the week in hair

so sorry guys, i feel like i have dropped off the earth!  i have been super busy at work but i didn't want to not post the week in hair.  :o)  hope everyone has had a great week & has an even better weekend. 

monday, q looked so cute, she went through her princess dress-up box & pulled out these clear beads.  she is so girly!  i love it!  :o)

tuesday, same hair for q, it's been that kind of week!  but i thought i would show you what we have been doing with hopp's hair this week.  i introduced her to the headband & she is in love!  it looks so cute on her & when her hair is dried it poofs up in the back!  i love it so much & she looks like a little doll!  :)

wednesday, i really loved how cute the stairs looked in hopp's pic on tues. so i decided to start posing them on the stairs.  getting them to look at me AT THE SAME TIME is such a pain, as you will see in this one & the next photo.  :)  but this is a winner because hopp is looking at the camera! 

thursday, not for sure what q is doing or saying & hopp has those squinted eyes & big smile!

friday, 3rd times a charm!  well, q is kinda looking at me.  :)

i haven't mentioned this yet but hopp will be 3 next friday!!!  we got the oriental trading party mag in the mail a month ago & we had her look at it for her fave party.  well she chose..... DINOSAURS!!!!  omg, really?!?  so i was on the hunt for girly dinosaur stuff & i found a little bit on amazon.  holy crap the 3 items i got were expensive!  stupid shipping!  but anyways, i got some dino rubber duckys, dino cupcake rings & super cute dino foam masks.  i can't wait to have her party.  still not for sure on a date yet due to the hubby has non-weekends off, he is asking about taking this next sat or sun off so we can have the party, so we will see.  i already made her invite, can't wait to show it, that will be a later post.  any suggestions on what party games we could do that is dino related?  i'm thinking of a dino egg hunt...

oh & i almost forgot, along with the dino stuff on amazon that i found, i found the cutest office supply EVER!!!!

you're jealous right?!?

it's a black stiletto tape dispenser!!!  i love it sooooo much & i have several VERY jealous co-workers.  :)  i even thought about adding glitter but that will be later on down the road.

super yummy gluten free recipe review

i'm ALWAYS trying to find good recipes for gf stuff, luckily i have found a couple of sites that have really good stuff.  i have talked about her before but Linda at the gluten-free homemaker has some pretty good stuff.  she has a theme each month & post goodies with that theme in mind each week.  this month has been apples.  i love baked apples & anything sweet with apples in them.  this week she posted applesauce muffins, talk about yummy!!!  let me just say, i couldn't wait to try them!  i made minis & regular sized ones & i forgot the minis were smaller (duh) so i didn't take them out before the regular sized ones & they burned just a tiny bit.  i almost ate ALL the minis by myself that night!  o-m-g they were so yummy!  the only thing i changed (only because i didn't have certain ingredients) is veg oil for coconut oil & tapioca starch for the potato starch.  this is definitely a must try recipe if you are gf!!!  i'm going to make these for the girl's bdays & ice them for cupcakes.  they are perfect for cupcakes.  the muffin is sweet but not overly sweet & the icing will definitely set it off.  thanks again linda!




sooooooo YUMMY!!!!!


here's the recipe, don't forget to check out all her AWESOMELY YUMMY stuff!

Recipe: Gluten-Free Applesauce Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. applesauce
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. coconut oil (liquid)
• 1 c. brown rice flour
• 1/4 c. sorghum flour
• 1/2 c. potato starch
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 c. toasted chopped walnuts

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven 325°.
2. Generously grease 18 muffin cups.
3. While you are preparing the muffin batter, toast walnut halves in the oven for about 5 minutes. Let them cool some, then chop.
4. In a large bowl, combine the applesauce, eggs, sugar, and oil with a spatula or wooden spoon.
5. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flours, potato starch, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg.
6. Add the dry ingredients and the nuts to the wet ingredients and stir just until moistened.
7. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. I like to use a large ladle for this.
8. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until the tops of the muffins spring back when touched lightly.
9. Cool for several minutes in the muffin pan, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.

oh & jess loved them, even the burnt one i shared with her & q asked for them in her lunch this morning so it was a hit all around.  the only person that didn't care for them, probably because he got a little bit of a burnt bite, is jason but hey he doesn't have to know how good the non-burnt ones are right?!?  that's more for us girls to devour!  :)

case of the curious stitch, anyone know what stitch this is?

