Friday, May 15, 2009

Is it hot in here?


This is Ollie Otter. He is one of the mascots for Tennessee's seatbelt education that is done in schools. Isn't he a cutie?!? It's ME! But don't tell my kids! And the suit is REALLY padded...that part is NOT me!


This is Ollie during the start of the program.


This is Ollie with one of our special students that wears her seatbelt everyday!



And this is Ollie being mobbed by the kids after the program. Rock star groupies have NOTHING on these kids. See the ones on the bleachers running down them to get to Ollie?

Friday, May 8, 2009

What was that noise???????

As I'm sitting here, I am pondering the noises I'm hearing. It's sort of a very soft hummmmmm. Every once in a while I hear a drop from the coffee maker plop into the coffee pot. There is a bird chirping outside. Oh, the dog just sighed. Man...who knew that there were so many quiet noises when there are not 2 children around! This is GREAT! See, I took a day off. Being a nurse for many years, I had gotten into the abysmal habit of NOT taking days off. But I now get 2 personal days off to use each school year. So I took one today. I was supposed to be going to the zoo (chaperoning little animals while they look at little animals) but alas, it is/was raining so the trip has been rescheduled. Darn. So I get to sit here, update my blog, drink my coffee in peace and quiet, and enjoy. I told hubby that I was going to "piddle" today. I might do some laundry. I might do some embroidery (actually, I should do some embroidery as I have another commission to do next week and would prefer for the jobs not to stack up). I WILL do some knitting. I'll probably watch a movie (Johnny of course!). But I am going to soak up the peace and quiet while I can. And have another cup of coffee while I'm at it.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Like Father, Like Daughter.....

There are moments in life where all a parent can do is laugh. We, as a family, have a tendency to go through microwaves about every 2-3 years. Well, the one we got 2 years ago has now died. You can turn it on, but it doesn't heat anything. My guess is that they don't like having rice cooked in them on an almost daily basis. All that steam and what not. Anywhoo.....It died. Hubby is planning on taking it apart and trying to fix it. (In other words, I have time to research which one I want to get at the store!). Now, it died the other night (Tuesday...after the rice got done cooking!) and we have tried heating various things in it with no success. Today, Mini-Me2 wanted to heat up some french fries. She put them in, hit the time, and hit start. When it beeped and she opened the container, what did this perfect litte sweetheart utter??????

"WHEN IS THIS DAMN THING GOING TO WORK?!?!?!?!?!"

I had just taken a sip of Coke Zero, and let me tell you this....it takes extreme concentration and control to not blow Coke out your nose, nor to inhale it and choke. It does make your eyes water to do this, but so did the diaphragm spasms from trying not to laugh after I actually swallowed the Coke. Now, being a "good" Mommy, I had some choices to make fairly quickly...1) Chastise her for her improper language usage, 2) Crack up and make her think it is OK for a little girl to talk like this, 3) Find out where she heard it or 4) Exit the room carefully and laugh myself silly in private. I chose options 3 & 4.

"Honey, what did you say?"

"When is this thing going to work?"

"Is that all you said?"

"No."

"What else did you say?"

"Damn."

"Where did you hear that word?" (Although we use "colorful" language, we are usually very good about not saying THOSE words around little ears.)

"Daddy."

"Hmmmm......."

The scary part is she actually used it correctly in a sentence while she imitated her Daddy's temper. Mommy is too easy going to have any sort of temper at all....and if you believe that have I got a deal for you!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Not by the hair of my Chinny Chin Chinchilla....

Well, they are here. Yes they. Two. Cage mates that didn't do well being seperated. At first we had Ande and Glimmer. Then our names changed to Prince & Princess. Then Willie & Fudge, Whiskers & Lisa, now we are at Whiskers & Lily. It has been those names for over 24 hours now so I'm hoping they will stick. They are adjusting well to being in their new home. The girls are beyond themselves. We had to take pictures on Saturday and print them out on Sunday so we could have them to take to school on Monday for share time. Once I get picures downloaded I'll post some. They sure are cute though!

Friday, April 17, 2009

I didn't quite catch that....can you repeat yourself?

