Nerdy Nostalgia

The other evening, I was feeling quite nostalgic for some of the cheesy shows I watched in my childhood. I especially LOVED The Disney Channel. I think it had something to do with the fact that we didn't have the money for special channels like that when I was younger. I WAITED for Free Disney. Do any of you remember this? Does the cable company still do this? It was some kind of ploy to get people to subscribe to additional channels by offering those stations free for a week or weekend or something. When it was Free Disney time, I would veg out to Disney shows. My favorites were Kids Incorporated and The Mickey Mouse Club. I did finally grow up a little and stop watching these by the time the likes of Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Justin Timberlake were Club Members. Yet, I did watch Jennifer Love Hewitt on Kids Incorporated (back then, she was just Love Hewitt.) While LOML* worked to meet a deadline, I sat transfixed to YouTube watching stuff like this:
and this
YES YES YES. . . I was a HUGE nerd back then. I guess I'm still a nerd if I was watching these just the other night. Oh well, it was a GREAT little escape back to my childhood.

Seeing that it is the end of the work-week, it must be "Feel Good Friday"

• Simple workouts for busy women
• How to unleash your creativity (I haven't gotten to read all of the article yet, but so far, so good.)
• TV promos and ads that make me nostalgic
  

Too bad it's a short weekend, try to make the most of it!!

*LOML-Love of My Life

Me? A Whiney B@#$%? Come On?

It's getting late, but I don't want to fall behind again. So, I'm posting even though there's not much news on the homefront.
LOML* has to go to San Diego next week for work. No matter how much guilt tripping or pleading I've done - he still says I can't go with him. I guess it's for the best, because I have a TON of stuff to accomplish over the next several weeks. Hopefully, I'll get my list done, rather than finding other distractions. But, I would REALLY like to go. Unfortunately, I have to take some time off at the end of the month and shouldn't be away from work that long, and the cost of round-trip plane tickets is ridonkculous. So, here I'll stay in Southern Alabama where I'll have to create my own adventures. Hmmmmm, what kind of trouble can I get myself into while he's gone? Suggestions?

Oh well, it's on to "Thrifty Thursday"

• Here are some frugal organizing tips
• There are least 12 things you should buy used
• Reuse your newspaper in a variety of ways

Hey, I know what I can do while he's gone. . .work on my blogging. It's got to get better than this.

*LOML=LOve of My Life

Made It Short, But Just for You

I've got this weird headache thing going on today. The pain feels like it is in the side of my head, in my ear, and down my throat. However, my left shoulder is extremely sore to the touch. I'm wondering if I'm just sore from the strenuous bike ride on Monday and from all the exercise I've been getting on my WiiFit (yay!)
In either case, I'm not up for a long blog post, but I said yesterday that I would try harder and tonight is my night with my nieces, so it's now or never. (WOW, if that wasn't a run-on sentence.)

It is "Wild Wild Web Wednesday" and that's my longest list. So, you're in luck!BUT, I'm going to make this short:

• The American Teenager, from NPR
• Magic Pen Game
• Mostly creepy cowering mummy
  
• Top 10 sexually suggestive lines from the original star wars trilogy
• Yankee or dixie quiz (I scored 78% Dixie and I don't even have an accent, really, I'm told that I DON'T all the time.) People who know me, back me up here.
  

Hump day, Hump day - you know what that means. . .Wednesday! Get your mind out of the gutter!

Excuses and Making It Up

Okay, Okay Oops!! I've been a bad, very bad blogger lately. However, I HAVE been a great friend and wife. I threw a baby shower and spent some time with LOML*.
I am sorry about the big lag. I did not plan on the blogging break, it just kinda happened. I had a lot to do and the long weekend didn't help. In fact, my laptop has been in my car since Wednesday afternoon.
Just so you can see what all my time has been involved with, check out this photo synopsis:
Monday I got back to my desk and back to work.
Tuesday I worked and then got some crafting done.
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were filled with planning, shopping, and crafting for the bay shower.
Saturday was the shower - it took up my WHOLE DAY.
Sunday was a party on the river.
Monday was a long, hard bike ride. We got to see some baby armadillos.

