Reunited

Cameron came home from Boy Scout camp today. It's the first night the whole fam has been under the same roof for about ten days. Heh, as a retired Navy family this isn't the big deal I am making it sound. Nonetheless I cooked dinner as a celebration. Yes, it takes a celebration for me to cook these days... and even then, it's questionable. It's just a summer thing, I swear... Just a summer thing, I swear... How many more times do I have to repeat this to make it believable? And, since said "Celebratory Dinner" involves the acts of shaking and baking, I will spare you the culinary details.
I need to get much better about planning meals and cooking meals.
Our Menu "Planning" looks much too much like this these days...

I'm tempted to make a resolution to cook dinner for five days straight. However, with plans to go out of town to amusement/water parks, museums, and shopping, that's not going to be an easy... or convenient... task. Sooo, I will just blame it on summer again!

The past couple of days have been home bound, cleaning and organizing, and listing odds & ends on a local Facebook sales page. Jason drove to the depths of Chesapeake, and then some, to pick up a Shoo-Shoo track & table from one of those sites last night.

Last night, Benjamin was enthralled with the trains. He woke up this morning talking about his trains. Today though, he was much more fascinated with taking the track apart and trying to (sometimes) rebuild it.

We've also watched some movies over the past few days.

Friends with Kids was excellent. I love a good movie set in New York City. Several of the cast of main six characters looked familiar, though not "big names," and all of them were excellent in their roles and interactions with one another. The plot is a bit predictable. The sextuplet group of friends are two married couples and two single friends, of opposite sex. The single friends think marriage has made their friends miserable and boring, yet they want to be parents.  They decide to have a baby together because it would be the perfect arrangement to be a parent 50%  of the time, and single/happy/free to date the other half of the time. Well, of course they fall in love. Despite that predictable plot, it was well acted with just enough twists to make the development interesting. The movie had a really good soundtrack too!

Wanderlust was also excellent. I am a big Jennifer Anniston fan and the cast of this movie too was just well put together. I am intrigued by communal living and this was a humorous twist to several of the stereo-types associated with "Intentional Living communities." Anniston and her husband, played by Paul Rudd, are forced to move out their New York City micro-apartment and find themselves thrust into a world of truth circles hosted by hallucinatory tea and naked grape crushing. It's a light-hearted witty plot with some good twists and the occasional overdose of corniness.

Chatroom was... odd, in that way foreign movies often are- the bad way not the good way. A psychologically disturbed teen created a private chatroom where he meets with four other teens on a regular basis. He uncovers the insecurity of each of his on-line peers and manipulates them to control the behavior of the the teens to the point of near-suicide. Although there is some aspects of a good psychological thriller weaved into the plot, the metaphor used throughout the movie of a mangy hotel room where chatters check into and out of each of the rooms becomes confusing, especially when the chat room guests realize that their host is trying to push one of them to suicide and they must come together to stop him "IRL."

Button Monogram

This evening, I returned to the Button Monogram project that I abandoned earlier in the week when I could not make a final decision on whether to use an eclectic mix of button colors or a hodgepodge of white buttons. Obviously, I chose the latter. This is a pretty self-explanatory craft. Pretty easy, and since I had all the supplies needed lurking in my closet, it cost $0.00 to do!

Supplies Needed: small canvas, fabric (large enough to wrap canvas), hot glue & gun, buttons, ribbon, and a pencil

Before firing up the glue gun, you will want to decide on your fabric and button choice. My first attempt at this project was using the variety of buttons so I spread them over the fabric choices to decide. When I changed my mind to using all white buttons today instead, I used this same technique and swathed all white buttons over my fabric choices to see which combination I liked best.

Once decided, you are going to wrap the canvas "Christmas present style" and hot glue the corners in. Avoid the urge to use too much glue because it will make the bottom edges look lumpy and take away from the overall appearance of your project.

Next, separate your entire button collection into coordinating colors, and once you have decided which color to use, separate those buttons into small vs. large, 4-hole vs. 2-hole, matte vs. shiny. Actually, I am kidding. Do not do this unless you are OCD-tinged like some of us and want to turn a 1-hour project into a 4-hour one!

Instead, with a pencil sketch out your chosen letter directly on the fabric. Do not bother trying to be fancy or cutting out a stencil for this. Your buttons are going to ultimately determine the shape for you and too much pre-planning would be a waste of time. Next, lay out your first layer of buttons on the sketched alphabet. Don't glue until you have laid it out first and are pleased. Use your biggest buttons first to form a base Don't worry that it looks too uniform, or "neat," adding the layers of buttons will give a personality!

