Biggest Loser hits the North Pole...

Santa Peg doll...

Love Boxes Shop...

Santa Baby!

Love Boxes Shop...

Doodles...

Baby Great Dane...

We had fun doodling in Stake Conference... We got permission from our Stake President :) Sorry L. spent almost the entire meeting exercising (taking laps around the building) so she didn't submit any art work for this post. It was a great meeting.

Park City Day School "Girls Night Out" Shopping Bazaar...

LoveBoxes will be there... hope to see you! :)

Every time a bell rings...

an angel gets her wings!

These angels and more friends will be available in the

LovE Boxes ShoP...

now.. or if you'd like to visit them in person there will be a boutique

December 7th at The Yard in Park City, Utah from 6-9 PM

ABC Letter Bean Bags...

I made this as a Christmas Gift for one of my children... It looks like about hours worth of work, but no... it took about a day and a half to make these. I sure hope they become a favorite toy! Whew.

If you are nutty and want to make these too.. I used these free printables for the letters HERE... And, I love to use plastic poly pellets for the beans because it makes the toy washable, which we need around here, but you could use rice or beans if you wanted. I used two layers of cheap white flannel in between to make them hold their shape better and red thread so that the letters would look a bit outlined. Not difficult, just time consuming.

Foamy Soap...

I love foamy soap at my house. It's not as hard on your skin as others soaps. But, it's about $3.00 a bottle last time I checked which would equate to almost $6.00 per week for my family. Pricey for soap. The thing is that the "foamy" is a property of the dispenser rather than the soap and it's easy to make. I buy this Dawn Pink Dragon Fruit because I like pink at my house, but you can make all kinds of colors.

Fill the empty containers with just under 1/4 to 1/2 inch of liqued soap and finish it off with warm water. This brings your price closer to 29 cents per bottle. And it makes it so that you don't have to buy anti-bacterial handsoap.

Easy.

Fall wrapping...

Red Roses: Custom Kokeshi Cake Toppers...

Makes Me Happy...

I have no idea why, but this treasury has received about five times as many hits as the White Western Treasury that made the front page (which is a big deal.. I'm still giddy about it). Maybe people want to look at happy things. But, one thing is for sure. These are vendors who do the most excellent work a rare and beautiful thing in this world.

Big C having a great time in SV...

Love this handsome, smart, tough guy... 

Lovely Perfume...

I don't wear perfume. I don't like it when others wear perfume because they wear too much or they try on every single one on the counter (MOM!) or the kind they wear gives me a headache.. I wore this stuff today. It smells really good and it doesn't give me a headache. I like it. Good job Jennifer!

Dreaming of Paris...

Paris makes me think of Red...

Etsy Inspiration board & vendor links HERE... 

Larry Crowne...

Full disclosure. I went to this film with a group of my best good friends and there were mixed reviews. But, I loved this movie. At first I thought so much of it was just too implausible to even consider. Who goes to their speech class and falls in love with the teacher who happens to look exactly like Julia Roberts. Then, I remembered the many friends I've have, every bit as gorgeous, who have been left by jerks. I was impressed that in this one Hollywood film, they admit that pornography has victims and they are not just the objectified women in the pictures. When I started thinking about some of the divorces that I know any details about.. pornography was a problem in most of them.
Who joins a scooter gang whose mission is to Feng shui everything and make it beautiful... umm.. I'd LOVE to! :)
The themes of being divorced, down-sized and broke are pretty depressing, but they are reality for so very many people around our country right now. The answer to healing our broken country has a lot to do with healing it's homes.. but a Feng shui scooter gang couldn't hurt. See it!

September 11...

These words written by Tony Snow gave me some comfort 10 years ago.. I think it's appropriate to re-post them...

 

Good and evil almost never express themselves as harshly and clearly as they did Tuesday morning. People we don't know slaughtered people we do, and they did it with contemptuous glee.

Yet, even as clouds of dust and smoke rose from the from the rubble, even as family members tortured by hope and doubt took to the streets with pictures and pleas; even as mobs celebrated in Gaza, Cairo and Bagdad something shook itself to life.

That something was a sense of ourselves. Kindness flourished amid the flames. A couple carried a disabled man down 68 flights of stairs. A priest crouched to give last rites as a mighty tower collapsed and the hand of God closed about him. A man and woman, their hope gone, held each other and leaped. A solitary candle, a flag, a tear. These are the tokens of our renewal.

The United States had a spirit even before it had a name-- one of faith and freedom; of ambition tempered by public piety. We once were a nation of neighbors and friends. We are again today. We were once a nation of hardship-tested dreamers. We are again today. We once were a nation under God. We are again today. Our enemies attacked one nation,. They will encounter another for they underestimated us.

Today, in our grief and rage; our determination and hope, we have summoned what is best and noblest in us; The kinship that awes our enemies and friends alike. We are again -- Americans.

Sunday, September 16, 2001 Tony Snow

Dark Passage: Bogart and Bacall...

