Last Yesterday

What's in the box?!

2012-02-28T18:57:00.001-05:00

So it seems that Tuesdays seems to be the day to update this month. Not doing it on purpose, just haven't had much that seems interesting. This weekend, I developed what I thought was a cold at first, due to the lack of energy, low grade fever, and the fact that it felt like I got hit by a truck. Nope. JUST KIDDING. It's allergies. Though, one of my dear, sweet, amazingly awesome friends (*cough* Kristy *cough cough*) brought me some chicken noodle soup, Gatorade, and a box of tissues, because I was very dizzy that first day. Now? I feel fine, besides being a snot factory and a cough. Oh, and wheezing. Great way to greet your husband after not seeing him for a month, right? I thought so.

Anywho, today is one of the every other Tuesdays that I go to pick my box up from the Skarsgard Farm people. This box contains just as much awesome as the last.

Oh, wait. That was after I unpacked it. Let's try that again. In today's box:

- Apples

- Lemons

- Oranges

- Pineapple.

- Salad Mixture

- Broccoli

- Red Potatoes

- Carrots

And my favorite part, are you ready for this?

Yes. You read that correctly. Filet Mignon. I am so excited about this. I've finally figured out how to cook it properly, and PJ, assured me that $29 for 2lbs (two steaks) is a damn good deal. I TRUST HER OPINION. (Most of the time.) So, as an apology for making disgusting black bean and turkey chili as Brian's last home cooked meal before he left, I'm going to make it up with this and some of the most delicious mashed potatoes that I've ever had that JG introduced me to. Cross your fingers for me...

Two thumbs down, or how I'm not dead yet, I don't know.

2012-02-21T16:42:00.000-05:00

True to the nature of who I am, I am severely accident prone. So, for the severly squeemish, here's your warning. I'll be talking about painful situations, and further down the post, pictures of my most recent accident. But, so the first picture you see isn't something gruesome, here's Scout trying to eat my shoe.

Aw. How cute. Moving along.

All my life, there's never been a month (at the most) that I haven't injured myself. First major accident I can remember, is stitches in my lip. Yes. Thanks to my brother, I have crooked lips. I mean, you don't notice it unless I point it out. But, once upon a time, back when I was 5 or so, Kyle had his "not girlfriend" over, and I had my two best friends over at the same time. I don't even remember how the situation escalated, but it ended up, my brother and his "not girlfriend" being in my playhouse and the three of us chanting around the house going "KYLE AND MORGAN SITTING IN A TREE. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. FIRST COMES... *SCREAM*" At this point, I suppose Kyle had gotten frustrated and he kicked "at" the glass window, which caused his foot to go through it. I tried to back up far enough, but didn't make it. Next thing I remember is SCREAMING and running towards the house. Then I remember Mom sticking a towel full of ice on my lip. Then, being wrapped in a mummy wrap thing, at the hospital so they could stitch up my lip. Bright lights. And more screaming. And that's all I remember. I can't remember how many stitches, what happened afterwards, or anything. I think it's funny, now. Though, now, I should ask my parents and my brother on their perspectives.

Other major injuries include:
- running down a hallway and spraining my ankle (has never been the same.)
- getting a concussion from a canoe
- sewing my finger to a Harry Potter cloak
- multiple scars that I don't even remember getting.
- injuring my back by slipping off a toilet and falling out a window.
- melting my palm with a match, trying to be a magician
I'm sure there's more, but that's what I can remember.

I still don't know how I've never broken a bone *knocks on wood* I'm pretty sure I've broken both my pinky toes, but I've never proven that.

Moving along to my most recent injury. It was Sunday, the 19th. 2pm. I wanted a snack, so I got an apple and my apple corer-slicer thing, and cut my apple. The apple was still stuck in the slicer, so I figured I'd push it out, using my thumbs. Um, I didn't realize how friggin' SHARP this thing was. I dropped it and my thumbs immediately started bleeding. Damnit. I moved to the sink and turned it on to wash off the blood to see if I could figure out the damage. Thumbs won't stop bleeding. Okay. Took two paper towels and wrapped them up and applied pressure. Okay, good. Five minutes later, they're STILL bleeding. Shit. Kitchen looks like a murder scene. Cats are whining. Brian's not home. I start to panic. Paper towels are soaked in blood. I look at my fingers, they look as if I'd been soaking in a tub for an hour; pruney. Then, I debate for five minutes if I should call a friend to take me to the hospital. No, I can do it myself. 15 minutes later, I some how got myself dressed and I'm out the door, thumbs wrapped in fresh paper towels, Scotch tapped shut.
Finally arrive at WBMAC at 2:30. Little confused on what the lady at the desk is asking me. Finally realized she wants MY contact number, not an emergency one. Whoops. Sit down for a couple of minutes, evaluation nurse calls me back and asks what happened. Told him bad hitchhiking accident. Got a chuckle. He takes the paper towels off my thumbs, they start to bleed again. He washed them off with something sterile and I wince. He wraps them back up with sterile gauze, and sits me back out to the waiting room.
TWO HOURS LATER I'm taken back to the urgent care room. My hands hurt, my thumbs are numb, but thank God, they've stopped bleeding. Four people ask me when my last tetanus shot was (2007). They all chuckle at my story, and remove my bandages, and I scrub them with this painful sterile sponge filled with soap torture device looking thing. I finally see my thumbs minus the blood. The left thumb has a flap like Beaker (from the Muppets) mouth. (Meep meep meep.) While the slit on top is small looking, it goes pretty deep. Glued. The right thumb is just all cut up and missing chunks of skin. Not so pretty. All I can do for that one, is just keep a tight band aid for it. I leave the hospital, 5:30. Get home, after picking up some dinner, 6. How EXCITING.

Yesterday, I accidentally ripped off the bandaid and a thumb started bleeding. Today, I woke up with the other thumb bloody. I just can't win for losing. So, for your viewing pleasure, my thumbs, as of today.

Left thumb, aka Beaker. Can't really see how far it goes down.

Right thumb. Missing chunks. Started bleeding again after photo was taken.

I suppose I still need parental supervision.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2012-02-14T19:07:00.001-05:00

Out of six years of being together, I think Brian and I have possibly spent two or three Valentine's days together? It doesn't bother me, mainly, because I'm not a romantic. I normally get him a six pack of the Reese's hearts, and some sort of silly card, and then we'll go to dinner. Just because. But, no flowers, no jewelry, nada. I'm just not that kind of girl! But this year, is one of those years that he's not around. So, I picked out my Valentine's day present in advanced. He okayed it, and about an hour ago, I went to go pick it up. I've never been this excited about a box of vegetables.

Awww yeeeah booooyyyyyeee!

Charla was talking about this farm that delivers boxes full of veggies and fruits, and it costs about the same that you can get from the grocery store. What? How interesting! So, I figured, why the hell not? I prefer supporting the little guy. That little guy is Skarsgard Farms, an organic farm in New Mexico. Frankly, I don't give a crap that it's organic. I mean, it's an added bonus, but I prefer supporting the little guy, because I know what it's like. My dad owns his own store, and has for the past 25 years now. And because of that, it's close to my heart, so I try to support the mom and pop stores whenever possible.

So here's how it works, you get an option of three size boxes, and you can choose from their crop that week of what you want in it! The small harvest box, which is what I got, you get 8 options for $24. Not too bad. I normally spend that much on veggies and what not at Albertson's. They also have side options, like meats, milk, baked goods, etc. Here's what I got:

Please don't look at the crap in the background, I'm still unpacking.

- spinach
- arugula
- sugar snap peas
- potatoes
- sweet potatoes
- carrots
- apples
- biggest damn onions I've ever seen

No lie on the onions. Lookit!

What the crap am I going to do with all of that onion?! At least I like onions.

So, there's my box. I plan on getting more and I'm very excited about this box. I'm just sad Brian's not here to share it with me.

Hope everyone's Valentine's are as great as mine!

P.S. I've got my new sewing machine running. Look for a post on it, soon!

Adventure to the Quilt show!

2012-02-11T22:52:00.000-05:00

Our "Blissful Stitchers" group here at Fort Bliss went on a field trip this Friday to a quilt show in Las Cruses, NM. It was fun! There were LOADS of beautiful quilts. About halfway through the show, I realized I could take pictures, so here's some of my favorites. (click to enlarge)

This was one of the quilts in the vendor's area. The color is not shown properly on the computer! It's amazing! And only about 75% done.

This is possibly my favorite one. The animals look like they've been made as if they were origami, and the stitching on where the letters are? It's in the form of the letter! I was blow away by this quilt. The color scheme is not to my preference, but it's still amazing.

Sorry for the crap quality

This one is equally amazing, just for the detail and the color. It was just breathtaking.

Move, Charla! ;)

This was my favorite scrap quilt. Once again, I just love color. Plus, it looks like something I could do! I'm sad that none of the ones I loved were for sale. Though, that being said, I don't think I could afford them.

Along with quilts being there, there were some vendors. They were catered to quilters (duh) but I enjoyed looking at the patterns and materials. I did buy one thing. It's a panel that looks like a vintage Fort Bliss Postcard. It's pretty cool! I thought it'd make for a nice wall hanging for my first quilted project.

Afterwards, we went to go eat at a delicious local restaurant called Medina Valley Kitchen. Man, they make a delicious bacon cheeseburger, then one last stop with the group at the Bernina store. Fabric heaven. I got some awesome Moda fabric I'm planning on making something out of. Possibly a sundress. I also found a long time search that is going to be my mother's birthday present. After we were done, the rest of the group left, and Charla and I went on more shopping adventures, which involved all things crafty. To which I will update about eventually.

As for me, in the next three weeks, I will become a hermit that only leaves the house for physical therapy, belly dancing and stitching. Possibly a few other things, if my social meter is low. Perhaps I'll have more crafty things to post soon. Including a belly dance costume.

One last thing...how's the new layout? :D

Home again, home again.

2012-02-07T19:15:00.002-05:00

Jiggity jog. I've been on vacation for a week. Can you guess where I went?

What? You guys have no idea? Wow, I'll just tell you then. I went to beautiful California and hung out in Orange County with my family. My mission? To find a tribal belly dance costume and to survive my goddaughter's first birthday. (Does this mean I can be a fairy godmother?) I got off the plane about 12:45, and we headed straight to Venice beach in search of the Velvet Gypsy. After walking about 10 miles, indulging in some Danny's Venice Deli (uh, the sliders are YUM.), and accidently getting high, we arrived. To find it had gone out of business. NOOOOO. So, I pouted for a moment, and bought a giant piece of material from another store. I call them hippie flags, but I don't know what they are actually called. Once I get the patcholi smell out of it, I'll take a picture. Ugh. I pouted a bit more, and then we left. In search of heaven.

And indeed I found it. A retail Penzey's Spices store. You get about 5 feet from the door and the most wonderful aroma comes wafting at you. A store full of crates of spices waits to greet you. Sample jars, magazines scattered about. I just wanted to buy one of everything (Which apparently is at least $900). Knowing that I can always mail order, and the airlines have luggage limits, I only selected a few items: the biggest jar of taco seasoning I could get, chicken taco seasoning (making something for supper tonight with it!), pizza sprinkle, ground cumin, and the Coco lover's gift set. A grand total of $45. Nicole and Aunt Judy on the other hand, together, got $90 worth of stuff. Another two converts, perhaps? We declaired we were tired and headed back to what would be my home for the next week.

The next morning, I declared I was making dinner, and so I threw the Zesty Italian Chicken in the crock pot, and Nicole, Emily, and I headed out to roll around in the early morning sun.

Emily's apparently ticklish like me. Or either it's all a secret tactic to steal my socks. I'm going to go with both. Nicole has a backyard that'll make you jealous. Grass that's always green and never needs to be cut, beautiful landscaping, along with various fruit trees: limes, lemons, tangelos, apples, and blueberry bushes. There might be a pear tree in there, but I can't remember. Anywho, I was feeling artistic and attacked the lime tree.

I'm actually a little proud of myself on that one. I find it very eye catching.

After that morning, the days start blurring into one. I know I took Nicole lunch one day. She's a math teacher at one of the schools, and I decided to stay and sit in on one of her classes. Algebra, which I caught the end of, I remembered. Mainly, because I was good with fractions. Then, in the next class, she started talking about vertexes, and my eyes glazed over.

I know Aunt Judy, Emily and I went to the Container Store (angels were singing here, too) so I could have a look-see, and then I scooted over to Old Navy where I got two pairs of jeans for $25. Deal of the century. After that, we went to go eat at a Lawery's Carvery in the South Coast Plaza while waiting for Nicole to get off work. Uh, hello mall I can't afford. My jaw was seriously dropping at every store. Jimmy Choo. Hermes. A store with no name, to which you have to ring a doorbell to enter. It was insane. I went into See's Candies for the first time, and fell in love. I am in love with Scotchmallow Bars. Why the bars instead of the regular ones? They're milk chocolate. Everything else is dark. Must. Find. More. I also went into my first Tiffany's. LOL BROKE. They had some really cute charms though. And the earring box I was looking for. But not for $275. MOVING ALONG.

On another day, we went to Long Beach (my new favorite place), and met up with my other family, Uncle Bob and Aunt Deb. We went out to eat at Open Sesame, because I'd never had Lebanese food before. It and I are not friends. So, I can now cross that off my list. Afterwards, we went to the most amazing shop ever, Merry's. The owner, Merry, and the store are equally amazing. I wish I'd thought to take pictures of it, but I didn't. It is FILLED with amazing. Apparently, a tribal belly dance troupe had been in a few days earlier and cleaned her out of stuff. BUT, she was so nice, she ordered me a couple of things I needed. And it arrived in about...oh, two days. But, from her store, I was able to pick up my 25 yard skirt (in a sky blue), harem pants (in red) that also double as MC Hammer pants, a black choli, a belt base, some earrings, and a gift for a friend. I'm kicking myself now that I didn't get any of the Indian coins that were 25¢ each. Perhaps I'll send Nicole back for some. But, Merry (and her store) were a complete delight, and I plan to visit her whenever I go back. If you're in the Long Beach area, and you belly dance, or just like awesome middle-eastern type things, you need to go. Merry doesn't disappoint. I'll have pictures of my costume later.

I also ventured over to Little India in Artesia. I wasn't really impressed. I felt uncomfortable there, as if we were intruding. I did find some bindis though. And saw some beautiful sarees. But, we hightailed it out of there.

Thursday, I had a "me" day. I am a true introvert, and I was just overwhelmed by everything, I stayed back, and chilled with the cat and dog.

Meet Simba, the world's angriest looking cat.

While looking constantly pissed off, Simba is 16 ½ years old, and has a set of lungs that could rival a stadium full of people. Ask me how I know. Despite looking angry, she is one of the sweetest kitties I've met.

And here's Dixie, the excitable.

She's looking so innocent here. But this dog wants nothing more for you to do than just pet her. PETPETPETPETPET. I'm not sure what Dixie is mixed with. Nicole told me, but I forgot. She's a medium sized dog, and just as sweet as the cat. She's also talented. She can jump over a 10ft wall in a single bound, and escape out of a kennel. Nicole must be proud.

After my much needed day of rest, it was my favorite day of all DISNEYLAAAAAAND. We weren't sure what day we could go, if we went, but it turns out that Friday was our day! We picked up Nicole's friend Selena and her son, Noah, and we were off! Like a kid on Redbull, I bounced around the park. I got my churro and rode on the tea cups. It was a good day. I love this picture of Aunt Judy. Just chilling out while spinning on a tea cup. No biggie.

After tooling around in Disneyland, we headed over to California Adventures. They're doing A LOT of renovation and adding on over there, but we were still able to ride rides. My new favorite one (that I didn't know about) is the Toy Story Mania! game. You sit in this car, and shoot the hell out of screens. In 3D, mind you. I beat Nicole and Aunt Judy. I win. Well, Selena beat me, but we weren't in competition. After spending about 6 hours there, we were beat. So we picked up some Chipotle (DELICIOUS.) and headed home.

And then it was Saturday. The day of all days. Emily's first birthday. PINK was everywhere. The theme was Princess Emily. I was not amused by all the pink. But, Nicole pulled it off well.

Here is Emily's cake. A giant pink castle, covered in fondant. Yuck. While the cake was cute itself, I hate fondant. I had to take this picture about 8 times and finally got the lighting right. It kept turning out orange. Party went well! A lot of people showed up to celebrate! I got to use the cotton candy machine, and that's all that mattered to me. I think poor Emily was overwhelmed by everything.

That picture just cracks me up, too. She REALLY didn't like that hat. Or the bib. Or all the people. Well, that's what I'm assuming. But, she made out like a bandit in presents. I still didn't finish her sampler. Perhaps by her second birthday. Minus all the pink and girly stuff. I had a great time

Sunday, was the day I went home. I tried to rob the neighbor's house across the street's garage. But they were on to me.

Though, truth be told, what the hell am I going to do with a garage full of Girl Scout cookies?

I got home at 7pm, right at the end of the 3rd quarter of the Super Bowl. My sweet and loving husband picked me up, and only complained once. Though, he cleaned out, detailed, filled up and changed the oil in my car. How sweet is that?

After all the excitement, it's good to be home. Though, I do miss the 70º+ weather.

Oy, my back.

2012-01-27T17:22:00.001-05:00

Remember the pod that was delivered on Wednesday? It's gone. The Pod people came and took it today. My husband was damn determined to unload it all Wednesday night. And we did. I don't know why, being that we could have had the pod until the 6th. But it's gone and unloaded, and I suppose that's all that matters. The furniture was my grandmothers, and I think it's either 50s or 60s era. Could be wrong. Don't care. I like it. But, that means it's real wood. Real heavy wood. Which means I can't lift it, and Brian couldn't do it by himself. So, we thought about it, and between the two of us, we came up with the idea of roller skates and towels. Yes. We moved all our furniture with a pair of roller skates and two towels.

Pics or it didn't happen!

So, the only thing that's left in our garage is about 20 boxes and a mattress. Not too bad. Still don't know where I'm going to keep the mattress, but don't tell Brian. With that being said, for the past two days, I've been cleaning and polishing furniture. I reek of Murphy's Soap Oil. It's not a bad smell, to be honest. Smells nice and clean. The furniture thanks me. I have one piece left to clean and then two left to polish, but that's because they need to go upstairs, and the polish makes them really slick. Can't have that. So, because I want to show off, here's what I've got done so far.

China cabinet! Complete with crooked platters.


Curio cabinet, complete with self portrait.

Soon, I'll post about the bedroom suite being done and in place, and possibly a finished craft room. One day...

The Pods have landed

2012-01-25T20:11:00.001-05:00

This arrived at my house today.

