Celia's Crafting Tips

Tip #1:  Avoid crafting alone.
I have found that when I craft by myself I have less motivation to finish what I have started.  When you have others around working on the same or similar projects, it is much easier to stay focused on the task at hand.  (And when you finish, there is already someone there to admire your handiwork :).

Luckily, I have a few sisters who love crafting as much, if not more, than I do.  My sister Brigitte and I were able to do a project together before I left Utah and it was lots of fun! 

Tip #2:  When in doubt, use scrapbook paper.
Scrapbook paper is an invaluable tool in a wide variety of projects.  Half of the crafts I have pinned on Pinterest seem to involve scrapbook paper.  Here are a couple of things I have made in the last few months that use this wonderful product.
JOY Letters

Use your wood letters to trace the outline onto the scrapbook paper.

Cut a little bit inside the lines that you've drawn.  (You do this so that you'll have a white wood border on each letter.)  Then use EXTREMELY watered down brown paint to apply VERY THINLY (with a paintbrush) along the edges of your cut-out letters.  This gives them a nice aged feel.

Paint your wood letters white.

Sand the edges so that the wood shows through.

With a paintbrush, use watered down glue to apply the scrapbook paper to the letters.  Then use your paintbrush to apply the rest of your watered down glue over the top of the letters.

After everything is dry, dress your letters up with buttons, ribbons, etc using a hot glue gun.  The finished product!

Flower on Canvas

This was my inspiration.  You can find instructions on how to achieve this awesomeness if you follow this link: http://itsdoable.squarespace.com/blog/2012/1/23/its-doablethe-flower-wall-art.html/

Here is the one I made.  I didn't really follow the instructions to be honest; I just looked at the picture and made my own interpretation.

Tip #3: If you don't want to use a stencil but you also want to have good-looking letters on your project, try this:  http://pureandposy.blogspot.com/2012/07/how-to-paint-near-perfect-letters.html
This is a link to my sister's blog.  I used this technique on one of my projects and it allowed me to pick out the fonts and sizes of letters I wanted.

The only thing I did differently was use transfer paper.  If you like making crafts, transfer paper will be a good thing to get.

 

Just place the transfer paper between your design and the surface you want the design to be transferred to.  You might want to tape it in place.  Then, using a pencil or a ball-point pen, trace the outline of your design.  Your design should be transferred to the wood/fabric/whatever other surface you're using.

Then all you have to do is paint inside the lines.  It's really awesome to see your own designs come to life!

Tip #4: Use Google to search for design ideas.  It's amazing!
While working on my most recent project, I found that I had left a little too much empty space in one of the corners.  So I typed "corner designs for pages" into Google and looked at the images that popped up.  So many good ideas!

For a Christmas present, I painted the lyrics to my sister and brother-in-law's song on wood...but I left a little too much empty space in that one corner.

So after typing "corner designs for pages" into Google, I picked this design from the large number of designs that came up with my search.

Using that design as a guide, I was able to draw my own design to fill in the empty space.  The finished product!

I'm no expert by any means but maybe these tips will help you out in some of your crafting endeavors.  Happy Crafting! 

Things I Get Excited About

A while back, a friend of mine mentioned something that they were thrilled about and asked me if I was excited about it too.  I replied with a simple, "Yeah, that's cool."  This person gave me a rather bewildered look and said, "You don't really get excited about anything, do you?"  Slightly affronted, I explained that just because I'm not one of those people that publicly jumps up and down and squeals with delight doesn't mean that I am never excited.

There are two reasons why I may not seem overly enthused all the time. 

Firstly, I generally express my feelings of joy, sorrow, anger, etc. in private.  My freshman year of college, I came home from a date that I was actually very excited about and my roommates promptly came out of their rooms to ask me how it went.  All I said was that I had a lot of fun.  Not satisfied with my casual answer, one roommate exclaimed, "Can you please show some excitement, Celia?"  I jumped up in the air once and flashed a small smile.  Once I got to the privacy of my room, however, I could not stop smiling.  The door opened suddenly and my roommate was able to witness the true merriment I had been feeling all along.  So really, it's not that there is a serious lack of feeling in my life.  I'm just not very good at showing other people how I feel.

