Seasonal Projects

I keep adding new projects onto my mental to-do list... I think it's a mile long already! I just spend too much time online looking at what other people are doing (projects, art, sewing, recipes, etc.) and I want to do them all myself!

I tend to spend more time gardening and reading in the the Spring. Planting new seeds, uncovering last years beds, planning new beds and dreaming of vegetables. And this Spring I really started reading again, much to my liking. It had been way too long since I read more than one book in a several month span. And the beginning of this year has seen at least 15 books!

The Summer gets so hot and the kids want to be outside all the time. The plants are all planted and there isn't much to do but wait and harvest... So this year I started painting. I hope to keep it up, even if it becomes a smaller hobby once my current project is finished. But I already have part of my room set up for it, so I might as well keep it that way. And my reading binge has come to a halt. There's something not so appealing about trying to loose yourself in a book while covered in mosquitoes and dripping sweat. But I do have the harvest to look forward to - lots of cooking and freezing for the Winter.

The Fall is when I really start cooking and getting out the yarn. There are so many things to make to stay warm and make the house all good smelling. And candles! Fall is a great time for burning candles all over the house. Maybe this year I will try to maintain my habits of reading and painting into the Fall as well. Fall is also when I start scouting out the locals for a pregnant person to make a baby blanket for.... This year, so far, I don't have a candidate.

And Winter is all about staying inside and crocheting something, blankets, scarves, whatever - I just love to have the warm fuzzy project in my hands. This year I have several ideas piled up. I want to make some dolls for the kids... also possibly for other people's kids if they aren't too hard to make (hello! Christmas presents!).
(side note to all crafty folk out there: I found this awesome blog that stemmed my ideas for the dolls. It's called Dolly Donations. If you have it in you to be crafty and like making things, you should totally check this out! Or just check it out anyway and maybe it will inspire you to be crafty and generous as well.)

And there are the ever-ongoing-never-finished projects. I have photography ideas that could go on forever. Hopefully these will pan out and either turn into some sort of income earning source or if nothing else, more Christmas presents for friends and family.

Right now I have the photo projects I'm working on and the paintings for Cayce's house. I should probably be working on those instead of typing here...

Another Blanket?

I finished the blanket I was making for my niece's Christmas present (see post here).

And I was really excited that she liked it... at least when she opened it she did. I assume she still does. I wasn't really expecting a happy reaction fro a four year old about getting a crocheted blanket from her aunt... but I did! See:




Now I feel like I need a new crochet project. I have so much yarn, mostly given to me from my aunt who's mother-in-law passed away and had tons of stuff... So I feel like I should use it. But I don't seem to follow through with projects when there is no goal, deadline, or expectant recipient. I don't know of any pregnant people right now and there are no gift giving holidays coming up... what's a girl to do?
I tried at one point to make some gloves, but they just didn't turn out like I wanted so I gave them to my sister, Cayce, to sell on her Etsy site. I think I should stick to things that come in a square.

Maybe I will try to finish some existing projects that are tucked away in my yarn boxes. I never did finish my blue/purple/black blanket.... first seen in my post, Off the Hook!
Maybe I will try to get that done... but what hangs me up is: what to do with it when it's finished?

What's the Happs

I've been meaning to blog on here more often... I just haven't. But I am now, so YEAH! Kirk was off work this past week (for my birthday and then Thanksgiving). It was nice to have him home but it didn't really feel like vacation. I guess because my day to day routines were uninterrupted, other than the Holiday.

What was I thankful for this year? That I didn't have to do any of the cooking! I made a dish or two, but wasn't in charge of anything really. That was nice.

