A Lefty Crochets

In the Midnight Hour ...

2011-12-18T00:42:00.000-05:00

Here I sit waiting on a batch of muffins to finish baking and can't stop thinking ... In the Midnight Hour ... and what it seems to mean to me.
I find that no matter how exhausted I may feel as the midnight hour approaches that that is exactly the time when I draw so much closer to God. In my thought life, in my spirit, in my whole being I find I am drawn to deep conversation with my Lord. Tonight the thoughts revolve completely around life and death and what it means to me as a child of God. There are a few factors that help this topic of thought. First is the fact that yesterday I attended a funeral and it so drove home the anniversary of my own father's passing. Secondly is the fact that I've signed up to share during Adult Education (aka Sunday School ) on the topic of," Being Children of God."

So many various thoughts run through my mind when I think of what it means to be a child of God. To begin with the idea strikes my fancy that we are not "infants" therefore we are not "babies" and that indicates we are responsible for our choices, our actions, our words and even our thoughts. As babies we are so totally not capable of making the choices for ourselves therefore someone else is responsible for our complete care. As a child of God we can be totally dependent on HIM however we are responsible for our actions, our choices etc etc ...

Recently our daughter & son in love (law) along with our 2 yr. old & almost 4 month old grandsons moved in to our home. One day during this past week, while I was thinking about just how to present the concept of being Children of God to the class, my grandson got "busy" taking care of "business" (if you catch my drift) ... so his mother asked him if he had "gone" or did he need to use the potty?
This made me think ~ Do we think we can hide our "stink" from God? Do we think if we just "hide" behind something and "do our business" that He won't smell our "mess"?

If we are children of God then we should mature past the "toilet training" and recognize our own stench.

Yes that is what has been on my mind lately. But I want to go back to the first reason for my thoughts about the midnight hour.

My friends' dad passed away and his funeral service was Friday morning. I understood how my friend felt having "lost" my dad 14 yrs ago today. Yes time has passed swiftly and yet my father is not forgotten. And the more I age (hopefully gracefully???) the more I think about the things of heaven more so than the things of this earth. After all this earth is not our "HOME"!!
My friend's dad was well known. He was very well loved. He was a man who you could depend on, who you could turn to in your time of need. He was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle, friend. But even with all that to be said about him he was a man in need of a savior. My friend had been praying for him to accept Jesus as his Lord and Savior and had many family and friends praying for him as well. Thankfully about a month before he died he had accepted Jesus as His personal Lord and Savior. Ensuring that his eternal home is with God forever and ever without end!!!! This brings children of God great joy, for we all understand the importance of the decision he has made. If you have not made this decision for yourself then I encourage you to do so ~ you can't be an "infant" and expect someone else to make this decision for you. If you need more information ask God to reveal Himself to you more fully, and read a Holy Bible, or go speak with a minister, a preacher, a church goer, or feel free to leave me a comment asking for more information. I do not claim to know everything but I will do my best to answer you from the Word of God.

Yes it is that important and yes YOU DO Mean that Much to ME... because YOU MEAN THAT MUCH TO GOD!!!!

So as I sit here with my muffins smelling very tasty, and my heart rejoicing over the fact that this is not all there is to living and dying ... for in dying we merely pass from our fleshly body setting our spirit free to join God in Heaven. Yes we mourn the loss of our loved ones because we miss them but we have a hope of joining them when it is our turn to leave this earthly home. That hope is there for you too all you need to do is become a child of God. Repent of your sin, (we are all born with sin and all fall short of the Glory of God) Believe on Jesus Christ (the Son of God who died to take away the sins of the world), Confess Jesus Christ as your Lord & Savior. Grow in the Lord ... read the Holy Bible (Gods Word) and pray for God to reveal Himself to you daily, and take time to "listen" to the Holy Spirit as He guides you in a closer walk with God.

May your "Midnight Hour" bring you peace, joy and fresh revelation of Gods love, grace and mercy. Good Night & God Bless!!!

Today is the Day of Salvation chose wisely!!!!

2011-12-12T00:00:00.001-05:00

Sitting here ... needing to head to bed and still can't shake the feeling that there is so much more to be said ~
So here it goes ... The love of God for each one of us is undeniably the Greatest Love to be had ... in fact it is so Great it is Priceless!
Meaning you & I could NEVER PAY the PRICE for Gods LOVE!!!

That being said here is the best thing to know about this Great Love ... God gives this LOVE to us FREELY!!!!
That bears repeating so here it is again pay attention will ya??? GODS LOVE is FREELY GIVEN to US ... IT IS PRICELESS meaning we could never Pay for it yet HE Gives it to us for FREE!!!!!!!!

Okay that is great, I mean something we could never afford to purchase is given to us for free how incredible is that??? But here's the sad news :( so many people are hung up by lies about God, about this gift He has given us that they never accept this gift of Gods Love for themselves. Big huge sad face here. I've been seriously dwelling in the place of growing closer to God based on basking in His Love because that is where I can honestly be free ... free from any of my past mistakes, sins, or whatever title or word best describes the garbage that passed as my lifestyle on this earth before accepting Christ as my Lord and Savior. Free to enter into forgiveness, not only for myself but for everyone else whether I've met you or not. You see God has been showing me how because of His great gift of His Love ... that when we enter into a relationship with Him, asking Him to be in control, to have our back so to speak ... when we enter into that close relationship with HIM as our Lord and Savior we gain the ability to lean on HIM for His great love for others ... including those individuals we might otherwise despise.

In my prayer time I am constantly drawn to pray for the children around the world who may be living in abusive situations ... this prayer often ends in my sobbing for them to be covered by Gods love, grace and mercy so that they not only survive the abuse they are subjected to but that they grow strong in the Lord to be a part of His Kingdom, and that they are set free from the damage the abuse could cause them ~ even possibly keeping them from entering into a healthy relationship with God. When I am praying for these precious children ~ whom I fully believe God LOVES and CARES about ~ I then find myself sobbing for the lost souls that are subjecting the children to the abuse. For you see God Loves them as well. God recognizes that SIN has them bound, and unless they are set free they are headed for Hell. For an everlasting separation from God for all eternity. I see and understand Gods compassion and mercy that is offered freely to them both the abuser and the victim. For God so LOVED the World that HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON .... yes HIS SON gave up HIS life Freely for me and for You ... whether we are victims of abuse or not ... even if we are abusing others or not... HE LOVES US and has paid the price for us to be set free from the sin that keeps us from being Heaven bound!

Freedom was paid for with a great price. The price of the blood of the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. Our part is in the acceptance of this gift. Whether you realize it or not ... and trust me the enemy of your soul does not want you to realize this by any means ... when you think to yourself that you do not need to make this decision .. later may never come for those who are facing the choice of surrendering to Gods Love. Today is the day of salvation enter into the shelter of Gods Love and be saved for all eternity. Do not put off until tomorrow the decision to follow Christ for tomorrow is not promised to you!

I just can't stop thinking how so many will be lost forever because they haven't heard the truth of Gods Love for them. And how many more will be lost forever because when they did hear (or read about) Gods Love for them but they couldn't be bothered to make a decision right then and there. (There is no buyer's remorse when you enter into the family of God!) It won't be a rose garden without any thorns that's for sure but you will have strength for each day, you will have comfort when you are mourning and you will have joy unspeakable.

So I encourage you to call on the Lord and be saved ... repent of your sins (we are born with sin and therefore all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God) ... and chose to follow Christ. The Lamb of God who through His shed blood paid the price so that you could be reconciled to God and spend eternity with HIM. or chose to ignore the message of Gods great Love for you and spend your eternity in hell, separated from God forever without end ... the ultimate choice is yours ~ I pray you chose wisely, and I pray you don't put off what needs to be done today!

Baby Afghan on my hook :) & some "food for thought"

2011-12-07T23:12:00.001-05:00

Yes I want to do the baby sweater and the baby dress and I so want to figure out just how I want to finish my sweater for myself but the yarn it calls to me and it speaks very loud & clear that it wants to be worked up into an adorable baby afghan! So it has begun ... the magic ring has been cast and the first two rounds of an "Anne's Square" has been worked. Tomorrow the contrast color will be worked for round 3 and then I will have to decide just exactly how I want to work this afghan up... I already have ruled out one giant granny ~ but I am not sure if I want to keep it to small squares joined as I go or larger squares joined together after I complete them ... if I want to work all the same square or if I want a really nice contrast ~ I only know it will be decided tomorrow and it will be designed with love. And it will be worked with prayer and love in every stitch for a baby that is loved before it arrives to join our family as it has already captured our hearts.
Then the joy of playing with the previously mentioned baby patterns will be all mine!!!

When I think of how much God loves us and how He gives us precious gifts such as children to love I am always struck with this thought ~ how is it possible that we start out with an ease of faith and yet lose the ability to believe at very young ages?
God Loves YOU ~ do you know it? Do you Believe it? Will you bask in it? Will you accept it? Will you share it? What will you do with it?

My grandchildren are so loved by us and yet I've already seen how they have gone from accepting what we tell them to questioning us. Often I hear "Is that true?" ~ I've also noticed how many times I end up saying, "Don't you believe me?" and then wondering how many times God is saying that very thing to me ... is He saying that to you as well?

We are all on borrowed time here on earth but that does not mean that our life is over or our journey ends it simply means that we move on to the next place and continue the journey that is ours to complete with HIM.
I Believe!
I Await His Return!
I will carry on and do my best to keep Trust in the forefront and doubts and fears banished from my thinking!!!!

As we see this year coming to an end may I encourage you to stop and think, even if only for a moment, about how Great Gods Love is for YOU. Bask in the fact that His Love is real and that He wants to see you through whatever challenge you may face today.
May you be blessed with Truth, Strength, Courage, and Wisdom and may you find Peace, Joy, and Self Control along with Love flooding your heart, mind & soul ... Filling your home with the ability to LIVE in LOVE :)

:) Peace out!!!

New on my Hooks :)

2011-12-06T21:07:00.001-05:00

So my very beautiful niece is expecting her second lovebug in Feb. and I would love to reduce my yarn stash even if by a little bit so I was on a pattern search for the 'just right' newborn baby gift (besides my usual favorite baby afghan patterns that is ! ) and came across some really lovely options via Ravelry ... a couple of very cute newborn sized items which I am now itching to get on my hooks!!!! I am going to get a very easy (almost too easy) newborn sweater underway first or well maybe I'll start the absolutely adorable dress or top from Sarah's Sweethearts ... found here on Blogger ....

Little White Dress

I just know it will be a welcome gift and I'm looking forward to making it for our family's newest little love :)

I also have my own short sweater/ shrug? not sure what to call it yet ... it's my own pattern worked from the top down and once it is finished I will post pictures ~ I know... I really do know... that if you've read my blog in the past you have heard promises of pictures that simply never showed up but I Promise to post a picture of me wearing my new "top" in the new year as I am sure it will take some time to do the finishing touches on it since it is a work in progress without a set pattern to follow.

So my hooks are busy and I'm happy about that. My yarn stash is supposed to present itself for my use so that in time I reduce my stash enough to have more space in my bedroom. Yeah like that's going to happen any time soon hahahahahahha seriously I crack myself up when I talk/ think that way it's just too funny!!!!
Have a great night and may all your projects be fun, and Frog Free ;)

Home again home again Jiggity Jig :)

2011-12-05T18:02:00.001-05:00

Here is a picture of one of the harbor seals that I managed to see & capture several photos of while I was in Howth, Ireland (north of Dublin).
Yes you read that correctly. I was in Dublin, Ireland for 3 nights in late Oct. (yes of this year) and then I was in Venice, Italy for 2 nights, followed that with 2 nights in Rome, Italy & followed that with 2 weeks in our cousins home in Francavilla al Mare ~ which is near Pescara. God has blessed me with the opportunity to see a little bit of Ireland (Lord willing I will be blessed again with an opportunity to see more of Ireland in the future???)

I loved visiting with family ~ it's always interesting to work out our communication. I do not speak any Italian. They speak some English but when we seem to hit difficulties out comes the dictionary or better yet we get on the computer and type and translate through a translation program she has on her computer. "Ma" would be so pleased to know we've managed to visit with her family. And for the record although Tiziana is taller than "Ma" she truly reminds me of my sweet grandma :)

But as with all vacations they come to an end and one must return to their "real life". In my case returning home was not to my "same old same old" but instead it included my home being transformed into a "full house" while I was away. Not that I'm complaining! I'm so blessed to see 2 of my precious grandsons daily now that they are living with us, along with their parents.
In case you were wondering (you were wondering, weren't you?? of course you were ;p ) going from an empty nest to a full house is... different to be sure. Thankfully we are all adjusting just fine.

It is my hope to get back to blogging more consistently. The current project on my hook is a shrug/sweater? for me! I started it on Oct. 22 and it is very close to being finished. I just have to work on the remainder of the sleeves and then trimming it all around and decide if I'm adding a snap or button or if I'm leaving it open.
Decisions decisions :) oh how I love them ;)
Happy crocheting & may your projects be "frog free" (rip-it rip-it)

I Can’t Sleep ~

2011-07-01T00:12:00.001-04:00

Sleep. It’s so good for you. Except when it doesn’t come. Especially when you know you have an early morning and you headed to bed early or at least on time!

I laid in bed, with my sleep apnea mask on, machine on and closed my eyes ready for sleep to overtake me. Thoughts running through my mind. Ut oh! Thoughts are not supposed to be running through my mind! At least not the entire time I’m waiting for sleep to overtake me!!!!

Finally I couldn’t stand it any longer & here I am at the end of another day writing.

I can’t share fully the thoughts that ran through my mind but I can share a few.

Like how we are supposed to die to self and take up our cross. I was thinking about that a lot lately. Especially due to the fact that I’ve been sitting with a friend of our family who is slowly slipping from this life into the hereafter. This process of dying can be so fast it takes you by surprise and you are ill equipped for the emotional aftermath. And then there is the slow death which surprisingly enough takes it’s emotional toll on the care givers but in the end still you find yourself with an emotional aftermath that takes you by surprise!

In the first case, where death seems so merciful in its’ swiftness and you are left reeling from the shock of it all the loved one didn’t suffer or at least it’s easy to believe they didn’t suffer. In the second case, where death takes its sweet time to arrive and snatch your loved one away from you if you are a care giver (even if you only attend to their needs for a little while throughout their lingering days) you may be aghast to find yourself praying for Gods mercy to be swifter in its arrival. Not that you no longer value their life but it is so painful to witness their abilities leaving them.

Okay so how does that enter into the whole process of “dying to self” and “take up your cross”? Well I think that some issues in our personal journey with God (whether you believe in God or not you have a personal journey in the one case you actively seek to Know God while in the other case you will spend an eternity Knowing just who He is and why a relationship with Him would have benefited you) can die swiftly while others suffer a S L O W & L I N G E R I N G death.

Satan is like a vulture circling over head just waiting for you to succumb to death so he can pick your flesh away. He picks and tears the flesh and enjoys his meal. Leaving behind the bones to dry out right where he finds you.

We have the power to LIVE in spite of the devils attempts to devour us. He strikes most in our moments of weakness. He searches for just the right time to strike and when he sees us at our most vulnerable he does all he can to knock us down and keep us down. He wants to destroy us.

However when WE DIE to SELF we are in the position of SURRENDERING to GOD! In our surrendering to God we relinquish our control to His control. In our dying to self we are allowing God to reign supreme in us. In that place where we no longer struggle to ‘be in control’ but rather ask God to “be in control” we have entered into a safe place. One where the things of this earth can no longer bother us.

Going back to the picture of a vulture devouring a dead body and I’m able to say this ~ if I’ve truly died to self then I don’t feel the weight of the vulture as he sits upon my carcass and picks away my flesh. If I’ve truly died to self then I don’t have any pain as the strong talons of the vulture grab ahold of my flesh to perch upon me to his best vantage for his meal. If I’ve truly died to self then the pain that must surely accompany the tearing away of my flesh as his beak digs in to me is in no way cause for alarm because I have risen above his attack. In that a dead body does NOT FEEL the things of this earth. A dead body is DEAD. But when we haven’t finished the process of “dying to self” we can are still very much ALIVE and therefore we Feel the attack of the enemy so much that it weakens us. We can feel the pain with each talon digging in for the feast. We can feel the suffocating weight of the vulture as he tears into our flesh.

I can honestly say I have not completely “died to self”. And I am in the process. And I am learning.

What I have learned so far on this journey through this life really is amazing. GOD LOVES ME. GOD LOVES YOU. And that is more than enough to get you through IF you BELONG TO HIM !

If you don’t belong to HIM (God) then you actually may not realize just how much the vulture has stolen from you. If you don’t belong to HIM (God) then you may discover when it’s way too late what you were missing out on because this life here on earth is merely a beginning, and the death that we see around us is not the end but rather a “mere stepping stone” for a much longer life. Because our physical death here on earth opens the gate on our the spiritual life we will have for ETERNITY which in case you are not aware is FOREVER, … as in NEVER ENDING!!!!!

So as I sit here writing out a small portion of my thoughts this evening (well now it’s the midnight hour) I wonder how many will ever read this and will it make any difference to the way they comprehend the Greatness of God, for while we were yet sinners HE LOVED US!!! Enough to send His ONLY SON that He would Die for us so we could be reconciled with God the Father and not perish but have Life Everlasting!!!!

I pray someone does read this and does become aware (or possibly more aware) of a Loving God who wants you to surrender to HIM and allow Him to be your guide as you journey here until the time He calls you to your heavenly home. If you don’t belong to Him then you don’t have a Heavenly Home to be called to instead you have chosen (even if by default) to spend eternity with all of those who refused to believe on Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior in hell. I pray you hear the truth of Gods Love for you and turn from your sin and accept HIM as YOUR Savior before your time on this earth is over.

May God speak so clearly that you can’t possibly ignore Him for another second!!!!

My Face book status :)

2011-05-18T00:05:00.000-04:00

Thankful to my Loving Lord & Savior who has continued to bless me in spite of myself, who has shown me His grace & mercy does not run out, who speaks in the midst of all this world may throw at me ~ it is in HIM that my Joy is everlasting :) Thank you Lord Jesus for saving my soul :)

That was my Face Book status tonight ... but it dawned on me that is is so much more than what I put there ... so often in my prayer time I find myself drawn to pray for the children who are neglected, or worse abused whose parents don't care enough to protect them or worse yet are the ones abusing them. It amazes me that after I pray for these precious children whom I know God LOVES and cares about that I am then burdened to pray for their abusers, for God Loves them too. In fact He reminds me that although my reaction to them may be to hurt them in the same way or worse, His reaction was the cross. He loves everyone and His desire is for each person to come to the understanding that we have a choice of our forever after. You may not believe this but we all will have a "Forever After" ! My choice is to spend my forever after with HIM. And you may chose to do the same or not as you wish. It's the easiest thing to put off believing that tomorrow is another day and therefore what's the big rush? However today is the day of salvation and tomorrow isn't promised to any of us, at least not tomorrow here on earth that is! We are promised an eternity. How & where we spend eternity is up to us individually. I can't chose for you and you can't chose for me. In fact God has given us this choice because of His great Love for us.

I chose Christ. I chose to take a stand, and say as Joshua did, "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord." This often conflicts with my idea of how things should work. You see I'm still learning and growing and walking on my journey with my Lord ~ so basically there is still lots of room for 'improvement' and all I can really say is Thank You God for Your great patience with me and my growing pains :)

Eternity. Forever After. In the fairy tales the princess is always rescued by the prince, who then marries her and they live happily ever after. In reality God told us that His Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior will be our Bridegroom and when it is time He will come and collect His bride (the church, aka all of His believers) and we will live together forever without end. Unfortunately there will be those who choose not to believe that He is who He said He is, and they will allow that unbelief to keep them from seeking the truth and discovering that He is all that He has told us He IS. They will have an entirely different forever without end from those who are HIS. It will be a never ending knowledge that they could have been with their creator God and instead they are forever separated from HIM. Never to be able to bridge the gap between Heaven (with God) and Hell (without God) has between them.

So it is with this view towards the Love of God for all mankind which does include the vilest of sinners that I must pray for them to repent and accept the Love of God and His gift of salvation before it is too late. For it is truly our mission to share the love of Christ with everyone, every where.

If you have been one of those who thinks they can't be forgiven by God because of some horrible thing that you have done, or are currently doing that is a lie from the pit of Hell. God told us if we believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior (accept the free gift of salvation) we can be with Him for all eternity. It's that simple. So what's the problem? Satan seeks to destroy our soul. And he will do whatever he possibly can to keep us from believing and accepting Gods word. A little doubt here, a lot of doubt there ~ here a doubt, there a doubt, everywhere a doubt, doubt! Once we buy into the lies from the pit of hell we find it harder and harder to accept the truth of Gods Love. Therefore we must be more diligent in what we 'take in' such as in our reading material, our viewing material, and our "listening" material. What we read, watch and hear does impart something to us so we must combat the things of this world that would draw us away from living our life for God. Give up the garbage, give up the not so obvious garbage, and even then keep pulling the "weeds" out of our way! " Weeds" such as bitterness, deception, anger, hatred, to name a few.
My question for you is: "Where will your forever after be?" Prayers you make your choice wisely.

Good night (or rather good morning) and May Gods blessings be with you :)

Sabotage … self saboteur… both need dealing with!

