KariV | Sunshine in my pocket

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Dose of Sunshine Monday — What if listening

By KariV on September 23, 2013 in Inspiration

Yesterday at church we discussed helping people, “rescuing” them…and someone brought up the idea that maybe we could help people by simply listening.

I think that there is definitely something to that. I know that just a little listening, understanding, discussing, and encouraging can go miles to helping someone (or even saving a life).

What if our only real assignment is to listen carefully?

But not just listening for others; Listening for OURSELVES. When we stop to hear God’s plan for us, we can see miracles unfold. Take some time to listen today…you decide what to listen to. What do you hear?

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You Make Me Smile card

By KariV on September 22, 2013 in Paper Crafting

Aren’t eggplants a funny vegetable. They really seriously make me smile. That is what inspired this card today, well, that AND the Paper Smooches Color Story card challenge. The colors they chose are called “Fresh Fall:”

With those colors to work with, I immediately thought of my Paper Smooches “Vegtastic” eggplant stamp. It is a funny little stamp, but it always makes me smile. When I got this stamp set, I wondered what I would EVER use that eggplant for. This challenge was perfect! Here’s what I came up with:

I watercolored the eggplant and used some purple glitter glue on a few of them. (Don’t touch yet…wet glue!) For the sentiment I used the “YOU” stamp set from Simon Says Stamp. The cloud die cut is also from SSS.

Look at those cute little shadows the eggplant makes…I popped them out with pop dots. A little washi tape makes the fun pennant banner. Those eggplant veggies *might be having a little party.

Here’s a side view so you can see the dimension. I hope this card made YOU smile.

Entering the Paper Smooches challenge here.

And the Simon Says Stamp challenge here. Have a week of SMILES!

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Grilled Peach Salad with Caramelized Onions and Homemade Croutons

By KariV on September 18, 2013 in Cooking Light, Recipes

Our peaches from Utah finally came in this week! Yes, I am very excited to make all things peaches! When you think of recipes with peaches, what do you think of?

I think peach pie, peach jam, peach cobbler…you know, desserts. But today I have an unexpected TREAT for you: My favorite salad with GRILLED PEACHES!

It’s my Grilled Peach Salad with Caramelized Onions and Homemade Croutons.

This salad is fantastic. It’s the only salad that I DON’T put salad dressing on…it doesn’t need it! (Ok, ok, if you need salad dressing try a light balsamic or Olive Garden Italian dressing. Those are delish on this salad. Also a Peach Balsamic is fantastic with this.)

First, prepare the caramelized onion. Slice an onion (I use a yellow onion, or Vidalia if you can find them). Heat some olive oil (about 1 T.) in a skillet. Add the onion and cook low and slow until the onions are soft and caramel colored. Stir occasionally. This will take some time…but it’s worth it!

While the onions are cooking away, prepare the croutons. Slice some bread into bite-sized pieces. I like to use sourdough bread or rosemary olive oil bread. Spritz the bread with olive oil and toss. Sprinkle lightly with garlic salt. Broil in the oven for a minute or two, until they are lightly browned and crunchy. Keep an eye on these while in the oven…they cook fast!

Now, prepare the veggies. Wash and dry the lettuce. Romaine and Green leaf lettuce are the best for this salad. Tear the lettuce into bite size pieces. Slice some fresh tomatoes. Shred some cheddar cheese.

By this time, the onions should be just about ready. Now, just slide those over a bit so you can grill the peaches. Take your peaches and cut them in half, remove the pit. Place them cut-side down in the pan with the onions (add a drizzle of olive oil if it needs it). Let those brown up just a bit…about 2 minutes. {Note: you can grill them on your outdoor grill or use an indoor grill pan if you have it.}

Now build your salad and ENJOY!

Lettuce, tomato, caramelized onions, shredded cheddar, grilled peaches; This salad is layered with flavor…don’t forget to add your croutons!

This is one of those dishes you can feel good about eating. It tastes good AND it’s nice and light. I wish I had one right now.

You can expect a few more peach goodies from me soon! Oh yeah.

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Dose of Sunshine Monday — Think Positive to Be Positive

By KariV on September 16, 2013 in Inspiration

Hello again, Monday. How’s YOUR Monday going? I’ve been thinking about the bad wrap that Monday has:

Another work week
Rainy Days and Mondays always Get Me Down
Just Another Manic Monday
Waiting for the Weekend

But how about some POSITIVE thoughts for Monday? Let’s think about all the times you have been successful. Or achieved something great! Can you think of any?

