Ima Le Arba

Hey, World- its me again.

2011-08-29T19:22:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know I said I would keep this blog current- and then life happens :) After a busy summer, it is finally back to school (yay!).
I have a new BFF (I still love you, Trish and and also my hubby). What did I do without him? He is sleek and shiny and makes my life soooo easy. Okay- I will tell you. It is my ruffler foot for my sewing machine. I was terrified to try it, but now I will never sew ruffles without it again!!!!!!!!!! If you have not seen one of these babies- you need to go to You Can Make This and get the free Ruffler Guide. Yes, free. Carla- one of the many fabulous designers who publish ebooks for patterns for sewing, beading, glassworking, you name it- there is probably an ebook for it.- Anyway, Carla wrote the guide for the Ruffler because the foot comes with little to no instruction! She totally rocks! Thank you Carla- and thank you new BFF.
So what did I do this summer?:
I took kids to Swim Lessons, Gymnastics, and Dance. We went to the pool almost daily. I joined the neighborhood pool committee. I sewed several cute little outfits (which I will post pics at the end of this post). I went Israeli Dancing every Tuesday (which totally rocks!). I sewed and finished my very first complete quilt, complete with Ruffles (oh, thank you new BFF). I photographed 2 weddings and newborn (I know it isn't much, hey- I take one day at a time, lol). Took kids to birthday parties, Chuck E Cheese dates, craft store shopping. Looking at the list it doesn't look like much- but it was busy everyday, I swear!
I tackled Mount Laundry (don't laugh- it was a bit daunting until I sorted through all the clothes- and gave to goodwill everything that didn't fit - 17 trashbags full!) I am currently tackling the garage- but it will be slowgoing since it is over 105 degrees everyday- so I only work in the am.
Here is pics of some of my projects:
This is the dress I made to give Lily for her birthday, Yael is modeling :)

The front:

Farbenmix Dortje Pants- oh how I love that pattern.
Tamar's Farbenmix Roxy dress. Love it! Love the ruffles in the back even more :)
(Yael didn't want to be left out of the pic)

New Haircut and New Project

2010-06-19T20:14:00.001-07:00

I decided yesterday that I needed a new haircut. My hair was getting longer and longer, and bushier and bushier. I was determined I would get my hair straightened and cut shorter. I have naturally curly hair- and have always hated it, although there are times where I could tolerate it. In the past 6 years since Itai was born, I have gotten my hair straightened and cut short. I occasionally have the capacity to decide to grow it out to the length it was before Itai, but usually get frustrated and get it chopped again, that is the case today and so I headed off to the salon. I didn't know which one I was going to, but I knew I didn't want a Procuts, Super Cuts, Style America, or Walmart Salon. I drove down Gatti School Rd- and found a salon. I walked in and they only had one customer, I asked if they did straighteners and they did, so then I told them what I wanted, the stylist- Johanny- told me the reason regular straighteners don't work for me, is that they are not meant for my hair type- and that while a Japanese straightener would be good, it would be very expensive (~350 dollars!!! ouch) and take 5-6 hrs (what???!) She suggested a cut that wasn't so boxy as the one I had, and both the stylists in the shop had naturally curly hair so they knew how to handle it.
Johanny took the time to go through some style magazines with me, we picked out a few we thought would work, then narrowed it down to one. I decided since I wasn't getting a straightener, I could get color and highlights. My natural color is mousy dark blond, light brown. Not flattering.
It took a long time, I am sure my husband thought I had run away all over town, especially since I forgot my phone. I am so pleased with my new haircut. Here is the after pic:
Now for our new project, the kids and are are making the bigger kids Picnic Table from Knock-Off Wood . I decided to paint before assembly so I could get in all the cracks- and so I could use the roller :)
I let the kids have first crack at painting:
And then I went back and smoothed it out :) (while they weren't looking of course). I will also let them help me with the screwgun. (but not the drill)

In other news: Savta Shuli is here (visiting from Israel). For Fathers' Day tomorrow- Ori has requested to go to the Institute of Texas Cultures in San Antonio- and maybe the children's museum there as well.

They are Done! Pictures and Recap ahead!

2010-06-17T05:07:00.000-07:00

Linking up to :

I am so happy to say the beds are built and completely done!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know you are anxious for pictures- but lets look back at where I started.
In April I decided I was going to build the girls beds- Thanks to Ana White at Knock-Off Wood, I had the plans for the storage daybed, and I wasn't afraid to use them. I was also really hoping she would make plans for the corner unit- basing it off the pb teen Store-It bed. I went out and bought the wood- found a great deal on cabinet grade 3/4 inch plywood for $23 each at Home Depot in Pflugerville. I had Orange cut the wood also. (on a side note, a lot of people have had trouble with their wood being cut being off on measurements- just find the carpenter that works there and you won't have that problem, lol)
I took it home and filled in the cracks and knot wholes on the backside sanded the fire out of that wood. And then put sanding sealer on and sanded some more. I sanded both sides til it was as smooth as I could make it. Since this is for 3 year old little girls I didn't want a single splinter to get in their fingers. Then I put the bottom half of the benches together, it looked something like this: only before the primerI had quite the assembly line going- since I was making two beds. So I had the benches built, and I wanted to prime them, but Texas weather in April and apparently now in June, is weird. Each day has been cloudy with a 20% chance of rain but one minute it would be sunny, and I would think I could prime, and the next minute I had to race to bring the benches back in. Now granted I could lift them by myself since they are only shells at the moment, but they are still a pain to move around. And about that time Yael decided the room had to be yellow.
So off to Home Depot we went- and Louisa and Sandy in paint helped me pick out the perfect yellow to match this room color:

We went home and I laid out the drop cloth and got my paint tray and rollers set up, and commenced painting the room. Well Ari decided he wanted to help- and he ran into the room and right through the paint tray, liberally annointing himself and the carpet with yellow paint. Now I was using latex paint, and I am sure I could have attempted removing it from the carpet, but those of you who read my blog (all one of you, lol) know I have a vendetta against my carpet since I have 4 children. So I yanked it up and found the cheapest swedish maple laminate I could find. My twin sister helped me scrape the subfloor and lay down the moisture barrier, quiet padding stuff, but I did the entire installation by myself. And it matched the yellow paint so well and looked totally awesome. I still need to install the stepdown from carpet to flooring. In the fullness of time.
So the floor and room sat for a while and got nothing while texas weather dilly-dallyed around. I bought the girls twin matresses because their cribs were about to fall apart because the girls removed some of the screws. Those mattresses sat on the floor until now.
I finally managed to get the beds primed, and then sanded before bringing them back inside, but then they sat some more, partyly due to weather, and partly because of Israeli Folkdancing. (which is a whole other topic for discussion :) )
So finally on May 21st, Ana posted the plans for the corner unit, and that finally gave me the push I needed. I ran out to Home Depot that night to buy the supplies for the corner unit, brought home the boards and put the frame together, let the glue dry overnight. After the glue dried, I still felt it was a little wobbly (probably shoddy building heehee) so I put cross braces at the corner of the frame, and then put the facade on. I laid it on plastic in the girls room and gave it a primer coat , then sanded, then painted, then sanded, then painted, then poly, then sand, then poly. Then I turned it on its side and did the other part. So then the corner unit was done and I was working on the hutch. I started with the 1x6's cut to length and sanded, primed, etc and this was outside, I was getting tired of TX weather taunting me so I braved it. I totally prepainted and polyed all the boards for the hutch before building it, and in hindsite- I wish I had done that with the beds. A few countersunk screws and woodfiller later, the hutch was built, installed, and touchup paint and poly applied. The corner unit was done!
Next up, painting the beds, and again stupid TX weather. So I set up my workstations in the living room- and started painting. I did the interiors first because I wanted to put the tops on (finally). You know the routine by now; paint, sand, paint, poly, sand, poly. And finally the benches were done. Just in time for me to put them in the girls room before Ari's bday party.
Now remember, I still have 4 hoodlums running around, and for the last week have had my niece and nephew plus a couple of sleepover friends so things happen slow around here.
Next up- off to Home Depot (Pflugerville of course) to get trim. Eric helped me determine what would work best and I took home all the trim I needed strapped to the car. I layered two trims for the bottom and since it was preprimed (hooray) I just painted, sanded, painted, polyed, and polyed. I put 3 layers of poly on the trim for supershine. Installation time! Then I used lattice strips to cover where the benches were jointed. Woodfiller, Paint and Poly touch up, and I am thrilled to present pictures of the beds completed:
Next up: Bedding and Curtains- I have the fabric all picked out- just need to get it sewn together!

Bed update

2010-05-21T11:52:00.000-07:00

Ana of Knock-Off Wood.com finally posted the plans for the corner unit- you have no idea how excited I am. I went this morning to buy the wood, John from the Home Depot in Pflugerville cut them spot on! I sanded the hutch pieces and put sanding sealer on them. It is finally a nice enough day to put the beds outside so I have the primer drying and plan on sanding them so I can put the first coat of color on this weekend. The excitement!!!!!!! Oh and Ori will be home tonight after him traveling for two weeks. Hooray!
If you haven't heard of Knock-Off Wood, let me tell you! Ana is a housewife who is married to a RAM (Real Alaska Man) and they have built their house in Alaska from the ground up- literally! She had the bright idea to make a piece of furniture like Pottery Barn sells, using normal materials you can get at Home Depot or Lowes, for way cheaper than you can buy the original. The plans are free! She started the blog and started posting the plans and has empowered women (and men too) to build their own furniture. I could never have afforded to buy the original of the beds that I am making for the girls. I can't see paying that much for a bed for kids anyway. Since I discovered her, after seeing what Shanty2Chic built, I have made the girls beds, painted their walls, replaced their carpet after Ari ran right through the paint tray, and built a bookshelf. I have learned how to use a nail gun and a table saw. Not to mention my new best friend the sliding miter saw. I discovered I am a perfectionist when it comes to making furniture and have been known the pull the nails out of the wood and refasten it if needed. I sanded the beds, put sanding sealer on it, and sanded again to make sure the finish is extra smooth. I am priming, then sanding, then coating with color, and sanding, and another coat of color, and sanding again. Then I will poly it- not sure how many coats, I bet Sandy in the paint dept at the Home Depot will be able to answer that question. I am thinking of taking some pics of my favorite people at HD to blog about. They are super helpful!

The snowball effect hits the girls room!

