FWF #51 - Finally, It's Winter Break!

It's difficult to believe that the end of the year is almost upon us - time to start thinking about resolutions for 2016! But first - are you ready for Christmas...? I am so relieved that both kids are finally done with school for awhile. Marika has already begun her break from soccer and Mika has only one more softball practice tomorrow...I am definitely looking forward to a more relaxed schedule.

For this week, I chose sketch #259 from My Favorite Things...

And it all came together pretty quickly - with the awesome Unity sentiment (Be Merry and Have Joy) and some fabulous MME Christmas paper...

For my recipe of the week, I decided it was time to try another fish recipe. My family likes fish, but we usually eat salmon - I wanted to dress up some tilapia and found this recipe that worked really well with it - The Very Best Fish Recipe Ever. Marika thought it was too cheesy (*gasp* Is there such a thing?!) but the rest of us thought it was quite yummy - and very quick to make.

Hope you all have a wonderfully Merry Christmas! Be well!

FWF #50 - Good week for hardware!

More than a week has passed since the terrorist attack in San Bernardino (the next town over) and despite the community being a little on edge, I have been pleasantly surprised by the unity within. Everything still seems extremely surreal - but life continues to go on...

And as Christmas approaches, it was time to make cards for some teachers/coaches...

This cute sketch is (apparently) an old one from The Paper Players...the pin I used didn't track it back to the original post, but at least I have a picture!

And here's my take on it, using Santas, Stockings, Candy Canes, Etc (from the Wit & Wisdom line at Unity). I just love this style of stamp so much, I had to use it with another sketch...

I thought this sketch from Freshly Made Sketches lended itself nicely to use with this stamp...

So fun! I love this stamp!

 

And on to food - this week's new recipe was Honey Cashew Chicken from RasaMalaysia - scrumptious! You really cannot go wrong with any of her recipes!

 

Speaking of good things...it was nice to have some positives after a tragic week. Mika's team won their second tournament in a row (American Athletics Toys for Tots Tournament - a wonder toy drive hosted by the U.S. Marines for underprivileged children) - and it was against some of the top teams in the country. One strong competitor from Texas had to fly home early (but I'm sure they'll play each other again at the PGF National Championships next July) and so, it came down to playing Power Surge-Bachtell, a powerhouse of softball out of San Diego. The Corona Angels Red team did it, beating them 4-3. It was a tough game!

 

Mika didn't get to play at all the first day (Saturday's pool play), but she did get to play in all four bracket play games on Sunday. The regular second baseman (who is AMAZING, by the way - you take one look at her and you can totally see her on ESPN later, playing for a big Div 1 school), wasn't feeling very well so Mika actually got to start and play the entire game of the semi-finals. She did pretty well, considering how much pressure there is (screwing up isn't tolerated at this level!) - every time the ball came near her, I thought I was going to throw up from nervousness!

However, I have faith she will continue to get better, as she earns more play time. Mika was on the field playing, when the championship game ended, though - yay!!! Mika's day began at 7:30 am that day and didn't end until about 8:30 pm but I gotta tell you - it was TOTALLY worth it. :) Yes, she's still working to earn her stripes, but you can only learn to be the best if you play with the best!

 

 

And in other news... Mika finally had her last running meet of the year - whew! I don't know why, but several of the top runners weren't there, so Mika ended up doing really REALLY well - she actually placed sixth and the top ten runners got medals. Woohoo! I am proud of her for never quitting and trying to push herself to do better each meet. She's never going to win a race, but that's okay!

Now that being said - I am so ready for school winter break...and a little rest from all the running around... :)

FWF #49 - Never Think "Never"

This week has been incredibly surreal - most of you know that there was a mass shooting this past Wednesday. It struck a little too close to home, as San Bernardino is the next city over (and the location was only about 15 minutes away from our house) and the residence of the suspects is just across town. We've always thought this was a pleasant little town in the suburbs and that NOTHING terrible would ever happen here. We didn't know anyone who lost their lives but are so sad for those that did.

Apparently, anything is possible - anywhere. Don't take anything in life for granted!
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Changing the subject here... I have no idea what happened to this week's Friends with Flair, but I'm going to post my creation for this week anyway.

I'm always touched when friends bring back souvenirs for my little girls. So, I made a thank you card for Mika and Marika to send to their friends.

I loved this Freshly Made Sketch #215.

 

 

 I thought it would be PERFECT for the Unity Stamp Kit - Kindness Matters. 

 

My new recipe for this week was Roasted Jalapeno Poppers by Rachel Ray. I had made some a few weeks ago but didn't like the breaded part - so I was pleased to find this one. OMG - these were WONDERFUL!!! And so easy! A real winner!

And finally...I'd like to end this post on a happy note. We enjoyed a lovely Thanksgiving together but then had to part ways on Friday - Marika and I went down to San Diego for a soccer tournament while DaddyDude drove Mika to Las Vegas for a softball tournament (they returned back home, Monday morning at 3 am!). Marika's soccer team didn't advance but Mika's softball team took first place at the 12A Winter Classic in Vegas. Woohoo!



It's the first time Mika has ever been on a team that won a tournament and as I've mentioned before, she earned a spot in September on one of the top fast-pitch teams in SoCal. Mika didn't get to start any games, but did well when she did get to go in.

 

Here's our girl with her four coaches - they've been pretty encouraging and supportive of her, and we're looking forward to having Mika work her way up. I think it's a good life lesson for her to EARN her way - not to be afraid of hard work and seeing that it will pay off. Maybe not immediately, but eventually.

Everything is a work in progress, as every top-level team works towards winning the National PGF Championship in July 2016. That's the brass ring, baby!

