and maybe 3 black and white shirts I could take. Hence the shop-o-rama that ensued.

What I didn't expect was a lesson in humility.

The dressing standard for sister missionaries has relaxed a little in the past year; hemlines have gone up from mid-calf to covering the knee when sitting and standing, colorful prints and patterns are ok, and nylons are optional! I began my search on Union square at all of my favorite city spots like Anthropologie, H&M, Urban Outfitters, and Macy's hoping to find modest clothing that would be trendy. I don't want to be a frumpy frump boring dresser. I found only one shirt and one dress. It had been hours and I was frustrated that nothing was turning up. The only long skirts in style right now are these hideous 90's hippie things.

ew see for yourself.

I regrouped with my Uncle and his girly friend over fish and chips and prepared myself for another few hours of little luck. Instead we headed over to Ross (ironic because that is one of the very few stores we have in Eureka) and well, I found 3 perfect skirts, a top, and some low cut socks all for less than the price of my clearance sale dress from Anthro!

After this success I realized that I had a poor mind frame for shopping for mission clothes. I'm not going to be spending a whole lot of time fussing around with cute fashionable things and the trends are going to change in the next 18 months. I don't even know what's in style in Tennessee and Kentucky and I'm really not prepared for the heat of a southern summer! As I stopped caring about the name brands on the labels inside of my clothing I was blessed to find what I needed at a much more reasonable price.

I stopped at the mall in Santa Rosa yesterday on my way back and scored on a bunch of really cute classy tops at Forever 21 (the one in Union Square is way too hectic to even attempt going in), PacSun, and Banana Republic. Um, hello? Three tops at Banana Republic for under $40? That was a serious blessing waiting for me right there!

So I ended up happy and spent far less than the average $1000 that we are told to prepare to spend. Bring on the 18 months of the 30x30 challenge!

Works In Progress

2011-03-20T00:40:00.000-07:00

These are my last two finished quilt tops in the pile that need to be sandwiched and stitched. Of course the green and purple one is one of the very first quilts I've put together and one that I am most excited about getting done. I think it's size is just daunting!

Pattern: Starlight Lounge Mini

Fabric: Martinique by Moda

Martinique is one of my absolute favorite lines of fabric. I made my first work apron out of it and the creams and browns were nice and versatile with whatever colors I threw on in the morning. This quilt is really small, only 38"x38" so hopefully some day I have a baby girl to wrap up in it. I love it far too much to give away!

Pattern: Yellow Brick Road

Fabric: Mostly Flora and Fauna by Michael Miller and Love by Amy Butler

This quilt is always going to make me think of Chuck (the TV show) because I cut out all of the pieces on my bedroom floor with Hulu catching me up on the episodes that I missed during the end of my last semester. I love that it has Minkee and flannel mixed in with the regular quilting cottons. Bump described the color scheme as having "sparkle" because your eye jumps around and is always moving. Nothing calm or boring here! I love the contrast in colors but I'm still unsure on the border. I think they kind of look like evil eyes. This one will be somewhere in between a twin and a full.

Flat Iron Case

2011-03-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

For some time I've thought about making a case for my straightener and that day has finally come! It's a bit of a necessity because I leave it out on the counter until it cools down before putting it in the cupboard and that usually means that I forget and it just lives there! To get some inspiration I searched around on Pinterest and found this really great tutorial from Rubies and Pearls. I liked it because of the fold over top to keep the ends contained. I didn't end up doing mine that way because my layers of fabric were too thick. I used Amy Butler home decor scraps so it matches a big shopper bag that I made this summer.

All I did to modify the tutorial was fold over a flap and stitch on some velcro as a closure. I then tacked a strip of ribbon on the top of the flap to hide where the velco is. Thats it! I also used Insulbrite instead of regular batting because it's what I have and because it's made for hot pads. The combination of the heavy fabric and special batting make it super heat proof! One downside is that it doesn't fit the whole cord very well and the plug is a really tight fit. I don't plan on storing it with the cord inside because I don't want it to melt so that shouldn't really be a problem, just a heads up!

I'm going on a trip down to San Francisco this week and I'm celebrating the week off of work by having painted nails!!! Hooray! I call these my galaxy fingers.

Emma also says hi!

Greased Lightning

2011-03-18T02:18:00.000-07:00

I am afraid that at any moment my house may be struck by a giant bolt of pure electricity. The thunderclaps are so long and deep that they rumble through the floor. Ah. There was another. The flash is so bright it's like God's photographer forgot to use the night setting!

Color and Cat

2011-03-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

With my living situation being temporary I haven't really moved in all the way. I have a laundry basket still filled with odds and ends that were thrown into the car at the last minute. As I was cleaning this out I decided that I really didn't want to keep this makeup palette around and it could find its way to the circular file. But me being who I am, there is no reason to just throw away something that can be played in first!

I grabbed a bobby pin and swirled up the eyeshadow bricks to show off the vibrant colors. I've noticed that shadow gets brighter when you break it up and the little rainbow can be saved digitally with these photos rather than taking up space in my room.

Kitty boy all snuggled up in my covers

I introduced him to the other cat that lives in my bed, the Cheshire.

Yay for kitty yawns! I hope I can get a shot sometime soon that isn't blurry.

A Project Complete!

2011-03-14T15:50:00.000-07:00

While working at Porter's this past year I fell in love with many fabrics and typically seeing them every day was enough to get my fix. There were some however that I just bought yards and yards of. The woodgrain fabric that inspired this quilt was one of them. I bought a little bit for a journal project during Red Velvet Summer Camp and it started a fever that burned in my crafty heart. The rest of the bolt came home with me shortly afterwards. I recovered a body pillow so it now looks like a log but there was so much of the fabric left that I knew I should make a quilt with it. Several visits to JoAnn's and Redwood Sewing Center later the final concept was born.

I give you, The Toadstools and Pinwheels Quilt

Yay! Hooray! Applause!

This is the first project that I have made with the intention to sell and it is a different mindset of quilting. I think I do better work when I know that the final piece won't be with me forever, but I'm also not quite as motivated because I know I don't get to snuggle up with it at the end.

You can find it for sale in my shop!

A look at the fabric on the back

Close-up view of the 'shrooms

Elyssa. Stop Whining. I Was Lying When I Said This Wasn't About You.

2011-03-08T23:54:00.000-08:00

I don't know which version of waking up I like better:

1. Proper with crossed legs

Or 2. The fat tard

Also this is a terrible post because Elyssa is in my ear crying about how fantastic we are. So here is easy blogging. A photodump of me and Elyssa.

This was at her birthday party. There was a puppy there!

THE Christmas Party. There was much amused fighting after the sugar rush of mocktails.

Boys Like Girls concert in Blackfoot. Super fun!

Said mocktails.

I really do like her. This was an ongoing battle.

"And if you do something to thwart it I will have to take action against you."

2011-03-06T20:24:00.001-08:00

I'm never surprised when I leave the house and there is thread all over me. But when I looked down and the cat had thread on his ears? That was worth a laugh!

This Is My Boyfriend

2011-03-05T19:43:00.000-08:00

Our kitty boy has adopted me as his favorite in the house. Well he hasn't said that in so many words because, well, he's a cat. But he sleeps with me every night and can almost always be found in my room. As I mentioned before he came to us with the name Tosh but after my mom realized that Tosh.0 was not something she wanted a family member named after we've settled mostly on Guster.

He is a Sealpoint Siamese that came from a breeder but his family before us was unable to keep up grooming costs and they had allergies so he was sent to a shelter. Big blue eyes fits so perfectly into our home that it seems like he's never known anything else.

