Being brave together makes us stronger

I was sitting on the beach in Mexico next to my husband. We were celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary, enjoying some much needed time to reconnect, just the two of us. The waves were lapping up, I had a cold drink in one hand and a good book in the other, when I got a Facebook message from my sister Angela. It confirmed what we all had hoped wouldn't be true.  

The biopsy that she had had the week prior was indeed breast cancer.

Angela had only just turned 43. It had been a rough year for Angie. The year before, she had lost her husband Randy very unexpectedly to a heart attack. Now here she was, a widow diagnosed with breast cancer. Her 40's weren't looking so good for her.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States. And while it's rare in women under the age of 45 {an 11% diagnosis rate}, it's important to know your risk because young women can and do get breast cancer. 

Angie's mother had passed away at a very young age {she was only 26} from breast cancer. After her mother passed away, our dad got remarried to my mom and my mother adopted my dad's children.

Most young women who are diagnosed with breast cancer find that it's usually diagnosed at a later stage and often it's more aggressive and difficult to treat. There are great benefits to just knowing what your risk factors are and keeping those in the back of your mind so that you can be aware of any changes that might indicate some risk. 

Like my sister, you might be at higher risk for breast cancer under the age of 45 if you have close relative who was diagnosed with breast cancer at a young age. But there are other factors that might increase your risk as well.  You can find some of the risk factors for breast cancer in young women here.  

Angela fought her way through treatment.  I was impressed with her positive attitude throughout the whole process. She had been getting knocked down at every corner it seemed, but managed to get right back up and fight.  It's been almost two years exactly since her initial diagnosis and she's changed.  But it's been a good change. She's so much more resilient than she thought she could ever be. She's bolder and braver and she's enjoying all that life has to offer. You can read other young women’s stories here.

These women tell their stories of prevention and how they explored their personal and family history and risk and how they are working with their health care providers to live a full life.

The CDC has started the Bring Your Brave campaign specifically geared towards young women under the age of 45, so that we can be inspired to learn our risk for breast cancer and be brave enough to talk with our health care providers about any possible risk factors that we may have. 

It's a sad reality, but most of us have been personally affected by breast cancer. Let's share our stories to bring awareness and inspire others to know their risk. Use the hashtag #BraveBecause when you share, because being brave together makes us stronger. 

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Using scrapbook paper to create a journal with a pocket

I'm a lover of a good print. It could be a good print on fabric or a good print on paper, I don't play favorites.  Lately, though I have found some pretty amazing scrapbook paper prints that have been screaming for me to create with them!

If you are local, my most favorite craft store is Artco in Tacoma, WA.  It's locally owned and while it's more expensive and doesn't have 40% off coupons like those other craft stores, it does have some pretty awesome items in stock.

I picked up a plain spiral bound notebook for $1 and these two pieces of coordinating scrapbook paper.  It took me all of five minutes to make something I love that would cost five times as much at those specialty paper stores!  Wait until you see it!

A little paper cutting and some double stick tape is all you need to cover the notebooks {I covered them front and back}

On the inside, I added a small pocket.  You do this by cutting out a small piece of paper and using double stick tape around 3 of the four sides {leave the top open}, and press it into place.

That's it!  Now you have some fancy notebooks just waiting to be filled with all of your thoughts. These make great teacher gifts for the holidays or teacher appreciation week.  Don't forget to pin it so you can remember to make one for your favorite teacher!

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Trying out the 2016 Kia Sedona mini van my thoughts for review

In case you are new here,  for the past few months, I have been preemptively test driving new cars in an effort to be prepared to make a selection when my current 2004 Honda Odyssey mini van bites the dust.  I love Thelma {the name of our mini van} and have never been one of those people that has been staunchly against driving a "swagger wagon".  

However, my three kids are no longer lined up in car seats in the back, so I have been opening up the options for consideration.  I tried out the Mitsubishi Outlander {an SUV crossover} and while the sound system was amazing, the practicality of driving all five of us in this car at once wasn't realistic. My son and I road tripped to Walla Walla in the Mazda 6 and while it was the perfect car for a road trip for just the two of us, I just couldn't see my three kids sitting thigh to thigh in the back seat.

The benefit of trying out all kinds of different cars is that I am able to try out all kinds of different new features.  My 2004, though it's the high end model, can't really compete with the features of cars today. I've learned that I love adaptive cruise control and the blind spot detector, though I could totally do without the lane departure warnings.  

During my time with the Sedona, I took the kids to the local pumpkin patch and drove a team of six missionaries from all over the globe {the Russian's weren't as impressed with the Sedona's camera system as the American's were!} to Seattle to be a tourist for the day.

Out of all of the cars I have tried so far, this was our families favorite! I'm pretty sure that's a good indicator that we just aren't ready to make the switch from a mini van just yet.

