Kitten Yarn ^ . .^ ~

We Miss You, Mystery Kitty

2011-12-09T09:50:00.006-06:00

Baby Mystery Kitty, you left us way too soon. Apparently, you were sick and we did not know it. You will be greatly missed. Every day, 4 yr old Talon says how it can't be a fun day without you, Mystery. Thank you for those last little purrs you gave us. R.I.P. Mystery. We love you. Your human mommy, Natasha, misses you terribly. Eliana loved to carry you around like a little baby.

Cold enough for hats :)...and other things I have been doing lately

2011-11-30T06:41:00.016-06:00

I have had a lot of fun in the last couple of months making custom hats, which is fairly new for me. I have made sock monkeys, owls, pandas, horses, kitty cats, hats with earflaps, hats with braids, and hats with flowers. It is a good thing I have hats made for my kids because we actually got snow flurries yesterday here. We don't usually get snow that early in the season. The kids were really excited.

Someone showed me some pics of some really cute beanie hats with beards on them on etsy and asked if I could do that. I said I would try. I found lots of beanie patterns free on the crochet pattern central website. I kind of just made things up as I went for the beard. I used Talon as a model, as well as the girls' fashion doll head. I started with the mustache row and made it as long as I wanted (ear to ear on Talon). On the next row down, I just chained about 10 or so when I got to the middle to make a hole for the mouth. Then I made a couple more rows after that. Maybe 2 or 3. I think it was 3. On the the 2nd one after the mouth opening, I did 2 stitches per stitch for the chin, and then on the last row I just did one stitch per stitch all the way across....someday I might write that out if it doesn't make any sense. To get the texture of the beard I did crossed half double crochet stitches. That means I skipped a stitch and did a hdc, and then I went back and worked a hdc in the skipped stitch. I have no idea if any of the people who sell these on etsy do their beards like this or differently. I really just kind of winged it. As you can see, Talon was really happy with his hat :).

Talon requested his own bearded hat after watching me make a couple for a special order. He said his had to be green and yellow (his favorite colors) with a brown mustache. :)

special order in KY Wildcat colors :)

well, the first try making my brother a hat for his birthday was a real dud until I figured out that it was perfect for a baby doll sling. Haha. Eliana loved it.

Talon also helped me with the homemade crayons. (See below)

What I Have Been Working On Lately

2011-11-10T19:22:00.004-06:00

I just realized it has been a while since I posted things I have been working on....
I have really enjoyed doing some special orders for some friends. These little hats and baby blankets have been really fun to make.

A Lot to Be Thankful For

2011-11-05T19:24:00.003-05:00

I have a lot to be thankful for. On Thursday evening, I was on my way home from gymnastics with my two youngest children, Eliana and Talon. It was chilly, dark, and drizzling. As I was merging onto the parkway, the truck spun around across 2 lanes and into the median and crashed into a guardrail. I came out with just a seatbelt burn on my neck and some very minor bruises. Both children were fine. I am thankful for all the people who stopped to help us. I am thankful that no other vehicles were on the road at the time. Things could have been so much worse. If Natasha had been with us, she could have been seriously injured. Her seat is normally right behind the driver's seat. The people who towed the truck said it was totalled 3 times over and they wondered how I walked away without a broken leg. I want to say thank You, God, for protecting us. I have been overwhelmed the last couple of days by the thoughts of what could have happened and how blessed and protected by God that we were. I have spent a lot of time hugging and snuggling my family. My mom and dad are so sweet and have called to check on me several times a day. Praying for blessings for your families this holiday season.

Fall Highlights 2011

2011-10-30T20:48:00.006-05:00

One day after church, I snapped some quick pics in the front yard. I think they came out so cute!!! And yes, Talon is really sitting on that pumpkin :). Then we have batgirl, batman, and Elwood from the Blues Brothers (She's on a mission from God). Next is a purse that Natasha made by herself from some free material I got at a yard sale!!! I am so proud of her. She gave it to her friend as a birthday present. The purse has the greens on one side and the maroons on the other. We have plans to make more of these purses. Last is pretty Eliana. She requested matching owl hats for her and her Green Bunny :)

HORSES, Inc. Craft Fair

2011-10-11T19:23:00.006-05:00

These will be my raffle prize donations to the HORSES, Inc. Expo this weekend. HORSES is a non-profit organization that provides therapeutic horseback riding for children and adults in the western KY area.

If you want a chance to win the horse baby hat or the baby cowboy booties, please come to the HORSES, Inc. Expo, Book/Craft Fair on Saturday October 15 at Carson Park in Paducah, KY.

More New Things

2011-10-05T20:53:00.004-05:00

a neat idea, a crocheted edging around part of an old greeting card = Christmas ornament

baby cocoon and hat for friend who wanted photography props

a true scrap afghan, granny style

don't know why, but I truly like this, no matter what angle I turn it

Trying Something New

2011-10-04T18:23:00.004-05:00

A friend asked me to make her a little owl hat for her baby-on-the-way. After I finished that one, I decided to try to make a little sock monkey hat. I think they came out well enough that I will be trying these again. Yay!

Updates :)

2011-10-03T07:03:00.003-05:00

Please be patient with me, as I realized that I could adjust the width of my template, which was good news because some of my gadgets on the sidebar were "hanging off the edge" into my background. However, I see that it really messed with the captions on my pics, and that is going to take a long time to fix :)

First craft fair completed. Yay! Got some good ideas for the next one :)

More Craft Fair Items

2011-09-28T15:56:00.007-05:00

I am very excited about my first ever craft fair this weekend. Come and see lots of Western Kentucky Crafters at the Woodmen of the World Building in Benton, KY on Saturday from 9am to 5pm, and on Sunday from noon to 5pm. I will be there both days.

Found these 2 baby quilt panels on a sale table at a local sewing shop. This one has pink flannel on the back, and the bears have soft off-white fleece on the back.

Sweet Dreams baby afghan

Blue Shawl, my design

Close-up of picot edging on Sweet Dreams afghan

What I Have Been Working On This Week

2011-09-22T07:25:00.026-05:00

This cute little sea creature pillow was designed and made by my 7 yr old daughter Eliana. She did all the sewing on the sewing machine and the stuffing. I am so proud of her!!! She did such a good job. (I only did the snaps and some of the hand stitching)

Eliana was not 100% happy with the pillow, but was very happy to sell it to her sister for $1 :) LOL

these were made by Natasha. She did such a good job!! So proud of her

fun kitchen items...new designs I am testing. Another kitty, pawprint dishcloths. Kitchen scrubbies are made from recycled mesh bags that you get potatoes, apples, and popsicles in :)

frog change purse, made to match frog purse I made recently. My design, unbutton eyes to open

fun curvy scarf

pretty lacy scarf...my design

Sweet Dreams baby afghan

what do you think of these? I was at Fred's Dollar Store and saw these autumn kitchen towels and got them for myself, and then crocheted the tops for them....one is supposed to be a pumpkin and the other one is an apple.

What I Have Been Working on This Week

2011-09-09T10:30:00.005-05:00

Well, reality has set in, and I can see that after 2 weeks reaching my wednesday goal of posting what I was working on and 2 weeks of totally missing wednesday, that I will just start calling these posts What I Have Been Working on This Week (and hopefully I will be able to keep up with that) :)

I am having lots of fun trying to get ready for upcoming craft fairs. This is a first for me, so I am hoping I will have enough time to make enough things to sell for 3 days of craft fairs.