Then... you just keep gluing and gluing until the World Tetris Champion could not possibly find another spot to fit a button. It works best to progressively with with smaller and smaller buttons so the tiny ones can be clearly seen on top. To hang my canvas, I simply hot glued a piece of ribbon to both sides of the back canvas and tied them together in a bow to hide the nail hanging the print.



Project Runway, Week 1

Project Runway is my absolute favorite show. I watch several reality and reality game shows, and this is the only one that I can say I have never missed a season (an episode?) of. I'd like to say that it's my dream to sew like this. But I think that's an abuse of the word dream. I think learning to sew is an achievable task, and like most things, with practice, learning to sew well is also achievable. I am definitely going to put it on my craftiness time table.

For the Season 10 premier, I was glad to see Beatrice go home. I tossed her on the bad designer side of the list as soon as she said that she was a "nonsewer" and it took her four weeks to complete her "first look." Both outfits that she sent down the runway looked like sleepwear. I realize that in the "real world" of fashion design there may be minions to do the menial tasks like sewing, but I think for Project Runway, the ability to visualize a look is only half the competition. You should be able to masterfully create the look too. There has already been one season winner that didn't know how to sew... and for heaven's sake, we don't need another season of "draping" winning the runway.

I would have been just as happy to see Kooan go home though. I am all about the kooky guy and I love the designer that creates unconventional looks. I am a huge Mondo fan! However, I think Kooan's attempts at being eccentric are contrived and forced. And I think that his clothes were a mockery of the show, specifically the monochromatic Twister jumper that Michael described as a Telebtubby's vomit.

Alicia (dread locks)'s red hooded jumper, however, I really liked. It had a fashion forward style and a casual feel. I would n-e-v-e-r wear a romper. However, I have often liked the ones I have seen on the runway. It takes real artistic talent to create this look without it looking like a maternity jumper.

The other piece I thought was overlooked was Andrea's long gown. I tend to always like the older female designer. (Maybe because I know I will be old when I figure out how to sew this well, ha!) The only thing I don't like is that she is so well-degreed in art and teaches fashion. I don't like, in general, when there are designers that have done runway shows, or own a boutique, or just have a lot of experience in the field. I like the romance of a novice being given their "big chance" at stardom and success.

My favorite look on the runway tonight was Ven's white pants suit. I loved the pleated flared legs with matching cuffs. Loved the fuchsia color stark against the white and the twists and tucks of the top of the bodice. I would actually wear this look (a rarity for anything that comes down the runway)!

Although there is a handful of lackluster talent, namely Leapord Head (Buffi) who was Retro 80s, not in a good way, there does seem to be an abundance of talent this season- architectural stylists with classic taste and clean designs- Elena, Gunnar, Dmitry. However, I foresee a lot of runway commentary about "playing it safe" and needing to "break out of your comfort zone." There was a lot of black on the runway during the season premier and that cannot last for long before the judges' criticism begins.

Big Brother- Eviction 1

I would have preferred to say Week One, but with the emphasis that the guests have been in the house 13 days (how?) that would be confusing.

Well Ian... dear, dear geeky lil' Ian... you are a bit too much. I will have to resend my previous prediction that he would make it to at least the half-way point, and perhaps further if pawned. Instead now, I am apt to predict that his longevity in the house is solely based on how long there are bigger targets to attack (such as Russell Jr. in the upcoming week, yee-haw, sweet justice ahead for Frank? Yank the knife out of your back and throw it at Willie a la the spinning lady at the circus with an apple on her head?)

One trick to surviving on an a reality show where your peers determine your time of game death is to secure a "role" for yourself. Are you the one everyone confides in? Are you the one that cooks or cleans?  (The benefits of this role become moot when you attempt to cook the house's entire ration of  food such as the "I-must-yell-at the camera-in-the-diary-room-to-prove-my-testosterone-level Joe, who is quickly going to turn this to a game of "Survivor" instead of "Big Brother.") 

Or, you may become the entertainer. I have a feeling that Ian has used self-deprecating behavior often in his life to try and gain the favor of those around him. Ironically as he was kicking himself in the head, literally, this past week, I told Jason that could have been his bully-avoidance technique. Seriously, who is going to hurt a guy that starts beating the crap out of himself? That party trick is only entertaining for a fleeting moment and is going to be rekindled far less often than streaking through the house with the other guy's hats cradling your genitals or camping out on the bathroom couch in hopes of getting a boob peek.

