Leaping summers of learning...

Two summers ago I took the leap into the unknown and tested myself with crochet. I learned to make crocheted animals and toys. Last summer I took another leap and forced myself past the fear of canning. I made jams...blackberry, peach and plum. Just a few months later I leaped into creating crochet patterns. I opened my own Etsy shop. This summer I am leaping into sewing. I made my first shopping bag! I have lots to learn but I am giving it my best shot.

Introducing... Southern Gal's Crochet!

So I have been debating this for some time now and have finally went through with it. As most of you know..here lately if and when I do blog, I blog about my crocheting. I'm sure some of you have been seriously tired of this convo and wish I would get back to the regular topics of animal antics and the hubs humor or maybe even my ponderings.

So in light of my realization, I have created a new blog just for all my crochet talk and creations. www.southerngalscrochet.blogspot.com

If you happen to enjoy all my crochet talk, then please feel free to come on over and join me. I will be posting about what I am making, where I got the pattern, what issues I might have had and also will be introducing fellow crocheters, their lovely work and links to free patterns I find across the web that interest me.

This will not only be for the benefit of you my readers and other crocheters but will also allow me to have all my saved patterns all in one place..LOVE that!!

Old Year yields new hopes for the New year

Last year at this time I was making a blanket for my brother and his girl. Yes I was still in the baby steps of making JUST blankets. I was just venturing out into the www and finding out that I could get patterns online! I was amazed but still too chicken to try anything out of my comfy blanket zone. Shortly after making the said blanket, his girl passed away suddenly. The family was devastated, needless to say. Sad to say but Yes life does go on and makes ya think and appreciate.

I tell you this cause I am convinced it was this time of refection after her death that made me stop and rethink what I had been doing with my daily life. I spent my days glued to my computer, doing my blog, reading blogs and feeling tons of pressure to keep up with it all. Not to mention the neglect my hubs was feeling over us being in two separate rooms all the time, him watching tv and me wrapped up in other peoples lives. I tried my hand at photography and really liked it but getting the opportunity to go places and explore with my camera wasn't feasible with our income.

So then came along crochet! I have known how to crochet since I was a teen but never really tried anything other than blankets and scarves. Squares and rectangles! LOL! I suddenly had mustered up the courage to try designs in my blankets which required learning to read patterns and new stitches. Learning how to read patterns opened my world up to all kinds of new possibilities. I look back at the pics of all the things I have done this year, I marvel at how far I have come and how much I have learned. To think that last year at this time I was still stuck behind a blanket and now I am doing hats, clothes and even toys! Oh what a difference a year makes and there is still soo much more I want to try!

This last year also brought us a new grand-daughter and we was lucky enough to go and see her and the family. Yes I know I have already told you that but I still squeal under my breathe when I think of the grandkids, I can't help it!

I do believe my last post was about the layoffs at hubby's work...well he escaped the first round of layoffs but not the closing of the company. He was out of work for three weeks but it has been 6 weeks without a paycheck. Times have been hard for the last few months but I have high hopes next year will be better. Hubby has a job (which is a blessing) and now that I have been doing soo much better with my crocheting I am also making a little bit of money to help out.

For the New Year I hope...
to further my knowledge in crochet
to teach my niece how to crochet
hubby has good luck with this new company
hubby's health doesn't worsen
Save a little money! (I can hope!)
And maybe if I am really lucky I can kick this habit of smoking. (wishful thinking!)

I hope you all get all your hopes fulfilled and have a wonderful New Year!

Memorial day weekend

Saturday I spent the morning and the evening with the hubby watching some really great old war movies on the tv. I absolutely adore Van Johnson and he was a huge star of the b&w era, so manage to get my fix of him almost all day. During the afternoon I spent a few hours with my bf. I had a pretty good pile of things to take to her and we had some crocheting to share with each other. It was a good visit and we sat and watched History Detectives together (very interesting episode), it had been so long since we had the chance to just sit in each others presence. I do dislike that we now live so far away.

Sunday the hubby and I lazied around almost all day. I cooked twice and crocheted till my tush went numb. Then we took a nap. After the nap I was full of energy and the sun was setting, the temps outside had finally dropped down into the 80's. I decided it was a great time to get the mowing done. Watching the beautiful sunset across the sky made me long for my camera but I knew I had to finish the mowing before I lost all sunlight. Kinda a bummer to have missed the opportunity but at least the mowing got done. BUT before the mowing was finished, the hubby decided to come outside (first time since friday evening) just to aggravate me about my mowing technique...grrr. I was pretty peeved. I was very close to saying something ugly but thankfully refrained.
Meanwhile while mowing the race was on. There was about 77 more laps left to the race and Earnhardt was in 3rd by time I came in. Okay NOW this is a race to watch! I decided to sit and watch it while giving myself a foot soak. There I was sitting in my chair with my feet stuck in water and suddenly Earnhardt was in the lead. I was slapping my knee begging and pleading for him to go go go, while my whole body wanted to be jumping up and down but couldn't cause my feet were stuck in water!. It was torture! Only to watch his car slow down, he ran out of gas on the 4th corner just yards away from the checkered flag. OMG it was so disappointing but yet it was a thrilling race.

Tomorrow I plan to finish the yard, go to the grocery store, do some laundry and hopefully finish the throw I have been working on. Just a plain old regular day.

Yeah we really know how to party, huh?

Another This and That...

