Gluten free yummy!

Tonight I have been very productive! I continue my quest to make homemade gifts. One of the most precious people I know is having a birthday on Sunday. I have warned her that her present may be slightly late...but tonight I had a chance to do some work on it. Part of it has been finished, while the other part is become more and more questionable... let's just say, it's hard to explain but I will be able to share the whole story next week. I also have a baby shower gift to finish, which is so close to being done that I kind of want to stay home from work to get it finished, but I won't. And my third project, my mother's day gift, is also on the verge of completion. I hope Saturday will be very productive.... especially since it's time to bring out my summer/ spring wardrobe!

Ok, back to tonight... in the midst of my crafting, I also decided I needed to make some banana bread. I had two bananas that were well beyond consumption (in my opinion) and needed to be baked with or tossed. Over the weekend, I found a new recipe for banana bread from the blog Bicycle Built for Two. Tonight... I tried it out. Caitlin from Bicycle Built for Two does a great job explaining the recipe so I am not going to repeat it, but of course I took some pictures to amuse you...

This is my kitchen (quite amusing and messy)... the other half not in the picture is my washer/dryer. The washer/dryer very often becomes part of my counter space when cooking.

Looks yummy....

The other downside of my kitchen... no dishwasher. It makes cooking and baking less fun when you have to HAND WASH everything! Sigh...oh how I miss a normal kitchen...

TaDa.... I can't wait to cut it!

That will unfortunately have to wait until morning.... but it smells delightful and I am excited about my breakfast treat!

Sweet dreams friends!

weekend roundup

This weekend was quite busy for me! I went to the national conference for my profession, which just happened to be right around the corner in New Orleans. Let me start off by saying, it was a great weekend!

I would definitely say I am somewhat of a conference nerd and try to attend as many sessions as possible. One of the things I loved about school was learning, but hated the tests... so I feel like going to a conference is getting the good stuff without those pesky tests. But I ran into problems when it came to choosing which ones to attend.... there were so many great subjects! Soledad O'Brien was the keynote speaker. She was phenomenal... I wish I had cable so I could watch her specials on CNN.

Joining me this weekend for the conference were some amazing people. My friend Brie and I met up with two friends, Joey and Jessica, that we hadn't seen in almost two years! I love the people in my life that just pick up like we never missed a day apart. Needless to say we had a great time exploring New Orleans and dining on delicious food. I even found some gluten free choices :)

Joey, Jessica, Me, Brie

Muriel's in the French Quarter. They have a gf menu (with desserts!!!!)

yep...yummy gf pizza at Naked Pizza. It was probably the most delicious pizza I have had since changing my diet to gluten free!

This is Elizabeth's. My favorite waiter, Jeff, took good care of me. He brought gf cornbread muffins to our table...so yummy. I had the most delicious lump crab and avocado salad!

I even made some new friends, one of which works for Make It Right. Make It Right is the organization Brad Pitt started that is rebuilding the lower 9th ward. He drove us down there one night to see the progress and incredible houses. Unfortunately because it was late, I couldn't take pictures of the houses (go check them out on the link). He also drove us by the spot where the levee failed. It was very eerie. I can't imagine what it feels like to live there after experiencing and living through that trauma. I was immediately filled with varying emotions as I saw the empty slabs and heard stories of the people who live there.

new friends Cesar and Casie

the digital playground (read about it)

this is in honor of the lives lost in Katrina

Before I knew it, the weekend was over! There is so much to do in New Orleans...I think I need to go back!

my first blog award

Yea! Pal Rachel passed on the Versatile Blogger award to me this week! Rachel and I have been friends since undergrad and have frequent craft nights (I talk about her a lot in my blog). She got married last summer and asked me to coordinate the wedding...this is when I thought our friendship would end. But the wedding went off without a hitch and we are still friends (phew...huge sigh of relief when that night was over!)! Crazy enough, we both traveled down the same career path despite being apart for half of undergrad and graduate school. We have some great memories and I honestly think there are days I wouldn't survive without her! She is that friend that shows up at your house with a bottle of wine after a bad day, a break up, or just because she has a bottle of wine to share! Check out her blog falling from trees.

So now that you all know how amazing she is and have read her blog...back to the award...

The task is to list 7 interesting facts about myself

1. I love nicknames. I try to give them to all the people that I really love and care about. Although, I have yet to be given a nickname by someone else that I really like.

2. I hate the word lovely. To me, it's like describing someone as having a good personality (ie..ugly or fat)... gosh, that's just lovely! Really, can't come up with a different adjective?!

3. I knit and sew because I watched my mom and aunts do it when I was a kid. Knitting and sewing just remind me of my childhood and that makes my heart smile.

4. I eat gluten free. Although if you really know me, then you know this!

5. I wake up very early most mornings to watch tv shows on hulu.com and go for a run. I can't confess how early because you would think I am crazy....

6. I have never had a cavity (dentist appointment next month...hopefully I am not jinxing myself).

7. I give up sweets almost every year for Lent. I would kill for a bag of jelly beans or gummy worms right now!

So now to pass this award onto my fellow bloggers... check them out too!

Christy @ crazycanadys

i love her what i love wendesdays posts!

Hollie & Janie @ lifewithjanie

janie blogs everything in her doggy point of view!

a quick trip home

I had to take an unexpected trip home this weekend. And while most of my weekend was spent inside or running around town...I did have an opportunity to go on my favorite morning jog. I snapped a few pictures after I was done. I think one of the things I miss most about my hometown is the bay. I find it so calm and relaxing to look out over the water and breathe in the fresh air. Of course, I forgot how annoyingly loud seagulls are... regardless, their squawking just added to my relaxing morning jog.

So peaceful!

This entire pier was covered in seagulls.... quite the talkers!

