Last Tuesday, you got a little glimpse of the 'party' in the living room that Remy had with her dog bed. As you might recall, we came home the Friday before to find this scene...

...complete with not so innocent face. And so, an 'emergency' dog bed project was born. As I mentioned in my first post, this whole situation wasn't exactly a surprise. Remy has ripped holes in her bed (and I've sewn them) twice already, so I knew that my temporary fixes weren't going to last long. A number of people pointed out to me that Costco has large dog beds for about $40, but apart from not having a Costco membership, anything I've seen for that price either wasn't big enough, didn't have a separate washable cover, or had very thin material...meaning it definitely wouldn't last almost 5 years like the first one did. Especially with this kind of action (to the tune of "The Entertainer" so you don't have to listen to our tv...it always pops into my head when she does this):

That was a little more low-key than usual. Anyway, I decided that DIY-ing a new bed for Remy, reusing the current filling plus adding some new fluff, would be more economical and durable than anything I could buy at a store. Awhile back, I found this tutorial for a kid's floor cushion from Living With Punks.

                      Source: livingwithpunks.com via Corrie on Pinterest

It was essentially the same shape as Remy's bed, just with different dimensions, so I figured it would be a good guideline for doggy bed assembly. I pinned it on Pintrest to save for future reference.

I also pinned this doggy-bed-related-but-otherwise-irrelevant picture of an Irish Wolfhoud, which made me laugh because it perfectly sums up Remy's relationship with other dogs. And I love Irish Wolfhounds.

                                             Source: Uploaded by user via Corrie on Pinterest

Oooo, I just want to snuggle him! ...Er, Let's get on with the bed making.

I wanted Remy's bed to be both durable and aesthetically pleasing because - let's be honest - given its size, it might as well be a major focal point in our living room's decor. So the supplies I picked up were:

• 4 yards of seafoam-colored indoor/outdoor fabric with a subtle scroll print from Joann Fabrics for $39.96 with a 50% discount. (It's similar in color to the fabric on my blue pillows, plus its outdoor durability means it's moisture and stain resistant, easy to clean, and stands up to heavy wear.)
• Three 12 ounce bags of shredded foam (to add to the existing filling) for $8.38 with various coupons. (Joann Fabrics will accept multiple coupons in one transaction so I always have them scan the printouts to see what will work.) 
• Thread in a coordinating color, which I already had
• Total cost: $48.34 (less than half the cost of her original bed when I purchased it almost 5 years ago)

The foam was very static-y and had lots of tiny pieces, so I decided to sew closed some old t-shirts with the foam inside, plus one additional t-shirt full of the old filling. I literally just sewed the arm and neck holes closed, dumped a bag of foam in each shirt, then sewed the bottom of the shirt closed.

The idea is that when it comes time to wash her bed, most of the filling (at least the smaller stuff) will be contained in 'bolsters' (the t-shirts) so that we don't have to deal with this :

You could easily sew together one giant bolster, but I didn't want to spend more money on fabric when I could just use t-shirts.

While Remy was swimming in a sea of stuffing, I was busy cutting apart her old bed along its seams, which left me with three pieces, much like the pieces in the floor cushion tutorial: the top and bottom circles (each 48 inches in diameter) plus the side piece (6 inches wide and about 154 inches long). The side piece was actually made up of three separate strips of fabric, since one of the strips contained a zipper. Because I also planned to add a zipper (and my fabric wasn't wide enough to cut one long strip), I determined the measurements of the three almost-equal strips were 51in.+51in.+52in.=154inches total (the circumference of the bed). I things are getting a little math-y, so I hope you're still following!

I used the old bed pieces to trace the top circle onto the new fabric, measuring my pencil line 1 inch out to accommodate the seam allowance.

 I cut out my new top circle and then traced it on the fabric to make the bottom circle. 

Then I measured, drew, and cut out the strips that would form my side piece, adding in 1 inch for seam allowance. Two strips measured 52in. x 7in. and the zipper piece (which I then cut in half to insert the zipper) was 53in. x 8in. 

