Harlem shake (Grumpy Cat Edition) - Meme for Monday

So have you guys seen this Harlem Shake thing going around? There are a few different versions making there way around the interwebs. However I think Gumpy cat's version is my favorite. Enjoy!

Sunday Snap Shots

Hello world! I know I have had a bit of a hiatus because of my little vaca. Since I really haven't been taking pictures this week here are some shots from my trip!

Before there was Gyspy, Rudy was the dog in my heart. It was fun to see him again because he likes to cuddle!

While in Gainsville Billy took us for gator tacos, however it was the fried mac and cheese appetizer that was the star of the dinner!

I had a lot of fun at my cousins wedding and based on this picture so did my mom. This is us cutting a serious rug. When the Electric Slide came on my Aunt Judy was like "this is my jam!" She proceeded to slide with cigarette and beer in hand.

Going to the Wizarding World was very giddy experience for me. I had one big smile on my face all day! I was lucky enough to do everything that I had wanted, including meeting the ladies of Beauxbatons and the gentlemen of Drumstrang.

Things are starting to get back to normal. Its always weird adjusting post vacation. I have a few things in the works and will keep you updated!

Florida adventure time

I have been absent for the past week because I have gone on a little vacation, which was severely needed after the Nemo snowstorm. I was excited for this trip because I was going to see family and get some sun and see my cousin, Claire get married!

We flew in and hung out with my Dad and Lousia. I miss these people so much!

 

The second day we were there we made the trip to Universal Studios, where of course we went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The first time we went I had to make skip a lot of the stores because there were 2 hour waits to get into the shops! This time however, we made it a point to go on a weekday and we also got the express pass. We also ended up spending about $40 dollars on candy at Honeydukes.

That night we spent at my Aunt's house and we got to spend time with family! It was really nice to see everyone. I also fell in love with my aunt's dog, Wheeler. 

We then drove up to Gainesville and hung out with my brother Billy. He was excited to show us around the University of Florida. He showed us some neat stuff around the town. There was a bat house close by. When the sun went down we went over there and saw all the little batties waking up and fluttering around in the nighttime. The downtown area is also really nice and was a bit hipter-ish. He took us to Bocca Fiesta and had some pretty amazing food, including gator tacos. I passed out at around 12, while Billy and his roommates raged on into the morning. When we woke up a note was taped to the door, "Good luck waking up Billy" we found a mass of sleeping bodies and none of them were Billy. We eventually found him and made our way to Clermont to our hotel. 

The next day I helped my cousin, Melissa (Maman Jolie) and my Aunt Nancy (mother of the bride) set up centerpieces and other little tasks for wedding prep. I was also really nervous because I was doing a reading durring the ceremony! The wedding went off with out a hitch and despite a slight chill in the air  we all had a good time.

Melissa & Skye watering the center pieces

All of the cousins in birth order

After the big day my family went to congregate in the hotel and hang out for a little while longer. Its not very often that we get together. However, while I was enjoying my time with my Mom's side of the family, I received sad news from my Dad's side. My Uncle Sal had passed away earlier in the evening. It was a weird mix of emotions. For a bit it looked like we were going to be in Florida a bit longer than expected. However, we had to return the rental car, had no luck changing our flight and trouble getting off from work.

As bummed as I was feeling I had a nice pick me up while we spent our last day in Florida. Louisa's daughter Michelle stopped by with her adorable daughter Sophia. This is perhaps one of the silliest babies I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. She was fascinated by my iPad and showed Tim where his nose is.

Now to try and get back to normal.

Snowed in....

I am very much a home body, however after being snowed in for the last three and a half days has driven me a bit crazy. Despite a slight case of cabin fever I managed to get a few things done.

this is my going crazy face

I was super duper lucky that my space heater was delivered Friday before the storm hit. I was able to spend hours upon hours in the craft room in comfort. So I rearranged somethings. I do this every couple of months. I was finally able to finish up some iPad cases and figured out how to make some sweet pull tabs. I used all of the cool nerd fabric I ordered a while back. Since the stuff is so cool I tried to find different ways to utilize the scraps. Since I had some elastic around I made some head bands. 