One thing I was doing this week was trying to design my own kitty cat dish cloth. Above are 2 versions of the same pattern. It is a work in progress, and I am not sure if I will try to sell these because they are not exactly what I was imagining, but they are not so terrible that I will rip them out. First pic is with the flash, but ecru kitty didn't show up, and second pic is without flash and you can see ecru textured kitty better.

What I Have Been Working on (not) Wednesday

2011-09-01T07:50:00.007-05:00

revised.... added whiskers to the kitty after my family all said kitty looked like a pig :)

Kitty Bath Mitt finally has a face!!

more cotton dishcloths

Pretty purple scarf

here are a couple of fun and colorful curvy scarves

Headband made with burgundy cotton thread

Got 2nd toddler sized strawberry hat finished

Made this pretty purse/market bag out of double worsted cotton. I got lots of this yarn on sale, and I am having fun thinking of things to make with it. No pattern, made it up as I went. A friend gave me the wood beads from a purse she had that fell apart.

Talon asked for a puppy dog hat this week. How could I resist? No pattern for this one, as I kind of made it up as I went along.

Birthday Celebrations

2011-08-24T20:20:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to my beautiful daughter and to my awesome Dad! I love you both!!

Natasha requested the "curling of the hair" time for her birthday :)

Great birthday times with family

What I Have Been Working on Wednesday

2011-08-24T20:05:00.004-05:00

Kitty Bath Mitt, a work in progress, as she has no eyes or whiskers yet (my own design)

More cotton dishcloths

Custom Baby Strawberry Hat for a friend

Natasha's big baby models the strawberry hat

What I'm Working On Wednesday

2011-08-17T11:03:00.003-05:00

Love this square called More V's Please by MoCrochet. I decided to try it with a soft green yarn I had in my stash. I think I am going to try to make 12, and hopefully I have enough of the same color. If not, I will mix in some coordinating pastels.

My friend has offered to put some of my crocheted dishcloths at her booth at the farmer's market this summer. This is the beginning of the 3rd batch I have made this summer. Hoping to make at least a couple more sets by Saturday.

this is a special order for a friend's daughter

this is a baby afghan I am working on, another custom order :) (don't tell if you know who it is for)

Purr Babies

2011-08-16T21:12:00.002-05:00

Out for a Morning Stroll

2011-08-12T14:04:00.003-05:00

Here are Eliana and Talon out for a morning stroll with their "baby," while Natasha stops to see the pretty baby.

Today is Wednesday

2011-08-10T14:39:00.003-05:00

Today is our first day of school this year, and Talon is showing us his new Days of the Week Bears. Here's to new crayons, pencils, paper, and glue!!!

Mystery Kitty

2011-08-09T02:42:00.008-05:00

So Natasha and I come out of the doctor's office today and we hear a little "Meow" in the bushes. We look around and I finally see a little shaking bush. So now we have a little extra Mystery in our home.

I consider her to be a little gift from God. In some ways, she reminds me of Leah, the first purry yarnbaby we had after we got married. It is funny, but Natasha has been asking for a kitten for her birthday. It was the first time ever in all her big 10 years that she ever asked for a kitten. When we found her I said to her that God gave her the desires of her heart. Happy Birthday, Natasha!! Love you, Sweetie

Kids Will be Kids

2011-07-31T16:42:00.005-05:00

You know, it just dawned on me. Children have childish behavior because, well, they are children. And what do children do?

they play
they laugh
they don't take things very seriously
they do things impulsively
they ask for your help
they don't worry about bills or clean laundry
they dance when they want to dance
they wear what they want
they give spontaneous hugs
on and on and on and on

so....why do adults seem to expect adult things out of small children? I have to catch myself, because I see myself falling into that sometimes. And you know, without gentle reminders and practice, of course children will go on being children.

and then again, lots of us adults have childish behavior, too, don't we?

Turtle

2011-07-29T15:07:00.004-05:00

I decided to make a stuffed animal for a friend's little boy, and that is how this little turtle was born. The pattern I used was from JonBoy Crochets!. The pattern is called Fred the Turtle.

I used double worsted Peaches' n Cream cotton yarn with a K hook (it is very thick yarn, 8 strands thick).

Summer Summer Summer

2011-07-25T09:31:00.007-05:00

random pics of my cuties from this summer

Talon's 4th Birthday Fun

2011-06-17T17:38:00.007-05:00

We have had lots of fun for Talon's birthday this year. His actual birthday was the last day of our family trip and we went to the Cincinnati Museum before getting on the road to come home. Since then we went to my mom and dad's house to swim and celebrate. My mom is such a good cook! We had ribs, hot dogs, hamburgers, baked potatoes, and cake.

Today we had Talon's birthday party. He wanted a pizza party at a local restaurant. For his cake he wanted a volcano, a waterfall, trees, and dinosaurs. The cake was fun to make. Talon did all the hard work, putting on the chocolate rocks, trees, and dinosaurs :). His daddy blew up helium balloons for all the kids, too.

Hope you enjoy some pics from the party:

Summertime

2011-06-09T09:29:00.005-05:00

I know, I know. It won't technically be summer for a couple more weeks, but school is out here, and summer activities are in full swing. We went on an awesome family trip with Jason's mom and brother to the Cincinnati area. Lots of fun.

Then it was Talon's 4th birthday and my 40th. So weird. Not feeling 40. My mom got me a huge gift bag full of yarn. I got myself a couple of what they call afghan crochet hooks to try out tunisian crochet (crochet that kind of looks like knitting...going to leave it at that). I have been fun trying to figure out tunisian crochet, but other than that, I have been camp taxi driver :).

Talon's party will be on the 18th and I still have a lot to do for that. I do know that he wants a cake with trees, dinosaurs, a waterfall, and a volcano. I have some good ideas, so we will see how that turns out :)

We have had some relaxing reading time, sprinkler time, and swimming in Grandma & Grandpa's pool time. I just love this pic of my son, Talon. This was him at the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History reading National Geographic magazine on his birthday. I think I like this pic so much because he reminds me of his daddy here. He also got to hold a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach and scratch a chinchilla behind the ears. Eliana absolutely loved the cockroach, too; and Tasha loved the chinchilla. I will have to post more about our trip and pics, etc. later. The Cincinnati Museum where Talon was reading houses 3 museums. It was really cool.

April & May Craft Fun

2011-05-10T08:15:00.003-05:00

Happy Mother's Day!!

2011-05-08T08:45:00.002-05:00

To my mom and my husband's mom, I love you both very much and am hoping you have a beautiful, wonderful day today. Hugs

More April Flowers

2011-04-22T18:23:00.010-05:00

I can't tell you how happy it makes me to see pretty plants and flowers in my yard. I love perennials :)

If anyone knows what these mystery spring flowers are, please let me know. Sometimes I want to cut this thing to the ground, and then I remember the unusual flowers, and I just haven't brought myself to do it.

Health & Beauty Show Highlights

2011-04-20T09:12:00.007-05:00

The girls and I had a really good time at a local Health & Beauty Fair. I hope you enjoy this slideshow with highlights. I had a lot of fun in the week before the show crocheting little flowers and butterflies. I will gradually be adding things that did not sell to my etsy site, but if you see something you like (not already listed), send me a message :). A friend got a pink butterfly hair pin for her sweet little girl. A pic of her is in the slideshow. I have added a couple of things to my etsy shop already. I know the pics don't show everything, but there are aprons, diaper bags, headbands, etc made by my awesome friends, Jennifer and Tabitha (send me a message about contacting them if interested). All the crocheted items and the baby quilts are by me :). At the end you can see pics of Natasha & Eliana from the fashion show they were in at the Health & Beauty Fair. They thought dressing up & getting their nails and makeup done was lots of fun :).

