i'm back!

ok, ok, it's two days later! give a girl a break, it's been a hectic weekend.

remember that pot i showed you a while ago? it was this, ham & bean soup. mmmmmmmmmm, yummy. and yes, that was a shitload of soup. we had dinner that night, and then froze 5 gallons of soup for later. we don't fuck around, lol.

This little guy is the first of a series of critters i intend on making for AC4C, for the stocking project for Online Angels. i'll get y'all a website later. and yes, that is a pink elephant. his name is elefink. (something my boys said when they were little, lol)

This little cat is the second i've made. these things go very fast, i made him in one evening of sitting in front of my computer. i altered the ear pattern a bit, and i see i'll have to shrink them a bit. looks almost bat-eared, lol.

This pup is just a tad bit frightening looking, but he's so ugly somebody is bound to love him. i can't remember where these patterns came from, cuz erin printed them up for me, as my printer had been acting up. unfortunately, even though i got these for free, they are no longer so. the woman who created these decided to start charging for the whole set as of nov 1. poo.

Thanksgiving was insane. my brother and his wife got in at 1 am thursday morning, and put the country ham they brought to soak as soon as they walked in my mother's door. i finally got them to answer the phone at 10, when we discovered that the ham needed to cook for 5 hours. so much for my 2 o'clock plans. so dinner was moved to 3. shortly after they got here with the ham, mark called, and i found out that his dad had had some sort of attack (he'd had panic attacks a few years ago), and was going to the hospital. at that point, mark and i went into panic mode, because his mom was supposed to bring the dressing and 2 pies. sigh. so mark asked me run to the store and buy the makings for dressing, and i decided we needed to buy stuff for one more pie, since i was only making two, and my SIL was making a TRUE southern pecan pie (pecans soaked in jack daniels! and she brought too many, so there's a small bowlful fermenting in my frigdg. i may get soused yet!). mark couldn't leave his place, as he was babysitting 2 turkeys, one in the smoker, and one in the roaster. thank god for that man! he made the dressing, green bean casserole, scalloped corn, mashed potatoes, and both turkeys. his brother and SIL brought a relish tray and salad, and wouldn't you know it, mark's nieces had stopped by his parents' house, and picked up the dressing and the two pies, plus an apple crisp! also, my SIL picked up a chocolate meringue pie when they ran for extras. so i had 7 pies and apple crisp for dessert for 14 people. ugh. i still have 2 1/2 pies, and i had to toss the apple crisp.

and then. the ham wasn't done at 3. it was 4 before we ate, and steph ended up leaving before the ham was done. she is going to have some for lunch tomorrow, finally. mark and i were so exhausted by the end of the day, that he went home at 645, and crashed, and after everyone else left, i fell asleep on the sofa for an hour. of course, when i do that, i'm unable to go back to sleep, so i was up til 12. and i had to work friday. double ugh.

mark's dad is still in the hospital. he had another attack yesterday, and they've decided to do a heart cath on him, to see what is going on. we went to visit him today, and he looked very good, considering he had a heart monitor pack on, and an oxygen sensor on his finger, and an iv thing dangling from his hand. actually, i thought he looked pretty good. i haven't seen Mom since Dad went in the hospital, but every time i talk to her, she sounds so tired. this is really hard on her. and mark practically goes into a coma everytime he talks about it for more than a few minutes. i really do understand. but there's a major difference. the last time my dad went into the hospital, when i finally saw him, he was unable to speak, or move his right side. and he died 12 days later. yeah, it's been 4 1/2 years, but it still hurts. i miss my daddy.

and my brother acts like him. he looks like my mother, but acts like my dad. it was fun to see him and liam together. liam is almost as tall as him, and acts like him. and yes, my brother agrees, liam looks like his grandfather.

anyway, i gotta go to bed.

only one new book

Dune, Battle for Corrin by Brian Herbert (book cd in the house, yes i finally finished that blasted "heir!")

have a nice day!

a little turkey

now, this is an absolute riot! just make sure you leave your white suit at the door, k?

i'll be back later (maybe, lol)

you might be a redneck if you've ever carved a turkey with hedge clippers
. . .your 14 year old smokes in front of HER kids (note that plural?)
. . . you've ever been injured playing ping pong (a full contact sport?)

