That time of year

It's that time of year again. I woke up to a dusting of snow on my deck and little flurries swirling around the dogs as they went out to pee. Crap. I hate the cold. Guess it's time to break out these bad boys!

(image via LLBean.com)

And whenever those guys come out, these guys aren't far behind.
(image via zappos.com)

Coolest bike EVER!

Have you seen these bikes? They're made by an amazing company called Madsen. How awesome would I look toting around my big and little dogs, groceries or even the kids I nanny for with this puppy?!

Pictures of....well, me.

I happen to take all of the photos of myself for my Etsy store. Okay, that's not entirely true, my friend Annie took the photos at the Biltmore Estate for me. Other than that one shoot though, all pictures have been taken by me. Of me. This means I have hundreds, if not thousands, of photos of myself on my computer. Is that kind of weird? I think it is, but it doesn't bother me. (and TRUST me when I say there are hundreds, if not thousands of HORRID pictures of me too!) I am one of the rare breed it seems that enjoys having their picture taken. Maybe it's because I've been told all my life I should be a model*. Maybe I'm just a narcissist? I don't know. I do think I photograph better than some other people... but ONLY when I take the pictures myself. haha. That's kind of like saying "only after I photoshop the pictures into non-recognition". Anyway, it's a lot of work for me to come up with a look and then try and execute it so when the pictures come out good, I get really excited. I happen to really like how my hair turned out after this last photo shoot ( I slept in foam rollers, people! Do you know how much dedication that takes?!) So I am shamelessly putting them on my blog. And my facebook page. And my Thimble Kiss fan page. Okay, so now I'm kind of sick of looking at myself, but that probably means I'm not a narcissist, right?! Good.






*"You should be a model because you're so tall!" Gee, thanks.

Imitation is the sincearest form of flattery, right?

I did a photo shoot for Thimble Kiss today. If you are my friend or fan on Facebook than you know this. I kept thinking that this one photo I took looked SO familiar and then it struck me! It looks just like the photo from the Lady Grey pattern over on Colette Patterns! I've been seeing this pattern a lot recently since the lovely Gertie is leading a sew along for it. Okay, so it doesn't look like the photo from the pattern, but the button that Gertie made for the sew along. Close enough! I'm not brave enough to do a coat yet, but one day The Lady Grey will be mine! =)
(photo credit to Gertie over on Blog for Better Sewing!)

Ugly Crush

Do you have anyone you have a crush on that is less than stellar in the looks department? Mine are all musicians, but yours could be authors or movie stars. My mom's ugly crush is Tommy Lee Jones. She says his "confidence is sexy." George brings this up EVERY time Tommy shows up in ANYTHING.


My number one ugly crush will always be Adam Duritz. I love the Counting Crows SO much and the pain in which he sings some of the most beautiful words ever... well, it gets me every time. I must not be the only one because he's dated some of the most beautiful women in Hollywood including Courteney Cox, Mary Louise Parker and Jennifer Aniston. He's (I think) still dating Emmy Rossum. I also was on a flight with him once from Newark, NJ to Orlando. He sat right across from me while we were waiting to board the plane and looked at me at least 20 times. Its probably because the color of my face was going from pale white to deep purple. I ♥ him. (Just not as much as this guy apparently... scary. )




My latest ugly crush has been Win Butler, the lead singer for Arcade Fire. Now, I say ugly, but he isn't really. He's just not what I'd normally be attracted to. I was home in Savannah recently and late at night I caught a live show Arcade Fire did on tv. Ever since then, the crush has been full on. There's just something about him! I can't put my finger on it. That cute girl in the yellow dress? Totally his wife. =)
"We Used To Wait" Oxegen Festival 2010.

10 Things About Me

Carolyn over on Diary of a Sewing Fanatic passed on the challenge to post 10 things about your self you've never posted before. Well, considering I'm such a crappy blogger, unless you know me personally you probably know very little about me, actually! Okay, here it goes.

1. I don't feel completely validated in calling myself a crafter or even 'crafty' most of the time. I know, I have my own Etsy store, do craft shows and sell in local stores. I read all of these fabulous blogs from people who are SO much more talented than I am and who put SO much time in to their craft and I feel not worthy to even be partially in the same category. I know this has to do with some sort of weird crafting self esteem thing, but its true. I think it also makes me feel guilty that I don't spend more time on my craft business.

2. I don't like crafts/sewing projects that take more than one sitting! If I see a project sitting on my table, partially finished it makes me hate it. I like em quick and easy. I did finally make my first dress from a commercial pattern. It turned out to be a tent that was too short for me to wear. I fixed the tent part but am still going to have to give it to a friend because it's too short.

3. Most of the time I am too busy to miss my friends and family, but when I stop and think about them I get really sad. I have friends all over the country and my family is in Savannah, Ga. I go down to visit every now and then, but not nearly as often as I should.

