projects.

I have been slaving away over some projects for Christmas gifts. I've probably given myself carpel tunnel from it all but I am really proud of the outcome.

I crocheted two blankets for gifts. One for my mom and one for Alex's mom. I started with the one for Alex's mom. It's a little more simple and straight forward but I think it still looks super cute. And it's her favorite color so she will love it. I finished this one a few weeks ago.

Don't mind Rex in the background or my messy bed.

 And I made a purple one for my mom. I thought the stripes would look really cool and interesting. And the fringe. I probably won't do fringe again on a blanket. It was such a pain, but it does look really nice on this one. I just finished this one today!

And don't mind the lumpiness, Rex is underneath because he wouldn't move. You can see his little legs poking out the top.

My next project is a few scarves for presents. I am making 1 grey scarf, 1 maroon scarf, and 2 tan/cream colored scarves for some of Alex's family. The blankets took about 2 weeks to finish each (of working at night and on my days off) and the scarves take about 3 hours each to make. I am still a beginner so I don't do any fancy stitches or get crazy with anything but I think they all still look really nice. I am very proud that I've made two blankets now!

dogs.

I love dogs. Well I love all animals (except the creepy, crawly kind), but I especially love dogs. When I was growing up we couldn't have a dog because it was just mom and five kids so it was too much. But then we got a dog. When I was 11 I think. He's just a little guy and he was so much fun when I was growing up.

He's super old now and has a lot of problems, but he's still a little gem. He's got a little growth on his forehead that looks like a horn so I call him a unicorn. But he's a good sport and still lets at least my mom cuddle with him.

But we have a lot of dogs in our family and I love all of them.

Kelsey

Molly

Buddy (pre-horn)

Chase

Rex, of course.

Because of my love of dogs, it's no surprise that at Thanksgiving, when I saw a little lover of a dog, I immediately gravitated toward him. His name is Hatchi. I spent a few hours of the time we were there just sitting on the ground next to him scratching his neck and just loving on him. I was covered in hair when I stood up but I just couldn't resist.

Hatchi was in a fire when he was younger (hence the black burn marks on his face, and more on his back). He went through a lot to recover from them all, but now he lives a life of leisure with Mac. He spends his days laying on the patio and sleeping in bed and walking around the neighborhood. He is just a love. They call him "terminator dog" which is totally fitting for his appearance but his personality reads "spa dog."

thanksgiving.

My thanksgiving this year was spent staring at this beautiful view, eating a lot of delicious food that I did not have to cook, and laughing and having fun with family. Alex's family is awesome and I always have a good time when we get around them.

My grateful list:

~ laughter
~ beautiful views
~ someone else cooking dinner (and cleaning up!)
~ having a job. and not having to work black thursday!
~ my wonderful husband who always works so hard for our family
~ rex. mainly because he's cute and cuddly
~ all of my family and alex's family for being supportive and loving

california.

I am a california girl. Born and raised. For the past five years I have spent the winter months in Idaho at school. The snow and cold were fun for a minute before I missed the California winters.

This year I get to spend the winter in California and I am so happy. Here are a few of my favorite things about California winters.

~ fresh fruit readily available

~ cloudy beach days

~ cold meaning 55 degrees

~ being able to wear light layers of clothing and be warm enough (no need for huge heavy jackets!)

~ the sun still shines and you can actually feel its warmth

~ regardless of the warm weather, still being able to enjoy holiday things like hot chocolate and Christmas tree lots. You don't need snow and icy wind to enjoy those!

comfort.

It always seems like whenever I have a bad day or am in a bad mood or feel anything that could have any negativity, I crave comfort food. 

Everyone comfort food is different. Classic comfort food is southern food: mashed potatoes, fried chicken, creamed corn. But it could also be soup, chili, beef stew, pot roast with vegetables. 

Mine is pasta.

I love all pasta. Any shape. Any sauce. Creamy Alfredo, rich tomato basil, smooth vodka sauce, luscious cheese sauce. With meat or chicken or vegetables mixed in. There is just something about a big bowl of pasta smothered in sauce and cheese that makes me feel so warm and comfortable. 

That's why I made some last night. A big pot of spaghetti with meat sauce. It's an easy one to make and it just tastes so wonderful. I think homemade Alfredo sauce is my favorite, but last night I needed something quick and easy. For this one I just popped open a jar of good tomato basil sauce because it was convenient but I do like to make my own tomato sauce.

The best part of pasta is the cheese on top. This time I was lucky enough to have some fresh Parmesan to grate on top. It really makes a big flavor difference to have good quality cheese. And I'm a fan of cheese so I went big.

tomato meat sauce 

1 lb ground beef

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced small

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning

2 tsp oregano

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 24 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 14 oz can diced or stewed tomatoes

5-7 basil leaves, rough chopped or torn

Salt and pepper

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a deep sauce pan. When it starts to ripple, add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Add the ground beef and break up into small chunks. Cook until cooked through. Drain off any excess fat from the pan and return to the heat. Add the Italian seasoning, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook for a few minutes until the seasonings are fragrant. Lower the heat to medium low and add both cans of tomatoes. Use the back of a wooden spoon to break up the tomato chunks and stir the tomatoes into the meat and seasonings. Cook the sauce on low to medium low for 15-20 minutes to allow all flavors to combine, stirring occasionally. Taste the sauce and add 1-2 tsp of sugar if the sauce is acidic. Remove the sauce from the heat when seasoning is just right and stir in basil leaves.

