Season's Greetings!

Happy holidays! Can you believe that it is almost Christmas Eve? It sure seems like it comes quicker with each passing year! I had high hopes at the beginning of the month to write numerous blog posts and include photos of the many holiday paper crafts that I have created and designed for the season. As you can see, that didn't happen! But, better late than never.



This is the holiday card that I created for 2011...some of you might have received one in the mail! I decided to go with a winter theme so that the card could easily be displayed beyond Christmas. Compared to some of the holiday cards that I have created in past years, this one was fairly simple because it consisted of only one layer. Despite it's simplicity, I love this card and I am very happy about how it turned out.

Although December has flown by, I did have some time to make some cute "doo-dads" (love that word!) for gift bags, and I also embellished some adorable notebooks that I found during one of my many visits to Michael's this month. Perhaps you were a lucky recipient of one of these notebooks. Wink wink!





Despite it being a very busy month with so much to do to get ready for Christmas, I have managed to relax while spending time with my dear friends. Although Christmas preparations can be fun (and stressful!), I think that my best memories from this season will be of the time I spent with family and friends. Speaking of family, I am off to spend Christmas with my parents this year in their "neck of the woods." For my readers who don't know where that might be, check back soon for highlights of my Christmas celebration, including photos! You can also keep up with me on Twitter (see the link to my Twitter feed in the right-hand column of my blog).

I hope that by now you have finished with all of your shopping and things on your holiday "to-do" list so that you can take time to relax, perhaps with family and/or friends, and enjoy this Christmas weekend. No matter how you choose to celebrate, I hope that you are surrounded by loved ones and experience many magical moments.

While I typically end my posts with a quote, today I am going to do something different. Do you happen to have a favorite Christmas song, or perhaps a Christmas tune that has gotten stuck in your head this year? After all, some of the radio stations around here have been playing Christmas music since before Thanksgiving! Anyway, I'll leave you with a few verses from one of my favorite Christmas songs, The Holiday Song (Happy Holiday) sung by Andy Williams. It seems that many people have a "love-hate" relationship with this song, but I happen to like it.

It's the holiday season
And Santa Claus has got a toy
For every good girl and good little boy
He's a great big bundle of joy
He'll be coming down the chimney, down
Coming down the chimney, down

He'll have a big fat pack upon his back
And lots of goodies for you and me
So leave a peppermint stick for old St. Nick
Hanging on the Christmas tree

It's the holiday season
With the whoop-de-do and hickory dock
And don't forget to hang up your sock
'Cause just exactly at 12 o'clock
He'll be coming down the chimney
Coming down the chimney
Coming down the chimney, down!

Happy Holiday
Happy Holiday
While the merry bells keep ringing
Happy Holidays to you

Happy December!

Happy Holidays! Now that it's December 1, it's officially time to start celebrating on my blog and I hope that you'll join me for some festive fun this month. It's sure to put you in the holiday spirit!

Throughout December I'll be featuring a variety of handmade holiday tags and other holiday-themed paper-crafting goodies here on my blog.

So, without further ado, here's a photo of a cute tag that would add an adorable touch to any Christmas package.



The darling ice skate was created with the On Ice stamp set and coordinating die available from Papertrey Ink. This is one of my favorite winter stamp sets because I have fond memories of waking up on Christmas morning and finding a new pair of ice skates waiting under the Christmas tree for me. My dad would take me to a frozen pond near our house, in Massachusetts, and I would lace up those skates and glide all around the pond for hours...or until it got too chilly! Now that I live in California, it's challenging to find a pond to skate on, but I do like to go to the small skating rinks that pop up in the area during the holiday season. It's the perfect way to feel like a child again.

"Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time."
-Laura Ingalls Wilder

Thanksgiving Weekend Wrap-Up

I hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to enjoy the long holiday weekend while taking time to reflect on the many blessings in your life.

