our new poodle

Remember our Christmas card photo?

I got a card from a cousin in New Jersey yesterday. She's very diligent with good, old-fashioned Postal correspondence. So, of course, she sent me a "thank you" letter for the Christmas card we sent them. (How much more gracious can you get?)

Anyway, I was reading her letter and thinking how kind it was when suddenly I read this line:

"I love your poodle."

I furrowed my brow and thought, "Poodle? What poodle?"

And then, it struck me. The laughter lasted at least 3 solid minutes and my height decreased by 2 feet from doubling over.

I guess the great and mighty Genghis Khan does look a little poodle-like when he's silhouetted :)

Just to redeem him:

Good boy! You are virile and daunting!


Don't forget to enter the GIVEAWAY!!!!
Go here
or simply scroll down to the next post to comment :)


And now I must go take our rogue-ish poodle out for his morning fetch drills...

giving away... a giveaway!

There seems to be a general consensus that January is a dismal month. In hopes of bringing light to one of the calendar's shadowy places, I've decided to do several

giveaways

this month.

The first is easy and obvious:

A 10-pack of simply elegant birthday cards from the last post!



Just post a comment in the comments section below to enter...

if you have no idea what to say, just say

hi

hello

salutations

entering the giveaway....

or better yet, tell me a Laffy-Taffy style joke!

I'll draw a name at random and announce the winner on Monday.



simply elegant birthday cards

Stamps are in!

Aren't they?

That's what I've gathered, anyway. Selective gathering, maybe.

Regardless, I've been creating birthday stationery with two rubber stamps and a pad of gold ink.

Since Husband and I have about a gazillion aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents between the two of us-- all of whom we are very thankful were born-- I decided to make a stack of birthday cards to have on hand for mailing out as birthdays come up.

Looking for that many birthday cards was sorely unsuccessful. Boxed birthday cards, as it turns out, are generally tacky or too child-oriented. I wanted something more simple, serene, and elegant.

Something more like this:

For materials, visit your local Michael's, Hobby Lobby, or other discount craft store or paper source.

Or, check out the rubber stamps here and here.

rainy new years day

Our first days of 2011 were spent enjoying the comforts of home,

watching football, and

running a full Lord of the Rings movie marathon.

Some photos:

1. Brownie-Bottom Panna Cotta Cupcakes-- a new invention!

2. Watching Saffron turn whipping cream that beautiful reddish yellow color that goes with sunsets

3. Preparing for the traditional New Year's Day Black-Eyed Pea Fest

 Husband's "smoking" station, where he braved the rain to turn out a feast of Boston Butt and Chicken, smoked and seasoned to perfection with a homemade rub, sugar, and cider vinegar.



Now, it's back to normal!



2011

HAPPY NEW YEAR, FRIENDS!

I prefer seasonal and/or weekly resolutions, but I love the tradition of New Year's Resolutions...

so I'll play along :)

The 2011 Resolutions of a Lupine:

-Begin Learning a New Language (probably won't happen)

-Finish Grad School (must happen!)

-Listen better and create more

-Don't chase tail in circles as often as usual (metaphorically, of course)

-Have more disciplined morning reflection time

-Continue learning to cook...

(These resolutions are Husband-approved.)

What about YOU?

kicking back

We're looking forward to a low-key New Years weekend. Husband took yesterday and today off, and we have many plans to cook, read, and watch movies,

and zero plans to be at a specific place at a set time in a certain category of attire. In fact, we just got back from the grocery store and don't plan to leave the house again until Sunday morning.

Part of my cooking excursions will involve our traditional New Year's Day meal, and part will involve experimenting in the kitchen. Husband plans to marinate and smoke some meats.

I hope you all enjoy your New Year's activities, whatever they may be!
See you next year...


 

it ain't over till the garlands are down

All the Christmas decorations are down-- even the handtowels-- except for these few items on the mantel. It just looks so simple and serene, I can't take it down quite yet.

The Nativity scene was a gift.

It was handmade in Bangladesh from wheat grass. The golden luster is more brilliant than the photo shows. They can be bought through Ten Thousand Villages, a Mennonite non-profit that works to sell handmade masterpieces like this for artisans in third-world countries. Even their "employees" are volunteers, allowing even more profits for the artisans.

The Nativity can be found here. I think I will leave mine up year-round.