I got this picture with my phone right when I woke up. His typical night routine is to curl up under the covers with me. I have never known a cat to like being surrounded like that. He'll snuggle up to me and when I roll over he just climbs over me and settles in again. I know he's getting more comfortable because this morning he practically sat on my face as soon as I was awake.

Oh little buddy you make me so happy!

Taste The Rainbow

2011-03-02T13:02:00.000-08:00

I have finally joined the obsession of rainbow cake! The other night I was babysitting my little sisters and they suggested that we play Wii. I honestly love throwing imaginary frisbees at computer animated dogs but I didn't feel like doing that on our special night together. I raided the front hallway and found one white cake mix and we set off on our food coloring adventure!

These are our finished cupcakes which we dubbed "playdough cake" because of how vivid the colors turned out! We used gel coloring by Wilton and lets just say I wanted to make sure that there was plenty of color...

The cupcake shaped oven mitts were a project that we did together a few weeks ago. Very cute and easy. You can get the pattern from the designer here.

This is our batter after we added the coloring. I opted for pyrex measuring cups rather than bowls because the pour spout made it easier for little fingers to pour the colors into the cups. One point for genius?

There was no rhyme or reason to the order of colors poured and by the end we were mixing the batters together to make purple and orange. What smart little sisters I have that only wanted to use primary colors so they could play with their food. The heart shaped cups are silicone and peel away easily to show of the layers of color.

And here we have it! A multi layered colorific confection!

Repeat

2011-02-26T00:17:00.000-08:00

If I had to listen to one song on repeat for the rest of my life it would be Roxanne, the Moulin Rouge version. Ewan McGregor's voice has so much emotion that sometimes when I'm being ridiculously emotional (read every other day) it can even make me cry. I can attest to the fact that I wouldn't get sick of it because I in fact have tested this theory. My senior year of high school my jazz choir performed at the Santa Cruz Jazz Festival (we did quite well!) and you know how music nerds are. A trip to sing means vocal chords must be in use at every possible moment! On the drive back Roxanne and Creep (by Radiohead) were the most requested songs in the car. And luckily my mom indulged us and was oh so patient.

P.S. The movie version is better than the CD so here is a little treat :)

2011-02-24T13:50:00.000-08:00

Here are some things that have struck my fancy this week

A sign like this would be so cool in an overgrown garden or a park

Grandma and I are going to make pesto baked potatoes with dinner tonight!

The blog this recipe is from is probably going to be my go-to recipe file forever. It's the creation of a Dutch woman (don't worry, it's all in english) and her adventures as a food blogger. She takes excellent pictures and I love that her measurements aren't exact in the slightest! The ingredient list will say 1/2 a cup and then in the recipe it says 1/3 of a cup...could be a typo, or could be someone who cooks like me and changes their mind about what's going in the pot! I think a recipe should just be a guide to figuring out food for yourself.

My mom and I watch Psych pretty much every night. Its true love. You know that's right. I think that it satisfies my need for friends my age since I don't have many out here in California. I get my daily laughs in with Gus and Shawn and even thought eventually its easy to figure out the formula of who-killed-who there are always twists that are unexpected. All time favorite: when the theme song changes depending on the episode like the Bollywood one and the a capella version.

Yellow Brick Road is a great pattern and I just pieced another twin size quilt this week. I'm working on a pieced back for it and I think that I'm going to hand quilt it. (this one was made by someone else)

Baby platypuses! They look so velvety soft and I want one in my pocket. You have to admit that they are almost cuter than a kitten..

And of course, Hipster Ariel now has a following. I think Tiana and Belle are my favorite new ones.

In music this week: My little sisters and I have been singing Kokomo for about a day straight. It all started with this funny spin off about all the weird names of cities in Utah

Dear Laura

2011-02-23T23:49:00.000-08:00

Thank you for introducing me to Stephen Colbert ice cream.

No thank you to my teeth for being so sensitive in the moment.

Adoption

2011-02-23T23:16:00.000-08:00

Meet our new baby!

Well he's not really a baby, but he's new to us and oh so adorable! He came to us named Tosh but we're debating some other ones like Chocolate Columbo, Guster, Chocolate Moose, (can you tell that we're hung up on the fact that he's brown?). Well enjoy some more pictures of the giant boy.

He has the most beautiful big blue eyes and look at those white whiskers against his deep dark fur.

Streeeeeeeeech! I assume he was tired of posing with the deer. Or he's just a cat and they don't really sit around waiting for pictures to be taken.

The Anticipation is Over!!!

2011-02-18T23:55:00.000-08:00

After three weeks of torture and anxiety I have finally received my mission call.

I, Sister Elle Jane McCall, will be serving in the Tennessee Nashville Mission!!! I report to the Provo MTC on May 25th, 2011.

I'm so excited to get my nametag!

I have known since just before Thanksgiving that this was the next step in my life, to dedicate a year and a half of my time on Earth to bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to others but I had no clue where that would take me! The past four years of my life have been about me. My schooling. My career. My future. I'm honestly sick of being so self centered. I know myself. I've over analyzed every single little decision that I've made in my education. It's time to divert my focus. To take myself out of the equation and just focus on my duty to God.

Nashville, TN Temple

I knew that the Lord would send me where He needs me most and that it would be fitting no matter where in the world I was sent. Of course I had a secret little hope that I would be sent to a foreign country. I've always wanted to learn French and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity, but then again, that desire defeated the purpose of me serving in the first place! I know that Nashville is going to be the place I was meant to be.

As I was driving home from work tonight knowing that my big white envelope was waiting for me to rip it open and reveal my destination to my friends and family gathered together I was calm. The big ball of nerves that had built up in my body over the past month was gone. I was at peace. I knew that a choice had been made for me and that it would be perfect. I love Tennessee already. I've never been there. I've actually never been further east in the states than Wyoming! I know that there is something special that I can bring to the people I meet and my companions that I serve with. I hope to be a great servant in the hand of my Heavenly Father as I am a missionary. Now its time to get out there and find me some skirts!

Here are my mission boundaries. The state lines are kind of hard to see, but it covers Tennessee, Kentucky, and even part of Illinois. This is also a "blogging mission". There are 9 missions that are part of an internet beta test to see how effective it is to have the missionaries sharing the gospel online as well as traditional proselyting and service. I sure hope that I get a chance to participate because I would love to keep sharing stories!

2011-02-17T23:21:00.000-08:00

I read a few blogs that do TILT posts and as bad as I am at keeping on schedule I think I'll do one myself today! So here are a few pictures of things I've found around on the interwebs and throughout my day that have struck my fancy.

rabbit and girl print so sweet!

a tiny pink sewing machine that charmed its way into my heart!

Aqua, pink, and gold is my new favorite color combo

Baz Luhrmann. The Great Gatsby. Oh. My. Gosh.

The best and funniest silhouettes I have EVER seen

paper fashion matching card game

and a song

Hammer Meet Nail

2011-02-17T22:42:00.000-08:00

Bonus 10 points if you know what pop culture reference the title is from. One hint: NPH. I'm really bummed that I can't have painted nails at my current job :( They are so pretty right now and are dying for a coat of "Off With Her Red". Actually my bottle of that exploded on the drive from Idaho to California so there wouldn't be any of it if I could. I guess I'll live vicariously and through memory.

This purple polish from the summer turned out absolutely perfect!

This bright blue was one of my favorite colors for a long time. And the rest of the picture, well...it was St. Patrick's Day and we went on a field trip to the Hindu Temple in Spanish Fork.

And on to some fancy fingers that I wish I was sporting:

(click through for links)

Got that? Now if only I was talented enough to even do them this nice!

Happy Hearts Day

2011-02-14T15:33:00.000-08:00

Love Elle and Marshall!