I'm sorry if my few, but loyal readers have felt neglected. Here are some fun links to make it up to you, and I hope to get back on track soon.

• This should make you giggle a little - it did me!
• Sometimes it just doesn't translate well. These Chinese translations are a perfect example.
• It's so great to know that models are not as perfect as their bodies. Since I'm trying to lose some weight, these clumsy models make me feel so very good.
  
• All women know that their men are just big babies, this photoset of kid and men's faces switched help show the Manbabies they can be.
  
• Now that I've picked on the guys, I'll let you know that with these standards - I'd never stay married. Sigh, so glad I don't have to live up to that.
• And for just a little fun and tension relief - Click this.
  

Alright, I hope I've appeased the masses (Ben). I'll work on making this week a bit more fun (for all of us!!)

*LOML=Love of My Life

Recharging Her Batteries

Recharging Her Batteries
Originally uploaded by CraftyHope

LOML* says that she's a solar-powered kitty. I say she's just happy I'm working from home this afternoon.

Craft Contest Entry

So, Crafty Chica is hosting a contest with some cool prizes. Basically, you just answer the question "Why are you a Crafty Chica?"
I entered with this e-mail.

Wow!! This is quite an ambiguous question. There are so many ways to look at the question and to answer it.

First, I consider myself a Crafty Chica because I have absolutely no artistic ability, never taken a serious art class; but I love paint, beads, soldering, markers, glue, glitter, fabric, thread, wire, glass, clay, paper, stamps, ink, and any other material that lets my creative juices flow. So, if I’m not artistic, I MUST be crafty.

As well, I don’t feel complete unless my hands are covered in paint, markers, and glue. Plus, Michael’s and Hobby Lobby are my second (and third) homes.

Another way to look at this question is more of a soul searching method . . .like, why did you become a crafty chica, what made you this? Growing up, my mom was rather crafty – cross-stitching, crocheting, and sewing in my early years. Later, she decorated shirts and made earrings. I was always around it. Craftiness seemed like a basic way of life. As a kid, I made friendship pins and bracelets, crafted at camp, and learned to cross stitch. As an adult, I obtained a high-stress job and found my release in crafting. Now that I have left the high-stress job, I continue to feel something lacking if I don’t craft often. Without craft in my life, I wouldn’t be me.

All in all, I’m a Crafty Chica because crafting is not something I'm a part of, it's something that's a part of me.

So, that's it. Those of you who know me well - what do you think? Does that sum it up?

Quick Craft on a Friday

It has been raining here all day. Ever since I hydroplaned and totaled my car a few years ago, I've been a bit more nervous about driving in wet conditions. Leaving the house this morning was a challenge. I think the storms were at their height then. It's let up little by little as the day has worn on, and now it's almost completely stopped. Apparently, we'll have a nice, dry weekend. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I braved the weather at lunch to go get some grub and stuck my head in the Dollar Tree next door to the sandwich shop. My mom calls it the "Hundred Dollar Store" because she can't leave there without spending close to that. Fortunately, I only found a few items I needed/wanted. I've been wanting to experiment with glass pebbles and rub-ons for a little while, so I picked up a bag of pebbles and a few sets of rub-ons. Before I show you what I did, check out how my tags from yesterday are turning out.They're still not completely done, as I want to do something simple on the backs (maybe a little paint effect) and secure the paper on the big one a little better.

For my quick craft today, I simply rubbed a decorative image onto the back of the pebble.
Here's another view of them. It's not the best picture as the light in here is weird.
That's about all I can do with them here. Once I get home, I may test out tinting them with alcohol inks, then wrap them in copper foil, solder, and place a jump ring at the top. Easy-peasy!! I love to solder!

