This is my life....

Wow! I have been MIA for a very long time. A lot has happened. Lots of ups and downs, gutters and strikes. First off, I am writing for Craft Gossip now. I'm still working with Craftster. I had a little family illness that seems to be under control now but the biggest news is this:

This is Iggy Pup! He is the newest edition to the Pedersen pups. I have four children. What the hell is wrong with me? 

He was adopted from the Underdog Railroad Rescue. His mother was a Min Pin and his father a Rat Terrier or Whippet. I love this little man more than anything. He is smaller than Lola! 

His big brother watches out for him. 

Lola babies him, she gives him baths and Juju...well, Jujube is her typical teenager. 

He is quite the graduate of Handsome Boy Modeling School. We call Pete Zoolander and Iggy is Hansel. 

He is fitting in quite well and we can't imagine our lives without him...of course we can't really imagine anything right now-he's just a pup and we are getting no sleep at all. We are unsure of his age, I'm guessing still a babe because of his bitey behavior. He is bringing Lola out of her old age. They run around together and he loves to bite Pete's ears...how could you not bite his ears?

You can see Iggy in action HERE! 

Busy, Busy, Busy...

Whew! I have been busy stitching and crafting for all of the various Craftster swaps I am participating in. I am having just too much fun! Also...my new obsession, Washi Tape. I cannot get enough of it. Seriously.

I stitched this up and I think I might make one for myself.

This is why I'm obsessed with washi tape right now.

And this...

These washi tape journals are so simple to make and look so cute!

One last piece of stitchy goodness!

Off to get more of my craftin' on! I might come up for air in a couple of months.

Motivational Monday

I suck at letting go. I will let it fester inside of me...thinking of every word someone said or every action someone did. I think about it over and over again until finally I have made myself sick thinking about crap. That's just what it is, crap.

I'm slowly learning to let go of bad days and bad people. Let me tell you, it is HARD WORK! Sometimes thinking about bad stuff is so much easier than good. I wonder why that is?

How do you let go of a bad day? What do you do to take care of yourself?

Tie One On Tuesday

First off...it has been WAY too long since I've posted a Tie One On Tuesday. WAY TOO LONG! Let's remedy that, shall we?

Did you know that today is National Squirrel Appreciation Day? Neither did I. Let's raise a glass to our nut loving, fuzz butt shaking, bird seed stealing friend.

I love Pink Squirrels, both the drink and the idea of a bright pink squirrel.

Pink Squirrel
3/4 oz creme de noyeaux
3/4 oz light creme de Cacao
1 oz cream
Mix ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, strain and serve in a martini glass. If you want something a bit more frosty, combine in a blender and set to whip.


Maybe pink isn't your color? How about a Chocolate Squirrel?

Chocolate Squirrel (via drinksmixer.com)

3/4 oz amaretto almond liqueur3/4 oz  hazelnut liqueur3/4 oz brown creme de cacao3/4 oz cream
Blend in a shaker with ice, strain over a chilled martini glass. 

Oh my goodness! I really think this next cocktail will have you flying!

Flying Squirrel Cocktail (via1001cocktails.com)

 1 1/2 oz tequila 1 oz orange liqueur  1 splash sweet and sour mix 1 dash sweetened lime juice 1 dash sweetened orange juice
Pour tequila and triple sec into a highball glass one-third filled with crushed ice. Add sour mix and lime juice. Fill with orange juice, and serve

Did you also know today was national Hugging Day? Grab a few cocktails and hug your favorite fuzz butt! Just make sure you have all your shots. 

Motivational Monday

I have been reading a lot lately about online envy. You know, "the grass is greener on the other side" syndrome. People getting mad because all bloggers and pinners do is talk about how great their lives are. I've even been accused of being too perky and too happy. Listen up people, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret here. 

1. My blog is not my diary. It is a way to spread a little joy and sunshine. I do share a lot of private sad info, but for the most part, you just won't see a ton into my private life and I believe that is absolutely okay. This is my blog. 