Sweet Treats

2011-02-11T13:09:00.000-08:00

If I lived closer to most of my friends this year I would have made a truckload of homemade Valentine's. But I don't so I made one little sweet treat and I'm going to send them out today. Obviously I can't share what that is because some of those friends would get their surprise spoiled! What I can do is share some links to a few ideas for V-day that could still be done in time for Monday. I haven't gotten them done for the fam yet so there is still time to try out one or two!

Scratch cards from Family Fun

Photobooth Paper Chain tutorial

Printable stickers for the healthiest treat all day

Print out these little pirate guys and girls and add an eyepatch. All done!

Well I hope these ideas get your hearts pumping with excitement for the pinkest holiday of the year! Off to the post office with me!

You can find even more fun ideas for V-day on my pinterest Vamelumtimes page!

Don't know what a Vamelumtime is? 3 words.

Teen Girl Squad.

Word For Wednesday

2011-02-09T23:02:00.001-08:00

AMALGAM
[uh-mal-guh m]
-noun

1. An alloy of mercury with another metal or metals
2. A mixture or combination
definition courtesy of dictionary.com

This is a word that I learned this week thanks to um...Greek :) Since I'm not in school I need to keep up on my smarts and I think this will be a fine way to do it. I will be more aware of my surroundings and do my best to pick up on new words that I hear and if that doesn't happen by Wednesday then I'll just have to look a cool one up and use it myself!

Also I love Urban Dictionary so maybe I should share this week's word in urban terms:
"Shaken with mercury (or other semi-solid), separated and heated until she is a precious metal residue, as in Shakira's moving of body in her Hips Don't Lie video and her appearing covered in molten residue.
ex., "What an amalgam. Shakira is so hot. I'd fo sho drink her dirty bath water"
oh urban dictionary

This picture of Cappie doesn't really have anything to do with my word, other than he is my current TV massive crush. Oh, and I'm talking about Greek so it's ok right?

What makes this week's word even better is that Sarah used it in a normal sentence yesterday. As I bashfully admitted my knowledge of the word she laughed and said that they used it again on the most recent episode (I'm still on season one). Not only do we spend lots of time together, we are also creepily in sync with out vocabulary and TV schedules. Also we are mighty lucky that we have crushes on different characters. Every time. Until you bring up Christian Bale.

Music From The Heart

2011-02-08T18:11:00.000-08:00

When it came time to put together this year's V-day playlist I turned to my friend Sarah for inspiration. She's pretty much the coolest person ever and has the most rockin' little family so she knows a lot about true love and how important it is to share that love. Sarah also has premium taste in music so naturally we had to pool our interests to bring you this soundtrack for your day of love!

This fantastic shot was taken by yours truely, at our Camp Rock party.

More like Camp WE ROCK!

The playlist is as follows:

1. Guns and Horses - Ellie Goulding

2. Call 'n Return - Hellogoodbye

3. Can You Feel The Love Tonight - Elton John

4. When I'm Sixty Four - The Beatles

5. No One's Gonna Love You - Band Of Horses

6. Meet In The Middle - Diamond Rio

7. Old Park Bench - Inside Out

8. Poor Boy's Delight - The Infamous Stringdusters

9. Second Hand News - Mates of State

10. I Will Follow You Into The Dark - Death Cab For Cutie

11. If - Bread

12. January Wedding - Avett Brothers

13. You Don't Know Me - Ben Folds feat. Regina Spektor

14. A Wink And A Smile - Harry Connick Jr.

15. Hold You In My Arms - Ray LaMontagne

16. Long Time Coming - Oliver James

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

oh yeah, click on that big old joyous filled sentiment to download our creation!

Sunday Night Favorites

2011-02-06T20:50:00.000-08:00

I thought it was about time to do a little inspiration post.

Paper Dolls

Birdcages

Marie Antoinette

Oh yeah, and Nutella

I'm loving all of these things this week and I think I'll go scoop up a spoonful of nutella right now...

I Made My Bed

2011-02-03T01:45:00.001-08:00

But no really, I've made pretty much everything on this bed.

I didn't make the cute little owl, that was a Christmas gift from my little sister, but it was made locally. Also the pink and purple quilt that is barely visible was made by my Great Grandma.

I've slowly been reclaiming the front office/my bedroom into my own space. Its hard when it was already a fully functioning craft room with a futon and it now has all of my belongings in it and half of the room taken up by the bed. The good thing about having such a big bed is that when it is made half of the room is clean!

The top quilt is the one I previously mentioned, made with my Neptune charm pack. I absolutely love it! Each quilt that I have worked on has been an exercise in new techniques and this one was all about the picots (or prairie points, whichever you call them). My home decor sewing teacher, Sister Blake, showed me a cheater way of making them without having to cut out and perfectly space each individual square! Amazing. I'm sure that I'll promise to share it and then forget. But hopefully I'll remember :)

The toile pillow on the left and the rosette pillow on the right were both projects for Home Decor. I had never done home dec. sewing before and it caught on with me! In the time we were alloted to do one pillow covering project I made 3. The center one is inspired by a project that I found on Alisa Burke's blog a while back. The stems are a combination of hand stitched embroidery and machine stitching. I meant to do it all by hand but I really just got sick of it and wanted it done. I also cheated with attaching the flowers and hot glued them on. Since it is just for display I wasn't really worried about it holding up. I'd like to make another one and do quilting on it like she does. Now that I'm all grandma-ly and quilting up a storm.

Mrs. Rachel Denbow is graciously offering 3 spots in her Modern Patchwork e-course. What a giveaway! Click on the hooray pillow to enter!

The Goggies Get A Haircut

2011-02-03T01:22:00.000-08:00

The madre and I find ourselves on I Can Haz Cheezeburger every now and then when we are delaying bedtime and most recently we adopted the word "goggy". Or doggy. In lolcat language. Please don't judge us. We are not responsible for the things we say after 1am.

Sammy and Emma were getting pretty high up on the shaggy chart and this problem is best combated not with an electric razor or a trip to the groomers, but a pair of hair cutting scissors and a kitchen table!

Look at the difference between Sammy's front and back paws! So adorable.

He really just tipped over and was very patient through it all.

Emma looks sort of embarrassed.

Have I Mentioned My Love Yet?

2011-02-01T15:34:00.002-08:00

Chuck and cupcakes.

It must be the month of love

I Really Ought to Do Something

2011-01-25T22:15:00.003-08:00

source

I think that pretty much every day when I wake up.

Today after I beat myself out of that sentiment and got some clothes on my body here is what I did.

I quilted. And quilted and quilted and quilted. It was joyous!

All I have to do is hand stitch around the edges and it will be finished!

I was working on a baby quilt made from a charm pack that I absolutely fell in love with.

The line is Neptune by Tula Pink for Moda and it has an aqua minkee backing. Yummy so soft! As soon as it is completely finished I'll post some pictures. I free motion quilted it with an octopus, a crab, some anchors, and waves all over. You may say that I am slightly in love with all things nautical recently. Except for that sailor language! Lets keep it PG folks!

I think my love for all things sailor stemmed from my dad's obsession with Popeye. I was raised as a fan of the spinach guzzling sea man and my subconscious has brought some of that back to me. I adore stripes, knots, anchors, and all kinds of sea creatures EXCEPT SHARKS! And fish. Sharks scare me senseless. Remember when that young girl Bethany Hamilton was out surfing and she had her arm bitten off by a tiger shark? Well I found out about that as I was surfing in Hawaii. The surf instructors were all talking about it and I just thought "Crap. I'm susceptible to that same fate right now. Get me out of here!" I don't know what it is about sharks that I will never overcome, oh wait, yes I do. Its those rows and rows of jagged teeth and those beady black eyes. No thank you. Keep 'em away.