I'm almost finished with Allyson's Christmas Blanket. Here it is:
I am still working on the border but it's mostly done. A few more days and it will be wrapped up and crossed off my list.
The day after Thanksgiving I was NOT out shopping! I really don't like shopping when there are the regular everyday crowds... so Black Friday was just not an option for me. No desire, no need, no way! Instead we put up our Tree. For over five years now I have used the same color scheme on the tree: red and gold. Pretty, and added to in some way each year, but I'm over it. Last year I went shopping after Christmas at Target (Oh Target!) and got decorations at 75% off. My new color scheme for this year is blue and silver! It needs a little tweeking (and a gate around it so the monsters will leave it alone) but here it is:
And the next day it was so nice that we went out to the park as a family. We had the kids all decked out in coats and hats... those came off within five minutes of being in the glorious sunshine. We played for a long time since I knew the cold weather would be coming soon... Then out to lunch. It was a really nice day. Here is my big handsome man. I can't believe how big he is!
And once again... Screw Black Friday! I'm ALL ABOUT Cyber Monday! I have already done about 2/3 of my entire list online today... All from the comfort of my uncomfortable computer chair! And on top of not going out to do my shopping I have enlisted my kids to do some of the work for me this year. We are going to have some hand made Christmas gifts this year... and not just because I'm cheap (which I admittedly am) but because that's what the season is about... giving a part of yourself to someone else.... So here's a big HIGH FIVE from Nola to you on having a Happy Healthy Handmade Christmas!
(If something resembling this hand shows up under your tree this year, know that you are loved.)

But don't worry - I'm not going totally off the grid into Granola Land... We already bought the kids a game system for Christmas... ;)
Which by the way was AWESOME! Went to the site today, Cyber Monday, and got almost 20% off of everything I ordered. The system (V Smile Motion) is usually around $60 in the stores. I got it for $36! Then I bought an extra controller, an adapter, and two games. The total was around $82 with NO shipping, thank you cyber monday! And as I was checking out it asked me if I had a promo code to enter... so I clicked on over to Google and looked up Vtech promo code and got one! I entered BIGSAVINGS and got an additional 20% off of everything! HooRay! So I got the system for $28 - that's more than 50% off! .... I mean, Santa did all this and told me about it.... shhhh

New Blanket

(Don't look if you are Allyson!)

I made blankets in college, then stopped for a few years and started making them again when I was pregnant with Nola. And since then every baby born into my family has received a handmade blanket from me. But Allyson (who is older than Nola) was born in the years when I wasn't crocheting... and she never got a Janae Blanket. So for Christmas this year I am finally making her a blanket.

I turned my old purse into a sewing bag. Very handy to carry around and the pockets are very useful. I can zip away my scissors and hooks from the kids - who always seem to be magnetically pulled towards balls of yarn like they were kittens or something.


The colors I chose are pink (almost a hot pink), green (a very bright, light green), off white, and a multi-colored pink. There are four colors, and putting them together in the various combinations of two results in 12 different types of squares.


Not sure how many squares I will end up with, but I hope to make rows of 8. I have 36 squares so far and I was hoping for a minimum of 48... but with the sizes of the yarn balls I have left it may just stop at 40 something....

Here are some of the color combos:
Hopefully I will have many more squares to add to the collection and the blanket will be large enough for her to use and love for years to come. And her room is pink and green, so hopefully it will match. If you happen to talk to little Allyson, don't tell her that I'm making this for her. It's a secret - shhhhh....................

A Jumble of Stuff

So July... not much happened in July.

I did get lots of veggies from the garden.... Below is a meal I made mostly from the garden: sauted squash and zucchini, a tomato and basil salad, and a pasta with tomatoes, fresh green beans and basil.... YUM YUM YUMMY!


Also finally finished the laying of stones in my new patio area... I even decided to get creative one morning with Nola and add a decorative center with small colored rocks... I really really like how it turned out:



And here's a little bit o' Logan:


And what's the best way to have a wagon ride? Laying down on a soft blanket with your juice and being pulled around the yard....


But it's also nice to have company on the ride.... Look at his fat belly!


And big news in Logan Land... Standing up! All by himself! Well, not getting up to standing without support, but staying up once up....



And I'm starting a new blanket. For my cousin Ashley's baby boy to be, Oliver. I emailed her pictures of several color combos and this is the one she picked... more pix to come as I actually get to crocheting....