You will never guess what I did today! Go ahead....guess.....OK, I'll give. I've been putting together a cage, and a water bottle holder thingy, and 2 food bowls that get screwed in to secure them, and putting together a chinchilla house (made out of wood), and watching as Mini-Me2 just about wets herself cause her daddy said she can get her chinchilla TOMORROW! Did you know that a young girl can ask the same essential question ("When are we going to get my chinchilla????") 8,479 different ways? "When are we getting up in the morning mommy?", "What are we doing after we eat breakfast?", "We don't have to go to the store in the morning do we?", "Will daddy be here or will he already be at work when we go to get the chinchilla?")? Amazing what kids can come up with when they want to.

It is Friday night, and on Fridays and Saturdays, the girls get to stay up a little later since there is no school. Mini-Me2 is already ready for bed at 9:00, wanting "everyone!" to go to bed, so that she can get up in the morning and pester me about when we are going to get her chinchilla. Just watching her get everything ready for her pet is so cute!

I did get a cool techy type thing for her too though. I thought it was neat...it is a little electronic device for small animals, that clips on the outside of the cage, that sounds an alarm when it is time to feed, clean the cage, play with your pet, and give them a treat. If you don't press the right button, then your pet gets a mark taken off their "happiness" meter. I thought it was a neat way to make her more aware of her pet, rather than me or daddy coming behind and doing something for her (course we'll keep a watch out on her anyway).

Well, more tomorrow after we return from the great chinchilla safari!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

I know, I know.....

My step-half-adopted-brother-in-law was razzing me the other day that I "never" post on my blog anymore. PPHHLLBBBTTTTT. And no, you don't get any damn cornbread either.

Now that that is taken care of (tee hee hee).....

We just got back from spring break, and while it was very nice to be off for a glorious 10 days, it was not all leisure time. In fact, little of it was leisure time. In fact, I worked harder last week than I do at work. We moved furniture out, in, around, and then did it all over again. But it was worth it! See? See how pretty it is now? (Don't look at the walls, they haven't been painted...yet.)



Now, on to a "scientific" type post/blog/question. Most educated people know that, over time (lots and lots and lots of time), drops of water can wear a rock away. Using that same deduction, how long do you suppose it will take my youngest Mini-Me2 to wear her father down and let her get her own pet? Since it's been going on since Christmas, I'm figuring he has about another month before he caves. The whole story is amusing though. I love animals. I have had many different and varied pets over the years. There are some that I have problems with (mice, spiders, birds) and some I don't. Mini-Me2 started around her birthday, that she wanted a pet. She started asking for a gerbil (No), then a hamster (NO!), then a guinea pig (HELL NO!). No to a rabbit and bird too. Then she asked for the "not quite so easy for Mommy to say no to" pet. A chinchilla. I have to admit, I was intrigued with her request. I have had chinchillas in the past, and they are very clean (no shedding or parasitic bugs like fleas), have a long life span (10-20 years), and are just the cutest things! Well, over time (aka-daily) Mini-Me2 has gotten Daddy to consent to go and look for them and the phrase "probably after Easter" has actually escaped his mouth within her hearing. I haven't wanted to remind him of that, I'm sure she will. So, we went to a local pet supply/pet store that sold chinchillas and took some pictures for Daddy to see what a chinchilla is. I don't think he'll be able to resist. Do you?

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

I am such a LOSER!

Just a quick post....I got 2nd in the Biggest Loser contest our county was doing! Yippee to me!

Friday, September 26, 2008

What a Loser!

Well, 3 weeks ago we started a Biggest Loser competition at work. Well, actually, the whole county started it. As of last Friday (the results aren't in yet from this week), I am holding steady in 3rd place. The total amount lost so far is 16.6 pounds. Got a ways to go, 10 more weeks, and hopefully quite a bit more to come off.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Time to catch up......

First off, I have to tell you about a friend I lost on Monday. Utster was my cat for 20 years. He had been getting progressively thinner and feeble over the last year and I knew then I wouldn't have him long. This past weekend he didn't eat at all and I knew that it was time. It was the hardest thing I've had to do in a long time. I miss him. I know that time will heal the loss, but it doesn't help the heartbreak now.