It was actually pretty cool to watch the Pod being unloaded. I was so fascinated by it, I forgot to take pictures. It involved hydraulics, i-beams, wheels and an engine. My husband and I were just staring at it, in awe. So, now it's just sitting in the driveway, being all daunting like. There's actually not that much stuff in it. Well, according to me, there isn't. I'd say there's about 25 boxes and 7 pieces of furniture and a mattress set. I'd say it's a good amount. Somewhere in there is a sewing machine. Just waiting. And furniture for me to clean and polish. Yay. So, nevertheless, you might not hear from me for a few days. I'll probably be the one chasing cats away from boxes.

Excitement all around!

2012-01-24T15:09:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I got an exciting message on my facebook, from my friend JG to go check out her blog, Me and My SoliderMan. I obliged her, and so glad I did! I won her free blog layout contest! YAY. So, in the near future, you will see my blog with a shiny new layout! I cannot thank JG enough! (and my luck!)

Also, my friend Vanessa, over at Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts is having a giveaway for all you yarn-fiends. You should go try your luck!

Though, the best news I've heard in a while, I got today. After feeling super queasy this morning (no, I'm not knocked up, MOM.) I finally got up in enough time to go to my physical therapy appointment. Glad I did. After evaluating me, it turns out, all the problems stem from my hips, aka, the tilted pelvis. They're why I'm crooked and why I've got scoliosis. And then he said it, "We may be able to reverse your scoliosis." I almost cried I was so happy! But, I kept my composure and asked what we needed to do. I'm to go to therapy twice a week, to build back and ab muscles. I'm down with this. I can do this. I WILL DO THIS. I also learned that I have hypermobility. Uh, well, THAT explains a whole lot. Except, I can't touch my toes. wtf. I'm so excited, y'all. To be able to get up and move like I could as a kid? Simply amazing.

And for your time:

That baby will be arriving at my house tomorrow. Along with a POD full of more stuff. *squee*!

I'm so much more awesome now.

2012-01-21T13:59:00.000-05:00

As stated in one of my previous posts, I started taking belly dance classes. I've only been to two, but they're so much fun. The last class, one of the ladies from a club I'm a part of joined us, and convinced our instructor, Salem (and a few of the girls) to give a demonstration at our luncheon the next day. What? Me too? But I've only been to two classes! I can just dance in the chorus? Yeah, okay.

Salem, our instructor, and all around belly dancing bad ass.

Thursday arrives. Quite a few of the girls that said they'd come aren't able to. There's just four of us. I have to do what everyone else does. Well, it can't be that hard, right? RIGHT?!

After getting gussied up in belly dancer wear, Charla, my friend who is also in the class with me, we go to our table to greet our friend and eat lunch. It took all of them a minute to figure out who the hell I was, and why was she at the table. Well, in their defense, I wasn't wearing my glasses, and I now have bangs. Hilarious. Anywho, lunch was decent, I'm still trying to figure out how candied carrots and lasagna go well together. THEN IT WAS TIME TO DANCE.


Pretty arms!

I wheezed, removed shoes, stripped of my wrap, and headed out. Once I got over the initial panic, I had so much freakin' fun. We did a couple of slow dances first, to get the the observers to catch some interest.

The snowman joined us.

And then Salem, when out there and shook her stuff. Let's just say, that inspired me to get better.

SOLO.

And then every one joined us for some basic lessons!

I think we're moving boobs and hips at this point.

I'd like to think people had fun. I was hiding in the back, trying to help the people that were hiding in the back learn. It was a little hard, because I couldn't see what Salem was doing in the front, and some of this, we (or I) hadn't gone over before. But, we got the hang of it, and soon, everyone tuckered out. Then, much to my surprise (or not being able to remember) we were going to do a FAST routine, as one last hurrah. Oh, crap.

Spinning!


Twirling!

And then, that was it. It was over. I only screwed up once, but it's all good. I had an immense amount of fun, and it has inspired me. I've also noticed that while it does make my back hurt the day afterwards, I'm feeling a little bit more confident, and I find I have more energy on those days. I'm going to keep doing it! And possibly, show my stomach one day. (It's not that I'm embarrassed by it, I've never really liked showing my stomach. Oh, shyness. One day you'll go away.)

Also, all pictures are from John Whalen. Please visit his site for awesome things and his facebook page for more photos I didn't feel like posting!

Book love.

2012-01-18T23:48:00.000-05:00

As I was cross stitching on the couch yesterday, I saw the UPS man pull up. He was on the other side of the street, so I assumed it was for the neighbor. And so did he, until he quickly pivoted and headed towards my house. I flinched. My hair was a mess, I had on leopard print pj pants and a flannel shirt that clashed so beautifully. So, I hid until he drove away. I swiftly stuck one hand outside the door and snatched the package in. Turns out, it was for me. Me? What did I order that I forgot about? Nothing! It was a complete surprise from my Aunt Sandra. A book. Of course it's a book, being that it's from Aunt Sandra. Duh. But WHAT was the book?

How appropriate! I squealed with glee upon figuring out what it was. I greedily read through the pages, in awe of the artwork, loving every second of this 40 page book. This book was perfect. It's almost like it was written just for me! I finished it and sighed. Aunt Sandra chose wisely. Perfect.

In this book, a girl named Annabelle, lives in a monochrome town. One day, she finds a box full of multicolored yarn. So, she knits herself a sweater. And has some extra yarn. So, she keeps on knitting. And knitting. And knitting. And knitting. And then it goes on from there, but I won't spoil it for you. I loved it and what message it sent. I recommend it for anyone!

Pinterest strikes again.

2012-01-17T21:40:00.001-05:00

For months now, I've been staring at the pin entitled "Sopapilla Cheesecake." A warm gooey slice being lifted out of the pan. Oh. My. *swoons* So, I finally got around to remembering to buy crescent rolls and a block of cream cheese at the same time. And then I made it. May I present to you, Sopapilla Cheesecake

Being lazy. Didn't squish the dough together.

Oooh yeah. Just look at that bad boy, fresh out the oven, still sizzling, just waiting for you to dive in.

The original recipe is here, but I cut mine in half, being that there's just the two of us.

NEEDS:
2 cans of butter crecent rolls
1 8oz block of cream cheese, softened
1/2 tbsp of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of sugar
1/8 cup butter, melted
cinnamon and sugar

Preheat oven to 350F

The original recipe said not to put any non-stick spray on there, but lol, yeah right. I did it anyways. I used 3/4s of a can of crescent rolls on the bottom of this 9x9 baker.

Mixed the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla together, and spread it on the crescent rolls. Put the other can of crescent rolls on top. Dumped the melted butter all over the top, and let loose with my Penzey's sugar and cinnamon mix. I was quite liberal with it. I baked mine for 20 minutes, and then decided to do 5 more. Nice and crisp, with a gooey center!

Oh baby, yeah. My husband said it reminded him of a cinnamon roll, but I can only slightly see the resemblance. I don't care. It's still so good. Damn you, Pinterest!

Slacker.

2012-01-15T22:16:00.000-05:00

I've been nudged to update my blog. Has it been two weeks since I updated last? Yikes! Well, since then, I've:

- Celebrated a birthday! According to my facebook, I turned 90 this year. I delightfully share with Elvis, David Bowie, Graham Chapman, Stephen Hawking, Terry Brooks, Sean Paul, Kim Jong-un, R. Kelly, and a bunch others.

- Traded a skein of yarn for a Kindle from the delightful Vanessa. I'm still in shock. Also, I've joined the 21st century. When I finish my book club book, I'll let you know if I like it or not.

- Made and ate an omlette for the first time in my life. (That I can remember.) It involved 2 eggs, 2 tbsp water, 1/4 cup diced ham, and 1/4 cup chopped raw spinach. NO CHEESE. (I cannot eat cheese and eggs together. UGH) It was amazingly delicious!


(The brown bits are from butter)

- Joined a belly dancing class, which I've discovered the ballet that's been ingrained into my head doesn't really help. Even though I look like person who has no joints while doing it, I find it fun.

- Had my scoliosis re-evaluated. I learned my senior year in high school that I had it, and then I was only told to "watch it." After that, I never really bothered with it. A couple of months ago, it really started screwing with me. So, I finally figured out how this military health care works, and have started "fixing" it. I'll probably never have a straight spine again, but I'm going to go to Physical therapy for it. For those curious, I have an 8% curve, which affects my L2-L3 vertebra in the lumbar section of my spine, that curves to my right, making a "c" shape. I also have a tilted pelvis, along with one hip being higher than the other. I'm just all sorts of screwed up.

- Finally got more thread to finish my baby record cross-stitch I've been working on FOREVER. I contacted Plaid (the company who makes it) and I got a message back giving me the DMC thread conversion chart. I tried to go to the local Hobby Lobby and match it, but the colors just weren't matching it properly for me. So, I took my weekly 40% off coupon and just bought a whole 'nother kit. Since then, I've been working my ass off on it. I have the top right corner finished, and currently working on the top left. I just need to finish the "paper" part of it, and I can move on to the next corner.

- Watched the entire first season of Downton Abbey. SCANDALOUS.

- I've also been reading. I'm currently reading The Help and How to Be An American Housewife. Both are really good thus far.

-And lastly, last night, I stuck our last turkey breast in the Crock Pot last night, steamed some broccoli, and made the corn casserole from my sister in law (I can say that now!) that everyone raved about at Thanksgiving. Oh my, I can see why!

Look how pretty!

This is so simple to make, and delicious to boot!

Corn Casserole!
1 box of Jiffy mix
8oz of sour cream
1 can of whole kernel corn (undrained)
1 can of cream corn
1 stick of melted butter

Heat oven to 350ºF.

In a large bowl, mix everything together well. Pour into a 2qt baking dish. Bake for an hour. Let cool for about five minutes; serve.

See how easy? Yeah, I thought so.

Hopefully, I'll have something interesting to update about soon, and not wait another two weeks. :)

Mass-postage.

2012-01-04T23:12:00.000-05:00

I've been experimenting with some new recipies in the kitchen, and figured I'd share the deliciousness with you, in just one mass post.

First off, we have my family's traditional black eyed peas & sausage, and then mini-ham and cheese muffins.

Oh yes. Yes it was delicious. If anyone wants the recipes, post a comment and I'll post it up.

Next, we have some delicious Honey Beer Bread I found on pinterest:

It's super delicious! I used Woodchuck Spring edition beer, and some local raw honey. This was really, really easy to make.

And next, we have JFK's waffles that I made for dinner tonight.

My husband was skeptical at first, but then he told me "you've messed up...you have to make these EVERY MORNING NOW." ...right. I'll get right on that. Nevertheless, that means he likes them. Though, I won't lie. This was my first time using a waffle maker since the 90s.

Um. Oops. Yeah, I quickly fixed that mistake. And the fact that it says "non-stick." LIES. Ah well, I fixed it.

New cross-stitch!

2012-01-03T00:14:00.000-05:00

I'm a bit bored with knitting at the moment, so I figured it'd be a great time to work on the cross stitch birth record chart I've been working on forever. Until I forgot I was out of thread. Oops. I went to Hobby Lobby today to see if I could find some DMC thread to match it, but much to my dismay, nothing matched. So I pouted. And then started a NEW cross stitch project. Oh yes! I picked out a few colors that I thought would match, and then thanks to my friend, Rosey, I was able to create a pattern! Can you guess what it might be?

No? How about now?

Nothing? Okay. You'll just have to be patient and wait.

Happy 2012!

2012-01-01T13:58:00.000-05:00

It's the new year, and everyone's about making resolutions. Go to the gym. Stop smoking. Visit family more often. Shave your back weekly. You know, same old same old. I actually stopped making resolutions in high school, because I realized I can't keep them. I once heard someone describe resolutions as "a to do list for the first week in January." How true is that? And how often to people actually stick to them? Can you say that you've stuck to your resolutions for the 365 days of the year? Do you know anyone that's actually done it? Exactly.
So, what I did in 2010, on my birthday, I started a 101 in 1001 aka the Day Zero project.

Basically, what you do is you set a list of 101 goals you want to accomplish in the next 1001 days (or 2.75 years) and that's that. You either do them, or you fail. You learn from your accomplishments and your failures and you try, try again. They can be as simple as "get a pedicure" to something as complicated as "visit all 50 states by horseback." You chose to whatever your liking. I've heard some people describe it as a "mini bucket list." I love mine. It doesn't make me feel rushed or a total failure. I'm proud to say I have 38 out of 101 accomplished so far. That might not seem like a lot, but I have things like "Read two books a month" that won't be accomplished until three months from now. So, some of them take time, some of them don't. A few are expensive, some are free.

I encourage anyone to start one. I find it's most satisfying.

I like breakfast for dinner.

2011-12-18T19:11:00.000-05:00

No, really. I do. When I wake up in the morning, I seriously don't feel like eating until noon, or so, and that normally involves lunch. So, I like having breakfast for dinner. And this time, I wanted French Toast. I think I've had it only a couple of times in my life. Mom was more of a pancake/waffle expert. Being that I've been watching a lot of TV lately, I kept seeing Denny's commercials for French toast. I thought, "I can make that!" So, I did. And it was delicious.

Aw, yeah. Tasted even more awesome with syrup drizzled all over it.

Fluffy French Toast
12 slices of Texas Toast type of bread (thick slices)
1/4 cup of all purpose flour
1 cup of milk
1 pinch of salt
3 eggs
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp white sugar

Pour the flour into a large bowl that you can easily dip a piece of your bread into. Slowly, whisk in the milk. Then, whisk in the salt, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla, and sugar until nice and smooth.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat (I used a buttered iron skillet)
Soak the bread in the mixture. Transfer to pan and cook on both sides until nice and brown. Between ever piece of bread, whisk the mixture to keep the ingredients from settling to the bottom. Serve hot, drizzle with syrup if desired.

Oh, these were so good, especially with bacon on the side. I actually cut the recipe in half and only did six pieces, but there wasn't enough mixture.

Also! To add to this post, calling all knitters, crocheters, and crafty types! My awesome friend over at A Playful Day is having a "Giveaway Palooza!" on her blog. You could win two different skeins of yarn, patterns from three different knit designers, an awesome bag, a print, a bracelet, and a tea wallet. That's 9 different things you can possibly win! What are you waiting for? Go enter!

Needs more presents.

2011-12-16T13:29:00.001-05:00

It's another finished object post! YAY

Knitting in the round on DPNs isn't very hard at all. I don't know why people complain about it. I personally love it, because it helps my ADD. One needle at a time is less distracting and boring than just one needle. ANYWHO.

My second pair of finished mitts! Modeled by the fabulous Vanessa, who's over at Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts.

The pattern is Wristers by Joan L. Hamer, knitted on size 6s with Louisa Harding Kashmir Aran in white. Not a bad yarn at all.

The second finished object to show off has been finished for a while, but lost, due to the fact that I have a kitten.

TINY MITTENS. I got this pattern out of the Knit Simple Holiday 2011 issue. They're knit with some Bijou Spun from Bijou Basin Ranch on size 2s. They were fun to make, but a little frustrating, because they were so tiny! But, they're cute, and worth it.

So now, between trying to finish my last two projects, I've started one for me!

Any guesses to what it might becom?

Reese's Thins

2011-12-13T14:56:00.001-05:00

A while back, I was browsing blogs, or maybe pinterest, I can't remember, but I wrote down the easiest cookie recipe ever. Ever. I didn't know how easy this could be. I can't find the site/blog/link, so I cannot link you to the original creator. BUT. I must share these cookies with you. They're so nice and chewy.

Reese's Thins (aka Two Ingredient Cookies) (makes about 15)
24 Reese's Cups (the big ones, not the minitures or the minis)
1 egg

Yeah. That's seriously it.
Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Unwrap your Reese's and throw them in a food processor.

Give 'em a whirr until they're nice and "dough-like", when this happens, toss in that egg.

Whirr that around until nice and mixed.

Spread out by spoonfuls, and flaten onto cookie sheet. They will spread, so be sure to leave room.

Bake 'em for 15-17 minutes, or until edges are done. (It took mine 15)

Let cool on cookie sheet for 15 minutes before removing.

Now, enjoy these thin, chewy cookies with a cold glass of milk!

Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup

2011-12-11T22:18:00.000-05:00

About a month or so ago, El Paso had a Junior League Christmas fair. I needed to go. It's in my DNA to go to every craft/art fair I can find. You can find the best stuff at these things. Except for this one, I was disappointed that it was more commercialized products than people selling what they made. Though, I did come out with some yummy things. You can never go wrong with food.

Tonight, I tried Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup, that my friend Nancy convinced me to get. It's one of those packets of seasonings and what not that you toss in with water and chicken. The real directions are here, and do not include a Crock Pot. I was being lazy, and decided to put mine into a Crock Pot.

You'll need
1 package of the soup mix
1 lb of frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast
6 cups of water
1/2 cup milk
1 can of Rotel
1 bag of frozen corn
2 cups of rice

Throw the chicken in the Crock Pot, frozen, dump the package of soup mix in there, add the water and milk. Stir until the soup mix is no longer "chunky" looking. Then, add the Rotel, rice, and frozen corn. Set to cook on high for an hour, then put on low for 6 hours. Thirty minutes before it's done, pull the chicken out and shred it. Place it back in there and let it resume cooking. Garnish with Mexican style shredded and sour cream if you desire.

It actually turned out really delicious! It was very salty, though. I put a bit more sour cream in mine to help balance out the salt. My husband, who will dump half a salt shaker of salt on green beans, said it was a bit too salty for him, but he doesn't like sour cream. Though, I've been craving everything salty this past week, so it didn't bother me.

Just buy the Cool Whip.

2011-12-09T12:27:00.000-05:00

On Monday, I was supposed to go to a coffee, but it snowed, and being that it took my husband two hours to get home, I decided not to go. And with that, I didn't get to make my Triple Chocolate Peppermint trifle. Damn. So, being that I was being "forced" to come to book club, I decided to make it for that.

Someone remind me just to buy the damn whipped topping next time. It took me 20+ minutes to whip the cream into shape, and it really aggravated my tendonitis. Worth it, though.

Triple Chocolate Peppermint Trifle, as from Lizzy Writes

The main differences between mine and hers is the times. I did everything in about two hours, where I believe her's takes possibly 12 all together. Along with that:
-I cheated and used just regular chocolate pudding, and when it was time to stack the trifle together, I realized I should have made two boxes, instead of one.
-I also didn't chop my peppermints "coarsely" I threw them in my Magic Bullet and chopped them a bit too fine. But, it actually turned out better, in my opinion. I definitely did not use half a cup of them, as it would have been too much, but probably used about 1/8th a cup.
-Also, the topping was actually just Cool Whip, because I didn't read ahead and follow directions, realizing that I would need more.
-And then for the hell of it, I garnished it with Hershey's Peppermint Kisses. Nom.

I recommend making it. It wasn't easy, though, if you don't make everything from scratch, it will up the difficulty level to Super Easy. It was super tasty, though. I'm planning on having leftovers for breakfast.

Snow?!

2011-12-05T17:23:00.000-05:00

It is snowing. It is currently snowing in El Paso. And sticking.

Hmph.