The most impressive feature that had everyone talking were the middle row seats. I had no idea a reclining seat like this existed outside of business class on your international flights!

 source

The kids would tip their seats back, flip the foot rest up and stare up at their own personal sky light in the roof of the car.  Or on longer rides, they could pop the DVD player up and put on the cordless headphones and be entertained for hours.

The best part is that even with the middle seats reclined and the passenger in their full relaxed position, there is still room in the back row for passengers.  What our family has grown to love in Thelma is the spaciousness of the van, and this Kia didn't disappoint.  It drove like a dream, and while it did feel bigger than the current mini van I am driving, the full camera angles helped ease me into tight parking spots and city parking garages without any incidents.

I'm turning my review over to my son Aidan.  As a passenger, a new driver and a 17 year old, he's got some opinions and thoughts about cars that I don't normally care about or cover when thinking about the nuts and bolts.

Aidan here. As with all the aforementioned cars, I will be helping to write the review. The two cars previous to this one were fairly mixed bags. Both included things that I would really like to have in a car like leather seats, good sound systems, and nifty tech packages, but both lacked the most important thing of all: space. 

Because of my parent's decision to create many offspring and my mother and I's frequent need to transport a lot of things, we will definitely need a car with three rather spacious rows. Realistically then, the next car for our family will be a mini van simply due to the fact that we need to transport a lot of things all of the time.

Thelma effectively carried a glass coffee table, a TV stand, a medium sized sectional (one of those sections transformed into a bed), and three large humans with some room to spare. 

As you can probably tell, I wasn't lying about the need for space, which is why I was so excited to finally see a mini-van for review in our garage.

{and mom is back because, hello, did you all just read that?  A 17 year old boy was excited to see a mini van!!!  Carry on...} 

I knew this car was going to be great right when I stepped in. The beautiful leather seats complimented the interior trim nicely and gave the feel of a high end luxury car. As I sat down in the middle row, I was both thrilled and shocked to see that the two middle seats were full recliner chairs. 

The center console was great as well. Not only did it include an easy-to-use touch display, it also had real buttons so that you could control virtually everything without having to waste time in menus. You could also do a fair amount of controlling from the steering wheel, though those buttons were fairly small and you really had to look for the one that you wanted. 

Heated and cooled front seats in addition to the heated steering wheel were all nice features as well. The Sedona rides nicely as well but it lacks some of the get-up-and-go that Thelma has. Other than a couple of very minor things, however, this is an incredibly nice car that truly gives its competition a run for their money.

There's no getting around it though--this car is expensive. We got pretty much every option possible and the grand total was about $44,000. This is a huge chunk of money, but it's cheaper than a Toyota Sienna and right around the same price as the Honda Odyssey when similarly equipped. Technically, you can get this car for around $25,000, but you shouldn't.
Power side doors aren't included with the base model, and don't even become available until the EX model which is just under 33 grand. If you're in the market for a mini-van, the Kia Sedona should definitely be included on your list. I really was shocked at how nice this van was.
There you have it.  A review on the Kia Sedona from mother and son. It's been a few weeks now since we had Pearl {yep, we name all our cars, even those we have temporarily} and the kids continue to talk about missing her.  "Remember when....I liked that she had..." While Kia would not have made my list previously in my search for mini van's it certainly has made the list now.  What do you think? I would love to hear your thoughts.  Especially if you have any experience with the Kia Sedona.To read other car reviewsMitsubishi OutlanderMazda 6disclaimer: I was able to drive the Kia Sedona for a week in exchange for this review

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How to cut heat transfer vinyl like a pro!

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One of my favorite things to do with my Silhouette machine is to cut heat transfer vinyl {HTV}.  HTV is the iron on material that can be cut to create any letter, shape or design to make a custom creation for any occasion.  I'm a sorority girl, and my husband likes to joke that it's not really an event unless there is a t-shirt to document the occasion!  Over the years I've made dozens and dozens of t-shirts for our family 5k Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning. I've created stockings and pillows and custom bags, not to mention gifts for family and friends.I've learned a lot of things about heat transfer vinyl over the years and while I'm not an expert, I do have a few tricks up my sleeve!

These are just a few of my favorite HTV projects through the years.

