by Amy | Jan 30, 2014 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Projects
Well friends, Derek worked late last night…which means I was up late working on finishing the cloffice. Today is January 29 and my goal was to have it finished by the end of the month. Looks like I met the goal with 2 days to spare. It’s really nice when that happens.
One of the final pieces of the cloffice I really wanted was a dry erase board. I’m a major list maker and I’m trying to cut back on the amount of small pieces of paper with mini lists on them floating around. Hopefully a board near the desk will allow me to make an ongoing to-do list without paper trail.
The only problem is, I think white boards are kind of ugly. Especially against a white wall. Then a friend mentioned that he was going to replace his office’s white board with a painted glass storm door. That got me thinking, “Could any glass be written on and erased from with dry-erase markers?”
Google told me yes.
So I went to Goodwill last night and picked up an old frame. It even came with a complimentary picture of a sad little boy in period clothing. Case in point it was $3. Just be sure you get one with real glass in the frame. I’m not sure the markers would erase as well off of plastic.
Once I brought it home I painted the frame. While that was drying I cleaned the glass and started making a stencil. I free-handed a curve similar to the shape Martha uses on her labels. Also, to keep things tidy, I used the frame’s poster to prevent paint and markers from getting on my table. I only drew one quadrant of it to keep things symmetrical. I used the poster that came with the frame to find the center of the glass and a dry erase marker to split it into four equal sections.
Once the quarters were drawn on I traced my curve four times…once in each section. Then I flipped the whole thing over.
Next I used the curvy line as a guide and acrylic paint to trace over it. Let that dry.
Then put your frame back together {minus the dated poster}. I used a staple gun to attach a ribbon to hang it by, but if your frame comes with a hanger on the back you could use that too.
It’s cute and it writes on and wipes off easily.
If you aren’t known for your artistic handiwork here are some alternatives to making your own curvy frame.
1. Trace a platter to make a circular frame on your board.
2. Print out a giant brace…that’s what these are called {{ }}…and use that as your template.
3. Paint all of one side of your glass a solid color.
4. Use painter’s tape to create a guide for a square frame.
Get ready because tomorrow I’ll show off the finished cloffice!
by Amy | Jan 27, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Fitness
It’s the end of January. The “resolution” gym crowd is thinning out. At the gym I work at our membership forms have stopped flying out of the folder.
{Image from Women’s Health Magazine}
So if you are still sticking to your 2014 plan to get fit and shed those pounds that have haunted you…well done.
If you are new to the workout game {or even if you aren’t}, you might be getting bored with your routine by now. This month I’ve had a few days every week that I’ve taught four classes at the gym in one day. It’s a bit above average for me. All the time at the gym, all the classes have caused a couple people to ask me: Where do you come up with this stuff?
This is the truth. I write out every workout I teach. Then, at the end of class I throw it away. I do it simply because I like doing something new and different each time. So, where do I get so many ideas? Today I’ll show you my go-to sources for fitness inspiration. **Be warned…these are links to fitness sites. There will be images of tones up girls in sports bras on these pages. These pages advertise their workouts by showing results. I advocate conservative dressing…and working out while covered up.**
Some of my very favorite workouts come from The Daily HIIT. {High Intensity Interval Training.} These moves are way hard. They inspire my hard core classes. I usually do a workout, or just browse around for moves that I’d like to pair together.
For pilates inspiration I love Blogilates. She’s got good posts about clean eating, recipes, and workouts that will kick your booty. Most of her workouts are categorized by body focus and they are short {12-15 minutes each}. Usually all you need is a mat and a bit of space.
My last go-to source {I’m not giving you all my sources, just the ones I frequent most} is Women’s Health Magazine. The magazine is okay, but I’m a bigger fan of the web version of the source. That way I don’t have to week through ads, clothing advice and articles. I can go straight to the workouts. They have a great variety of moves to try out with basic equipment that you’ll have at your local gym.
I can go months without looking anywhere other than these three sites to bust out of a fitness rut. Hopefully they’ll help you too. The hardest part about fitness is always starting. So if you haven’t started: Go for it. And if you have: Keep it up!