Finished Presents

2011-12-05T12:44:00.000-05:00

This year, I'm feeling kind and knitting my close friends and family Christmas gifts. Actually, only those who would appreciate it. Anywho, I've finally finished some, mailed them and the intended recipients have received them! Therefore, I can show them off, like a kid pinning their artwork to the fridge.

First off, my first pair of mitts ever, modeled by the most awesome PJ.

Sporting these mitts, with her lovely Tetris mug, these are the Peekaboo Mitts pattern. I almost kept these for myself, they're so very comfy. I'm seriously going to make myself a pair. Make them. DO IT NAO.

Next on the list, is a present that's been long awaited. Ever since I discovered Ravelry and Firefly, I was determined to make a Jayne hat. And since I made the above mitts and realized that knitting in the round wasn't that hard, I figured, what the hell? I present to you, a Jayne hat.

Such a wonderful cell phone shot. This was made for Emily, a damn good friend since like 1889. She's quite obsessed with Jayne Cobb (she has a cat named Jayne) and I was damn determined to make her one when I figured out how to knit. And so I did. I also sent with her a blanket that I've been working on for her since July 2008. I have since then become allergic to the yarn (stupid cashmere) so I had to finish up the edging before I sneezed myself to death. I sent that along with the hat.

I have to say, if I make this blanket it again, it'll be in the bulkiest yarn I can find.

I have one more present finished, but that won't be shown off until after Christmas. Along with that, I have three more to finish and then I'm done. Then I'll be knitting stuff for ME. ME. ME. ME. Oh, and a boob hat for another worthy friend in February.

Oh! And I guess this qualifies for this entry also. Tonight there's a wife coffee, complete with ornament swap, so I whipped this baby up real quick:

A giant snowflake on my tiny Christmas tree. It came out larger than I thought it would, but if you had something other than my 4ft tree, or possibly even in a window, it'll look fantastic!
Keep a look out for more presents as they are received. :)

FINALLY.

2011-12-04T13:58:00.000-05:00

There's some quote art going around Pinterest that says something like "Asking me what camera I use, is like asking you which oven you made that pie in." I can't seem to find it, but I'd just like to say, horseshit. If your oven doesn't heat up to the right temperature, or it burns everything, or even only half of it heats up, that'll effect your pie. So, while, in a perfectly functioning oven, your pie would be delicious, but in a shotty one, it would possibly be burnt or undercooked. Same with cameras. With a very basic point and shoot, you can get great shots, but with a more advanced camera, your percentage of fantastic shots every time goes up. Don't get me wrong, I have taken some amazing shots with my Casio Exilim. But, it just can't get some of the shots I want. Which is why I upgraded. My very loving, sweet, caring husband got me a Canon Rebel T2i with the 18-55mm (basic kit lens) and a 75-300mm lens for Christmas. I am so overly thrilled, you don't know. Already, my photography has improved, just because of the things this camera can do. I WILL SHOW YOU.

Okay, so that one's not the greatest, but I just wanted to show off my chocolate truffles. So far, in the box has been, mint, chocolate, cinnamon, and I have one more to go.

That's my husband intensely watching the game and ignoring me. I love his freckles. And his eyes. And the fact that he let me stick the camera lens in his face.

And lastly, Scout. Scout loves the camera. I have so many great pictures of her, it's not funny. Now, Winnie on the other hand? Cat likes to run.

Basically, my point of this post (besides the fact to brag that I have an awesome new camera) is as every hobby, the most important thing to have is good tools and passion.

macncheez

2011-12-03T13:20:00.000-05:00

I have a confession to make. I don't like homemade macaroni and cheese. The only kind I've ever liked, is the stuff from the blue box. Now, before everyone gets huffy and calls me the anti-christ, let me explain. I don't like cheddar cheese. It's too...bold? Strong? Harsh? I'm not sure of the word I'm looking for, but I don't like it. There has been only ONE homemade mac n cheese that I've had that I actually enjoyed. I was too young to remember to get a recipe. So, I've began an adventure. To find a macncheez that I love. A couple of days ago, I think I might have found it! Only problem? Husband does not approve. Gah. Well, now that I've found one that I love, I have to find one that WE love.

Oh. Yes. There it is. My beloved macncheez. I found the recipe via Pinterest, and so I decided to give it a try.
Adapted from this one, here's what I did:
I ran out of milk, so I desperately used half and half. Not a terrible decision.

2 cups dried pasta (I used shells as you can see)
1 cup of milk (2%)
1 cup of half and half
1 cup of loosely packed shredded cheese (I used American and Cheddar)
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp dijon mustard

I followed the directions to a T. It turned out DELICIOUS. It's a thick macncheez, sticks to your ribs kind of meal. Now, I know I said I didn't like cheddar, but with the help of the American cheese, it wasn't too harsh. I absolutely loved the zing that the mustard gave it. That's what my husband didn't like. Party pooper. I am totally going to make this again. Maybe with a different cheese (or cheeses) and I'll try it without mustard, to see if I can make him approve. Mmmm.

NOW Christmas can begin.

2011-11-25T15:20:00.000-05:00

For the past few years, basically since I worked retail, I'm not in favor of having anything Christmasy out until AFTER Thanksgiving. Fall decorations are so pretty, why rush putting them away? Though, my Fall decor consists of a wreath, a pumpkin, and pilgrim salt and pepper shakers. My Christmas is a little bit better. Michael's had 4ft pre-lit Christmas trees on sale a few weeks ago, and I was all over that. So, we've got a Christmas tree, a few ornaments, couple of plates, and the newest additon, the wreath I just made!

One of my oldest friends, Allison, repinned this link on Pinterest. Then a few days later, I saw her put the one she made up on Facebook! I was sold. The hardest part about this wreath? Finding a wire coat hanger.
I used 8 of the bigger decorated balls, 11 of the small glittery balls, and about 60 of the red, white and green balls. So, they were correct when the website said about 80. I could have put two more on there, but it was getting hard to close the wire hanger. I bought some ribbon to go with it, but I didn't like how it looked, so I'll use it for something else. I actually recommend this wreath. It was really easy, and cost about $40 to make, but that's because I had to buy a hot glue gun. I'd make another one.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T22:05:00.000-05:00

We had a nice, peaceful Thanksgiving, my husband and I. It was actually kinda nice with just the two of us. My normal Thanksgiving is a potluck of food and family, scattered everywhere throughout a house, normally about 15-20 of us. This year, we're nowhere close to Georgia, and so we had our own Thanksgiving.

I started out with a slow cooked turkey breast. It was maybe 5lbs at the most. I rubbed it with Lipton's Onion Soup Mix, and threw it in the Crock Pot, high heat for one hour, then low heat for seven hours. Turned out nice, juicy and amazing. I was amused that the turkey breast came with a gravy packet, so much to my husband's liking, I made gravy. Poured in whatever was in the packet, 1/4th cup of the turkey drippings and about a hand full of flour. I don't like gravy, but this was delicious!

Along with turkey, I made my mother's cornbread dressing. I refuse to share the recipe, but I'm very pleased to say it tasted JUST like my mother's. I thought I made it too soupy. Along with that, I made bacon wrapped green beans. They turned out pretty awesome! And then I cheated and used bagged cream corn and the Hawaiian rolls.

The pies turned out amazing. Well, the sweet potato pie could have used about 1/2 cup less sugar, but I still liked it. The pumpkin pie was perfect. And yes, we did end up sampling them yesterday. :)

Overall, a pretty damn good Thanksgiving, giving what happened yesterday...but that's for another post.

I hope everyone else had a fantastic thanksgiving!

Pre-Thanksgiving planning.

2011-11-23T17:59:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving! And around these parts, we have to do a little pre-gaming. Or pre-baking, if you'd like.
To make my mother's secret dressing (I will not share the recipe!) You have to make the cornbread a day ahead, so it gets "old." Now, that recipe, I will share with you. Being that it's just the two of us, I cut the cornbread recipe in half:

Maybe I'll Eat YOUR Cornbread
2 cups of self rising cornmeal
2 eggs
2 tbsp of bacon or sausage drippings (I used olive oil)
and buttermilk or milk (I used buttermilk)

Heat oven to 400°F, place iron skillet with oil in there to preheat and warm up skillet.
Mix cornmeal, eggs, and drippings/oil together, add milk slowly. You want to make the mixture moist, but not soupy. Somewhere between thick and thin consistancy. Once you get it there, take skillet out of oven, pour mixure into skillet and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on your oven. IT should be a nice golden brown when you're done.

Awww yeaaah boooyyyy!

That's a 10 1/4 inch skillet, and it only fills it up half way. If you double the recipe, the same size pan should still work.

After the cornbread was done, I made TWO pies. Yes. Two. A pumpkin and a sweet potato pie, per request of my husband. I decided I wasn't going another Thanksgiving without a pumpkin pie (long, tragic story) and he wanted to try sweet potato pie, so I said, "Why the hell not?" I used my traditional pumpkin pie recipe, which turns out was developed by Eagle Brand and had to search the internet for a sweet potato pie recipe, being that we have no family one (terrible Southerners we are.) I found this one, and in the description it reads "special friend in Atlanta." What? Yeah, I'm sold. So, I made it, too. I've got my fingers crossed. It looks and smells delicious. I'm trying to resist sampling it.


Pumpkin and Sweet Potato

I'm so excited to try them. I'm seriously thinking about just having a damn slice tonight. I mean, it's just me and my husband for Thanksgiving...no one will care...

Beef Stew Bowls

2011-11-15T23:28:00.000-05:00

I think I may have found a new love of mine. Beef Stew in a Bread Bowl. That's right, it's so important, it needs capitalized letters.

First off, I made bread bowls, following this recipe, kind of. I didn't use all purpose flour, but instead used bread flour, also used olive oil and added 1 tsp of sugar. Nom. They ended up looking like this:

Mmmm. Yeah.

Then, I started cookin' my pressure cooker beef stew. So easy.

NEEDS:
1lb of stew beef
about 5 small potatoes, cut up (peeled or not peeled. Your choice)
a small bag of baby carrots, or about 5 regular carrots, peeled and chopped
half a bag of green beans (being vague, sorry.)
1 packet of Lipton's Onion Soup Mix
1 cup of water.

Layer it in the order of written, put on lid, close. Turn heat onto medium, walk away until done.

While that was cooking, I finished up the bread and let it cooled, then carved a bowl out of 'em.

Something like that. And all I had to do was just wait on the pressure cooker to do it's thing. Once it was done, I was able to stuff it full of beef stew.

Like this.

Awww yeah, boooooooyyyy! The bowls were fairly small, but seriously filling and oh so good.

I DID IT.

2011-11-14T18:43:00.000-05:00

Ever since I joined Ravelry, I decided I was going to learn to knit. Mainly for the purpose of knitting socks. And probably sweaters. Now that I have the know how to knit, yesterday, I embarked on the journey that is socks. Only took me three years. Though, these socks are slightly cheating; they're "baby" socks. Now, being that I've never had a baby and don't play with them that often, I'm going to assume these are going to fit my newest cousin, Emily.

I used the Mini-Sock pattern from Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer, and it was a great beginner sock! They both took me about 5 hours to make (because I kept having to rip out, figure out, and plus I just knit slow) but I love them! I used Claudia Hand Painted Yarns in Short Sport in the color way Summer Rose. I hope they fit Emily, if not Mom and Grandma get Christmas tree ornaments instead. ;)

I now feel as if I could conquer regular-people socks.

Thankya, Jesus.

2011-11-13T21:21:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I got an awful hankerin' for grits. Not that instant crap that you can pick up at the store. Yeah, it's easier, but it's not worth it. So I used my Google-Fu and finally found some. Sweet Jesus, thank you Anson Mills for existing. As I drooled over the monitor looking at all the yummies they had for sale, I realized they had a four 12oz bag purchase. That's too easy. I pondered over it for about an hour, and chose. WISELY. A week later, I had a box full of deliciousness at my door. The UPS man greeted me with his usual friendly greeting, and it was all I could do but snatch it from him and run. I opened my box with fevered anticipation. I pulled the bags out one by one and the smile on my face got bigger and bigger.

It was pretty much Christmas for this Southern girl. Bless my soul, stone ground white and blue grits, two different textures of cornmeal and Sea Island Red Peas. I excitedly placed them in the freezer and began my wait for my husband to return from the field. I mean, I can't not share these. After two long weeks, and several horrible distractions, I decided that tonight was the night, for grits. I've never cooked these bad boys before, as my dear, sweet, loving mother had always done it. So I called her in the middle of her dinner for instructions. 4 to 1 ratio? But play with them? 'Bout 30 minutes? Okie dokie.
Being that there's only two of us, in a small sauce pan, I put 1/2 cup of grits, and 2 1/2 cups of water and brought it to a boil on medium heat, (5-7 minutes), while stirring constantly.
After that, I reduced my heat as low as I could go, and brought some water to boil in my kettle. I'd stir about every two minutes or so, and would add water when they'd get too thick. I added a tablespoon of butter, threw a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper in, added a little more water, and that was it. I think total time was 30 minutes. I think they could have used about 10 minutes more, but I was hungry and don't mind a bit of chewy texture. And delicious they were! Served enough for my husband and I and probably enough for one more person. Or seconds. Or breakfast the next morning for one.
These seriously hit the spot. Hopefully this week, I'll try out the Red Peas and make some cornbread!

Now if only I could find some Purple Hull peas and Butter Beans...

Oops.

2011-11-12T17:28:00.000-05:00

So, uh, I've kinda ignored the blogging world for about two weeks now, but that's okay. I've been doing things with friends and doing other important things...like shopping. And cooking. And forgetting to take pictures. Whoops.

And so, because of that, I've decided to indulge you in a post. Blessed you are! For it's that time of year. The time where Thanksgiving becomes forgotten for Christmas. Well, I haven't forgotten you Thanksgiving. But I hope you will forgive me for going ahead and starting making my Christmas cards. That's right. I'm insane and have decided to make Christmas cards this year! This is what I have so far:

Basically, I'm cutting scrapbook paper (cutting straight is overrated) and gluing it to premade notecards. That's as far as I've gotten. I'm also going to attach a handmade ornament to the front, which is why they're kinda plain looking. Here's half of the first one I've made!

My husband makes a great hand model.

Tiny mittens! How exciting is that? Okay, maybe just for me, but whatever. Hopefully this will work out. I figured if I start now, I'll have a good chunk done before Christmas. :) So yes, I'm insane and I'm that bored. Hopefully, I'll be able to report back with happy news.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T12:42:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween everyone! I would like to present to you my first costume of the day. I call it, "The Angry Housewife."

What you can't see is me loading my shotgun. Also, that's how I look without makeup on. Notice the left over sunburn.

A sign?

2011-10-24T14:02:00.000-04:00

In the past week, I've had three friends post on my Facebook about knitting sweaters for penguins. First off, penguins in sweaters? How ADORABLE. I mean, just look at them:

It has a TUXEDO on.

Secondly, it's helping them! From Skeinz Spring newsletter (it's Spring in Australia) They write:
"As you may be aware the oil spill & potential disastrous effects to wildlife & environment off the coast of Tauranga is frightening. A small number of little blue penguins have already been caught in the oil spilled to date with growing fears that more will be effected. Skeinz has been asked to help with the penguin relief by knitting small Penguin PJ’s to help protect the birds & prevent them from preening their feather & ingesting the toxic oil. If you can help out by knitting a penguin jumper – send them to Skeinz at the address below."

Then, they go on to list a pattern for the penguin sweater (must be 100% wool) and an address to send them to.

So, I figured, why not? I have some wool lying around that I have no plans for. Why not send it to a needy penguin? So with that, I'm going to attempt making penguin sweaters.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Chip cookies!

2011-10-21T14:45:00.001-04:00

A while back, I finally found and bought some of Hershey's Cinnamon chips. I had two bags just sitting in my pantry begging to be used. I couldn't find anything I wanted to make with them. Then FINALLY, as I was Stumbling across the internet, a website was blessed to me. A recipe for Cinnamon and Chocolate chip Pumpkin Pie cookies. The sky opened up and the angels sang. It was DESTINY. And then I remembered my husband doesn't like Pumpkin flavored things. Whoops. Oh well, more for me. So I halfed the recipe so I wouldn't act like a fatass and eat them all.

Oooh yeah. My half-ing made about 18 palm sized cookies. These babies are moist, floppy delicious cookies. Oh, did I forget to mention that I left out the chocolate chips? Yeah. Pumpkin and chocolate is one combination I do not like together. I'll add my half recipe, in case anyone is interested. The real recipe is linked up top.

½ cup stick butter
½ cup sugar
3/8 cup brown sugar packed
1 egg
½ tsbp vanilla
½ cup pumpkin
1½ cup all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 cups cinnamon chips

The math may not be right, but damn if these cookies aren't delicious.

And I would do anything for love...

2011-10-19T12:02:00.001-04:00

Last night, were two firsts for me. One, was boiling potatoes to make mashed potatoes. I'd never done it that way before! I normally slice and dice 'em and throw them in the pressure cooker, but being that the green beans were in there, I had to figure out how to do it like everyone else. They turned out just fine! I almost want to keep boiling them, just because they don't burn as easily, like in the pressure cooker.

The next, was making meatloaf. The meatloaf I had as a kid tasted of ketchup and onions. I will leave off names to protect that family member, but she made meatloaf a thing to dread to me. So, I had a pound of ground just sitting in the fridge begging to be used. The only thing I found that I had all the ingredients for? Meatloaf. Well...okay. I remembered PJ had given me her recipe a while back, but in my message deleting frenzy, I accidentally got rid of it. The only thing I remember from her recipe was "Dijon mustard." Okay. So, basically combining three different recipes and substituting for my own needs, I came up with the most delicious meatloaf I've ever eaten.

Yes, I put a design in the ketchup.

Amber's Bacon Meatloaf

(Serves 4-6)
1lb ground beef (thawed)
1 medium egg
½ tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 cup milk
1 cup dried Italian seasoned bread crumbs
3 strips of bacon (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/3 cup ketchup

Preheat oven to 350ºF

In a large bowl combine the beef, egg, onion powder, Worcestershire, milk, and bread crumbs. Then, season with salt and pepper. Mix together with a large spoon. Spoon into an 8x8 baking dish or a loaf pan. Put bacon on top, set aside.

In a small dish (I just left it in the 1 cup measuring cup to save dishes) combine the sugar, mustard and ketchup. Mix well. Spread all over the top of your loaf.

Bake for one hour. Remove from oven and let sit for at least five minutes, or until it stops bubbling.

And that's it! You might have noticed I didn't add any actual onions. I did not like the crunchy bits in the middle of the meat. It was one of the things that bothered me. I also added the bacon, because ours is needing to be used. My husband described this as "Fluffy and airy" meatloaf, and he "liked it this way better." Well, I think I found a winner for my house.

Sock Bun Curls!

