What the?!?!

Ok, so I made popovers last night to eat with our frittata and WHOA NELLY I don't know what happened but lookie here!

I mean... what?!?!?  Look at it a little closer:

Ummmm....

Ok, now look at it with dinner:

It's weird and freaky but Nate ate it!

Here's my popover recipe, super easy, super yummy:

1 c all-purpose flour

1/2 t salt

2 eggs

1 c milk

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Liberally grease a 6-cup muffin or popover tin.

Mix flour and salt together in medium mixing bowl.  Combine eggs and milk; blend well but don't overbeat the eggs.  Add to flour mixture and stir with a whisk until blended.

Divide batter among prepared popover cups... fill only half-full (you may end up with a little extra batter).  Bake 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 20 more minutes.  Do not open oven door during baking process.  Serve immediately.  

You can add in grated parmesan or fresh herbs to the batter before you bake it for some extra yummy.

Note:  I cannot promise you'll get an odd one like I did.  

Soooo, here are the pics of the barrettes I recently made that I referred to in my last entry:

peacock feather

yellow feather:

vintage applique -- made to wear in bro's wedding but will actually wear on the back of my head, hopefully holding all of my hair up in a messy chignon or something less fussy than that:

AND finally I got all of my new necklaces and earrings up on my Etsy store so that is good.  Now I'm just gonna get busy gilding the garlands for the wedding and packing and making more jewelry for my May 6 sale!  Plenty to do!  And don't forget to watch American Idol tonight because it's the "Idol Gives Back" episode where they help people out around the world, it's inspiring.  Woot!  Now go hug somebody, we all need MORE HUGS!  xoxo

April Showers Bring May Flowers.... and an excuse to stay inside and SEW!

After a morning run, some dog wrangling and a bowl of oatmeal I made some tea and got busy on my most important sewing project: my dress for my bro's wedding -- everything except the hem is completed.   Here it is!

Doesn't it just LOOK like Spring?  Sooooo, when I finished the top of the dress as the pattern had directed me I tried it on and it looked like two giant walls erected to house some seriously giant bazoongas... of which I have none... here's a picture of what the dress is supposed to look like:

And here's what I ended up doing:

It looks sort of "blobby" in these pics but is really pretty when it's on.  Trust me.  I'd show you except the pics I took of myself wearing it are nightmare-worthy so you'll have to wait.  Now I just need someone to help me eyeball where the length should be and I'll hem it up and be ready to celebrate The Special Day!  

I couldn't let my creative inspirations stop at dressmaking so I wielded my glue gun and ended up making some feather barrette thingys that I haven't photographed yet but will... they turned out pretty cute but my fingers were "tarred" and literally feathered after the adventure.  I also made a really cool barrette with a vintage applique of a beaded green branch with beaded leaves, it's lovely and I think I'll wear it in my hair to bro's wedding because it screams SPRINGTIME WEDDING IN THE MOUNTAINS!  Then I remembered that I'll be setting up a table in a few weeks to sell my necklaces so got back to business and made this beauty:

I thought it was an interesting necklace, I like the different gold and brass colors and the "found objects" feeling of it. I have many more to make and will post pics as they are completed. 

And now, back to the grind.  xoxo

Don't kick the darkness... make the light brighter!

Well, happy Friday to my dear reader!  :)  A Friday in Spring is something to appreciate... you feel the beginning of a beautiful season and the beautiful ending of a workweek... blessings indeed.  So, to celebrate this Friday I made some fun earrings to wear to work: 

I like how they blend in with my hair and it sort of looks like maybe it IS my hair, but it isn't, it's FEATHERS!  

I bought some more feathers at Hobby Lobby today to make barrettes out of, I think they'll be pretty rockin', in a Native American sort of way. :)  I guess I should mention that if you see your life as I do, with this priority list:  1. God, 2. Spouse, 3. Family, 4. Friends, 5. Hobby Lobby... then you understand why I NEED to visit Hobby Lobby nearly on a weekly basis.  This trip was especially fun because my two dear friends Grace and Griffin met me there and I swear we could walk those aisles for days and not realize that we had been there that long... it truly is a glorious place.  Today I was there on official wedding business, getting garlands for my bro and his "almost-wife" for their centerpieces for the tables at the reception... I can't wait to see all of the details come together and celebrate their love story!  TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY!!! WOOOOOT TO THE MAX!!!

I'm still gearing up for my upcoming May 6 sale here in Austin, here is my business card:

I thought it was pretty official until Nate pointed out that I forgot to put my name on it.  :)   

Ok, that's all I've got today... I'm looking forward to a fun weekend of sewing and listening to thunder storms and most especially, getting to hang out with my bro-in-law who's in town visiting this weekend! Woot!  

I was runnin' and runnin'...

Well, I ran the 10k on Sunday and missed by goal for time by two minutes but was still pleased what with all that has been going on in my life the past few weeks.   Here's the back of my race tshirt that I customized:

I made sure to focus not on myself but thought about Terry and all of us here that miss her.  After the first mile, I realized that it was hard to see with tears in my eyes and the roads were slippery so I changed my thoughts to blessings that Terry had brought into our lives and turned the sad into the happy... it helped.  At the end of the race I was looking for Nate (who unfortunately had a flat tire on his bike on the way down to watch me cross the finish line!) and there was a Beatles cover band playing so I figured Terry had probably been enjoying the music, as she adored The Beatles big time.  

