So many blogs and new ideas....

You guessed it - so little time!  Well if you haven't checked out http://www.pinterest.com/, I suggest you do.  It's addicting and oh so full of great ideas - both crochet and otherwise.  I could spend hours on end just browsing through some of the pins.  I've come across some really cool new blogs you might want to check out.

Julia Crossland

Flower Gurl Crafts

The Small Things

Cult of Crochet

I am really enjoying reading their posts and admiring their amazing creative talent!

Last night I was working on the snowman scarf for my Mom's neighbor.  It's taking a little longer because of the detail, but here is a pic of how it looks so far.  Not sure I would more of these on a regular basis as it's time consuming, but I think it's pretty cute.

Now, on a side note -- I am going through an emotional time.  My head and heart are bouncing off the walls.  Everything on the radio reminds me of something that just sets my heart racing and my head spinning.  It's almost too much to bare but I can't turn away for fear of a missed opportunity at something amazing.  I know in a round about way I am heading for heartache.  Talk about a lesson in life.  How do you guys cope with stuff like this??  I know the saying, "God doesn't give you anything you can't handle".  Does God test you?  Does he test your will or your faith? 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Break the Spell" by DAUGHTRY.  "Maybe you're the part of me that's keeping me alive."

Oh Blog...

This morning I woke up with the realization I am way too sensitive and over think everything.  Why do I do that????  Over analyzing gets me nowhere except in a really horrible emotional state.  It's such a double edged curse.  Without the emotions am I really experiencing life??  With the emotions I'm a mess.  Grrrr. 

Moving on....  I finished up the scarf for one of my Mom's little neighbors.  I like it a lot and have gotten some really good feedback on it.  I think I will make up another and post on Etsy.

Not sure why the second pic is out of focus, but you get the general idea.  The next one I'm working on is striped lengthwise and I am thinking I will add a snowman to it for the decoration. 

I can't believe it will be 2012...  2011 flew by for me.  It was quite a year of change.  Moving from CA to OH, new job, new house...  It's funny how things can change.

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg.  Dang this song makes me tear up every single time, but I keep listening...

Crochet storm

I have been crocheting every chance I can, which sadly hasn't been as much as I'd like.  I'm hoping that this week and the weekend offers me an opportunity to crochet everything that's in my head.  I have so many ideas right now!!  I did write them down just in case...  

Here are a few pics.  I decided to use the mannequin my daughter obtained for us during her work in retail.  Even though I think it's funny it does help to show off the scarves.

This is the braided scarf.  It actually was super cute on my daughter.

Here is the other one I made her.  I had taken pics of it lying on the bed.  I think this pic shows the colors better.

This is the second pocket scarf I've made.  My daughter took this one with her she liked it so much.  I'm hoping to make a few more of these for Etsy.

This is one of the scarves I've made for my Mom's neighbors.  It's simple, but still really cute.

 

I hope the pics come out alright. 

With Every Season

This morning I am feeling a bit melancholy.  It's nothing in particular that has me feeling this way.  Could be the season.  Could be a lot of things.  I am thankful for everything and everyone in my life and I know I don't say that nearly enough - to God or even to myself.  Yesterday I saw a post on a site that said, "Imagine if you woke up this morning with only what you had thanked God for the night before."  That started me thinking about things.....  First off it was the material things but as the day wore on it started to really hit me.  The material things flew by the way side and I started to imagine not having the use of my hands to crochet or my eyes to see all the beauty of this world.  And my hearing -- a world without music?  Then last night I learned that a very good friend's wife is in Hospice now and how she was trying to hold on through Christmas for the sake of her little ones - all five of them.  I thought to myself, "What greater wish is there than that of life spent with loved ones?" 

I finished up the parts to my daughter's scarf whilst watching yet another Christmas movie.  I have no doubt those things (On Lifetime no doubt) also do wonders to make a person think and put life's priorities in order.  I'm excited to put the pieces together for her scarf.  Just hope she likes it! 

Hoping today is a short one at work.  We are all restless and not very productive.  With luck I'd like to be gone by 12!  We shall see!

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Do You Hear What I Hear?" by Carrie Underwood.  She does an amazing job on this song.  Love it.

Big project and other assorted misc stuff

Greetings!  I haven't done much crocheting lately.  Seems like every day there are other things to do that don't involve yarn.  Go figure.  I attended a party at the barn where I board my horses on Sunday evening.  Well, it was at their house - not in the barn.  They live in a farmhouse built in 1895 and it is absolutely gorgeous.  I can't tell you much I enjoyed looking at everything.  They have antiques and have decorated it so lovely.  Old farmhouses have so much character.  However, there was one thing missing -- you guessed it - an afghan!!  So as I was driving home the idea was forming in my head to crochet them an afghan!  Now I am all excited about this project because I am going to make a granny square (seems fitting) and incorporate a few surprises into it as well.  I can't wait to get started. 

This work week is short since I'm off Friday.  But alas, there is no rest for the weary!  Our daughter flies in at 11:30 and since it's about a two hour drive to the airport....  No sleeping in.  Not that I can anyway, but it's nice to think about just lying there with no agenda.  She's only in town till the 26th and luckily I'm also off that day as well.  Even better -- my boss is off starting Thursday through Dec 30th.  I won't see him again until Jan 3rd.  I'm having a love/hate relationship with this guy.  I think he's amazing at what he does; just not so good delegating and/or explaining what he wants from others. 

The DH and I are getting very restless about getting the horses on our piece of dirt.  We are starting to create ideas of him building one from scratch.  For so many reasons we feel this is the way to go.  Most importantly is we simply cannot afford the barn we want - but we can afford him to build one we can live with!  Does that make sense? 

**I don't have OCD but I have to compartmentalize everything and so I will now refer to the farmhouse afghan as Project 1 and the barn as Project 2.**

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Where Are You Christmas?" By Faith Hill

Everything Changes

Just when I think I can't take anymore, things change...  Wasn't it only Wednesday I was complaining about my job??  Today I had a meeting with my manager to go over the financials for three projects.  This can sometimes be a real painful meeting because at times it feels like I never have the data he wants.  Well today it went rather well and I could tell his plate was full.  I asked him about another assignment he'd given me to complete.  I need his input to finish it and he said, "I've not even started that yet.  And I have to complete this Charter..."  Now I perked up when he said "Charter" because I have a BA background so this was something I knew about.  I told him, "You know...I was a BA for years.  I could help you with that if you'd like...."  I don't think I had it out of my mouth when he launched the whole thing to my inbox.  LOL  I thought to myself -- "perhaps this isn't such a bad job after all..." 

As usual I have a hectic weekend planned.  Tomorrow I'm going to pick out the paint for the master bathroom and we are going to pull out the decorations for the tree.  The outside lights are up and look great!  Sunday is a very busy day.  I'm going to my Mom's to bake goodies for my son who's stationed in GA.  My Mom calls me daily to tell me what she has bought for our day of baking.  I think we will need to hire a personal plane to deliver the size box of goodies she has planned for her Grandson.  We are also going to attend the Christmas Party at the barn where I keep my horses.  The DH didn't want to go, so I asked Mom and she was quite happy about it.  So I am making my special Mac & Cheese for that and my Mom is making a pumpkin roll.  Because the party is closer to my Mom's afterwards I'm just going to spend the night with her Sunday and go into work from her house Monday.  Should be a fun time with her -- we always laugh. 

