Christmas Orders

I was so so busy leading up to Christmas fulfilling orders. I am so grateful for the wonderful response I have had from everyone. I am happy to be taking a little break, but not for long. I will be working on some new merchandise in the next few weeks. 

I am beyond thrilled with how this rapunzel beanie came out. I made one for my niece last year and had a special request to make another one. I think some little girl is going to be very happy this Christmas. 

Another cowl I made for a special order. Love this light teal!

My Latest Creations

I am so happy with the response I have been getting from these new products. I have been busy busy busy crocheting, making sure I meet deadlines. Thanks everyone for your support and orders. I am excited to keep up this pace and build up my inventory for next year. 

I'm back at it!

It's that time of year again, the weather is chilly and the holidays are around the corner. What better way to bide my time stuck in doors but crochet! I am really happy with the cowls that I have made recently and so happy that I actually have a few orders!

I love this cute turban ear warmer too. It stylish and functional, what could be better?! I can't wait to play with more colors! I made a few more that are a little wider and they are PERFECT. More pictures to come :)

Here is the pattern I use for the cowl. It's from lionbrand's website. I just make it longer so I can wrap it a few times.  Cowl Pattern

Favorite Things Friday | The Voice & Skirt Extenders

I have been following "The Voice" all season and in my book it has officially replaced American Idol. The musicians are way more talented and the coaches are great. They are so connected and invested in the singers, it has been great to watch. Also on my weekly TV lineup: Grey's Anatomy, Parenthood, and Scandal.  I have to have something to get me through the nights when Jared has class. I cannot wait for the semester to be over!!!! 

I am also loving my new skirt extender. I have been wanting one for a while and finally got one. I feel like my Sunday wardrobe has doubled. Now I will be looking sharp on Sunday's with my new calling in the Primary Presidency! Wish me luck!

Favorite Things Friday | Winco & Other Useful Stuff

Here is another installment of my Favorite Things Friday. Jared and I are finally back on track with our cash budget, and it feels great. We take cash out for different categories as suggested by Dave Ramsey. This plan has really worked for us in the past and I'm happy to be back at it! 

For our family of 3 we budget $275 for food. I usually try to plan dinners, and this pay period I actually stuck to it ;). I also shopped at WINCO, which I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! They have the best produce and best quality at the best prices. I love their bulk food section, and I am beginning to buy more and more in bulk. This grocery trip I bought flour, pancake mix, egg noodles and cereal in bulk and here are the prices:

Flour .30/lb......... I got almost 3lbs or flour for .80!

Egg Noodles 1.23/lb

Pancake Mix .77/lb

Cereal 1.25/lb

I was pretty excited about the savings, and I will be looking for more items to buy in bulk in the future.

Another things I have discovered and love are these awesome plates and snack cups from WalMart. I really don't know why it takes me so long to catch on to certain things. When I was fed up with cleaning gold fish crackers off the carpet, I though maybe I should get one of those spill proof snack cups. So I did, my life is changed, and Ellie loves it too! The plates are great too, they have sections for portion, so I can get a good idea of how much Ellie should eat and they are made of recycled materials which is a plus!

Favorite Things Friday

So I haven't posted on this blog for a while, so I decided to start doing a favorite things friday. There are some things that I know the readers of our family blog just aren't interested in. Another blog I read does a favorite things friday and it seems like a fun idea. So here it goes. 

This week my favorite thing is the BBC show Call the Midwife. If you are a woman, you need to watch this show! Both seasons are on Netflix and the Third season starts in December. The production value of this show is on point, and the story line is great. There is perfect subtle romances and plenty of intense drama brought on by natural at home child births. I forgot to mention it's based in London in the 1950's. English accents make everything better. If you haven't watched this show, go add it to your queue. 

Fiesta Bowl

So you know those black beans (Recipe Here) I made, this is what I make with them. FIEST BOWLS! This has become a favorite in our house. So easy and SO SO GOOD! This recipe is totally up for interpretation, add whatever sounds good to you.

This is what we like:
rice
black beans
frozen corn
tomato
green onion
avocado
cilantro
sour cream
salsa or hot sauce (I like siracha)

I cook the frozen corn on a cookie sheet under the broiler. It's so much better cooked this way! Spray the cookie sheet with cooking spray, spread corn on the sheet, spray corn with some cooking spray, sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cooke until golden. Delicious. 