The reason the zipper piece was 8in. was because I had to account for seams to sew in the zipper, plus seams to attach it to the top and bottom circles (2 sets of seams adds 2 inches). Here's a diagram that better illustrates the pieces:

The first piece I sewed was the zipper, following these instructions, though I kind of half-a**ed it by not doing a basting stitch, using glue, or a zipper foot. Oh, and I bought a separating zipper (the kind you would have on a sweatshirt) instead of a regular one...so basically, it's amazing this thing even turned out ok, especially since I was a zipper-sewing virgin. One thing to note is that I stitched around the whole thing twice for extra reinforcement.

With the zipper piece done (are you tired of me saying "zipper" yet?), it was time to attach all the side pieces together. This required some quick pinning, then sewing the ends of all three pieces, right sides (aka patterned sides) facing, into one long strip.

Then I joined the ends of the strip and sewed those together to make a continuous circle. Before proceeding, I pressed all my seams so that my fabric was nice and flat.

Next step was to attach the side piece to the top circle. I laid the circle out, flat on the ground, with the right side facing up. Laying the side piece on top with right sides facing together, I pinned the outer edge of the side piece to the outer edge of the circle. REWIND. Let me note that I actually did this completely wrong the first time. Not only did I waste an entire night after work incorrectly pinning and double-sewing (twice for reinforcement of course), but then I wasted an additional work night solely ripping seams out to redo it. You live and you learn I guess. So let's learn from my stupidity. 

Wrong way:

Right way: 

Glad we've got that covered. Evening three of dog bed making was when I finally sewed the side piece and first circle together for the second and last time. After two evenings of issues, I couldn't seem to excuse myself from another. Let me preface this by saying that anyone who has ever used a sewing machine knows that there is an evil spirit lurking inside every single one. Not.Even.Kidding. I think every time I've ever used my sewing machine for a project, at least one thing happens that leaves me cursing at it. Maybe it's because Greta the Mean Green Sewing Machine has been around since the 1950s and has a short temper.

Or it could just be user error. Either way, I can't imagine I'm the only one (besides Sherry at Young House Love) who has these problems. At least my machine has kept me from subscribing to the Humpty Dumpty school of hard knocks - I've learned how to put her all back together again.

So I guess what I'm getting to is my night #3 incident.

Enter stage left: blood blister/cut/thumb nail bruise. Let me tell you. Almost sewing your thumb off is a sure fire way to instill a fear of sewing machines in any DIY- savvy person.  I hope the fact that it still hurts and I can barely button my own buttons a week later is enough to convince you to question my sewing abilities never let your fingers get caught up in your sewing bidness. By that I mean, don't feed your fabric from the front even when you know it's a bad idea but think it will be ok. Because it won't.

At this point, my blood, sweat, and almost-tears were officially part of Remy's dog bed. I took a band-aid break and Darren asked, "So, do you think you'll finish tonight so Remy has her bed while we're at work tomorrow?" I think I muttered something along the lines of "Remy can shove it and so can this #*$% bed." (Sorry Remy, I take it all back now. Please don't sit on me.)

But actually, I did finish that night, after one last step. Sewing the second circle to the other edge of the side piece (which was now attached to the first circle on one edge). I did it the same way as the first circle, by laying the pieces right sides facing and pinning around the edges. I had to bunch some of the top circle's fabric into the middle to get the outer edges to line up flat.

Then I sewed around the edges twice for reinforcement. Because the bed has a zipper, I didn't need to worry about leaving an opening in the stitching in order to turn the bed right-side-out. Unzip and it was done.

All that was left was to stuff and fluff with the t-shirt 'bolsters' and the old reused filling.

Ta daaa!

No fancy cording around the edges like the floor pillows on Pinterest had (it would've added too much to the cost), but that's ok. It's just a dog bed. And apparently a comfy one at that.

Oh, what we do for our dogs.

I'm hooking this project up with the Pinterest Challenge: Winter Edition, hosted by Sherry at Young House Love, Katie at Bower Power, Cassie at Hi Sugarplum, and Erin at The Great Indoors.

Feel free to check out my past Pintrest Challege projects too! A personalized typography LOVE print and Pottery Barn knockoff pillows.

Sooo....this is what we came home to on Friday.

Oh, hey Remy. Looks like you're having some issues with your bed. Sounds like a personal problem.