Okay....pictures....  I'm going to see if I can't upload them so they show up.  Here goes!

Let's hope that worked!! 

So we left CA because we were tired of the sunny weather 360 days a year.  So what do you think CA has been getting this past week?  Rain and hail!  Friends posted pics on FB showing the hail and it looked like snow!!  In the meantime we've had unseasonably warm temps for December in the low 60's.  Go figure!!

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "White Christmas" by Bing Crosby

Feeling better

Greetings Everyone!  I hope this post finds all of you doing well.  Today we woke up to wind and rain.  I love it!  The temperatures are really unreal - 60* - on the 15th of December??  Not sure what that is all about.  My winter clothes and jackets wait patiently in my closet...

The Dh and I finished up the computer room.  Now it's really the Marine Corps room.  We hung up our awards from 20 years of service and it's officially an "I Love Me" room.  It looks pretty good and I must admit the color I picked for the walls is really nice.  The next room to paint is the master bathroom.  I've decided to go with a muave/lavendar shade.  I can't recall the name of it, but it's soothing and relaxing.  I'll use that on the biggest part of the master bath - around the garden tub and shower area and then a little darker shade where the toilet and shelves are.  I can't wait to put a fresh coat of paint on the master bath.  The previous owners hadn't painted it in the 11 years they lived there.  How does one do that??  I just don't know.  Dingy doesn't quite describe how awful they look.  A bathroom is supposed to be "fresh" and feel "clean" - not dingy and dirty. 

The tree is in the house and amazingly our cat, Hooters, doesn't seem to be too interested in it.  She had fun smelling it and laying under it last night when we first brought it in, but since then she just walks right by it.  We were both sure she would climb it.  Tonight we will pull out the decorations and get them up.  Here is our lovely tree!  It smells amazing!


Here is a pic of the scarf I finished up for my daughter.  She works at The Dry Bar and their colors are gray, yellow and black.  Not sure if you can tell from this pic, but there are two shades of gray.  It's kind of funky but I think she of all people can do something with it.  She has to wear gray, yellow, white and black to work so I thought this might be a fun addition to her winter wardrobe.  If not - she can give it to a coworker. 



My cousin showed me how to make these frilly scarves during the craft show.  My Mom claimed this one right off to match her gray vest.  My neice saw it and now wants one in black & red - her school colors.  I'm having fun with them.


My next project is to crochet snowflakes in yellow and sew on to a gray scarf for my daughter.  All before Christmas!! 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow" by JoDee Messina

Wet Wednesday

This morning we woke up to a light rain.  I would have given anything to have been able to stay home today.  Not because I don't like getting out in the rain, but because I would just rather be home than at work.  Right now I am struggling with work.  I'm a person that enjoys staying busy and feeling like I contribute.  In this job I don't get either.  I mostly sit in my little corner and do my own thing.  My boss will come around once in awhile or drop me an IM asking me to schedule a meeting or look into a financial matter.  When I do actually work it's nothing that can be measured.  Then people remind me how lucky I am to have this great job and I am thankful for what I get paid.  So I am sitting here today wishing I were home.

We are continuing to put things up on the freshly painted walls.  The house is coming together but I have to admit I feel very rushed by the DH.  He seems to not really care where things go - he just wants them up. 

I finished up my daughter's scarf last night save for the fringe.  I will hopefully start my neice's frilly scarf in red and black tonight. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Rescue Me" by DAUGHTRY

This has been an interesting morning so far.  Okay, perhaps interesting isn't exactly the right word.  Last night as I was just getting into bed we lost power.  Our entire neighborhood was black.  Now we don't have any close neighbors, but we can see other houses and they were completely black so we knew it wasn't just our house.  Since I was going to bed anyway the loss of power wasn't a big deal to me, but the DH had planned on watching MNF and when he couldn't he decided he would join me in bed.  We ended up playing Scrabble and Words with Friends on my phone for about 45 minutes before we both decided it was "lights out".  Our house has propane heat, but the fan is electric so as the night progressed and still no power the temperature dropped.  We were warm and toasty under the blankets.  Our water heater is electric so I knew there was a chance that I would wake up this morning with still no power and therefore no hot water for a shower.  I woke up at my usual 0515 to discover still no power.  I laid there for a bit wondering what was my best move and at 0530 the power came back on.  I decided to allow the house some time to warm up and also give the hot water heater time to give me a hot shower!  By the time I rolled out of bed at 0615 everything was right in the world again -- except I was really dragging!!!  I am not sure there is enough coffee to keep me awake today!!

The craft sale was fun -- only because I got to sit with my dear cousin Jules all day and crochet and chat.  It seemed promising early on when I sold the pocket scarf and a small bag I'd made almost 3 years ago.  But then it died.  I mean nothing else - not even a nibble.  My cousin sold one scarf.  It was disappointing to say the least.  Jules had some lovely scarf/hat combos as well as some trendy frilly scarves.  I had my basket of dishcloths/washcloths paired with some little soaps and my scarves all displayed nicely for all to see.  I also had about 8 of my bags.  Although several lookers picked up my items and seemed impressed - not a single one asked the price.  I decided this time not to price every article but to let them ask me.  This way I could see if there was interest.  One woman did ask me about my dishcloths and I told her 1 for $3 and 2 for $5.  She seemed alright with that price but walked away.  She later came back and asked if she could show her mother one of my cloths and I told her she could.  I could hear her mother in the background say, "Oh yes that's lovely but way too pretty to use to wash dishes."  What??  Isn't that the point? 

Needless to say I left the sale disheartened at my craft and wondering why in the world I even bother to try and sell anything.  I might as well just give everything away.  I will not ever stop crocheting -- that's just not going to happen.  So right now I am feeling a little ... disappointed.  Le sigh.

When it rains it does indeed pour.  We are still getting mail from our old address in CA and yesterday we got an envelope from the mailbox place with quite a few pieces of mail.  One of them was a letter from the IRS.  We are being audited for tax year 2009.  Of course we were!  And why not??  We make so much money!  LOL  Not 15 minutes after we opened that letter when the phone rings.  It's our renters in CA to tell us the roof in the house is leaking.  Of course it is!!  During one of SoCal's worst rainy stretches in a long time why wouldn't our house have a leak??  When it rains, it pours. 

So the DH and I have resigned ourselves that we will probably not have our barn up in 2012.  We still want the horses on our property before summer, so we are brainstorming about options.  Since he can build anything we have decided we can afford to purchase a run-in type of shelter and simply modify it for a barn for the two horses.  When we do get ready for a barn, this shelter can be turned into the hay barn and garage for the Gator.  It wasn't exactly our plan, but it's a plan nonetheless.  Adapt and overcome.  Go ahead Life, Bring it!

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Winter Wonderland" by Garth Brooks.    I love this season and one of these days I hope my horse Dolly pulls a sleigh! 

