Just Drink a Coke.: January 2012

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Promptly Remove Shirt

Next time I win something really great, this is definitely what I’m going to do.

It just seems like protocol now days, doesn’t it?

You gotta love sports!

Photo sources: Wikipedia, The New York Times

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Friday, January 27, 2012

A Flower with a Different Purpose

That’s a cute flower, right?

It would be cute on a sweater, a jacket, a hairclip, anything but…

a sleep cap.

I just had to dress up this white, clinical-looking sleep cap because it just wasn’t a happy-looking thing to wear without it.

You see, this is an adult sleep cap for my dear friend who lives across the street from me, and she’s going to need it because she’s getting her head shaved today, not by choice really, but out of necessity. Her hair is falling out in clumps from chemo.

Life was normal a little over a month ago until a her doctor said those life-altering words, “You have breast cancer.” It’s something no one ever wants to hear. I hate that she had to hear it. I hate that she has cancer. I hate that her daughters have a mom who is sick.

… but nothing can change what’s happening.

She has cancer, and we’ll get through this together. She’ll go to her doctor’s appointments and get her treatments, and we, as a community of friends and family members, will take care of everything else.

We’ll bring her family food.

We’ll get her kids off the bus.

We’ll clean her house.

We’ll try to make light of the situation, and tell her she went all “Britney Spears” on us.

We’ll do anything and everything we can to make this easiER.

Please add Sharon to your prayer list.

It’s what friends do, and I know she would do the same for any of us :)

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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Moms Make it Look Easy

I love to write. Sometimes, I wonder what would happen if I sat down for 20 minutes every day and just wrote… put my fingers on the keyboard and started typing.

What would it be about?

Would it be valuable?

Would it be poignant?

Who knows?

I’ll probably not get the opportunity to sit in quiet, alone with my thoughts, for twenty minutes for about 16 years… I’m guessing.

{At that point, all three of my children will be in college and will surely be out of the house at the same time at some point during the day!}

For now, I’m going to going to embrace the chaos, the noise, the mess, and the beauty of what young children bring to a home, and do the best I can.

If I get to write… yay! If I don’t… oh, well!

As moms, our lives are pretty full, it’s a wonder how we are able to do what we already do {and with such style and grace, I might add}.

So many of you inspire me to follow my dreams and reach for the stars. You’ve turned your dreams and aspirations into a reality, and it is truly inspiring.

Beautifully done, my fellow moms, you make it look effortless!

Photo source: MMS

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Friday, January 20, 2012

I’m Going to Draw on All My Dishes!

My sister is getting married in June, and this cup was part of her fiance’s Christmas gift from us. I’m pretty sure this is just what every military captain likes to receive for Christmas.

{Hey, he better get used to handmade gifts from me, right…lol}

The are two easy ways to make this sweet little gift. After you head to the Dollar Tree and pick out a coffee mag, you could find some cute clip art online and do the following:

-print it

-scribble with a lead pencil sideways all over the back of the image on the paper

-tape the piece of paper to the cup with the image facing you

-trace over your image with pen

Voila! Your image appears on your cup. All that’s left to do is trace over it with your porcelaine marker.

The other way is to just freehand your picture right on your cup with a pencil like I did.

Here are your supplies--- porcelaine markers. That’s it!

I could only find these little gems at Michaels’s and my local “make your own pottery and draw on it” store.

The pack of colored markers ended up costing about $9, after a 50% off coupon. The single black marker was $4.

After you’re done drawing on your cup, wait 24 hours and then bake it in the oven for 30 minutes on a baking sheet.

Now your cup is ready to be used!

The possibilities are endless!

I made this one for my hubby; it’s our little family.

I added a little something extra to the handle of each cup I made… just a little extra love.

What do think of these gifts? Am I just a cheap gifter or a thoughtful gifter?

It’s a narrow line a crafty gal treads :)

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Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Dresses Not Meant for Wearing

Aah, a dress made purely of of wire {kind of makes you think, “Mommy Dearest,” right?}.

I am absolutely in love with every single piece that Leigh Pennebaker makes. She marries the femininity of a woman’s curves in what seems like a corset with a rough, almost bondage-like, quality that only industrial wire gives, and the result is pure genius.

Are you a fan of this type of art, too?

Photo source: The Fashion Spot

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Thursday, January 12, 2012

You Named Your Baby WHAT?

Some baby names are classic.

Some are trendy.

Some are popular…. and some are just plain CRAZY!