Coming soon to my parent's house....blackberries!!

Yum!

Happy Monday everyone!

drum roll please....

So this past weekend on of my favorite people celebrated her birthday...and if you read my blog a few weeks ago, then this means I gave my first (of many...) homemade gifts!! It was so fun and luckily I got it finished before my vacation, so I wasn't stressed. She was a great sport at being the first recipient...let's just say I hope my skills get better as the year goes on (basically, the Christmas gifts will probably be the best)!

I didn't have a difficult time trying to figure out what to make. And since she is one of my besties...I knew it had to be special. So here is the run down of what I made :)

Project # 1

Finished product.... a cupcake pincushion!

This project was not easy for a beginning knitter. I wouldn't have been able to complete it without my knitting friend Rhi (a complete lifesaver...especially when I had to rip out 4 rows and then was COMPLETELY lost in the pattern). It was a free pattern I found through Ravelry (an ah-mazing resource for knitting patterns) and can be found on the Spud & Chloe website.

Project # 2

Finished product...a travel sewing organizer

Complete with multiple pockets, a pin holder, & spool holders

And it rolls up neatly when you store it!

This project had me working on my sewing skills (which are a bit dusty since I haven't done much sewing since...well... high school home ec.). The pattern for this came from the book One Yard Wonders. I am sure there will be more homemade gifts that come out of this book before this year is over! During this project I think I ripped out more seams than not and I learned how to add (and remove) snaps. Just a tip, be careful if you are adding snaps that you don't break them...they are not too easy to remove :)

I think she liked her gifts and I am pretty proud of my first accomplishments! There will be another homemade gift coming soon!

You can probably tell that I am also trying to experiment with and hone my blogging skills, which is why there are a few crazy collages thrown in here (just wish I knew how to make them bigger) and a new blog header. Any and ALL blog advice is welcome! Oh and thank you to those who leave comments! It makes me very happy to get them (hint...hint...)! :)

more vacation pictures...from a 5 year old's view

Remember this adorable little 5 year old that was my travel buddy last week...well this post is all about him. Truth be told, when he wasn't sick, that little man was attached to my hip! It's so sweet and I felt incredibly loved. His older brother is 8 so hugging or really any form of affection is soooo uncool...and his younger brother is only 1, so mom is his #1 everything. And, I know it will be only a matter of time when holding my hand and yelling "auntie claire, wait for me" will no longer happen (sigh...). Goose (the 5 year old's nickname) was not only my travel buddy but also my morning coffee buddy (well, I drank the coffee, he snuggled next to me watching cartoons) and my dinner date. Oh and my favorite part was when he crawled into my lap one night and told me he was going to marry me when he grows up.... yep, that kid is going to be a heart breaker...

So, periodically during the trip he took my camera and snapped a few shots of his own. Some of them were actually pretty interesting. So here is a little glimpse from the world of a 5 year old....

he was dying to blow out this candle...which he finally did before we left

an artistic shot of the night's specials

artistic shot # 2

the fish face was somehow very popular during this trip...he caught me in the act ;)

this one is pretty good... maybe this kid has some talent?!

(this is BW his brother)

This is one of my most favorite pictures of him. He ended up falling asleep in my lap one afternoon at lunch.... ugh, what a sweetie pie! I wish it lasted forever! I love my goose, BW, and j!!

Back to the real world....

I have been on vacation for the past week. My family tries to take a ski vacation once a year to Vermont. I have been going to Killington off and on for the past 30 years. Now we are taking the next generation up there to learn to ski. My oldest nephew reached quite a milestone and advanced to using poles. He will quickly tell you that he can ski backwards and do a 360...these are things I dare not try! Although I admit, I did fall once on the first day...it was quite graceful...of course it's always good to fall at the chair lift so everyone gets a chance to see :) The week was a blast... full of skiing, eating, hot chocolate, and laughter. Unfortunately, there was a sickness passed around the condo and I brought home a cold as a souvenir. But regardless, we still had fun!

Sorry in advance for the length of this post...there are too many pictures that I want to share!

This was my travel buddy. Having a 5 year old as a travel buddy is kind of like having a monkey as a travel buddy. But he did great....and I didn't lose him :)

Airplanes provided a nice distraction for the wait

My favorite...the poma. I hear they are big in Europe.

I would LOVE to ski in Europe!

My S-I-L and I at the peak

And yes, it's true....this is in b & w. Unfortunately on the most beautiful day my camera got switched to b&w (thank you ski gloves), so you can't see how the sky is an amazing bright blue.

This was the same day...but I tell you, from the top the sky is so much bluer!

And no, this is not in b&w. We unfortunately had a few days of poor visibility.

This picture is from one of my FAVORITE places... Simon Pearce. It has everything I love...food, shopping, and crafting! It is one of my musts for this vacation.

We ate brunch there...soooo good!

Glass blowing

my vase purchase :) now I need more flowers

Of course, we made a stop at King Arthur Flours. This is their gluten free section. I picked up a few mixes to bring back home. I can't wait to do some baking!

Lists, lists, lists

I recently stumbled upon this blog called 30 days of lists. I love the concept behind it. Basically there is a daily post prompting you to make a list. At the end of the month, you will have a small group of little lists to give a little "snapshot" of your life. I personally hate to journal, which I realize is kind of strange since I love to blog. Anyway, I find these lists make journaling a bit less tedious and a little more fun.

Check it out...it started on the first so you aren't too far behind. My first list wasn't too hard. The subject was "a few things about myself". Today's list, was another story... it was "things I am good at". Why is it so difficult to list good stuff about myself?! I am not brave enough to share my list. I will say today's list included baking yummy things, car dancing, and procrastinating, but it only ended up having 9 things on it....