2. My pins are there to make me happy and to inspire me to create. If they make you smile too, than super. 

Now, you may ask, where is the motivation? Well, here it is and this isn't a secret, you can actually tell everyone this...Quit comparing yourself to everyone else. Quit thinking someone has it better than you. You are pretty damn awesome just on your own. 

Everyone will have problems, everyone will have ups and downs. Don't ridicule the person for not wanting to share. Allow them to focus on the positive in their life. You should be doing that too! We will all have major disappoints in our lives. We all we have craptastic days. It's called life and it can be a bitch sometimes, but if we focus on what is good in our lives, we won't have to look over the fence and compare. 

Be happy with you! 

Don't Be a Wiener....

Unless you are a cute patchwork cross stitched wiener!



I have been busy stitching up these cute little guys for a swap I am in on Craftster.org.



I can't help making all kinds of wiener jokes....these wieners are bigger than expected, they are about 6 inches a piece (SEE! I can't help it!) Everyone just loves a colorful wiener (Please! make the jokes stop!)

I hope my partner likes her wieners!


Okay, okay...back to some respectful stitching. This little girl was way cute and very easy to stitch up. She now lives with a grumpy cloud and a quilted embroidery piece.






Whew! Busy! Busy! Busy! I love swapping! It keeps me creative.

Motivational Monday

via Visit bitsotruth.blogspot.ca

How many of you journal or have a diary that you write in. I have this wonderful leather journal that my husband bought me. It is green with leaves on it. I carry it with me everywhere. I have noticed though, that it started turning into a negativity trap. Every time I was having a bad day, I wrote in it, but I never wrote the good news. I started thinking that I was carrying negativity around with me in the form of the this book. Every where I went, this negative writing was with me. All of my bad days, all of my anger was constantly with me. 

So, I decided that the journal was way to pretty to carry all that negative crap around and started a new journal this year. It is my Happiness and Thankful journal. It is filled with pictures, inspirations and things that make me happy. It also keeps me organized. I write down things I want to do, stuff I want to find and pieces I want to create. Now, instead of carrying around extra negative vibes, always bringing me down, I have this wonderful happy journal that lifts my spirits. 

I actually found that it was kind of hard to write about positive things in my life. So, I made up some questions to help me get started. Maybe if you want to start a Happiness journal, these questions will help you too. 

What makes me happy? (This one is a given but actually can take a lot of thought)

What makes me feel bad and how can I change these things?

What do I want to learn?

What am I thankful for?

What am I passionate about?

I also cut out pictures of places I want to go, draw little pictures and write myself little pick me up notes. 

As for my negative thoughts. I just threw the negative journal into the fire and let the badness burn. When I want to write negative things down, I still do, and then I toss them. I let them go. 

It is a lot of work to be happy, but I think journaling is one step to keep me focused and remind me that life isn't that bad. What do you do to remind yourself of happiness? 

Pinning and Winning

Craftster is having an AWESOME contest right now, Pinning and Winning with Craftster. Check out the details below and enter to win over at Craftster.org. 

1)  Visit each of the small business sponsor Facebook pages listed below.  Show them some love!   Like their page and/or comment on their wall.  If a small business sponsor does not have a Facebook page listed, just visit their site and have a look around at all they have to offer.
2)  Follow us at http://www.pinterest.com/craftsterorg/
3)  Create a Pinterest board on your Pinterest account called "My Craftster Favorites"
4)  Pin projects from Craftster that inspire you!
5)  Head over to Craftster.org and reply  with a link to your fabulous new Pinterest board full of crafty ideas.

Link for replies

Contest ends January 22, 2014, 11:59:59 PM PDT.  One entry/reply per person.
One winner will be randomly selected on or about January 23, 2014.

the itty bitty print:
Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.  Winner will be notified by private message on Craftster.
Eligible to US and non-US.  No purchase necessary.  Void where prohibited by law.