Pattern of the Day:
11-23: Lace Candle Sleeve. this is kinda cute, but the only type of candle you should put this on is the ones in a glass jar. the only time i see candles like this is in no frills in the mexican food section, with pictures of Mother Mary etc, on them. hmmm

11-24: Holiday Shawl. um, this damn near comes close to being a non pattern. nuf said

11-25-27: Deco-Ribbon Cell Phone Bags. these are cute, but i'd never use them. however, the annoying part is this pattern covers 3 days because the second page falls on a weekend. i think i may write a letter to the editor about that. how annoying.

What I'm reading
Heir by Johanna Lindsay (book tape in the house, i know i'm really dragging on this one)
The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice (book tape in the car)
The Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King
Otherworld: The Sea of Silver LIght by Tad Williams
Night Embrace by Sherrilyn Kenyon (another Dark Hunter book, these things ROCK!)

Don't shop til you drop!

thanksgiving eve

and all is totally insane.. the kids don't have school today (i don't remember EVER getting the day before thanksgiving off!), and my shower broke, and the house is a mess and i've got SIXTEEN people coming for dinner tomorrow. oy.

and yes knitting progresses, if slowly.

you might be a redneck if your barber wears rubber gloves.
. . .you've ever been fired from a construction job because of your appearance (ew?)
. . .people often mistake you for an elvis impersonator (is more than one impersonator elvii?)
. . . you call anyone who completes 8th grade "brains."
. . . your car won't start because of the ear wax buildup on the key (gag!)
. . .the local bloodmobile is an ice-cream truck on weekends (god this week makes me want to puke!)

Pattern of the Day
11-17: Scrap Yarn Afghan. sigh, non-pattern.
11-18: Safari Rock Star Scarf. another non-pattern, only this is two-stranded.
11-19/20/21: Saddle Shoulder Cable Pullover. this is cute, but it only comes in a child's medium. and since this runs over the weekend, this pattern was up for 3 days. why do they do that?
11/22: Shetlands Chevrons Scarf. this is in New Shale pattern. is this as opposed to Old Shale? hmmmm.

I gotta scram, kids still aren't dressed yet, and we're leaving in 10 minutes. sigh

it's been HOW long?

sorry it's been so long since i've posted, and even longer since i've posted pics. i'm worn out. between daylight savings (i know, that was weeks ago) and sean, and fucking WINTER, i'm beat. but here we go!

Gee, this should be a good thing. you'll notice this is postage paid UK! another secret pal package! i do believe that i've twigged she's from jolly old england (or there abouts, lol, does scotland's postmark come up uk as well?)

and oh, it's a doozie!
This lip balm looks interesting. i haven't opened it yet to see what it's like, but it says you can use it anywhere. hmmmm. (hey, don't get nasty, i was thinking elbows! geez!)

And this chocolate is absolutely luscious! i don't normally care for orange, but with this chocolate, and whatever spices they added, it's to die for! in fact, the kids (including steph) all asked for a taste. steph thinks it's orange flavored dirt (a typical 11 year old response out of a 19 year old) while the boys liked it so much they chased me into the bathroom trying to get more (a more typical older reaction(minus the chasing, lol)). it amazes me that while she is older, her culinary tastes run much younger than the boys' do. i've always had the "please, no thank you" bite theory (a one bite taste, no matter how many times you've tasted it, you never know, the 10th time you may like it, like liam and green peppers (shudder)), so the kids (the boys in particular) have been exposed to many more foods (with a mom with a culinary arts degree, lol) than most kids. Liam and I are still working on trying sushi (we had an opportunity saturday, but didn't realize it til after we'd already eaten lunch. rats!)

i also got two very nice soaps, but i'll save them for another post, because here comes the good stuff!

yes, those are what they seem to be. noro2 by debbie bliss, and simply knitting bonus pack. the simply knitting came with the mini rowan mag, and the pearliz(s)ed head pins. and just in case you didn't know, the rowan mag has BIRCH! WOOHOO!!! no scrounging for the pattern, i actually own it! (doing the happy dance here)

THANK YOU, MY WONDERFUL AND GRACIOUS SECRET PAL!

and don't worry, doll, i don't mind the package was late, a bit, this was most definitely worth the wait!

and now for something completely different. (anybody know where that's from?)