I enjoyed having Thanksgiving dinner with my brother, Andy, and his girlfriend, Amber. I prepared a turkey breast as well as some other tasty side dishes including stuffing, cranberry-apple relish, green beans and dinner rolls. Andy and Amber also cooked some delicious sides - candied yams and mashed potatoes. It was a delicious and filling meal, but fortunately we weren't too stuffed for dessert! I'm not a big fan of pumpkin pie, so this year I chose classic apple pie. And while I do love to bake, I've never actually tried my hand at creating a pie crust from scratch, and I didn't think experimenting for Thanksgiving was a great idea. The pie came from Beckmann's Old World Bakery. Beckmann's is actually located in Santa Cruz, California, however they sell their items at the local Farmer's Market near my apartment each week. Their pies are delicious, as are the other goodies that they bake. Our dinner rolls also came from Beckmann's. I am very thankful that we were able to enjoy a delicious meal and spend time together.



The highlight of my day on Friday was watching "The Muppets." I am a huge fan of the Muppets and I have fond memories of watching "The Muppet Show" on television when I was a child. Do you have a favorite Muppet? I would have to go with Kermit as being my favorite, but Animal comes in as a close second. To be honest though, it really is hard to choose a favorite - I like them all! I have to admit, I have been singing "Mahna Mahna" since I left the movie theater! It's the perfect song if you want to put a smile on your face!

Photo Credit

In lieu of joining the "Black Friday" madness on Friday, I decided to go shopping on Saturday and while I did visit some of the "Big Box" stores, I made an effort to support the small businesses in my community in honor of Small Business Saturday. It just happened to turn out that I needed to buy some new yarn for some knitting projects that I want to complete, so I decided to visit Nine Rubies knitting store in San Mateo in honor of Small Business Saturday. I ended up finding some gorgeous yarn to add to my stash and I am looking forward to "casting on" some stitches very soon.



I will be enjoying my autumn decor throughout this week and I plan to put up a few Christmas decorations next weekend, when the calendar actually changes to December! I like Christmas, but it sure feels like Thanksgiving is rushed along more and more with each passing year. With that being said, I will admit that I did spend some time in my stamping studio over the weekend getting "crafty" for Christmas. My holiday greeting card is designed - now I just have to get to work on making multiples! And I also have big plans for getting my blog into the holiday spirit, beginning on December 1, so you'll have to check back then to see what I have up my sleeve!

Sending you wishes for a lovely holiday season and hoping that you find plenty of time to savor all of the magical moments during this most wonderful time of year!

"Keep your Christmas-heart open all the year round."
-Jessica Archmint

Honoring Our Troops on Veterans Day and Throughout the Year

Today is Veterans Day in the United States. I was fortunate to have the day off from work, and while that was a nice treat I thought it was important to take a moment to reflect about the meaning of this particular day.

Veterans Day offers an opportunity to celebrate and honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.

I spent part of the day thinking about what I might be able to do to say "thank you" to the men and women serving in the military, fully realizing that I wouldn't be able to personally thank each and every one of them! There are many ways to reach out to both veterans and those who are currently on tours of duty around the world, ranging from sending a care package or simply writing a letter to a soldier.



As I was browsing the internet this afternoon - something that I often do - I came across the following website: Operation Write Home. I was immediately intrigued when I discovered that this organization gathers blank handmade/hand-stamped greeting cards and sends them to troops so that they have cards to mail to their family and friends. What a perfect way for me to say "thank you" to our troops! It's a "win-win" situation for everyone: I get to make some cards (a favorite hobby of mine) and the troops end up with cards to send to their loved ones back home.



In honor of making my first batch of cards for this organization and the fact that it's Veterans Day, I decided to go with a patriotic theme. I am very happy with the final results. There is no minimum number of cards that need to be sent - you can send one or a hundred (quality is more important than quantity). I'm starting out by sending five cards this month and my plan is to send at least five cards each month, and if I have time I will send more. Hop on over to the Operation Write Home website for specific information about making cards.



Below is a photo of the inside sentiment on the "Happy Birthday" card. It works perfectly with the star theme.