Small Business Sponsors
Acts of Craftiness
Alpha Stamps on Facebook
Crochet 'N Things on Facebook
CUTEure Creations on Facebook
Faster Kittykill
HRSG Mosaics
Lily Loves Bernie
Missing Willow Farm
Mountain Mommy's Crochet on Facebook
Sew Lovely Embroidery on Facebook
Spin Heart Spin on Facebook
The Décor Photo Store on Facebook
Vine & Ever on Facebook

One winner will be awarded a spectacular grand prize package valued at over $600 USD.  The prize package includes:

• Six colorful circus-themed collage sheets to help bust you out of any Wintery, post-holiday blues from Alpha Stamps

• One embroidery kit of silk embroidery thread and towel from Faster Kittykill

• One purple framed glass necklace from Lily Loves Bernie

• Two pairs of beaded earrings from Missing Willow Farm

• One "Fire" 100% wool newborn bonnet and one "Ice" mohair newborn bonnet from Mountain Mommy's Crochet

• Four 18"x24" Delightfully Different iron-on embroidery patterns from Sew Lovely Embroidery

• One lace and beaded camera custom strap from The Decor Photo Store

• One children's "Hi" hoodie, one children's head cozy and two mounted linen 5x7 art prints from Vine & Ever

• $20 gift card to Acts of Craftiness

• $20 gift card to Crochet 'N Things

• $26 gift card to CUTEure Creations

• $25 gift card to HRSG Mosaics

• $25 gift card to Spin Heart Spin

• One handmade altered Altoids tin filled to the brim with ephemera donated by rackycoo

• One handmade journal and jelly roll donated by LimeRiot

• Two handmade crochet hats, one copy of "Make Me I'm Yours... Sewing" and one copy of "Make Me I'm

Smooth Baby, Smooth

One thing that I absolutely love about Craftster is the fact there are so many talented people who are willing to share their recipes and crafty ideas. This month's video was just the case, MareMare shared her awesome recipe for lotion bars with me. They are fabulous!

The recipe is pretty easy to follow. You will use equal parts of the following items:

1 part shea butter
1 part cocoa butter (I used scented and the whole house smelled like a chocolate factory, you can buy unscented)
1 part olive oil
1 part bees wax

The molds I used were a combination of soap molds and candy molds. The fancy hearts and squirrels were candy molds.

Motivational Monday

Ugh! Mondays are the worst! Especially Mondays after a holiday. Can't we just skip today? I mean, c'mon...is today really necessary....yes it is! Every day of your life is necessary. Every second is necessary. 

I know what you are thinking...Pam, you are not the most chipper person in the world, you do not have rainbows shooting from your butt and you're right, at least in part, you don't know if I have rainbows shooting out of my butt, do you? The thing is, life is so worth living, even the crappy Monday mornings. Cherishing the good with the bad is what creating a life worth living is about. Making it through the rough patches in life allows you to really enjoy and embrace those smooth sailing times even more and who knows, you might learn something along the way. 

So remember, Mondays may make you grumpy, you may not want to get out of bed, but you need to. 

via http://zsazsabellagio.blogspot.com

Scrappy Dog Sunday

Can you believe Lola is still as feisty as ever? She is 90+ years old and is still going! She is the Bettie White of dogs!


She does need her sleep after attacking OMP and running around the backyard.

I really think we need to bottle Lola's energy and sell it. We would make a fortune. 

In Memory Of...

Today OMP and I lost a dear friend. OMP knew Mike from the comic and toy scene. They used to trade VHS tapes for toys. I remember meeting him for the first time and he was so excited about taking us to a pancake house that had pancakes the size of a large pizza. He was a dear friend to OMP. His wife, Lisa and his children are in our thoughts and prayers.
http://www.seattleweekly.com/home/950460-129/mike-vraney-founder-of-something-weird
In Memorium
MIKE VRANEY
Founder of Something Weird
December 29, 1957 to January 2, 2014

We regret to tell you that Something Weird’s founder, Mike Vraney, passed away on January 2, 2014 after a long heroic battle with lung cancer. He was 56 years old, way too young to leave this planet. There was still so much Mike wanted to do in his life, so many films to be found, and adventures to be embarked upon.