Actually, it's been a bit of an ongoing problem - like 6 months ongoing - that started out more like this (the raggedy thing next to her is a giant knotted ball of rope aka one of her toys):

Which resulted from these (giant holes in her bed that I have already sewn closed two times):

Which brings us back to this (the holes are ripping open for the third time):

As you can see, underneath her there is a giant hole about 18 inches wide - among other smaller holes - spewing the contents of her bed all over our living room.

I don't want to give her any bad street cred, though. This didn't result from her chewing the bed - she's never been much of a chewer-of-things. Despite being a good dog, she isn't exactly a normal dog when it comes to laying down. Apparently, she is on a life-long quest for Ultimate Bed Fluffyness. The quest takes shape in one of two forms. Either stomp-circling her bed before she lays down, as a normal dog would do...although, as you can see in this video, her circling lasts an obscenely long time. (Sorry for the darkness. Even with the lights on in our living room it's still not very bright.)

This only captured about 30 seconds of it before my camera died - she laid down shortly after - but she sometimes does this for up to 2 minutes. Destructive, no. Weird, yes. Humorous, maybe (probably more so in person).

And then there is the other way, that in which the beast is unleashed. Apparently disgruntled by its location or lack of fluff, Remy kicks her bed around with her feet, like a kid trying to juggle a soccer ball. She tromps and flops it across the living room and back. Grabs it in her mouth and tries to toss it. Flips it in half. I yell. She stares. Repeat. Her bed becomes less layable than it was in the first place. This inevitably ends with me grabbing her bed, fluffing it, and telling her to lay down on it. She looks at me like I ruined everything, disdainfully obeys, and the sometimes gets back up to try all over again. It's quite a dramatic affair. I only wish I had a video to show you, but since we try to discourage her bed abuse ("ultimate comfort seeking" is probably what she would call it), I don't have any live-action-proof.

You now understand how her poor, abused bed has been left for the third time bleeding of its fluff, some of which is gone forever. The whole bed has become somewhat deflated, which only perpetuates Remy's need for more fluff. It's like an addition for her, I think.

Ok, Remy. Three strikes. You win. You get a new bed.

I've been anticipating this for some time. Because dog beds of the same quality and size that she currently has are hard to find and would cost me at least $100 to buy, I've had some fabric at the ready to make her a new one for much cheaper.

So, I suppose this isn't a real emergency, but considering we have hardwood floors and Remy isn't allowed on the furniture, I'd like to complete her bed as soon as possible. I'm using her old bed as the template and reusing the old stuffing, plus adding more. Work has already started - not without issues - so I will be back later this week with a full report.

I have a confession to make. I'm in love.

With Darren...yes. But there is another.

This week, I began an unhealthy love affair with Chaing Mai.

I know...Chaing Mai is a little crazy. And has been around the block a few times - for a few years in fact. But I just can't resist.

Courtesy of The Desk of Annie

Courtesy of Caitlin Wilson Design

So complex. So much personality. It was love at first sight.

Courtesy of Yay Decor

Couldn't you just see it making a home as a pillow on my couch?

The seemingly random pattern that's so easy to pair with other patterns. That perfect mix of colors found throughout my house. The piece de resistance of my entire first floor. Oh, the places you'll it'll go!

 Oh, the drama.

.:Sigh:. But I forgot to mention a minor little detail. This is only a visual love affair for now, because I ain't no sugar momma. Think $140 per yard. Ouch.  On top of the price, it's a designer fabric made by Schumacher (whose fabrics I'm obsessed with, by the way) so it's playing hard to get. I've searched Ebay and Etsy but with nothing very reasonable to be found. The best I could find was a pair of pillows made with the fabric (only on one side) for $100. Still way out of my meager DIY budget. And there's nothing comparable that satisfies me.

Soooo for now I suppose I am left to dream. And keep stalking Ebay. And Etsy. And maybe save my pennies. And maybe make some calls to some local fabric/upholstery places to see if they might have any remnants.

And, hey! Any of you out there! Can you help a sister out? Do you or anyone you know have any scraps of this fabric they would be willing to part with? Any idea where I might find some at a bargain price? Chaing Mai in aquamarine. The bane of my existence right now. (Pathetic to say about a piece of fabric, I know. But gosh does it seem so fitting for my house.)

In the meantime, I'm going to focus on finding some orange curtains. Yep, orange. And picking a paint color so we can get our bedroom makeover. It's about to get crazy in here, kids.

