Author: Clare at CatsEatDogs

Kickboxing, zombie fighting, cookie baking ninja

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This morning I did my kickboxing/ninja/zombie defense class at the Y and I have to say, it totally flew by. I can’t believe how fast the time went. No doubt sore arms and legs tomorrow, but I love that!  Really, I do, I think it confirms I worked hard, I firmed up some wobbly bits  and now I can make and eat some cookies! Did someone say cookies? Look at what heavenly beast I found in Trader Joe’s this morning.  I only wonder why I didn’t buy a cart full. These should come with a stern warning along the lines of… ‘Do not open until you intend to bake with them. Not even just to try them. You will nibble and nibble and they will all be gone – forever. No cookies.’ They are so good straight out of the packet, forget fancy Christmas M&M’s, just get bags of these for everyone who needs sweets! Job done. You’re welcome. Leave some for me though. I just used all mine in cookies….and nibbling… I am going …

Eat curry, hunt treasure.

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This weekend was my birthday weekend as we wouldn’t all be here on my actual birthday to have cake and gasp at present opening! We went to House of India for a curry buffet extravaganza lunch. Bodhi ate his body weight in chicken Tikka Masala and I just wanted to eat the rice pudding, but tried to be an adult and had some actual food first. Onto Barnes and Noble to pick up a woefully old, Mollie Makes magazine,  out of date because it is a UK publication and I assume it takes ages for it to flap those magaziney pages over here. Not to worry though, there are no horoscopes to go out of date, no celeb gossip to age, just lovely crafty stuff for me to look at and plan to make. When I can knit and crochet effectively…..I can use a sewing machine and a needle and thread, so all is not lost!  I like the look of the itsy hedgehog on the cover, I can make him! After Indian lunch, we went off …

Cranberries float

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I spent the morning in my son’s second grade class doing experiments and explorations with cranberries.  Thanksgiving is on it’s way and cranberries are a main foodstuff to go with the essential turkey!   I was in charge of the ‘sink or float’ station. They float, in case you were wondering…even the smushy ones. While they all loved the experiments, the clear highlight was when a local police officer visited with our principal! He came to each station (excuse the pun!) and chatted with the kids, well,  they thought that was the coolest thing ever! I agree, I can’t imagine many schools where local law enforcement would show up for a quick chat to the kids. When I got home it was my turn for cranberry experimenting. I am making cranberry sauce, but I have no orange or juice which the recipe on the back of the cranberry bag calls for.   So,  I am using lemon juice and zest with water to make up the quantity. I think I will throw in a couple …

Stamping and teepee building

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We took a walk to ArtMart this morning after a brekkie of ‘Nate the Great’ (recipe from the books) pancakes and bacon. I have an urge to make my own stamps so that I can stamp little catseatdogs logos wherever I please. I also want to make a star shaped stamp for making Christmas cards, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves! Here is the kit I bought, I haven’t delved into it yet, but I have established that it is not a toy! So anyone who knows anything about using these, feel free to share tips! I am looking forward to using my stamps, but I am doubting my ability to successfully manufacture one and keep all of my fingers intact. I will be sure to keep you updated! While we were out, I spotted these Peppermint White Chocolate M&Ms. A couple of bags later, off home to try them. Do I want more or will they be too sweet? Munch munch munch munch munch munch munch munch…..munch munch munch….smell nice..taste…yyuummmm!  I mean, they …

What’s in your bag?

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‘In your bag‘ is the photo a day prompt for today. Confession-I thought this was a boring one. How can this be an interesting photo? Where’s the creativity. Well, it may not be an interesting statement of art, but I had a little giggle, or rather a crazy person talking to herself hearty laugh, as I emptied my bag to investigate! What did I find then?  Here goes, I will start with a list and then decide if I want to explain, defend and anything else in order to justify this hoard.  You will also be pleased to know that I put it all, yes all of it, back into the bag! E45 lip balm Yes! carrots tinted lip balm Neals Yard Lip gloss Baby Baby lip balm Good Clean Soap orange lip balm Creme Brulee Vaseline lip balm tin L’Occitane Green Tea perfume in a tin L’Occitane Rose perfume in a tin Pacific perfume Malibu Lemon Blossom solid perfume A ladder A plastic tortoise (not in the photo as I have only just found …