This sad news may come as a shock to most of you. Mike was a very private person and didn’t want anyone, except his closest friends, family and colleagues, to know about his illness. He went through aggressive chemotherapy and radiation treatments for over a year, but sadly the cancer spread and cruelly took him from us.

Mike had a larger-than-life personality and a genuine enthusiasm for movies. Something Weird was his heart and soul, he was obsessive in his pursuit of tracking down the weirdest, wildest movies out there. And it wasn’t enough to find a few forgotten films, he was always in search of the movie motherload. (Making 370 two-hour volumes of Nudie Cuties loops is a good example of this. Who does that?! Mike Vraney!) Even as a child, Mike loved movies. During his teenage years, he worked at the Bel-Kirk Drive-In, and then later as a projectionist at the Green Parrot and Apple Theaters in Seattle. Then around 1990, Mike went in search of as many old, unusual, obscure, and lost low budget exploitation movies as he could, and preserved them for prosperity. Mike amassed thousands of these rare movies and had them transferred to video so that people could relive the good old days of going to the drive-in or grindhouse theater, in their very own home. We have him to thank for introducing fandom to the wonderful world of sexploitation sinema, rescuing it from the dark recesses of forgotten film vaults and defunct movie theatres.

Some of you may know that prior to Something Weird, Mike was involved in the early Seattle punk rock music scene. He was a partner in Modern Productions, the group who started Seattle’s seminal rock venue, The Showbox, in 1979. Mike then went on to manage such well-known bands as The Dead Kennedys, TSOL, and Seattle’s own The Accused. Mike always seemed to be at the forefront of whatever was happening and cool.

Mike’s second greatest passion in life was collecting old comics, vintage toys, movie memorabilia, and pop cultural ephemera. He enjoyed going to the swap meet and always had a magical ability for finding great stuff. But when he wasn’t working, collecting, or telling great stories, Mike spent quality time with his beloved family. Mike adored his wife and business partner, Lisa, and two (now young adult) children, Mark and Danielle. These three were the center of his universe, and his reason for getting up each and every morning.

The folks at Something Weird fully intend to honor Mike’s incredible legacy. Mike may be gone, but his remarkable achievements will live on. One of the happiest days of Mike’s life was when legendary David F. Friedman and Dan Sonney called him “the forty-first thief,” which to him was the ultimate compliment and recognition for his work. We’d like to think that Mike’s now hanging out with his old pals Dave and Dan, reminiscing and talking shop with Dwain Esper, Kroger Babb, Barry Mahon, Joe Sarno, Doris Wishman, Bob Cresse, Dale Berry, Michael Findlay and all the other exploiteers and smut peddlers who’ve gone to the great grindhouse in the sky.

We will miss Mike with all our hearts. Goodbye dear friend, husband, father, and fearless leader…
– Lisa Petrucci, Tim Lewis, Kendall Bechtel, Mark Vraney, Danielle Vraney of Something Weird Video

Happy New Year!

Has it really been since August that I've last visited with everyone? HOLY COW! How dare real life get in the way of my blog! OMP has a new job, Lola is still hanging in there, Jujube is just the bee and Pete has turned into the sweetest little man ever!

I have been hanging in there, doing what I do...ya know, the usual!

I want to thank everyone for hanging in there with me and I hope that 2014 is full of glitter, pink, champagne and cupcakes.  So much love and peace for everyone.


Happy New Year from me and the OMP!

Shake Your Pom Poms!

Oh yeah, shake your pom poms! Okay, not really, but how about making a pom pom garland?

Aren't these great for birthday parties? They are so super easy to make!

