We have a winner!

I laughed really hard when I made this picture. The winner is an actual person, I promise...Not the mannequin pictured above.

So, congratulations The Mannequin! When you decide which apron you would like all to yourself, send me an email to erika(at)oopsicraftmypants.net. Please include your mailing address and which apron you would like.

Everyone else, thank you so much for entering. You guys are fantastic (notice, I didn't say "awesome") Also, a big huge thanks to Flirty Aprons. This giveaway was so much fun!

(ps. Does anyone know how to get my comments numbered? It would make giveaways a lot easier! I can't figure it out no matter what tutorial I use. I'm the worst at computers...)

Passion and Google Reader Collide

I'm passionate about a lot of things in life, such as family and friends, to name a few. Another thing I'm passionate about is Google Reader. I'm serious. I don't know how people live without it.

I was shocked when my mom and my friend LeDawn (check her out, she's awesome) told me they didn't know what the heck Google Reader even was. WHAT!? So, then I did a little poll amongst my friends and found out that lots of people have no clue what I'm talking about when I say stuff like "So then I checked my Google Reader..." My mind was boggled people. Bog-gled.

Now I feel like it's my duty to let you, my loyal friends and readers, in on the greatest thing known to (wo)man.

So, fasten your seat belts and let's get going.

First, what IS Google Reader, anyway? Google Reader is the easiest way to read blogs, without having to remember pesky URLs. You just simply input the URL once (yes! Only ONCE!) and it'll show you every single update on that blog. Swoon.

So, how do you get  Google Reader? Simple! Just go to www.google.com/reader. You'll need a Google account to continue, but seriously don't sweat it. It literally takes two minutes to set up. Once you have an account, you can log in.

When you log in, the page will look like this:

Completely empty.

Now's the fun part. Click on add a subscription to well...Add a subscription (the blog URL).

After you add your subscription, it should look like this:

Keep on adding subscriptions until your heart feels content. Here's my real Google Reader (the one above was just for example). This is what it looks like when I first log in.

Oh look! 26 posts were made (by different bloggers) since last time I logged in. If you want to see ALL of those, instead of just the most recent on the home page, you click on all items.

It looks like Mer in Cashmere updated a ton, but she just moved to a new blog and imported all her old stuff... No worries! Definitely go check her out, though. She's awesome.

So awesome, in fact, that I'm going to use part of her post to show you how awesome it is to click a post title!

Look how great that post looks. No ads, no annoying background, no music...Just clean and beautiful (though, her site is always clean, but you get the picture).

Ready to move to the next post? Awesome, just scroll down and click on the next title.

So, there you have it. A mini how to on using Google Reader.

I must warn you, though...Google Reader IS addicting and you probably WILL double (or triple) your blog reading time because it's so addicting to add new blogs, and so easy to remember those blogs you always seem to forget to write down (and kick yourself later for)

I must also warn you that sometimes there is heartache regarding Google Reader. Like, when this message pops up.

It's the worst.

What are you opinions of Google Reader? Love it? Hate it? Use it? Had no idea what it was? Let me know!

** These are my real, true opinions. I wasn't asked to write this post.

Edit: I will never use the word "awesome' again. Sorry about that, I got a little excited.

everyone needs a little color in their life

Today, I went to my parents' house for dinner. The first thing my mom said when I arrived was "Erika, you HAVE to come see my basement... I just cleaned it all out!" I willingly obliged because I had a feeling she'd have lots of crap to give me. I was right.

I also found a box full of clear jars. Immediately, when I saw them, I remembered a little trick that was going around blogland to make clear bottles have color. I knew that I needed to make a few changes, though.

One of those changes was to paint the inside of the bottles, rather than the outside for a more polished look. I also decided to use a mixture of Mod Podge and Tacky Glue for maximum coverage and a smooth finish.

I wish I could give you an exact recipe, but I honestly just eyed it. If I were you, I would use one part Mod Podge/Tacky Glue mixture to a 1/4 part water. Then, add as much or as little food coloring as you need to to get the color you prefer.

Once the mixture was made, I decided that the easiest way to get the bottles dyed evenly would be to pour some of the mixture into the bottles and secure the lid. Once I did that, it was easy to shake the bottle around and make sure the each and every little centimeter of the bottle was covered. Then, I set them out to dry.

Here's the finished product. They're still a little streaky, but I just couldn't wait to post about them so I didn't wait for them to fully dry.

Sorry for the billion pictures. I absolutely loved this project. It was so much fun to make and probably the easiest project I've ever done. Need proof? My craft challenged sister even helped out!

(Don't you LOVE those vibrant colors while they're drying?)

Psst! Fellow Utah friends!

Do you live in Utah?
Do you need some gals to craft with?

A few friends of mine and I are trying to set up a little craft club...Want to join in on the fun? Shoot me an email! erika(at)oopsicraftmypants.net with the subject "Utah".

I've also set up a private Facebook group, which you can request an invite to here.

The "club" will most likely meet in Utah County.

Okay, carry on.

Ps. Did you sign up to win the apron yet?