TGIF

Today has been an interesting day.  I woke up and started getting ready for work.  My DH popped up in bed and said, "Why don't you spend the night with your Mom so you don't have to backtrack going to your craft sale tomorrow."  What a great idea.  So we packed up the car with all my inventory and I will be driving to Mom's for the night.  This is a good thing for a couple of reasons.  Tonight we'll have La Rosa's for dinner.  I'll get to drive up and see the horses tonight.  Win win. 



Forgot to mention that my older mare had to have her very first vet call yesterday.  The first one in 11 years.  She has a slight cloudiness in her right eye.  The vet said it's not much to worry about.  Just normal for a horse her age.  $150 later...  Well.  I can't complain.  It's her first vet call.  I hope her last. 


No idea what's up with my pictures loading/not loading.  I will try again...

It's almost time for the sale -- Dec 10th.  Yesterday I took a Mental Health Day and stayed home from
work.  I hadn't slept a wink the night before and I was really dragging.  I got up, got dressed and was ready to walk out the door when my DH suggested I stay home.  I hesitated because it meant me losing the Christmas bonus but he said did $200 really matter?  Besides it was our 21st anniversary of when we "hooked up" so we felt it was worth a holiday of sorts. 

We had a good day -- tried a new cafe in town that our vet raved about and we both found it to be quite good.  I had their tomato bisque soup with a caprese sandwich.  The soup was out of this world -- in fact it rivaled Panera's.  The sandwich was also quite good - it was mozarella, tomato and pesto on a grilled ciabatta roll. 

I snapped a couple pics of stuff for the sale...  Thought I'd share.  Sorry pics are uploading correctly....



I apologize for the crooked pics.  I cannot for the life of me figure out to rotate them once I copy them.  Grrrr.    One thing I'm at a loss on is how much to charge......  I suppose that's everyone's biggest worry when doing these types of sales.  You want to price them right.  Honestly I would be happy to just sell everything for a lower price than a few items for a higher one.  Most of the yarn I'm using these days has been part of my stash for a very long time.  Anything I could make off it would be welcome. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  I wish I were able to stop myself from getting so wrapped up in music.  It takes me to a deeper emotional level sometimes than I'd like.  There's always those few songs that hit home with me and I'm caught up in the drama.  I know a lot of it has to do with letting go.  So today's song is ...
"You and I" by Lady Gaga.  I apologize for the commercial before the video, but hang around for her performance.  Amazing.

Terrible Tues-Day

My day started out at a run - or so it feels like.  That's one thing I do not like about this job....  It's never, ever busy enough and then all of a sudden I get a ton of work to be done.  I never feel like I am accomplishing much of anything - at least nothing substantial.  I've decided my perfect job (next to full time crocheter to the stars) would be to have a warehouse full of papers.  I mean, floor to ceiling/rafter stacks of documents.  My job?  Go in an organize it.  So, if you know anyone looking for someone to tackle such a job, please pass on my information.  Until then I suppose I will have to stick to my current ho-hum job.  But at least I have a job, right??

I didn't take a pic of the pocketed scarf last night.  It's so close to being finished that I decided to wait until it actually is finished before I snap a photo.  The DH actually commented on the colors saying it's really nice.  He never does that unless I ask so that was different. 

Craft sale is fast approaching.  DH is making my rack today - for the table top to display scarves.  I have all the sample soaps in to pair up with washcloths/dishcloths.  I think I'm set!!

Question for the day?  If you could be any animal which would you choose?  I'm undecided between a cat and a horse. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Long Hard Times To Come" by Gangstagrass.  Check it out!  Warning - violence and sex

Meant to be

I'm pretty sure I was meant to live in a rainy climate.  Perhaps Seattle would have been a better retirement choice?  Everyone always complains about the rain.  It's dreary and depressing to them.  To me it's cleansing and I love the smell and feel of the rain.  Today I woke up to a glorious downpour and it continued all the way in on my hour long drive into work.  Sadly I don't have a desk next to a window (probably a good thing because I'd surely never get a thing done then).  But our roof is such that when it's coming down pretty good we can hear it.  I rejoice in the sound all the while my coworkers are mumbling about how wet and nasty things are. 

This was a good weekend for crochet in my house.  I managed to start and finish a very pretty pink scarf for the craft sale.  If it doesn't sell I think I shall give it to my Mom's neighbor (if she wants it that is).  It worked up so easy and I was so pleased with the colors. 


I started another scarf on Sunday.  I have had this picture in my head for quite awhile - a scarf with the pockets.  I used heather grey as my base and then just added stripes of colors.  Sorry, no picture of it just yet.  The night creeped up on me and I lost all my natural light for a good pic.  I'll try and take one this evening and post it tomorrow.

The craft show is fast approaching and I think I'm ready...  The DH is going to make me a stand for the table to display the scarves better.  He's itching to make me one and although he wants to go big I'm hoping to convince him to scale it down some.  I am not sure what to expect from this craft sale.  It's in a church and doesn't seem like we will have much in the way of customers, but one can never tell about these things. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Songs About Rain" by Gary Allen

Bad

I'm going to admit it right now - I'm a bad girl.  I like bad boys.  I enjoy riding my Harley fast and drinking.  Not at the same time.  I like a good shot of Crown or JD.  I like men that are themselves and enjoy life.  I like the ones that slide into Heaven bruised and bloodied.  So why did I marry a good guy?  LOL

This morning I woke up at my usual time (5:30) and rather than getting out of bed I laid there and fell back to sleep.  Something I never do.  So as you can imagine that changed my entire morning routine and luckily I don't have a set time to be at work.  I came strolling in at 8:30 this morning (after a stop at Starbucks, of course).  It was nice that my co-workers were happy to see me.  I have this love/hate relationship with my current job.  I'm a contractor and honestly, I don't enjoy the job itself at all.  It's just not busy enough for me.  But the people I get to see on Monday, Thursday and Friday make it better somehow. 

I finished up the purple and gold scarf last night and as I was doing so I really sort of hit a wall.  For some reason I couldn't get the ends to look right.  Does anyone have a really good picture or instructions on how to tie off and weave in ends??  I'd appreciate it. 

It's chilly again this morning and there was frost on the ground making it look a little like snow.  I kept thinking how wonderful it will be when there is snow on the ground.  We are going to decorate the outside of the house this weekend.  We aren't getting our tree until the 12th.  The DH opened up a few more boxes and found some really cool stuff we had packed away in 2007.  It's so neat seeing these things we put away knowing one day in Ohio we'd open them again.  Now I just need to figure out where everything is going!!

I will start another scarf tonight in two shades of pink.  I'm thinking I'll use the V stitch as it looks feminine and gives the yarn texture.  If I finish that one I'll start another using purple and ???  Not sure what color I will add to the next one.  Perhaps another shade of purple...hmmmm.....

SONG OF THE DAY:  "Drink in my Hand" by Eric Church

Whimsical and deep in thought

"Every time I see your face, my heart takes off on a high speed chase"  That line gets me every time.  No matter how many times I have heard that song when I hear this line my mind is yanked from whatever else it's concentrating on and submerged into the danger zone.  It's truly a love/hate relationship and although it's often painful I cannot let go.  Not yet.  One day, maybe..  But I wouldn't place any bets on that happening. 

