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2/29/2016

The Monday Report - Week 7

2/29/2016 0 Comments

Happy Leap Day Everyone!

Oh, it's also Monday. Well, that's not so fun. 

This week's recap is going to be short and sweet, because AF showed up and really messed up things. 

When I was in high school, AF used to grace me with terrible cramps and nausea, but I haven't suffered with that stuff for forever. Until last week. 

Holy wow, did AF knock me on my ass. Labor was easier. Seriously. I even gave birth to a 10+ lbs baby, and I'd gladly go through those 18 hours again if it meant not feeling like I did last week. 

I'm hoping it's a fluke. We'll see next month. Oh the fun we have as women. Seriously, I think we've paid a thousand times over for the sins of Eve. 

Today is a new week, so let's just get to the meat of the post.

2/26/2016

Flashback Friday - Woven Pillow

2/26/2016 0 Comments
Flashback Friday
There are a lot of inspired posts in the archives, and I'm digging them out to share with you all again. Hence, the new themed day. This isn't going to be an every Friday thing, but I figure it'll happen often enough to where it deserves a pretty graphic. It might happen every Friday for a bit, but who knows. I'm really just flying by the seat of my pants here.

I'm excited to share today's blog post. I mean share it again. I originally wrote this blog post way back in 2010. I'm not going to just cut and paste the original post though.

I've learned a few things in the years between then and now, so I'm going to spruce it up, and regift it to you guys.

2/25/2016

Fit 4 Thursday - Banana Walnut Tartine

2/25/2016 0 Comments

What!?!?

I've managed to write two Thursday posts in two weeks?! That's craziness. Ok, it's not, but I feel like mini-celebrations are a needed part of everyday life. They're little pick-me ups.

You know what else is a pick-me up? Breakfast.

I love breakfast. Breakfast = coffee. If you follow me anywhere, but here then you know I love my coffee.

Today's post is not about coffee, but about a breakfast that pairs super well with coffee.

Earlier this week, I made myself some fresh ricotta for the sole purpose of making myself a tartine for breakfast. My ricotta recipe is {HERE}, and my other tartine recipe is {HERE}. Both are super yummy and easy.

What's better, is if you don't like store-bought waffles, then use bread! Challah would be amazing, as would sourdough or even a baguette. It really doesn't matter. Now let me introduce you to my newest favorite.

2/24/2016

What to Eat Wednesday - Eat More Chocolate (and Nuts)!

2/24/2016 0 Comments

Happy hump-day folks!

It's me! Heather's charming and talented baby sister, Dana!

Cutting right to the chase, what I've got for y'all today is a recipe test with some helpful tips/random thoughts at the end.

This is not my recipe by any means, but rather from Whole Foods. In case you couldn't guess from the title (and if you did, points!), we're making a homemade version of Nutella today!  Or, as I like to call it, HC spread.

2/23/2016

Updating the Picture Wall

2/23/2016 0 Comments
Why is it that some of the simplest updates we can do around our house take the most time?

Not because they're difficult or will take a lot of time, but because they're so easy.

You keep putting them off, because one day you'll "get to it." It's on the list.

Today, I knocked one of those "get to it"s off the list.

I finally updated the kids' pictures on the picture wall.

2/22/2016

The Monday Report - Week 6

2/22/2016 0 Comments
The Monday Report

Training last week, started off really strong, then sickness invaded the house. All the kids shared some nasty stomach bug, which meant plan changes for me, but it's all ok.

Everyone is now healthy, and hopefully it stays that way for a bit. 

There's not much else going on, so let's just get to the meat of the report. 


THE RUNDOWN

2/19/2016

Small Fry's Not-So-New New Room

2/19/2016 0 Comments

Small Fry was a very patient boy for 6 weeks.

6 weeks ago, we told him we'd be updating his room. He needed more space, and with smallest room in the house, the arrangement we had going on for him just wasn't working. 

He patiently waited while we worked on the basement before Super Bowl. Then less than a week after Super Bowl, he had his new set-up. I'll share a secret with y'all - he's worse than me about timelines and what he expects done.

2/18/2016

Fit 4 Thursday - Throwback Edition

2/18/2016 0 Comments
Fit 4 Thursday

Some journey's don't require you too look back. Most people don't like looking to the past, but when you're on a journey to get healthy, lose weight, or achieve a fitness goal, looking back is good for you.

It reminds you about how far you've come. It's been a rough week in the Boyajian household. Over the weekend, Small Fry went down with a stomach bug, and then Tuesday night, Baby Girl got hit with the same bug. Small Fry was kind enough to suffer during the day. We only had one incident at night, but the hubs and I were still awake. No biggie. Baby Girl, on the other hand, was stricken with the nasty bug about an hour before hubs and I went to bed. It was a long night. A very long night.

Garmin said I got 4 hours of sleep. It lies. I might have been lying down for 4 hours, not continuously, but there was not a lot sleeping going on. We moved Baby Girl into our room, so we could better hear when we needed to take her to the bathroom, which was a fine idea. Our bed didn't get puked in, but she was sick multiple times throughout the night. I think I finally fell asleep around 5 am. The hubs didn't fair much better.

I am still recovering from that horrible night of sleep, which has me whining about my run later today. It's only 4 miles. It's not a big deal, but it is.  I want sleep too, but I need to keep with my training. The miles will get done, but they won't be pretty, which is why I went looking for inspiration.

I found inspiration on my old fitness blog, Muffin Top, in a post titled: Popped my Cherry.  It was just the kick to the motivation I needed.

2/17/2016

What to Eat Wednesday - Quick Potato Corn Chowder

2/17/2016 0 Comments


Happy Humpday everyone!

Man, it's been forever since I did a What to Eat Wednesday, and I'm super excited to share this gem of a soup with you guys today.