Flirty Apron Giveaway

Today, I received my Flirty Apron in the mail. I was seriously giddy. I couldn't wait to put it on and get to work!

So, in true Erika (read: geeky) fashion, I put the apron on while I was still outside and casually walked into the house to show my husband. He loved it. He may or may not have said something inappropriate involving the apron and myself, but I'll keep that one on the down low.

I seriously felt like super woman in this bad boy. In fact, I wore it to clean my entire house. I didn't mean to, I just started cleaning and I couldn't stop. By the time I finished polishing my counters, I realized that an apron is meant to cook in. So, I threw a frozen burrito into the microwave for lunch. Deeelish.

Overall, I would rate this apron very high. It has huge pockets (great for tidying up and throwing random things in there) and long ties so that it can fit virtually anyone. I love this apron and can't wait to find somewhere cute to hang it. It's so darling that I don't care who sees it!...Plus, it makes me look like a more legit housewife...Can't argue there.

Would you like to win your very own Flirty Apron? Of course you do. Who wouldn't want to look and feel wonderful while slaving away in the kitchen? Here's how to enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post saying which Flirty Apron you like the most (there are men's and children's aprons too, don't forget to check them out!)
2. Follow Oops! I Craft My Pants (tell me if you already are)
3. Blog, Tweet, or Facebook about this giveaway.
4. Purchase a Flirty Apron (worth 2 entries so leave two comments)

So there you have it. Four (technically five) chances to enter. Make sure to leave a comment for each separate entry! Giveaway will end on Wednesday, June 30, at 4 pm Mountain time.

Blogs to Know

It's no secret that I love blogs. So, what better way to channel my obsession by starting another blog about blogs?

Did you know that there is a whole slew of blogs out there beyond the craft world? Well, there is (I know, it baffled me, too)! So, my newest blog is going to highlight some of my favorite blogs out there in the big wide blogosphere. They might be brand new blogs or they might be blogs that have been around "forever". They might be about crafts, family life, fashion, make up, or who knows what else! I'm not going to put limitations on the kind of blog that can be featured., because honestly, there is a blog out there for everyone!

So, if you feel so inclined, jump on over to Blogs to Know and get started. I promise that if you stick around, you will find at least a few (hundred) new blogs to add to your Google Reader.

Want your blog to be considered for a future feature? Join in on my party and leave the link to your blog for me to drool over. Who knows? You may just see yourself on a future feature.

What a chore

I've been blessed with an awesome husband. He's so awesome, in fact, that you hear about him quite frequently around here (ya know, when I actually blog).

The other day (a.k.a. last night around 1 a.m., the husband mentioned above said to me "we really need a chore chart. I don't help out enough around the house." Awww, right? I couldn't agree with him more (sorry, T!),  so I decided to get right to work.

Initially, I wanted to make a chore wheel, but, frankly, I'm not smart enough nor crafty enough to figure out how! So a chart it was.

I really wasn't sure what direction I wanted to go with this chore chart. First, I painted two canvases grey. I was going to have one canvas for Tyler and one canvas for me. Talk about overload! So, instead, I just used a plain white canvas. I like it that way. Lots less busy! Plus, the grey was so dark on the other ones it made me want to cry...Or, at least give up.

ANYWAY, after 15 hours of rambling, here is the final result.

One column is for my husband and the other is for me, if you didn't know.

To make the paper a little less flimsy, I attached every piece (minus the week days, those are Mod Podged on the canvas) to a piece of orange card stock paper. Why orange? I don't know...What I do know is that they're now a heckova lot stronger. Perfect, because I needed to add magnets for variety.

I tried to keep the chores pretty basic. After all, we don't want to go into a cleaning shock or something. Basically, we each have 2-4 chores a day (minus Sundays where neither of us have any, and Saturdays where I tried to keep things very simple so we can just enjoy the day with each other). Thankfully my husband likes to cook, because I love not having to cook every. single. night.

I actually ended up liking this project a lot. Even if it did take me til 4 a.m.
Looks like my hard work paid off.

 

They approve.

Ps. Can I just say that I LOVE the new blogger editor thing? how amazing that I can get huge pictures without the hassle of Photobucket. My life in complete! Plus, now you can see my blog pictures, even at work with those pesky blockers.

Thanks

picture found here

I just felt like I needed to write real quick and tell you thank you for your unbelievable support. When I posted a link to my family blog in the last post, I had no idea that I would get so many comments, emails, and messages letting me know that you were thinking about me or praying about me.
You guys are such loving and friendly people, and I am so lucky that this blog brought us all in touch with each other. I needed that so much, I needed you so much.

It's hard to write this post without tears. Not only tears of sadness, but tears of gratitude to you readers.
My husband and i miscarried again a few weeks ago. It's been tough and I've had a hard time dealing with it, but I feel at peace at the same time. I know it's because of your honest prayer, thoughts, and concerns on my behalf that I was, and am, able to move forward and be my happy "normal" self.

It's not that I'm not still sad, but you readers make it a whole lot easier to deal with.

Thank you.