Just Messin'

First, a fun personality test. Dead-on accurate as usual.

View Full MyPersonality.org Profile

0 50 100	%
Openness	84%
Conscientiousness	16%
Extraversion	5.5%
Agreeableness	64%
Neuroticism	21%

(click to read but don't go by their graph, the numbers aren't right on that one for some reason. they are right here on this one.)

And now collages of pictures scanned on my trip to mom and dad's, click to enlarge and see the lovely details!

These are my dad's parents. His mom is the one in the light colored overalls and on the right in front of the car downtown(bottom pic).



My great-grandfather(the young man) and his parents and siblings(bottom pic) with great-grandpa being the little boy front and center. I'm not sure who the babies are in the first pic.


I'm feeling a bit better today. Enough to make a trip to Hobby Lobby for yarn and crochet hooks! Now we just need to get Mark well and I think we'll be out of the woods. We're expecting nasty ice stormy stuff tonight, bluck.

I'm HOME!!!

We drove straight through yesterday, leaving a very cold Micaville around 7am and arriving in Longview around 10:30ish(honestly I didn't look at a clock). There was fresh snow on the far end of Yancey county but not too slick on the roads. It was beautiful on the mountains but I don't have a picture, the cameras were packed.

The trip went by really fast, dad and I took turns driving. We saw dozens and dozens of deer all through Mississippi, probably over 100. The girls and I had fun watching for them, until we hit one. Dang things leapt in front of us, the first one made it across to the median, the second one crashed into the rear wheel well. I have no idea if it could have survived its wounds, we found a dent and where it wiped off the road dirt along the back of the SUV. After that it was a nervous trip, there were deer EVERYWHERE!! Thankfully the Louisiana deer weren't as plentiful.

Mark took me to lunch today for my birthday. Then mom and I went and enlarged patterns from several books and magazines for our thrifted wool projects.

We're having homemade chili for dinner with cornbread. Mark's coming home early because we didn't sleep well last night. He's VERY busy with his new company, getting everything in compliance takes a long time!

Anyway, I've got pictures on 3 different cameras so it's gonna be a few days. I'm sure it will take a week to get back to normal!!!


(the girl in the hat is my mom's mom's mom, Ollie Skaggs)

Is this cute or what?

My parents adopted two babies several months ago. This is Bert and he weighs about 5 pounds. They look like china cat figurines, very beautiful and delicate. Nan is a bit shy but I've got some pics on my camera. I'm trying to figure out how to get them onto the girls' computer, which is where I'm posting from now. Hopefully I can get it all worked out soon.

Mom and I have been going nuts at the thrift stores with the wool blazers and sweaters. So far we've deconstructed at least 15 or 20 and there are maybe 15 more to work on. We'll end up halving the goods when we're done. I have LOTS of ideas in the works, LOTS! I'm also working on my third batwing shawl. Its about halfway finished.

It was 14 degrees here this morning!! We're expecting snow on Friday but it will be followed by rain and won't stick. When we were here 2 years ago there was the pretty kind of snow that stayed for 3 days. The kids were in heaven. I wish it would do the same this time.

Anyway, that's the goings on here. I don't know what we'll do today for our New Year's celebration. I'd like to cook something, maybe a chocolate pie or something.

Sharing Ornaments....

Every ornament featured here, except the glass ones of course, was made by my mother over the last 35 years or so. She did the wooden painted ones when I was a little girl and the crosstitch ones not so long ago. I've got several more painted things, a Rabbit and Piglet, Little Red Riding Hood, Eyore, a mouse, etc. but I don't think I'll have time to take pictures of all of them!

We have a Christmas party for our homeschool group next week and then my parents will be here so I've got to get things done around the house, plus do some shopping!!!

Enjoy!





















and another quiz that fits...

Which Positive Quality Are You? Your Result: Faith   You are Faith. Faith is the belief in better things, in spite of the cynicism and doubt that swirls around us. Faith gives us strength; it inpsires us to move forward and follow our hearts. "Faith tells us what the senses do not."
Peace
Courage
Charity
Friendship
Love
Which Positive Quality Are You? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Esmeralda and Matilda

Here they are getting ready for the holidays!!! I'll be making Matilda Mouse some holiday finery soon.

