So many pictures...

My box of photos from Shutterfly FINALLY arrived yesterday. You know you've ordered a LOT of photos when they're shipped in a heavy cardboard box rather than a flimsy mailing envelope.

My memories are apparently not in my head but are, in fact, inside this box!

That explains a lot!

Now my memories are in a pile on the floor!

Yep, you got 'em all! says Tinsel.

Although it may not look like it, there are nearly 500 photos in these piles. (Can you tell I have fallen behind in my photo printing?) To be fair, this stack of photos includes a trip to Florida. But there are also lots and lots of photos from IU football games. And you won't believe this, but there are NO cat photos in this order. Not a single one!

I ordered a a few enlargements of favorite photos. As I'm editing photos prior to uploading them, I try to think about how many I'll need for a particular event in order to tell the story. If one or two photos stand out, I'll print them as 5x7 or larger to use as focal point photos on layouts.

A couple of years ago, I started keeping track of the photos I've printed and want to scrapbook on a little chart. (This comes as no surprise to those of you who know me!) It's nothing elaborate but it helps me stay on track -- and it was especially useful when I was working on layouts for our daughter's graduation.

When facing a big pile of new photos (or even a box of old photos), it is easy to get overwhelmed, but I've found that having a "process" makes things go pretty smoothly. Here's what I do:

1. Throughout a given month, I edit and sort my photos in Picasa. Each set of photos goes into a labeled folder on my computer.
2. At the end of the month, I make a list (on my little chart) of the events/topics which occurred during the month which I want to include in the scrapbooks.
3. I upload each folder of photos using the interface between Picasa and Shutterfly. (Picasa has interfaces with 15+ developers; Shutterfly is the one I'm using at the moment.) I note on my chart which photos have been uploaded.
4. When the photos arrive, I check them off on the chart.
   
5. I organize my photos by date into black photo boxes. I'm using these boxes because they match the color scheme of my scrapbooking area.
6. As soon as I've organized my photos, I pull out batches of photos and put them -- along with matching cardstock, paper, and memorabilia -- into page planning sleeves. This makes it easy to grab one and start working on a layout whenever time permits. When I'm facing a big stack of photos, I tend to start by scrapbooking the "smaller" events (one or two-page layouts) and then work my way up to the larger (multiple-page events) so that I can feel more productive. (Yep, it's a psychological thing!)
7. As soon as I've completed a layout, I check it off my list. That's always a good feeling!

With this set of photos, I'll be starting on a Florida vacation album. I'm going to try a color-themed and semi-repetitive design approach for that album, so watch for posts about that process in the coming weeks.

Lily's Bigg Dai!

Hai guise! Mi hed iz SOO BIGG rite neow that it cannot fit throo da rales. Im feline kinda famuss!

Wanna no whyy???

Im so exsited becuz da nice peeps at Bell Outlet put mee on dare blog todai! Becuz i lernt to ring bellz for fuds and teeched miself to also ring a possum! Thx Bell Outlet!

Bell Outlet is far from mi howse but i wish i cud go dare sumtime. I can onlee imagyne how many bells i cud ring dare an how many fuds i cud git!

Hopefully other kittehs will see da blog post an also lern to ring bellz and trane der humans, too!

Kthxbai!
Luv, Lily

Feline Friday: Possum Bells

Some of my faithful readers (maybe even all five of you!) may recall that a couple of years ago, I taught Lily to ring a bell for food. I tried a couple of different bell options at the time and found that Lily could most easily handle a cloth bag of jingle bells. She pushes the bag with her paw until it makes a jingle noise and I come running to dole out the tasty morsels. Tinsel has also learned to come to the kitchen when she hears the bells, although she doesn't ring them herself. This little routine is actually quite adorable and if you come to our house, we'll gladly give you a demonstration (much to Daughter's dismay).

For the past couple of years, Lily has been ringing the bag of bells regularly when she's hungry. In fact, she sometimes rings it so frequently that I have to put it out of reach.

Okay, we're coming to the point of today's post, so get ready...

A few days ago, I put Lily's bag of bells away due to Incessant Bell Ringing. That evening around dinner time, I heard "jingle-jingle-jingle" coming from the kitchen. Hmmm...What could that be? Lily's bag of bells was out of reach.