Woodland Tales – treasury on Etsy

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Acorns we found at Pere Marquette State Park, IL Here are some fabulous creatures from the wonderful world of Etsy. Treasury created by me at catseatdogs, including some of my favourite Etsy artists. ‘Woodland Tales’ by catseatdogs Wooden or woody lovelies. Perfect for walking in the woods, planning to walk in the woods or dreaming of walking in the woods. Gingerbread Lip Balm – One T… LongWinterSoap… $4.00 Hand Knit Hat Womens Hat – T… pixiebell $50.00 pink mushroom StephanieSersi… $35.00 Hearts – Bamboo Wood Earring… Cabin $12.00 Wooden Boho Necklace / Brown… BlueBirdLab $24.00 Handmade Knotted Bracelet Bl… yashmacreation… $20.00 Tree Love slouchy eco crewne… elSage $53.00 Women’s Infinity Scarf i… beautiefullthi… $30.00 Quietude LoreleiEurtoJe… $79.00 Glass Leaves Necklace villadesign $48.00 Rings. Modern Contemporary S… Epheriell $68.00 the beer soap collection goodcleansoaps $18.00 Treasury tool supported by the dog house

Ten on Saturday the tenth!

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We are on the way to Pere Marquette state park. I have my real camera as well as my iPhone, and of course a Milky Way/Mars bar. I always remember the pure joy of a Mars bar on hikes when I was a kid! Well, we went the wrong way to the park, but a potentially dangerous situation (wrong directions are never pretty, even when confidently spouted out of a phone which answers back) turned good when we stumbled upon Smartt Field where there is a aviation museum of tiny proportions. The Commemorative Air Force, Missouri Wing is a shambolic looking gathering of hangars with impressive planes, including the B25 Mitchell and the 1945 TBM 3, both WWII planes. Spectacularly exciting for the boys in my life! We toured the small airfield and the men who worked there couldn’t have been happier to answer all and any questions. Saturday 11am, here we were. A happy wrong turn indeed! I think Bodhi has this on his birthday list…. This however, is not on mine, but it …

Beady Heart

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For the photo a day, today’s was ‘A Favourite Thing’. I took a picture of a beaded heart at its beginning. I love to make jewelry  and it is exciting when someone buys one of my pieces and then I see them wearing it! Today my making focus is all over the place. I am washing, putting pots away, making a coffee, checking Twitter… and on it goes. I do like the whole social media merry-go-round, but boy, sometimes I wonder whether I need to duct tape myself on or just leap off and hope I hit some soft grass. I don’t like to post the same darn thing on every site, because I think that is boring and apparently I like to make more work for myself.  So I flit about on my little iPhone,  posting a photo,  writing a short sentence on a short sentence site,  or messing about with photo finishes so that the aforementioned photo is an interesting one. Then I feel that I really should be making something, because hey, …

Happy on the Trail!

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Seven o clock  on  Sunday morning, first stop was to photo these frosty leaves – I just can’t walk about without spotting things to photograph, even in the freezing cold! I was on my way to meet my friends to go and run at Castlewood State Park. I have hiked there before and admired the runners hopping about like mountain goats, but I have never run a trail with rocks, leaves, mud, a creek, 300 steps and a giant hill.   This was going to be my mountain goat moment. At the beginning of the chilly trail, I had my water, gloves and Stinger honey gel (yes, I was feeling that unsure of my legs that I equipped myself with energy gel). Ready to hop skip jump and run six lovely tree filled miles. One of the best runs I have done. No pressure, stay upright, one foot in front of the  other and keep going, my usual running rules.   About those 300 steps, I walked them!  Check out the view from the top. …

October 2012 Photo A Day

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Day 1. Where You Stood. Chilly out, wet footprints on a skateboard ramp destined for the tri city yard sale on Saturday. Day 2. Lunch. Miso soup with pot stickers. This is something I will often have for lunch, but I did plan a little bit around the daily photo for this one. Check the chopsticks! I ate the soup with a spoon…. Day3. This happened today. I went to Trader Joes for pumpkin bread ingredients and to Target for socks for Bodhi and parchment paper. Day 4. What you read. I have either read these today, am reading them or am going to read them for bedtime stories.  ‘Mary Poppins’ is our bedtime read. You ‘Wouldn’t Want to be a World War II Pilot’ was last nights read, it is quite informative! Day 5. Shadow. Drink anyone? I took this on the iPhone 4 camera, added 1962 in Camera Bag, then into Camera+ to add clarity and color dodge. Love playing with photo apps! Day 6. I’m thankful for.   Amazing yard sale finds …