Amy
by Amy | Jan 23, 2014 | Blog, The Art of the Moment
While in Louisiana I spent a good deal of time with one of my greatest friends in the world. In addition to a lovely husband, she has three roommates full of personality and antics. While staying over a snapped a few quick portraits of them.
Meet Sam.
He was Megan’s first dog when she lived along shortly after college. He may be tiny, but he loves his mom and will protect her from any and all threats. Be it slippered feet moving a bit too quickly, a dog on TV, or the doorbell, Sam is on guard. I think deep down he is happy to have Dallas out of the house so he can have his momma all to himself.
Meet Stella.
She was in a litter of puppies at the animal control center in Enid, OK. Megan and Dallas adopted her and rescued her from the clutches of death. Now she likes to spend her time cuddled under blankets, rolling over for belly rubs, and on long walks. Actually, she likes to be carried on long walks. In the car her favorite spot is slung around the back of Megan’s neck between the headrest and her mommy. Best of all, she loves her dad {and men in general} and cannot wait for him to come home.
Meet Mo-Kitty.
Mo was once a nursing home cat. He took long walks around the old folks home in the basket of his owner’s walker. His career as a therapy cat was cut short due to his habit of nipping at the residents on occasion. From there he moved on to his new home where he quickly packed on a few pounds and discovered his passion for bird watching from sunny windows.
I just love pets.
by Amy | Jan 21, 2014 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Projects
I know many of you are creative types. Like me you probably have the skills {and enjoy} whipping up a new wreath, making felt flowers, pretty-ing things up with scrapbook paper, doodling, stamping, sewing…
If any of that describes you, you’ll probably also relate to this word: Accumulation.
For those of us who like to create it’s easier {and more cost effective} to slowly amass an arsenal of supplies instead of running to the craft store every time the making-mood strikes. And since our supplies are often put away in a closet, binned up in the basement, or neatly shoved under a bed…sometimes we don’t even realize how much stuff we’ve accumulated.
I’m still working on the cloffice, which will also serve as a place to store some of my crafty supplies. So while I was making the move from dark, dingy basement to bright, pretty cloffice I started to process some of my goods. Let me tell you…it’s a little disgusting. I’ve got supplies that date back to my freshman year of college. At this point, if I haven’t used black plastic beads, wooden star cutouts, and glittery wired ribbon…chances are I never will.
Going through it all was quite a task. As I’m sure you can tell by the photo, it was a messy task and a lengthy task. But I’ve been through my ribbon and string, tested all my markers, sorted my colored pencils, wrestled my buttons into one location, and weeded out my stationary. In the process I’ve made quite a pile of things I don’t need any more.
It’s so easy to hoard craft supplies. I think we all get that irrational itch, thinking “I can’t throw this out…what if I want to use it someday?” Friends, take it from me, you’ll feel better when you purge. And 5 years down the line if it turns out you actually do need a handful of black, plastic beads, it’ll only cost $1 to get more. In the meantime I think that’s money well saved to take back your space, organization and peace of mind.
This year I’m going to try to use up some of my arsenal. So put some cute things on Pinterest, so I can make them. Okay? Thanks.
Amy
by Amy | Jan 14, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
I’m in Shreveport, LA. If you’ve been a friend of the blog for long…you know that before PraCan was home, this was where I parked my car and rested my head. One of my best and dearest friends still lives here. So when Derek found out he needed to come down for a week of training, I was totally on board for tagging along. Seeing a bestie + escaping the Polar Vortex=a major win-win.
Today the bestie is at nursing classes. So I was on my own. I started my day off by doing a little video work for another friend who works for a lovely non-profit in the area. More on that later. After I finished up there it was 10am and I had yet to have a cup of coffee. In dire need I headed to Strawn’s Eat Shop. Here’s the thing about Louisiana. I don’t miss the heat. I don’t miss the bugs. But what I really do miss is the vibe here. The accents, the sassy locals, and the abundance of southern comfort food.
Stawn’s is iconic. They’ve been featured in magazines and on TV. Their joint is quaint. Their food is amazing.