It's winter here in Ohio.  This morning the temperature driving in was 25*.  I actually did a double take when I saw it just to make sure I wasn't dreaming.  The crisp morning air felt amazing and I could have stayed out in it - happy as can be.  To be forced into the over heated building where I work is almost too much to bear.  Alas I am reminded (especially on days like today - payday) why I stay working and the goals we have set.  No, money isn't everything, but right now it's a means to an end.  That end can't happen unless I make it so. 

After work I had my two hour massage. The therapist was alright; a bit too chatty for me and she wasn't crazy about the idea of me simply lying on the table while she did the work.   She wanted me to participate in the massage by breathing at certain times.  "Deep breath in; hold, hold..."  That wasn't what I wanted but because of my demeanor I let it go.  Eventually I fell asleep on her - the one thing she didn't want. Oh well. She did, however, get out many tight spots and released some tension not only in my neck and shoulders, but also in my arms.  As a crocheter I often forget just how much muscles work when I crochet.  She found some very tender spots along the tops of my arm towards the elbow.  The massage was good and I do feel better after it, but next time I'm going to indicate I do not want to be part of the whole process other than it's my body they are working on. 

Last night I worked for a bit on the purple/gold scarf for the sale.  I finished up the base and now I need to tie off and weave in the ends and add the fringe.  I'm already thinking about my next scarf.  Pinks - for my Mom's neighbors.  They are a nice family and Mom and two girls are getting a scarf.  I'm also going to make one for the Dad.  I asked Mom to find out their favorite colors and one of the girls likes pink.  So I'm thinking shades of pink for her scarf.  The second girl likes purple with anything.  That leaves much in the way of possibilities.  I just need to find that right combo.  The one also likes pink, but I'm going to take it a bit further with hers....  Dad gets a black and blue scarf to match his black beanie. 

"Fallin In" by Lifehouse

Let It Snow

Yesterday afternoon I came down with a horrible headache while at work.  A coworker gave me some Excedrin Migraine and although it took care of the headache it made me really loopy.  Although I had intentions of finishing up the purple and gold scarf, I barely managed to complete a few rows.  With that my evening was spent in La La Land.  On top of that, the drizzle of rain we had finally turned to snow flurries around 9:30pm.  I was so thrilled!  The DH was asleep on the couch, snoring away.  I was in my nightgown and not anywhere close to being dressed for a visit out in the flurries.  I picked up Dumpster and held her so she could see the flakes falling through the glass of our mudroom door.  She was actually a bit frightened by the flakes.  Every time one hit the glass she would jump.  The flakes were huge, too!  They melted as soon as they hit our deck, but it was still lovely to see. 

I went to bed feeling loopy and suffered through a horrible night's sleep.  This morning getting myself going took more effort than I've had to dish out in a very long time.  However, there is a light at the end of the tunnel -- I am leaving work at 3 and going for a 2 hour massage at Massage Envy!  I cannot wait!!  Every once in awhile my body starts to talk to me.  It tells me it feels like the only thing to provide relief is to be run over by a steamroller.  That's when I know it's time for my massage.  I always go for two hours because one is just not enough time for me become fully relaxed. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg

Scarves! Let's hear it for progress!

Sometimes I feel like I don't get anything accomplished with my crochet.  Last night I didn't feel that way.  I was able to finish up two scarves.  One is for a friend in SoCal.  Big USC fan, so the red/gold scarf should be a hit with her. 



It worked up so quick and I am really happy with the way it turned out. 

This second scarf is for the craft sale.  Since we'll be in Northern Ky I thought perhaps Wildcat colors would be popular so I made this one:



I used that Lion Brand suede in blue and then Caron white.  Love this scarf.  So tempted to keep it myself if I didn't already have 50.  LOL 

Dumpster is feeling a bit better these days.  We are slowly getting her levels under control and she looks better than she has in a few months.  This pic makes her look so chunky, but really it's just her fur.  Okay, she's big boned and fluffy.  She's still my baby!  I <3 her!



The forecast calls for snow flurries tomorrow and I am so excited about this!!!  Okay, I know it's crazy and all, but for me having lived in SoCal for 25 years having snow flurries will be monumental.  If only I could retire and stay home and enjoy the weather and crocheting and our ranch.  Le sigh. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Winter Wonderland" by Rascal Flatts

Monday, Monday and a whole new chapter

I am not a negative person by nature.  In fact I despise negative people and strive to always be positive.  With that I have decided to stay focused on CROCHET and other positive things in my life.  I am a Libra and if any of you are as well I'd like to know.  Striving for that perfect balance in life is really what my whole is made up of.  So at times I get caught up in this vicious circle and when I find myself unhappy I usually realize it's because I am not living towards harmony.

My DH and I had a productive weekend.  He was so frustrated with the state of the garage he finally made the decision to start his organizing and built some shelves. 







As you can see, he's good at what he does and they really came out great.  He's going to basically line two walls with this type of shelving.  The garage looks so much bigger now! 

I was also quite productive.  I decided I could no longer tolerate the brown plaid in the kitchen so I primed it:

(sorry for the oversized pic.  I can't figure out to reduce it...)



and then gave it the first coat of it's new color!!



Talk about feeling better already!  Both the DH and I are loving the new color.  It's given us a whole new idea about the kitchen and has made our decisions on the new appliances, cabinets and even the backsplash behind the stove.  Now all we need is MONEY!!  LOL

I did manage to do a bit of crocheting.  I finished up the second scarf Christmas gift and also finished another for the craft sale - a pretty white and blue suede.  I will try and get a pic of them and put them up for you to see I've not abandoned my crochet for interior design (thankfully!!). 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Feliz Navidad" by Jose Feliciano.  I love this song.  And I have no idea why. 


 

I'm still here

You aren't getting rid of me quite that easy.  I think along with everyone else these days are super busy.  I think we'd all LOVE to be blogging but there are just other priorities.  I have been crocheting - mostly because I have a few gifts to knock out for friends and I am on a time crunch.  And of course the craft fair is coming up fast (dec 10th).  From the sound of it we are going to have a lot of inventory.  I ordered soap samples today to pair with our washcloths.  They always make a neat gift idea and people tend to look closely when they are in a neat little package. 

Our Thanksgiving was a good one.  Small; just me and the DH, mom and her bf (sounds weird to call him that but I don't know what else to call him) and my sister.  The meal was amazing.  My Mom outdid herself this year and it was kind of funny because at the end she told me it was now falling on my shoulders from here on out.  LOL  Now I don't mind this duty, but you have to understand something.  You see for the past 8 years or so I have spent Thanksgiving alone - by choice.  The DH goes on a 4x4 trip to AZ and I get the house to myself for about four days.  This is heaven to me and although it's a holiday meant to be shared with family I thoroughly enjoy the alone time.  We laugh because my DH buys me a bottle of Crown Royal and I buy a pie for myself.  So it is with some regret I take on the responsibility of Thanksgiving. 