Celebrities can name their babies whatever they want, and so can we… I guess. Somehow, though, I just don’t think our children would make it in the real world with ridiculous names. In fact, they would bare a burden no child should have to bear and probably get some crazy looks along the way.

{ I’m betting you know what prompted this post.}

Now take a look at these lovely names from 2011… very nice!

Did your baby’s name make the list? What number?

One last thing—what’s the craziest baby name you’ve ever heard?

List from BabyCenter.

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Wednesday, January 11, 2012

The Cooking Crew

I was going through my cookbooks yesterday and came upon something that I had forgotten about—my crew team’s cookbook!

Isn’t that what all Division 1 college teams do in their down time… make a cookbook?

Probably not, but this one was made out of a genuine love for one another and a friendship that could withstand the test of time. So, here’s the story. I’ll try to give you the abbreviated version of it.

When I was a student at the University of Louisville many years ago, I was on the women’s rowing team. Now this crew was like no other, and because we spent more time with each other than with our families (we’re talking a minimum of 20 hours of training per week, not to mention sitting through hours of lectures together), we were really close. As it were, student athletes have a rigorous and ridiculous schedule. They eat, train, go to school, eat, study, eat, train, eat some more, sleep, and then do it all over again the next day. Did you catch the recurrent theme in the previous sentence? I know that sounds like a lot of eating, but it’s really not when you think about all the calories one burns when working out that much. It wasn’t long after rowing with this group of women that they figured out that I did not know how to cook. I could bake, but when it came to cooking an actual meal, I was truly clueless. Hey, no big deal, right? Who cares if if a college student doesn’t know how to cook? Well, in this case, this student athlete’s husband could only eat so much CAKE for dinner. What!?! That’s right… I was married, and I was the only gal on the team who had matrimonial bling occasionally glistening on the Ohio River like a beacon in the night (I’m kidding about all that… lol), but really, though, I was the only one returning home each day to a husband.

Upon discovering my lack of culinary talent (and in my eyes made me a pitiful newlywed wife), my team made it their mission to teach me to cook. So, my crew and I, along with my husband, spent one evening a week just cooking with everyone. We made all kinds of stuff and had the best time doing it. At the beginning of each week, we would decide what we were going to cook and split up the ingredients amongst everyone. That way, everyone arrived with what they were supposed to bring, and it didn’t cost each person much money. This little weekly cooking night turned into a tradition that carried through until graduation.

(I’ve got to go get a tissue because I’m getting a little teary thinking back to those days.)

Now this brings me to the evolution of the cookbook. Before graduation, we compiled our recipes, and turned it into a cookbook so each gal could have something to remember our weekly cooking nights by once they returned to their hometowns. Each page was filled with recipes and funny thoughts! This one really cracked me up because we always had on spandex. Seriously, spandex… all spandex… all the time. It’s kind of the curse of being a rower!

Pictured below are just some of my teammates. I told you we were close; just look at how close we had to sit when we were in a boat! How could you not be!?! … lol!

If you’ve made it to the end of this post, thank you! It feels good to think back to those “pre-Just Drink a Coke.” days, but living in the now with my husband and our three children is even better! I’m still not a great cook, and I’ll probably never be one, but at least I’ve got a little cookbook filled with great recipes and great memories to help me along the way!

What is your fondest college memory? Was it cooking with your teammates, partying with your Greek friends, or just hanging out?

I’d love for you to share it here!

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Monday, January 9, 2012

He is Not Ashamed.

He gives thanks and praise to Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior. He shines for Jesus. He walks the walk.

He really needs no introduction, but I’ll give one anyways. His name is Tim Tebow, and he is the quarterback for the Denver Broncos.

Last night, he threw an 80 yard pass that resulted in their win in sudden death overtime in the wildcard game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Afterwards, he did as he always does and gave thanks and praise to the Lord.

He is not ashamed to be a Christian… He is proud to be a Christian.

Thank you, Tim Tebow, for standing up for our Lord and Savior and making it known that we serve an awesome God!

Oh yeah, and congratulations on your big win!

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Friday, January 6, 2012

Coca-Cola, Here I Come!

Okay, Coca-Cola, here it is. I’m putting it out there—my idea for a new box wrap is subway art. It’s fresh and current and completely embraces the brand and it’s history.

What do you think?

I’m totally going to wait by the computer for you to email me and offer me a position at the company (wink, wink).

(Seriously, though… I’m not kidding.)

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