Onto happier moments.....

This weekend we went to my dear MIL's retirement party. It was a surprise for her that family and friends were coming. She was surprised (for sure!). It was wonderful, not only for her, but being able to be a part of such a wonderous celebration of her.

School has started and it is really (REALLY) busy this year. 3rd grade has tons of homework and 1st grade is working diligintly on reading. Youngest has now gotten glasses (with her whole maternal side of the family being blinder than bats it was inevitable) and talk about cute! Course, she thinks that we need to clean them every 5 minutes and hasn't gotten the concept that if you don't handle the lenses with your greasy, Oreo mush coated fingers, you wouldn't have to clean them so often.

Oldest daugther decided to get her hair cut in a bob, and now she looks older than her years. They grow up so quick!

I was able to continue working on my Rising from the Flame socks on our trip this past weekend. They are progressing well. I'm also working on a crocheted grocery bag that can be reused (instead of adding to the collection of a gazillion Wal-Mart bags that are in my garage). I would love to slice them up and make sturdy bags for the store, but I just don't have the time for that. So cotton worsted weight yarn it is!

And finally, hubby bought a toy and took us out on the lake the other weekend for a fun, family fishing trip.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Found Dog



Robertson County Tennessee
Coopertown Area
Found 7/2/8
Siberian Husky

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Found Dog!


On the off chance that someone knows who this dog belongs to, please contact us to get your dog back. Otherwise my children are going to drive my husband crazy until they are able to keep it and call it Shasta. Watch Snowbuddies to find out why. (This is just what I needed right before getting ready for our annual Fourth of July party!)

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Are you my mother?



Many years ago we started out with one mocking bird. Then we got another one. Then they reproduced and so forth and so forth and so on. Now, we have mocking birds all over, in just about every tree on our property. And this little fella was getting a stern talking to from mom & dad yesterday about flying before you are ready. Then of course, he (or she) fell out of the tree. That's when my daughters found him (or her). And then we put him back in the tree. Course, mom & dad were a might bit ticked at us and put up a huge (HUGE) racket. Then after the coast was clear (we had retreated to a safe distance) the little bird took a good flight. Then he cried for mom & she fed him. It was sweet.



And these are my current project. Working out the pattern is fun and a stress relief. Course, when it is done it will be posted on Ravelry. I really like the way it is looking like flames. Course, the yarn is Phoenix (and the name Fawkes was already taken for a pattern name) so for now the name of the sock is "Rising from the Flame".

Monday, June 23, 2008

Where are my socks Mommy?!?!?!?!?!



Well, after being so nicely reminded on Sunday that I haven't posted in "about a month", I decided it was time to post.

Summer break started about 4 weeks ago, and short of being at a standstill with putting stuff back after the floors were done (we're waiting on the baseboards to be put down), there hasn't been a lot going on.

My youngest has been asking (read-badgering unmercifully) me to make her some blue socks as soon as I got finished with my red socks (MOM...you were supposed to make ME some socks, not you, again). Since this is the girly tomboy, she wanted plain socks with very minimal "girly" decorations. So, to work I went and came up with a cute, basic, minimally girly sock (that my mother showed off at the last night of VBS). Has she worn them yet? Nope. But they are done. The pattern is posted on Ravelry of which you have to be a member to access. If you knit or crochet, I highly reccomend joining. Jess & Casey & Bob are wonderful!

Now, I'm working on a flame sock pattern for my "Phoenix" yarn from Dani at Sunshine Yarns. She makes the most beautiful colored yarns, not to mention her Harry Potter inspired colorways. It's coming along, and has only been frogged (ripped out and redone for non-knitters) 3 times since yesterday. I think I have it down now and will keep working on it until it is done. Then the pattern will probably be posted on Ravelry. Then I have to decide what to do with Dani's "Ginny Weasley", "Gilderoy Lockhart", and "Cherry Blossom" yarns. Not to mention my Koigu yarns (pink, green), my Lamb's Heart yarn, the Socks that Rock (I really want to do the "Snape" sock pattern with this yarn) and the umpteen other sock yarns in my stash.