Happy (now belated) Valentine's Day, loves! I originally started writing this this post as I was waiting for my valentine to arrive home from basketball on Tuesday, but since we didn't get our downtime together until about 10:30pm that night, I was never able to get the pics into the post. (Notice a trend here? Belated holiday greetings...belated Valentine's greetings...sometimes I suck at life.)

I have to admit...I generally don't go crazy over Valentine's Day. As much as I love decorating for holidays (and in general), Valentine's Day isn't something I go ga-ga about. Maybe it's because I (mostly) hate the color pink. Maybe it's because I don't like how the media seems to tell us that if we aren't buying All The Things for our partner that we don't love them enough. Or maybe I'm just a believer in doing the little things that show you care about your loved ones each day, not just on a day that 'designates' you to do so. Regardless, we don't do fancy dinners, or expensive gifts or grand public gestures of appreciation for Valentine's Day. While I love seeing others become joyful over those things, it's just not our style.

So in true DIY, made-with-love form, I raise a toast of cheap champagne (though not because I think cheaply of you) to you and your valentines, and I bring you our Valentine's Day.

The morning started with Darren waking up to find 12 post it notes I wrote out last night with cupid arrows drawn on them, each saying "I love you because..." with a reason underneath each arrow. The picture did not come out clear at all, probably due to the fact that I took it on my dumbphone non-smartphone while it was still dark out. Knowing that D gets up before me and let's the dog out, I left the post it notes around the house last night in each place he wanders in the morning so that he would find them as he got ready for work.  A free and heartfelt way to tell him how much I love the little things he does. Cheesy? Probably. Did he enjoy it? Yes.

I proceeded to indulge myself in chocolate at work, thanks to my lovely coworkers. When Darren picked me up from work, he had a card waiting on the seat for me with an unexpected little gift inside - a Groupon for a wine education class, which we had been eying up last week...and which I didn't have money to buy at the time. We both love wine, but unlike beer, don't know much about it, so it was a great thing for him to gift to both of us. The somewhat-unfortunate twist was that he didn't realize when he bought it last week that the promotional value expired a week later. Meaning, Monday, the day before Valentine's Day. Shady Groupon place and their shady timeline. No big deal though, because the paid amount never expires so we can still use it, but we'll just end up paying the full price when the time comes.

When we got home, we proceeded to make dinner as usual and then Darren ran off to basketball. While he was gone, I decided to take advantage of some leftover dark chocolate we had and make chocolate covered strawberries.

Chocolate covered strawberries are just about one of the easiest desserts you can make. I wanted to jazz them up a little bit by experimenting with some salty/sweet and spicy chocolate combos, so I pulled out some sea salt and cayenne pepper. I dumped a little more than a cup of dark chocolate chunks into a small bowl and heated them in the microwave, stopping to stir every 15 seconds. I know that sounds ridiculous, but if you choose to melt chocolate in the microwave, you must stir it frequently to distribute the heat and keep the chocolate from burning. As long as you obey that rule, microwave melting is much faster than stovetop melting. My plan of attack was to dip a little more than half the strawberries in the regular dark chocolate, then mix the cayenne pepper into the chocolate to do the rest. 

Right after dipping in the chocolate and giving a little twist to catch any drips, I placed them on top of a freezer bag to cool and reharden. Normally you would put them on wax paper, but I realized after I started melting the chocolate that we were out.  Oops. I gave a little sprinkle of coarsely ground sea salt over the top of some of the dipped strawberries while they were still melty, and left others plain. When I only had about 6 or 8 left to dip, I mixed about 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper into the dark chocolate and proceeded to coat the rest. Then I quickly sprinkled some cayenne over the tops in order to identify the spiced ones from the regular ones. At this point, many had hardened enough that I could remove them from the wax paper freezer bag and put them on a plate in the frig to chill.

Since I was hoping to present them a little more fancily than "oh hey, check out the plate in the frig," I decided to make a little box to put them in. It was as simple as google-ing "paper box template" and picking one of the many options that popped up. The one I used was from mirkwooddesigns.com, and it was fittingly called "candy box." 

 

When I printed it in it's original size, it looked a bit too small to hold a bunch of strawberries, so I just adjusted my printer settings to 125% and reprinted. It was as simple as tracing the top and bottom pieces on some card stock, cutting them out, folding along the lines, and gluing the corners in place. 

