LenaLoo Has Moved...

... to a new home at http://lenaloos.com/... I will be posting there from now on! Please come by and follow me on GFC!
Also come check out my posts at Goore's Insider.

LenaLooBlog

Sunday, December 5, 2010

My Orange Advent Calendar


I am posting regularly on the Orange Christmas blog during advent and I posted a tutorial for this cute Advent Calendar that is now hanging on my wall! Each box is large enough to hold readings with small coloring sheets, a couple squares of fair trade chocolate and even a small toy if you choose. There are also links to advent readings with a focus on justice for slaves for adults and kids written by my pastor!

Photobucket

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Cohen Turned One!

Before I totally go into Christmas mode, here are some pics from my son's first birthday! We were basically celebrating all month!

Cohen's First Photo Shoot


Cohen's LA Birthday Party


Cohen's Sacramento Birthday Party


Cohen Enjoying His Birthday Gifts


Photobucket

Monday, November 29, 2010

Merry SITSmas!


glitter-graphics.com
Gosh Decking out my blog is as hard as decking the halls in my home! I decorated just for all of you! Have a listen to my fave Christmas Tunes and check out some silly Christmas posts from the last couple of years while I get to work decorating my home! Merry SITSmas!

Edit: This is what I got done this evening!

For the life of me I can't figure out why I strung my garland the way I did two years ago! I have to find a special extension cord or something to be able to plug it in. It's probably because I put it on top of the TV console, but I think I did that last year too, I have no idea, but now I am too tired to care! Tomorrow I think I will string some Icicle lights outside when it doesn't feel like there should be real icicles hanging off the rafters! Come on this is California for goodness sake!

Photobucket

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Coming Soon!


I am moving my blog and redesigning it. I am also Grand opening my Etsy (slated for cyber Monday but we shall see). Please bear with me through these changes. I will be hosting a giveaway soon as well! Thanks for keeping on with me!

*Edit: My blog will temporarily be reverting back to http://innergreenfairy.blogspot.com
please follow accordingly.

Photobucket

Monday, November 8, 2010

Kawaii Dumplings and Sushi Felt Food



I made these super cute sushi and shumai dumplings for

I think these are going on my soon to open Etsy! I am also going to make some gyoza and fortune cookies and maybe some wontons to complete the set!
Photobucket

Bloggy Love.

I have not given out an award in a really long time, and I am quite past due I think. I have found some fabulous blogs this year that I pretty much can't live without!

Photobucket
For amazing DIY tutorials:
Skip to My Lou
Mrs. Priss
Knock-off Wood

For making me laugh till I pee my pants:
Nanny Goats in Panties

For fighting modern day slavery with style:
Dreaming of an Orange Christmas


Photobucket

Giveaway Central!

Win a Laptop!

I don't typically blog about giveaways, but this one is just too good to pass up. My sister-in-law really needs a laptop for all of her work she is doing with the Youth group at PRFC. I would love to win her one for Christmas!

I entered Crissy’s Can’t Wait til Christmas Lenovo Laptop Giveaway and hope to win a $799.00 IdeaPad!

You can also enter to win one at MommyPR by making a video on the Lenovo "What's You're Idea of Fun" Website! Here's Mine!

Fun Video 260643911 | What is your idea of fun USA


Photobucket

Thursday, November 4, 2010

I Heart Shopping (On and For Etsy)

I went a little shop happy at Michael's clearance yesterday! I spent about $150 but got ALL THIS! (Okay I had some of that ribbon already, and a few of the flowers too).

I reorganized my craft closet a bit to fit in a good amount of my overflow. I got rid of about a box full of SU catalogs and forms (since I don't think I will be restarting that business). You can see pics of the before stash here. It looks much prettier now :).

I am fully determined to get my Etsy shop up and running before Christmas this year! (I know I have said that many times, but this time I have a plan!) Any good shop name ideas incorporating my nickname?

I plan on carrying some pretty jewelry, hand stamped notecards and greeting cards, custom capes and tutu's (like this one - too bad she couldn't stop twirling long enough for me to get a good shot), custom diapercakes, notecards, hairclips, burpcloths and bibs, and maybe some felt toys once I come up with some patterns of my own.

I also plan on selling some crafting supplies I make with my Sizzex Bigshot and my Xyron.

Ooo and I just got a great idea from Penelope's Oasis for something I might be able to make. I really want to use what I have to make a little spending cash.