2010-04-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

Have you ever noticed that if you start a project, it will often snowball on you? So I was waiting for there to be a nice enough day to paint the girls beds with the spray painter and meanwhile Yael asked for yellow walls based on this picture we found on Inspired Design:
so I said sure, why not, so we made a trip to Home Depot (I know my Home Depot employees mostly by name at this point :) ) and picked out the perfect yellow paint (Sunshine Yellow) and got drop clothes, rollers, a plastic liner for the paint tray, and took my treasures home. I took my time working around the room around the trim, carefully lining it because it is a stupidly textured wall and so those trim lining tools don't work, HMPH! So I got all the way around the bottom, top, doorways, and window and was ready to get started rolling. Poured my paint into the tray on the drop cloth and started rolling. Ari heard me painting and came running in- RIGHT THROUGH THE PAINT TRAY!!!!!! I managed to catch him just as he was about to run off the drop cloth and onto the carpet, so I was thinking phew, that was close, until I noticed the big spiral spray across the end of the drop cloth. I tried warm soapy water and the shop vac- no go. Now I had always daydreamed about replacing the carpet in the whole house, but wasn't really planning on doing it so soon. So the girls room got a new floor this weekend.
Happily our tax refund is almost in so I was able to go buy some laminate floor for the girls on Saturday morning. I ripped the carpet up and used a carpet knife to cut it in smaller strips for disposal. I bought 250 sq ft of Swedish Maple 6mm laminate flooring. I worked and worked, and finished it 30 minutes ago. So the walls are yellow, and the floor the light maple color and it looks totally, totally awesome! I am so happy with it. All I have left to do to the flooring is install the threshold pieces (between the carpet and laminate) and the shoe moulding around the perimeter, and then the girls can move their matresses back in from the spare bedroom.
Meanwhile, the bathtub with bathsalts and warm water is calling my name and I totally want to relax. That was a lot of being down on my hands and knees, and going up and down the stairs everytime I needed to make a cut. Since it was my first time doing this type of flooring, I made some miscuts and I managed to waste an entire piece by cutting it wrong but overall, I would say I did well. My knees are sore and my back is protesting, but the girls room is coming together. Can't wait to finish the girls beds and start sewing their comforters!
Oh, and I am putting window moulding around the window- don't know why the builders left that plain but I think it will add a nice touch, like you can see it behind the curtains I plan on putting up, but anyways :)

Benches are coming together

2010-04-05T19:42:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder- my project is the girls beds. I am basing them on Knock-off Wood's plans for the Stratton Daybed.
Here is my project plan again for reference:
Ok, so I have learned something- nailguns have a learning curve. And as I build the girls beds I am also learning that your wood can be bowed, or maybe cut slightly crooked. So you work with the flow and try to stay as square as possible. It is good that I wasn't planning on any drawers for these beds as I kinda nailed crooked a few times. But I plan on setting the nails into the wood and puttying over so hopefully it will be unnoticeable- not to mention not scratch the girls when they play in the cubbies- which I know they will.
I did completely ruin the first set I tried to nail together. I have decided that one this project- you can't have too many pencil lines to guide me in putting the pieces together. Since I will be sanding before painting, they will not be seen and whatever helps, right?
Ana's directions call to put the bottom piece on, then the divider then the top. But I found if I put the divider in first- it gives me a place to rest the bottom piece while I glue and nail it in place. Everybody has their own way of doing things and that is what works best for me.
If things go well, I will get the wood for the last bench (the one I ruined) tomorrow and get it sanded and put together.
At this point I should also mention that I have not put the top on the benches yet- I want to prime and paint before I do so that I don't have to try to reach into the cubbies with a paint sprayer, and I don't trust the paint brush to do a clean enough job- unless of course I am doing touch up.
In other news- I have found the dark pink material for the girls bedding. Now I just need to find a nice flowered material for the light pink or yellow. I have the most wonderful pillowcase tutorial from You Can Quilt This.com . I believe it is called the Double Cuffed Pillowcase.

Well, it is time for bed- busy day tomorrow. Meeting with the chiropractor I had evaluate my back today. Tomorrow's meeting is to give me the results of the xray and evaluation and to determine a treatment plan. Wish me luck.

Sanding, Sanding, Sanding

2010-03-28T18:14:00.000-07:00

did I mention sanding? lol. The backsides of all the plywood except 3 are sanded, sanding sealered (is that a word, lol), and sanded again. They are waiting for primer and paint now. I am considering putting together the benches without the tops before primering. That way the paint will seal the edges and leaving the tops off will let me get into the cubbies without contorting myself. I am already so stiff from sanding the 12 million boards (okay really only 30 (5 for each bench times 6 benches) but it seems so many when you are doing them. I also have a sunburn on the back of my neck. I moved the whole sanding operation to the backyard so I could be with the kids while they were in the sandbox and also so I could spreadout as it is a bit crowded in the garage with all the new tools and the boards. Speaking of which- I finished resanding as it was getting dark and rushed the boards back to the garage so that the dew wouldn't find them- Wood and Water don't mix- especially if they haven't been primered yet!
I couldn't sleep last night because muscles I didn't know I had used were pointing out that they were uncomfortable. Ugh. I am going to have a hot bath in about 20 minutes before bed so that my muscles will relax (I hope).
Plans are proceeding along with the beds- but I will be taking tomorrow off as I am preparing for first night seder. We invited friends over (what was I thinking as the house is a disaster? - sand from the kids new turtle sandbox and sawdust I have tracked in, along with all the usual crumbs under the table and laundry up to my ears)
Tuesday during the day I will try to get priming done.

New Project: Beds for the girls room

2010-03-27T15:58:00.000-07:00

Having been inspired by Shanty2Chic, I followed her link to Knock-off Wood. Have you ever visited? I have been totally inspired to build my own furniture. Ana White- of Knock-off Wood started her blog 5 months ago- and in 4 short months had 1,000,000 followers, and after being noticed by William Sonoma for using their pics and names (even though she gave proper credit) has now grown to 2,000,000. She writes plans for furniture like those sold for 1000% markup from what you can build.
I am building the daybed that she has plans for. Well, I am building 2 of them and may, at some point, build another 2. My 3 year old twin girls need to move out of the toddler/crib beds and into twins but after shopping everywhere for beds less that 200 dollars apiece, (for cheaply made bed that may or may not last 3 years), I have decided to build my own. My inspiration is the PB storage bed in this configuration:I am using Ana's storage daybed plans, and my dad showed me how to use my table saw that I purchased after one Home Depot told me 1/8 of an inch short was acceptable (hah!) But I discovered I was short by 3 pieces so I went to a different Home Depot and had them cut my wood. Eric at Home Depot in Pflugerville totally rocks! He cut with precision - and didn't even charge me for the cuts! I brought all my pieces home and piled it up in the garage.
I spent some time last night, and some time today sanding the backsides of the Cabinet grade plywood.
Here is a sanding tip for you- try to sand outside, or else you will have white powdery dust allover the garage. Don't ask me how I know that hahaha.
These beds are for my girls so I want to make sure that they are sturdy and very smooth, including in the cubbies. So, I did an initial sanding (and wood filler) today (and some last night). I am going to apply sanding sealer and let dry (instructions say 2 hrs) and then resand. I am not painting them today because I am going to do that step outside and it is very windy, although absolutely beautiful, today in Pflugerville. I really need to figure out how to make the corner unit- this configuration at PB is 1600 dollars, not including shipping. AAAK!
Want to see the inspiration for the room?
So far, not including the cost of tools- since I will use them for multiple projects- I have the following invested:
6 sheets of cabinet grade plywood- 2 sheets at 23.00= 46.00
4 sheets at 29.00= 116.00
Benjamin Moore Stem Green paint 1 gallon at 27.00= 27.00

So a total for supplies of $189.00 for supplies.

Now tool wise I have spent a few hundred recently- purchased a table saw, sliding compound miter saw, compressor and nailgun (purchased to replace the stairs, gotta tell you- it is sweeeeet!), and yesterday I purchased a heavy duty palm sander (love it) and a paint sprayer to make painting easier.
Now I need to get these beds built to justify the purchases! If these turn out well, the boys will get new beds that match - probably in espresso color. On another note- my Home Depot today was so crowded- everyone is doing weekend projects I guess.

Weigh in Wednesday- on Thursday but never mind that

2010-03-04T05:20:00.000-08:00

This week: 177.2!!! Hooray, no longer in the 180s. It would have probably been less if on Sunday I hadn't gone out to eat with friends to Terra Burger. Not a whole lot to choose from diet wise, and really the sliders were nothing to write home about. But the company and the fact that it was a chilly but beautiful sunny day and they had a playscape for the kids made it all worth while.
I am rededicating my efforts though because I would like to lose 2 pounds a week until we leave for Kochavim. I am not sure how much of the food will be dietetic there, so it may be a break from WW. However, the activity points will probably cancel the lapse anyways. 4 days of dancing? And there I know I will drink enough water because there is limited access to diet coke. I am off to 3fat chicks to change status bar!

Weigh in- not on Wednesday

2010-02-26T07:26:00.000-08:00

So it snowed here on Tuesday so I was not able to go to my meeting. So I weighed at home- 176.4!!!!!!!!!!!! I am down 10 pounds from my starting weight. I am so excited.
I have to tell you though- it is really disheartening to post and never get a comment. I am pretty sure no one actually is reading but since I need this to keep me honest I will keep posting. I am trying to decide what my next craft it project will be. I am thinking maybe the Cameron Cubby Storage system from Pottery Barn Kids. Ana at Knock Off Wood has posted plans on how to build this system. I am thinking I will do this configuration in my studio:
Photo courtesy of Pottery Barn Kids.

Stair conundrum!

2010-02-23T08:48:00.000-08:00

When my blogging friend at Thrifty Decor Chick redid her stairs, I immediately added that project to my list of to dos for the future. Well, a small influx of money and my daughter throwing up chocolate and clementine tangerines allover 4 stairs resulting in me pulling up the corner of the carpet. Dang! It was 2x12 boards, the cheapest stuff and totally rough cut, evidently the builder thought carpet would hide a million evils. And the risers were cheap particle board. But I was determined so I found new treads at Lowes (9.95 each, very nicely joined pine with a nice bullnose edge) Thanks to my dad we did this in stages. We would pull off two board and two risers (no pulling staples, Yeah!!!!!!!!) and then replace them with treads and new risers cut from 1/8s. It looks so much better!!!! It is still bare wood but I am going to sweep and gel stain them after I get the landings finished.
I am trying to determine how to finish the landings. I found a box of flooring at home depot in the color I want to stain the stairs so I was going to lay laminate on the top of the stairs, but I am not sure how to finish the edge. My dad suggested 1/2 round trim, or two quarter round trim pieces glued together but I am afraid it will be too ugly. The landings the builders put there are again the pasted together chunks of wood so I can't just leave them as is, plus the edge is square. That is the only place I had to pull staples- I think there were a million, give or take two. I did not take a before pic of the stairs, but suffice it to know it is the standard beige cheap carpet that turns fuzzy and grey after being walked on. Trying to vacumn the stairs made me very unhappy as a standard vacumn won't do the stairs. So I would take my Dirt Devil hand vac and use the hose with the edge attachment and do them all by hand. I am so looking forward to only having to sweep them!

Weigh In Wednesday- Much better week!

2010-02-19T19:34:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I went by my meeting only to weigh in this week. I am happy to report 180.4!!!! Hooray. Course the tracker said I was losing weight too fast but what do you expect when your pants weigh two pounds? This time I wore exercise pants. I didn't stay for the meeting, only because I was meeting my friends at Triumph Cafe. Normally I would go ahead and eat there (I love their tuna salad) but we are kinda on a tight budget so I just brought my dinner and ate it in the car on my way to meet my friends. That way I could also know that my Tuna salad is only 3 points and theirs I would have no idea :) and I also ate Israeli salad (0 points). Yummy!
Then off to Israeli Folk Dancing! It was such an awesome class!!!!!!!! We had 10 people, where normally we only get 6 regularly. Hooray!!!!!
So next week I am hoping to go down another two pounds. I would really like to lose about 16 pounds before Kochavim- which is April 22-25th. That is approx 8 weeks from now, so I think it is doable.
I will report in next week! Shabbat Shalom Ya'll.

Craft it Tuesday- Hamsa Hanging Mobile Part 2

2010-02-19T07:16:00.000-08:00

Okay, like I said in the Israeli Salad post, I am behind. But that is okay I am catching up.
We are going to decorate our hamsas today and hang them for display.
Supplies for decorating

rubber or acrylic stamps
stamp pads (I use Stazon but not required)
acrylic paint
spray paint
crystals
jewelry pendants
sharpies
E6000 glue (available at any craft store)
think creatively, you can use anything
Don't forget, you can also do this craft with children so think crystal shapes, stickers, markers, and glitter glue.

In the past I have used my shapes both in the plain white, and with a painted surface. I have also painted my shapes with textured paint to look like limestone and also hammered copper. And in the past I also used my chalk inks to make a background on the shapes (like a blue sky).

So for this first mobile, I have painted my shapes to look like limestone. I used Rustoleum's Textured Stone Paint.
I don't know if you can see the texture in this picture, but this is what it looks like:It is a very light- textured surface.
Allow to dry- I have found it is usually about 1 hr.
Now we will decorate. This paint texture seemed to say to me simple and beautiful.
I am using simple jewelry pendants. I found the Magen David (star of david) at Michaels in the charms and I found the round swirl pendant also at Michaels in the jewelry.
On the square shape, I paced a square jewelry pendant I bought in Israel that the pendant mechanism was broken, so I repurposed it. Place the swirl pendant on the round shape and the Magen David on the Hamsa. I glued all of these using E6000 glue. I love that stuff!!!!!!
Let your glue dry. It takes about 1 hr to dry and 24 hrs to cure. If you decorations are light- you can go ahead and start the hanging process, if not, go ahead and allow the 24 hrs as you don't want your mobile falling apart.

