Sweet Valentine's Day Gift

This Valentine's Day I gave my sweetie this homemade Gift. It's a jar with heart stickers and little love notes inside. The love notes range from saying things like: "I Love You Because You Make Me Laugh" to "I Love You Because Even Though It Makes You Crazy, You Let Me Fill Our Garage With Junk That May Or May Not Become A Project." Your Lover can open them all at once or one a day...

Christmas Decor

I made this last year but forgot about it until I was packing up my Christmas decorations and came across it. It's just a can with sticks hot glued to it and then scrap red and green fabric tied around. With a battery powered candle (they even flicker) it looks very festive and practically free.

Lego Batman Pinata

Dylan and his Lego Batman Pinata!

This pinata started from cardboard and newspaper but with his legs and head filled with confetti and his body full of candy, he was a big hit. (I'll never get tired of that pun)

His arms and cape were moving parts and this was the first pinata that I spray painted the black over the body section. He was very fun to make and totally made Dylan's day!

Thanksgiving Decor Upcycle

This bottle painted white and turned on it's side made the perfect backdrop for these paint samples in a yellow hue. They create an ombre effect and the black sticker letters were left over from another project. Total price for this thanksgiving decor: $0

Halloween Upcycle

Every year we look forward to making Halloween decorations and even though this year it seemed to sneak up on us we were able to make a few.

Cans as candle holders is nothing new but these pumpkin faces were very easy to make and required nothing I didn't already have in the garage. After washing cans and removing labels I spray painted the cans orange. Then using black duct tape we made the faces. The bat candle can was left over from Halloweens past; it is covered with a spooky printable that I believe I got off the Martha Stewart's website. These were fast and fun and most important:  FREE!

This Zipper Face costume was scary and easy to do.

First I marked where I wanted the zipper and used eyelash glue to attach it to the face. Then using Halloween makeup I painted the face white and eyes black. The red gooey stuff was going to be food color and cornstarch but I had neither of those things so it ended up being red kool-aide mixed with water and a little flour. We didn't leave this on for a long time because it's unclear if the kool-aide will dye the skin. (I know it's used on hair sometimes for that purpose)

**Big Thanks to my model Meghan **

Sushi

Being friends with someone who loves to catch and eat fish can be a wonderful thing. This past weekend I got to help vacuum seal and eat all this yummy homemade sushi at the Bryan's house.  

This was Bluefin, Yellowfin and Yellowtail sashimi and nigiri, spicy tuna rainbow rolls, grilled Yellowtail ribs and collars, Hawaiian poke, spicy poke and a few hand rolls.

Awesome Spiderman Pinata

I made this Spiderman Pinata for my buddy Colton's 4th Birthday party. His body is a regular cardboard box, his legs and arms were from paper towel tubes and his web is from six pack plastic holders. He was fun to make and the kids had a blast whacking him until an adult had to hit him hard enough for all the candy to spill. 

Home Grown Sunflower Seeds

If you are lucky enough to live in an area where giant sunflowers grow then this is a familiar sight. I'm only lucky enough to know someone who has enough to give away. The first thought that struck me after staring at this wonder is how perfectly nature can make and repeat patterns. The second was "how do I make this into a yummy snack?" Having never done so before I asked the internet and like most answers the internet gives I had to wing it.

First I picked all the seeds from the flower and soaked them in salt water overnight.

Then I drained them. Do not rinse.

Then I spread them out on a cookie sheet and gave them some seasoning. I choose to do half with regular season salt and the rest with sour cream on onion flavoring that came with some popcorn seasonings.

Everyone's oven is different but I baked mine for 30 mins on 400 degrees. They came out awesome, we can not stop eating them! Plus the remaining flower part looks cool in my backyard and also attracts bees to my garden. 

Grilled Cheese and Unicorns

A favorite sandwich of ours is grilled cheese and I just discovered how much fun it is to make them with the waffle maker! It's easy and looks so cool after. Add a side of home grown tomatoes and lunch is served.