I settled in this morning, ready to take my time…maybe knock a few more pages off of an amazing book I received for Christmas. During the course of the hour I spent there sipping coffee and slowly working on my food I watched the action unfold inside one of Shreveport’s oldest and most loved eateries.
It’s the kind of place where the waitresses know the customers. More than once was a patron greeted with a “Hey, how you doin’?” and a hug to match. My coffee cup never fully drained. The waitress never pressured me to hurry up and move on. She just let me nibble and read. By 11:15 the door was constantly swinging open as more and more hungry locals poured in for burgers and pie.
{yes, that is a giant slab of butter on the counter. I love the south.}
When you spend time in a place like Strawn’s you see the best in the community. People excelling at their work. People carrying on a tradition worth carrying on. Lately, I’ve been overwhelmed and heavy-hearted over the state of our world. The truth is, it is easy to look around and feel like everything and everyone is awful and growing worse. But all it takes is a slow breakfast in a hole-in-the-wall to remember that there are still lots of good people, and plenty of good left to be done. Maybe things aren’t really as changed and far gone as they sometimes feel. That’s a happy thought to hang on to.
xo Amy
by Amy | Jan 9, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Adventure
As you may have noticed, it’s been cold. Really cold. Now, I’m not going to jump on my high horse and tell you that I’m better and more hard core than you because I live in Practically Canada and it’s been colder here than wherever you are.
That’s not my game.
They have called it a Polar Vortex. Which sounds ridiculous. Like a a sci-fi black hole that you get sucked into. On second thought, that’s kind of what it’s been like.
I’m just going to tell you what’s it’s been like living the past week in the coldest place in America. Compliments to a few of my friends who took a moment to take photos during this time. I’m using their images…because I have been too busy a) not leaving the house and b) madly dashing from house to car to destination at a pace that didn’t allow for photography.
The image above was taken north of Bismarck. Click the photo to go to its original home.
You see that cool ring around the sun? Up here it’s called a sun-dog. It happens when the sun’s {or moon’s} light reflects off of ice crystals in the atmosphere. ICE. In the atmosphere.
Derek, being every observant noted that one day it was “120 warmer in our house than the windchill outside.”
Take a moment to really think about the difference you feel between 0 degrees and 120. That’s the difference between “dead of winter” and “Texas wildfire hot.” That’s the extreme difference we were feeling this past week.
Now…for a segment I’ll call…Cold Enough…
First. Thank you to my friend Melanie, who took one for the team and snapped this photo. It proves that it has been cold enough to freeze wet hair solid after shaking it upside down outside for a moment. Her hair is frozen like that. Frozen.
While making supply run to Menard’s I lost a glove somewhere in the store. It was cold enough that the walk from store to car left my ungloved hand visibly cracked, bloody and chapped.
The extreme cold will make your eyes water. But it is cold enough that your tears immediately froze on your face. So don’t even think about shedding tears over the situation.
Cold enough that the air you breathed felt like sand paper rubbing the inside of your lungs. I guess really the temp wasn’t so bad if you held your breath and closed your eyes.
To really gauge the severity of the situation…the National Weather Service warned that it was cold enough that frostbite could occur on uncovered skin in less than five minutes.
Perhaps, most shocking…it was cold enough that North Dakota schools closed down because of the extreme cold. If you live here, you know this never happens. If they closed down because of cold, negative temperatures, there’d be no school from November to March.
And in case you don’t want to take my word for it, I posted to my personal Facebook page asking friends to describe the cold in their words. Here are some of the things they said.
A brainfreeze on the outside. All over your body.
Hard to breathe because your nose hairs freeze straight out.
When you inhale your nose hairs get stiff. When you exhale your glasses fog up and freeze over.
It feels like death.
“I can’t [describe it] without cursing.”
You get an ice cream headache from breathing.
You have to do the Minot Shuffle. {Where you run into stores instead of walking.}
It’s now 23 degrees. I guess I should go for a jog or something. Stay warm and toasty my friends.
Amy
by Amy | Jan 6, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Faith
I’ve been thinking about freedom. It started with a devotional I heard on New Year’s Eve. Since then the concept of freedom has been tumbling around my brain.