Secondly, different things excite different people.  Something that excites you might not excite me and vice versa.  Some people get really excited about cars.  I appreciate a sleek shiny vehicle as much as the next person but I can guarantee that I will never be talking excitedly about any car's horsepower.  Some people really love art.  I like making crafts and being artsy in my own way but you will never find me overcome with emotion while staring at a painting in an art museum.

So what kinds of things get Celia all riled up, you may ask?  Well, I'll tell you.

Movies - I love watching movies.  I love quoting them.  (Before she left on her mission, my old roommate Jen and I would text movie lines back and forth to each other for hours.  "Don't want that...don't want that...")  I love movies that transport me to another world or another time.  I love movies that cause me to be emotionally invested in the futures of the characters.  Some people go to movies for the social aspect of it.  They go because their friends are going.  I (generally, not always)go into a movie theater and try to forget all of the people around me so I can focus on what is going on on screen.  Weird?  Yeah probably.  But that's the way I like to be entertained.  ("Are you not entertained?")

Music - I come from a very musical family and I minored in the subject so I better be somewhat emotionally drawn to music.  The story I am about to relate very aptly expresses my experience with music: I really liked the soundtrack for the Star Trek movie that came out a few years back so I bought it on iTunes.  (I love movie soundtracks in case you didn't know!)  I was listening to it one day while studying for a test.  In one of the pieces, the main theme was being played on the oboe but then the violin section, almost imperceptibly, took over the melody.  It sounded so cool to me that I dragged my roommates into my room to listen to it.  They just looked at me and said, "Uh yeah, that's cool," and then left.  I couldn't believe they didn't appreciate the pure genius exhibited in those notes the same way I did.  (Here's a link to it so you can listen and decide for yourself.  I bet most of you will probably respond similarly to how my roommates responded and that's okay. What I'm talking about starts at 0:23.)
http://youtu.be/ZEDLQD7l-dM

Books - I have never understood people who do not enjoy reading.  That is a completely foreign concept to me.  I love curling up in a blanket on the couch to read a book.  I love to imagine the characters and the scenery.  I am one of those people that can, and often does, stay up all night to finish a book.  Whenever I go to the library, I come home with three or four books I didn't intend to check out when I first walked in.  I love reading!  And I think it's one of the only forms of entertainment out there that can expand your vocabulary.  Seriously, what's not to love?

Politics - I am probably a little overly-passionate about politics in this country.  Anyone who ran into me after last month's election would probably agree.  There are very few times in my life when I've shown my anger as openly as I did then.  Though I like to talk politics, it often brings out a side of me most people rarely see.  When I was a senior in a high school, part of our grade was based on our participation in Mock Congress.  For two days, all the seniors gathered into their designated "senates" and debated bills of their own making.  I think I talked more animatedly during that two day period than I did the rest of the school days combined.  What can I say?  When you run into idiots you have to defend your beliefs from their idiotic attacks.  Just kidding...but really.

Boys - I would be remiss and dishonest if I chose to neglect them but...I'll just leave it at that.

American History - I love American history!  When I found an entire section in the BYU library on the American Revolution, I just about died from sheer joy.  George Washington is one of my heroes.  I have more books on the founding of America than on any other subject.  My favorite subjects to study are, in order, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, WWII, the Great Depression, and WWI.  I get a little bit giddy everytime I watch this scene from the movie Gettysburg.
http://youtu.be/-kdOKJXfTU4
I love America!

The Celtics - Win or lose, I love my boys in green!  I get slightly hysterical during their games and witnesses to my hysterics are often bewildered at my sudden release of emotion.  If I had a Bucket List, watching a Celtics game in Boston would definitely be on it.