Spring Has Sprung

2011-04-16T06:35:00.002-05:00

Baby Polka Dots

2011-03-26T21:10:00.022-05:00

I had so much fun picking out material and making these blankets for my friend's baby shower. She is having a baby boy, and her nursery theme is blue, green, and brown polka dots.

For the quilt, I just got 1.5 yards of the brown cotton with blue dots and 1 yard of the soft baby blue fleece. After a little trimming, I just pinned them together, and added the satin border. I did machine quilt the 2 pieces together with diagonal stripes.

I was super happy with the quilt because all the corners ended up square. Double yay!!!! I know this is primitive quilting, but with 3 little ones, I love these fast projects that don't require too much time. I was able to get both of these done in one evening. My kind of project!!!!

For the colorful receciving blanket, I got 1 yard of the soft polka dot flannel and folded right sides together. I sewed around the 3 open sides, leaving a few inches for turning. I trimmed the corners, and turned it, then top-stitched around. Maybe I should have pinned the hole instead of eye-balling it, because that part ended up a wonky. But hey, it was so easy, I know I will be doing it again....and again, so I will have more chances to get it right.

Ecru Purse & Belt

2011-03-25T09:26:00.007-05:00

Some pics of a purse and belt/headband I made this week for a Health & Beauty Fair in April. This was my first try at a lined purse and belt. I searched high and low for patterns I liked, and ended up just making it up as I went along :). Thanks to my beautiful model (hard at work even before breakfast). Both purse and belt are designed for adults but she graciously posed with them for me anyway. What a sweetie.

Owl Be Thinking About You, Baby

2011-03-22T20:50:00.005-05:00

I had a lot of fun creating some cute owl things for a friend's baby shower recently. I found a cute owl bib pattern at the LionBrand site that I thought was super cute. I decided to make it into a stuffed animal. One thing led to another and pretty soon I had changed my little owl into a marsupial by giving it a pouch and an owlet. I made both into baby rattles, too. It just so happened that I had begun a granny square baby blanket from a Christmas gift Jason and the kids had gotten me, Vanna's Choice: Color it Beautiful Afghans.. (yes....Vanna White...from Wheel of Fortune) :)

I had stopped working on it in January and packed it away because I had run out of gold colored yarn to continue the pattern. It turned out to match the little owl so I decided to add a few rows of colors in the afghan to make it a little bigger. It turned out very well, even without the gold yarn. Here are some pics:

Owl also be making some more baby gifts very soon....lots and lots of friends and family are expecting babies. What fun!!! Hopefully, owl not be up all night crocheting and sewing :)

To Make a Long Story Long....

2011-03-10T12:59:00.011-06:00

Well, I started out wanting to post some pics of things I have been making lately. Naturally, I started looking through my pics to make sure I had some good ones of everything I wanted to post. Then I came across this pic, which brought a big smile to my face:

Oh, yes. I know very well that that is a VERY SILLY hat.

It was a special request from Talon (in a way). He wanted a yellow kitty cat hat (thus the ears).

Earlier in the day (yes, the very same day...it was a Tuesday), Natasha spotted a flyer in the library.

She said, "Mom, you should do this!" It was a flyer for a NEW YARN STORE. In my town. And....they were having a January Hat Challenge to raise money for the American Cancer Society. How exciting! So what did I do? Cleared the afternoon schedule (because of course we were just a couple of days away from the contest deadline) to make a hat. Then comes the "looking through patterns" stage. Online patterns, patterns in my books. I settled on one that looked fairly easy. It was a hat made out of 5 granny squares sewed together.

Well, of course mine ended up looking nothing like the pattern in the book. The original didn't have cat ears, for one thing. Well, wouldn't you know it...Talon absolutely loved it...this thing I created that could be ranked in the top 5 of the ugliest things I have ever made.

So, I have to say I was really, really surprised when I saw this:
an article in the local paper with a pic from the new yarn store, with a pic of my hat (well in a big group of hats, but hey!). See the kitty ears sticking up over there on the right in the back?

I am so excited! (I will have to make another post with all the other exciting things I have been up to). Yay!!

Love is in the Air...

2011-02-07T14:37:00.008-06:00

or is it snow?

some Lovely bookmarks I made lately

Green Bunny, Amber the Yellow Striped Kitty, and Sneaky the Leopard were kind of chilly with all this snow, so I made them some sweaters.

Sunrise

2011-01-28T07:09:00.008-06:00

From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD'S name [is] to be praised. Psalm 113:3

thank You God for new days and beautiful mornings

thank You God for loving family and friends

thank You God for snuggly children

thank You God for fingernail clippers

(just seeing if you were paying attention)

God make me a mender of hearts today, a sower of love in all that I do. Help me sprinkle mercy and grace and love in every word and action today.

Sowing love
Sewing love
same thing

Happy New Year January 2011

2011-01-01T18:13:00.009-06:00

The kids went out to play on this chilly first day of January. I love my children. They sparkle and bring me much joy!

The Hard Life of Kitties at My House

2010-12-18T16:47:00.005-06:00

Here is Snowball in the beautiful cradle my dad built for my baby dolls and stuffed animals when I was a little girl

Talon loves his kitty

Finished Crochet Projects

2010-12-12T21:20:00.008-06:00

Here are several things I have made or finished lately. Talon's sweater was one I made last year, and it was huge on him. I finally put buttons on it. Not bad for one of my first tries at sweaters, and he is happy with it, but I see lots of imperfections. My mom gave me all the yarn for the sweater. Talon's favorite color is yellow.

The granny square afghan in blues/greens/yellow was for a friend's baby shower this week. It was so soft and warm. She loved it. Yay!! This was yarn from my Aunt Sandy :)

The baby afghan variegated pink yarn is available/for sale in my new Etsy store (see sidebar) Yay!!! I just wanted to try a new pattern and love how it came out. This is more yarn from my Aunt Sandy :) (Aunt Sandy, I am working really hard to use up that yarn, but I think it will take a while)

The stocking and the two white scarves were orders I got after the Holiday Bazaar. I think they both came out wonderfully.

I love the holiday season, and love giving gifts....praying you are all safe and warm and full of God's peace.

Bazaar Happenings

2010-11-07T14:53:00.016-06:00

Just a glimpse of the fun I had setting up a booth at a local Christmas Bazaar. I do have a few things left, so if you see something you are interested in, let me know. My friend Jennifer made the awesome aprons, and she does custom orders. Please go to her Etsy site and support her, too. 100% of your purchase at her Etsy shop goes to support Ichthyosis research and education. Ichthyosis is a rare skin disorder that her daughter has.
Not shown on there are 3 gorgeous full size aprons that sold on Saturday. She also made the beautiful aprons the girls and I got for Christmas last year :). Also, did you catch a glimpse of my pretty girl wearing a hat that I thought was a dud. After adding 8 pom-poms and 2 tassels, Natasha loves this hat :)

who knows? Maybe I will open an online store to sell my extra items...what do you think? I have snowflakes, the baby quilt, potholders, and a scarf left. (though I am making more scarves)

edited 2.20.11: etsy shop is now open. Click here to go to my KittenYarn shop or click any of the pics on the sidebar from my shop. Slideshow was not working on this post so I took it off and put pictures instead. The silly hat I made that Natasha loved so well ended up being perfect for her as she was the Jack-in-the-Box for a Christmas play. You can see a pic here on Facebook hopefully.

Bits & Pieces

2010-10-19T08:30:00.015-05:00

What do you do with your bits and pieces?