2011-10-14T13:17:00.001-04:00

My hair is as straight as a board. It doesn't do anything fancy. It just hangs there. Growing up, my best friend and her sister had the prettiest curly hair. I'd always get so jealous. So, I'd try to curl it to be like them. Hot rollers? Last about 3 hours. Curling iron? The same. The only thing that actually keeps my hair curly is washing it, putting gel in it, putting it in curlers and let it dry for the next 12 hours or so. I don't know about y'all, but sleeping in curlers is not a pleasant thing. I needed something new. Once again, browsing through Pinterest, I came across a picture of a girl with lovely curly hair and the caption read "Sock Bun Curls" wtf is a sock bun? So I clicked the link, and came across this video:

What? Just one massive thing on my head instead of a bazillion? Yeah, okay. I'll try it.
So, I washed my hair and stuck it up in the bun, and went to bed. Now I know why she said it should be just damp.

don't mind my pjs.

TA-DAH. Holy crap, that's amazing. They're the nice big wavy curls too! My only problem was? I didn't listen and I went to bed with my hair soaking wet. Whoops. So, an hour later, you get this:

yes, I'm still in my pjs, bite me!

Less curly, more wavy. And I'm pretty sure, by 3pm this afternoon, the curls will be gone. But, now I know that my hair should be damp and not soaking wet. :) I shall try again!

Fail of the Century.

2011-10-12T14:03:00.001-04:00

So, I'm trying a new stash down program. Being that I'm still new to knitting, I'm trying to use all my thicker yarn first. You know, like the fat crayons you got when you were a kid? Yeah, so my thought process is, by the time I'm done with all the thicker yarn, when I get to fingering, I'll be AWESOME. So, with that in mind, I've been staring at my Malabrigo in Ravelry Red given to me by Chemicalika in a swap a while back. So, I finally found something to make with it! The Waves of Grace scarf! Perfect. I decided it's time to try cables now, being that my dear friend Kate, blessed me with an awesome package that included cable needles!


See the awesome?

As you can see, she blessed me with a lot of other awesome things than just cable needles. BUT, because of that, I decided to try cables. I flipped through some patterns, and decided on the Waves of Grace scarf, because it was deemed the easiest. I followed through rows one and two, and when I got to the cable row, my head exploded. I was confused. So, I asked Vanessa for help, and she put it in simple stupid terms, and the light clicked on. Seriously? That was it? Soon, I was on row 10 before you knew it.

I was reevaluating my work today, just because it didn't look right. So, I asked PJ what she thought. And while I was waiting for her response, I realized I did a cable wrong so I just ripped it all out.


Scout tries to help rip.

PJ says it looks like I'm doing it right, but am I "meaning to knit in the back loop?" Huh? Back loop? WTF? I googled. Yep. I'm knitting "wrong." I've been knitting everything in the back loop this whole time, thinking it was the actual way to knit. *headdesk* SO, I get to learn how to knit all over again. With three numb fingertips, thanks to burning them on a pot last night.
Guess I'm thankful I have plenty of spare time...

Noms and Fails

2011-10-10T23:00:00.001-04:00

I don't know if I mentioned it in a previous post, but I've been trying a few things I've found on Pinterest, namely, recipes.

Friday, for lunch, I created my husband's much asked for mini cheese sliders. Easiest tiny sammich I've ever made. Though, the fail on my part, is that I didn't take a picture. So, I am yoinking the picture from the website I got the recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything.

Why can't my pictures look this good?

These were really simple to make. I used 24 of the King's Hawaiian rolls that you find over in the bakery section of your grocery store, a package of store brand swiss cheese, and some regular 'ol sammich ham.
I lined a cookie sheet with tinfoil, cut these babies in half, stuck the ham and cheese on there and drizzled the stuff all over them. I elimimated the mayo like she suggested, because my husband hates EVERYTHING about mayo. Popped 'em in the oven for 20 minutes and VOILA lunch.
Now, I'm trying to eat a wee bit "heathier" so I stuck some of my baby spinach leaves on there, after they were done cooking. I have to say, it tasted pretty good!

Though, before I made those, I was attempting beef stew in the crock pot. I followed this recipe, except I added 1 ¼ cup of flour instead of just ¼ cup, like the recipe said. And it was a fail. A fail of epic proportions. The beef stew was so thick and so dry, it was like I threw a cup of water on everything and that was it. The beef was so shredded, you couldn't even taste it. Though, edible, I wouldn't make that recipe like that again. Whoops. I normally make it in a pressure cooker, so next time, I'm just going to stick to what I know.

So, I've got a hit and a miss. I'm not to terribly upset about it. I'm more upset that I wasted food instead of messing up the recipe. Because, there's always next time. And because of my lack of my food pictures on here, I give you Winnie, who's in denial about this basket.

"See? I do fit."

My goddaughter is cuter than your goddaughter.

2011-10-08T17:40:00.000-04:00

Just LOOK at her.

Emily, the baby watermellon

RIIIIBS.

2011-10-03T15:22:00.001-04:00

I love ribs. I cannot explain to you how much I love ribs. I am a rib connoisseur. Okay, not really, but I pretend to be one. ANYWHO. I love ribs. And so I made some.

That was a full rack of ribs. I tried pulling them out of the Crock Pot in one piece, but they were so tender, that just wasn't happening. So, I had to deal with them being in pieces. I do have to say, these were the easiest ribs I've ever made. I actually combined instructions from two recipes, so I'm just going to call it the way I did it. (I can't find the link to the other one, sorry!)

Mmm....Ribs!
(serves 2-4 depending on how hungry people are)

You'll need:
Rack of pork ribs
16oz of beef broth
16 oz of your favorite BBQ sauce
Large Crock Pot
Cookie sheet
Tin foil
Some sort of rack
Basting brush
Broiler

STEP ONE
Make sure your ribs are fully thawed. This is super important. If they are not thawed, wait until they are.
STEP TWO
Plop your ribs into the Crock Pot, thick side resting on the wall. Pour your beef broth, then BBQ sauce all over the ribs. You might want to save a little BBQ sauce for later. Set on low, leave it alone for seven hours.
STEP THREE
Seven hours later, come back to inspect your ribs. They should be done. If you feel they are not done, cook a bit more. If they are done, line a cookie sheet (one with edges) with tin foil, and then place some sort of rack across it. I didn't have a fancy meat rack, so I used a cooling rack. I don't recommend it, though.
STEP FOUR
Carefully, very very carefully, pull your ribs out of the Crock Pot. They will be hot, and they will be very tender, and will fall apart. I couldn't get mine out whole. Lay them on your cookie sheet-tin foil-rack get up, with the "inside" (aka less meat side) facing up. Put it to the side.
STEP FIVE
See all that stuff still swimming around in your Crock Pot? Yeah, you're still gonna use it. Get a small sauce pan and a mesh strainer, and strain that yummy stuff into the sauce pan. Bring it to a boil, then let it simmer for about 5-10 minutes, depending on your patience.
STEP SIX
Now that your sauce is done simmering, brush that goodness all over your ribs. My ribs were a little dry, so I just let it pool on the ribs. Turn on your broiler (mine was at 525ºF) and place your ribs in there for 3-4 minutes. Pull them out, flip 'em over, and then put MORE of the sauce on there. This time, broil them for 9 minutes.
STEP SEVEN
Pull them out, brush more of the original BBQ sauce on there, and serve.

NOM NOM NOM

Cross stitch update

2011-10-02T14:29:00.000-04:00

It's coming along smoothly. I'd say it's about 75% done. My goal is to have it finished by Halloween. I think I can do it. :D

Chicken Cordon Bleu

2011-09-30T20:54:00.001-04:00

Inspired by a luncheon I recently went to, I set out on finding a recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu. I found it! And it's a good one.

Chicken Cordon Bleu
(serves 4)

I followed the recipe as linked above, and then I took the suggestions of one of the comments. It reads:

After baking for 30 minutes, then add the cheese.

"I read the reviews and took the suggestion of some others. First of all, I dipped the chicken in egg wash, then laid the slices of ham and cheese on top. I got a plate and sprinkled breadcrumbs and placed the chicken on it and rolled it from there. I also added a pat of butter on top of each. It came out beautifully and you must use the sauce (which is 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 1/2 cup of sour cream and 1 tbsp of lemon juice). I put a bed of white rice on the plates, put the chicken cordon blue on top of the rice covered with the cream sauce. A good side dish is buttered rolls, mmm-mhmm! All I can say was that it was such a beautiful presentation and absolutely heavenly!"

The only thing I didn't do was dip the chicken in an egg wash. I forgot about that part. Or use toothpicks, because apparently we don't have any. Amazingly, the chicken didn't unroll or anything! I do have to say, this recipe was easier than I thought it would be. Though, smashing the chicken with a meat hammer was a whole lot messier than I originally though. I would highly suggest an apron or a HAZMAT suit. I was going to take pictures of the whole process, but the raw chicken splattered everywhere, and I didn't want to clean my camera. I also used "store brand" ingredients and it tasted just fine. My husband has already demanded that I make it again. I'd recommend this recipe to anyone.

nom nom nom

Dinner from Pinterest

2011-09-29T23:52:00.000-04:00

Most of you know what Pinterest is, correct? Yeah, well, I'm addicted to it. I feel like I'm an idea hoarder or something. So, I've decided to try a few things I've collected over the past few days. Last night, I tried some recipes.

Chicken and Spinach Stuffed Shells (enjoyed with a spinach salad, adorned with bacon and croutons.)

This was actually a pretty yummy recipe! Being that there's just two of us, I cut the amounts in half, except I forgot to cut the amount of onion in half. Whoops. Though, I did use a full jar of sauce. I'm glad I cut it in half, though. I was able to stuff about 15-20 shells out of it or a 9x13 pan's worth.

Before the bag of cheese I dumped on there.

If I made this recipe again, I would not put so much onion in it (lolz) and I would make it with turkey. While, I enjoyed the chicken in it, it felt like it didn't belong. I think turkey or beef would be a better replacement for it.

For dessert, I made the Frozen Reese's Peanut Butter Pie. I'm not gonna lie, this recipe made me a little mad. Don't get me wrong, it is DELICIOUS. You see that picture on the website? I realize it's the tiny pie version, not the 9" springform pan version. First off, I couldn't get the Oreo crumbs to stick to the walls of my pan, so I gave up and just made a bottom layer. And then when I made the filling portion? No where near thick enough. Just look!

nom nom nom

If I made this again, I would make it in a pie tin. Or hell, just be lazy and buy the pre-made Oreo crust. But, don't let those small things stop you from making this pie. It's seriously delicious. Chunks of Reese's surrounded by peanutbuttery goodness and line with a layer of Oreos? Yes, please.

Tomorrow, I may try a few crafts.

Thief!

2011-09-24T20:31:00.000-04:00

I have nothing to say, but I'm saying this.

(stolen from my friend over at Heart Shaped Leaves.)

Age: Quarter of a Century

Bed size: Queen!
Chore that you hate: Mopping.

Dogs: Not at the moment. I had two growing up, and planning to get one later in the future.

Essential start to your day: Putting on my glasses, taking my Synthyroid, then staring at the computer until I'm coherent.
Favorite color: Today, I'm all about some red. Tomorrow...could be blue?

Gold or Silver: It used to be silver, but now I'm down with gold, too.

Height: 65"

Instruments you play: Flute, piano, and I'm learning my ukulele and banjo.

Job title: Domestic Engineer
Kids: None yet.

Lived: Georgia, Kentucky and Texas

Motor vehicle: Honda Fit!

Nicknames: Ber, Amberghini, hey you

Overnight hospital stays: None that I can recall.

Pet peeves: bad drivers, ignorance, and people poking me

Quote from a movie:

"It's 106 miles to Chicago. We've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses." "Hit it."

Right or left handed: Ambidextrous.

Siblings: Older brother

Underwear: Why yes, I do wear them.

Vegetable you hate: Cabbage

What makes you run late: Oversleeping

X-Rays you’ve had: Teeth, back, hips, guts, ankle, hand, wrist, and I think that's it?

Yummy food that you make: EVERYTHING.

Zoo animal: Flamingos.

Finally!

2011-09-23T10:46:00.001-04:00

I can finally show you two out of three secret projects I've finished! Well, the third one's not finished, but still.

Object in Question #1:

A scarf for my mother. I'm stash busting (can you believe it's true?) and I bought some Berroco Touché in a peachy salmon color (7927) back when my favorite LYS in Georgia was having it's retirement sell. When I saw that color, I knew it would alternate perfectly between the two colors of coats that my mother has. So I snatched up enough, and merrily went about my way.
I had the yarn for about a year and a half before I knew what I wanted to do with it. I would KNIT IT. With my new found skillz, I used the Lime Scarf pattern I found on Ravelry, and knitted my heart out for my second finished knitted item. I LOVE the way it turned out. I was so proud, and the yarn, it's 50% rayon and 50% cotton, feels amazingly soft and drapes beautifully. If you're not a yarn snob, by all means, you need to try some. I will be buying more in the future.
But, I finished this scarf the first week of September, and finally sent it out to my mother who received it sometime this week. I highly recommend this pattern, and I highly recommend this yarn.

Object in Question #2:

Color Swap partner's handmade: A mini Dia de los Muertos skull! (aka Day of the Dead)

My favorite swap on Ravelry, the Color Swap, is an amazing swap. It's a secret swap, and you either request from your partner a color, theme or both! I find it more fun to do both. My partner requested her colors to be dark red, black and white. Now, that's something I can do. She also mentioned that she's a sewer and loves dia de los muertos things. I live in El Paso, how hard can this be? As I'm typing this, I'm sitting here regretting every moment that I forgot to take a picture of what I mailed her. I got her some spectacular custom dyed yarn from Dyeabolical Yarns, and then scowered her wish list for that one perfect item, and then get smaller things from there. So, I went skipping about El Paso for Dia de los Muertos stuff. And it was quite an adventure, interestingly enough, I couldn't find much that wasn't way out of my price range. But, I did end up getting her some fantastic finds. And then, I had to decide on a handmade. I normally sew something, but my sewing machine wasn't working properly until now. I couldn't knit very well yet, so crochet it was. And crocheting is really starting to bother my wrist, so I did something small. I made a Yorick! and then embroidered on him. My first time, too. Great experience.

Serger curtains!

2011-09-22T20:24:00.001-04:00

Okay, so I lied. I didn't work on my red velvet jacket yesterday. I didn't want to break my sewing machine right after I got it fixed, so I decided to make something simple: curtains! I finally made my kitchen curtains, and it only took an hour! YES.

You can click on it to make it bigger.

Okay, so they need ironing, but there they are! PERFECT. And how did I do it, you may be asking yourself?

Well first off, I bought a yard (42" x 36") of this fabric from Spoonflower.com. Then, I just cut it straight in half and hoped for the best. After that, I took my handy dandy serger and serged all around the edges, because I'm lazy like that and I hate hemming.
Because I was using a tension rod, and wanted the little frilly bit at the top, I measured about two inches and folded it over.

And then I sewed right along the serged edge there.

After that, I stuck the tension rod back in there, and measured a pocket for it.

Marked a line from end to end, and sewed my pocket. And then I folded a half inch on the bottom to make a pretty end, which I forgot to take pictures of, and voila! Simple, cute, instant curtains.

I love them, the husband approves of them, and that's all that matters. :)

It's about time!

2011-09-21T12:19:00.000-04:00

So, yesterday P'cess realized (probably after seeing the boots) that she knew what my costume was, because we stalk each other on Pinterest. And then Andrea was confused, but she guessed right. And Rosey had the best wrong answer ever.

I'm going to be a Circus Ringmaster! *waits for the collective Ohhhs* Get it now? The patriotic picture was the pattern of the jacket I was going to be creating, the red fabric was the color of the jacket, and me in the hat, well, I was going to wear that hat. And yesterday's, the rings - three ring circus, Ronald McDonald - least scary clown I could find, and then the boots, well, I was going to be wearing them! HUZZAH.

I started cutting out my pieces yesterday, which I forgot with a cat is always a battle for me.

i can halp?

So, after pushing Winnie out of the way multiple times and moving Scout from attacking the pattern pieces, I finally managed to get them all cut out. Took an hour to cut four different pieces. Thanks, cats. BUT on a better note, I FINALLY got my sewing machine to work. It's a Singer Futura II, which means it's from the 1970s. My aunt gave it to me one Christmas, and I finally was able to find a manual and get it to work! AND IT DOES. Though, I need to adjust stitch length. MOVING ON. I'm planning to attempt to make my jacket today. Hopefully, I'll be able to report later this week wheather or not it's awesome.

Note to self: velvet sheds something awful.

sad trombone

2011-09-20T09:54:00.000-04:00

I can't believe no one guess properly yesterday! I suppose I threw you off with that first picture. That's actually a sewing pattern, I'll be using one of the pieces from it. Though, I have to say "Sexy Abe Lincoln" is a pretty funny thought.

I'll give you more clues:

And!

Yes, I am getting those boots for this costume. The last entry was all about what I'm wearing, this one, not so much.

GO GO GO.

It's that time of the year...

2011-09-18T16:30:00.000-04:00

...where I get overly excited about Halloween costumes. Didn't you know one of my passions is costume making? Well, you do now. And I know what I'm going to be this year! I've tossed around a few ideas in my head. For a while, an AAGPBL Player (aka "A League of Their Own") uniform was numero uno. I was so gonna do it. Then, I was going to be a saloon girl. Then a fairy. Then a ballerina. Then Mary Poppins. Then just some fancy Victorian lady. And THEN I started rummaging through my Chest o' Fabric. AND IT DAWNED ON ME. I know what I'm going to be! I have 80% of everything, all I'd have to do is find some sparkly tights, boots, and probably some thread. Curious as to what I'm going to be? Here's some hints:

And and and

Oh and:

Circa 2005

Confused yet? Or has someone out there got it?

Cowboy Beans!

2011-09-16T20:50:00.000-04:00

Like I said in a previous post, I was going to make Penzey's Forward! Cowboy beans. And I did!

Okay, so it's not the prettiest picture ever, but whatever. There they are! I used Bush's Original Baked Beans. I love the way they taste. But, Brian said it was too sweet. Well, okay. So, I send him with a container of it to his unit. 8 out of 10 guys thought they were too sweet while two guys thought they were perfect and one asked for more! So, next time, I'll use a more BBQ flavored type of baked bean. Or perhaps not a flavored one at all?

And just for good measure, the kitties kinda getting along:

In this picture, Winnie (the grey tabby) is growling at Scout (the orange tabby) and right after the shutter snaps, Scout attacks. Yeah. One day we'll have kitty harmony.

Spicy!

2011-09-13T18:02:00.000-04:00

I ordered some spices about a week ago, and they came in today! YAY!

Yeah, that's not suspicious at all.

And I'm THRILLED. Mainly, because yesterday, I got in the mail the new Penzey's magazine and on the front cover was a big ass pot of deliciousness. You can kinda see it here in the picture with my NEW SPICES:

Okay, not really, but the recipe is called Forward! Cowboy Beans (which apparently isn't on the website. Hm.) But it looks delicious. It's got beef, bacon, corn chunks, and...beans. I was thinking about making it for a Troop BBQ we have next week, but I'm not sure how it'll taste. So, I'll make half a pot and see how it comes out.

