Stop For A Minute... And Just.. Look.

Because when you stop and look around,
this life is pretty amazing. 

- Anon.

Today I am grateful for the eyes that saw this sunrise this morning. 

I am thankful for the ears that heard not only the sounds of the city, but the sound of the breeze. 

I am thankful for the nose that smelled the morning lifting off the ground when I walked outside. 

I am thankful for the sensation in my body - the chill of
morning air and the warmth of sun on my face.

I am thankful for a heart dedicated to God, who created this beautiful picture for us all to see. 

I am thankful. I am whole.

Happy Thursday ♥

xo | cmd 

Art Post || Fideli Sundqvist

The word, art, is such a broad term. There are countless ways in which people adopt that word, and for the most part, it can start to run together for a lot of people after a while.

While I certainly do appreciate the scope of human artistic ability, every once in a while there comes that one artist that just amazes me.

I'll stop talking now & you can see for yourself:








fideli!

^^ ***Note: I didn't make any of that work up there, and I didn't photograph it either. Those are all borrowed images. [In case any of you were thinking I had this type of talent, or wanted to punish me for pretending I did.. haha..]

Refreshing to see something new, yeah?
Yeah. (:

xo | cmd

An Eagletriever?

wait, what? :)

I am more than happy to report that I spotted a small spec of reprieve today from this ridiculous bout of whatever it is that's been plaguing me for the majority of the week. I had more energy today than I've had over the last three days combined, and I made it all evening without a nap. Wa-hoo! For the first time all week, I actually felt better at the end of the day, as opposed to the beginning. Go figure. :)

In the meantime, I had someone pass along these silly little hybrids to me. I give due credit to the creative wanderings that led to these being created. I'll leave these for your meanderings. Meanwhile, I'm kinda glad that these original creatures were designed by God, and in the fashion He desired. Hah. Just sayin'. These are definitely fun to oogle at, though. Hah..

Tomorrow = FRIDAY!

Friday = Small Group!

Small Group = Amazing, always :)

 xo | cmd

Creativity Is Cheap [Hooray!]

Typical Monday, you silly thing. I’m glad the work part’s over. Hah.

So… yesterday when we were at the Babots, Sydni and Landon had a blast playing with the ‘weather bear’ that Lara and her mom had made for Landon. It’s basically a felt board teddy bear with felt clothes. It struck me today that it’s the perfect idea, and, knowing Sydni, she’d love it. I was all over it. During lunch, I made a pitstop at Michael’s to pick up some felt, then over to Goodwill to find a good frame for it all.

Back at home, Sydni and broke out our $5ish worth of materials, the felt glue, and some scissors. For all you DIY’ers out there, here’s how we completed our little project:

1. Remove poster or picture from picture frame. Wrap glass pane with felt. Secure back into frame.
2. Create a template for animal cut-outs. We used simple notebook paper and then traced out the shape onto felt. All the animals should be the same size and shape if you want the clothes to fit them uniformly.
3. Cut out animals. Use a sharpie to add details [paws, claws, etc.]
4. Glue animals directly onto felt. Add little eyeballs of your choice [glue ‘em.]
5. Using the same animal template, trace out clothes. Make them slightly bigger than the cutout so they’ll cover the animals completely.
6. Cut out clothes; use sharpies or markers to add details!

Tada! You now have a stellar little felt board for dressing up animals. I particularly love it because it’s not just a little girl thing; these animals and outfits could totally be boy-catered. J Love.

This one’s definitely goin’ on Pinterest. Hah.

Night, blogbots!

xo | cmd

Syd-So-Stylin'

Sydni is morphing into a new phase [for her]; she must have everything that Mommy has, everything that Daddy has, and she must do everything that they do. [How's that for force of accountability??] Most recently, I've noticed that the rack in our closet which holds all of my scarves has been raided several times over the past few weeks. A few days back, I caught the culprit red-handed, and cute as could be, for that matter.

Sydni was on the tippiest tips of her toes, reaching as high as she could to yank down one of my scarves. I peered around the doorway and marveled in silence as she fidgeted, strained, and finally succeeded in securing one. She proceeded to wrap it around her head, neck, and half her torso, just like mommy does. She came tearing out of the closet partially mummified in what was certainly an oversized accessory for her.

So...

We took a timeout and did some snipping to an old T-shirt I had, producing the finished product of a little scarf, for a little lady. She was so excited to wear it that she is now insisting on wearing it to bed [not happenin']. Ha.

