Sunday, August 15, 2010

Inspiration

If you have read my prior blog posts you know that I have spent almost an entire month lying on my belly on the floor suffering from a burst/herniated disc. I have managed to find a few projects that I could work on while in this position... such as starting this blog. :) I actually finished up a HUGE wedding project this afternoon. I am so excited about it, but I decided not to post it because I want to keep a few things as surprises for my guests. I am not good at keeping secrets, but I am going to try not to share everything ahead of time to give my friends a reason to actually show up.
I have been searching the internet for fun/interesting/inspiring blogs and websites to keep me busy and to keep my creative "juices" flowing (I don't really know why I just wrote that, because that saying has always bothered me... but it was so fitting).
Since I anticipate several more weeks of limited mobility post-surgery I wanted to see if any of you -my very few readers, know of a really good or fun blog or website that you could share, I would love to hear your suggestions. Thank you so much.
 Surgery is tomorrow morning at 7:30. Your prayers are coveted and appreciated greatly!



Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Anxiousness

I had my appointment with the surgeon this morning. My back surgery has been scheduled for next Monday, August 16th at 7:30 AM. I have never had surgery before, in fact, i have never had anesthesia. I was awake when my wisdom teeth came out, so "going under" will be a new experience for me. I hadn't really thought about the actually surgery until this morning. And I have to admit, I am terrified. I know that there are hundreds of people praying for me and I know that God is holding me in His hand. I know that He knew this was going to happen before he created me. I am trying to trust Him, but there is still the fear of the unknown, but more than that, my intense fear of needles... and that dreaded IV. I have never done well with needles, in fact I generally feel nauseated or faint just from seeing the needle, let alone having it under my skin. I am trying very hard not to think about it, because if I am not thinking about it, I am not worrying about it. It does make it easier to focus on the positive... but... I am so thankful that my God hears my prayers and cares about even my "insignificant" fears.  I have been claiming this verse and trusting Him to give me peace-

I Really Love My...

This spring I spent hours on etsy.com looking for the perfect 'tiny tag' necklace that i had imagined one night as I was trying to fall asleep. I am horrible about getting something in my head that I have never actually seen, and then getting terribly frustrated as i search for it because I can never find exactly what my brain pictured. I think that is part of why I like to create so much, because I can at least make at attempt to reproduce what I envision in my crazy little head. After days and hours of browsing, I finally came across the etsy shop of StephieMcDesigns and I fell in love with one of her necklaces! I wear it almost every day and actually hope to get another one soon.


This is the link to her etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/stephiemc

and her website: http://www.stephiemcdesigns.com


This is my necklace. I just love it!!!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Jones Design Company

My cousin just shared this blog with me this morning and I absolutely love it!!

http://jonesdesigncompany.com/


I love so many of the ideas that she has on her blog. She is doing a giveaway right now. If you sign up for her e-mail you are entered to win a bunch of beautiful things from her shop. :) Definitely worth signing up for! I will try to link a button to the giveaway, but if you go her website there is a link on the left sidebar. Enjoy!


Tissue Paper Flowers

One of the projects that I have been working on this week is tissue paper flowers. I plan to use these as some of the decorations at our wedding reception. I have several ideas for how to use them, but they are really easy to make as I lie on my stomach. I have already made hundreds of them. I will give step-by-step instructions along with the photos.


Cut 4, 4" x 6" pieces of tissue paper. I used a 4" x 6" index card as a pattern.


Accordian-fold the papers lengthwise, using 1/2" or 3/4" folds.


Wrap a piece of wire around the center of the folded paper. Trim the ends to slight curved to give a scalloped edge, this will create the 'petals'.


Separate each piece of paper by carefully pulling it in towards the center of the flower.
And the finished product is your tissue flower.

My Burst Disc

I decided to give a personal update so anyone that cares to know what's going on in my life will be informed.
The past 3 weeks have been three of the most difficult and painful weeks of my life. After struggling with back pain off-and-on for the past 6 years, I am rather accustomed to random, unpredicted flare-ups, so when my lower back started hurting three weeks ago, I just assumed that I was in for more of the same. Was I ever wrong. Recovery has previously required 2-6 days of rest, some pain medicine, and a few days lying on the sofa on my back before I would return to my normal self. This time I immediately got prescribed a steroid pack to try to heal it a little faster. After about 3 days on the steroids I was feeling slight relief and feeling a little stir crazy, so I did a few little projects and some cleaning. The next day I still felt better, so my boyfriend and I met some friends and went to the Saturday market held downtown Greenville (where we picked up some of the ingredients for the salsa from my previous post). That didn't go so well. I actually ended up passing out in front of the Westin Poinestt Hotel, which proved rather embarrassing, but comical. Glad I have a good sense of humor and found it hilarious that my boyfriend had tucked the cabbage, which I bought at the market, up under my skirt to keep me from flashing the hundreds attending the market, as my legs were elevated. I joked that I had birthed a cabbage patch kid at the farmer's market. :) I rested that afternoon and felt so much better by that evening that I entertained a few friends for dinner. That night my back pain returned in full force. By the next morning it was so bad that I actually got stuck on the livingroom floor for 3 hours unable to find any position that would offer relief. I was misdiagnosed with SI band disfunction on Monday morning. Tuesday morning my boss who is an orthopedic surgeon told me that he thought I needed an MRI, but that I would have to start with x-rays. I had the x-rays and a round of physical therapy. Then Wednesday morning I had the MRI. It was torture to lie on my back, but I endured the 25 minutes in the claustrophobia-causing tube. The MRI showed that I had a burst disc in my back and that a piece of the disc is sitting on a nerve bundle- my sciatic... causing intense shooting pain all down my leg. Thursday morning I went in for an epidural shot which was supposed to ease the pain within 2-3 days. I lay here now almost 2 weeks later, on a double-strength of Percocet and I am still without relief. Surgery has been recommended at this point to remove the piece of disc that is on my sciatic nerve so that hopefully I will be able to walk and sit again soon. I meet with the surgeon tomorrow (Wednesday) to find out the details of the surgery and get a surgery date. I am praying that I will get scheduled this week. I am so tired of being in pain.
All of that update to say that I have been working hard to find activities to do as I lie on my stomach on my parents livingroom floor, which has been the only comfortable position for 2 1/2 weeks. I have found quite a few crafts to do. And since my boyfriend and I are planning to get married next Spring, with his approval, I have started gathering ideas and working on projects for our wedding. It has been so much fun! It will be nice to have a few things completed that I may or may not have found time to do between now and then. I will try to post some of the things that I have been working on.


