Adults

Custom Frame Memo Board {Guest Post}

2012

Another fun project from Debra!

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This next project is one I am so happy I’ve finally finished. I bought this frame about 4 years ago at a yard sale. It is kind of big, measuring about 28″ by 32″(I don’t really know. I’m too lazy to measure it so I’m just guessing). It has bounced around my home, lurking behind doors, loitering in the bottom of closets and stubbing people’s toes from under the bed, all while looking for a permanent place of residence. I didn’t know if I wanted to use it as a frame for an actual picture, or if I wanted to line it with metal and use it as a magnetic message board. I thought about putting cork in it with some hooks and hanging my grandmother’s jewelry on it.

But none of my ideas seemed just right. Then as I was perusing a “Stampin‘ Up” catalogue, er…I mean….I was coming up with ideas all on my own, I decided to put some wire in the back and hang some tag clips on it and use it as a place to hang pictures and invitations.

I love how it turned out. I just wish my picture-taking skills were a little better. If I ever make another one there are a few things I’d do differently: like use a thicker gauge wire and thumbtacks on the back instead of teeny weeny finishing nails. I might even use chicken wire instead of weaving my own pattern with a roll of wire (not super fun by-the-way).

Anyhoo… I love it!

Filed Under: Adults Tagged With: Crafts

Home Crafted Serving Trays {Guest Post}

2012

Happy Valentine’s Day!

2012

{Movie Review} Contagion

2011

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Yesterday was our 19th anniversary. Man–we are OLD!

19 years.

Nineteen years.

That’s 10 years….plus nine more!

It is the time it takes for a child to be conceived, be a toddler, go to kindergarten, get baptized, turn into an awkward tween, develop and hopefully overcome acne, get a drivers license, graduate from high school and move out on their own.

19 is the age I was when we married. 19 years and 2 months to be exact.

It just doesn’t seem possible. I don’t know where the time has gone, but I’m sure glad that I’ve spent it with Curtis. He is an amazing husband and great father. He is a sweet “boyfriend” that takes me on a date every week.

I love it! Since we knew we wouldn’t be able to go out on the actual day, we decided to go all out on the romance for our anniversary weekend. We went to the movies. Yes, we go to the movie almost every weekend, but that doesn’t make it any less special. The movie theater is the most magical place on earth. Where else can you put your life on hold for 2 hours, forgetting your cares and worries.

Oh wait, you can do that at the temple. Okay, the movies are the SECOND most magical place on earth.

Anyhow, we decided to see “Contagion”. It has big name actors in it. A lot of big actors. I don’t want to give too much away, in the off-chance you may go see it, but here is the gist:

A new and unknown virus is quickly spreading and killing people. The CDC is quickly on the scene trying to figure out where it started and what to do next. In the meantime, people are dropping like flies, foaming at the mouth while their extremities are turning black. There are robberies and murders, looting and all-around mayhem. I told you we were romancing the night away.

If you didn’t feel like getting your year supply together before now, you will after seeing this movie. You’ll also want to stock up on hand-sanitizer for said year-supply.

The acting is great, the pace is good. The moments of quiet and reflection are welcome, if not somber, amidst the chaos. You really start to feel for some of the characters. Their emotions- shock, sadness, love, resolve- are palpable. I liked that it didn’t have a big, flashy, save-the-day, Hollywood ending. It did have swearing, I’m not gonna lie. I guess when people are desperate and on edge, they forget their manners. Even the “baddest” word makes an appearance. This movie is definitely not for kids. Aside from a brief comment in the opening scene about an act of infidelity, there isn’t anything else along those lines for the rest of the movie.

Anyways, go see it. Let me know what you think of it. I give it 4 & 1/2 out of 5 popcorn buckets.

Warning: If you are a germ-a-phobe you may want to skip it. You’ll never want to leave your house again, or at least eat sweet and sour pork. Curtis admitted to watching to see who washed their hands in the bathroom, and then not touching the door when he exited the bathroom (Seriously, he is just now noticing that kind of stuff? Welcome to my world!!! I don’t even share a cup with my grubby little kids.)