Serve the sauce hot over your favorite shape of pasta with the lots of Parmesan cheese to top. 

The other best part of pasta is the sides. Crispy salads with oil and vinegar dressings and croutons. Steamed broccoli with salty garlic butter and Parmesan cheese. And of course garlic bread. Garlic bread has been my favorite food item since I was a little girl. I would take huge portions and bread and small portions of everything else. This is my favorite garlic bread recipe by far. It starts with the star ingredient: bread. I love a good sourdough loaf. The chewy inside and light sour flavor really make a good boat and complement for the garlic and butter. You can use a French bread or a ciabatta if you want but look for a long sourdough loaf to try at least once. San Luis Sourdough is my favorite...hard to find and sometimes expensive but such a good splurge. It comes from my hometown, so, yes I'm biased.

garlic bread

sourdough bread loaf

Butter

Garlic salt

Grated Parmesan cheese (not the best stuff but not the powdered stuff in a can)

This is more a method than a recipe. First preheat the broiler on high. Cut the bread loaf down the middle long ways so you separate the top and bottom. Liberally spread butter on the cut sides. Sprinkle a good amount of garlic salt on each half as well...enough to taste it, obviously but you can do more or less depending on what you like. Then sprinkle a decent amount of cheese. Again enough to cover a taste but you can put as much or little as you want. 

Now throw it on a baking pan and into the broiler a few inches away from the heat source. Keep your eye on it because it goes fast. You want to top to be light brown and the cheese all melted but no burnt edges. The bread should be softer as well. Then slice it up and serve it hot.

productivity.

I don't know why but I am always so much more productive when my husband is away. Not just away at work or away hanging out with friends because those days I am lazy as ever and usually eat in bed watching Netflix. 

But he went out of town this weekend to visit family and friends and I was so productive! I worked three 8 hour days just to start and then when I got home I was busy busy the whole time. 

On Friday night I cooked a nice dinner since I haven't been able to cook in a long time and then went to work on one of my presents for Alex for Christmas. Obviously it's a surprise and it's already killing him that he doesn't know what it is. Then on Saturday I worked a full day and after got to go out to dinner with Alex's mom at Natural Cafe, which is delicious. We just got to talk and hang out and relax for a little while. Unwind from the week. After dinner I went back to work on Alex's present and was able to finish the whole thing!! I'm very happy it's all done. Now on to other homemade gifts. 

Then Sunday I didn't work until 2:30 so I spent the morning cleaning out our closet. When we leave the house and the dogs are alone for an extended period we usually throw anything that they can chew and destroy into the closet and close the door. Well a few weeks of doing this and you can't see the floor, so I cleaned it out and organized it up and hopefully it stays nice for a while. 

After work today (another full shift thankfully) I plan to keep going on my crocheting project. I picked two green yarns and I'm thinking if it turns out decent enough I want to give it to Alex's mom for Christmas because green is her favorite. 

I like productive weekends. Especially when Alex is away because it makes it go by much faster. That is always a good thing!

gratitude.

I have had a rough little while the past few weeks. Just stress and discomfort and a little sadness come my way that I've had to deal with. Nothing too serious but enough all at the same time to just wear me down. In the past I always noticed that when I was helping other people or very aware of my personal blessings, it was a lot easier to deal with stress and other issues. So here's a list of some things I'm grateful for:

1. My husband. Alex is amazing at making me feel good about myself and helping to defuse situations. I am a high stress individual and he is very calm. We have a nice balance.

2. Rex. This little baby dog is wonderful. He is so cuddly and sweet. Anytime of day he has a way of making everything ok with his goofy smile and sweet kisses.

3. My mom. She is a gem. Even from a different state she is always looking out for me and Alex and makes sure that we are ok.

4. My job. I am grateful to have a job and the ability to work.

And...

Cold weather

Sunshine

Freedom

Books

Cozy beds

The holiday season

Laughter

Juice

Caramel apple lollipops 

Sales and clearance items

Food

Hugs

Walks

Health

Love

Inspirations

Fresh mown grass

crafting.

My husband and I have been working our butts off for the past few months to pay off some debt and save as much money as possible to move to Portland. Doing this meant that we moved in with his mom and step-dad for a while to cut down on our expenses. They have been wonderful to let us stay with them and we have been doing our best to save as much as possible.

With the holidays coming we realized that we wanted to give our family members something to show them how much we love them and appreciate them, but we need a budget because we both will spend all our money to give to others. It's a wonderful generous quality that we both have but our bank accounts don't appreciate it all the time. So we budgeted out how much we could spend for everyone and for each other. Our "each other budget" is super small so homemade gifts are a must. That is what brought me to the craft store when I saw the yarn and thought "hey! I used to know how to crochet! I could do that!" Fast forward to four hours when I was still online reading tutorials trying to figure out what I'm doing. 

When I was younger (like 8 or 9 years old) I learned how to crochet and I was really good at it. Then I picked it back up a few years ago and made a couple scarves and hats. Now here I go one more time and I'm gonna try a bigger project. 

I found a lot of really awesome tutorials on maybematilda.com with pictures and instructions for all different stitches and how to read patterns. It really brought back everything that I remember from back in the day.