Gaaaaah!!

47 days til Christmas!!!!!

I have MUCH to do!!!!

Like wrist warmers, leg warmers, walking wallets, cell phone cases, hats...

Ackkkkk!!

I won't make any more scarves for a while, we've got plenty!




(Amy modeling scarves, um several years ago)

I LOVE this hat.


(Sarah's Gwen Stefani hat, she's outgrown)

The walking wallets I'm doing are quite a bit smaller than this tween purse, with a strap to wear across the body from one shoulder to the opposite hip. They hold identification and a cell phone, and are PERFECT for walkers.


(Sidney's purse)

I'm currently working on another Patricia shawl like this one but in red(Icelandic Jewels by Yarn Bee). This one is done in Yarn Bee's Highland Thistle and is a bit too stretchy and bouncy for everyday use. It is absolutely cuddly though and I love flopping on the couch in it when its a chilly morning. The red one will be more sturdy but not quite as long.


(bat wing shawl)

I haven't made a hat in a looooong time. Ryan has requested some beanies but he wants the "name brand" kind. I wonder if he'd wear one I made?


(Aaron's hat, unknown ultra bulky yarn)

And I want to make this into a Christmasy wall hanging or table topper. I'm trying to decide if I want to make a zillion more hexagons in red for the background, or just applique it down to a solid piece of fabric. Hexagons would probably look better, darn it.


(vintage fabric paper-pieced hexagons)

I shan't lack for busywork that's for sure.

I'm participating in...


over at Smiling Sally's.



(our tree should look like this again in a few weeks, I hope!)


(my mom gave these antique pretties to me last year for Christmas)


(Mark made this painted box for a Christmas present years ago. I'm not sure if this was for his mom or my mom)


(Amy drew this last year using paint)

In other news...

Around bedtime last night a blustery cold front blew in with a vengence! I've only heard the wind howling like that during a hurricane! Because of our recent room rearranging, our bed is now under the window and the tree is just feet away from us. Needless to say, it took a long time for me to get to sleep. We ended up losing several good-sized limbs and branches. One hit the house and rolled off, its about 15 feet long and as big around as my thigh! Surprisingly, none of the branches that were broken during Ike ended up on the ground. I think they are too tangled up to come loose, for now.

We've been so slammed around here that our staples are low. This almost never happens but our weekend was so hectic that we ran out of cat litter, potatoes, ice, and lunch meat! So, I have GOT to run to the grocery store. I'd much rather stay home and work on my crocheted bags though. They are coming along nicely and I hope to have several ready for Patricia to sell soon. Pictures are coming soon.

One thing we'll definitely do today is make Homesick Texan's Wacky Cake! I've heard of this cake before but I'm not sure I've ever tasted one. I hope its good! We'll doctor ours up with cayenne powder and maybe cinnamon so I'm sure it will be scarfed down.

My mom sent some Christmas ornament kits to the girls so if we have time and if they're in the mood, we may work on those a bit. One is needle-felted ornaments and one is styrafoam balls with sequins to stick on with pins.

Felt Balls and Halloween...

A few days ago I found the perfect place to display my felt balls! This is an old Pepsi carrier that my parents had when I was a bitty girl. I remember it from waaaay back. The fuzzy thing on top is a crocheted bowl out of alpaca boucle and fun fur. Its about big enough for a racquetball to fit in and I use it for jewelry or change.







Now for today's happenings....


(last year's fall mantle)


(garland made from fabric leaves we found at Michael's)


(two packages made three garlands)


(I did this while painting with the girls, craft paint on construction paper with clear glitter)


(this year's fall/halloween mantle- the pumpkin/jack o'lantern is reversible)


(the girls couldn't resist this adorable owl)


(and, thanks to my bloggy friend Susan at Blackberry Creek for posting a picture of her little jack, my Jack now has a beautiful chapeau)

Cats, Crafts, Clutter, and More...