(that's a chocolate brown, a light mustardy brown and a light bright teal)


And my latest project is planning Logan's first birthday party - Whoo Hoo! He will be one on August 19th! We are having his birthday in the same park we had Nola's first birthday party, which we have since renamed the Birthday Park. Here's the big boy waiting to be one:

And the theme of the party is....

SHARKS!

So that's my big jumble of stuff....

Crocheted Baby Rattles

Today I made something for the first time in a while... crocheted baby rattles. I got the idea from my sister, Cayce - who got the idea online somewhere....
So here's what I did (with lots of pictures):

I started with this bright colored baby yarn



I crocheted rows across to make a long rectangle:



Here it is folded over, so you can see how long it was:



Then I sewed the long sides together to make a tube:



I just crocheted the two sides together all the way down:



Then I looked for some sacrificial toys (ones the kids no longer play with or ones that are just past their prime). Also, another idea from Cayce, I found ones with the bells, rattles and squeaky things inside to harvest:

The lovely caterpillar above offered up his internal organs for my crafting experimentation. He contained lots of stuffing, a squeaker, the crinkle sound makers AND a bell!


And a mystery was also solved. What do they put into baby toys to make that crinkle sound? Well my friends, it's stuffing wrapped in plastic tape! How simple is that? Here is a crinkle sound maker:



So then I stuffed the tube with the toy guts:



Then I sewed the ends of the tube together to make the ring.
Here is one of the rattles, this one squeaks:



I made two, one that has the rattle bells inside and one that squeaks - they both also have the crinkle noise in them as well:

I included my hand so you could see the size of them, they're rather large. (Ignore my lack of upkeep in the nail polish department.)


So this is what I did today. Tomorrow we will see if the baby actually likes them.

Blanket for Ella

My brother-in-law and his ex-girlfriend are about to have their first baby. Even though they aren't together anymore and I'm not sure if or when we will see this new niece of ours, I made and sent her a blanket. I know she will be born in the next few weeks and her name will be Elenore, Ella for short. That's all I really know but I hope that she and her mom really like this baby blanket I made for them. It turned out so pretty (it's a heather gray and a softer pink than the pictures appear). It's almost one of my favorites so far.

Here is the whole blanket (about 3.5 x 3.5 feet):
Here is a folded shot:
And here is a close up of the detail:

I'm now back to working on my blanket I called "Starry Night" - blue and purples outlined in black. I'm thinking it will be my favorite by the time I'm finished (I see a trend here, either I'm getting better as I go or I just love em and leave em).

You Should Shop Here!

My sister Cayce just opened up her Etsy Store and you should totally buy her stuff!

Go here to visit the shop:

HelloCayce!


Even if you don't want to shop for awesome things, you should check out the captions for the items...
Pinky the Bookmark likes hanging out in Romance Novels and books about Flowers! TOO CUTE!

Tell Me...

...what to do with this project!

I got this yarn from my sister in law. I have five skeins of it! It's really colorful and very soft, like baby yarn. I started a square, because I had a hard time crocheting in rows with it because it was so soft. (Maybe I should try again now that I'm used to it) But I stopped my square because I have no plan. I could carry on with the square forever and make a large square blanket... I could make multiple squares and put them together for a variety of things like a blanket, a scarf or two or three, some sort of outfit for the kids... I don't know! Anyone have any ideas?

Here is the square I finished (and one skein of the yarn):


And here is a closer up version:

Finished a Blanket!

I finished the blanket I'm making for my upcoming niece. My brother in law and his wife will be here for Thanksgiving so it's just in time!

Here it is:

Captured!

I found a good place to put the kids while I'm trying to get something done! Actually I put Logan in there (that's Nola's crib by the way) while I was doing laundry in her room and she wanted in too. So in she went! And off I went to grab the camera.

She's pretty funny these days when she wakes up... the other day she covered her face when I walked in to get her up from nap time (this was after she called for me) and said, "I'm still asleep! Go Away!" And this morning when I went in to get her she had peed through her diaper and told me she would just "Lay in my pee-pees a while." When she was ready to get up she said she would like to "go pee-pees in livin room now."