We have been swimming, a lot. And sleeping in our tent (inside) just about every night since we got it. It was a reward from the Disney Movie Rewards program (Love It!). And we are gearing up to see Wall-E this Friday.

Well, time to take care of the kiddos.

Sunday, May 4, 2008

Hardwood





Aren't they purdy?!? The men doing the installing did a fabulous job! They are so nice, and make the rooms look much larger. And the area rug I got just ties everything together nicely! I'm so happy!

Sorry it's such a short post, but dinner is on and I'm hungry. More later. Oh, 14 more days of school!

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

When it hits the fan...it hits the fan!

Well, some things just keep getting better and better around here. My walls are painted (YIPPEEE!) and we are just waiting for the floors. Which should be in next week. While DH is gone. For work. Out of town. For the next 2 weeks. Isn't that going to be fun for me? Aren't you just so envious of me having to take care of the kids, move all the stuff (aka crap) back and forth, back and forth, then clean it up so that DH can come home to a "new" house. And youngest gets to start swimming lessons next week. 3 days a week. For 2 weeks. But that is OK. Both kids HAVE to learn how to swim without nose clip things so that we can get the pool in the back yard for the summer. That is the deal.

The zoo was wonderful yesterday. I so enjoyed being a chaperone to 3 kids (2 little boys and my youngest). We had the wagon loaded with water, juice, first aid kit, backpack, lunches, and the kids. Can you look up the word pack mule in Websters? See that picture there....it's ME! We saw all of 2 exhibits (the creepy crawlies and the Lorakeets-? spelling). Took 88 pictures. Fed a whole bunch of the birds-the kids loved it. Visited the gift shop (I bought the whole class pencils). And played on the absolutely awsome playground. Twice. Fixed one boo boo. Came home and took a nap till the kids got home. I am pathetic. They wore me out!

Sunday, April 13, 2008

The Dust Bunnies Have Attacked!

Well, we did it. The carpet came up. The dining room, the living room, and the hallway are now bare. And there was A LOT of dust/sand/dirt/gunk/ick/yuck/blechy stuff under there.


Now my poor house is a wreck. And I get to live in it. Yippee. But (hopefully) it won't take too long to get the walls painted and the floor put in. And it does give me a good chance to go through everything and destash and declutter. Here are some more views so you can be envious of me. Ha.



And this is a picture of absolute trust.

Friday, April 11, 2008

This week in my life

Well, first off, I would like to post pics of my children and my absolutely lovely niece and my nephew.




My oldest daughter, the Drama Princess.



My youngest daughter, the "What can I possibly be up to" Princess.



My beautiful niece, the (Soon to be Heartbreaker) Princess



And last but not least, my (Why do I have to put up with all these girls) nephew.

Obligatory showing off of my family done. For now.

Well, I am getting ready for chaperonage. Yep. I will be chaperoning (I have no idea how many) kindergarterners at the zoo. Woah. I am so looking forward to it! This will be my first field trip with my youngest and I can not wait! I get to pull a wagon with lots of water, juice, first aid kit, probably kids too. Keep track of them. Take pictures (lots of pictures according to my daughter). Play. Pull the wagon some more. Get lunches ready. Eat. Do bathroom duty. Do germ duty. Play some more. And basically get to be a mom. Woo Hoo!

We had some very nice gentlemen in the house today to paint. My DH (Dear Husband) had done some work for one of them, and as a trade off, he got to come in and paint my ceilings. He will be coming by some time this week to paint the walls. And DH decided tonight that "maybe I should just go ahead and pull up the carpet in the living room, dining room and hall to prepare for when we get new wood floors". Yeah. Right. I'm all for pulling up the carpet. You don't know how bad I have wanted to slash the carpet and stick the vacuum hose in the slit and get all the @#%@#$! dirt and dust out of there. Lord. The carpet has been there for (gasp) 16 years, so there is no telling what is under it. But it would also mean that I would be living with (ugly) flooring until we get the wood floors done. I opted for the bamboo I saw at Lowes the other night. It was absolutely gorgeous! But he is opting for "traditional" wood floors. Whatever. As long as I can put an area rug down, I don't care (really). Unlike the paint (see previous posts if you are a new reader).