so i found a pattern i like, i know i can make it myself & make my own changes, don't really care for the actual hat but i love the stitch!  do any of you crochet ladies, know what this stitch is called?

it almost looks like dcs with a semi-spike (is there even a semi-spike?) but i know that's not what it is.  i'm terrible at looking at stuff to figure out what the pattern/stitch is.  if i have to, i will buy the pattern but it's a zebra hat & i don't want the ears or the mane & i'm guessing that's what the charge is for.

thanks ladies :o)

the week in hair & a special visitor

here's the week in hair...

monday, i loved this, it almost looks twisted

tuesday, this week was a leave-the-house-early type of week so this is why her hair is sopping wet.  love that smile though

wednesday, ugh, the dreaded missing tooth weird smile...  daddy did hair this day.  it's so funny because he parts way in the back & i'm a part closer to the front kinda girl.  plus i think my parts are better.  ;)

thursday, just a plain ole "dog ears" day

friday, she was excited about a braid today!  i love braiding, just need to get better at french braiding.

on tuesday we came home & jess said "hey mom, look!", it was a praying mantis by our front door!  they are so neat!  he was gone the next day.  :(  so here is our little surprise visitor.

he wasn't very big but it made a huge impression on q & hopp.  they were all giddy with excitement!

sadly, i have no fof to post today...  i mean i have stuff to post but i have no pics.  i will post soon, i have been working on the fundraiser stuff for the bunco for breast cancer event.  :)

have a great weekend everyone!

quick wipw & fundraiser

sorry, so short today, we are having lots of presentations this week & i'm swamped with work....  if you read my previous post i told you that i was going to do a fundraiser for the bunco party i'm participating in next month.  i just wanted to say that 75% of ALL sales will go towards this event.  it's called bunco for breast cancer & all the proceeds go toward mammograms for women that can't afford them.  this is a great program & has saved many women's lives that normally wouldn't have gotten one due to them not being able to afford one.  breast cancer runs in our family so this is something that is probably going to affect me or my children or grandchildren, i'm hoping for the best but i have to be realistic about it.  so anyway not to get all dark on you.  so here is my wip for the day but i got 3 scrubbies done & will share as soon as i get a pic. 

this is my first dishrag, it's made with Lily cotton yarn in Hot Pink & Love. 

if you would like to order one or anything from the previous post just let me know.  i can do the pinks for the breast cancer awareness or if you prefer different colors i will do that.  i know a lot of you can crochet or knit your own stuff but if you know of someone that would like to buy one to support this great cause pass it on!  i would love to make lots of money for this event.  the only reason why i'm not giving 100% of the sales is so that i can purchase more yarn.  right now, unfortunately, yarn is not in our budget.  or if you would like to donate Lilly yarn i will be more than willing to take it off your hands.  :)  if you have questions please feel free to contact me at sewell@suddenlink.net. 

http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/

head on over to tami's amis to peek at all the other wips today

it's official!

my mil (mother in law) called & just asked me if i wanted to play in the bunco for breast cancer.  i told her i would if she would, since they are her work peeps.  :)

so....  that means that i need to do that fundraiser.  so be on the look out for special pink stuff.  :)  if you would like something custom made let me know & i will make it for you.  i guess that also means that i get to go PINK YARN SHOPPING!!!  yay!!!!  :o)  since tonight is cnc (chat 'n craft) night i will do some of this stuff tonight.  :o)

ok, sorry for all the smileys, i'm getting excited now. 

so this is what i'm thinking of making...

some face scrubbies....

coasters....

maybe a corset or two....

dishcloth, with or without a loop....

these are all made by me but photographed so beautifully by my friend christine.  she did such a great job!!!  oh & she said that the face scrubbies are by far her most fave face scrubbies ever!!!  i made a big one on accident & she used it as a washcloth for her twins & she said it was perfect!  :)

movies...

i've been meaning to do a post about movies i've seen lately.  let's see if i can remember what i've been watching.

first is a movie called Flipped, it's a story about a girl & boy and how their relationship changes over time.  i don't think this went to theaters but it was a really cute little movie.  if you can catch it on one of the movies channels, check it out.  it's definitely worth the hour and a half or so.  :)

we saw Your Highness this weekend.  it's pretty raunchy (what do you expect, danny mcbride is in it!) but it was funny too.  but to me that's a win-win.  :o)  definitely NOT a movie to watch with kids or teens!  if you like comedies & you don't mind all the raunchiness you should watch it.  now saying, this i wouldn't spend pay-per-view money on it but redbox or netflix or even wait to get it on the movie channels is worth it.

