Homemade sprinkles, why yes!

It's been a week since my last post. I promise to get better at this and blog more than once a week. What good would a blog be if you only updated it once a week? I can't get away with that, I'm not PostSecret.

As I sit here watching the Oscars and listening to the thunderstorms, I can't help but long for winter to make it's final disappearing act. I hear these storms are going to turn into snow and ice over night. When will it end?!?! Some of you know that I am not a fan of winter. The cold doesn't bother me as much as the gross, disgusting, messy snow. And since it's difficult to do outside activities with snow covering everything, I've taken on a long list of house and craft projects this winter. If only I finished any of them.

My to-do list last week was 3 items long, one of which I accomplished the second I posted the list. So how did I manage to only accomplish 2 of the 3 items on the list? I'd like to say that I was super busy and didn't get home until late every night. But that would be a lie. With the exception of being out of town this weekend, I really had plenty of time during the week. I suppose pure laziness took over. Or maybe I just didn't feel like hanging our wall decorations, which is probably why it was on the list to begin with. I often find that the items that make my to-do list are the very items I don't have the desire to complete. I guess that's why I need to write them down, to motivate me to do them.

I did manage to make homemade sprinkles this week. They were lemon flavored and this beautiful light blue that will be perfect for decorating cupcakes or cookies at Easter. Overall, the recipe was not very difficult. Here are my tips if you'd like to try it yourself (in list form of course):
1. Make sure you have ample time to pipe the icing for drying (around an hour)
2. Thinner strips dry better and break up to look like sprinkles more than thicker strips. I was piping thicker strips by the end because I wanted it done, but they just didn't turn out as well as the thinner ones. But don't worry, they taste just as delicious!
3. Do some strength training on your hand muscles. That piping really hurts after awhile!

And of course every blog needs pictures, so here are some I took during the sprinkle expiriment.




The finished product!

Discovering life through lists

My blogging started about a year and a half ago when my husband and I were planning our wedding. We wanted to be able to keep our guests informed of all the necessary details, but wanted something more customizable than a wedding page from TheKnot. A year and a half, and only about 10 posts later, we were married and our blog was obsolete. What were we thinking starting a blog devoted to the wedding when we were just beginning some of the best times of our life?

I will admit that I only recently began reading and following blogs. I had a brief stint with xanaga in early college, which read more like my diary than a blog. However, it was only after getting married that I started really getting into DIY and food blogs. I've really enjoyed reading about projects and recipes that other people are trying in their homes, so I've decided to start my own blog. After a few weeks of "soul searching", my husband helped me come up with the idea of A Listful Life. I live through lists. I know this sounds crazy or neurotic, but I like my lists. In fact, I'll make a list of why I like lists:

1. I enjoy crossing items off once they are completed
2. Lists help me remember everything the first time around.
3. My husband has this amazing ability to be "blissfully unaware" as a friend calls it. Lists help remind him of the things that need to be done around the house.

My hope is that this blog is not only me sharing my lists with you, but rather the events that complete my lists. I have an ever growing collection of recipes I want to try and restaurants to visit. I have house projects and craft projects and even some simple goals (like learning to sew) on my lists, and I hope to share my progress here. And mostly, I hope to inspire some of you to try something new, whether it be a restaurant I've reviewed, a recipe I posted, or simply a stab at organizing your life using lists. And mostly, I hope to follow through with this blog more than I did with our wedding blog!

This week's To Do List:
1. Start blogging (check!)
2. Make sprinkles, using the recipe found here
3. Hang up wall decor in our dining room