As always, I'll wrap up this post with a quote that I recently came across:

"Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does."
-William James

Wishing you a wonderful weekend.

Happy Fall, Y'All!

Just popping by with a short post today and to wish you "Happy Fall" on this first official day of autumn. In honor of the new season I am including a photo of some of my recent paper crafting creations - a bookmark and a coordinating card. Isn't the patterned paper simply gorgeous?! Gotta love Papertrey Ink and all of their wonderful stamping supplies!



I am thrilled about the change of seasons since autumn happens to be one of my most favorite times of the year for a variety of reasons. The hockey season is about to get started - Go Sharks! And I am enjoying football - the New England Patriots are 2 - 0! I've pulled out all of my Halloween and autumn-themed paper crafting supplies and I'm looking forward to creating cards and other goodies. I am also excited about trying out some new recipes for homemade soups. A bowl of warm soup is perfect for dinner on a cool, crisp autumn evening. I've already made two apple desserts this month - Fresh Apple Cake and Cranberry Apple Cake (both turned out delicious and I highly recommend them). It's starting to get darker earlier, which provides the perfect excuse to curl up on the sofa, light a candle and get lost in a good book. And perhaps the most exciting thing - a trip to Disneyland (all decked out for Halloween) with my family for my belated 40th birthday celebration!

Wishing you a wonderful start to autumn and hoping that you find much coziness in the season.

"How beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days."
-John Burroughs

August Papertrey Ink Blog Hop

It's "Blog Hop" time at Papertrey Ink and I am excited to be participating this month! Papertrey Ink issues a challenge on the 15th of each month when new products are revealed on their website and participants have until the 25th to prepare their projects. A variety of crafting supplies can be used, however projects must include at least one Papertrey Item.

This month, the following photo (credit) was posted as inspiration for the Blog Hop:



This is a wonderful photo. It reminds me of a late summer afternoon and it has a very vintage feel to it - check out the lining on the suitcase! Most wonderful of all, it contains some of my very favorite things: books, strawberry jam (okay - I don't know for sure if it is strawberry jam, but that's what I am guessing), ribbon, flowers (in a lovely shade of pink) and a floral scarf/tea towel.

I love to read, and one of the first things I noticed in the photo were the two books in the suitcase. I have been wanting to make some hand-stamped bookmarks for quite awhile, so I decided that would be the first part of my project. Although it's still summer and the weather is nice here in Northern California, I know that autumn isn't too far off. I love curling up with a good book when the days begin to get shorter and cooler. Lighting a beautiful scented candle adds a warm glow and increases the "coziness" factor quite a bit. On that note, I decided to embellish a jar candle to coordinate with the hand-stamped bookmark. I realized that the bookmark and candle would actually make a wonderful gift, along with a book, so I also created a coordinating 3 x 3 card.



I wanted to keep my bookmark fairly flat without a lot of layers so it fits easily inside a book. I decided to include a button at the top, which looks very cute as it "peeks" out of the book. I chose the "Celebrate Today" sentiment because I feel that reading is something that really keeps us grounded in the present moment - and what is more joyous than taking some time each day to read a good book, your favorite magazine or perhaps even reading to your child?



Speaking of reading, you can see the book "The Help" in the photos with my bookmark. Yes, I'm a little late with regard to reading the book since the movie was released earlier this month, but better late than never! I am thoroughly enjoying this book - I was hooked from the first sentence! It's definitely one of those books where I could finish it in two days, but at the same time, I don't want it to end so I am taking my time...or at least trying to. I plan to see the movie, and I am hopeful that I will finish the book while the movie is still in the theaters. Of course there's always DVD!



Here is a list of supplies that I used to create the bookmark, jar candle and 3 x 3 card. All supplies are from Papertrey Ink unless otherwise noted. Stamps (Think Big Favorites # 4, Friendship Jar); Cardstock (Kraft, Pure Poppy, Spring Moss, Vintage Cream); Patterned Paper (Green Tea Leaves, Sugar Plum); Buttons (Ripe Avocado); Felt (Simply Chartreuse); Dies (Limitless Layers Collection 2.5 inches); Punches ( 1 1/4 inch and 1 3/8 inch circle); Self-Adhesive Rhinestones. The candle is from Michael's - one of their seasonally scented jar candles which are a great deal when they go on sale (perfect for stocking up to make gifts throughout the year).



