Merry Christmas!

"Yea, Lord we greet Thee, born this happy morning;  

Jesus to Thee be all glory giv'n. 

Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing;  

Oh come let us adore him, Christ the Lord." 

(Oh Come all Ye Faithful) 

Merry Christmas from us Saks and rabbits! Hope you are having a wonderful time with family and friends - eating good food and singing and what-not. Penga-sis and I have been having an interesting time in the kitchen lately; here's a few of our odd concoctions!

A yule log..made of mint oreos.

Yes, that's santa riding the log that sorta resembles a truck. @_@

Someone gave Sak a panettone (fruit cake?) for Christmas. I thought it might be better as bread pudding! (Used Food Network's recipe here)

It's a little burnty on top, but it tastes pretty good!

And lastly, olive penguins!

They took FOREVER to make. But they are cute!

Christmas Hodge Podge

I really don't know if I like white/silver elephant gift exchanges. I never seem to get it right. Either it's too stupid (spam cans) or too normal (giftcard). I have sensitive feelings so I tend to go the boring route. No one can say no to Vader with a giftcard, right?

Anyway, just a few snippets of Christmastime around our area lately..

The rabbits have taken to eating the bottom of our fake tree. I don't know why. And yes, those are nerf guns on the coffee table >.>"

And little reindeer!

And X-wing snowflakes! I cut them with my silhouette using the shapes from here.

Downstairs is all penguins!

Even penguin nativity, haha!

I fell in love with the rock candy stir sticks at Sak's annual holiday party..

And found these cute Hello Kitty hot choco packs at World Market, perfect for little gifts!

For church and for work I made little cookie bags with a small leaf tag cut with my new friend..

Not pictured, but I tried making earl grey cookies this year. Though someone ate them at work, they were pretty weird. I kept getting weirded out that I was basically just eating tea leaves. Weird. I don't think I'll make them again, though they tasted okay.

Also, does anyone else keep a gift log? I write all the gifts I give/plan to give every year in a journal so I don't end up giving the same thing in subsequent years! Plus it helps me stay organized. This journal dates back to 2007, and after the holidays are over I just put it back in the box with all the Christmas decor for next year!

Anyway, I love December! I think I'm nearly prepared for Christmas, just two more sewing projects and a whole lot of wrapping left!

How's your holiday spirit? Get enough Mariah Carey and Wham! yet?

DIY Twilight Ring

I have a love/hate relationship with online beading/jewelry stores. On one hand, it's a great and economical way to get the stuff you want, but on the other hand, there's SO much stuff to look through that you often come away with a cart full of "extras".

One of these extras happened to be this awesome filigree ring setting from Beadaholique:

Isn't it pretty? And only a $1.50!

Anyway, there was a tutorial attached to the listing, prompting me to buy the matching glass stones to put into the setting.  I printed and cut a small Cullen family crest to go inside, perfect for my Twilight-loving friend!

To glue it together I brushed on a thin layer of mod podge. You can see how half of it is dry (clear) and the other half is still wet (cloudy) below:

I love how the orb-shaped glass looks!

Would Edward approve? :)

I'll always have fond memories of seeing the last Twilight movie with my friend M, so I think this was a somewhat fitting gift!

Christmas Etsy Shopping

Ever since the year Sak gave me a paper shredder for Christmas, we decide together what to get - usually a gift we can both use.  And this year Sak let me open it early - a Silhouette! :) So that explains the blog-absence. I have been stressing out trying to finish my holiday projects before the mailing deadline! I'm maybe 75% of the way there. But I should have lots to share after it's all over!

Anyway, if you're like me and still stressing about finding the perfect gift for that name you drew or that friend you have, you should check out my friend's mom's Etsy store I just found out she had. It's called A Bowtique Shop, and she sells themed hair bows. And seriously - pretty much any theme. Sailor Moon, sports teams, My Little Pony, Disney and beyond. Even customs! (Also very reasonably priced, I might add. The small ones are only $3.50.)

Anyway, here's some of my favorites!

LOVE LOVE LOVE.

The feather is so cute!

My friend is the lovely picture model, too! Hehe.

Her bows are so cute and creative! I bought the Sugar Rush mini and the Sailor Moon Mini for gifts. :) Anyway, just thought I'd share my friend's shop in case anyone is looking for some last minute stocking stuffers!

See you all again after the mailing deadline!

Dim Sum Christmas Card

Yum yum yummm. Keeping with the food Christmas post card theme from years past (here and here), I tried my hand at some dim sum squishies this year!

Muahaha. Can you tell what types they are? I think people may have trouble with the har gow, as they are maybe too pink. And the potsticker looks more like a calzone than a dumpling. >.>" Sak likes grandpa bao the most, followed by crazy-Totoro-face baked bao.

I printed them through vistaprint again, and am super pumped to send them out! It's not even December yet - ahead of the game this year, that's rare! And I get to use the new Aloha shirt postcard stamps, whee!

Are you doing holiday cards?

DIY Eraser Magnets

Whenever I go to stores like Daiso and see those cute little food-shaped erasers, I cave. :P Usually I justify myself by giving them to my sister, but here's another ridiculously easy way to give the little things a bit more function.

Pack of flat magnets + cute erasers + glue = insta cute magnet!

Makes me hungry.

Works great!

Seeing as I don't know anyone who uses these things as actual erasers, this is a good way to display one's collection. Or you could use them to feed your action figures. Can't say I haven't done that either. >.>" 

Now I'm hoping Penga-Sis knows where all her erasers are, so we can glue some more magnets to them. I love a cluttered refrigerator. Inside and out :P

Marin Headlands

In the midst of daily Muni commuting and general fogginess, sometimes I forget what a beautiful area I get to live and work in.  Luckily when we have visitors I can take some time to appreciate what's here!

On two different weekends within the last month or so, we took Sak's parents and then my parents to the Marin Headlands, specifically to the Point Bonita lighthouse. If you want breathtaking, iconic shots of the Bay - this is where it's at.

Black sand beaches at the base of the cliff..

And an amazing treasure trove of historical bunkers, gun turrets, and forts from the Civil War to the Cold War.

WWII gun mount base

Cracked civil war era bunker

Penga-Sis acting like Slenderman in a creepy concrete tunnel

Amazing "hobbit house". You can go inside too, if you're brave enough! (I wasn't). Lots of creepy graffiti inside according to Penga-Sis

Not-so-creepy graffiti. Haha

Up the hill is the Marine Mammal Center, where they rehabilitate and heal sick and injured seals, sea lions, otters, etc.

Just in case anyone needs the recipe, lol

Getting better!

On a clear day you can see seals sun-bathing on rocks.

And flocks of seagulls swiping at the fishing boats as they clean their catch and come into harbor.

The path to the lighthouse is truly amazing, with a tunnel right in the rock and everything.

The bridge was a little scary!

But it was worth crossing!

This is definitely one "tourist" place I don't think I could tire of.  And we didn't even see everything! And it's all free aside from the bridge toll :)

Next time you're in the Bay Area on a sunny day (rare, I know), check out the Marin Headlands, it's breathtaking!