Race Bib Book

So my last post was all about the races I have completed. I included a picture of my bibs. I've saved them all. And even though I met my goal I'm going to continue to run. I ran a race this weekend in fact. I'm expecting this stack of bibs to grow and grow and grow.

 

And they are taking up a lot of space! I needed to do something with them so of course I googled for ideas. I found several ideas about making them into bags or Scanning them and printing on canvas to make them into a quilt and even making them into coasters. But all of those projects required the bibs to be sent away or made a product that I really don't have a need for. The best idea was something I saw in the back of Runners World magazine called a bibfolio, But this cool album to keep track of all my bibs was almost $40! I knew I could do better than that.

 

 

Unfortunately I didn't take many in process pictures. I think I was just too excited to create and just kept working without snapping some photos.

First I decided on the size of my cover I measured the largest bib I had. In this case it was the color run and the GOTR Spring 5K. And then I made my cover and back bigger than those by about about an inch in all directions. This meant that my book will be a 9 x 9 square. I cut chipboard into two nine by nine squares. You can buy chipboard at a craft store, but I typically use chipboard that comes as a stabilizer in packages of pattern scrapbook paper. You might find these on the back of a stack of coordinated paper or in a package of lettering. You want to make sure that you use chipboard and not corrugated cardboard.

Next you'll cover this with patterned paper. The best way to cover is to glue the chipboard in the center of your square of paper. Then cut triangles off of each of the corners. This gives a nice mitered finish on the inside corners of the board you're covering. I also cut a square just a shade bigger than 8 3/4 inches and glued this over the folded in edges to make everything look professional.

I use my Cropodile to punch holes in the front and back cover at the same width as the holes in my tops of my bibs. The cropodile really is the best hole puncher I've found because it lets you punch further away from the edge than a traditional hole punch and it easily punches through chipboard and multiple layers of paper.

 

I threaded the front and back cover and all of my bibs arranged chronologically from the first race in the back to the last race on the top onto 3 inch binder rings that you can purchase at craft stores or office Supply stores.

Last step is to embellish. I used letters and rub ons and stickers to decorate the front. I cut four rectangles of a coordinating color of patterned paper to make special places on the inside cover for my PRs or personal records. (I saw a great idea online to use white address labels to record your PRs. This way when you break a record, you can just place a new label over the top.)

 

And the best part of this bib folio? I used all crafting supplies that I already owned! I did not spend a single dime to buy something new to create this bib folio.

 

Posted with Blogsy

A Baby Shower Gift: Onesie Cupcakes

Today I had a baby shower for three awesome friends who are expecting new little ones in their lives. I found an awesome idea on Pinterest, of course, and I just had to try it out. This is a great alternative to a diaper cake, and a very cute way to present a simple gift.

Here is my inspiration: http://www.ourlittlecasita.com/2011/08/diy-cupcake-onesies-tutorial.html. This blog has great easy-to-follow instructions however I decided to skip a few steps and see if I could make it even easier

Since I was making three sets of four cupcake onesie packages I bought 12 onesies. I didn't want to use jumbo cupcake wrappers so I made sure to buy only newborn onesies.

First I took off all the tags so everything would fold up and rolled easily. Next I folded Each onesie into thirds and then that long skinny strip of onesie in half again. Starting at the end by the sleeves roll it tightly into a spiral, pulling the center up slightly to make the cupcake shape.

This is where I had to play around a little bit. Some of the onesies were made of thicker material. They didn't roll nearly as nicely as the super-thin Gerber onesies. I had to roll and reroll a couple of these until I got them just right! I skipped the step about the rubber band. It may have been easier I just tied it with a length of coordinated color ribbon around the spiral. Place it gently in the cupcake wrapper and you're done!

The next step is to find a cupcake box. I found mine at Michael's, a great craft store. You can find these in the cake decorating aisle near the cupcake wrappers. I was really surprised at all the patterns and coordinating cupcake wrappers that were available. The boxes hold for cupcakes each and are in packages of three so it was perfect for my shower gifts today. I added a tiny green adhesive rosette to the top of each cupcake. These were from the scrapbooking aisle. Tie each box with a coordinating color ribbon and ta-da! They're done!

Don't forget to pay attention to whether your friends are having boys or girls. Two of our friends haven't found out yet so they have green and yellow onesies and ribbon. Another friend already know she's having a girl so of course I chose to use lots of pink!

Posted with Blogsy

I did it - 12 5Ks in 2012

I know this is my crafty space....but tonight I need to write about what I've accomplished.  I met a goal I set for myself and I am so proud, I need to share!