we dvr'd It's Kind Of A Funny Story and it was ok, it was a little depressing but the end was worth it.  it's about a teen boy that is extremely depressed & thinks about killing himself constantly & admits himself into a hospital ward.  it's got some pretty funny parts in it but can seem a bit heavy at times.  anyway, the teen finds himself & finds love too.  it's worth the watch if you have the time.

ok, that's all for now.  if i remember any other movies i will save for next time.  :)  have a great tuesday!

the week in hair

this has been a pretty good week in hair, but challenging time-wise.  since i've been working at my current job they had my schedule as mon-fri 8:30-5:30.  i loved the 8:30 hours because it gave me a little more time to be at work on time, i'm terrible about getting places on time.  i didn't really care for the 5:30 part because 30minutes makes a big difference in the evening when doing dinner, kid pickups & bed routines.  i never realized how big of a difference until this job.  well i'm now working 8-5 & i really like that 5 clock-out time, the 8 part is a bit of a challenge but jason has been such a HUGE help this week.  thanks honey!  mtl you!!!  :o)  i digress... so here's the pics

monday, she actually asked for this, i was shocked, she hates her hair like this.  should have just added a bow.

tuesday, i will never take a pic in the master bath again, it almost looks like a mugshot.  ugh, i so need to update my bathroom, the tile is so ugly & my bathroom counter is covered with this same tile. 

wednesday, the twist on top looked a bit weird & had high "peaks", the bow helped counter out the weirdness, loved that she let me braid the mini pony.  :)

thursday, my first full attempt at the fishtail or fishbone "braid", it turned out really good but it made her pony stick out a little to the side.  apparently during nap she really fudged it up so the teacher had to re-braid it.

friday, she wanted a regular pony, she wanted her hair like mine today but i told her we had to do a headband too.  her hair is wild, wild, wild after school if i don't have something to hold the front down.  yay for curly hair!  :)

so this is the week in hair for 9/12/11, i hope all of you had great hair days this week.  :)  have a great weekend.  oh & btw, a crochet hook is absolutely the most fabulous tool for making the twisted pony aka topsy turvy!  except for today, i have used my h hook for the mini twists, a larger hook would be better for a full pony.  see if you can't crochet you can at least have fab hair!  :)

oh i almost forgot one more thing.  i simply love the shirt q is wearing today!  it reminds me of old school run dmc, now if only she will stop the fake smile.  ;)


who can't resist putting a gold chain tee & a tutu together, not to mention the bright orange socks!!!  damn my kid has a great sense of fashion!!!!

tgifof!!! crochet-along :o)



http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/

 yay for fridays!!!  so ready for this weekend, i'm exhausted!  i do have a couple of finished grannies to show you guys.  i have one more that is ready except i need to weave in my ends so it doesn't technically count for fos.  :)

10 grannies done!!!

i'm running out of my colors so i'm going to have to start buying yarn to finish my projects.  it's all good, just an excuse to get to go check everything new out.  :)  i will have the hair update soon, until then have a great friday.  head on over to tami's amis to check out everyone's fos.  there are lots of really nice stuff out there.

it's wipw!!!



http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/



as this will be a wip until it's officially done i will post my progress so far.  i'm doing pretty good.  all but 2 of the 44 brights are through the 3rd round.  i ran out of my red so i have to try & find a match for it.  i think it was a discontinued yarn.  :(  i have about 5 brights through round 4 which is my goal before attaching them.  i think the squares are too big for my liking through the 7th or 8th round everyone else is doing.  so here are the pics....

the last 2 brights waiting for more red on the left, one through the 3rd round in the middle & then 3 on the right are finished through to the 4th round.  i can't wait to see them all through the 4th round.  they are so pretty!!

same as the above pic but with the curtain bag storage, as you can see i have another one through round 4 in a different sequence of colors in the bottom left.  these are all the different color variations of the red/yellow/orange/blue in the bright yarns.

just a random pic of all the different rounds in a random shot.  :o)

happy wipw everyone!  check out tami's amis for more wips.

a special happy birthday today!!!