Oh, and lest I forget our new box of Mickey Mouse bandaids that was ripped open this evening. After about three whole minutes of the most intentional deliberation I've ever seen from a 2-year-old, she finally picked out the bandaid she wanted for her non-existent boo-boo. [Sidenote: bandaids went up, up, and away into the cabinet after this one. Stickers will have to suffice moving forward.]

All in all, I'd have to say that I've got a like-minded little tyke coming up in the ranks here.

We're so proud.

Tee-hee. ♥

xo | cmd

Jewelry Blitz

I went on a bit of a rampage tonight.

Over the past few weeks, I've re-engulfed myself into Pinterest, and I've gathered a definite amount of pinspiration from doing such. Tonight, I devoted the evening to channeling that inspired thought into the boxes of beads, fixtures, and chain that comprise my collection.

Result?

See for yourself.

bake marbles at 350 degrees for 25 minutes
glue on end caps

add jingle and jangle :)

 

matching earrings



touch of turquoise and copper



pewter trumpet and bits of red

So I got a little carried away. It's cool :) 

You know what else is cool? 

It's FRIDAY!
[hello, weekend!]

xo | cmd

2011 Mini Review & Goodwill Update

First... Here's how little miss started off the last official day of 2011. I woke up this morning to her toting in the life-size Santa Mickey wanting to play. It was adorable, so I let her have her own photo shoot with him.

my little mickeys

SOO.. I'm not going to focus this entire entry on the had's and were's of this year, nor am I really all that interested in new year's resolutions this time around, either. It's a little hard for me to believe that this year is already over. I say that every year, but this one was unique for a few new reasons.
Top Five 2011 Highlights:
1. Joe finished all his tech school training, and we moved to Illinois.
2. We joined a new church.
3. Joe made & played for the U.S. All-Air Force soccer team.
4. We had our official vow renewal ceremony - the big, fancy way + Smokey Mtn. honeymoon!
5. We moved into a house!

Top Five 2012 Wishlist:
1. Stay in one state for an entire year.
2. Grow with our church.
3. Promotions with work?
4. Continuously improved fitness & health - maybe another full or half marathon?
5. Baby #2?? [Notice the ?. I'll get back to you on that one. Hah.]

Anyway, today was another one of those always-welcomed days of peace and nothingness, and I took its offer. Joe worked last night, so the bulk of his day was spent sleeping. I had originally thought Sydni and I would take some sort of jaunt out and about, but as soon as I thought we were ready to go, she'd find some little nook in which she'd settle and start to nod off. So, I took the opportunity to get some of my latest Goodwill finds transformed into suitable condition and/or into the DIY project for which they were intended. These are just a glimmer of the real treasures our Goodwills here have to offer. Why not, right?

Thought I'd share :)

< This one is a tribute to the seasonally appropriate thrift finds I've found over the past couple of months. I would've taken a snapshot of the tree skirt that I found for a whopping $2, but in all truth, even in its frilly fanciness, the tree I borrowed from my parents upstages it, bigtime. That, and it's a tree skirt. It's a red tree skirt with a gold-fringed edge. I don't think you need an illustration for that.

The itty bitty nativity scene, complete in its modern yet durable rubberish design, came at a grand total of $4.50. Each character rang through at $.50. I offered the cashier $2 for just baby Jesus alone; I felt that proportionally speaking, I was committing an honest injustice by purchasing the infant saviour of the world for two quarters. She refused, stating that the prices on items are set by a higher power [ironic, yeah], and are non-negotiable, even if that price is lower than what the consumer is willing to pay. I'm guessing that type of offer doesn't happen regularly, but hey, standards are good. :)

Oh, and the advent calendar that *magically seemed to wind up on a different, randomly selected day, was thrown in for one more whole dollar. Yeah, it was worth it.

This little guy also found its new home off the modge-podge shelf and onto an end table in our living room for less than a gallon of gas. Since that might not be the same price a few years from now, I'll clarify that gas at the time of this little buy was just under $3.20. Woot! [for both moderate gas prices, and for this guy!] >

Down below there, that's my most recent gem: iron frame, glass top coffee table. Love, love, love it... and I loved that I could adopt it for $40. Btw, that shot was at the store. Sorry to say, but that couch in the picture would have to come free, with a $5 check, to me, to make it into my house.