Here is what I decided to do....

Ta-Dah!!

Wet soap not being crumbled down the drain by small hands, in a little pretty washable pouch :)

The soap pouch is actually from a pattern set called Heirloom Sachets from the book 101 Fun-to-Crochet Projects. Also from this book I am working on these Enchanted Snowflakes

Every little bit and piece you do and say can count for something or it can be wasted. Too many times I find myself wasting words, things, and time. May we all be mindful of the opportunities around us, not to be wasters, but rescuers. Let us rescue even things that seem small and unimportant. It may be a person you end up rescuing. Small things can become eternal things.

What will you do with the bits and pieces in your life?

12.14.10 update: the children discovered for me that it is still possible to violently squeeze wet, gooey little chunks of soap out of this (aren't they sweet product testers?), so this has been washed and put away for the moment, and will probably be used as a sachet (as the original pattern prescribed). As a side note, I will probably still save bits and pieces of soap so I can try cooking up a batch of liquid soap (recently read a recipe online somewhere)....or at least I will scoop them up out of the soap dish before they get lovingly jammed down my drain :)

p.s. curiouser and curiouser... here is the quote of the day that was posted at the bottom of my blog

I had the story, bit by bit, from various people, and,

as generally happens in such cases, each time it was a different story.
Edith Wharton (1862-1937)

Girly Afghan

2010-09-27T13:12:00.006-05:00

very happy with this newest baby afghan I made....very soft and pretty

A while

2010-09-08T07:23:00.003-05:00

It's been a while. I have missed you. We are busy with school right now. Contemplating field trips. Eliana is doing gymnastics. Tasha is doing tap and jazz. Talon gets to go to story hour at the library. Add in the fun of jury duty for me a couple of days a week. Oh, wait, I almost forgot art classes for the girls. It's going to be a wild, yet strangely relaxing semester. I really, really love the start of school. I love buying new school supplies. Ask my mom. I have always loved school. In fact, I am kind of surprised I am not still in school. Ok. Kidding on that one. I am mulling over and toying with the idea of taking some sewing classes again. At least I have fun reading through the descriptions every semester.

Instilling a love of learning in children is one of the most valuable things you can do for a child, I think. I have always loved to learn. Not sure how my parents did that, but thank you Mom and Dad. Mom, how did you guys do that, anyway?

Oh, here's something funny. I have to stop Tasha from reading books to do things like go to bed, eat, finish her schoolwork. Ha ha ha ha ha ha...I have created a little me. She is sooo like me in that. I just need to surround her with good books, and away she'll go. :)

It seems that there was something else I was going to say. Hmmmm..... yeah. nothing. I guess I can always come back later and fill you in, when I remember.

as for now, woke up with this song running through my head:
My heart sings a brand new song
The debt is paid, these chains are gone
Emmanuel, God with us...........
Like hinges straining from the weight, my heart no longer can keep from singing

if you want to hear the entire song on youtube, click here:

MercyMe/God With Us/All That Is Within Me

Dirt Guy

2010-07-09T12:52:00.008-05:00

This is Talon's Dirt Guy. He got him at Vacation Bible School. Talon gave him a nice haircut right after this pic. Dirt Guy's head, which is made from pantyhose, was filled with seeds and dirt. We soaked his head in water for about 10-20 minutes, then set him in the sun. We saw happy sprouts within a few days, and a full grown head of "hair" not long after that. Lots of fun. I think we will be recreating this fun activity with the girls, and maybe try different seeds for different kinds of hair :)

Pretty in Pink

2010-06-29T21:21:00.008-05:00

Here are some pictures of one of the two matching baby afghans I made for a friend who is having twin baby girls. Thank you to my Aunt Sandy for all the beautiful yarn!!!! I will be busy for a long time :)

Good. Great. Wonderful

2010-06-15T06:01:00.006-05:00

Recently, during family night, we sat down to watch What About Bob? Funny movie. Every morning Bob says, "I feel good. I feel great. I feel wonderful" over and over to himself. What a great way to start the day! I am already a morning person, and this would be a great addition to my morning routine. Ok, ok, so I don't really have a routine per se, but it sounds really good when you say it together. Try it. Morning routine. See, don't you feel better? Anyway, something weird and miraculous has been happening in the world of me lately. I have been managing to get my bed made every day. And...I have been having this weird urge to get all my dishes washed and sinks cleared before I leave the house. Pretty cool. I like it.

Recent highlights:
Talon is now 3 and is a repeater. Catch him at the right time and he will say everything you say. At least if you are Eliana. So, watch what you say :). Wiggles, cars, trucks, Spiderman, Transformers, some of his current favorites

Eliana is 6 and can't decide whether she is not growing up fast enough or is growing up too fast. She mourns the fact that her teeth are just barely wiggly, and is not encouraged by the fact that she might be able to sing, All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth, by December. Energetic and extremely athletic, this strong beautiful child will either lovingly pick you up or climb your walls (literally)

Natasha is 8 and wow, she is a reader. No, wait, she is a book devourer. Give her a book that she likes, and you'll have a friend for life....or you could just invite her to play Scrabble :)

We recently started family movie night up again, and I love it. What About Bob? was a diversion. We are currently working our way through all the Star Wars movies (nevermind that we've only seen the first one...here is where I will not go on a diversion and discuss whether we watched the first chronologically made Star Wars or otherwise). :) Your only clue is that all the girls want to dress up like Princess Leia, including me, hahahaha

Oh, wait, I have more good news. The guy who mowed my lawn last week didn't mow over all my hibiscus plants or black eyed susans. Triple Yay!!!! Daylilies are blooming. One yucca bloomed early, the other one is indecisive. My hostas are getting ready to bloom, too. Did I say, Yay! Yay!!!! Well, gotta get this show on the road.

I feel good.
I feel great.
I feel wonderful.

I feel good.
I feel great.
I feel wonderful.

you try it :)

KittenYarn is...

2010-02-21T03:43:00.009-06:00

thinking about fathers today. Another friend at church has lost her father-in-law. The anniversary for my father-in-law's death was just a few days ago, on Feb. 17. It has been 2 yrs since my husband's daddy William McKinney has been gone. We really miss him. Another friend wrote about the excitement of a small child waiting for their Daddy to get home from work. I remember standing by the door waiting for my Daddy to get home from work. Sweet childhood memory. I see my children's excitement and love for their Daddy as he comes in from work. It is as it should be.

I think of all the wonderful things my father taught me, though the few words typed here cannot really capture it all. I think of patience for untangling knots and polishing wood with the grain. I think of drawing flowers and cleaning the kitchen floor. I think of the fun and silly things my dad did when I was small. Somewhere my mom has a picture of my dad hula hooping and riding my brother's little bike down the street. I think of the sweetness and joy of watching my daddy teach my children too.

I know it is nowhere near Father's Day, but I am thinking about fathers. Maybe it is because of this habit of mine to always think of my heavenly Father when I get up in the morning. I think about His love, and how His words in Zephaniah say that He is rejoicing over me with singing. I am thinking about how all fathers are different, and how glad I am that my earthly father was chosen just for me by God, perfect for me.

I know that not all earthly fathers are perfect. Who of us is perfect? Not one of us. I thank God that even if our earthly fathers fall short of our expectations, He is creative enough to give us the love and nurture we need, one way or another. I am thinking about those whose fathers are just not there for their kids, who maybe cause them great pain and anguish by hurting them or deserting them or just not being there.

I thank God that we can be there for each other, no matter where our past has brought us from. I firmly believe that all of us can have a bright and loving future. I certainly thank God for my earthly father and my heavenly Father. They are both perfect for me, and I love them.

