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! 

Take The Road Less Travled

This is an idea for a project that I have been wanting to do for a long time. I have been looking for an inexpensive landscape print at thrift stores and hadn't found one that I thought would be large enough so I got the idea to use an older map as my background. I already had a frame so I glued the map to poster board using the all powerful Mod Podge. Then I arranged sticker letters to form my saying. I wanted a quote that had something to do with travel because the background was a map. This quote being a variation of a Robert Frost passage. The letters that I used were removable so some of the edges weren't firmly stuck. I went over those edges with a little bit of glue stick.  I had to make two extra letter E's because the pack only came with three of each letter. After I had the letters where I wanted I took it outside and spray painted the whole thing, let it dry and then peeled the stickers off. Some of the map paper came up a little with the stickers but I liked the weathered look that it gave it. Handmade things shouldn't look too perfect.  I was going to seal it with another coat of Mod Podge but I liked the way it looked so I put it in the frame and now it hangs on my wall. I smile every time I look at it not only because of the sentiment but because I spent zero dollars on art that I made myself.

Mad Men 6:01& 6:02 The Doorway Rodger Sterling

I Heart John Slattery

Rodger Sterling has been one of the best characters of this show from the beginning.  He makes us laugh with his one-liners and cry when he lost Lucky Strike. Plus he did LSD more than once and is now in therapy (at least this is the first time we see him there). I know Matt Wiener got his TV feet wet on The Sopranos so it really brings me back to the therapy scenes that we got to see there; more so than the therapy scenes with Betty or even when Sally needed to talk to someone. When Rodger makes a joke and the shrink explains to him that he can’t laugh at everything Rodger says, I about died. Rodger gets through life with his charm and wit and when you take that away from him, who is he really? Is he silver fox that just lost his mother? A mother that only ever let him eat vanilla ice cream because chocolate stained? A mother that left all her fortune to the Zoo so she could make them name all the animals. A mother whom we find out used to say that her son was her sunshine.

When Caroline came into his office to deliver the bad news it reminded me how much I like Caroline.   She doesn't take Rodger’s shit (“no one is going to see your shoes”) and she’s good at her job. When she downed her drink it made me think that she could be my new favorite secretary, second only to the great Ida Blankenship.

At the funeral I loved that Cooper complemented Rodger on the decor of the room. I thought it was funny to see the differences between Jane and Mona. One of them is offering her support and even his mother’s ring back and the other bringing a date and making a scene. Not as big of a scene as Don made being drunk and loosing his liquid lunch in front of everyone. Seeing Rodger connect with his daughter and hopefully invest in her and her husband’s future. We now see that she has a son and that makes Rodger a grandfather. This may change the way he feels about the money he has made and the way he’s spending it. Or not, his character could really go either way and that’s why he’s so great to watch.

He says he feels nothing but when Georgieo the shoe shiner dies he finally breaks down and cries. Is this him really mourning his mother or is it his own mortally that saddens him so? Is it the heartbreaking fact that he was the only one who asked about him so his family passed his shining kit down to him that broke him? When he said that he feels nothing I don’t think this is what he was looking for. I think he’s looking for what a lot of people were looking for in the 60’s. The world must have felt so out of control and no matter how much money Rodger has, no matter how many coat check girls he sleeps with and no matter how many LSD trips he goes on he has no sense of control.

Craft Project

I have only been using spray paint for a short time but now everything I see I can picture it a different color in my mind. I've seen variations of this project on Pinterest and I had all the materials and supplies so I gave it a  go. I point out my inexperience with the spray paint because I didn't shake the blue paint up enough so the paint was uneven and dried in little blobs. The frog figure turned out to not be plastic so the paint didn't dry on him at all. The next time I make these I would probably use a stronger glue, I just had my hot glue gun handy. Overall I think they are very cute and I learned a lot. I have already given a few filled with salsa away to friends and they have all requested custom ones.

Learn from my mistakes! Shake that spray paint can!

Before

Finished Project

Mad Men 6:01 & 6:02 The Doorway Betty Francis

As for Betty Francis we open this season to find that she is still trying to reduce and therefore passes up the shared candy at the ballet. Then we see her get a ticket in one of my favorite Grandma Pauline scenes ever. Trying to name drop to a cop in NY isn't the best idea but they way she gets so pissed about it is great. Then she gets very dramatic and says that she “can’t imagine how things could get any darker than this.”  To which Sally’s friend Sandy replies “my mom’s dead,” and the three girls giggled like, well little girls. This shows us how truly immature Betty still is and how much more grown up Sally is becoming.