So, my spices! You can't really see them, I now realize, but I indulged in:

-mulling spices
-minced garlic
-Arizona Dreaming
-Forward!
-Cinnamon
-Italian seasoning
-and it came with a free sample of Tuscan Sunset. Yum. Thanks Penzey's!

So, basically, I just wanted to brag about my delicious spices, and hopefully, I'll be able to give you a written report on the Cowboy Beans.

Kitten-face.

2011-09-10T11:08:00.002-04:00

Well, we done done it now. Yesterday, my husband and I went to the shelter to see when the original kitten we picked out would be ready. We spent about 30 minutes there, talking to the girl, and watching Brian being attacked by various cats and kittens. Hilarious. So, the girl told us that we wouldn't be able to get little Phobe for quite a while, but that there were orange tabby females at Petsmart. Brian about wet his pants to get there. So, we removed the kittens we were trying to steal from our pockets, and headed to Petsmart. And there she was. Beautiful little Trinity....Trinity? This is not the Matrix! So, we gathered our supplies for the kitten (food, more litter, dish, collar) adopted our kitten, and went merrily on our way. This cat, did not meow or whine ONCE on the way home. I was so impressed, our other cat, Winnie, would have done had a conniption by then.
So, we decided to change little Trinity to Scout. Little Scout. Scout was born in the shelter, and so small places has been all she's known. And so now, she's living up to her name. No place has been unexplored.

Winnie keeps a watchful eye from above the fridge. She'll get used to her soon.

Nom.

LOOK AT IT omg. LOOK AT IT.

2011-09-06T21:46:00.000-04:00

YOU GUYS. LOL OMG YOU GUYS. I finished my peachy teaser post I posted a while back (all will be revealed soon), and now, now I'm starting on something for ME. The Saroyan Scarf! It's a little challenging for me, but I like a good challenge.

I have this so far:

I am so proud of myself, you can't really tell it, but to the left there, that's supposed to be a LEAF. Oh yes. My first leaf. *sniffles* Perhaps when I have made more leaves, you'll be able to tell.

And if you look closely, you can see my gangsta stitch markers. Twistie Ties. I have stitch markers some where, but I tore my room apart, and I still can't find them. I have to say, they work very nicely.

ALSO, I just realized I have 22 followers now! Helloooooo everybody! :D

Holy Crap.

2011-09-04T19:50:00.000-04:00

You guys. You know that voice inside of your head that tells you not to do things and stuff like "I told you so?" Yeah. Mine is my mother. Before you start laughing, and think I'm crazy, let me explain.

Hey! You don't belong in there!

Still have more to go.

My craft room is FINALLY finished being painted. Well, besides the ceiling, and that's my husband's job, and who knows when the hell he'll get to it with his busy schedule. ANYWHO. I'm starting to unpack and organize things. I decided to tackle my cedar chest first, which is where all my fabric is stored. I start with the fabric I have in one of those blue IKEA bags. Only took up like ¼ of my cedar chest. And then I start on my 22 gallon tote. Holy crap. I'd forgotten I had half the fabric that I was finding! I have stuff that ranges from cupcakes, to brocade, to outdoor canvas, to white pleather to fabric from the 60s, 70s, and 80s! Then, I found two bolts of fabric, some upholstery stuff, and then Mom sent me some fabric I forgot that's at least 70 yards. And I still have another roll back in Georgia. And then I found zippers, buttons, grommets, doorknobs, at least 50 patterns, etc. I could go on forever. And then...then that voice came from the depths of my head, "Don't go shopping until you've searched through what you have." YES MOTHER. I now understand what she meant. As I'm fondling some of the fabric I haven't seen in years, patterns I meant to make, a surge of creativity washed over me. Now...if only my sewing machine worked...

It's pronouced "Lah-zag-nuh."

2011-09-03T12:39:00.000-04:00

A day after...

I have been dying for some lasagna for a couple of weeks. I was going to make some last week, but some back trouble prevented it. So, I was determined yesterday, to make some before anymore chaos could break loose. I searched the internet and I found this one: World's Best Lasagna. (I love this website, can't you tell?) It's rated 5 stars with 5700+ votes. I figured, why the hell not? It takes three hours to cook, and those three hours are worth it!

I did a few things differently, just because I couldn't find things/wasn't thinking. What did I do? Well, for one, I couldn't find any sweet Italian sausage, so I just used mild Italian sausage instead. I also was being lazy and used the dried parsley I had instead of fresh chopped parsley. And I forgot to buy shredded Parmesan, so I just used the stuff that's normally reserved for spaghetti. Over all, it still turned out delicious and husband approved.

Layers of CHEESE and MEAT.

I would totally make this again, even though it took three hours to cook. Though, I had one problem with it. It says it serves 12, but when I started layering it in the pan I had a whole lasagnas worth of meat and sauce left. Maybe I didn't have a deep enough dish and it was all supposed to go in there? Because, mine was over flowing already. Either way, it still was delicious. I'm actually thinking about freezing it for a later lasagna. Save me some time for next time.

Sorry, Mom.

2011-08-30T20:08:00.000-04:00

I bet you my mother wishes she thought of this everytime I ran off with her sewing scissors.

o hai thar...

2011-08-29T12:58:00.001-04:00

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged, but that's okay! It means I've been busy. LET ME SHOW YOU MY BUSY.

First WIP: Our bedroom. It's almost done. We just need to finish up with the trim paint, find some curtains and something for behind the door to hang up our jeans.

Not a great picture, I blame the morning sun.

Second WIP: My Craft/the Guest Room! You can't see it, but the walls closest to where I was still need paint. I finally got my workspace in place (i.e. two file cabinets and a countertop) and now I can start putting things away. I got my bookshelf in place and all my books on it, and there's still room to spare! Guess that means I need more books, right? You can also see the new ceiling fan that we invested in. Best. Decision. Ever. The upstairs is now about 20 degrees cooler than it was.

The paint color is called "Knitting Needle" :3

Third WIP: The Yard! We're actually not going to do much to it, being that the house is a rental, but all the petunias died that they had planted, and I've been admiring a bush that's scattered throughout the neighborhood, so I researched and bought me two! Behold! The Texas Sage. Needs little to no watering, and either full sun or partial. Best part, they stay green year round and bloom after it rains. Let's see if I can not kill it. Not pictured: the backyard. My husband just weedeated it, and it looks like a small tornado went through and hit it. The pumpkins are still thriving though!

Pretty positive I'm going to put another bush/plant where the green spot is.
Just haven't decided what yet.

Fourth WIP: My cross stitch. I'd say it's about 75% done. I've been working hard on this. I'm a little miffed, because I've run out of some of the main colors already, but that's okay. I'm going to finish what I have, then make a trip to Hobby Lobby/Michael's/JoAnn's/Walmart/Mom's to get some more floss. I'm proud to say I'm pretty sure I'll have this finished and framed by Halloween. :P

10x13 "Once upon a time, a princess was born"

We also went on Vacation about a week ago, to beautiful Orange County, California to visit family and meet our goddaughter. She is PRECIOUS. I'll have pictures of the trip a little later. Everyone had a great time.

Sew what?

2011-08-06T21:10:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Family Day at my husband's unit, and I got to do some pretty cool stuff. I rode around in a Stryker, play with night vision, play with big boy guns, and just had a pretty good time. I mean, how often do you get to do that stuff? There's a video of me somewhere playing with a 50 cal. I'll have to find it.

Other than that, I've been cross stitching my ass off. For the amount of work I've done, it doesn't look like I've done a lot!

Once again, I apologize for the cell phone shot. I found my camera, but now have misplaced my charger. Go me. Anywho, if you look at the yellow star, you'll see it looks a little funny. That's because it has sparkly filament thread mixed in with the yellow thread. Looks great, but what a pain in the ass. Anyone think I can finish this 10"x13" piece by Thursday?

Week Four: lol wut

2011-08-02T11:16:00.000-04:00

So, yesterday was supposed to be the day where I go "Thanks Beachbody! I look AWESOME." Whoops. Due to various things taking over my life, I haven't worked out for the past two weeks, basically, and so there's been no change. I feel I've kinda failed myself, but I'm not upset about it. I'm just going to try, try again.

On another note, the mailman was very kind to me yesterday. He blessed me with yarn, books, and a cross stitch piece, to which I ripped it out of the package and started working on it. It's a bit more massive than I thought, so I have to get goin' on it. This is what I got done yesterday:

Any guesses on what it might be? :D

So, if you need me for the next few weeks, this is what I'll be doing.

Super Secret Projects

2011-07-29T19:55:00.000-04:00

I realize that I've been quiet on the works in progress front lately. That doesn't mean I'm not working on any thing. As of right now, I have three projects in the works. One is a knitted Christmas present, another is a crocheted swap present, and the last is a sewn birthday present. So, I'm keeping busy with things, I just can't share them....yet. Well, I suppose I could share a teaser of one of them....

Though, I will share that I saw my first Black Widow spider last night. I still have no clue how my husband saw it in that dark corner in the garage. Apparently, he has super vision or something. It's dead now. We'll be calling pest control soon, because we can't have any of that.

How to Bathe Your Cat

2011-07-28T14:04:00.000-04:00

My cat, Winnie, has done nothing but lick and lick and lick since we've moved here. The internet says it's stress or allergies. Not wanting to get kitty stress drugs, I've decided to bathe her. I've bathed my cat possibly five times in her 6 year old life. Four out of those five times were when she was a kitten, and we were trying to get rid of fleas. Anywho, trying to allevate the sound of Winnie licking herself, I went down to the local pet store and picked up some shampoo with dry skin/allergies stuffs in it. Also, sulfate free! Moving along.

1. Locate cat and reasure her she's the prettiest most lovely-ist cat there is.


"Well, hello."

2. While your cat is still basking in your compliments and pets, run a shallow bath of lukewarm water, upstairs, so she won't know what's coming.

3. Search for your full bodied wet suit.

4. Cry when you realize that you left it at your parent's house.

5. Don an old t-shirt that you don't care about instead.

6. Gather unsuspeciting cat and pet her lovingly all the way upstairs into the bathroom.

7. Put cat on floor and close door quickly.

8. As you remove her collar, cat will let out a questioning meow. DON'T FALL FOR IT.

9. Quickly and gracefully, place cat into tub and slam shower doors.

10. Remember that you no longer have shower doors, so keep pushing cat back in tub.

11. Dump water all over cat, trying to keep her in, with her futile escape plans.

12. Chuckle as you massage cat shampoo all over the cat, because she just looks ridicilious.

13. Quickly rinse off cat, because she's becoming more slippery at each passing moment.

14. Take cat out of tub and throw a towel on her to help dry her off.

15. Leave cat alone in bathroom to sulk and lick herself dry.

"I just lost 10lbs thanks to a bath!"

16. Plan to reward cat with treats later, because she was a good kitty and didn't whine, and you didn't loose any body parts.

Day Twenty-One: Oh, right.

2011-07-25T10:39:00.000-04:00

Last week, I wasn't feeling my best so I wasn't able to do much exercise wise. I also didn't get around to blogging much, but this week is my last official week! I suppose I'll put a lot of effort into it, being that for the past two weeks I kinda slacked.

Original Results:

Height: 5'5"

Chest: 36"

R. Arm: 10 5/8"

L. Arm: 10"

Waist: 28 ½"

Hips: 36 ½"

R. Thigh: 20 ½"

L. Thigh: 21

Weight: 129

Body Fat: 25.7%

Week One's results:

Chest: 35 ½

R. Arm: 10 ½

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 28

Hips: 36

R. Thigh: 20 ½

L. Thigh: 20 ½

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 24.5%

Week Two's results:

Chest: 35 ½

R. Arm: 10

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 27 ½

Hips: 35

R. Thigh: 20

L. Thigh: 20

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 23.7%

Today's results:

Chest: 35

R. Arm: 10

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 27

Hips: 35

R. Thigh: 20

L. Thigh: 20

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 23.2%

Okay, so honestly, not much change, but I've not gained any weight, despite my epic junk eating last week. Little disappointed in myself, but that's why I'll just work my ass off this upcoming week and just continue until my pants fit properly again. :)

Day Fourteen: Whoops

2011-07-18T10:22:00.000-04:00

So, being that I only exercised three days out of six, due to a foot injury, I didn't really see much change. But, I'll post my results anyways:

Original Results:

Height: 5'5"

Chest: 36"

R. Arm: 10 5/8"

L. Arm: 10"

Waist: 28 ½"

Hips: 36 ½"

R. Thigh: 20 ½"

L. Thigh: 21

Weight: 129

Body Fat: 25.7%

Week One's results:

Chest: 35 ½

R. Arm: 10 ½

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 28

Hips: 36

R. Thigh: 20 ½

L. Thigh: 20 ½

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 24.5%

Today's results:

Chest: 35 ½

R. Arm: 10

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 27 ½

Hips: 35

R. Thigh: 20

L. Thigh: 20

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 23.7%

Results from last week: 0lbs, 3 inches

Over all: 5lbs, 5 inches.

I am pleased. ON TO WEEK THREE.

Tricksy pumpkins.

2011-07-16T12:37:00.000-04:00

Remember this post, when I thought I had a baby watermelon growing? Yeah. Turns out my very first guess was right. I don't have a watermelon patch, it's a pumpkin patch! I began growing suspicious, when that first watermelon turned round, and then started turning yellow. As I checked them this morning, the second pumpkin had doubled in size, and no longer looked like a watermelon. Oh yes. We have pumpkins.

Winnie is possessed by the sand.

The Great Pumpkin?

This is the original "watermelon." It's going to be a tiny pumpkin!

And just for good measure, these things in my shoe? Yeah, that's what was in my heel.

Barefootin'

2011-07-14T12:07:00.000-04:00

I have a confession to make. I haven't worked out in two days. Why? Not because I'm "not feeling it." But, I have a hole in the bottom of my heel. BACKSTORY:

So, I was weeding the watermelon patch the other day, and I came across a plant I've never seen. It was some sort of ground cover plant, and I didn't like it, because it looked too much like a weed, so I pulled it up. Thorns went EVERYWHERE. So, I tossed it to the side, and decided to let it die a slow death in the Texas sun. Monday, I went to go inspect my watermelons (three, yay!) and I made the mistake of walking out there, barefoot. I have been walking barefoot everywhere since I was about, oh, six. So, I'm used to it, gravel doesn't bother me, crunch leaves, etc. But, I stepped on about six of those thorn mofos, and it was all over. I pulled them out of my foot, and limped back to the house for further inspection. I was able to pull four of the splinters out of my foot, but I still had two lodged in my right heel. It HURT. I couldn't walk anywhere without limping, couldn't put pressure on it, it was annoying. When my husband got home, I stuck my foot in my face and said "IT HURRRRRRRRTS. GET IT OUT." (that's what she said?) So, my very sweet husband, got to work. He tried getting it with tweezers, and couldn't. Why? His words, "Your heel is nothing but a big callus." DAMN RIGHT IT IS. I worked HARD to get it that way, lol. So, basically, he had to clip through about half a centimeter of callus (didn't hurt) to pull the splinter out (that hurt) which turned out to be pretty long. So, he slapped some second skin on there, and I'm good to go. That was two days ago. I woke up this morning, and finally can put pressure on it. And so, I know the internet is all "PICS OR IT DIDN'T HAPPEN, I present to you, my heel hole.

Mmmm. Yeah.

Day Seven: Judgement Day

2011-07-11T11:13:00.000-04:00

Well, today's the day. The day I see if my results are worth continuing. I'd like to mention, that the Brazil Butt Lift dvds come with a diet that promises "Six inches, six pounds in six days!" I thought it sounded too good to be true, and so I flipped through some of the recipes. Some weren't bad, some made me laugh. I decided not to do it, and just cut fast food out of my life. Well, I caved. I had Subway one day, and then Arby's yesterday. *sigh* BUT ANYWAYS, you don't want to hear about that, you want to see if BBL is worth it. Here you go.

Original Results:

Height: 5'5"

Chest: 36"

R. Arm: 10 5/8"

L. Arm: 10"

Waist: 28 ½"

Hips: 36 ½"

R. Thigh: 20 ½"

L. Thigh: 21

Weight: 129

Body Fat: 25.7%

Today's results:

Chest: 35 ½

R. Arm: 10 ½

L. Arm: 10

Waist: 28

Hips: 36

R. Thigh: 20 ½

L. Thigh: 20 ½

Weight: 124

Body Fat: 24.5%

Results: 5lbs, 2in

Not quite 6lbs and 6inches, but any results is good enough for me. :)

I'll post my results again next Monday! Here goes another week!

Presenting: Kneads, Knits and Knothing!

2011-07-10T20:51:00.000-04:00

Over at Kneads, Knits and Knothing, you can find pure bliss, just like the title says, beautiful loaves of bread, amazing knitted wear and yarns, and of course, Knothing, which could be ANYTHING, but sometimes, Sundae, resident cat and photoshop subject.

WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!
I'm PJ, and most recently I've started blogging at Kneads, Knits, and Knothing where I like to show off new yarn, post bread recipes, talk about my latest travel escapades, post pictures of my cat, and other random things. I've also done the other "usual" things - gone to school, gotten married, gotten a job, stayed out of jail...I think I'm doing alright!

What are some of your favorite things to do?

I can be pretty indulgent when it comes to enjoying my free time, and I have a pretty good rotation of "favorite things" to keep me busy! On the more "normal" days when I just get home from work or I'm spending a quiet weekend, I'm very happy to fire up my bread machine, and sit down with my knitting, a glass of wine, and maybe the internet (which really cuts in to the knitting!). As the weather warms up, I'll end up taking it outside, possibly to the coastline or even the Laguna Seca - one of the best racetracks in the world in my back yard! Though on the longer weekends or breaks, I LOVE to travel. I especially love learning about historic sites and doing the "interesting" touristy things.

Please elaborate on your hobbies.

Knitting is the hobby that takes most of my time and money. I learned to knit after developing a passion for pretty yarn and discovering so many beautiful knit projects on Ravelry. I decided "I want to make pretty things too!" and here I am! Funny enough, my mom has done a lot of research in to our family history, and has discovered that the women in our family going back many generations have always excelled in needlework and even took work doing such outside the home. I guess you could say it's in my blood!

What style would you say you lean more towards?

I'm very casual, both in my attitude and my dress style, though I really LOVE wearing dresses and skirts. Summer is my favorite season for that reason, because it's so easy to look feminine and cute and comfortable! It doesn't make for good knit wearing, but I guess that's why we still get Winter. :)

What are your favorite things to bake?

Bread has exploded in to my life in the last 6 months, and ever since I started playing with sourdough starter I've gotten REALLY interested in how the process works and actually taking the dough out of the bread machine and getting a little fancier with it! Every time I bake another loaf I learn a little more, and it's exciting to watch the dough grow transform before your eyes! Also, I would prefer to eat a savory loaf of bread over a sweet cookie or cake almost any day, so while I enjoy baking sweet items from time to time, it's nice to bake something that I can enjoy almost daily!