Thank you so much for visiting my blog, whether you stopped by as part of the Papertrey Ink Blog Hop or you currently follow my blog. I am happy to have you here.



I always try and wrap up my posts with a quote and I happened to come across the following quote in the last couple days and thought it would be perfect for this post since it is related to reading.

"We read books to find out who we are. What other people, real or imaginary, do and think and feel is an essential guide to our understanding of what we ourselves are and may become."
-Ursula K. LeGuin

Wishing you a wonderful day.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Independence Day - a day to celebrate our freedom, enjoy all kinds of tasty food and watch the fireworks light up the sky! No matter how you might be celebrating today, I hope that it's a wonderful day.

As some of you know, I love taking photos of food. It's probably the most common type of photo that I post of my Facebook page. While it's fun to snap photos using the camera on my cell phone, I prefer to use my regular camera to capture the best images.

Included in this post are some food photos that I recently took which capture the essence of summer perfectly. I think you might get hungry as you scroll through these photos. Wink, wink.

Grilled Casper's hot dog, potato salad and grapes



Summer salad with feta cheese and other toppings



Hot fudge sundae with homemade strawberry ice cream



Buttermilk pancakes with fresh blueberries and raspberries



Do you have a favorite summer food and/or beverage? It would be very challenging for me to pick just one thing that I enjoy eating and/or drinking during the summer months because I have so many favorites. A few things that come to mind right away are pink lemonade, my mom's homemade potato salad and chocolate-dipped soft serve ice cream like the treat served at Dairy Queen.

Speaking of ice cream, I am off to enjoy a small scoop of the homemade chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream that I made earlier today using my new Cuisinart ice cream maker. Yum!

"Happiness is life served up with a scoop of acceptance, a topping of tolerance and sprinkles of hope, although chocolate sprinkles also work."
-Robert Brault

Summer Card Camp 2011 - Week 1

It certainly has been awhile since I've posted an entry highlighting one of my latest paper creations and because I originally created this blog to showcase my cards and other paper crafting goodies, I think it's time to do just that!

I recently signed up for the online Summer Card Camp class which began earlier this week. Each week day I receive an email filled with all kinds of card-making inspiration. At the beginning of each week a new color combination is introduced and we are encouraged to use our supplies to create our own card and post it in the class gallery to share with other class participants. It's easy peasy and tons of fun!



So, without further ado, here is my card featuring this week's color combination (as noted in the above graphic):



The following supplies were used to create this card:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink - Cupcake Collection, Flower Fusion 2
Paper: Papertrey Ink - Cardstock; Stampin' Up! - Patterned Paper
Ink: Tsukineko Memento - Bamboo Leaves; Stampin' Up! Classic Ink - Melon Mambo
Embellishments: Felt (Papertrey Ink); Button (Papertrey Ink); Teal Acrylic Bead (Martha Stewart)
Tools: Eyelet Border Punch (Stampin' Up!); Flower Fusion 2 Die (Papertrey Ink)

I hope that you are having a great 4th of July weekend! I'll be back soon with another post featuring photos of some of my favorite all-American summer time foods.

The Colors of Summer

Summer has officially begun and the Bay Area enjoyed warm temperatures and sunny skies throughout the week - the perfect way to kick off the summer season!

What are some of your favorite things about summer? Do you have any summer memories from childhood that you look back on with fondness? Are there any particular colors that you associate with summer?