As much as I was productive with the free time, I was also super lazy. That is what snow days are all about guys! So Tim and I watched a couple episodes of the Wire (which is cray) and we also hit up some Netflix. Tim had never seen Battle Royal so that was quite an enjoyable viewing. (Suzanne Collins pretty much took the concept for the Hunger Games from this movie) I also enjoy a good doc every now and then and I finally got to watch Queen of Versailles. Who orders 50 chicken mcnuggets at one time? 

Aside from movie time I have course been listening to some groovin' tunes in my little crafty dungeon. I have really fallen in love with Ram by Paul McCartney. It was recently re-issued and although I am a huge Beatles fan, I have always stayed away from their solo careers up until a few years ago. That was when I also fell in love with George Harrison's All Things Must Pass. 

I was also able to use the time to prepare for something quite epic, my first ever craft night at Crazy Beans! You guys know from reading that I absolutely adore this place. For years I have yearned for a cool hang out near by. With this place, its like the owner Callie knew everything that I would ever want! I mean butter beer is on the menu! So after falling in love with this place I approached Callie about doing a craft night. She was down and I started preparing. I decided that the Sharpie Mugs would be an appropriate craft for a cafe. I was a little worried that I wasn't going to make it because the Rocky Point roads were pretty dangerous. However we made it! A few people also trekked out to get out of the house. Here are some of their fabulous creations.

Now I can but all these bad snow nightmares behind me and go to Florida. So long suckers! 

Iron Craft Challenge # 3 - Hearts & Stars

Another Iron Craft Challenge is in the bag! This time around the challenge was hearts and flowers. So Michele and I took a trip to the dollar store and decided to decorate some fancy plates. We used the same technique for the sharpie mugs. Here is what I ended up with!!!!!

Bread and Milk (Meme for Monday)

Well it looks like Long Island can't go more than six months with out a major natural disaster. In New York state, Long Island got the worst of it. Rocky Point got about 30 inches. Friday I had the scariest drive home trying avoided spin outs and of course mopes driving like nut jobs. I am so lucky I made it home, because a lot of people had to either sleep in their cars or abandon them and go to a shelter. 

I think when Long Island hears that a big storm is coming every one goes crazy! The days leading up to the storm were very familiar. The gass-holes were back and I was very lucky to fill up when I did. I am lucky Tim and I usually keep the house stocked so we didn't have to go to the supermarket. If you're wondering what people around here act like when this crap happens this is perhaps the most accurate and hilarious depiction of it. 

What was supposed to be a weekend of work ended up being a little staycation. We hung out in our pjs most of the day. To not be too lazy we got in a Yoga workout which also limbered us up for shoveling! I think we're going to invest in a snowblower sometime soon. I was really excited to get some serious crafting in complete warmth because waiting for me at home was a new space heater for the craft room.  So at least I put this unexpected free time to good use. 

Sunday Snapshots

Hello there! I hope you all had a lovely week! Here are some highlights from mine!

I spent Super Bowl Sunday at my Brother & Sister in laws. While the dudes were watching the game I was reading with my little niece! 

Speaking of reading, I started and am enjoying a new book! Bomb recently won Youth Media Award honor. I also signed up for a children's librarian book discussion for this book. Its non fiction, which I am not particularly fond of, however I am really loving Bomb so far. 

I doing my first Mother Goose program soon. In preparation for it I made some dickey birds! (one named Soft, one named Loud. Can you guess who is who? 

We had some snow earlier this week (pre-blizzard)... also some trespassers! I noticed these tiny footprints all over our porch. We have a couple of stray cats in the neighborhood. They usually cut through the backyard. Gyspy is not amused. 

On another trip to Crazy Beans I tried a peanut butter latte. HOLY CRAP its amazing. I love this place more and more with each visit. Since I go there so frequently I am making it a point to try something different each time I go. I may have to repeat peanut butter latte though. 

Michele came over for another crafter-noon. We were working on another Iron Craft Challenge. This time the theme is Hearts and Stars. Since we are near valentines day I went with hearts. We got some plates from the dollar store and decorated them with sharpies. Here is how mine turned out. 

Painted shoes! - Tutorial

This is the project I did for Iron Craft challenge #2. I have seen pictures of painted shoes and checked out a few different tutorials (all with different techniques and results). So I did a combination of stuff and here is the process I used to make these shoes.

