Amazing Grace.

This is a different kind of post. I'm feeling a little down today and just to warn you, this blog is very self indulgent.

I don't know why, but I've been having these really stressful dreams about my Nana lately. She passed away last year and I was devastated to lose such a beautiful force in my life. The truth is that I had been missing her for a long time. Long before she left us. Even so, the loss of her life felt like being hit with a ton of bricks.

Nana and me at my college graduation.

I was lucky enough to have lived 30 minutes away from my Nana for most of my childhood. She attended many of my birthday dinners, all of my graduations, including college which I know she was really proud of, and my wedding. I think that my wedding was the last time she really got to see her entire family, and she whispered in my ear that I had taught her something. I'll never know what that was, or how little me could ever have taught HER something, but at least I know that she was truly happy that day. She not only had a profound impact on my life but on my parents' lives as well. She and my dad disagreed about many, many things, but she loved him dearly and I think she really lit a fire in him to find things that
he was passionate about.

Fun food!

Make it into shapes, and they will eat it. At least my kid will.

My first attempt at this went REALLY well.

-Quesadilla flower cut with a petal cake decorating thing I got at Joann, and pureed squash in the middle. 

She ate everything on that plate and then had seconds and thirds. Well accept for the arugula..I was just getting too excited. She did try it though! And promptly spit it out.

So because I am way too lazy to make a picture out of my child's food for every meal, I've just started cutting her food into shapes. "Look Gemma! Your break is a diamond!" And it's WORKING! Homegirl is eating everything I put on her plate. Sometimes she spits it out, but just the fact that she's trying it and chewing it up is good enough for me. 

So tonight I got bold and decided to put carrots and celery along with her chicken. Sure, she smothered every last bit of that food in ketchup, but she ate it! She actually ate all of the carrots and even though she only chewed up the celery and spit it out..that's got to count for something, right? 

Try it! Let me know if you have any success!

jill

Beachy themed room.

I've spent most of my life next to the ocean. I grew up in Pacific Grove, California, right next to Monterey. I worked at the Monterey Bay Aquarium throughout most of high school and seasonally throughout college. I spent hours in my car at Asilomar State Beach doing homework, and watching the cute boys surf. I even got married on the beach. Needless to say, I love all things ocean. I tend to gravitate towards blues, and have shells scattered throughout my house.

My Aunt Gina is also a true California girl, although she grew up in Southern California, which might as well be a different state as far as I'm concerned :) I lived in the fog, she lived in the sun! She lives in Washington now, and I know she misses the beach. I lived in Washington for about 2.5 seconds before I ran for the hills. :) Anyways, my lovely Aunt is redecorating her room beach themed, and these are just some ideas.

Paint

wisteria.com

These are almost the exact same colors my husband and I used in our bedroom. The exact colors we used were "Quiet Rain" by Glidden for the walls, and "Bone Folder" by Martha for the ceiling and trim. When I think of adult beach theme, I think of soft blues..but not too icy! I like a bit of grey or green in my blues because they are more relaxing. An icy blue will make you feel cold, which you probably don't want in a place like Washington.

atlantahomesmag.com

If blues are not your thing, go with a more sandy color like in the room shown on the left. You can always add more colorful accents which I will get to next. 

Moroccan Jars

When I first discovered the land of DIY blogs, the first one I became obsessed with was http://matsutakeblog.blogspot.com/. This woman's creativity is mind blowing and so very inspiring. One of the first projects I did was these Moroccan jars/lanterns.  They are so beautiful and so easy to make!

All you need is:
-glass paint
-gold dimensional paint (I think I used fabric paint)
-empty jars

 Paint the inside of the jar with the glass paint, and then use your gold dimensional paint to decorate the outside!

I used a spaghetti sauce jar and a BJ's wine cooler bottle :)

100 books in a year.

