Crochet bag... still waiting

It has surely been a slow weekend as far as any projects are concerned.  

Friday was all about enjoying the "warmer" weather and some bowling.  It was nice to see the large group that showed up for bowling and lets not forget all the laughing and chatting being done by the Moms sitting on the side.  Good times!

Saturday was about running in and out of the house enjoying the much nicer weather than the day before and making the yummy peach cheese cake recipe for after dinner.

Sunday on the other hand was very windy, damp and cold.  The weather can't make up it's mind on what to do around here.  Not that I felt like doing anything any way.  All I wanted to do was curl up with a blanket and sit around.  Not even a movie sounded like fun.  So that is what I did, moving about the house from one room to another, trying to find a cozy spot only to get fed up with the spot and go looking for another.  It was surely a funk I was in, so much so that I didn't even touch the good ole' hook and yarn once!!  Glenn wondered if I was needing to be taken to the hospital after a while.  No thanks, I'll pass.  :)

Today has been slightly better.  Lessons were mostly done while laying all over my bed going over spelling, history, science and writing.  It was nice because of all the lovely light coming in through the windows.  The sunlight helped some but not enough to get me bouncing around the house.  I think it is a bit of cabin fever but with a bit of achy added to it.  Yuck.  :P  I'm hoping after a good night's sleep and that great stuff NyQuil, which knocks me out, tomorrow will be better.  Cross your fingers.

And let's not even begin to mention what is happening to this country of ours, which depressing me even more.  Just sickening.  Sad to see that certain people, the government, can just ignore the fact that there is a Constitution that is the law of the land, but they are going to do whatever they want (break the laws) and no one is suppose to say anything. Pathetic.  Sorry for the rant.

I had to post a pretty picture of some mountain wildflowers to perk up the post a bit.  I love going up on a hike and watching the bees bounce around these flowers.  Quite relaxing.  And how wonderful to be surrounded by the lovely bluey purpley color.  Bliss!  :)

I did get a smidge done on my bag this afternoon before the fire went out as far as enthusiasm is concerned.  Just picture a crazy woman trying (fighting) to get the lining to fit just right so it not all twisted up in a mess.  Nice sight especially when the crazy woman kept sticking herself with the pins over and over.  The girls thought it was funny.  Glad I could give them comedy hour.

The lining finally cooperated and the sewing began.  Now I just have to finish the handles.  Don't hold your breath for when that will be done.  Not too fast with how the past few days have been going.  But "we" will prevail and press on to the finish line.

I'm tired again.  I have to go find one of the bright cozy blankies and curl up somewhere again.  I feel like my battery is drained again.  Hope everyone is having a better few days than I.  I'm hoping I can find something to put the "kabosh" on the funk and get back to feeling better soon.

Toodles!!!

Crochet goodness, road trip, fabric fun, and yummy treats!!!

I had someone email me and ask if things were okay around these parts because I had not posted anything since Monday.  Yes, things are just dandy.  Just too darn busy!!  :)  I need more time and more days in the week!!  I'm still not sure that would help though.

As you can tell I've been working on these quick little coasters while I was waiting on going to the fabric store to buy fabric for my crochet bag (the lining).  Cute little things they are.  I have a few sets that will be going to a few friends to see how they like them.  Maybe if there are good comments about them I might think about selling some.  Haven't thought that all out yet though.  I'll keep you posted.  :)

Yesterday included a trip to the fabric store after school work and then a trip up in the hills above our house.  We were looking for bald eagles but didn't see any.  Plenty of turkey vultures though.  Yeah.  Just as my luck would be my camera battery wanted to die on me after just a couple of pictures.  The rest of the pictures were taken on Glenn's camera, which I was deathly afraid of touching.  It just freaks me out holding that much money in my hands.  Especially if something would go wrong!!  Geez!!  I would never be able to look at him again. :}  So I will have to wait until Glenn downloads the pics to share them with you.  

