autumn leaf: January 2011

Monday, January 31, 2011

Terrariums

"Having nature close has made all the difference. It has colored and calmed my life throughout the most difficult times. Nature has an uncanny ability to spread tranquility wherever it reigns. No matter where you dwell, no matter what you do, there's something about plants and nature that is relaxing."

-Tovah Martin, The New Terrarium

I have wanted to build a terrarium for a while now, probably since I saw Martha do it. I figure the dead of winter would be a good time to start and would add a little life to the house. Mine is a little over a week old and seems to need no attention. (My kinda plant.) I didn't really follow any directions; I didn't buy charcoal or moss and I just picked plants at Home Depot that all required similar water and light needs. Time will tell if my creation survives. Either way, I like seeing my triceratops family eating their lunch.

Need a little inspiration? Visit:

CBS Sunday Morning

Martha Stewart

Two Straight Lines

The New Terrarium

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Moving: Day 1

The day may have started off a little frantic, but much was accomplish. Maren was a trooper and waited patiently while mom, slowly but surely, got her act together. We knew a huge snow storm was on its way, so we hurried! Three loads were delivered and I feel like another has been taken from my shoulders. (By the way, hoodies are great for keeping little girl's hands warm and busy.)

After our busy day, we relaxed with a popcorn picnic while watching Babies. Such a happy movie...I laughed. A lot. The beginning showed many pregnant bellies and I asked Maren, "What's in that mommy's tummy?" She starred very intently at the TV and whispered, "Baby." After a while turned her interest from babies to baggies, which she put on her feet and called "flip flop." Soon the couch became the beach and she was instructing me to make sand castles and people (while I wore "flip flops" also).

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

blue chair

A few months ago I posted about a few things I found at the thrift store, including this Conant Bell chair. This weekend, we decided on a color (using these Crate & Barrel chairs as inspiration). Chris patched and painted, glued and sanded all evening. I love my happy new chair!

Monday, January 24, 2011

Tea Party

One of Maren's favorite past times is playing "food" and she is becoming the perfect little hostess at our tea parties. She keeps my cup full of hot chocolate (with marshmallows and honey) and heaps my plate with mini cakes. I like the cakes better than her egg/pickle salad, but don't tell her that.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Outside today

Earlier this week, we had a little storm and all the roads were covered with ice. I discovered this when I tried to go out for a walk with Maren and kept sliding all over the place. After giving half the neighborhood and most of the passing cars a good laugh, we turn back. January is usually the month I just have to endure, but this year seems a little better. Maybe it's the milder weather (it might not be warmer but definitely less snow than I am used to) or keeping occupied with moving.

Maren loves to get all bundled up...warm blanket fresh from the dryer and everything. I took some pictures of us both. She thought that was pretty great and said, "I try, I try."

Maren's self portrait.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Pretty things

We are moving...again. But on the bright side, when I open those boxes with all my "pretty things" (especially if they have been packed away for a while) it feels like Christmas morning. Over the years, I have collected a few things I really love, that make a house a home no matter where we are living or how temporary. I have always loved seeing how other people decorate their homes, so here are a few corners of mine.

Little Maren's room...changes as quickly as she does. I like things to be a little mismatched.

We just got this dollhouse/bookshelf. I have been wanting one for her room for some time now (I've had her books in piles by her bed and in her closet). Trying to decide what color to paint it (Maren wants pink, or course). It doesn't exactly look like this or this or this , but I got it for $15 at Michaels so I'm not complaining and Maren doesn't seem to mind, either. (And the only "doll" furniture we at have at this point is a little calico critter's patio set.)

Our bedroom (with my winter quilt). The only new piece of furniture we had when we where first married was this bed and it is still as soft and cozy as it was 9 years ago. I found the little yellow table a few years ago and I love it more now than I did when I bought it.

Doily love. I found this photo in a Blueprint mag (which was discontinued) and copied the idea.

Quilts. Can never have enough.

Pottery I made...and the only piece I kept.

New lamp shade I found over Christmas. I was looking for something similar to this, but didn't want to pay $128. Pretty happy with what I got.

The yellow desk.

My tea kettle gets used everyday.

I love, love, love glass jars and would have everything in my pantry contained in jars if possible (for example).

Dining room table/sewing table/craft table/Chris's weekend desk...

Little glass bowls are one of my true joys in this life.

My prettiest little thing.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Highlights of 2010

As I was running errands today, I thought about all the things our family did last year...

1. Chris graduated from BYU with his MBA.
2. We moved three times and lived in three different states.

3. In June, Chris went to Peru with with his dad and brothers (and for some crazy reason, I never posted any pictures).

4. Chris started his job with PricewaterhouseCoopers.
5. Maren turned two and is happy and healthy.
6. We traveled home for Christmas and surprised our families.

7. Autumn has been a good sport about all of this while learning to navigate East coast streets.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Making Yogurt

I finally made yogurt. I love plain yogurt and I have been wanting to try it for a while, but was (to be honest) pretty sure it would fail. Well, it work and was really easy! My mom used to make it all the time when I was young, but stopped when we moved to Utah. I think she mentioned once that it was more difficult to make because of the altitude or humidity or something. I looked for some recipes online and liked the Soule Mama recipe best. A lot of other sites suggested using a double boiler system, sterilizing equipment, using a yogurt-making thermometer, etc. I didn't want to go out and buy a ton of stuff so I just kept things simple and the recipe was a success!

I bought a heat pad to incubate the yogurt over night but was ticked when I found out the pad has an automatic shut off. (I seriously considered waking up every two hours in the night to turn it back on.) Instead, I put the jars by the warmest heat vent I could find which worked just fine.

Tastes great with homemade granola and fruit.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Resolve

Happy New Year! I loved our trip back to Utah but was happy to come home. I get excited each New Year and the opportunity to make new goals. This year, I resolve to...
1. Read the New Testament with The Life and Teachings of Jesus and His Apostles.
2. Drink a green smoothie every day.
3. Produce less trash. (No Impact Man and The Zero Waste Home, though both a little too extreme for me, were inspirational to this goal.) This resolution is more than just throwing away less. Making less garbage means buying less, making do, eating healthier, cleaning with more natural ingredients, learning new skills, and the list goes on... My plan is to eventually throw away only one kitchen trash bag each week (maybe less).

Good luck to me!