2011-05-06T07:07:00.000-04:00

Yes I’m still on my weight loss journey, however I’ve taken a few detours along the way. In the process I’ve learned a few things. I could go all negative and say it’s taken me too long to learn & therefore I will just quit. However I really don’t want to quit. I don’t want to be a failure at this. And more then that I don’t want to be unhealthy. Really I don’t want to be unhealthy.
That said, the question then becomes why then am I a self saboteur? At first glance I really didn’t think I ever was the one sabotaging my journey. In fact I would have sworn I was innocent of that charge! But most recently I have discovered that the fact is I am a self saboteur.   I know that carbohydrates when consumed in to high a quantity will set me into a carb overload frenzy. I also know that to break that cycle requires me to be more diligent to avoid that overload in the first place, that not happening then requires me to just stop eating and take full responsibility for what I am eating.
I seem to have been caught up in the idea that I could simply blame my weight on all of the issues I have rather than owning the fact that along with my health issues I still chose what I consume. Yes I still have health issues that make it harder to lose the weight however the weight can be conquered and brought under control if I stay on top of my food choices.
Unfortunately once I was derailed (and I do know exactly what derailed me, it was an error on the settings for my sleep apnea treatment) and hit a plateau that just didn’t seem to want to be broken ~ I s l o w l y fell only to crash & see my weight climbing back up!
Waking up to the realization that I have been my own worst enemy is by no means a small consolation, it means I have to stop myself from being self destructive. I have to really come to terms with I can live without whatever craving has hit my system at the moment. I have to walk away more than just the pounds!! I have to walk away from the cravings, I have to walk away from the underlying cause of my self destructiveness.   I still haven’t come to terms with why I am a self saboteur along my journey but I can see my actions in a hold different light now that I recognize the destructive behaviors that work to keep me from my ultimate goals.
With the discovery comes new challenges. No longer can I state that all my weight problems were due to my health issues. No longer can I ignore the part I have in my weight not being healthy. No longer can I say, “I’ll walk it off tomorrow” because tomorrow may not be any easier to ignore the cravings I’ve allowed to run rampant.   I can see how much I need to be completely committed to the journey. Not just when the journey is working! Even when I am diligent if the weight stays unhealthy I have to remain steady and continue on with my healthy choices instead of giving up! I had hit the plateau (seriously by no self destructive actions on my own it was a machine setting malfunction ~ and that is the bald truth) but once the plateau had shown it wasn’t moving for a while I stopped trying so hard. I basically gave up. I had the attitude, “it really doesn’t matter what I do since it isn’t working”.     Now I realize that had I not given into that attitude I may not have to start the process all over again. I could have simply moved through the plateau and ended up in a healthier state. This realization hasn’t come too late. I can & I will be reaching my goal it just has taken me a little longer than I wanted. I have to begin my journey all over again to get the habits I had been living with back in control. And once they are well established I hope the results will follow like they did last time if not that won’t stop me from continuing in the path where my health drives my choices and my attitude will remain what is best for me rather than nothing works so why bother.     I think sometimes that is how the enemy of our soul sabotages us on our spiritual journey. If he can’t get under our skin one way he attacks our underlying attitudes so that we give up. It’s so easy to give up when we think what we are doing isn’t working. And it is so easy to fall for the lies of the enemy when we are not keeping a healthy spiritual diet of time spent in prayer, in reading the Word of God and in just basking in His presence.     Where do you stand today? Not yesterday, or last month or year but today? Do you find yourself growing busier and therefore have less time to spend with God? Do you find yourself getting weaker spiritually?   Don’t let a “plateau” derail you! Don’t let a weak attitude keep you from entering into all that God has for you. Today is the day to move ahead in God, for yesterday is gone never to return and tomorrow isn’t here yet if it even arrives for we are not promised tomorrow! So move ahead with God today, close in with Him and listen to what He has to say to you. Be blessed and know that God Loves YOU don’t listen to the lies the enemy of your soul speaks to you!!!!

May God bless you today

Another day to Praise my Lord & Savior

2011-05-03T08:49:00.000-04:00

Well I woke up this morning, tired and sort of dragging from a rather not so restful night of sleep... one might say, "go to bed earlier" another might say," you don't sleep long enough" ... but I say it makes no difference since I have sleep apnea, when I take off my mask or nasal pillows and immediately fall back to sleep and then get up a few hours later feeling as if I haven't slept the actual bed time or the actual number of hours spent supposedly sleeping doesn't matter... and yet all of my tiredness makes no dent in my Praise to God!!!
I can be ready to fall asleep yet does my heart sing praises unto the Lord God,
Jesus Christ the Savior !!!

How could anything keep me from Praising Him? can anything keep Him from caring for me? NO! Nothing hinders His Love for me, Nothing keeps Him from pouring His love into me & my life. Nothing prevents His care for all that concerns me.
Therefore I find more and more the desire to Praise Him stronger than ever before! But even more I'm learning how I simply can't keep it all to myself. Today I may have woken up feeling like I still needed to recline in my bed and close my eyes but at the same time I immediately praised God for another day, another day to share His great Love for all of us. You may disagree with me but He died in order to save the world ... for anyone & everyone who accepts Him as their Lord and Savior! Yes that includes the vilest of sinners if they repent and accept HIM as their Savior he will forgive them & save them from Hell. (Hell = separation from God for eternity)

The purpose of telling you all of this is to simply state that God deserves all our praise no matter how we may feel. We need to realize truth is truth and facts are facts and the truth is that God alone is Worthy of all our Praise forever without end, and the fact is He LOVES US and desires a real, personal relationship with each one of us.

May you all be so blessed as I am with the knowledge of the truth of Christs love for you and enter into a real relationship with Him as I have ~ if you already have a real relationship with Him then may you grow ever more in Love with Him daily praising His name!!!!

A M A Z I N G

2011-05-02T22:58:00.000-04:00

ALMIGHTY
MAGNIFICENT
ALL POWERFUL
ZEALOUS
INCREDIBLE
NOBLE
GREAT GOD

Amazing AMAZING AMAZING do you get it???? GOD IS AMAZING!!!!!!!

and here I am in AWE of HIM
more in love with Him then ever before
waiting for whatever is next on my journey home.

Looking at the journey thus far & find myself wondering how it is that I am loved so much by my Heavenly Father that He would send His Only Begotten Son to die for me? How can my Lord and Savior have so much Love for me that He would ransom me from the pits of Hell?

And seriously how can I respond in any other way but complete surrender? I know for years I ran in the opposite direction ... I know that my rejection through those years caused Him great pain... and yet, still HE LOVED me!!!

There is nothing that I could ever do to repay Him.
Thankfully He doesn't require repayment.
How can I not find this whole situation anything but AMAZING?

Where does the time go????

2011-04-30T23:46:00.000-04:00

So here it is 45 minutes before May 1st and I haven’t posted in what feels like forever. And since I should be heading to my bed for some rest I find myself compelled to “express” some things … WHY???
I don’t know and I doubt I will ever really understand why I get into these ‘moods’. But here goes I’ll be “expressing” some things I’ve been “pondering” on lately. Hope it’s not too boring for ya
The other day at book group at the library (it’s a book discussion group) ~ one of the ladies who attends regularly mentioned that it’s hard to cook when you’re alone.   It got me thinking just how easy it is to take our spouse for granted.   I really do love my hubby and appreciate having him in my life.   And I feel badly for my mother in law & my mom who are living "alone" and my prayer is that they will find life not so lonely.     Another member of the group mentioned that she believes her life is “boring” not necessarily
“her life” as in the fact that she lives but there isn’t anything interesting to “report” for her “story”
(we all have a “story” of our lives” after all)   … and yet I understood her even if I didn’t agree with her simply because that is how I once felt about my own life.   I used to think that all I was doing was living day to day and excitement wasn’t really a part of my life.   But then I woke up one day & realized that excitement is different for everyone. What excites you? Well when I started to think about what excites me I discovered that I am a very basic, down to earth woman. It really doesn’t take much to “excite” me!!! I like seeing the sky as I drive from point a to point b … yeah I really do just love to see the sky in all it’s many glorious looks … I don’t have to be going farther than my home to my son’s house and I can be so thrilled to see Gods handiwork in the view I’ve got right in front of me on the drive.
Another thing I do love is whenever I’ve had the opportunity to travel. I realize there is often a lot of stress involved with traveling however that doesn’t hinder my enjoyment (or at least not for long )
our granddaughter asked me recently, “Grandma, why do you like to travel?” And I told her I always have liked seeing new places.   And I am sure I always will.
So boring, maybe, by someone else’s standards but actually I’d rather be “boring” than miserable trying to live up to someone else’s idea of exciting!!!
While I’m thinking about all of this my hope is that no matter where I am, no matter what I may find myself doing ultimately I want to be where God wants me doing what God has placed before me to do.
After all I’m not of this world I’m just passing through on my journey ‘home’ to my heavenly home! So staying busy may be one way to look at things but ultimately I want to be busy with being a witness for Christ. Not just busy passing time ~ what a waste that would be if I managed to remain ‘busy’ and no one ever knew I belonged to HIM, and my hearts’ desire was for everyone I’ve encountered whether in person or via the internet would have the opportunity to know that He is my reason for being. And my purpose is to Praise & Glorify His name!   Dear Lord, let all who stumble upon my blog have a true encounter with YOU. Life changing. Soul saving.         Until the next time …

God forgive me …

2010-12-16T17:27:00.002-05:00

so what have I done now, you may well wonder if I’m asking God to forgive me as the title to this post… well wonder no more for I will tell you exactly what I have done. But be warned it isn’t exactly pretty. In fact it is rather all to common in my life. And I’m still working on changing this habit.
I began this habit at a young age … and I fear so has so many others ~ in fact we think of it as several things so it can be difficult to realize the damage it causes until it is just too late.
Gossip. This is the official name of my offense, however because I really don’t talk about anyone behind their back it seems like there should be another name for it and until recently I had no idea that there was!   I’ve been slowly reading through the book by Lois Tverberg with Bruce Okkema titled: Listening to the Language of the Bible   Hearing It Through Jesus’ Ears and when I got to their description of The Evil Tongue well it really opened my eyes to some of my bad habits. My heart was pierced to recognize that I am guilty of hurting others based on things I have said. Now mind you I said them directly to them, or in front of them not necessarily behind their back. Which I think is even worse. I do try not to say anything about anyone that I would not be willing to say to their face. However as I read about the Evil Tongue and how sarcastic speech is just as damaging well my heart sank. I have been sarcastic for as long as I can remember. It is something I’ve disliked about myself for just as long.
I realize now that the habit of speaking so poorly was at first a defensive action on my part. Growing up with a family that often jested with one another with a lot of sarcastic wit put me in a position of often having to be able to respond with just as much sting as I was being stung with or suffer the deluge of verbal abuse that was sure to follow. Honestly it was normally all meant in good fun… but when did it stop being just humorous and start being defensive and intended to sting?   I can’t pinpoint just when that happened for me but I do know it’s been years of working on stopping my tongue from lashing out at others for no apparent reason other than they said or did something mistakenly in my hearing or presence.
So why now make this all public? Well I noticed I even will respond to facebook posts with a sarcastic bent ~ why???? I wish I knew what motivates me to respond this way but since I don’t have any strong answers to share I think I’ll concentrate on seeking God’s help in changing this as well as all my other bad habits. I know asking for forgiveness isn’t a ‘cure all’ but it’s the first step in getting help.
For anyone out there that has been hurt directly or indirectly by my sarcasm I am truly sorry. I hope nothing I have said to you directly or indirectly has caused you any suffering. I read how this is worse than stealing since a thief could return what they stole whereas one can not take back the words they’ve spoken, nor can one repair a damaged reputation ~ and let’s face it we do this daily when we pass on the email jokes of those in the public eye pointing out all their faults, whether it is their poor sense of fashion, or their ineptitude in speech, or missteps or mistakes made where a witness was able to report back about it so what might have been nothing much has been spread all over the world through the wonderful world wide web.
I realize my sharing this isn’t earth shattering news, nor is it a complete ‘cure’ for me instantly from this moment on however I hope it will keep me thinking before I speak and perhaps help you to stop and think before you pass on any tidbits about your friends, family or even complete strangers. The old adage is still right … “If you don’t have anything nice to say about another then don’t say anything at all.” (If I misquoted that well there you have it .)
One last thought before I go crochet something … how many times do we speak ill of someone in front of our children? I know I raised my children with a lot of my sarcasm and they all “got it” from me … for that I’m truly sorry … I know I can’t change it and saying I’m sorry doesn’t make it all better. For that I ask God to help heal us as a family of sarcasm and let us be a family that can share the fruit of the spirit instead. That is my wish for all of you too peace within your own heart, within your families and friendships that are blessings not subtle wars of wit that sting underneath all the laughter. May you be blessed with kindness one for another so that we truly would show the world we belong to Christ by our Love for one another. Let our Light (Christ in us) so shine in a dark and dying world.

dreaming … not of a white Christmas!

2010-12-09T00:05:00.000-05:00

So here it is December 8th well for the next half an hour anyway … the year is winding down and along with it comes the usual heart wrenching ‘review’ of what “I should have, would have, could have” done as well as what I did not do! But there is hope that springs up within me to sustain even the toughest of “critical moods” I can enter into all because as the year winds down there is a brand new clean slate in sight. Yes a brand spanking new Year is coming our way and we can pick ourselves up and begin anew.
It’s not too early to be looking ahead! It is NOT!!!!

Oh the patterns I drooled over and yet they sit undone, the yarns that I just had to have waiting for my hook (or possibly my needles) to put them to good use. The incredible insights that I just know everyone out there in cyber land would be delighted to read about ~ oh sure I’ll share them even though I believe even my “followers” probably have given up “following” me since I don’t write more regularly!!!
The house work that beckons and taunts me with my failures … the half finished organization of the upstairs and the upcoming painting to be done which means more cleaning and organization necessary in two more rooms of the house (mind you upstairs was sooooo close to being finished before I traveled in November but fell just short of completion and now I’ll have to get something settled & soon since the bedroom & den will be under attack in a week & a half!!)
The thousands of photos awaiting my sorting for the photo book for my mom of our trip to The Holy Land … yikes I really need to get those sorted and uploaded and a book ordered soon… almost more important than the organization of the house … umm another excuse I’m sure .
So with the fond memories, the sad ones too I look (early for a change) at the year in review …
2010 held many fun & exciting times … January held our beautiful grandson Anthony as he arrived on the 20th … April we celebrated my mom’s 75th birthday … May I turned 50! July we traveled to NC to visit the kids and especially to see our grandson Mikey (moo) … spent time at the beach, brought Sarah & Mikey back to NY for a visit and to surprise Ashley for her bridal shower then back to NC another visit to the beach before heading home … September and it was Adriana’s turn to head off to school, Kindergarten for her & Kyla entered First grade (boy time flies by ever so fast!!!) … very end of September the Pollies arrived and we celebrated Mikey’s “First Birthday” as he turned 11 months old … October ushered in with wedding bells for Ashley & Patrick, followed by Mike coming to our house and repairing our living room ceiling and archway & painting November mom & I traveled to Israel, and came home changed!!! December brings more home repair which allows for another visit with Mike & Sarah & Mikey moo!

As December winds down we will undoubtly be thinking of gifts for family and friends but I hope we could get to the place where we stop and pay attention to the whole reason for celebration … it’s not about the gifts. It’s all about the birth of our Savior! If Jesus had not agreed to come we would not be able to be reconciled with God the Father. A tall order for a little baby! And yet being fully God while being man He was able to pull it off for us. So as I let this day come to a close and the thoughts of Christ’s ultimate gift linger in my mind I hope to share with someone out there in cyber land the truth of God’s love.
We may celebrate and in order to “not offend” someone with a different faith we opt to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas (by the way Holiday comes from Holy Day) in the end regardless of what we say God cares more about our heart. He cares more about our actions for our actions speak louder than our words. I can say with my mouth that I Love God and will live my life for Him but then not put that into action. Leaving the statement void of conviction. Or I can live my life for Him and fail to express with words the fact that He is the source of my strength, my love for others, my joy, my peace, my everything. So I chose again and again and again to Live my Life for Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, my Savior, my Redeemer, My LORD & KING!!!! May you know Him as I know Him, still ever growing in the knowledge of His Love for me, daily leaning on Him fully for all things. Trusting in His Truth.
Peace on Earth, Good will toward Men … May God reign in your hearts this day.

A Lefty Crochets: Moving Upstairs what will I manage?

2010-10-18T12:02:00.001-04:00

A Lefty Crochets: Moving Upstairs what will I manage?: "Today holds a challenge for me ... to get upstairs & actually work. I managed to clean our bedroom without putting all of the work on John ..."

Moving Upstairs what will I manage?

2010-10-18T12:02:00.000-04:00

Today holds a challenge for me ... to get upstairs & actually work. I managed to clean our bedroom without putting all of the work on John (as has been my habit) so I don't know why I feel so reluctant to get up there & face the mess I created. OH there it is ... facing the mess I created. How often we hide from dealing with our messes? I mean we get into a situation & then don't want to admit our part in it ~ thinking we can ignore it & it will just go away. Hahaha poor planning that's for sure!

There is a verse in the bible that states be sure & know your sin will be found out (again my interpretation please read the bible for yourself & see what God reveals to you) .... my mess upstairs should not be so intimidating but for some reason it has been. But no longer! Today is the day I will ... you heard me I WILL go up there & make some progress before I have to play with my grandson :) He's coming this afternoon & I look forward to spending time with him. But in order to really enjoy our play time I have to make some progress upstairs.

Thinking about this makes me think of making some progress "upstairs" in the thinking process. I need to make progress with my thoughts. I need to think like an "organizer" and 'see' things the way they can/ should be and then go from there.

I'll take some before & after pictures. maybe ... I might even share them with you ;)

I am “brand new” in Christ Jesus

2010-10-13T10:17:00.001-04:00

So I have lived my life fairly consistently in that I have a faith in God, believe in Jesus Christ His Son, that He (Jesus) died for my sins (and the sins of everyone in the world) … and yet I have failed to grasp the reality of this concept that I am made new in Jesus.

In this my 50th year of living I feel that it is truly my year of Jubilee ~ in the Bible the year of Jubilee is a time (and it happened every 50 years) when debts were forgiven and you were allowed to have a fresh start. (my interpretation please read the bible for yourself and see what God reveals to you).

As I was saying, I believe this is “MY” year of Jubilee. I feel as if I have been given a fresh start. All my debts have been forgiven (that is those debts I had with God not with man) and now looking at my way of living I realize it is beyond time to “step it up” and make the changes in my habits that have been holding me back from living life to the fullest. I admit to the fact that I do not or rather have not lived my life to the fullest. I admit that I settled for the bare minimum, with the occasional abundance.

Looking at my living room today, knowing I still need to finish furnishing it, I can see how vastly different living will be in this room! Before I did not have a “place for everything” and therefore did not put “everything in it’s place” instead my room just got cluttered up and then piled up and then overflowing piles took over half of my living room. The truth is that “Knowing” and “Doing” are two separate things!!! I may have known my clutter needed to go but actually making it go didn’t happen!

In fact right now my kitchen is housing the majority of my clutter. The remainder is upstairs along with a lot more “stuff” that needs organizing, evaluating, and eliminating. My goal is to have my house in order before I travel this November. I need to seriously look at things and decide will I really miss it if it’s given away? Will I be able to replace it? Will it cost me more to keep it or replace it should it really be needed at a future point in time? Yes, I am going to be brutally decisive with all of my “things” and I will “possess my things” and not have “ my things possess me”.

I was looking at the kitchen table, currently covered with stuff. Half of the table seems to be holding old VCR tapes, empty CD cases and items that were filling my old computer desk & hutch. Why? Why did I keep the old tapes? Why did I keep the empty cases? Why … why… why. Why ask WHY???

Instead I chose to look at today as a new day and instead of asking why to all of the above (and so much more) I will chose to evaluate the stuff and if I’m wondering why I have it in the first place you can be sure it will not be in my house much longer!

So in this my year of Jubilee I now have a fantastic incentive to break the old habits that inhibited me from truly enjoying life the way God intended. Now I will look at things on a different level. I will evaluate things with a different standard. Work smarter not harder ~ which means maintaining the clean rooms instead of putting off until tomorrow what I can do today! Yes I’ve declared war on my old habits. Knowing I can change because of Christ in me. Becoming what He wants me to be in all ways not just the comfortable ones. I am no longer going to call myself a “clutter bug” nor will I refer to myself as a “pack –rat” ! Instead I will simply be and continue to be a new creation in Christ. Thank you God for your mercies that are new every morning

Finally a long over due repair is getting done :)

2010-10-06T23:06:00.000-04:00

Years ago I started writing about my crocheting and various patterns I was trying or hoping / planning to try ... also shared about my designing dreams ... then that blog was moved here to Blogger and my writing became more hit or miss to eh every so often to hey did I want to share that with someone ... anyone out in cyber space???

So if you read my blog whenever I actually write something you may be well aware that I have shared how my 'pack rat' habits and "clutter bug" habits have left my home really messy. And after so many years of complaining about my procrastination and my mess it looks like I may have a chance to break the cycle ... we've emptied our living room (well almost, we had no place to move the tv, my chair & one of the loveseats so they are still in the room) ... and our son in love (law) has taken on the job of repairing our damaged ceiling, archway, & wall and then painting our entire entry way, living room & hallway.

Now I have to figure out how I really want my room to be set up ... the saying : "A place for everything & everything in it's place" has been running through my mind for years now ~ the only problem I seem to have (besides being a pack rat & a clutter bug) is that I've almost never had a "place for everything" in order to have 'everything in it's place!!' Just how does one have a place for everything??? I mean I have been in homes where their occupants seem to have a grasp on this concept but really how does one manage to maintain this way of living ??? Oh yeah ... they don't have more stuff than they need in each space... which means perhaps it's time for me to actually let go of some things.
Let go ... give away or throw away or find a "place" for it if it is to remain in my home :)

Usually I can 'picture' things in my mind's eye ... makes life a bit easier for me when I want to shop for yarn, when I want to decide how I want to arrange the furniture etc ~ however I have no clue how I want my living room to be once the work is done. I can't seem to picture my living room completed. I know I need to get a clue and move with it but I want our living room to basically be empty. Just the really necessary items in it ... if only I could figure out what they are ??? I mean do we really need anything more than our t.v ., my chair, and table, and a desk or table for my laptop & printer??? LOL oh sure we'll need a couple of seats for when someone comes over but we don't need wall to wall stuff ever again :)

Today would have been .....