It was a nice little drive to a little town that is a valley on the other side of the hills from where we live.  The road is nice, but let me tell you that the 7% grade drop from the top of the hill bugs me.  Especially when one keeps seeing the signs for the runaway truck ramps every so often.  I could not imagine living on the other side of this hill in the winter and having to drive that highway everyday.  I would be on drugs just to make it.  I would probably be one that would use the ramps.  Not good!!  And to think some people actually do that drive every day ALL year round.  Better them than me.  :)  

We did see some neat stuff and found our way to a wildlife watching area where we saw some swans from the road above.  We couldn't get into the area because it is closed during nesting and hatching time.  So we will have to wait until end of July to go back there and walk around that area.  We went exploring around an old dam that isn't operational anymore on the Payette River.  Pretty cool to see that and all its parts.  Brenna saw some sheep, cows, horses and other farm animals along the way and had to share her animal sound talents with us.  Pretty funny how the horsey sounds.  We even saw some deer grazing on the side of the hills on the way up (glenn's camera).  It was a fun afternoon but very chilly with the winds that were blowing.  I'll be very glad when it warms just a tad so that the outdoors can be enjoyed more.  I'm not a fan of the cold winds when trying to enjoy the outdoors.  I just have to be patient and wait to frolic and leap in the mountains.  Hopefully that won't include anything broken. :}

Here's the loot from the fabric store.  Aren't the colors lovely? Yes!  The pink is for my bag.  The purple is for Em's two outfits.  And the two lady bug fabrics are Brenna's.  You should have seen the happiness in their eyes picking and choosing their fabrics.  It doesn't take much to make them happy.

This is what all the pretty fabric will be made of.  Two dresses for Brenna and one dress for Em and one top and capris.  Too cute!  I get such a kick out of the girls picking things out for warmer weather!  Tickled!!!!

These are other patterns just waiting for the fabric stash to be dug into and made into these lovelies!

Now for some tasty treats!

I had to pick up supplies for a couple of these lovely little yummies while at the store today.  I was drooling just thinking about them.  I can feel my clothes getting a little snug already.  Oh well, at least I know I will be happy.  I'll just have to do some extra walking next week when it's nice out.  :)

All the recipes are from Kraftfoods.com.  Easy and yummy!!  Try them and see what you think and let me know what you think!  I know will love them.

Peaches 'n Cream No-bake Cheesecake.  :P

Lemonade Cheesecake Pie.  :P

And last but not least, I could not resist posting about this.  My Mom use to make for us when we were little.  It never failed, every Easter, Mom would always take the time to make a bunny cake like the one below.  There never was too much left after Easter dinner.  Maybe part of the bow tie.  For some odd reason, the ears would always be the first to be cut.  A bit morbid when one thinks about it.  :)  Oh well, they tasted good anyway.  LOL!!!

Easter Bunny Cake.  Yummo!

Well, the fabric is waiting to be put into the dryer so that it can be cut out tomorrow morning.  It's suppose to be nice and warm in the afternoon so hopefully we can get to the park and try out the new kites the girls got last week.  I think I will wait until Glenn gets home so that he can join in the fun with running around trying to get the kites to take flight.  LOL!!  Why have him miss out on all the fun?  :)  

I will try to get a post in this weekend.  Sunday will be rainy and cold again, so there will surely be some time to talk about yarn, food, fabric, yarn, relaxing, yarn.  Do you see a trend?  LOL!!

Anyhoo, have a great weekend everyone!!!  Have fun, but make sure it's not so much that it includes injuries or trouble!

Toodles Noodles!!!

(I am pee'ing my pants right now!  Glenn came in the room telling the story about his "encounter" about checking out some weird sounds last night after I went to bed.  He went up from the lower level because he thought he heard "someone" messing with the door.  He went to step on the wood floor with his slippers on and they made sounds going across the floor so he bent down to crawl on the floor but all he heard was his knees and other joints popping and cracking.  So he said the heck with it because if there was "someone" trying to get in they would know he was there and all they would have to do is point and shoot in the direction of all the popping and cracking!!!  So, so much for trying to save the girls and I from imminent danger!  My sides hurt!!  I have to go and lay down now to recover from the laughing.  I was also told that I would probably have to pack a bag for making fun of him on my blog!  HAHAHAH!!!!  Sorry Glenn!  I do love you but you are too FUNNY!!!!  That is why we have been together so long!!!  Free entertainment!!)

What am I up to now? :)

Today will probably be a quick post with more pics than before.  Yeah, we'll see. :D  After lessons and lunch time today all you could hear in the house was my dear old friend, the sewing machine, singing it's song down in the craft room.  I finally took the shower curtain down in the girls bathroom and cut it in half.  Yes, you heard me right!!  Cut it in half!  That big chunk of yellow was really starting to bug me and I went to fixing it with a little color.  I also got sick of seeing the spools of ribbon I had bought for this project just sitting on my desk, staring at me every time I sat down to work on something.

So here is what happened.