This one would be acceptable. But only because it's teeth are rounded and I think it's stuck. I could get enough of a head start if it came after me.

source

If you want to see more nautical and ocean themed images and apparel that inspire me, check out my Sail Away pinboard on Pinterest. Here's a peek at what is on there!

yay!

Mighty

2011-01-23T17:22:00.001-08:00

For a while in college I had this great pair of shoes that had once been white but I doodled all over them with sharpies to make them completely unique. Some of my friends liked them so I decorated pairs for them as well. Elyssa never got a pair of shoes, so when she asked me to decorate her Mighty Wallet for her, I had to say yes. Not that I would have said no, it was just fitting that it was her turn. I'd heard of the Mighty Wallet before, but never seen one. It is made out of Tyvek, you know the stuff that houses are wrapped up in? And those heavy duty mailing envelopes. They are waterproof, don't tear, are super thin, and recyclable!

They come in all different designs and patterns but she got the simple green one for me to doodle all over!

Click to see it bigger!

It's not the finest work in the world or anything, but I like how it turned out and Elyssa was thrilled!

Egg Salad.

2011-01-19T01:50:00.002-08:00

I want it in my belly. And it's 1:30 am. So naturally there is a big old pot of boiling eggs on the stove right now while I've got Step Up 3 playing for ..cough cough...the 3rd time today. Whoa. Did I just admit that on the interwebs? Yes. And I'm really not ashamed of it in the slightest!

BREAK for favorite scene

The fantastic dancing in Step Up 2 and 3 just keeps me coming back for more. And honestly, I think the stories are pretty good too, even if they are cliche and completely predictable.

But back to the sandwiches. The eggs are all donezo and here is a link to the recipe I'm going to use: YUMMO! I'll probably be too wrapped up in delicious to post about how it just fixes the craving for me so let me tell you now, I'm excited. Very excited.

Update:

The recipe had way too much dill in it, so I'd tone that down a lot and I wouldn't put the dry onion flakes in it, but rather chop up a little fresh onion. Other than that it was so delicious and my craving has been satisfied!

Movie Night

2011-01-18T22:51:00.003-08:00

I wish I had an imaginary friend as faithful as Captain Excellent. Over 40 years of dedication.

I never even had an imaginary friend that I can remember. The closest thing was a horse that I tied to a pear tree when it was time to come in for dinner. That horse didn't even have a name.

Isn't this the kind of thing that every imaginative person is supposed to look back on and laugh about? The adventures they had with the companion that was always there when we needed them? I didn't even have siblings until I was 7, but I guess my own personality must have been enough for myself to handle.

Now I don't think I'm even lamenting the lack of an imaginary friend right now, but more of a character connection. I rented the movie Paper Man because I've had this undying amount of fandom for Emma Stone since House Bunny. And Ryan Reynolds is never a bad thing on screen either. I was extremely surprised with how much I liked this film, especially since it has a terrible rating on Rotten Tomatoes (but then again, since when has the general public ever had good taste?). It is more than a story of a weird man with social issues and his unorthodox friendship with a teenage girl (don't worry, there is no funny business). I think it really shows what it means to be a friend and care about a person, no matter what. The relationship that Richard and Abby form helps them both to combat serious mental blocks that they can't face without support.

So in a way I guess it's a good thing that I never had an imaginary friend, at least in the way that this movie portrays them. Then again, I think that it is healthy to have another side to ourselves that we can only understand, something personal, something safe.

Also, this is becoming a trend.

Me Mosaic

2011-01-17T00:18:00.003-08:00

Amanda did one of these on facebook and I had to play around with Flickr photos. I love how it turned out! If you do one then send me a link to it.

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search (http://www.flickr.com/).
b. Using ONLY the first page, pick an image.
c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Mosaic Maker. Change rows to 3 and columns to 3 (http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fbighugelabs.com%2Fflickr%2Fmosaic.php&h=f4c20).

The Questions:
1. What is your first name? elle
2. What is your favorite food? red velvet cake (had I been thinking right I would have said potatoes)
3. What is your favorite color? pink
4. Favorite drink? strawberry limeade
5. Dream vacation? claude monet's garden (I'm slightly dyslexic so I switched 5 and 6)
6. Favorite hobby? sewing
7. What you want to be when you grow up? mommy
8. What do you love most in life? family
9. One word to describe you? eclectic

Saturday in California

2011-01-15T15:30:00.002-08:00

Well technically my everyday is in California. But I couldn't think of anything else creative to say. In about 15 minutes my fake cousin Cheyenne will be here so I can do her hair for the Winter Formal. She's a sweet girl and I've been the go-to girl for fancy dance up do's since I was her age. It'll be fun to play around with her pretty blonde hair.

Also today: Kelli and Hector Marquez's wedding reception. Aren't they just gorgeous?

My friend Court is the bassist in this great band J.Wride and the have a cd coming out on the 18th of February. They just put a preview of the album up on facebook. They did a collaboration with MIMS (you know, the guy that sings "this is why I'm hot") on their last EP. Want to hear it? Yeah, of course you do!

Also, Jesse's collaboration with John Allred. So great. I'm a huge fan of cover songs.

I'd like to also give a little shout out to my one follower on Bloglovin! It doesn't show me who my followers are, but I like that one person a lot :) Bloglovin is a great website that manages all the blogs you read so that you can just click from one new entry to the next without forgetting any!

So Close!

2011-01-12T17:44:00.003-08:00

I got a filling today and scheduled my Bishop and Stake President interviews for Sunday afternoon and after that it will be just 2-3 weeks until I get my spot on the globe! We took my pictures for my mission application last Sunday and although this one is too silly to turn in I think it best represents how I feel.

And a shot of my feet because it was a funny accident.

I created a new button and moved them to their own page so that they don't make a mess all over my blog page. It is to show off that you're writing to me! Because then you get a grinny smiley face on your blog to show off to your friends. And they'll be jealous and want it too. So they'll write me letters. And I'll be even happier! It's a cycle.

Bravery

2011-01-09T11:57:00.001-08:00

I've been an avid follower and poster on Pinterest for the past few months and this quote is one of the most popular posts today

source

Now I can say that I am mildly put into this situation daily as my mom has found a new favorite food, green smoothies. I'm a die hard believer that smoothies should be delicious blends of fruits and dairy with a yummy little bit of whipped cream on the top, with maybe a serving or two on fruit included. My mother on the other hand has a new cookbook of health friendly blends and she's having a kick out of feeding us all her concoctions. She claims that if it follows the recipe it has to be delicious.

source

Excuse me? Grapefruit + dates + spinach + cinnamon + pears+ bananas + lime + berries +cilantro does NOT equal a scrumptious blend of breakfast to me. Cilantro? Really? The good part is that if I throw it all back in about 3 long pulls it doesn't really taste all that bad. And I'm getting bona fide nutrition in one glass!

The most memorable one so far? It was pretty good, with grapes and berries, but then she said, "Oh look! Parsley!" and threw a little sprig in. Don't ever. Just trust me.

you are what you eat. pineapple pants!

The best part of this obsession is that it gets my little sisters to each more vegetables. What mom hasn't struggled with getting her kids to get greens in their bellies? Her other trick is when they are playing Wii she'll slice up a pineapple or some bell pepper and just stick it into their free hand. One game level later and the goodies are gone! Sneaky mom of mine :)

The Ideal Double Date

2011-01-07T00:12:00.002-08:00

Yes, the past two evenings have been filled with a Pushing Dasies marathon which has been far too long in the making. Kristin and I have a weakness for the nerdy too talkitive type and we realized tonight (via cross country and time zone texting) that we would make the ultimate foursome if finally combined with our TV sweethearts. We meaning; Ned the Piemaker and Kristin, Me and Chuck Bartowski of Chuck. Wahoo! Here's our pretend date. Indulge me and play along?