Supplies for preparing your hamsa for hanging.
Beading line- I think I used 5mm but I am not sure.
Beads (preferably coordinating, although eclectic is good too :) )
E6000 glue
wooden dowel (if you choose this method)
large silver bail (if you choose the wooden dowel method)
scissors
Needle nose pliers
There are several different ways you can hang these. For this mobile I used just a simple beading line loop but in a couple of the examples I am going to show you you can see that I have varied the method of hanging.

Lets get started:
Take your bottom shape and tie a long piece of beading line ( usually go with 14 inches approx) with a double knot around your hanging piece. (remember the u shape we inserted in the wet clay?).
Leave at least 2 inches of beading line as a tail. Thread a small bead onto both ends of the beading line and then feed the ends again through from the bottom to the top- we are going to use this method a bunch of times to prevent the beads for sliding around. I go ahead and add a drop of glue at this point to the bottom of the bead where it sits over the u hanging piece. Now thread another bead on, this can be a square, a round, a tear drop, any shape bead you desire. Again, I felt this was a simple feel to it so I only used small blue beads that matched the blue on the swirl pendant and one bright green square bead. I usually space the beads out 4-7 inches apart but it all depends on how long you want your finished mobile to be.
Again, you are going to loop back through, and this time go ahead and put your thread through the loop before you pull it tight (like a blanket stitch) This seems to hold it from sliding down. Do this with as many beads as you want to string together. Space them out or put them all together, this is your design, go crazy :). Now slide one more bead on, but don't tie through it yet, first tie the end of the beading line to the bottom of your next shape. Now use your tail to double loop through to secure it to the bottom of the shape, I again use a little dot of E6000 to keep it from moving. Just a little bit more security. After your glue is dry, go ahead and trim the ends of your tails to close to the beads they are tucked through.
Repeat these steps for as many shapes as you have. (I did three, one I purchased has four, it can be as many as you wish)
Now to finish off. If you are using the beading line to make a loop to hang your mobile, you will want to tie it several times (I think I did 5) and then add a drop of glue, let dry, and trim the ends. Your done! Hang it up.
Sorry , my walls are very light colored so it is hard to see but I still love it!
If you are using the wooden dowel method- I cut mine to 5 inches wide (it was a 1/4 inch dowel) And spray painted it black. I attached the large silver bail in the center and then tied the beading line to the bail and the top shape.
You will notice on this one, I rubber stamped on the bottom one, then put crystals- I think I have a close up-I went back after this and used a sharpie to fill in where ever the ink didn't cover. This is where making sure your shape is flat and even is good, if not, that is what sharpies are for, lol. I used black crystals from Jolee's (thank you Michaels again)
For the top shape I used another pendant I found on clearance.
So these two are the ones I have made but I made a bunch of these for the holidays. I decorated one with peace signs for my niece. I made one with zebra print just for fun and also I used chalk ink to make a sky on one and then stamped a tree that looks like the tree of life, and then I used silver embossing powder to make it look awesome. Since I gave it as a gift I can't show it to you, wish I had realized I was going to be doing a tutorial- maybe I will have to make another one to show you :)
I am working on another clay project- maybe we will do it next Tuesday :)

Israeli Salad

2010-02-19T06:42:00.001-08:00

I am a little behind, but I am going to catch up today. My sister in law is visiting from California so as a tribute I am going to tell you how to make Israeli Salad. Now I am going to do a disclaimer: This is the american version- no real Israeli would use prebottled lemon juice, extra light olive oil, or lite salt. So sue me :)

There is nothing I like as much as Israeli Salad as a side dish to any meal. I serve it at every gathering I hostess and I bring it to all the potlucks I attend. I had never heard of it until I went to Ori's sister in LA. (I don't know if I mentioned it, but my husband and his family are Israeli). I attribute my love of Israeli Salad and Israeli Folk Dancing to her. She is influential to me as someone with great taste and I would love to emulate her style.
So back to Israeli Salad. This salad is the simplest I have ever made
You will need
A Cutting Board
A Sharp knife
A large bowl
chopper (optional- this can all be done by hand)
trash can close by

For the salad you need:
6 mini cucumbers (I find them in Target) or 1 english hothouse cucumber
2 bell peppers- I like the colorful ones, but the green ones are cheaper
3 or 4 Roma tomatoes
green onions- you need only one stem, but you can only find it in big bunches so you can eliminate this if you want
I like to add Israeli pickles to the mix (optional also)

For dressing you need:
Olive Oil
Lemon Juice
Salt

Lets get started:
Wash your vegetables thoroughly
Take each vegetable and dice them, discard the ends of the cucumbers and the insides of the bell peppers.

I love to use my Vidalia Chopper. It makes making this salad so much easier. I cut them to pieces small enough to set on the chopper.
Mix them all together.
If you are serving immediately go ahead and pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice and salt to taste over the salad and mix well and Serve
If you are preparing in advance, you can keep this in the fridge up to a day before serving and then pour the dressing over it and mix well.
Yum!

The best part is- this dish as 0 points per serving- yes! 0 points!!!!!!!!!
Optionally, you can put the tomatoes on the side if you have someone who doesn't care for them. I know, shocking that there may be people who don't like tomatoes.

Natter on Friday

2010-02-12T19:13:00.000-08:00

My twin sister is here! Love it when she comes to visit, which is never often enough! Trish and the cousins are here and the kiddos are in 7th heaven. We took them to Chick Filet (I always spell it wrong, lol) for dinner. I was very good- did you know that 8 nuggets are only 6 points? So I am right on for my points today, hooray!
I also have been trying out a copper painting technique for our Hamsa Tutorial. It is soooooo cool. You'll see it on Tuesday. I also will try to have a recipe for Monday of Israeli Salad, mmmmm yummy!
Tomorrow Trish, some kids, and I will be going to an Art Supply store. My sister has a Yudu machine- I want one too, but it so totally is not in my budget. She made me shirts for my Israeli
Folk Dancing group which has our blog address on it. Toda Raba Trish!
What else? I know I shouldn't weigh myself all the time, but that 184 was still bugging me. So I stepped on the scale today, with clothes on: 180.4 so I feel a lot better. We'll of course see at the official weigh in but at least I am not 184, so there!
I registered for Kochavim today. Hooray, I cannot wait. It is 8 weeks away (give or take) so I should be down at least 10-15 pounds by then, and since I am trying to exercise regularly, I will be in a little better shape too. (although round is a shape :) heehee)
I will not be posting tomorrow as it is Shabbat- not that I necessarily don't get on the computer on Shabbat- but I don't want to bore you by posting each and everyday. I think 5-6 days a week is plenty.
I'll leave you for now with news of a giveaway- Fat Quarter Shop is giving away two jelly rolls in honor of Valentine's Day. You can read all about it by clicking here:

Photography Thursday- Newborn Photography Tutorial part 1

2010-02-11T06:47:00.000-08:00

Do you ever wonder how photographers get those beautiful photographs of newborns, they call them newborn art. Here are a few examples:

These are all pictures I have shot with newborns recently. Here is what you will need:
Disclaimer: These pics for the tutorial were taken w/ my point and shoot because I was too lazy to use my SLR. You will notice they are slightly blurry as they were underexposed on this less than lovely grey day.
Supplies:
SLR camera- I use a Canon 5D- and I am not going to claim that someone with a point and shoot won't be able to do this as well- just a SLR gives you more control over your settings.
Beanbag
Boppy pillow (if you don't have one of these- use a rolled up towel or blanket)
Backdrop stand (or use two chairs or tape your background to the wall, whatever works, right?)
Backdrops- I highly recommend 3-4 backdrops. Babies when naked will often surprise you :)
I use fleece for my black background and blankets for light colors. It is all the rage now to use textured blankets, especially the bobble throw. Be creative, I have seen people use curtains, sheets, shower curtains, and comforters.
Puppy piddle pads (wonderful under your backdrop to catch those little surprises so it doesn't get on your beanbag or boppy)
Space Heater- babies love it warm, especially if you are going to get them undressed.
Accessories (hats, tutus, other prop kinda things)
PATIENCE- #1 necessary tool you are going to need.

This is the note I always send the parents before the session: (or some variation, it is never the same)
Newborn sessions should ideally take place in the first 11 days of life, this makes them more likely to sleep and more flexible to posing. However don't stress if it doesn't happen. Please turn the temperature up in your home by one or two degrees, at least 1 hr before I arrive. I suggest feeding baby 30 min-1 hr beforehand as well. Loosen baby's diaper so that we don't have red crease marks. What to expect: Your session will last 2-4 hrs in length. Ideally baby will be asleep, but if not I love open eye pictures too. Be patient, and don't worry about me. This is all about baby, so if baby wants to eat, or have a cuddle, that is just fine. I don't want you to feel like you need to hurry baby's eating so we can get back to taking pics. And don't stress if baby poops or pees on the backdrop- or your hands. It won't be the first or last time. Daddies tend to be impatient with the whole process so if you want pictures of baby w/ daddy, we should either do those first or last.

So lets get started:
Setting up the baby nest
I use natural light whenever possible. I try to find the biggest window available and place my backdrop at a 45 degree angle whenever I can. Place your beanbag in front of your backdrop (but not on top of, because your backdrop is going over the beanbag). Place the boppy pillow (or rolled up towel) on top of the beanbag. Which direction you turn the boppy pillow depends on the type of shot you are going for. If you want baby's head on hands then turn the curve of the boppy forward, if you want back wrinkles (so cute!) then turn it with the open part of the boppy toward you. (see pics below)
Put your backdrop over the boppy/beanbag combo, smooth out the wrinkles in the background as well as over the boppy. If you don't do this step you will have to do some major cloning of the background in my final pic. If you are going to use the piddle pad, you will want to put this in place before putting the backdrop over it.
Make a little indention into the center of the boppy. This is your "nest"
At this point, I turn on the heater on low and ask mommy to undress baby to his/her diaper. I settle baby into the nest, face up and put a blanket over baby. Let baby settle. In my experience babies are usually asleep when put down, so while baby is settling, I will test the light, set my white balance, and exposure. Take a couple of test shots, and chimp for all your worth :) It is better than a underexposed or overexposed mess when you get home. If you check your histogram, you can see if you are blowing out in any specific areas.
Begin your shoot by removing the blanket and shooting a few pictures of baby facing up- this is usually a profile shot (you should be sitting or squatting at baby's level. Be careful of your angle- you do not want to shoot up the nose, not an attractive pictures! Turn baby on his/her side and let settle. Shoot a few more and then slowly take baby's diaper off. Allow to settle (are you sensing a theme?) This is why you need the heater. Babies this young cannot regulate their own temperatures. The heater will keep them nice and comfortable. I keep a running dialogue with the baby, it seems to soothe them, at least it has worked for me. We discuss about keeping boy or girl bits covered with their feet, and I will cross their ankles, usually over the specified bits. At this point you can slowly and carefully turn baby onto his/her tummy. I will start out with their legs curled underneath them and then sometimes straighten them a little to bring their toes up by their chin (see below)
This pose should not be done with babies who are older than 2 weeks as they are less flexible.
Next, I usually try to get some variation of baby's head on hands or arms pose:This is an ideal time to get out your hats. They are all the rage now, and really emphasize how small baby is. I love the square hats with the tassels on the corners, and the helmets.
At this point, right after the chin on hand pics, my babies usually wake up. This is a challenging pose for them, and for you to get them in because they don't have the ability to hold their head up. I am extremely slow and careful about putting their hands in position, and making sure their head is supported so they don't tumble sideways. If you are concerned or the parents are, don't try it. Like I said though, they usually wake up about this time. This is a great time for baby snack and cuddle time, and for you to check your pictures and make sure that your lighting is looking okay. It is also a good time to change out backdrops or move on to your next move, whether it might be on a large piece of furniture that showcases how small baby is:Or setting up a basket to put them in. The tall twig basket from Hobby Lobby has been very popular with the long fringe blankets. I never could find either the throw or the basket so I don't have any of those in the repetoire.
Did I already mention back wrinkle shots and how cute they are? Check them out:

In Part two, we are going to examine loving contact: newborns with their parents shots. I showed a peek at a connection when showing the pic of baby in daddy's hands (above) but I want to take a closer look so you can start to develop the skill.
Linked to:

Weigh In Wednesday- My pants weigh two pounds!

