catch-all.

I would LOVE one of these for catching all our spare keys... so clever & chic. I am adding it to the list.

{ via here. }

new blog love.

How amazing & beautiful is this art barn? Absolutely fantastic... it's an amazing barn used solely to create & play & dream & make. {sigh.} It's owned by one of my new favorite blogger's, who writes Fern & Feather. You will love her ideas & taste level. I promise.

Also, why you are at it, check out Marta Writes. She is witty & clever & creative. I love her "how-to" series where readers write in & share how to actually make things they have created... so you don't just have to drool over them... you can actually DIY without the guesswork! love. I also particularly loved her post entitled, Blogging & Jealousy. The title alone speaks volumes, no? amen.

Happy Friday's eve!

PS - While I am on the topic of the blog world, thank you to those who follow my blog & think my mundane thoughts are worth a minute of your time... I appreciate it more than you know- and that includes all of my "google reader" followers... I still don't know who all you kind people are, but thank you! I am humbled.

Belated NY Resolutions.

While I am aware that I am a) incredibly late AND b) extremely cliche for posting New Years' resolutions... I thought hmmm, what the heck... so thus far & furthermore in 2011 I vow to attempt or keep up with these silly & not-so silly resolutions:

Paint my fingernails more & make them more girl-ified. (ie. take/ make time to just sit still long enough to achieve an opaque color on my typers.)

Embrace my inner redhead... I. am. a. redhead. I grew up as redhead... but, I am not a red head so much anymore? I don't dye my hair at all, but much to my mother's dismay, I have somewhat grown out of it, if that is possible... however, I have the fair skin & freckles that tend to come with the territory. 2011 will be a repeated mantra to myself of wearing sunscreen daily & not feeling the need to lay for hours in the beating rays to make myself a non-existent tan. {Does this make you very happy mom? :) }

Be in the word more daily. period. We all need more of Jesus.

"And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty." Matthew 13:23

Learn how to make & master the art of baking macaroons... this skill will be delightful to have for the many upcoming baby showers, birthday parties, & kids events that will be, without a doubt, part of our new normal in the next few years.

Keep trying new recipes & if I fail... pick myself up & try again. I love trying new dishes, however, I tend to wrongly think I know better than Mrs. Julia Child's herself sometimes & add in my own things here and there. Sometimes I make myself very proud... others, well... I have to pick myself up, scrap it, and try again... this time, following the directions. I was NEVER very good at following the directions.

Find a great pair of all-purpose scissors... my parents got me an awesome 5-piece Martha Stewart set for the kitchen that cuts anything from herbs to poultry... however, now I am now looking for the perfect pair for my new craft table. One that perfectly cuts paper, fabric, etc. Still searching...

Find a way to create some open shelving in our kitchen... I love the look of it. Love it. Such a fun way to display & access the everyday.

Master the art of HTML & CSS... Oh, the possibilities. It opens a whole new world & a whole new avenue for design work. I know the basics... but once you know the basics, you realize very quickly that the basics are 1% of the whole shebang.

And finally, and on everyone's list (the gym attendance numbers alone prove this) wake up & get my day started with a workout. My consistency tended to waver the last month or so in 2010 - so 2011 is about getting myself there.

Happy Tuesday! Its almost Friday, right?

Sweet Em.

Hey Em... you're the best.

The best at chatting.

The best at playing barbies.

The best at sleepovers.

The best at telling me stories.

The best at shopping.

The best at bossing me around.

The best at being like a sister.

The best at being my matron.

The best at kareoke.

The best at being a mom.

The best at being my friend.

xoxo.

mfcreativedesigns.com

Finally got this little ditty up & running... finally. And while it's not perfect & I am still tweaking and adding, I am glad I got it up! I am not great with HTML coding, or CSS for that matter, but it is now on my list of things to work on in 2011. More on that later... I digress.

mfcreativedesigns.com is up & running! It doesn't really do much, it is more of a cohesive place to upload my latest work and a nicer place to direct people to than Etsy.

For some reason, however, it looks a whole lot cleaner on a Mac, versus PC. Why is this? anyone? its driving me nuts.

xoxo. Happy Monday!

an amalgamation.

January has hit... we're back in the swing of things. It felt so nice to pack up the decorations, & clean & purge & start fresh. I have no concise thoughts at the moment, but here is the current amalgamation of tidbits in my brain at the moment.

Sweet Paul {one of my fav. food styling blogs} made this awesome cut paper silhouette frame. So chic & clever... and a fun, unexpected twist to the classic profile silhouette. It would be perfect for a family. {Great use of texture, too. }

I had some best chums over for dinner & to decorate gingerbread houses over the holidays... or that was the intention. I started the process & failed... so therefore, we still decorated gingerbread houses, they were just, well, flat. :) Maybe one day I can work on them each year, & hoepfully have them perfected by the time kids roll around. Anyone have any tips?

Are these little girls not so presh? thats all. I am just dreaming myself out of the cold & on a boat right now... in the sun, with cute nautical stripes.

This DIY tutorial is awesome. Make your own tray for all your little ditties - jewelry, soap, etc. Such a great gift idea. I love the Little Green Notebook.

I have come to the conclusion that my favorite combination for cooking is rosemary, lemon, garlic, and salt & pepper. Seriously... so wonderful on anything. Chicken, potatoes, rice, couscous... even bread. Try it. Trust me. {and there is no science to it.}

and finally, I could go on & on {I believe I already have} about my love of miniature things. This mini doll supermarket from the 1960's is absolutely rad. My dad built me a doll house that is still my favorite Christmas present to this day. I am going to re-gift it to my munchkin one day, but this supermarket would be an awesome addition to add to the mix. Momma doll could bebop over to the grocery store for the daily meal, right? right. {man, I must be ready for the weekend.}

Happy Happy Friday... ciao.