Oh, Christmas Tree!

Oh, Christmas Tree!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

(P.S. ignore the dead squirrel dog toy in front of the presents...)

Twas the night before Christmas...

and all through the house

not a creature was stirring...

not even a mouse -

MOUSE!!! - Happy Holidays!

This week's favorite... Wire!

Wow - is all I can say!

Look at the workmanship in this silver wire moon from KUKLA studio! I think I want every piece of jewelry in this shop!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 11

Want to join a group of people getting in 100 miles before the end of the year? Go to the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge Blog for the details. (Don't worry, it's not too late! You can just do a graduated total based on your start date from the program's start.) This week was my slowest yet - only 7 miles added making my total 141 - but that leaves me so close to my end of year goal of 150!

25% off at Shore Debris 12/17-19

End of year sale: 25% off all items at Shore Debris!

Bookmarks and bookthongs priced $5.25-$7.12 with free shipping!

Unique and one of a kind jewelry priced as low as $7.50!

Notecard sets less than $5!

Sales, Sales, and More Sales!

Have you had time to browse the handmade highway? If not, do try sometime in the future...

There are lots of sales on the handmade highway just in time for Christmas (and hey, I won't complain)!

Linda Searcy Jewelry Designs is having 25% off all items in stock through Friday! Here's a sample of just one of her intriguing wire designs:
My Little Chickadee Creations has a special on all holiday painted coasters and trivets. Here's one of her sets of costers that I could definitely use in my house :)
Rebecca Plotnick Photography is offering a buy one photograph, get one free deal, and here is just one of her beautiful photos up for sale:

Inspired by She is offering a buy one cheeky lady get another free deal. Don't you need one of these cheeky ladies in your house?

Have fun with your last minute shopping!

This week's favorite... Fabric Pins!

1000 Markets has some great handmade items... I found these pins made by Comfort Colors. Actually, there are pin wearers on both sides of the family, so I just got a couple of the Christmas ones for stocking stuffers :)


The Christmas pins feature a variety of brightly colored stockings, santas, trees, presents, pointsettias, etc... Comfort Colors also has a line of dog pins - aren't these just way too cute?

The cat ones are great, too! I may have to come back to this seller for small birthday items in 2010.

(P.S. All of the pins are $3.50, so a great deal in my book!)

The Best Pumpkin Bread

I'm very picky about my bakery items... like pastry crusts - I like no one's by mine.

Pumpkin bread falls in that category, too. Most bakeries serve me a slice of something way too dry to be a fancy bread in my book...

So here is batch 1 of this year's pumpkin bread:Only 2 more to go :) I'd make more than one batch at a time, but my bowl won't hold anymore than one batch... thus this year's christmas wish = gigantic mixing bowl.

Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1 cup oil

3 cups sugar

1 can pumpkin (2 1/2 cups fresh pumpkin)

5 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cloves

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons soda

2 cups walnuts

1 cup raisins

Directions:

Blend eggs, oil, sugar, and pumpkin. Sift in flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and soda. Add chopped nuts and raisins. Bake at 350 for 1 1/4 hours for loaves, 45 min for muffins.

100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 10

Want to join a group of people getting in 100 miles before the end of the year? Go to the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge Blog for the details. (Don't worry, it's not too late! You can just do a graduated total based on your start date from the program's start.)

This week was OK - did not do exactly what I had planned, but did get up and walk every single day, so that is a smiley face in my book :D

Adding 14 more miles this week makes my new total 134! The end is in sight :)

West Millbrook Middle School Holiday Marketplace

Holiday Marketplace

Saturday, 12 Dec, 10 AM-4 PM

8115 Strickland Rd, Raleigh, NC

To benefit the Children's Outreach Program at West Millbrook Middle School

Vendors will be in the Cafeteria and 8th Grade Buildings.

Children's Giveaway on the Handmade Highway!

The artists of the Handmade Highway are doing it again! On the Notes from the Handmade Highway, they are hosting a giveaway containg a total of $133 in children's merchandise from various artists/crafters. Here's a sampling of some of what you could win:
Training Pants from Windy Lou

Bib from PachaMama

Bookmark from Jolinne

Don't forget to stop by and check it out on the handmade travels blog before it ends on 14 December!

Libby's New Stocking!

I love craft shows! Browsing what other people make and getting to buy such great presents... although this past weekend I did more buying for me than anyone else!