Have you committed the act of defenestration?

Since I live in a one-story home, any item chucked out the window would just sit there and stare at me at eye level until I admitted defeat and brought it back in. I prefer the method of shoving things in to the bottom of my knitting bag and pretending it doesn't exist.

If so, what was the poor item?

For the sake of not leaving this question hanging, I WILL tell you that my husband once threw his best friend out the window in to a watermelon patch when they were kids. It arose out of the friend not sharing his Nintendo. 8 year old DH chucked him out, friend came back in through the front door crying (as you would), he and his mom went to confront DH, who was contentedly playing Nintendo. For the record, they are still best friends.

Why are man hole covers round?

I actually know this one! It's so they can't fall inwards. If it were square for example, you could turn the cover at an angle and lonk it down the widest part of the hole, the corner-to-corner way. With a circle, there's no part of the hole that is wider than any part of the cover.

Also correct: because the hole is also round.

What is your favorite accent?

I like tildes: ~

;)

I love listening to people speak that come from other regions and countries, and don't know that I can narrow it down to a favorite. I do like when people have in interesting combination of accents, for example if they're born in England but then move to the American Northeast when they're 8, and you can hear elements of both but can't nail down which one is dominant. I think that's a great example of how language and tone change all over the world, and how language evolves and takes on different elements of its surroundings.

What's the most ridiculous item you've spent money on?

When I was 18 I bought myself a pair of fashion glasses - the kind with the non-prescription glass in them. When my friends saw me they gave me compliments like "oh you look so cute in glasses - but I didn't know you needed to wear them!" After sheepishly explaining for the day that I did NOT, in fact, need to wear glasses, I put them away for good.

Being that you knit, have you ever stabbed yourself with the knitting needles?

Surprisingly, I have NOT stabbed myself with my knitting needles. Though one time I was winding a particularly evil skein of yarn, and after 90 minutes and some swear words and finally getting it in to a ball, I threw that ball against the wall as hard as I could and twisted my ankle. It's quite possibly the dumbest knitting-related injury ever.

Name one goal that you have at the moment.

I would love to knit a sweater. I've made sweaters before, but I tend to go long stretches between them and it's become a "big, intimidating project" in my eyes again. I have plenty of yarn with which to knit one, I just have to narrow down my pattern options, jump in and do it!

What's your weapon of choice?

I'm torn between Gunblade and Energy Sword. Because I am a giant nerd who likes sharp objects.

If you could banish one celebrity off the face of the earth, who would it be?

Kim Kardashian

Why?

What does she DO? How can you be so rich and successful without DOING ANYTHING?!

What is your most interesting scar?

I have a scar about one inch long on my left knee. When I was 15, I knelt across my bed to grab a book, and suddenly heard a sharp "POP". I thought "that was an odd sound", when I saw that my pants had been cut, and my knee had been sliced about an inch deep. It was so fast that I didn't feel pain until I saw it, and it didn't start bleeding until after that. I got stitches for the first time ever, and since I couldn't bend my knee with the huge bandage on I had to have my little brother tie my shoe for me. It doesn't look like too much now, but it does feel weird in different weather conditions!

Day Four and Five: I can MOVE.

2011-07-09T17:27:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, I forgot to update, just because I was so tired. I didn't feel like doing much, but I did as much as I could on the Cardio dvd again (Bum Bum, lol), painted the windows and a door, and flopped on the couch for the rest of the day.

Today, I'm not my best, so I didn't do both dvds like it said. I only did the Tummy Tuck, like it said, because I'd already did the previous one on Day Two. Plus, I still am a little tired. I got up this morning, finished touching up the paint and moved some furniture back into the bedroom. The only thing that's left now is for my husband to touch up the ceiling and the doors. But, I'm going to paint all the doors in the house at the same time. Moving along, I thought I'd show you guys what I work out on:

Yep. Foam mats. As you can see, our whole downstairs is tile. No cushion what so ever. That rug there, doesn't help much either. So, my knees thank me when I do my stuff on this. Each tile is a 2X2 block. Also great for blocking crocheted/knitted items. ;)

Tomorrow is the last day for the first week. I'm not as sore as I was the first two days, and that's normally a good sign. I'll post my week results on Monday.

Also, the mailman brought me some joy:

Oh yes. Three skeins of Malabrigo Twist in Pearl Ten and Six skeins of Dream in Color Groovy in Torchwood. Sadly, this is the last yarn I'll ever get unless I get a job. *pets gently*

Day Three: snore

2011-07-07T16:57:00.000-04:00

I decided to go ahead and rest on day three, mainly, because I couldn't walk properly up the stairs. And my clothes are upstairs. Along with my yarn. My thigh muscles are thanking me for the rest.

So, today, I went to go check out the new commissary on post, and it is HUGE. After I found my beloved Dale's marinade and some Woodchuck Summer Ale (tastes like blueberries!) I wandered over to the PX to see if they had any of the mascara I like. A guy hands me a ticket and says, "Free drawing in ten minutes!" Well, okay. Apparently, it's a drawing for three gold and Swarovski bracelets that have never been sold in the states before. What the hell. I'll try my luck. I wander over to where the drawing is, and everyone gathers, and he tells the folks to rip the ticket in half and dump them in a little container. And then he asks me to draw three tickets. I close my eyes and do my best. And then he hands me a gold dipped penny! He explains what it is and it was his token of appreciation for me being his assistant today. I'm thrilled. I mean, it's just a penny dipped in 14K gold or whatever, but I love pennies! I don't win the bracelets, but I'm more than pleased to receive my penny. I wander off happy. Maybe it'll bring me lots of luck?

After that, I came home and is doing as the Brazil Butt Lift guide suggested. Resting. I've decided to drag back out my knitting and work on it. My scarf is happily coming along. :)

Day Two: My buns are burning! My buns are burning!

2011-07-06T14:37:00.000-04:00

Day two, by far, was much easier than day one. It consisted of mainly floor exercises, that has caused my abs and my butt to FEEL THE BURN. Oy. I'm sore from yesterday, but the good kind of sore that lets you know it's working, not the "Hmmm...maybe I shouldn't be doing this" sore. I can move around just fine, but walking upstairs, is not a pleasing task. Crawling works just fine though. ;D I'm going to update about my progress every day this week, and then move it to weekly.
I highly doubt any of my measurements have changed, but, I have lost 1.7lbs as of yesterday. HA. I'm more interested in toning my jiggle than losing X amount of pounds.

...I'm having a weird bout of deja vu.

Moving along, over the holiday weekend, my husband and I bought us a charcoal grill, just because it's apparently un-American if you don't grill on the 4th of July. Right. So we made some burgers and dogs on the 4th and last night, I busted out the chicken and my new Penezy's Spices. I threw some Olive Oil on the chicken and put some Old World spice on it, and Brian grilled it. Then, I made the Penzey's Edmund's Up North Roasted Potatoes and some green beans. What a delicious supper! I highly recommend this recipe.

All you need are:
4 cups of Red Potatoes chunked (I used about 10 of 'em)
1 cup of Yellow Onion coursley chopped (I used about 1/4th of one)
2tbls of Northwood Seasoning (You can get it from Penezy's)
2tbls of Vegetable Oil (I used Olive Oil, because I didn't have any Veggie oil)

It takes about an hour to cook, but it's so worth it. It tasted like Rosemary potatoes with a kick. Not like hot sauce kick, but deliciousness. My husband ate all of his and kept stealing mine! Best part? They're only about 7g of fat. Delicious and low fat? Yes please. I forgot to take a picture before hand, so you get to see what was leftover. Still delicious, I promise.

Oh HELL yeah!

Day One: I think my heart is going to explode

2011-07-05T12:11:00.000-04:00

Let me start this post out with this: I am not fat. But, if I continue my ways, I will become fat. With that out of the way, my half naked body has not been seen on the internet since 2009, which is in a Facebook picture of me in a bikini, on a boat, looking pissed off because of the choppy waves. Moving along, I have made the decision to plaster myself on the internet once again. Why? Because, after 10 years of not doing any actual daily exercise, besides January when I did P90X for a month or so, I'm determined to get my ass back in shape. And I feel, by presenting myself to the internet, it will embarass me, and inspire me to get moving. Actually, just taking these pictures have inspired me, because how often does one look at one's back? Ick. Okay, here I am.

There I am, in my workout gear glory. I don't have any bikinis that fit, so this is what you get. Like I said, I'm not fat, I'm just getting there. I tried P90X back in January, and it was just too much for my out of shape self. So, I decided I really liked the Beachbody brand, so I started looking through what they had to offer. Insanity was out of the question. Then I thought about TurboFire, and just was meh about it. Then, I had my decision on the 10 minute trainer. I could do that. And then it caught my eye. Brazil Butt Lift. I laughed my ass off at the name, and it's purpose. Then, I watched one of the infomercials, read the reviews and decided, why the hell not? I, being super white, have the flat-ass curse. Plus, it was a 20-30 minute workout, has a good chunk of cardio in it, and the moves reminded me of stuff I used to do in dance. Plus, it had fun Latin music. And the deciding factor? My husband was real enthuastic about it. Well...okay. So I ordered it Wednesday of last week, and it arrived on Friday. Though, my husband had a four day weekend, so I refused to start in front of him. Bought the weights required, and one of those foam puzzle mats, because tile is no fun to work out on.

And here it is. Day One. I've chosen the "Lift and Shape" option. There's four you can choose from. "Classic" "Slim and Shape" and "Slim and Lift". Being that I don't really have an ass, I'm going for the lift and shape option. All of the programs are a month long, with a different plan for each week, with Sunday off. Sometimes, you'll get a day off in the week, but being that my husband is home on Saturdays, I might skip it, and continue through. We'll see, though. Anywho, today was Day One, which was the "Bum-Bum" workout. It's about 35 minutes long, and I thought my heart was going to explode 15 minutes into it. So, I skipped to the stretching at the end, and tried not to pass out on the floor. My husband told me never to just "stop" after a workout, so I picked up my mats, swept the floor, put away the dishes and then I collapsed on the couch. And here I am. I feel sore in my back and my thighs. Yes, already. It's been a while.

So, there's my confession. Make fun of me you want for choosing Brazil Butt Lift, but I'm determined to do this. I would appreciate any encouragement to help me keep on chugging.

And for good measure (lol) here are my measurements:

Height: 5'5"

Chest: 36"

R. Arm: 10 5/8"

L. Arm: 10"

Waist: 28 1/2"

Hips: 36 1/2"

R. Thigh: 20 1/2"

L. Thigh: 21

Weight: 129

Body Fat: 25.7%

Awww.

2011-07-04T21:56:00.000-04:00

I am pleased to announce that my husband and I are proud owners of a baby watermelon.

Come on, everyone. Let's say it together. Awwwwwww.

For a while, I thought it was a squash plant. Nope. We also have five miniature ones on the way. I was so excited, that I went and weeded our tiny garden. Only to get attacked by some prickly thornbush. BUT, it's gone now so yay!

Hope everyone has had a happy 4th of July!

Cheeseburger in Paradise

2011-07-03T17:10:00.000-04:00

I have been craving this on and off for about a year. I've been asking my mother for this recipe forever, but we're all so busy, we've forgotten about it. So, the other day, I went to one of my recipe sites and pieced together the Tater Tot casserole I vaguely remembered from my childhood. I attempted to make it slightly healthy, but you know how that goes.

Amber's Bacon Cheeseburger Tater Tot Casserole
Serves Four
Ingrediants:
1lb ground beef/turkey/venison (I used turkey for this time)
1 cup chopped onion
3 strips of bacon, cooked to your liking
1 can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
2 cups of your favorite cheese(s) (I used cheddar and American)
And about half a bag of frozen tater tots

Preheat your oven to 350°F
Chop up your onion and cook your bacon. Then, begin browning your meat. Throw your onions and bacon and there and mix well. While your meat is browning, line the bottom of your dish with tater tots and tell your cat to back the hell up, she gets none for attempting to eat paint chips earlier in the day.

After your meat has done browning, drain all the grease you possibly can, and smother that beautiful meaty mixture all over the tater tots.

I didn't pre-cook my bacon, I just chopped it up and threw it in with the turkey

After you smush it in there good, whip out your trusty can of Cream of Mushroom soup, and smother that on there real good, too.

Then, cover real well with cheese. I used about two cups.

Ooooh yeaaah

You have the option of topping it off with more tater tots, but I ran out of room, so I left it just as is.

Bake for 45 minutes.

And voila! There it is! Let it cool for about five minutes, or whenever you hear it stop bubbling.

Scoop it out and feel free to add whatever condiments you like. My husband and I find that ketchup works perfectly.

om nom nom nom

The UPS man brings joy

2011-06-28T16:47:00.000-04:00

Today, I have been stalking the UPS man. Winnie has been helping, too by staring out the window every time some vehicle that sounded like a UPS truck would pass by. Finally, my package I've been waiting for has arrived:

Oh yes. My first order ever of Penzey's Spices. I am so thrilled. I almost cried tears of joy when I opened the box and such a heavenly aroma wafted out and wowed my nose. I cannot wait to figure out what to make first. Winnie was thrilled with the box and the new smells. She deserves it for being such a good creeper cat.

Epic project is epic.

2011-06-27T22:08:00.001-04:00

I'd like to start this post off with saying: I hate painting. Walls, that is. I have painted more walls/houses than I care to remember. Seriously. I painted my childhood bedroom, twice, my brother's bedroom, my childhood bathroom, a couple of houses on different mission trips, my brother's new house, numerous baseboards and ceilings, and now, I've decided to paint our house. And it has textured walls. Yes, I am nuts.
But, let me show you why, I want to paint this house:

Yes, as you can see, EVERYTHING is ONE color. ONE. The ceilings, walls, doors, windows, baseboards, etc. etc. And it's this awful "desert sand" color, or whatever the hell the realtor called it. Also, it's a "warm" color, and I'm not fond of warm colors on walls for some reason. I like my colors cool. Not like, jazz playing, turtleneck wearing, poetry reciting, finger snaping cool, just...regular cool. So, I searched for the nearest Sherwin-Williams and stared at the paint colors for about an hour. And I came up with these:

I don't feel like rotating the picture.

If you can see, yes, they're all some sort of grey. Though, the color I'm most excited about is the craft/guest room. The paint color is called "Knitting Needle." lololol. I have no idea how long this WIP will take, but all I know is I'm going to take it one room at a time.

Not so calm cowl.

2011-06-26T13:25:00.000-04:00

I was given a skein of the most beautiful blue I've ever seen in my life for my birthday this year. Madelinetosh Tosh DK in Lapis. I almost cried when I got this skein of yarn, it was so amazing. I didn't know what to do with it. A couple of months later, when I went and explored Eat. Sleep. Knit. I found the MadTosh Vintage in Chamomile, and knew they had to be united, but how?
Being that I'm currently job free, I went stash shopping the other night, and stuck my hand in my stash and decided to crochet with the first thing I pulled out. It was the Chamomile! And so, I dug around for the Lapis, grabbed it, and went pattern hunting. I found the Calm Cowl, by seeing what other people had made with the Vintage, and I knew it was meant to be. So I got to work. It was a quick crochet, only took about four days. Probably would have taken less, but my wrist isn't allowing me to work a lot at a time. I love the results!

FO: Fatass Friday

2011-06-24T20:43:00.000-04:00

Okay, so a bunch of the bloggers that I follow do Finished Object Fridays, meaning they finished something yarn wise and want to show it off. My wrists have been bothering me lately, so I can only crochet for so long. So, instead of presenting you with a picture of yarny goodness (there is something in the works), I shall indulge you with COOKIES.

I originally started off with this recipe I found, but didn't want to do it that way because I'm a spechul snowflake. So, I changed it. Here's my version:

You Got Peanut Butter in my Chocolate! Cookies

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups peanut butter chips

Forget about preheating oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets. Ignore those instructions because you have a STONE.
Yell at butter to soften quicker. Forget about it until your husband comes home two hours later and questions your sanity on why there's a stick of butter on the counter.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Combine the cocoa, flour, and baking soda, gradually stir into the creamed mixture, while it explodes everywhere. Brush flour out of hair and off clothes. Finally, forget to fold in the peanut butter chips. Dump half the bag in the mixer while it's mixing instead. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets, using tiny ice cream scooper gadget. Lick beaters. Now remember to preheat the oven to 350F. Drag string around for cat to chase. Cat becomes unimpressed after 45 seconds. Spend the next 9:15 smacking the cat with the piece of string while on a sugar high.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffy but still soft. Stuff cookie in your mouth. Remember it needs to cool, while grabbing milk jug and start chugging desperately from. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Bring one over to your husband and shove it in his mouth while he's playing Madden.

You don't have to do it exactly like I did. Matter of fact, I don't recommend it. Also, the batter was super thick, reminded me of brownie batter and looked like chocolate ice cream, or according to my husband "that looks straight up like shit." So, to spare you from that image, I have not included any of the "before" pictures, but I will leave you with this plate of delicious cookies. Seriously, delicious. Next time, I'll dump the whole bag in there.

Husband approved.

Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts, for your pleasure.

2011-06-23T12:45:00.000-04:00

I'm such a slacker. I promised you interviews, and I've just been lazy. So, if you'll forgive me, without further ado, Vanessa from Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts!

Please state your name, blog, and the crime that you're here for.

Vanessa, Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts, and I'm being tried for crafting with out a license. But I'm innocent, I tells ya!

What are your hobbies and interests?
I like to knit, embroider, kick ass at kung-fu class, and I sometimes crochet. I've also recently got into building terrariums and I like to collect small plastic toys. I've also been learning how to work a sewing machine.

Proudest Finished Object.

What brought you to do these things? My mom taught me how to knit and crochet and my older sister taught me how to embroider. We're a crafty family and someone is always doing something. I took kung-fu
lessons from Sifu Vizzio (www.vizzio.com) and I was a student of his as a little girl. His studio was a few blocks from my house and my mom signed me up for classes because I hated the dance classes she made me
attend. I left after a few years because school work just got too much to handle and I found him again a year ago and he remembered me! I've always loved being a tough girl.

Which one are you most proud of? I'm proud of my handiwork because it's something that I've done on my own. My knitting skills have improved with the help of friends but ultimately, a lot of problems I've solved by simple research and trial and error. Also, it's great knowing that I made something with my own two hands. With kung-fu, there's a lot of pride in fighting for me. I was always picked on as a kid and later on I was in a controlling relationship so I've always felt weak. But when I'm in the ring, I'm not weak any more, I'm strong
and powerful. There's a similar sense of accomplishment in the two, actually.

That Darn Sweater

Which one are you least proud of? As far as FOs? My crocheted sweater!! The back and the front are two different lengths and widths! I have no idea how that happened.

