Buh-bye, bad news

Earlier this week, I was in a situation in which I looked at NZ and said, " I'm afraid of bad news."

His answer...

"There's no such thing as bad news. All news is good news."

At first I utterly disagreed.

Afterall, I have a laundry list of situations in which I was given "bad news" over the course of my lifetime...but he explained his stance, and I realized...He was 100% correct. ( dare I admit!?!)

It's not the news itself, but rather... how we react and process the "news", that makes it "bad" or "good". News is information, and information is knowledge, and knowledge is always a good thing. Therefore, all news is good news.

So, the whole "bad news" "good news" belief is right out the window with the Easter Bunny ,Santa and the tooth fairy. From here on out, it's all good.

Little fighter

Today is Thursday.

In my world, Thursday is PEOPLE magazine day.....

and this week, the World met Josie Duggar through PEOPLE magazine..

This photo of the Duggar's 19th baby gave me goosebumps. Josie was born at 25 weeks gestation, which was also when I delivered our little one..different outcome, but still...I am in awe of how someone so teeny- tiny, can survive..I think it is absolutely amazing. Keep fighting little one!

Sweeeeet ride

OUCH!

NZ's Al Merrick Epoxy board took a beating on Saturday.

Off to the repair shop to make it as good as new....

But wait...don't be so sad....Meet the "Dominator"..NZ's newest addition to his surfboard fleet.

It's yet to take it's maiden voyage, but my guess is that a nice new board, mixed with the recent surf conditions will make for a super good surf sesh.

Disgustingly Sweet

I started this weekend off with a mission. On Saturday I headed to the Super JoAnn's in a nearby city with my sister. We were both trying to find "just the right fabric" for the projects we had in mind. She was shopping for fabric to make some throw pillows to match a "hard-to-match" bed set, and I was searching for coordinating fabrics to make my Amy Butler Slingbag.

In my attempt to be as resourceful as I could be ( those that know me, know that I am not exactly resourceful..ever seen me bake and throw away half the goodies..totally a waster), I thought about recycling some leftover fabric from my recent "cut-a-kingsize-duvet-down-to-a-queensize-because-i-like-it-so-much-and-there-are-no-queensizes-available" project. I looked high and low for two fabrics to match the black and white pattern of my duvet cover. NO SUCH LUCK. Really. Who would think that matching black and white would prove to be difficult. I swear... I selected, then returned many bolts during my trip through the aisles. I finally decided on this turquoise one, which I was not wild about, but wanting to sew so badly, I caved in and settled for a less than stellar piece.UGH.

Upon checking out, I found some Valentine's stuff STARING at me. I saw a heart and cupcake print and snatched it. I didn't know what I would use it for, but I HAD TO HAVE ME SOME!

Well, long story short, we got back to my house, and I pulled out my fabric stash and matched the turquoise up to my black and white and HATED it.. I was bummed. I kept eyeing my cupcake print, and the turquoise laying side by side, and then rummaged through my linen closet and found a duvet cover that my kitty decided to shred the corners of, thus rendering it unfit for my bed anymore. I cut off all the seams and buttons and tears, and ended up with two coordinating fabrics..just like that!

So, in the end, I did recycle a duvet cover into my Amy Butler bag, but it was definitely not as planned. Instead of a mod-bag, which is more my style, I've got a cute little cupcake and polkadot bag..If only I could find some puppies and rainbows to fit into it, it'd be disgustingly sweet.

I have to admit, it was a fun project, and I am bound to make some more, but now that I have the "need-to-sew-it-right-this-minute" out of my system, I can take my time to find some fabrics that really float my boat. I can't complain about having to make a trip to the fabric store, afterall, I have always gotten way more excited about fabric than any kid should. Perhaps that's because a trip to the fabric store with my mom usually resulted in a new leotard for me to wear to the gym. My mom was the leotard-making-extrordinare, and even started her own business. Being the daughter of the leotard maker definitely had it's advantages, as I think at one point I owned like 30 leotards. A different one for every day of the month.

Spoiled?

Nope, not at all.

Just well loved.

Aussie Pies

While in Australia a couple years ago ( where does time go?!) NZ and I discovered Meat Pies, the Aussie equivalent of grabbing a hotdog or burger at the local joint. We were told that these are common stadium-fare at the footie and netball games that the Aussies are so crazy about.

Our first meat pie experience was at Jesters in Surfer's paradise, located in Queensland. Unfortunately, this discovery came the last weekend of a 15 day trip. Had we known about these earlier, we surely would have filled up on those instead of sandwiches filled with salad & basted with butter ( don't get me started on my issues with Aussie sandwhich makers, who totally didn't understand the term "dry").