Yesterday I got in an irritated mood.  You see my DH's ex is always a pain in my side.  Admittedly I allow her to take up space in my head, but it's for good reason.  She is a pathetic loser and enjoys making our daughter feel like sh*t.  Anyone that knows my daughter knows that her relationship with her bio mom is a terrible one.  And what makes it so funny is that she will comment on our daughter's fb posts and make it sound like she is just so chummy.  Our daughter says she laughs about them all the time with her friends and bf.  Her bio mom thinks everyone is reading them and thinking, "Oh what a great relationship they have!  What a wonderful Mom she has!"  So not the case!!  The sad part is that now our daughter basically ignores the posts.  She says they are wildly embarrassing and acknowledging them would only make her bio mom worse.  But my problem is this -- for years (over 21) I've been exposed to her crap and no one ever calls her out on anything because they say they don't want the argument with her.  I say why not??  She continues to do it because no one challenges her and she thinks in her warped mind they don't because she is right.  She has no clue everyone is talking behind her back saying how stupid and pathetic she is.  Why can't I let this go??  I guess because our daughter really struggles with her antics at times and she comes to me to vent.  I have seen over the years the harm this woman has done to her own daughter with absolutely no regret or responsibility.  Everyone keeps saying karma is a b*tch and she's going to get hers.  I say she is experiencing her karma NOW and is just too stupid to know it.  50 years old and still single.  Not even one decent relationship to speak of in 21 years.  She has this world in her head where she is in relationships but really they are just booty calls.  Okay.  I'm done.  Really.  I know that no matter how much I think about this she will never be forced to face reality.  I know that truly my justice is that she is an unhappy and pathetic person that everyone makes fun of no matter how much she pretends otherwise.  It's her with the problem.

If you haven't already made the purchase, now's a great time.  DAUGHTRY's new CD is OUT and it's amazing.  The deluxe edition has 16 amazing tracks.  Right now my favorite song is......

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Rescue Me" by DAUGHTRY

Where have I been?

I didn't realize how long it had been since my last post.  It's way to easy to drop this, isn't it?  It's really a matter of making the time for it and making it happen.

Let's see...  First off I was really down sick starting the middle of this past Friday thru Monday morning.  It literally came on me in a matter of hours and by Friday afternoon I was heading home early.  I felt bad all weekend long.  That meant I didn't do much of anything.  Saturday was a horrible day.  I got up with the intentions of staying home and not doing a darn thing but resting.  Then we got the call that my Uncle was being moved from the hospital to hospice and only had a short time.  The DH and I got ready and headed to hospice where everyone else was meeting.  We arrived second only to learn that my dear Uncle had not been in his hospice bed for a minute and passed.  Very sad.  My Mother and her Sister took it hard as he was their last living brother.  Now it's just the two of them.  We said our goodbyes and after getting something to eat finally headed back home.  I took all kinds of meds but nothing seemed to relieve my constant dripping nose, watery eyes and dry cough.  After a sleepless night I woke up Sunday knowing we had to make a drive to see the horses and give them a worming.  So we headed out and what should have taken us 3 hours took almost 5.  Getting home Sunday was so nice.  I crashed on a bed I made on the floor with the sounds of football games putting me to sleep.  I didn't sleep well again Sunday night and was thankful for a follow up doctor appointment where I could have my symptoms looked at. 

Allergies.  That's right - I have allergies.  Something I have never had in my entire life.  After one Benadryl I felt like a million bucks.  Go figure.  According to my doc the harvest of corn and soybeans, the number of mold spores in the air and this time of year brings it on.  I am still having to take the Benadryl and find the worst thing about it is fighting the drowsiness while at my desk.  In the past I have used it as a sleep aid.

Sadly my kitty doesn't seem to be doing well on the insulin.  Well, let me rephrase that - she's not the same cat she was before.  I'm beginning to think her quality of life is deteriorating rapidly.  I think it's our duty to know when to let them go.  I have known her for almost 8 years and she is a far cry from the delight she was only a year ago.  We have another vet visit tomorrow and I will see how her numbers are, etc. 

I have managed to unpack my yarn.  Right now I have a lot more yarn balls than I do skeins.  Here is a pic of my current skein stash, minus the chenilles, boucle, Christmas colors and a few other 'different' types of yarns.

I should take a pic of my yarn balls.  I have two containers full of those little suckers.  My inventory for the sale is at a good place right now, so next I'm going to make two scarves for friends of ours back in CA.  Afterwards I'm thinking about a granny afghan to use up some of the balls I have and maybe some of the light yellow - since there is a lot on that particular shelf!

Thanksgiving will be at my Mom's this year.  There will be her, her companion Price, me and the DH, my sister and her daughter.  I get to have Christmas at my house this year.  I'm excited about decorating for Christmas!  We have opened up several boxes and it was like Christmas pulling things out we had forgotten we had.  You see, we started packing 4 1/2 years ago in the hopes of one day being in Ohio.  So here we are and the boxes contain so many wonderful things!!  It's easy to see the theme for our house...westerny/old farmhouseish.  With rustic thrown in for good measure. I've also decided on the color for my living room, dining room and kitchen --- white and red.  Yep.  Just that simple. 

Okay, enough for today. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Red Solo Cup" by Toby Keith.  If you haven't heard it, I recommend you do.  It's a great song and reminds me not to take life too seriously. 

TGIF

Finally found a minute to post.  Work has been keeping me very busy and when I get home getting on the computer just has no appeal. 

The house is coming together nicely.  As all houses do ours has it's little quirks.  We are learning to live with some and realize some will need to be changed.  All in good time.  I don't know how many of you live on a septic system.  We do and let me tell you it is quite a change from having a sewer line. 

My craft area is about 2/3 of the way done.  I have a lot of yarn left to unpack and get on the shelves.  That's always fun.  Soon I will be thinking about getting back to my pen friends - I think I have 4 or 5.  They probably think I have dropped off the face of the Earth since I've not written to them in so long.  I hope when I finally do pick it back up they are still interested in corresponding. 

I started a red scarf for the sale.  Here are a couple of pics:

It's a pretty color - far more than this pic shows.  I'm thinking the fringe will be a sparkly white in honor of the upcoming snow. 

I bought some cotton yarn (3 balls) and JoAnn's had their Vanna yarn on sale 2/$5.00.  So I picked up two each of a dark red and mustard to make two friends scarves.  They are USC fans.  I'll get those done as Christmas gifts. 

After work today I have to take my oldest kitty to the vet.  She is not doing well.  She is showing signs of being diabetic; constant thirst, hair loss, dandruff and not using the litter box.  Her urine is different, too - watery and sticky - not yellow.  She is almost 8.  I have never had a diabetic animal so I am not certain of the prognosis.  Let's hope for the best.  I hate to see her suffering.

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Womanizer" by Britney Spears.  Why?  Because I love this song.   

New Chapter

Starting today it's a whole new chapter in our life.  The DH got in late Friday night/early Saturday morning.  We had the whole family over Saturday to unload the truck and trailer.  Then he and I spent all day Sunday and Monday just getting some things set up and taken care of.  The cats survived alright.  My older cat didn't take to the commotion of the move in with all the people so well and was having trouble making it to the litter box, but I think she's alright now and doing better.  I think they "get it" - that the furniture and stuff is now in this house and the two humans that care for them are once again back in the same location.  I think they just need some settling in time and adjustment period - like the rest of us.