This was the perfect lunch for taking a break from making another Pinata. This one was a unicorn made from a cereal box (Cheerio's) and the legs and neck are paper towel rolls. It was a big hit at the party! (Pun Intended)

From Broken to Useful

 This wooden chair was left outside and started to fall apart. So I placed a flower pot in the broken bottom part and placed it in our front yard. We used to have a large bush there but the landscaping people needed to access the sprinklers so they cut it down leaving an eye sore of a stump. This broken chair/flower stand is a great way to hide something ugly and use something that would have gone to the dump. I'm planning on turning the broken top part into a trelis for climbing plants but that's for another day. . .

u

Yummy

Fresh and Homegrown will always taste better than store bought and full of preservers!!! 

Making a Pinata

Homemade pinatas are easy and fun to make. I started making them because I thought it was crazy to pay money for something that is just going to be destroyed. I just made one for a BBQ to celebrate my friends's son Dylan's graduation from kindergarten, so I made it a letter D. I started by cutting the shape from cardboard. Then I taped the cardboard together to form the shape in 3D. In order to mold the cardboard takes patience and a bit of practice. This cardboard I used is a funny color because I was spray painting and had used it as my drop cloth.

Then once the shape is done, I used Mod Podge to paper mache some newspaper strips to add strength. 

Then I cut some tissue paper in strips with tassels and used a glue stick to add them to the outside of the pinata. 

This doesn't take that much time because it really doesn't have to be perfect. If some of the newspaper shows through or the tissue paper doesn't line up then it just looks that much more homemade. When the pinata is dry then I cut a hole in the top for candy and a small slit for the hanger. I used a wire hanger and bent it to form a hook and two barbs that will hold it in place. 

Then I added a bit of glue to make sure that it held together. 

Fill it with candy or whatever else you want to scatter when it gets hit. I've made these in the shape of a letter T for my son's birthday but I think pinatas should be a part of every party!

 

Mad Men 6:03 The Collaborators

  

This episode (directed by Hamn-Bone himself!!) seemed to explore the differences in how the two very different characters of Don and Pete commit adultery. I’m shocked at how Don picks women that are so close to his life. Bobbie Barrett and Rachel Menken were clients, his daughter’s school teacher Miss Farrell lived right around the corner, Allison and Faye Miller both worked with him. Now he see’s Sylvia (and her husband) socially and in his building, just one floor below. Why? Does he want to get caught, or is he just lazy? When Don gives Sylvia the money and suggests that she should say she found it in the cookie jar, it felt a little dirty; almost like he paid her for sex.

Pete on the other hand picks someone who is close to home and she starts off a little clingy. I’m not sure what Don would have said to a woman putting her stockings on, telling him about how where she parks her car is sending him messages; but I don’t think whatever he said would have made her feel like it’s a good idea to run to him if she needed help. How is it that Pete didn't learn anything from the last neighbor he cheated with? Does he not have to see the guy on the train now that he has an apt. in the city? Trudy’s speech to him was awesome. She is truly a badass and Pete should not be messing with her. She must feel so foolish that she gave him permission and he still found a way to dag her. At least she will still be beautiful when he is bald. (He is getting so bald)

We find out a lot about Dick Whitman in his flashbacks to his youth in the whore house. What are the odds that his birth mom would be a prostitute and his Father’s wife’s sister would also be running one in a different state? I guess it is the oldest profession. It explains a lot about how Don is disconnected from sex and cheats on even the most sexual partner.  He has to have it be bad or wrong for it to feel good. I’m thinking mostly about the hooker slapping him during sex when he was this close to rock bottom of the bottle; or even when he and Megan have these epic fights (chasing and plate throwing) and then get it on. I don’t know how you can really fix that twisted notion of sex if that’s what you knew as a child.