A little pinning.  And sticking my fingers with the pins.  There were a few muffled words I should not repeat.  :)

A little sewing.

Then putting every thing back together in the bathroom.  

I think this bit of color looks much better than the blog of yellow that use to just hang here.

Pay no attention to the hideous brown tiles that still remain in the bathroom.  One day I will break all of it out and but something pretty in it's place.  Someone once told me that brown is back "in" for bathroom decor.  Who ever those decorators are, they need help.  They can come get these tiles and I wouldn't not cry about it.  :)

Nice bright ribbon went around the cutesie pictures in the bathroom to separate them from the walls.

Aren't they the cutest little pics you've seen?  Too cute for words.  :)

Now to my little treat I bought over the weekend.  I could not resist this teacup planter when we walked by it at the store(yes, Walmart.  not my favorite place  :{ ). I was going to pass it up because of the $20 price tag on it but Glenn twisted my arm and said that I need something cute to put out in the back yard for spring.  Thanks Glenn!!  I'm not getting rid of him anytime soon!!!  :)

Yes, the planter is huge.  I put the teapot I won from Danette next to it to show the scale of this thing.  It's going to look awesome with a bright flowery plant in it.  Can't wait!  Yes, peeing my pants!  hehehe!!!

The girls worked on a art project after lunch today.  Watercolors on a pen and ink picture.  They turned out great!  I am going to have to get some frames now to hang them up.

And yes, I worked on something other than my bag last night!!!  I know it's an awful thing to admit but I had this little pattern for coasters laying around on my desk and it was screaming at me to try it.  So I did while watching Masterpiece Theater with Em last night.  David Copperfield.  Wonderful show.  We were lucky enough to watch both parts back to back.  It's a really nice Sunday night ritual we do now.  Em was not please for the past two weeks when the local PBS station was running their fund raising "stuff" (as she called it).  She really missed our movies.  Really too funny!  The coasters are really fast to work up.  I had a whole mess of them made by the time the shows were over.

Well, this wasn't terribly quick but not to long either.  So not bad, at least not for me!  hehehe!  Of to get dinner out of the oven so that I can get back to some sewing while the girls sit on the other side of the desk and work with their melty (perler) beads.  It's nice having a partner desk to use for crafting, sewing, lessons, etc.  It's HUGE!  I just have to clean it up a bit and paint it.  Just have to figure out what color.  Too much thinking!

Have a great night with whatever you do.  I will be doing more crocheting after the wee bit of sewing after dinner.  You didn't think I could stay away from yarn too long did you?  Naaaaahhh!!  :)

Toodles Noodles!!!

Cookies, bits of Spring, and yarny goodness !!!!

Today started out with chores, chores and more chores.  I feel like the house and laundry were severely shoved to the side this past week with being occupied with Em's tests.  Glenn doesn't see what I see.  He always tells me that the house is spotless and that we could eat off of the floors.  But I just feel like nothing was done.  I must say to Glenn's credit he did take care of the dishwasher, straightening up a bit and keeping Brenna out of trouble.  It did help even though I "panic" about how I didn't do things according to my schedule. :)  He does a wonderful job when he is needed and asked to help with things.  He's a sweetie!

So I popped my head out in between batches of cookies to take in the fresh air and warm temps today.  61 is pretty darn nice after all the cold stuff we had.  Can you believe that tonight we are suppose to get rain and the hills are supposed to get snow.  Crazy weather in these parts until we get into the end of April.  You never know what you will get.  :)  I saw the trees budding already and could smell the nice fragrance they give off.  I lost myself out on the deck sniffing the air.  I hope the neighbors didn't catch a glimpse of that bit of insanity.  :)  The bees were all over the buds collecting pollen.  Their little legs were so loaded down with pollen they looked like little pack mules with big yellow bags on their sides.  The girls thought that was funny.  We all stood in one spot just listening to the buzzing the bees were making while going about their busy day.  Can you believe with all those bees buzzing in the tree, not one in the pic.  Geez!  They were cute little buggers.  :)

Since the subject of cookies came today I thought I would share a few pics of the biggest cookie monster we have in our house.  Yes, it is Miss Brenna.  You can't get a cookie within a mile of her without her knowing.  Especially if it is chocolate!  She would pass out if there wasn't any chocolate in this house.

Don't you just love how she looks like she is daintily enjoying her cookie and then just devours it in one last bite!  Just too hilarious!