apparently i'm old enough to have a 17yr old!!!  YIKES!!!  :) 

today jess turns 17 officially at 2:45p.  :o)  i can't believe that 17yrs ago i was waiting on my dr to break my water.  i was exactly, one week from my due date & she was literally about to fall out!  i was a 6-7cm & 80% effaced! after he broke my water i was in labor (with only a "cocktail", so pretty much all natural) for only 2hours & 30minutes!!!! i told him the baby was coming, didn't know if she was a boy or girl, i wanted a surprise, he didn't believe me, i yelled the baby is coming & he looked down & had to put down my numbing meds & couldn't even give me an episiotomy!  it was all worth it though & i wouldn't change it for anything!!! :o)

anywho, she is a bright, beautiful, good young lady, and i can't wait to see what's in store for her in the future.  pretty soon she will be leaving home for college **sniff sniff**, the choice happens to be Sam Houston at the time.  i'm trying to persuade her to get interested in Angelo State so she's not too far away but far away enough to live her life.  she helps me in so many ways & i hope to surprise her with some privacy in the evenings as part of her bday present.  (right now the girls all sleep in the same room because we use the 3rd bedroom as an office for jason since he works from home.  i'm going to leave the girls stuff in the bedroom with jess but put the little girl's bed in the office so that jess can read & talk on her phone in the evenings without having to wake up the little ones.  she has been doing all of that at the kitchen table which can't be too comfortable.)  she will be so excited! 


happy birthday baby girl!!!  i love you so much!!!

first day of her junior year 8.22.11

celiac awareness day is today

i started following The Gluten-Free Homemaker awhile back & she has some great recipes & insightful stuff on everyday stuff.  i also signed up for her newsletter so i didn't miss anything & then i got this email today about her celiac awareness day post & it's astonishing that more dr's don't test for celiac's when there are digestive/intestinal issues.  here are some of the facts from her post, please click the link to read the full post.  :)

Among other celiac facts, the resolution states:

• “Whereas celiac disease is underdiagnosed because the symptoms can be attributed to other conditions and are easily overlooked by doctors and patients;”
• “Whereas as recently as 2000, the average person with celiac disease waited 11 years for a correct diagnosis;”
• “Whereas 1/2 of all people with celiac disease do not show symptoms of the disease;”
• “Whereas a delay in the diagnosis of celiac disease can result in damage to the small intestine, which leads to an increased risk for malnutrition, anemia, lymphoma, adenocarcinoma, osteoporosis, miscarriage, congenital malformation, short stature, and disorders of the skin and other organs;”
• “Whereas celiac disease is linked to many autoimmune disorders, including thyroid disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, type 1 diabetes, liver disease, collagen vascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Sjogren’s syndrome;”

of the 5 facts listed, i'm #1 (they always thought my attacks were my gallbladder, nope it was from wheat making my insides attack itself!), #2 (i've had stomach issues my entire life, thought to be lactose intolerance was probably more of a wheat thing.  my initial diagnosis was 15yrs after trying to figure out what was wrong with me, why i was having severe stomach aches) & #4 (i've had 2 miscarriages, not for sure if wheat was a cause, & i'm definitely in the short stature category, i'm 5 foot nothing as jason calls it.  q also has eczema really bad & gets these bad scaly patches on her scalp i have a hard time getting rid of)  ;)

so if you have been having stomach issues, please talk to your dr.  it may be as simple (not at first) as a blood test & cutting out all your wheat.  i've been really proud of myself, for about a month now i have been extremely aware of what i put in my mouth these days.  as much as i want a simple sandwich, pizza, etc.  i have decided i'm going to be good to myself & not eat it.  q has been excellent as well.  even at 5 she knows that if she even eats something with wheat she will get sick.  she pretty much refuses to eat anything with gluten in it.  i did however let her have cake this last weekend but i think the next bday we go to i will bring her gf cupcake or something.  i don't think it bothered her but i need to be better prepared.  also i'm super proud of my teen, this has been as hard for her as it has been for me.  she loves anything bready!  but with self-diagnosis, she hasn't been tested yet, she has learned that it's not worth the nausea or the stomach issues to eat wheat.  she has even opened the eyes of friends at school that gluten free doesn't have to be gross or weird.  maybe this is why we have it, to open the eyes of others & help spread awareness.  i should look at it as a blessing & not so much a curse.  :)

i hope you all have a great tuesday!