Now, I am irritated. I am sitting at my computer desk and listening to the lovely sounds of my (inconsiderate) neighbors !@_#P${%*()@_#$%(@#$%(@#$_%()2[]5 hunting dogs barking. Now, I am an animal lover. I have a dog myself. I have a cat. I have a husband and 2 kids (yes, technically they ARE animals). But these (insert bad word/words of choice here) dogs bark all the time. In the morning. At night. They are hunting dogs and we live in the country. For city dwellers, that means that during the night there are various animals that walk/run/slither through our yard (deer, racoon, opossum, rabbits, geese, turkeys, etc.) and what do these (stupid) hunting dogs do? They bark. They are kept in cages. They are not let out. They are not played with. They just bark. And bark. And bark. I have seriously considered going over there in the middle of the night and opening the cages and letting them run loose. But the (stupid) dogs would probably be so grateful someone (anyone) was paying them attention that they would camp out on my patio and bark their everlasting devotion to me. Which at that point I would have to do something drastic. Like go buy bunnies for them to chase.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Eyelet Rib Lacy Baby Socks

Here is another free pattern for baby socks that I came up with. These are worked toe up, short row heel with heel flap. If you notice any errors, please let me know so I can correct them.



Fingering weight sock yarn (I used KPPPM)
Circular needles-US Size 0
Stitch Markers-3 Total

Techniques used: K (knit), P (purl), Inc (Increase), YO (Yarn over), SSK (slip the next 2 stitches as if to knit to the right needle then knit both stitches together through the back loop), W&T (wrap the yarn around the next stitch then turn your work)

Cast on 8 stitches on each needle using your favorite toe-up sock cast on method. I like Judy's Magic Cast On from http://www.knitty.com

Knit 1 round.

Row 1) K1 stitch, Inc 1 stitch (using your favorite method), K to last stitch, Inc 1 stitch , K1.

Row 2) Knit around wihtout increasing.

Repeat Row 1 & 2 until you have 20 stitches on each needle.

Eyelet Lace Rib Pattern
Row 1 and 3) *K2, P1; repeat from * to end, K2
Row 2) *K2, P1, YO, SSK, P1; repeat from * to end, K2
Row 4) *K2, P1, K2tog, YO, P1; repeat from * to end, K2

Top of foot begin Lace Rib pattern starting with Row 1, Bottom of foot work in plain stockinette stitch.

Work 4 repeats of pattern stitch on top of foot before beginning gusset increases on the bottom.

Work gusset increases as follows on every other row while continuing in the pattern stitch on the top of the foot.

1st row of gusset increases) K1, Place Marker, Increase 1 stitch, knit across row to last stitch, increase 1 stitch, place marker, knit last stitch. You should have 22 stitches on the heel side of the sock at this time. The marker will be kept to mark the 20 stitches of the heel. As you continue increasing to 10 gusset stitches on each side, keep the markers to mark the 20 stitches.

Knit the next row without increasing. You will only do gusset increases on every other row. When I did it, it coorosponded with working Rows 1 & 3 of the pattern stitch.

On the top of the sock, use the remaining stitch marker to mark the row you have just finished. For example, if you are knitting Row 1 of the pattern, knit 1 stitch, place marker, and finish the row per the pattern. If you are doing Row 2, then move the marker to between the second and third stitches, and so on for the 4 rows. This way if you set down your work and go to pick it up later you know what row to start on in the pattern stitch.

When I did my socks, I was at Row 1 of the pattern stitch when I began working on the heel.

Ok, to do the heel:
K 18 stitches, W&T
P 16 stitches, W&T
K 14 stitches, W&T
P 12 stitches, W&T
K 10 stitches, W&T
P 8 stitches, W&T
K 6 stitches, W&T

Purl across the heel stitches unwrapping and pearling wrap and stitch together as you go until you get to last stitch. Purl last stitch and 1st gusset stitch together. Turn.

Knit across row unwrapping and knitting wrap and stitch together as you go until you get to the last stitch. SSK. Turn.