It's been miserably cold here in NoVA lately, and I've been perpetually on the chilly side because of it. When the days are as cold as they've been, then it's definitely soup time here at the Boyajian house.

The problem with soups is that my Big Guy doesn't like brothy soups. He likes soups that you have to chew. The other problem was that Small Fry came up sick and unable to hold anything down, so chewable soup was out for him. This soup only solved one problem - feeding the Big Guy. Small Fry got some warmed plain chicken broth in a mug with a loopy straw, because being sick is not fun for anyone, but drinking soup from a mug with a silly straw is sure to make you feel at least a little better.

So on to the hearty soup. Years ago, I found a terrific recipe for a Potato Corn Chowder from one of my Taste of Home cookbooks, but I couldn't find the darn recipe, and I needed to get to the grocery store before nap time was over, so I did a quick search on Taste of Home's site, and found {THIS} perfect little number.

It takes 30 minutes, and it's super easy to modify. We added Turkey Kielbasa to ours, because meat. It was a hit, and everyone had seconds!

2/15/2016

The Monday Report - Week 5

2/15/2016 0 Comments
The Monday Report

The kids are off school again, dang holidays, but luckily, we're forecasted for yet another winter storm. 

Can you sense my sarcasm? If my kids are off school tomorrow...

I don't even know how to finish that sentence. I love having my kids home, but not on unscheduled days, when we're stuck in the house. Cabin fever sets in real quick in this house. 

I've gone off topic again. The real problem is that I have a hard time motivating myself when the white stuff is falling. All I want to do is curl up under a blanket, near the fireplace, with my coffee and watch tv. Not a good way to start off my 40 days. 

Well enough complaining, let's get to the meat and potatoes.

2/12/2016

One of those projects.....

2/12/2016 0 Comments
So remember when I shared my plans for the bar table? It's been a few weeks, but let me refresh your memory.

Reclaimed Oak Bar Table

It will now be known as That %*&$ Table.


It was one of those projects. If it could go wrong, it did, and then some.

We're never getting rid of this table. It went so over budget, and it's stupid.

Ok, I might be done throwing my minor tantrum.

2/11/2016

Woman's World Valentine's Day Wreath - Throwback Post

2/11/2016 0 Comments
Woman's World featured this wreath in their magazine issue last week!

When they contacted me out of the blue one day in January, saying they wanted to do a feature on this wreath, I was a little overwhelmed. Here is the post from 2011, I did edit it a bit so that nothing is out of context.


Throwback Post


Hearts are not my favorite shape. I know I've discussed this, but when it comes to heart I'm a little ambivalent about them, which makes Valentine's Day odd for me. I like the idea behind Valentine's Day, but I don't go heart crazy. At least I didn't, I've warmed up to hearts over the years, which is why I'm excited to debut my double heart wreath.

2/10/2016

Decoupage Pub Table

2/10/2016 0 Comments

I'm so excited about this little corner in our basement. This corner used to hold the bar, but when we moved the bar a while ago, this corner just seemed unimpressive. Now, it's mostly done. There are a few more things we want to do to the corner, but for now it's done. I shared the picture windows yesterday {HERE}, but now it's time to focus on the table.

Last year we got this pub table set for a steal off of our local yard sale site, and it sat unloved for almost a year.

We always knew that we'd be updating it, but we couldn't quite agree on how to update it. The hubs and I talked about several different things we could do to it, but never actually did anything to it, until last week.

2/08/2016

The Monday Report - Week 4

2/08/2016 0 Comments
The Monday Report

This week went better than previous weeks. I got in 3 dedicated workouts, and more than a few housecleaning workouts.

Overall the week went well, it wasn't until the end of the week, when things got a little busy gearing up for the Super Bowl, did I trade in my runs for running up and down my stairs multiple times. 

I need to start getting in all my runs. DC is next month. Thankfully we're done with parties and holidays and what not for a bit. 

On to the recap!

2/03/2016

Styling the Basement Built-In

2/03/2016 0 Comments
Styling the Built-in

My husband thought I was nuts. After we finished the built-in, I was worrying about styling it.

We'd just built this beautiful thing, and I was worried about what to put in it.

I should've trusted the hubs, because he was right. Styling it was the fun part. I got to go shopping, both retail and at home, and experiment with stuff. What's not to like? I think I was mostly worried about the vastness of the space I needed to fill. It was a lot, at first, but then it really wasn't so much. 

After I got the books put in place, then came the fun part. I was able to create this nice cohesive look with a mixture of old and new.

2/02/2016

State String Art Love - Virginchusetts

2/02/2016 0 Comments


You might be a bit confused by the latter half of that title, but let me explain it. My Big Guy has been putting his witty 10-year-old prowess to work with puns and other wordy jokes, and when I completed this project (the first time) he dubbed it Virginchusetts. So it's now stuck.

So if you've followed Sew Half Crazy on Instagram or Facebook, then you know for the last 3 weeks or so we've been diligently working in our basement. Super Bowl is Sunday. We're hosting. We've got a bit more to get done. Eek! I digress.

2/01/2016

The Monday Report - Week 3 and January Review

2/01/2016 0 Comments
The Monday Report

Well today is February 1, and honestly I thought I'd be further in my training right now.

I really have no one to blame, but myself and a lack of dedication. The stomach bug I came down with last week didn't help either, but hey I'm down 5 lbs! Not the way I wanted to lose half the weight I found over the holidays, but I won't turn my nose up at it either. 

I did get in workouts last week, and I'm proud of that; however, I am finding myself contemplating Rock 'N Roll DC this year. It's 5 weeks away. Am I going to be ready for it? Probably not. Should I run it? I don't know. Do I want to run it? Yes.