The ice cream cones are my favorite.

Now I am totally addicted to pom poms. I want to make a whole room out of them!

Check out the video to make your own pom pom garland.

Craftster is Turning 10!

I can't believe it! My favorite crafty website is turning 10! How cool is that? I can't believe it has been that long. So many years of crafty goodness!

To celebrate 10 years, the wonderful folks at Craftster have put together an amazing Challenge. Entries are due August 7-13th  The grand prize includes:

• A canvas Red Heart project bag/tote
• 6 sheets of Phoomph! in both Stiff and Soft
• The September/October 2013 edition of Crochet Today!
• 3 skeins of Red Heart Boutique Unforgettable yarn
• A 6mm Susan Bates Bamboo Handle Crochet Hook
• Dubonnet Poncho crochet pattern from Red Heart
• A stitchable iPhone 4/4s case

The theme for this challenge is "What Craftster means to me." Now, don't be scared of this theme! Craftster is made by YOU, Craftster can mean different things to different people so whatever it means to you, that's great!!

You can find the challenge threads for each specific category in this list! They will list the full rules and the prize for that category:

Bath and Beauty - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424909.0
Clothing - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424884.0
Cooking - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424865.0
Crochet - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424891.0
Fiber Arts - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424850.0
Glass Crafts - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424862.0
Home Sweet Home - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424896.0
Image Reproduction Techniques - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424912.0
Jewelry and Trinkets - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424913.0
Knitting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424895.0
Miscellaneous Topics - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424849.0
More Art, Less Craft - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424893.0
Needlework - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424885.0
Occasions and Holidays - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424914.0
Paper Crafts, Scrapbooking & ATCs - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424910.0
Pottery, Ceramics, Polymer Clay - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424905.0
Purses, Bags, Wallets - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424887.0
Quilting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424886.0
Reusing/Recycling/Recrafting - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424851.0
Toys, Dolls and Playthings - http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424852.0

Read more: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=424917.0#ixzz2bIaQss3Y

If the challenge is a bit overwhelming, then check out this month's Hoopla Along or our Newbie Craftalong, both are great ways to get your feet wet. Who knows, you might make a new best friend or learn a new crafty skill. 

No More Reality, PLEASE!

Yeah...I'm a little done with reality right now. I'm going to Pamtown and not coming out. Wanna come with me? I feel like I haven't devoted enough time to my blog lately and I am so sorry for that. Between my father being under the weather and having surgery and Lola Mae having problems from getting older, I just haven't been able to devote the time I wanted to. Don't you just hate when reality tries to control your life? 

Since taking care of a sick dad and sick little Lola, I have been stitching like crazy and reading a ton. What have I been reading...nothing special except, TRASHY ROMANCE NOVELS! Hey, it's the summer, which means trashy romance novels, don't judge. 

I am really having fun reading them and I prefer to go for the PG-13 romance. The X-rated ones just make me giggle too much. I have found that there is a certain formula to these novels, they break down like this:

City girl has crappy disrespectful boyfriend and for some reason they just broke up. She then decides to head to a small town because 1-someone wronged her family and she is getting property to make it right or 2-she wants to start a bakery or a wedding planning business in a small town because that's all she can afford. 

After she is settled she meets a very attractive man who is widowed and his wife at the time was having an affair, caring the child of her lover or the child is sick and the mother has left because she can't handle it. The man has a heart of gold around the rough edges. 

Boy and girl meet, they get into fights. She is independent but he loves that. She loves that he is a caring dad/cares about animals. 

They finally give into their lust and live happily ever after. All problems solved and she ends up pregnant with his child. The end. 

I am not making fun of this formula, it works and I love it! I love it so much that I will sit and read a book in one day. I think they are very sweet books.  

Some of my favorite authors right now are Lori Wilde and Debbie Macomber. Yes, these authors make quick easy cheesy books but they also restore our faith in romance and love. You want to see the couple fall in love at the end, you want the bad guy get what's coming to him and you want it tied up with a nice bow. I am a firm believer that we all need a little summer romance. 