So next time you think I don't get excited about anything, think again.  Ask me to participate in any of these things and, trust me, you'll probably get more excitement than you bargained for. :)

10 Things I Am Grateful For

1. A Toothbrush - I spent the night of Thanksgiving at my brother's house in Brentwood with the rest of my family.  After stuffing my face with piles of plaque-promoting foods, I found that I had forgotten a very important item: my toothbrush.  I resorted to rubbing toothpaste all over my teeth with my finger and went to bed with a less-than-fresh feeling in my mouth.  There really is no substitute for a good toothbrush.  Whoever invented the modern-day toothbrush deserves about 40 million pats on the back.  I am truly grateful for their insight.
2. Jeans - After a long day at work, there is nothing better than slipping out of my dress pants and putting on some comfy jeans.  I am grateful for the clothes on my back, for the clothes in my closet, and for the stores just down the street that allow me to remain properly protected against the elements. :)
3. Nieces and Nephews - I just spent the last four days surrounded by children, all of whom are five years of age or younger.  While each one definitely had their little moments of insanity, I also enjoyed their moments of laughter and discovery.  I love them all and I'm grateful for the opportunity I have to watch them learn and grow. :) 

4. Movies - Anyone who knows me well knows that I love movies and good quotable lines.  I just recently splurged and bought the movie We Bought a Zoo.  I'm grateful for those who put time and effort in to producing good quality entertainment for my enjoyment.
5. Rays of Sunshine Through Puffy White Clouds - This past Friday, I had to walk in the rain to get to the bus stop.  After that rather miserable walk, I looked out the window as we rolled down Ygnacio Valley Road and saw the sun shining through the clouds onto the hills.  I'm grateful to know that there is always light behind the clouds.
6. Food - Thanksgiving is one of those holidays when everyone feels justified in filling themselves to the brim with delicious food.  I loaded my plate with mashed potatoes, turkey, gravy, corn, green beans, and rolls then sat back with a contented smile on my face when I was done.  I'm grateful for the abundance we enjoy.
7. My Job - Though I don't always know what I'm doing and I am sometimes asked to do things that go beyond my field of expertise, I am grateful for the opportunity I have to learn new skills and gain experience.  I am grateful for others' generosity and understanding as I become accustomed to a new field.  After going through quite an extensive period without a steady income, I am grateful to have a paycheck and the means to support myself.
8. My Country - Despite some recent disappointing events, I am very happy that I am an American.  There are so many people in the world who don't know what it means to be free.  We do.  I'm grateful to live in a country where my voice can be heard and where I have the right to stand up for what I believe in.  I am grateful for all those, both past and present, who have made this country great.
9. The Temple - Over the past year, I have been able to attend the temple quite regularly.  I can not tell you how many answers to prayers I have received while in the temple.  I have felt comfort and peace there even when it felt like the whole world was crashing down around me.  I am grateful that, through making and keeping temple covenants, I can be with my family forever.
10. My Savior - I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and that He loves and cares about me.  There have been so many times in my life when I have been able to rely on His strength when I knew that mine was not sufficient to make it through the day.  With his help, I have been able to accomplish so many things I would have never thought possible.  I am grateful for the Atonement and for the sacrifice Christ made on my behalf so that I could overcome the trials and tests of this world and move on to a better one.

Classic Celia Moment #1

This is the first installment of what, I am sure, will become a common occurrence on my blog: recountings of what I will call "Classic Celia Moments" or CCMs.  My sister Lisa came up with her own acronym a while ago (CLMs) to describe those times in her life when events occur that she feels only happen to her.  They are the kinds of stories that, when related to others, produce a laugh and a loud, "That would happen to you!"  Although Lisa's stories generally involve falling down, walking into glass doors, dropping spaghetti sauce on white shirts, etc., mine seem to involve animals or bugs.  It's probably because I'm not too fond of them so I notice their presence more than the average person.  Whatever the reason, I feel that most CCMs will fall into the animal/bug category.

