holiday wedding

My friends Candi and Andrew got married last weekend. Their wedding in the courtyard at the Thomas Center was simple and beautiful.
The ceremony was short but full of meaning. Our friend Amy officiated and Candi and Andrew read personally written vows. All of the guests had to stand and pledge to support their marriage -- a really sweet touch. But there was one part that really stood out to me: the beautiful song playing while the wedding party walked down the aisle. I can't seem to get it out of my head. The song, "Lullaby and Exile" by M. Ward, was graciously provided to guests as part of a wedding CD. I'm so glad it was so I can listen to it incessantly:



I will always think of them whenever I hear it. The reception was lots of fun as well, filled with numerous toasts to the bride and groom, good friends, yummy food, and the best music playlist I've ever heard at a wedding. Honestly, how often does one get to dance to Radon's "Kibbles & Bits" in a fancy dress and heels? If I had that mp3 to share, believe me I would (that record's been on the turntable lots since I got home. Oh, memories.) Congratulations Candi and Andrew. You two are amazing!

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

Although it certainly doesn't feel that way with tonight's low in the upper 60s. Phew! We got the tree up on Saturday and decorated the rest of the house. I love sitting in front of a lit Christmas tree at night -- there's something about that glow that makes me feel all sorts of happy. That and the yummy smell. I worked on my annual Rockefeller Center Tree card today too. It's always a fun challenge to come up with a new design. In the next few days I'll share some of the previous year's cards. Still on the to-do list: write my holiday letter that goes inside each card and finalize gifts. I think I'll end up doing more holiday coasters since they are quick, easy, and cute! Also in the works are a couple of purses and a hat possibly. Thanksgiving news to come soon, or whenever I figure out how to upload videos.

beagle on the beach

My family spent Thanksgiving at the beach this year. I actually got to bring Madeleine on a trip for a change instead of leaving her in a beagle hotel. She had a little trouble adjusting to the other dogs sharing the house (both my uncles brought their dogs), but she absolutely loved the beach. Here is a video of her first experience with the water. I loved the way my aunt was trying to get her to go in!





The beach house had a gorgeous view, and that's about the nicest thing I can say about it. The house was undergoing renovations by someone who didn't really have the skills to renovate (i.e. matte & gloss paint on the walls, uneven & unfinished flooring, uneven marble counters in the kitchen, etc.) And that kitchen! Wow, was it tiny -- and really hard to keep three dogs out of while cooking Thanksgiving dinner. But when it came time to sit down and eat I was thrilled and thankful to have a large part of my family together, regardless of where we were.

After Thanksgiving, we went through the giant 20-gallon tub of photos we collected after my grandmother's funeral. Talk about a walk down memory lane! It was fun to see silly pictures of my Dad as a child, pictures of my cousin and me was she was just a little girl (gosh, we look alike!), even a picture of me coming home from the hospital that I'd never seen before. I've been thrown into the role of family archivist now, so I plan to scan a bunch of these pictures into the computer before I attempt any restoration. I promise to share some of my favorites.

PhD, please

Just wanted to congratulate Tim on finishing his oral defense for his dissertation comps yesterday. He's been slaving away on those 24/7 for about a month and a half (pictured here in his natural habitat -- on the computer.) Now officially a doctoral candidate, he's just one dissertation away from his PhD. I know, I know -- that's easy for me to say. Now the fun really begins. Congratulations -- I'm proud of you!!

the scarf: skein two

I also finished the second skein of yarn for my new winter scarf (which apparently can also be used as a table runner?) I need to finish up soon since it's starting to get chilly here at night. I took my knitting to a forum on how the US should fix the failing health care system last night since (honestly) those things tend to be sort of boring and my attention span is limited. I finished the skein two-and-a-half hours into the forum, so I think I made the right decision (I also think I paid better attention during the presentations and Q&A session than I would have without the knitting.) I called it my winter insurance plan -- helping to keep myself warm so I don't catch a cold and have to spend money I don't have on a doctor's visit and medicine.

Even without the knitting, the forum was very interesting. Harvard professor Dr. David Himmelstein gave a great presentation on the single-payer system. The Labor Party has been working on getting HR 676 passed in the House for several years now. The current state of insurance and health care in this country is scary. It's not even about the 45 million (yes, million) without insurance -- it's also about the millions of us who have some insurance but not enough, or whose premiums are so high we can't afford to go to the doctor even with insurance. Michael Moore's Sicko documentary helped shed light on the discrepancies between the American system and that of the rest of the industrialized world. Hopefully, now people are angry enough to do something about it. I'd like to see the health care debate become a serious issue in the 2008 presidential race -- not the small lip service it's being given so far. Because goodness knows my new scarf can only protect me from so much!

I still love it!

I have been kicking around the purse idea forever, and I'm so glad I finally did it! It took almost six hours total to complete, but that's mostly because I didn't follow any pattern. I used some of my favorite bags as a measuring guide and this super-helpful webguide, used mostly for squaring the bottom. The rest was just guessing and measuring -- lots of measuring.


