Heavens to Betsy!

I'm addicted to Etsy.

I've always liked etsy. Somehow in the last week, it became my new favorite website to browse.

Usually, my internet time consists of the following:

-Email

-Reading blogs

-Pioneer Woman (BTW... I think she's crazy for the whole cinnamon toast thing. Who really has time to be so picky about cinnamon toast? I make mine the "horrible" way and it's served me well for 26 years now. Thanks PW for the cinnamon rolls though. swoon.)

-Woot & Peachy Cheap

But here lately, I've spent a ton of time perusing the endless handcrafted vendors featured on Etsy. Feathered headbands. Handstamped jewelry. Personalized everything! I could easily spend hours upon hours looking at different things and drooling over this and that. One store in particular -Elizabeth David Designs- has really caught my eye. This gal is talented!

A mini portfolio? Yes, please. What a perfectly cuuu-te place to keep notes and to-do lists and receipts and even my drivers license and a credit card!

And a ridiculously cute lanyard! Wouldnt it be so fun to wear something like this at work!?? I have a feeling that once we transition over to hospital provided scrubs (aka boring single color, unisex, poorly fitting scrubs), that I'm gonna need something fabulous like a lime green zebra printed lanyard to hold my badge AND add a little pop to an otherwise blah set of scrubs.

And this! I've always wanted a cute checkbook cover. I still have the boring bank-issued variety swimming around in my purse. Oh and have I ever discussed my love affair with all things Amy Butler? Oh geez.

And this!!!! A perfect kindle cover. I bought it. It's mine. I Love it. I was in the market for a Kindle cover, which ultimately led me to Liz's store in the first place. I dont know how many of you have ever shopped for a Kindle cover, but the ones listed on Amazon are borrrrrrring. There are so many super duper cute covers in Liz's store, I was in agony over which I liked best! Ultimately, I settled on the gray one, which ended up being a custom order. Through all my special fabric requests and questions, Liz was such a NICE person to work with.

In fact, she is SO nice, she's giving away a mini portfolio to one of you lucky duck readers!

To enter: FIRST check out her etsy store: Elizabeth David Designs

THEN post a comment with your favorite item! She also has MORE cute things in her other store, Accessory Heaven, so make sure and look there too! I'll randomly select a winner from the comments received.

The giveaway will close next Tuesday, May 4 at midnight.

Sad heart

I received word a few hours ago that sweet Catherine Hanna has passed away.

She was still ventilated and deteriorating and it's my understanding that her family made the decision (knowing her wishes) to remove her from life support. I know my last update said they were weaning her oxygen settings, but she was unable to tolerate this. To my knowledge, she has needed more and more assistance from the ventilator over the last few days. While it is hard to lose such a busy, funny (check out her blog!), loving, young (47) woman, we rejoice that Catherine is now praising Jesus face to face.

Please keep her family in your prayers; for peace and understanding in this difficult time.

Where's Waldo?

A week ago today I helped a sweet couple deliver their first son! It was a wonderful day: labor was quick and comfortable, baby was cute and healthy. Brooke & Mikey P were some of the first friends we made here in Rockport, which made the day really meaningful for me. I was overjoyed to be there for the 3 of them on that very special day!

Check out these photos (I'm in one of them!)

Peacock Photography

By the way: Update on Catherine Hanna as of yesterday morning, she was still on a ventilator. Not much change has been made, but they have decreased her oxygen settings from 70% down to 65%. As far as I know, the plan is to continue decreasing her ventilator settings by tiny bits until she can ventilate herself spontaneously and tolerate it. Please continue to pray for Catherine and her family.

MFoM & Potatoes.

I got a few requests for the potatoes I pictured on the last post. But before I divulge the recipe, you have to sit through a slide show of the dog. (complete with commentary!)

The Many Faces of Mauve

"Hi Hi Hi Hi Hi are you going to play with me?"

"Seriously? More of this camera thing?"

(pout)

"Is that food?!?!!!!?!"