2010-02-10T13:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I went for my first official Weight Watcher's meeting. I have been using the e-tools for a week so I figured my weight was at the very least down, if not even more down than where I started. So I stepped on the scale after divesting myself of my jacket and shoes. 184 pounds ! What? I weighed myself at home and I was 181.2. Now I understand scale difference, but 3 pounds? I was in shock. So after dance I weighed myself at home, without my pants- 181.2. I put on my jeans again- 183.4. That is a difference of 2.2 pounds my friends! My jeans weigh two pounds!!!!!!!!!!!! Who knew.
Oh, how I hated to enter 184 in the e-tools but I want my tools to reflect the same weight they will get at the meeting. So I get the little pop up about how I gained weight this week- but not to be discouraged and I wanted to shout at it, that my pants gained the weight, not me, lol. So from now on my weight will be on par with the meeting scales.
I really like the leader of the group- when I joined Weight Watchers at Work 1 1/2 yrs ago, I did not like the leader, she sounded so condescending and her voice was just like Denise Austin's (did I mention her baby sweet voice and how annoying it is?) Speaking of baby, there was a Mommy in the meeting who brought her son- I am guessing 6-9 mo- and he was so sweet. He was flirting with me. There was one other newbie, well she was trying it out as a free meeting. She was asking do you have to eat all your points value? Now, normally you get people asking about using the 35 extra points, but she said she wasn't sure she could eat all of her allotted points. What? I would say she was about my size so her points would have been 24 like mine. Obviously the way she was already eating is not working for her. What does she mean she can't eat all 24 points? Whatever.
Ok, so tomorrow with be Photography Tutorial Thursday (liking the new titles?) I just thought it might be something fun to change it up.

Craft it Tuesday- Hamsa Hanging Mobile Part 1

2010-02-09T09:29:00.000-08:00

We are going to make a Hamsa Hanging Mobile. Hamsas are house blessings. They are found in a multitude of cultures. The word comes from Hamesh (or similar in Arabic) and means 5- as in the number of fingers on your hand- which is why they frequently look like a hand. I love Hamsas and their meanings. I have them hanging all around the house but found that they might not match my decor- plus I couldn't find more hanging ones like the one on the left in the picture below. So I made my own, and then made a bunch for Holiday gifts. They are perfect for my first tutorial- plus, just so you know- you can do this project with kids- instead of the air dry clay- try it with Crayola Model Magic. I did that for my son's Hanukkah party for his friends. They loved it! But this tutorial is for you, my fellow crafters!
You need to start this project with your supplies:
Supplies:
DAS Air Dry Clay (white)
Hamsa Cookie Cutters (you can buy them online, or sometimes in your local bake shop)
Other Cookie cutter shapes- I used circle and square.
Parchment Paper

Tools:
wire cutters
needle nose pliers
20 gauge beading wire
bowl of water (not pictured, oops)
rolling pin, or some kind of flat round object (I sometimes use wine bottles if they are handy)
eye pins, the smallest you can find

Lets get started!

DAS clay is my favorite Air Dry clay- it is pretty easy to use. I bought some in Israel- but then I found it in Michaels so I was very happy! This is what the package will look like:
I buy the white, it also comes is Terra Cotta.
Tear off a chunk of it, and put it on a sheet of parchment paper.
and put the remainder of the clay in a gallon sized Ziploc and seal it so it doesn't lose moisture. Knead the clay until it is soft and malleable. Kneading warms it up and allows you to roll it out.
Once soft, roll it out flat to about 3/8- 1/2 inch thinkness- try to keep it as smooth and even as possible, but don't stress over it. This is the fun, and messy part :)

Once flat and rolled out, use your cookie cutters to cut out your shapes, much like cookie dough, you can gather the clay back up, knead it, and roll it flat to cut more shapes.
You will notice, that it will tear a little bit on the bottom of your shape, kind of look like mulberry paper tears.
Okay, nobody notice that I didn't keep it flat and even, or maybe I should claim the camera distorted it, yeah, that sounds good. So take your bowl of water, dip your finger in it and run it around the edge, smoothing out the "tears" and smoothing the clay. Lay on another sheet of parchment/wax paper to dry.
Cut your remaining shapes and also lay them to dry. Now, take your wire and wire cutters and cut 3/4" to 1" pieces and use your needle nose pliers to curve them into a u shape. Dip the U into water and then insert into the top of your shape and then bottom of your pieces. If you know it is going to be the bottom shape, only insert the U into the top of the piece. (if you miss these steps they can be done later with a drill, eye screw, and E6000 glue). Press slightly on your shape, or use a brayer, to smooth over your hanging piece and make sure the clay wraps around it.

If you have left over clay, you can either tuck them back in the bag or cut more shapes, why not?
Some ideas for shapes to cut- alphabets? Kids favorite shapes (airplanes, teddy bears, flowers, etc), have fun!
Now, here are some tips about drying: you will notice this clay takes a while to dry. As it is drying, it will get white around the edges and still be grey in the middle. I usually turn them over when they have about 1/2 inch of white around the edges. I keep flipping them until they are completely dry. If you have young munchkins like mine- you might want to put these on a cookie sheet and put them out of their reach. Curious hands, or curious if they are cookies, means not so much fun for you.
We will continue this tutorial next week (it takes about 24 hrs for the clay to dry). I will leave you with the words of the house blessing:

the pit of dispair and then saved!

2010-02-08T10:33:00.000-08:00

My one week trial of the WW online tools expired. And I thought for sure my husband wasn't going to allow me to get a Monthly Pass so I could go to Meetings and track online so I was moping around. Then I found out they take Paypal- and I happened to have some photography payment money in Paypal that I hadn't withdrawn yet. Hooray. So I was back, and all before I was desperately tempted to give up dieting and just go back to my unhealthy ways. Saved, in the nick of time.
My first meeting will be tomorrow- but I couldn't resist weighing yesterday afternoon on my scale at home. I was down to 181.4! That is almost five pounds! I know it won't all be that easy but I am so happy. Of course I can't tell at all the difference but I feel different, or maybe it is because I am eating healthier!
It was a close call yesterday. I had a photo shoot at 3 yesterday- a newborn. So I ate a pretty filling lunch and headed out for the shoot. By the time I was done, I was starving! And thirsty- she offered me a drink, but you know I was almost done so I figured I would just stop at Sonic on my way home. Well, here I was starving and I stopped at McDonalds for a diet coke, and I really eyed the hamburger, I was thinking "it will tide me over til I get home" but then I stopped myself by saying- almost 5 pounds. Think what a difference. So I just got my diet coke and sped away as fast as I safely could. Go me!
I also learned how to change my turn signal yesterday thanks to the automotive store guy. I hate it when my lights go out, I live in fear of getting stopped or of someone rear ending me if I don't have my signal on.
Today I am sore. I always am after a photo shoot. While I am shooting, I totally get into it, squatting, twisting, bending, and scrunching. I don't even think about it, anything to get the right angle and composition. And the next day I pay for it. My darling husband alway suggests a nice relaxing hot bath, mostly so he can join me after the water cools down, but never mind his ulterior motives, it usually works and I feel better.
Now that I rambled on let me tell you my plot and plan for the blog.
I really want to start posting regularly and I want to make it interesting, and not just weightloss, but my crafts, photography, and home decor (which is currently non-existant, but needs to change) efforts. I am afraid these posts may be a hodge podge of information until I develop a method. This may evolve as I go along. Thanks for letting me natter on!

Good times at the Melting Pot

2010-02-06T06:26:00.000-08:00

I went out with two friends that I only see every few months- and one of them I hadn't seen in 1 1/2 years. We had a great time, we went to the Melting Pot. I had already eaten but enjoyed the company. We laughed and laughed and laughed! I should get activity points for all the laughing!
I had never been to the Melting Pot. It was really nice and it is a good thing I had already eaten because Sheri told me that the first time she went there- her meal, with everything was 96 points!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG my daily points are only 24 so that would be 4 days worth of points!
So we got to telling jokes :)

What happens when you throw a green rock into the Red Sea?

It gets wet. hahahahaha

Our waiter was so funny. And I learned things about Sheri I didn't know- Oh, I already knew she had a wicked sense of humor- but I didn't know when she retires she wants to be a deck hand on a fishing boat, and that she loves to Shark Fish and has been shark diving in Africa.

It was so nice to see Carrie! I miss her. I met these ladies at CKU in Dallas and then we all went to CKU Chicago together. Good times. And it is the kind of friendship that we just pickup where we left off. The only person missing is Cenee! We miss you Cenee!

Hats, Tutus, and Tigers Oh MY!

2010-02-05T10:48:00.000-08:00

Okay, no tigers (sorry to get your hopes up). Besides weight loss, what have I been up to? Well, I mentioned to a friend that I give a hat for all the babies that I do their newborn session, but that I was running low. Since she crochet's I offered her $8 dollar hats, thinking she would make a few and I would order more later..... she showed up with 11 hats! That is right, 11. And they were so cute!!!!!!!!!! Here are the fruits of her labors:And also I have a newborn girl session on Sunday, and while blogstalking Peekaboo Photography, I saw a beautiful baby girl in a tutu. I had to have it, but with no time to order one, decided to make one. I made a beautiful pink one, with pink polkadot ribbon, and because it was so easy decided to make more than one- I ended up with seven!!!!!!!!! See below:
If you have never made a no sew tutu- I can give you a tutorial- but since now one reads my blog, I won't post it unless you post that you want it.

Another day done- and a review

2010-02-04T20:08:00.000-08:00

So I did my abs workout yesterday so I wanted to do a cardio workout today. Since I quickly decided Denise Austen's very annoying baby voice in her Body Burn Dance and Pilates video was just too much to bear- let alone the fact that she doesn't explain how to do any of the steps- I went back to Walmart today to buy Dance the Inches Away Hip Hop Dance video! Love it. LOVE IT. It reminds me a lot of Body Jam. And there is a seperate section to explain the dance moves you may not get- so watch it first and then do the workout. My only annoying thing was that my son kept interrupting me- to the point that he was trying to turn on a video on the tv close to where I was rocking it with Jennifer G. Now, I don't consider myself a natural dancer, especially since I have put on weight so I know I didn't get all the moves exactly right- but I am sure I will do this one again. Note to self though: wear dance sneakers- my tennis shoes where gripping the floor just when I didn't need them to. I have Jazz Dance Sneakers from Capezio that I use for my Israeli Folk Dancing so they should help when I do this one next.
So I am right on for my points this week- have only used 1 of my extra 35 weekly points- which I may or may not take. Since it is my first week- I dont know that I should and I am not required to take them anyway. I probably should eat a few extra to make up for my activity points though, maybe? Not sure. I really need to go to a meeting next week- but since they are 12 dollars individually- I was kinda hoping the money I am expecting will come in.
I am not concerned about the diet portion - I seem to be handling it pretty well this week- and I have worked out a deal with my dear darling beloved hubby that if I do my exercise every day- he will do his (30 minutes on the exercycle). Go honey!
TTYSoon

The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

2010-02-04T04:47:00.000-08:00

There might even be a tutorial on how to slice bread for that matter.
Have you guys heard about DIY Dish- if not watch this 1 minute introduction video and then click on the DIY Dish button on the right. If you haven't heard yet- DIY Dish is a spin off of You Can Make This.com and will have all kinds of video tutorials on how to make and do things. I can't wait to see what is in store! And you can Win either a Janome Embroidery Machine or a Janome Sewing Machine!