And yet another beauty shot of how a poor cookies had no chance of survival with being so close to Brenna.  :)

Well, on to the cookies.  These are made with cake mix.  Yes, the boxes of cake mix.  Super simple and fast!!  I like that!

For chocolate cookies here is what you need:

1 box of chocolate cake mix

3/4 cup of butter

2 eggs

half a bag of chocolate chips

any kind of nuts if you like

preheat the oven at 350 degrees F

add all the ingredients together

then drop a teaspoon full of dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for 11 minutes.

I use a very small "ice cream" scoop (#70) to make sure all the cookies are the same size.  Yes, there are arguments in this house if someone thinks they got a smaller cookie than someone else.  I also use parchment paper so that I don't have to clean cookie sheets afterwards.

The cookies are awesome!  They are a FAV around this place.  If you try them, let me know what you think. :)

I finally took my blankies outside to get a sunny colorful pic of them before the rain comes in.  As I'm typing the sky is getting gray.  

Glenn said it is a good thing that I crochet fast because I'm already drawing out some ideas for some other blankets.  I have got to finish that bag!  But I will try to control myself and make sure I make the girls something before I go towards another blankie project.  :)  I so do love my bright pretty blankies!  

Here's what I have finished on the bag so far.  Not too bad.  Oh the yarn this baby will hold!  Yippee!!

Well, off again to finish dinner.  Pot roast soup!  YUMMO!!!  Great way of using up leftovers and not throwing out yummy pot roast.  I also have to go take a look at a link that Libby shared with me for some crocheted butterflies.  They are so cute!  She made the cutest little poncho and added on of these butterflies on it.  Just adorable!  Thanks Libby again for sharing!

I must run so that I can get outside before the temps drop.  Tomorrow we are only going to get to 50 degrees possibly with rain!  So you know where I will be and what I will be doing!  LOL!!!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Toodles Noodles!!!!   xxxxxx

**stop the presses!!  I just looked at a blown up pic of the tree bud pic and there is a bee in it!  Down at the lower left of the pic, resting on the tree limb!  FABULOSO!!!  The girls thought that was awesome too!  **

Daydreaming and crocheting in the sun!!!!

Well, this week sure has been BUSY!!!  We finished with Em's tests yesterday.  She said she felt that the test over all was easy and she didn't have a problem with it.  She even said she thought it was fun taking the tests!  I know she can be a bit messed up once in a while.  :)  It was hard waking up earlier in the mornings just to make sure we left on time to make it to the testing center with time to spare so we could go over the days announcements ,etc.  It was also fun to see some of the other homeschooling families that we see on a regular basis and chat with them about "stuff" and how things have gone so far this year.  It was also great to hear about the wonderful things happening in our state's legislature that will improve our homeschooling laws where we live.  We really do have an awesome group working for us to make sure we can educate our kids properly, in a safe loving environment.   Thank You to everyone that works so hard for all of us!!!  :)

Well, on a different note, the other day after dinner I could not resist going out on the deck and soaking up some sun while working on my bag.  But before I started on the most important crochet time, I started daydreaming about when we can get up in the hills and start frolicking around like little mountain goats.  It will be wonderful to get up in the fresh breezes, hearing the wind in the trees, listening for birds, looking for bugs and just taking our little sweet time hiking around.  Let's not forget watching for critters that may be in area.  We have only come near an elk one time near Stanley Lake a few years back.  Other than that, no excitement.  But we still keep an ear and eye out for anything.  You just never know.  I just love the little meadow pictured below in the summer time because it turns blue from all the Lupines that bloom in June/July.  AWESOME!!!

Enough of the daydreaming.  Hiking will come soon enough.  :)

Please don't get frightened by the pale legs that are attached to the really pretty red socks below.  I do need to get out in the sun a bit.  But I couldn't resist wearing my favorite homemade socks.  Favorite color too I must add.  

So I gathered everything one would need while sunning and crocheting out on the deck in the beautiful weather we had the other day.  Big cup of lemonade, tools of the trade, Ipod, the bag, and the phone.  Not sure why I had the phone being I had the ringer turned off.  Don't ask!  :)  The girls were running around the yard squealing and making a bit of noise, which drives me a bit nuts sometimes.  I still don't understand the need or reason for running around squealing about nothing in particular, other than to irritate parents and neighbors.  Sometimes I wonder what the neighbors think when the girls are out just making noise.  I have to remind the girls that others may be out in their yard to enjoy themselves and they didn't come out to hear the crazy whacked out "calls" of the two little birds tearing around our yard.  So the Ipod is needed so that I am not continually asking little peeps to tone it down a bit.  I figure that if I can hear them above where I have the music turn to, then I will remind them.  Nothing like jamming to your favorite tunes while sunning and crocheting!