The only reason to watch this film is to see how truly ridiculous a film can be. Bogart's character accidentally KILLS 3 people during the LONG saga.. But, don't worry he shrugs it off pretty well as does Bacall's character, THE weird girlfriend. Bad luck can happen to anyone ... right? This film drove me crazy from the start, but I kept watching because I just couldn't believe that these 2 very fine actors would participate in this cinematic train wreck.. it's started to be funny by the end. Who wrote this?? Cinematography .. weird ..F. Acting F. Script.. what's worse than F? Skip this.. and see Key Largo instead.

Soldier Hollow Classic Sheepdog Championships...

Photo credit Salt Lake Magazine and more info HERE...

Thanks to my friend Sarah, when I saw the ad in the paper about the Soldier Hollow Sheepdog Championships... I tore it out and saved it. We don't have a dog, but my kids are big dog lovers. I have to say that I thought attending this event was one of the more amazing things I've seen in my lifetime. I'm a total novice so a little patience... this is what I saw. People release these wild sheep about 400 yards up the mountain and the trainer commands his dog via whistle and vocal commands to drive the sheep down the mountain through a series of obstacle courses.. including shedding (which means splitting the group of 5 in to two groups of 2 and 3) and then finally penning them. It was amazing to see how smart these dogs were and the relationship between trainer and dog and what they were able to accomplish together. Truly inspiring!!

It was hot up there and I will come prepared next time (WE WILL BE THERE NEXT YEAR!) with.. camp chairs, ice, more water, hats and umbrellas for everyone. I might even pack a picnic although there is really delicious and tempting food up there.. not a lot of healthy choices though and if you're staying all day.. you could use a carrot or something.

This event is a testament to excellence... something I love to see. And, it has further added to my prejudice that Utah is the best place in the whole world largely because so often people who are excellent at what they do come here and share their talents with us. Thank you.. amazing people!

They also have a diving competition for just your average dog, which my little one thought was hilarious and everyone else enjoyed. This whole day was a surprise for little c who thought it was one of the best days of her life... Great fun!

Together Forever...

My artwork was included in this lovely treasury: HERE... 

Beth & Bertie: Custom Kokeshi Cake Toppers...

LoVE BoXes SHop...

Bogart & Bacall: Key Largo...

This is a GREAT film. Loved it! One of those movies that for the most part is still current and relavent. The dialogue is fairly gripping. HERE is the trailer. See it.

An August Wedding Out of Doors...

LoVE BoXES SHoP...

Smile!

Personalize your own photo slideshow My sister Alicia makes these for our family and I LOVE them! This one that shows how fun my crazy nephews are is one of my very favorites. I adore every single one of these folksies. They make me happy everyday.

A Future Spring..

A thing of beauty is a joy forever. — John Keats

Waking Ned Devine...

With a charge not to rent Nazi, Government Conspiracy, films about failing schools worse foreign policy.. .. There was only one place to go. Rest in Peace Ned Devine.... you make us smile in every line.

Light from Within...

People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within. 
~Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

I like this quote so much and was reminded of it when I took these photos of the beautiful stained-glass of the Kaysville Tabernacle...

Woman of the Year...

From what I've read and from interviews I've seen of Katherine Hepburn, this character may be the closest one she played to herself and it's a great performance. But, the script needed a bit of tweaking. The ideas in the film are still very relevant.. and this is a film that could use a great re-make. Still, it's worth seeing the original.. it's is long and could easily be cut by at least half an hour and the ending leaves something to be desired.. that said.. It's Hepburn and Tracy and their wit and banter and chemistry is unrivaled still.

Wait Until Dark...

This is one of Audrey's most amazing performances and this is also one of the scariest movies I've seen.. but it's really, really good. See it! 

Bow Tie Pasta Chicken Salad: To Feed Almost the Whole World...

Bow Tie Pasta Chicken Salad:

1 (12oz.) pkg. bow tie pasta
1 (12oz.) pkg. spiral pasta
2 (16 oz.) Kraft coleslaw dressing (Christine only uses one bottle and I like that very well)
1 C mayo
20 oz. pineapple tidbits, drained
2 small cans sliced water chestnuts
2 C celery, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 pkg. craisins
1 C red grapes, halved
2 small can mandarin oranged drained
1 large (12oz.) can salled cashews
6 chicken breats, cooked and chopped

Directions:
1. Mix coleslaw dressing & mayo
2. Make this the night before, Add everything except oranges & cashes... which you add just before serving.
3. After salad stands overnight, toss and add more dressing if needed.

LDS Museum of History and Art: The LeConte Stewart Exhibit... Part 1

If you grew up in Kaysville, then you have no choice, you must see this exhibit. Many of these paintings are pictures of my memories.. places that no longer exist today or no longer exist like they were. LeConte Stewart is our painter, biographer of the land, farms and barns that have passed away and been replaced . "Barnes are going" he said, "they tear them down or they fall down." We aren't an agrarian society anymore, but farms are our foundation, they are what we came from.

My ten year old home stands on the site of some one's old farm. It makes the land sacred to me. Someone carved an existence out of the wilderness and survived on this land. It gave them the very bread they ate. LeConte Stewart had the talent to paint anywhere. I am so grateful that he recorded this place that is so dear to my heart and did it with such care. His life was glorious and he new success in his own time, which is something for any artist. But, he was troubled by great tragedy in his life losing all his siblings and his mother within a few short years. I wish I knew how and why they all died, but I can't find it anywhere.

