eager little mind

I have the worst habit of saving posts in my Google Reader to a point where they become completely unmanageable. Currently, I’m up to over 700 starred items. Some I want to keep, some I was just putting off reading. Time to do some spring cleaning. Here are a few links/posts I wanted to share:

-Completely in love with this studio tour, and home tour. Can I move in? I used to be a big fan of really saturated colors on the walls, but I’ve come to love the simple, clean white wall with lots of art and photos.

-Cute Fairy themed party.  Daphne has just started to like Tinkerbell, or Tinkbell as she calls her.

-Too many cute party ideas, not enough occasions… love these meringue message cones from Hostess with the Mostess.  You could stick a small rolled up invitation inside the cone for a summer ice cream party.

-Vintage inspired “travel” posters for all your favorite Star Wars destinations.  Love.  Love.  Love.  Do you think it would be too geeky to have one of these in your living room?  Not that I really care

-And another Star Wars link… free book Goodnight Forest Moon.  None of that old lady whispering shh, and bowl full of mush crap.  (Can you tell I dislike Goodnight Moon?  Dull.)

-Adjustable waist pant tutorial.  Going to be very helpful, since D’s no longer in diapers and her pants keep falling off.

-Very cute monster art tote tutorial for little boys, or little girls who like monsters.  Filing this away for future gifts.

-Oh, you know I’m a sucker for a cute headband.  But cute flower and feather headbands on a newborn?  So cute I can’t stand it.  Check out this post by Peekaboo Photos.  LOVE the peacock feather headband.

-Or maybe this vintage cat eye glasses onesie will just push me over the edge.  Hmm… maybe a shirt for Daphne.  Or one for me.  But that would probably look dumb since I do wear cat eye looking glasses.

-List of artist at this years Renegade Craft Fair in Austin, TX.  I soooo hope to be there.

-The IndieFixx penpal project that I’m a part of.  Love the idea of bringing back snail mail, plus it gives me an excuse to buy cute stationery.

-And I might have to make this for Daphne’s birthday party.  Alice in Wonderland skirt tutorial from Lil Blue Boo.

Way too many amazing things on Etsy lately. I need more money in my Paypal account. Ha!

Here are my recent faves:

What are you loving on Etsy, lately? Comment with a link.

Need a pick-me-up today? Check these out and I guarantee you’ll be in a better mood.

The dance sequence from (500) Days of Summer. I loved this movie.

Katrina and the Waves, Walking on Sunshine (sorry, won’t embed). Cheesy but effective.

Some of these pictures are just priceless. My Parents Were Awesome.

And if those don’t work, hey, at least tomorrow is Friday! Uh, the 13th. Ok, nevermind.

It’s a rainy, blah day here in Houston. Perfect weather for staying inside and watching TV, reading, and planning this week’s menu. Here’s my stack of books for today:

First up, recipe search and menu planning. I have 5 pounds of apples and am looking for ideas, preferably savory. Thinking of trying this- Rosemary pork tenderloin with harvest apples. Do you have a good apple recipe to pass along?

- Frank Stitt’s Southern Table. Stitt is an award winning chef from Birmingham. This book is just gorgeous.
- Stop and Smell the Rosemary. Junior League of Houston cookbook. Supposedly contains the best tortilla soup recipe ever. I need to try it. Some of my favorite cookbooks are from Texas Jr. Leagues, like Austin’s Necessities and Temptations, which is out of print. But if you are ever visiting Austin, you can pick up a copy in the capitol building gift shop.
- Barefoot Contessa Family Style. I adore Ina Garten. She’s my favorite celebrity chef.
- And just for fun, Julia Child! I grew up watching a bunch of public television, including Julia Child’s show. This was a birthday present from my sister and I’m trying to figure out what I will make first. Nothing involving gelatin, bone marrow or tripe

And a few photography books:

- Photojojo! So many great projects in this book.
- Exposure and Lighting for Digitial Photographers Only. One of the many photography books we have around the house.

And a crafty book:

- Pop Goes Crochet. What a fun book! 36 crochet projects inspired by pop culture. The first project that caught my eye was a retro, felted purse inspired by Dita Von Teese. I love Dita’s sense of style and she is one of my favorite people to follow on Twitter. She’s always off on some fabulous adventure. I’m also thinking of making the Doris Day scarf in an olive green wool yarn I’ve had for ages. I just need to find my hooks.

And just for fun:

- A Sookie Stackhouse book, From Dead to Worse.

What are you reading?

In case you can’t see them live, YouTube will live stream this Sunday’s U2 concert at the Rose Bowl.

