Life

Raggedy Ann

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My sister called today and among our regular chit chat we started talking about the Raggedy Ann dolls my mom and grandmother made for us.  Ah the memories, I told her the one I have was one that our grandmother had made for me one year when she asked me what I would like for Christmas and I told her that I would like her to make me a Raggedy Ann doll.  She had made me one when I was much younger and of course it went the way of all things that little kids have, sigh.  I am so glad she agreed to make me another one.  She passed away in 1988 and it is so nice to have something that she made me.  I don’t have one that my mom made, but my sister has one that mom made her.  The difference is the one my mom made had embroidered a little heart on it with the words I love you in the heart.  My grandmother sewed well but I don’t think it was her favorite thing to do.  My mom sewed but it wasn’t her favorite thing to do when she was young because she was very into sports and band in high school so she learned her sewing skills after getting married, when it was more fun :P.

I’m working on a sympathy shawl until I get the yarn I need for the Little Lace Daisy Scarf I’ll be making for my friend’s wife.  The scarf won’t take very long then I will get back to the sympathy shawl.

Comfort Shawl Done

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Comfort Shawl 10-14

Comfort Shawl 10-14

Updating from my last post.  I have finished the comfort shawl and have given it to the friend that lost her babies.  Comfort shawls are always  nice because it helps let the receiver know that someone is thinking about them and that they don’t have to be alone in the grieving process.  You can’t see the colors really well (not sure if it’s my camera or my lack of photography skills :P) but it has red, orange and a turquoise color in it. I have also finished knitting the scarf I was working on but will post a picture along with the pattern later this week, it’s blocking at the moment and I wanted to get a nice picture of it to post with the pattern.  Now I can work on finishing the sweater I started for the special little someone, who is still reminding me it’s getting cold and she needs it, lol.

Annual Soup Cook-off 3rd Place Winner

Annual Soup Cook-off 3rd Place Winner

Well to the right you see a picture of an award I won last night at the Annual Soup Cook-off at my church.   It’s in conjunction with a ward get together and “trunk or treat” for the kids.  We had a nice array of soups to taste.  There were 25 brought in and they were all so yummy.  I didn’t bring mine in with any intention of winning anything and actually kinda winged it with a last min addition to my taco soup.  I usually add canned green chilies (mild) to my soup but I forgot to get them, so to add some zing I added a dry packet of Guacamole to it.  It added a wonderful little bit of spicy flavor.  The judges must have thought so to because I won 3rd place.  The little awards they gave us were very cute and I was so surprised when they called the number on my crockpot (they put numbers on a bit of tape on all the soups as we brought them in and put them on the tables.)  The 1st place was a long wooden spoon painted gold, the 2nd place was a little shorter painted silver and the 3rd was a short spoon painted bronze. HAHA,   very cute, someone went to a lot of work to prepare them for us :).

Melissa Gilbert Promoting Her New Cookbook!!!

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Melissa Gilbert - New Cookbook

Melissa Gilbert – New Cookbook

I talked my daughter into giving me an early Birthday present.  She took me to see Melissa Gilbert (Laura of Little House on the Prairie) who was in town, yesterday, to promote her newest endeavor, a cookbook.  The cookbook is wonderful and as a bonus it has many photos of behind the scenes things and stories of the Little House TV series, and in the book she also answered questions that have been asked regarding the series.  All in all a very fun cookbook, and she was very entertaining.  She talked for a little over an hour, including letting the audience ask her questions.  At the end, she signed the all cookbooks.  The audience was so large that they ran out and not everyone was able to buy one, they brought 100 books to sell at the promotion – they hadn’t expected quite so many people,  I had told my daughter we needed to get there at least an hour early, so glad we did :).  Yesterday was the 1st day of it’s release, so my daughter and I got one of the first 100 books sold on the first day of it’s release.   It was a very fun day!! 🙂  She is a delightful person :).

I am working on 4 knitted items, in this order – a comfort shawl for a friend who had her twins too early and they didn’t live (it’s close to being done), the scarf from the handspun from a friends sheep’s fleece, finishing the sweater I promised a very special little one, and a pair of prairie boots I promised another special person. 🙂  Pictures will be provided when I am done with each. 🙂

Murphy’s Law – ARRRGGGG

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Murphy

Ok the day is just beginning but it’s already been a Murphy’s law day.  I work at the Family History Center this morning and I babysit on Monday-Wednesday mornings.  I have time, barely, to get from the babysitting, back home to eat and finish getting ready and then to the Family History Center.  This morning the dad (who works days) as he was leaving for work forgot to the let the dogs out to go to the bathroom (they are in cages at night to prevent accidents and a knocked over kitchen trash can) and I will usually let them out when he forgets because I feel bad for the dogs.  However, the mom (who works nights) has planted a garden and if the dogs are let out they have to be watched so they wont dig it up.  If only you knew where I am going with this.  I didn’t let the dogs out because getting two small children bathed, fed, dressed, teeth brushed, lunch made and off on the school bus takes my full attention.  The biggest dog (of course)  had an accident in the cage, which is in the kitchen, sigh.  The little kindergartener did not want to go into the kitchen, lol, not that I blame him, but that meant I needed to let the dogs out, watching over them or not.  I do not have time, nor did I want to clean out that cage :P.  While all this is going on the lady that reads the water meter came in the back yard and was a bit intimidated by the dog – so I had to come out and hold him so she could read the meter, all this time I’m thinking, are they going to miss the bus?  They made the bus and I sent a text to the mom (who I was hoping would be home before I left so I could tell her in person) saying I’m sorry that I couldn’t put the dog back in the cage and it was a mess and I hope he didn’t tear up her garden.  And I am sitting at work (on a break) enjoying some peace and quite and wondering who will be in trouble tonight, it wont be me, I’m family and I do this without any compensation lol.   I made the sign above and will print a copy to give her to put on her door for the future to let “Murphy” know he is not welcome in her house.