Some of my favorite things about summer are:

• The abundance of fruits including blueberries, strawberries, peaches and apricots; I love going to the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings so that I can fill up my fruit basket for the week
• Wearing sandals and flip flops to show off my pretty, painted toenails
• Indulging in iced chai tea lattes from Starbucks
• Reading outdoors - at the park, the beach, a cafe...
• Making homemade strawberry jam to share with my family and friends during the holidays, which gives them a "sweet" reminder of summer during the winter months
• The slower pace of life

One of my most vivid summer memories is of spending just about every day swimming at the high school pool that was within walking distance of my house in San Mateo. The pool was open Monday through Saturday afternoons for recreation swim. I remember spending almost the entire afternoon in the pool each day. Fortunately I didn't sunburn easily and while I didn't intentionally aim to get a tan, that's exactly what happened. I guess it's my Italian genes. My nicknames during the summer months were "Brown Berry" and "Water Rat."

Another memorable summer ritual was hearing the ice cream truck coming down my street. My brother and I would hear the music and we would grab our money and run out the door just in time to see the truck approaching our house. Not much beats enjoying ice cream on a warm summer day! I'll have to keep my eyes and ears open for an ice cream truck over the next couple months so that I can indulge in a "sweet" reminder of my childhood.



I'll wrap up with a line from Kenny Chesney's song Summertime:

"Perfect song on the radio,
Sing along 'cause it's one we know,
It's a smile, it's a kiss,
It's a sip of wine, it's summertime,
Sweet summertime."

Enjoy your week!

So Many Things To Be Happy About Today!

1. It's my 40th birthday! Yes, it's a big birthday, and one that some people often dread, but not me - I happen to love celebrating my birthday. What's not to love about being another year older and another year wiser?

2. I am taking the day off from work. I have a rule that I don't go to work on my birthday when it falls on a week day. In fact, since it's my 40th birthday, I decided to take the whole week off from work!

3. I signed up for a digital photo class which is beginning tonight.

4. My brother, Andy, is taking me out to lunch at Sam's Chowder House in Half Moon Bay to celebrate my birthday. It will be my first visit to this restaurant and I am looking forward to it.

5. Overall, my health is good and I am feeling optimistic about life.

6. Not having to wake up to an alarm this morning.

7. Taking photos today with my new Nikon D90 DSLR camera and lenses.

8. My family and friends wishing me "Happy Birthday" when they call.

9. Being able to take a long walk this morning - my favorite time of the day to be outside.

10. Starting to read a new book on my Nook.

11. Looking forward to a belated 40th birthday celebration at Disneyland with my family in September. Can't wait to see Mickey and Minnie!

12. Enjoying the gigantic, still "afloat" birthday balloons that my co-workers gave to me last week.

13. That my birthday falls on June 13. I consider 13 a lucky number because of that.

14. Knowing that the official start of summer is just around the corner.

15. Being able to wear sandals and flip-flops to show off my first pedicure of the season.

16. Thinking about the magical things yet to come during my 40s - I believe (and hope!) that it can only get better.

17. Enjoying fresh blueberries on my cereal for breakfast this morning.

18. Knowing that I will get to enjoy some yummy birthday cake this week, and maybe even a cupcake or two!

19. Listening to the newest playlist that I created on my iPod.

20. Making a wish and blowing out the candles on my birthday cake.

I'll wrap this post up with one of my favorite birthday quotes:

"A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip."
-Author Unknown

Spring Greetings!

Another blog post at last! You might be wondering where I have disappeared to for the last few months - it wasn't my intention to take a break from posting on my blog, but my "8 - 5" job took center stage and unfortunately I had to put blogging aside for awhile. The academic year has finally come to a close and things should return to a more normal pace at work which I hope will leave me with more energy to pursue the many interests that I have outside of work.

Despite being overwhelmed by work recently, I have managed to find time to read, cook/bake and take photos, some of which are included throughout this entry. Rather than devoting an entire blog post to all of these things, I have decided that I will dedicate my next several blog entries to each of these items individually.