this weekend

didn't do much of anything this weekend, which if you have been reading this blog, it's how i like it.  :)  we had a bday party for one of q's classmates at the zoo.  it was in the learning center & all the kids got to touch different animals & it was really neat!  we then went to the fort imagination park next to the zoo after it was over, it was just me, q & hopp, i think some of the partiers went on to the zoo.  i love this playground & if it wasn't so far away from our house i would take them more often.  we did have a minor mishap though.  q was jumping off a little platform to go swing & she didn't realize there was a big silver bar right in her way & hit it really hard on her forehead.  :(  poor baby, i was about to go see what she was doing & then i heard her screaming.  not the i hurt myself scream, it was the 'I REALLY HURT MYSELF' scream.  the one you know is not a cry for attention/drama queen scream.  :)  after i got her calmed down i convinced her to leave & head to nana's house.  it really needed ice because her forehead was starting to bruise & swell just a bit.  :(  she is ok, no major head trauma or er visit was needed but it's still really sensitive to the touch.  we had another party for sunday but the girls were not back from spending the night & going to church with nana so we didn't get to make it.

so here are the pics from the park & one from this am with the sad little bruise on q's head...

i forgot about this one & the next one.  in the goodie bag, they both got some zoo stuff & then these little masks, she is holding a plastic snake that moves crazy when you hold the tail. 



i love this little mask!  i may have hopp dress up as a raccoon for halloween



i love these shots, even if hopp isn't looking at the camera.  ;)

this is such a cool swing, i would love to have an adult-sized one in the backyard.  q was pushing this time.  i had to tell her to be careful because it didn't have a seat belt on the chair.  q thought she was such a big girl getting to push.

hopp on the horsey.

girls on the tire swing, this was right after the forehead incident.

can you see the bruise on the left side? (your left)  it's right above her eyebrow  :o)

 i hope everyone had a great weekend!  :)

tgifof!!! crochet-along :o)

http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/

it's friday, you know what that means, it's show-n-tell time!!!  yay!!!  i've been working so hard to catch up with the CAL.  i'm only a week behind.  omg, making 88 round 2 circles is NO JOKE!!! 

so here is what i should have had done last friday.  now i have to catch up to week 2's goal & also get week 3 going.  it's a bit overwhelming but i know i can do it!!!  :)



now my coloring is better but i think it's because i have the two different shades by each other.  i really, really, really like the bright colors but once i pulled out the darker ones i really like them as well.  what's your favorite color set?

  i finally put up my curtains i bought probably a year ago & i thought i could probably use the bags for something & then it dawned on me i could use them for the bright circles.  it works perfect & right now, i could probably use the zipper bag for all 88 circles.  btw, i highly suggest you buying room darkening curtains!  they are totally awesome & really work.  i actually bought a set for one of my windows to try them out & i couldn't believe the difference!  but.... the one problem was i got 2 different sized panels!!!  i'm always doing this, it really pisses me off!!!!  the only good reason for doing that is i had an excuse to buy another set to match the other sizes.  :)  always look for the bright side ladies & gents (if there are any gents out there).  the only bad thing about them now is they have different designs on them.  it's ok though, not many people get the pleasure of checking out my room & my room is dark so you can't really tell anyways.  :)  ok, so back to the subject here are my circle savers.

circles with my storage solutions

man, this is a really big project but i think i'm really going to enjoy the end product!  that's all that matters right?  the man has decided that this is his blanket & that he will share with me.  :)  he keeps asking if i'm going to have it finished in time for winter.  uh yes... we do live in west texas where it's colder later in the winter. :)

i hope everyone is having a fabulous friday & enjoys their weekend!

the week in 'dos & some homework stuffs for q

i thought i would start a post on what q has been doing as "homework" for kindergarten.  i will probably do them with the hair do pics.  so here we go...

up first, the 'dos, we don't have a pic for monday due to the holiday.


tuesday they had alike 'dos but hopp had bows in her hair.  i'm so in love with her expression!



wednesday was a headband day by request not because of time :)



thursday, i was disappointed in my braid but i'm still working on it




when i practiced last night on the side twists they looked better & then i didn't have too much time for hopp's hair so i just clipped the long front curlies to the side & it looked so cute on her.  now if only i can keep them from instantly touching their hair after i finish.  ;)

 now on to some homework for the week.  i think there will probably only be one thing during the week but this was the project of about myself that we had to do over the weekend & then we had the letter A for homework today.

all about q, i was shocked to find out that she wanted to be a baker.  she has never had interest in baking but for some reason this was what she wanted to be when she grows up this time.  her fave food is spaghetti (gluten free of course) & cocoa pebbles.  her friends are alexis & angelina & her fave color is purple.  :)

A is for Angel  :)

i will have a fof post later just got to get my pics together.  happy friday everyone!