Oh, and then filling with strawberries. I did a row of the salty sweet, a row of regular dark, and a row of cayenne spiced.

Then I made a little tag out of paper scraps (it says...*geek alert*... "you're spicy and sweet <3 " to match the strawberries) and I tied everything up with baker's twine. 

When Darren arrived home, he opened his card and we proceeded to enjoy the strawberries alongside a cheap, half-full bottle of champagne that had been sitting in the frig (yet was still as carbonated and delicious as the day we opened it). Classy, right?

Between the cheesy displays of affection via post it notes, a somewhat expired Groupon gift, and a half bottle of cheap champagne, you probably think we have a dysfunctional relationship. To tell you the truth, it was totally 'us' and I wouldn't have had it any other way.

PS: The strawberries came out great! I loved the salty sweet ones. The spicy ones actually weren't really spicy - you could tell there was a hidden flavor, but the heat didn't really come through. It could just be that we have a good tolerance for spicy food. I might consider adding more cayenne next time, unless I'm feeding them to spice-intolerant friends or family, of course.

While you were out...er, I mean...while *I* was out -- away from blogland for extended holiday celebrations -- we made a number of exciting upgrades around the house. The main one involved adding additional electrical boxes to our half bath so that we could install a wall mounted light and corresponding switch (more on that later.) We also installed an additional cabinet in the kitchen (more on that to come too).  Lastly, there are a couple things we tweaked in our living room that I'm pretty excited about...and those are what I'm going share with you today! Maybe you won't find them blog-worthy, but I was able to get some good deals and I feel like they've helped brighten up the space a bit.

Last you saw, my living room probably looked like this:

Womp womp. Dark. Mismatched. Unexciting. Even Remy looks depressed about it.

While I am very grateful for our free aka hand-me-down couch, I've never been a fan of it's dark green color and it has become a little worse for wear. As you might have guessed, we don't have money to buy a new one anytime soon, nor is it high on the priority list. The table lamp in the corner with the freakish lighting effects, which was leftover from Darren's college apartment days, has always gotten on my nerves as well. It's our primary light in the living room because we don't have any overhead lights and it's closer to the couch than our floor lamp. Don't be fooled by it's unnatural glow in this picture. The lamp is too small and barely gives off enough light to be able to read at the other end of the couch. Apart from it's lack of function, it's way too modern for my taste. 

Soooo, here's how we fixed things up a bit:

Cue heavenly dream sequence, choir gloriously singing, "ahhhh!"

I had been stalking slipcovers pretty much since the day we moved in, but the average price I was finding for a basic, two-piece/separate seat, fitted slipcover was $120. Regardless of which store/site I ordered it through, I knew that any place would tack on almost $20 to my order in tax and shipping...meaning $140 for the average slipcover. The Sure Fit brand had a lot of good reviews, but despite signing up for email coupons/sales, prices never came to $100 or less with shipping.  Target, Macy's, Amazon, and Overstock all carry the brand, so I was sure to keep an out out online and when I happened to be at the store. The specific slipcovers I had my eye on were the Cotton Duck Cloth 2-piece slipcover and the Twill Supreme 2-piece slipcover. Both offer a separate cover for the seat cushions, which gives more of a custom look, and both are machine washable, which is very important because we have a large dog and do a lot of eating on the couch.

Finally, in December, Macy's had a big home decor sale, which included their slipcovers. Not only was the Twill Supreme slipcover on sale, but so was a fancier, more expensive version that had Scotchguard in the fabric. The Scotchguard version was normally retailing for $200, but with promo codes and the home decor sale, it was only going to cost me $84.99 before shipping! Not only was that a good price for any 2-piece slipcover, but an AMAZING price for one that has 'stain-proof' fabric!

As you can see, the final amount came to $100.20. It felt like a steal! Shipping only took about a week, and the day I received it, I immediately washed/dried it and put it on the couch. I was giddy with excitement about how much it brightened up our living room (accompanied by the pillow covers I made awhile back)!

Ok, maybe it doesn't look very bright in that picture because I took it at night, but the slipcover is a nice neutral color. After 2 months of living with it, I'm happy to say that any food spills have wiped off without a problem, and the dog hair is easy to vacuum off as well. We haven't had any problems with the slipcover shifting either. 