We went to “Texas Roadhouse” afterwards and you better believe I put hand-sanitizer on. I even slathered the ketchup bottle with it. I made Curtis put some on before he touched the menu. And forget about eating the peanuts!!!

We joked about our romantic evening out, watching people vomit and die, but in the end we realized that didn’t matter.

We were together and that’s what counts.

Date night: highly recommended

Debra is super talented, an awesome mom and very funny. In her words, “I am a mentally and physically exhausted mother of five (six if you count Curtis), caretaker of too many pets, piano teacher to the most amazing students, and always a day behind on the dishes. Where are those dish fairies when I need them?” She blogs over at Curtis Fan Club.

Filed Under: Adults, Movie Review Tagged With: Fun

Father’s Day Tie – One Tie He Will Not Throw Away!

2011

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**Update: Check out the completed Father’s Day Tie here for 2011

Do you want to know what my husband is getting for Father’s Day? He has already made a request, so it is an easy one for me this year on figuring out what to get him. Normally, I like the kids to do their own Father’s Day Gifts without much help from Mom (and they still will…something like this or this), but I can not deny this request! He wants an updated Father’s Day Tie!

I made this tie for his first Father’s Day when our son was just over 3 months old. Growing up we made a picture collage tie for my Dad one year and I remember not being excited when my Dad decided to wear it. I figured he was wearing it to be nice and was probably just as embarrassed to wear it as I was that he was wearing it! LOL

So, I decided to make one for my hubby, but this time I was going to make it a a nice picture tie (and I made one for my own Dad, as well). When I do it again I may get even fancier! It is pretty easy to make and most copy centers will be able to do it for you for around $15. I think that is what I paid 5 years ago and they included the tie! The hardest part is deciding which picture to use. =-)

What You Need:

Pictures
Word (or other software, if you are fancier )
Colored Printer
White Tie – The copy center had one, but it was just a bit short for my tall husband. I am on the look out for a white tie
A copy center you love that will print on a tie- I know there are some that brag about being able to print on anything
2 sheets white paper

Directions:

Step 1: Pick your photos that you would like to put on the tie. Preferably choose ones that are good head shots or favorite memories. You can use 1 photo or as many as you like. I ended up using about 12 and when I make it again, I am planning on 6-8 (3 or 4 picture of each child)

Step 2: Open Word or other software that you are comfortable with and insert each picture into the document.

Step 3: Crop each picture to make it a square. Then right click on each picture and click on “size” to resize it to your desired height/width. I made all my picture 1 inch by 1 inch for this demo.

Sorry, I used sample pictures from the computer for this.

Step 4: If you want to do the checkerboard pattern like my tie,you can do it two different ways it just depends on which sounds easier. You can either make a table with as many 1inch columns (or desired size) across and enough to go the length of the page.

OR, the way I prefer, you can edit your picture to “through” (see above picture – right click, then click on “text wrapping”, then “through”). Then insert a “Shape” (double click on the shape to make it 1 inch by 1 inch width and height or desired height/width), also make that “through” and use that for your layout.

Step 5: Make sure your rulers are on and then stagger your first line with one picture, one blank square (or empty column depending on which way you are doing it) , one picture, square, etc. For the second line, Add the square (or blank column) first, then picture, square, picture, etc. Now you have your layout.

Step 6: Continue this process until you have one full page. Try to mix up your pictures so that the same pictures are not in the middle each time. Once you do the first row of blank squares, you do not need to add them for spacing. Make sure you erase the squares (or remove the borders) before you print.

Step 7: Print two pages off and take it to the copy center with your tie, if they don’t carry any. Call ahead and make sure you have a place that will do it. Explain to them what you are doing and hopefully they will take it from there. You may or may not need to tape the two sheets together end to end depending on the place, so you have no gaps in the flow of the pictures.

