Monday, January 28, 2008

it was a good party

our first annual meet-the-neighbors party was last night and it went very well. we had about 12 adults and 6 kids show up. the biggest mishap (other than blowing out my knee while kneeling to get some candles from a cabinet) was that i mistakenly thought the party was at 7 and we realized at 5:56 that it was at 6.

oops. : ^ )

unfortunately, when we realized the time issue, i had just started the cheese fondue and in my haste i ended up with a huge glop of expensive-cheese-in-a-pot instead of yummy, tangy fondue. fortunately, we had enough of everything else to keep everyone satisfied.

i only took one picture of the whole event since i was running around like a crazed person for the first 20 minutes. sadly, i apparently didn't even have enough time to set it up properly, so my shutter was too slow for my handshake, but you can get the general idea.

teriyaki sesame chicken skewers, bread (for the cheese fondue) spinach dip, crudite, pound cake bites, vanilla creme puffs, chocolate fondue, fruit bowl and chocolate biscotti


it was great getting to meet some new faces and get to know the familiar ones a bit better. we will definitely be doing this again.

Friday, January 25, 2008

it's here! it's here! it's here!!

my lovely in-laws gave me funds for purchasing a sewing cabinet for christmas. which is good, because i received a sewing machine (which i have requested for years) as a wedding gift way back in september!

the cabinet arrived today, and in the interest of getting the boxes out of the house in time for our party on sunday, DH and i put it together this evening.

of course, we were assisted by jp (i realize i am quickly becoming the person who only blogs about her cat...but in my defense...she gets. into. everything.)


here is the machine, in all it's glory...tape still on and everything...

the base of the sewing machine sits flush with the cabinet top and when i am not using it, it stores itself hydraulically inside...like magic.


bye bye, machine!

now i just have to learn to use it!

Thursday, January 24, 2008

mmmm...chocolate biscotti

we're having a meet-the-neighbors party on sunday so today i made chocolate biscotti to use in the chocolate fondue we will be making. other fondue dipping items will include fruit and pound cake.

this was exciting as it was the first time i was using my new mixer that we purchased with some of our wedding funds.



i was supposed to make two rolls, two inches in diameter, which wasn't easy since they kept 'growing' on me while i was handling them.

after baking for 35 min (or 50, if your oven is on the fritz like ours), you cut them and then put them back in the oven to toast.


the finished result...they smell yummy and for the most part, they actually look like biscotti :)

Monday, January 21, 2008

stow-away



please don't ask how long she was in there before i realized it.
please don't ask how high i jumped when i found her.

Sunday, January 20, 2008

attempt #2

well, i tried making the cards with my name on the front and they ended up looking very squished and unprofessional. so this time i added my name to the back along with my motto, 'sit back and relax'. i also added the swirl from the lemon, to emphasize the brand.

i do like the outcome, but there are still a few changes to consider. i plan on moving the phrase over towards the right so that there is less interference with the back of the ribbon. that will also allow me to move the ribbon higher on the front of the card. lastly, i will add ellipses to the end of the phrase.



note: for some reason my trusty digital camera is not taking pictures that truly represent the back of the business card. the yellow is so light, it is just barely noticeable, and even though in the pictures you can see how (sadly) pixelated the graphic is, in person the yellow is so light, there is no way to even tell.

Friday, January 18, 2008

front hall rug

we have a new front hall rug. i have been looking for something for a while that would fit in the space, be a nice thing to come home to, and go with the fun table we have in the foyer.







i think we did pretty well.

next on the list: painting the front hall butter yellow.

business cards



i finalized the design and then realized i don't have my name or my address on the card. back to square one :)

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

many thanks...


... to lynn at the hand crafted wedding, for featuring LimoncelloSTYLE on her blog today. i was so honored to read what she had to say and she really captured the spirit of my DIY rescue service.

lynn's blog is a wonderful resource for brides who are looking to break out of the mold and create unique and meaningful details for their weddings.

keep up the great work! and thanks a million!

Friday, January 11, 2008

displaying the jewels

i saw a spread in a recent blueprint (or it might have been domino...i can never keep those two straight) magazine where they used a branch of sand blasted manzanita as a jewery display.

since i have some left over from the wedding, i figured i would give it a go.






i'm not 100% convinced i like it...and it isn't as functional as i thought it would be since i have a lot more stud earrings than dangles, but for now it is on display on my dresser in the bedroom.

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

meeting the neighbors

dear husband (DH) and i have lived in our blue house on the hill for a little over a year now and we only have ever spoken to three of our neighbors.

DH's parents host a holiday party every year for their neighbors in pittsburgh so it was suggested that we try to do the same.

considering the little time we had during the holiday season (what with all of our travel and jumping out of planes and all), we decided to host in january...with the hopes that maybe more people would feel inclinded to stop by.


you won't be surprised to know that i created the invites when we were all buried under 15 inches of snow. even though the snow is currently all gone, i still think it is relevant.

i hand delivered each invite and although i haven't heard back from anyone i am hoping that at least the three neighbors we know will show up :)

Friday, January 4, 2008

continuing the crazy...

so this is the last i will post about it, but the still pics came in and they are pretty fun. here are a few that I like the best...




Thursday, January 3, 2008

i clearly lost my mind...

on Sunday, we headed out to hollister, ca to go skydiving. davis' cousin turned 21 on monday (he turned 34). when he was 21, he promised her they could do anything she wanted for her 21st birthday. she could have gone with him anywhere in the country, but she chose to have us all come to visit them in sunnyvale, ca.

since she has always said she wanted to go skydiving, he set up the date and surprised her with the trip. unfortunately, he chickened out. fortunately, his wife is super, super cool...so she went.

it was an absolute blast and i am so glad i did it. But i will be honest; i never need to do it again :)

hope you enjoy the video...i will post some still pics as soon as i have them back.

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

happy new year!!

hope it is great for everyone!!