Oh, and it's Tuesday and I still haven't lost any weight. So I'm a looser. Boo Me. I'm not even going to post the regular stats - just know that I'm fat and bummed about it.

In other news...
I have about 10 squares started on my Starry Night blanket, will post more pics when it comes together more.
I still haven't finished my hair makeover... I am going to get it re-cut sometime soon and color it a very dark brown, will post pics of that if I ever get around to it.
I have to renew my drivers license before Nov. 4th because I'm a big old slacker and still have my old address and my maiden name on it! I've been married over 3 years! I just don't want to take any chances that I won't be able to vote. I will be lying about my weight to the License Bureau by the way.
Logan is laughing all the time now - it's really cute.

Off The Hook!

I've started crocheting again... the little one is 2 months old and starting to sleep through the night, therefor I am no longer a walking zombie who needs a nap everyday. I'm just not into stressing out about a not-so-clean house... so I have a free nap time and a free couple of hours to claim back as my own (after 8pm if I so choose to stay awake). And I've been feeling that nagging need to be crafty! It's Fall and the weather is getting cooler... cold actually... and what better hobby than one that keeps your lap warm while you work on it! So Blankets it is! Have Hook - Will Crochet!

I have been planning on making my brother and sister in law a baby blanket for my upcoming niece (in January) but I've been a super-slacker... well, I did have a baby. But I really lucked out. I found a blanket I had already started and already had plenty of yarn to finish! So now I'm working on that blanket. They found out they are having a girl but it's only about a 75% chance... I'm secretly (well openly) hoping she will pop out with boy parts! So green it is! I will probably put a pink border on it... and replace it with blue is she is really a he.

So here it is so far:
Blanket #1: Baby Gem

They are making fun of us for naming Logan after an X-man (Wolverine, aka Logan) and saying that they are naming their daughter-to-be after Gem and the Holograms....

I have also been inspired by a blanket on The Purl Bee blog - the Babbette Blanket. I want to do my own version... basically it's a bunch of granny squares in different sizes and colors put together to make a crazy-quilt type blanket... ala coat of many colors.... check out the right hand side of the Purl Bee blog under crochet projects if you wanna see some. Link over from my Blogs I Like section....

Here is my color pallet for this blanket. I think I will be using the blues and purples inside the squares and outlining and connecting them all in black. My vision is for it to look like stars...


And here are a few squares that I've started with all the balls of yarn again... The two on the right will not be included in the blanket... They were practice squares just to get back into the feel of granny squaring again... and they aren't right anyway. The one on the left is my first completed square.


And here is a close up of the very first square in
Blanket #2: Starry Night


I'm not too sure what I'm going to do with this blanket... I may put it up for sale on Etsy or something if it turns out good enough....

By the way - if anyone wants to commision a lovely crocheted blanket, scarf, hat, etc... let me know! I'm open for business and could use a part time job!

Projects Update - July

Finishing Nola's Baby Book
I have about 2 pages that aren't complete... and they most likely never will be. So I'm going to say FINISHED! on this one.

Crocheting a Blanket for Molly
I have about 4 rows to go and then some tails to tuck in... that's a Sooooo Almost Finished!

Creating Human Life
My due date is 15 days away! I better be Almost Finished! Will go on no longer than 27 days from now (c-section planned for 28th if no labor)

Starting Roses from Clippings
Ends look truly disgusting... and I think it's time to put the suckers in some dirt and see what they do.... no visible roots popping out but the tops are still alive and kicking in the window sill. So we will give this one an In Progress still.

Growing Vegetables
Well - my planter box has been very much neglected since I entered my 8th or 9th month of pregnancy...I have still collected some green beans and one pepper... but it's so hot out that I just don't go check on them all that much. I did pull out some plants to give the others a chance to grow larger... I planted the rejects in an abandoned pot along my driveway and have done even more than nothing to them... well, they look 100 times better than the ones in my planter box. I guess they are shaded more or something... Maybe next year I will have the luxury of an in ground garden or just not be pregnant in the heat of the summer! Either way, this one is still In Progress.

