typhoon ketsana (ondoy)

typhoon ondoy has rendered the philippines with water levels worse than hurricane katrina.

familes are displaced and homes ruined. my co-worker was telling me about how her friend and her one-year old baby had to be rescued from a building with a rope system and a plastic bucket for her baby and it's not surprising when you see pictures like above. mark's family has been hit hard as well.

puts life into perspective. donate here.

or if you'd prefer:
this month all proceeds from my etsy store will go to support the Philippine National Red Cross.

aw, damn it

i got to work today. set my stuff down and said hi to rachel. then i asked her, 'is today wednesday?'

she said, 'today is tuesday.'

then i cried.

hashbrown casserole

when you want to make sushi you find someone japanese. when you want to make kimchee you find someone korean. when you want to make a casserole you find a older white woman. ;P

i'm serious. at my old job all my co-workers had the best recipes for casseroles and 'potluck food.'

this is one such recipe. hashbrown casserole. as rachael ray would say, 'yumm-o!'

this past saturday morning, 7:30am i sacrificed sleeping in to make these lovelies for my church's women's prayer breakfast. i made two batches so that's why the pictures show two of everything.

ingredients:
1 - 10.25 oz can of cream of chicken or mushroom
8 oz colby cheese
1/2 cup melted butter (i'd suggest a little less)
1 small onion, minced
2 lb frozen shredded hashbrown (look in the freezer section)
1 small package of pork sausage
13x19" pan

1. pre-heat oven to 350 and spray your pan with cooking spray
2. cook sausage in a skillet. when cooked remove from skillet and chop in small pieces

3. cook minced onion in sausage drippings until slightly translucent

4. combine soup, cheese, butter, onion, sausage, and salt & pepper to taste
5. gently fold hasbrown into mixture and pour in pan
6. bake for 35-40 min until heated through and brown on top

have a heart!

hahaha, wouldn't it be just perfect after i post about how obsessed i am with etsy that i would share that i just started my own etsy page. LOL!

so i've been making these little felt heart pins in my spare time. to be honest i made them to possibly use them as part of a future wedding favor for myself. i just figured, 'hey i have some time since mark is gone i might as well help myself by planning ahead.' is that weird? i probably will still use them but i thought they might make cute little gifts for other people too.

please visit!

esty: an obsession, part one

i don't think i'd consider myself to have an addictive personality but etsy.com makes me second guess myself. "it's your place to buy & sell all things handmade!" to which i say, "yes, please and thank you!"

quiet moments at work i'll sneak a peek to see what is being featured on the front page. sometimes i browse for myself and sometimes for others. there's something for everyone on etsy.com.

one of my favorite things so far is a seller who is a felt taxidermist...feltidermy! it's freaking awesome! who wouldn't love to have one of these bad boys hanging from their wall?!

good friends

today is a birthday of a friend at work. in the art department we always make a handmade card for the birthday boy or girl. i think it's a really nice gesture for everyone to receive something that's been made by hand with the specific person in mind. this card was made from our sassy collection found only at jo-ann's. it's funky and sweet, just like elena!

omg!

i haven't been sleeping well lately and one night as i was up late in my room i heard a loud thud against my window. of course immediately i thought of the worst and imagine some guy trying to break in to the house and he's stupid enough to try the window with the light coming through the blinds.

i got up from my chair and peeked through the blinds and this is what i saw!

what is that?! a grasshopper?!

and when it left my window screen it left with a loud thud. freaky.