The DH and I spent Sunday getting the kitchen unpacked.  We felt like we really needed to make that happen.  We put out a good amount of trash on Monday morning and got rid of a lot of boxes.  I started my craft area, but it's not finished.  The family room is good to go and so is the master bedroom/bath.  We got our W/D delivered Monday morning and finally that pile of laundry is gone.  Love my new W/D.  My DH is the Laundry King and I was a bit worried about him at first working the new set as they are computerized, but he is managing rather well.  We got such a deal on the set!  We feel so fortunate. 

We also have TV which is really nice.  Although I don't "watch" a lot of TV I do listen to it and that's the only time the DH can sit still is when he has the remote.  I thought I was going to have to hit him over the head with something to make him sit the heck down and chill.  We promised ourselves we wouldn't kill ourselves by unpacking but he seemed to not really abide by that rule (as is norm) and was driving me insane.  I would just sit down with feet up and hook in hand when he would demand my attention in another part of the house.  Usually it was something silly and that could have waited but he's just that type. 

So last night I managed to crochet two dishcloths (one for me and one for the sale) and start a red scarf using the V stitch or cross stitch as me and my cousin sometimes call it.  I will take pics tonight and get them posted. 

It's getting chillier here.  This morning there was frost on the porch which made for a slippery walk to the garage and it was actually colder at work (35*) then when I left the house (43*).  I can't wait until the first snow flurries!  I know - becareful what you wish for!  Those people in the northeast without power are NOT enjoying the weather one bit. 

Okay, gotta get back to the salt mine.  Have a great day Ladies!!

SONG OF THE BLOG:   "Someone Like You" by Adele 

Cure

In the Marine Corps we used to have a saying, "There's no cure like SECURE".  That means nothing cures an unmotivated Marine like telling him it's libo time!  That's the way I feel this morning.  I'm sitting at work and all I can think about is getting off work.  I'm so ready for the weekend.  I'm so ready for my husband to be off the road.  He called this morning and is in Texarkana.  So next milestone is Little Rock, then Memphis.  He's about had it with the two cats.  They sleep all day and at night when he's trying to sleep they wander the cab and won't leave him alone.  They also aren't using the litter box very well so that's causing him some grief.  It can't be soon enough for his trip to over and done with.

I didn't crochet a stitch last night.  Although I really wanted to and I think it would have helped me relax.  I've been having terrible night's sleep and really bad restless leg syndrome.  When we are all moved in and our bed is up and I can really relax I am going to take some Benadryl and with luck get a full 8 hours sleep. 

Went up and saw the girls last night.  They are doing really well and Cheyenne seems to be loving the hay where as Dolly has been a bit more picky.  Last night the owner tossed Dolly two flakes of some lovely hay and she couldn't get enough so I'm hoping she's found what she likes.  Dolly has gained some weight.  Cheyenne needs a little more going into winter.  I have no doubt the owners will get her there.  They are wonderful people.  I feel very lucky the girls are in such good hands. 

I have been thinking of another granny square afghan lately - just sort of visualizing it in my head.  I love doing them when the mood hits me.  I've got one in mind using black - of all colors.  So we shall see if something comes of that.  Otherwise it will be working hard on scarves, hats and dishcloths for the craft sale December 10th. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Honey Bee" by Blake Shelton

Yarn

My DH finally got on the road yesterday around 3pm PST.  He's currently in NM.  I don't think I mentioned that on that huge truck is about 13 containers of yarn.  I am sort of going through withdrawals at this stage.  I'm used to walking into my area and seeing the yarn and since arriving in OH my yarn has been hidden away inside the plastic containers. I'm one of those people that get inspired when I see the yarn, like walking through the aisles of JoAnn's I suddenly have flashes of blankets flickering in my head as I walk past colors.  Needless to say I am very anxious to get my yarn off that truck!  The DH being a handyman has agreed to make me the following bins on two walls:



Looks a bit like a yarn store, doesn't it?  The craft show is December 10.  My cousin and I have been discussing ramping up our crocheting to build some inventory for this sale.  Our Moms are having a "sweets" table and my cousin's daughter (my second cousin) and her boyfriend also have some ideas for a few craftsy things.  I'm looking forward to it even if it doesn't generate a lot of sales.

DAUGHTRY'S new video is out.  "Crawling Back To You" off their soon to be released Break The Spell.  The CD comes out November 21st.  You can check the video out here.  Be warned - Chris looks amazing and remember, he's mine.  You can preorder on iTunes and if you preorder the CD off their site (http://www.daughtryofficial.com/) you can download both "Crawling Back To You" and "Renegade" for free. 

Naturally today's SONG OF THE BLOG is "Crawling Back To You".  Enjoy!

Get Ready! Set! STOP!!!

My DH got less than ten miles from the house and had to turn around.  Seems he had no brakes on the truck.  He went to a good friend's house and called the rental company who sent out a mechanic.  The first thing they said was you'll need to move into another truck.  My DH told him unless you're bringing over a working party to unload and load another truck that is not happening.  Well they aren't doing that so they are going to fix the problem.  Seems the brake line rusted out.  With luck he will be on the road today at noon.  This sets us back a day for his arrival and our move in - at least that's what we are thinking. 

No crochet last night.  In fact I was rather bored last night.  With no furniture I find it very difficult to get comfortable to crochet.  My air mattress doesn't provide the right support so I slip down when I try to lean against the wall.  I was frustrated trying so I settled for Sudoku.  Finally fell asleep and woke up at 2.  I thought I wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep but I finally did.  Then this morning I was actually out of the house on my way to work EARLY and I thought I was doing so good on time until I took a detour in search of a grocery for some breakfast and ended up all twisted around. 

Okay, enough whining from me.  Here is a cute pic of my kitties traveling in the rental before he had to turn around.  The DH said they were quite content to ride like this. 

Not the safest way for them to travel but it sure beats their constant meows and clawing at the cage door.  He said he'll take his chances with them this way.

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Cat Scratch Fever" by Ted Nugent

Wagons East!

The DH is now on the road headed to Phoenix for the night.  With luck and good weather and no truck/trailer issues he should be at our door in Ohio sometime on Friday.  I'm hoping the cats settle in for the journey and their meowing isn't constant.  That would make for a very long ride. 

I did not crochet last night.  I ended up running some errands and when I got home, got a little bit of dinner I was just not in the mood to pick it up.  Tonight I need to do a little more straightening up to make ready for the big move in on Saturday. 

I think Wednesday evening I will go up and see the horses.  Spend some time brushing them out and feeding them too many carrots.  I miss their nickers and nudges.  Can't wait until they are in very own backyard.  I have narrowed down the fencing I want.  Thought I'd share a pic:



It's a very traditional four rail horse fence, but I love the style and color of the natural wood.  I was going to have black fencing, but now I think I want to just weather treat this and leave it natural.  Black seems very high maintenance to me.  Besides, this will look so pretty in the snow!  We will be putting the fence up ourselves.  We have been working out this plan for a long time.  We will have the portable fencing in the beginning and then as we slowly get the wood fence up, simply increase the area using the portable fencing.  It's not going to be easy or fast, but we want to do it ourselves.  The DH has the skills/tools and know how - I can't see paying anyone to do something we can do. 