Sally says in the car that she “hates cops.” How much interaction has she had with cops? Is it all from watching TV and seeing the news or are we going to find out that Sally has grown up faster than we thought. It also killed me watching her be so mean to Bobby. She used to be so sweet and I know her example of how to act is Evil Betty but she was just so… so…. teenager.  I think her story line is going to get more adult as she grows and I’m so glad they kept the same actress when we've have so many kids play Bobby. Kiernan Shipka is such a great little actress.

The interaction between Betty and Sandy is a great Betty scene. The bond that she has with this girl and wanting to see herself in her, made the dialogue more meaningful.  It isn't often that Evil Betty says things like “it makes me feel so much.” As if being cold is something she just got used to.  When she was describing rape to Henry in bed, I was reminded how shocking the things she says are. Why shouldn't Sally grow up being mean when Betty once told her she was going to cut her fingers off? Getting advice from Betty Francis is not the mothering that this girl needs. Plus Sandy is 15, smokes cigarettes, uses tampons and plays the violin; she’ll be fine on the streets.

After seeing the dirt and filth of the city through Betty’s privileged eyes, it made me feel sorry for her that she really hasn't had many life experiences. I wonder if she felt the same and that’s why she went dark with her hair. It’s a safe way to walk in another woman’s shoes for a while and still go back to being her. Or is this the real her and the Betty from a bottle is gone; after one talk with a street kid? I think Betty’s selfishness trumps progress any day but maybe I’m wrong. Maybe being a few sizes bigger than she’s used to is helping her to be less shallow. Maybe it’s Henry’s influence, how he puts up with her I don’t know.

Kitchen Upcycled

I've always wanted a large kitchen that is decorated in a theme but until then most of my kitchen is DIY.  This little can sits on the counter and holds my sushi making tools. I made it from a clean coffee can and some contact paper. Because I don't really throw anything away I have a bunch of cans filling the shelves of my garage and so I'm always making them into something that I can use for years. 

Mad Men 6:01 & 6:02 The Doorway

Mad Men has been one of my favorite shows on TV for years now.  I have spent many hours re-watching episodes and reading all I can about the show and its creator, Matt Weiner.  Fans of the show know that this will be our second to last season and so the end begins.  Last season we left Don trying not to be a Dick (Whitman) and not doing a very good job. It wasn’t as jaw-dropping as season finales in the past but you got a sense of things to come. Not just for our characters but for the world as the late 60’s and all that changes with them is upon us. 

I usually get the episodes Monday morning through iTunes and this way I own them and can watch them without commercials. This means that my “Two Hour Premier” was really only and hour and thirty-four minutes. I remember reading that Matt Weiner has said in an interview that AMC asked him to do either a two hour premier or finale.  

This episode was very dark and morbid with a strong theme of death. It follows Don’s story but it also gives you stories for Peggy, Rodger and Betty.  This post will be about Don and Megan and then there will be more for the other three. There was a lot of catching up and a lot of pot smoking, but overall a great season opener.

We open with a first person view of someone having a heart attack and based on the sound of Megan in the background you assume that it’s Don. Then we see a Hawaiian paradise and have Don’s voice quoting The Inferno. It seems as though we are in some sort of death or dream state and then Megan charges her giant blue drink to their room and you see that they are on vacation. Dan really only takes working vacations so it’s no surprise that we find out that he’s on assignment for the Royal Hawaii Hotel. [Side Note: When I saw him reading a book, my Man Men spidey-sense started to tingle. We usually see Don reading magazines but in the past when he was reading a book it was either because of a woman (Rachel Menken) or a client (Honda)]

Other than his Inferno quote in the beginning Don barley speaks at all in these first few scenes. The audience can feel his disconnect from Megan but she doesn't seem to notice.  When she was approached for an autograph she seems a bit flustered like it’s a new experience but she signs it her maiden name and not “Draper”.  It seems a little strange that she wouldn't have taken his last name. I've heard people in the office call her Ms. Draper and it’s not like she was famous with her maiden name and that’s why she would use it professionally. It just makes me think how long they are going to last.

We see Don meet PFC Dinkins (it’s usually printed right there) and how uncomfortable Don is talking about war, both in Korea and Vietnam.  The conversation is quite morbid as he describes shooting the water buffalo with the machine gun. How he could paint the room red. It really shows how desensitized our soldiers come back from combat are. I know the war brings up powerful memories for Don for other reasons, but just watching him have to talk about it made me uncomfortable for him.

When flying from New York to Hawaii they would have had a layover in California. If they stopped at all to see Anna’s house or Stephanie then we didn't see it and it wasn't mentioned.  The last time I remember Don talking about the house was on the phone with Stephanie saying that she could stay there as long as she needed.  Maybe it was just too painful to go there knowing that Anna would not be.