#Slip 1st stitch as to purl then purl across row, purling the last stitch and the next gusset stitch together. Turn.

Slip 1 stitch as to purl, knit next stitch, repeat from * to last stitch. SSK last stitch of heel and next gusset stitch.

Repeat from # until all gusset stitches have been worked.

Resume working in the round and begin using the Rib pattern on the back of the sock as well (starting on the same row that you are on the top of the foot-ie: if you are ready to do a Row 2 on the top of the foot, do a Row 2 on the back of the leg).

Do 4 repeats of the Rib pattern, then work 4 rows of K2, P1 ribbing.

Bind off using a 1-2 Picot bind off-%Insert needle as if to knit the first stitch. Pull up loop. Place that loop on the left needle. Bind off 2 stitches. Place stitch on right needle back onto left needle and repeat from % to the end of the row. Weave in ends.

Taa Daa...1 baby sock done. Now do the other. :)

Monday, March 24, 2008

The difference between Mommy and Daddy

Well, we made it home safely from our Easter trip. Thank you M-I-L for everything! We had a lot of fun.

Now, for those of you that have children (notice the plural?).....

In the car, on the way home, the girls fought. From Effingham to Paducah. Off and on..."give me that!"..."You got to do it last time"......."Mom/Dad...she's doing (fill in the blank)"...."I'm hungry"...."I'm not hungry"...."I'm not tired"....."I don't have to go potty"....and so on, and so on, and so on. My darling husband turned to me (after threatening to take away all toys, movies, clothes, blankets, crayons, paper, just about everything except for a paperclip and used tissue) and asked "Do they do this all the time?!?!". Clearly he was (very) frustrated.

Now, that was surely an open ended question he asked. A cute response would have been "Do what?". Snarky response would have sounded something like "Well, if you were at home more often you would know that wouldn't you". Sarcastic "Nope, they only do this on Sundays, when you are driving". Concerned could have been "Well, do you think we should do something about it?" But no, I just looked at him and said "Yep. And you are doing a fine job of keeping them in line too." Then went back to my sock. Tee hee hee....

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

What do you mean it's Wednesday already?!?!?!?

Wow. I can hardly believe that it is Wednesday already. We are into March! Well, lots of stuff has been going on. My youngest is in the last leg of her F.R.E.D. (Families Read Every Day) project and has decided that she wants to "WIN". The goal was to read 100 books by April 14th. We have read over 200 (for now) and so far this week we have read 21 books (3 days, 21 books, yep....7 books a day!). She is determined to be the one that reads the most. The best part...she is now reading to us. Of the 21 books, she has read 7 herself to either myself or hubby. I'm so proud! Grandma, if you are reading this, we are planning on bringing books with us because she wants to read to you. Get the tissues ready.

All this week the girls have had fun things to do for Read Across America week. Monday they dressed as their favorite book character (Amelia Bedelia and Hermione Granger), Tuesday was wear your PJ's to school day. Today was dress for the royal court as a prince, princess, king or queen. Both girls were princesses (per their Daddy). Tomorrow is dress like your favorite wild animal. We are planning on a black leopard and a unicorn. Friday is Freaky Friday/Mismatched clothes day. Boy is that one going to be fun!

I kind of hit a snag with my knitting. Bad person that I am, I started (another) project without finishing the 2 (or more) I currently have in progress. I picked out yarn that closely matched the paint we are using in the living room, and the furniture (without the slip covers) and started a new afghan for the living room. I still have to finish my other Fleet Street Fingerless Barber Mitts and the sock(s) I've got going. But, the afghan goes quick so I'm not too worried. And when spring break is here (Woo Hoo!) I'll be putting the finishing touches on the communion gown for the oldest daughter. Crud. Just remembered that I have to get Easter dresses and shoes and such too. Which means I have to go shopping. Ugh.

On a cute note, my Depphead (her word, not mine) friend got a little surprise in her mailbox at work this morning and I can't wait to see what she thought of it! Tee hee hee. I got her a set of artificial nails that are black with little tiny silvery white skull and crossbones on each tip with a small pink rhinestone in one eye. You gott be a Depphead to appreciate it.