Materials & tools

• Blank ugly shoes
• Mod Podge
• Foam brush
• Spray paint
• Acrylic paint in contrasting color
• Duct tape or masking tape (I used both) 
• Ruler

Instructions

• Tape the wedges or any area that you do not want to be painted 
•  Then stuff those shoes! That way they keep there shape while painting

• Next break out the Mod Podge! Pain all over the shoes, then let them dry for a few hours. This step prevents the paint from bleeding through the shoes. 

• Next Spray paint them kicks! I put them in an old cardboard box then sprayed (this kept the paint contained in one area) 

• After I let them dry I thought these need a bit more pizazz, so I decided to add some tips. I measured about a few inches from the point and then covered it with some masking tape 
• I used some acrylic paint for the tips and did a few coats. Peel the tape off when done painting because if you wait for the paint to dry completely some of it may come off with the tape!

• I let them dry overnight and ta - da look at my fabulous new shoes! 

Let's be Friends link up (week 1)

Sally from Forward from the heart has started a new link up! I saw it last week and it looked like fun.. so I decided to give it a go this week! If you want to join in on the fun then check it out here! 

This week is all about my favorite caffeinated pick me up: Coffee!

Coffee or Tea?

I used to not drink coffee at all and I much preferred tea. However since I got a Kureig and have fallen in love with Starbucks it is the second thing I go to in the morning (after giving Timbo a good morning kiss). Now I can't get enough of this stuff... especially blonde roast! 

How do you take it?

I usually just put a little tiny bit of coffee mate creamer in it and I am good to go! When I opt for tea, ya can't go wrong with some honey and a wee bit of sugar. 

What is your favorite coffee house drink?

Its no secret that I have also fallen in love with a local coffee shop, Crazy Beans. I am very fond of their toasted marshmallow latte! They have all kinds of crazy creations with flavors so I can't wait to try a different one next time I stop in. 

Porcupine Predicts Super Bowl Winner (Meme for Monday)

Hello there people! Its Monday and we have another long work week ahead of us. If you were like me,  last night you got dragged to a Super Bowl party last night and fell asleep durring the power outage. However did I enjoy the highlights from the Puppy Bowl and some of the commercials. This year it wasn't just humans and puppies getting in on the football action. Today's meme is a porcupine predicting the winner. I didn't realize how adorable porcupines are and that they make silly squealing noises and apparently determine outcomes of the Super Bowl. Enjoy! 

Sunday Snapshots !!!!!!

Well my friends here we are again, another Sunday. This week has been ok and pretty typical. Work, craft, sleep and repeat. Here is a look at my adventures for the week....

Wednesday was reveal day for the second Iron Craft challenge. The theme was orange so I decided to jazz up some ugly thrift store shoes. Not bad eh? You can read about it here and expect a tutorial this coming week!

I have been trying to maintain a steady gym routine and I have been doing OK. I enjoy doing cardio while listing to Songza. It is one of my most used apps! If you are not familiar, it is a streaming music app similar to Pandora, however playlists are created by people (not algorithms  and there are no commercials. I really love listening to NPRs workout mix. While I was on the treadmill 'Born to Run' came on and I couldn't think of a more appropriate time for that song to come on!

Last week I ran out of business cards! So I ordered some new ones. This time I ordered from Moo. The cards came out really nice and I was excited to have rounded corners! I also love that it came with a really neat carrying case with a divider for my cards as well as others. I also took this opportunity to do a slight redesign. What do you think?

So you guys should know that my new favorite place in town is Crazy beans. Tim and I attended Wednesday night's Bingo night. Sadly I did not get any Bingos but I did have a delicious butter beer! I also spoke to the owner Callie and asked if she would be interested in doing a craft night. She was excited about the idea and we booked a night! So if you live in the area and your free Monday February 11 at 7:00 you should come on by and check it out! Here is more info.

I had some nail fun this week. I haven't really been keeping up with nail care. It can be a real pain in the butt. Its a lot of work and for some reason mine never last for more than a few days. Anyway, I did some half moons with my new favorite color, mint green.

I also started playing around with screen printing again. Here is one in progress. I am going to try making some library totes and thought this design would be perfect.

On Friday I met up some of my friendos. We went to Patchouge, which is has been getting super nice and is turning into a super hip area now. We hung out at Hoptron Brewtique where I enjoyed some soda and delicious rosemary popcorn. At one point things got a little weird with Caitie Laura and I. I also loved that the bathroom signs of this place all at storm trooper heads for no real reason.