I bought a couple of shoe clips on the creative seed's Etsy to make these gorgeous pieces tuted by Mrs.Priss (I love the posey ones at the end of the post!)

How have you other Etsy mom-prenuars fared lately? Do you find that having a varied inventory is good or is it better to stick with one type of inventory? I have so much stuff and I feel like I need to use it all!

Photobucket

Monday, November 1, 2010

Is It Voting Time Again???

This is a rant... Just a forewarning... I kinda hijacked my friend Kari's status update on FB...

Kari: voting time!

Me: Ugh do I have too? I am going to but I am sooo not excited about it...

Kari: Be excited about it girl! Our feminist forebears fought for the right for our vote to count:
http://www.encyclomedia.com/video-women_s_suffrage.html
Also, vote for Jerry Brown and piss your husband off. :)

Me:
#1 I know... that is why I vote even though I hate it
#2 why would that piss Toby off? He thinks Whitman is creepy
#3 can't we just have a Utopian society where every one is equal and perfect? Oh wait I am asking for heaven aren't I? Not sure I am ready for that yet lol...

Kari: oh I'm just going off something Toby said to me recently about being annoyed by liberals and that is awesome that you're voting even though you don't like it! Why don't you like it?

Me: I hate all the mud slinging... it makes me anti politics... to me, the only good thing about election day is the end to all the negativity... lets face it, all politicians are people, they all make mistakes, do I have to hear about all of them for three months straight?

Me: Also... because they are all people, they are all going to disappoint me in some way or another so why should I care who makes it in? Ugh I sound so much like my dad... I know my vote does count and that is why I use it but in the end I feel like it doesn't because I do not really care for any of the nominees. I always feel like i am choosing the lesser of two evils. Can't I just write in Jesus for every office?

Me: Toby is really only annoyed by the liberals in his family because they are always trying to tell us to vote the way they do... he doesn't like anyone telling him how to live his life...

Me: OMG just asked him if he is voting and if he has even looked at his sample ballot and he said "yeah my Nana gave me one" it was already filled out for him!!! he will not be voting that way!

Photobucket

Our fun filled Halloween Weekend

This weekend has been a total whirlwind!

Saturday morning I made a dirt cake for the party we planned to go to on Sunday night after trick-or-treating. I showed Cohen the joy of making dessert at home is getting to lick the beaters at the end.


Saturday night was The Nana's 80th Surprise Birthday Bash hosted by my fabulous mother-in-law. Family came from as far away as Scotland (Toby's brother lives there with his fiance) to celebrate all of her accomplishments.


Cohen met his Uncle Simon and Auntie Monica for the first time when we "picked them up" from the train station (they actually got in early and had no cell phone so we went to the mall and were going to look for them in an hour when the next train came in and we actually ran into them there). We kept them busy all afternoon at the mall trying to hide them from Nana.

The party was a hit! Nana was totally surprised to see everyone there and even cried a little when she saw Simon! It was a great time.

We also got to meet baby GT, Cohen's newest cousin and see lots of family we have not seen in a while.


On Sunday morning we got up (too early) and went out to the same restaurant we had the party at the night before (if you live in the Sacramento area, check out The Terrace at Marconi and Fulton in the Arden Arcade area. The food is to-die-for) with all the family. It was nice to see them again before they went back to the bay area.

We took a long nap and then went over to my mother-in-law's to show off our costumes.


Then it was time for church in the park.


This is our band of Superheroes: The Oaks of Righteousness (OR!): Sarcasmo, Hyperbole Man, Mr. Cohen (Disguised as Super Panda), Pastor Girl, and Hapa Girl.


After church we drove to East Sac to trick or treat near Sacramento Friends church and we collected canned food for River City Food Bank that burned down about a week ago. Cohen passed out on the short drive from the park to the church and we put him in the wagon before trick or treating.

After about an hour and a half (to get down one block and back up again) we went to Pete and karen's house for a little party. Bella and Cohen dug into the candy (he was just playing with it lol). In my family we alway had some kind of get together after trick or treating (usually to celebrate all the October birthdays, my dad's is the day before Halloween). It is fun to start that tradition with my family and friends too :).




Photobucket

Monday, October 25, 2010

Looks like I will be regularly posting at "Dreaming of an Orange Christmas" throughout the holiday season (they gave me my own blog!) so I will link back here for every post so ya'll can stop by and read :).