I'd like to pose a question for all of you that stop by.  Maybe not every day, but just once in a while.  I hope you enjoy sharing your answers and ideas with everyone.

Today's question:  What is your perfect spa setting?  Include color, textures, style and anything else that will give us a feel for what you would consider "perfect".

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Pocketful of Sunshine" by Natasha Bedingfield

Definitely Monday

Happy Monday?  Oh, not so much?  Me either.  I think I got about 3 hours sleep last night.  Let me back up though and go through me entire weekend.

As you know Friday was the day I moved into our "new" home.  I had such big plans for a wonderful, relaxing evening.  Hot bath in my garden tub, some relaxation music on, a glass of Scotch and no other noise.  Well, I did get all moved in and after talking with the DH for what seemed like the 50th time I finally was able to get to some "me" time.  (I despise chatting on the phone and get very impatient)  So I get out my air mattress and pump and proceed to fill it.  We have one of the nice ones; queen size that sits up off the floor and has the pillow top.  It filled up in less than 5 minutes and I went to draw my bath.  Put the bubble bath in and went to the kitchen for my glass of Scotch.  When I got back the water was luke warm.  I let it run a little longer and still - nothing!  Of course, my DH text me to ask how my bath was going and I told him "no hot water".  So naturally him being 1) a worrier and 2) a handyman, he calls.  He walked me through all the possible scenarios of what it could be and after about ten minutes he figured out the water heater breaker needed to be tripped.  Sure enough the water heater started making water heater noises and in about 15 minutes the water was hot.  But by this time I was so exhausted and Scotch didn't sound very good and my CD player was acting up.  So I went to bed with my Sudoku and after about 15 minutes I realized my back was against the floor!  My air mattress was deflating!!  I pumped it up again only to realize it had a leak somewhere.  So I drug my tired butt into the living room where the previous owners had abandoned a sectional couch and slept on it.  Well, tried to.  I finally just got up and made a pot of coffee.  I went to the bathroom and what do you think happened?  The toilet overflowed!  I scrambled for all the towels I could find to sop up the water and tossed them into the tub.  I had a pile of them.  I put them into a trash bag and took them to the only laundramat in town.  2 loads of towels and 2 loads of my clothes.  When did the laundramat get so expensvie???  It cost me $2.50 for the regular size load and $4.00 for the heavier towels.  $.25 cents got me 5 minutes of drying time.  It about broke the bank!  But I got them done and was back home before 0900. 

The good part of my day was that I have Internet and a house phone.  It was nice to get online at home after so long.  My work firewall doesn't allow me to visit some sites (FB, etc).  I feel like we have made progress by having these two things installed.  But the installer snagged a thread in his drill when he was drilling the hole for the cable and put a run in my carpet of about 5 inches long and 2 inches wide.  His supervisor is supposed to contact me for resolution.  It was an accident, but I was like, "Really??"  The carpet in the house is less than a year old.  It will be under a desk (for the time being), but still. 

Sunday my sister, my niece, my Mom and I moved that sectional sofa from my house to my sister's garage for her to eventually put into her living room.  Let me tell you it was quite the ordeal!  We were often laughing so hard we couldn't get anything done.  It took us forever to get the 3 pieces into the truck, but we finally did manage.  We headed out down the road and it wasn't 10 miles when the back piece flipped out of the truck bed and onto the side of the road.  The strap had come loose and the wind caught it.  It landed across the street from a house and the owner came out and helped us get it back in and tie it down.  Fortunately we made it to my sister's without any further incident.  Getting it out of the truck was another thing.  Needless to say something that would have taken men about an hour took us almost four. 

Afterwards me and Mom went to see the horses at the stable.  They were doing well.  They had been turned out and were all muddy from rolling.  I didn't have time to clean them up, so I left them muddy.  That's a rarity for me.  I hope to make it up there on Tuesday and take a curry to each. 

Crochet?  Sorry - not this weekend!  No way.  Which is no doubt why I am a mess and tense!!!  Tonight I plan on making a couple of dishcloths for my sink!  Oh and that hot bubble bath?  I've managed to take two and they have been amazing.  Scotch?  Not so much...  Just not in the right frame of mind just yet. 

The DH leaves tomorrow morning.  We had to rent a UHaul trailer because the 24 ft Budget truck wouldn't hold all of our "stuff".  Here is what he will be driving cross country in:



SONG OF THE BLOG:  The only one that seems to fit..."On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson

Today is THE Day

I'm not sure I can contain my enthusiasm.  And why should I?  Moving into our new home has been a dream of ours for so many years and today it's coming true.  Well, partly.  The real "move in" happens the 29th, but still!  I will be living in our new place TONIGHT.  Woohoo!

I managed to finish the manly beanie last night.  Here is a pic of it.  The colors are pretty cool - I think even a teen girl would like it. 

I can picture myself crocheting quite a lot over the next week.  Or wasting time online because I have no TV.  Guess time will tell!  LOL  Hope everyone has a great Friday! 

Home

Greetings Ladies!  I hope you are all doing well this fine Thursday morning.  I am in a great mood for so many reasons.  Let's see; for starters today is payday.  Yay!  Second I am packing up all of my things I have at my cousin's house tonight with plans to not return, save for a visit and/or an overnight stay should the weather turn really ugly.  (She lives less than 6 miles from where I work so if a blizzard comes and I'm at work I'll be going to her house instead of trying to make the trek home).  And third - it's still raining here and I absolutely love it.  One thing I do need to do though is learn the finer techniques of using an umbrella.  I look more like a packmule trying to hold an umbrella than a professional career woman on her walk from her car into her office building.  Let's not spend too much time on that visual, okay?

I did start another beanie last night while watching Game 1 of the WS.  I grabbed a skein of Red Heart's Spring Green (love this color) and a dark shade of a teal/forest green.  My goal was to make a hat a little more manly and I think I have succeeded.  I didn't finish it and I fell asleep before I could take a pic of it, but I'll get that done and get it up for your viewing pleasure.  The craft show will be at a Church in Kentucky sometime the first part of December I do believe..

My Mother is the funniest lady.  I have given her quite a few dishcloths which she adamantly refuses to use saying they are too pretty to be scrubbing dirty dishes with.  So instead she has decided to display a few like this:

I actually like this idea a lot and I love the old container.  I finally talked her into using one cloth, but she does so begrudgingly.  I keep telling her I can make her anything she likes, but it falls on deaf ears.  Sort of like when your child colors her first picture or makes that first art project at school.  She enjoys saving my work. 