My other little bonus buy, with the help of a $15 TJMaxx gift card I received for Christmas, was this handsome lamp for $35, which replaced the old modern slacker we had next to the couch. 

Even Target, where I found a similar lamp, couldn't match the price of this one (the lamp bases alone were $35 at Target, and drum-style lampshades were $16). It's much taller, the shade is bigger, and it has so much more interest than the old one. I only wish I had a close up picture of the old one so you can see the comparison. Actually, I'm not all that sad that there isn't a picture. You're not missing much. Darren happened to come home from basketball right as I was making the lamp switch-a-roo,  which meant that he was right in time to witness the 5 minutes of happy dance that ensued when I turned the lamp on. I said, "Aren't you EXCITEDDD, Darren?!" He responded, "I guess I just don't get that excited about lamps." 

You also may have noticed from the pics that we made another upgrade - the rug under the coffee table.   This was another exciting steal-of-a-deal that we got back in July. I wanted something 5'x8', durable, soft and with natural fibers. Plus, I tend toward buying indoor/outdoor rugs because they hold up well to Remy's and our foot traffic, they are durable and easy to clean, and they don't have loops that get caught around Remy's nails when she's playing. Jute was a choice that fit all of these things. However, most 5x8s are around $150 and up. I lucked out and found this guy on Overstock, with great reviews, for $80.99. Thanks to Overstock's cheap shipping, regardless of weight, the rug was still a great deal. 

My favorites things about it, after living with it for over 6 months, are that it's soft, double-sided (meaning we can flip it over for even wear), and that all dirt and most of the dog hair falls right through it. I'm not even kidding. I would have taken a picture when I used the shop vac to sweep underneath it last week, but it would be embarrassing for me to show you how much dirt and dog fur accumulates underneath when the top of the rug looks like it's staying so clean! I'm thinking of replacing the other living room rug, which is patterned, with second jute rug so make the room look more like a unified seating area. As much as I dearly love the patterned one and its cheerful colors, I feel like it breaks up the room too much. What do you think? Here's Remy attempting to model the rugs for you.

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, we didn't upgrade Remy. That girl could never be upgraded. Best doggy we could ever ask for. (Her stuffed dog from the first pic, however, has been downgraded to various pieces parts, and most recently, to the trash can.)

And no, we didn't make her lay in essentially-the-same-spot as last time. She did that all by herself. I guess she felt that you needed her in the pic for an accurate comparison to the original living room picture. I'm just sad she didn't cross her front legs like a lady, which is how she usually lays. She mentioned something about not wanting to look like she was trying to hard...

So there you have it. Total cost for new rug, new slipcover and new lamp = $216.19. These items would've cost me around $400 if I had not bought them on sale, or even at other stores. That's almost $200 I saved! Hooray!

Maybe you think it's a little silly that I'm SO EXCITED about these little improvements. But when you don't have much money to spend, when you realize you can't just re-do a room all at one time, but that you will have to prioritize and save piece-by-piece...when you have to wait very impatiently, watching an item for months, hoping the prices will fall...watching sales go by, thinking "gosh, I should just get it already even though it's still more than I want to pay...but it IS on sale!...but what if that's as far on sale as it's going to go?"...well, you end up celebrating each great-deal-on-a-purchase as a little victory. And it seems that each item in your home gains more worth in your eyes because you worked hard to save the money for it. You struggled to make the smart decision by rejecting your credit card and waiting until you could afford it. And you end up not just purchasing a meaningless, yet functional object to put in your home, but gaining an appreciation for everything you've come to own. Not saying that someone who has the money can't appreciate a lamp or slipcover they purchase right when they need it, just that when you are forced to save and budget-shop, there is a whole new level of appreciation for what's in your house and every decor upgrade feels like a little victory. Why not celebrate the little victories? Maybe i'm getting too sentimental about my household objects, but when I am forced save and wait to get something even as silly as a lamp, I feel a greater pride in the things I own, and I don't think there's anything wrong with that!

Any big purchases you've made lately that you're excited about? Maybe even something you've been waiting to get and finally were able to with the help of some holiday gift cards? Do share!

Oh man, you guys. I am sooo embarrassed. Like, walked-in-on-in-a-public-bathroom-stall embarrassed. (Which actually DID happen to me at work last week...Awkward.)