This, of course, being ironic with Frank's ploy to label Russell Jr. as a bully in the house tonight. This was a smart move in the sense of the sheeple mentality of house guests to follow the latest stated opinion and thus come together to label a common enemy. I don't think it was very effective though as a last-minute plea to survive eviction. Do you think any players are undecided or change their mind at that point in the game? The best use of the "Final Plea" is to make a proclamation that will affect the next round of game play. As Frank did. Well played Carrot Top. 

Russell Jr., instead, would have liked to paint Mike Boogie as the common enemy. Now, I could be in support of this for two reasons: Number One, it is creepy to be 41 years old and refer to yourself as "Boogie." Number Two, I am already fed up with his self-promoting t-shirts, as if his egocentricity needed such tangible proof. However, that sheeple mentality of the house guests is most evident in their willingness to follow the advise of their "Coach." There are beginning to be rumblings of the understanding that the Coaches are playing their own game, not the house guests' game, but no one has been willing to act upon that belief yet. Even though I agree with Brittney that they are likely to enter the game later, and thus you do not want to make enemies, all the house guests are too willingly abiding by the alliances that they were thrust into by the spinning beds. (I wonder if CBS sees this playing out and thus instigated the Coaches' swap next week?)

Ashley is my favored player for the win right now, mainly because she reminds me of an endeared Key Clubber. But she does face the danger of being wallpaper and becoming a floater. And Wil (with one l... of course) is my favored player by which to be entertained. Russell Jr. is who I want to go... go, g-o, GO... next. I appreciate the value of a villain to the plot, but I am content just disliking Boogie for now. Please don't let Frank be stupid enough to fall for a deal. I still really dislike Rocker Chick but she if flying to far below the radar to be targeted right now.

The Beach

I took Justin & Benjamin to the beach tonight. Yes, I said tonight. We arrived in Virginia Beach around 6 p.m. Now, I realize that would   not be most people's definition of  "night." However, it is far later than I have ever been to the beach, even when we were on vacation and staying at the beach. Usually if I am not out the door by noon, we just won't go. However, I had a lunch meeting that ran late and didn't want to not go to the beach another day.

I knew I would gripe & grumble all the way there... then be glad I went.
                                                                                                     Which I did... and then I was.

Most folks "round these parts" like going to the Outer Banks. Not me. I like being in the middle of the tourist city with loud jets flying overhead and neon-lit boardwalk shops. I was surprised by how many people were still on the beach when we got there, still coming to the beach after we arrived, and staying back at the beach after we left.



I have always said that I like the idea of going to the beach.

I find the sight, the sound, and the smell of the beach peaceful and soul-reviving.

                                                                                                                              The sand? Not so much so.

Well, the last time I took Benjamin to the beach, our day was spent like this...

Today? A world of difference. I  had suspected that Benjamin would be apprehensive of the water. I don't know what I was thinking. One word I often use to describe this kid is- FEARLESS. The kid will climb anything and one of his first words was "jump." He wanted to be in the water. He wanted to be knocked down and drug around by the water. He wanted to stand in it, jump in it, and sit in it. When Justin's wave board got away from him for a few moments, Benjamin was quick to chase it and jump on it and was elated when the water drifted him away on it. Thus, coralling Benjamin at the beachfront was much more a fully-engaged adventure than a "soul-reviving" experience.

What Benjamin was apprehensive about though were the sand fleas that Justin kept unearthing to show him.

Indecisive

Today we were planning to go to the beach. This morning I felt too tired to endure the hour drive though.
(Surely this had nothing to do with my 1:00 a.m. summer bed time.)

So instead on the agenda, I added making the button monogram that I wanted for the craft room wall.

First, I couldn't decide which fabric I wanted to use as the background.
So, I spread a bounty of buttons over the choices to decide (eventually) which one I preferred.

Of course, my smart ass brilliant husband pointed out that my name didn't start with a "C." However, it made for an easy & quick preview.

I decided on the orange gingham and after hot gluing the fabric and initial outline, I started doubting that I wanted a hodgepodge collage of buttons.

I have seen examples of the button monogram done with monochromatic buttons and done with an eclectic mix.

I thought the funkier mix was more "me" but now I am reconsidering. Sooo, I decided to walk away from it for the day and come back to look at it tomorrow with a fresh mind and new perspective. Wouldn't life be so much easier if we could do that all the time? I beg my students to finish writing their papers early and give themselves enough time to come back to it and look at their work with fresh eyes. I am sure they diligently follow that advise, ha!