Well here's Kristin's idea, it begins with dinner at Craigo's (the world's best pizza place, located in Rexburg,Idaho. Yes, there are potato flakes in the crust) and would continue for like, ever because it would end in Eureka (California) at Bon Boniere ice cream (the world's best frozen dairy). Yes, my best friend is a fantastic schemer. If you plan the world's longest dates to the best places then you get to spend all of that time with your favorite people! I'd like this arranged please.

Now my idea was an evening at the Buy More in the home theater room playing board games and watching both Tron movies (with cuddling being not optional) followed by something yummy at the Pie Hole. A delicious situation that I would love to find myself in.

But alas, I will not be going on this date any time soon. Nor will Kristin. But I do have a lovely kitty sitting on my back as I write this and I think that will do just fine for now.

Also, I'm not really sure why I chose the ridiculous picture of myself. But it seemed most fitting. And Kristin's new glasses are so cute!

New Button!

2011-01-06T14:24:00.005-08:00

Hooray! New year and a new button! I'm no expert at photo editing but I'm happy to have my face on this one. It's a little less boring I think.

Peeved

2011-01-06T01:25:00.001-08:00

I HATE ANTS.

Hate hate hate them.

The way they feel if they crawl across your foot.

The way they smell if you squish them.

The fact that there is no way to get rid of that smell.

If I see one I feel like its crawling all over me.

They are impossible to get rid of.

And for some reason they like my Grandparent's cat's food.

And I'll have to man up to deal with them tomorrow.

Yuck

Exploring Home

2011-01-05T00:56:00.000-08:00

Wow. I am eternally sore and I need to go back to the gym ASAP. It hurts so good! Last winter Erika and I took a weight lifting class together and I really liked it but I sure forgot how much work it takes to get my stamina built up. Well, pain is gain and I'm gonna get these little muscles of mine back up to how nice they were a year ago.

A day of hats, humanity, and Humboldt

Today I went on an adventure with my friend Brooke down in Ferndale. Brooke and I met my senior year of high school through some of my friends from Fortuna (both of these towns are about half an hour south of where I grew up). We didn't have any plans for the day but to talk and catch up while we explored Main Street of the tiny Victorian town. We had a delicious and probably not so nutrious lunch at the Ferndale Pizza Company and set off for some window shopping.

The film noir secretary to the detective hat

As we glanced through the glass at a pair of earrings we both jumped back in shock as we realized that there was a dog right below them looking up at us! The woman who owns the shop pulled us in and chatted for a while. When I say chatted, well, it went something like this: She loo
ked like Professor Trelawny straight out of Harry Potter book 3 and was wearing some mass of yoga pants and wrapped up sweaters with at least 3 rings on each hand and frizzy hair coming loose from a hair tie that she probably put in the night before.
She began the conversation with "Come in! I've just been online dating for the past few days and I'm so tired!" Uh...ok? We heard all about the British guy she's dating and the one whos' teenage daugher had a bunch of crazy underage drunks over on new years. Oh boy. At least 20 minutes of her incessant babble went on until we were finally able to get out of that little place. She seemed really lonely and I think it was probably good that we stayed to talk a little.

The pimp hat and the innocent little girl

The rest of the trip was lighthearted and we tried on lots of hats at Abraxas and made up scenarios that each would be worn in. A good day yes, a good day. Oh yeah! And my tights from We Love Colors came!

Movie Night

2011-01-05T00:40:00.001-08:00

Everything is Illuminated

Holy goodness this movie is strange. It begins with a slow and kind of hard to follow account of a family. I wasn't really paying much attention so it might have been more interesting. I really started liking it at the point at the well, diner? restaurant? table with meat that only comes with potatoes.

Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. even turns out to be a pretty nice idiot of a dog. I love that the guy uses the word "premium" to describe anything cool, or spectacular.

Elijah Wood's character Johnathan is so ridiculously awkward that it is almost painful but it's an interesting comparison of the culture clash. Howerver I don't really think of Ukrainians as extremely outgoing people. Though I could be mistaken by that. I have only met 2 Ukrainians and they were teenage girls that had a lot of attitude. They would not be in the extrovert category.

As I'm watching it I'm trying to understand the pices of the grandfather's past, both the tour guide grandfather and the one whose past is being searched for. It sems that the living grandfather is coming to terms with his side of WWII and what his anti-semitism has stemmed from.

As the movie progressed I liked it more and more. It is a story of history and putting together the pieces. There is always more hidden than we see on the surface, and if we search hard enough, everything will be illuminated.
(awkwardly working in...the movie title)

The end. Oh the end.

Time Can't Keep Us Apart

2011-01-04T23:45:00.000-08:00

This Christmas our high school crew was all reunited in one joyous place. Danny and Joe came home from their missions this summer, Kristin, Katie, and I were home from college and Andy found his way up to Mack town to hang out with us. Sarah and Daryl are always very inviting about their home and welcome everyone to get together there. It's always been a Blair family tradition to have squishy couches and teen friendly living rooms so it's fun that Sarah is keeping that going at her house. Here's some pictures from the night.

Katie looking mighty stoked about the night

Kristin and Me.

Dan and David

Joe gives this shot a thumbs up

I love these kids. Well, grown up kids.

So This Is The New Year

2011-01-01T17:29:00.000-08:00

2010 was filled with my lowest lows and my highest highs. I graduated from college, spent a summer and fall working full time and playing the rest of the time, developed a few very close personal relationships, went to my sister's wedding, made some major pitfall mistakes and poor choices in friends, recognized that I have a great support net of people who wanted to help me bounce back, fought long and hard with myself about who I want to be, and began paperwork to serve a mission and dedicate my life to the Lord for 18 months. I don't think many more details need to be given about the lows because they are trenches that I have pulled myself out of and moved on from. I hope to remember the great moments of the year that were stepping stones to where I am now.

2011 will be unlike anything I've met in the past. I have moved home temporarily, something that I had vowed I would never do again once I was on my own, and am once again in search of short term work. I know that I am not going to be here more than 3 or 4 months and then I will be uprooted to another place on the globe. Most of my best friends have been left behind and the social life that I crave is not available. Living life where I am is going to be a big challenge. I love having my blog friends because I know that wherever I am I can just check in and see that life goes on.

I have some personal goal ideas floating around in my head that I am working on but I have never been a big resolutions person. Oh, except for that one year that I had a big time major crush on Billy Gilman and I resolved that not a day would go by that year that I did not have a little daydream about him. Yes. I kept that resolution faithfully! Oh 13 year old Elle. If only things were still that easy. But maybe not so stalkerish.

Gifty Giggles

2010-12-31T12:25:00.002-08:00

So as I mentioned before we do a lot of silly little presents at Christmas and I thought I'd share the weirdest ones that were in my stocking.

Sadly the alka seltzer cupcakes didn't fizz, but they do make sweet tasting water.

If you are ever craving a bite of turkey, the Thanksgiving gumballs sure don't disappoint. Seriously. They were kind of gross. Ha ha! We did convince Lucindo (he's about 8) to try one though. He had a weird little look on his face, said "tastes kind of like bacon" then just kept chewing! The other flavors in the pack were cranberry and pumpkin pie.

My uncle has started a tradition of finding super cool socks for me and my sisters each year. Last year he got us each a set of Little Miss Matched socks. They come in sets of three! This year was Sock It To Me. He chose me the Chat Noir pair. Love 'em!

And the final little goody that I'm going to share, fix a bad haircut in a box! It's a tiny little box of gum with the directions to chew and strategically hold hair up to cover the poorly cut places. Not so sure that I'll be following the directions, but it does give you fruity fresh breath!