Selling My House
No news on this front - it's about to come to a close for a while when I have the baby but until we actually sell, it will be In Progress ... Unless we decide to bunk up the little ones, give up on the sale and just stay here longer to save hassle and money.... you never know!

Buying a Bigger House
Really - this one Hasn't Started Yet.

365 Project
I think I am on 46 out of 365... that's about 12% complete. So this one also gets an In Progress

Learning About my Camera
This has been labeled, In Progress, but seeing as that learning is an ongoing thing I think I need to relabel it as OnGoing.

Being 'Greener'
Also better known as OnGoing. We have been very conscious of saving on water and electricity and while my electric is on budget billing I can still tell we've used less... and our water bill was about $20 cheaper than last time... so that's progress. And I think I will join a wholesale club after that baby comes. If anything it will allow me to stock up and save on gas going to the store... and hopefully money. Still in the process of getting rid of all current cleaners before making my own.

Paying Off Debt
We are about 3 months into my 3 year plan... and so far so good. I'm keeping track of all the debt that's being paid off... and it's definitely decreasing! And we are about ready to get rid of another credit card! We will have only one left for emergencies (which always come up). And pretty soon we will start aggressively paying off Kirk's car early. So this one deserves a very proud In Progress!

My Projects - June Update

In my sidebar I have listed my current projects.... Here is an update on how they are all going:


Selling My House - We've had several people come by and look. An open house on Sunday the 29th. So far, no bids. Keeping the house in 'showing' condition has been hard but we've gotten so many things done that only have to be done once... now it's just maintaining... hopefully it will get easier as we go, and hopefully we will sell this house before Logan is born. (fingers crossed)

Buying a Bigger House - We haven't even started looking yet (except online for fun). We need to wait and see how much we might get for this house first before we know what our actual price range will be for the next house. But I am going to assume that buying will be easier than selling...

Creating Human Life - 8 months pregnant... wow only 2 months to go! Logan is a completely different pregnancy than Nola was. I'm carrying him so much more forward than I did with her. It hurts. My stomach is constantly poking out in uncomfortable positions. But I haven't gain nearly the weight I did the first time and haven't had the swelling so far either. I really just don't think I'm going to go all the way with him... I'm thinking early August instead of late August.... we shall see!

Crocheting a Blanket for Molly - (Molly is my soon to be, in September, niece) I'm about half way finished. I think the blanket looks so pretty! I can't wait to be finished, even though it's fun to do. And for those of you who know your crocheting, I'm tucking all my tails as I go so when I'm finished I will really be finished... and will all the darn stripes, that's a lot of tails! Here is a 'so far' picture:





Finishing Nola's Baby Book - This is a project I have been procrastinating on for about a year! But I REALLY want to finish before the new baby comes so I can start to procrastinate on his baby book! I have been pretty good about keeping up with her photo album (about 4 pics a month, all in sepia tones, all in one album). I also have an album waiting for Logan too....

Learning About my Camera - Well, this will be a long term thing really. But I'm mainly talking about learning what all the photography term mean and how to use them. Perfecting my skills will take a lifetime, as all learning processes should. Right now, thanks to Lucy, I am going through a 12 week, online photography lesson. I have read a few so far and already learned a lot. I will be posting my lesson projects in my Photo Blog.

365 Photo Project - This is also being posted in my Photo Blog, but I am about 2 weeks into a 52 week project. This is helping me a ton in that it makes me get out my camera and try and be creative every day or so. It's a great hobby that (in my wildest dreams) could someday turn into a money making hobby.

