For Today

Craftiness for today

 My latest knitting project has been the Daphne Purse, as seen on the front of Knitting Little Luxuries. I'm using an evergreen color for it, and some old yarn that I've saved for years specifically for this project. I'm over half way done with the knitting now, so hopefully I'll finish it soon!


I'm also working on some sewing projects lately. There's a lap quilt in the works, an apron waiting to be made, and a green blouse with little white flowers to be finished. My Grandma gave me a bunch of fabrics and I can't wait to turn them all into something lovely.

Leafing through the pages

-Les Miserables | Victor Hugo

-Not Regina | Christmas Carol Kauffman

- The Acts

Plans for the afternoon

My Mom and I will be heading over to a friends house to discuss Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot. After that I go over to my Grammy's house to watch a movie with her. Tonight I think it will be the first three episodes of Jeeves and Wooster.


Excited about
I ordered some books recently, and one of them still hasn't come yet, so I'm looking forward to it's arrival. Also, I just ordered some yarn last night, hopefully for a new Classic Kniterature item. I don't order yarn very often, so it really is very exciting! I'm also pleased to be getting my Pampered Chef business geared up again. 






What is your day going to look like?

How Doth the Little Busy Bee

How doth the little busy bee

Improve each shining hour,

And gather honey all the day

From every opening flower!

~Isaac Watts

Wherein I Over-Edit Just for Fun

The results of experimenting with the new photo-editing tool, PicMonkey.

Quilts and Honeybees

Yesterday we went and picked up our bees. We've had a hive for a while, but now it is occupied!

I started a new project this afternoon. I've wanted to make a quilt for a long time, but have either failed, or never had the patience. Today I sat down and picked out the pieces from squares that my great-grandma had cut out. I trimmed them all down to the right size, and began sewing together my blocks. So far I have five out of twenty completed. It won't be a huge quilt, but I'm very excited about it!




As I begin each new block, I start to worry thinking "Oh, I shouldn't have put these colors or patterns together! They'll look awful!" Once I finish the block, however, I am always quite pleased with the result. I can't wait to see the finished project!

One Boy's Battle ~ Book Review

One Boy's Battle by Christmas Carol Kauffman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Millard Gingrich is a young lad whose life is not that put together. He completely respects his mother, yearns to be close to his father, and knows he needs to be right with God, but in the last two areas he is held back by his father's stand-offish manner. In a moment of weakness and in a small way, despair, he enlists with the military at the start of World War II, only to discover that this is the very last thing his mother wished for him. With no way to back out, Millard just sincerely hopes that he will never actually see any action.

When he is sent to the front lines, Millard is forced to see how ugly and pointless war really is. His agonized days are spent carrying out orders, but trying to desperately make sense of it all. One night when he is knocked unconscious from a blast he finally decides to release his life to the Lord. In doing so, he is utterly convicted of the sin of killing any of mankind, and realizes he can no longer fulfill the obligations of his job. Perceiving his difficulty he goes to the camp priest and shares his conviction only to be told that he should sleep it off.

The rest of this true story shares Millard's journey as he waits to travel home to his loved ones in the States, and how he finally found peace, forgiveness, and love for every man, including the Germans and Japanese that he had fought against. It is a testimony of non-resistance, and how God does amazing things for and through those who are obedient to Him.

This book receives four stars, not for great writing, but for a great message that is powerful and convicting. For another fabulous read by the same author, check out For One Moment: A Biographical Story.



View all my reviews

Corn Tortilla Pizzas

When you have eliminated a certain product from your diet, sometimes it can be a challenge to try and find good tasting alternatives. Especially when that removed item is something as common as wheat. My family has been trying to go wheat-free for the last couple of months, and it has certainly been an adventure!

The idea that I tried this afternoon was a very simple pizza. I had tried it before with just plain corn tortillas, but they were so floppy I had to eat it with a fork. These pizzas, however, are crisp and yummy. They are also make a quick and easy lunch item that everyone will enjoy.





Corn Tortilla Pizza

Corn tortillas
Oil
Tomato sauce
Mozzarella Cheese
Toppings of choice

Place oil in pan so that it is 1/4 inch deep and heat on medium-high heat. When oil is hot, place a tortilla into the oil until it is crisp. Remove from oil and place on paper towels on a plate to drain.

Once the tortillas are ready, place them on a baking sheet, and top away! The toppings that we usually have on hand include tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and diced ham.

Try other things too! Pepperoni, cheddar cheese, ground hamburger, sausage, mushrooms, red or green peppers, etc. The possibilities are really endless. In fact, I'm envisioning desert pizzas now!

Rounded Avatars in Comments Tutorial

I was quite pleased to discover a little trick while I was messing around with my blog template in the last couple of days. I had seen on a friend's   blog that the comment avatars were little circles rather than the standard    square shape. The circle was just really cute, and was one of those small  touches that adds so much to a design, so I decided to add it to my own  blog.

I didn't have any luck finding a tutorial to follow, so I fiddled around until I came up with the right combination and here it is!

1. Of course you begin every similar tutorial like this by going to the html editor of your blog, and downloading the template. That is unless you're like me (read: lazy), and don't. It's up to you.

2. Search for the following code:

.avatar-image-container {

3. Right under that, paste this code:

-moz-border-radius: 20px !important;

-webkit-border-radius: 20px !important;

-goog-ms-border-radius: 20px !important;

border-radius: 20px !important;

4. Save your template, and go check it out! The preview won't work in this situation, because the comments don't show up on the home page.

Enjoy!