What's currently in your fridge? Some chocolate milk, cheese and tortillas. We're going to be moving soon so our fridge is rather empty.

When looking for clothing, what are you typically drawn to? I like big, bright and bold colors. Geometric patterns are also nice. I've been really drawn to this new hipster look sometimes. Also, retro cuts
from the 50s (think mad men) tend to flatter my figure more.

Do you think you could take Chuck Norris on in an Ass Kicking Contest? Uh duh. My Sifu totally kicked his ass once anyway. Did youknow, Chuck Norris is a former Airman as was Bob Ross?

What colors would you say you're most drawn to? Blue! I own so many blue things and blue yarns it's not funny.

When the weather outside is frightful, what do you find delightful?

Hot chocolate made with milk not water. It needs to be rich and creamy and with tons of whipped cream. All of which make mesick since I'm lactose intolerant.

What would you do for a Klondike bar? Not a thing. I don't like Klondike bars.

First Crocheted Objects

What was your favorite song of the 90s? Just one? Hmmm...I think Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden sums up the 1990s for me. Or Machinehead by Bush. I was really into grunge in the 90s. I do a great Eddy Vedder impersonation. Actually, I ripped it off from Adam Sandler. EV is easy to impersonate anyway.

Do you have any pets? Yes, I have one very cute cat named Little Jerry Seinfeld. He's very silly and he's always getting in the way of things for me.

What is something new you'd like to try? I'd love to learn how to spin straw/wool into gold/yarn. I'd like to learn how to weave and glassworking. Metalsmithing is also pretty cool and I'd like to improve my jewelry making skills.

If we went yarn shopping together, how disastrous would it be?

Very. I can be an enabler sometimes. And I'd point out all the blue yarn going "isn't this a really cute color?" even though it's the same damn shade of sea blue every time. Also, I'd probably forget that you're allergic to alpaca.

Washington. Washington. Six foot twenty, killing for fun.

You recently survived cancer, is there anything you'd like to say on the experience?

It was really hard but I learned a lot about myself in the process. I don't mind talking about my story but for the love of mustard, if you meet someone going through cancer, do NOT tell them about someone you know that died from it. It happens to me all the time and it really blows my mind! I don't want to hear how lucky I am to be alive and that I can still have a recurrence and die. I really don't need to be reminded of this. Tell me about people you know that BEAT cancer, those are the stories I'm craving to hear. And don't tell me about a study you heard that links cancer to a certain food. It gets annoying and I really just want to enjoy my meal with out guilt.

Inspiration!

2011-06-06T18:20:00.000-04:00

I was going through and unpacking a little of my new craft/guest room and I opened my material box and POOF. I was inspired! I've been scowering through websites and stores for curtains that I like and that are reasonable (lol not possible) and I've only found one. So, I've decided to make my own.

When I get my sewing machine set up, I'll churn out some curtains. It's amazing what you can find in your own stash. Keep a look out! Hopefully I'll have them done within the month.

Baconolia!

2011-06-05T15:09:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to make these for a while now. Back when I worked at the library, I had some awesome coworkers. They were so awesome (how awesome were they?) that a good chunk of us got together and threw a Bacon Party. Yes. Everything that we ate that night had bacon in it. We had Turtle burgers, Bacon Explosion, and a few other things I can't remember. But the thing that stood out the most to me? The Chocolate Chip Bacon Cookies. Holy crap. I think I ate the majority of those. Why? Sweet + salty combinations are one of my favorite things to enjoy. Oh, they were so delicious. I asked my coworker for the recipe and she told me she got it online, surprisingly from NPR.
So, yesterday, when my husband discovered that I ate all of HIS cookies, I told him I was going to make him some today. And I did. Like 30 minutes ago.

BEHOLD: Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 18 thick and chewy cookies

5 strips bacon
1 cup, plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon, turning several times, until browned and done, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Chop finely.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla extract, and beat until just blended. Add the dry ingredients; beat until just incorporated and the flour is dissolved. Stir in the chocolate chips and bacon.

Drop one large tablespoon cookie dough 2 to 3 inches apart (as they will spread) on baking sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until firm and golden brown around the edges, and still slightly soft in the center. Transfer to a rack and cool for 15 minutes.

Can be stored on countertop for one to two days, then refrigerated in an airtight container.

Nom nom nom. For the original recipe and other bacon-friendly recopies, please visit the NPR site I yoinked this from.

I'm baaaack!

2011-06-03T14:02:00.000-04:00

So, after not quite a month's "hiatus" I am pleased to announce that I'm able to blog properly again! On May 28th, my husband, the cat and I piled into our Budget truck and hauled ass from Georgia to El Paso, TX. It took us two days! Longest. Trip. EVER. But, we now can say we've been from one end of I-20 to another. It took a day to go through Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. And then a whole day for Texas. Texas is a BIG STATE. I sadly didn't take as many pictures as I originally wanted to. Though, when we passed through Sweetwater, TX, I got to see something I've never seen before: Windmill Farms. I was practically plastered to the window just staring at these massive things. They're so cool!

El Paso is way different than anything I've ever lived in. I'm used to small towns with cows and bad drivers. El Paso is a medium city with slow drivers. We had to stay in a hotel, because we didn't find a house yet. The next day, we found one, called the realtor, looked at it, applied for it, and got it, all within five hours. I'm pleased to announce we are mostly moved in, and I love our house! There's very few things I don't like about it. 1. How close it is to the neighbors 2. The tiny, cramped master bath, 3. The terrible shape the carpet was in. But, those are all over looked easily.

I'm experiencing a lot of firsts here, and it's rather exciting. Brian keeps laughing at me. Whatever. I was most excited to arrive to the house and find a TUMBLEWEED. Yes. I have my very own tumbleweed trapped in my back yard. I don't know what to do with it. I don't want to throw it away, but I'm not sure if I want to keep it. It's rather shy. It likes hiding in corners.

We have grass in the backyard (which my husband was excited about) and rocks in the front yard. We have three trees, but they're tiny, and not helping. After looking at the ones in the back yard, I'm guessing they're some sort of fruit trees. One looks like an apple, and the other one is some sort of citrus. Guess I'll find out when they bloom, right?

I'm fascinated with Texas. I have to say the heat is way different than in Georgia, due to lack of humidity. I can walk out in 102 (F) degree heat and not even think twice about it. Though, it is really BRIGHT outside. That I'm having to get used to. I have to wear sunglasses every time I step outside or else I can't see. Hopefully, I'll have more updates about cool stuff I'm able to do. For instance, Cattleman's Steakhouse. Click the link. You won't regret it.

Enjoy.

Introducing: A Playful Day!

2011-05-18T11:29:00.000-04:00

I meant to post this yesterday, so I could have something every week for the month of May, but, because I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off, I forgot. I'm interviewing some of my dear friends, who's blogs I think you should check out, because they're AWESOME.

Today, I am"interviewing" my friend, Kate, who runs the A Playful Day blog and her awesome A Playful Day podcast!

What is your name? She who plays
What is your quest? To make the world a more playful and pleasant place, one game at a time.
What is your favorite color? Whatever colour I chose each day. I'm notoriously whimsical. It's usually intense though. I love the drama of a sunset or the blue of the Indian Ocean or the button on a child's vest.
What are your hobbies? Knitting, podcasting, photography, walking, reading, board games, fact finding and exploring.
And why is that? Because I made a vow after a rather miserable few years where I would live every day playfully as a life saturated in limiting yourself, self sabotage and unflexibility is no life at all. I believe that play is therapy for both children and adults alike.

How much wood can a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? A couple. A couple is the safe answer to everything e.g. "How many of these brussel sprout cookies do you want to try?" "Er, a couple?"
What is your favorite song genre? Probably old time rag bands, swing, soul. Things you can dance to and twirl your skirt. I am pretty into music generally. I love a lot of different genres. Picking one makes me feel mean.
What is your favorite style of dance? That kind of dance where you forget that anyone's looking. I used to perform until I bust my hip and I still crave ballet with every bone in my body. Except my hip bone.
How do you overcome the awful threat to your creativity, which is boredom? I stay curious and I dare myself to explore and play. Just the other day I felt boredom looming so I crept to where my man was working in the other room and 'hid' behind the door. Over the time period of about 5-10 minutes I crawled over the floor, dived behind the sofa and hid (unsuccessfully) behind a waste paper basket. Just because.

So, being that you're famous now and have a podcast, what are your favorite things about being a podcaster? Getting to talk to people and find out about them and getting everyone into a sort of community. The crafting community is a very special one and what I love more than anything is when you link two people up and it works so well that you know things are going to be brilliant for them.
Worst? Editing out 'ummmmms' and tech mishaps. I lost a weekend once trying to work out how to edit out the sound of my laptop.
Being that you reside in England, have you ever harassed the palace guards in funny hats? Yup and I did it in Prague too. I spent a while just staring at their uniforms and them standing so straight. I announced to my friend 'Man he's so upright he has no bum, mine doesn't do that' and tried. My friend caught a pic of him peaking at my bum. We laughed for ages when we saw as it was back in the day of processing film and we hadn't noticed at the time.
What inspires you? I work with children facing great adversity and I regularly tell them 'I wanna be just like you when I grow up'. The ability of any child to render any adult's problems to nothing with their innocent view on life is amazing, inspiring and empowering.
Why are keys so fascinating? Because you never know when you'll find their lock and where it might be. I always loved stories with secret doors and boxes. I still climb in big wardrobes to see if I go to Narnia. Seriously, if you have one and don't want your clothes thrown everywhere, don't show me.
If aliens landed in front of you and, in exchange for anything you desire, offered you any position on their planet, what would you want? Observer. I love playing and being involved but actually when others are enjoying themselves I tend to step back and just enjoy their enjoyment. You notice a lot about people from just watching. I'm endlessly nosey. Not in a gossipy way but more of that childish curiousity I always have.

What's one of your favorite childhood memories? Sitting on two buckets in my favourite bikini. I had this red folksy print bikini with ruffles that was NEVER on straight where I was always tearing around but I loved that thing. It was unusually girly but then I'm a girly tomboy. I had that on and was sat on an upturned bucket at the seaside with a smaller upturned bucket for me to put my feet on. I was devouring a nice drippy icecream and there was a lady bird on my leg. The sun was out and the sea was warm and the sand even warmer. My Dad and I built castles all day but chatting to that ladybird really tickled me pink.

Dudley rode a horse backwards first.

2011-05-13T13:01:00.001-04:00

About a month ago, I received an earburn in my Ravelry inbox, from Vanessa. She excitedly signed me up for a blog review of a new shawl pattern. I'd never done such a thing before, and needing some blog material, I agreed! A few weeks later, I received the pattern for the shawl. I was amused by it immedeatly. 1. It was called the Dudley Do Wright shawl by Anastasia Knits 2. It had triangles on it! Luckily, I had just received my KSD yarn in the mail, and being that it was the only worsted weight around (I'd already taken my yarn stash to Georgia) I caked them and began work on the shawl immediately.

Rows 1-16

I rate my crochet skill level as intermediate, and I found this shawl really simple and fun to work on! First off, I'd never made a worsted weight shawl, so I was pleased at how quickly it worked up. Of course, you can use any yarn weight you'd like, but I find the worsted looks best, though, I would make one again, in possibly DK.
I sat down and began work on it, and found myself enjoying the triangles appear as I went along. Rows 1-16 went by quite quickly, and took me about an hour to do. Rows 12-16 are repeats. After one set of them, I had the pattern memorized and could easily watch TV while doing them. I probably could have finished this project in a day, if it weren't for my tendinitis and having to pack a whole apartment. It took me about two days to complete, not including blocking time. Now, in one of Anastasia's pictures, she has her shawl blocked where it's what I call "super blocked" meaning, it appears super lacy. For some reason, I wasn't particularly fond of that. But, to each your own, right? So I gently blocked mine, after handwashing it with some Soak. Back at the apartment, I didn't have any of those fancy foam blocks, so I had to block it out on the carpet. It took two days to dry! I guess I've been spoiled by using mainly only fingering for my shawls? But once I got it blocked, I was pleased with the results. I mean, just look at it!

I am tremendously pleased with the results. This shawl was not overly complicated, quick, and fun to do! I gave it to my grandmother for Mother's Day/super late Christmas present, and she loves it. Now, this shawl does come with a pretty decorative border, but I ran out of yarn, so I was only able to SC along the edges to give it a clean finished look to it. I'd recommend this to anyone!

The designer has offered 25% off her pattern for those that are interested! You can buy it off her website Anastasia Knits and enter the coupon code amberghini. This coupon code is only good from today until May 20th, so get crackin'!

STFU Already!

2011-05-07T18:50:00.000-04:00

I arrived to my parent's house last night about 10pm. I was so tired, I basically stumbled into the house, on the couch, then down the stairs, into my bed. While, completely forgetting the whole time about the cicadas.

Oh yes. The Magicicada is a thirteen year cicada, meaning that they only are annoying every thirteen years. The last time they were out, was 1998, and I was in middle school. I remember the boys pulling down the tree branches at lunch, and letting them go, flinging cicadas everywhere, making all the girls scream. I laughed. Anywho, these noisy bugs can make their annoying noise up to 100 dB, which is about as loud as a lawn mower passing three feet away. And they make this noise as soon as the sun comes up, until it goes down. In other words, if you live in the woods, like my parents, you're pretty much having to repeat yourself if you go outside.

These annoying bugs live about a month. Basically, they come out of the ground, which they've been hibernating in for about thirteen years, come out, mate, lay eggs, then die. The eggs mature for about six to ten weeks, where they drop to the ground, bury into the ground, and the cycle starts all over again. Hmph.

For more educated sounding information, or when these bugs might be attacking you, please check out the Wiki page I ganked my information from.

My Old Kentucky Home

2011-05-05T07:31:00.000-04:00

Weekly Tank Parade

Today is my last [full] day here at Fort Knox. For the past six months, it's been an amazing experience. What? Living on post while your husband goes to school and you're bored as hell is an amazing experience? Well, yes! This was my first time ever being an "official Army Wife" and living with my husband. We got married in May of last year, and due to the economy, I stayed with my parents and kept my job. He was a Gold Bar Recruiter at Georgia Tech, and so we decided the two hour commute to each other wasn't that bad. We kept it up for six months, before Brian moved to Fort Knox for ABOLC. I originally wasn't going to move to Fort Knox with him, because we were going to go to South Korea for our first assignment. Then Kim Jong Crazy Person decided to blow up a chunk of South Korea, and various other stuff, and then I wasn't going to Korea anymore. So, I decided to move to Kentucky, so I could enjoy actually spending some time with my husband. And I have been, since after Thanksgiving of last year.

Brian demonstrates proper
Mud Puddle Jumping

Living on post was a completely different world for me. I was threatened to drive under the speed limit, something that is hard for me to do. I learned that being nice and friendly moves you from a tiny hotel room, to the biggest apartment with a tiny shower and slow internet. Bugle calls happen at least 10 times a day. I found out that tanks are loud and are pretty frickin cool. I discovered that you should tip the bagger at the commissary, or you look like a bitch. People come and go, and all the spouses are just as lonely as you are.
It actually was not horrible, as some spouses have described it as. I made it through ABOLC just fine. Then, ARC came along, and it sucked. I won't lie, ARC, while it's only a month long, has sucked the most. Brian was selected to be Class Leader and because of that, I saw him even less, and he was even more pissed off than usual. But, we got through it. Brian graduates ARC today, signifying a job well done.

After ABOLC graduation

Now, shouldn't I be all sad because my husband's going to Korea and leaving me? Nope. He traded orders with someone, and now we'll be moving to Fort Bliss, in El Paso, TX here within the month.
And with that, for the month of May, I'll be interviewing some friends, so you can see why I think they're awesome. Mainly, so you'll forgive me for packing and moving across country, with a husband, a cat and me, in a UHaul, instead of updating my blog.
Until then, I'm going to go pack.

Cleaning out the fridge.

2011-05-02T12:59:00.000-04:00

With moving, comes one fun task that most people forget about: Cleaning out the fridge. The only "cold" thing I've bought in the past two weeks has been milk and a frozen pizza. My mission has been to clean out the fridge. So, the other night, I ran out of ice cream, and I wanted something for dessert. I stared in the fridge for about two minutes, when I spied a forgotten tub of Cool Whip lingering in the back. My first thought was just to dig in and enjoy, but I decided that I wanted something with a bit more substance. I pondered for a few moments and then it dawned on me, BROWNIES. But wait, I've already packed my brownie pan! Crap. I thought a bit more, and as I panned around the kitchen, I saw it. Muffin tins. Perfect. I'd like to say that I made brownies from scratch, but I needed them RIGHT THEN. So, I pulled out my "snack size" box of brownie mix, threw in the eggs, oil, etc and poured it, creating six brownie cakes. Nom. While baking, I cleaned out the fridge of the stuff that had already been freezer burned or past the expiration date. Ding! Done. Pulled 'em out, let them cool for all of 30 seconds before dumping half a tub of Cool Whip on each brownie cake. All I have to say? Best. Idea. EVER.

Perfection.

Indiana Fiber and Music Festival

2011-05-01T14:30:00.000-04:00

Well, yesterday was the Indiana Fiber and Music Festival, and being that it was only an hour away, I went! I took a fellow Army wife and her daughter for support, and the fact that I didn't want to go by myself. We loaded up about 9:30 and headed on over. It was at the 4-H Fairgrounds and didn't look very big. We got there and were greeted by some people, who pointed out where to park. Got out of the car, and wandered over to a table and the nice people there pointed out the three buildings of stuff. Awesome.

Obey the sign.

The first building had the most "stuff." There were all sorts of fibery crafts in there! I picked up some handmade greeting cards from a really awesome lady. I can't show them to you, sadly, because they're for friends. After that I saw Luna, our LYS owner and her booth, Blueball Mountain Spindle and Needleworks, and I was just overwhelmed with everything that was crammed in that small building! There was mainly fiber and whatnot, but there was the occasional booth filled with yarn and things that I could use. I also got to see an "old fashioned" knitting machine demonstration. I want one! Moving between buildings, we spotted a funnel cake stand, and of course, had to indulge. So delicious. After that, we spotted Llamas and Alpacas! The daughter was so excited, she headed right to them. She was allowed to pet them, and even lead an Alpaca around a course! It was pretty cool, and she really enjoyed it.

"Does yarn make you happy?"

Moving on to the next building, was a smaller more barn like structure, that had even more fibery goodness in there, including a beautiful blue skien of yarn that I picked up from Happy Fuzzy Yarn. It's delicious. Also in the barn were the angora bunnies! Sadly, I didn't see anyone picking the fur straight off them and spinning it. But, they were beautiful and on sale for $50! If only I were a spinner...
The last building sadly wasn't that full, but it still held some neat stuff. I believe it's where the classes were going to be held. Overall, I had a great time, and if I were in the area, I'd go back again! But sadly, my days are numbered here in Kentucky, and I must move on to greener pastures.

Perfect.