Santa glitter pillow, Nana canvas bag, Sophie dog silhouette stocking

Africa design, 12 month onesies, Turkey Trot T's

More Turkey Trot T's {there is a new design every year!}, more 12 month onesies, Space Mountain vintage shirt

I posted a tutorial on how to design, weed and iron on your HTV here. I love being able to design just about everything with my Silhouette design software. As I get more comfortable with HTV, I have become more adventurous and made some fairly complicated designs.  I've learned a few things.  And thanks to my friend Melissa at Silhouette School {if you own a Silhouette and aren't following her, you are missing out on some real gems. She's ah-mazing!} she gave me a few ideas and tips when I got a little stuck earlier this week. I'm always learning!SO...how do you cut heat transfer vinyl like a pro? Well, first off, start with the right materials. Expressions Vinyl has some pretty amazing HTV that cuts like butter! I always like to have rolls of white and black HTV on hand because you just never know! It never fails, but I always second guess myself on two things.  1. Yes, the image has to be mirrored before you cut it. 2. The shiny side of the HTV goes down. Every.single.time. I question this.  It's worth checking and double checking these two things. Trust me, I know.I have learned that as I get more complicated in my designs and with my fonts, that cutting on a mat is a lifesaver and it doesn't hurt to check the box that says double cut.  You can absolutely cut without your mat on simple designs, but it doesn't hurt to put it on there {and it may make it a little more stable too}, so just do it.  The double cut feature may be helpful to me because my blade is about a hundred years old, but again, it can't hurt, so just check that box.Remember how I mentioned that Melissa helped me out of a jam earlier this week?  This library date shirt was what I was working on.  I saw a shirt that was similar on The Middle last season and loved it, so I thought I would try to recreate it.  It took me about six months of randomly thinking about it from time to time to figure out how I would get HTV to work to get this smudged typewriter look.  I gave up the idea several times thinking that I would need to screen print the shirt, but on a whim, I decided to see if I could find a smudged font {this one is called Underwood 1913}. The font was free, so with a quick download, I was able to install it in my Silhouette software.  I used dates that are important to our family {minus the 1987...I was 9 then...I'm sure it was a good year.  I think}. 
I tried to cut the HTV a few different times without any luck.  What finally worked is ratcheting up my blade {yep, it's old and dull}, putting the vinyl on the mat and using the double cut feature.I am what I like to call spatially challenged.  I am grateful to be married to an engineer who can see things. I usually have him look something over for me, but when I am working on a project during the day and he's at an actual job, then I have to hang on my own.This West Philadelphia {born and raised} shirt gave me a little run for my money today.  {You're singing the song right now aren't you?} The shirt for the most part is super straightforward, the only thing that was a wild card was the curved Philadelphia.  Here is a tutorial for how to curve your font since I don't have one. You have to mirror your design when you cut your HTV, my Philly on the curve was mirroring upside down not backwards. It's complicated so stay with me.   I fixed it by typing the Philadelphia in the text creator {as a straight line} then mirroring that BEFORE I put it on the circle to curve it. 

And finally, one of my most favorite shirts ever because it's of one of my favorite places ever, is this Africa graphic that I made this past spring. I made a pretty complicated design in the HTV, but glory of glories it cut and left me with something awesome.

I only have one word for this one...patience. It took me a few hours to weed this shirt out {you will need a weeding tool}.  The hardest part for me on this shirt was deciding what part I wanted to be positive space {left in} and what I wanted to be negative space {weeded out}.  If you have a complicated design, like this one

or even one like this one {these pics were taken three years apart and yet I used the same table and the same globe!} just stick with it.  It will be worth it!

Hopefully these tips will have you cutting heat transfer vinyl and whipping up sorority girl worthy t-shirts in no time!  Like a boss. 

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How to make embroidery floss tassels

I'm a huge fan of this tassel trend that is happening right now, so when I found some embroidery floss at a garage sale recently I knew I had to whip up some tassels of my own!  It's super easy and I can't wait to show you how!

I had no idea embroidery thread existed, but I suppose since it comes on a spool that's exactly what it is!  Not to worry...

If you weren't lucky enough to find embroidery thread at a garage sale like I was, you can pick up embroidery floss at your local craft store pretty cheaply too!  I will show you how to make that variation as well.

Start by taking your embroidery thread and looping it around in a wide circle. It doesn't need to be too big since you really don't want a very big tassel.

Cut the thread from the spool and set it aside and then cut an 18 inch string from the spool and tie it twice in the middle of your loop. Fold your loop together in half keeping your long strings separate as much as you can.

Cut the end of your loop apart and you will be left with what looks like a pretty epic mustache or hair for a dolls head.

Take a long string from your spool {about 12 inches} and start wrapping it around the top to form your tassel. Tie it in place and cut off any loose ends.

Trim the ends of your tassel to make it the length that you want.   That's it!

If you want to go the embroidery floss route, there isn't too much of a difference.
Leave your floss wrapper on one end and find your thread end.

Cut off a length that you can use to tie in the middle like we did with our embroidery thread. Cut the two looped ends of your floss and remove your wrapper.

Separate your tied middle section and fold your ends together. Cut off a length of thread for the top tassel like I did before and secure it in place.  Easy peasy!

I really liked using the embroidery thread much better than the embroidery floss because I could make a much fuller tassel. The two tassels on the left are from floss, the three on the right are all made from embroidery thread. It's all a matter of personal preference and using what you have on hand.

