Friday, February 26, 2010

A Little Friday Afternoon Project...

So, on our wedding day, Michael and I had a jar and some cards out for our guests to write little tid-bits of advice for us as newlyweds. I forget the idea that we had for when and why we'd read the bits of advice, but we couldn't wait to read them once we got the jar home. I remember laughing at some of the advice and knowing that some advice is exactly what we'd expect from certain people. I also remember tearing up at how heartfelt some of the advice was, that was the greatest day of our life and we still marvel at how great it was...anyway, with all that said here is my little Friday afternoon project.

This is the jar holding the advice. It's been sitting on our nightstand since it made it home from the wedding. We have looked at it, but not as often as we'd like.
I got an idea when I saw these frames that I had lying around that haven't been put to use since I moved to Lancaster. You can see that they need another use. The light bulb went on.
Enter a pair of scissors, scotch-tape, and some paper that matches the detail the cards had. I am sure there is a better thing to use than tape, but I am using what I've got!
The first step was taping 2 pieces of the colored paper together and then tracing the mat the frame already had to get the correct size of paper I could mount the advice cards onto. I just traced around the mat and then cut out the paper.

Next, I arranged the cards on the mat in a way that I could make sure they were easy to read at a glance.

Add a little tape to the back, and continue with all the cards. It was best to lay them out before I started taping so that I knew how many I could fit in the frame.

I repeated the process with the 2 other frames I had and viola': some new art work for our bedroom walls.

I am sure why you are wondering why I am sharing this since you probably don't have advice cards from your wedding, but you may have something else that can reuse and give new life. I have some other frames that need new life so I am thinking of writing some of my favorite recipes out and framing them for the kitchen. Of you can use frames to give your child's art work the display it deserves! I feel like I've become more "crafty" in my days and I will continue to post my masterpieces!

Sunday, February 21, 2010

February Antics-Part 2-Skiing at Yosemite!

See, I told you there would be a Part 2. This month, although a short one, has been pretty busy! I am starting to work more and more and am beginning to finally figure it all out. I am happy to be working and am excited about what the future holds with this company. Although, I have a new job and am working, we had a ski weekend planned, so off we went to the cabin. We left on Thursday evening, only to be met by a serious accident on the 5 North in Gorman. The freeway was closed and it was literally a parking lot. Have you ever had to put your car in park and turn it off on the Freeway?? It is a crazy feeling...but an hour and a half later, we were on our way. Then we got to the fog...and slowly made our way to the cabin. We made it and after about 4 hours of sleep we were up and off to hit the slopes!!
We headed to Badger Pass in Yosemite. This is the 3rd year we've gone and are excited that it is becoming a tradition. Friday we skied and skied! Leah was in ski school and very excited about learning to become a skier. Of course, she had her sights set on the biggest hill there! The benefit of ski school is that it allows Michael and me to get some of our own skiing in. Friday started out sunny and by the end of the day is was pretty cloudy and starting to rain at our cabin about 40 miles away. You know what rain equals!!! SNOW!!! On Saturday morning, we met the mountain with a few inches of fresh powder and snow in the trees! The weather stayed cloudy and eventually it began to snow on the mountain. We left a bit early, because of white-out conditions!! It was such a good time for us to get 2 days of skiing in, and we look forward to continuing the tradition next year. Here are some pictures to enjoy!!


Leah, going down the hill!!
Me and the hubby on the chair lift!!


Day 2--the Snow in the Trees!!
Our Snow Bunny, showing off her skills!
The Snowy Weather






Sunday, February 7, 2010

February Antics-Part 1

This is a jam packed month of "stuff" so that is why there is a "Part 1"...look in a few weeks for another post about our upcoming ski trip...





Anyway, I have now worked 2 weeks at my new job as a tutor for Autistic kids. It is a LOT of work, but I am already in love with the kiddos I work with. Each kid brings a new set of challenges, but I look foward to the progess they will make with me...it will be very rewarding. We are adjusting at our house to our new schedule and I think it will work...Leah gets more time with Michael and I get a chance to make a difference in the lives of the families in our community!

Even though I've been busy with work, we managed to take a mini-trip to Huntington Beach for the Surf City Marathon and 5K this weekend. We went down on Saturday and in between rain storms we went to healty life Expo at the beach to pick up our packets...including our new shirts and bib numbers!! We then had a nice evening with dinner with Aunt Diana and Wii playing!! Leah is in love with Wii and couldn't get enough of it!! I managed a few games myself and Michael showed us how to Wakeboard and Jet Ski with a Wii!!

On Sunday morning, we were up before the sun to go to the Surf City Marathon and 5K. Michael did the half marathon and I did my very first 5K. I finished with my best time ever...which is still pretty slow, but I am proud of myself and look forward to the next time we get to race. Michael did well on his half marthon and even shaved off 15 minutes from his last 1/2 marathon time just 3 months ago. Leah got to do a kid run and ran a mile in just about 12 minutes. She is a trooper, and very patient waiting for all of us to finish our runs! My parents were great to watch Leah and be our paparazzi documenting the day!! After the race we had a great lunch at Buca Di Peppo...or whatever it's called! We even brought out doggies and they got to play with Charlie...they are way too funny to watch! Here are a few photos of the run:
Here I am heading to the finish line...seeing my family gave me the boost to finish strong!!
Me, Michael and Leah after all of our runs!!


Leah's race, with me encouraging her to "keep on going, you're almost there!"