Down By the Sea

I have been going swap crazy on Craftster. I am currently in a Hit the Beach swap. We had to make our partner something that was beach themed. Of course I decided to make a wreath. I was inspired by My Very Educated Mother .

I started with a dollar store swimming pool noodle. I taped it up to make a wreath form.

For the ocean (or the sky) I used chunky blue yarn and for the sand I used burlap. I added some shells and there ya have it, a beach wreath.

For my small item. I decided to do a sea glass vase/jar and fill it with gummy sharks. The paint came out a little darker than I wanted and I really wish the directions told you for a completely smooth finish you really need more coats or that it take 4 days for it to dry and then bake. I'm still pretty happy with it and may play with other shades.

Now on to the next swap....Sideshows, Halloween and Make a Friend. Yahoo for crafty goodness!

Busy, Busy, Busy

Someone once told me that idle hands are the devil's workshop. If that's the case, I've got nothing to worry about because I have been super duper busy.

First, I just finished up another Craftster Quickie. This time I made corn starch clay. It was pretty cool! I love the white porcelain look of it. 

Second, I've been stitching like a mad woman. I've been picking little projects that I can do while watching movies or TV.

First, a group of cuties with pups!






Yep, I was totally singing the Wonder Woman theme when I did this one last night.



If that wasn't enough, I had to do a beach scene to get me in the mood for summer!







Whew! June was way too busy! I need a vacation! Who am I kidding, stitching and crafting are my vacation! 

Cool Stitching

Over the weekend the heat was a little more than the pups could take so instead of worshiping the sun gods, I stayed inside with the A/C blowing on me, stitching, while Lola, Pete and Jujube crashed around me. I decided to watch a few shows I had on my Amazon Prime watchlist. 

The first show was London Hospital. Such a great series. Unfortunately, BBC only filmed 2 season. Boo on that! The series is set during the industrial revolution in London. It centers around the famous London Hospital. Be warned! This show can be gory! It depicts the era with gritty realism. The stories are based on newspaper clippings, journals and hospital records. At the end of each episode they give you a bit more information about the history of the story. 

After watching London Hospital, I needed something a bit lighter, so I went with Sherlock. Yes, I know...I'm late to the party about this one. Can I just say, BRILLIANT! Love this series and I can't wait for the next season. The story is set in modern London with the usual suspects, Sherlock Holmes, Watson and Moriarty playing games, creating and solving crimes. Steven Moffit of Dr. Who fame has his hands all over this series, which makes for excellent writing and producing. 

What are you catching up on this summer? Any series that you are just dying over that I need to see? There are a lot of hot days and a lot of stitching ahead of me. 

Scrappy Dog Sunday

Last Christmas a friend of mine sent me a great dog treat recipe. Great because it was so simple! Having three dogs can pose a few problems, one being that each one has a different food thing going on. These treats perfect for all three. These treats are great for older dogs because they are slightly soft.  

Peanut Butter Dog Crackers
Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons oil

• Mix all ingredients together in a bowl and form a dough ball

• Roll out dough with rolling pin and cut into small bites. I have used small cookie cutters before but they really were too big for my dogs. I also didn't make them too thick so they could chew them. Cut them do your dog's needs. 

• Bake at 350 degrees for 15-17 minutes. 
• Cool on rack
• I put a little baggie full next to the door and freeze the rest. They can last in the freezer for about 6 months. 

A few things:
I tried it with natural peanut butter. It was okay but I might reduce the oil by about 1/2 next time if I use the natural stuff

I used regular flour but if your dog has an allergy, you can certainly try different ones and maybe adjust the cooking time.

You can put these treats on a baking sheet pretty close to eachother. They do not spread. On a big cookie sheet I used about half of the dough.

As you can see, these treats are so good, they even brought the elusive Emo Jujube out of her natural cave habitat.