Have you often found yourself browsing the web and coming across photos and information that you would like to note for future reference? Yes, you could print out the photo and/or the information and refer to it later, but if you are anything like me, you might end up with a lot of paper very quickly, not to mention the fact that you'll be buying a lot of ink for your printer! If you find yourself in this situation, Pinterest is the site for you. In a nutshell, it is a place for you to catalog the things you love. The following is taken from the Pinterest site:

Think of Pinterest as a virtual pinboard - a place where you can create collections of things you love and "follow" collections created by people with great taste. People use Pinterest to collect and share all sorts of things - wedding inspiration, favorite T-Shirts, DJ equipment. You name it, people are pinning it.

One of my favorite things about this site is the fact that you can browse other user's boards and "re-pin" their items to your own boards, or you can add items directly to your own boards from the web. It's the best of both worlds! You can also comment on other people's pins and "like"them as well (similar to Facebook).

I have come across some stunning photos of food, people and fashion, just to name a few, while browsing the Pinterest site. Pinning food photos to my various boards (Cupcakes, Desserts, Cooking, etc.) enables me to go back at some point in the future and easily locate the recipe or other information associated with a specific pin (i.e., location, where to purchase, etc.). Pop on over to the Pinterest site and see for yourself how much fun it is. Enjoy!



I'll leave you with this quote that I came across today:

"To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter...to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring - these are some of the rewards of the simple life."
-John Burroughs

One Little Word Blog Hop - March 1

Happy March! I can hardly believe that we're already at the beginning of the the third month of 2011. Time passes by so quickly!

As many of you already know, I am participating in the One Little Word project this year (click here to read the post highlighting my January project). To coincide with the project, I will be participating in a blog hop on the first day of each month to highlight my progress throughout 2011. The blog hop is titled ONE on 1 (also known as One Little Word on the first day of each month).

The February prompt was to cultivate an awareness of my word (wonder) in the world through photos: "Where does it exist? What does it do? How can you capture it?" In some cases it's possible to see a word both literally and figuratively. With regard to my word, wonder, I found it challenging to find photos that represented it literally, so I ended up focusing on the figurative aspects and created the following montage:

I chose these particular photos because they do indeed cause me to be filled with admiration, amazement and awe (part of the definition of wonder). The February assignment has caused me to look at things around me in a different way - even the simple, everyday things can stir up wonder which certainly makes life much more exciting!

In case you are curious, the photo collection shown above was created digitally using Photoshop Elements in an 8 x 10 format. Each of the individual photos are approximately 2 x 3 so when the photos are printed, they will perfectly on the back side of the 9-photo holder page that I used last month when I created my January project. Additionally, if you would like view these photos in a larger format, they are available on my Flickr site in the set titled One Little Word.

Thank you so much for taking a few minutes out of your day to visit my blog, whether you are a regular reader or stopping by for the first time. If you are interested in seeing some more great projects related to One Little Word, you can continue "hopping" to another blog by clicking here.

I also want to send out a big thank you to Margie for organizing the monthly One on 1 blog hop!

Wishing you a wonderful week and hoping that the month of March brings you much happiness.

"We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something that we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have."

-Frederick Keonig

Papertrey February Blog Hop Challenge

I am very excited to be participating in Papertrey Ink’s Blog Hop for February. The challenge this month was to use scallops of any sort on a project. That could include scalloped borders, stamped scallops, layered scallops or any other scallop-related design you could think of. Here is photo of the card that I created especially for the Blog Hop:

I want to say thank you to all of my blog visitors, whether you're a regular reader, or perhaps just stopping by today for the first time. I appreciate it!

"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures."

-Thornton Wilder

One Little Word

You might have noticed the badge on the left side of my blog titled One Little Word and perhaps wonder what that's all about. I came across a reference to the One Little Word project at the end of December while reading one of the many blogs that I follow. Upon reading just a little bit about the project, I signed up immediately. One Little Word is an ongoing virtual class offered by Big Picture Classes and it's taught by the amazing Ali Edwards.