This morning I did the hardest and craziest 5k I have ever done.  I finished the Blood and Guts 5K at a local Paintball park.   This was a nutty 5K and obstacle course - logs to crawl under and over, an army crawl in pumpkin guts, a climbing wall, several times back and forth across a creek on rocks and boards and even a "blood and guts pit!"   All while being chased, scared and attacked by Zombies and Monsters (they launched foam balls and bats at us!)

The fact that I did this, that I made it means so much to me... I never thought I'd be able to do this!  BUT even more important, this was my 12th 5K of the year.  I set a goal, back in February to get moving and do 12 5Ks in the year 2012.

I started out just walking these races.   I was slow, but I was moving.

I slowly started running some, then walking, then running more.   And this is how I finished my races.  I run and run and run now and I love it!  Sometimes I have to stop to walk and it's ok, then I run again after the next little bit.  But I am doing them.

And today, I finished my 12th.   I completed my goal.  I started on the 24th of March and finished today, November 4th.   That is 37.2 miles raced in 32 weeks , or the equivalent of 8 months.  I not only met that goal but I blew my goal out of the water!!

• March 24 - Rev 3 Run Rogue 5K at Fairfax Corner
• March 25 - RMH 5K in Ashburn
• April  15 Strides for Success 5K at Fairfax Corner
• May 5 Run for Kids 5K in Leesburg
• May 20 - GOTR 5k at GMU 
• June 9 - Buzzing for a cure 5k in Herndon
• September 23 - Asha Jyothi 5k at Fairfax Corner
• September 30 - Cody's Crew 5K in Manassas
• October 6 - Soles for Hope in Chantilly
• October 20 - Color Run at National Harbor, MD
• October 27 - Goblin Gallop at Fairfax Corner
• November 4 - Blood and Guts 5K in Aldie 

And today, I am proud.   I am so much stronger - and so much healthier.  And I needed to write about it!!  Thanks for reading!

Waiting for Sandy, the SuperStorm....and a tShirt Quilt

Ok, so this big giant superstorm is headed our way.  Sandy has cancelled school for 2 days and disrupted everything.   Right now we have high winds and lots of rain.  We are expecting flooding soon.... Thankfully I don't have a basement!

So I decided this was the perfect time to start a LONG project.   Last time I made a tshirt quilt it took for-EVER!   This time, I am either much better at it, or less distracted because I am rocking this quilt thing!

And this is also an in-process blog post.   No finished project yet -but hopefully (if the power stays on!) I will have something great to share soon!

I have committed to running 12 5Ks in 2012.   In my quest to get healthy and strong, this is just one goal I have set....and I am about to reach it.   :)   I have 11 races done and one more in November.

Now, all these races (but one!  GRR!!) have given me a tshirt of some sort.   SO this is where my 12 shirts are coming from.

First, I cut the shirts apart - sleeves off, sliced the sides and the shoulders.

Next, I bought value packs of iron on interfacing (get a light weight one) and cut it into 12" squares.  I ironed this onto the insides of the shirts.

Then I cut them into about 13x13 squares (so I have seam allowances this time!)

Next is the most fun - laying out the design!   Most of the shirts have a back-side with their sponsors.  I can't decide if I'm going to use them in the quilt front and make it huge OR make the back quilted from the backs of the shirts.    Right now they are laid out separately on my living room and dining room floor:

Now - I have one more race to run AND one race that didn't give a shirt.  I'm going to take a pic of the "plastic cup" we got instead of a tshirt.   That is why there are two spots left.   I wish there was a way to put my race bibs in the quilt without it being too much...   I thought about scanning them and printing them on iron-ons.   Hmm... Maybe this will be what I do next!

Last time i made a quilt like this it was a Queen Size quilt with my college, camp and sorority tshirts in it.  It took me forever!  This time I am going much faster!  I used a Fiskars Rotary Cutter and it is beyond amazing.  Everything is cut straight and so quickly!!

AND I have all these beautiful tshirt scraps left - so I googled projects with tshirt quilts and found this.  SOOO easy!  I made two wide headbands and one thin so far.  I anticipate making more because they are so super easy and fun!

Apple Cider Pork Roast in the Crock Pot

A few weeks ago, I had dinner at Cracker Barrel and saw their Apple Cider Braised Pork - delicious! But I knew I had to try and make it healthier, because let's face it....who knows what kinds of sweetener and preservatives are used and how much salt is added in when we eat out

Today I headed to Target and Costco - in the middle of all the crazy storm preparations here in Northern Virginia. Most people were buying tons of water and toilet paper, bread and milk. I did buy some bottled water just in case....but no TP, bread or milk in my basket!