This is me and my sweet puppy, Paisley, lying on my yoga mat... where I have been for 2 1/2 weeks.


This is my boyfriend, Topher and Paisley visiting me on the livingroom floor. (aren't these the 2 prettiest sets of eyes ever?)

My parents have been so kind and thoughtful by letting me stay with them and waiting on me hand and foot. I couldn't have gone through this without them. I have amazing help! I am so thankful to the Lord for the wonderful, loving parents that He has given me. I am so blessed.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Avery's Dress

About a month ago I was invited to my friend Valerie's baby shower. I have known Valerie practically all of my life, so I wanted to give her something really special for her first baby, but finances being a little tight that month I was having trouble coming up with something that I thought would be the perfect gift for her little girl. I decided to attempt to make her a little dress and some matching shoes.
I started with the shoes knowing that they would take a little bit longer. I didn't have a pattern, so I just traced a pair of the smallest baby girl shoes that I could find at work (I am a nanny). I will admit it took quite a bit of tweaking, and being a perfectionist I was a little disappointed with the shoes by the end of the night, but by the next morning I had enough time to step away from the project and I was pleased.
For the dress I just made a simple pillowcase dress. I did add some little arm holes because i thought it might be a little easier to dress the baby. I was very happy with the end result... and I think that Valerie liked it too.
Avery Jael Adams was born Friday night, July 30th. I am so happy for Valerie and Jon and I hope that they are enjoying their sweet little girl. :)



My first attempt at cobbling(is that a word?)- baby shoes that will hopefully fit a human child. :)


I never knew how simple pillowcase dresses are to make.


Avery's baby shower gift.

Friday, July 30, 2010

Grilled Pizza

Several weeks ago my boyfriend's parents were in town. We had just gotten a new grill, so I was anxious to use it. I did something that I realize now was very risky when cooking for the future in-laws; I tried something new. We made pizza on the grill. I have used the dough recipe many times in the oven, but it turned out a little different on the grill. I actually like it a lot better grilled. :)
It was very easy and absolutely delicious. Definitely a new summer favorite.

Pizza Crust

3 3/4 c. bread flour
1 T. yeast
1 t. salt
1 T. sugar
1/4 c. cornmeal
1 1/3 c warm water
1 T. olive oil

Combine all ingredients until they form a ball. Knead for about 3 minutes. Cover and let rest in an lightly oiled bowl until doubled in size (about 15 minutes). Punch down dough and knead lightly several times. Divide into equal portions, however many pizzas you desire, I made 4. Stretch and press dough onto foil covered pizza pans to form small circle or oval crusts.
Preheat grill to medium heat. Place crusts on grill for 3 minutes. Flip crusts and top with sauce and whatever toppings you desire. I used pesto for our sauce and fresh mozzerella, spinach, grilled chicken, artichoke hearts, tomato slices, olives and parmesan cheese. Grill for 3-5 more minutes. Check often to make sure the crusts don't burn. The first batch of crusts were a little over-done, but the second attempt came out perfect. Yum!!!


salsa recipe

With much encouragement from my sister and my mom over the past few months I finally decided to make my first post. :)
The past few saturday mornings my boyfriend and I have gone to our local Downtown Farmers Market. It had been about 3 years since I had gone and I was more than pleasantly surprised by how much it has grown. We picked up a few things each time, but one of my favorites is definitely the salsa recipe that I sampled while we were there. I made a few adjustments, but it is so easy and completely addictive. I have made 2 big batches already. It's been a great way to use up some of the fresh tomatoes from my porch "garden".

Fresh Salsa Recipe
1 pound fresh tomatoes
1 small onion (I used red onion)
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro
3-4 jalapeno peppers (or any variety) hot peppers, seeds and veins removed
juice from 1/2 fresh lime
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. garlic powder
2-3 cloves garlic
1 t. salt (or to taste)
dash of pepper

Combine all ingredients in food processor and puree. Chill for about an hour for flavors to combine. Enjoy!