I did decide to divide that landfill of buttons into different color piles.

Yes, I have a lot of buttons. I love. L-O-V-E. buttons. I have a Pinterest board dedicated to just Button Projects. I think I have loved buttons forever because in this mix there are military uniform buttons I remember getting from my grandmother's sewing box over 25 years ago. I have bought one bulk bag of buttons over the years, but for the most part I have just ALWAYS cut buttons from clothes when they were worn beyond the condition to donate. As a matter of fact, I even came across the three orange buttons that were from the shirt I wore when I brought Justin home from the hospital 20 years ago. Sadly perhaps, I can look at a lot of my buttons and remember the specific outfit that donated them to my collection. But now I have lots of crafty ideas to use them for!

Lastly, this evening I planned to use the pasta maker attachment that I bought for our Kitchen Aid... but, I just threw two Hot Pockets in the microwave instead.

So, all in all... a very indecisive day.

Spoon Pendant

This is an easy craft for the most novel crafter. This is my first attempt at making jewelry since friendship bracelets in the 8th grade,
and even those were only the simple braided ones. It is a unique piece of jewelry that you can make "yours" and then make
another one... and another one... because they take less than an hour and cost less than a dollar to make!

First, obviously you need... wait for it... a SPOON! Our local Habitat Re-Store sells silverware for 10 cents a piece, so I grabbed a varied selection of spoons to work with.

You will need to cut the handle of the spoons about an inch up from the neck (actual cup of the spoon). I enlisted my husband for this task. After attempting several methods, he thought the easiest way to do it as with a jigsaw using a hacksaw blade (whatever that means).  Then, you are going to curl the remaining piece of the handle to create a loop for the pendant. I did this with needle-nose pliers.

When choosing the spoons for this project, I focused in getting a varied collection. After having worked with them, I would suggest getting the "cheaper" quality spoons that are going to be easier to cut and bend (and hammer).

Next you are going to hammer the "cup" out of the spoon, flatten it. I found the easiest way to achieve this was to duct-tape the spoon onto a brick and hammer it!

The art of the spoons is created with scrapbook paper! Cutting a stencil for the spoon and then using the negative space will give you the best preview of how the design is going to look. This will help you choose the best paper and the best area on your paper to work with for an optimum design.

Next, cut the chosen scrapbook paper to fit the face of your spoon pendant and Mod Podge it to adhere to the metal surface (and, of course, let dry).

Then it's time for embellishing! I may make another version of the pendant that leaves the spoon "natural." Then benefit of "tarnishing" it though is that it blends the paper onto the spoon so it's not so obviously... paper glued on a spoon.

The tutorial that inspired this project instructed crafters to try and create a rusted look on your pendant. I could not get the color combo right to achieve that effect. So, I just played and played until I found something I liked. I painted the front of the pendant and then wiped it off a few times. When the paint dried I wiped over it a couple of times with a fine sandpaper, especially the edges, to try and give it that rustic look. For the back of the pendant, I just swirled and swirled paint until it was the appropriate level of whimsical funkiness.

Lastly, you will need to seal the pendant, which will make it shiny(!) and prevent any wearing away of the paint.

Add to a chain or leather cord and hemp and Voila! A unique new piece of jewelry that will make folks say, "That's not a spoon. Is that a spoon? Did you make that?"

The tutorial that provided this project can be found at  Busily Spinning Mama.

Mississippi Mud Cake

The consistency of the cake is like a dense, nutty brownie.

The frosting will get a little firm to the touch but softens and "goos" over the cake when cut.

 It was a big hit at the party I took it to. The fine Southern ladies took a small piece... then went back for more...
and I spied one even cleaning the ooeey gooey chocolate goodess from the serving spoon! 

Ingredients 

• 1 1/4 cups butter, softened
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 (7 ounce) jar marshmallow creme
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease one 9x13 inch cake pan.              

2. In a large sauce pan over low heat, melt 1 cup of the butter or margarine and the cocoa. Stir often. Remove from heat and add white sugar, beat well. Beat in eggs one at a time.

3. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt and stir into the egg mixture. Stir in the chopped nut and teaspoon of the vanilla. Pour batter into the prepared pan.               

4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 35 to 45 minutes. 

5. To Make Icing: Beat together the remaining 1/4 cup butter or margarine, 1/3 cup cocoa, 1 teaspoon vanilla, the milk and the confectioner's sugar. Once well combined spoon over the still hot cake.