Spring is in the Air

2010-02-19T11:45:00.003-06:00

The kids and I went out this morning to squish through the yard, and we found many signs of spring. First we saw my tiny yellow and purple crocuses poking through the soil. We found soft green moss, and huge mud puddles. After we came back in, Eliana found an earthworm in her pocket, so I had to take that back outside. While I was making lunch, they all drew pictures in their notebooks of things they had seen/done outside. Tasha's picture showed a T-ball in the middle of my baby plants. Eliana drew a pic of an earthworm on my crocus who had just eaten and a leaf and was "pooping". Talon drew a yellow earthworm too :). While they ate lunch, I googled "how to make an earthworm habitat" as I can see that in our near future :).

Eliana is loving her ladybug habitat, and one of her larvae is already in the pupa stage. Natasha is loving her crystal mining kit, too. The first crystal she found was an amethyst.

I am working on some special requests for Eliana's birthday. She said Green Bunny needs a party dress and some other clothes. My first try at crocheting bunny a shrug and skirt turned out to fit last year's crocheted monkey instead. Monkey looks very festive in her red and aqua outfit. I am working on a mint and pale yellow bolero for Ana, too. Other than that, I have been using up my cotton yarn making potholders. I did make a little white baby sweater, too, recently. I was so excited that it fit my friend's baby perfectly. Just in time for springtime and Easter. Yay!!! Happy Springtime! Now to start some seeds inside with the kids :)

Birds

2010-02-15T05:13:00.008-06:00

It has been so nice to watch the birds passing through our yard this week. Though they were timid at first, the birds devoured one of the orange bird feeder snacks I hung in the tree. I found it on the ground completely empty. They ate all the peanut butter, raisins, and bird seed in there. It was much easier for tiny birds like the chickadees to eat from the orange feeder but I did see some bigger ones trying to balance on there and eat, too. I couldn't get a pic, and I couldn't find a pic to match in my bird book, but one bird that kept coming back was very pretty. It was greyish with a lighter colored belly and long tail feathers. It seemed to have a dark stripe across its eye and did have a white stripe on its wings. It reminded me of the pic of the Northern Shrike in my book, but my mom thinks it was a mockingbird. She was probably right....(ok, I just googled it, and my bird looked very much like the picture here. This is a Northern Mockingbird. Good job, Mom! Do you get these at your house?)

Over the course of the week, I saw a whole group of pregnant robins, lots of cardinal pairs, chickadess, bluebirds, junkos, a tufted titmouse, and what looked like a house finch. It had brownish colorings that reminded me of a female cardinal but its beak and crest were different and it had a reddish belly.

I was really happy to see as many birds as I did considering I am out of bird food now and I didn't know if they would like the orange feeder. I know my mom and dad get tons more birds at their house, including hummingbirds, but I just have one little feeder right now and am glad to see whoever decides to stop by.

For the Birds

2010-02-09T11:03:00.012-06:00

We are getting ready for the Great Backyard Bird count and decided to make some snacks for the birds. Within the last week I have seen bluebirds, junkos, cardinals, robins, chickadees, and some other pretty birds. We saw these orange bird feeders in my mom and dad's Birds 'n Blooms magazine and thought we'd try it. We were almost out of birdfood, so it was pretty simple. I hope the birds like it. We just put in peanut butter, birdseed mix, and raisins. Our tabby kitty TigerGirl is running quickly on the porch because her paws are cold. At the end of the post are long belated Christmas pics :)

The 80s are Back

2010-02-04T16:32:00.003-06:00

Today, after I took down Ana's barrette and brushed her hair, she said, "I look like I'm in the 80's!"

(and she did)

This is how her hair looked after I put the barrette back in :). Apparently the 80's are coming back

Sunshine

2010-02-01T13:20:00.003-06:00

Had a few extra minutes before everyone got up this morning and made myself a sunny yellow potholder....

First Winter Snow

2010-01-30T15:43:00.003-06:00

I forgot I took this video with my new camera right after Christmas. This was the first snow we had. We got a lot more snow the second time, at least 5 inches. I didn't get any video of that today, but the kids had just as much fun. In today's 5 inches of snow, we ended up making a Miss America snowman :), in honor of tonite's pageant.

Living History Night

2010-01-24T04:36:00.004-06:00

Our homeschool group had a Night of Living History. My girls were excited! Natasha was Laura Ingalls Wilder and Eliana was George Washington. Wish you could have been there to see how cute they were giving their speeches!! A friend took this pic. If mine had been working properly there would be pics of their presentation boards too. I am sooo proud of them!!! I love you, girls! you guys will have to forgive me as I am having fun playing with the free backgrounds from the Background Fairy :)

Scotty's Place: Post #1000!

2010-01-16T04:44:00.001-06:00

Scotty's Place: Post #1000!

Wow, check out all the beautiful Works in Progress (WIPs) this person has. I am amazed!!!!

Jan 2010

2010-01-11T21:32:00.005-06:00

Life is short

Keep it simple

Nothing is more important than really loving people

I am taking things slowly

I am talking softly

I am treasuring every moment

I am being thankful for you

Not Much

2009-12-30T13:29:00.008-06:00

Not much new going on around here
wanting to spend lots of time at home
it has been a year without many extra curriculars or field trips
it has been a year of simplifying
(though, really, the more I give away, the more seems to come in)
have had not much to say, and yet a lot to think about
we still have 3 cats, silky white mama kitty and her 2 grown babies
one white and one tabby (purr babies)
they are turning into very sweet cats, but nothing can seem to replace the 2 lost ones (they don't even seem to like yarn...)
we had a very peaceful fall semester of school, with very little sickness
I am very thankful for that
I am very thankful for Christmas break, for that matter
Resting is very good
Thinking and not worrying is very good too
I find myself not worrying or being anxious, and that is good too
This has been a year of practicing letting things go, things out of my control
I like letting go of things out of my control
I like the idea that you can do what you want, and I don't have to let it bother me
I like the idea that you can think what you want, and I can too. No big deal
I like the fact that I don't have to be like you
I like it that my family does not have to be like yours
I like the desires that God has given me, to create beautiful things for my family and to give away, to be a blessing to others, to give someone else a smile or a laugh or a hug
So anyway, I say "you" but don't take it personally, I mean the whole world and not just you, whoever you are, just now......that reminds of the story my dad always tells, that he really thought that Carly Simon song really was about him :).....

so here's another Carly Simon song, just for fun

thank you to the Background Fairy for my new pink damask background :), very pretty (it did kind of mess with my pics from previous posts, but it will take me a while to go back and fix that)

Trying something new...

2009-11-30T15:20:00.003-06:00

My first try at crocheting snowflakes, and yes, in some of the later pics one of the bigger ones looks a tad stretched downward....as if some random curious 2 year old came by and pulled the snowflake.....still very pretty though and I am happy with this first attempt, so much so that I will do this again. I used a pretty simple recipe for stiffening them- one part white glue and one part water. One of these is for a friend in an ornament exchange I am in, and the other 2 are for the kids. I still have to make another one for Natasha. Who knows, you all may be getting snowflakes and potholders for Christmas, ha ha!!!!!!!!!

Metamorphosis

2009-11-01T00:23:00.005-05:00

The End of an Era

2009-10-24T12:17:00.011-05:00

The end of one stage of my daughter's life is coming to an end, and a beautiful new one is beginning. My Natasha is now 8 and is nothing like a baby girl anymore. She reads chapter books and does multiplication. This week she made us baked apples in the oven. They were so good. Somehow, in recent weeks it dawned on me that she was ready and able to start using the oven. She has enough maturity and safety-mindedness that I thought, "Hey, why not?" So, she made up her own recipe, and it was so good.