Before I leave, it is finally "Feel Good Friday" and boy, do I feel good about that!! My nieces have their recital (they call it Showcase) tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to it.

All I really want to share today is some life instructions.

From Bits and Pieces

Enjoy your weekend!!

It's Not Botox, But. . .

How do you like the new duds? I decided the blog needed a bit of a facelift. This is as far as I got. I'm sure there may be more to come, I might even get a new template, but I'm not sure yet. However, I am QUITE proud of myself. I know the header needs some tweaks and LOML* said he would help me and give me a tutorial to be able to get the image(s) on the header that I want. Now that I know it's so easy, you may see more and more up there.

Let me know what you think or if you notice any problems that I didn't.
Thanks!!

*LOML=Love of My Life

Sneaking In Some Creative Time

I'm better today. I apologize for the pity party yesterday. I was just having one of those days.
Today, I've been staring at my blogger dashboard, trying to figure out what to share with you. I also really wanted to CREATE something more than just a blog post. I dug through my craft bag here at work and pulled out some small wood tags. I then found some images I liked on the collage images group in flickr. I picked out a few and printed them. After comparing image sizes to the tag sizes, I chose the images for the tags. I traced around the images with the tags and cut them out. My craft bag also contains some travel containers of acrylic paint and a few paintbrushes. Right now I'm really fond of metallic paint, so I went with a few of my favorite colors of those. This is where I am stalled right now. I want a few embellishments for these tags (i.e. rhinestones, sequins, silver or gold paint pens, etc) before I glue them down. These items are not currently in my craft bag - DANG! I do have a bag of cheap glitter glue (easier to transport than loose glitter.) But, that's still not enough. I guess I'll have to wait until I get home to complete these two tags.

I guess I'll go ahead and update you on what IS in the craft bag today. Leeeet's see: a bag of wooden beads and tags; a bag of various papers (tissue, text, wrapping, etc.); 4 travel containers of acrylic paint; paintbrushes; gel medium; hole puncher; paper tags; dyed string; glitter glue; clipboard; sharpies; large craft/life notebook; journal; gel pen; and USB camera connection. There should be some pieces of shrink plastic in there too, but I can't seem to find them at the moment. Oh well, it's heavy enough right now.

Friday is almost here, that means it is "Thrifty Thursday".Today, I want to share a few 'crafty' thrift tips I've found:

• A while back, Craftzine had a piece on using old salad containers as shrink plastic. I've cut out the ones I've had myself, but haven't had much chance to play around with this yet.
  
• A Little Hut also had a post on this bright idea lamp - re purposing an old lamp. I love that idea. A friend of mine has a square lamp base covered in cork. I bet it would be pretty easy to do a square lamp with cork on two sides and chalkboard paint on two sides to make a message center.
  
• Lastly, Crafty Goat shared a variety of ways to use mineral oil with polymer clay.
  

Maybe I'm back in a crafty groove. Here's hoping you can get your crafty groove on too!!

Cheering Myself Up and WWWW

I'm having a really BLAH day.
This getting pregnant thing is much harder than all my 'accidental pregnancy' friends and family make it out to be. I'm trying to find things that make me feel better liiiiike -
1. the thought of going to the new Thai restaurant tonight for dinner
2. remembering the good, tight hug LOML* gave me this morning when I was so upset
3. a chocolate milkshake with lunch
4. these pictures I took all by my lonesome
They're not much, but I like them. I'm still playing with the settings on my camera to get the effect I want.

Those make me feel better AND guess what?!! It's "Wild Wild Web Wednesday" and I want to share some things with you because you coming to read my blog makes me feel better too. (5.)Here we go:

• Domain names can be misleading, so before you buy one - think about all the ways it can be interpreted.
  
• Wanna be a ninja? Who doesn't? Check out this ninja recruitment ad. AWESOME.
• I made you this monk-e-mail message. It was fun.
• These sheets could be fun.
• I haven't gotten my stimulus check yet, but have had some fun checking out how others have spent theirs.

