Hodgepodge Wednesday

Join us on Joyce's blog

1. What is a pet peeve you have when vacationing?


That hotels expect us to be up and out by 10am. Some of us sleep late when on vacation.



2. Would you describe yourself as a light packer or do you need everything in your closet plus the kitchen sink?


I am a light packer most of the time. When going to craft events, I bring way more than I need.


3. What's the best lesson a child ever taught you?


Laughter can get us through the hard times.


4. Share one piece of advice you'd give a recent graduate as they attempt to enter the job market?


Start a retirement fund NOW! Do not wait until you have the money to start one, use the money you get as graduation presents and start an account.


5. What's your favorite lemon something?


Lemon air freshener. I use 1 cup of white vinegar and put the rinds of lemons in it. Seal and put in the fridge for a week. Pour into a spray bottle and fill the rest of the way with water. Better than febreze!!! You can also use orange or grapefruit peels.


6. Flat sandal, wedge, heel...your favorite footwear?


Flat sandal!!- But bare foot is my favorite!


7. What do you like best about a beach holiday? If you're not a beach lover (GASP!!) what do you dislike the least?

I live near the beach. I love the sound of the waves and the calmness it brings me.



8. Insert your own random thought here
 
House cleaning day two. Kitchen done. Moving on to the bedroom.

Big changes- Plan of attack!

Today, Boo and I joined Weight Watchers. We have both decided to get healthier while Sarge is away. I know I need to reduce my size by half and boo needs to reduce hers by a third. We will both have struggles, but Weight Watchers program has been proven to work if you stick with it. I figure I will use this year to get me conditioned to eating healthy and exercising regularly.

We have also decided to do a major purge of the house. Today we started with the dining room and 2 huge trash bags came from just that room. The table is cleared off, the counter/bar can be used and once I move the treadmill back into the living room, the room will be cleared of everything that doesn't belong there.

The rest of this week will be spent in the kitchen and living room. I am thinking of pulling everything out of my cabinets and if I use the item in the next month (other than holiday items) they go back in the cabinet. If I haven't used it, it goes to Goodwill. In the living room, we are going to pull everything out, steam clean and then put stuff back that belongs in that room. I hope to be able to order new furniture soon, so I want to set up the room in a way that will work with the new couches.

Next week, I plan on tackling my room, the walk in closet and the master bath. I need to purge the stuff we don't use and fix/replace a few of the drawers in the master bath. I am admitting I hate to fold laundry and put it away. I have a pile of clothing in my room that needs to be folded and either purged or put away. I would rather clean the cat box than fold clothing. I need to train myself to fold as it comes out of the dryer and put it away instead of stacking it on top of the dressers. Really- my drawers are empty and I have two dressers!! I am going to spend the next year training myself to be clutter free! During this week, Boo will be working on her room and the main bathroom.

The final week of cleaning is going to be geared toward the easiest room in the house, the craft room. I tend to keep this room cleaner, as we only go into it when we need to. However, I would love to be able to actually spin in that room instead of having to pull my wheel out to the living room.

These are the goals for this household. I hope we can accomplish them and stick with it through out the next year.

Wool Fumes!

I guess I did a bit of emotional shopping this last month. The wool fumes just made me pull out my C/C and use it. I blame it all on the deployment! No, I am not returning any of it! I will try to use it up before I see Sarge again.
Here is the rundown:


 Batts from Uniquely Yours!



Into the Whirled-


Plays well with Colors- I won this!


Wolfe Farms colorway from Desert Vista DyeWorks.


Loop batt



Highland Handmades


Trifecta of Awesome Fiber club

1st yarn store in Kalamazoo-






2nd yarn store in Kalamazoo




Yep- already started a project for a friend!


Back

Front

Plus I received a few gifts from Friends.
Thank you!!


Project bags big enough for sweaters!!!
Thank you LollyT!!


Puffies and goodies, plus two mice for King Tut and Mr. Spot (not shows as they have already claimed them)
Thank you kae1217!!


And finally-
I was able to do a bit of spinning while watching Sarge get ready to go. I needed the Zen it gives me.
222 yds of DragonFly in Iris colorway


Putting the credit card away for a while!

Saying Bye Again

Once again, Sarge is off to the sandbox.

Lord, please take care of him while I can't. Amen.

Mr. & Mrs. Bear

On the 28th of April, I gained a daughter.





Welcome to the Family Mrs. Bear!!

Natural Glory

What do you get when you put together hand spun fiber of these varieties:  

Alpaca, BFL, Bison, Cvm, Chiviot, Cormo, Charlie- Angora, Cashmere, Corriedale cross , Devon, Falkland, Finnish, Grey Gotland, Icelandic,Black Jacob, Lincoln, Masham, and Merino?

A shawl that is lovely in all it's natural colors

HodgePodge Wednesday



Join us on Joyce's Blog

 1. William Shakespeare's birthday is celebrated on April 23rd...when did you last read Shakespeare? What's your favorite Shakespeare play?

A midsummer's nights dream. We used to attend a Renaissance faire in California and Each year we would watch this play, acted out as intended by men, while we ate our lunch.


2. What food(s) would you recommend a foreign visitor try when they visit your home country?

I am not a fan of normal "American" food for people not used to it. A hotdog or hamburger does not say America to me. I like regional food in the area that does it best. The vegetableas and wine of California, the pulled beef in the midwest, the seafood of the east coast. To not try these would be like going to Italy and not trying the pasta.


3. What's a lie you often tell yourself?

One day I will be organized.



4. What's something you're good at that might surprise us? Remember this is a family friendly blog!


Cleaning Silver. I love to polish silver. The summer between my Junior and Senior years of high school I went up to my mom's friends house, she happens to be an antique silver dealer. I polished silver until my fingers turned black, but I still love the gleem of a freshly polished piece.


5. Who is your favorite animal character from a book?


Froggy and his mother. Yep, zip, zoop, zup, zing.


6. April showers bring May flowers...do you have a green thumb?


In the house I tend to, but outside, I leave that to God.


7. Speaking of rainy days...which one of the following activities would you most want to spend time doing on a rainy day-
sort photos and create albums

bake cookies, read a good book, hold an all-day movie marathon, organize closets, cupboards, or bookshelves, try a new recipe, fix something that needs fixing

Out of that list, read a book or the movie marathon. Either way I will be knitting or spinning as well.





8. Insert your own random thought here.

Time is short, we steal every moment we can.