So, Classic Celia Moment #1:  A couple of weeks ago, my sister and brother-in-law were dropping me off at my apartment after a nice evening of babysitting my nieces.  I did laundry while at their house so I placed my laundry basket in their trunk for the short drive over to my apartment.  When we reached my complex, I stepped out of the car and made my way around to the back to open up the trunk.  It was dark and I wasn't fully aware of my surroundings.  I set the laundry basket down on the ground next to me, swung the trunk lid shut, and took a step to the right.  As I did so, I felt something squish underneath my foot and heard the rather nasty sound of thick liquid splattering on pavement.  I pulled my foot up quickly to find that I had stepped on a frog/lizard/insect/whatever-thing (I'm still trying to figure out what the heck this thing was) and that all the liquid that was in this creature before my unfortunate misstep was now foaming to the left of it in the parking lot.  The creature had somehow flipped onto its back and its legs and arms were flailing about as it tried to right itself.  At the sound of my strangled cry, my sister got out of the car and stood beside me as I tried to figure out what this monstrosity was.  Our speculations were cut short, however, as the creature did eventually manage to right itself.  As it began to limp (rather quickly, I might add) toward the car, I grabbed my laundry basket and ran up to my apartment while Brittany hastily got back into her car, shouting, "Make sure you wash your shoes!" as her vehicle sped out of sight.  Needless to say, I was grossed out for the rest of the evening.  The still visible splatter mark in the parking lot of my apartment complex will forever serve as a testament of the events of that disgusting night.

Yes, you can say it.  That is the kind of thing that would happen to me.

This is not at all what the "creature" looked like.

UPDATE:  If you wish to know exactly what I stepped on, my sister has figured it out.  Type "Jerusalem Cricket" into Google at your own risk.  Yuck!

(By the way, this is my 100th blog post!  Here's to over four years of being a member of the blogging world!)

Happy Halloween!

It's that time of year again.  It's that time when we can bake 10 loaves of chocolate chip pumpkin bread and feel justified in doing it.  It's that time when we can shove handfuls of Reese's M&Ms down our throats and say we're doing it for the sake of the holiday spirit.  It's that time when adults and children alike can dress up like lunatics and approach doors late at night and ask for free candy.  It's that time of year when we can act like the devil's angels and grim reapers and not feel at all sacrilegious.  It's that time when we can get together with friends and watch scary movies that give us nightmares or cheesy old "creepy" classics that make us chuckle.  Really, though.  Who doesn't love Halloween?

I took this picture while on the drive to work on the morning of Oct. 30.  (I know it wasn't technically Halloween but close enough.)  I thought it fit the spirit of the season :)

Picking out pumpkins in Brentwood with the fam!

Bruce was Buzz.

Sophie was an adorable little pumpkin.

Sydney was the cowgirl, Jessie.

Rhyan was a cute little ladybug.

All ready to go trick or treating!

The awesome decoration Brittany and Melissa made.

At the Halloween dance in Berkeley.

Mrs. Incredible and the waitress from Roswell.

I hope everyone had a "spook-tacular" night!  (Yeah sorry, that was lame but it needed to be said :)

Thoughts on Government

All of us, to some degree, have been privy to the intense political atmosphere this country now finds itself mired in.  As a conservative in the San Francisco Bay Area, it is nigh unto impossible not to get caught up in all the political debates and discussions occurring all around me.  Since most of what I hear is coming from the left side of the political spectrum, I thought it would be good to express a more conservative viewpoint.  I am not writing this blog post to convince anyone to change their mind.  (We're all so set in our own ways, I know that won't happen anyway.)  I just think it's good to understand where the other side is coming from.

I believe that each public servant we elect is just that: a servant to the public.  We are not here for the government; the government is here for us.  And what is the role of government in our lives?  According to our Constitution, the government is in place to "establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity."  It seems simple and straightforward but, considering that most of the political squabbles we encounter today involve the depth of the role of government in our lives, it is not.  Liberals tend to be proponents of large government and government programs.  Conservatives tend to be distrustful of large government and of putting too much power into the hands of a few.  As a history major who has studied governmental authority and how it is wielded, I firmly stand with the conservatives on this point.  As you may recall, the American Revolution took place because American colonists felt that their lives shouldn't be ruled over by a king or a parliament that operated 3000 miles away, across an ocean no less.  Our nation was born from this very principle, that the people should decide their own fate, not government officials who have only their own selfish interests at heart.