Happy hump day. I'm feeling a bit better now that I've shared with you. Thanks!

*LOML=Love of My Life

Parle Vous Crayola?

I went and helped with my nieces last night while my mom attended a meeting. They were overall pretty good - for them. My mom didn't make it back in until just about 10pm and I hung out talking to her until almost 1am- meaning that I didn't get home until almost 2am and couldn't get to sleep until after 3am. I am EXHAUSTED!! SO, I'm trying to busy my mind with pleasant thoughts and pretty colors.

Has anyone else had noticed the strange things going on with crayons lately? I am a HUGE fan of Crayola Crayons. The smell of a new box always excites me. I was playing around with the box of 64 you saw in Friday's post. I began to wonder what the name was of the lovely shade of blue with which I was coloring. So, I turned the crayon to realize that this crayon was not only pacific blue, but also azul pacifico AND bleu pacifique. As I sorted through the box, I found that almost all of my crayons' colors were named in three languages. All except for Robin's Egg Blue. What's up with that?Has anyone else noticed that their crayons were trilingual? I bought these in January and just noticed the change. How long have my crayons been smarter than me?

Weekend Summary and MMSM

So how was your weekend?
LOML* and I had a very nice time down at the Gulf of Mexico.

I attempted to summarize the trip for you, and it was WAY too much information. Instead, let me just say we had a fabulous time on the beach drinking beers and putting our toes in the sand and water.We also ate at the following restaurants (the first was our favorite - great beer selection):

• Ginny Lane
• Hazel's
• Lillian's Pizza

Though we forgot some items because of the change in plans, I accidentally shaved my knuckle, the Gulf waves ate my sunglasses, and the AC in our room never worked quite right; we had a GREAT time getting some extra rest and simply hanging out with each other. I don't think anyone can make me laugh the way he can.

We headed home before breakfast on Sunday, spent some time with the kitty, and took a walk along the Mobile Bay here in Fairhope. It was really windy. I'm testing out my camera's recording ability so I'm sharing this video of where we walked. It's pretty short.


I also got some crafty work done, I'll share that later. I"m not happy with how some of the pictures turned out.

It is "Made Me Smile Monday", so here's some fun for you!!:

• Check out what one big truck can haul.
  
• These twisted trees are comical and beautiful, they simply make me smile.
• Have you heard of photo bombers who jump in to ruin pictures? Pretty funny!
• I'm not real sure what to make of this feedback on eBay. It did make me LOL though.
  
• Here's a quick video of some comedy genius. You gotta love it, clean and hilarious!!

I'll finish up here - sorry to overload you with so much in one post - I had a lot to say.

*LOML=Love of My Life

Change of plans

Change of plans
Originally uploaded by CraftyHope

LOML* was pretty stressed out when I got home. I figured he wasn't up for pulling the trailer, so I reminded him of plans B and C. He didn't want to travel that far, so we're in an 'affordable' hotel in Gulf Shores. We just wanted a place to stay. Now if the AC would just cool, I'd be much more pleasant.

Weekend Crafty Plans

I'm so excited!!