Every little girl needs a kitchen! Sydni got hers for a $10 bill. My parents had found her an adorable vintage one that will now serve as the downstairs kitchen that Sydni seems to think already exists ;) This buster here will ask you what's for dinner in English, Spanish, or French. You choose. :)

Also for the kitch en: chips and dip? Dip and chips? Veggies? Fruit? Something? Anything? I don't have something immediately in mind, but it doesn't matter; for the $3 it cost, I'll wear it as a hat if I don't use it for anything else. <||:)

I thought it would be a little too much to photo-document all the dishes, glassware, and plates we've found along the way at various thrifty places, so I'll just let this one serve to represent our cabinet shelves of second-hand fun.

Last, but certainly not least, is the little DIY project I finished today. This was yet another inspired fix I'd seen on Pinterest, and I couldn't justify not doing it when I stumbled across a six-frame wall deco discarded by someone else. :) Yay, crafts!!

 ^ Woot! [click to enlarge]

1. Regular picture frame ensemble

2. Remove glowing pre-set family.

3. Replace with fun cardstock/paper

4. Sharpie tattoo frame headers

5. Use dry-erase marker for events

= Weekly calendar!

[ Yes, w/o weekends. We like to think that the weekends are our sacrosanct time to be together for the entire duration of those days, so if we really need to map out plans, we'll just use post-its. That, and there were only six frames, not seven. I didn't want anyone to have to share :p. Hah. ]

Well, folks. That's about it. I realize I just spent 3/4 of this entry on Goodwill projects, but ya know what, I'm cool with that since the rest of today has been a mix of well, nothing else. :) We're not really obsessed over the ball dropping or the new year razz this year - Joe will be at work and I will be here, so .. yeah. :) Oh well.

Happy [pre] New Years!!

xo | cmd

Pinterest!

Today’s a big day for me J 

Add caption

For all of my fellow blogbots and creativity-fueled DIY-ers out there, if for some reason you haven’t already discovered Pinterest, I would suggest you pause my little amateur operation here and www-dot your way over there to check it out.

[You back, yet?]

Well, so today I took a time-out to refresh my bank of creative inspiration and perspective by oogling over some pins posted by people from all over the place. Understand, this is a website that could easily hoard hours and hours of my time and send me reeling into ambitious dreams and ideas on how to renovate everything in my house from the front door to the dish detergent.

I thought I’d share some of the fun with the class. Keep in mind, I didn’t generate any of these ideas, but you can bet I might be replicating some!

crochet/knit costumes for babies. i want, want, want.

santa hat brownies!



shower hook necklace library :)



this one was just an extra ;)

Have a day full of pinspiration!

xo | cmd

I Haven't Forgotten....

It dawned on me today that in the midst of my newly-fashioned obsession with knitting, I've let my beadwork fall to the wayside. How rude of me. I made a resolution today to fish the bins of un-assigned beads, wire, fastenings, and other random trinkets out from hiding and give them some long-absent attention.



current knitting endeavor

 With Christmas just around the corner, I tend to be a little more bold in color selections and textures, simply because I feel like this is a brilliant time to celebrate boldness and color. Don't ask me how I arrived at that particular correlation, but I felt the distinct need to hone in on the array of ceramics over which I've always debated in adding to pieces. Why? Well, for starters, they're not cheap, and once I've incorporated them into a necklace or other piece, they are then no longer available for anything else. It's a ridiculous battle I'm constantly perpetuating in my own head, which could easily be remedied if I weren't so stinkin' fickle.

Whatev'.


ceramics: o, how i love you.

 Either way, I sorted out some ceramics today that, along the way, became part of a collection instead of a wearable item. I wound up losing focus on beads and leaning back on knitting when I realized that I should be crafting jewelry to match knitting projects, and vice versa. Hello, genius. Wake up.

That being said, I'll be taking Christmas gifts to a whole new level this week. Haha.
I'll keep you posted.

xo | cmd

It Gets Dark Early, Nowadays

Holy full moon.
Yesterday, I declared my satisfaction and appreciation for God's great ability to paint the world with random acts of beauty. As I was leaving work today, I realized that daylight savings time has truly set it; it was past the point of dusk, and clearly dark as I headed down to the base.

Except... for the moon.
Full Moon.
See?

It feels a little out of place to see a full moon at 5:15pm, but it's getting dark early nowadays, so I guess I'll just have to get used to the premature dimming for the time being.

I'm gonna take advantage of the full moon and, in an act completely disconnected and unrelated to it, make some dinner for the fam. :)

Two days until the weeeeeeekend!

xo | cmd