I rounded the corner and found Lily sitting in front of her food bowl where, much to my amazement, she was wiggling her POSSUM toy back and forth -- jingle-jingle-jingle!

Lily hadn't shown much interest in this new possum toy until she discovered the bell. Now she rings the possum AND the bag of bells -- whichever is more convenient for her, of course.

Here's the possum, up close and personal. Who knew he'd have such an important job to do?

And here's Tinsel, right on time. It seems she answers to Possum Bells, too.

Now when Lily first learned to ring a bag of bells for food, I have to admit I was pretty impressed. But I'm even more amazed at this new trick! Out of our vast array of cat toys, she singled out one with a bell quite on her own and -- in absence of her bag -- rang it, too.

Lily, you may go to the head of the class!

Snow Day!

Here in central Iowa, we just caught the edge of the mammoth storm which has paralyzed the Midwest. If the wind would stop blowing, we might be able to get an accurate measurement of snowfall totals, but I'm guessing we got around six inches of the white stuff, on top of the snow we already had on the ground. It's nice to freshen things up a bit. :)

Here's a photo early in the afternoon shortly after the storm began.

A little while later, you could see it starting to accumulate.

And then the wind kicked in. I wish you could see the wind in this photo.

The wind eventually became so strong that it looked like the snow was coming down sideways. You'll just have to take my word for it.

And last night, it looked like we were in the Arctic tundra.

Remind me again: Why do we live in Iowa?

Recipe: Moroccan Vegetarian Stew

When I lived in Paris during college, we often ate at a little Moroccan restaurant just down the street from our dorm on Boulevard Raspail. The food was cheap and quite different than anything I'd ever tried back in Iowa. The atmosphere also appealed to college students who were far from home and trying to live "la vie Boheme". I have vivid memories of our little group sitting on pillows around low tables in the dimly lit restaurant, sampling exotic new foods and chatting with other students from all over the world.

Since that time, I've had a fondness for Moroccan food but it's been many years since I've made it myself. Last week, I ran across a recipe for Moroccan Vegetarian Stew and thought I'd give it a try. Colorful, healthful, and incredibly aromatic, this kind of dish is wonderful served over couscous. And I have to say that the aroma of the stew simmering on the stove was ALMOST powerful enough to transport me back to those days in Paris.

Moroccan Vegetarian Stew (Taste of Home magazine)

1 large onion, chopped
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. salt ** (I added a bit more)
3 cups water
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 medium carrots, sliced
3 plum tomatoes, chopped
2 small zucchini, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans (chick peas), rinsed and drained

In a Dutch oven (I used a large stock pot), saute onion in oil until tender. Add spices and salt; cook 1 minute longer. (You won't believe how good this smells!)

Stir in the water, squash, potatoes, carrots, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes and squash are almost tender.

Add zucchini and chickpeas; return to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 5-8 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Serve over couscous or with warm pita bread. Add a dollop of yogurt or sour cream on top to cool it down. (Some may find this recipe spicy; I did not.)

So true...

I picked up this little letterpress-printed quote on a trip to Kansas City last year with the crew from Memory Bound. It's only taken me a year to put it in a frame! Unfortunately, the eclectic shop where I bought it is going out of business.

I was immediately drawn to the art and the whimsical font. And of course, any cat person would agree with me that the proverb is 100% accurate!

Feline Friday

Click on the photo to see Tinsel's Tip of the Day:

How to catnap next to your irritating little sister without actually TOUCHING a single part of her way-too-cheerful body

Hurry, please!

What NAUGHTY THING could these kitties possibly be doing? They look so INNOCENT, just sitting on the desk nicely next to each other.

Well, I'll tell you what they're doing: They are waiting for me to finish my yogurt so they can have a tiny taste! As soon as I open the yogurt container (or pour a bowl of cereal, or heat up some leftovers, make a salad with Ranch dressing, or whatever!), the Peanut Gallery is assembled and waiting, often not so patiently, for small treat. Sometimes Tinsel will hop on my lap and Lily will climb on my shoulder, each one trying to get close enough to snag the first bite.

GIRLS! It's MY lunch! :)

Recipe: Picadillo Chowder

Recently I ran across a copy of a new-to-me magazine called Clean Eating. The recipes in this magazine feature ingredients in their natural, unprocessed state. So far, we've tried two recipes from this issue and they both were great. A third is on the stove right now.

