cat cakes

Spent the evening doing laundry and finishing up this order of cat cakes. They have been securely packaged and will be on their way to a pet store called Scalawags in Kennebunkport, Maine.

It feels good to cross things off the overwhelming to do list!

We are off to spend the weekend working on a contract for the Arts Umbrella which will pretty much swallow our next two days. Then we are off to LA on a 6:30 AM flight Monday morning. I'm sure glad that the Tim Horton's is open 24 hours.

Faux birds are cute. Real birds are scary.

Today started out with breakfast at Joe's with Melba, Brent, Drew and their friend from Mexico. We then headed to Paboom on West 4th Avenue and picked up this cute little birdie for our mantle. I am all for faux birds, but when it comes to real birds.... I think I would pass out. That's right. I have a fear of birds. You know how some people can't stand spiders? That is how I am with birds. I mean.. the little ones are ok.. but the worst are pigeons! I can't stand them. I can't even go through the stuffed bird section at the museum. All of them looking at you while you pass through their exhibit. When Rob and I were in London, we had to pass through the bird exhibit to see the rest of the museum. I had to close my eyes while Rob lead me through.

whipped cream + strawberries = yum!

I made strawberry shortcake for dessert last night. The shortcake part turned out to be more like a biscuit then one of those golden sponge cakes you find at the store. Nonetheless, it was quite delish! You can find the recipe here.

Yesterday was also filled with some crafty goodness. I made this with a 99cent frame from Dressew.



Here is a picture of the table that I found on the street. It has 4 holes on the top where somebody screwed in a cushion, so I made a small table overlay with trim to cover the holes.



and if that wasn't enough... I finally started making my sewing machine cover. Here are the pieces of oil cloth that I cut.



Its good to be back on the machine!

tortillas for all!

I received quite a number of emails for the recipe (people actually read this!?), so I decided just to post it.

Happy tortilla making!

Flour Tortillas – Makes 8

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp canola oil
2/3 to 3/4 cup warm water

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, oil and half the water. Stir and continue adding water until the dough comes together, but is not too sticky. Knead on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic.

If you have time at this point, cover the dough and let it sit at room temp for 30 minutes (or up to several hours) to let it relax.

Divide the dough into 8 balls. On a lightly floured surface, press each ball into a disc and then roll it out as thin as possible. It should be about 7 to 8” in diameter.

Cook the tortillas one at a time in a dry skillet set over medium heat, until it blisters and brown spots appear. It should take about a minute per side.

Trust me.. you will never buy store tortillas again!

Side note: I’m not sure where this recipe is from as I had clipped it about a year ago and shoved into my recipe drawer.

for sale and wanted

Update: Cart has been sold. Thank you!

I almost forgot to post this...

Since we moved into a smaller place last May (whole floor of house to 1 bedroom apartment), we had to get rid of a few things.

For Sale:



I use it for events all the time and it has been a lifesaver. Seriously, who needs to carry heavy things when you can just load them onto the cart and roll! Unfortunately, there is just no room here and we have decided to sell it. Price - $30.00.

Stats: 29 in. (73 cm) x 18 3/4 in. (47 cm) platform. 4-in. solid rubber caster wheels: 2 fixed, 2 swivel. Quick release folding steel handle for flat storage. Capacity: 330 lbs (149 kg). Made of steel. It has a scratch on the rubber on the bed.

Wanted:

I am looking for a provincial style dresser. Preferably white with handles (can be changed later) and no more than 3 feet wide. I found one in Vancouver, but I believe it is a lingerie dresser as the drawers are very thin. Looking for something that costs no more than $75. Found a beautiful one in Salem, but it was huge.

Something like this, but a bit wider maybe not as tall.

catching up

Sorry we haven't written for so long. Time seems to be moving at warp speed.

Let's play catch up.

Last week we went to my mom's and Rob finished the first half of the library catalogue. I was upstairs in the living room when I banged my knee on the coffee table. This was pain that I have never experienced before. I hit the corner right into my knee cap. All I can remember was that I was sitting on the sofa, holding my knee and almost in tears. The next moment, I was standing up, yelling for Rob and shedding my hoodie. Besides the room spinning, I have no idea what happened in between. Crazy eh?

Last week was also spent getting ready for PitchFest. That's right.. we leave in less than 1 week. I can't believe it! This time last year, we were in California. WIth the cold snap in Vancouver, I can't wait for some sunshine! Don't worry though.. we will soon be going from "Holy, its cold!" to "Holy, its hot!". The event producer has rented a house so we are all living in it together (sort of like a reality show?). Rob and I rented a car for the week so we hope to explore LA and visit Trinh from Craft Republic!