Now you can take your tassels and tie them anywhere you want!
They can find their way into a book as a bookmark, or onto a key chain, or they can hang on a knob on a dresser

or on the end of a pen cap

or maybe on the top of a jar.

The possibilities are endless! That's a good thing, because making tassels sort of becomes super addicting and you will want to tassel all the things!  

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Homemade Caramel Apple Pie

Holy Craft's newest contributor, Kate, has been busy in the kitchen!  Last week she shared with us M&M candy corn cookies {did you try them?}  and this week, she's sharing with us her homemade caramel apple pie.  It's part of the Wayfair Battle of the pies contest. 

Since you all can't try the pies in this competition, the way votes are counted is by engagement: make a comment, share a post, pin the image, like the picture, you name it, we will take it!  You can find all of Holy Craft's social media outlets on the far right side bar of this post.  

But most of all, we just hope you will enjoy this yummy spin on this classic favorite.

Caramel Apple Pie{printable recipe}

Filling:

5-6 hard fleshed apple of choice peeled and cored {I used gingergold}zest of one lemonjuice from one lemon1 tbsp brown sugar½ cup flour¼ tsp nutmeg¼ tsp cinnamon

Slice apples into thin slices {all the same size} and mix with lemon juice and zest. 

Mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl and toss with apple. Set aside.

Pie Crust:

12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter3 cups flour1 tsp salt1 tbsp sugar6 to 8 tablespoons {about 1/2 cup} ice waterORMake it easy and use a store bought pie crust {I personally love Trader Joes}
Cut butter into small cubes and return it to the refrigerator while you prepare the flour mixture. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse a few times to mix. Add the butter. Pulse 8 to 12 times, until the butter is the size of peas. With the machine running, pour the ice water in and pulse until the dough begins to form a ball. Dump out on a floured board and roll into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.Cut the dough in half. Roll each piece on a floured surface into a circle, rolling from the center to the edge, turning and flouring the dough to make sure it doesn't stick to the board. Fold the dough in half, place in a pie pan, and unfold to fit the pan. Repeat with the top crust and cut into strips. Fill in the bottom pie crust with apple mixture.

Arrange strips of pie crust into a lattice design on top.  Trim excess pie crust and crimp edges.

Caramel Sauce:

¼ cup brown sugar¼ cup white sugar4 tbsp butterpinch salt½ tsp cinnamonIn a sauce pan melt all the ingredients and keep warm until ready to pour on pie.Pour all the caramel on top. 

Place foil on edges on pie and bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour.

Enjoy a slice and share some with a friend!

Apples are perfectly in season right now and make the best pies. Make it even better by adding caramel to the top. It's sure to be a new family favorite!disclaimer: as part of this competition we were given a Wayfair gift card. All opinions are 100% my own. I wouldn't share with you something I didn't love.

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Benefits of buying used gifts for your kids

It's hard to believe, but Christmas isn't that far off.  Some years it sneaks up on me.  Other years, I'm totally prepared.  The one thing that is consistent is that we really like to give more than we get. We started out as a very young family and early on set a $50 Christmas gift limit for our kids.  We didn't want our kids getting consumed by wish lists and having Christmas be all about them.  We wanted them to be thinking of others.

Because we have set this limit on Christmas gifts, I've had to get creative.  Especially as they get older.  There are things that they have really desired, but that haven't been in the budget. I wanted to share some of the benefits that we have found because we have bought used gifts for our kids.It's not uncommon for our kids to find gifts that I have found at garage sales under the tree.  I actually see a huge benefit from it from a parents stand point.  I hear a lot of parents on Christmas saying they stayed up all night putting together the kitchen they bought for their kids or piecing together the Barbie dream house for their daughter.  

I saw this video and I had to share. I love that most of what we buy used comes put together already. We don't have to spend hours following directions that don't make any sense.  Instead, we can enjoy a warm drink in front of the fire and stare at the glowing lights on the Christmas tree.I'm not a super tree hugger but one of those side benefits is that you don't have the packaging and waste that comes with the doll being bolted in a package six different ways from Sunday!By buying used, my kids have gotten gifts that we wouldn't otherwise buy for them.  While we can afford to buy a new American Girl doll, I would much rather spend my money on something else that matters far more. My daughter doesn't have an American Girl doll shortage. In fact, over the years, she's had upwards of 10 authentic American Girl dolls. All bought at garage sales for less than $5 each. Does it matter that she didn't have the box that the doll came in? Not once!Shopping this way requires some forethought. I have had to keep my kids and the things that they like in mind when I'm out garage sale shopping. I don't just buy used gifts at garage sales though. I've been known to pick them up on Craigslist and eBay as well.  So what do you think? Do you buy used gifts for your kids? Would you even consider it?

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