you like me, you really like me!

i feel so ...sally field (sans the habit and ability to fly)...you're too young if you don't get that reference, and i refuse to explain it to you.  google, bitches. :D

i'd like to thank the academy beth, at make me pretty again for bestowing upon me, the (drumroll please)...

ok, now the fine print: 

1.  Thank the person who gave you this award. That’s common courtesy.
2.  Include a link to their blog. That’s also common courtesy — if you can figure out how to do it.
3.  Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly. ( I would add, pick blogs or bloggers that are excellent!)
4.  Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award — you might include a link to this site.
5.  Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

so..7 things about me? is it coincidental that there are 7 deadly sins?  hmmm..be suspect.

1.  i have a blatant disregard for majuscules, which is an antiquated term for upper case letters.  i like to think i'm channeling e.e. cummings, when in fact i'm just lazy about the shift key.

2.  i obsess over silly things that don't matter in the grand scheme of things, but thankfully i have a severe case of attention deficit disor..hey is that burlap?!

3.  i'd rather make something than clean up a mess.  and oddly, or not, there's often a mess once i've made something.  vicious cycle.

4.  my biggest fear is outliving my mom; she's my best chick friend.

5.  i love using semi colons.  no, really.

6. i'm not a big fan of chevron.  *gasp* there, i said it.

7.  i don't have a bucket list.

8.  i'm fairly irreverent and sometimes don't follow rules


ok, so wait, i'm not sure if i actually got this award or if i was just nominated (i just read the fine print)..wow, this a quite the faux pas if i didn't get it, isn't it?

and now, this is where i  alienate someone whose blog i love but have totally spaced out on.


first is my internet sister from another mister, sign maker extraordinaire and her name's not inndia.  she puts the nut in nutmeg and always makes me laugh.  say a prayer for her ill kitty and visit her at  nutmeg place.

andrea at queen b and me sucked me in with her bathroom remodel and i've been a fan of her blog ever since; she's got great ideas and such flair!

i'm not sure when i started following deanna at it's just me, but i'm sure glad i did.  she finds -the- best junk, cheap! -and- her chest of drawers is one of the most beautiful furniture refinishes i've seen online.

and speaking of furniture refinishing, carolyn at my simple messterpiece constantly has me drooling over her furniture re-dos.  oh and that laundry sign.  sigh.

when i grow up i wanna be carol from the polka dot closet.  seriously, the woman has it all together, makes the most lovely crafts with flair and aplomb and has a booth at an antiques mall.  i love how she shares information like pricing and what sells and what doesn't.  the woman's all class.

so there's five, i'll  work on the next ten and get another post in, k?

xo

silhouette cameo giveaway

pink by design is giving away a silhouette cameo.   who doesn't want one of these?

center of attention sunday! sunday! sunday!

sorry this is so late, today totally got away from me!  i was up at 6am painting my terra cotta pots and planting before the monsoon hit.  check out my blog post to see what i made today, i'm pretty pumped about it.

jazmine at keep it krafty's been keeping it busy since she moved into her new place, her bathroom reveal showed us all that with just a little creativity you can completely change the look of a small bathroom by replacing old dingy shower doors with a new curtain. instant gratification at its finest!  great job jazmine!

if i had a 'you did what?!' award it would definitely go to karen at somewhat quirky this week, as she rounded third base and slid home into her daughter's gorgeous bed frame narrowly escaping the tag and scoring a home run! seriously, this head board was is, and will once again be drop dead gorgeous.  i wish i were karen's daughter.  (i'm glad i'm not her ass right now!)

kim at reposhture has the most adorable daughter, tessa.  i want to bite her face she's so cute! (not in a mean way) i couldn't decide which was cuter, the cake or the child.  twist my arm, the cake's great, but the kid's a winner!  happy birthday tessa, your mom makes a rockin' rapunzel cake!

and finally, from the long list of submissions *pregnant pause followed by a rimshot -ba dum dum-* stacy at handmade by stacy vaughn shared these wicked amazing jumbo scrabble tiles.  i am coveting these cause i think they're super cool.  i'd love to make a giant scrabble board on the patio and use these with it.  i'll need the patio first...(minor detail).

ps? if she'd make an 'i' and stick it in there, she could make my name.  hint hint.  ;)


thanks everyone for linking up, the party's always small, but i love looking at your stuff no matter what.
i'm going to hold off on the link up this week because i won't be around much this weekend.  look for center of attention sunday! sunday! sunday! next week.  same bat time, same bat channel.