First, it is really hard to get anything done with this kind of cuteness going on. We are now wondering if Tallulah will end up being a normal Manx cat after all. Her diet of special easily digested kitten food with pumpkin seems to have done the trick as far as her "poops" are concerned. She has not had a problem in two weeks! And, AND!, she can move her tail now!!! We first thought that her nerves had not developed that far down along her spine because she seemed to have no feeling in her stump of a tail and was unable to move it. Yesterday she was raising it in response to being petting down the length of her back. Those of you with cats know the movement that I mean. We are hopeful that she's free of the genetic problems known as Manx Syndrome but it will probably be early next year before we know for sure.

Now. We are finally ready to get down to the business of painting the kitchen soffits and dining room walls. YEEEHAW!! So, in case you haven't followed my blog through my bedroom painting experience, I take forfreakinever to choose a paint color. And then I sometimes get it way wrong. This time though, this time I am not making a hasty decision. I want it to pop and sing but I don't want it to be garish. Which ones do yall like?



My favorite from this shot is the yellow between the rusty red and teal, on the left. It is also the same color that's in the third and forth photo. What is too funny is that each of my kids, at different times and all on their own, suggested that we do the walls in splotches of color just like these. It would look FANTASTIC if you want my opinion, but I don't think certain people would be terribly supportive.



My favorite from this next picture is the harvest gold that is next to the robin's egg blue and again to the extreme right. Unfortunately it looks terrible next to the countertops.





All three of these are great but my favorite is still the mustard yellow. We are probably going to do the kitchen soffits in the rust(a more burnt orange than this one).



I am continuing the decluttering from yesterday. We lazed a bit and I didn't get this finished last night. Actually we didn't cook our fajitas til 8pm and then Mark got a call to deliver something to a nursing home so he had to eat and run. And I just plain old DID NOT FEEL LIKE IT. There. So, it waits for me today. I'll empty all the baskets, boxes and suitcases and bag up what I don't want. Looking on top of the entertainment center, I just noticed almost a dozen more baskets to sort through. Yeah.







I did finish my wet felted balls but I'm not satisfied with these results at all. It didn't work very well the way I did it, they are way too lumpy and holey and lopsided. The first one, from a few weeks ago, was a ball that has been completely needle felted first and I got a perfectly round ball after wet felting. This time I basically draped the felting around and around and rolled it in my hands to form a loose ball. Then I needle felted enough to hold it together. I filled a bucket with hot water and dipped each ball into it, squirted it with dish soap and rolled the ball in my hands like playdoh. I'll stick with the original way I did it.

Ending this post on a high note... IT IS RAINING!!!! WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!!!

more decluttering going on....

Yesterday we tackled the garage. Again. But, this time we didn't just restack what was there. We tossed stuff. Three huge bags of trash were filled and many bags were filled for charity and the suburban is stuffed! Including a tall kitchen bag full of yarn that I'll never use.

Found items included a plastic shoebox full of sunflower seeds(birdseed style) inside another box, hidden from our view. This was on a shelf right outside the door and would explain why we startle rats when we go out there. It is tossed so maybe the rats will go away.

I also found two of my good pairs of sunglasses, missing fabric and quilt patterns, and ***dddrruuumrollll please*** the remote to the dvd player!!!! It had been missing for at least a year now, maybe more.

We have several pieces of furniture that need to go as well but they won't fit in the suburban so we'll probably just drag them out to the curb and hope someone claims them. Mark hates to do this because it looks junky and he's always afraid that nobody will get them and we'll have to drag them back inside. I tend to look on the positive side, that someone will snap them up within hours(which is usually what happens). Anyway, that's for another weekend.

In other news....

I made a heavenly chocolate pie for dessert last night. My grandmother used to make them but I didn't really care for the taste. My version used dark chocolate cocoa powder and followed this recipe, sans meringue, over at Homesick Texan's blog. Ooooh it was rich!!! There is just a small slice left too so I'll be forced to make another one today probably.

A friend of mine called later and asked me to meet her at Books-a-Million for Bluegrass night. Some local musicians meet up there once a month for a mini-concert. They were ok. Not great but certainly not bad either. I didn't go til 9:30 and they wrapped up shortly before 11. It was nice but a late night.

