New Year's Resolution Fulfilled

Do you like to make New Year's Resolutions?
I do.
In fact, I take them very seriously and make a checklist out of them that I refer to throughout the year to make sure I stay on top of them.
I'm happy to say that my New Year's Resolutions for 2009 were as follows and fulfilled rather early in the year:

[x] get pre-pregnancy body back
[x] raise happy and healthy baby
[x] get out of the house regularly
[x] get last name officially changed
[x] get comfortable driving the Prius
[ ] stretch every day
[ ] make something for my baby

As you can see, was missing just two things...
But today I'm proud to say I accomplished one of them!
Introducing, Ella's new legwarmers!!


I got the pattern from I Knit, That's It and am so thankful for the super easy pattern and versatility! It was also the first time I used Daddy's size 5 bamboo needles and was pleasantly surprised at how good they felt! Nice and smooth with just enough grip~
Perfect for keeping Ella warm, while also making it easier for upcoming potty training!!!
I'll definitely post the future pairs of this that I make too. ;)
'Til then!!

I love December

:: Christmas songs.
:: Baked goods.
:: Fires in the fireplaces.
:: Thinking about loved ones...

And thinking of creative ways to both celebrate the holidays but still keep my basic waste-free, environmentally conscience values.
So, say hello to our tree this year!


After Daddy's new (made in the USA!) bicycle came in from Worksman Cycles Factory, we had a big old cardboard box we didn't know what to do with.
So Daddy came up with the brilliant idea of repurposing it into this year's Christmas tree!
Standing at a whopping 1'3", our tree is made of the following elements:

:: thrifted dowel makes up the trunk

:: cardboard box gave us the tree and branches

:: scraps of yarn were turned into bows and "tinsel"

:: silver and green paints saved over the years gave us that extra color

:: chocolate kisses give us ornaments as well as a tasty treat now and then ;)


I love my husband and the holiday spirit and an environmentally gentle alternative to killing a tree or buying an artificial one. I hope this little guy lasts through the years and we can add more and more to him.

Stay warm and happy holidays to you~

Newport

Today we went to Newport with the family -- Nana, twin sis, her BF, Daddy, and Ella.

The weather was the most cooperative it had ever been while there and we got to stop by all these shops I'd never been too. Here is Ella in the candy shop with some radiant lollipop rays coming from her head. And the proud auntie in her new scarf too. :)
Ella will be 8 months on the 1st!!
Crazy, right~?


Stay warm, everyone!

Spreading the love...

Happy day!!
My twin sister and her boyfriend came down today to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with us :)
And finally after two weeks of laboring, I finished the garter-stitch scarf I made her!
Why does it always seem to take two weeks for me to finish anything...?
Anyway, here she is wearing it proudly~


I made it out of one of those "1 Pound of Yarn" skeins and it is a very gentle and soft pink. With pink and purple tassels! Not shown here, but you can imagine it I'm sure ;)
And she was so taken by the craft that I got to sit down and teach her how to sew the basic knit stitch!! It feels so good to teach knitting to others and knit quietly together.
She is now working on a scarf for her boyfriend and doing smashingly well. Maybe she'll even get it done in less than two weeks!!
Well, that's all in the world of knitting this week.
Take care and Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Newspaper Logs

The weather has gotten pretty chilly out here in the Northwest. And what with having a fireplace, there's no way we're going to spend this winter without some cozy fires to warm our feet and souls.
But instead of going out and buying chopped up wood, I figured we could repurpose all the newspapers we've been accumulating after reading!
So, behold! Newspaper logs:


The steps are pretty simple for making these...

1) Spread open newspapers and pile on top of each other

2) Roll nice and tight

3) Dip in bowl of water/run water over them (this encourages them to retain their log shape)

4) Tie with yarn

5) Let dry for at least 2 days

And there you have it!
They burn pretty well though they do create a lot of fine gray ash that you have to clean up after.


And so you have our first fire in Oregon:


Enjoy and stay warm, everybody!!

Homemade Dog Treats

With Thanksgiving coming up, I wanted to do something special for Take (pronounced, TAH-keh, for those of you who are unsure). ♡
So I whipped out this book I'd gotten a couple of years ago, Doggy Treats : Homemade Treats for Happy, Healthy Dogs, and whipped up some "Chicken Biscuits". What a great way to use the leftover chicken, I figured!
The recipe, as you can see, is quite easy:

• Chicken leftovers (all the bits of meat still stuck to the bones in those hard-to-reach places)
  
• 3/4 C water
  
• 1/3 C vegetable oil
  
• 1 egg
  
• 3 C whole wheat flour

1) Shred off the meat of the chicken from the leg, wing, etc from your leftover chicken. A good 1/2 C. outta do it.

2) In a large bowl, mix oil, egg, and flour.

3) Stir the shredded chicken meat and water into the dough.

4) Knead the dough on a floured surface until firm.

5) Roll out the dough to 1/2-inch thickness

6) Cut out shapes with cookie cutter (or, as I used, a metal 1/4-C measuring cup)


7) Place cookies on a baking sheet, 1/2 inch apart.


8) Bake at 325 degrees for 55 minutes.

9) Cookies will be firm to the touch when done. Leave them in the oven to harden after 1 or 2 hours.


Ta-da!!
I got 35 cookies out of this recipe. :)
Hope your doggies get a kick out of them, the way Take did!!

Bike Trailer!

Since moving to Corvallis, I've had bikes on the mind.
After all, one of Corvallis' big selling points for me was the many bike lanes you can find all over town. In fact, Bike USA listed Corvallis, 9th in the nation as a Bicycle Friendly City and Bike at Work listed Corvallis 9th in the nation as a car free community.
And with our location, we could easily hop over to the local supermarket, thrift store, or farmer's market without getting the car involved.

Then, as you all recall, our bicycles were stolen. I felt robbed of my mobility! ;_;
But with our new Africa Bike, I felt free again! ...Almost.
It's hard to get around without little Ella, so I started to look into another thing you can find all over Corvallis: bike trailers.
With these suckers, you can stick your kid (or even two!) in a secure little seat and add the groceries, clothing, or anything else you get on your errands about town!

Typical brands of these bike trailers include the Burley and Chariot, and are usually $200+, but wanting to be as non-consumery as I can be, I just kept an eye out on the local Craigslist...and after two diligent months, spotted a great deal on a used InStep Rocket!!

After waiting for the rainy weather to clear up, I finally took Ella out on her first ride, making sure she was bundled up enough for it:


Pants, mittens, hat, jacket...it was the whole kit-n-caboodle!
And then...the departure!!

I have to say, she loved it from the moment we strapped her in! First, I rode around the neighborhood just to get her acclimated. And once it was apparent that she comfortable and happy enough to even be singing to herself, I took her all the way to the LBCC for our mommy & me class. She fell asleep on the way, she was that comfy!!

Needless to say, I look forward to many a bike&trailer day!! ♡