Hmm.. what else happened? I finally made tortillas!
Day One - Mixed all ingredients together and realized I didn't have canola oil
Day One (evening) - Realized that I could use olive oil instead of canola oil - duh!
Day Two - Was working on a program at the airport for 8 1/2 hours and ended up staying late since some flights were delayed
Day Three - Finally made them and they were worth the wait!!

We haven't made fajitas in over 2 years and I was positive that I did not want to buy the pre made ones at the store. Who knew, they were so easy to make! (Those are mushrooms in the picture.)



I will post the recipe later. If you would like the recipe, just leave a comment or email me.

On Sunday, it was my uncle's (by marriage) mom's 81st birthday. I call her grandma, but I'm not sure what exactly she is to me. It was pretty much a birthday weekend with family flying in from Peru, Wisconsin, San Francisco and China. The celebrations ended Sunday night with a banquet for 270 people. That's right.. we could have filled a small island! Just kidding, but we did take over the entire restaurant. It was crazy. I saw people there that I have not seen for 10 years and Rob got to meet a lot of people that he never knew existed. Yet, we were all somehow related to each other. Even the Councilor of Peru was there! After a 12 course dinner, slideshow, 3 dance presentations and a cake cutting, we rolled into bed as I had to get up early and be at the airport at 3:45 AM the next day for airport departures. Ugh.

So what does this week hold? lots of lotus weddings, some get togethers with friends that we have not seen for awhile, a weekend contract with the Arts Umbrella and then we are off to LA.

Will try checking in sometime this week.

Ps. Still waiting for a sunny day to take some apartment pictures!

Friday's House Guest

We had Meredith and Alex over on Friday. Of course, as with most of our house guests, we headed over to Max's Deli for coffee and lunch. Yum! Thanks Blue Skies for the heads up on the ham and cheese croissant!

things are getting busy

i love these new bowls!

nature in my mom's backyard

cat grass is so easy to grow

We seem to be always on the move lately which is why I haven't been posting as much lately. Rob's parents came over on Friday, so we went out for some dinner at the Banana Leaf. I swear, I would be quite happy to go through life with a diet of roti and sushi. Yum!

The move is almost done. I have somebody picking up the stove from the old place today off of Craigs list. Rob's parents were suppose to take some stuff, but won't be back until June to pick it up. I have one dolly (lifesaver during events, but just no room) and one electric heater left. Make me an offer!

Anyways, we spent Saturday morning / afternoon at my mom's to finish the library catalogue (needs a nice stain) and then headed to Rob's aunt's 75th birthday in the North Shore. Sunday started off with breakfast with Rob's parents at the local De Dutch and then we met our wedding couple Tim and Laura at Max's during their brief stay in Vancouver to wrap up some wedding details. As we were heading home, we bumped into Derek, Janna and Roxy driving up Oak Street so they stopped and we chatted. B-U-S-Y.

The warm weather has certainly arrived. I forgot how hot apartments can be. We had the fan running pretty much all day to circulate the air. The windows are great here, but it still gets warm. When it is really hot out.. Cleo just walks around looking for the coolest place. Then she lies down and stretches out so that cool air can circulate her all over.

Last week was kinda blah. Had some family drama to deal with... a close friends' dad passed away.. and was just feeling overwhelmed. I'm back and the future looks bright! I can feel it already! Happy Monday.

summer

We missed the scorching heat last weekend in Vancouver, but we definitely experienced the scorching heat in Portland! It was hot.. like record breaking hot. Surprisingly.. neither of us burned!

Our weekend consisted of watching movies, catching up on Grey's Anatomy, sleeping, strolling, going to the farmers market, classical Japanese gardens, lots of coffee (hot and cold), enjoying a band playing on the front porch of a house (this would SO not be allowed in Vancouver!) and general gallivanting.

What's new? We picked up our armchair from Vintage on Hawthorne in Portland and it looks fantastic! Super comfy too. I should know.. I took an hour off today and spent it sitting in the chair and playing DS! Any Animal Crossing fans out there?

I also started a milky white vintage glass collection and I am currently looking for a nice sized coffee cup x 2 and some nice plates for the wall. I tried Anthropologie, but was feeling hot and un-inspired. Hmm.. will keep looking.

Worked on some weddings today, packaged some goods from the etsy shop for the post, calculated some final budgets and we are off to Chip's Not Dead (aka Mr. Lululemon) event tonight at Relish and then zipping across town to sell our old stove. Oh Craigs list.. you are handy.. but.. so sketchy =)

attempt #2

Ok..I made this this morning. I like it better than the last one. The wheat one (although healthier) was a little heavy.

Do you know what I was thinking after I took the picture? Soup bowls! Whenever Rob and I are in San Francisco the clam chowder sourdough bowl at Boudin is a must have. I can make mini loaves, carve them out and fill them with some soup! Very excited.

Will post some pictures from the weekend soon...