LOML* and I are going camping this weekend. We're going to pull our RV to the campground where some friends of ours camped a few weeks ago.
[I know it's Mother's Day weekend and all, but I haven't had a free weekend in a few months. So, I took care of the Mother's Day gifts already, they should be on the way there as I type.]
Last night, I packed my craft bags for the weekend. I hadn't even begun packing clothes yet. LOML* walked into the craft room, shook his head, and said that he thought I actually liked packing up my craft supplies more than the going somewhere. Of course, at that point, we still weren't sure if we were going to be able to get a spot at the RV Park, or if we were going to have to resort to plans B or C (B- hotel in Destin, FL and C - hotel in New Orleans.) He may be right about the craft supply packing. I get excited about finding new ways to carry a lot of stuff in a little space.
Wanna know what I'm taking?
Well, I've got a "small" bead bag packed with a variety of findings, wire, thread, pliers, and (of course) beads. I like to use fishing tackle boxes to store and tote my beads. At some point, I'll take a picture of all three of my tackle boxes. As well, I'm taking a general craft bag that has supplies for the following additional crafts
1. Embroidery - needles, hoop, embroidery thread, & fabric squares
2. Decoupage Jewelry - wood beads and bracelet blanks, acrylic paint, paintbrushes, gel medium, pieces of scrap paper, magazines, scissors, glitter, & sealer
3. Doodling/Drawing - journal, watercolor paper, gel pen, & watercolors
4. Coloring - fancy grown-up coloring book, crayons, colored pencils, & electric pencil sharpener
5. Tags - paper tags, hole puncher, brayer, glue stick, & thread
6. Shrink plastic pendants - Shrink plastic, sharpies, & clipboard

Since I am at work right now, I can't check my bag to see if there's anything else or not - I feel like I'm forgetting to list SOMETHING. Yeah, it's a pretty big bag, but I've got all kinds if little travel containers for the supplies to consolidate them. I can't wait!! LOML* will play in the water and windsurf. When I'm not playing in the water, I'll craft. I'm looking forward to the break from the house and running around.

I always bring a small craft bag to work (just in case). This morning, I pulled a few supplies from the big travel bag to bring with me. You can see the bag in the pic above, here are a few of the supplies pulled out and splayed on the desk at work.

I've only got a few more hours to work then it's home, finish gathering a few items, hook up the camper, and TO THE BEACH!! Too fun! I will try to blog a bit while we're there - between all the crafting and playing in the water!

I hope you have great weekend plans too!

Since it is also "Feel Good Friday" - Check out these links:

• Good to know, there are benefits of a big bottom. At least there's that.
  
• Check out the ultimate act of sportsmanship. Do you really think boys would have done the same thing?
• There are at least 10 ways to control your cravings. And, of course, 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.
  

Have a fun and Feel Good Weekend!

*LOML=Love of My Life

Seen Anything Good Lately?

Have you seen any good movies lately? I mean REALLY GOOD.
I watch a lot of movies, and lately I've felt like the movies I've seen have been pretty predictable and stereotypical.
For example:
Last week on video, I watched The Golden Compass and 27 Dresses. They were both 'good' movies. The Golden Compass disappointed me the most. I LOVE a good fantasy movie. It is by far my favorite movie genre. This one had all the elements there for a good story, but it seemed to have TOO many elements. From what I know, this is supposed to be based on a kids book. Yet, I had trouble keeping up with all the different elements. It seemed to be leaving out parts and cramming too much into scenes and not giving enough information. LOML* fell asleep in the floor (not unusual) and didn't even bother trying to finish it later. Again, it was a good movie, but I probably won't watch it again.
I was really looking forward to seeing 27 Dresses, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it too. It was definitely one of those great mindless romantic comedies that you can simply sit back and enjoy. But that was it, there were no surprises or unexpected scenes. Well, actually - there was this one scene when (nevermind, watch it for yourself.) It had all the makings of a typical romantic comedy: the lead girl, the cute guy she doesn't expect to fall for, a costume-change montage, the evil girl, the guy she really likes, the quirky best friend, betrayal, and more. I liked the fact that (during the DVD extras) I found out the entire office in the movie was enviro-friendly and made of recycled and unusual materials. In all, it was a good watch, a classic romantic comedy but predictable. I will watch it again, when it's on TBS in a few years.
Lastly, I saw Iron Man over the weekend with LOML* (of course). It was not a movie I was particularly looking forward to seeing. I knew we would, because that's the best way to see an action movie. It was everything I expected it to be: cool toys and lots of action, and that's it. Now, don't get me wrong, I did enjoy it. But, I don't expect to see it again.