Now I did core the apples and cut them in half for her, and I did get them out of the oven. Other than that it was all her. She looked up recipes and then just picked which parts of which recipe she liked, and then made up her own (just like mommy).

I taught her how to make Ramen noodles on top of the stove the other day, and today it was frozen pizza. I know, I know, it is a lot of processed junk, but hey, you gotta start somewhere....and she already knows how to make Spaghettios for her brother and sister in the microwave, too, ha ha.

Anyway, back to the apples...she put the halves skin side down and put some margarine on each one (we were out of butter or she would have used that). Then sprinkled on sugar, cinnamon, and then drizzled on some honey. Then she put them in the oven, preheated to 350 degrees, and baked for 45 minutes. After that, I turned the apples over, skin side up, and baked for 15 more minutes. We ate them after they cooled about 10 minutes or so. All the butter, sugar, cinnamon, and honey, made a yummy syrupy glaze in the bottom of our dish that we spooned over the apples.

You are probably not surprised, but there were no leftovers :). I can imagine that they are very good with homemade whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. I also know that she will be making this again :).

I am also finishing up nursing my youngest child. He is very close to the age the girls were when they weaned themselves. It is going to be a new thing for me to have no babies to nurse and change. He is totally potty training himself, too. I know that there is the possibility, slight though it is, that there will be more children, someday...But for now, we are saying that we are done. There, I officially said it. For now, we are done. Whew, that was hard to say. I am not sure I really meant it, either...

It won't be long til all my children are school-aged too. I am spending this time dreaming about the future. What new things does God have for me to do? Don't get me wrong, we are a homeschooling family, and I don't see that changing any time soon. I am not wishing away my children so I can go and do something else. It just dawned on me one day that there are ways for me to grow as a person and keep learning at this point in my life. I thought, Hey, that's pretty cool.

Saturday in the Kitchen

2009-09-26T11:18:00.003-05:00

Chocolate Chip Pancakes with cold milk for the kiddos with cartoons

another failed attempt at making cookies for me, ha ha
After the infamous "cumin is not really cinnamon" incident, I was feeling brave and decided to have another go at Oatmeal Raisin cookies. It's infamous because it just happened today and thankfully I caught my mistake before adding all the ingredients.
Unfortunately, in spite of all my best cookie efforts (butter not too melted, pans not warm/hot), my cookies looked flat and too brown around the edges. I didn't even have the heart to take a pic, haha. I tried to google you a similar pic, but apparently not very many people mess up their cookies and take pics, hardy har har har. Oh well, I will try again another day. I decided to freeze the rest of the dough and now I will have some in my freezer for a rainy day

Now I am off to google what to do with that pound of hamburger in the fridge....maybe meatballs with something? maybe mini meatloaf things?

September Flowers

2009-09-18T09:22:00.008-05:00

hydrangea

mint

The good thing...

2009-09-16T13:25:00.003-05:00

Hey, you know....the good thing about ice cream cones is that you don't have to get a bowl dirty AND you get to eat the bowl. How cool is that?

Hey, Jelly, this one's for you :) ....though of course, as luck would have it, I am totally out of ice cream cones, and in fact, am having to sacrifice and eat my chocolate ice cream out of a bowl, ha ha :)

Full Speed Ahead

2009-09-11T10:21:00.005-05:00

School is in full swing already. The girls are doing very well and are very excited about school. There have been tons of distractions and side roads already, especially with family things. My husband just moved into a new office space, and then immediately got very sick with what they think is lyme disease (though they are not saying that definitely). He is finally back to work but still has lots of pain. He is on a very strong antibiotic. Natasha just missed a couple of days due to sickness but is up and running. Yay! Not much school missed there, thankfully.

Unfortunately we have had other sad family news already this semester. My husband's grandmother passed away and that was a hard way to start the semester. It was right before school started. His mom also found out she has cancer the very same week. My heart is very heavy for her and lots of prayers are sent up around here daily for her. Not only has her husband recently passed away (almost 2 yrs ago), but her mom died and she found out she has cancer in the same week. She is very optimistic and has a good outlook, and that is very good.

All that happened before my husband got sick. He missed a whole week of work when he was feeling so bad. Those of you who know my husband know that for him not to go to work is a big deal. I also knew how serious it was when he headed to the doctor just a few days after he started feeling bad.

We also just found out that my husband's other grandmother, Nana, fell down in her yard not long ago, and bruised herself up pretty bad.

My mom is doing much better though she is still recovering and doing physical therapy. Needless to say, I am very glad we are homeschooling and school is portable. The children were very happy recently when we packed up our school books and had school at Grandma and Grandpa's for 2 days.

As far as crocheting, I am still working on small, easy to finish projects like potholders. I found patterns for little sweaters for the girls that will be very pretty to wear to church this winter, but I have not started that yet. I have been trying a couple of patterns for a fall sweater for Talon, but have not settled on one yet.

Just wanted to stop by here for a sec, have tons to do....you know how it is when people have been sick at your house, everything seems to pile up while you are busy taking care of everyone. I am very thankful everyone is feeling better already. I am very thankful for loving parents and grandparents. I am thankful for a joyful, loving, hard working husband. I am thankful for my happy helpful children. What are you thankful for today?

"It's My Birthday!"

2009-08-04T09:48:00.007-05:00

Note: This is a guest post by my daughter Natasha :)

Pirate Cuteness

2009-08-01T04:13:00.002-05:00

Perennial Surprises

2009-07-30T10:45:00.004-05:00

Let no feeling of discouragement prey
upon you, and in the end you
are sure to succeed."
- Abraham Lincoln

lots of these surprise lilies are blooming in my yard
unfortunately there are very few black eyed susans (got mowed over)
and zero hibiscus this year (again, lawn mower tragedy)

I guess that's what happens when you let other people mow your yard.....
oh, well, they will grow back next year :)
that's what I love about perennials

Ta-Dah!!!

2009-07-13T16:45:00.003-05:00

I finally got the hexagon baby afghan finished this afternoon (just in time for the baby shower this evening). Here are some pics....my blanket testers gave this one a 2 thumbs up :)

Summer Creations

2009-07-02T09:51:00.005-05:00

Here are some of the things I have been crocheting this summer. The pattern for the market bag is here. It is a printable from Lily Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn. I used cotton yarn from Wal-Mart for all the kitchen things. The blue/white set has 4 washcloths/dishcloths, 2 square potholders, and 1 round potholder. I made up a simple pattern for the washcloths and square potholders (which are 2 pieces single crocheted together). I just looked through my pattern books and found a round potholder pattern and made 2 and crocheted them together. The rainbow one is a smaller potholder made with some leftover cotton yarn.

The yellow, blue, green, and white hexagons are for a baby afghan I am working on. The yellow/white zig zag is something I made up for a friend for a baby shower.
For the girls I have been making squiggly hair ties. Natasha is beautifully modelling all of them at once :). If you look closely you can see the patriotic red, white, and blue ones I just made :)

The blue/white kitchen set is available for sale, as well as the market bag, and the multi-colored potholder. If you are interested please make an offer. Almost forgot....the blue/white kitchen set also has a matching swiffer cover I made (forgot to take a pic of it, the girls were testing it out for me) :).