this brightens up a rainy sunday

i've been admiring a set of terra cotta pots on pinterest that were painted with a house number and decided yesterday that this would be my rainy day project for today while the mister finally finished getting all the tongue and groove up on the ceiling on the porch.  was i in his way? definitely. 

so now my mom and my sister each want a set. 

i work part time once a week at j. crew as a personal shopper (yes, i do it just the the discount). a few years ago we sold the cutest rainboots ever and i think i have 4 pair that have been sitting in the hall closet for a few years now.  they're getting more use now.  i loaded the bottom with some 3/4 stone, used some larger rocks in the shaft and a plastic chinese soup container with holes drilled in the bottom fit perfectly in the top.
these boots have an adorable floral strap on the side, that i didn't get in the photo :(  and those are two real birds nests next to the boots.  we found the nests between the joists of the porch.  no birds were hurt during this project, they'd long ago flown the coop.

and one more photo of my painted pots.  i'm totally digging these, so glad i tried it.

this brightens up a rainy sunday. linking up to:

more randomness

so hey, help a girl out, wouldja..click on that advertiser's link over there on the left. it doesn't hurt, really. you can close it right away. two clicks, one in and one out and you've helped a girl out. it's easy and i've made a pledge to click at least one advertiser's link on each blogger's page i visit, won't you too?

 2000 page views. i'm the sh*t. stop laughing. i get a little giddy when i see that my blog's been viewed 2000 times in a month. that's a pretty big deal to me and my center of attention deficit disorder. so thanks for looking at me!

as a fluke i put the thrift store cookie jar on craigslist for $25. someone wants it! holy crap. so either i'm going to get raped and pillaged when they meet me or they're really gonna give me $25 for something i got for $4 and took literally six minutes to make. (don't worry about the rape and pillage, i'm having them come to where i work, it's a very public place).

what else, what else? the kid's hitting .541 right now in 6 games and has a slugging percentage of 1.125 and her high school team has won their last six games straight. god i love living vicariously through my daughter! why yes, i WILL have another piece of cake!

 it's really hard to be creative without a printer. i had the other half lug home the big color laser from the office this weekend, but it's rough schlepping that back and forth. i really don't want to invest in a printer right now, i have a prom, a limo bus, a gown, a hairdo, shoes, accessories, college tuition deposit and a boatload of other senior year expenses to deal with. not to mention estimated quarterly taxes and college tuition coming up. oh and i really, really, really want a silhouette cameo. so i'll keep lugging the laser back and forth for a while.

does anyone remember the aol commercial years ago about spam protection..with the middle aged woman wearing a leopard print catsuit, knocking at the guy's door saying 'hey, wanna read my blog?' sometimes i feel like that woman....sans the catsuit.

i now return you to your previously viewed program without any further interruption. thanks for reading.

it's not christmas yet

but the porch ceiling is almost finished! one more full weekend oughta do it.

i also drilled a couple holes in my beach sign, strung some jute through it and hung it on my front door. it's a bit early for the beach, but it's going to be 90 degrees tomorrow! woo hoo!

the front door needs a paint job. it's coming. by christmas.

center of attention sunday! sunday! sunday!

last week's center of attention sunday was more like an informal gathering of a few friends rather than a party and i'm ok with that. i don't want to be a big, popular blogger, really. :D

i am serious about that last bit, i'm not sure i'd have time to visit 200 link ups. sometimes i wonder how some of these bloggers have time to cook, clean and raise a family, refinish three hundred square feet of furniture and blog about it. anyway, back to the business at hand, this week features everyone who linked up, in order of inlinkz views *drum roll please*

marilyn at 4 you with love found a .50 canvas of miley cyrus and did what any good american should; she painted over her. she then turned some odds and ends into an adorable wall hanging. this has 'fun' written all over it.

jazmine at keep it crafty has moved into her new place and commemorated her first house key with this super cute framed glitter key.

and i'm so happy carolyn at my simple messterpiece is feeling better and had time to share her garden edging turned cabinet top decoration. this makes me miss having open space atop my cabinets.

everyone loves a comment, be sure to leave one and brighten someone's day!