3 guesses what's in the pot. and this is a stockpot, not a dye pot, so guess again. i'll tell ya tomorrow


Now, for the part y'all ahve been waiting for!

REDNECKS!

You might be a redneck if the only time you sky-dived, it wasn't on purpose.
. . .the city council ever discussed your yard.
. . . the ATM starts laughing when you walk up to it.
. . . you know more than 20 party tricks involving cigarettes


Patterns:
11/11: Scarf Capuche in Viola. this sounds interesting, but i just can't quite twig the instructions. i'll need help on this one.

11/12-13: Winter Shawl. looks pretty, but it's just a ruana, crazy lanea style.

11/14-15: Yarn Forward Bomber Jacket. looks definitely interesting, and it comes in multiple sizes.

11/16: Big Mexiko Scarf. i think this is self-patterning yarn, but rather than sock weight, it's worsted. kinda cool, in a way.

What i'm reading:
The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice (booktape in the car, the reader is a tad bit bizarre, because it sounds like the same guy who did Shawshank Redemption, but he changes hsi voice and cadence just enough to sound like the slithering style of lestat)
The Heir by Johanna LIndsey (booktape in house, this has actually gotten better, once we got past the hoity toity bink who was SUPPOSED to be the fiancee, hmmph)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon. i picked it up sometime last weekend, and haven't really put it down since. i'm well trapped, and well surprised, as well. bravo diana.
Otherland: The Sea of Silver LIght by Tad Williams.
The Wolves of Calla by Stephen King.

whew, too many big books, i need to finish a few of these off!

Have a nice day!

insert title of choice here

cuz i can't think of one.

hmmm. where to start? ok, we'll start with the wedding. i've now got one bridesmaid and a matron of honor. steph knew she was in the wedding (i didn't have to ask, she just assumed, lol), and i asked erin to be my matron of honor tonight at knit night, and she said yes (more like squealed, gave me a hug, and practically screeched "OF COURSE!") (the woman is enthusiastic, what can i say). we discussed colors, and my idea of a dress, and the fact that she and steph are the same body type, so they will be able to wear the same dress and not look hugely different (nothing i hate worse than a dress designed for one body type forced on another. sigh). black silver and white, how yummy. i'm thinking something with a drape across the chest, and simple styling otherwise. if we can't find what i like, we're sewing! (yeah, right, I'M sewing (note to self, ask erin if she sews at all)).

i went to knit night (obviously) and had a ball! i actually got there before erin(which never happens) and decided to settle in and start in on my super secret xmas project with that delicious silk i bought earlier from Touche. i met a few newbies, and gave out a bootie pattern i got from AC4C ( i have it memorized, and this poor girl was struggling with the most obscene baby bootie patterns). Erin came in with a crocheted flying pig (i gotta check out craftster.org (yeah right, like i need a hole in the head!)), and the start of a crocheted lemur, and, of all things, a knitted yoda. yes, the little green guy from star wars. we had WAY too much fun with that, and i actually broke out my yoda imitation, which had the whole place rolling. they all agree i do yoda way too well. and of course, erin's mind was in the gutter (is it ever out, hon?) so the lemur tail was waved about suggestively. sigh. i took a pic of erin wearing yoda's ears, with the head and body tucked into the scarf she was wearing. YOU BETTER POST THAT, WOMAN!

in fact, it was a night loaded with double entendres and phallic symbols. we all laughed way too hard. god, i'm with erin, i love that group!

work is cutting into my crafting, sigh. i've been in the mail room every day this week, and frankly, at this point, my hands ache. i suppose i should try to slow down a bit, but it's so hard to do so. i'm an over achiever (in case you didnt' notice), and even though mail is not vital to a raise (which i got one this year! wow, a whole quarter, i'm so underwhelmed. ) and i also want to break my record. i did 8 full bundles last friday (which is 160 pieces of mail). i only did 133 today. my hands hurt. oh well, slow down dingbat, or you're going to impede holiday crafting. sigh.

sean has been doing amazingly well since his med change last tuseday. last week we were pleased that he got 2 cards instead of just one for the week. this week, he's actually gone 3 for 3, and card today. this is fantastic. maybe having him at the parent teacher conference was a good thing, because mrs. H told him that if he didn't straighten out, there was no way he'd go to lewis & clark (liam attends there). so, today was magnifique! i love my little boy, and it pleases me so to hear he's having a good day.

you might be a redneck if you won a pair of knee-high moccasins (either that or a hippie, lol).
. . . you think people with grass in their yards are uppity.