Today we'll be getting the girls' friend from a nearby town for the afternoon. They are out of school tomorrow for a teacher work day or something so she might spend the night. Soon I'm headed out to walk at my favorite walking trail before meeting Mark and the kids at the bookstore for coffee and magazines.

Later this afternoon I plan to get my craft corner thinned out. There are boxes and old suitcases full of junk that I just don't need to keep. Things like fabric from the mid-80s we've saved for quilt backing and such as that.

Yesterday I started some adorable needle-felted balls. I left the felting loose so I can wet felt them the rest of the way. The first attempts at this were very successful and didn't take but a few minutes. I'll share pics tomorrow.

A post in which I ramble on about our weekend...

We hosted the first Teen Thing(a tailgate party) for the homeschool group we're in. There were 4 girls and 4 boys, including 2 sets of siblings. The kids had a blast but the movie ended up being too slow for them to stay with so the boys went out front to play football in the road with Mark. Of course the girls had to follow and turned into complete giggleboxes running in and out of the house. It was good times for sure! Next month's Teen Thing to be a trip to the Yamboree, a local festival, where they can run around riding rides and acting cool. I've never been even though I have lived just down the road from this town most of my life. Can't wait to see what I've been missing! There is even a STREET DANCE!! Woot!





Saturday morning Mark and I got up and moved old fencing and deck boards over to his parents land. His dad will use some of the decking to make a bridge over a creek bed. All that heavy lifting tired me out so to I had to find neat things to photograph while Mark huffed the remaining 90% of the pile to the back of the Suburban.







Ryan and his (homeschooled) buddies pulled some stupid teenage tricks Saturday morning that resulted in a squad car bringing them home from down the street where they'd egged a house. It darn near landed one of them in jail(not Ryan) because of an illegal knife. This has resulted in his loss of communication with the offender probably permanently. We've had issues with this particular boy off and on for a few years so this isn't a rash decision.

Then, just hours later, we learned that the brother of one of Ryan's other(public schooled) friends had been in possession of illegal drugs while Ryan was there. So, he's basically lost ALL of his friends in one fell swoop. It was well past time to nip that one in the bud for a number of reasons. We had actually already decided last week to keep Ryan away from that household due to ongoing(and worsening) "domestic problems" with the mom and her babydaddy. Lovely huh? Now we've had to ban him from his church youth group because these kids are a part of it. I'd like to talk to the youth pastor sometime about this. For now its better to cut it off cold turkey than to have to plan some intricate dance for every single interaction. Sigh.

We took Ryan's spend-the-night friends home later in the afternoon, then Sarah and I took Amy to stay with a new friend.

This morning we(minus Amy) went to my favorite walking trail for some exercise, then to BAM for coffee and free magazines. I found many cool decorating and cooking mags and will be going back later in the week for more ideas! Amy came home after church with her friend. We ate turkey and swiss cheese on foccacia sandwiches for lunch, very yummy. Mark took Ryan and Sarah to the mall for shoelaces(for his dress shoes or something). I messed around with glitter while Amy took a bath.


(I'm not finished my Autumn decorating by any means. None of these folks are relations)


(If you look closely at the ghost you can see that he's made from a Club cracker box. The only white paint I had was a metallic and it didn't cover well. Luckily it doesn't show unless hit with the right light)

We had a great dinner, Sausage, Kale and White Bean Pasta, and everyone is now resting their tummies. This is another of my "what's in the pantry" dinners.

1 pound lean turkey breakfast sausage(or Italian if you want)
2 cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes with juice
1 (8oz) can no-salt-added tomato sauce
1 bunch kale, coursely chopped, large stems removed
garlic and onions to taste(powder or actual veggies)
dash of cayenne pepper(this makes it, in my opinion)
1 teaspoon savory spice
1 can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 box rotini pasta
handfuls of cheddar cheese, grated

Brown sausage well. Add tomato stuff, spices, and kale. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring now and then. Add beans to sausage and kale, continue simmering for another 15-20 minutes or so. Start pasta cooking. When the pasta is almost done, drain it well and add to sausage mixture. Stir well, cover and cook about 10 more minutes til pasta is tender. Serve in bowls with cheese. Yum!