Soo if you have been following my stats on Facebook, then you know I have been a berry picking fool lately. I have blackberries gallore! So far I have filled up 20 quart sized bags and one gallon bag (that I gave to my mother). I'm trying desperately to get as many as I can before the heat dries them all up. Just last week I was outside for two hours and got to gallons of berries. Yesterday it took 4 hours to get the same amount. They are getting harder and harder to find berries that aren't dried up, half eaten or just plain falling off the vine.

I had a lovely visit with my mom, sister and her two youngest. It's funny how we need to see each other at least once every month or so to exchange stuff. By time they got here I had a pretty good stack of stuff for them to take and of course they were bring me stuff. I also had to do some checking on mom's computer, turns out all it was..was her impatience! Not a thing wrong with her computer! LOL!

I finished dad's blanket on the 19th and started mom's blanket on the 20th, I'm 3/4ths of the wat finished with her blanket already! Every chance I get I am crocheting.

I am begining to think that I am repetative and quite boring. LOL! If I am not mistaken my last few posts have been about the same things. What can I say..I'm predictable..sorta.

Back to mom's computer..Any of you computer savvy people know how to change the settings on a computer to enlarge everything? My mom's computer was enlarged to the point that everything is soo blown up it looks distorted. I'm talking everything, from the welcome screen, icons, wallpaper..ect. We need to put it back to normal, but can't find the place to change it.

I guess that is all for today, time to get some yard work done.

This and That...

I'm sitting here thinking..Is it possible that I am losing interest in the process of blogging. Naw..not possible! I just don't ever seem to have the time that is necessary to dedicate to it as I should.

Ever since I picked up my crochet hook last September, there is nothing I want to do more. I have always been a crocheter but maybe only one blanket a year, if that. I have a blanket I was worked on for 3 winters. Since September I have done..6 queen sized blankets and have currently started number 7. I don't know what spurred this obsession other than once I did A blanket for one person, bam I had a list of people to do blankets for. Like enough to keep me busy for the rest of the year! Then I got into exploring crochet websites for patterns and I got carried away. Soo many pretty patterns and new stitches to try!
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I got my new camera today and am dying to get outside and play with it. If only the stupid batteries would hurry up and charge.
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I washed both the truck and the car by hand. The car was beyond filthy and The hubby's running mates at work was giving him a hard time about it. Fingering in "Wash Me". The biggest culprit is his friend Grumpy. He goes back to work in the clean car and

Grumpy says...I did a good job BUT I should have used a towel to dry it.
I said "Dang, I just can't make that man happy!"
Hubby says.."They don't call him Grumpy for nothing!"
LMAO!!
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Hubby gets home Thursday night knowing he is going to be off for a three day weekend, so he hangs up his bib'alls and says aloud..see ya Monday morning.
I said..What, your not going to get dressed till Monday?
Hubby..Dang toot'in!
This afternoon he gets dressed. I asked him why.
Hubby..I figured I better get outside and mow so you would think badly of me.
Me..You nutcase! I was perfectly resigned to the fact that you was going to do nothing all weekend. (stupid girl)
The bib'alls got hung back up!
Me...No, No, No...I didn't mean it! Go ahead and go outside!
Too late. Dang it, will I ever learn?
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The new kittens are such a joy to watch. I love watching them learn new things. Like getting their little legs to stand up, they sway at the attempt and I can't help but to laugh. Yesterday one had learned how to get out of the box. She is my little explorer, she has already learned how to roam all over the place and tumble down the stairs. Her other sisters are trying to follow her lead. He brothers on the other hand..well lets just say they are slower to try. They seem to be saying...why should we get out of the box? It's nice in here. LOL!!
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Yall have a nice day!

Randomness

Yesterday was a bad day for Taco, he was getting hurt left and right all day.
He tried to jump up on the chair and missed, he landed on his side and whimpered for a good two minutes. Scared him is all.
He wanted down from the chair and I raised my crocheting to let him pass and he jumped his face right into my hand. He has a loose tooth, so I know that really hurt.
He was doing circles in front of the door (The "let me out" dance), I go to open the door and Stitch rushes over and pushes Taco into the moving door. Hurt his right front foot.
I'm sure if he could, he would file "elder doggie abuse" on me! Really an "Off" day!
Today..he acts like he is going to try to sleep through this day. No chance of getting hurt while your sleeping, unless the cat pounces on him! Poor old man!
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I know most of yall are still being pounded by rain or snow and most think I am pretty lucky to be in Texas and to be getting spring already. For the most part I would agree, but believe me we are already hitting some problems.
For the last few days it has been gloomy and chilly outside, like it really wanted to rain. Heck it did rain all around us, but here at my house..Nothing. AND yet the grass keeps growing!!
The temps are already starting to climb back up and the fan in the livingroom decided to die and the AC in my bedroom isn't working right. One thing I have learned here in Texas, there is NO happy medium! Okay maybe there is but it only lasts about a week! It's either hot or cold, in a drought or flooded...warm with light showers is a rarity to be treasured. I want some of that!
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I forgot to post my last project in crocheting.


It's really hard to tell, but there is a large heart in the center of the bed. I made this for my bf's birthday.

I am currently working on a blanket for my dad, I'm about halfway finished with it.
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If you will notice there is a donation button for paypal over on the side panel, it is for a camera fund. I was talked into putting it up there, by a few folks. It's not that I don't already love the cameras I do have, they are both great in thier own ways. It would just be nice if all those features where in just one camera. Soo, I have been drooling over this camera for some time and of course the price of it is soo far out of my range it's pathetic.