Here is the progress from two days ago while out in the sun.  I had finished the increasing and was making my way up the side of the bag.  I will have to take another pic sometime today to show the progress since then.  I am really liking this bag!  It is going to be awesome because it will hold a lot of yarn for whatever project I choose next.  I am going to line it first though.  So hopefully that won't take to long to finish so that this beauty can be used.

I must be running now.  I have got to get to Bowling!  We have some friends meeting us.  It will be nice to go and have some fun after the hard work Em and I had the past few days.  Well, at least I need to go and have fun.  Em apparently had fun while testing remember.  Issues!!

Go and have a FAbuLosO weekend everyone!  And keep on creating!  I will be surrounding myself with more yarn.  Like you didn't know that!  LOL!!!  70 degrees here today so I see more sunning on the deck later this afternoon!!  WooHoo!!!

Toodles Noodles!!   xxxxx

Finished Ripple, more yarn & "green" decor...

This weekend went by too fast.  As usual.  The good news is that some how our leak temporarily disappeared while the leak detector guy was here on Friday.  The only thing we could think of is the compressed gas he put in the pipes to listen for the leak pushed "something" into the very tiny leak and sealed it for the time being.  I think I am still going to dig up the area where he thought he heard it to begin with when the weather gets warm.  It still bugs the snot out of me.  At least I'm not hearing things in the house for the time being.  Key word being "time being".

Bowling went well though.  I got 2 strikes!  I really had to control myself and not jump up and down yelling in celebration.  Simple things.  :)  I picked up my book on Saturday that I had being held at the book store.  Very pleased I must say.  I'm trying to be good and not get anymore books and stuff for the time being.  I have enough to keep me busy for awhile.  The girls finished their St. Patty's decor.  It turned out pretty darn good.  And I managed to hang it up just high enough (barely) so that poor Glenn doesn't run into it when he walks into the kitchen.  He had to test that out Saturday when he came home.  Glenn and decorations that hang down just don't mix well at times.  Mostly my fault.  I tend to forget to put the decor up past the 6 foot mark.  :}  And yes, that is a Valentines decor on one of my cabinet doors because the girls said they couldn't bare to take that one down yet.  I may just have to do it when they go to bed one night. :)  

The girls put on a play about Cinderella that they have been working on for the last couple of weeks.  Too funny!!  It was a mix of speaking and "silent movie" stuff.  Don't ask.  Glenn and I just tried keeping from busting out laughing during the play.  They did an awesome job though.  It was fun for all.

I have been trying to figure out some kind of order for the yarn I will be making the bag with.  Yes, trying to control it just a bit.  :)  The girls and I were sitting on my bed trying to come up with something in what little light there is outside today.  So far the idea is starting with the red, then pink, etc.  The navy blue would be last in the sequence of things.  Don't hold your breath.  Things could change without anyone knowing.  I've got two colors done so far.  We'll see how far I get tonight.  

Everyone is hitting the hay early tonight with Em's testing the next three days.  We have to get up at 6am to be at testing by 8am.  I hope I don't wake up as "miss crabby pants".  Wouldn't be nice.  Brenna is excited because she gets to go with Daddy to his physical therapy appt.  Glenn isn't sure what the excitement is about.  :)

And here is the ripple finished with the edging.  Sorry, but like I mentioned earlier, the lighting today stinks.  Rain all over the place here.  The ripple sure is warm and soft after it's first washing yesterday.  The girls like it because they can both lay under it and keep warm at the same time.  The bright colors sure brighten up the room.  Very cheery!

Well, off to finish the spaghetti sauce for dinner and some chocolate chip cookies.  Em and I need some kind of snack to hold us over between tests you know.  Nothing better than a Chocolate chip cookies I tell ya.  I've got to go upstairs and check out what the girls picked out to wear tomorrow.  You have to wonder sometimes. :)  Em is making sure everything is laid out for tomorrow so we can eat, get dressed, grab our goodies and supplies and head out the door.  I have to go over that too just to make sure nothing is forgotten.  

Well, have a great night everyone and hopefully some yarn will be in the evening mix for you!  

Toodles Noodles!!!!   xxxxxx

Happy day and packages in the mail !!!!!!