2010-08-25T08:24:00.000-04:00

My dad's 75th Birthday. Dad was running errands on his last day here on earth. He had been on his way to the store when he didn't feel well, so he turned around and drove back home. Managed to get upstairs, after "being ill" he went to lay down. Mom went to check on him and ask if he wanted her to call the doctor, which he said no he didn't ... but she said he looked "wrong" ~ she ended up calling "9-1-1" and then called us to let us know he was at the hospital & that she didn't think it was good. That was just a couple of month's after his 62nd birthday. And after all this time he is still extremely missed.

My dad enjoyed the outdoors ~ fishing, being on the water seemed to be his most favorite activity. Although he did enjoy hunting too. He wanted to live at the camp year round. But the camp wasn't quite ready for that and if he had lived I am sure he would have managed to get it up to that level of comfort.

I am just sitting here remembering dad, and thinking how short life really is ~ you know you've all had those moments where something happens that drives home that point "LIFE'S SHORT" so live it to the fullest while you can. But then the every day "routine" takes over again and everyone is doing what needs to be done and they are back in their own little "ruts" until the next time something happens to jar us into realizing that "Life's too Short".

Anyway ... life is full of so many mundane things but if we take the time to look a bit closer we can see that in among the mundane is a whole assortment of Amazing! Just take time to stop & smell the roses ...okay not necessarily the roses but have you looked at any flower close up? They are just one small facet of nature, and yet they are evidence of the Creator.

Everywhere I look I can see something that reminds me of my dad, but that doesn't make me sad... instead it means that he truly is with me in my heart daily. And it drives home the point that God has left us reminders of Him in all of the every day living we do, if we will only take the time to "see" them. When I watch our grandchildren playing and I catch a glimpse of them "looking" like another family member it amazes me how much we "look" like one another. Well in a way that is how it is for us as God's children. When we look at one another we should be able to "see Christ in them" as they should be able to "see Christ in us" ~ speaking the truth in Love and sharing the Love of God one with another daily. Life's just too short, so why not live each day to the fullest? This scripture comes to mind and I'd like to leave it as a final thought today ~
"Whatsoever your hand findeth to do do it with all your might, for there is no work, nor device nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." Ecclesiastes 9:10
Thanks dad for the memories. Thank you God for everything!

Wishing you all great joy.

32 Years of “Wedded Bliss” :)

2010-06-25T07:42:00.001-04:00

… it’s been 32 years and although we’ve had our share of ups & downs I can still say it’s been “BLISS”

We married young and had our beautiful family young… which means we are still “young” at this stage in our life. With grown children who have blessed us with beautiful grand children we can look back and see the hand of God has been with us through the years.

To any of you who have weathered the storms of life as long as we have you know it really does take work to keep your relationship ‘fresh’ and strong through the years. To any of you just beginning your life as a married couple ~ I want to encourage you that it is well worth the effort required to last this long. And to those of you still “waiting” for your “soul mate” to come along I really would say concentrate more on living each day to the fullest ~ enjoy what God has given you.

It’s funny how often our “soul mates” arrive when we aren’t “searching” for them but rather when we are busy enjoying our lives… how do I know this? Well my true love showed up within days of my telling my grandmother I was not dating anyone & had no interest at all in dating someone. I meant it with my whole heart. I was enjoying my life and had my own “plans” and a “special someone” was not in my plans at that time. So imagine my surprise when “Bam” he arrived!!!!

Many of my friends have expressed that they were “taken off guard” in that when they weren’t “looking” for love it came & found them. So if you are “searching” high & low for your “true love” STOP!!! You may be prolonging their arrival as you probably can’t “see” them for your searching.

… life is work … relationships are work… marriage is work… parenting is Work… so WORK at what is truly important to you!

For as I was growing up my dad used to say (or maybe it was my mom who said this??) … “Anything worth doing is worth doing right! '”

Keep in mind that usually doing something right requires WORK so stop fighting it and get to work ;)

Speaking of work … I’ll busy myself with a little bit of cleaning today so my love won’t come home to a mess (like he does every other day of the year ;)

Hope you have a great day. Keep the “frog” away get your UFO’s out and pick one to work on and turn it into a FO!!!!

Testing … testing… is this thing on?

2010-05-13T12:33:00.001-04:00

So just really trying to embrace the whole laptop experience and discovered that I have an option to write for my blog and have it show up there while not actually being “on my blog” ;) now I’m sure many of you were well aware of this option & many others & here I am just “catching up” LOL … or I’m too easily distracted to stick with something long enough to get all the benefits from it in the first place???

Oh well let’s see how this works … if it works & even more importantly if I like it!!!

It's the Year of Jubilee!!!! for Me anyway :)

2010-05-11T12:15:00.000-04:00

Hello there ~ bet you thought I'd just up and walked away from blogging it's been so long since I bothered to write anything at all ... sorry ... to disappoint you that is I'm here & although I am not consistently writing in my blog doesn't mean I'm not thinking about it :)   Yeah I know thinking & doing are two completely different things!!!

So I've got something to share ~ I've officially lost 100 pounds!!! (Last week I pulled it off & even with indulging for Mother's day I didn't gain for my weigh in yesterday I weighed the same as the week before ... go ahead & ask I don't mind & I'm not exactly keeping my numbers a secret LOL
My starting weight was 280 (pounds) and my weigh in was yesterday morning ~ 179.6 = 100.4 pounds lost!!!!   I have another 50 to go! But I know I can reach my desired goal of 130. It may be hard. It may seem impossible but I don't care about that I've lost 100 pounds already & I'm going to work hard to be set free of the last 50 pounds I need to get rid of..
And as for numbers ~ if you don't know what a year of Jublilee is all about well it is from the bible (Old Testament) and it had to do with the 50 th year (now not their birthday's but I'm all about my birthday)
Yes I am 50 yrs. old today!!! To celebrate I've already gone out for breakfast with a dear friend and this afternoon I am going to surprise my granddaughter by being the "Mystery Reader" for her Kindergarten class. I'm going to read " A Rose For Pinkerton" by Steven Kellogg... if you haven't read his books I highly recommend them ... his stories are very entertaining & his illustrations are fantastic :)
Yeah I am a big fan of Steven Kellogg's work .

Oh and by the way ... this post is being written directly from my very own laptop! My husband was thoughtful and bought it for me so that I can have my computer when I travel, etc.   I do enjoy my desktop however there are so many times that if I could just take it with me how much more I could do ... well you understand I do not need to ramble on ~ I know why stop now? LOL

On a crochet note ... well I am thrilled to say I gave my 5 yr. old granddaughter a crochet lesson and she has already made two "chain" bracelets. I am so looking forward to our next lesson. When I will show her how to work a sc stitch.
Okay need to get moving I just realized what time it is & I have a few things to do in order to go to read at her school. Have a great day ~ may your hooks be moving swiftly and may your projects be UFO's no longer!!! :)

Rambling thoughts & Update :)

2010-03-22T09:45:00.000-04:00

Good Morning everyone :)
I am happy to report that although I had a slight gain this past week I am well aware of why and how to correct the behavior this week. I over indulged over several different days during the past week & failed to compensate for it with movement (Exercise) so it was not shocking to me to see the weight gain show up on the scale.

I have so many rambling thoughts running through my mind so in no particular order here goes ~

why is is that when we think we know something we are faced with the realization that we really Don't know it at all?

As for crocheting ideas why do I see so many creative crocheted items in my mind's eye yet fail to know how to capture them on paper or in actual work so that I could put it into a pattern? I want to be able to take it from my "mind's eye" to finished product complete with working pattern so others could make them too ~ God Help me with this please as I really want to see this come about.

I will go "there" ... yes I will .... my faith. My faith is in God. And since it is I am confident that although I am not perfect I can strive for / towards perfection (HIM) God is perfect, God alone. No one else is even close to perfect . So as I struggle to live my life in a manner that brings Glory to the One who is Worthy of all Glory I hope my little light can shine in the darkness that tries to snuff it out ...

Women need to recognize that they are precious in God's sight ~ in fact God LOVES YOU ~ but if you don't "feel loved" you may miss out on what God is trying to show you, to bring you through etc ... so often we ( we as women) fail to be completely honest with ourselves. (No offense meant if you have managed to be completely honest with yourself ... the truth is I know how hard it has been for me to be that open & honest with myself ~ often I hide the unpleasant sides of "me" from "ME") if you have managed to be & remain completely open & honest with yourself (which means you are thereby completely open & honest with/ & before God) kuodo's to you and would you share any tips with me?

What do you hide from yourself? do I still have anger issues? I mean yeah when someone cuts me off or someone drives rather stupidly I vent a bit of "rage" but honestly that can't be the full force behind my "vent"... or can it?? ... let's face it I'm not perfect so therefore I must make driving errors just like the ones that will tick me off ... anyway bearing oneself completely before God is hard (for me anyway) and slow & progressive ~ but worth it every time I manage to bear a bit more of the hidden recesses of my heart before HIM and find that He knew it all along & forgave me for it already & covered me in His Mercy & Grace allowing me to face it and move past it ... not that everything that has been "hidden" has been "bad" some things that have come to light have been positive & uplifting ... like I do have some strength to make progress in my daily habits towards my God :)

and there is an ever increasing burden on my heart for women ~ all women everywhere to come to the knowledge of God's love for them no matter what they may have done or been through ... I have a book being birthed in me and that is scary ... I know I need to shut myself up with God and move when He allows me to move so that I can accomplish what He has in mind for me to accomplish.

That's it for now I'm tired ... it's hard to open up & reveal the things that lurk deep within or actually some things that lay right on the surface that we like to think aren't seen because they are right in front of our eyes...

Be Blessed Embrace the Love of God in your life & if you don't know HIM as your personal Lord & Savior then ask Him to reveal Himself so that you can know HIM fully. He is there waiting for you. He won't turn His back on you when you call out to HIM.

Our Fifth Grandchild has arrived :) ... & other thoughts

2010-01-27T10:20:00.000-05:00

So he kept us waiting but it was well worth it! Anthony arrived on Jan. 20th at 10:04 am and all 8lbs 4ozs of him is simply adorable :)
His big sister is crazy about him & I have been told she often refers to him as "little man" it's so cute!!!

I've been working hard & have finally gotten under 200 lbs ~ this past Monday I hit my 3rd weight loss goal. (I have set them at 10% increments) and now I am working to meet the next one. Some days are harder than others but I push through to the best of my ability. Some days I fail horribly while others I seem to sail through without any mishap in my choices. So I want to share with all of you that there will be days like that & we have to pick ourselves up & move on without wallowing in the poor choices of the day before otherwise we go on a downward spiral that gets increasingly harder to break free from.

I will be alternating between the walk away the pounds & the Wii Fit exercises since I have found that I am getting too comfortable with my "routine" and I know it is important to try & keep the body moving & not in the same "rut" to stay successful. So yeah the hula hoop exercise was fun but I still feel it two days later!! And the boxing (Wii Sports) I am so funny trying to do it right but it gets the heart pumping! And tennis yeah could never play it all that well in person so to see YOU LOSE come across the screen makes YOU WIN all the sweeter!!!
Yes I am enjoying this form of activity very much & often find I can play for an hour or more & not even realize the time has passed.

Okay need to move away from my computer ... get up move, run some errands etc. But I will ck back in soon.
Maybe get a chance to go hold Anthony again ;)
Now that's one "activity" I could do forever :)
Wishing you all a "frog free" day & may your crochet hooks be busy busy busy !!!

Hello 2010!!!!

2010-01-11T09:58:00.000-05:00

Okay so if you are wondering where in the world did Anne go? Let me tell you I've had an incredible time finishing up 2009 and entering into 2010.
I am happy to say my darling grandson arrived October 25, 2009 ~ just 3 weeks before his "due date" so he was waiting for my arrival instead of the other way around :) and I was able to spend all of November with him and his parents. Made a quick, short return to his side in December so that grandpa could meet him too. And now we pine for him. Thankfully Skype (even though we don't have a web camera here) so we can see him and hear him over the video conference call from our computer does make us pine for him more :)
Excitement in Dec. of 2009 as we thought our other grandson was going to make an early appearance on Dec. 19th he was putting up quite a fuss but not enough of one to show up just yet... and here it is Jan.11th, 2010 & he still has us waiting on him :)

As for the whole weight loss journey I am thrilled to report that I am officially half way to my goal! YAY ~ hard work and even with slacking for the family Christmas party & for the rest of the "holidays" which of course resulted with a weight gain (come on this is the reality of over indulging) I was glad to get back to the seriousness of watching what I eat counting those calories & carbs and seeing the number on the scale going back in the right direction. So since Mondays are my "official" weigh in day this morning was no different ~ I am 203 ... yes 77 pounds and counting since July 6th. (that is the day I officially began counting calories & carbs) and I do exercise daily. At least half an hour of "activity" or more. Something to get the heart pumping.

And let's not forget the whole crocheting aspect of my life. I finally took the time to work on a basic diagonal box stitch in order to "learn" it for the first time! And I love it!!! (It goes by several names, corner to corner etc) ~ my project to learn this stitch was a simple little doll blanket so when the girls come over they can play with the dolls & put them in a little cradle that we pulled out of storage (my dad, God rest his soul) made it for our daughter and now our granddaughters can all enjoy it every time they come over.

So I'm excited to see what this year holds in store not only for my weight loss journey but for my crocheting journey as well. I still haven't sat down long enough to attempt Broomstick Lace (which you might recall was one of my "resolutions" in the past to learn it before the yr. was done oops missed out on that one) ...
Okay so my challenge to you is to make an honest review of where you stand crochet wise ... do you need more time to organize your stash? do you need to settle into a regular routine to finish up outstanding projects? do you need to just face the challenge of learning that new stitch or moving from scarves & afghans to sweaters or hats or slippers? Whether it is learning something new or just finishing up projects to make room for new ones my challenge is for each one of us to face it this year. Grade them if you must hard, easy really difficult ... then chose one of the hard to difficult ones & one of the easy ones ~ once you finish with them then chose another and before you know it you will have accomplished it all and new challenges will come along :)

Happy New Year ~ happy crocheting :) Happy journey to being the healthiest YOU that YOU can be :)

mind your p's & q's ... a few thoughts

2009-12-19T08:16:00.000-05:00

"Mind your P's & Q's" ... so funny how growing up that was used to remind us that we were to mind our own business ~ I had read some time ago that originated from when travelers (mind you this is back to when travel was by horse & carriage) would stop to get refreshed, and change the horses the tavern owner or barkeep would tell the customers' to mind their p's & q's ~ referring to the pints & quarts that the ale was sold in ... not so much so that they could settle their bill when they were done but more to keep them from getting drunk and doing &/or saying something they shouldn't.

I thought that was a funny thing to grow up hearing "mind your p's & q's" referring to not telling others what we heard (or over heard) in various situations then to read where it originated stuck in my brain.
I share that because this morning so many things have been running through my mind ~ and how we have been told to mind our own business growing up & yet we crave connection with one another so much so that we join online communities to get that feeling of being heard, or understood, or agreed with in some manner. Even if it is only a connection through joint interest in a game. Then when that thought settles itself down I can't escape the fact that God Himself wanted, desired, craved fellowship and that is why He created man ~ so that we would have fellowship with Him. He desired true connection with His creation & so He gave us all a Free Will to chose Him freely. Once we learn that He Loves Us it can be so much easier to chose to Love Him back.
(a bit of a change of thought but I think it can be tied in...)
1 Corinthians 1:9, 10 states: "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement."
I often refer to just verse 9 ~ it is so amazing to me that we have all been called to fellowship with Jesus & that it was God the Father himself that has called us to this fellowship. (fellowship with God!!!) but as I continue reading ~I know this was directed at the church in Corinth, but that does not mean it isn't valid for all of the body of Christ ~ to realize that when we have contentions among ourselves within our communities that there is a problem. As the bride of Christ we need to be "perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement" ... to me this means that we need to all get to the same understanding that we are not of this world but just passing through until we go to our heavenly home. In the process of passing through we need to worship God and have fellowship with Jesus Christ our Lord. When our focus is on HIM we can mind our "p's & q's" more easily.
Keep pressing on in the path He has laid out for you ... doing the work He has placed before you often we don't understand the path we travel on but when we press forward & keep standing firm on the Word of God we are rewarded with glimpses of what it all means to one day be standing fully in HIS GLORY forever without end ... oh what a day that will be :) so don't forget to mind your "p's & q's ~ Press on & don't Quit!!!! from my heart to yours :)

Baby Sweater photo (finally)

2009-09-21T22:28:00.000-04:00

Here's the blue baby sweater

the pattern can be found here : http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/tonis-newborn-sweater.html

it calls for a baby weight yarn & I did work one up using a 3 ply and I loved it so much I actually took the time to work up some gauge swatches in the DMC Petra cotton size 3 in order to make the one pictured above.

Weight loss update/ and something from my heart....

2009-09-21T09:38:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone ... if you were wondering how my weight loss journey has been going since my last update you're in luck :)    I'm down a total of 45 pounds right now. I am just 9 pounds away from my second 10% goal.... I believe I can do it in this next month.   My routine now is to get up every morning & within an hour of getting up doing 30 minutes of "activity" which means my 2 mile walk away the pounds workout.   Some times I will add something more (I have Time Warner Cable so I can go to the exercise on demand channel & select a 10 minute workout to increase my activity level for the morning) ... mind you I have only done this a couple of times but it's really nice to have that option.   (Can you tell I miss the Wii?) See when I was at my daughter & son in law's home I did use the Wii sports for increasing my activity level every day.   I look forward to my next visit there (coming soon) so I can do my 2 mile walk away the pounds & follow it with the Wii fitness & / or sports.

I just wanted to say it's great that I am finally eating with more awareness of making the healthier choices, and that I am to the point where if I miss a morning of activity I miss it & look forward to moving instead of just sitting around.... and I am thrilled when I see the number on my scale as it reads a smaller weight on my bones .... but I also know & understand there are many of you who have done all that was "supposed" to work and they haven't had this result. (remember I was doing all I knew to do Healthy right & gained 20 pounds which led me to my doctor looking for some answers) Please don't give up on your health. If you find that what you have been doing isn't working talk with your doctor or find a dietitian who can help you learn different ways to work on your goals. Also keep in mind that some medications actually cause weight gain. One other area that is completely different for me on this weight loss journey is that I have my VPap to treat my sleep apnea. So if you have sleep apnea and have not been treated for it that can really affect your weight more than you realize. ... yes an underactive thyroid, obstructive sleep apnea & pre-diabetes can do a job on one's weight, but with the proper treatment for the thyroid & OSA one can turn the pre-diabetes around to prevent becoming diabetic.

Now from my heart to yours ~ my prayer is that you will find the strength you need to face your challenges & make the changes necessary to meet your goals. I know from personal experience that it is not easy to make the changes necessary but once begun and continued it becomes easier day by day. If you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ I pray you will meet Him and discover for yourself how much He Loves You. I met Him when I was a teenager. I always had a faith in God. I always believed that Jesus Christ was God's son. So going to church & loving God was a fairly easy thing for me to do as I was growing up. But one day I was at a church picnic and the minister there took about 20 minutes to share with everyone the Love of God. This included explaining how God created man in His image and then a woman to be his helpmeet. How the choice to disobey God brought sin into the world & that everyone born is born with sin in them. How in order to redeem mankind God sent His only begotten Son Jesus Christ into the world with the purpose of dying on the cross so that all who believe on HIM would be saved. This was nothing that I had not heard before. This was not "news" to me. As I listened to him he continued with this tidbit... not only did Jesus love us enough to leave heaven & live life on earth as a man, then willingly give up his life on the cross to pay for our sins he did all of that so he could have a personal relationship with each one of us. Yes a personal relationship. One where you can meet with Him daily, through the reading of the Holy Bible and in prayer. It was as if I had suddenly heard about Jesus for the first time that day instead of knowing about Him all my life. I recognized that I needed to have that personal relationship with HIM. I wanted more from my prayer life, more from my time spent reading the Bible. I wanted more of Him in my life.   So when the minister asked who would like to have that personal relationship with Jesus Christ I raised my hand & prayed the prayer he led us in ... it has been 32 years since that picnic and I know I have a long way to go to truly become the person He desires me to be but the journey has been incredible. I know that there are days when I fail to live for Him but I also know that when I turn to Him He is faithful to forgive me & He helps me to move forward. I know that there are days when it seems as if I have managed to do everything "right" and on those days I know it's because of HIM who lives in me, it is in His strength that I managed to do everything "right". My prayer is for you to know HIM as your friend as well as your savior. My prayer is that you will grow in your relationship with Him daily. That you will see His hand moving in your life. That when you feel that there is nothing left in this life for you you will find that He is right there with you & He will bring you through. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me ... I may not have all the answers but I will certainly pray with you.

Now for those of you seeking the crochet info... I have recently made some preemie hats for Heartfelt Angels. I began three berets for Kathleen ... she needs them by October 7th so I need to concentrate on getting them all done .... I found the yarn I will use for my exchange partners square ... I hope the pattern I selected will work up nicely. I need to begin the sweater fronts for Angie's sweater (now that the sweater back panel is done I am really excited about casting on the front panels) ..... yes, knitted, but once I have the front panels knitted I will turn to crochet for the rest of the sweater (so in about 2 more years LOL) .... wait for it ~ it will happen!   I still have to determine which sweater I am making for Carter (I haven't forgotten but want it done soon) .... and there are some friends expecting this November (as well as my daughter) that I would like some items made for them & also my new grandson who is expected this January.   So yeah I'm a little busy these days :) & you know I love it.

So this week my goal is to get as far as I can on the berets, make some baby items for the November babies that are expected, make my exchange partner's square & mail it out ... and to work on the Missions display board for our church's Missions Convention which is being held Oct. 3 & 4.