Here is an overview of the class, taken from the website:

The objective of the class is to select one word that sums up what you want for yourself in 2011. It can be something tangible or intangible - perhaps a thought, feeling or emotion. It can be singular or plural. The most important thing to consider when choosing a word is to make sure that it has personal meaning for you. This is not your mother's word or your spouse's word or your child's word - this is YOUR word. Each month you'll receive an email and an invitation to visit the One Little Word classroom. Inside the classroom, you'll find instructions for a simple creative project to complete related to your word. At the end of the year you'll have an album that celebrates and honors your word - making it that much more concrete and visible in your life.

Some other wonderful things to note about this class are:

• Register anytime during the year


• Access a community building message board for sharing thoughts on your word


• Upload photos of your word-related projects to a gallery to share with other participants

It didn't take me too long to choose my word for 2011 - WONDER. It just popped into my mind after I registered for the class. I am still pondering exactly why I chose this particular word, and I believe that I'll gain more insight as I continue to work on the monthly creative prompts. I am including some photos in this blog post that highlight my creative project related to my word for the month of January.

I am very excited about this class. As some of you know, I have decks of cards with individual words on them at home and at my office. Each morning I take a moment to shuffle through the cards and choose a word to reflect upon throughout the day. It's amazing how one, single word can have an impact on me and influence my day, usually in a very positive way.

Because I have chosen the word wonder for the One Little Word project this year, I am paying particularly close attention to how it influences my daily life. Last weekend I happened to grab my camera before heading out the door to walk what I call the "neighborhood loop." I usually walk this loop about two or three times per week, so I am very familiar with the scenery. However, I found that by having my camera with me and being mindful about looking for things to photograph that I saw things I wouldn't normally have noticed. I felt a sense of wonder as I completed my walk because something that is usually so routine, turned out to be very enlightening. I arrived home with some wonderful photos, which I will include in future blog entry.

As always, I am wrapping up this entry with a quote, however it's in the form of a photograph this time!

Weekend Fun!

Winter weather returned to the Bay Area this weekend which gave me the perfect excuse to stay inside and spend some time in my stamping studio. Valentine projects have been at the top of my list for the past few weeks. I came up with the idea for this adorable Valentine banner awhile back and it turned out wonderful. I made two banners - one to keep for myself and one to send to my parents in Oregon as part of their Valentine goodie package. The banners make the perfect decoration for Valentine's Day. I can think of some other possible themes, too. Perhaps I can create one with the colors teal, black and white in honor of the San Jose Sharks!

Speaking of the Sharks, I have a new companion in my stamping studio: SJ Sharkie! I bought this adorable backpack while I was at the game against the Minnesota Wild last week. Doesn't Sharkie look great hanging on the back of my chair? It makes a fun addition to my stamping studio.

As many of you already know, I enjoy photography. I'm always on the lookout for a photo opportunity, and it seems that many of my photos include food! Because I consider myself a "foodie," it makes perfect sense that I have a large collection of food-related photos. On that note, I am including a photo of some very tasty onion rings that my brother and I shared this weekend with our gourmet burgers from Godfather’s Hamburger Lounge in Belmont. We have driven by this restaurant several times and it has been packed, so we decided to try it out. If you happen to like the burgers at Jacl’s Prime in San Mateo, you'll probably like Godfather's. Their menus are similar, but each offers slightly different types of burgers. Other tasty items include shakes and fries (regular and sweet potato).

I wrapped up my weekend by baking a couple loaves of chocolate chip banana bread. Yum! I'll be enjoying this tasty treat during breakfast this week.

Hoping that you enjoyed your weekend and had plenty of time to relax and also do something fun. Wishing you a great week!

As always, I'll wrap up this post with a quote:

"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."

-Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story

A Little Somethin' Sweet

Do you have a sweet tooth? I certainly do! There aren't many types of sweets that I will turn down, but of course I do try and sample these tasty treats without going overboard. Fortunately, my love of sweets also comes with a love of being active, so my occasional "sweet" indulgences are balanced out with frequent visits to the gym, long walks and lots of sit-ups!