Well, today seems to be going a bit better.  Even though I can still here "water" somewhere.  The leak detector will be here tomorrow, not today.  I was wrong.  :{  (deep breath & find my happy place)  :)  I have my Itunes cranked while typing which seems to be helping.  And yes, the stereo is on (when I'm not on here) so there is happy music playing while getting things done.  And so I can't hear the faint sound of "you know what".  And we are not dealing with any "you know what" in the house.   :}  And Monday was rough also with it being the day we lost my DAD 6 years ago.  Very somber day.  Love and miss you Daddy, ALOT!!!!

Yesterday I had to make a trip to the library with the girls to get more books and there was a "present" there for me that I had put on hold.  I wasn't so sure how good this book would be but to say the least I was VERY pleasantly surprised.  Way to go Jan Eaton.  I now have my own copy being held at the local bookstore so that I can buy it this weekend.  YEAH!!!  Trust me, get this book.  It is well worth it.  Em got so excited looking through it.  Yes, pee your pants excited.  Like mother, like daughter!!  LOL!!!!!!  They are just like me until they do something wrong.  hehe!  :)

After lessons today the girls sat down to make some "springy" crafty decorations.  They are making puffy, cottony clouds with rainbow streams hanging from the bottom.  They want to make something else to go with them but I'm not aloud to take pics until it is all finished.  Drama you know.  All about the presentation.  And yes, they are wearing summer dresses.  It is still very cold out but you can't tell them that.  They just keep telling me that "we are inside where it's warm".  It's their new stuff they picked out this weekend when we went for a quick trip to the store to use up their gift cards from Christmas.  They were holding off using them until spring things came out.  They were happy with their loot. Can't tell they have a bit of cabin fever can you.

Well, the best thing about today was when the long awaited for packages ARRIVED!!!  I was dancing, after I shut the door.  For one, I don't want the neighbors thinking I have totally lost it and two, if I fall and hurt myself I don't want to be stuck outside.  :)  I would be so embarrassed that I would have to pack and move.

So first the books.  I LOVE THEM!!!  I can not wait to get going on my bag, finish it and start on a project from one of these lovelies.  I think I will make something for the girls being I have been a bit of a project hog lately for things all for myself.  Here's the list:  (left to right, top to bottom)

1. Patchwork Afghans thru the year

afghans made from grannies!  How awesome is that!

2. Casual to Classic fashions to crochet

Love the red kimono jackety thing on the front.  I WILL make that for myself!

3.  Top-sy Turvy

The cutest little springy sweaters for girls.  The patterns are sized for both girls.  Nice being it is getting hard to find patterns for Em's size now.  

4.  Crochet Cardigans

Love the green one on the front!  And the long white one shown on the inside!

5.  Crochet Shrugs

All of them are too cute!  Yes, I love the green one on the front. 

6.  Fun Time Bath Mitts

They are too cute!  And the girls are debating on which one they want first.  They want them all made but at least that isn't being demanded all at once.

And yes finally, (I know you have been waiting) the yarn I picked out for my BAG!!!   I am so loving them right now.  Yes, I am pee'ing my pants, listening to my Itunes, typing like a mad woman with a HUGE smile on my face!!!  (I haven't done that all week, smile you know)  I was a little worried about not being able to hold the lovelies in my hand and seeing the colors first.  But I am loving them!!  WOOHOO!!!! I am dancing and jigging in my chair!  It doesn't take much to make me happy as one could tell.  :)  It's a mix of Red Heart Creme de la Creme and Lion Brand Cotton.  I just sat and stared at all the lovely colors when I pulled them out of the box.  Simple minds.  AWESOME!!!!

I can't believe that I am finished typing this already.  With the music loud in my ears and typing, it reminds me of when I used to work at night at a trucking company putting bills into the system.  Headphones on, volume up and typing up a storm to stick to my 2500 bills a night average.  I don't miss the work at all, but having music in my ears for 8 hours straight is not bad.  Especially when it is my Ipod fill with my most FAV songs in the world ever.  Now I remember why I couldn't stand that place.  They always tried to screw me out of my incentive pay EVERY month because I would hit the most bills per hour and 98% or more accuracy.  They would be out at least $500 or more because of that.  BAD MEMORIES!!!  