Down 1.4 in 4 days

2010-02-02T20:52:00.000-08:00

Okay, it is day 4 and I weighed in today because I set my weigh in day on WWOnline to be Tuesdays. Tuesday's are my alone evening, and I also go dance for 2 hrs. I wasn't sure how to list the activity so I said it was 40 min of Moderate, 20 min of High, and 1 hr of low intensity. Works out to 8 activity points, but that seems high to me. I love Israeli Folk Dancing!!!!! I think I mentioned this ages and ages ago.
Yay for having made it this far. It is 10:54pm with is way past my bed time so I am going to bed- especially since Aba Le Arba :) is teaching a Europe class this week so he is having to get up in 3 hrs to get ready and drive to the office to start teaching at 3am. Which means I have to get up extra early so I can do my 8 minutes in the morning exercises before rounding up the horde and getting them dressed to take Itai to school. But we will get through it. It is just for 2 more days.

Abs Ouch

2010-01-31T16:36:00.000-08:00

So I got out my Transfirmer and did the Jiggle Free Abs routine- 25 minutes. It has been a long time since I did that routine (obviously). I had to rest a few times in the middle of the crunches but I think I did okay. I will do this every other day to make sure my body doesn't get too used to it- plus aren't you supposed to rest a muscle group after working it so it heals and strengthens?
Do you read Jorge Cruz? I love him- he wrote the 8 minutes in the Morning exercise book, and also the 3 hr diet. For now I am following the Weight Watcher's points but Jorge has a point. He talks about the 9" plate. You divide it in half- in the top half you put green vegetables- it can be as much as you want. On the bottom half you divide the plate in half again- in the first 1/4 you put protein and the other quarter you put carbs. You are allowed a healthy fat as well (flax seed oil, etc). Now, obviously this is a don't count what your eating type of plan but don't go overboard- piling your plate 4 inches tall would kind of defeat the purpose. He said there is no restricted foods, just proper portion control. I feel I do better counting my points or calories but I still like his principle message and I try to follow it even on the WW plan because it makes sense.
So, today at Macaroni Grill for lunch I had the Rosemary Grilled Chicken with Roasted potatos. I only ate half of the potatos because I wasn't sure how many points the chicken was until I got home. Turns out the meal of the chicken with roasted vegetables would have been 7 points, but I didn't have the roasted vegetables (did I mention I am a picky eater?). But when I got home I had some spinach to make up for it. I went ahead and counted the whole 7 points because I am not sure how many pints 5 roasted potato wedges would be vs the roasted vegetables. Then Ari and Tamar and I went to Joann's and then to Border's Books. (the first for me, the 2nd for them). Then home and stuck the kids in the bath tub.
Anyways my Abs are going to be sore, and my thighs because there are some squats in that routine. Tomorrow I have to decide what exercise to do- I was considering my Zumba dvd- the basic workout since it has been years since I did that one (again, obviously).

I survived the first day

2010-01-30T17:47:00.000-08:00

Well, I survived today- and it wasn't bad at all. Course I had a turkey sandwich for breakfast because it was the fastest protein thing I could come up with as we headed out the door to meet one of my photography clients. But it kept me full until we got home so I had tyson beef fajita strips and low carb tortillas for lunch. Not bad, I vaguely missed the cheese- but since I keep kosher now it was no big loss for me.
I went out shopping with Yael and on my way back we stopped at HEB to buy Totinos, Popsicles, and Ramen Noodles (none of those are mine). I also purchased one of the lean pockets 4 cheese pizzas. Wow, it was really good, and filling which meant I could have Israeli Salad for dinner and top it off with a Skinny Cow low fat Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich. I ended up thinking I might join Weight Watchers because as much as a I love you dear readers- what is it the Nesting Place calls readers- peeps? - I need to be accountable and if that means going to meetings, then that is what I will do. Don't worry- I will still blog here, for my sanity , if nothing else :)
Thanks for checking back

Answerability

2010-01-29T19:47:00.000-08:00

Ok, apparently I have a little trouble with will power and responsibility. I know I am overweight and in the past it has been easy for me to decide to diet, and then do it. I cannot seem to gear up the same determination this time. I have started and stopped within a day or two at the first sign of a challenge or what my body is telling me is hunger (or craving). Like I said, before it has always been I decided I would lose the weight and was singleminded on making it happen, but this time... not so much. So I am putting this out there- if I tell someone I am going to do this I am answerable for my promises, I am unable to deny that I need to do this. So here goes:

(Deep Breath)
My current weight: 186
My short term goal: 170
My long term goal: 150
This is me at Thanksgiving. I was thinking I looked okay, until I saw this shot:

Lets take a closer look: (do we have to?)Yup, that is me in my size 16 jeans, with backboobs that are at least a c cup.
I am taking this as a wake-up call. It is time to stop ignoring the obvious.
My instigation are these pictures, this feeling of unhealthiness and unsexiness, and my going from a large shirt to an extra large. My inspiration is knowing I will feel better both about my health and my relationship with people instead of food, getting back to exercise and taking time for me, and last but not least- the inspiration of the Incredible Shrinking Woman- If you haven't heard of her, go to Youtube and look her up. She has lost 200 pounds and is incredible! You go girl!
Now you would think that as someone who dances Israeli Folk Dance and chases four young children that it would be simple to lose weight. But to be honest, I dance hard at dance class and then sit on my butt everyday on the computer, doing homework and sewing, crafting, reading, playing on facebook and reading blogs. I used to go to the gym 4 days a week when I was working. My children would go in the gym daycare and I would do body jam (love and miss you body jam!). Now that I am not working I cannot go to the gym- so you would think I would exercise at home... not so much. There is much to be said for a partner that you meet at the gym- there is some accountability there (thank you Judy). Now I see Judy once a week at Israeli Folk Dance. I miss going for body jam and feeling like I am making an effort toward fitness.
So my audience (real or imagines- mostly imagined I know since I have 10 followers and as far as I know very few hits in the past few months (my fault since I didn't post much)) it is your job to hold me accountable- I am counting on you to give me strength and determination to follow through. I know it won't be fast- I know that I didn't gain it in 1 month and I am not going to lose it in one month-, but I will keep plugging away at a safe and healthy pace. I will update this blog with my progress, as well as other projects I am working on.

Pink Ruffles and Polka Dots

2010-01-23T08:24:00.000-08:00

Just thought I would show a beautiful baby with my pink ruffle pants:

What have I been working on?

2010-01-13T16:54:00.000-08:00

So you might wonder where I disappeared to after promising I was going to stay current. Hahaha. Have you noticed life rarely happens like you think it will? My photography really took off in November and December of last year. You can view my work at www.teresamaureen.com/blog.

I have been busy playing with things for my photography. Here are a few pics:

The girls started ballet/tap

2010-01-13T16:44:00.000-08:00

Big props to Lonestar Dance in Pflugerville, although they are still in the old building they will be moving this coming week (hopefully). The girls had a great time at their first class. I did discover that I will need to bring something to work on, since I will be unable to see the girls during class. Yael came out and told me they did the hokey pokey. When I tried to do the hokey pokey in my living room, she stopped me and said "No, the ballet hokey pokey" apparently I was supposed to point my toes. Who knew? lol.
Thanks Ms Blair for making my daughters first dance lesson so much fun.

Party in the USA

2009-11-03T12:30:00.001-08:00

One of the bloggers I follow- Life at the Zoo- posted the official music video to Miley Cyrus's video to Party in the USA- I love that song. Then I saw this video:
I haven't posted many videos- but this one is amazing. I know this guy's mom. (hi Melinda) He is right on with timing and facial expressions!

Busy Times

2009-10-23T17:42:00.000-07:00

So I have signed up to have a table at the Hadassah Hanukkah Gift Bazaar on Nov 15th. So I have been sewing, pinning, ironing up a storm. In addition I am taking an intermediate hebrew class on Thursdays. The kids have been sick, now Ori is sick (which is worse than having the kids sick because at least the kids try to pretend they aren't :) ). Also I posted an ad in Craigslist for my photography with free sessions to let me use the pics in my portfolio and got 20, Yes, that is 2-0, people who responded, well there were more but I cut it off at 20.
Want to know what I am sewing? Ruffle Baby Bloomers, Sensory Tag Blankets, Burp Cloths, Blankets, Hair bows, Hats with Marabou Feathers. Here is a pic of one of my bloomers- pay no attention to the actual picture- I was sad her forehead is all wrinkled- but it is a good pic of the bloomers. You can see more pics on my photography blog- www.teresamaureen.com/blog.

Get 2 Patterns Free- just in time for Halloween.

2009-10-20T05:31:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone- you probably know I am a huge fan of www.youcanmakethis.com and now I am thrilled to announce they were featured on Studio Five in Salt Lake City and to celebrate they are giving away two free patterns- the filled tutu and the festive vest. Watch this video and then go to www.youcanmakethis.com for your free patterns!

Shana Tova

2009-09-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

I'm Back- and Reinspired

2009-09-13T19:25:00.000-07:00

I know I have been AWOL- it has been a crazy summer. But I am reinspired!!!!!!!! I have to show you what my friends and I accomplished in 1 day!
My craft room was a total mess- boxes and items that hadn't been unpacked since we moved in a year ago. Fabric, ribbons, and stuff spread on the floor while I was searching because I couldn't find anything. More Boxes, Baskets, and containers piled in corners and the closet. Well- check out the transformation.
My friend Susie painted the room, while Sheri and I sorted through everything- and I mean everything. Sorting out Fabric, scraps, ribbons, Books, Office Supplies, Scrapbooking Supplies, Sewing Tools, Yarn, etc. Divided items into keep, sell, donate, or trash. My new Motto is: It doesn't go into the room unless it has a place or a purpose.
I bought some darling- and I do mean darling- storage boxes at Ikea. The bookshelves I have had for a year- also from Ikea.
Enough Teaser- from Messed up Craft Room to Uncluttered Design Studio- here is the big Unveil:

BEFORE:
Left Wall inside the doorAFTER
Left Hand Wall inside the door

BEFORE-
Wall with Window

AFTER
Wall with the Window

BEFORE
Right Hand WallAFTER
Right Hand Wall
Wall Beside the ClosetAnother View of the Bookcases on the right hand wall- see the flower boxes aren't they cute?!

Teresa's Wish List

2009-05-14T10:28:00.000-07:00

I am throwing this out there because hopefully the Universe is listening. My husband always says I have expensive tastes- and he is right. but I don't ask for anything too outrageous. Universe- feel free to fulfill my wishlist.
1) Canon 5D Mark II
2) Canon 580ex flash unit
3) 1 or 2 TB External Hard drives
4) Sprinkler System
5) Whole house Water Filtration System
6) Wordsmith "What to Sell"
7) Wordsmith "What to Write"
8) Wordsmith "What to Wear"
9) Photoshop CS4 (I have 3 but I want the latest)
10) to get into my photography forum's prepro business forum

I've been Tagged!

2009-05-05T18:19:00.000-07:00

I was tagged by Melissa at 3 Princes -
I have to tell you 8 things in different categories.
Ok, here we go:
8 things I did today:
1) Listened to Harkada Radio chat
2) Called my Mom to congratulate her on 1 week cigarette free (which after 40 years of smoking is no small feat.
3) Sent my husband off to Columbia for a business demo.
4) played game cube Dora and the Purple Planet- did you know you can't die in that game? So I vary it up by trying to get as few space gems as possible
5) Watched- CSI: Miami from last night on my DVR
6) Picked up Ari from Pegasus, and then kept him home with me instead of taking him to daycare.
7) Picked Up Itai from Kindergarten- 1 hr later
8) let the kids play in the dirt for 1 hr and then sent them to bath and bed

8 Things I wish I could do:
1) Get a successful photography business going
2) Enjoy staying home with the kids this summer instead of working a 9-5 job
3) visit my sister or have her visit me more often
4) Make enough money to support the lifestyle I would like to become accustomed to :)
5) Be able to take my kids to do the things they want to do without worrying about money
6) Live in Israel for at least 3 months so I can become fluent in Hebrew
7) Craft or Photograph my kids more often
8) Finish my YCMT quilt- just need corners and binding and then to do the batting.