The NYE speaker pointed to the song “Young, Wild and Free” as a cultural reference to what can be perceived as freedom. Until recently I’d only ever heard the chorus, but before writing this post I read all the lyrics. It’s basically about smoking weed…which, as my 5th grad D.A.R.E. class’ strongest finisher, I can assure you I’m not into. But this isn’t a post about drugs. It’s about freedom. The chorus goes like this:
So what we get drunk?
So what we smoke weed?
We’re just having fun
We don’t care who sees
So what we go out?
That’s how it’s supposed to be
Living young and wild and free
Classy, right?
It’s got that whole do whatever you want, no attention to consequences kind of vibe about it.
So I started thinking about freedom. The thing about freedom is that it means you are free from something. Our country was founded on the concept of freedom. Folks came here looking to be free. Free from religious oppression, free from persecutions, free from famine. The modern concept of freedom seems to have taken on a much wider berth. While we used to seek freedom from a force that kept us from being the best versions of ourselves…freedom is quickly becoming the right to do anything at anytime. And that’s not a safe practice for a successful society.
I think it’s dangerous because those “wild” and unruly actions can quickly become habits and addictions. Then suddenly the things that made you feel so free, {smoking, drinking, shirking responsibilities to get lost in the vortex of Pinterest, binge watching Netflix in the middle of the day, cheating on your other half} can easily become the things that weigh you down. They can ensnare us, tangle us, and leave us seeking freedom. Getting lost in the liberty to do anything anytime can mean that we sacrifice our ability to be world changers, doers, movers. Most of our young and wild living is self-serving. And I’ve learned that people who are really living, really doing things are usually interested in the external: the needs of others, helping, making a change, solving problems. They use their freedom of choice to make things happen. And here’s a truth-flash…it’s us young folk that need to be working to make a positive difference. I assure you, it’s not the elderly who should be improving the world.
So my big question is…what has you ensnared? Maybe it’s something heavy. Maybe it’s a freedom that has spun out of control. It’s a new year and a great time to assess yourself. Are you being free in the wrong way? Are you using your freedoms for good? What is keeping you from being the best/most productive/amazing person you were created to be? Search your heart and take a step toward becoming the person you desire to be.
Amy
PS…The guys who sing Young Wild and Free are 27, 28 and 42. So, that’s two kind-of-young-but-really-it’s-time-to-grow-up…and one not-young-at-all.
by Amy | Jan 3, 2014 | Blog, The Art of Projects, the house
Excuse the mess.
This is embarrassing, but it’s real. This is real life. In my house. What you see before you is a 2013 project left unfinished. In its uncompleted state it festered into a catchall eye sore, a place for me to stash things without a home. My favorite gym bag packed with some items that need to be donated, lists of workouts of fitness classes gone by, printer paper, a curtain rod…When it got too ugly, I hung a curtain. To hide it until I found time to finish it.
This space is a closet. A really nice closet, even. It is the byproduct of my bedroom makeover I took on over the summer. In the original second floor layout the master bedroom and guest room had identical closets that backed up to one another. They were only separated by a flimsy sheet rock wall that was easy to knock out in an afternoon. {You can see that destruction here.}
When I finished the bedroom {see that here} I put a wall in front of the original closet opening and built in a brand new closet into the newly expanded space. It was a win-win. The master bedroom gained its own, larger closet–and the guest room closet doubled in size by taking on the original master closet.
I prioritized my projects, and to be honest, prettying up the closet in a room no one really uses wasn’t at the top. But, as you can see, things are getting out of hand. I’ve been asked a lot recently what the first project of 2014 will be. Well folks, you’re looking at it.
The grand plan is that 2014 will also bring us a finished basement {that’s a whole other story} as well. In the basement we will add a third bedroom and a second bathroom. That will turn into guest quarters and the current guest room will become my office. When I renovated in the summer, expanding the master bedroom meant that we lost our office space. So until all our construction is done, this over sized closet will serve as an office nook for me. Granted, it’s not as cozy as sitting under an electric blanket on the couch with Panda Kitty…but I think it’ll be much more efficient. Maybe something more like this…
The goal is to finish the cloffice {closet-office, get it?} by the end of the month.