 <-------the code is up over there on the left

somewhat slacking

i feel like a slug lately, not doing anything productive since easter sunday, where we only got 1/3 of the porch ceiling up. to be fair, we only had 3 hours of work time, given that dinner at mom's was to be served promptly at 4pm. and there were showers to be had and desserts to be assembled. yes, we were late.

softball is in full swing with games mondays, wednesdays and fridays and i've traveled a good part of connecticut's shoreline to get to 'em. which leaves me slacking in the creativity department, mostly. with the mister having to work today, the porch got put off another day but i didn't mind because i've been itching to use the water slide decals that finally came. i picked up a great white shark cookie jar at a local thrift shop whose sales benefit the disabled. $4! and it's huge! and pretty.

and prettier now, i believe, yeah?

and since that took a whopping six minutes to complete, i was up and out of the house by 11am, which is like sunrise in mcvick speak. i hit up six tag sales, two thrift shops, goodwill and joan's, coming home only with clearance acrylic paint from joan's. oh and this simple set of three wooden trays that i've already sanded and painted with one coat of paint.

the wheels are turning and i'm contemplating mother's day gifts with these. a blackboard cheese tray for my mother in law, a graphics fairy simple black silhouette on white for my mom and i'm keeping one for me! i'm thinking some utensils from graphic's fairy

and just to prove to myself that i could, i made a sign with some leftover wood from the bedroom ceiling project.

i applied a thinned coat of raw umber acrylic paint to pre-primed scrap of 1x6, let that dry, brushed on a nice healthy coat of elmer's glue, let that dry just a bit but still tacky and painted on some linen white that i made with old clay beige and untinted white satin paint. this is the same color mix i used for the french graphic on burlap tray here . sign painting is so much easier now that i've found sharpie paint markers. i just print out my graphic, rub the back the paper with artist charcoal and trace over the outlines onto the surface i want to paint. and because i drink wayyyy to much coffee and diet coke, the sharpie marker is a godsend. just outline the letters, paint the inside and it looks pretty sweet.

so i suppose i wasn't at all unproductive today. the mess in the house proves it. err... linking up at:

truffle fries and a tongue in groove porch ceiling

a natural combination like chocolate and peanutbutter, milk and cookies, ying and yang, right?

of course not, but that's what's on my mind this easter morning. it's quarter to ten and the kids are still in bed, no rush to rip in and devour the easter baskets anymore. *insert sigh* i miss the excitement. cherish your babies ladies, oh how the time flies.

i got my easter basket last night:.

rough cut french fries tossed in thyme, salt and truffle oil.

there is something so perfect about the combination of salt and truffle oil. it's earthy and addictive and your tongue just begs for more. i swear i'm going to put my misto sprayer full of truffle oil in my purse so that the next time i'm at five guys i can just douse their fries and be sated without the hour wait to get into the place i had these last night.

oh yes, and part two. the mister is gathering his eggstoolbelt as i type and we are going to ruin the peace and quiet of easter sunday morning with sawing, hammering, nailing and probably the occasional 'jesus christ!' when something goes awry (i promise to add, 'died on the cross for our sins' when this exclamation occurs)! this porch ceiling has been hideous for too long, that ends today.

if all goes as planned i'll have the 'after' pics by christmas.

center of attention sunday! sunday! sunday!

is it sunday already? this week has flown by so fast! i suspect the rest of the school year will too. i was just informed that there are 24 school days left for my youngest who graduates in may. where does the time go? well here we are, easter sunday; enjoy these features while you're sneaking marshmallow peeps and jelly beans.

center of attention this week is this amazing chest of drawers, refinished by it's just me in a word? unfreakinbelievable! i've seen many furniture re-dos, but this one just takes the cake. i love everything about this dresser, from the soft glazed color to the lines to the hardware to the fabulous distressing.

karen at somewhat quirky always makes me smile. while i'm not a religious person (12 years of incarcerationcatholic school) this quote really appeals to the spiritual side of me. i'm going to find something to do with this quote, by golly!

i'd like to thank all of you who linked up to my little party, i love seeing everyone's talents. you are all such great inspiration and even though it's a small gathering, i'm going to keep doing it; i hope you'll stay with me. so without further ado, let's get on to this week's center of attention sunday, shall we?