I have put myself up to a task that seems pretty impossible at this point. 100 books in a year, or more like 11 months since I decided to start in February. With a husband and 2 year old to take care of, along with selling a house, and the possibility of a new child all in the next year...that is a daunting task.

I have always loved to read. My wild imagination paired with many days of being grounded (I love you Dad but you were wayyyy too strict <3) led to my fascination with fiction.

There is something sacred about libraries. They're so quiet and they smell like old paper. Filled with shelves and shelves of other people's stories. A library is one of the only places you can go these days without someone bothering you, i.e. people trying to sell you something, strangers making small talk, children screaming. I always loved checking out books and imagining who else had read them. I used to get about 7 books a week from my tiny local library and just burn through them one after another. I had to practically be dragged out of my room for things, and if I had to go to the bathroom I would hold it until I couldn't stand it anymore.

I'm not a snobby reader. I can appreciate almost any writing style, because more than anything I appreciate the imagination behind the stories. I do love me some classics though, Wuthering Heights being one of my all time favorites. But I also love an easy read. I'm not gonna lie, I freaking loved the Twilight series. Read all of them in a week, running into Walmart every other day like a crackhead looking for my fix. I'm not saying that good writing is indistinguishable from poor writing. Stephenie Meyer is no John Steinbeck...but you have to take a book for what it is, and just try to enjoy it.

Here is my list so far, it will be updated as I finish each novel. If you have any book suggestions, please leave them in the comments!

1) The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
2) Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
3) Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins
4) Nanny Returns - Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus
5) Triumph - Carolyn Jessop
6) Stolen Innocence - Elissa Wall
7) Vinegar Hill- A. Manette Ansay
8) A Winter Haunting- Dan Simmons
9) Chinese Cinderella- Adeline Yen Mah
10) Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea- Chelsea Handler
11) Bossypants- Tina Fey
12) The End of Normal- Stephanie Madoff Mack
13) The Full Cupboard of Life- Alexander McCall Smith
14) In the Company of Cheerful Ladies-Alexander McCall Smith
15) Blue Shoes and Happiness- Alexander McCall Smith
16) The Good Husband of Zebra Drive- Alexander McCall Smith
17) The Miracle at Speedy Motors -Alexander McCall Smith
18) Tea Time for the Traditionally Built -Alexander McCall Smith
19) The Double Comfort Safari Club -Alexander McCall Smith
20) The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party -Alexander McCall Smith
21) Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang -Chelsea Handler
22) 50 Shades of Grey -EL James
23) 50 Shades Darker -EL James

Make your own coasters.

I made these a really long time ago, but people seemed to like them so I thought I would make a little tutorial for them. It's actually very easy to do and doesn't take a ton of supplies (most of the supplies are cheap anyways.) This is a really fun way to use your kid's art..or your own!

I've seen people do this with photos as well, but make sure you are using actual photos or laserjet printouts. Preferably not inkjet copies. Otherwise the ink will smear quite a bit. If you must use inkjet printouts, spray them first with a polyurethane or a clear acrylic sealant a few times and let it dry. That should keep the ink from running. HERE is a great introduction to using mod podge.

Read more for tutorial!

Low calorie egg drop soup w/Brussels sprouts!

This is my new favorite thing. Not only is it very low calorie at around 70 calories per serving, but it's delicious and great on these cold days we've been having. Yes, the recipe does include BRUSSELS SPROUTS. The most hated vegetable of all time? I say no! Even Brian, who is not fond of Brussels sprouts really enjoyed this soup. Give it a shot. It's especially good if you are trying to lose weight like me!

Ingredients:

Brussels sprouts, around 10. Leaves peeled and the rest quartered.
2 Tablespoons EVOO
2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups chicken broth divided (32 oz pre-made or use bouillon. I like the tomato chicken bouillon.)
1 or 2 stalks of green onions, chopped (I like a lot of green onion so I often add extra if I've got it)
1/2 teaspoon salt
A few dashes of ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch (not pictured oops!)
2 eggs and 1 egg white, beat together.