Serendipity + Whole Foods

Mere moments ago, I stumbled upon a blog that had a list with a line that said, “Whole Foods Recipe Box” and I thought, does Whole Foods offer its recipes online? Speedy quick, I typed in www.wholefoods.com and yes! Yes indeed. That fabulous company has a ton of online recipes with the option to create your very own recipe box.

I love that they have so many categories, including one for kids. And, based on a quick scan, the recipes look straightforward and fairly simple. Basic cooking skills seem to be the only requirement.

This is so exciting. Why? Well, I’ve found that making dinner is quick and enjoyable when I plan menus in advance. Plus we eat healthier. The trouble is, planning menus always feels like such a chore. I pour through my stacks of recipes (still waiting patiently to be organized in the binder I bought for that exact purpose several years ago) and books, looking for a good mix of interesting meals that won’t get the stink eye from K. It never really takes that long, it just feels like it does.

Now, with my snappy Whole Foods recipe box and newly organized utensil drawer, I’ll be planning meals and cooking up yummy, healthy foods with ease. Check it out. Check it out now. You will love it!

Me & the button tree

One of the things I love most about blogland is the wealth of creativity and tips — everything from easy ways to miter corners to packaging ideas. I find myself endlessly inspired and antsy to try new projects. And so begins the tale of how I found myself making a button tree. Yes, a tree made of buttons.

It began innocently enough. The supply list was temptingly short: tree-shaped styrofoam, buttons, pins. Check. I decided to alter the idea from the get-go by spray-painting the styrofoam silver. I figured it would be ever so much better to have silver sparkles peaking out through any small gaps. Excellent.

Then I set to work. Ah, very relaxing. Until this point:

At this point, you need to tap your inner engineer to solve many a spatial problem. What started as a speedy quick, relaxing project turned into a painstakingly intense challenge. I wondered, how many pins can one small styrofoam cone take? Turns out, hundreds.

I was not about to give up but I told anyone who would listen that I would not be making a forest of these anytime soon.

Pinning the last button in place was indeed a happy moment.

The finished product is rather pleasing (and not blury in real life!). And the silver spray-paint was a brilliant touch, I must say. This little cutie is going off to a friend who loves pink. And you know, I just might make a few more. Success has transformed my momentum into a desire to repeat (last sentence courtesy of Sage)!

Pay it forward

I’m a blog collector. My collection of bookmarked favorites continues to grow as my tastes evolve and I discover the favorites of my favorites. Take a look at the “blogroll” on any blog and you’re likely to find a list of like-minded people or, at the very least, an interesting spot to visit.

While my favorites list has changed over the past two years, a few of my first loves are still on my daily travels. Ali Edwards’ blog is one. And from hers I recently discovered Molly’s Journal, which quickly became bookmarked for her thoughtful writing and gorgeous photos. It was there that I read about a “pay it forward” handmade exchange. It works like this:

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don’t know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week, but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog.

Wanna play along? Just leave a comment. The first three people to leave a comment will receive a PIF handcrafted item from me. Now, I know some of the visitors to this blog don’t have a blog. Comment anyway! The way I look at it, there are many ways to pay it forward. 

Note to self

Is it really Wednesday? The days slip and blur as I catch up after the crazy work deadlines and volunteering. Traveling through blogland this morning, I learned about a new book that lead me to a new blog where I found this:

We’re only living this day once. Let’s slow down and taste it.

Oh yes! That’s exactly right. Just what I needed to see. Just what I need to remember.

Sweet & sinister

I just participated in my first blog swap — the Sweet & Sinister Swap organized by Kari, a craft blogger I read for ideas and inspiration. I remember when I read about it. I thought, it would be fun to do a swap someday; went upstairs to put laundry away and then sped back down to sign up. No time like the present and all that.

In case this is all Greek, let me explain. Swaps happen all over blogland. Someone comes up with a theme, sets the specifications, invites participants and then pairs them up. You send to one person and that same person sends back to you. Reminds me of these funny treasure hunts we did growing up. All the kids in the court would take turns emptying their drawers of trinkets and items they no longer wanted, hiding everything in a designated treasure spot (i.e., their backyard). All the treasure seekers were invited to keep whatever they found.

Swaps take a bit more planning but are even more fun than those treasure hunts. The Sweet & Sinister swap required each participant to send something sweet, something sinister, something handcrafted and something decorative. Interpretation of each was up to each participant. Oh, and everything had to be black + white, orange ok as accent. Here’s a shot of the items I sent to Jennifer in Texas right before they were boxed up:

Oh I just love packaging things! And it was so exciting to watch for the mail this week. On Thursday, I was spoiled by my S & S box from Jennifer:

Look at those tags + cards! And the glittery candles … you can never have too much glitter I always say. I’ll be swapping again, that’s for sure. Thanks Jennifer!

My space

Not to be confused with MySpace, which I don’t care for. I love blogs, podcasts, YouTube … all social media really except for MySpace. Probably an age thing. And yet you see how I was still compelled to hyperlink it? Things that make you go hmmmm.

And still more hmmmm’ing … this post was intended to be a quick one. Just a glimpse of my view as I work, which I find particularly charming today. And really, what better reason for a blog post?

But now I’m stuck on the MySpace thing, which reminds me to tell you about Scott. I was at MySpace today during an Internet Field Trip to check out all the ways this guy named Scott who wears a nametag that says, Hello my name is Scott, promotes himself, his books and his speaking gigs. He’s funny and clever. Check him out.