Almost the 4th of July

2009-06-28T17:21:00.003-05:00

been busy around here...summer is flying by
it is almost the 4th of July

kids have been to Quilt Camp and Basketball Camp
they are going to the local Summer Reading Program

I am busy getting the house and school room ready for the fall semester. I am busy making lesson plans, too.....

will be swimming and grilling at grandma and grandpa's next week
be blessed and don't forget those who have sacrificed for the Independence and Freedom of our country

Race Car Birthday Star

2009-06-02T20:34:00.004-05:00

We had a blast at Talon's 2nd birthday party. Beach balls, race cars, train table, ice cream, race car cake. What more could you want?

April Showers Bring May Flowers

2009-05-21T16:43:00.004-05:00

Got Milk?

2009-05-15T16:12:00.005-05:00

Our homeschool group went on a field trip to a local dairy farm. The kids had a lot of fun learning about Holstein and Jersey cows and feeding the calves.

Mother's Day Surprise

2009-05-09T11:17:00.005-05:00

My sweet husband and babies surprised me last night. He had taken them all to the grocery store to get some "milk" and this is what they came back with (well, and milk and chocolates and a 17 pound bag of fruit loops, ha ha)

I love my sweet babies! This is us assuming our usual position on the couch. Are you feeling the love yet?

Here is Talon working really hard to open my chocolate covered pretzels. I also got a huge Hershey's bar, raisinets, mounds bars, and mint 3 musketeers :). Sorry this is the only pic of the chocolate we managed to get :)

Not sure how my husband can watch the basketball game with all those fingerprints, ha ha

Pink Roses! My favorite. You know they made me cry :)
Thank God for my Family. Happy Mother's Day especially to my Mommy and all the other mommies out there.

Almost 2

2009-05-03T05:00:00.007-05:00

Well, in less than a month my baby boy will be 2. I am sitting here thinking about how fast the years have gone by since each child was born. It is funny how differently your mind perceives things with each child. With my first daughter, we celebrated her independence when she turned 2. With my 3rd baby, well, he's still mostly a baby to us, even though he's almost 2. Don't worry, there's no holding this one back. He is in a hurry to be like his big sisters. We even look at baby girl number 2 (Little One) and still see lots of baby traits, even though she's 5 now (the pic is a Jungle Cake she decorated herself for her party).

Our children bring so much joy to our lives. Being parents is easily the most important job we have ever done. I am so thankful to God for the chance to be a Mommy. I pray that I live up to that beautiful name.

in other news:

contemplating a Truck/Car Birthday Party

surprised that we are not really behind in finishing our curriculum, despite much sickness this year and the delays due to the ice storm

I am finding that you can't hold a child back when they want to learn, but that there is a delicate balance between joyful motivation and the point of frustration.

I finally figured out that if your child wants to go take a nap, just let them. There's usually a good reason, and everything else always gets done better when they are well rested.

I love love love being outside in the yard in springtime :), so you might see less of me on here.

Pretty Rosey Blog

2009-04-25T19:53:00.005-05:00

Rose Cottage

those who know me well, know that is sooo me

tea

cottage garden

pink roses

One Person at a Time

2009-04-23T17:10:00.004-05:00

"Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you." - Mother Teresa

Man, this is a good quote, and quite clearly shows why I really like Mother Teresa. Anyone can make a difference in another person's life. You never know what one small act of kindness or love will do for another person or family.

We are the hands and feet of God, showing the world His hope and love.

Mom in Hospital

2009-04-19T06:25:00.005-05:00

My mom, Motherkitty, has been in the hospital all of last week. Thank you for your prayers. She had a bad cold that turned into bronchitis, then pneumonia. She is doing better, but will be there til at least Monday.

Hop on over to Motherkitty's blog and let her know you are thinking of her :)

Get well, soon Mom. Love you!!!!

praying you find something to laugh and smile about today, because a merry heart really does do good like medicine.

Happy Birthday Mom!

2009-04-10T11:17:00.005-05:00

Hey, Mom! Happy Birthday!!!! Wish I could be with you today!
Hurray that you don't have to go to work! Too bad it is because you are sick :(
Praying that your doctor visit goes well, and that you feel better soon. I love you, Mom!

Party Time

2009-03-30T04:03:00.005-05:00

I keep coming over here thinking, I really should post something. I kept leaving Ana's pic and birthday post up because, well, her birthday is not over yet. We ended up having to cancel her original birthday party because some of us were sick, and that was such a bummer. So, anyway, the rescheduled party is this weekend. I have a lot to do to get ready. Brainstorming time. Thank God that I had gotten each of the kids a helium balloon from the grocery store a few days before her birthday. They were all sick and miserable and I had to run out to get milk and something else. Boy were they surprised to see balloons too! They are always begging me to get them a balloon at the store :).

I love the store near my house, by the way. It is just a grocery store with a deli. No supercenter, no clothes, no pharmacy, etc. etc. Usually when it is nice, we load the baby in the stroller and get to walk up there. Not long now til we can do that again. Maybe this week

Anyway, I felt so bad because I knew they were too sick, and I was going to have to cancel the party, so I kind of looked the other way when they got into the bag that was full of the goody bags supplies. In the past couple of weeks, we have gone through a whole bag of tootsie rolls and a bag of suckers. Thank God I was able to save the pixie sticks and another bag of candy for the goody bags, ha ha. They may have even opened up the stickers. (they were really sick, you would have let them, too)

So starting today should have been our spring break from school, but I am debating. We have missed so much school because of the ice storm and sickness. Part of me thinks that we cannot afford to miss an entire week. I am hoping for a lightweight, easygoing compromise. The girls have a friend coming over Tuesday and Wednesday, so I thought Tasha could do some school today but take off for a couple of days. Who knows about Thursday and Friday? Only God, I suppose. :)

I am just glad we are all well now. I am really looking forward to some spring cleaning and decluttering. I am hoping it is not raining today. I really want to go take pics of some of my spring flowers while they are still blooming.

So Happy Birthday to my Eliana! You are going to have a great birthday party!

Happy 5th Birthday Sweetie!

2009-03-14T09:14:00.003-05:00

Happy 5th Birthday, Sweetie! Mommy Loves You!!!!

Little Red Afghan

2009-03-07T13:20:00.011-06:00

Just have to say, it's a lot of fun being pelted with matchbox cars while you're blogging, waiting for your photo to upload...just thought you'd want to know

thankful that Talon only knows where 3 of his matchbox cars are, and that he was not playing with weeble wobbles when he gleefully decided to toss things in my direction. 67% of said matchbox cars hit me squarely on the back of my shoulders, and one landed right in my hair. I guess I should be glad my head is protecting the monitor
anyway, the reason I got on here is because I know you are all interested in what I did with some restless time the past few days....
I made a little red afghan for a friend who has a new baby girl. I picked the red because I knew she had decorated the nursery with the Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. Very cute.

I used the same pattern I used for Eliana's rainbow blanket but used a J hook, so it went pretty fast.

(I don't know why I took this pic of the back of her rainbow afghan, as the front with all the bobbles is the pretty part. The white kitty is Duchess of Silk)
I also made my starting chain half as long as stated in the pattern, because I wanted it to be little. I made up a simple border I was really happy with. It was 5dc (in one stitch) and then 2 sc around, with 7 dc in one stitch for the corners.

Never too Late

2009-03-05T13:32:00.006-06:00

"It's never too late to become the
person you might have been."
- George Elliot

That's good. I really like that.

for with God all things are possible
from Mark 10

I have always liked the story about Moses where his friends hold his arms up in the battle (from Exodus 17). Thank God he did not have to do it alone.