Libby (if you haven't seen her yet, I introduce my fuzzy terror... errr, world's best behaved dog here) did not have a stocking before this weekend, but look what I got at the show to benefit Second Chance Adoptions! It was from Holiday Treasures, the women who were stuck next to me - the chatterbox - during Saturday's show. They've got lots of stockings in all themes in their shop in addition to beaded angels ornaments, and Lil' Angel Paintings!

Since I was working on my Christmas decorating yesterday, I thought you might like to see old hubby's stocking:
and mine, too!

Hope your decorating is going well!

This week's favorite... Gnome Home

I was looking around etsy quickly today and saw the cutest little Gnome Home made of stoneware by Iktomi Clay.
This little shop of handmade clay art sculpture makes me wish I had all day to browse...

Handmade Highway Giveaway!

Want a chance to win $157 worth of ornaments & decor and holiday cards & tags?

Head on over to Notes from the Handmade Highway and enter.

Hurry, the giveaway ends Monday, 7 Decemer!

Sales, Sales, Sales!!

Don't you just love finding sales? I certainly do! Last night I was browsing through some of my favorite shops on etsy and noticed a few of them are running sales this weekend!

Aunt Jane Can has a variety of fantasy art and free shipping on everything. (So I got myself another of her fairy notecards!) Risky Beads, creator of the handmade highway, has accessories with attitudes all at 15% off through Sunday. (This bracelet is definitely going on my list of wants to be put under hubby's nose!)

Dinnertime Chimes creates unique recycled gifts and is running a sale on windchimes and owl ornaments. (I'm always looking at the fork easels in this store, but the bright colors of these owl ornaments have caught my eye!)

Satin Stitchery, fellow hitchhiker on the handmade highway, has embroidered purses and gifts and is offering 20% off in a few sections of her shop (I know someone who could use this great cell phone pouch as a gift.)

And as always, if you need a gift for your beach lover, don't forget to stop by Shore Debris to find beach theme jewelry and home decor all at 20% off until Sunday night!

Happy Holiday Shopping!

100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 9

Want to join a group of people getting in 100 miles before the end of the year? Go to the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge Blog for the details. (Don't worry, it's not too late! You can just do a graduated total based on your start date from the program's start.)

Well, last Saturday and Sunday were no exercise days for me.. that hasn't happened to me in a while - two days in a row without even a walk for the dog. Monday started me getting back onto the bandwagon and I finished the week very well!

Adding 16 more miles this week makes my new total 120!

Holiday Bazaar at Brier Creek Commons

Another busy weekend for me in Raleigh!

Holiday Bazaar

Brier Creek Commons Shopping Center

Sat, 5 Dec, 9 AM - 6 PM

Sun, 6 Dec 10 AM - 6 PM

(A Benefit for Second Chance Pet Adoption)

Event is indoors and includes a raffle.

Of course I look at the 18 unfinished projects around my house and wonder exactly when I am going to be finishing these? Well, they'll probably stay behind since I no longer have the energy to pull all-nighters!

I'll be at this event both days (recently I was wondering what was I thinking signing up for a show covering so many hours after so many weekends in a row) and so will Just Beautiful Designs. Sunday, Linda Searcy will join us with her jewelry as well as Old Broom Street (another Triangle Area etsy seller).

Brunch Dish... What to serve the morning after a huge holiday meal!

My family has a traditional treat that we serve on the day after a huge holiday meal where you have spent hours and hours slaving over the stove (like this one below): What?!? You don't serve your Thanksgiving dinner on your coffee table? Nevermind...

So on to the brunch dish... I love this recipe - it is so easy (actually that qualifies for all of my recipes doesn't it?)

Preheat oven 450 degrees

Ingredients:
12 Slices Canadian Bacon

12 Slices Swiss Cheese

1 Dozen Eggs

1/2 Pint Cream

Grated Parmesean Cheese

Directions:

Line a 9x13 Baking Dish with the Canadian Bacon.

Add a layer of Swiss Cheese**

Break eggs over each cheese/meat pile, being careful not to break the yolks.

(**Recommendation, buy cheese slices and don't let your husband slice the cheese if he can't make even slices because you get the messy set up below versus a very pretty dish if your cheese is level.)

Drizzle cream over the whites until the yolks just peek through.

Bake at 450 degrees for 10 min.