FWF #48 - Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! And so...another Black Friday approaches. It's pretty overwhelming how many email offers come flying into our inboxes, isn't it? Remember when life used to be slower...? We didn't get mail service on Saturdays and stores were NEVER open on Sundays. Remember...? Or, am I just showing my age...? LOL!

We have a soccer tournament this weekend (Mika is heading out to Vegas with her dad for a softball tourney out there). It has, however, been a very peaceful Thanksgiving and for that, I am very grateful. :)

Marika's teammate had a birthday party last Sunday so I looked for a sketch that could feature a giant soccer ball...

My card was very CAS, so I am not going to link it up with Sunday Stamps, but it worked well enough to showcase two different Unity kits...

 

The front sentiment came from Birthday Jubilee (July 2013 Sentiment Kit) and I used a huge sentiment from Here's My Thought (August 2013 Sentiment Kit). Her friend was delighted to get a soccer card. :)

 

And while the kids were at the party (it was at a location about 30 minutes from our house), I dashed out to the local Asian grocery store there to grab some dumplings - and stopped by the produce area to oooh and aaah over the vegetables. I saw some long beans (see below) and immediately wanted to eat some.  

 

I don't know what it is with these things, they intrigue me! I am constantly looking for recipes on how to cook them up. Yum yum... and it's pretty hard to feel guilty about eating vegetables...LOL!

 

Spicy, dry, sautéed long beans - pretty tasty! I didn't add the optional hoisin sauce at the end but next time I will (the flavoring was good, but there are certain times I like it heavier).

Hope everybody has a safe and fun weekend - if you're braving the crowds this weekend, GOOD LUCK! And be safe!

FWF #47 - Already!

Can you believe it? It's already week #47 for FWF and woot woot! It's time for Unity Stamp Company's famous Brown Thursday sale! Time to go shopping!

This week, it was time to make Mika's second thank you card for our other neighbor...my eye was caught by this CAS design of Freshly Made Sketch #213... (after all, it was supposed to be masculine in nature)...

I ended up using stamps from two different kits - Kindness Matters (I never get tired of this awesome stamp!) and Thanks Above and Beyond (April 2015 Sentiment Kit). 

We found a new great recipe this week - but not gourmet by any means! When I met DaddyDude in college, he was still making Hamburger Helper. As a male that cooked, he was still light years ahead of most of his friends! When I saw this quick recipe for "Homemade Hamburger Helper" (and I love one-pot recipes!), I thought it might be appealing to the kids...and I was right! Not only was it easy/quick to prepare after a soccer practice, but it was just the right amount for a family of four (no leftovers!). It will certainly be added to a regular rotation of favorites...and DaddyDude didn't find it "too stroganoffish" (the kids LOVE beef stroganoff - but he does not). Win-win for everyone!

FWF #46 - When the chips are down, you can count on good friends!

This past week was much better - thank you, everyone, for sending good vibes my way!

Fundraising is one of the more difficult issues when your kids do club sports, but it's even harder when the team decides to hold a poker night - and the event is an hour away from your house - and you don't really know anyone who plays poker! So, when we were told we had to try and get five people to come, I was very worried. But, two of our neighbors were kind enough to help out. One is actually going to come (he always does VERY WELL in Vegas) and the other was willing to sponsor two players (he's so appreciative because DaddyDude dispenses free professional advice). Whew! And we were so touched by their generosity! DaddyDude will be our fourth contribution - and really, he's just handing our money over because he has no clue how to play poker!

So, I thought it would be nice if Mika wrote a thank you note to these kind neighbors. I've finished one so far...

This sketch from CAS(E) This Sketch (#148) looked like an interesting way to combine a few Unity stamps.

I used the sentiment from Everything Wonderful (June 2013 Sentiment Kit), the frame from Everything More, and Kindness Matters.

My new recipe for this week was Easy Garlic Alfredo Tortellini - delicious! There's something about Italian sausage that makes everything taste so yummy!

FWF #45 - Finally Feeling Like Fall is Here

It finally feels like fall out here in southern California - we finally got rain and temperatures actually dipped below 50. Woohoo! Bo agreed to pose while I took a shot of our neighborhood street - love the poofy clouds, you can almost feel the cool crisp air!

I'm finally feeling more relaxed, having survived last week - Bo tangling with an opposum (and getting covered by fleas as a result) AND having some crook steal our credit card (topped off by our bank NOT catching the fraudalent activity and allowing a $1500 charge to happen...and lying to us about Fedex'ing our replacement card...and sending it snail mail instead).

But all is well that ends well - Bo (and the oppossum) is fine and our new cards arrived yesterday. I was so bummed to have missed Unity's last sale, but hope everybody else was able to score some great goodies!

One of Mika's favorite middle school friends is having a birthday party later this week, so I was really happy we could buy stuff at Amazon again - her friend is into making friendship bracelets, so it was fun to shop for gifts. :) Today, I made a card for her, using this lovely sketch from Viva La Verve.

I used stamps from three Sentiment Kits - Everything Comes Full Turn (September 2015), and Butterflies & Sunbeams (August 2015) and Everything Wonderful (June 213). I added one more butterfly than the sketch, but only because I *love* insects and didn't think it was possible to have too any butterflies on a card! LOL!

And as for my recipe of the week...I developed a strong craving to make Baked Jalapeno Poppers after talking to another parent on Marika's soccer team about them. Mmmmmm...these were pretty good, but I had a hard time getting the breading to stick - so next time, I would probably skip that step. Also, I totally forgot to make the dip. BUT, they were pretty tasty without it - and the jalapenos weren't spicy at all, after the insides had been stripped away. 

 Thanks for visiting! Hope everyone is enjoying their fall weather!