May all your goals for this week be easily obtained/ met and may your projects be "frog-free"! Write me about anything at all ... if you have any ?'s regarding crochet, or about my personal walk with Christ or even about my weight loss journey please feel free to contact me.

"Hunted"

2009-09-17T06:36:00.000-04:00

So I wrote this out late last night & just getting around to posting it here... hope it encourages you. Let me know ~ leave a comment please.

Hunted … by Anne Fatato Sept. 16th, 2009

Seriously didn't know what to call this topic but the truth is that I was looking out my kitchen window and I did witness something that God used to "enlighten" me ...

Anyway looking out my window I spied a black cat sitting in my back yard. Don't usually see cats in my yard so I stood there to watch & see what it was doing. It looked as if it were hunting. The posture, the intense stare (mind you our back yard looks like a jungle since it needs mowing) and I stood transfixed watching this cat as it stared at its’ prey (which I couldn't see).

Suddenly a movement caught my eye & that cat just pounced on its’ prey so quick & I was surprised by the scene unfolding in front of my eyes. Was it a mouse? Was it a chipmunk? The cat turned toward the house & I could see it's captive caught in its’ mouth. Then what I saw really surprised me. The cat shook his head and dropped the captive on the ground. Then sat & stared at it some more. Was it dead? Was it going to get away after all?

What was that cat up too?

By this time I had to go get my glasses so I could have a better look at this scene as it continued to play out before me as I stood looking out my window. When I returned with my glasses the cat was now pawing at its' prey. I guessed it wanted to see if it had any life left in it. Again the cat picked up its' captive and shook it, released it and watched it, almost daring it to get up & run.

It was a while but sure enough that little chipmunk (I could finally see what creature it was) moved slowly. I watched intently to see what that cat would do now that it's prey was on the move. I was really surprised when that cat just sat there watching. It didn't pounce on that chipmunk for quite some time. It just let it move away.

But not so far out of it's reach. Just enough to make the chipmunk think it might be 'safe'. Then very suddenly up jumped the cat & pounced on the chipmunk yet again.

As I stood there taking in this scene it was very clear to me that is exactly what Satan does to us. He sits ever so patiently, staring at his prey. Waiting for the perfect moment of weakness to pounce on us in order to destroy our relationship with Christ. In any way possible he will attack. As the cat toyed with it's prey ... that is just how cruel Satan is with us. He will shake us & then drop us daring us to show any signs of life so he can attack again.

I watched to see if this poor chipmunk got away or if the cat would actually finish him off. But the cat finally chased the chipmunk out of my line of vision. I wasn't disappointed that the cat & chipmunk were no longer visible to me through my kitchen window becasue the scene that was now playing out in my mind was so much larger than the life & death situation outside in my yard. Here I was basking in the truth of God's faithfulness & love. In the knowledge that whatever Satan may do to "trip" me up and to "catch" me that my God is bigger & stronger & more than able to sustain me through anything the enemy can throw at me. Pounce after pounce my strength is in Christ who is there for me every trial, every testing, every disappointment. He is also there with me in every success, every victory, every joy.

So when I am feeling like I've been chewed on & spit out, pawed at & toyed with I will always remember that the goal is to escape Satan's wiles and move closer to my God. I can overcome because I have an advocate who is always praying for me.

Did the chipmunk escape? I have no idea. How many people are lost in this world being shaken & pounced upon with out a clue that there is a way of escape? And before you ask why I didn't just go out & scare off the cat ... to be honest that thought never entered my mind ... how like us to be silent when we should be speaking up, sharing the truth of God's love & His plan of 'escape'.

Just thought I would share what was on my heart tonight.

So much is going on .... have you played with your hooks & yarn today?

2009-09-14T22:57:00.000-04:00

I am home for now. I do have a decent photo of the baby sweater I made for my new grandchild due this November.... just can't play with it right now perhaps before this week is through ;)

The excitement of visiting my dd & sil has slightly worn off ... like a slow fading away of the fun we had together ... leaving enough of a remnant of the feeling so that looking forward to my return visit builds some fresh excitement for that trip.   Continuing reports that all is well with my daughter keeps my outlook bright. Not knowing who is coming makes life more interesting in that we simply have to be prepared for both genders ~ but in my "own opinion" (which, let's face it really doesn't amount to much in this case since it's a 50 - 50 chance of being "right" or being "wrong" ... my opinion is that she's having a b.... admit it you wanted to fill that sentence in didn't you? ..... Baby is the correct answer ;)   I will tell you who arrived to join our family after they arrive so I can " know" who I'm announcing.

Baby things .... let's see a sweater for Carter (hey he was only born this past March so I'm not horribly late on his little gift am I?) ... still selecting the right yarn & pattern ... too many ideas to settle on one just yet.   Will need a baby item or two for my new grandson due this January. Yes my ddil has been told it's a boy! Yay. Friends of mine are expecting this November as well so I would like to make something especially for them ... if time permits I will. Keeping in mind that I need to create my granddaughter's shrug for her birthday. We have decided to make that a "tradition" for my little sweetie. This will be her 4th 'birthday shrug' so I do want to make it really nice. I think I found the stitch I want to do but I will see.

Then there are some more hats & scarves for Kathleen that are needed rather quickly so everything will be put aside in the hopes that I can get them started & completed fast!

Combine all of that with doctor's appointments & various projects that have nothing to do with anything else & you find a fairly busy schedule can look daunting from time to time... I know I'm not nearly as busy as most of you are ... seriously I mean that. I know there are many who hold down a full time job & some who also have a part-time job besides & they still manage to run their errands, and work on their projects that are just as important to them as mine are to me. So I mean this when I say take care of yourself. Make time to get the rest you really need & also make sure to schedule in your crochet time~ it helps to reduce the stress in our lives (take a few deep cleansing breaths, don't hold your breath ~ let it all out) ....
Relax & enjoy your hooks & yarn. Play with it & see what you can create. Or pull out the pattern you've been wanting to make & get it going.

I've had a good report ~ my "pressures" will be reduced ~ thanks to my recent weight loss. And as I continue to lose the weight my "pressures" should be reduced at every 20 pounds off. (for those of you who don't know this is all about my OSA & the treatment for it)

Speaking of weight loss ... I've lost the first 20 (which shouldn't have been there to begin with but without it I may not have gotten the help I needed) ... and 21 more besides! For a total of 41 so far. Almost every morning I get up & do my 30 minutes of Walk Away the Pounds the 2 mile walk. Sometimes I "play" some more to keep the "fat burners" turned on.   Who knows that may be the main reason for the weight loss... but I doubt it. Instead I really believe it is a combination of everything that I am doing right. I get my sleep. I get my "exercise" (okay "activity" if you insist LOL) ... and I eat right. I enjoy my food very much.

Okay so it's time for bed but before I go I wanted to say I played with my hooks & yarn today & can't wait to play some more tomorrow.
Good night / Good morning ~ either way enjoy your day.

Still in NC and just had to share...

2009-09-06T09:55:00.000-04:00

As I sit at the kitchen table looking at my yarn & hooks I think how much I've managed to pack into my brief visit thus far... I have completed the back panel for Angie's sweater... have more clearly defined the design for it and am renewed with excitement in regards to working on this sweater altogether.
I have designed a micro/preemie hat ... still in the pattern testing stage but once completed will be offered for personal/ charitable use.
I have been working on something for someone but am not at liberty to disclose any of the details at this time.

I managed a lovely visit at Phootsy's Yarn Cottage. I just love visiting this yarn shop ~ first off the owner Freddie Schuh ~ is a delight to converse with, secondly she has a way of making you feel so very welcome to pull up a chair and work on your project while you visit. Her displays just inspire me to take some time working on my projects! She has beautiful yarns to purchase... this time I picked up some lovely wool. Yes you are right handwash lay flat ... did I have a brain freeze moment? Did I just not read the label? I normally do not consider fibers that need the extra care since I am Lazy and want my gifts (or anything for myself) to be easy care all the way. But I just couldn't resist giving this yarn a try... it's Galway by Plymouth color 10 (it's a navy blue) doesn't feel itchy as many wools that I have petted has. Soft and feels good in my hand ummm babies due in November & in late January maybe a nice baby hat? Something small that can be easily hand washed? There is time yet to decide.

This month's charity challenge had me searching out micro preemie & preemie hat patterns (hence my sudden play time which led to my own pattern) ~ keep in mind I'm not at home so sharing a computer means sharing computer time so my search was split with everything else I try to accomplish on the computer (games, reading the comics, email, groups etc) but last night I came across the cutest knit hat for preemies & /or newborns that I can't wait to go home & try working up. Yes I know I know I know... but it is soooooooooooooo CUTE I had to ask my daughter to hook me up with a copy of the pattern so now I've got it I'm going to play. I found it through a search through patterns on Ravelry so join if you haven't already and search for : Christmas Tree Hat by Pattie Pierce Stone ~ it is that cute that I want to make it in the newborn size for my sweetheart who is due to arrive this November. Of course I have a lot of projects in mind so I will have to really pick & chose the priority of them all :) like I mind? LOL

We have gotten the baby's room partially settled, we have to double ck what clothes options exist so we will have a better idea what is needed. So inventory sometime today or tomorrow. Tuesday I would like to pack & relax as much as possible with my daughter since I leave on Wed.

Okay time to go make some breakfast ~ wishing you all a wonderful day ... may all of your projects be frogless and to God Be the Glory!!!!

Cleaning, weight loss, crocheting & who knows what else?

2009-08-24T08:13:00.000-04:00

Yes you read that right ~ cleaning! LOL if you have read my blog at all you should have picked up on the fact that cleaning just isn't my "thing" LOL hehehe. But when the living room looked like something had exploded & left the debris to rot it was beyond time to do something.
Of course you know I didn't accomplish it all by myself. Thank God for my wonderful husband. I moved a lot of stuff, sorted & threw away what I could. But he did almost all of the physical work that needed to be done. He even went to my craft room (* the one that has yet to be organized) and cleaned up there so all my stuff from down here could be relocated up there.
The results are that I now have just a little more work to do in my living room but at least now if our granddaughters stop by they can sit & play (yeah before they couldn't sit in my living room due to all the stuff everywhere!)

Changing topic LOL ~ I can't wait to see the dietitian this morning.   I have lost 33 pounds thus far. Granted one week I was ill with the "runs" and lost 9 pounds that week but over all I have steadily been losing and I"m so excited.    First off the whole "exercise" is key thing ... yep it's true. Second the portion control ~ huge key to weight loss! Now I don't pretend to know anything beyond my own experience with weight loss so please if you need to lose weight talk with your doctor first before starting any weight loss program, including any exercise program.
So for me the "activity" of choice has been Walk Away the Pounds (Leslie Sanstone) I worked my way up to the 2 mile workout but have some days where I do the 1 mile workout. I would like to get back to the pool come this winter for my water aerobics or aqua jogging ~ since that is my first "love" where activity is concerned ;)
Portion Control ~ yes the measuring cups & spoons have been in full use along with a food scale.
I feel so much more in control when I take the time to weigh &/or measure my food. Also key for me has been since getting past the first week (and possibly part of week 2?) I have no food cravings ~ no food mood swings to deal with. It is an incredible feeling. Free! Free from the urge to eat everything in sight. Free from the desire to have chocolate every couple of hours. Just free to be me. I honestly believe this is the time I will reach my goals. All of the other times I engaged in the weight loss battle I think I always held onto some doubt of my possible success. This time I have no doubt that I will make it to my "ideal" weight ~ whatever that may be... since my current view of this weight loss journey is to lose 10% of my current body weight (which I already hit the first 10% goal) and once hitting that goal then to aim for the next 10% until I am at the weight I should be (and as I get closer to that weight I will be better able to decide on my ultimate goal with my doctor & my dietitian's help).   That is not to say that I don't have a number in mind it is simply the truth that I want to be realistic & as I lose this weight I may discover that the number I have in mind simply isn't the right number for me. Why be set up for failure when there is no need to have that final goal decided upon at this time?   I'm taking the baby steps to this destination, no short cuts, no cheating along the way to reach the place I need to be instead simple direct and to the point goals that are reachable are my focus.

Ahh now to get to the best part of my blog ... the baby sweater I had started last year and had then set aside has been completed ~ & it is sooooooooo cute!   I love it and can't wait to bring it to Sarah.   I will take pictures & hope to post them before I leave if not at least I'm only going to be gone for 2 weeks this time.
I've completed the items for Kathleen & I even brought out the knitting ~ the sweater (back panel) for my friend Angie that I started 2 yrs ago I believe???
I have several projects that must be started & completed soon so God willing I will manage to do them & I have a quilting project in mind so I need to be more organized with my time.

I leave this Wed. & will be back in a couple of weeks so when I return I will share the highlights of my visit ~ we go to the 3-D ultrasound yay and I intend to stop by & visit with Freddie S. at Phootsy's Yarn Cottage while I'm in NC. So many exciting things for me ... maybe not so exciting to you but for me they are exciting.   I will be able to see the new catalog that Discovery Toys has put out and see what new things they have that our grand children will be able to have lots of fun learning while they play.
Well the clock tells me I need to leave so I will say have a great day ~ may your projects be "frog free" and may the children in your life play joyfully with you :)

Crochet 2010 Calendar ....

2009-08-14T13:19:00.001-04:00

I'm so pleased to say my crocheted square Anne's Square has been published in the Crochet 2010 calendar... it's July 16th. I hope you will purchase this calendar & enjoy all of the beautiful projects therein.

I would also suggest that this square may be used for baby afghans (you determine the size), for shawls, for full afghans, and for just about anything you can use a motif for!!!

I'm so excited and just had to share. Be on the lookout for this cool calendar so you can have one for your very own.

Mama Blogga's group writing project ~ Before I was a mom....

2009-08-11T10:39:00.006-04:00

http://www.mamablogga.com/august-2009-group-writing-project/

So the topic of this post is : Before I was a mom.

I know some of you may think what does she have to say now? Her kids are all out of the house, married and with children or expecting children of their own. All of that is true but I'm not so far gone that I can't recall life before becoming a mother. I feel equipped to compare life before & after the arrival of the first child to stretch my imagination & take me to new heights in living life.
Before I was a mom I was in high school. My wedding day took place 2 days after my high school graduation. Before I was a mom I walked daily, basically everywhere. (Not so ever since.)
Before I was blessed with children I had an idea of what I wanted my life to look like (mind you this was before I met "the ONE" who changed that forever) ... I had even gone so far as to map it all out during a discussion with my girl friend ...we were sitting in her room and she was telling me how she knew what she wanted to study in college and how she wanted to be married and have several kids etc ... so she asked me what I wanted to do with my life after high school. I told her I wanted to go to college and I would go into an area that revolved around counseling. I wanted to meet my husband and get married around the age of 24, have the house with the white picket fence around our yard & have lots of room for our babies to grow. Ahh what a day dream that was. The fact is before I was a mom I was just a teenager with day dreams. During the last couple of months of my junior year of high school I met my husband. By the age of 16 I had already had 3 marriage proposals. I had turned them all down ~ first because they were all wrong for me and secondly because I knew what I wanted & expected out of life. Marriage wasn't top priority. In fact 2 weeks before I met my husband I had told my grandmother that I was done with boys for a while. I had decided to concentrate on finishing school and not bothering with guys. (mind you this followed 2 of the 3 marriage proposals) Then I met my husband and all that changed. In the very beginning of our relationship we fought. We fought on the day we met. We fought the next time we met. We fought the third time we met. ... see a theme here? It was around this time I had a phone call from a long distance guy friend ... he was soooo cute but too far away for me... anyway we were talking & I mentioned this guy that I had met and how every time we got around each other we'd end up fighting. For a second I thought the phone had gone dead. Then suddenly he starts telling me how I can't marry this guy because he has our life all planned. He basically proposed marriage to me but the catch was he was going into the service and then following how many yrs he planned on signing up for duty then we would marry at the age of 36. Needless to say he wasn't happy when I told him no thank you.

My husband and I had only met and seen each other for two weeks when he drops this on me ... (the scene: local ice cream parlor Sunday afternoon relaxed atmosphere) suddenly I hear him say; "So when are we getting married?" I respond; "Well I'm certainly not getting married until after I graduate high school." He asked me when graduation was, I pull out a small date book and look it up. He looks at the date book and said, "We can get married Sunday June 25, 1978" ~ yes he set the wedding date for 2 days after my graduation. Mind you I thought this was a joke. He was extremely serious. He went home and told everyone he was getting married and our wedding date was set.
Before I was a mom I was an engaged woman who didn't even realize she was actually engaged.

Monday in school I met up with my friend who had introduced me to my husband. She congratulated me on our upcoming wedding. How could he be serious? I thought he had been joking. And how could he have told everyone so quickly? I went home and that night I poured my heart out to God. I told God how I knew the first 3 marriage proposals were without merit. I also told Him how I had 'planned' what I was going to do with my life. Then I asked God to help me. I pleaded with Him to let me know what I was supposed to do. If this was really the man for me then I didn't want to lose him. But if he wasn't the One for me then I didn't want to lead him on either. Before I was a mom I prayed.
Before I was a mom I had a dream. A dream that set the course for my life. That night I dreamt of my wedding. I could see my groom. It was this man I barely knew yet felt connected with. I saw things in great detail. I saw the wedding gown, the veil, the church including the carpeting. When I woke up I prayed again. I told God that I would take that dream as an answer to my prayer of the night before but that as I lived through the year leading up to my wedding day if at any time something proved to me that I was making a mistake I would call it off. Before I was a mom I was a woman determined to make the right decision.

July 4, 1977 I was invited to attend a church picnic with my fiance's family. I heard how God wanted a personal relationship with everyone. God was alive and willing to have communication with us. Mind you I already believed in God and I had faith that He answered my prayers the dream of my wedding was not the first time I had felt that God had responded to me. When the Pastor asked who wanted to accept Christ as their personal savior my hand was up in a flash. Before I was a mom I was a woman in need of a Savior.

During that year I spent some time with my future mother in law. She asked me one day if I would consider wearing her wedding gown. As we climbed the stairs to go look at the dress I saw her wedding photo on the wall at the top of the staircase. It was the dress I saw in my dream. The veil was different but that was the same dress. I accepted her offer.
As the time drew closer I went shopping for a veil and I came across the same exact veil I had seen in my dream. I felt such confirmation everytime something happended that reflected my dream. One day while we were just relaxing we talked about some things and I mentioned that I wondered if we were really going to get married since he had never actually asked me to marry him. He got down on one knee and asked me to please become his wife.
The day came when we were going to the church (mind you I had never been there before in my life) and when we walked in I knew where everything was... it was exactly the same as in my dream. Right down to the ugly carpeting. (I'm sorry after all this time I still think that carpeting was ugly and it was a detail that proved beyond a shadow of doubt that God had shown me this was the man I was supposed to marry). Before I was a mom I was a woman in love, willing to spend forever with this one man. A month and a half after my 18th birthday I graduated from high school and two days after my graduation I married the man of my dreams (literally)!
Before I was a mom I was a bride. 31 years of marriage, 3 children, 3 children in love (our daughters & son in laws) and now grandbabies too ~ before I was a mom I could only hope and dream of all that life would hold for me and my family ... now I am a mom and a grandmomma and my best advice to share is to LOVE your family every day no matter what!!!!

What's that in the ???

2009-08-10T13:51:00.002-04:00

What's that? In the where? Oh NO it isn't!!!! Yes it was. Okay so far so good.
Yes it's that kind of a day around here so far. I have found spiders, mind you they don't bother me as long as they are allllllll outside! But there is one living in my living room (okay so his brothers & sisters, aunts & uncles are all in hiding, and he is the only one I can "SEE") ... and one of these days he will be no more because I will be brave enough ~ or I will give in & call my hubby in to do the dirty deed. As long as he seems content to stay put I think I can arrange to ignore him... but the minute I have to wonder where he's gotten off to then I will not be able to stand it any longer.

I will let you know besides the uncharacteristic humane side of me showing up on behalf of the spider (and yes it's a rather small one or else it would have been history long before now) ... I have been under the weather. Oh it really didn't seem like such a big deal at first ... just came across as something that disagreed with me (no gall bladder = lots of times when food doesn't agree with me) ... but then one day became two and before I knew it an entire week of "running" wasn't so much fun. In fact I had actually stopped eating as much as I could in order to see if I could get things back under control. It didn't work. It had gotten to the point where even just water made me "run". But as of a couple of hours ago I have to say I feel the best I have in just a little over a week. I think perhaps (*& I hope I'm not jumping the gun a bit here in stating this) that it is finally under control. In the meantime I have lost an incredible amount of weight during this past week. Not the way I wanted to see it go but if it decides to stay gone I certainly won't be complaining!

So far I've managed to remain focused on my goals ~ the food has been great until this past week's episodes... but I know I can & will remain steady on this course now that my stomach seems to be feeling better. I am very close to having lost 10% of my weight. Which simply means I will reset my goal to lose the next 10%. I'm going to see this through even when it is hard. My ultimate goal hasn't been determined yet (weight wise) but I do know I have a very long slow journey ahead of me, and I'm ready and willing to reach the end of this journey no matter how long it takes.
Any of you care to share your tips on keeping your activity level up? Or what foods you enjoy the most that are also "healthy" choices please leave a comment & share away.

Wishing you all a happy healthy day & may all your projects remain "frog free"!!!

I'm still around :)

2009-08-04T07:23:00.002-04:00

Okay time for an update. First off I couldn't be happier. I have almost lost the 20 pounds I gained earlier this year. And as any of you who have tried to lose weight knows it goes on way easier (and Faster) than it goes off!
I have not experienced any drastic food cravings, I think whatever was happening to make me "food crazed" before has come to a complete stop (and that was within the first week) ~ now I simply figure out what I'm most hungry for and then see how it fits into my daily allotment of calories & carbs. Now my husband has read that it is more important to keep tabs on fat (saturated fats) along with the carbs becasue there are too many low to non carb choices out there that are very high in saturated fat!
What this all means is that together we have "embraced" this lifestyle. I am getting in my "activity" (simply put Exercise!!!) LOL by doing my walk away the pounds workout. I like that I can get up & turn it on any time I'm ready in the morning. Once done I can go about my day.
Also I have been really enjoying my fruits & veggies.