8 TV Shows I Love to Watch: (in no particular order)
1) All the CSIs- Miami, Las Vegas, NY
2) America's Next Top Model- Cycle 12
3) Numbers)
4) Bones
5) Biggest Loser
6) Backyardigans (that did not just make my list did it?)
7) Signing Times- a really great way to teach your kids sign language
8) Criminal Minds

the History of Ima Le Arba part 1

2009-05-05T05:23:00.000-07:00

I was just your typical american growing up in East Texas when I met my husband. I worked everyday by driving into Dallas and then driving back to Greenville every work day. My stress outlet was the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) which is a renaissance reinactment group- kinda like a ren faire but held almost every weekend and we try to live life as close to period accuracy as possible. And that is where I met Ori, an Israeli- as out of place as one can possibly get :). He came here in 1997 from Israel with a successful Israeli startup who sent him from Israel to Silicone Valley and then to Arlington, TX to start their customer service dept. Now how did he end up at an event in East Texas, let alone ever heard of SCA? Well- he left his job and went to be a student at University of Texas Arlington. There was a fairly strong group on campus and that is how he got involved, he says it was to meet women- well, it worked didn't it?
It was close to my 29th birthday and I hadn't had a date in 3 years. Ori wasn't really my "type" but I got a surprise of my life when at a SCA meeting he walked by me and my knees got weak. I had met him before, What? So cliche- but I literally got all weak over him walking by.
So I got brave and asked him out (first and last time ever) Our first date was at an Indian Food Restaurant in Dallas- but Mapquest gave the wrong intersection and where I stopped and asked directions- not Ori. He wasn't really good at driving and Dallas traffic made him nervous- so he parked and got out at that Intersection (Preston and Arapaho) and walked all 4 corners. He didn't have a cell phone and so he was an hour late and to this day I don't know why I was still there. He came rushing up to the restaurant with 3 Gerber daisies and full of apologies. So we went in to eat. He did most the talking and at the end of the date he said to be honest he just didn't feel a spark. I said I appreciated his honesty and hoped that we would be good friends and that we would always be honest with each other.
Now remember- I had an hour and a half drive home and somewhere between the restaurant and home I decided he couldn't just decide something like that in 1 hr so when I got home I sent him an email that said "I demand a recount!" and other stuff but mostly the gist was that I didn't think he couldn't make such a decision in 1 hr and that I wanted a 2nd chance. He wrote back and said this was good- he thought I was too quiet. Hahahahahahahahahaha.
He knows better now.
We actually had our first date Sept 7, 2000 (the day before my birthday) and got married January 2001 in Las Vegas- but then we had about 5 ceremonies, lol. First we got engaged, it was a snowy day and we had just closed on our new property in Campbell (further known as the Pomeranch) and I didn't want to go back to work so instead we bought a ring- and he proposed to me at the corner of 3202/3204 overlooking our property. Next we were Hand Fasted in the SCA. We got married in Vegas, We had a engagement party in Israel that summer - because Ori didn't want to tell his parents we got married before they even got to meet me, not to mention that I am not jewish so he was concerned how they would take it. and Lastly we had a Renaissance Wedding at the Japanese Gardens in Ft Worth, where I grew up and his parents flew there to be with us and surprised us by renting costumes and dressing up for our wedding. The Renaissance wedding was gorgeous- nice clothing, good friends, good food, and we couldn't have asked for better weather. Cool enough that we didn't swelter in our Ren clothes but sunshiny and comfortable temperatures. and then we went to the Zoo for the fun of it- in our Ren clothes.
So that is the end of Part 1, I will post part two tomorrow.

I want to give a shout out

2009-04-29T08:17:00.000-07:00

to Ayelet at harkada radio- it is Israeli Dance music played 24-7. With Live shows on Mondays and Tuesdays and sometimes Fridays. Love it- I stream at work and minimize the chat. Or you can chat too. The chat is sometimes English, sometimes Dutch, sometimes Hebrew. You never know what you will get. You should really check it out! Here is the link to Harkada . (music is mostly Hebrew- but occasionally they throw in spanish and english)
Awesome station!

I need your help- what to name my photography business.

2009-04-26T15:24:00.000-07:00

I have had Moments Matter Photography for 3 years, but... last year I found someone in another state is using my Moments Matter name. I sent her a note saying she was in violation but she said she registered with her state and as long as they said it was okay she wasn't going to give it up. I never registered mine here. So I have toyed with a couple of different names: Teresa Maureen Photography and Birds Nest Photography. I just can't seem to nail it down since I really liked my Moments Matter. But I got to thinking maybe I should change it to Teresa Maureen since Moments Matter is limited to people photography only. I am not in love with any of them, So what do you think? Here is my current logo

and here is my work up for Teresa Maureen. I

didn't make one for Birds Nest Photography, although I did get the domain. Do you have another suggestion?

The issue is that if you do a google search- you find her, not me. I did want a more colorful logo- but I can't think of anything using Teresa Maureen and I am not sure about Birds Nest- although it does have great branding potentional. So I am throwing this out there for your suggestions. HELP?

Just a quick drop in note

2009-04-24T13:06:00.000-07:00

I am having a garage sale tomorrow- and I haven't done anything except told my neighborhood I would host one as part of their neighborhood garage sale. So tomorrow early am will find me out putting anything and everything into the garage sale. Whee!
but hey, at least I will have some cash to show for it.

Oh, I know it has been a while

2009-04-21T11:10:00.001-07:00

but there are going to be a life change coming. I am leaving my job at IBM to become a stay at home mom in June. There are a myriad of reasons but the one I am looking forward to the most is spending more than 2 hrs a day with my children. I feel like my children's daycare knows more about them than I do.
So if I post anything crazy like- that is why. This also will let me spend 3 weeks in Israel in July :) I am looking forward to it. I will get to practice more photography too.
Drawback- little adult time. You guys have to give me some Adult conversation okay. I don't mean xxx conversation- I mean crafting and people conversation.
So now I need to get working on some ebooks for YCMT.com so I can earn some extra money. I was also considering hosting a blog to sell my scrapbook stuff- I have a whole room full and it is just a part of my life that is behind me right now. And when I bought the stuff- oh how happy it made me. Now it makes me sad- seeing how much money I spent buying it and not having any time to use it. If I have any spare time- I want to sew- or take pictures, or just take my kids to the park.

Kochavim 2009

2009-03-31T11:17:00.000-07:00

So I spent the weekend away at Kochavim 2009- an Israeli Folk Dancing Camp. OH, it was sooooo much fun! We learned 24 or so dances (talk about brain oversaturation!). I met lots of new people and we danced, danced, danced, ate yummy food, and danced some more. Now you notice I didn't say sleep because I doubt we got more than 4 hrs before it was time to get up and start all over. Our instructors were lots of fun, and patient too which is good considering I am not that talented to learn in one teach! And big kudos to Larry M for editing the video so that I only show in the review video looking like I know what I am doing.
I will post a picture later.
Also big kudos to my husband for keeping the kiddos. I missed you ahouvi but I had such a good time.

Giveaway Alert: WonderMommy is up to some good

2009-03-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

Wondermommy is hosting a giveaway for 2 yds of Anna Maria Horner Fabric- it is gorgeous. I so want some but I am spreading the word- so go enter by leaving a comment on her blog- just click on the picture to be linked to her blog:

I have a dream

2009-03-16T09:48:00.001-07:00

I don't know how many of you know that I am also a photographer- I have another blog called Moments Matter Photography. I have always wanted to have the opportunity to go to Photography Workshops around the world to learn everything I can and maybe provide reviews to magazines and my blog public about those workshops.
Well now I can try to make my dream come true- there is a contest being sponsored by Lenovo and Microsoft. You can view my entry by clicking here. If you like my idea- click on Pic it to vote.
If I win I get a new laptop that is made specifically for photographers and some money to apply toward my dream. So all my loyal readers- I need your help. Pass on my information to whoever you think might like it.

My Nephew's School Project

2009-03-12T07:12:00.000-07:00

Okay- I can't claim to have anything to do with this project other than it is my nephews. They had to create a habitat for a pet rock. Blake decided on Sonic the Hedgerock- it turned out so cute!
especially considering he is only 9- not shabby at all huh?

My poor baby car

2009-03-11T10:36:00.000-07:00

So this week Ori is teaching a class in the office so I have been picking up Itai from School. So he has been driving my car so he can pick up the 3 little ones. Ori's normal car is a tiny little Hyundai Accent, and I drive a Dodge Grand Caravan Minivan. Somehow he didn't make the turn out of the parking garage and this is what my poor baby car looks like now:

So I called insurance and had them book me an appt and dropped it off at the body shop this morning. Well if Ori thinks my car is Carzilla- then the rental car is Truck Kong- they gave me a Dodge Ram King Cab Pickup Truck! No way am I letting Ori drive it so looks like I am not going to the Israeli Block Party this evening :(

My new fabric

2009-03-03T11:43:00.001-08:00

I am so not a product photographer- unless it is clothing:) but look at my pretty fabric I got in the mail today:)

Israeli Block Party- Matilda Jane- and misc

2009-03-03T08:15:00.001-08:00

For those that asked- my MJ Trunk Show went well. We only had about 5 of us- but we all were able to get what we wanted and I really enjoyed talking to the Moms I knew and the ones I just met.
For those who don't know- the Israeli Block Party is held every year on the UT campus and this year they are looking to make it the best since this is Israel's 60th yr. March 11th is the date- Click on the link for more information. My Israeli Folk Dance buddies and I will be leading dancing down there and it is going to be fun. Come on out and do some shopping, dancing, talking, and eating!

I am joining Mama's a Mess- in providing an orphanage with blankets and bibs. Sharon- your heart warms mine! If you are interested- head on over to Mama's a Mess' blog and volunteer- make a receiving blanket or two or 20 and feel good about yourself- if your going to craft- might as well get some love out of it- right. And those kids in the orphanage don't have warm blankets and bibs to keep them clean- lets do what we can to help! I am also thinking some fleece blankets for the older kiddos wouldn't go amiss either. Or quilts- I know lots of you have your YCMT quilts.

I am in love with these pics

2009-02-28T18:42:00.000-08:00

Just in case you guys don't peek at my Moments Matter Blog- here are a couple of recent pics of the girls. There are more pics on my other blog.

Matilda Jane Trunk Show- Austin, TX

2009-02-25T08:41:00.000-08:00

That is right- I got the first Trunk Show date of the new Hot Line Collection from Matilda Jane. For those who have not seen these clothes- they are gorgeous- and perfect not only for portraits for going out and about. I own several of the pieces from the Fall collection- check this out:

While this is not the most technically perfect picture- it does have all 4 of them looking and looking so cute in their Matilda Jane (yes- the boys are wearing the Mr Lucas shirts from MJ)

If you are interested in coming to the Trunk show it will be Sunday March 1st at the Bright Horizons on Braker Ln in Austin at 2:30pm. Come and see the brand new collection- I can't wait. And I am setting up my photography lights so there are pictures involved!

Matilda Jane's website is http://www.matildajanegirls.com/ and the blog is http://www.matildajane.typepad.com/ they have been posting sneak peaks over there so head on over and check them out.

Bring your friends- your all invited. (more pics of my kids in Matilda Jane at www.momentsmatterphotography.blogspot.com)

Fabric Insanity

2009-02-18T07:19:00.000-08:00

Some how I have become the proud owner of the complete Aviary from Moda Fat Quarter Pack - here is a pic from the Fat Quarter Shop

And if that wasn't enough I also got 3/4 packs for the Grand Revival Darla Fat quarters- this pic is from the Grand Revival Blog

Here is the picture from the Fat Quarter Shop

See- what happened was- I joined a fat quarter swap. Then I ordered fabric- I think I thought I was ordering a small pack- but um- no. But my husband said it was okay- I can keep it so Hooray!