I want to address Megan’s miscarriage and then on to brighter parts of this episode. Is she really so isolated that the person she chooses to confide her guilt about her relief is her catholic neighbor? I get the feeling that Sylvia wanted more children and hearing Megan talk about not wanting them now is rubbing her face in not only the fact that she and Don were still sleeping together but that she’s still young enough to make that decision. I was truly sad for Megan in this scene. Of course she shouldn't want children right now, she’s step mom to three kids already one of which is still a baby. She has a career that is more than just a job for her but a dream. Peggy didn't know she wanted to be a copy writer when she was a child (maybe if she knew what one was) but Megan always knew. She also didn't have the most supportive parents a performer could ask for but at least they are dramatic.

Okay a little Peggy. . .  I love that she has this great relationship with her secretary Phillis. She tells her to “get me whatever book you read and save me these little lectures,” and it doesn't  sound mean or even mocking. She says it with a smile and a hint of respect. I hope we see more of them together.

Then I got all grossed out when the slimy Herb came to the SCDP (how long are they keeping the P?) office and wanted to have a meeting. Is it really this important to keep a dealer happy to a car brand? It was worth it to get my favorite line of this episode: “I know there’s a part of you that you haven’t seen in years.” Yes Joan!!!!

I love the way Don spoiled the pitch in such a way that the super gross Heb didn't even know he was acting. Getting people to do what you want is the quality that makes Don a good pitch man. He sees how gross this guy is because he himself was once a used car sales man. The first time we see Anna in a flash back we see Don in the middle of selling a kid his first car. Don understood that the day a kid gets his first car is a memory and story that gets told over and over for years. It’s not just money in your pocket. When we flash back to when Don meets Rodger we see that he’s an excellent salesmen, picking out the perfect gift for Joanie. So it’s just another example of how dumb this guy is for him to say that Don isn't a good salesman. (Did I mention that he’s also gross?)

Alright, enough Mad Men for the moment, after reading this post I noticed that I ask a lot of questions about this season. I hope we get the answers but I suspect there will be just as many new questions.

Trash To Planter (again)

This time I wanted to use a bottle that would normally be just thrown away and use it as a planter on it's side.  I cleaned out an veggie oil bottle and spray panted it, cut a hole in top and planted away. I like the way it still looks like a bottle but is being used for something more green.

Mad Men 6:01 & 02 The Doorway Peggy Olsen

The last time we saw Peggy she was on her very first business trip. It was her first time riding in an airplane and I’d be willing to bet that is was the first time she looked out of her hotel window only to see two dogs doing it, well, doggie style.

The first time we see Peggy in 1968 she is being a problem solver. Bert Peterson is back and he is a widower now and we find out that he’s in accounts at CGC. I’m not sure we really needed to see his belly button but how dignified can we really expect the man to be?  Peggy tries to call Ted but she really knows how to solve the problem and even make the ad better than it was before. She is not, however, good at being the boss. She’s just as belittling as Don was toward her and it can be seen differently coming from a woman. Her Jr copy writers don’t like her but she thinks that this is how a boss acts because she was pushed and had to stay late and worked her butt off and she’s not going to expect less from the people around her.  She handles the unhappy client with grace and then gets to work on a super bowl ad that pleases her boss. She has come so far from the little girl who was afraid to cut her hair.

We see her using some of Don’s tricks by writing the letter to a pretend person and the shots of her staring off look a lot like Don’s thinking face. I like to see her with Abe (even though it took me forever to remember his name) and I think they make a good couple. I also like that she’s still in touch with Stan and gets to hear all of the SDCP gossip. I thought it was great that he’s on the phone and can hear her make her ‘fix it’ pitch at the end. It really made me think that she did need to leave in order to see if she was just as good without Don as she was under his wing. The scene when she quit last season was so well done by both Jon Hamn and Elizabeth Moss but they always have good scenes together. I do hope we get to see Peggy’s mother again, she’s so funny to watch. And Father Gill, they should bring him back as well!