Starting Roses from Clippings - I'm about 2 months into this project. I always thought I didn't like roses, for my own gardens, but now that I have a rose bush of my very own and see it get bigger each year... I love it! And now that we're moving, I really want to take a piece of it with me. I guess it's sentimental... I did lots of research online in trying to decide how to grow a clone of my wonderful rose bush from clippings. After a few days of reading so many different processes, I came across an article that basically said, Cut a clipping with a rose on it. Stick it in a vase of water and enjoy the rose until it dies. Then clip off the rose bud and keep the leaves and stem in the vase until it roots. It may take months, but this is what our Grandmothers and their Mothers did. It's just the easiest way. So that's what I'm doing. Here is a picture of how slimy and strange the cut ends look:

Being 'Greener' - This one is baby step by baby step. I have started using mostly Green Works cleaning products and plan on making my own once I have used up all the misc cleaners under my sink. I have started buying certain things only Organic. I have started a few vegetable plants in the backyard. I switched our bread and pasta to whole grain, mostly. I've switched all our light bulbs to the curly kind and have been super diligent about turning them off when not in use. We installed ceiling fans in all the bedrooms and the dining room to cut down on cooling costs and we waited and suffered through the early heat so as not to turn on the air too early. (I think this will be easier next year when I'm not pregnant). Next I would like to really get into recycling and growing more vegetables. Possibly collecting rain water for the yards/gardens. And composting. Also, sealing up the windows in winter to save on heating costs. It's slow, but steady, and it feels good to do it all, so no harm done!

Growing Vegetables - mentioned above obviously.... I have about 6 green bean plants, 2 pepper plants and around 10 tomato plants all grown from seed. Oh wait, the peppers I bought. But they are all doing good. We had two harvests of beans (about 8 beans each time) and had them all as a side dish at my sisters house, combined with her beans from the plants I gave her. I have 2 peppers growing, one of each kind, jalapeno and red bell. The tomatoes are still small... nothing yet! It's fun that Nola helps me water them and wonderful that she can participate in how the process works of seeds in our window to food on our plates! That's a great lesson for a kid!




Paying Off Debt - Well, I have a 3 year plan to get out of all of our non-mortgage debt. That includes credit cards, cars and student loans. I spent about 3 hours (an entire nap time) working out the details in an Excel spreadsheet. This will bring us to $0 a month in non-mortgage debt in 3 (THREE) years! If we can do it, we're awesome! This is assuming we will incur no more debt along they way, but since we have built our savings up, we just have to only purchase what we can afford. There will surely be emergencies down the road that will change the plan... and who knows how much the birth of this baby will throw off my plan... but it's a start.


If you're wondering what exactly I did... here is step one: Write down all your bills that are monthly loan payments. Then find your contact information for each one and keep it in the same place. Go through each one and find out and write down all of the following information: Company Name, Phone Number, Website Address, Your Account #, User Name and Password (for online or phone), Current Balance, Interest Rate, Monthly Payment (if fixed). This way you can find out your total debt at any time! It's the best reminder of why to stay on track with your plan.

Baby Go-Gan's Room

Nola calls Logan, Baby Go-Gan. It's cute... She points to my belly when I ask her where the baby is. And when I raise up my shirt for any reason she points and says, "Baby Go-Gan!" Just thought I would share with you all my plans for the baby's room (if we ever get around to moving so there will be an actual room).

This is the fabric I am going to order to make New Baby's crib blanket and any other accessory that we may need. In case the picture isn't coming through, or you're just so inspired by this blue camo that you want to order your own, here is the link to the website I am buying it from:

http://www.vtarmynavy.com/blue-camo-fabric.htm

All the other stuff I am just going to mis-match from blue, blue camo, stars (blue and white)... Not a very cohesive theme - but hopefully it will be unique and come together enough to look good, and not like a military room. If you would like to see some of the other things I have chosen to buy, take a look at my Babies R Us registry.... (it's not for gift giving reasons, although feel free to buy me whatever you want to - ha ha ha - it's just a list for my own sake). Here is the link to that as well:

http://www.toysrus.com/registry/index.jsp

Search by my name or my registry #: 71443388

I have already made a blanket (crocheted from yarn) for him but I wanted to have the "quilt" type blanket too. Nola sleeps with both, the blankie I made for her and the comforter her set came with.... So I assume Logan will too. Here is a picture of the blankie that I made for him:

And since Nola's pronunciation of Logan's name sounds like the artist Paul Gauguin, I thought it may be appropriate if we find a print of his work to hang in the nursery somewhere.... Most of his work is of naked Tahitian women, but I think this one might work:

Breton Bather