4. My mom is still the most important person in my life. She rocks. I love her and I have a panic attack just thinking about the fact that there is a good possiblity that one day she won't be around. She is bitchy, has an attitude, can curse so well it will make any sailor blush and is my biggest cheer leader. She coddles me which I don't get anywhere else and is my go to person for advice. I wub her.

5. I am one of those crazy people who is obsessed with her dog. I actually have two dogs but clearly have a favorite. It may very well be because I'm his favorite too. =) (Said dog and myself.)

6. Custom orders for weddings stress me out so much I almost give myself an ulcer. Its so very personal and is completely about taste. What if they don't like what I've made? What if I can't find or make what they want? Ugh, I don't even want to think about it. (Custom wedding order)

7. I love fabric way more than I love sewing. Actually, that's not completely accurate. I love sewing too, just not all of the ironing, pinning and cutting you have to do first. I'm also not that great at sewing. I'll take a shortcut if you give me one and usually my stuff comes out pretty sloppy. That's handmade, right? I need to get better at that.

8. I am going to be trying to get into a competitive program at school this year. I'm trying to get into the medical sonography program (think ultrasounds). There are only 11 spots in the program and roughly two thousand applicants every year. What if I don't get in? It makes me want to wet myself to think about.

9. If you haven't guessed by the theme of this list, I'm a Negative Nancy. Glass half empty all the way! I can't help it, and the sad thing is I'm usually right!

10. This is the biggest secret, even to the people who know me personally. All five of you that read this blog (that includes the strangers! haha) will be the few in on the gig. George and I have pretty much decided that we aren't going to have kids of our own. In some ways, that feels weird to me because my entire working career since I was 15 has been about kids. I love them, they love me and I'm good at my job.

(The rugrats I currently nanny for)



Its not that we're never going to have a 'family', in fact its the opposite. We fully plan to adopt. We're pretty dead set on it. I don't know exactly from where or when, but we'll probably have to get started on the loooooong process in the next few years. It's super expensive too. We would definitely want a newborn. The craziest thing about it all as that a lot of the agencies I've researched will adopt to a single mother, a divorcee, and married couples, but not couples who aren't married. In theory, I get it, but George and I have been together 9 years. I don't really see us separating anytime soon and even if we were married who says we wouldn't get divorced? Because of this however, I think we are going to have to get married, soon. Most agencies require you're married for at least a year, usually two. I'm not sure how I feel about this. I have created a comfy little identity with not being married but being committed to him. I believe in the reasons why we've stayed this way for so long. If we do get married, it will be an uneventful thing at the courthouse that resembles notarizing a legal document, but it still irks me. Anyway, off of my tangent, I am excited and nervous and terrified of the process all at the same time.

Lets Cook! Kale, Sausage and White Bean Soup

This is a good recipe. Super easy, quick and delicious. I say 'recipe' loosely as you can pretty much do whatever you want with this soup. Throw in a little of this or a lot of that if you want. Make it thicker by using less stock or more soupy by blending half and adding more stock. You can make it veggie by eliminating the sausage and using veggie stock. You still have the white beans in there for protein and sometimes I make it that way just for a change. Either way, its delicious.



I used leeks because I had them. Slice them in half length wise then chop crosswise and throw in a big bowl of water. That way, if there is any sand in them (which there usually is, don't skip this!) it falls to the bottom of the bowl. Swish them around every now and then.

This time, I added sweet potatoes. Sometimes I use regular potatoes or no potatoes at all.


TIP! When you go to drain the leeks, use a slotted spoon instead of just pouring them all into a strainer. You don't want all that grit you just washed out to get dumped back on them!

I add a little olive oil to the pot to help my sausage brown up. Its a local sausage I've used a lot so I know it doesn't give off too much fat.


Local sausage I use. I like the hot kind, but any kind will do.


Brown up your sausage in the olive oil and when most of the pink is gone, go ahead and toss in your leeks. Drain the leeks well first and maybe even roll them around in a dish towel to dry them.

I use this prepackaged kale. Its already chopped and ready to go. I used about half of this big bag.


Let your Kale wilt down a little bit. Stir the sausage and leeks around with the kale (making sure you're not leaving your sausage on the bottom of the pot to burn!)


Add your chicken stock. Scrape any bits of sausage that may have gotten stuck to the pan at this point.


Sweet potatoes, AWAY!


I used two cans of great northern beans, rinsed.


Grate in your garlic. If you ever chop garlic, you're a chump. Use a microplane like the cool kids do.


I forgot to take a picture of it, but I also added a big can of crushed tomatoes with about half the juice drained. I love smoked paprika so I add a generous amount of that. Also, add in salt and pepper of course and any other herbs you like. I did grate a little nutmeg in there too because I love nutmeg with dark greens.


Now we're looking like soup! All you should be waiting for at this point is for your kale to get tender and your sweet potatoes to be done. keep checking them and when they're soft enough for you, turn off the heat! You're done!

Good...


Better! Grate some parmesean on top and maybe a splash of lemon juice. DELICIOUS!