On a crochet note ... I'm sorry to report that I've been super lazy. I did make the beret & scarf for Kathleen... but I am lacking the baby sweater for Carter, and the completion of a baby sweater for my new grandchild due this November... and I need to make one for my grand baby due late Jan. (early Feb?).... so I need to get moving ~ the truth is my hands have been bothering me a bit and I have been lazy. Lazy Lazy Lazy!
I also need to get the shawl for my sister in law done... er, well , um... started! (& then done)
Not to forget the sweater for Angie that has been set aside & negelected. I need to get back to work on that!!!!
So I admitted my faults ... & am now making baby steps of progress on correcting them ~ how about you? You certainly do not need to confess anything to me but to yourself you do. You know what it is that you have put off repeatedly. Face it cause it is actually much easier to do it than to have to deal with it later. (like dusting off my mantle... ugh it would certainly have been much easier to do months ago when I first realized how dirty with dust it had become)
With that note .... I will leave you with this thought ...
May you find the strength you have within you all along is more than you need to accomplish that which you need to accomplish the most whether it be a crochet or other craft project, or losing weight, or increasing your activity level or cleaning your clutter.
May you have a "frog free" day :)

Week One complete ....

2009-07-13T10:23:00.002-04:00

Yes I have met with the dietitian and have a rough idea of what I need to do so I have officially completed my first week following my meal plan as outlined by the dietitian.

Watching my carbs ~ did you know that basically everything (other than meat & some fats) has carbs???? I honestly didn't realize this basic fact that is most likely (which means I was taught this information) taught in a basic health class at school. So anyway to watch my carbs is actually balancing the amount of carbs I eat at each meal and in doing so it basically levels out the way my body has to work throughout the day. I have to say it makes me pause & stop to think before I eat about what I am chosing to feed my body as a source of fuel.
After following the basic meal plan (I chose all my foods from everything available to eat ~ I just make sure I don't consume more carbs at each meal & snack time then advised)... I have lost 6 pounds so far.
The other important key to this is I have to exercise ~ oops pardon me the new "word" is Activity. Increase your activity level in order to lose weight. Besides the dietitian telling me this at least 4 different books that I've been reading through states that increasing your activity is absolutely necessary. The number one recommended activity is walking.
So this past week I have worked hard at doing the walk away the pounds dvd workout for the one mile (hey must build up to the two mile) ... and I admit I groan & moan all throughout it but I Do It anyway.

Okay I'll share more later ... it's time to go walk away the pounds!!!
Have a nice & active day :)

Walk this way ....

2009-06-30T08:37:00.004-04:00

So far I have not lost any of the recently gained weight... went to see a specialist who told me that my primary care doctor handled my thyroid correctly. But due to my insistence that something was not right and in view of my recent weight gain he felt that I had Metabolic Syndrome.... which according to the various things I have read means I have a "cluster" of symptoms ... and that I may be insulin resistant or "prediabetic" ... which by the way I have heard once before at least 3 or 4 yrs ago... ummm. I just didn't get it. Not then & apparently not now.

I will be seeing a dietitian or nutritionist soon in order to try & make sense of the incredible amount of confusing information available. One source states reduce your carbohydrates, another states you must chose the "right" carbohydrates ... yet another states, "everyone is different & what works for some may not work for you so you need to slowly discover what works for you through trial & error" .... and don't let me leave off the whole glycemic index... talk about confusing!!
And so my saga has taken on a whole new view ~ I am prediabetic which means if I can get my food choices worked out and increase my activity by a whole lot I can prevent becoming a full blown diabetic. It must work this time since last time it did not.

In case you couldn't tell this is a very frustrating situation. To have realized that I must make positive, healthy changes in my life & was actually executing them only to have a 20 pound gain in such a short period of time really set me back. I just don't function well when the expected results are completely opposite! So I will see how this journey proceeds.

As for the sleep apnea journey ...I'm still trying to find the "right" mask for me ... I recently tried the nasal mask in a size small ... but it was worse than the size medium and I need to see if I can return it for a medium or if it's too late already. I just feel like I can't win for trying.

Walk this way ... watch your step, don't stumble or fall if you do then please pick yourself back up and continue in the way. Yes, life is full of surprises and lots of options for passing your time. But only that which is done for God will hold any real value or long lasting results/ rewards etc. So may I encourage you to walk this way? Walk with the assurance that there is a God who loves you, live your daily walk knowing you are not alone, enjoy your time of fellowship with God throughout each day ... walking & talking with Him instead of ignoring Him to do your own thing. See what God will do if you only seek after Him & serve Him with your whole heart, mind & strength!

and yet will I praise HIM, from whom all blessings flow ~ Thank you God for keeping me safe in your care each day regardless of my circumstances & regardless of how I may or may not feel.

May you all have a blessed day & look beyond your situation to God who loves you & holds you in the palm of His hand, he has a plan & a purpose for your life & if you yield to HIM it will unfold before you.
God Bless you all.

On a crochet note ... I still have several items in the works & more to come :)

2009-06-01T16:40:00.003-04:00

Here is the Dress I made for Abigail ... on the off chance that she may be too tall for it when she can wear it I have set some of the same yarn aside that way it can have more added to the hemline before it goes through wear & tear and the yarn no longer "matches" ~ the top photo a picture of the back & the lower one is the front ... showing a corner of my "tag" in the shoulder area.

The pattern is found on Ravelry (if you are a member there you can get it) it's called Hip Dress for Baby ~ original size is for 0-3 months. Mine should be the right size for 12 - 18 months.

That feels sooooooo great to have completed that project ~ better late than never!!!!

That being said I'm frustrated with my thyroid and sleep apnea and the weight I've gained since beginning my OSA treatment... after all I had been told I would lose weight if I dieted & exercised when I was first treated for my underactive thyroid ~ ahhhh NO that didn't work... then when I saw the specialist for my OSA he told me, "don't worry, if you diet & exercise with your sleep apnea being treated you will be able to lose the weight" ~ I should have known better! Dieting & exercising and gaining weight seem to be what I do best. The weight gain brought me back to my gp and he said oh your thyroid is off we need to adjust your meds & test your blood in a month. Meanwhile my weight is still climbing. NO NO NO I just can't stand it!!!

My body has been protesting and my body is losing this battle ... then someone said you need to read about the thyroid diet, certain foods will work against you... huh??? can this be?? if this is true then why didn't my doctor tell me about this back when he started me on my meds years ago????

All I can say is that everyone is different & what works for one may not work for another... and all doctors can do is their very best for their patients... so it is up to the patients to look things up & keep questioning their doctors in order to have/get the best care possible!!! I'm so sorry I took so long to seriously look into these things ... hopefully now I will have some answers. I'll let you know how it goes ... as it looks like it will be a long journey still.

Wishing you all a frog free projects & good health & restful sleep!

Another Month passing us by...

2009-05-28T05:46:00.003-04:00

Hi again. I really had not intended to disappear but it feels like I have done just that. And in the time away do I have anything to show for it? The answer would be a resounding NO!
Personally I was really looking forward to beginning the treatment for my sleep apnea and could not wait for all of the benefits that I had been told I could expect to "kick in" that I jumped right in without looking. However within a very short period of time I have gained weight (supposed to help me lose weight), I've had a bit of a problem "adjusting" first it was the machine now it's the mask & yes this has been & still is an ongoing issue. My skin seems to be on the sensitive side (which by the way I knew & told my CRT) ~ I know he is doing what he can to help but so far I wish I could just go back to the first mask and never had any issues with pressure points/sores at all because now that we have the right machine for me I really would like the right mask to go with it.

TMI right? I'm sorry but here's the upswing ~ before all of these complaints ~ which basically means before I began treatment for my OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) ~ I would sleep all night and when I woke up in the morning I felt like I had not slept at all. I would sit at the computer and discover that I had dozed off (& no I do not have a laptop) and still felt tired. Go about my day & while I was "active" felt ok but could rest if time allowed. Once able to sit a bit to crochet or read or watch tv etc would find 'napping' does exsist. Often doze off rather quickly when I was able to sit for a bit. Now although I am not "happy" about the issues I've been whining about I must say it does feel good not to be falling asleep moments after I've awaken for the day. No more day time naps unless I really want one & I use my machine for any of those.

So if you have sleep apnea & were afraid to go get tested or you've been tested & you have not been dealing well with your machine/mask please be encouraged to keep working on it until you have the best possible fit for you. I do believe once I'm set up with the right "fit" mask that my other issues will actually begin to be resolved or at least be in the process of resolving.
In case you wondered (I'm sure you must have) why if the mask was so good before the machine was a right fit for me what happened .... the mask was good the machine was good but for me it didn't do what I needed it to do so that took a while to discover. The second machine same thing. Once the 3rd (& so far final one) machine was put into use and quickly proved to be a good fit for my needs the mask for the first time really did what it should have been doing and almost immediately I developed a pressure point/sore (most likely this only happened because I have had cold sores / sun blisters in the past that have left me extremely sensitive and now that that mask was sitting on top of one very hyper sensitive location it brought on a fresh sore) ... I don't blame the mask and actually wish I had not returned it because although I like the idea & feature of the nasal pillows I now use I find that I don't get the same sleep as I had with the previous mask.
I share all of this to say I'm still working on getting the right combination for me in order to have the results all of this treatment should be providing.

On a crochet note ... almost finished with the dress for Abigail. Just need to complete the shoulder straps but since I had gone from a 0-3 months size to about a 12 -18 months size I need to measure a child about that age to get the shoulder strap right. So hopefully next week I can show pictures of this completed.
Still lagging way behind on Carter's sweater ... but I am confident that will be accomplished soon.

Well off for the day ... hope you all have a great day & if there were comments I would not stay away so long.
Wishing you all a "frog free" day :)

contemplative mood sets in & ....

2009-05-16T10:28:00.002-04:00

these are the results of that mood ... why is it that I've started projects & have failed to settle down to complete them? Why can't I just settle on the yarn choice to make the sweater now that I've found the pattern I want to make??? Why am I stuck????

Then it hits me that I am stuck. Stuck with no desire to work on these items. Stuck daydreaming of other projects that I'm not willing to begin since I haven't finished the projects on hand. Thinking of more designs that I probably won't manage to sketch out & put into writing.

Then there is the huge personal project I have been living with and not managing to get ahead on ... some days I find myself thinking it will never happen, it just won't become a reality then others I can hardly contain my excitement at the thought of what I might actually accomplish.

It is now that I see I can't manage to divide my time & energy properly to effectively complete all of the things I want to complete. I need to settle my mind on completing one thing at a time & then concentrate only on the completion of the personal project I have on the back burner.

Yes it is all hush hush for now but that is what personal makes it ... it's private & not for public showing ~ it's too new, too in the birthing process to present to anyone for their feed back. So I will take steps to accomplish the crochet tasks and then settle into a routine in order to, (God willing), accomplish the very hush hush top secret project (non crochet related). Seriously I know I will sprinkle some crochet throughout this projects' development since I can't go without crocheting for long periods of time !!! :-)

In the mean time I pray for a healthy pregnancy for my daughter.
Wishing you all a frog free and very happy weekend.

I can barely contain my

2009-05-02T09:34:00.002-04:00

Excitement!!! I am happy to say that I have a new grandchild on the way. Whoever is joining my family will be making their appearance this November. And since my daughter & son in law wish to be "surprised" we won't be finding out in advance if it's a she or a he!

I'm so blessed & happy & excited. So what's new with you? I thought I was going to get off the "baby" mode for a bit but now I'm not so sure I can!!!! Well I still plan on taking a short break because I have found myself so far behind on things!!!! For example I still haven't finished the adorable baby dress for Abigail (Heather's daughter) the shower was April 16th & she was born March 10... so good thing I was planning on it being for a 1 yr old at least. But that was my problem I took a cute 0-3 month dress & decided to make it large enough for a 12 month old (but I wouldn't be surprised to discover mine is even larger than that) .... so as I work on it I need to actually settle on the "finished size" in order to keep it in the proper shape & measurements regularly will help. I do promise pictures of this when it is finished.

But that just shows how far behind I am because I also wanted Carter's sweater to be done by now but I just haven't settled on the pattern (mainly because for some unknown reason I'd settled on his sweater being for a 9 month old & the size info for that age is varied & hard to come by) so my flow of excuses runneth over.

Anyway I did take some pictures (of other items) & just haven't had a chance to sit at the computer long enough to play & post. Soon I hope!!!

May all your projects be "frog free" and may your blessings include hugs & kisses ;-)

When will the warmth begin???

2009-04-21T17:06:00.003-04:00

Yeah I went there... the weather usually reserved for "small talk" when running into acquaintances we are polite to but really don't want to get into anything "serious" when "asking" them how things are etc.

So anyway it's been cold, damp & just to tease us we get a really nice day sandwiched inbetween. Today however was yet another rainy day ~ can you even picture it? I mean afterall it is April ... you remember the lovely little saying "April Showers bring May Flowers" don't you? Well I think they really mean it ~ Literally!!!
I rarely bother to listen to the weather reports (after all I can easily look out my window or open the door & actually go outside to determine if the weather requires a jacket or heavy coat or whathaveyou... but I had the tv on while in another room & over heard these words "80 degrees on the weekend" ... now I dare to hope that we will actually have such lovely warmth this weekend. Of course I only heard those words & had not been watching so have no idea if I misheard or if it will be as lovely as they stated.

OOhhh I'll get off the wet, damp, cold weather that has been here on & off most of this month thus far.

In turn I will mention that I still haven't begun a sweater for Carter (yes, he's arrived in March and I still failed to get a simple sweater ready for his arrival) ... the dress I decided on for Abigail will take a bit longer since I haven't just sat down to "work" on it... and I started the Charity Challenge for April project... I only pledged one item this month since I saw how far behind I was with my other projects! I belong to a wonderful yahoo group of crocheters and we have a charity challenge each month from Jan. to Oct.

Ahh the sleep apnea saga continues ... although the machine seems great I've now noticed (20 nights after getting the second mask) that I have a pressure point at the bottom of my right nostril. Pressure points are not good things. Also when I called to ask about it & my dry mouth the tech who ususally deals with me was not in so I spoke with someone else & she really did not address the pressure point issue at all but she said she'd send me a chin strap to help keep my mouth closed while I sleep so that I won't have a dry mouth. That arrived today & I just don't see how that will help since it didn't seem to fit me at all.

So I am off to have some fun with my darling lovebugs (yes all 3 of them) they've already requested I bring the discovery toys I have. I must say I absolutely love that they will ask for the "cuppies" (that's from Kamryn the 2 yr. old requesting the Measure Up Cups) and then from Kyla "bring the math game please" and then Adriana requested the "Busy Bugs" (another math concepts activity) ... just go ck it out and if you have any questions call Sarah (her contact info is on the website) Tell her that her mother sent you!!!! (not that that will save you anything but it will please her no end to know I sent you her way)

Okay off I go to play & hopefully get some crocheting time in (yeah I know it's a lost cause LOL) but I've got a new "camera phone" ~ yes you read that right ~ and I'll try to get some cool pics to share :) you never know! It is just possible???
Frog free projects are wished for all of you :) And nice restful sleep!!!!

Random thoughts

2009-04-14T16:47:00.002-04:00

Today was an odd day for me. I woke up with plenty of time to be 'productive' however I also woke up feeling dazed & wishing I had more time to sleep. (True that isn't odd at all for me!!!) With the OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) being treated I guess I thought it would be a change for the positive & that I would feel great almost instantly and all things would be put to 'rights' almost as fast. Since beginning treatment on March 7th (yes that's all it's been) I have had a roller coaster of mild ups & downs. And now when I believe the machine & the mask may be the 'right fit' for me I have been dealing with a feeling of congestion & as if a sinus infection is ready to be taking over my head & sinus cavity. Now that would not be so bad but it's like waiting for the 'other shoe to drop' in that I have no idea if this will actually become a full blown sinus infection rendering me to lay about in my bed until the worst of it passes or if it will remain a nagging thought in the background just out of reach but enough of a presence to annoy the ever lovin' daylights out of me... ummm I honestly just wish it would go away completely & never bother me again. But so far it's been about a week of this feeling non-stop.

So that being the case this morning I decided to have a "pajama day" ... I worked on the baby dress (still have a long way to go!!) and caught up on some shows I had recorded. Managed to prepared veggies for dinner yet wonder what the rest of our meal might be... if anything?

Caught up on some blogs I like to read. All in all a rather easy going day.

Just wish I had managed to get up & head to the pool as I love to do and get some other things accomplished today.

Wishing you a great day & frog free projects ... (okay evening, night, morning whatever time it is where you are hope it's great.)

Happy Resurrection Sunday (or if you prefer... Happy Easter)

2009-04-12T06:26:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter Sunday .... a day to remind us that our sins have been forgiven ~ if you don't understand it's so simple that it sounds complicated... in an "egg shell" LOL ...
God created us (humans) for fellowship (relationship) but the first man & woman disobeyed God bringing punishment to all humans their disobedience is called sin (which every human being is born with) and the punishment that we were to have was forgiven when His Son Jesus Christ died on the cross. Jesus took our sins upon himself so that we could be restored to a right relationship with God, His Father. So if anyone believes that Jesus is their Savior they will be saved. That's right anyone who believes will have their relationship with God restored so they can have eternal life with HIM. For those who don't believe they will have eternity without HIM which is called "hell".

Wishing you all a happy wonderful Easter.

Project underway

2009-04-10T07:50:00.002-04:00

I've decided to make a dress instead of a sweater for the upcoming baby shower. Yeah I know I have been saying for months now that I wanted to make a sweater for Heather's baby but I came across the cutest baby dress and just couldn't resist wanting to make that instead. With the baby afghan finished & a cute outfit already selected and the last piece to complete the gift about to be started I went on a pattern search. Yes I was looking for baby sweaters but you may understand what it's like to go on a pattern search & be distracted by all the possiblities.

Anyway I was doing my pattern search in the usual places I started with Lion Brand's pattern finder and although I loved a lot of the options most of the ones that I wanted to make were knitted & we all know I'm toooooooooo Slooooowwwwwwwww when it comes to my knitting hence the crochet passion I have come to know & love. I will eventually knit some of these adorable baby sweaters but for who I just have no idea!

Then I moved on to Ravelry's pattern base and oh my pattern heaven! So if you haven't joined head on over & get your self an invite to join ~ it is an incredible online community of fiber artists, if you crochet, knit or weave or spin or just love fiber you really should ck it out!

http://www.ravelry.com/

So here I was strolling through the baby patterns (crocheted ones although some of the knitted ones could definitely tempt me!!!) and came across this pattern Hip Dress for Baby.
I've completed the first three rounds and although I am making it larger than the pattern calls for I believe it will be perfect for when the baby is bigger. Pictures to follow (next week some time as it is Easter weekend and all).

Wishing you all a very Blessed & Happy Easter ... may the Lord Bless you & Keep you.
And may all your projects be frog free!!!!

Crochet Update... yay :)

2009-04-07T13:15:00.003-04:00

Finished the items Kathleen requested. However I did "change" something. I have made the scarflet that she has requested each time basically the same with very minor differences based on the "personality of the yarn". And don't tell me you haven't noticed that some natural fibers have a "personality of their own" because I know most of you if you've worked with any natural fibers you've seen this for yourself! Anyhoo ... I really took Kathleen's concern about the amount of yarn required to make both the beret & the scarf into consideration. I really have no control over how much yarn is used for the beret.
I made the first one and just did not trim it the way I ususally do (which I think it looks fine but I don't know how she will react to no scalloped edging) as it turned out I had so little yarn left that I did not think I would manage to make a flower that she also prefers. So now I had both berets finished and was looking at the yarn to make the second scarflet (scarflet by the way is a short scarf that you wear close around your neck either held together with a button or the "button hole" is large enough for you to pull the other end of the scarf through) ... ~ I decided what did I have to lose? I would design a new one that hopefully used less yarn to complete while hopefully still being "cute" enough to please Kathleen. (after all it is her yarn & she asked for the other scarflet) .... so I hope to see her soon in order to give her these items & see how she reacts to the changes I've made. As for the flowers to adorn her scarflets ... I did manage to have just enough of the dark brown left to make two small loopy style flowers and on the second one I added the last of the first yarn and worked a very small round to make that flower "match" the scarflet it was being sewn onto. I am not sure how she will react but I hope it pleases her in the end.

With these projects finished I can now concentrate on the baby sweaters I need to make and also see if I can write out the pattern for the one I want to design. I still need to write out the pattern for the scarflet & flower I made today.

I need to get back to some of my other long term projects like my shrug and Angie's sweater!!!! I want them to be finished soon before I get all distracted and the shawl/wrap I want to make for my sil ... I will see if it's possible for me to get these finished and off my "to do" list sometime soon. :)

Wishing you all frog free days!!

What a Day today has been ....

2009-04-05T17:57:00.002-04:00

Today is Palm Sunday. One week from now Christians will celebrate Easter Sunday ... the Resurrection of Christ ... which is our Hope! For since He came, died & Rose again we now have the Hope of His return.

Church service this morning was incredible. The presence of the Holy Spirit was so strong. I know that God's word states that He inhabits the praises of His people and this morning was not unusual for our body of believers. But there was a difference this morning. For this morning I felt a weight of love for the lost like I've rarely felt before. I know I've "felt this way" before but not at the level of intensity that came upon me this morning. I also felt as if God wanted to challenge each one of us to Trust HIM and to step out in faith to believe for our needs. He will increase our faith if we lack the faith to trust HIM for all we may need from HIM. So here is a challenge to you. If you are new in your faith or perhaps the zest of your faith has been fading ask God to increase your faith. Ask Him to prove Himself to you again. Allow yourself to seek His Face yet again, and don't be shy about waiting on His reply!