Remove from oven and sprinkle with grated parmesean cheese.

Return to oven and bake 8-10 more minutes.

Cut into square and serve (Trust me, it tastes so much better than it looks in this picture).

Tryptophan Coma... A Treasury

A beautiful treasury from 3Squares Handcrafted Jewelry: I am so honored to have my little metallic shell ornaments be a part of this beautiful collection!

This week's favorite... Christmas Ornaments

Since today I will be putting up my Christmas Tree, I wanted to look and see what ornaments I could find on etsy… out of the 33,300+ listed, I only made it through page 200 (so probably missed some really special ones on pages 201-1500)!

Look at the cute faces on these little dragons! Aren’t they adorable? Red Wyvern Studio has lots of additional polymer clay sculptures and fantasy ornaments.

Oh, and the little nose on this mouse! I can almost see it twitching… Warmth is a shop full of lil’ felt mice.

And boy do I love the color purple! Here’s a way to quietly add it to your tree… Bloom And Barnacle has an entire selection of mini stockings you just have to check out!

And I have a tree full of painted glass ornaments only (yes, there are two trees in my house)! These ones from Ornaments by Deb would fit right in…

And isn’t this little dress so cute! Cottage in the Sun offers a variety of items made from ceiling tins.

My New Etsy Shop

So, you may have noticed the new etsy shop in my sidebar... Purple Fuzzy Feet

I went ahead and openned a new shop that has my stuff that doesn't fit in my Shore Debris shop. I also decided to make it help me support Carolina Animal Rescue and Adoption (where Libby, the newest ruler of our household came from).

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100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 8

Want to join a group of people getting in 100 miles before the end of the year? Go to the 100 Mile Fitness Challenge Blog for the details. (Don't worry, it's not too late! You can just do a graduated total based on your start date from the program's start.)

Only 10 more miles this week - making my total 104!

Designer's Downtown Market

Come visit if you're in Raleigh!

A-Z Wednesday from Reading at the Beach

Good Morning! Welcome to my portion of A-Z Wednesday brought to you by Reading at the Beach.

This week's letter is "P."

To play, simply scan your shelves and piles of books to find a title starting with the letter "P." Post a picture, the title, synopsis, a link to the book (from amazon, etc), and post your link on Vicki's Blog in her A-Z Wednsday Post. Have fun finding an old friend or maybe something you've been meaning to read, but had forgotten for a time...

People of the Lakes by Kathleen O'Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear.

I love this series of books. The Gears are a husband/wife team; she - a former archaeologist for the U.S. Department of the Interior, and he - the principle investigator for his own archaeological firm. Their books start with a short introduction (10-20 pages) to the "present day" site of the book (this one is a ranger trying to save old "mounds" from destruction by a new federal highway grant). Then the real story begins... the gears take real facts known from archaeology and create a story around the prehistoric peoples and their daily lives that created whatever is still left in present day. This historical fiction involves a people of Mound Builders fighting over a totem mask in the Great Lakes Region of the U.S. as the heroine attempts to destroy the cursed mask and vengeful clan members attempt to kill her.

Technically, this is the 6th book in the "People Books" series, but each can be read as a stand alone. I read People of the Sea first and this one second. Until today, I thought I had read all of the "People Books" but now know I need to find Thunder, Weeping Eye, and Nightland.

Now although, I thought these books were great, I bought a couple of other books written by Kathleen O'Neal Gear in the past couple of years and after starting the first had to get rid of the whole stack - so my caution would be, make sure you read the back of the book before you buy it! (I'm guilty of skipping that part regularly.)

One Hundred Trillion Dollars!

Before I get to the money, I want to gripe! Oxygen TV, what happened to my yoga?!? I know I was bad and didn't do yoga at all last week, but why are you punishing me with episodes of "Bad Girls Club" in lieu of my yoga? If I wanted to watch and listen to stupid people, I'd have stupid friends!

Ok, I'm done now.

My husband got back last Friday from a trip for work and brought back a gift - well, it was something he received from one of his friends who lives in Pheonix and like any good husband, he knows what's his is mine and what's mine is mine :)

We are now the proud owners of one hundred trillion dollars - the bill was so great I had to take pictures of it: From the bank of Zimbabwe (back side).

Yes, this is a real bill.

Too bad 100 Trillion Zimbabwe Dollars convert to less than 1 U.S. Dollar.