 <-------the code is up over there on the left

lemon kiss, no bake cheesecake bites

so there's this great recipe floating around pinterest for no bake nutella cheesecake by my baking addiction and i'm hooked. i've made it three times this week! once in regular custard cups because i was just dying to try it, the second for a family get together (remember the 3 olives grape vodka hangover?) to which i added frangelico liqueur and served in crystal irish coffee glasses and once for my daughter's team pasta dinner tonight in mini muffin liners (sans the frangelico). it's so freakin' good and wicked easy!

the ease of this dessert, multiplied by its deliciousness, prompted me to totally rip this off and make another version.  i toyed with the idea of a flutternutter cheesecake (which i'm still going to make, but not today) marshmallow fluff, peanut butter and a shortbread crust.  no, today was so bright and sunny, seasonably warm; a true spring day.  and then it hit me.  lemon. and not lip puckering lemon, just a silky lemon kiss.  so without further ado, i present the lemon kiss no bake cheesecake bite:

crust:
40 nilla wafers (i used the store brand and they're small, so about 1 cup crushed) i think those lemon cooler cookies might be really good too, that's an after thought.
3 T butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon grand marnier liqueur (because everything's better with a little alcohol, yeah?)

crush nilla wafers in the food processor, stream in melted butter and liqueur until well mixed.

line 36 mini muffin cups with paper liners. using a regular (not measuring) teaspoon, add a heaping teaspoon of cookie mixture to each cup and press down with the back of a spoon to compact and form crust.  set aside.

filling:

1 8 oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 8 oz container of non dairy whipped topping such as cool whip, thawed
1 10 oz jar of lemon curd (in the jelly/jam aisle)

1/2 teaspoon yuzo juice (you can substitute lemon, lime or orange juice)
1/2 teaspoon grand marnier liqueur (because i might be an alcoholic see above)

beat softened cream cheese and 3/4 of the jar of lemon curd (reserving the remaining lemon curd for decoration), juice and liqueur with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.   fold in the entire container of whipped topping. 

spoon into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip, or use a plastic zip loc bag with the corner cut (use a pinking shears for a similar effect) and pipe onto prepared crusts.  add the remaining lemon curd to another bag and place a small dot of curd atop each, adorn with a sugar pearl.

alternately, you can just suck the filling from the pastry bag right into your mouth  spoon the filling right onto them there crusts.

if you're patient, refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but they're really best set overnight.  if you're 
like me and haven't gotten sick sucking the leftover filling from the pastry bag, you wait 20 minutes and devour.  

these are a seriously easy treat, but look elegant when piped - great for your easter dessert.

linking up to:

'tis the season!

softball season, that is. and while i've made a semi-conscious decision to keep this blog free of personal stories, i can't help but gush with a little ok, boatload of pride this morning. my youngest daughter was just named one of the top 25 high school softball players to watch in the state. it's nice to see that her years of hard work and dedication have been recognized. this morning i am one proud mom!

 when my kids were little i found time to decorate the house, keep it clean, work and do some diy stuff and crafting. as they grew older and started playing sports the craft part diminished, then the diy. my youngest started playing travel softball when she was 9. so every weekend from april through august we'd leave the house friday, travel to a hotel and spend the next two days on the field and then spend an entire week at nationals in july. between that were 2 hour practices, twice a week, 30 miles from home, all year long. that's when the house decorating and cleaning fell to the wayside!

i did, however, learn to master the art of the jello shot, pudding shot and on-the-fly, party-in-the-hotel-lobby-with-12otherparents gourmet catering during that time. you'd be amazed at what you can concoct in a parking lot in the front seat of a chrysler pacifica with a blender hooked to the car battery!

(yeah, we do it right!)


while softball has taken up a huge chunk of our lives, time and finances, i wouldn't trade the experience for anything.  we've made wonderful friendships and realized the joys of seeing our daughter grow into a strong, determined, confident young woman who is headed to play division ii softball in college in the fall.

get your kids involved in sports, especially your daughters.  i'm a huge advocate of girls in sports; it keeps them focused, helps them learn to prioritize their time and builds great character.  also keeps them away from aimlessly hanging out at the mall ;)

center of attention sunday! sunday! sunday!

if i keep partying on saturday nights, i'm going to have to change the cad sunday to another day, because vodka hangovers are not conducive to writing.  by the way, three olives grape vodka and seltzer goes down very smoothly.

the party doubled this week and though i'm sure you're not all getting a lot of traffic from my little ole site,i personally love seeing your talents, so thanks for sharing.

jazmine at keep it krafty turned a $20 garage sale score into a fabulous center of attention stealing coffee table!  this is one resourceful young lady!  
see her how to here.

now my sister from another mister,meg over at nutmeg place had the second highest clicks and i'm not sure, but i think they might be all from me, cause i so love this sign.  i'm coveting it. i think she could easily repaint it to say 'center of attention deficit disorder' don't you?

 <-------the code is up over there on the left