Now I'll get off my soap box and tell you I've made some limited progress on my crochet projects. I've completed the snuggle sq. for my granddaughter. I've finished one of the two scarves (minus the decorative flower that usually adorns it) but I'm really doing my best not to start the 3rd hank of yarn she gave me ... but I don't think I will be able to manage a decent flower with the very small amount of yarn left from the first two hanks. Time will tell.

I am working on a design for a baby sweater. I have an idea I just need to see if I can execute it properly, and write the pattern on time!!!
Also I need to get the second scarf done and the baby sweaters that I should have finished already. So how do you like that for being late??? Oh yeah it happens.

So I wish you all a great week as Easter approaches take my challenge seriously. I know that God will meet you where you are.

Wishing you all frog free projects :)

PS ... I almost forgot to share with you ... one of my patterns has been published in the online e-zine Crochet Uncut ... it's called Toddler Scarf. (I made one for each of my granddaughters.) I hope you'll ck it out & let me know if you like it.

April Fool's ??

2009-04-01T07:44:00.003-04:00

So today is April 1st. Also referred to as April Fools Day as long as I can recall. Personally I do not go in for all the April Fool's day gags, jokes, and pranks however if you can think of a really clever one & manage to pull it off then I can appreciate it.

I am not all that clever, nor would my execution of any of the pranks, gags or jokes be smooth enough to pull it off without a hitch! Instead of making lame jokes or a miscalculated prank I'm better off just ignoring the whole "April Fool's Day stuff" and concentrate on the important things happening around me. For example I have completed the second hat for Kathleen & need to get the scarves finished. I have one made without it's trim or flower and the second one is not even on the hook yet. So I must get to work on that. Then there is the charity challenge for this month ~ Blankets for Deployed Daddies... the idea is you make a specific sized baby blanket using a specific yarn & pattern they send your blanket to a daddy who is deployed to sleep with for a week so that their scent is now in the blanket he sends it to his wife so their baby can sleep with it & learn his scent. I think that this is sooooo cool!!! So I have this project waiting for my attention. Then there is the ever desired snuggle requested by my lovely granddaughter & she has been waiting for about a year now... I finally purchased the correct yarn for this and have actually started it but set it aside as there are more pressing projects to work on (see above mentioned scarves for Kathleen!!!) Not to mention I still have 2 outstanding baby projects to begin since they were expected (by me) to be completed long before today!!!

Oh so many things & yet I am so behind on their progress. But today I am really excited because I will be visiting my niece & nephew & their newborn my "great nephew" this morning. I am so happy for them & can't wait to hold this beautiful boy.

So I'm off to get ready for my visit and to get my projects lined up for working on when I return home.

Wishing you all a prank free & frog free day :)

It's Friday but Sunday's Coming ....

2009-03-27T16:20:00.003-04:00

Technically that "title" is true but not in the sense that I want to discuss. You see Resurrection Sunday (you may think of it as Easter) is coming. And I'm thinking about a really great sermon about how it was Friday (when Jesus died), but Sunday (the day He was Resurrected) was coming ~ we can go through so many "Fridays" in our life where we really need to be encouraged that Sunday is on the way. When Jesus died for our sins that Friday, his disciples must have felt terribly alone, and confused. You see they didn't know what we know about the Resurrection Power that was coming until Sunday when they discovered He had risen from the dead & was no longer held in that tomb. So when we face our worst day or night that may equal a "Friday" experience but we can hold on to the fact that Sunday is coming.

Of course if you do not have a relationship with God, do not believe that Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead you will have your "Friday" experiences and be stuck with little or no hope of a resurrection Sunday on the way. I don't know how you will get through your difficulty without the strength of a faith built on God's mercy & grace. For me I could not survive without my faith in God, nor in my ability to Trust Him with everything.

Yeah I know this may sound "preachy" however if I have this great relationship and never share it with you then how would you ever know about it? How would you know that you could ask me why I believe, and know that I would tell you about the many times when I needed God to see me through & HE did! How when I thought I could handle things myself, in my own strength & how I got to the place where I made stupid choices that left me feeling alone & confused and as if I had managed to get so far away from Him that I did not think I could ever find my way back into His grace. Yet in all of my stupidity God never left me alone. He simply stayed by my side and let me see how my choices were really self destructive. And He waited until I admitted that I really did not like what I was doing & how I was behaving, how I was feeling & how far I had run from Him. Then He let me open my eyes to the truth that He never left me. That He did not like my choices either but that He still loved me. HE Loved me enough to forgive me when I confessed my sins and repented of my wicked ways. And now I know that for me those areas of my life that I was weak in before I am now much stronger and can lean on HIM to resist the tempations that may come my way.

I don't share that to sound as if I've "arrived" at perfection. Rather I share that to say I know how difficult it can be to stand firm daily in my faith. And that God provides the strength I need in order stand firm when I lean on HIM. When I lean on myself I fail to get through the day.

The truth is we have friends who we can call on no matter what time of day or night & know that they will be there for us. God is that friend to me. He is always there for me. No matter what.
And He is who I want to lean on first & foremost.
So as I sit here thinking of this upcoming celebration of Christ's Resurrection I pray that all of you have a relationship with the Savior of the world. That you know you can have eternal life with God. That you can face your "fridays" with the hope of the Sunday to come.

Wishing you all a very blessed day.

Things I Love Thursday ~ my cell phone's camera feature

2009-03-26T17:20:00.002-04:00

I must admit I tend to be 'behind the times' however slowly I enter into this "day & age" I want you to know I eventually "catch up" to everyone else! So here I am, have had my cell phone for a few years & almost never used my camera feature. But as I was enjoying my granddaughters I discovered that using the camera was fun. Let a few more years go by I just have to tell you who knew you could actually send those pictures taken with your cell phone's camera to your email address??? Or to other people's cell phones??? Well I finally "arrived" at this stage of technology and today while visiting my niece at the hospital following the arrival of my great nephew I took some pictures with my cell phone's camera & then sent them to my family members then sent them to my email so they could be saved on my computer!!!! YAY for cool cell phones with decent cameras built in them.

So yes who knew? Well knowing me all of you knew before I did that this could even be handled all from your cell phone!!!!

Wishing you all a great day ... call someone or send them cool pictures from your phone to theirs!!!

Works for Me Wed. ~ yay!

2009-03-25T08:45:00.005-04:00

So I try to "enlighten" myself by reading other blogs that share what works or doesn't work for them and really enjoy reading Jill's blog ~ she seems to always share something interesting & since I'm a grandma to 3 adorable girls she often has things to share that I can relate to even though my children have all flown the coop. Reading her blog today & seeing the games she has recommended inspired me to share our favorite toys/games source as well. Discovery Toys has educational toys & games geared for all ages from birth to adult. I know that they have been around for 30 years & that their goal is customer satisfaction.

I know because I had called regarding an item purchased that needed a new piece & they sent one out no questions asked. Another thing I have found that amazes is me is that I have purchased several of their games and play them with my granddaughters. The one I absolutely love is Flip Flop Faces, but as I bring my games for play time with the girls they always want to play with the Meausre Up Cups. These cups are for 12 months & up ~ but they have so many ways to be used that they can easily be for children in elementary school! My 2 yr. old sees me & always says Cuppie Cuppie ... we take the smallest cup & hide it under the larger ones & we take turns with who hides it & finds it. She is really good at this game & enjoys it very much I can't wait to play with her outside so I can show her the basic math skills these cups help you teach your children. The other game I bring I use with my 4 yr. old granddaughter (I can't wait to play it with her cousin who is 3 so I will be patient a little longer) it's recommended for 5 + yrs. & it teaches & reinforces basic math skills of addition & subtraction. Kyla & I will go sit at the table & play game after game, and often her little sister will join us & watch while we add or subtract.
We alternate between them and I always ask her which one she wants to play. She loves it! This is a great way to bond over math & have fun doing it... she is starting Kindergarten this fall.

So many games so many options however one really great thing about their games/ toys is that they also make their products with every need in mind. If your child has special needs you would be surprised at the options they can provide for you to be able to play with your child in an educational way. Just ask a Discovery Toys Educational Consultant about your child's needs & what toys & games are best suited for them. (If you don't know a DTEC you can always ask my daughter Sarah for suggestions.)

Wishing you all fun filled & frog free projects :)

Sleep update / crochet update/ life update ...

2009-03-23T19:05:00.002-04:00

Ahhhh Choo!!! yep I've been sneezing. I am a bit confused, but what else is new?? I never understood how important humidity could be to one's health. Too much is often not good & too little or none is not good. I've lived in my home for 21 yrs (this May) and our oil furnace is forced hot air & no humidifier on the furnace ~ makes for one dry environment. I've survived these past 21 yrs. with sinus issues on & off during the winters. Now that I've finally come to understand the importance of getting on top of my sleep apnea and dealing with the therapy for it I'm learning that humidity or the lack thereof is a bigger factor to my well being then I ever realized.
You see the machine that sends the positive airway pressure is drawing the air from my room (my environment) through a filter, into the machine & through the hose into the nasal mask I wear to sleep. This air is what I breathe in during my sleep. If it is too dry it will cause me to be too "dry" in my sinuses etc. So between the "vendor" as my doctor has called them & my doctor I am very confused. My vendor tells me that I need my doctor to prescribe the machine & my doctor tells me that he wrote a generic prescription because he is not in the business of selling machines. So between the two of them I am left wondering what went wrong??? Since the vendor has an idea of which machine might best meet my needs he should have brought that one to me instead of one he felt might not be able to handle my humidity needs based on my pressure settings. Not knowing who to believe has given me a headache.

Waking up in the early hours of the day (anywheres from 3 to 4 a.m.) is not my idea of good sleep. I'm certainly not ready to begin my day at that hour. But I have had to add water to my water tank on my machine every morning when I awaken at that time. Since we bought a room humidifier and have it set up a few feet from my machine I really hoped that it would help but there hasn't been any improvement. Anyway I will have a new machine on Wed. to try this all again & hope & pray that finally we will have the "right fit" for my needs.

I've been going to the pool M-F and doing my best to move in the water and get my weight under control. I'm huge ~ & for me this weight ~which I do realize is just a number on a scale~ is way too large a number in my opinion. I don't like how I feel, nor do I wish to "learn to live with it" anytime soon. I want to see it begin to go down & continue on the downward path until it reaches the best "number" for me. (Only God knows what that number is but I promise you it is not the number I've been seeing when I do step on the scale!!!)

So God willing as my sleep apnea gets treated & brought under control so will my weight. I'm trying to make the best choices every time I have to decide what to eat. When I want to make brownies & can talk myself out of doing that & chose to eat fruit instead I think I'm on the right track ... the only problem is I have no idea how long I can continue to make the right choice. So far though I have managed not to make the brownies for a week now.

As for my crochet update ... still need to complete the items for Kathleen (too tired) and for the baby gifts (again too tired) ~ but while playing online I came across a beautiful afghan pattern that I thought you all would enjoy ~ even if you never want to make it for yourself or for a gift it is so beautiful you should enjoy seeing it! Check it out & let me know if you agree.

http://www.happyyellowhouse.com/htm/atw.html

Now here is another link from happy yellow house that you may enjoy ~

http://www.happyyellowhouse.com/htm/crochet.html

I love the free patterns here & thought you migh enjoy them too!

Now please leave comments ~ you can ask me anything ...you can share anything you can agree or disagree but seriously I'm wondering how to survive with a comment here or there every couple of months!!!!

Where did the week go????

2009-03-21T15:46:00.003-04:00

So umm I have nothing to say. Well we know that's not true! I always seem to have something to say however it usually is stuff no one really wants to hear (or in this case read) about. For example we went to the store to get a humidifier (I still have no idea how to select one, so we opted for the one where the information on the box indicated it had permanent filters that never need replacing! So it's supposed to be a very easy care item. Get it home & open the box to discover it was a "returned" item. Normally returned doesn't always mean defective & in this case I might have considered keeping it if it did not smell of cigarette smoke. I am not kidding this thing stunk horribly of smoke. That & the water still in the bottom of it indicated it was a used item!!! So back we go & I send hubby to the customer service so he can get in line while I go grab a replacement from the shelf. Two on the shelf; one in a horribly ripped box and the other is open, no plastic covering so it looks like a returned item. Grab the one in the ripped box and head to the cs line. Our turn so I explain to the woman that I want this item opened before I will take it home in case it turns out to be unacceptable. And once we see the pristine condition of the humidifier I tell her I want the box the rejected one came in... back home and my humidifer seems to be working just fine. ~ So basically nothing noteworthy really & my hubby actually told me that the sales woman certainly did not care why we were returning the item nor did she care that I said the other one should be taken off the shelf since it looked to be a used item also.
This evening we will go see our beautiful 4 yr. old granddaughter sing & dance at a talent show fund raiser at her church. I am sure it will be fun.
Okay still working on Kathleen's items expect to get them done very soon.
And the baby sweaters that I need to get done ... yep very soon.
Still adjusting to the machine/ dealing with the dryness / humidity needs etc. Not feeling as good as I did those first couple of nights on the first machine yet. So if this doesn't change soon I will request a different machine for my treatment.
Wishing you all frog free projects :)

Fresh week ~ what to say?

2009-03-16T17:23:00.002-04:00

Well I missed the fun of the pool today because I got to sleep so late (or should I say so early this morning) ~ all is well Thank You God. But it was a long & boring night.
I've started the second hat for Kathleen so hope to have it finished by tomorrow night or early Wed. then if there is enough yarn left over to make the scarf that will be good.

I've got an idea for a baby sweater so if I can get some time to play with it I would like to make it for my friend's baby.

I have been having a little bit of problems with my computer since my Norton's 360 expired. I downloaded CA security 2007 from Time Warner (because we have tw for our internet provider) and around the same time I joined facebook... so I am not sure if the trouble is due to facebook or the virus protection (I"m sorry it makes me believe it is 2 yrs old & therefore outdated based on it's title) ...

As for my OSA & my bi-PAP machine ~ I'm still on this journey. The doctor sounded confident that if I keep using my machine & deal with my moisture issue by getting a humidifier for my home (along with the one on my machine) that possibly I will see some marked improvements.

So let me leave you with this... take good care of yourself because no one else will. Sleep is vitally important so make sure you get enough of it to do your body good!

Wishing you frog free projects & great sleep :)

Lots of "New" things here ...

2009-03-09T10:22:00.004-04:00

So much to say & where to begin??? Okay first my friend Heather had her baby girl Abigail on Sat. (I haven't had a chance to see her yet but knowing her parents I'd bet she's one beautiful baby)... thankfully the baby shower is in April so I have time to finish her gift. (I'm so close to finishing the baby afghan it should be soon.)

Oh I've started back to the YWCA ... which means I'm back in the water!!!!! I can't tell you how much I missed being in the pool. It's been way too long. I'll just leave it at I had a gain of 13 pounds with out my exercise. So first thing this morning I was back & I was in the water for 2 hours. Being in a pool is heavenly to me.

But the big news is my bi-PAP machine. First off when they advise you to allow 6 to 8 weeks to adjust to the use of it, they aren't kidding! So I would not describe this as the "honeymoon" phase ... it's more like the love/hate relationship just before the wedding due to all of the wedding details that can drive a couple totally insane.... I woke up from my second sleep study feeling very strange & weird to the point where my only way to describe it was I felt as if my brain were 'awake' or very alert... something I had not felt in a very long time. So I think that made me believe I would feel that way automatically once I started using my machine at home.
Well let's be honest here ... in the sleep center my sleeping was all monitored & if I needed more air pressure or less it was being controlled by the technician down the hall. Here at home the machine is set to the setting prescribed for me. However the truth is this adjustment period is to see if this machine & this setting is the right "fit" for me & my needs.

As for the use of the machine it's not too bad ... I will need to decide where I'm sleeping and set it up & leave it there ... I can't just fall asleep anymore without thinking about where I want to sleep & how I'll be able to set up my machine. You see any "planned sleep" including naps is to be done with the use of the machine. So it does present me with the need to "think" before I "sleep" ... which if that doesn't make you laugh ... WAKE UP it was too funny!!! But since I've been waking up with a terrible back ache (weight gain but don't tell my hubby I've been blaming the bed) I chose to sleep in my recliner and oh my I slept!!!!! I slept all night through!!!! Okay you may not realize this but I haven't slept the whole night through since I can remember. I slept last night from 11 to 4:45 am. For me that is a really big deal. I felt like I wanted more time with the machine so opted to go back to sleep for 45 minutes longer and when I got up at 5:30 I felt good. Not Great. But really good, and even now after having gone to spend 2 hours walking in the pool I'm not tired. That is really Big news for me ... after years of waking up tired and any activity where I would feel good afterwards was always followed by the need for a nap I'm really excited that I'm seeing this kind of improvement so quickly.
On the down side I did notice my sinuses are much drier than usual and I'm just concerned about this leading into any kind of sinus infection. The machine I'm using does have a humidifier but it doesn't stop the air pressure from drying me out this I've learned really fast. My view is that I'd much rather deal with the dryness than go back to not having real restful sleep.

Okay that's boring ... the class at the bead store was so cool! I made 2 bracelets. I could have actually completed a 3rd & begun a 4th but I really don't work with my wire often enough to have my hands /fingers in shape to have worked on it much longer. The other ladies who came to the class were making their bracelets and most had 3 done by the time I was leaving. Pictures to come ... I haven't had a chance to take them yet.
I loved the class & I will admit I think the larger beads would have been a bit better I used small ones & they look great but the others made theirs with larger beads & they just looked better (imo) and I think they worked up a little bit faster (just a bit) ...

Okay running out of things to share ... will continue to let you know what's going on with the sleep apnea/ bi-Pap machine ... and the love / hate relationship.

Wishing you all frog free projects & real restful sleep :)

Something new ....

2009-03-06T06:36:00.002-05:00

Facebook. I have heard of it. I thought it was basically a lot like myspace. Apparently it's so much better than myspace. I've been told that 'myspace' is so last year, "facebook" is today.
So I joined facebook. Oh yeah my kids are there (well most of them anyway) and amazingly so are many people I've met or known over the yrs. So this is the "something new" in my life right now. Can I spend any more time on my computer???? I don't know. But it seems I already have been.

On the theme of something new... I will be attending another class at Diva Beads & Jewels (near my home) bracelets ... something about her work just draws me to that lovely little shop. I wear very little jewelry & yet I want to create beautiful pieces. When I have taken classes there I always walk away excited to work on this new skill. Wire wrapping & oh well all I can say is I'm very excited to be able to attend this class (I've missed out on at least 4 or possibly as many as 6 classes that I really wanted to take since last Sept.) When she finally gets me in on one of the regular beading classes look out. So far it's always something to do with the wire wrapping & beads or stones that I've been most fascinated and therefore compelled to try.
That is tomorrow night. So I won't have to wait long.

On a crochet note ... working on Heather's baby afghan ...and happy to report it is now very close to completion. I need to make a baby boy sweater, and I need to make another sweater for Heather and I need to get Kathleen's hat & scarf done... at least now I've got her yarn wound into a ball. I'll work on her hat today. ( I hope)

May your projects be frog free & may your day be full of creative fun.
Oh and drop me a comment ~ I really never know if I'm writing to myself here.

Things I Love Thursday ~ Abreva

2009-03-05T06:57:00.003-05:00

Abreva is expensive (to my budget anyway) at $16 or more per tiny little tube. (And I do mean tiny). However if you suffer from cold sores like I have then you may find out like I did what a Godsend this tiny tube of medicine can be. I was driving home from I don't remember (church meeting?) and as I was driving I noticed the first pain of a beginning cold sore. I called my husband to tell him I was stopping at the drug store to find out if there was anything that really workded. Prices were outrageous. I actually asked a pharmacist for help in selecting one of the choices before me. I was told Abreva was supposed to work but only if you caught the cold sore at the immediate first sign of it. If you missed that initial first sign & used Abreva on the cold sore it basically wouldn't help.

I spent the money on it because I believed I was at the very first sign of the cold sore. I really wanted it to work. I was surprised when it did work. I am happy to report I purchased that tiny tube of medicine at least 2 yrs ago. I still have medicine in it & I have used it to reduce the life span of many cold sores. You see you really are instructed to use a very tiny amount of this cream & if you miss the very first sign of the cold sore you will be wasting the medicine as it works quickly at the onset. I literally carry this around with me so that if a cold sore is about to start I've got my abreva with me to immediately go to work.

So gotta tell you I do Love my Abreva & I especially love that I haven't had as many outbreaks of cold sores as I once had.

Sleep Over accomplished

2009-03-02T07:09:00.003-05:00

Everything went well on Sat. I managed to have only one small amount of stitching left on my quilt front. Class went nicely. I learned that you can actually accomplish a project in the 2 hours allotted for the class if you actually make the 9 patch and then simply sew it to the batting (which would then be called machine quilting!!!) then add the back panel ~ right sides together trim edges if needed (but you should be sewing about 1/4 inche all around so shouldn't need much in the trimming department... when sewing around you should leave the center section of the last "side" unsewn so that you can turn (pull ) right sides out. Then make sure your corners are all pulled (pushed) out and stuff with either a pillow form or with fiberfil. Sew last section. Very pretty pillow!!!
But since I chose to embrioder on my 9 patch the teacher, Sandra, suggested I get a heart traced on my 4 unadorned squares to use the sewing machine and sew the front panel to the batting. Only I decided that I would like the hearts better if they were "stuffed". I used some left over fabric, cut into 4 pieces approximately the same size, folded all 4 and cut out a heart shape. They were a little too big so folded them all again & cut again. I thought they were perfect, Sandra helped me pick out a stitch on my sewing machine to sew them to the panel. Once I finished that I had to very carefully pull the hearts away from the panel in order to place a small slit in the back of them so I could stuff them with fiberfil. All I can say is that made my 9 patch come alive (in my opinion) ... I really like how it looks. So as class was ending I put my work away & have my "finishing instructions" from the teacher. I chose to do several things to the front of my "quilt" so now in order to attach the batting to the panel I need to use some random stitches here & there. When I manage to finish the work on this I will post pictures.