Anyhow, after discovering Jester's meat pies, my domestic wheels started turning when NZ asked if I thought I could re-create them.

So, never wanting to disappoint my one-and-only-sunshine-of-a-husband, I purchased 3 small pie tins, measuring about 4 inches in diameter when we returned home and got to work in the kitchen.

Meat Pies can be filled with anything, from ground beef, to chuck roast, to pulled pork and chicken. I bet you could even fill them with spagheti if you felt so inclined. The most authentic Meat Pies are a mixture of chuck roast and gravy, with a dollop of ketschup on top.

I'm not a huge Chuck fan, so I altered the recipe and usually use CHICKEN to make CHICKEN PIES. I am a Sunday cooker, so I cook all of our meat for the week on Sundays and use it for recipes throughout the week. My chicken pie recipe uses precooked chicken.

CHICKEN PIES:

Necessities:

2 Precooked Chicken breasts ( cubed or shredded)

1 package Gravy mix

1 c water

1 c frozen veggie mix

Pre-made pie crust ( I like Pills.bury)

Cornmeal or Cornstarch

Cutting Board

Rolling Pin

Small Sauce Pan

(3) 4" dia. pie tins

Steps:

PREHEAT OVEN to 450 degrees

1. On large cutting board, unfold thawed pie crust. Dust board with cornstarch or cornmeal to keep dough from sticking. Gently roll out crust so that it is about 1/8" thick.

2. Using small pie tin as a guide, trace and cut out (3) rounds and place in pie tins.

3. Re-roll unused crust and cut out 3 more circles to top the pies with.

4. Add 1 c cold water and gravy mix to saucepan and wisk until thickened.

5. Stir in shredded or cubed chicken breasts and 1 cup frozen veggies.

6. Spoon the chicken,veggie, gravy mixture evenly amongst the pies. 7. Wet finger and run around the edges of your pie topping circles.

8. Place tops on pies and gently pinch to seal the seams

9. Place tins on cookie sheet to avoid dripping in your oven ( saves the mess!)

10. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 450 degrees.

mmmmmm, I'd reckon it's din-dins, mate!

It's in the bag

I have officially fallen in love with all things Amy Butler . She has beautiful fabrics ( including home deco weight), patterns and ideas.

Goodbye Aprons, hello TOTES!

I just ordered her "Birdie Sling" Pattern from Amazon.com and am really hoping it is as "easy" as the pattern states it is. No zippers...so it won't be too hard...I hope! Although I mastered the zipper on my Quiet Book, they still scare me. I will always select a pattern that has no zippers over one that requires them..Guess my early zippering experiences scarred me for life. I must have PTZD ( post traumatic zipper disorder). I am sure there are classes that could get me over my fear of sewing in zippers, but I'm not at that point in my sewing career yet. I can still avoid them..MOST of the time.

So, hopefully in a week or two, I'll be blogging photos of my Amy Butler tote!

Sewing rocks!

Oh and before I forget..Thank you to Nolan's mommy, Ashley for nominating my blog for an award. The award is for blogs that make you happy. I know mine isn't full of sunshine and puppies and rainbows, but I am very appreciative that my blog makes someone smile from time to time. Here are blogs that make me happy that I would like to nominate for the continuation of this award:

Stephanie at Sweet Creations

Shanna at A cup full of Cake

Jamie at Week by Week
Wendy at What we're up to

Nutty Buddy Cookie Brittle

We took up a last minute invite to go camping this past weekend, and with not much time to prep for a camping treat to share with everyone, I found myself wandering the aisles of Fresh & Easy's limited selection of baking goods on Thursday night... I found NOTHING to bake..Imagine that..Me, Brie..not feeling the baking-vibe. I must be sick or something.

Anyway, this is what I came up with, using just 3 ingredients, and no oven. Call me lazy, call me Semi-homemade, call me a fricken GENIUS..cause these bars are GOOD!

BUY:

1 package of Nutter Butter Cookies

1 bag of Reeses Peanut Butter Chips

1 bag milk chocolate chips

Gallon Size ziploc bag

Silicone Mat (or Parchment paper)

GET TO IT:

1-Put Nutter Butters in Ziploc bag and CRUSH them (whacking them on the counter top works awesome)

2-Melt Peanut Butter chips in a double boiler

-Melt Chocolate in a double boiler

Once melted, dump half the bag of Nutter Butters into the melted PB chips, and half the bag into the melted Chocolate chips and stir to coat.

4-Spread in single layer on Silicone mat (or Parchment paper)

Chill at least 1 hour.

Remove from fridge and break into pieces and ENJOY!