Can't wait to sew!

I just have to brag!

2009-02-16T14:44:00.000-08:00

My son Ari is going to be 4 in June. He is so talented- he drew this when he had just turned 3-

For those of you who are not family- you might not know that when Ari turned three he was inarticulate- he rarely said anything and he was very frustrated in trying to communicate. He had had a series of ear infections from 12mos old and had ear tubes put in at 18 mo- even after that his ears drained and drained and when we took him for his followup with his ENT he had 40% hearing loss. His dr gave him claritin and suddenly his ears started clearing up- by the time he hit 2 1/2 he had 100% hearing- he got it all back- but he wasn't talking.

When he was 2 1/2 I had twin girls- He liked to play independantly and I just thought it was that he was secure- but then when he turned 3 and wasn't talking I was worried- and I thought he might be autistic- he had neurologist appts and MRIs and even a geneology screening- and wouldn't you know it- completely normal. We put him in private speech therapy and since January 08 he had made huge strides. He was doing 48 piece puzzles at age 3. and then he drew the lion above. Isn't that impressive for a 3 yr old? I have tried to find an art program- but there are not any for age three. What is up with that? Ballet starts at 3- why not art?

Follow up to the Teacher's Valentines

2009-02-13T05:21:00.001-08:00

the gifts were a hit! The teachers all marveled over how it was made and how cute they were. I owe a big thank you to Kris for those directions! Also- I took a picture with my cell phone- it isn't a great picture but hey- it was 6:30 in the morning. Here are the girls teachers- doing it up Charlie's Angel Style

Altered Letters Tutorial

2009-02-11T20:15:00.001-08:00

This is one of my favorite all time crafts- and it is perfect for my first tutorial to share.

ALTERED LETTERS

Supplies:
Wooden or cardboard letters (I got mine from Joann’s) Since it is right before Valentines I chose the word Love- but you could spell Family or someone’s name. (the possibilities are limitless)
Scrapbook paper- I used coordinating paper- but it doesn’t have to be- you can make every letter different if you want.
Ribbon- I am a ribbon aholic so I put Ribbon on almost everything I do.
Photographs (small- no bigger than wallet size is recommended) (unless you use the big letters you can sometimes find)
Bulldog clip (opt)
Cup hook (opt) I bought the tiniest size from Home Depot

Paint (I love Memories brand- but regular acrylic is fine)

Modge Podge

foam brushes

embellishments- I used a big flower- isn't it pretty?

Basic Construction:
You need about 4 sheets of coordinated paper (1 for each letter). Even unrelated lines of paper can be combined in an appealing manner.

Paint the edges and/or bottom of your letters with a coordinating paint. (that way if your measurements are a little off it will cover a multitude of sins.

Turn your first sheet of paper upside down and place your letter right side down. Trace around your letter. (make sure you get the center of letters as needed.

Now cut out your paper letter- I cut on the inside of the line I drew.

Apply a thin layer of decoupage glue (Modge Podge) evenly on the front of the letter and quickly put your paper letter over it. Use a brayer or your finger to smooth the paper several times to make sure the paper doesn’t bubble up. The idea here is not to be a perfectionist so if you get a few bubbles no harm no fowl. You’ll be covering up any mistakes with your accessories anyway. (the important thing here is THIN layer- too much and your paper will stretch and wrinkle)
Repeat steps 2, 3, and 4 until all letters are covered. Remember… there is no wrong or right to this. You can be as perfectionist or as messy as you want to be. You can sand the edges of her paper to make it flush- . As I tend to cut my paper just a little smaller than the letters, I used paint to cover the imperfections. Can you spot my mistake?

Yes, that is right- I didn't notice that when I turned my paper downwards and placed my letter on it- I got the title strip. If you can read that- you are too close- but the paper line is from Basic Grey. I fell in love with it on sight.

Here is the L fixed
Set aside to dry and begin thinking about your accessorizing.
Accessorizing
This is the fun part. You can mount at least one of your photos onto chipboard and mounted it using a bulldog clip from the local office supply store using a screw. I like the idea of using a cuphook and hanging beads, bells, or something similar. Dig in that stash- you can use metal frames, photo corners, rubons and more to make your letters unique. My husband was delighted that I actually used some of my supplies and I was delighted to make room to buy more J.
You can use ribbon to tie a bow around one or more letters.

Here is the final product again- have fun- and feel free to show me the letters you made

Teacher gifts are done!

2009-02-09T18:16:00.000-08:00

Here they are- they turned out so cute!

teacher gifts in progress and quilt top

2009-02-09T14:17:00.001-08:00

Sorry for my pity party this morning- I wasn't sure anyone was reading since I didn't get any comments. Anyway- moving on...

here are the teacher gifts in progress - there are 16 of them- I am obviously not a product photographer- but they are filled with (l-r- conversation hearts, valentines candy corn, valentines m&ms and valentines fruit snacks) They will be topped with popcorn balls dipped in white chocoate and sprinkled w/ valentines sprinkles. a "cherry" chocolate heart and pixie sticks or pencils for the straws will complete the look.

Here is the pink/sage green quilt top- I cannot seem to get a picture that is as pretty- it is much prettier in person.

OK- I know your out there lurking

2009-02-09T10:09:00.001-08:00

I have only one PIF commenter. Pay it Forward is a great program.
Or maybe I do only have 3 people who read this- me, myself, and I? Well we will keep nattering on anyway! Maybe someone will randomly land in my blog by clicking on that next blog button up at the top.
Quilt status- the pink and sage green is 2/3 sewn together. the black/white/teal is patiently waiting for me to sew it together too.
And my "sundae" teacher's gifts are in progress. If you haven't seen this- sneak over and visit Kris at JesseKate Designs. Her valentine center pieces are becoming my teachers gifts- only I can't find taffy so they are getting popcorn balls instead.

Pay it Forward

2009-02-06T06:09:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of Pay it Forward- it is a fairly easy project requiring little on your part. How many times have people done something nice and you wish you could pay them back- but you can't - but you can do something nice for someone else? That is the concept of Pay it Forward.

How this one works is quite simple. The first three people to sign up on this post will receive a surprise PIF sometime within the next 365 days. Then each of my three players will invite their own three players and so on. Doesn't that sound like fun?
Ok, so the first three to sign up (international welcome) will receive some Random stuff from my collections :) sometime this year. In return, you will make a post on your blog and offer the same thing to three of your blog readers. So, come on....who wants to be part of this great event?

PS- Make sure you give me your email addresses- I would hate to not be able to contact you.

Don't be shy about commenting- I have lots of random goodiness in my craftroom- some scrapbooking, some beading, some yarny stuff, some fabricry stuff. You name it and I probably have it- except maybe felting stuff- haven't ever done felting :)

I have pinwheels- for my quilt that is

2009-02-05T13:23:00.000-08:00

Here is my pinwheels- I am loving them both- but now I wish I had made more- oh well- this is for a wall hanging right? Not a queen sized bed- trying not to be too overly ambitious.

I still can't decide which I like best- although I love love the sage and pink but I also really like the teal and black/white combo.

Hello.... Hello? Echoo?

2009-02-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

Is anyone reading? I feel alone in cyber space. I have been sick this week and haven't gotten a single comment? I am working on my quilt- My pinwheels are almost together.

On the Mend

2009-02-04T06:40:00.000-08:00

I am on the mend (finally!!!!) from the worst cold I have ever had, well maybe the flu- not sure. I had fever for 3 days and now that that is over I am coughing and sorethroat. But at least the fever is over! So sometime soon I will try to do more work on the quilt. Steps 8 and 9 are on the YCMT website but I am still where I was- squaring up the original triangle blocks.

Quilt update- and before and after pics of me

2009-01-30T06:52:00.000-08:00

Okay- first the quilt update- I have finished ironing the squares for both quilts- now I am squaring them up. I don't understand how I got so far off on some of those- but it is all good, I will make it work. It is obviously going to take a while to square them up since I have 64 of each quilt.

Have you heard of Weightview.com? They so rock. I sent in a picture of me and they did a digital nip and tuck to show an after picture if I lost 40 pounds- check this out:

Before

After

As Promised- Quilt Pictures

2009-01-29T06:47:00.000-08:00

I still haven't made much progress- I have ironed all the bw squares, Now to do the Pink and Sage Green- but I have delayed long enough on posting pictures so here ya go.

My Follow along Quilt (s)

2009-01-28T10:04:00.000-08:00

I am following along with the YCMT quilt a thon- you can link for more information by clicking on the graphic on the right hand side. You might have noticed that I posted about this a while back to help me chose a color theme- since I only got two comments- I went with BOTH color schemes so I am making a black/white/Aqua quilt and a pink/cream/and sage green quilt. I of course have taken pictures and not posted them because I am at work so check back this evening and I will post them.
Kim posted step 7 today- but I am still on step 2 (don't tell her, okay?) I am on the ironing the new squares part- next I will square them up and sew them into pinwheels, and square them again. Is there a support group for people who are way far behind?
This is my very first quilts so I am going slow and making sure I do it right, because I want to be able to do something with what I have made. Maybe a gift or to decorate the guest bedroom?

Some Big Changes are coming!

2009-01-27T07:55:00.001-08:00

I am going to be making a new header and changing up my backgrounds. For those of you waiting for my quilt pictures- I am working on it. As I say on facebook- it isn't the taking pictures that takes so long- its the uploading and editing :)
Keep watching, cause things are happening!

Do you Israeli Folk Dance?

2009-01-23T09:42:00.000-08:00

I do! We have a very small group here in Austin, but we are looking for more and a teacher too.
There is a dance camp coming up at the end of March- Kochavim 2009. They are a wonderful camp- hosted by the dancing group out of San Antonio.
Last years Kochavim was a blast and they didn't stop dancing! They danced at the pool, they danced on the lawn, and they danced everynight until 3 or 4 in the morning.
I am looking forward to this years. You can view their link at www.kochavim.net- although they haven't updated it yet.
This years brochure is digital- I can't seem to figure out how to attach it so you can email me for it (go to my profile and click on email me)

Torn between 2 color schemes

2009-01-21T05:28:00.000-08:00

So I was out shopping yesterday at Joann's. I want to do the Make a Quilt thing from YCMT (see the graphic to the right). I found just tons I could have used- but I couldn't decide between pink and sage green or black and white with retro teal accents. Somebody help me decide. I will post pictures this evening. I have to get to work cutting them and sewing them into pinwheels so try to post/comment today.
Thanks in advance!

Winners of the Name the Blog Contest

2009-01-16T11:39:00.000-08:00

Mama Krit, Turtle, and 3 Prince designs- please email me your address because you win :)
I am going to go with Ima Le Arba and will just make a nice little banner to explain it all. Maybe its silly- but I feel that it defines me- I am a mother of 4 wonderful small human beings and I can't imaging being called anything else.
If you have a specific request for your prize let me know- I have so much stash I am sure I can accomodate. (no machines though heehee)

Making it up Quilt

2009-01-15T05:25:00.000-08:00

For those who don't know, Kim at Youcanmakethis.com is making a quilt. Not just any quilt, this is a super dooper, super easy quilt- broken down with step by step directions. Now I have to chose what fabrics from my humongous stash. Black and White might be fun :) . Today is step 4 and 5. Here is the link to the YCMT blog .
If you have been hiding under a rock, and haven't read any of the rest of my blog- you still need to know this: You Can Make This.com is a wonderful site where you can find ebooks on how to make just about anything- aprons, children's boutique clothing, purses, bags, baby blankets, etc. There are sewing patterns, crochet and knitting patterns, paper crafting, digital scrapbooking, and so much more (even some adult and tween sewing patterns, not just children). If you haven't been to the website you should go at least once. I love YCMT and even was chosen to participate in their Thrifty under Fifty challenge right before the holidays. I was on Team Carla along with some wonderful teammates. The link to their blogs are in my profile so feel free to check them out.

New Blog Name? contest?