So our founding fathers set up a system that gave the people the right to elect their own officials, people who would truly and selflessly represent the people of their region and their needs.  Perhaps the only person in our history who truly lived up to the office of President of the United States is George Washington. After the war was over, the reluctant hero wanted nothing more than to retire from public life, return to his home at Mt. Vernon, and live quietly for the rest of his days. But that dream never became a reality for him. He was the obvious candidate for president and, unfortunately for him, he was chosen unanimously. Putting aside his dreams of a life without repute, he relented and became the first president of the United States of America. He never wanted the glory that was given him. He never wanted to be a hero. But he believed in a cause. He believed in the idea of America. He gave up the life he wanted in order to live the life he knew was needed. He was, perhaps, one of the few selfless public servants this country has ever had the privilege of knowing.  He was not perfect.  He made mistakes.  But he went into office with the right attitude, one without thought of political gain or power. 

Today if anyone were to mention the idea of a selfless and incorruptible politician, all of us would probably throw our heads back and laugh.  Sad?  Yes, but it's reality.  We must remember that we are an imperfect electorate who have to settle for imperfect beings to represent us and to lead our nation.  If you are a huge Obama fan and think the man can do no wrong, get your head out of the clouds and come back down to earth.  On the flipside, if you think Mitt Romney will immediately fix the situation our nation has fallen into, you've got another thing coming.  Both of these men are seriously flawed.  Heck, they are human just like the rest of us.  The trick is to pick the candidate who will strive the hardest to get this country back on its feet again.  As discussed before, your opinion on the role of government in society has a lot to do with who you will vote for.  But it also has a lot to do with what you choose to believe.

I have been involved in several debates on facebook.  I should have exercised better judgment and stayed out of them but...that's just not me.

• Debate #1:  Big Bird  Mitt Romney said he would cut funding for PBS and liberals everywhere practically started a verbal riot.  "Oh no!  I won't be able to watch Downton Abbey anymore!"  Let's analyze the facts here.  Our nation is 16 TRILLION DOLLARS IN DEBT!  We are spending far more money than we take in and it's only getting worse.  How do we get back some of this money?  By cutting back on wasteful spending.  Now, I love Downton Abbey as much as the next person.  The third season is already up and running in Britain and I am ticked that us Americans have to wait another few months before we can see it.  But the arguments people have against Romney's plan are just plain ridiculous.  One person I was debating this subject with said that it was the government's responsibility to provide us with "the arts" because it improves our quality of life.  Oh, please!  So what you're saying is that a portion of my next door neighbor's taxes should go to PBS just so I can get my Downton Abbey fix every week even though he doesn't watch it himself?  And what is your definition of "quality of life?"  This is the difference between the liberal view of government and the conservative view of government that I was talking about earlier.  The liberal view is that the government should pay for these programs (with our hard-earned tax money) to improve our quality of life.  My view is that I should be able to keep the money that would otherwise be taxed so that I can watch whatever I want to.  The government's role is not to spoon-feed us these things but to provide an environment in which we can obtain what we want ourselves.  That, in my opinion, is true freedom.
• Debate #2:  Obama cares about everybody and Mitt Romney only cares about rich people.  People have this messed up notion that Obama is this caring loving politician simply because he says he is.  He says he wants everyone to have cheap access to great healthcare, for example.  You know, I'd really like that too.  It would be nice not to have to pay an arm and a leg (literally) everytime I step into a doctor's office.  But Obama's ideas are just not plausible.  If you look at other countries that have socialized medicine or partially socialized medicine, their taxes are extremely high.  Doctors still have to be paid.  Medical equipment and medicine still have to be bought.  You'll either be paying high premiums to an insurance company of your own choosing or you'll be paying high taxes for a government-run (and therefore, innefficient) health care system.  So when Romney shoots down one of Obama's great sounding ideas, it's not because he's cold-hearted or favoring the rich over the poor.  He's just being reasonable.

There are several other topics I have debated with people but I'll get off my soapbox now.  As you have rightly assumed, I am voting for Mitt Romney, not because he is the perfect man for the job but because I think he is the right one for the time.  Whoever you decide to vote for, just make sure you put aside partisan politics and truly analyze the facts.  So read and watch.  Make informed decisions. Vote.  If you choose not to get involved in politics, don't complain when you wake up one day and find that all of your liberties have been thrown out the window.