Yeah, it sure is purty! I have it on my Christmas list, but the hubs hardly ever pays attention to the list, if he looks at it at all. He is NOT a shopper! LOL!

Sooo, I thought I would give the button a gander, we'll see.
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I guess I ought to give yall a little update on some past posts.

Mom and dad didn't kill each other, they stopped talking for a day and now they are both back to normal with some extra umph and gusto at working out some of the issues.

I appreciate all of yall's help with the address labels and placed my order last night. #3 will be "mine" and #10 will be "ours". Between friends, family and awesome bloggers those are the ones with the most votes.
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I hope to do better...

I guess you could say I got quite bored with blogging. I mean let's face it, I don't live a very exciting life. Most days I dream up stuff to do to fill my day, watch a movie, play games, go for walks, take pictures, talk on the phone, light housework and of course crocheting. To tell you the truth, I'm pretty boring. My day doesn't brighten till the hubs gets home and that's only an hour or two before he hits the hay.

Here lately I have been filling my time with crocheting, and have gotten alot of it done. Well that time is about over since the high today will be 87, impossible to work with yarn and blankets in that weather.

Soo, what's left? Do I return to the blogging world and try to win all my friends back or do I find something else to comsume my time? For now, I have opted to try to win back the bloggy love. Yall have all been so kind and patient with me, I really don't deserve such loyalty, considering I can't even remember the last time I read some one elses blog. I am determined to read at least ten blogs a day, so if I don't get around to you but once a week, please bear with me. Ten blogs is about 2-3 hours of my day, so it's a start.

Tuesday I started my spring cleaning and totally kicked A** in the livingroom, it was spic and span by time I got done. Although it did take all day to do it. Yesterday, I started tearing apart my closet, getting it all reorganized and in top shape but halfway through the process I started not feeling well. Temp of 101.2 and feeling run over. I spent the rest of the day in and outta bed till this afternoon. My fever broke and all I am left with is a sore and constant tickle in my throat. Thank goodness it wasn't one of those long drawn out death scenes, where you not completely convinced your going to make it through.

I guess I'd better close this up, so I can get to reading them blog posts. See ya around.

A Little bit of Something...

Okay so I know it has been awhile, so I wanted to at least say something. "Something" there I said it! LOL! Naw, just kidding!

After my last post, I am truly blessed with such good and thoughful friends, yall are awesome!

It has still been hard on the family, but most especially on my brother. Which in turn makes it hard on us to see him suffering so. But we will get past it and resume some sort of normalcy(is that a word?).

Now on to other things.
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I have come to realise that my cats have to be the stupidest cats ever. (Just a slight warning this might be a tad too much information.) Now I have always had a cat, most of all those times I have always had an indoor cat or two or three. Indoor cats require a litter box. I have gone through all sorts of sizes of litter boxes trying to find just the right size for certain cats. Usually this is not that much of a big deal. BUT I currently have the biggest size I have ever had and these stupid cats still manage to poop on the edge. Aggrevates me to no end, how hard can it be to actually get "it" into the box?! It's the largest box ever!! Lets not even go to the subject of actually covering it up. Okay lets do, for just a little...Whiskers is the worst at covering! He will scratch at the wall, the rug and even sometimes the shelf right next to the box, but never will he touch his paw to the litter for the art of covering. All I can do is shake my head and do cleanup. Ohh and lets not forget all the litter spillage they manage to do. Well actually that is Peach's doing, she can really get messy with her art of covering, almost to an obsession.

Well...thanks to my hubby's sister we now have an extremely large litter box, complete with a hood. The cats have to actually climb (not step) into the box. This sucker is soo big, I had to do some rearranging in the bathroom just to get it to fit. We will see if this sovles any of "our" problems. Today is its first day and so far things are looking up. I caught Whiskers actually covering it up!
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Yesterday we went to hubby's mommas house for his birthday, I never get to bake him a cake cause his momma does. No point in having two cakes for just us two to eat. Goodness we are big enough already! Anyway... I was out in the back yard and saw something I wanted to get a photo of. I went back inside to my purse to get my camera. I pulled it out of my purse and wow, it was hot! I felt down in my purse and all was cool in there but the camera was HOT. I quickly realised it was the battery compartment that was hot and opened it up and let the batteries slide into my hand. Wowza! Hot potato, hot potato! They were melted to gether and as hot as fire. I rushed them out the door, I couldn't think what to do with them, not knowing if they were going to explode or not.

After the camera cooled down, I tried putting some new batteries in it and it wouldn't come on, I did that four times before I gave up. I was soo distraught at the prospect that it was broken and now I am without a camera. As soon as we got back home, I hit the internet like a mad woman on a mission to find a decent camera in my price range. With my price range being so little, it was more difficult than it would be for most. After a good while..for some reason (lets call it denial), I tried my camera again. Walla! It works! Weird and freaky! I am soooooo glad it works, but concerned as to why that happened in the first place.
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I finally finished blanket #4 of this winter season and halfway finished with a baby blanket to be donated to Ft Hood's massive baby shower for soldiers or soldier's wives who are expecting. Bf is donating 3 baby hats and bootie sets.
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That is all I can think of for right now. Yall have a great day!!

Making it through the winter chores...

There is just something about the winter months that keeps me soo busy.

