When life gives you lemons, and other reasons the net makes your life better...

In keeping with my general down-on-the-desert disposition, I often find myself surprised when I find myself in situations that just wouldn't be possible elsewhere. A beautiful sunset on the commute home from work, being within driving distance to Oak Creek and Grand Canyon, the generous amount of skin that is constantly on display here which turns out to be a highly compelling reason to work out. Oh yes people, cleavage is definitely in. I'll never forget my first impression of Arizona State University; I believe I called it the "ass parade." But I digress...

What else is nice about living here? Copious amounts of citrus! And those who know me can attest to love of lemons. My friend Trina happens to have a lemon tree that was so weighed down with lemons, I just had to insist she give me some. I must preface this by also saying these are the the BIGGEST lemons I have ever seen - two to three times bigger than you would see in a your typical grocery store. These bad boys are super juicy, too. With one lemon, I made two glasses of lemonade and enough marinade for a 1 pound flank steak. I filled a shopping bag and plan on further relieving her tree of it's burden in the very near future.

As for other news, I have to send a great big "thank you" to Christina! Look what came in the mail with a sweet little message to have fun! HotPatterns Deco Vibe Cosmopolitan Dress!!!
I mentioned in one of my previous posts that I had tried making McCall's 5648 and how disappointed I was that it looked nothing like what I was hoping. Note the sack I am wearing below:
Hearing my woeful cry for help, both Christina and Cidell offered to loan me their Cosmo patterns. How awesome is that?! The web vastly increases one's circle of friends, that's for certain. Thank you both for being so sweet :)

In keeping with my lemonade theme, I'm going to salvage this muslin to make the Cosmo. The bodice will have to be recut, but the skirt and sleeves are salvageable. More on that later and a review of the tie blouse from Burda's January issue. I'm off for an evening bike ride and lemonade refreshment...