michelle my belle

supermarket fun

we've made it to China.

Lex (my oldest) endured the 15 hour flight quite well.
probably better than my achy-knee self!

we've already visited the supermarket.

one of my favorite things to do when traveling to somewhere new.

China's fresh and dried offerings always amaze me!
but my favorite thing...
what i unfailingly have to have when i'm here...
their yogurt.
it's thin enough that you can drink it.
and it's oh so good.

taking my daughter to China!

i've been wanting to take her for quite some time.
for her to experience the differences in culture from ours in the USA.
to realize the luxuries we live with but can live without.
she is brave and excited.

ever heard of cyclocross?

well, this is cyclocross.
and these are the Cross Crusades here in Portland, OR.
with over 250 women participating!
yes, that is me on the left.
my 2nd cross race EVER.

my hubs assured me that "cross" is FUN!

this is him on the right in blue.

if 45 minutes of being completely anaerobic and muddy is "fun"...
then i can honestly say it's a BLAST!

i'm not used to working this hard.
pushing my body to the edge.
wanting to give up.
fighting mentally.

but, when that 45 minutes is up.
it sure feels good.
accomplished.

cyclocross is empowering.
invigorating.
exciting.

a day to play

taking a little time to play today...
a walk and chat with a good friend.
my youngest's soccer game.
dreaming and scheming with my hubby.
an uninterrupted 30 minute nap!
a little house cleaning.
sketched and inked this little owl in galoshes.
(inspired by the sound of POURING rain hitting the metal roof!)
scanned him and messed around in photoshop.
and that my friends, is about it!


oh! speaking of owls-
check out this darling necklace my friend April sent me for my birthday.
thank you April! i LOVE it!

37 things list

last year i did this list.
and did a much better job on it than this year!

my birthday has come and gone (Oct. 16th).
i am now 38! boy, i'm really getting up there!!

i've finally updated my list.
i'm a little sad that there are so many items unchecked.
but, i will just add the ones i still want to do to this years list and push forward.
i can still say, that because of this list, i've done things i wouldn't have probably made the time for otherwise.

1. spend a fun weekend with my mom
2. day date with each of my girls
3. learn how to French braid
4. make a pillow
5. visit Victoria B.C. (can you believe i live in WA and have never been to Canada!)
6. breakfast at Zell’s or ScreenDoor in P-town
7. plant a rhubarb plant (and make it survive this time!)
8. Norway
9. do a bike race (PIR twice and my first Cross Crusades race last weekend!)
10. run Boston Marathon
11. Kennedy School –never been! did EdgeField instead
12. submit something to a magazine-to Cloth Paper Scissors
13. participate in Craft Hope
14. sew a quilt
15. do a makeover on our bedroom
16. make a Doll
17. silkscreen something-Hood to Coast t-shirts(see below)
18. learn my camera (still learning but have made leaps of improvement!)
19. host an aspiring artist group
20. go to an outdoor concert
21. send 10 surprise gifts
22. studio photo shoot
23. find and make a good pizza crust (my oldest did, does that count?)
24. make a new friend(i'm sure there are some i'm forgetting)-Lacy, Dierdra, Lulu
25. visit bakeries with Alexis (my oldest) (see below)
26. post a tutorial of some sort on my blog camera strap tutorial
27. give blood (ah, common michelle!!! ugh.)
28. create an art wall w/other artists’ work
29. go wine tasting
30. visit an artist friend
31. cut 5 stamps
32. reach 1000 Facebook Fans  (SO CLOSE! 964!!! thank you :)
33. travel somewhere on a whim
34. take a photo shoot of my kids
35. do a triathlon (no-but did do the Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon)
36. participate in a Bible Study (oops!)
37. can LOTS of salsa 

have a fantastic weekend!
make a list?

 

Soap Spitters are here!!!

we are so excited to finally have our Soap Spitters in stock!
there won't be another shipment of them until very close to Christmas.
so HURRY and get yours before we run out!

Fun & Gross Hand Facts
(from Southeastern District Health Department)

• Up to half of all men and a quarter of women fail to wash their hands after they use the bathroom.
• Right Handed people tend to wash their left hand more thoroughly than their right, and visa versa.
• We have between 2 and 10 million bacteria between our finger tip and elbow.
• Damp hands spread 1,000 times more germs than dry hands.
• The number of germs on your fingertips doubles after you use the toilet.
• Germs can stay alive on hands for up to three hours.
• Millions of germs hide under watches and bracelets, and there could be as many germs under your ring as there are people in Europe!

 

best and cutest popcorn balls ever!

admittedly, i haven't seen that many popcorn balls in my lifetime.
but i'm thinking these are pretty darn cute!

looking for something fun to make for our fall newsletter.
Katy (who works with me) and i decided to make her Grandma Lois's popcorn balls.

we wanted to be creative so we added the jello and candy corn.
ugh, bad idea! the jello made them too sweet.
and we had a hard time getting the candy corn to stick.
full recipe below

simply pop your popcorn

bring your sugar, butter and karo syrup to 220º.
remove from heat and add your vanilla. (and food coloring if desired)

pour over popcorn and mix.
we felt that we desperately needed to add some fun.
so trix cereal it was.
 
a clever trick to putting them on a stick...

take two slightly warmed caramels and smoosh them around the end of the stick.
form your popcorn ball around it.
smashing it together with a little force.

the caramel keeps the stick from pulling out of the popcorn ball.

using acrylic paints we painted the handles.
finish by wrapping in cellophane bags and tying with black tulle.

Grandma Lois's Popcorn Balls

10-14qts popped corn
3c. sugar
2c. marg. or butter
1c. Karo Syrup
2tsp vanilla
optional: caramels, Popsicle sticks, trix cereal, food coloring

cook butter, sugar, corn syrup on low until sugar is dissolved. then boil to 220º, add vanilla.
pour over popcorn and mix well.
note: as syrup and popcorn cool, they handle & form easier, so don't give up.

trying to paint...

 are you ever ready to throw in the towel?

sch-molly!
fighting to keep my head above water.
everything i touch seems to be falling apart or i manage to ruin it.
i take a break.
i come back with a new attitude.
optimistic that there will be a break through this time.
that i will find MY true style.
find my stride.
 
i'm trying to remind myself that it's the journey and not the destination.
i know God has given me this gift of art and creativity.
unfortunately, like most "creatives" - headcase seems to be included! haha!

am i alone here?
i'm going to go ride my bike.
it's sunny.

the last of our London adventures

we thoroughly enjoyed the food in London.
this lightly spiced avocado on homemade bread was just to die for.

we stumbled upon Caravan at the Exmouth Market.

um, LOVED this place!

hand lettering on the stairs - it's all in the details.

Covent Garden

this whole area is filled with unique charming shops and cafes like this!

see the gal on the right? she's singing beautiful opera.

well, i've shared some of my favorite photos and moments of our trip.
i'll be back to more "artsy" postings tomorrow.
happy friday!!!

a little buckingham palace

it was completely by mistake that we saw the changing of the guards.

we just happened to walk through buckingham palace right as it began.

schmolly! masses and masses of people!

it was kinda cool...

truthfully, we were way more excited about the trees in the park across the street!
this picture doesn't give these lovelies justice.