Mission Checklist

2010-12-28T20:19:00.002-08:00

The ticking clock of mission papers looks something like this:

Paperwork: CHECK!

Dr. Visits: CHECK!

Dental Work: CHECK!

Eye Exam: CHECK!

Application Picture: CHECK!

Interviews: CHECK!

Hopefully it will all be done before the end of January!

If you would like to learn more about my 18 month mission and the Gospel of Jesus Christ click here

That is the what but I don't know the where until my papers are all finished and submitted.

Update: January 16th, everything is done!

Christmas Conversations

2010-12-26T15:22:00.002-08:00

Some bits and pieces of my holiday at home.

Christmas evening and we have the Gables over to visit. Jason walks into the room and asks my grandpa, "Do you smoke meat?" He looks up and says, "No, only pot." Jason laughs and asks again, "but do you smoke any meat?" Grandma tunes in and adds, "I only smoke weed!"

Grandma recieved a lovely assortment of hedgehogs and displayed them all over Grandpa!

Our family does a lot of funny little gag gifts and the slippers were just a placeholder for a pair of mission shoes that my grandparents will get for me. Some of the others were completely hilarious an ridiculous though. Don't worry. I'll share them soon!

Taking A 15 Minute Break

2010-12-18T23:15:00.001-08:00

The packing police arrives tomorrow (aka mi madre) and I want her to be impressed by how much I have done. I actually amazed myself when I got ALL of my clothes except for jackets into a big green duffel bag and a little black carry on suitcase. Yes, the color of the luggage will help you visualize their size and my stuffing abilities better. The donation pile downstairs is growing and growing and I'm thinking this is the most ruthless I have ever been with de-junking.

I can't figure out which makes me more sad though, getting rid of something that I bought new or getting rid of something that I thrifted or was given. When I've purchased something full price I kind of expect myself to love it forever but my styles always changing or I really don't need the thing (like all of my kitchen stuff). But when something is thrifted I've already decided that the item was a one of a kind treasure that was worth rescuing from guaranteed boredom to death on a dusty shelf. How can I let something be double rejected?? That's just mean! Like kicking out a foster child.

So as I've been going through everything I have made a shopping resolution that I should be standing by better. If something is on sale, or a good buy at a thrift store, don't just get it because it is a steal. Think about it. Would I buy it if it were full price? Because that is what makes it a good deal, actually getting better price than you planned! (But still feel free to have some of those thrifty impulses).

Here's my poster child for the story. Think long and hard like this kitteh...

5 Wishes

2010-12-18T09:17:00.001-08:00

There really isn't much that I want for Christmas since my present this year is moving home :) But here are a few little things that I love:

Flapperdoodle stationary

Tights from we love colors

in navy, maroon, or mint green

Easy A on DVD (already a classic in the opinion of Erika and Elle)

Cute kids books :)

Pretty books

Funny pencils

And a bonus?

Oh baby.

Fuji Instax

Holiday Cheer

2010-12-14T20:37:00.001-08:00

Finally I have come to my last week of work at Porter's. And it started out kind of sucky. Register day. Not my favorite. Beep beep beep scan scan money. Next?

But a young child brought some joy into my day. Feliz Navidad was playing on our non stop Christmas music station and this little boy started humming along to it.

He looks up at me and exclaims,

"We sang the police la-de-da song at my school last week!".

Don't Let This Happen To You

2010-12-09T00:53:00.002-08:00

So as many of you know, I'm making a big move back home soon. I had lots of things to get rid of and posted a few onto Craigslist. One of the things I posted was my PlayStation and all of the games and parts that went with it. I asked for $200 and I even felt that was a little much considering how outdated that system is now. I had an offer from someone and they offered $300. I was surprised and figured, well they must really want it! I received an e-mail from PayPal that said payment had been received and would be delivered to my account as soon as I sent the goods to his cousin in Nigeria.

Uh, hello?? That was not part of the agreement. I don't care that you claim to be an engineer and don't have time to look at what you're buying before you pay for it. But really? I'm not sending a 20lb package to Nigeria when a perfectly good new Wii or Xbox would cost less. Mr. Handy Dandy at the post office looked me straight in the eye and said "Nigeria is known for electronic fraud. I wouldn't go through with this if I were you."

I trust that post man. He's there almost every time I've gone to the post office and he obviously knows what he's talking about. I went home and did a little research on the PayPal account. The names on the e-mails and the PayPal invoice sent to me didn't match (Tharry Smith and Lukas Gold if you ever have a situation like this). I messaged the potential buyer and said I was no longer interested in selling the item. I also looked at my account and there was nothing about the transaction at all. I had actually sent my own invoice and he had disregarded it for his own.

After I responded to PayPal asking for the transaction to be cancelled and the money to be
returned to Lukas or Tharry or whoever it was. Funny story, the e-mail wasn't sent to PayPal, but it was transferactivations@officeemail.net I I google searched the e-mail and found a link to a blog
with my exact story.

Here is a link to that blog so you can have a secondhand account. (link link link!)

In conclusion, thank you to my instinct for telling me something funky was up
and thank you Mr. Postman for helping me out.

If you EVER feel uncomfortable about a transaction through PayPal or an e-mail that you have
received from them forward it to spoof@paypal.com and they will verify it for you.

Disappointment in My Generation.

2010-12-07T01:29:00.000-08:00

At work today I overheard a mother chastising her son,
"Holden," she said curtly, "you have enough water, get over here now!"

Its always a little awkward to observe parenting so I try to make conversation with her. "So you're a big fan of literature?" I ask. She gives me a blank look. Just stares. "His name" I say, "Holden, like Holden Caulfield?" Her mother comes up and seems surprised. "That name is in a book??"

At this point I just feel dumbfounded. I read The Catcher in the Rye when I was 15 and between a husband, wife and her mother none of them even know that the name of their offspring comes from a great literary character?

I just kind of went about cutting their fabric and said, "well, if he grows up to be a crazy rebel of a teenager I guess now you know where he got it from." And I silently wept inside. Because they looked at me like I was crazy.

May I Have A Moment Of Silence?

2010-12-07T00:24:00.002-08:00

Because I am about to share the most devastating yet ironically funny news of my week. I have lots of appointments this week for my mission papers beginning this morning with a trip to the dentist. Here is a brief look at my dental history:

4 baby teeth pulled
2 adult teeth pulled
4 wisdom teeth pulled
total of 10 in all
4 years of braces
only one cavity in adult teeth to date

So I go into the office expecting a normal check up, a need for a cleaning and then get outta there. Wrong-o. Oh Elle Jane, you may brush your teeth every morning and every night like a champ, but you can not fight fate. Would you like to guess the grand total? 9. NINE! How did I go from having one filling to needing an entire mouth full of plaster??? It won't really be full of plaster because they are tiny ones that just need to be stopped before they spread but seriously? Is there nothing that I could have done to prevent this misfortune from falling upon me?

Thanks to my insurance policy, or lack thereof, I was only covered until I was 21 so I'm just about a year too late on this one. Lucky me. Hopefully everything goes much smoother with the doctor and at least I'm covered until I'm 26.

So kids, floss. Seriously.

Christmas is in the Air

2010-12-05T15:36:00.002-08:00

So I will admit to a post that never was finished. I had an entire collection of Star Wars themed Halloween ideas and it just never made the final cut of being interesting enough to complete. This however, is far too cool.