First it's the holidays and all of it's hoopla, get ready for, then doing and then there is the recooping. Then we move into the switching over to the new year, for me that is a big deal. Switch out all the previous folders of bills and reciepts, tally the expenses of the year, file away all this junk and throw away the stuff from years past (but first go through it all and determine that it is throw awayable). Then there is all the stuff that was in storage that we are going through and repackaging, organizing and downsizing, what a chore. AND lets not forget TAX season, what a big stresser! Naturally I had to add to the mess with taking on 6 crochet projects to be finished before the warmer weather kicks in, which happens fast here in Texas.




Well I made it through all the paperwork and craziness and managed to get it all done. My desk is finally clean and my drawers/folders are ready for the new year, finally. The holidays are finally behind me (except for hubby's upcoming b-day)and the crocheting is more than half done. Still working on the storage stuff.

Maybe now that I have eliminated a large portion of it all, I will be able to think straight and get back on track with this blog and all my friends.

A Busy Weekend

This has been a very busy weekend.

Saturday... I went to my best friends house and picked her up in the sloppy mess of weather we have been having lately. We ventured out into the abyss of people in the caos that is Walmart. Our mission was yarn. What a huge disappointment. The one color we was most certainly after, was not there, as it should be. The one thing that made the trip bearable was getting to see bf's greatgrandkids, who met us there for a brief visit. We were off to the next closest walmart to do another search for that one color. This time the selection was good, much to our relief. We loaded up our buggy with as much as my card could stand.

The torment of the day was the rumor that walmart is going to discontinue their yarn sales. This has us greatly distressed. Walmart is the cheapest place to get yarn and soon we will no longer be able to get it. Okay maybe we will be able to get it, but at a much higher price. A blanket that once costed $40-50 to make is now going to be around $65-90, depending on where you get it. "They" say crochet and knitting is a dying art, well when forced to fork out higher bucks and search at length for places to buy, that really just might happen. Very sad.

Okay, enough of that pity party.
Soo we are driving along and I see this batch of black cows just standing around, I guess they we holding a meeting or something. I suddenly burst out laughing. My mind comes up with the stupidest stuff and amuses me greatly. Hubby says "What's soo funny?" Okay soo what I saw was one of the cows face was half white and he or she was the only one with any white on them. My mind wondered...I wonder if that cow knows that it looks like that? Has the other cows told him that he was different? Do they not let him play cow games? LOL! It's still funny, at least to me. Then I got to thinking about all the other animals in the world...How do they know what they look like? Do my dogs know? Do they judge each other by looks as people do? AND there ya go...the mind is a curious thing and super funny at times.

Sunday...We spent the whole day cleaning out the spare/storage room. I told hubby that in order for us to save $40 bucks a month to go towards this **** new car payment, we were going to have to clean out that room and bring home everything we have in storage. I said that a week and a half ago and all I had done to begin this process was to fill up the back of my truck and left it sitting there all week. I was determined to get this done TODAY! Hahaha, the joke was on me. Kinda like the eyes are bigger than the stomach thing.

I got up and opened the door to the jungle of the spare room. Sigh. Okay heather, just move one item at a time and all will be okay. First I begin at picking up an item and expamining it, do we really need this? Is it broken? Could I possiably get away with throwing it away? Could I find a perament place for this item? Before I knew it I had made a dent. Then the unexpected happened (secretly expected), hubby got up from his lazy sunday position in front of the tv and joined in on the expedition. I say secretly expected cause it is sooo easy to get him to join in. All I have to do is ask questions about this item or that item and the response is almost always the same... What are you doing? What are you throwing away? LOL! AND up out of his chair he comes! He just makes it way too easy. LOL!

I told him I was wanting to find at least 20 items that could be trashed. We ended up throwing away 74 items. I was very impressed! We worked hard and the room looks soo much better, well for now it does, cause I still got plenty to fill it back up again. Ohhh I sure do need a linen closet. Sigh.

That is about it for now. I need to get back to my crocheting.
Yall have a great one!

I Slept through the New Year!

Wow my first post of the year, you would think it should be grand or something but really not a whole lot has been going on around here lately.

Hubby came home super sick last Monday and by Thursday I was into the flu full blast, thankfully he was on the mend. New Years Eve came and went in a drugged out blurr of load noises and shaking dogs, as I was snuggled down in the covers and asleep by 10pm. Even though I was awake every few hours as the drowsiness of the nyquil wore off, I still missed everything. By mid New Years day my fever finally broke, that truly was a relief. There is just something about a fever that just zaps all energy from your body and just trying to lift your arms is exhausting.

Well the cloud has lifted and I can sorta think now. Although thinking might not be such a great thing, cause there is a mountain of paperwork waiting for me on my desk. Yes I pushed it aside just for you, temporarily. Tax season is such a drag! Then there is the cleaning out of my desk and preparing it for the new year, categorizing, collating, filing away. Yes, I'm a freak.

I've been super busy trying to get blanket #3 done (except for the days of being sick), looks like I might get it finished in the next two weeks. Yippie! I think I will be taking a break from crocheting for awhile, other things need my attention.

Surely yall have noticed I haven't been posting any pics on my other blog, well that's cause I haven't been anywhere. Seriously, the last time I was away from the house was Christmas day. I seriously don't have anymore new photos to show. Sad, I know. I think this Sunday I'm going to hijack hubby's new ride and go somewhere... anywhere! I am truly sick of being confined. I can't count how many times I thought of just going for a walk, but I am allergic to the cold weather. LOL! THAT IS WHY I LIVE IN TEXAS!!!! Or so I thought. LOL!