Of course, I forgot to take a picture of the first recipe I made, so here's a photo of the magazine page. Note the title: Picadillo Chowder with Rice Browns. HAHAHA, I thought. A typo right in the title: They meant to say "brown rice", not "rice browns". This doesn't bode well for the recipe! It's probably going to SUCK!

Well, as I was assembling the soup, I read on a little further and realized that the "rice browns" are actually those cute little rice patties shown in the photo. FINE. Have your rice browns. Who even says "rice browns" anyway??? In addition to sounding a bit too pretentious for my taste, they looked rather labor intensive. No rice browns for me, thank you very much.

Now, the soup -- or chowder, to be precise -- was great the first day and even better the second. Definitely a KEEPER recipe. I made it early in the afternoon then put it in the crock pot to simmer until dinner. The only thing I would do differently is add a little salt. I think Spouse threw in some additional cumin, too, but I can't be sure of that. Perhaps he'll comment and share his secret ingredient.

Picadillo Chowder withOUT Rice Browns (Clean Eating magazine)

1 pound lean ground pork
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
32 oz low-sodium fat-free chicken broth
1 cup organic black beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup brown rice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chile powder
Juice of 1 lime
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

1. Prepare 1/4 cup rice according to package. Remove from heat and fluff with fork; set aside.

2. Chowder: In large stockpot, cook pork and onion on medium heat until pork is opaque and onion is translucent. Stir in garlic; cook for 2 minutes.

3. Remove pot from heat, pour pork mixture into colander and drain fat. Return to pot and add broth. Stir in beans, rice, cumin, and chile powder. Bring chowder to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Stir in lime juice and simmer for 15 minutes. Garnish with parsley.

Tabby Tuesday

SOOOO unladylike, Lily.

Valentine's Day Tree

Last fall, I bought a metal tree (with a set of wooden tags) at Memory Bound. It was intended to be for Christmas but since I surely don't need any more Christmas decorations, I decided to make a few sets of tags for other holidays. I started by making a Halloween tree using chipboard coasters. And this past weekend, I made a set of Valentine's Day decorations.

I'm not at all a big fan of Valentine's Day, but I thought it would be fun to have a new set of decorations and use up some very old things in the process.

My Valentine's Day tree is actually a blend of old and new product. Some of you may recognize the very old Making Memories pink/brown paper. I've always loved it (and of course, I hoarded it!) so I thought this would be the perfect project to use up some of my huge stash. I also used a few very old Making Memories metal tags, along with a new set of Tim Holtz keys (which I also used on my Halloween tree), and a few other chipboard pieces.

To establish a theme and color scheme, I first cut out several large hearts from the Making Memories paper using an Accu Cut die board. Since the paper is heavy and double-sided, there was no need to double the thickness. I simply inked the hearts, tied them with ribbon, and clipped them to the tree.

Next, I painted the chipboard pieces pink, inked them with Tim Holtz Walnut Stain, then added die cut or punched hearts to each along with a little bling. I used an Ali Edwards "love" stamp on some chipboard coasters and a very cute bird stamp on other pieces.

I'm pleased with how this project turned out. With luck, my next set of decorations will be for Easter/spring.

A Trip to the Vet

Earlier this week, it was Tinsel's day to go to the vet for her check-up. I dusted off the cat carrier and went to fetch her. (Of course, she was suddenly nowhere to be found.)

Sure enough, when I finally returned to the carrier with Tinsel in tow, there was Lily -- all ready to go somewhere fun and exciting!

"I iz reddy, Mama! Letts go!" she said.

Unfortunately (or actually FORTUNATELY for the vet) it was not Lily's appointment day. (Some of you may recall that Lily has an Extreme Aversion to Cat Show Judges and Veterinarians. Her chart at the vet's office is even marked "FEISTY".) At any rate, it wasn't at all easy to fish Lily out of the carrier and poke Tinsel in tail first (while she clung frantically to my neck), but I managed to get the job done without injury to any of us.

Tinsel serenaded me non-stop with her special "I sure hope I'm not going to the vet" RAAAAAAOOOOWWWW for the duration of the 25-minute trip. As soon as we turned into the vet's driveway, she stepped it up even further, just for dramatic effect.

As I parked the SUV and got ready to take her inside, Tinsel caught a glimpse of the vet's office and immediately realized where she was.

The look on her face says it all. OH, CRAP.