I brought them out around the campfire our first night, after many people had already gone to bed. Those of us who stayed up and enjoyed them decided to be nice and save some for Saturday night...I put them in our dry goods cooler, and went to bed, only to wake up in the morning and find them MISSING! I grilled the guys who stayed up after my bedtime, as to whether they finished them off without saving me one...and as I was reading them their rights, our buddy stepped out of his trailer and asked, " Did you guys see the coons last night?"

Dang it, the coons got us again!

Apparently, they like my cookies.

Dick & Jane

Thanks to childhood friend SKS who sent me a link to the fabric mecca, Fabric Depot. They have actual Fabric Depot stores where she lives, but they also have a fantastic online selection of Michael Miller, Robert Kaufman, Heidi Grace & my other favorite textile designer's fabric prints. I fell in love with quite a few, but at $4 a yard, this Dick & Jane fabric was a steal! I had originally thought I would create a duvet cover from it, but am considering making an actual quilt and using this for the backing..Easy Duvet vs. Possible Disaster Quilt? I've never made an actual quilt before..but seeing the one our mail lady made, gives me a kick in the pants to TRY one. heck, the fabric was cheap, and wouldn't some cute mod/retro prints make a cute square block front side with the Dick & jane fabric used as backing and binding???Decisions, decisions.

What's a girl to do?

De-Lurk yourselves

The other night, our neighbors were sitting in our dining room with us, and I mentioned my blog. My neighbor didn't understand WHO would ever read a blog, and don't I worry about strangers??

NZ explained to him that he reads my blog all the time, but is not a follower, and I am sure there are many more lurkers out there who have either found themselves in my blog, or just know me from real life.

My reason for blogging began last January when we found out we were expecting a baby. I started the blog so I could document the excitement I felt after having miscarried a baby the year before. The purpose of my blog was so that I had something to go back and read after my baby was born, and so that my family near and far could share in the excitement with us.

May 18, 2009 changed the purpose of my blog. This was the day that I learned I would be delivering our little girl 16 weeks early, and that she would not be alive when we met.

Being able to blog has helped me trudge through the emotions, which don't always make sense. I found many other babyloss mom's through their blogs, and reading how they are dealing with their respective losses, has helped me feel so not alone. My goal for this blog now, is to show how life goes on, despite loss, but beware:there is a smattering of whoa-is-me posts when the hard days hit.

So, if you're a lurker, I'd like to say hello and encourage you to say hi and introduce yourself! Happy De-Lurking Week!

A good assumption

My co-worker and I have developed a friendship with our mail carrier. We have greeted her almost everyday for the past few years, and are most excited to see her on Thursdays ( PEOPLE magazine day!!!!). Sometimes she sticks around a few minutes and chats with us, and through one of our chats I found out that she quilts. So, now when she has a few minutes to spare, I ask her about her current projects.

The other day she returned from her mail truck with a beautiful baby quilt she made for someone at one of the stops on her route. It was so cute, little baby clothing on a clothesline was the main print on a pink background, binded with a contrasting stripe fabric. She made the entire thing herself, and in the corner there was a tag, with the baby's name on it. A-freaking-dor-able!

What she said to me next, " One of these days I will be making one of these for you", made my day, and I felt the appreciative tears welling up in my eyes as I said, "I'd love one".

I don't often talk about my loss with her, but she remembered, and most importantly she assumed we are still trying...I've had it said to me, " You're done trying now, right?" And usually when I answer, "Not at all", I get a response of, "Well, if it were me, I couldn't go through that more than once." I feel like saying, "Hey, thanks for the vote of confidence jack-a$$!" As if we haven't already thought of another loss as a possible reality...Believe me, we have!

So, the mail carrier absolutely made my day. It's something as simple as her recognizing my hopes for a future baby, and her support even though we don't know each other all that well, that helps keep my chin up and feet moving forward, even on the difficult days.

NZ, the rod-maker

For Christmas this year, NZ's dad gave him a new reel, and a fishing rod blank. Over the course of the New Year's weekend, he proceeded to work on making his first custom fishing pole. It's a tedious process, wrapping the threads around the rod, securing the eyes to the spine of the rod, but as always, he succeeded. NZ's dad has made many of his own rods, and loaned NZ his motor, which attaches to his vice grip, and is controlled by a sewing machine pedal, at two speeds (as seen above). The motor slowly spins the rod while NZ wraps it in black thread.

In the words of Rob & Big, this rod is going to be "murdered out", meaning black on black. NZ says the fish "won't even see him coming..then WHAM!"

Next step is glassing it, then taking it out for it's maiden voyage. I think I smell a chartered fishing trip in his future!