That is all for now, time to stop staring out the window and get some house work done. Yall have a good day!

Dizzy Randomness

Most of ya know already by Facebook, but just incase you don't know...

We ended up having to get us a newer car/van. It truly wasn't a popular desision in this house. We were both scared out of our minds, still am actually. This was hubby's second time going through a dealership, my first. Hubby's first was back in 77', so in a way he was a newbie at it too.

The loan asspect of it all has me frazzled more than anything ever has. I am sooooo not used to these super high numbers. Hundreds scare me, thousands freak me, tens of thousands...I am losing my mind!!! I just don't know how people do it without panicing. I know lots of folks that turn thier cars in for a newer one all the time and it doesn't seem to phase them all that much. I am a "What if" kinda girl but yet can't afford all those "what if's", which in turn throws me into an even bigger frenzy. It's a vicious cycle with no end.

I have been crunching numbers all morning and still don't feel any better. Cancel this and that, pay off this and that. If I use the money I have now to pay on this, will I be able to find this amount again in just a month. OMG!! I can't stop! I so wish I had some calm right now. Even the sweet birdie at the window ain't getting it.

Okay, hold on...let me try to refocus my thoughts. Back of the brain please, BACK OF THE BRAIN, I SAID!! Happy thoughts, happy thoughts. Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens...Did yall watch that last night? I did. Hubby was asleep within the first 30 minutes! Musicals are just not his thing.

We had a good time at my brother J and SIL J's for Christmas. Just a food get together for some of the family. Thankfully there wasn't the added pressure of gift giving, but I did get to deliver the blankets that I did for them.

Hubby gave me a new hand mixer, fry daddy, blue jeans and a sweater. I got him a shirt, new longjohns and something from the sports store. AND then there is the van. I give. The brain won't stop thinking about that car and all the stress that comes with it.

*Sigh*

I guess I better sign off now, before I drag yall through the ring around the rosie's going on up there in my mind.

Randomness

The Christmas cards are done.
The second blanket almost finished.
Christmas is 10 days away and I'm not ready.
The sky is gloomy and the air is way too crisp.
The trees are bare and the ground is crunchy.
One truck is broke down and the money is not to be found.
Family drama continues on, season doesn't matter.
I'm feeling a little scroogie. Bah humbug.


Well now that I got that dreariness out of my system, lets move on to better things.
I finished the first blanket of the season.


To my bf's surprise (and my own) who is always on me about finishing things. The last blanket I did (for myself) took me two years to finish and the one before that three years. Yes, I am a very slow crocheter and do procrastinate ALOT.

The second blanket of the season:

Just two more stripes and then I can put it together and trim it out. Must finish before Christmas.

Currently waiting on my order of a series of books by Patricia Hickman. She writes religious novels set in historical time periods. They are so well written, I sometimes I forget they are fiction. As most of you know, I'm not big on religion but every now and then I dabble.

Just in case I don't make it back by Christmas, I hope you all have a very merry one.

Tidbits of the Vacation / Holiday

Miss me? Well even if you didn't, I missed blogging.

Vacation is over for now and I am much happy to be done with it. It was 10 days of laziness. Laziness is good sometimes but I was sooo ready to get back to our regular routine. Hubby would differ in that opinion, he was whining that it wasn't long enough and went by tooo quickly. Awww, poor baby, now get back to work and outta my hair! Just kidding folks! It was fun and I do love having him around (but only if I can get some work out of him). Okay I'll stop picking on the boy. Maybe!

Sooo, what did we do on our vacation/holiday? Let me just say it was nothing like we had planned for the first half of the year. Plan was to do a triangle of the state of Texas. To do a whole lot of visiting with family and friends throughout the state. We had such lovely plans...sigh. Well life had other plans. Things broke down, extra expenses came up and before we knew it the money we had saved back was gone. Sad.

We instead had a staycation here at the house. Although we did spend a lovely time at his niece's for Thanksgiving. Resigned to the idea of having to stay home, I had visions in my head of all the things we could do at home and possiably get done. I guess I do tend to get carried away with my ideas, cause they didn't match up with hubbies ideas at all! LOL!

Hubbies ideal staycation is to sit around in his chair and be glued to the tv. Syfy all day baby! Sleeping in late with no alarm clock buzzing him awake (yes, I admit that was nice, realllll nice!).

The biggest difference of opinion came about four days into it. I was informed that I was slacking on getting the coffee ready for the next morning. LOL!
Me...that is cause I'm on VACATION!
Hubby...NO I'm on vacation!
Repeat this several times back and forth and we was roaring with laughter!
Needless to say..If he wanted coffee before I got up (which was the whole vacation), then he had to make it himself.
Okay I am cracking myself up (I'm such a mean old lady), lets move on.

Excuse me while I go change out the washer and dryer.

We had our first freeze the other night and stupid me forgot to put my plants up or wrap them. Some survived and some didn't. It wasn't a harsh freeze just right at freezing temps. We had to dig out the heaters for the first time and in response to the artifical heat, my hair now looks like I rubbed a balloon on it. It's not a pretty sight and is driving me insane! Okay fine, it's not a long drive but I am sooo there!

In the crocheting news...
Bf and I pledged 8 scarves for the Special Olympics and have 14 ready to mail.
I am four days away from finishing my brothers 7ft x 7ft blanket.
I have been asked to do a king sized blanket for other brother and his lady's first place together.
Currently waiting on some yarn I ordered to come in, so I can finish the lap blanket for my chair.
@ Kaylen...Wish I could have donated some yarn for your drive, but the expense to ship was too much. Sorry. Glad to hear you got the hooks though.
Looks like I'm going to busy for the rest of winter.