DEATH STAR LEGO ORNAMENT!!!

directions here

Apparently this guy Chris McVeigh posts all kinds of lego tutorials. Who knew there was even a program dedicated just to lego designs and instructions?? James and I used to play legos together on Sunday afternoons while we listened to Weird Al. That is some serious sibling connection time right there! I would build these really cool intricate houses and he would make giant cars and roll over them. Ok, so he would usually ask first but not always. I mean, little brothers are supposed to be destructive right? Like the time that he got a remote controlled car stuck in my hair...

One other super awesome Star Wars decoration for the holidays,

Darth Vader snowflakes! So cool! The directions can be found here for Vader and a Boba Fett and Storm Trooper version. I attempted one last night and I was surprised how simple they are to make!

Back to joy and gladness.

You might not believe me, but most of my presents are already done and one is even wrapped already! With the big move I had to be on top of things this year especially since I decided to do an entirely handmade Christmas. I'm not saying what I made because that would sure spoil the surprise for my family :) What I can say is that I completed and sent my ornament for Strumpet's Ornament Swap!

I based mine off of these stacked fabric trees by The Small Object (tutorial here)

Mine are a little modified (think only 3 layers and I used fusible fleece rather than thin fusible web)

Holiday tunes are one of my favorite parts of the season! Here is a little treat for you readers, the first of at least two parts of Christmas music! Its a short one since I'm bumming off of Shanda's computer again, but they are each little gems!

PART 1

Cute cute!

2010-12-02T11:47:00.000-08:00

I just love all these little adorable doodles!

Credit is given on each image

A Letter to My Brother

2010-12-02T11:14:00.002-08:00

I've been contemplating how to share this information in the blogosphere and it seemed to me that this letter I wrote to my brother would be the best way. This has been one of the most spiritual and poignant moments of my life. It is taking me in a direction that I had never planned for myself. It has been a few weeks and everything is coming together so well! I'll be updating more about the process as I go but for now, here is the story of how I realized that I was on the road to serving as a full time Sister Missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints:

James James James.
I have a story to tell.

So it has been my plan since graduation to stay in Rexburg for a while and save money to start Cosmetology school in January. I changed my start date to October because I didn't want to put it off longer than I needed to, but that didn't work either. I'll be going home for Christmas in 5 weeks and school would start as soon as I got back and I felt totally unmotivated to get ready.

On Tuesday this week I just thought to myself, Elle, why are you doing this? Why do you even want to spend so much time on doing hair and crap and have to go into debt for it when you already have a perfectly good education? I was thinking about moving to Provo. I was thinking about going home and living there and going to the hair school in Eureka. But none of it was right.

One of my co-workers suggested that I call my home teacher and have him give me a blessing. I texted him right away and we made plans for him to come over as soon as I was off work. Jonnie and Brian showed up right when I got home and I just started sobbing as I explained how lost I was feeling and wanting to know what the Lord wants from me. They were understanding and it was a relief to have a few people to talk to. Jonnie gave me a blessing and in it I was told that I am on the right path and that Heavenly Father will continue to bless me as I am diligent in following the commandments. I was also given a blessing of peace and comfort. They left and shortly after I headed upstairs to read my scriptures.

D&C 60: 2 and 13. That was my answer. Immediately. You need to read that section as soon as you can because it is my motivating force for the next year and a half. That's right. As soon as I opened my scriptures and started reading that verse (I had a note I took at a meeting that I wrote the verses on and just turned to it) I had the strongest most overwhelming feeling that was "Here it is Elle. This is what you must do as soon as possible or you will lose everything you are working for."

I am meeting with my Bishop tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon to start mission papers!!!

The first time that I considered a mission it was just a good idea. It was a step in the right direction. I felt that it was necessary for me to begin preparing myself and I think that preparation made me ready to accept the revelation when I was explicitly told to go. I still tear up every time I have explained this story to someone close to me.

I am pretty sure that I won't be leaving until you get back because of the time to get papers done and everything, and yes. You get the car back. Lucky you! Ha ha! I'm so proud of you for setting such a good example to me of being a dutiful servant to the Lord. I've seen you grow up through the letters you've sent and I can't believe I'm going to have that experience for myself!

Love you,

Elle

I'm Thankful For The Alphabet

2010-11-25T13:54:00.001-08:00

Here is my all in good fun but totally serious list of things I am thankful for in alphabetical form. The rule of the game is to go in order and list the first thing that comes to mind that you are grateful for. There were other things I thought of but I play by the rules and this is what emerged:

A-Airplanes
B-Bishop and Sister Wilcox
C-Cheddar Cheese
D-Deseret Industries
E-Erika Kern
F-Friends and Family
G-God
H-Houses
I-Ice scrapers
J-Joseph Smith
K-Kristin
L-Love
M-Moccasins
N-Neville Longbottom
O-Olives, black
P-Photos
Q-Quadriceps
R-Rain storms
S-Silly Youtube videos
T-Tattoos of the fake variety
U-Underwear!
V-Vaccines
W-Watermelons
X-Xerox machines
Y-Yummy Thanksgiving dinners!
Z-Zachary Levi

Now I don't want anyone thinking that I'm being all flippant and making fun of the Holiday or not really showing gratitude. I honestly believe that it is important to think of the obscure little things that really are blessings in our lives. I was getting out of the shower earlier and looking at how my hair color is fading again and I thought, "What a great gift that God gave us color." Because honestly it isn't a necessity, but how much better is a world full of color compared to one in shades of gray? There are so many small things in my life to be grateful for. I find it easy to appreciate the big important ones like my fantastic family and awesome friends, but I don't say how much I love tupperware that often. And I really like leftovers a lot. So I should lay it out and be straightforward. I love tupperware.

Bishop and Sister Wilcox are on here because I'm going to have dinner at their house tonight. I'm in charge of my absolute favorite part, the sweet potatoes so I better finish getting ready and go put those suckers in the oven!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Just About Ready For This Photo Challenge To Be Over

2010-11-23T23:57:00.001-08:00

But I will keep plugging on because I said that I would finish it.

day 21. a photo of you standing up

I love Kayla!

A wider view so you can enjoy the whole glory of this moment.

day 22. a photo of your town

source

Hometown number one, Eureka

source

Hometown number two, Rexburg. I don't know which one to claim now.

day 23. a photo of your friend as a baby

source

Ok fine. This isn't a photo of a friend of mine as a baby. Or even a friend's baby. But I would like to be friends with this baby!

day 24. a photo of you that your hair looks nice in

The vulture doesn't look half bad either.

A Fact of Life

2010-11-23T23:45:00.001-08:00

Honey is not a replacement for brown sugar.

I learned this in a sticky not quite delicious way yesterday at dinner. I love me some acorn squash and although my cupboards are extremely low right now (read: I've been too lazy to grocery shop and cook) there was a little green squash buddy hanging out in the pantry. They take forever to cook in the oven (Over and hour. Not worth it) so my Grandma told me to take a fork to it and throw it in the microwave for a few minutes. Hooray for Grandma! It was ready in under 10 and boy was I hungry. Then the terror struck. I ran out of brown sugar forever ago, hence the reason I'd stopped eating yummy warm breakfast cereals and hadn't baked delicious cookies in forever. I raided all of the cupboards desperately hoping that Rosette or Shanda had some stashed in a secret hiding place, but alas, there was none. The next best things that popped into my head were maple syrup or honey. They're both sweet and brown right? One should be able to substitute. WRONGO! A little drizzle of honey over my microwaved to perfection acorn squash was not what the doctor ordered. It didn't have a terrible flavor, it just was not something I'd ever like to experience again.

So take this as a little lesson from me. If you are ever in a bind and need something to top your gourd of choice, find a savory flavor like butter with rosemary or some other spice because honey just won't cut it.

The End.

Anthropologie Wishlist

2010-11-21T17:50:00.003-08:00

I heart Anthro. Now I just need to keep my eyes open for things like these, only much cheaper.

foxes on tights?? adorable!