Pattern of the day: Fuzzy Bear Sweater. this is cute. at first i thought it was a sweater for a bear, with a bear on it, but now i notice it's a baby sweater. very darling, except the picture is done in mint green. ew.

What i'm reading:
A Breath of Snow and Ashes (there's a major surprise awaiting you around pg 200, michelle) by Diana Gabaldon
The Heir by Johanna Lindsey (booktape in the house)(and i'm slightly disappointed, this isn't up to her usual humorous look at regency love)
The Wolves of Calla by STephen King
Otherland: The Sea of Silver Light by Tad Williams

no book tape in the car yet, i finished one off yesterday, and haven't gotten around to putting oen in the car yet.

have a nice day (and i promise pics tomorrow vi, honest)

wedding HO!

well, i did it. i reserved a park (not the one i wanted sigh) and rented the hall. now we're in like flynn. sorta. still a ton to do, but the big worrisome stuff is out of the way. at least i THINK it's the worrisome stuff. someone correct me if i'm wrong.

i called as soon as i could yesterday morning (about 20 minutes after they started taking reservations) and was on hold for 10 minutes, and when i got through, i found out the park we had wanted was already taken, for the time we had wanted. so i made an executive decision, and we went with another park that is just as pretty, just a shade smaller. mark's ok with it, so that's good.

and since it's 5 minutes before i need to leave, i'll leave you with this:

you might be a redneck if the last time you saw your daddy outside, he was picking up trash, chained to three other guys.
. . . you've lived the last ten years with shotgun pellets embedded in your rear end.

Pattern of the day:
11/7: Van Dyck Scarf. this is pretty. v shaped lace. my one question, which i'm sure my adoring readers can answer, is how is this pronounced? is it van dyke, like dick van dyke? or is it van dick? any voters?

11/8: Lobster Pot Simple Cable Hat. this is cute, and a good candidate for charity, but why is it people tend to name their projects for the yarn they use for it? i cannot imagine calling something a "redheart anything," sigh.

have a nice day!

i'm so boring

i've really got nothing to say, but i'll fake it, lol.

went to the baby shower this afternoon and had a LOVELY time. no, really, i did. i got there just in time for the games. these were actually kinda fun. the first was "guess the baby names of these animals." some of them i should have known, like llama. please, people, a cria. i did get fish when most people didn't. small fry indeed. the second game was "the price is right" and we had to guess the cost of baby items purchased from a local walmart. now, as the only woman there who was as far removed from babyhood without having grandchildren, you'd think i would stink at this game, but i was only off by 14 cents! good grief. even the mom-to-be (who was only off me by 3 cents) was impressed, lol. and do you know what my prize was? two journals and a pen. how funny.

now, for all of those of you wondering "did she get the blanket done in time?" the answer is no. i got stuck again, and i think it was my own fault. so i'm frogging once again, and rethinking how i'm doing this. i was going to do the heart motif 9 times, but now i'm thinking of checkerboarding it with seed stitch blocks. the hearts are driving me mad, lol. so, i did an emergency bootie call (teehee) this morning (despite a nauseating migraine) and whipped out a pair of stay-on booties in the same pink as the blanket. they were a bit big (this pattern wasmeant for dk), but i figured that what i can do is make more size appropriate things for when the wee one is born (like that sweater). i love babies. and it's nice to have one to knit for.

the funny part, is when Karen got to opening the gifts, i told her i had forgotten to put my name on mine. she looked at me, laughed, and said "i'll look for the knitted gift." she knows me too well, lol.