I guess that is all I got for today, talk at cha later.
Yall have a great day!

Taking some time for the Special Olympics.

So your probably wondering what happened, where have I been, what have I been up too?

What happened...Well first I got sick but was still trying to stay with it. The lingering dizziness and fatigue that is still here, but has eased up a little, have really taken its toll on me body and mind. If you feel neglected, you should see my house! Hubby has done the dishes for me many times since this thing set in. Bless his heart!

Where have I been...Well I'm embarrassed to say I have been right here, hiding in the cloud of a mindless woman. Okay that was stretching the truth, but it was like that at first. I guess you could say I detached myself from blogger, not literally but mentally. I know it's not fair to yall for me to be soo neglectful, it wasn't intentional,, it just evolved it to a blah. Matter of a fact all my Internet experiences of late have been a blah. Does that mean I am done with blogging? No, it just means it's a little slow around here in this old brain of mine. Maybe I will slow down for now, hubby has been very happy to have lots of my attention and it's been good for me too.

What have I been up to?...Crocheting! Yeah it is finally in the temps of crocheting weather. It is a passion that definitely interferes with blog reading or creating, very difficult to crochet and blog at the same time, well at least for me it is.

My perfect model
I finished up some unfinished projects and went looking for yarn on ebay, when I couldn't find what color I was looking for I went to the Red Heart site. My world changed for that one decision. Up at the top of their site is a "Follow us on Facebook" button. I did that! Then I learnt of the Special Olympics Scarf Project. The details are here, just in case your interested as much as I am. I even got my bf to get busy with some scarfs and trying to talk the old man at our local craft store to put up flyers.

My current work with the Special Olympics colors
It's funny..last year I pretty much skipped crocheting season and this year I can barely put it down. I am having a lot of fun, knowing some of my work is for such a good cause doesn't hurt.

The scarf I sold
Oh and I posted my finished work on the Read Heart Yarn Facebook page and sold my first scarf! I guess you could say that motivates me even more to get the most out of this season as I can. I also signed myself up for the next available knitting classes here in my local town, that should be interesting.

Hope yall wont miss me too much, but I'll still be around just not as often. Okay soo back to work I go!

Writer's Workshop: 10 Reasons

Writing prompt #5...10 reasons you like fall.

1) The colors!
Oh the pretty colors. Yeah I like green but the colors of the decaying leaves on some trees are just amazing. Sometimes living in the near desert of Texas, it's hard to tell when fall is actually here cause in some places even green is a rare color. The extreme Texas heat usually leaves everything a plain shade of brown, but I think everyone got a taste of that this year.

Back when we was traveling across America, I always looked forward to our return trip to the eastern states. Going through the Appalachian mountains was always my favorite, especially in fall. Getting up real high and looking at the beautiful landscape was breathe taking.

2) The cooler temps.
Like Sunday, was our first real taste of some livable days with out a/c. Yesterday morning was real nice and this mornings low was in the fifties. What I'm really looking forward to is a little reprieve to our electric bill. Getting that bill down to under a hundred for a couple of months will be well worth the wait. The weather will be so nice the chance of catching heat exhaustion on my walks or bike rides will be eliminated.

3) Clothing.
Not hot enough to have to run around with sweat stains and the minimal of clothing acceptable. Not cold enough to be bundled up in layers of clothes that you can't hardly move your arms. Just right for jeans and a t-shirt with maybe a light sweater in the evenings.

4) Pets.
Having the cooler temps will make having the dogs on my lap a more enjoyable experience. Just two weeks ago I was pushing them off of me in the effort to cool off my legs. There will be less aggravation towards them wanting to be on me and a whole lot more love and snuggling. I'm sure they are sick to death of hearing me say "It's too hot" and forcing them to go lay on the couch far away from me. They also sleep with me and two of the three sleep under the covers. I know for a fact that Stitch will be plenty glad for me to stop throwing off the covers in a fit of exasperation of being too hot.

5) Shopping.
The fall season is the time that I have to begin the winter stocking of our supplies. It is a hard and tasking job and yes I complain a bit, but really I do like it. It gets me out of the house and I enjoy the satisfaction I get when all is said and done. I know it sounds like: we live in the north or maybe that we are chipmunks, having to stock up for winter. Hubby's job is dependent on the weather and when the weather turns too cold; asphalt can't be laid, work is scarce and the pay checks get really small. So there will be no extra money for household, auto, pet or personal supplies. Now that I am thinking of it..I need to get started on that list.

6) Vacation.
I was looking forward to a fabulous vacation this year, but it looks like we will be staying at home. I was bothered by this for awhile but I have been researching places to visit here locally that we can enjoy. I have lived here for nearly 20 years and there is still so much about the area I have yet to discover. Two whole weeks of sleeping when I want, instead of being dictated to by an alarm clock. Oh the bliss!

7) The Cooking.
Even just last night hubby got all excited and rubbed his hands together in the anticipation of Chili. The summer heat tends to lead us towards quick meals like salads and sandwiches or just about anything that wont heat up the kitchen too much. When the fall comes with the promise of winter I tend to get out the soups, stews, chili and roasts. Can't wait to dig into the chili and cornbread. YUM!

8) The Holidays.
Not particularly the holidays themselves but the feel and spirit of them.