2009-01-12T07:30:00.000-08:00

So since the Thrifty Fifty is over- I was thinking of changing my blog name- but I can't seem to think of anything clever- so howabout a contest?
The winning blog name will get a special care package from me- maybe fabric, maybe scrapbooking, maybe both, maybe something already made.
Here are somethings to go off of: I have 4 children- all 6 yrs old and younger. My husband is Israeli- so if you can think of something clever in hebrew, bring it on. My sign on name for a lot of places is imalearba4 (ima le arba is mother to 4 in hebrew). We don't have any pets- my kids are desperately afraid of dogs (don't ask me why, I haven't figured that out). I like to do crafts, sewing, scrapbooking, beading, knitting, crocheting, etc. I can't draw worth anything, but if Carla wanted to make me a cute little person like hers on the Scientific Seamstress blog, I wouldn't say no.
So have fun, be creative. I could use Imalearba- but people get confused about that sometimes.
To enter just make a comment to this post.

This amazes me!

2009-01-05T10:21:00.001-08:00

This story affects anyone who handcrafts any items meant for children- If this passes it will require that goodwill test any items for children for lead. Including clothing! So all of us that handmake items for sale would have to pay a private firm to test the clothing we make. The article is here:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-thrift2-2009jan02,0,2083247.story
Now- keep in mind that I am sure that if your yarn company certifies their yarn is lead free then you can pretty much use their statement for your product- but what if they don't have it tested- because say the yarn was not intended only for children- then you have to pay to have it tested before you can post it on etsy- or for sale through a boutique.
Goodwill says they are going to have to take all the children's clothes to the landfill- but the truckload! Wow. So all of us who are donating clothing to goodwill when our kids outgrow it are going to be affected to- even if we don't sell it.
This is absolutely absurb- I understand toys- especially that crisis that we had last year- but clothing? Sweaters? Babywraps, even cotten birdseye cloth diapers? This is going to raise the cost even at Walmart for clothes. AAAAH!

Back to Work

2009-01-05T06:06:00.000-08:00

Well, it is time to get back to work. I have worked from home for the last month, but I am back in the office today. So if I don't pop in or comment on any blogs- that is where I am. I usually can manage to get on facebook though so you can add me if you wish (Teresa Pomerantz).
Poor Tamar is sick today- she was up all night coughing and feverish. I gave her a breathing treatment around 11pm which helped some- but we are all tired and cranky today. Itai is being such a good brother and helping entertain her at home with Aba.

Happy New Year to You!

2009-01-01T07:20:00.000-08:00

Here in the Pomerantz household we are gearing up for a fabulous new year starting with our resolutions. Here are a few of mine:
1. enjoy the quiet moments
2. more crafting
3. resume going to the gym on a regular basis (4 times a week for bodyjam)
4. I am not going to resolve to lose weight since that isn't effective- instead I am resolving to get healthy this year.
5. To have my crooked teeth straightened and whitened.
6. To work with Itai on writing
Hope your resolves are attainable.

Murphey's Law- Its true

2008-12-14T17:30:00.000-08:00

So tomorrow is the last day of the challenge. So My plan for this weekend was to sew, sew, sew. I had my pattern pieces all cut out and ready to sew. Saturday was parents day out at my kids daycare so I could put the kids in from 9:30-3:00. I had to run a few errands so I didn't get back to the house until noon so instead of napping which was what my husband was doing- I started sewing my son's teacher's new apron together. I finally got my ruffler to work after some configuring and so I made the ruffle. I finished attaching the ruffle around 2:30- time to leave to go get kiddos. We then took the kids to Joann's and Border's books and got home about 6- fed the kids and put them to bed then back to sewing the apron. I think I might have made an error by using a heavy canvas as the background because the apron is very stiff- but it has to hold up to kindergarteners so it is probably going to get softer with age. (yes I washed it first). I will post pictures in a bit.
I finished the apron last night at 10:00pm (it gets harder to sew when the kids are home.)
This morning my husband was leaving for Canada to teach a security course (he is going to Ottowa- I heard they had a snow storm last week). My project this morning was to sew the girls blankets and pillows so they could move to their big girl toddler beds after New Years. While I was sewing my oldest son said Ari was coloring on the furniture- he was right- Ari was coloring on my new couch, chairs, and coffee table with permanent green marker. I caught him just as he started coloring on the cream colored carpet. I don't think Ari missed a single piece of furniture- the coffee table, the side table, the entertainment center, the computer table, the two brown colored chairs, my olive green couch, some boxes. I asked Itai why he didn't tell me earlier and he said that he was trying to stop him... hmmm.
So I finished the blankets and started on the pillow cases- when I heard a crash downstairs- one of the girls dropped a ceramic coffee cup (thank goodness it didn't shatter, it just cracked so I was able to easily clean it up.
That was it! I put all three little ones in their beds for naptime. You would think there would be peace and quiet- right? Well I heard giggling from the girls room and went in there- Tamar was straddling her crib rails- about to tip herself forward. Now I am really glad I was finishing the girls blankets and pillows. I spent the rest of the day finishing their pillows then took them for a walk to the park- and when we got back I cleaned the kitchen to work off some steam. But then I got more steamed because I discovered my husband had let the dishes from Thanksgiving- 3 weeks ago- sit in the sink and they were black (he does the dishes and trash and I do the rest of the cleaning). I was nooootttt!!!!! Pleased. I have been putting off sweeping the dining room so there are crumbs under the table, the table was sticky. (apple juice spilled and not cleaned up hmmm)
Ok so enought complaining. The girls big girl beds are put together- I now have to teach them to stay in them. It could be touch and go- but they will learn- the boys did, so will the girls.
I have Seska's ladybug purse cut out and ready to sew. Hopefully I will get at least it done before the deadline.

Ooh, the pressure!

2008-12-10T18:01:00.000-08:00

Okay, so my craft projects are due to be finished by the fifteenth. Some have been more successful from others.

My first time sewing with zippers- a failure. I made the ladybug purse and was doing so well- when I realized I sewed the zipper pull inside the purse. Proof?

But my hairbows turned out really cute (please excuse the poor product photography) I still haven't found my studio lights:

I felt I really had to make some time to straighten up my craft room since I was dodging around boxes and could barely see what i had: here is my "straighted up room"

So projects in progress- tutus. The nightgowns are being delayed. I am making the girls Disney Princess bedding as they are moving into their big girl beds for New Years. (toddler beds)
I guess I will remake the ladybug purse- it really is a cute purse.
I am making a drawstring backpack for my nephew and sons.

Projects update

2008-12-04T05:40:00.000-08:00

that is right- Projects with an s, as in multiple projects at the same time.
I finally made myself sit still long enough to cut out the nightgowns for my girls using CarlaC's Portrait Peasant Dress pattern. For some reason I only had 2 yds of each fabric so for the ruffle I cut two of 1.5 yard strips and I will piece them together. Nobody will notice anyway. Fortunately it was 60" wide fabric so no shortage for anything else. I love my rotary cutter!
My husband surprised me with a ruffler foot for my sewing machine (yay!). Now I have a reason to watch Carla explain the ruffler foot in her video on www.youcanmakethis.com (it is on the front page, just scroll down to the bottom) You can also get the free Ruffler- unruffled ebook here.
Other projects- I am cutting out the Kimberbell Kids Dolls pattern tonight.
I have 14 sets of hairbows in progress using mini ornaments from last years after-christmas sales.
I am also cutting out the Mini LadyBug Purse for my niece. Using the beautiful fabric that I got in the remnants basket at Joann's last week (Yahoo!).
I am also cutting out the CarlaC's Aline dresses fabric tonight: I think these will go perfect with the girls new SugarPlum crocs (the pink, green, and cream)
What else am I in progress of doing? making a mess in my craft room (heehee, the better to keep people from figuring out what I am up to, right?) and also working full time and attempting to spend some time with the kids. (does sitting on the couch gluing hairclips while the kids watch Barney at the Zoo count?)

Cute girlie story

2008-12-02T06:02:00.001-08:00

While I was making the hairbows for my daughter's class I had the clips out preparing to glue the ribbons on- I looked over at my girls and they were taking turns sitting on a bench and pretending to fix each other's hair. They were having such a good time. They must have changed places at least 4 times. They would fluff up the hair , smooth it down, and then pretend to put the clip in the hair (don't know how they got the clip without me noticing).

SMICHIS and christmas crocs

2008-12-01T19:49:00.000-08:00

Here is my daughters' SMICHI (sensory blanket)- I will make matching nightgowns out of the peasant gown pattern from www.youcanmakethis.com.
The best part is I already had the fabric and ribbons so the SMICHIs were 0 dollars to make. The clogs were 4dollars a pair- so at 4 pair they cost me 16 dollars- and since I had the ribbons and paint and glue already- it cost me only for the shoes themselves. My grand total currently is 19 if I have to include the clogs as a cost- not sure I should as they are an outfit for the holidays and not a gift- but I will put it in the cost for now. Next stop- the nightgowns. Might have to have pockets with gingerbread girls on them? hmmm. Now any ideas how to decorate clogs for boys? A friend suggested skater shoe laces.
I wish I could find me studio lights- we just moved two months ago and I still haven't located them yet.

Here are their Christmas crocs- Oh Horrors- I will need to make a matching outfit- no, no, please don't throw me in the briar patch.

I liked the SMICHI ribbons so much that I had to make matching crocs :). Another outfit perhaps?

Here are the gingerbread girls that I attached to the shoes- I am making matching bows.

The gingerbread girls in progress.

Sale at Joann's

2008-11-28T13:47:00.000-08:00

So we went to Joann's Wednesday and they had their remnants on sale 75% off. So I got 1/2 yr of this fabric, which is normally 35.99/yd for only 3.50. I plan on using it on my nieces ladybug mini purse (pattern from www.youcanmakethis.com).
If this looks a little saturated in color it is because the light is really funky today, really overcast and gloomy.

On other note: did anyone go to the Black Friday sales- ooh it was scary. I had to replace our defunked tv that died during the football game yesterday- ugh! so I went to Walmart to buy the 32" Emerson tv for $388- the crowds were horrendous and people were pushing and stuff- next year I am doing all my shopping online- or making it!

My first project- I confess I cheated

2008-11-26T12:54:00.001-08:00

I don't know if I mentioned it- but I have an addiction to www.youcanmakethis.com. I already finished this one 2 months ago- but I did make it using the You Can Make This Ebook: Boutique Blankets. I just made it bigger and added fringe. Please excuse my mess- I don't have my studio set up yet because we just moved in September. It is a slow process of unpacking.

My twin and I

2008-11-26T12:48:00.001-08:00

Some Ideas to Share

2008-11-26T12:29:00.000-08:00

here are a few things that make good gifts: Altered Clocks, Altered Blocks, and Altered Letters!

If you want directions email me at teresamaureen@gmail.com

Here is a pic of me and my twin- she was ultra blond and I was ultra dark- never mind that our natural color is more of a dark blond

What do you do:

2008-11-26T09:09:00.000-08:00

When you have a houseful of the very people you are making gifts for and you can't let them see your plans? Why- you make your craft room as messy as possible so they don't even go in and look (at least that is the excuse I am going to stick with!)
I have decided what to make for my niece- she was easy. And I have ideas for what to do for my daughters (dress up trunk). Anybody know where to get holiday color Crocs or Croc knockoffs?
My Mom is not being helpful because she says all she wants for Christmas is the cardboard from my boxes (we just moved and I have a pile 4 ft high).
My nephew- I am lost. He won't wear a tie, he won't wear a apron or chef's hat, he is 8 and has no interest in the bowling shirt. hmm. He is going to be a challenge.
How is everyone else coming on theirs?

Welcome to my Thrifty Fifty Blog

2008-11-19T10:46:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to be one of the Thifty Fifty Challenge for YouCanMakeThis.com!
The Challenge: Use what you have, if you need to buy anything stay to under $50, make your holiday gifts.
I have a long list: 4 children, my parents, my sisters, and my niece and nephew.

Keep your eye on my blog as we go through the journey together!