Picked up my sweet heart for our sleep over date. She was all excited. We played a couple of games while papa made dinner. Dinner was fun. More games. Snack time. Followed by getting ready for bed. Watched a movie. Snack time again. Brush teeth and get settled in bed. Told her some stories so she would settle down. Her on the air mattress, me in my recliner.
She was very happy to know that I would be right there if she needed me for anything.
Sleep was so very peaceful. For a little while anyway. She got up needing a drink, then potty time. Got back to bed. Back to sleep. But at 4 am she was standing right in front of me ~ startled me awake. She climbed up & snuggled in my arms to tell me that I was snoring so loudly it scared her. So she is snuggling & I'm dozing off only to hear, "there's that sound again".
Me snoring. She was so excited about all the things we were going to do when we "woke" up but she couldn't settle back down to sleep. And everytime I dozed off she woke me up because my snoring was loud and scary. The day went well & we returned her home safe & sound & a bit tired ;-) so she told her mom about how I snored and how loud it was LOL. Her mom said well I guess you didn't sleep very well on your sleep over & she piped up with no I slept great it was a great sleepover and I want to do it again. Sweet heart she can come anytime but next time papa is sleeping in the recliner! (He snores sometimes but if he does it is usually on the light side.) And God willing my CPAP machine will be here & all set up before she sleepsover again.

My son turned 30. My love bug slept over & all went well. Sunday after church we went to my other son's home for dinner and the girls all got to play togther. Ate a wonderful meal. Then brough her home. Got home ourselves and fell asleep. So getting back on "schedule" hopefully today.

Wishing you all frog free projects & restful/ peaceful days.

Look what I made ...

2009-02-27T08:49:00.002-05:00

Yes I did make these lovely stitch markers for a knitter. I used 3 different size rings so that she could use which ever one suited her project. And attached to those rings is a lovely little stone that I "wire wrapped" just so it would look pretty hanging from the knitting needle.
I had a blast making them and I know when I have some time I will make some more. I just have to warn you if you wish to work some up for yourself the small stones can drive you crazy when wrapping with wire. They tend to escape the wire while you are working on it.

Today I'm cleaning ... need to have my house clean enough for my granddaughter to spend the night tomorrow. I've already tackled most of the bathroom cleaning (will finish in there shortly) (waiting for the floor to dry then I will take care of the toilet, tub & sink) ... also I have a small pile of items still needing sorting in order to have the floor cleared. Then the major job is cleaning off the kitchen table ... hey we do want her to sit at the table for her dinner tomorrow but right now that isn't possible!!!

And I'm going to have it all done this morning. I'm heading to the library this afternoon. This evening I'm doing my stitching on my memorial quilt so that I have it ready for tomorrow's quilting class. Yes I do put off until the last possible moment just about everything. (mind you NOT everything but close enough) ...

So with what little energy I can muster I will go attack another cleaning job.
Wishing you all frog free projects & blissfully happy days!!!

Things I Love Thursday

2009-02-26T07:36:00.003-05:00

I've been reading a few blogs (yes I do read other's blogs ... it's a very fun thing to do!) And I've been "resisting" getting on board with this "Things I Love" Thursdays. Every Thursday they write about something they love & they let you know if they purchased the item or were given it to review.

I don't know about you but I wouldn't mind being given things to use & then review but I have no idea where to sign up for something like that so if I tell you I love something it's because I bought it or it was a gift. In the unlikely event that I ever am given something to "review" I would make sure you were fully aware of that before you ever got to see my opinion of the item.

Okay So it's Thursday & I have several items that I "Love" but today I will brag on Clover Locking Stitch Markers. I prefer the small ones. They also come in a "jumbo" size but I haven't found a need for those so far. Here's the beauty of them ... I'm working with a textured yarn & the stitches can be hard to recognize when I'm at the end of my row ~ simple solution place a locking stitch marker in that stitch as soon as I work it so when I come back to it I don't have to wonder if I missed it or found it. I actually use them on most projects just out of habit now so that I don't mindlessly increase or decrease as I work. When not in use the markers must be left open so that they don't remain closed on you. I've given more of these little stitch savers away to the point where I needed to replace my own supply. Knitters could use them by closing the marker & placing it on the needle where needed but to be honest I think they work best when placed in an actual stitch. Knitters may find that it isn't as easy to use as a solid ring stitch marker if they need to keep unlocking for storage. That being said I would highly recommend these stitch markers for easy use & quality of product.

Now I was reading Jill's blog ... The Diaper Diaries and she had a "Mr Magic Linkey" thing so I did sign up for that to link to her blog but I don't know if it worked or not. In the event it did not I'm putting her url here ... go ck it out she has a give away right now & you have to leave a comment in order to be in the drawing to win it... Yes I'm leaving a comment as I want to win it!!! So good luck & hope you have lots of cool things in your life that you just "love"!

http://thediaperdiaries.net/things-i-love-thursday-disney-pix-jr-digital-camera-and-a-giveaway

ps ~ my floor is almost clear!!!!
Wishing you frog free projects & a wonderful day.

Getting ready for a sleep over ....

2009-02-25T08:33:00.003-05:00

Yes you read that correctly ... we will be enjoying our granddaughter this weekend over night. Here in our home. I know what you're thinking ... how in the world can that child sleep over when she doesn't even have room for anyone to sit down. True. Your question is valid. That is why I actually emptied the huge box of stuff that was taking up the majority of my living room floor. Need to clear the floor so that we can inflate the air mattresses so she has a bed to sleep on. Which meant the loveseat had to be cleared off also so that before we set up the bed she will have a place to sit & play. I had mainly pattern magazines and some yarn and some odds & ends in the box I've been slowly removing the items from the floor since Monday. And today I hope to finish with the rest that remains on the floor. (Yes empting the box meant putting everything on the floor... how do you empty a box?)

As for the sleep study ... I want my machine & I hope they don't take a full 2 weeks to call me about it. First off it was a very strange feeling to have to breathe through my nose & keep my mouth shut while falling asleep. But with this continuous positive air pressure I was able to fall asleep. I felt good until I opened my mouth (I believe I rolled onto my back & my mouth opened) ... I felt like I was fighting with the mask in order to breathe. The technician came & put a chin strap on me so I settled back down and don't know how long it took me to really fall asleep. I felt as if my brain was seriously awake. But I know I had to have fallen asleep at some point in time becasue I remember waking up and laying still trying to go back to sleep before my being awake could ruin the test results. No sense of time though since there is no clock in the room and my cell phone was out of reach. But it wasn't all that long before I heard," it's time to get up I'll be right in." When he came in the room I asked what time is it & was really surprised to hear 5:30. My brain felt so awake / alert I didn't know what to think. I felt like I didn't sleep all night but couldn't have since my brain was so alert. The first time I felt like that in years.
All he did tell me was that I did sleep, and I did snore and that I would be contacted within 2 weeks with my test results & to get me set up with my own machine.
Left there & felt incredible. Looked horrible as my husband said you better go get some rest you look tired. But I didn't feel like I needed to sleep until about 4 in the after noon. (Trust me that is not normal for me at all!) I think if you need these machines they should be prepared to send you home with one right from the study. But Noooooo that would be too easy. So Sat. I felt great but then comes Sat. night & needing to get to sleep for Sunday. I couldn't sleep. I was up every hour and just couldn't settle down for the night. Woke up exhausted. Tired all day. And every day since then is just a reminder of how much I want this machine. I don't care how uncomfortable it can be. I don't care if my face looks like it's been run over due to the straps digging into my skin. I just know I want to feel like I did on the morning of my test ~ awake & very alert.

Bethany's scarf finished & delivered. Scarf for Kathleen (to match the beret) started & frogged. Should have know immediately ... well did know immediately but wanted to see if I could pull it off ... was working on the wrong number of stitches.

Still need to complete the baby gifts ... one for a boy (didn't start yet) two for a girl, started one ... have the baby sweater / jacket ready for the other girl gift needed.

So wishing you all frog free projects & restful sleep :)

Sleep Study take 2 tonight

2009-02-20T08:47:00.002-05:00

I woke up with a pounding headache this morning. I need to function as laundry has to get done, in order for me to be comfortably dressed (otherwise I can be uncomfortably dressed) for the day. I have no desire to move with this pounding in my head.

I feel like I've been here but not here. Too busy to enjoy the time I've spent being busy. But sleepy through all of the busyness. It's not a pleasant feeling. It's not nice to wake up feeling as if you didn't finish what you needed to finish and some how discover it was the sleeping that you didn't finish because even though you spent 8 hours in bed with your eyes closed you didn't actually get real sleep ~ the kind that lets you wake up ready to face the world and any task you have before you. The kind that lets you feel like the energized bunny. I have to admit I haven't felt like that in years ... probably in about 20 years. But over the course of time my level of exhaustion seems to have reached an all time high within the past 3 or 4 years ... where I could wake up and start my day just to fall asleep sitting at the computer a few minutes after I sat down. Or just put on a favorite show to watch & have to restart it 10 times in order to actually "see" it because sleeping took over almost instantly within the first 10 minutes of the show.

So it is with great anticipation that I look forward to this sleep study tonight. I hope they discover what I have suspected for a very long time now ~ that the CPAP machine would provide me with some relief from the apnea. Enough relief that I would wake up feeling refreshed & energized for a change. Relief that would make my time seem more useful. Instead of like I'm trying to get something accomplished before I fall asleep again.

With that I will say I'm almost finished with the scarf for Bethany. I still need to get to work on Kathleen's projects. And I need to finish up the baby gifts. I'm slower than ever these days & not enjoying that at all.

Wishing you all "frog free" projects and really good restful sleep!!!

Norton's Security ... Gotta Love it!!!

2009-02-16T09:40:00.002-05:00

My Norton's security is almost expired. But this morning I got on my computer to see that there was some internal problem with Norton. Thinking about the time my old computer crashed and I lost everything I wasn't too happy to see this error message. I tried to resolve it according to the steps outlined by them but that didn't work for me so I clicked on No to the ? did that resolve your problem. Then a new window popped up and told me I had 3 choices ... the fastest option being to have a chat with a technician online, or I could have the issue addressed by email or I could call them. I opted for the live chat. Someone came on and discussed the problem and gave me an option to go through a secure server and have them have access to my computer to run a check and correct the problem. Now I am sitting here wondering what I should do but still remembering how horrible it felt to lose everything when my old computer crashed. And since I purchased Norton's to protect my computer didn't I trust them to correct this problem & not mess me up just because I trusted them through a secure server to access my computer? Well Yes I did chose to trust them. And the technician did what he had to do and my computer issue was resolved. I will be renewing my subscription with Norton's for sure.

I've almost finished the baby sweater I was working on ... and yes this time I will take pictures! I think it is so cute. I still have a lot of things I must work on. So I will be busy for a while.

And by the way if anyone is reading I read something interesting and thought I'd share it with any female readers out there. There is a Christian researcher looking for women who will participate in her survey. She said it is completely private in order for you to take her survey you need to sign into this yahoo email account copy & paste the survey questions into a new email (right in that yahoo account) answer the questions & then mail to a second yahoo account ... this way your email & name / identity is completely private and she can still get her research done. Please go ck it out by signing into yahoo as: songofsolomon11 password is: a1s2d3 once you copy & paste the survey questions into a new email answer the questions and then email to solomonssong11@yahoo.com Thanks in advance for helping her out.

Okay wishing you all a great frog free day :)

Test 2 to come ...

2009-02-15T10:27:00.003-05:00

So I had a lovely, if somewhat rushed evening with my hubby. But made it to the sleep center just a few minutes late. Had my sleep test last night woke up this morning still exhausted. Asked how long I had to wait for results and was told not as long as I thought. She then told me that I tested positive and not to miss my next test. The next test is with a CPAP machine to see if it helps me sleep (eliminate the apnea). It may even require yet another test afterwards as a follow up once I'm on the machine. CPAP means Continuous Positive Airway Pressure. Not oxygen but rather room air that flows through the machine to provide you with a continuous flow of pressurized air. The technician told me I must have been sleeping like this for years & years.

Okay so I get home exhausted and ready to sleep. Makes sense doesn't it? I mean I went to bed around 11 ish (not sure there were no clocks easily spied so I felt totally disoriented by the lack of a clock) and woke up to go to the bathroom during the night then again but decided not to get up afterall and finally a third time to go to the bathroom at 5:30 and there ended my sleep study. Got up unhooked and told to clean up and answer the question sheet. Back home I had a yogurt and read the funnies (comic strips) online then went back to bed until 10 (so 7 to 10 for some sleep) feel slightly more awake now than I did at 5:30.

Okay going to figure out what I will do now ... maybe go prepare food for my hubby for when he gets home from church.
Stay alert when your awake but make the most of your sleep when you do sleep!!
Wishing you all frog free projects ... and oh by the way I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day with those you love.

Sleep Study is on ....

2009-02-14T08:20:00.003-05:00

for tonight! Happy Valentine's to me. Yes I know I just whined & complained here yesterday about how disappointed I was that my test was being canceled and after my first test next week they would determine if a second test was necessary. But yesterday afternoon I received yet another call telling me there was a cancelation for tonight if I could come in I could have that appointment. So of course I just jumped on it. Then remembered that my darling hubby purchased tickets for dinner at our church for tonight. So I ended up calling him to see how he would react to my needing to leave him for a sleep study test. After all it is Valentine's Day. Dinner is a "romantic" gesture to be sure. Supporting the girl's group at church is a wonderful way to spend money on dinner. Anyway long story (still too long in the retelling) is that I will be going to dinner but will have to leave almost immediately or possibly even early in order to get to the sleep center. But I will be able to have my test tonight and again next Friday (unless they cancel on me again).

Oh well the ups & downs of life. My sweetie knew I would be leaving him alone this evening so he gave me my Chocolates (there is a really cool Chocolate shop near us) last night. YUMMY!!! Uncle Sam's Chocolates. http://www.unclesamscandy.com I love their truffles and their butter creams ... well I do love them all so I can't just say get the chocolate creams or the maple creams because then you might miss out on the lemon or cherry or etc. You get the idea! Really good chocolates. And I'm not just saying that. I am well aware that there is another chocolate shop not overly far from our home. And although I wouldn't refuse their chocolates I would always chose uncle sams over the other shop because I prefer the taste of uncle sams!

Managed to pull out the yarn for Bethany's scarf yesterday (yes now that the weather has shown signs of warming up & she won't need it much longer) I'll show her how I started it to see if she wants me to continue or change the stitch or whatever. (She purchased the yarn & requested I make the scarf & in return she will help me with my quilting. I call it a very fair trade.) Also pulled out the yarn for my exchange partners square & managed to select a square & make it last night. (I love it & hope she does to.) And to top that off I pulled out some yarn for a pair of slippers & am just chosing which slipper pattern will be easiset for me to follow.
That all on top of my already long list of must do's ... then I signed up for a magic ball swap with a different group of online friends. I am so excited I can't wait to get all the goodies for this swap. I have several ideas already.

Okay must get my day underway ... pack my overnight bag & have it in the car for tonight. Pick out a simple outfit for tonight's dinner. Since I'll be dropping off my hubby at home & then going to the sleep center I need to have everything prepared in advance.

Wishing you all a fun filled Valentine's Day ... spend it with those you love.
And of course frog free projects!!!

Random thoughts or just rambling ...

2009-02-13T12:02:00.005-05:00

I received a phone call to confirm my sleep study test for tonight & then about 45 minutes later I received a second call to cancel my appointment. Add to that news I was then told the next appointment time would not be until April. I'm rather disappointed to say the least. Knowing for a fact that I do have sleep apnea I was really looking forward to finding out if the use of the CPAP machine would help me at all. Telling the guy that I was scheduled for the second test with the CPAP machine in order to determine if it would help me did nothing to help the situation. Instead of him saying we'll do what we can to get you in he continues to tell me that next week will be my "first" sleep study and then "if you need" a second one we'll schedule you.
What? Didn't the doctor already determine he wanted me tested twice to determine if the CPAP machine would help me? Why then does a non-doctor get to act as if I would not need a second test with the machine? It just upset me.

Then I was thinking about the reason why I sought this testing in the first place. I know I have sleep apnea (and anyone who has been on a trip with me as my roommate knows this too) it is pretty obvious when I'm snoring away & then suddenly stop breathing then jerk around a bit & begin breathing again. So yeah I have sleep apnea. So yeah I'm exhausted most days & nights & my concern is that I need help to get some real "rest" when my eyes are closed so that I don't just continue in a fog. The nurse in the recovery room told me I needed to be reevaluated so I wonder what she saw /heard etc. to make her tell me that?

Okay change of subject. While visiting with my daughter & son in love we watched an episode of Dateline. Bring Sean Home ... First off this particular episode totally s***ed in my opinion. My prayers are with that father who is (as far as we know) still seeking to be reunited with his son. I'm doing my best to recap this show as briefly as possible : Husband discovers marriage gone bad with no warning, completely caught off guard. Son stolen from loving doting father by mother who apparently had everyone fooled by her loving behavior. Son not returned to the father even though there is an international something or other law that is supposed to help parents in these cases, he's now divorced even though it wasn't what he wanted or even understands why she wanted it. (She was originally from Brazil & she went back to Brazil) She remarries, gives birth to a baby girl then dies & his son is still kept from him. The new husband claims he wants to adopt the son because he was more of a father figure to Sean then his biological father. I was so upset by the end of this show & that was a few weeks ago that I saw it and it has stayed with me all this time. I think it is horrible that things like this can & do happen. I find it most upsetting that there is no explaination for what caused her to do what she did. I mean not that I would agree with what she did but if she were so unhappy living in NJ wouldn't she say something to her husband? Wouldn't she ask him to consider moving to another location or country or something? Wouldn't she tell her closest friends how unhappy she was? They all seemed just as surprised & shocked by her departure as he did. No one seemed to have any clue what was behind her behavior.

Change of topic ... my prayers are with all of the families & friends who lost loved ones in the plane crash in Buffalo NY last night. I don't have any details as I haven't been watching the news (yet) but I have heard it was horrible and many lives lost due to this plane crash. It makes me doubly thankful my dear daugher's flights home went so well. And she is home with her hubby now safe & sound. My heart is broken for all of those who have lost someone due to this crash.

Okay one crochet related item & I'm done for today ... I gave the flower hexagon sweater to someone else (I just didn't have /take the time to finish a baby sweater that I wanted to give them & so I took the finished item and gave it away) ... it was intended for Heather's baby but not now. I am almost finished with the sweater I started for the gift (which then wasn't finished in time) but it can't be Heather's baby's gift since it is pink & yellow & Heather wishes for nothing in pink. I will make yet another one for her.
Okay off to try & finish this sweater and get another item underway.
Wishing you all frog free projects & trouble free days. May all your loved ones be safe today!

Getting back to the everyday routines

2009-02-12T08:11:00.002-05:00

I brought my daughter to the airport yesterday afternoon. It was great having her home for a visit, although her husband was missed. (He had to stay home & work.) She made it safely home last night. So now we both have to get back into the usual everyday routines that comprise our lives. You have a "regular routine" don't you? Well for me I have been "off balance" for several months. Now I need to get my list of "must do", "want to do", "should do" etc. and then get doing all the things I need to catch up on.
I've still got to finish the order for Kathleen (thought I would have had that completed while visiting my daughter's home) and I need to get back to work on Heather's baby gift. I'll get my list worked on first then go from there.

I have sleep apnea ~ known this for years. However when I had my outpatient surgery last July the nurse in the recovery room suggested I be reevaluated. So I go for my first of 2 sleep tests this Friday night. Then my second one is next week on Friday. Then I wait a month for the results to be discussed with me. The idea is to find out if I would benefit from a CPAP machine. I suffer from chronic post nasal drip (ugh so disgusting I can't stand it ) and wonder if having oxygen keeping the back of my throat moist will help while I sleep.

Sorry it is a disgusting problem & nasty to discuss especially here where you would have to read about it so I apologize and am moving on...

Speaking of moving on I need to begin my day by getting ready to go to the Alpha Pregnancy Care Center for crochet class. Yay someone from my online crochet group sent me a bunch of crochet hooks & some dpn's for the ladies in this class. I can't wait to give them this gift.
Wishing you all frog free projects.

No photos due to ??

2009-02-07T18:13:00.001-05:00

Okay so how hard would it have been to take a couple of photos? I mean I promised you photos of the baby afghan & the sweaters I made & yet today was the shower & I never managed to take the pictures before leaving for the shower. I'll email my niece & request she send me a photo of the items as soon as she can. But since she will be busy I don't know if she'll send them my way.

I don't have any real excuse other than life just got in the way. I mean I knew I needed & wanted those pictures & I still managed not to get the camera out & just take them!!!

Ugh. I hope she'll take them & pass them on to me since the sweaters were really cute & the baby afghan was really nice.

Wishing you all frog free projects.

p.s. ~ I'll be a bit busy since I am blessed to have my daughter here until Wed. yay :)

Home again Yay...

2009-02-05T18:54:00.003-05:00

The ride home went smoothly & I was even able to meet up with a friend from one of my online crochet groups. It was fantastic to meet with her & her son. She was willing to meet me on my way home from NC by driving about an hour or so from her home. She came by the Days Inn where we were planning on spending the night. Picked us up & we all went to CiCi's Pizza for dinner. Yummy! Affordable. Good time had by all.

I have to take pictures of the baby afghan & sweater before I can post them.
Today was spent in my pj's and robe watching lots of shows I had recorded while I was away.
Tomorrow back to "normal" if anyone can actually define that let me know.
Tomorrow is the Discovery Toys party that my daughter will demonstrate (which means we all get to play with the toys yay)
Wishing you all frog free projects.

