"ADVENTURE IS JUST BAD PLANNING"

This is what I came home to 11 pm on Valentine's Day. A deserted little table that looks like someone got stood up. In most cases this story would be sad, but with all the luck Chad has in trying to surprise me (this is the 3rd Valentine's mishap!) we thought it was pretty funny.

Neither of us talked about making any kind of Valentine's plans. We're going to some shows later this week and most of the time we want to do something special we just do it then. So babysitting for Valentine's Day isn't a big deal (and is paying for our concert tickets!) and I had a family ask about it weeks ago -- it's on the calendar and everything. Between the screwy schedule we have right now with Chad working so early and me not getting home until late I knew that I wouldn't see him until today (the day after VDay) when I got home from work. I even left him a little note by the door to find on his way to work to say "Happy Valentine's, blah blah, will miss you today, blah blah... see you tomorrow since you'll be asleep by the time I get home".

I did get to talk to him on the phone between work and babysitting, which was a good thing, because he was about to start cooking me a special little dinner for a surprise. Since we live in the tiny apartment he knew he couldn't hide everything he'd picked up to save for the next night without me catching on, he told me about forgetting I had plans and to not eat the chocolate covered strawberries in the fridge until he said so :)

So tonight was try number 2 and was not a surprise but every bit as wonderful. We ate at our card table turned bistro in the living room with music, flowers and candles, pasta and bread, wine, chocolate, strawberries and cool whip. I even put on a dress for our in home date!


Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day -- whenever/wherever/however you decided to celebrate it!

VALENTINE FUN

I found this fun idea on Lu Bird Baby and thought it was perfect for a little Valentine's Day gift for those kids in Montana that I miss so much! The little mailboxes are from Target's dollar section right (found them the beginning of January) and the rest is from Hobby Lobby - felt and velcro. I sewed little envelopes and put velcro for a closure. The envelope also has velcro on the front to change the stamp and "mailing label". There are letters to put in there, but it will be fun for the kids to write their own notes too!

AND THE STOCKINGS WERE HUNG

This is the first year that I'll be waking up Christmas morning in my own bed! The last few years I've spent the night before at my grandparents or been out of town somewhere else. This also means that there was a need for Christmas stockings.

I generally like things to be matching and coordinated, so the idea of picking up stockings this year for 5 (my parents, brother and the two of us) and then possibly needing more in the future was kind of scary. I decided that I would be coordinated by not having anything match. Each sock is made from a patterned sweater. And when the need to have more arises I'll just cut up another old sweater. So, there's a theme and no one ever feel like their Christmas sock doesn't belong because it doesn't look like the rest. Here's the beginning of my collection!

TAKE THAT WEEKEND!

Thanksgiving was a little crazy for me. Not quite the quiet weekend I was expecting. Chad worked a lot of over time last week, including the early hours of Thanksgiving and both Saturday and Sunday after Black Friday. I worked Black Friday and all day Sunday. Between all the coming and going, setting up Christmas stuff and shopping we tried to squeeze in our apartment is a wreck!! I was not ready for Monday ...

Very thankful to have the morning off to get my life back in order! Got laundry done, kitchen cleaned, Christmas decorations that didn't get put up put away, got to the bank and post office. Opened up a new Scentsy bar -- Grapefruit Berry -- and the apartment is starting to smell lovely! I'm ready to come home tonight, take a hot shower, and crash on the couch with some knitting.

Itching to bake Christmas cookies and make caramels, but will wait until it's a little closer to my family getting here -- may have to make some chocolate chip until then.

HAPPY HALL(HOO)WEEN

OWL COSTUME INSPIRATION

lady bird | owl mask | wings | owl kiddo
We thought with moving to a new place that we would not have Halloween plans or the need for costumes, but we've been invited to a co-workers Halloween party and for the last week I've been racking my mind for what I can make and not spend a lot on.

Spirit Halloween opens in Bozeman a month or so before, and of course there's costumes at Target and Walmart too. Here there are all kinds of Halloween stores, but a lot of them have the same expensive stuff that doesn't always fit the right way.

I narrowed my list down to:
- a sunflower (my original idea from months ago)
- a lady bug
- 20's flapper

And then while I was blog surfing this morning, I came across this lady bird costume and from there did a couple other searches for some ideas to be an owl. I'm so excited to have a project to work on and a costume that will be original!

CHINESE TEA EGGS

While searching for how to dye eggs with onion peels, I came across this technique for "Chinese Tea Eggs". This is a snack in China that is actually made by soaking cracked eggs in tea . . but for Easter it was more fun to use colored dye. Instructions can be found here!