Finding my happy place, deep breath and listen to my happy music while dancing in my chair.  I'm okay now.  Whew !  Close one.  I don't want high blood pressure problems.  I'm still a young pup you know.  :)

So anyhoo, I must go get the girls going on the second phase of the decorations so that I can sit and supervise while adding the last 3 rows on the ripple and then start the edging.  Don't worry my little bag, I'm nearly finished so I can get going with all your beautiful colors!!  Yes, I am not all together at times.  But at least I am happy 99.9% of the time.  That is all that matters.  Especially where the family is concerned.  :)  Remember:

IF MAMA AIN'T HAPPY, AIN'T NOBODY HAPPY!!!

True so True!!!!!  I do remind everyone of that every once in a while.  :)

Alright, I'm done.  Everybody go and have a FANTABULOUS rest of the day.  Turn up your favorite music and dance your little tail off !!  I said so!  :)  hehe.

Toodles Noodles!!!!

A big mystery, flowers, and the ripple....

Well, things have certainly been "exciting" here the last few days.  I'm not sure exciting is the word to use for all of what has been going on.    First off, Monday brought a wonderful surprise in the mail from Danette.  I received the most wonderful teapot and cozy from her giveaway on her blog.  Thanks again Danette.  The girls and I used it the other night after dinner and it really kept the tea just right all night long!  I almost didn't want to use it because it is so pretty.  It looks good in the kitchen.  I will have to take pics later to post.

Tuesday was filled with a Dr's appt for Glenn to check out his shoulder that has been bothering him.  Good news.  No tears or anything major.  A little physical therapy should do the trick.  Thank goodness.  I really hate the word SURGERY.  It really makes me nervous.  Glenn has had a couple of surgeries before and I didn't like seeing him recovering from them.  I just feel helpless.  So good news with that part of the day.

After the appointment though was not so uplifting.  I have been hearing this noise in the house as if someone has left a faucet running just the slightest bit.  I have searched every where and no sign of water anywhere in the house.  I have even taken access panels off of things looking for water.  No luck.  So with a call to the plumbers, the water co. and a leak detector service, the only thing we can think of is that there is a leak somewhere in the main line feeding into the house.  Good and bad there.  Good that we have rocky, sandy soil all under the house.  So where ever the leak is it isn't coming into the house but just seeping into the ground somewhere.  Bad because if it is under the house, we have a slab foundation.  I am hoping and praying that it is out in the front yard somewhere.  The leak detector guy is suppose to be here tomorrow with his high power listening equipment to locate the leak.  I haven't eaten but twice in the last three days because I'm wigging out about this.  It's not so much the leak but the dollar signs I'm seeing.  That freaks me out the most.  I could just get sick.  So that is my fun for the next few days anyway.  Crossing my fingers for a winning lottery ticket tonight and that the leak isn't under the house. :)  I think I'm going to get sick again.  :{

So with all that going on I had to find a pretty picture of some really wonderful flowers.  Below is a pic of Idaho's state flower, the Mock Orange or Syringa. They smell so wonderful that it over takes you.  I don't know how to explain it.  Bliss!!!  :)  I took them last year at a nature center we have in the area.  It is a great place just to go and wonder around when the weather warms up.  I can't wait till they have the salmon there again this year.  It is so nice to see those pretty fish every year at the center.  I'll have to remember to take some pics when we go this spring & summer to share with you all.  FABULOUS!!!

Em gave Lucy's teeny tiny flower pattern at try and they turned out wonderful.  She has more colors lined up to make more.  She was tickled that she figured the pattern out and made them her self, with a little "back seat driver" help.  :)  I'm pleased as punch with her.  She is too cute!

Below is the ripple and how it has come along over the weekend.  I haven't done much in the evenings this week with what has been happening here.  It just sucks the mood right out of you.  Anyhoo, it is nearly finished.  I still have not figured out why the width slowly but surely "stretches" out a bit as I continue to work on it.  The only thing I can figure is it is the acrylic yarn I am using.  Maybe, maybe not.  Who knows.  It is looking nice though even with the light section that sticks out at you.  I'm running out of the colors I choose for the ripple.  A few more rows and it should be done and then I will add an edging to it.