For this recipe, I picked up a 4 pack of pork roasts, a bag of gala apples, dried cranberries, chopped pecans, and a half gallon of apple cider.

I browned the pork in a skillet, just to get the brown bits in the pan and on the meat. I added a tsp of coconut oil to the pan to speed things along.

(Side note: this white enamel skillet from Pampered Chef is amazing. I've completely been converted to using this and no other! I cook eggs, meat, veggies, of course bacon, and nothing sticks. It is so easy to clean up too! And pretty too!)

Then I chopped up my apples, peels on, and added them to the crockpot on high. I added about a half of the bag of cranberries and a third of the bag of pecans to the crockpot.

Next, I transferred the browned pork into the post and added a half jug of apple cider. I used a little of that to deglaze the pan and get all that yummy browned pork out of the skillet.

Now, all this is cooking on high for a few hours and it smells DELICIOUS! I can hardly wait till it is done. I'm guessing about 3-4 hours, but I will rely on my meat thermometer to tell me when the inside of the pork has reached 170 degrees and it is pull apart tender.

I'm normally very good at reading labels and avoiding additives like extra sugar. I missed the boat on these cranberries....they have sugar added. However, the chaos that is the stores here before the giant storm mean I just used them anyway instead of heading back out to exchange them. Always read carefully!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Oh my goodness! Pumpkin Pie Shake and Frappe!

Oh my goodness.

 

A few days ago I pinned a delicious looking drink recipe. I am ready for fall and that means I love all things pumpkin. It amazes me how businesses can develop anything and everything pumpkin.

 

Now, they are rarely healthy and certainly not Paleo.

 

But this? This recipe I can adjust and make it Paleo! I can do this. And I did. It is beyond amazing. I can't wait till morning to try the frappe recipe (if it wouldn't guarantee I am up all night I'd make it and drink it now!)

 

Ok....here it is.

 

http://www.peanutbutterandpeppers.com/2012/08/24/drink-your-pie/

 

That is the original and I only changed it slightly.

1 cup of coconut milk

2 Tbsps of canned pumpkin

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Handful of ice

Blend all ingredients in a blender or magic bullet. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon and enjoy!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Homemade Veggie Soup

Nothing says "First Day of Fall" like a slow cooker full of homemade soup.   Between the smells coming from my Scentsy (currently obsessed with Fried Ice Cream - order yours HERE!) and the soup cooking - and the sounds of football on TV, it was a perfect fall Saturday.

Now, to make this soup, I needed more veggies....I went to a local Asian Market - Lotte Plaza - and it was like a veggie jackpot.  Check this out!   I spent under $24.   And I splurged on a $4 bar of dark chocolate - so all the veggies and fruit was really under $20.

2 zucchini
2 yellow squash
2 green peppers
a bag of yellow, orange and red mini bell peppers
8 bananas
a pineapple
2 boxes of strawberries
5 peaches
a bag of carrots
a bunch of cilantro
and a box of artisan organic variety leaf lettuce.
PLUS that delicious bar of dark chocolate from Green&Black

Wow!  That is where I'm going from now on - but not on the weekend.  It was SOOO crowded!  I will go on weeknights.  I've gone a few times on school nights and it's not that bad.

So anyway, to make this veggie soup - add about 2 TBSP coconut oil and some seasonings to the bottom of your crockpot on high.   I used salt and pepper and oregano for this one.

Then start cleaning and cutting your veggies.  As much as I make fun of Rachel Ray, I like her idea of a garbage bowl - and it really works.  So cut your veggies, I cut up 2 yellow squash, 2 zucchini, 2 green peppers, a big handful of mini peppers, a bag of carrots.  

Add them to your crockpot.   My BF doesn't like onions, so we leave them out, but they are good in this too!  Fill up that crockpot!  They will cook down.

Add your tomatoes - you can use meat broth if you'd rather - but I like to make it vegetarian so I used 2 pints of tomato basil simmer sauce and 1 pint of stewed tomatoes.  The stewed tomatoes are a mix of red and yellow, so they are a light orange sauce.  :)   If you don't have home canned tomatoes to use a big can of chopped tomatoes or stewed tomatoes will be delicious too.  Also, you can add ro-tel to add a little heat!

Then, just let it cook.  YUM!   I will probably get some nitrate-free sausage to add to this tomorrow.  Probably something a little spicy...but I've eaten it as veggie soup many times!   Also, you can change your seasoning to chili seasoning to make this more like a veggie chili.  Also, browning a bunch of chopped up beef or ground beef first to add to the bottom of the crockpot is a great additive.

Enjoy!