6. Remove cake from oven and spread the marshmallow cream over the cake. Spoon chocolate icing over marshmallow topping while the cake is still hot and spread. The cake will get "muddied" by the spreading action.

Revolving Doors

Busy weekend at the McHenry household. Jason & Justin left early Friday morning and returned early this afternoon. They made a 14-hour+ round trip to New Jersey to deliver the goods that his brother stored here during his move. Then, this morning Cameron left for a week-long Boy Scout camp.

Saturday morning I finally went yard saling. I have set the alarm for yard saling several Saturday mornings but never actually made it out of bed. I took along a "navigator" and we probably hit about 25ish sales. I found a shelf for DVD tapes, which was actually on the shopping list, a book, and lots of odds & ends crafting supplies. It was a good morning... actually turned into afternoon with a Target stop and working together on the blog.

Cameron & I watched a couple of movies over the weekend.

I get in the mood for adventure movies once in a while, and Mission Impossible was good. There were a couple of parts to the plot that were difficult to follow. However, the action was intense. Cameron made fun of some of my gasps and shrieks because I was so getting into the action. Also, after Rock of Ages, I was in the mood for another dose of Tom Cruise. He may have his haters but ever since he slid across the living room floor in his whitey tighties, I have been a fan of the Maverick. I am also a fan of Nicole Kidman and have liked some Nicolas Cage flicks. However, in the movie Trespass, both of their acting just seemed... bad. The plot was rather predictable too.

Other than that, the weekend was a lot of cleaning and cooking and crafting. This afternoon we had a get-together for the Relay for Life committee. This was my first year stepping into a committee position and today we all got together to review how this year went and look forward to next year. In honor of this year's event ,I made a Mississippi Mud Cake for the dinner. I topped the cake with a picture of my girls from this year's relay.

There were torrential downpours the night before Relay this year, and the field was a big muddy mess after just a few laps. I can hear the echos now of all the future conversations that will begin, "Remember that year the field was so muddy..."

While I was making the cake this morning, I distracted Benjamin with ice, bowls, and a spoon!

I got this idea from Kelly's Blog a while ago and it has worked wonderfully as a way to distract and entertain Benjamin the few times I tried it. The game? Simple. Fill one bowl with ice, give him a slotted spoon, and model moving ice from one bowl to the next. It's fun to watch to how the game grows with the new discoveries of age. "Water" is a common word for him now and he was amazed when he left the bowls for a while and came back to find water. He also chose to use the empty bowl for a hat and parade around the kitchen each time before refilling it, and would try to get more ice from the fridge himself.

The Craft Rooom Reveal... Ta-Da!

The Craft Room... Studio... Imaginarium... is not yet complete, but I hope that it never is. By definition, I hope it to be an evolving haven of creativity.
(Am I overdoing that a bit?)

Maybe so, but the room is "Open for Business" and I am overwhelmed by all the ideas I have of projects to do!

This is the view walking into the room, the crafting station.

The table was the first kitchen table that I bought over 15 years ago.

It is heavy wood and very sturdy with a huge work area.

The bookshelf belongs to my classroom and will be replaced.

Across from the crafting area is my office area for schoolwork and household matters.

The desk is repurposed from the boys' room until I find the right one. 

I like large working areas for any project- work or fun.

This is the fourth wall (obviously), which is basically 2 deep closets. The column is what my previous birdhouse sat on. I am thinking about... just maybe... about getting new birds. I'm going to wait out that decision until at least Christmas break to make sure I am in the room enough to give the birds attention and interaction. That whole column display is temporary. Maybe going to put a tall shelf there. It is a very narrow area to work with.

The various inspirational boards and quotes around the room

will also return to my classroom in the fall.

Keeping it real! This pic doesn't do justice on showing how deep these shelves (that Jason installed) are. It also makes it look far less organized than it really is. Half of each shelf houses supplies for different types of crafting: foam, dream catchers, scrapbook, jewelry, sewing, painting, cross-stitching, and holiday projects. I am just not worried about "pretty" displays when it is all hidden behind closed doors.

See... organized!

The other organization and storage area are the shelving units that I bought from Michaels.

This is so classing craft room, right? The shelves are filled with paper

for card-making and scrapbooking. The drawers are filled with stamps.

Jason didn't think I really needed that much storage space for stamps. Surprise babes!

These were the shelves I used. I put them together myself, very basic assembly.

Their list price at Michael's is $44! However, about three months they go on sale for $17.49!