(yawn)

"Wait, I wasnt ready yet!"

"Ok, Are we done yet?"

"I'm hungry."

And now for potatoes! They're so easy, you'll wonder why exactly you just endured about a dozen pictures of Mauve. And they're so yummy. Good for breakfast. Good for dinner. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's one of Jordan's favorite side dishes (along with mac & cheese, fried okra, french fries, corn, green beans, asparagus, baked potatoes and just about any other side dish out there). For the two of us, I dice up 2 small/medium sized potatoes. Leave the skin on, it's pretty tasty, just make sure you wash your taters. In a skillet, heat up some olive oil and a pat (or 2...) of butter. While the oil is warming, season your taters with fresh pepper, Lawry's and whatever else suits your fancy. Yesterday, I added some Tony Cachere's. I find this easier than trying to season while cooking (mostly because on more than one occasion, I overdid it on the salt). Slide the taters in the skillet and toss them around to coat with oil & butter. I didnt say this was a low fat recipe. Let it sizzle away at around medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Cook to your liking. I like having some crunchy bits mixed in here and there. Last night, they cooked about 12-15ish minutes?

So lets review: Dice, season, cook, serve.

Cheddar Chicken

Two things I will always love:

1. Not having to run to the store before cooking dinner (aka: Pantry Meals). My go-to pantry meal? Chicken Pot Pie (which isnt really a "pie" because it has a crunchy stuffing crust). I'm not good at making weekly menus. And i'm not good at shopping for meals. So, it's not uncommon to make a grocery run (or call Jordan to make a run on his way home) before cooking. I should work on this. Carey, you're my hero.

2. A new way to make chicken. We eat chicken regularly, so any time I come across a yummy new way to prepare chicken (hello chicken spaghetti & chicken cordon bleu!), I'll file it away and use it again.

SO, when I was looking through the new Real Simple and saw the recipe for Cheddar Chicken, I thought to myself, "that looks pretty yummy."

Fast forward to tonight. I've got chicken thawing in the sink and a hungry husband. Personally, I want pizza or something cheesy- so my first thought is Chicken parmesan. But we dont have any mozzarella. Then I remember the cheddar chicken recipe. Perfection.

So I crack out the magazine and begin preparation.

Almost there...

Completion.

Add in some sauteed potatoes and a salad (and some Sister Schuberts! Yum!) and there's a meal in approx 30 minutes. Did I mention I also love quick meals???

So what's the verdict? The chicken was alright. Can I be really honest? I didnt finish it. It was juicy but the garlic was REALLY overpowering and I didnt use but a fraction of what the recipe called for. The cheese wasnt all gooey like I was hankering for. I'm thinking that if (IF) I make this again, I might do garlic powder instead of chopped garlic. OR maybe Tony Cachere's and no garlic at all! I'd say my Wednesday night meal was much more successful (grilled chicken with fettucine alfredo- the real stuff- NOT from a jar.)

I need some new chicken recipes... what's your favorite/go-to/pantry Chicken meal? (thanks to Carey again for posting this on fb. I need some inspiration!)

New Digs

After probably the easiest and most delightful ACLS renewal I've ever taken (can you imagine? A Delightful ACLS class? Unheard of.), I visited the local sports store for a few running essentials. I've been running regularly and realized quickly my need for a few new things.

For Example:

A few new pairs of running shorts and a new moisture wicking t-shirt. I dont really know where the moisture is wicked away to, but I would wholeheartedly prefer a dri-fit T to a plain ol cotton one. I think this has something to do with the fact that I sweat like a donkey while running. I am certain as I am picking out my shorts & tshirts that once I have them on, I will look like this:

Another purchase? New shoes. Ahhh, new shoes.

Structured cushioning with gel padding here there and in the corners as well as duomax support. All this for medium-arch-mild-over-pronators like myself, hoping to obliterate the knee and shin pain I have after running. While I do run in Asics (and love them), I am not getting paid to put this picture up. Asics doesn't know me from Adam.