In any case, LeConte turned to nature and art for comfort.

Painting is more than expressing the appearance of things; it is expressing the spirit of things. When you know and love a tree, you can paint its spirit, the quality God gave it.  ~LeConte Stewart

He was a fan of this little bit of Whitman...



AFOOT and light-hearted, I take to the open road,
Healthy, free, the world before me,
The long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose.
Henceforth I ask not good-fortune—I myself am good fortune;
Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing,
Strong and content, I travel the open road.

I also loved this declaration of faith:

I would like to tell you what kind of Latter-day-Saint I am. I couldn't be anything else, and that's why this church- the things that it proposes have got me enraptured. The Lord started it, and all I can do is fall in line. I tell you, it's over powered me. When I go out now and paint a tree, I just feel His spirit. I tell you it's marvelous... ~LeConte Stewart

Go! See the exhibit and those pictures will sing you a song that you'll remember from when you were very young.

LDS Museum of History and Art: Part 2...

 The LDS Museum of History & Art is a summer tradition, but we should go even more often. It is really excellent. And, if you have questions, the missionaries there are really knowledgeable. In addition to the really great LeConte Stewart exhibit (REALLY excellent).. there is a quilt show and a very fun children's activity center. .. In fact, don't take your kids unless you've planned to stay because they can learn some Mexican dances wearing the big skirts.. collect eggs from chickens and play farm etc... They won't want to leave.

I'm sorry about the terrible photos. I have never been able to take a decent photo w/out natural light. But, anyway I wanted to show you a few of the beautiful quilts they have on display. This one above was my favorite. I love crazy quilts. It's fun to read about them too. They all have an amazing story.

I don't know how to make quilts, but I know enough to know that this one was hard..

They have a fun magnet board for children to design their own. L likes crazy quilts too.

Z'Tejas Achiote Marinated Chicken Salad: The Real Recipe...

RECIPE...
Marinade

• 2 oz. Achiote
• ½ c. Orange juice
• ½ c. White vinegar
• 1 t. Black pepper, ground
• 1 t. All spice, ground
• 2 oz. Garlic clove
• 1 T. Paprika
• 1 T. Kosher Salt
• ½ T. Oregano, ground
• 4-6 Chicken breast with skin

Preparation:
1. Add all 9 ingredients to a blender and blend well.
2. Place all chicken in a large dish. Using gloves, make sure chicken gets thoroughly coated.
3. Marinade 4-6 chicken breast

Cooking chicken breast: Salt and pepper chicken breast and place melted butter down on Teflon skillet top. Place marinated chicken skin side down and place a weight on top. Sear for approx 4 minutes till crispy then turn over. Cook till done then turn on skin side down for approx one minute before slicing.

• 1 oz. Lettuce shredded 1/8"
• 1 oz. Red Cabbage shredded
• ¼ Avocado sliced
• 1 Roma tomato-small
• ¼ c. Sweet corn
• 2 T. Cotija cheese
• ¼ c. Black beans
• 2 T. Pumpkin seeds
• 3 oz. Ranch Vinaigrette
• 5 oz. Achiote chicken breast sliced

Instructions:
Mix all ingredients in large salad bowl. Pour ranch vinaigrette over salad and mix well so all ingredients are covered.
Dressing recipe:

• 2 c. Favorite ranch dressing
• ¼ c. Balsamic vinegar

Mix two ingredients until consistent throughout.

Or, you could go eat it at the restaurant like I did... It's really yummy.

Summer Love: Wedding Cake Toppers...

LoVe BoxES SHoP...

Grudges & Dragons...

A Poet in Zion has posted her Friday Post... you'll not want to miss her Dragon Poem...

OK.. discuss.

I love what I do...

This is how I spent my day today... I hope I can find better outfits for these guys tomorrow. And, hopefully, some jewelry and flowers for these cute brides.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels: At Hale Center Theater...

Kyle Olsen & Angela Jeffries who brilliantly played Sydney Carton & Madam Defarge in Hale's production of Tale of Two Cities (which I hope they will bring back very soon!) were cast as Freddy Benson & Christine Colgate. I laughed so hard my stomach hurt and my face was sore.

The cast and crew at Hale are very hard working. They do 3 performances on Saturdays! The Ensemble must have had 10 costume changes. And, the dance numbers were spectacular. This wasn't a show for wimps. The set designers and the costumers at Hale knocked it out of the park! Lucky Angela got to wear about 6 different, lovely yellow frocks and you should have seen her matching orange luggage!

Now that you're all excited to see the show.. I hate to say that I went on the very last day... :( I won't do that to you next time. But, I hope to see Kyle and Angela in a new show very soon... They are such great talents.. I worry that Utah won't have them for long.

East meets West: Custom Painted Wedding Cake Toppers...

Finished painting this beautiful couple just this evening. I love painting East Indian Brides and their beautiful gowns.
Find more Wedding Cake Toppers... at..
LoVE BoXes SHoP...