Here is the front. Once I cut out a piece to use as the outside, I embellished it using the sewing machine and some buttons. I wanted to add some appliques but I decided it was too much. The machine stitching continues to the back of the bag.


Once I finished that I cut out a piece of fabric the same size for the lining. It's a bit baggy so I think I'll make it smaller next time. I knew I wanted pockets, so I added those using both the outside and lining fabric for strength.


This is a close up of one of the pockets. I double stitched the edges since pockets have a tendency to tear easily. I actually created the pockets based on how I wanted to use them. I am forever missing phone calls since my cell drops to the bottom of my bag. Now that I've got a perfectly sized pocket, I won't have to dig to find the phone!


I like the ease of finding things in square-bottomed bags, and the webguide had a quick and simple way to make it happen. I think it makes the bag look a bit more professional too.


The thing I struggled with the most was the handles. Since I had to sew the bag together inside out, I wasn't sure how to place the handles. Internet advice wasn't helping me visualize what I needed to do, so I made a guess and went with it. I think they turned out okay, although I might do the seams differently on the next bag (insiding out small canvas tubes took a long time!)

Overall, I am just ecstatic over this bag. I was so excited to go grocery shopping today just to use it. The next bag I create I'll take pictures of each step to share.

wowie zowie

Okay, so I haven't posted much this month. Sorry -- I've been busy, overwhelmed, insert other lame excuses here. But, I come back bearing my favorite creation yet. I was up until 1am finishing this up. I'll post more about it later since I'm almost late for work. For now, enjoy the pictures -- my very first purse!













This is the inside. Notice all the pockets sewn into the lining so that everything has its place. As you can see, I have to use it right now. I can't wait to sew another one!

quilt projects

So here are those coasters I've been working on. I tried putting them together two different ways. I'm not sure which one I like best, so I'll probably do some of each (although for the sewn-edge ones I think I'll use pinking shears on the edge to prevent fraying.) I'm getting the hang of the piecing part of quilting, but wow does it take lots of time and precision. I have a feeling I'll have the hang of this once I finish the four sets I'm making.

my first jet!

Finally, after a couple months of frustration and lots of hard work, I got my first real jet job Friday! We fixed two side cockpit windows on a seven-year-old Astra. The picture shows the windows I worked on. I'm so happy with the way it turned out -- and I can finally stop stressing about money for a little while. Now, I just need to make this happen on a regular basis. Ah, the joys (more like stresses) of owning your own business!

empanaditas

Tuesday evening I made one of my favorite yet most time-consuming Cuban dishes, empanaditas. These tasty meat and veggie filled patties are traditionally made using a pie crust type dough. I found a recipe forever ago that used won ton skins baked in the oven to replace the normally fried dough. This made these tasty treats relatively healthy. I've been playing around with the filling ever since. Since these are so time consuming, I recommend wrangling someone to help with the stuffing & sealing. Solo, it took me about an hour and a half to put these in the oven.


pen loves paper's Empanaditas (beef or chicken)

1 cup very finely chopped red potato, skin on
1 cup very finely chopped onion
1 cup beef broth (or chicken broth if you are using chicken)
1/4 teasp salt
1/2 teasp cumin
1/4 teasp allspice (omit if you are using chicken)
1/4 teasp black pepper
1/2 lb boneless sirloin, trimmed and very finely diced (or chicken breast)
3 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tblsp finely chopped cilantro

1/2 tblsp cornstarch
1/2 tblsp water
about 45 won ton wrappers (found in the veggie area of the grocery)
2 oz. shredded cheddar cheese

Bring first 10 ingredients to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Reduce heat and simmer 5-7 minutes or until potatoes are done, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and drain in a colander. Cool.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put a baking sheet in the oven to heat up (this is the key to making these empanaditas crispy.)

Combine cornstarch and water in a small finger bowl with a spoon. Open the won ton wrappers and work with one or two at a time. Leave the rest under a damp kitchen towel so they don't dry out (and they are really tricky to work with if they get brittle so don't skip this step.) Spoon one teaspoon of the drained meat and potato mixture into the middle of each won ton wrapper and top with a pinch of cheese. Moisten two of the edges of the won ton wrapper with the cornstarch mixture. Bring 2 opposite corners together to form a triangle. Pinch the edges together firmly with your fingers (really make sure they are mashed together or you will have filling all over your oven!) Place the filled triangle onto a plate.

Once you have about 18 empanaditas ready, carefully take out the baking sheet and add the empanaditas, leaving space between them. Place them in the oven for about 4-5 minutes (be really careful about this step.) Pull them out, flip them over, and place them back in the oven for another 4 minutes or until they are golden brown. Place baked empanaditas on a plate to cool for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, continue making triangles until you have no more filling. Repeat baking step one to two more times. I can usually get 42-45 empanaditas out of this recipe.