I've said all these movies were good, but overall what disappointed me was that they were JUST what I expected - so typical, so stereotypical for their genres, no surprises. Entertaining - YES! NEW and EXCITING - not so much.

If the genres of these movies interest you, I do recommend seeing them. But, you've been warned.

Now, have you seen anything new and exciting lately?


*LOML=Love of My Life

Techie Tuesday - Twitter

Okay, it's been a while since I've done a "Techie Tuesday" post
I figured this topic deserved one.
I've been obsessed with Twitter lately and figured I would talk about that today. If you haven't heard of Twitter, it's a cool little cross between chat rooms and instant messaging. You have 140 characters to say what you are doing. This bit of text goes out just to the people who are 'following' you. As well, you can follow whomever you like (as long as they are on Twitter). If you look to my sidebar on the right, you can even see my recent twitter updates.
There's just so much to say about Twitter. . .I'll try to condense it as best I can.

There has been much ta do and ta da about Twitter in the technology world. But in the real world and where I live, it's still quite an anomaly. LOML* (the big geek he is) doesn't use it, but I've found that many in the Search and Online Marketing industry are using it/calling it a valuable tool. I dunno, for me it is totally more social and feeds my nosy, need-to-know-what-other-people-are-doing self.

I personally have two different twitter accounts, one related to the field in which I currently work - to try to keep up on current news and items of interest and another that is my personal one. On the personal one: I follow friends, other crafters, and people who are near my location. I've found that I also follow some people because the people I follow have replied to them, and I want to see what that's about. I did say I'm nosy, didn't I?

There are tons and tons of blog posts listing tools related to twitter. These lists do include some desktop tools you can use so you don't have to have be ON the Twitter page to use it. I personally use Twhirl on my desktop. I chose it because you can have several accounts open at the same time. The people I follow use a variety of OTHER twitter clients including Twitter Mail, Twitterfeed, TwitBin, and Twitterific. As well, the majority of people I personally follow just use the web or text messaging.

One tool I've found that I really like is TwitterLocal. This lets you enter an area and a distance to search and will locate other people in that area who are twittering. It's cool, especially if you're interested in locating others near you.

Anyway, check Twitter out. What do you have to lose? Speaking of it, go ahead and follow me on Twitter. I'll see you there!


*LOML=Love of My Life

Made Me Smile Monday

I've sucked up the fact that I've got a sore throat and burning ears and came in to work today so I can (horror upon horrors) answer the phone. The boss specifically asked last week if I can make sure (for the next week and a half) to be here to perform this task and some bookkeeping duties. Sigh, I'm too nice.
Since I am regaled to the front desk, I have to cheer myself with the thought, 'At least it is "Made Me Smile Monday" and perchance I may make someone else's Monday a bit more bright.' Please let me know you life is now complete by this blog post!
Here's what I've got to offer you today

• I dance to the music playing in stores all the time, to the amusement as well as embarrassment of LOML*. This cop in a convenience store, though, takes it to a new level. Is it a challenge?
• As a psychology major, this sneaky witchery comic amuses me so.
• I've visited croc pools before and am amazed at the people who lean over the ledge and try to feed them. This sign is for those sort of people.
• A quick quote - "Is Santa so jolly because he knows where all the bad girls live?" - Unknown
• I've saved the best for last. This video is a bit long, but TOTALLY worth it. I smiled, I laughed, I cried. It is THE most amazing wedding toast I've ever seen. (GrayStar and MavsMom - you will completely appreciate this.)

I hope you all have a lovely Cinco De Mayo and LOTS of yummy margaritas.

*LOML=Love of My Life

Experiencing Some Difficulty, Plase Stay Tuned

I am still here, really.

I'm

• mentally processing some things
• weighing some options
• trying to simplify
  
• deciding how tied-in I am to certain endeavors
• and basically rethinking my entire life.

No biggie!
It's just taking a little bit of my time and energy.
I should be back to regular blogging and blathering in no time.
Until then, enjoy this adorable pair