It has been 2 MONTHS since the last time I blogged! I hope you haven't given up on me. I hope you didn't think I forgot about you, because I haven't. I can explain. Really.

It's not that I haven't had things to blog about- because there are lots of things! It's really because the holiday season has basically lasted 2 months for me this year. Two craaaazy, family-fun-filled months. It started around the time of my last post, when I was preparing a ton of items for our office's craft show (my first show ever). I made fabric covered bulletin boards, baby headbands and pacifier clips (a post on those later), and planned to take orders for those items, plus customized LOVE prints. It was a LOT of work. I ended up selling a number of things, plus I received orders for four LOVE prints and four bulletin boards of different sizes, due by Christmas. Work began on those, during which time we were traveling to my grandma's house in Toledo for Thanksgiving, then a day trip to Wooster to cut down our Christmas tree. Then throw in beer brewing and other preparations for our 2nd annual holiday party the weekend before Christmas, plus Christmas shopping. In the meantime, my office of 300+ people was preparing to move to a new building over Christmas weekend. Being that my department facilitates the offsite storage of our files, we were basically bearing the brunt of people trying to get rid of 20+ years of stuff. I was in the office on any Saturday that I didn't already have plans, plus occasionaly working late one day per week.

On Christmas Eve, we became the third generation to host my family's traditional pork chop and pierogi dinner for about 11 people.

Photo taken by my 5 year-old cousin, Maeve.

The following days were spent running between my dad's house and my mom's house celebrating Christmas, followed by the arrival of my brother, Joe, on December 28th for his 3-week Navy leave from Japan - the first time we had seen him in 14 months!

We met him at the airport and then had a little gathering at my mom's house to celebrate. A few days later came a hospital visit after the birth of my friend Emily's first baby, New Year's Eve fun with some friends, plus traditional New Year's Day dinner with my dad. At work, we were officially in our new building, but still dealing with areas under construction plus some issues with an employee. The weekend after New Year's we spent celebrating my youngest brother's birthday, which brought us into the second week of Januray. Darren and I had planned a Thursday through Saturday getaway for our 8 year dating anniversary (our Christmas gifts to each other) at a cabin in Millersburg, Ohio, which was a lovely, relaxing time, sans technology, despite some yucky weather. The Saturday we returned, we had planned to have a 'redo' of Christmas Eve dinner so that Joe could enjoy it with our immediate family. Given that some of our other in-town extended family had been out of town for the original dinner, this ended up being another 11 person event. All three of my siblings ended up staying at my house from that Saturday night through MLK Day, so we had quite an extended weekend. It was nice for all of us to be together again right before Joe returned to Japan on Wednesday, even though Darren and I were able to sneak in one more evening with him by having dinner at my mom's house on Tuesday.

On Thursday, the day after Joe left, we had more house guests arrive! My cousin, Anna, and her husband, Bill, from Maine flew in with my cousin Alaina (Anna'a sister) from Vermont for a Cleveland visit. Most of our Cleveland relatives hadn't met Bill yet, and none of us had seen Alaina in 16 years! Thank goodness for Facebook, because Alaina and I had been able to reconnect over the past couple years and discovered how remarkably similar we are. I joke that she's my "sister from another mister." (You know, like "brother from another mother"...but for girls.)

Anyway, my dad and one of my aunts joined us all for dinner at my house to celebrate the cousins' arrival. Darren and I had to work on Friday, so we left Anna, Alaina, and Bill with some suggestions for fun places to visit and they did some exploring. We had a cousin get-together with some in-town cousins that night and then had a big family gathering on Saturday at my aunt Cathy's house. It was such a fantastic time and felt as though Anna, Alaina and Bill had been with us all these years, despite the distance.

With a week to recuperate and get my house back to normal, that brings us to now! PHEW! So, now that I got that recap - which you probably didn't care about - out of the way, let me leave you with some outtakes from our Christmas card photo shoot, just so we can all get one last little taste of the belated holiday spirit before Valentine's Day is upon us....

 

Don't worry. This was not torturous for Remy at all. In fact, my mom and I had plenty of shredded chicken to feed her and she was quite content to tolerate our shenanigans as long as the chicken was available. (Card was created by me using various pieces parts on http://www.mixbook.com/)