The reason I create two full pages of pictures is so that when the copiers copy the photos to the tie, it does not matter if they are exactly in the middle or on the side of the sheets as long as the tie is getting covered.

Step 8: Also, make sure that you copy/instruct the copiers to copy the pictures on to the tie up past the point of where the wearer ties his knot. I only did mine half way up since they back side is never seen and does not need to have any pics on it. My hubby is tall he so he had to fake it to make it work. This next time I am getting him a longer tie and measuring to see how long he needs it so the pictures are continuously through the front and knot of the tie.

Step 9: Get creative and enjoy your genius-ness! Here are some other alternatives. You can do stripes, diagonals, tint everything one color, change the size and have tiny stripes or diagonals…the sky is the limit!

Step 10: Have Fun!!

ENJOY!!!

I am linking up to these parties!

Filed Under: Adults, All Ages, Birthdays/Celebrations, Creative Gifts Tagged With: Crafts

Slim Down For Summer Fitness Challenge – Guidelines

2011

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I need a little motivation to finish getting in shape before summer comes and so I am challenging you!

Come join me in the

SLIM DOWN FOR SUMMER FITNESS CHALLENGE

You’re Invited!

Who:Everyone! Anyone who needs a little motivation to get a bit healthier or simply likes competition! It is not about lbs or inches. It is about a healthier you!

When: 8 Weeks, April 4 – May 29, 2011 – If you do not start at the beginning, you can join in at anytime.

How: There will be weekly check-ins to keep up accountability (and daily, via facebook if that is better motivation). Each day an individual can earn 7 points and is in charge of keeping track of their own daily points to report on Monday for the previous week. At the end of the 8 weeks the person with the highest points wins. If there is more than one person with the highest amount of points, random.org will be used to select the winner from those individuals. There will be prizes….I am working on the details of the prizes*. There will be one prize for the winner and one prize given via random.org based on each weekly entry filled out per individual (for example: if you only participated 6 weeks, you will have 6 entries at the end for the random draw prize). Check out Beginning the Slim Down For Summer Fitness Challenge for additional information.

Points To Earn Each Day:

1 point = Drinking 64+ oz.
2 points = Exercise 30+ Minutes
2 points = No Sugar (**see below)
1 point = 6+ Hours Sleep Every Night Day (Yes, naps do count!)
1 point = No Eating After 8 p.m. (nothing good ever happens with late night eating! If you have a funky work schedule, set your own food curfew and stick to it!)
Bonus Challenges = Given throughout the 8 weeks as an opportunity to earn extra points.

* If you are interested in sponsoring or donating a prize or giveaway to be given away during the competition, email me at michelle (at) funonadime (dot) net. You know, if you need a little extra motivation because you are invested!

** A note about No Sugar: I am learning that everyone has their own individual idea of this, so for ease of explanation we will use the top 8 bullet points on the USDA’s Food Pyramid’s description under “Foods that contain most of the added sugars in American diets are:” found here…these are ”regular soft drinks, candy, cakes, cookies, pies, fruit drinks, such as fruitades and fruit punch, milk-based desserts and products, such as ice cream, sweetened yogurt and sweetened milk, grain products such as sweet rolls and cinnamon toast” Most processed foods have some form of sugar in them. Substitute sweeteners are okay. I use Stevia for a lot of the things I used to sweeten with regular sugar. Plain yogurt is great with fruit or even Greek yogurt, but if you cannot find it or stomache it try to use a low sugar brand…improve upon what you are doing now. Use your own discretion. You are accountable for you! The main point is to avoid the REAL junk – captain cavity cereals, desserts, etc. That should be doable, right?

Also, if you are a caffeine drinker and wanting to cut it out of your diet, do not do it at the same time as cutting sugar. Wait a couple of weeks so you do not have to fight two cravings at once.

Are you in?

If so, leave a comment!

P.S. I am still working on Phase 2 of the Live For Life program. If you are interested they have changed their pricing (it’s lower now!). Go check them out at livethelifefitness.com.

Filed Under: Adults, All Ages Tagged With: Fun