the med change for sean has been interesting. his behavior isn't any better, but he seems happier. that is a positive step. mark and i are working on getting him off as much medication as we can. he's got stuff to counteract the side effects of other stuff, and stuff to help him sleep, because he's on so much other stuff, etc, etc, ad nauseum. hopefully this new doctor will be in line with us on that one. i'd like to get him down to just adderal and risperdal. the rest is crazy making, i'll tell ya. the boy rattles when he walks, and i'm afraid to even give him an aspirin for a headache. sigh.

liam is being a big little ass. will NOT go to bed when he's told, and when i told him "you won't get up in the morning," his reply was "that's because i don't want to go to SCHOOL!" yup, gang, he's 13. and he's not so little any more. mark told me today that he can palm the archway between the living room and the dining room at his house, so i asked liam to show me. sure enough. now, this archway is high enough for mark to walk under without ducking (in the middle anyway, lol), and i can barely reach it with my fingertips, flatfooted. granted, i have extremely short arms (i measure 18" from my middle fingers to the back of my elbow), but still. ape child, indeed. he's gonna be a biggun, if he keeps this up. at this pace, he may be bigger than my little brother when he gets here!

and wedding plans march apace. mark is ahead of me in one respect, he's already asked his brother to be his best man, and liam and sean to be his groomsmen. we're going to ask O & Sue if luke can be our ring-bearer. i still dont' know what we're going to do about a flower-girl. i don't know any little girls! so far i've only asked steph to stand up with me (no, she is NOT going to be my maid of honor, let's get real). i've got 2 other people in mind, but i haven't asked them yet. i need to get to it, so we can go dress hunting for the ladies. i have to call to reserve the rose garden at memorial park (doesn't that sound lovely, erin?), and i'm going to call the hall and tell them september 16 is a go. mark and i both agree, we like this hall, it's close to home, and neither one of us has the energy to look further. now the fun stuff. i need to call mark's coworker (and my former coworker as well, lol) and find out what all she needs for planning for now. i may ask her to cater the rehearsal dinner as well (we've got the bloody hall from friday night to saturday night anyway, lol) and invitations, and flowers, and cake, and tuxes, and and and and, oh hell, i'm gonna make myself crazy! where's my wedding book?

You might be a redneck if your car's antitheft device is the way it looks (i've owned one or two like that, sigh)

What i'm reading:
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (booktape in the house, i know i'm slow)
Dragonheart (booktape in the car)
Otherland: The SEa of Silver LIght (the last book int his series, and my goodness, this is a honker!)
The Wolves of Calla by Stephen King
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon
Ghost Moon (i dont' recall the author, but i got this from PBS as aprize for guessing a 20 questions game!)

Have a nice day!

slacker blogger

i know, i know, i've been a slacker. i've just been too tired with the whole daylight savings crap. why can't they just leave well enough alone? i hate walking out of work with it being almost dark.

halloween was fun, even if sean didn't get to go trick or treating. he did behave well enough to get to hand out candy in costume, and mark was wearing his cloak as well. coolness indeed. i just ran around in ears and braids, lol.

and yes, vi, we missed you.

you might be a redneck if you 've ever swapped shirts with a scarecrow.
. . . you quit your job because deer season's fixin' to start.
. . . three generations of your family women are currently breast-feeding.
. . . people have grown weary of telling you that your pants are unzipped.
. . . you put "horns" on your new bride in your wedding pictures.

Pattern of the Day:
10/31: Punkin. this is a bond machine pattern, and i'm not sure i understand it to convert it to hand knitting. hmmm.

11/1-2:Three WArm Wool Mittens for Special Needs. I like this. it's a regular mitten, a flip top mitten, and a "trigger finger" mitten. these would be good for the res, or maybe the knitting train in january.

11/3: Child's Polo Pullover With Collar. This is very cute, but they did it in a variegated yarn, and looks dopey. this would be better in a tweed or solid, not a wild variegated like they did. ugh.

11/4: Dune: this runs all the way from a child's small to a men's xl. i like that. however it's in chenille. i don't like that, sigh. chenille is nice the first few wearings, but then it starts to worm, and be a general pain. sigh.

Have a nice day!