We haven't had a house landline in going on 8 years.  Because we are out in the country and my Mom will probably be a frequent house guest we opted to put a house phone in.  So yesterday I went to Target and bought a phone.  I got the simple cordless version with a second handset you can put somewhere else in the house.  It was $59.99 which I thought was a decent price.  At times it is still very hard to believe I am actually now living in Ohio after so many years (28) in CA.  My horses are here and soon my husband and cats will be as well.  It's a whole new chapter in our life starting.  We have been dreaming and talking about this move for a very long time.  We are a couple that takes great pride in home ownership and we have always wanted to have our horses in our own backyard.  After years of boarding them and being frustrated with the conditions and upkeep of other's property we are now going to be able to take care of our own.  In the beginning we would have liked more acreage, but after a very long search (2 years) and some 47 properties later the place we decided on isn't exactly what we had in mind, but it turns out it is indeed perfect for us.  I can hardly wait to start "living" on this property.  I started a web site quite a while back for the move.  You can see pics of the house here. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Home" by DAUGHTRY

Rain Dancing

I'm not even going to pretend like I WOULDN'T dance in the rain, because I would and I WILL.  I love everything about the rain.  Everyone kept saying, "You can't ride your horse in the rain!"  And my reply back is, "And why not?"  I absolutely love it and to be honest so does Dolly.  It might seem odd to anyone that riding in the rain would be pleasurable and perhaps to others it is not.  For me it takes me to a much simpler time.  I pretend as if I am a rancher out looking for strays.  Or a pony express rider crossing the plains to make a delivery.  Or I just unwind and let the rain come down and my little Dolly plod along, the rain drops dripping off her mane.  For me rain is a joyous thing! 

Last night was my evening alone house sitting.  You all know I had big plans to crochet!  Well, I did half a row which finished up the following hat:


After that I had some dinner and promptly dozed off in the recliner.  I woke up 9:30 and went straight to bed.  LOL  Go figure. 

Plans are still on to move into our house Friday.  My hubby starts his journey from CA on the 25th.  I will have a week alone in the house.  I didn't get the TV issue resolved, but I will have internet that week so life is pretty darn good. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Songs About Rain" by Gary Allan.  Love this guy!

I Don't Wanna Be Here

If it were at all possible I would play hookey today.  Work is just not someplace I want to be.  You know those days when comfy clothes, something warm to drink and yarn are on the only thing you want to think about??  Well my butt is parked right there and I can't do anything to persuade it to get to work.  But alas, I am not able to leave work today.  Even though the house is empty.  Even though it's raining.  Even though I'm in the project area all by myself.  Work I must do.  Gotta work to pay the bills!

I started another beanie last night and will snap a pic of it tonight when I wrap it up.  Looks like my cousin Julie and I will be participating in a craft show sometime in early December, so I am working on my inventory.  We have decided to do beanies in school colors for the local area.  I do not have time to make any afghans so will work on beanies, scarves and dishcloths for this particular show. 

Two days and a wake up and I will be moving into the new house.  I have decided to paint a bedroom before the hubby arrives with the bulk of the household goods.  The guest room is currently a very dark shade of blue.  It really shrinks the room and I am going to paint it.  I haven't decided yet what color, but I am teetering between a light blue/periwinkle and sage/moss.  I am sort of thinking the sage/moss combo is what I will put in my master bedroom/master bath though.  I will enjoy going to Lowes this weekend (Sunday) and looking at the color selections. 

I wanted to say "Thank you" to all of you that stop be frequently and comment.  It's nice to see comments and I really enjoy reading your blogs. 

One of my long time friends on FB is getting on my last nerve.  I know I should just ignore the posts, but being a staunch conservative his liberal jabs are beginning to annoy me.  No one ever debates him which is another reason I am having a hard time ignoring him.  Sadly I cannot access FB at work, and my phone offers very limited ability to find articles and facts to post.  When I get home I am way more interested in relaxing than sitting at the computer trying to find debatable articles.  I know I shouldn't let him ruffle my feathers.  He believes what he believes and nothing I say or post is going to change that.  I just don't like to see my point of view not represented!! 

SONG OF THE BLOG  "Perfect" by Pink. 

Exciting week!

Happy Monday Ladies!  This is going to be an exciting week for me.  As you might know I got the keys to our house and I can start moving in on Thursday (20th).  However, I am house / dog sitting for my cousin that night so it will have to be Friday that I move my first load in and will be my first night I spend in the new house.  The hubby leaves CA on the 25th and is planning on pulling into our driveway on the 28th.  He will have both of our cats and the bulk of our household.  I can hardly think of anything else, but I am trying very hard!!

The horses are both doing very well these days.  The new barn still holds some surprises for them.  It's been windy the past two days and the old barn creaks and moans and every once in awhile they will look at one another for reassurance that it's not a horse eating barn of some sort.  Sunday I went over to spend some quality time with my girls and I turned them out into a small pasture for a bit.  They both love to roll and scratch their backs.  But they were much more interested in eating the amazing green grass.  Here is a pic of them enjoying Ohio.  Dolly is on the left and Cheyenne on the right.

I also managed to finish the infinity scarf (no pic) and another beanie.  This one is in that bright flourescent pink (even though the camera didn't quite capture that brightness) and black chenille.  It's really cute on.



In an effort to make some room and empty a container for hauling things, I consolidated some yarn over the weekend.  I can't wait for the hubby to get here with my yarn stash as I have grown tired of the yarns I brought with me and since I have so much it's silly to go buy more in the interim.  So I am making do.  I did start another surprise yarn ball with the plans to eventually use the wonderful blue yarn I picked up while in Germany last year.  My Mom has asked me to make her goose, Gracie, a Christmas sweater and scarf.  So I have that idea bouncing around in my head.  I'm just going to make something that slips over head like the dresses she currently wears and make her a skinny scarf with fringe for her long neck. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Baggage Claim" by Miranda Lambert. 

Yay it's Friday -- and I have GREAT news!!!!

I am so happy to report that the sellers are moving out of our house this weekend.  I will be able to get the keys on Saturday and move in after they clean it on the 20th!!!  The first night in my new house will be Friday, 21st!!!  That means for a week I will be able to stay in my new home alone!  How great is this news??  No TV, no Internet (I'm working on this) - just me and my yarn and my Ipod.  Oh and my big garden tub.  Life, Ladies, is about to get AMAZING.  Bring along my 125 year old bottle of scotch my son gave me and I'm set for a week of complete "ME".  I can barely contain myself.

As promised here is a pic of my white double strand beanie.


No one has asked for this one yet and I'm guessing it's because it is so white that keeping it clean will be an issue.  I would use it but one run in with the horses and it would no longer white. 

I continued working on my first ever infinity scarf.  I snapped a couple of pics of it before I got started.  It's now more than twice as wide as the pics show.  I'm kind of excited about this one now and the color is actually really neat.  I love green anyway so I just might keep this one for myself and see if it "works" or if there is changed I'd like to make on it (length, width) as well as see if I get any compliments on it while wearing it or requests to make a few from buyers. 


My dear cousin Julie and I have already planned a gathering to crochet for an afternoon on the 22nd.  She is bringing her Mom and I will bring mine.  We will order pizza and eat yummy desserts all the while chatting and crocheting.  Now my Mom doesn't crochet at all, but she will enjoy just sitting with us.  My Aunt Sue has such awful RA, but this season she is in pretty good sorts and has been crocheting up a storm making scarfs and beanies for all the people that have cared for her through the past year with her RA. 

I don't know if any of you are DAUGHTRY fans, but their new CD is due out Nov 21st.  Two singles have been released; Renegade and Crawling Back To You.  You can pre-order the CD here and with that you get the two singles to download for free now. 

SONG OF THE BLOG:  "Renegade" by DAUGHTRY