Layer everything up in the order of the ingredients or however you want. 

See SUPER simple. 

Pot O Beans

My mom taught me this concoction, like many of my other meals I prepare. She is a master of the kitchen. I'm so grateful for a mom who was so creative. She always cooked the staples like; beans, rice and potatoes. She also always made sure our meals consisted of a protein, starch and vegetable. I still haven't mastered that. Making a pot of beans probably costs a grand total of $1.25. Great for a family on a budget. 

So here it goes:
Get a pot with a lid, I prefer cast iron.
A bag of beans, any beans (black, white, pinto).
Half and onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 bay leaves
2 tsp of cumin
1 tsp of pepper
1 tsp of salt
* these spices can vary based upon your taste level

How to:
Heat oil in pot over medium heat, add onion and cook until almost transparent, add garlic and cook a bit longer. Add beans, mix with onions. Add water, about 3 cups. You want the water to completely cover the beans, about an inch over the beans. Now add the spices. Salt, pepper, bay leaves, and cumin. When putting the bay leaves in break them in half to release more flavor. Bring all of this to a boil and then cover and bring heat down to low and let simmer. That's pretty much it people! Now I set my timer on the stove for every 30min, just to check the water level. You want to water to stay right about the beans. They need to cook for about 3 hours. Check and eat one to make sure it's cooked through. Should be soft. Don't eat the bay leaf, remove before serving.

Bun Bows

My latest project...Bun Bows. These can be worn by girls of all ages. A perfect way to add a pop of color to any outfit. They will be up in my Etsy shop this week!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/LynnEleanorDesigns?ref=top_trail

Me in 250 words....more or less

I was born and raised in Salinas, Ca. NOT to be confused with Salina, Ut. I lived in the same house across the street from a park for 19 years. I have two older brothers which makes me the youngest and only girl. Growing up I was a perfect cross between a tom boy and a girly girl. I skateboarded and road bmx bikes with my brothers while also enjoying shopping and crocheting with my mom. Fast forward to high school. I went to an all girl catholic school, which believe it or not was awesome. We wore uniforms and had a graduating class of 87 girls. I began running cross country and track and field in high school and found my passion. After high school I went to San Francisco State for 2 days, realized I hated it and came home. I attended Hartnell Junior College in my home town and excelled. I got my associated degree all while running on the XC and track team. I got to spend time with an amazing team traveling over California for 2 years and loved every minutes of it. I discovered strength in myself I didn't know I had and placed 3rd in the state of Ca. in the 800m at the state championships. After graduating I moved to St. George, Ut (cough) following a boy I was dating. Well that didn't last but something did. I was introduced to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I took the missionary discussions and was baptized in Sept. 2007. One of the best decisions I have ever made. St. George was just not for me and I moved to Orem, Ut. to attend Utah Valley University and study exercise science. I met my husband while living in student housing. We lived down the hall from each other and he went running with me to train for a marathon. We were close friends for a year and then we decided to date. It wasn't long after we were dating that we decided we wanted to get married. We got married in Sept 2009 in the Sacramento, Ca. temple. I have since graduated with a Bachelors Degree in exercise science and had a baby. 

Wow! There is is, all summed up!

Something I miss

I'm running behind and being choosy with which "blog a day in May" topics I right about. I can definitely write about something I miss. 

I MISS the OCEAN!

Above 3 Monterey & Carmel, Ca

Bottom 2 Eureka, CA

I grew up in Salinas, California which is 15 minutes to the closest beach. It is nestled into the center of the Monterey Bay and is know to be some of the most beautiful coastline in the country, if not the world. There are days when I wake up and think "what do I want to do today". Some days all I want to do it go to the beach and go get some squid and chips for lunch. I miss it. Luckily I traded that for living 3 blocks from massive mountains. I guess the mountain will do for now. Good news is both my parents and Jared's parents still live in California so we get to go back and visit whenever we want!

New Merchandise

I finally got around to getting some new merchandise up in my Etsy shop. Last week was so crazy for some reason. I wasn't even that busy, but It just seemed crazy! Probably the stress of of 14 month old who wouldn't eat anything. Well it's a new week and she is eating everything in sight, so we are back on track ;)