Good reads at Generation Meh (Your Poker Face Won’t Save You)
and The Happiness Project (Who’s in a Starring Role).

10 Tips for a Sharper Image by Amy Wenzel.

Bad Banana on Twitter. His tweets always make me laugh.

Apple Cider Donuts on Smitten Kitchen. Someone make these and tell me how they are. They look yummy!

Enjoy and happy reading!

From my Flickr Faves:

1. IMG_1314, 2. Scrap bucket, 3. Birdy Applique-Freezer paper stencil tree, 4. freezer paper stencil, 5. fabric flower, 6. Fabric flowers, yay!, 7. Fabric flower garland, 8. IMG_4934, 9. Farmer’s Market Twin Bedding, 10. Wreath Round Up, 11. kanzashi projects4, 12. Kanzashi Bag, 13. Kanzashi Vintage Purse, 14. today, 15. Purple in Love, 16. Ava in Brown, 17. little girl’s dresses quilt, 18. Back to school clothes, 19. The yellow cabinet, 20. snow bunny, 21. scrappy owl treat bag, 22. Campy and the Mallows, 23. My fabric buffet, 24. summer FUN

Mom and I had a good time at the Nutcracker Market on Saturday. After 2 1/2 hours we had only made it through maybe 25% of the booths. I didn’t buy much, in fact I only spent $25 on a hat and 5 hair bows for Daphne. And then I spent another $20 on a mimosa (for brunch, I guess) and a baked potato and Diet Coke for lunch. $4 for a 20 oz. Diet Coke. Don’t you just hate how they screw you over on concessions?

The place was packed!!! And honestly I didn’t see much I was interested in, with the exception of this charm from Waxing Poetic.

I have all my mom’s old sealing wax and seals (from her high school days?), so these charms remind me of them. In case you didn’t know, I’m a necklace person. I pretty much wear necklaces all the time and the more unusual or interesting, the better. Maybe I’ll put this charm on my wish list for Valentine’s Day or something.

While I’m on the topic of my wish lists, I’ve added another item: a commissioned watercolor portrait from Sitting Pretty Studios. How awesome would it be to have a watercolor portrait of Daphne as a toddler? I’d LOVE it and it would be something I’d hold onto forever. Grosgrain is giving away a 9.5″x11.5″ custom portrait. Unfortunately, I never win anything. Ok, I take that back. Once at a women’s retreat they were giving away door prizes and I happened to be sitting near the front and had to draw the names. I drew my own name. Then I felt like a big cheater. Then the woman handing out the door prizes made a joke about it. I mean, like I orchestrated my own win or something. Please.

I love Worth1000’s Star Wars Photoshop contest because it merges my slightly geeky sci fi side with my love of fine art. I can’t pick a favorite- maybe the Yoda Bouguereau or the little girl holding the AT-AT, and the Adam & Eve with Chewbacca is pretty funny. I’m so impressed with the Photoshopping skills (well, in most of the entries)!! Check it out!

This is totally me:

You might not be able to read the caption, but it says “Jenny spent many a pregnant night dreaming of breast-feeding, washing hemp diapers, and handcrafting education toys from pieces of twine. And then she had the baby.”

I was one of those people who said my kid won’t watch TV until she’s much older, and even then in moderation. Then I had the baby. And if 5 minutes of Noggin will snap her out of a fussy time and allow me to regain my sanity, then let’s watch Oswald, baby! I’m still on the fence about cloth diapers. I swear my child poops more than I thought possible. I should have started back when it was all breastmilk poop and not as offensive as real food poop. Yucko. Oh yeah, I also wanted her to play with handmade, organic toys, not loud obnoxious plastic stuff. Unfortunately she only likes loud, plastic stuff that requires batteries. She doesn’t even touch her stuffed animals.

I love Sloane Tanen’s work. She is so funny and I love those little chickens. A few years ago I had one of her calendars in my office, but my boss at the time was a little offended by the lesbian reference in Paige, so I took it down. Recently, I put her Hatched book on my Amazon wishlist without seeing any of the images and now that I’ve looked at a few of the prints I realize I must have this book. In Placenta, the chicken is babywearing!! (There’s a phrase you probably don’t see often, “the chicken is babywearing”) Only my fellow babywearing mamas probably find that as hilarious as I do. And Ned’s bedtime,
Goodnight Moon and Polygamist are pretty funny too. I think the book would make a really cute gift for a new mom.

Just a few links with tips on getting great fireworks shots:

Photojojo: 11 Tips for Sparkling Fireworks Photos

Scott Kelby’s Photoshop Insider: How to shoot fireworks

NYIP Fireworks Photos

Digital Photography School’s How to Photograph Fireworks