I thought it would be fun to share a recipe with you today for a classic cookie that most everyone enjoys...unless you don't happen to be a fan of chocolate. This recipe for chocolate chip cookies is taken from the book, Martha Stewart’s Cookies. If you haven't had an opportunity to browse through this book, I strongly encourage you to check it out. The photography is incredible, and almost every recipe includes a beautiful photo of the finished product. I've tried several recipes from the book and all of them have yielded wonderful results. If you like cookies, this book would make a great addition to your cookbook collection.

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon coarse salt

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips, or a combination (about 12 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour and baking soda in a bowl. Put butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about two minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add salt, vanilla, and eggs; mix until well blended, about 1 minute. Mix in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges turn golden but centers are still soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; cool completely. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature for up to 1 week.

I have tried many different recipes for chocolate chip cookies, and this is my favorite, especially if you like chewy cookies. This dough also freezes very well. You can mix up the dough and then use a cookie scoop to make the individual cookies and transfer them to a freezer-proof container for storage until you are ready to bake them. The next time you get a craving for a warm, chewy, fresh-baked chocolate chip cookie, just pull the pre-made dough out of the freezer and bake some up. Yum!

On a completely different note, the Bay Area continues to enjoy some unseasonably warm and sunny weather. It truly feels like it should be late March or early April instead of January! While I am enjoying the sunshine, I do miss the rain - after all, it is January and it's that time of year when I like to be all cozy and warm inside. No matter what type of weather you are experiencing in your neck of the woods, I hope that you have had a wonderful weekend and that this coming week brings many good things to you.

I'll wrap up this entry with a cute quote about chocolate:

"Chocolate is the answer. Who cares what the question is."

-Author Unknown

Happy Martin Luther King Day!

Happy Martin Luther King Day! Whether you are fortunate to have a three day weekend or even if you have to work today, I hope that you are enjoying your day. The weather is gorgeous here in the Bay Area - it feels more like an early spring day rather than mid-January. I started out my day by taking a long walk so that I could spend some time outside in the sunshine. It certainly is a treat to have an extra day off from work and I am thankful for this.

My weekend has been fairly low-key, but certainly fun! The Sharks played the St. Louis Blues on Saturday night and I am happy to report that they won! It was their first win at home since December 23 (the game that my family and I went to which included a Sharkie-gram, as seen in this photo). Today the Sharks play an afternoon game against the Phoenix Coyotes and I will definitely be watching. What better way to spend an afternoon off?!

My other favorite sports team, the New England Patriots, played the Jets on Sunday afternoon in the playoffs, but unfortunately the Pats lost. My brother and I watched the game at the Clubhouse Bistro in San Mateo - a nice atmosphere with great food and drinks. I was disappointed that the Pats lost, but at least I was able to enjoy some "good eats" while watching the game. I am not looking forward to the football season being over, but at least there's a few more weeks remaining until the Superbowl. Despite the fact that the Pats won't be making an appearance, I'll still be watching because I like football, no matter which team is playing.

As a "crafter," it's definitely not too early for me to be thinking about Valentine cards and goodies, so I have set aside some time this weekend to work on my projects. I thought it would be fun to include a photo of this mini muffin tin that I keep some of my embellishments in. At the moment it has Valentine embellishments, but the contents change depending on the season and projects that I am working on. I think it's more fun to keep my embellishments in a tin such as this one because it's different. And unless I am using the tin to bake some yummy cupcakes, it would just be sitting in my cabinet.

I am also including a photo of one of the many Valentine cards that I have already made this year. This happens to be one my favorites. This card will be available for purchase in my Etsy shop - just click on the thumbnail under "Christianne's Etsy Shop" in the left column of my blog. As always, thank you for looking. I hope to add more items to my shop in the near future. In addition to working on Valentine products, I'm also creating a lot of birthday-related items such as cards, gift bags and gift card holders.

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, I think it's fitting that I end my post with a quote taken from the book Strength to Love, written by King:

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

Wishing you a week full of laughter and smiles.