Okay.  I'm done.  (I could say more but I think half of the people reading this want me to shut up now so I'll oblige them just this once.)

The Hilarity of Daily Life

At first glance, my life doesn't seem all that exciting.  I go to work for eight hours a day.  On Tuesday and Wednesday nights I go to class and spend the other nights trying to get homework done.  I babysit occasionally.  I go to the singles ward home evening activities on Mondays.  I go to church and eat dinner with my family on Sundays.  I chat with people on Facebook far into the night when I should be in my bed sleeping.  I read books and watch movies and TV shows.  Yeah...it doesn't seem too exciting now, does it?

But one thing I've learned how to do over all these years of dealing with boring schedules and daily routines is to see the humor in everyday life.  The reason comedians like Brian Regan are so funny is because they talk about ordinary everyday things that everyone can relate to, just in a funnier way than most of us can manage.  (For example, Brian Regan once did a whole skit on ironing boards.  I always thought ironing boards were pretty unremarkable items until I heard Brian Regan say, "Every ironing board I've ever had sounds like a witch being boiled in oil."  Now every time I unfold the legs of an ironing board and hear the shriek of metal scratching metal, I bust up laughing.  It's so true!)

My life may not seem too exciting but it can be pretty darn funny sometimes.  Here are a few instances in which the seemingly mundane things of life became extremely amusing.

At a ward Linger Longer, a bunch of us sat around a table and talked about facial hair.  After about thirty minutes of discussing whether or not guys can really pull it off, we came to the conclusion that some guys can and some guys can't.  We have yet to figure out what the distinguishing feature is that allows someone to pull off facial hair.

I was babysitting last night.  Usually babysitting jobs are pretty uneventful but last night was different.  Sydney was already in bed.  So I set up my laptop and Sophie and I Skyped with my old roommate Heidi for an hour.  After we finished, I put Sophie in the jumper and proceeded to unplug my computer.  I had plugged it in behind the couch.  I pulled the couch out a little bit but apparently I didn't pull it out far enough.  I managed to get my arm behind the couch and unplug the cord but, to my dismay, I fell, landed on the couch, and pinned my arm behind the couch just above the elbow.  I tried and tried to move the couch with my other arm to no avail.  The numbness in my arm obviously extended to my brain as I thought about that guy whose arm got pinned under a rock while hiking alone in the mountains and, after a couple days, he decided to cut off his own arm to free himself.  Though my situation was not that dire, I didn't really want to be pinned to the wall when my sister and brother-in-law got home.  Crying out in pain and frustration, I finally managed to pull my bony elbow out from behind the couch.  I now have a lovely bruise all around my elbow as a testament of my clumsiness.  That was not a fun experience while it was happening but, in retrospect, it's kind of hilarious.

If there was a quote wall at work, these are the things I would put on there:

•  Melodie (during a staff meeting): "Men sniffing their snot..."
• Jeff (walking to my desk to retrieve a candy bar from the candy jar): "I need chocolate!  Gimme chocolate!"
• (So there's an overhang just outside our door at work.  One of these overhangs actually fell down once.  David is really concerned about ours falling randomly while someone is standing under it.)  Jeff: "Hey David, why don't you go take a call outside.  And make sure you stand below that overhang.  That's the real secret to managing an overstretched payroll."
• (There are a few extra offices in the back.  On the wall of one of the offices, there are a bunch of little red dots and red streaks.  Even though we're pretty sure it's just furniture polish, we make jokes about people being shot in there and their blood splattering on the wall.  We call it the Zombie Room whenever Jeff's kids come into the office.)  When we haven't seen someone for a while, we say, "They must have taken a trip back to the Zombie Room."
• Jeff (to Melodie): "You're getting way too logical.  If I wanted that kind of logic, I'd stay home and listen to my wife!"
• Melodie: "Can you just shoot me?" Jeff: "Only if you shoot me first, and with my last dying breath I'll shoot you."  Celia: "Rough day, huh?" 

Make sure you take the time to laugh today.  You'll be surprised at how funny life really is.