2011-04-28T11:16:00.001-04:00

Today, it is sunny. I haven't seen the sun since I left Georgia. It's beautiful, and I don't care if it's 52°F outside, it's amazing! I'm tired of going to bed wondering if I'm going to drown or get blown away by a tornado.

Anywho, I got a small bit of sunshine in the mail! My Kitchen Sink Dyeworks that I ordered from Stitches South arrived! It's delicious. I couldn't remember for the life of me what it looked like, and now that I see it, I know why I loved it. Have a looksee.

And just because, look how cute it was bundled!

You don't eff with tradition.

2011-04-24T22:46:00.000-04:00

In my family, as long as I can remember, we've had the crocheted topped towels danging from a drawer beside the sink. Since I started crocheting again, back in 2006, I've been slowly collecting my own collection of towels. I didn't know when I was getting married, so I didn't work on them. Now, that I'm married, I can start creating them! I churned out four of them yesterday, two for me and two for Mom, mainly, because Mom doesn't have any Easter ones. I'm pretty proud of them.

Don't mind the footboard railing there.

I think they're cute and cheery! I'm pretty proud of them, being that I haven't created any in a while. Also, a small note, this was the first thing I crocheted on. Mom was making one one day, and I asked her how she was doing it, she showed me, and let me finish it. I was hooked. (lololol. Pun intended) So, it's kinda a tradition in both ways. Being that all my family has them, and it's my first project. I mean, who'd let such cute towels go to waste?

Like a fat kid loves cake.

2011-04-22T17:05:00.002-04:00

So, yesterday, I went to the big city of Atlanta to go look at a car that my husband's interested in. I took my friend Alicia with me, because 1. She knows the area better than I do and 2. I don't like roaming around Atlanta by myself. Well, honestly, it wasn't Atlanta, it was Norcross, but to us small town folk, anything above Conyers is Atlanta.

After my Garmin routed me through the ghetto, I finally got to Alicia's house. We started off with some lunch, my bribe to get her to come with me. We found The Flying Biscuit Cafe, which is a cute little cafe, that's spreading through out Georgia and North Carolina. I'd seen it a couple of years ago, while doing something with my husband. And then I somehow got the cookbook. Since then, I've wanted to try it. I thoroughly enjoyed my fried egg sammich and rosemary potatoes. If you ever see one, they're worth a try!

I figured, since I was in the area, I might as well stop by Eat. Sleep. Knit.'s headquarters. Best. Idea. EVER. I walked in, and a chime rang out, sending a very nice girl my way, welcoming me, and explaining how everything was set up. First stop to my right, was a room full of MadTosh. Alicia's not a crocheter or a knitter; her medium is glass. Therefore, she could appreciate the colors and wasn't too bored. Or so she said. Anywho, after drooling over a room full of MadTosh and only selecting one, that I hoped would match a skein that PJ and Kate got me for my birthday, I moved along. (While it does match, it's two completely different weights. Damn.) I past by bottles of Soak, a bunch of mannequins just hanging about, and then I moved into the next room, where there were Knit Pick needles, Lorna's Laces, and a wall full of alpaca yarn, to which I avoided, and various other goodies laying about. Didn't see anything I needed, I moved to one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen, the warehouse. The warehouse was FULL of yarn. Shelves and shelves of the stuff, just waiting for me to fondle and oogle at. Two rows FULL of Malabrigo in all weights and colors, Blue Sky Alpacas, Dream in Color, Squoosh, Sweet Georgia, more needles, etc etc. I feel to my knees and called out praises to the yarn gods. It was a beautiful sight. Alicia just shook her head and helped my short self reach high yarns and helped point out pretty colors. Such as this beautiful Dream in Color, Everlasting in Tart. I won't lie, I kind of bought it for the name, too. Everlasting Tart. Bahahaha. I almost got a Dream in Color Starry, which I've been drooling over for a while, but I would have been over my limit that I set, so I put it back, now knowing what it looks and feels like, and will purchase at a later date. I promised it that I would. After spending 30 glorious minutes in there, I took my two beautiful new yarns and proudly took them to the checkout and marched out with my new loves in a bag, while thanking the very kind staff profusely. I'm sure Alicia thinks I'm nuts after that trip, but I think she understands what it's like to be passionate about your talents. I mean, after all, who volunteers to take pictures of me acting like a looney in a warehouse full of yarn?

That is my dream shopping basket full of Malabrigo.

Ta-dah!

2011-04-21T10:10:00.000-04:00

Remember this teaser post? Well, I finished last night! So I can reveal it to the world now!

Behold! This is the Tendrillon Shrug from Addydae Designs It can be adapted to any shape and size! All you have to do is a little measuring and a little math. Well, I didn't do the math. PJ did. She's brilliant at it. I can balance my checkbook, convert fractions and that's about it. Moving along, this is a great pattern. It consists of single crochets, double crochets and back and front post double crochets. Fairly simple. The stitch definition on it is fantastic! It has great texture. This yarn (which I am not fond of) created a very soft, squishy feel to it. It's also stretchy, but returns to it's original state.

Changes to pattern? Well, I single crocheted around it three times, instead of the suggested two for adults. I also didn't comprehend what it wanted me to do after I sewed it together, so I just single crocheted around the body opening until I ran out of yarn. I like it better. Helps it fit better, too.

I also added some "decorative design" to the single crochets around the body.

Racing stripes?

I felt it needed a little something to help all the single crochets.

Regrets? Yeah. I think I could have made the sleeves a bit shorter, and should have added a tighter stitch around the arm cuffs. That can always be fixed, though.

Overall, I love it, and I'm very proud of it! What I want to do now, is to crochet it again, but this time, create a throw pillow out of it. No idea why, but that's what this screams to me.

LIKE A BOSS.

2011-04-19T18:20:00.000-04:00

Today, I have been fully taking advantage of not having shared wifi with 100 other people. I've been using Netflix Instant. I have enjoyed today
-Bill Burr: Let It Go
-Whitney Cummings: Money Shot
-Jo Koy: Don't Make Him Angry
-Daniel Tosh: Completely Serious

Yes. All stand up. I loves it. While I was watching the above said stand up, I decided to get off my ass and try knitting again. This time with bigger needles and less annoying yarn. I whipped out my 10mm (US 15) and The Spun Monkey: Monkey Spun, which is 102 yards of handspun wooly yummyness. I tried doing a row of knit stitch, then a row of purling, but I really, really suck at purling. Even after the really nice lady at Bijou Basin showed me what I was doing wrong. So, after ripping everything apart approximetly 15 times, I gave up and just started doing the knit stitch. After ripping that out at least four times, I finally got something going. Behold! All four inches I have knit today:


Check that miracle out.

Oooh. Ahhh.


I don't even know what happened here with the bottom, I gave up after the 20th try.

And there you have it. My first halfway successful attempt at knitting. It's not perfect, but I'm proud. Perhaps I'll actually finish this soon to be scarf?

Monday, Monday. Can't trust that day.

2011-04-18T21:21:00.002-04:00

Being that I have access to things I normally don't have access to this week, I'm taking full on advantage of it. 1. A sewing machine and 2. An awesome oven and supplies.

Now, being that I have these things, doesn't mean any good will come of it. Well, Half Good. Or Half Fails. Whichever you prefer.

My first attempt of the day was sewing. Since Vanessa interviewed me over on her blog, Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts, I've had an itch to sew something. I couldn't figure out what, though. So I started digging through my cedar chest, which is FULL of fabric, and I came out with three choices: a black Hawaiian print, a preppy green and white stripe, and flannel donut fabric. Guess which one I chose? The donut fabric. Duh. I've had this fabric since 2006. I love it, and I was determined to make pajama pants out of it. Little do most know, but any sort of bottom that involves a crotch and legs is my mortal enemy. I was feeling confident today, so I decided to tackle shorts. I googled something like "pajama shorts pattern" and came up with this. Well, AFTER I printed out the pattern, cut that out, then cut the fabric out, I failed to realize that I didn't have the directions. Crap. So, I attempted to do it myself. Which ended up in the Fail of the Month. I'm quite embarrassed by them, that all I've decided to show you of them is this picture:

You can kind of see the crotch fail in the bottom right hand corner, but I'm not going any further. The color's terrible, because the green's actually a more pleasant color. Why is this a Half Fail? Because, I can rip out the stitches and try again. No worries, for I have found a better tutorial.

My next Half Fail was a pre-Easter food trial. Which, I will always test my recipes before serving them to others after an epic fail earlier in my life. I've been watching cooking shows more recently lately, and I've noticed lavender being put in things. I was intrigued. So, I bought an 1/8th pound of culinary lavender (very important) and it arrived today! After the Half Fail with the shorts, I figured I'd try again with cookies. Everything was going smoothly. I had all the ingredients, I knew how to do everything, a simple cookie really. It told me it was a drop cookie, and just to plop teaspoon fulls onto my cookie sheet. I used a Pampered Chef "ice cream scooper" in the smallest size, and stuck them in the oven. 15 minutes later, I pulled them out, and was mildly confused. They were still in the shape of the scoop! I don't know why, but whatever. I let them cool for a few minutes and then I tried one. Not bad. They taste like they're missing something. Honestly, I think they're meant for tea, and if you love having tea and cookies, you'd enjoy this. Mom said it tastes like she was eating her lotion. I thought it taste just fine. Kinda a fragrant taste. Nonetheless, I'm on the search again for a new Easter desert.

Try, try again. Tomorrow.

My name is Amber, and I'm addicted to Stitches South.

2011-04-17T13:44:00.000-04:00

It was a dark and stormy night, Friday. As Mom and I were glued to the 52" flat screen TV in our swanky Hyatt Place hotel room ($67 a night? Yes, please.) we watched the Weather Channel (which was interestingly enough, about five miles away) tell us that we were under a tornado warning. THEN THE POWER WENT OUT. For like two minutes. I was mad that the Chuck E. Cheese's across the street had power and we didn't. Then, the power came back on! YAY. We weren't going to die! lol, just kidding. The tornado sirens started going off. Awesome. Mom and I grabbed our valuables, and headed down to the lobby. The lights were flickering, the bar was busy, people were everywhere. Thankfully, the sirens stopped, and about 10pm, Mom and I deemed the weather safe and went back upstairs. We prepared ourselves for bed and crashed. Only to be woken up by another tornado siren at 2am. I'm pleased to announce that we made it through the night, with no tornadoes. Only severe weather and winds up to 55mph.

Despite our interesting stay that night, Saturday, we were bright eyed and bushy tailed the next morning. Well, after I had ingested some breakfast, and Mom had her coffee. Why? Because we were headed to Stitches South! We got there a little after the doors opened, and we wandered in. Simply a sight to see. My eyes welled up with tears, as I completely ignored my "Plan of Attack" map I had created, and just started wandering down the aisles. I was overwhelmed and overjoyed. So much so, I COMPLETELY forgot to take pictures. Way to go. So, you'll get a wordy post, with pictures of what I got.

First stop, we stopped at a button booth. Actually, the aisle seemed like it was where all the buttons were located. Being that I have enough buttons to last me a century, I was very picky. I did come out with two cute ones, though! A sheep and a pair of scissors. I wouldn't really call the scissors a button, but more of an embellishment.

After spending quite a bit of time drooling over all the buttons, toggles, clasps, and what not, I hit my first major "point of interest", Kitchen Sink Dyeworks. KSD has fabulous color choices! I was so giddy, I couldn't stand it. After mulling it over, I picked up two skeins of blue faced lace in Peabody, and ordered some custom dyed worsted. I, for the life of me, can't remember the color I picked out, but damnit, when it arrives, I'll gladly show it off.

After KSD, I found the Halos of Hope booth, and got lots of information. I'm excited to have a place to mail some hats to! They were also giving out free hat patterns, so I snagged a few so I have something different to make.

Being lazy and not wanting to unbag it.

After that, I about tripped over Woolstock Yarn Shop, who always has the giant bin of sweater quantity yarn that I want to go swimming in. I had four different bags, and then realized that I was only on the second aisle, so I picked out one, Ella Rae Bamboo Silk in a beautiful green, and moved on my merry way.

I passed books, notions, WEBS, and ladies demonstrating spinning wheels (one day, damn you!) and all sorts of wonderful things. But I had a budget and a plan. I kinda stuck to my plan after the Woolstock stop, and only visited booths that I had written down. Like Lisa Souza. Holy Crap. Kate had informed me about Lisa Souza, but I was not prepared for the awesomeness that is Lisa Souza. Lisa Souza PERSONALLY helped me pick out yarn. I explained what I was looking for, how it was going to be used, and that I was allergic to alpaca and goats. I came out of that booth with one of my favorite yarns. It's the white one that looks like Funfetti cake. I will personally cut off your hand if you think about taking it from me. The other one is a beautiful silky feeling lace weight in the color of Sourball. Mom also hit the jack pot at this booth and picked up four skiens of Lisa Souza's new yarn, which is 85% Polworth Wool and 15% Silk Tussah. Beautiful. You can find mom on Ravelry as MarshaTM. She's never really on there, but you can at least view her stash, when I get it uploaded.

The next stop was Sanguine Gryphon, which always has an amazing display, yarns, and costumes. I'm always in awe of their costumes. Sadly, I did not find anything I needed, so I rounded the corner. And there was Dragonfly Fibers. One of the places PJ requested yarn from. After much deliberation, texting and help from the Dragonfly Fiber's owner's mother, who was very sweet and patient, I picked out Dragon Sock in Firecracker for PJ. I also scored and got two skiens of Dragon Sock in Winter Woods. Beautiful. It's delicious and I can't wait to see what it looks like "knitted" up. Even though it'll be crochet. Whatever.

After that, I wandered down and found MacKintosh Yarns, which I met and talked to the dyer and her mother for about an hour. Turns out she's my age! She was very awesome and helpful, and I got two great skiens of lace and one sock yarn for a future pair of socks for Brian. She said that particular base is great for Man Socks, because it's very durable, yet comfortable. I picked out the manliest color I could find and went with that. Those two skeins of lace? $24 a piece with 950 yards. I find that quite reasonable!

From the MacKintosh booth, I spied Bijou Basin, and made a bee line for it. After recently using their yarn to create my first "sweater", I was determined to get more, mainly because it comes in colors now! Also, I wanted to see if they had one of their new crochet patterns displayed, and they did! I really want to make this pattern: Wrap Front Shrug. It's even more amazing in person. I was talking to one of the ladies at the "yarn tasting" table, which was basically all their yarns available to try, and it turns out, she was the person who took the pictures of the model in that wrap! I told her that I was first attracted to it, because the girl looked like she was having an amazing time. Then she told me a secret. She told the model a really dirty joke. I couldn't have been more proud. Just for that, I'm going to buy the pattern soon. After "tasting" the yarn, and laughing at the knitters not really knowing how to crochet, the lady explained that she was a "crocheter who knits." I liked that. I explained to her that I was trying to knit, but the purl stitch was kicking my butt. THEN, she very sweetly SHOWED me what I was doing "wrong." It was how I was holding my yarn. Oh, well, duh. It clicked and I'm going to try knitting again, soon. I picked out some Bijou Spun, because I loved the way it squished. I also had a 15% off coupon, AND they had show prices, so I feel I got a great deal.

I went to Miss Babs last, mainly because I knew I could get what I wanted online, if she sold out at the show. I drooled over colorways and decided just to get one skein. I'd been drooling over PJ's skein for months, and decided that'd I'd go outside my "color comfort level" and grab this beautiful skein of Squash Blossom. Yellow looks awful on me, but this particular color is just an amazing golden yellow, that even if it doesn't become something that goes around my face, it'll be fantastic as a pair of socks. Or just to put on the shelf to display. Either way, it's delicious.

After spending three and a half hours wandering around and just drooling over everything, we realized we were hungry. So we bid adieu to Stitches South, and vowed to save up even more money for next year's. I would like to say that it wasn't very crowded at all, though at time, in some booths, you'd get a claustrophobic feeling. Today's the last day, and I'm sad I'm not there, going back over and seeing if there's anything I missed. Nope. My mission was accomplished. Stock up on things that weren't readily accessible and find birthday gifts. Oh, yes. There's even more yarn I got that I can't show you. Guess you'll just have to wait.

Bow chicka bow bow

2011-04-13T11:26:00.002-04:00

Since it seems that I know some dirty enablers, (I'm looking at you Darcy and Karen!!) I started another small project. Just to give me a rush and hopefully finish a project before Stitches. And because they're dirty enablers, all you're getting is a teaser.

Whatever can it be?

Ooh! SHINY.

2011-04-12T15:20:00.000-04:00

I'm having mad Project ADD. I get about 75% done with a project, and then I get all twitchy to start something new. I have four started, here with me. I'm trying to finish before I move. I'm trying to be good this year and finish all my unloved unfinished objects, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen.

Is there a cure for this? Has anyone ever found hope after you've started 49874839 new things?

Teaser post.

2011-04-08T18:27:00.001-04:00

Whatever shall it be?

You'll just have to wait and see!

I mean, I've gotta have something to do to keep my mind off of Congress failing to pass a budget.

Last Yesterday

What's in the box?!

Two thumbs down, or how I'm not dead yet, I don't know.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Adventure to the Quilt show!

Home again, home again.

Oy, my back.

The Pods have landed

Excitement all around!

I'm so much more awesome now.

Book love.

Pinterest strikes again.

Slacker.

Mass-postage.

New cross-stitch!

Happy 2012!

I like breakfast for dinner.

Needs more presents.

Reese's Thins

Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup

Just buy the Cool Whip.

Snow?!

Finished Presents

FINALLY.

macncheez

NOW Christmas can begin.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Pre-Thanksgiving planning.

Beef Stew Bowls

I DID IT.

Thankya, Jesus.

Oops.

Happy Halloween!

A sign?

Pumpkin Cinnamon Chip cookies!

And I would do anything for love...

Sock Bun Curls!

Fail of the Century.

Noms and Fails

My goddaughter is cuter than your goddaughter.

RIIIIBS.

Cross stitch update

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Dinner from Pinterest

Thief!

Finally!

Serger curtains!

It's about time!

*sad trombone*

It's that time of the year...

Cowboy Beans!

Spicy!

Kitten-face.

LOOK AT IT omg. LOOK AT IT.

Holy Crap.

It's pronouced "Lah-zag-nuh."

Sorry, Mom.

o hai thar...

Sew what?

Week Four: lol wut

Super Secret Projects

How to Bathe Your Cat

Day Twenty-One: Oh, right.

Day Fourteen: Whoops

Tricksy pumpkins.

Barefootin'

Day Seven: Judgement Day

Presenting: Kneads, Knits and Knothing!

Day Four and Five: I can MOVE.

Day Three: *snore*

Day Two: My buns are burning! My buns are burning!

Day One: I think my heart is going to explode

Awww.

Cheeseburger in Paradise

The UPS man brings joy

Epic project is epic.

Not so calm cowl.

FO: Fatass Friday

Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts, for your pleasure.

Inspiration!

sad trombone

Day Three: snore