I can. Just today, actually. My Monday started out with some things I had to take care of that I wasn’t very happy about. Problems, fires, you know how Mondays can be… (oops, another bad Monday thought)
But I DID THEM! I GOT THROUGH THEM! And now there’s a little twinkle in my eye and a skip to my step.

And just last weekend I went to a large group gathering (that many times I’m not too fond of…I don’t like big groups and I often get claustrophobic…sigh), but I DID IT! (Que the Rocky theme song music!)

So what have you done lately that has you feeling happy, successful, proud or ecstatic?

This sign is a little quote from my husband. He is so brave and is constantly cheering me on when I have to do things I’d rather not do. When I hold onto that happy moment, I feel much more positive!

So take a moment to think positive thoughts and feel more positive about your day. Then go and conquer your work! And if you need to, go ahead and turn on that Rocky theme song “Gonna Fly Now” or “Eye of the Tiger” and feel great about yourself. 😉

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The Handmade Nest — A Glimpse

By KariV on September 15, 2013 in Favorite Things, Uncategorized

Have you heard about the Handmade Nest? I had the opportunity to go to the first ever GNO put on by the Handmade Nest last weekend. It was fabulous!

The Handmade Nest is an opportunity for bloggers and non-bloggers in Arizona to get together and craft! It was held at the Power Ranch Barn, and let me just say it was the PERFECT venue for this event. There was plenty of room for all the tables, and I did not feel crowded, squished, or claustrophobic at all. 🙂

It was dark when I got there (it started at 7 p.m.) so I didn’t get a picture of the outside of the barn, but take a look at a portion of the inside:

This is only about half the room; there were a number of additional tables set up to the left that aren’t pictured here. Also, I have to mention, there was a nice & big bathroom located on the east side of the room. (I know it’s funny to mention a bathroom, but when you have that many women gathered for an evening…it’s nice to have that close by!)

When I first got there, I had to check out the giveaway table:

Just look at all that loot! They had amazing sponsors like Riley Blake Fabric (love them!), Downeast Basics, My Minds Eye, The Ribbon Retreat, DecoArt, Wood Connection, Vintage Rose Wraps, Petite Party Studio, Rod Works, and so many more awesome companies! And you may not believe this, but I WON something:

A gift card to Downeast!! I was so excited…I may have screamed out loud. 🙂

Then I was drawn to an amazing display on the north side of the room….the CAKE BAR!

Petite Party Studio and Inspired Sugar have done it again…a FEAST for our eyes!! Those cakes are amazing…and I love the logo made out of fondant on the middle cake. It looks perfect! Those fondant flowers on the other cakes are so cute. And look at that amazing burlap runner with ruffles to match the theme.

I just love all the banners on the cakes, too. See the sticks used behind the cakes as a backdrop? Perfect for the “Nest” theme. They had many flavors of cakes at the party…like pumpkin chocolate chip and vanilla with raspberry filling. Yum.

When they started the evening, we got instruction and got to crafting! I chose to make the “Nest” boards. There were 4 equally amazing crafts you could pre-order to make. My husband asked what we were going to do with “Nest” boards…and I said, “imagine how cute these would be with an Easter vignette…” and he said, “Well, I guess we could re-arrange the letters to say TENS or SENT…” Yeah, I’m pretty sure they will be re-arranged every time I walk by them! 🙂

While my boards were drying, I took a break for cake. I had the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cake and it was SO good. I’ve tasted a lot of cake in my decades of living…and this one just MIGHT be in my top 10! Really…it was that good. (Thank you, Inspired Sugar) I heard the other flavors were delicious, too. In the interest of fair reporting, I just may have to taste all the flavors next time and share my findings with you. 😉

I met some fun new people. I think one of the perks of going to these types of events alone is that you are kinda forced to meet new people. Even though I am sometimes a little shy, one of my goals for the night was to meet another blogger or two.

Here’s Melanie from Reasons to Skip the Housework and Valerie from Occasionally Crafty. (Sorry, Kaitlyn, only a part of your shoulder made it in this picture!) I was lucky enough to sit by them! And they made these cute signs…which was one of my top choices for the night. (BUT since my husband was recently in a bicycle accident I decided against this one) Now that I see how cute they turned out, I’m wishing I opted for this craft as well!

Thanks to all the brilliance of the event coordinators:

Rebecca from The Crafted Sparrow

Kelli from Lolly Jane

Katie from Sweet Rose Studios

Kristy from The Diary of Dave’s Wife

All the crafts were too cute and it was so difficult to choose!