We have a moment with Don and Dr. Rosen in the elevator and at Don’s office where we get to see Don be a dude, a bro, a friend. We get to see him be charming for no other reason than he can and he wants to be liked because he likes that person.  He’s not trying to please a client and he’s not trying to sleep with a women. I think back to Don and Lane’s Bro-Date and even the trouble Don and Rodger used to get into. It makes me think that maybe Don is making friends in the building and then the Doc skis off to save a life and I’m like “YES! Doc Rosen is a badass! He and Don should be BFFs.”  Then, I find out that Don’s diddling the guys wife and it all becomes clear. Don didn't give the Doc a camera because he’s a bro… he probably feels guilty about breaking the bro code. He probably feels more guilty about that than being unfaithful to Megan.

Oh Megan, poor Megan. At the New Year’s Eve party Megan is, of course, the perfect hostess making me think back to the days of Betty Draper stressing over company and Francine telling her “Oh Betty, you really do have the worst luck with entertaining.”  Megan is becoming a success and seems to have it all: an awesome apartment that we now know cost Don Seventy-Five Thousand dollars, youth, beauty, perfect husband and joints in her bikini bottoms. I can feel her bubble about to burst.

Upcycled Pallet Gardening Shelves - Back Yard

These shelves that I use for my garden supplies are made from an old discarded pallet. They were made by cutting the pallet in half and using some of it's wood as shelves. There is on on either side of our back door and give me much needed storage for gardening things and was best of all : FREE.

From This Into That - Salad

Growing our own food has been an important part of our lives for years now and with summer right around the corner we have been planting up a storm.  One of our favorite year-round/indoor plants is this lettuce. The seeds come in a strip and it is really easy to grow.  It looks great and tastes just as good.  This salad also has the green onions growing in this window as well as carrots, croutons  Parmesan cheese and the dressing is a home-made oil and balsamic vinegar. YUM!

The Walking Dead Season 3

This is just a quick recap of how I felt about this last season of The Walking Dead.  I wanted to write reviews for each episode but it got away from me so I only did a few.  I plan on spending more time on my Mad Men reviews. What can I say? AMC has me hooked on Sunday nights.

As I look at this picture of the cast it makes me miss T-Dog. Even though his character didn't get much of an arc (we never even knew his last name!) he was still hard to watch die.  There were some fans of the books who thought that the T stood for Tyreese but that's just one more way that Robert Kirkman is taking the show a different direction. I have only read a few volumes but I know that in the graphic novels the Gov gets to torture and rape Michonne so I'm glad we didn't have to see that. It's almost as if Kirkman gets to make a new story for his same characters and I can see that he's having fun with it.  I've heard him interviewed on a few podcasts (the Nerdist and Doug Loves Movies podcasts stand out) and he's a funny guy but he's also kind of a dick.  I'm sure that this show is his baby though because it has lost more than one show runner due to "creative differences".

I miss Merle but mostly for his bad ass one-liners. I'm glad we got to see more of him this season but I hate the way he got the most screen time in the episode that he dies in. I would have liked to get to know him longer but his death is what I think is going to change Daryl. When he made the choice to stay with his brother even though he was quite an asshole, it really affected Rick. It was almost like it brought up unresolved feelings that Rick has regarding Shane. Merle is dangerous but Daryl won't leave him behind. Shane was dangerous and like a brother to Rick but he couldn't live in a world (even a post apocalyptic one) where his wife and best friend could be having a child together. Oh well maybe we'll get to see the Dixon brothers together in a flashback or fever dream.

I don't really miss Lori or Andrea. They were both weak and made decisions that made me roll my eyes or yell at the TV.  I thought Lori's death was important to show and was shot really well.  

Andrea just needed to die.  I'm glad Michonne got to be there and hopefully get a little closure. 

I was very happy that in episode 3:12-Clear we got to find out what happened to Morgan.  It just sucked that he ended up being bat shit crazy. They seem to be making a big deal out of Milton's tea when we first get to Woodbury in episode 3:03-Walk With Me and then it's never explained or even brought up again. I think my favorite thing this season was Michonne's "Walker-Gram" warning Merle to "GO BACK".  I'm getting a little sick of Maggie and Glenn but at least his proposal didn't make me want to gag too much.  Except the fact that he cut the ring off of a walker's hand. Gross Glenn, you couldn't have looted a jewelry store?

Spray Paint Cans

Last summer I painted some soup cans and planted wildflowers in them to add some color to our backyard. All I had at the time was regular craft paint so as time pasted the color began to fade. They looked nice and lasted most of the summer but this year I wanted to make more using different colors.

Last year's pained flower cans

This year I used spray paint on the same cans and they turned out great. 

I can move them around to chase the sun or use them as a centerpiece.

Finished Cans With Flowers On Fence

Easter Eggs