today.

today is a day when i kinda sorta wish that i could just write a blog of all the ins and outs of life. but i'm not. i keep alot of things to myself, and that is ok. today however i feel like sharing and here's what i've got:

joyous news:: a tiny little baby is growing and we are expecting him or her to arrive in july! it's exciting, scary and wonderful all at once. we have to trust God and His timing and just put it all in His hands. we sure do love this baby already though and hopefully that's a good start.

newsy news:: my husband is going to OSU in january to become a school teacher! i'm so excited for him. he loves computers and showing people how to use them so he is going to be a high school vocational computer teacher.

living news:: i love our new apartment! i love it! it feels like home and that is a very good feeling indeed.

christmas news:: i have a couple gifts crossed off my list, none wrapped, a tree up, stockings hung and lots left to do. christmas cards may not get sent this year. my energy gets zapped pretty quick but i'll just save them for next year.

holiday kitchen news:: i made some christmasy chocolate covered pretzels and i plan to make these and nathan made this and i would like to try these .

photography news:: i got my first paying gig assisting the amazingly talented nick fancher with a wedding. i was one of 2 other shooters and i had a blast. sadly i don't think i did very well but it was a great learning experience. i am trying to learn as fast as i can because i do so love taking photos. (by the way - the photo above was taken with my iphone, so not the greatest quality)

that's all i've got for now. happy holidays to you and yours!

ewe are too cute!

how cute are these sheep! i want to smash them up they are so cute. little cake pops. who knew you could do such a thing? more importantly who has time to do such a thing?? oh to have that luxury. :) if you are so fortunate, here are the directions.

my addiction

i guess it's time for me to come clean with you guys. i am an addict.
i am addicted to the food network!
seriously. i don't care what anthony bourdain says i love watching it. i really enjoyed watching the next iron chef america. lately i think my favorite thing to watch are the challenges. i particularly enjoyed the 'edible ornaments' challenge and the one where they had to make a haunted house out of gingerbread. i get kind of bored with emeril and bobby flay but i love watching paula deen, rachel ray $40/day, alton brown (especially the one where he's traveling around the country), unwrapped, dinner impossible, 2 dudes catering. i love the stuff with a story behind it or a challenge. watching emeril crank it up a notch doesn't do much and neither does sandra dee or lee or whatever her name is. the thing where bobby flay challenges people is kind of sad to me because here are these nice people thinking they have a tv crew doing a special on them and then it turns in them having to defend their honor in their hometown. boo. that's not cool to me.

so now you know what i spent alot of my time at home doing. my down time and relaxation usually involves me...the couch...my laptop and the food network. there's just something so comforting about it. i love to cook too and the food network has definitely inspired me and taught me quite a bit. every since i was a kid i loved watching cooking shows and daydreamed about having my own someday. i love that i can now watch them pretty much any time of day (except during the 3am -9am infomercials, what's up with that?).

crock pot recipes

any ideas? something yummy and non casserole-y. something other than chili or pot roast. it's fall and i need some good recipes that can cook all day by themselves while i'm at work.

looking for directions

does anyone know how to make this fruit display or where to find directions for something like this? it's stumping some of the most talented girls in the kitchen i know. i want to do something like this at a little party we are throwing next weekend. :)

edit: 5/14/07
we have figured out pretty much how to make this using skewers and florist wreaths but does anyone know where i could find some grape leaves?