Halloween: gives me thoughts of children and their clever costumes, not the store bought ones but the creative ones that they dream up themselves. Then of course there is the CANDY and the house decorations (not mine but others). There is also the hayride to look forward to.

Thanksgiving: The family gathering of good food and good company. The preparation of thanksgiving can be gruel some but the reward of having family and friends to share with is awesome. Even if it is just me and the hubby and two small hens, the spirit of being thankful is always there. I also love the decorations of hay and pumpkins.

9) Photography.
I am really looking forward to the future photos that are just waiting to be taken or discovered. The anticipation has been gnawing at me for some time already. The trees will be thinning out and more of the landscape will be visible, things that were hidden behind the brush will now be reveled. I can hardly wait!

10) Crafts.
My craft of choice is crocheting. In the spring and summer it is nearly impossible for me to work on any projects cause the yarn doesn't flow to well when your fingers are sweating. Just in the week of slightly cooler temps I have managed to start a project and already have two other projects running through my head. AND that is just the first week of fall! I can do my crocheting up till about the beginning of march, then it starts to get a little too steamy outside. So when fall comes I tend to get into a creative mood and I love it!

Soo there ya have it folks...I love Fall!

For more great writing head on over to Mama Kat's place.

Oh, to have a good back again.

I can remember back about 20 years ago I could do anything, lift anything, move anything. I was strong, still am too a point. I think I reached that point, again, for the umpteenth time. The beginning of last week was spent moving slowly, carefully or not at all, apparently I slept wrong and had to roll out of bed. I spent a good deal of time just sitting in my chair watching tv, cause moving wasn't an option. The pain was extreme at times but was tolerable for the most part. I even started to get better by Wednesday night and was beginning to feel decent. I could do my chores and even walk at a normal pace, heck I even went grocery shopping Friday.

Talking to the bf (B) Friday evening about crochet stitches and our new projects, we realized that it was about time to get together and show our work. It is really difficult to try to describe stitches and patterns over the phone. We are both "Show me" kinda gals. So we made plans for Sunday.

Hubby came home early Saturday and asked if I wanted to go over to see her right then. I would have said yes but I was still feeling the slight twinge and thought it best to wait one more day. Besides, come to find out her hubby was planning a BBQ for Sunday. Wouldn't want to miss that, since he is like the best BBQ'er I have ever known. Hubby is good, but even he will admit his bf's (M) is better. (Yes, his bf and my bf are married, it's a little confusing)

Sunday morning all was well and we finally got ready to go. I have to do a mental check list to make sure I don't forget anything, cause I almost always do. I always manage to remember something I forgot about halfway there. I was good this time and didn't forget anything, amazing, I know!

Camera..yup
Smokes..yup
Nail clippers..yup
Patterns..yup
Yarn and project..yup
Family Reunion memory card..yup

(We will get to the nail clippers, I know yall are puzzled over them being on the list)

So we are on our way, I have just a tiny twinge but I'm tough I can handle it.

Let me just say the sky was gorgeous Sunday and with the promise of a cool front pushing though sometime today. There was a breeze and oh it was so lovely, even hubby said so and it takes temps down to the 60's for him to like it.


We are greeted by B's three little yappers(kin folk to my yappers). Thankfully her yappers love us like family and were very excited to see us. There was lots of spins, jumps, running, dancing and happy panting. B..well not so much! LOL! Even the "I'm gonna getcha" didn't bring as much as a reaction I got from her "Old Lady P" yapper, who ran through the house like I was hot on her tail. We love that game, okay she really loves that game.

We sat around and showed stitches, patterns, projects and clucked like old hens. M..started up the fire and oh the smell had my mouth watering, I was ready to sink my gums into whatever he had in the pit. It didn't matter what it was, I was ready for it. *Knife and fork in hand, banging on the table* kinda hungry!

While waiting I thought, now would be a good time to get my chore done. I got out those nail clippers. Why? You ask. Cause they are doggie nail clippers! LOL! Yeah I'm cracking myself up!

As soon as the dogs realized what I had in my hand, *flash* they were gooonnne!

G.. got up on the couch and faced the wall. That is his way of saying "I'm invisable". Sorry fella, not going to work this time, even if you are being funny. I clipped his nails right there on the couch. After bending over and wrestling every foot, I went to straighten myself upright. Ouch, that kinda hurt.

P.. I always have trouble with this old lady. We are the best of friends except for these moments, she will try to bite but hasn't gotten that lucky so far. Lord help her if she ever does! I found her back outside and as soon as I tried to bend down to get her, she bolted. I on the other hand did not bolt right back upright, it took some doing. I finally managed to get her back in the house, picked her up and put her on the table. Again did a wrestling match for each foot, while trying to keep her from making the great escape. By time I finished with her I was having some really bad pains in my back, but had to move on to the last and craftiest of them all.

A..I looked in her spot under the end table next to B's chair. Nope not there. I call her and why I though she would come running was stupid of me. I go outside and ask if she was out there. Yup, there she was hiding under B's chair. I reached down to get her and she flops over on her back. I take hold of her legs and literally dragged her out from under the chair on her back and she let me. Everybody was laughing! I picked her up and carried her inside to the table and proceeded to do her nails. This girl shakes like there is a thunderstorm directly over the house! Very hard to hold onto. I think it is her ploy, her sympathy card or something and it works everytime. Yes she nearly got away, with only two feet done! I had to catch her in mid-jump! I finally finished her up, but really all of them together finished me up!