So, I'm working on my dress for my bro's wedding - two weeks from Friday!!! WOOOOOOT!!!! And I've nearly completed the top part of the dress which was tricky -- it even has boning!  If you've forgotten what it looks like, here it is:

I'm working on the middle view, with the straps and the simple skirt.  I've put about five hours of sewing into it and probably will need about five more hours to finish but it will be totally worth it.  I'll post pics as soon as I'm all done.  As far as my necklaces for Etsy and stuff I'll hopefully be setting up a booth at Austin's First Thursday  on May 6 which will hopefully be a good event because a TON of people come out, the boutiques stay open late and people mill about looking at all of the tables of fun stuff.  When I was in Colorado I bought some neat necklace components so I'll be getting busy soon with my pliers and soldering iron to make some new stuff... pics to come! 

Happy Spring! 

  

Mama said there'll be days like this... there'll be days like this my mama said...

Soooo, I guess it is true that it just plain and simply takes time to get through the heartbreak of losing someone... I've heard that every day is supposed to be a teeny tiny bit easier but we only have two weeks on this process.  I can't imagine what Nate's dad is dealing with, losing his best friend and soul mate of 40 years.  Nate and I have only been married 2.5 years and I'd just feel like dying if I lost him.  I guess this is where I resolve to make it a priority to live each day to the fullest and tell everyone how much they mean to me.  Don't you just hate that it takes something SO devastating to remind you of something you already know... something that just seems to fall by the wayside so easily.  

In other news, I'm running a 10k this weekend and haven't been training the past couple of weeks (what with the traveling back and forth to Colorado and my emotionally sensitive digestive system) so was worrying about it until I decided to take myself out of the focus and run the race for Terry.  I look forward to using each mile to appreciate something specific I've learned from her and taking the time to pray for the rest of us missing her.  So it is now a 10k Run for Terry Tuck!  Woot!  

In Hollyberry news... I made my lil sis a skirt for her bday which turned out pretty ding dang cute if you ask me... here it is:

I wish I had a picture of Em in the skirt because she just looks like a model in it... absolutely fierce.  :)  Speaking of Em, she turned 19 a couple weeks ago and I was blessed enough to spend some time with her, my parents, bro and my bro's 'almost-missus' at the cabin.  Here's the lovely haven in the woods:

Try to tell me you don't know someone who could use a good cozy day or two in a cabin like this!  That fire was HEAVENLY.  I just think some quality mountain time is good for the soul... even if you spend it all in front of a giant fireplace.  

Lastly, I've started making headbands out of chain, here are my first two attempts:

Cute?  I like them.  But I'm a big fan of chains on everything so I may be a bit biased.  I've got several new necklaces to put up on my Etsy storefront and lots of sewing to do so hopefully I'll be getting back into the swing of things soon!  As the Beatles sang: Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da life goes on, bra, la-la-la-la life goes on...

A Long and Winding Road...

Terry Lynn Tuck

June 14, 1949 - March 26, 2010

Have you ever known someone that upon meeting them you instantly knew you would like to be more like them?  Maybe it's their open heart, open mind or open arms... maybe their sense of style and grace... maybe their wit, wisdom or candor... or just their stories of trips taken and people met... welllll, my Mother-in-Law had all of these and more.  Sadly, tragically, suddenly she was taken from this Earth and escorted to the Heavenly realm just a week and a half ago.   

I think we're all still in shock and probably will be for a great while.  There's just no way to comprehend it, no reconciling the possibility of her not being here to call, to visit, to share holidays and recipes and books and prayers with.  As Terry's best friend LeAnn said to me at her memorial service "God is tricky"... there's much we just cannot understand as mere mortals.  God has a plan for Terry... luckily for us, part of His plan was for her to be on Earth and marry a most wonderful man and parent three amazing children.  We are blessed and changed for having had her in our lives for as long as we did and now she's on to the next task, blessing and changing the lives of others around her in Heaven.  I'm guessing she's speaking some Spanish and enjoying some great music (LIVE John Lennon again!) and food (NOT gluten-free) and catching her father up to speed on what her husband and kids are up to.  

As an homage to Terry, who could find beauty in not only the rose but the thorns, I must say that through her passing a great many people have been brought together, relationships mended and gaps have been bridged.  It is truly a testament to who she was as a person.  As a mother typically is, she was and is the glue that brings and keeps the family together... we just have a wee bit more leg work to do. Happily.  

As a lovely gesture, her husband Tom asked that donations in her name were made to my brother's orphanage which she so passionately cared for.  Her generosity continues!  You can see the message from my bro at his website: www.graceorphanageafrica.com .  Thanks, Bud!

Lastly, as her obituary so eloquently stated: Words can't represent the magnitude in which Terry will be missed, as an absolutely incredible Mother, Wife, and Friend. In her memory, please don't miss an opportunity to express love to those dearest to you.