Spring! & Spinning at the Park

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Blueberry Bush

Blueberry Bush

 

I have been going to put a little garden on my patio for several years now.  Last year I finally broke down and bought 2 large pots and 3 small rectangular potting boxes (you can see part of them in the picture on the left)  and didn’t get the soil for planting, lol.  This year I bought the soil and mulch and started, inside, two squash plants (a zucchini and a yellow squash).  They are officially growing and planted out in the pots.  For Mother’s Day I received a potted blueberry bush – which I had wanted for a couple of years but it wasn’t in my budget, it is shown in the picture at the left.  I have planted spinach in the rectangular boxes and am very excited about having some fresh veggies this summer ;).

I forgot to take my camera out today when I went to the park to spin but you can see the park here from another year.  I try to get out to the park once or twice in the spring to spin.   After being cooped up inside most of the winter, it was wonderful spinning in the shade of the lovely large trees and  was beautiful and with all the green grass and the leaves on the trees, and the temperature was absolutely perfect, such a wonderful peaceful thing to do. 🙂

Is it Spring Yet?

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Installing Spring

We got a tease of spring, but it’s cold today again in the 30’s.  Spring in the midwest is off and on again and I saw this and this is exactly how I felt!!!!  Tho’ Hawaii is what comes to mind instead of FL, FL has alligators, snakes and sharks, Hawaii doesn’t have any alligators or snakes, only sharks lol.  Hope you laugh as much as I did.

Meet Boo

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click picture for larger image

 

 My parakeet passed away this week.  He was 13 years old and I had had him for about 3 years.  He wasn’t really friendly but did seem to enjoy my company and I enjoyed his wonderful little songs. My son and his spouse decided that I needed another little friend. So they showed up last night with Boo (Cockatiel) and cage and toys and food in hand. He’s about a year old.  He’s not real friendly yet, but he should accept me and will be nice company.  He’s very pretty, he’s a yellow with a modled grey on his back and wings.  Thank you Tim and Ev.

 

 

Polypay Ewe roving almost full single spool

 

I have been spinning, and knitting (2 comfort shawls for some sweet ladies in my ward that lost a husband and mother) so I have been keeping busy.  You can see how the roving to yarn is coming along 🙂 

We have been cold and snowy, though that is what the Farmer’s Almanac predicted, I was hoping it was wrong :P.   Is it spring yet? 

 

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving Day

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Waldorf Salad

 

 This was what I made for the Thanksgiving dinner I attended today.  Good stuff 🙂 

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving day some good food, family, friends and football games :).  Oh yeah the Cowboys won today :).

Snow is here 2013

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November 11th – First Snow

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  Well, we had our first snow, was only ground cover and didn’t stick to the streets as you can see in the picture on the left, on November 11th.  We had a similar ground cover snow the next week.  I woke up this morning to some real snow, not alot of snow (about 1/2 to 1 inch) but it did cover the ground and the street.  The city has it’s snow plows out and the stores are plowing parking lots.   Ok the first few snows are all right, pretty, etc, etc, etc.  HOWEVER, it’s cold and the snow doesn’t stay a pretty pristine white.  It gets grey and dirty and that is what the winter will look like alot as the winter drags on. sigh.  Is it Spring yet?

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Newer Car!!!

Yep, I got a newer car (9 years younger than my little red putt putt).  A friend of mine (the one I walk with on Monday and Thursday evenings) and her husband got new cars and had this one sitting arournd.  They told me they would like to give it to me, but I’m stubborn and proud and told them I would take it if they would let me pay something for it.  Wasn’t much that I had to give them but it was something and now I have a newer car that I don’t have to worry about needing fixed all the time. 🙂  It has the key device  that you can unlock it from a distance and it has power windows and a radio that works :), I feel like I’ve moved up in the world, lol.  It drives smoothly and I have to say the color is one of my favorites :).  What a blessing my friend is. 

I’ve been teaching in Primary for about 4 1/2 years in my ward.  I got a new calling on Sunday, Compassonate Service Co-ordinator.  I’ve served in many positions in my church but have never filled this calling before.  I know a little about what to do, not alot, I know it’s not one that most people covet :P, but I like people and I like helping, so I’m hoping I will be more of a blessing to others in this calling than a burden as I learn.

Fall is Coming

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Funny  Note Pad

Ok, I was shopping at JoAnn’s Fabric store and saw this note pad and had to keep myself from laughing out loud in the store, so I had to buy it.  There are many days I feel like this. 🙂

Yes, Fall is coming.  Offically I think they said it was the 20th of this month.  But we went from upper 90’s (ambient temperature, not including the humidty that made it a heat advisory) a week ago this last Monday to 60’s on Sunday.   It’s back in the low 80’s and 70’s this week, so I know Fall is really coming.  I will enjoy the warm temps while we have them, Fall doesn’t usually last very long and winter is very cold and long here.