So I'm pretty motivated now to get out and try out my new digs. Hopefully the rain can hold off long enough to get some pavement time in!

Prayers please.

One of our sweet church members, quilter extraordinaire, and Young Life superwoman, Catherine Hanna, is currently battling for her life. She has a long history of health problems (most of which I've come to know about secondhand and am uncertain of details) including cancer and problems with her lungs and kidney. Last Monday, she fell and broke her hip. The surgery to correct the fracture was successful, but she remains on a ventilator in a medicated coma. According to an update today, the doctors feel her condition is grave. Her lungs have deteriorated significantly and they dont believe she will be able to come off of the ventilator.

Scott: "It would seem, at least for right now, that in order for Catherine to come home and resume her life, the Lord would need to intervene in a very real and powerful way. Even her doctor believed this."

So please take a minute to lift this sweet woman up to the throne room of God. Please pray for healing and the Lord's will for Catherine. Also, please pray for Catherine's family and the overwhelming stress they must be under at this time.

Lets review...

Remember a few days when I posted pictures of this card?

And remember how I said I wish I had a picture of little Cailen's bedding so the card made a little more sense?

Well look what I found!

So cute.

And remember when I said we would be getting a fancy new (BIG) table??

Well look what I found!!

I love it!

Even Mauve loves our new table!

We celebrated our new fabulous furniture by having a steak dinner. Yum!

Big Changes

Jordan and I are slowly turning our house into a home. Moving from a 700sq ft apartment into our house (1824sq ft!) means we have some small sized furniture in a large space.

Case in point: our dining table.

I love our little table. It has served us well for 3+ years now, but now that we have room for a bigger table and host weekly dinners with a dozen or more teenagers, it's time for something larger. So by this afternoon, we'll have our little two-seater replaced with a table that seats at least 6 (with room for more!). I am thrilled to have extra space- I LOVE having folks over and I LOVE to cook (obviously) but I hate having to do dinner around the coffee table. I also look forward to decorating the table! Yay!

But there is a little bittersweet element to our fabulous new furniture procurement (pictures to come- I promise!). Our little 2-seater has a silly special place in my heart- it was our first "big" purchase right after we got married. We had just moved to Fort Worth and needed something to eat on other than our couches. We bought it from Ashley Furniture and it was a perfect fit in our tiny space. Ahhhh, memories. I'll miss our little pub table.

Coming soon to a mailbox near you!

...well, some of you.

I've been a busy scrapper lately! My days off have been spent getting these next 2 invites ready for mailing.

A baby shower invitation for Catherine and her gestating girl Cailen. I wish I could find a picture of Cailen's bedding, which would show the inspiration for the shower invites! Catherine was a bit renegade, buying girl bedding before she was even pregnant! Happily, she is having a girl this time and Cailen will be well-loved (Just like her big brother Carter!). I bought my plane tickets yesterday to make sure I could be at my bff's shower. Fort Worthians: this means I'll be in town from Thursday April 22 to Sunday April 25!

Then the next is my fab sister's graduation announcement! I was totally thrilled when Casey said she'd like me to make her announcements and then I was even more excited when she said she'd rather have something fun instead of the traditional graduation cards. YaY! I also have plane tickets in May to be by Casey's side when she gets her degree! Augustans: This means WE (jordan and I) will be in town Thursday May 6 until Tuesday May 11.

Then we will be gone again June 4-12.

And July 11-15.

And potentially July 24-31.

In other words: the next 4 months are literally going to fly by in a busy/crazy/stress-inducing way!

In my Easter bonnet and sunday best...

Lets all remember that just like Christmas isnt about Santa or presents, Easter isnt about a bunny or plastic grass. The veil is torn! (Luke 23:45) The tomb is empty!! (Luke 24:3) Jesus is alive!!! (Luke 24:5-6)

Praise God for the purification of sins made through Christ Jesus our Lord!

Happy Easter!!!!