In other news, we are dressing up as superheroes this Halloween so we can trick or treat grown up style for canned food to refill a food bank nearby (River City Food Bank in Midtown) that burned down last week. I am going to be Hapa Girl (Part Asian, 100% Awesome!), Toby is going to be Hyperbole Man (the absolute greatest since...FOREVER!), Becky will be Pastor Girl, and Clint (if he chooses to dress up) is going to be Sarcasmo. Cohen is going to be a Super Panda (but in our crew we call him Mr. Cohen - picture him in a pin stripe suit little mustache and fedora - and he is our boss). We got a little carried away one day on a trip to San Fran with Becky and decided we had to dress up as our comic book superheroes this year. This is my costume.

Photobucket


I need to make the cape (we all have silver, but mine will have a red circle with a big H in the middle to look like a Japanese flag).

Photobucket


There is a "utility belt that you might not be able to see too well, but it is a fanny pack from Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers line (that I had to fight with multiple people to get to keep, cuz they think it is hideous) it is Red with light blue accents and has White Kitten faces on it. Every once in a while, I feel the need for an excuse to wear a fanny pack, okay?!? :) When I got it, my excuse was Relay for Life (when you are walking on a track all night it isn't very convenient to carry a purse, and I like to keep my phone and my money on my person, and no, my gym pants didn't have pockets).

Anyway, please check out my post on the Orange Christmas website and browse around too! It is a great cause!

Photobucket

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Guest blogging!


I am guest blogging today at "Dreaming of an Orange Christmas" which goes live tonight at 11pm! For those of you who are not yet in the know, Orange Christmas is a modern abolitionist movement started by Midtown Friends Community pastor Rebecca Tucker. The goal is to bring awareness of modern day slavery and give some helpful hints on how to have a slave-free Christmas (hint, it is something we bloggers tend to love anyway: buying and making handmade gifts). My post is on my foray into felt food crafting! It is not a how-to, just a "hey, here is something anyone can do, even an ADD mom like me!" Hope you'll check it out at 11pm tonight!

Photobucket

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Felt Toys!

Making Cohen Christmas and Birthday gifts out of patterns (like this adorable fishing set) that I bought from Bugga Bugs Etsy! So excited to be doing my part for Orange Christmas!

Photobucket


I Took The Handmade Pledge! BuyHandmade.org

Photobucket

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Orange Christmas




Midtown Friends is Dreaming of an Orange Christmas! In a movement to fight slavery, we are giving slave-free, handmade gifts for Christmas! In the months of November and December, Midtown Friends will be hosting a space to create handmade gifts before services every Sunday. Tune in for more info!



I Took The Handmade Pledge! BuyHandmade.org

Photobucket

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Ink?


So I have been contemplating getting a small tattoo on the inside of my right ankle... This is the art that inspired me... It was the image we used on our bulletin for our church launch last October... It reminds me that my relationship with Toby has deep roots that kept us in the ground through the storm and that by putting God first and working together in our church is what got us through it... I don't want it exactly like this... I want the tree to look a little more bonsai-ish and I am thinking about having my maiden name in kanji incorporated into either the roots or the branches of the tree... Maybe... And either get a waterfall (because my last name is a derivative of the Japanese word for waterfall) as the background or save that for something else if I am ever brave enough to get another... I may not get a background... I have never found anything I wanted to have on me permanently until I found this... And I am going to wait awhile before getting it to make sure it is really what I want... Not sure how long to wait though, three months? Six? A year?
Photobucket

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Rockin' It!

So I was tasked with creating a menu for 75 people under $300 for our Easter party at our new location and I totally did it! Well, mostly... A few on the items are being donated...

The Menu
Butternut Squash Soup Shooters
Caprice Salad Bites
Citrus Beet Salad Bites
BBQ Meatballs
Tortellini Salad Bites
Hummus with Bell Pepper & Pita Chips
Crudites with Veggie Dip
Tropical Fruit
Assorted Cheeses, Cured Meats, and Organic Crackers
Mini Quiches
Sauteed Crimini Mushrooms
Fair Trade Chocolate Fountain

You know you want to try my rockin' food! If you are in the Sacramento area, come join us for service and stay for food and dancing (or, you know, listening to a DJ spin good music while bobbing your head)...






Photobucket

Button Button, Who's Got a Button?

What? I Got An Award???

Photobucket
Photobucket