I was stuck but good. I slowly made it to the front door and hubby saw instantly I was done in for. He helped me down the steps and asked if I was ready to go home. Unfortunately there wasn't the option to sit there in pain all day. I had to say.. Yes, my pain pills were at the house and I would have hated to sit there in pain and be a downer on the whole get together.

Soo we came home, hungry. I felt so badly for ruining his day. To my surprise and relief, he said..

"I'm not glad that you are hurting, but I am glad to be able to see the rest of the race!"

Yeah but what about supper? We were both pretty hungry and totally missed out on the BBQ. Well folks I will have you know that hubby cooked supper. Okay so what if it was:

Gordon's fish fillets
Pork and beans
Uncle Bens whole grain rice
with hot dog buns

I got fed by the hubs!!!

Soo, I sit here with an ice pack and a pillow, soon to be in bed. Wonder how I'm going to get out of bed...maybe Stitch will help me! LOL!

Randomness

My tooth hole hasn't been healing right and was really hurting pretty bad for two weeks. I kept trying to keep it clean and finally figured out the part that I though was food stuck, turned out to be a really good size sliver of tooth. I yanked that sucker out with tweezers and finally most of the pain is gone and the hole is healing. Lucky for the dentist I found the problem on my own!! I was really getting tired of hurting and it was worrying me.

I'm finally getting some progress in my room. The goal was to get it cleaned out and all the boxes transfer to the storage unit. Yeah well...for some reason the progress and ump hasn't been going well. I wanted to get the new floor laid by time the kids come on the 17th. Hubby managed to hurt himself, so there went my major helper for the big stuff. Sooo, yeah, that ain't gonna happen. Sigh...

How hubby hurt himself?

The "I must get everything that sits in the road" syndrome that my hubby has, lead to him rescuing this fire hydrant that had been damaged by a car accident. YES, he got permission, but still...those things are heavy! Mr. Macho man just couldn't help himself and now is suffering back trouble.

We ended up busting into the little savings that we had for the vacation that got cancelled. I soo didn't want to do it, but funny enough things started breaking down all of a sudden. Hubby's work boots blew out on the side, my tennie's blew out the heel, a pipe under the side sprung a leak and my microwave made the fatal error of not heating up my coffee.

Soo, I guess it was a good thing that we had that extra money to deal with the unexpected. Just really sad to see the damage to the savings.

I got to go visit with bf and this what she made for my little namesake with the yarn I gave her.

A hat, poncho and some little booties! They are soo cute!

What I did for Ten Days

Random things that happened in the last ten days.

Monday..As you all know, I rushed my computer to the computer doctor after my screen went blue and Microsoft shut me down and dumped my physical memory. I did try rebooting, but the Internet wouldn't open any pages. The doctor said it was going to be 3 days, I felt lost leaving it there. My first thought was "What am I going to do with myself for 3 days!" I went home like a wounded puppy with my tail tucked.

Tuesday..With nothing to do, I called my bf and made plans with her. By noon we was going over crochet stitches and went shopping for yarn. I really shouldn't have spent the gas money but it was so worth getting to spend time with her. I started a crochet project as soon as I got home.

Wednesday..I called everyone in my speed dial to whine about my boredom. I'm sure everyone got plenty sick of me complaining. I eventually got off my butt and went outside. I first played with the dogs and before I knew it I was laying 12 inch cement blocks for a walkway. Hubby came home and before he got to the door, he said..
"Your computer should break down more often."
I shut the storm door and held it shut till he took it back!

Thursday..The computer doctor called and said my baby was ready. I rushed out the door on half a cup of coffee. I was so excited! I had to run to the bank first for several reasons and figured while I was there I would try to see if we could get a loan to help pay off a credit card.

I got home hooked it up and ten minutes into checking my emails, it started doing the exact same thing it was doing on Monday. I called them back and this boy told me somethings to do, this only made it worse. I couldn't even get it to open to my desktop.

Needless to say I was sad and pissed. I took it in to get fixed and all I could tell was that the only thing they did was add updates and give me a better virus protection. They didn't even try to FIX it.

Hubby came home right after me getting it back, so to keep him from blowing his stack, I didn't tell him. He came home early cause he was super sick, I didn't think he needed the extra stress.

A little later in the day I called to see about the loan and we was approved. What a relief and blessing. We can pay off that card and will still be saving ourselves 40 bucks a month and hundreds of interest in the long run!

Friday..First thing in the morning, I took my computer back. Now there wasn't any set time to pick it up, more of a wait and see kinda thing. Aggravating! I did tell hubby the situation before leaving. He was too sick to know what I was saying, lucky me. Stopped and got groceries and back to care for the sick fella laying on his "Death bed" (as he called it, when he crawled on it).

Saturday..I went to the hardware store (for wood) and the auto store (for spark plugs) and just for the heck of it went to the thrift store (just to browse around).
I came home and used hubbies skill saw and cut and laid the new steps. ALL BY MYSELF!

Sunday..Hubby feeling a little better. We fixed by bike together. New tires and a wash down and then attached a basket to the handle bars. Its fixed and ready to go, but I have yet to use it. Lazy. We sat around the rest of the day and watched the race.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday..I sat around crocheting and calling the computer doctor twice a day. I did manage to get in a lot of extra heavy duty house cleaning and extra chatting with the family everyday.

Now that brings up to date with Thursday..Computer doctor calls and says my baby is ready. They didn't charge me anything extra!
So far so good and very happy, happy, happy!!