Mustard for the Ketchup

2010-11-20T11:33:00.000-08:00

day 18. a photo of one of your classes

This picture was taken of my feet by one of my teachers. It was English 314...um, Advanced Literary Composition or something like that. Basically we just tore literature apart and wrote cliche things about it. Brother Samuelson was a fascinating teacher though and he just loved the color combination of my shoes and socks with Chandler's book bag so he took a picture! I think I was supposed to e-mail it to him but I never got around to it. And it's been two years. Um...at least I remembered now??

day 19. a photo of you on a school trip

You may not believe me, but I went to Belize and Guatemala on a school trip. President's week 2006. Oh baby. Best field trip ever! I scanned my entire computer and when it was reset I think I lost all of my pictures but I have them on a disc somewhere and I stole these off of Mandy's FB page. (It was mine originally anyway) I'm in the middle with dumb sunglasses and a light blue t-shirt. This is in front of Temple II in Tikal, Guatemala. Temple I faces it and it is the iconic one that is most familiar but because of its stardom it is blocked off and only for admiring. We went to the top of the one that we are standing in front of. Amazing.

day 20. a photo of something you enjoy doing

SEWING

It consumes my life. And I love being consumed.

source

A Happy in My Day

2010-11-20T10:44:00.001-08:00

I was tired of my bathroom so I bought this shower curtain. It makes life so much more enjoyable and I never want to get out of the shower. But that could be because of my enormous love of bath products as well.

buy your own

The first step is admitting you have a problem.

source

Brontesaurus

2010-11-19T23:59:00.002-08:00

I've been craving a read through of Wuthering Heights since the snow started falling. Something about dreary white wasteland just makes me want to get sucked into a miserable novel full of vengeance and suffering.

I found this video n my friend's facebook and had to share it.

The power of literary women!

And for some follow up, here is The Jane Austen Fight Club!

I'm a huge fan of Fight Club, and actually not a gigantic fan of Jane Austen, but this is a clever video.

I Am A Procraftinator

2010-11-18T21:40:00.000-08:00

I should be working right now. Or sleeping. Or working on my final design project.

But no. I made this refashioned scarf!

Well, not this one literally. I haven't taken pictures of it yet but I got the idea from Disney's blog Ruffles and Stuff. It was super super easy and I can't wait to wear it tomorrow! I'll hunt someone down that's good with a camera and get it up as soon as I can. I dare you to make one yourself!

For another moment of procraftination I'm planning on making these Regency Silhouette ornaments from The Magic Bean. They are so adorable and I'm a huge fan of silhouettes.

I haven't decided completely where they will be going after I make the ornaments. Some will be for my family and a few for friends, but I'm also participating in this great craft swap

Ornaments for everyone!!! If you would like to participate the deadline is tomorrow, November 19th.

Well Erika has fallen asleep on my couch watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas, but she's probably just avoiding the fact that I've been reciting the whole thing! Brent is watching it for the first time and I bet he wants to shove a pillow in my face. "WHAT's HAPPENING TO ME? I'm all toasty inside. And I'm LEAKING!!!"

I'm super proud of the effort that I put in at work today. I'm the designated seamstress for apparel in our fabric department so I reorganized our little girl patterns and made a nice display. I also wrote a little tutorial for making fabric roses but I'll share that in a separate post. I'm really getting into the handmade Christmas spirit so with all of the new projects for work, as well as my top secret project (that will be finished on Saturday) and gifts it's a wonder that I find time to breath! But I'm managing somehow. Five weeks until California!!!

The photo challenge today is a photo from one of your classes and I'm not in any right now (technically I am, but it's independent study) and I'm not using my computer right now. If I find one later I'll add it but I think I'm just going to skip this one. Boring.

Ketchup

2010-11-17T00:28:00.001-08:00

Yep. I took my own advice and spent some time off of the internet and read a book! Given, it was a graphic novel but it was excellent. Browsing through the local library I found a copy of Persepolis and had to read it. It's a memoir of a woman who grew up in Iran in the 1980's and about her experiences as a girl in a family that was opposed to the changes in the government at the time. It was moving to see how much her family fought for their cause and eventually her parents sent her to finish school in Vienna because they knew that she would only be punished and persecuted more if she stayed in Iran. It's a beautifully told story and really informative so I'd highly recommend that you check it out.

15. a photo of you and someone you love

This is me and my mom making total tard faces at my sister's wedding. You can only smile for a pictures and look normal like 500 times in one day. And this was obviously not one of those times.

16. a photo of you at the last party you went to

I've been to parties since Halloween, just none of them have been documented.

17. a drunk photo of you

Well no drunk pictures of me exist anymore, so this will have to do. Because any normal person in this situation would probably be drunk. I find it HILARIOUS!

Missionary Monday

2010-11-15T09:55:00.000-08:00

My brother James is currently serving in the Florida Orlando Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and on Mondays he gets to e-mail us updates! This picture is from a recent baptism of a girl named Brittany (she rocks because she has PINK hair!). The sister missionaries in the photo taught her and she requested that my brother be the one to baptize her. He told us a little bit about her and how strong her testimony is of the gospel. She's had to change a lot about her life to be in the great place that she is now. Stories of members in his area and the people that he is teaching are my absolute favorite about his letters.

And Elder Van Buskirk here hasn't seen The Hangover yet, but I'm going to make sure he doesn't call that a man purse. It's a satchel. Although he's pretty flamboyant about wearing it, so maybe it is a man purse.

In other news I'm eating apple pie for breakfast. SO good! Kristin came over last night and we baked up a little storm and laughed our faces off at SNL. The perfect ending to a slow weekend.

Latest Endeavor

BLOG TRANSITION!

Dearest Followers

Cross My Heart

Strip Pictures!!!

Fiction Is My Friend: Part IV

Life Goes On

*I Love You Kitty Boy*

Traditional Blocks

Dumps Like A Truck, Truck, Truck

Fiction Is My Friend: Part III

Bonus Goodies!

Fiction Is My Friend: Part II

Well At Least I've Got A Second Chance!

Fiction Is My Friend

Dear Bloggy Friends

Happy Easter

Interwebbing

Confession

Is It A Baby? Or Is It A Snail...

A Little Bit of Concert

Ugly the Pillow Gets Dressed

Last Week On The Web

I've Been Shot!

Chocolate + Nutella = Heaven

About Time I Made A Playlist

Light of the World

The Sibs Quilts

In The City

Three Sizes That Day

The Costco Demo Diaries

Right Now

Shopping

Works In Progress

Flat Iron Case

Greased Lightning

Color and Cat

A Project Complete!

Elyssa. Stop Whining. I Was Lying When I Said This Wasn't About You.

This Is My Boyfriend

Taste The Rainbow

Repeat

Dear Laura

Adoption

The Anticipation is Over!!!

Hammer Meet Nail

Happy Hearts Day

Sweet Treats

Word For Wednesday

Music From The Heart

Sunday Night Favorites

I Made My Bed

The Goggies Get A Haircut

Have I Mentioned My Love Yet?

I Really Ought to Do Something

Mighty

Egg Salad.

Movie Night

Me Mosaic

Saturday in California

So Close!

Bravery

The Ideal Double Date

New Button!

Peeved

Exploring Home

Movie Night

Time Can't Keep Us Apart

So This Is The New Year

Gifty Giggles

Mission Checklist

Christmas Conversations

Taking A 15 Minute Break

5 Wishes

Holiday Cheer

Don't Let This Happen To You

Disappointment in My Generation.

May I Have A Moment Of Silence?

Christmas is in the Air

Cute cute!

I Love You Kitty Boy