I'm waiting for my yarn and books that I ordered last Friday.  They are suppose to be here tomorrow.  At least there will be one happy thing going on tomorrow.  I will take pics of the loot when it gets here.  I can't wait to start working on my bag I ordered the cotton yarn for.  Yes, pee'ing my pants while waiting!  How did you know? :)

Well, off the get dinner going and get reading time in with the girls.  Brenna is doing so wonderful with her reading.  She just has the biggest grin on her little punkin' face when she gets a new word right and then squeals with delight.  I'm glad the girls love to read.  It warms my heart to see them cuddled up in their library loving their books.  I've got to take something for my head and nibble on some crackers or toast for the tummy.  PLEASE let there be good news tomorrow!  At least for my sake and Glenn and the girls.  I have been a bit grumpy and off sorts the last few days.  I take a lot of deep breaths before reacting to anything around here.  Other wise heads would get bit off.  :/

Toodles!!!!    xxxxxxxx

(sorry for the edit.  I can't seem to spell today. :(  )

Soup, bowling & blankies!!! Nothing better!!

It's been a busy last couple of days around here.  School work, house work, and some fun.

Then there was the YUMMY Baked Potato  soup!  Fabulous it was!!

Now you will notice in the pic that I didn't use the cream called for in the recipe.  I used evaporated milk, which we like just the same.  Cheaper too.  Pay no attention to the carrots sitting on the cutting board.  Those are my snacks that I munch on while I am cooking.  

Too bad there isn't "smell-a-blog" available.  Is there anything better than smelling bacon, onion and celery cooking.  Can't think of any right now.  Makes one drool!  :)

Then after following the rest of the recipe as it says, you come up with a tasty treat for dinner.  Trust me, it does look better than what the picture presents.  The lighting was awful when the pic was taken.  And yes, there were left overs.  And it tasted just as super-duper as the first night.  We were all happy campers both nights.  The bowls were just about spotless when all was done.

Friday is our sporty activity day.  We go bowling must days now.  It is addictive to say the least.  And it is bad that we get a break in the cost for setting up Friday's as home school time.  Sweet! :)  The girls and I were able to talk Brendon into going with us.  He wasn't too pleased with the score of his first game.  Let's just say he wasn't pleased with Em's score of 124 (with bumpers).  He kept reminding her that she used bumpers.  His second game was better at 82.  For what ever reason he was trying to get up on the lane and try with all his might whiz the ball down the lane as fast as he could.  There were a few gutter balls on his first game.  He was not impressed.  At least on the second game he settled down and took his time and the score improved.  Everyone ended up with what we call "bowlers butt" today.  When you don't work your calf & thigh muscles much, you really feel them and the tooshie after bowling.  It was a fun afternoon and I think now the competition is on with Em and Brendon.  We will see more of him on Friday afternoons tagging along.  Hilarious!!!

There was more rippley work done last night while listening to the beloved Ipod.  Love that thing.  I seem to really get into a rhythm while listening to my music and nothing else bothering me.  There was alot of the 80's playing in my ear last night.  There were alot of flashbacks of high school during ripple time last night when certain songs came on. Like, dancing, Levi 501's, Ocean Pacific t-shirts, Doc Marten's,  Kaepa sneakers, and the movies (the Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Weird Science, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Meatballs, The Great Outdoors, etc.).  Were those the days!  Let's not mention dressing like Wham and Culture Club in the big t-shirts for school.  Don't ask!!!  I'm laughing so hard right now I could hurt myself.  At least they were fun times and the music was happy and not dark like what is out there now days.  Could you imagine being tortured with today's "stuff" while in high school?  Don't want to think about it.  No wonder kids now days have issues!

Anyhoo, below is what I have completed on the ripple.  I just noticed that there is a bit of the light color thing going on at the top.  I must break that up with some brights.  I'm not ripping anything out so I must work with what I have done.

Well, off to finish the bed sheets.  Glenn said he doesn't like it when I put the sheets back on and make the bed.  I do military corners and he said he feels like he is in a zip-loc baggie when trying to get into the bed.  I'm just trying to keep him fresh you know.  LOL!!!  Em is waiting on me to show her how to make some of the little flowers off of Lucy's blog.  The cutest little things they are.  And easy!!  Thanks again Luce for sharing your lovely little bits with us all.

Off for more fun.  Brenna has requested some reading time being she is feeling a bit down today.  A teeny bit of a cold.  So who could resist snuggling with the "Squeaker" and reading some good stories with her.  Not I.  She made my heart melt last night when I was tucking her in.  She reached up to give me another hug and said that I was the best Mommy for taking care of her while she has a cold.  And then said "thanks for loving me alot Mommy".  I'm all mush now.  That makes it all worth it, doesn't it.  I'm getting all drippy now too.

Have a super-duper to all.  Hope there will be lots of fun things happening with everyone.  Staying warm, cuddling and crochet is the name of the game here.

Toodles!!!! xxxxxxxx