The Mill on the Floss is a book I read several years ago and liked very much, even though the characters had to go through some very trying things. It is one of those books where you get caught up in the feelings of the characters, and when you get to the end, you wish things could have turned out differently. At the same time, however, you realize that there could be no other ending. I thank God that even if we head down a path to destroy and confuse our lives, He can help us change the ending.

Fishy's Exciting Day

2009-03-02T15:37:00.002-06:00

Make a Smilebox photobook

Obstacles

2009-02-25T07:46:00.006-06:00

"Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you
run into a wall, don't turn around and
give up. Figure out how to climb it,
go through it, or work around it."
- Michael Jordan

Read this quote today and thought I would share it. Michael Jordan just happens to be my oldest daughter's favorite athlete right now. Two books she has and likes to read about him are Salt in His Shoes and Jump. If you ask her what her favorite thing to do with her Daddy is, she is likely to say, "Watch Basketball."

Finished Baby Shower Gifts

2009-02-21T20:24:00.006-06:00

I made some gifts for some dear friends' baby showers. For one I crocheted a bear afghan, and for the other I sewed a satin edging on a pre-quilted panel. I think both projects came out very nice. I used this pattern for the bear. It was designed by Judith Prindle. Since it was for a baby boy I did not put the bow on, though. I added 3 rows for a border around each square. The first row of the border was just double crochet around, with 3 double crochet for the corners. The last 2 rows of the border were back post double crochet (except for the corners). I added some extra rows of country blue to join, using single crochet for one row and then double crochet, chain 1 (to look like the filet pattern in the bear) for the next row....there is a little bit more here and there around the borders, but I kind of made it up as I went along. I made 9 squares for the afghan. I used Caron's Simply Soft Eco in Wheat for the main color, and Simply Soft Light Country Blue for the edging.

sorry the pic is so fuzzy, my camera was kind of messing up....

See below for the Animal Quilt I made for my other friend....

Frosty Crocuses

2009-02-20T08:57:00.004-06:00

here are a couple of pics I took of my crocuses this morning....or is it crocii, ha ha, what is the correct plural of that? Somebody look that up for me, ok?

In Loving Memory

2009-02-17T05:40:00.005-06:00

Yarn Home Decorating

2009-02-16T11:00:00.010-06:00

In case you were wondering what I was doing with yarn lately...
Why bother putting an afghan on the back of the couch, when you can just put your yarn there....

Of course, I am not actually making anything with red or black yarn right now, it really is decorative, ha ha

And why make your bed when you can use your current unfinished work in progress as a blanket....

Now you know....

President's Day History Lesson

2009-02-16T07:58:00.004-06:00

My husband is in charge of teaching history this year to Natasha (2nd Grade). Yesterday I asked him if there was anything he wanted me to print out, etc for her to do today in relation to President's Day. This youtube video was his reponse. snicker. My husband is so funny.

The Flowers are Coming! The Flowers are Coming!

2009-02-13T16:23:00.003-06:00

I am very happy to say that I spotted a couple of crocuses popping up this morning. I saw a yellow one and a lavendar one. Yay! Yesterday I also saw baby daffodil sprouts coming up. Yay!!!!!

from a previous year:

I don't care if only 2 crocuses come up. Seeing those first crocuses makes me so very happy!!!!!

A Few of My Favorite Things

2009-02-11T08:57:00.009-06:00

Today is a Sound of Music kind of day, it seems. Very windy here
Without further ado, here are a few of my favorite things....

Untangling perserverance

2009-02-07T06:22:00.002-06:00

"Never give up, never, never give up." - Winston Churchill

thoughts

2009-02-05T06:23:00.005-06:00

"You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you."

- James Allen

(a seeker of truth and peace who stumbled upon one of God's eternal truths. I have no idea whether he became a follower of Christ or not, but James Allen studied and meditated and seemed to lean in that direction)

plant a seed of hope and faith & watch it grow

think a thought of thankfulness & possibility

cast out anger & bitterness

put on the garments of love & compassion

trust in the Lord with all your heart

lean not on your own understanding

in all your ways acknowledge Him

and He shall direct your paths

from Proverbs 3

Mom just called...

2009-02-04T15:43:00.005-06:00

and said, Guess what? Our electricity's back on!!!

All you could hear for about 5 minutes was the sound of me and the kids screaming, Yay!!!!!

I will leave you with the very apt words my Mom said as we were getting off the phone:
"And God said, Let there be light"

YAY!!!!!!

Ice Storm Update

2009-02-02T16:48:00.006-06:00

All of us in western KY were hit pretty hard by the ice storm last week. At one point I think the radio said at least a half a million people were affected and without power.

Our power is back on now, and we are ok. My mom and dad's power (Motherkitty and Tomas) is still out, and I would appreciate prayers with them. Thankfully, I have been able to communicate with them by phone on most days.

I still know lots of cities and counties without power around here. For some they are still saying it might be weeks before everything is back on. Thank you ahead of time for your prayers.

just found this regional ice storm blog with lots of pics of ice and downed trees, etc. Doesn't really do the reality justice but worth looking at

Life: Imagine the Potential

2009-02-01T15:17:00.004-06:00

President Obama, your life is a miracle, and we are praying for you. Praying that God will give you wisdom in your role as leader of the United States of America. Praying for good health for you and your family, and for your safety. Praying that you will lead our country on a good and Godly path, and keep honesty and integrity as core values in all you do.

Happy Birthday to the Love of my Life

2009-01-24T11:59:00.010-06:00

To my husband, I wish you the best of everything for your birthday.
You know all the things I would get you if I could....you will have to just be happy with a new skirt and shaved legs *wink wink*

And a couple of pics of me from our Honeymoon in Gatlinburg (March 1996)

Look at me loading the dishwasher on our honeymoon. Pretty sexy, huh?

You are better than any movie star to me :)
I love you, Sweetie!

You will have to forgive me for not posting any pics of my husband for his birthday. It is part of his present, ha ha. This post is all for you, Baby. I love you. Happy Birthday!!!!

Adventures in Shopping

2009-01-22T07:56:00.005-06:00

Husband told me I needed to go to JCPenney yesterday and buy some clothes. He knows I am like most moms and am very reluctant to shop for myself. Ended up with some good deals and the discount was good. When I did the math, it was right at 75% off.

will leave you with some highlights of the shopping trip:

Talon screaming because I would not let him crawl out of the dressing room while I am half clothed and "trying" to try on clothes (just the thought of me possibly having to run out and chase him scared the living daylights out of me. I had to buckle him up in his stroller for a while. When I let him out, he alternately jumped with his sisters on the sitting bench (not made for jumping) and stood at the door sticking as much of his feet and legs out as possible) fun fun fun

Natasha and Eliana piling about 20 hangers full of clothes onto the stroller, because, you know, my life ought to be just like that show, What Not to Wear (thank God no one swooped in to whack off my hair)

happy and exhausted we pile onto the couch with our Happy Meals to call out consonants and vowels at 6:30 and to see what kind of dress Vanna will wear today

I really do need to find some good babysitters. That was really almost too much excitement.

Happy Inauguration Day

2009-01-20T09:10:00.007-06:00

"And in the end it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years." - Abraham Lincoln

We will be following the Inauguration events for school today, as well as go on a Field Trip at the local university. We will be visiting a travelling hands on science exhibit and a Lincoln museum exhibit.

Other than that, more laundry and dishes and potty training. Also I think one of our classes will be watching snow fall and eating snow. When the baby naps, I will be feverishly crocheting a baby blanket for a dear friend. I have less than 2 weeks to get it done. Busy, busy, busy.

have a great day :)