Havin' a Ball

The other day I posted a photo of a Christmas project I had started. For some reason this year I have wreath fever and we just may end up with a house full by the end of the festive season. In fact, last week I kept doing google image searches for wreaths to get some ideas. I've seen them before but the photos of wreaths made with ball ornaments were calling out to me. I was going to wing it but decided to read some of the blog entries to get some tips. Almost every single one referenced me back to Eddie Ross' blog where he posted a tutorial. I won't bother with any directions because I followed the tutorial pretty closely. I will add that I wanted to be able to have the option to not cover the top with a ribbon and bow so I tried to hide the top of the hanger and where I twisted it closed as best I could. This was the only difficult part and I highly recommend needle-nose pliers. It can be hard to make the top look uniform like the rest of the wreath when you close it. I did a little frigging and it wasn't too bad. There was one slightly bare spot so I just took an extra ornament and hot-glued it to its surrounding ornaments (making sure the glued spots are hidden in the centre of the wreath.)

Even though it's hung on the inside of our sunroom door, through the glass it looks lovely and festive from the street too!

Tin Heart

While out marketing and shopping for a holiday party appropriate dress on Saturday, Jess and I stopped in at Aitkens Pewter and I picked up this ornament for Dave. It's pretty adorable. I'm trying to make Dave love Christmas. We're working on it...

Friday Phone Pics

I've been thoroughly enjoying my new phone but I hadn't done much playing around with the camera. With the help of a photo effects application I took a couple photos with it today.

I'm working on a project that uses a whole bunch of these. Stay tuned for it:

And a hilariously creepy bonus picture that I took on the first try and could probably never recreate:

O Christmas Tree

O Christmas Tree O Christmas Tree

Thy lights are beautiful and convenient

Huh? Yeah, I know. Last night I was out and about and shopping around for all things Christmas (hopefully lots of Christmasey posts to follow) and I stumbled upon a sale item that became an impulse buy for me. I don't normally fall into that trap but this $5.00 gadget was too amazing not to buy. My biggest complaint though was that there were no details on the package about how this little bundle of fun worked so I was a tad skeptical. I was going to buy one for a stocking stuffer for my dad as well but decided to try the first one in case it was a dud. It's not! It's CHRISTMAS CHANGING! What is it you ask? Why it's the Carlon Christmas Tree Lights Touch Control. Or if that doesn't make things clear for you it's a little brass tree ornament that you hang on your tree, it connects to a dimmer box that connects to your lights (all of this is hidden of course besides the ornament) and you just touch the ornament to turn the lights on, there are three brightness settings and then off. Basically it turns your Christmas tree into a touch lamp. Yeah, I know. Amazing.

Btw, this is my hundredth post. Most people would say "yay me!" I say, "took you long enough!"

Okay, so a little yay me.

Lunch

At Taco Bell I made the right choice: (Crunchwrap Supreme)

At Starbucks I made the wrong choice: (Peppermint Hot Chocolate)

Why is Starbucks hot chocolate SO chalky?!

Not your Grandmother's Rotary Dial

I just purchased my first ever cell phone. But I guess calling it a cell phone is a bit like calling a Caramel Frappucchino a coffee. So happy with my HTC Desire so far. Now I just need to get customizing!

Btw, while I joke about rotary dial phones, we didn't have any other phone until about junior high. I was embarrassed by it then but I love them now, especially in bright colours. I painted my parent's a bright purpley blue a few years ago.

Blueberries!

Here's a picture of Cain hanging out in the fall leaves. What a cutie.

Mom and Dad got me a 5lb. box of blueberries. I had big plans for it. Crisps, pies, cheesecake, muffins. I made a Blueberry Buckle. It was so so SO good.

But then I ate the rest of the box in the next week or two like this:

It's a trick I used to do when I was a kid. Rinse the frozen blueberries off and then pour milk over them and let the milk get all frozen and slushy. I know it's weird. But it's delicious.

Halloween

I had a fun Halloween. "Carved" a pumpkin with a drill. Dressed up in Dave's costume from last year and gave out candy. Dave and I ended up taking some funny pictures of the pumpkin and goofing around with glowsticks with the flash turned off on the camera. Boo!

Tis the Season to be Jolly

I love Christmas. I love Christmas. I love Christmas.

I've noticed facebook statuses lately complaining about Christmas commercials and the stores filled with decorations and holiday stuff. I won't complain. Ever. I'm out snatching all the good stuff. Haha. Kidding. Sort of. Really though, I haven't allowed myself to accumulate too many Holiday decorations as I moved from apartment to apartment. This year, I'm going for it. I've already picked up a bunch of bulb ornaments, stocking hangers, a star tree-topper, a reindeer decoration and some stuff to make the house smell all holiday homey. And I can't wait to pick out more tree ornaments, new stockings and some other stuff.

This Christmas post may seem WAY too early but I'm getting amped. We are going to a tree-trimming and otherwise festive gathering at our fun and Christmas-loving friends tomorrow and I can't wait. I'm also really looking forward to trimming our first ever tree. Our last home was way too small for a tree so we have never had one together. I can't wait. Hot chocolate. Frank Sinatra. Christmas tree. Falalalala lalalala.

Happy Birthday Me.

My birthday was a couple of weeks ago. I had a bunch of friends over for a sundae bar. We had vanilla ice-cream, chocolate ice-cream, vanilla frozen yogurt, strawberry frozen yogurt, homemade hot fudge sauce, homemade hot caramel, homemade blueberry sauce, whipped cream, bananas, coconut, oreo crumbs, sprinkles, crushed peanuts, crushed skor, crushed reese's pieces, crushed butterfinger, brownies and cherries. We are just STARTING to run out of the leftovers and I have had at least one sundae a day everyday since.  

Café Olé

Tonight I went to pick up some groceries at Victory and I saw a couple that used to frequent the coffee shop where I worked when I was 15/16. As soon as I saw them I thought, 'Tall café latté and tall café mocha'. I don't normally speak to people I recognize from jobs I had 12+ years ago but for some reason I decided to. And I'm glad I did. I told them that I remembered what they used to order and her name though I wasn't sure if I remembered his (I knew it either started with the same letter or rhymed with hers) and they kept saying they couldn't believe how good my memory is. I asked them if they still order the same thing and they said that they don't go out for coffee very often anymore but they do still stick with their old favourites. They asked me if I was surprised that they were still together. And she made a comment about how the odds are against couples lasting as long as they had especially with "how much we used to fight back then". That made me smile. She said that as soon as I started talking she could remember my voice and me and they asked me my name. He just kept shaking his head in awe at me remembering them so well and I told him that if I bump into them again next week and he doesn't remember me he's in trouble. I gathered my bags, wished them well and left the store, smiling and feeling happy and quite honestly feeling a little high on my horse at how awesome I am to remember people so well from so long ago.

And then I went to walk to my car and realized that I was walking in the wrong direction and had forgotten where I parked.

Life is funny sometimes. 

Rick Mercer and David Suzuki

I love David Suzuki.