Lost Generation Video

A friend of mine showed me this video on YouTube today and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to share it with all of you. Lost Generation

Clutter, Clutter, Go Away

So I was reading a fellow houseblogger's post about maintaining an uncluttered life. The blogger was "Making This Home" and you can read her post here.

I've listed her 5 points below and it's funny because I actually used a few of these "tried and true" recommendations last week.

1. Do I love it and need it?
2. Where will I keep it?
3. How often do I have to clean it?
4. Where will I keep it when I'm not using it?
5. Ask yourself if the stuff represents you, not family who doesn't live with you or what society deems a perfect addition?

You see I found a great quilt on sale last week. I immediately decided I needed it and then 30 sec. later had hesistations. I carried it throughout the rest of the store, because of course I couldn't let someone else buy it since it was the last one. Eventually, I paid for it and took it home.

I laid it on my bed to get the full effect and was immediately drawn to two bright panels of orange and green amongst the muted and soft yellow, taupe and blue. I walked out of the room and came back a few more times throughout the evening and each time, my eyes went directly to the orange and green. I packed it back up and wanted to "sleep on it" as the saying goes. The next day, I flipped through my Inspiration Binder to see if I had pulled out a magazine swipe or something which would get me back in the mindset of why I picked up the quilt in the first place.

I found a few things; but wasn't in love...so that weekend I returned the quilt.

What lesson did I learn here: That I should go with my gut and if something doesn't feel right (my hesistation in the store) then I should probably steer clear.

On a similiar topic, I think I'm going to go through some of the other clutter in my house. For example, I have a couple of boxes in the basement that I haven't opened since moving into my house 2+ years ago. Obviously, I'm not missing anything in them.

In Honor of Mardi Gras, I made Gumbo

Saturday in St. Louis was the annual Mardi Gras parade and while I did not attend, I showed my spirit in other ways. I had been wanting to make Gumbo for some time now and remember eating a Chicken and Andouille Sausage appetizer at a local restaurant.

I Googled it and came across a recipe from who other than Emeril Lagasse. I pulled all the ingredients, got my stockpot and started the nearly 3-hour marathon.

Here is the lovely seasoned chicken after cooking in the oil and "essence"...doesn't it look yummy.


After the chicken, I thought I was heading downhill fast and horribly messing up any future prospects of making gumbo. Let me start by saying I had no idea what a "roux" was.

The directions stated that I needed to add 1c. of flour to the nearly 1c. of oil that was in the stockpot, constantly mixing for 20-25 min. until a chocolate color emerged. What ensued was a nasty looking/smelling mixture that I was sure I messed up. Yet after pushing through those 22 minutes and proceeding with the recipe (adding the vegetables, sausage, chicken broth and finally the seasoned chicken), 3-hours later all was well.

I poured the mixture over a bowl of rice, sat back and before I knew it the bowl was empty.

So there you have it folks, my attempt at Chicken and Sausage Gumbo.

Project Linus

I have to start this post in the beginning, you see I bought a "Granny Square Throw" kit on sale about 8 years ago and jumped right into the project. I made it about 12 rows in, when I lost interest. The work-in-progress or WIP made it's way into a plastic tub and sat, collecting dust. It made the move from one house to the next, only to sit on another shelf untouched.

Fast forward to 2010, where I came across an ad mentioning that Project Linus was going to collect blankets in late February.

For those of you who are new to Project Linus, here is part of their mission statment.

"It is our mission to provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need through the gifts of new, handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly created by volunteer “blanketeers.”

I of course wanted to jump right in and get crocheting; but where to start. You see where this is going don't you...

Well, I finally finished the "Granny Square Throw".

Hopefully it doesn't take me another eight years to finish the next one.

2010 Seeds

The Baker Creek seeds which I ordered arrived. Boy, do I have a lot to start preparing for...