Not Home yet ...

2009-02-01T09:04:00.004-05:00

I'm still here, where the weather is lovely (to me anyways), in North Carolina. My visit is coming to an end very soon as we will be heading home on Tues. My daughter will have to pack up her toys selectively since her return to NC will be by plane. While we were here we had our own impromptu Discovery Toys party and we have our own purchases to pack up to bring home. I know I'm not the one selling these toys (how could I get my crocheting in if I were playing???) but I have fallen in love with these products. They are really excellent quality and fun to play with. I know you have all heard about my "favorite" but since then I've had a chance to play with a few other items and must say I am also crazy about their Measure Up Cups. These cups are outstanding in several ways over other simple stackable cups. Besides stacking & separate them by color & still they stack... you can play and teach time concepts They are volume correct I may be using that incorrectly but basically if you put water in cup 4 & 6 they will added together fit into cup 10. Play is not restricted to the basic baby play of stacking when you see the animal imprinted on the bottoms so playdoh or sugar cookies can be more fun ... also playing at the beach can take on a whole new level of fun. Okay so I've brushed the surface of what can be done with this product however you really should ck it out for yourself.

Oh I almost didn't tell you but I made a sweater to go with the afghan & it came out very cute. Pictures when I am home. Working on several things currently. So to recap the ripple afghan is finished, the hexagon baby jacket (sweater) is done, and I'm still crocheting up a storm. Ut Oh... hope that isn't why they are saying we will be traveling into a storm on the way home. LOL

So wishing you all frog free projects and beautiful weather.

Still Away...

2009-01-28T08:54:00.003-05:00

Away from the snow & ice my family at home are dealing with. Sitting here in NC where the season is still "winter" but I can wear my flip flops and t-shirts comfortably. Yeah, some would say it is cold but I'm not one of them. I don't mind a cool breeze where I can get away with wearing my light jacket and not be uncomfortable. Now if I needed my coat then I'd say it's cold here. But so far so good.

It's been a pleasant, uneventful visit so far. Other than the fact that I've seen more Discovery Toys and have fallen in love with a few of their games. I would not look twice at it in the catalog or even online but playing with it person I'm hooked! I can't wait to play it with my granddaughters. What you wonder could I be babbling about? Wonder no longer it is called Flip Flop Faces and it is a very fun game. A bean bag game & you have several options for play. We chose to play where we needed to match the color bag to the bowl and we opted to play to a certain number of points to declare a winner (mind you 'we' are all adults & this game is for 4 yrs & up)... Needless to say for me to go on & on about it I must think it is fun!!! My mom played with us and determined she did not care for it at all. (poor mom, just could not make the bowls flip flop over and score some decent points). We return, to God please decent weather, early next week sometime.

The toys will come with us so Sarah can demonstate the toys & we can all play with them. Two other games that are very cool in my opinion are ~ Wiz Kids and Quick Call these are both games that adults can play with or with out the kids & enjoy. But there are still a few I haven't had the chance to play yet so I may be reporting on more later.

Finished the ripple afghan & it is lovely. I'm very pleased with it & will take pictures & report on it more when I am home. (can't do things to easily from someone else's computer).

Miss blogging will hopefully be back in full force when I am home with some pictures & more.

Wishing you all frog free projects!

Leaving in the morning... see you in Feb.

2009-01-20T07:22:00.002-05:00

I'll be packing this afternoon. Leaving in the morning. Be back in early Feb. sometime. Hopefully with some pictures to share. Amusing road trip story to share??? Ya never know!
My mom has the "glamorous" job of keeping me awake on the road.
I'm bringing serval projects with me in the hopes that I can get them accomplished while I'm there.
Wishing you all "frog free" projects while I'm gone.

Ripple baby throw

2009-01-19T06:57:00.003-05:00

All I can say is I'm totally "hooked" on this pattern. I've gotten through the first "color band" as I decided to call it ~ and it measures 8 inches which means I need 5 "color bands" to = 40 inches. I have 6 rows of blue, 1 of powder yellow (looks almost white until you put white next to it and then you see the color), 6 of lavender for the "color band". I will put one row of yellow between each color band as well. Then trim all around with one row of yellow, one of blue & one of lavender. I know my niece will love it, gender neutral and in colors she likes.

I have to admit I fell behind on my baby stepping but did manage to sort the old newspapers this morning before getting online. I'm going right back to the baby afghan and see if I can get another color band done before having to "do" something else. My goal is still to have this one finished before I leave for NC.

Wishing you all "froggy free" projects :) and if the weather is cold where you are ... stay warm, if you're weather is warm stay cool :)

North Carolina here I come :)

2009-01-18T13:25:00.002-05:00

Okay I am not leaving this minute! But yes I will be leaving this week. Driving on down to visit with my dd & sil. My mom & I will have a nice visit with them and then we'll bring my dd home for a lovely visit and so that she can attend her cousin's baby shower. While she is home my lovely daughters in love (law) & I will host a Discover Toy party allowing Sarah to show everyone the great products Discovery Toys has available. (You can go to www.discoverytoys.com/SarahPollie to ck out her online catalog & you can order online too.) There is a sale going on right now that ends on Feb. 6th so if you have any toy needs (whether for birthday's or any other gifts or perhaps you are a day care provider you really should know about Discovery Toys. They have toys suitable for children with special needs.

Okay I'm not the toy consulatant my dd is... so go, look, bye!

As for my progress with my baby gifts OUCH!!! I'm still working on Heather's baby afghan ... started my niece's baby afghan (love the pattern by the way... using a free pattern from Lion Brand... spring baby ripple throw ??? I can't recall the title exactly but I think that was it)

And of course I will be getting back to that project so I can make some real progress on it. So just popped in to say I'll be leaving by/ before the end of this week.
Wishing you all frog free projects!!!!

Deadlines looming decision time...

2009-01-15T07:05:00.003-05:00

So I have decided that as much as I want to go to the baby shower this Sat. for Heather I simply can't. I have a very small gift for her and have started the baby afghan for her but I really want to concentrate on working on my niece's baby shower gift. Of course if I could finish Heather's by Friday evening I could go to the shower on Sat. and not have to think about that gift any more... so I don't know what to do. I guess I'll give myself until tomorrow evening to complete the afghan & if I haven't then I will just stop & begin working on the other one that I need for Feb. 7th. There will be a second shower I can attend in April for Heather so I have choices.

Yes I will allow myself to continue on with Heather's baby afghan if I can get it completed by tomorrow evening then I will be very happy. If I can't then I still have time for it so no problem.
I think I'm making a simple granny square afghan for my niece but I'm not 100% sure I will have to be totally committed to whatever pattern I chose since I want it finished for the shower this Feb. 7th. And I want it finished before I leave for NC next week.

Okay so really loving the pattern I'm working with for Heather's baby afghan but don't think it's right for a "gender neutral" gift. I think it's lovely & if my color choice were different then maybe it would be good as a "gender neutral" gift but in the New Aran Twinkle it seems "girly" to me ... I may not think that way once it's finished but so far that is my assessment.

Gotta get back to the hook & yarn ... pretty little things won't make themselves!
Wishing you all Frog free projects.

Hook's been busy busy busy...

2009-01-13T07:46:00.004-05:00

I've been sort of dragging my hook in the process of making all these baby gifts I need /actually want to make. I wasn't "thrilled" with the patterns I had before me ... mind you I only looked at about 50 to 75 so I could have kept looking until I found the "perfect" thing.
I have really enjoyed the Hexagon Granny baby jacket (I posted about it earlier it's found on Bev's site ~ Bev's Country Cottage) ... anyway I wanted something that easy but different.
I looked through an old book of mine titled The Pattern Library Crochet published in 1981 by Ballantine. And in there I came across a Flower Hexagon. So my brain working the way it does said hexagon granny folds just perfectly for a baby sweater why not use this motif and do the same thing???
Made the first motif (actually tried enlarging it on the first go round but quickly saw I was making errors in the process so had to frog back to the row before my attempt to "make it bigger" ... finished the motif as the pattern directed & really liked the end results. Made a second one & could not see how it would fold into the proper shape. You see you make petal shapes in this hexagon and it folds a bit differently then the granny hexagon. When I decided to simply chose two sides to make the back then did the best I could to 'fold' the rest into a shape that could be a baby sweater. I love the end results but will admit it has a unique shape to it which is probably what I love in the first place.
I tried it on my two 'baby dolls' one that is supposed to be the size of a real newborn and one that is supposed to be the size of a baby 3 to 6 months old. It looked better on the larger doll. But could be put on the newborn baby too. So I will give that to Heather for her baby shower (they are expecting a girl) then I was really excited to get started on a baby afghan for her as well but I still didn't care for the things I had started nothing seemed to spark any interest for me. Until I was playing online yesterday. I can't tell you what directed me there but this is where I ended up : http://www.crochettoday.com/freeprojects.aspx

There are free patterns listed there and I selected the Super Simple Throw (May '08) and sat to work the swatch ... loved it and so after finishing the baby sweater I started this super simple throw (not as large as the pattern calls for of course!) Using a "K" hook and baby yarn and so far loving it ... I'm so happy to be productive on this project. I might actually attend the shower coming up this weekend not sure. Depends on a few factors. (like if I can get this baby afghan finished in time ;-)

In the mean time I have many things going on and I'm preparing to drive to NC with my mom to visit my daughter & son in love. And when we return my daughter will come home for a brief visit. And attend her cousin's baby shower. So I'm busy busy busy these days with looking for just the right pattern to give me the results I want for these baby gifts.
Wishing you all warmth, peace, joy & happiness and that the frog will abstain from visiting your projects today :)

2009-01-10T07:20:00.004-05:00

Emailed my beautiful niece & discussed the "colors" for the baby afghan I would like to make for my new great nephew or niece. We don't know who is about to join our family but we all are very excited to meet the newest family member when they arrive this March. I admit I did try to discover if she knew and was just keeping it a secret based on something my mil said but my niece stated that they really don't know so I believe my niece & chalk up my mil's comment to have been a mere misunderstanding. The result is that I will work with blue & lavender (possibly another color that works well with the two I have on hand) for the baby's afghan. It won't match the baby's bedding selection but it will be unique (I love that factor) and it will be in colors that my niece likes so she will be more inclined to use it rather than put it in a closet untouched. Now I just have to work out the design I have in mind & if that doesn't work I'll have to search my extensive pattern library to pick out just the right one.
I have finished the adorable white & yellow sweater for a newborn baby. (That will go to my niece.) I decided that for three of the baby gifts (1 boy, 2 girls) I will make simple sweaters & maybe include a small amount of money in the card or go out & pick up a cute little outfit to join with the sweater. Then my other friend I want to make a baby afghan & a baby sweater for her little girl. She doesn't want pink, she told me she would actually prefer blue for her daughter than pink so I'm using Red Heart Soft Baby colorway Laddie for the baby afghan I'm making her. Not sure what I'll do for the sweater as I don't plan it to be a "set".

So yeah I'm into baby mode! Besides all the crocheting I'm excited because I will be able to go visit my daughter & son in love and bring my daughter home for a visit with the family & she will be able to attend my niece's (her cousin's) baby shower. While she is home she will put on a Discovery Toy party (she is an independent consultant for Discovery Toys) http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/esuite/home/SARAHPOLLIE ck out her website if you need toys for someone special in your life. I purchased the working trio dump trucks and the giant peg board and the playful designs gave them as Christmas gifts & loved all of those so went back & ordered some other items that I'm waiting to receive. I know it is hard to purchase by description and much easier to decide when you see something in person & can touch it and actually play with it first. So the party will give all of us a chance to see what her new career looks like. It certainly sounds like fun playing with toys at home parties.

Wishing you all frog free projects and baby steps to accomplishing whatever your working on today.

Design mode hit ...

2009-01-08T05:25:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was weird in a way. First off we had snow followed by ice. My poor hubby has a terrible cold and he couldn't decide if he should stay home or go into work ... thankfully (in my opinion) he opted to stay home. Which meant I stayed home all day as well. But while I went bewteen baking and crocheting and cooking and crocheting I had decided to go ahead & see if the pattern I had in mind for a baby afghan would work. So I'm now 4 rows completed on a baby afghan I am working on... not sure if I like it or not. First off the orignial idea came from a scarf I worked up in ww yarn this is being worked up in sport weight 3ply yarn so not sure if the weight of the yarn is the issue or if it is simply that this particular yarn seems determined to snag on my hook every other stitch. Managed to work 2 rows before getting so upset I switched hooks. Yes I know you really should not change hooks but I just couldn't stand the snagging any more. You guessed it ...the problem was not my hook since the yarn continued to snag. Anyway I've got it under way & the shower it is intended for is coming up fast so I will stay with it & see what happens. Not sure how I want to edge this yet so that is another design feature to work on... I attempted to write out the pattern last night so I might be looking for pattern testers at some point in time.

Along with hubby being home & my never bothering to get dressed (I normally love pj lounge days) I never got around to my baby step program either so now I'm two days behind in my "baby stepping" to decluttering the house. I have to go out today for the crochet class at Alpha so I am not sure if I will manage to get just 5 minutes to clear one more small space or if I will have to come home and force myself to get it done. Time will tell.

Wishing you all frog free projects and now snag free as well!!

All Around the Mulberry Bush 12 in. Sq pattern

2009-01-06T15:06:00.004-05:00

This is my original pattern for a 12 inch square that I call All Around the Mulberry Bush or All Around for short.

All Around the Mulberry Bush 12 inch Sq. by Anne Fatato Sept 2004

I do not have a gauge other than when finished you should have a square that is 12 inches all around when this is worked to 10 rounds.
This square uses two contrasting or complimentary colors of ww yarns & an H hook.

Working with color A chain 4 join with a sl st to form a ring. Ch 3, 2 dc (in ring now & for rest of round one); ch 2; 3 dc; ch 2; 3 dc; ch 2 & draw up a loop, join color B through the second chain st just made & work 3dc; ch 2 join with sl st to top of beginning ch 3 of color A.

Round 2 : continue working with CB by:
ch 3, working in same corner space work 2 dc; work 3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc in next corner space; 3dc, ch 2, 3 dc in next corner space- leave off CB ... picking up CA - Ch 3, working in same corner space (should cover color join) work 2 dc, complete next corner sp by working 3 dc, ch 2, join w/ sl st to top of ch 3 of CB... go back to CB to complete round 2 . wk 3 dc in corner sp & ch2, join w/sl st to top of beginning ch 3 of CA.

Round 3 : (Pattern should be now established, CB "follows" CA) Working with CA: ch3, working in same corner sp wk 2 dc, ch 1, work dc in sp (makes the side); ch 1, (work corner) 3dc,ch2, 3dc; ch 1, 3 dc, ch1, work corner, ch 1, 3dc, ch 1, 3dc ... pick up CB ch3, wk 2dc in same corner space, ch 1, 3dc, ch1, finish corner by working 3 dc, ch 2, join w/sl st to top of chain 3 of CA. Go back to finish last corner by chaining 2 & joining w/sl st to top of ch 3 of CB.

Continue working around until round 9 is complete . To work round 10 (last round) finish off CA, and continue working with CB until round 10 is finished. You should have a 12 inch square.

There is one picture of this sq in my projects at Ravelry. If I get a chance I will work up another one just so I can have pictures to share. No promises as I'm really busy these days.

Anyway standard copyright ... don't sell my pattern if anyone is interested send them to my blog to get a copy of the pattern for themselves. If you find any errors let me know so I can correct them. Thanks!

Murano Glass Vase

2009-01-05T09:19:00.005-05:00

The vase the glass master is making before our very eyes is being blown now...

Then shaped....

Before the finishing touches he had removed the vase & put it back on the pipe upside down (if you look carefully at the above 2 pictures you will see the bottom of the vase is blown out then shaped but then for more shaping work the bottom of the vase is now on the end of the pipe and the top of the vase is facing us) then he placed the vase back into the furnace ... not sure if he added more glass to the piece or just made it hot enough to work the finishing touches... but whatever he did sure made it beautiful! Don't you agree?

Keeping up with my baby steppin'

2009-01-05T08:27:00.004-05:00

Yes! I am on a "roll" so to speak with keeping up with the baby steps to de-cluttering my home. If I can just keep devoting a mere few minutes here and there the small areas will be cleaned & clear of the clutter. Which I do believe will spark the necessary stamina to work on the larger areas. So far it has been very low key & truth be told only I would actually notice the minor changes that have been achieved. But there is a valid reason for that my sweet hubby wouldn't notice the small changes until the big ones occur. He has learned over the years not to touch my mess and so now he ignores my huge mess as best he can.

There are reasons for this being the right time of my life to follow through on these things that have been building up inside of me ... procrastination can only get you so far before you must do whatever it is you are supposed to do and that is what has happened to me.

And it is true that you are more creative in an environment conducive to creativity. Which would be clean and uncluttered yet still have you surrounded by the things that help your creativity flow. When I finish my decluttering and have my home set up the way I'd like it to be my fun things will still be surrounding me so I can be as creative as I would like. Some times it can be scary to have so many ideas bouncing around inside of me that I just don't know how to harness them. I don't know how to commit them all to paper so that they can be possibly carried out some day but they are there. Some have stayed a very long time others faded away. But the creativity is a force to be reckoned with and procrastination has no place in the truly creative process. My desire to allow my creative side to have full expression has grown to the point that procrastination has to step aside or be blown away from the force of my creativity.

I will have my organized craft room, my organized home and my ideas will be kept somewhere handy so that I can act upon them as needed.

You can clearly see that baby steps will take me so far but the rest will have to be done with mature steps. The rest of the story will have to unfold at a pace that allows me to still tackle all of the "must do" items on my crochet list. I'm sure I'll manage to tell you all about it successes or failures.

Baby Steps to Progress

2009-01-03T05:52:00.003-05:00

I feel good about my baby steps taken yesterday in de-cluttering my home. I told you how I began my day with the 5 minutes to clean the top of my night stand. Later in the day I cleared another area and began a bag of give away clothes. Today I will do another small area. Maybe two. I have my crochet list of "Must Get Done". Once those items are taken care of then I can concentrate more fully on my surroundings. The goal is to make progress daily ~ every little bit thrown away or given away is a step closer to being completely de-cluttered. Trust me I have had this in mind for too many years now & it is long over due to become my reality. I have been the Queen Mother of Procrastination. I'd like to change my title. Not sure to what exactly but I've already steered one generation in the wrong direction thinking that procrastination won't really hurt you when it most certainly can & does. Perhaps it's not too late to make the positive changes so my grandchildren can reap the benefits of my "wisdom" ??? LOL

I've finished the hat for my mom. I must admit I do like it. It is colorful, but it should be very warm.

Here is a pic of Adriana's toddler bed afghan. It is a Project Linus pattern called Granny Ripple.

http://www.citiusa.com/grannyripple.html

I have tried to make this pattern several times & never seemed to "get it" don't ask me why since it is a very easy pattern. Once you have worked the first two rows all you do is repeat row two until it is time to fasten off. And the picture does show it off pretty well that it resembles a granny due to the "granny shell" and it is clearly a ripple!

On to other memories... I have several more photos to share regarding the Murano Glass demonstration but am not prepared to post them right now. If time permits later in the day or sometime early in this week I'll do a post of photos or perhaps two.

Wishing you all frog free projects. May you find the beginning of your new year off to a grand start ~ even if you need to take baby steps like me in order to accomplish something you've managed to put off for years.

Just 5 minutes :)

2009-01-02T09:42:00.004-05:00

I took just 5 minutes and cleaned off the top of my nightstand. Dusted it too. Later on I will take 15 minutes & clean another area of my bedroom. (Yes I will use a timer.) That way I will accomplish something positive without taking forever and not feeling overwhelmed. I figure if I can do a 5 minute clean up here or there then a 15 minute to 30 minute on some larger area each day eventually my cluttered areas will no longer be cluttered. Yes in that 5 minutes I had to decide to put things away and to throw out some others. I expect that when I handle the 15 minutes I will be forced to decide what to give away and what to keep, and if I keep it where to put it away. But I also think it will be fairly easy based on the rule if you haven't used it in a year don't hold on to it any longer. I know I have clothes that I haven't used in a year based on my current weight & I can't just hold on to them thinking one day I will be able to use them again. So a lot of my clothes will be tossed into a give away pile. Making my cluttered drawers & closet much more managable. (yep those will be more 30 minute sessions ;-)

Finished Adriana's afghan ... forgot to take a picture so will get a photo soon. Half way thru on my mom's hat ~ will take photos when that is finished also.

Ahhh close my eyes & just think about the glass demonstration. We were brought into a large area and directed to take a seat along the wall where we could see from a safe distance. Across from where we sat I saw what looked like a large furnace and a smaller furnace. There was a setup for the master glass worker to demonstrate his skills for us and behind him was a work area for several artists to learn & hone their craft. From where I was seated I really could not take in much of what was going on behind the glass master who was showing us his skills. Our guide showed us some things and told us what we were witnessing. One glass worker "set up" the project for the master who then came and began working with the hot glass on the end of a very long pipe. He had a bucket with water in it and when he brought some water up with to handle the pipe you could hear it sizzle. (They place the pipe with the glass into the furnace so it is surprising that they can handle those long pipes when they get so hot.) We saw how he used various tools to shape the glass after he blew into the pipe to get the glass to take some shape other than looking like a "blob". A bit of shaping this way a bit of blowing into the pipe and before our eyes this hot blob of glass became a vase. But he wasn't finished yet he wanted to embellish it more so back to the furnace to get the glass hot enough so he could work it some more and when he worked on it more with his tools it was a much prettier vase. And he didn't stop there he then began another project & he chose to make a horse. We saw him use some glass blowing techniques and saw how he worked rapidly with a few tools to make the vase so I was surprised when he took this hot blob of glass on the end of a long pipe and shaped a horse out of it with a couple of tools. It was so fast and amazing to watch. The end result was a beautiful glass horse. Just remembering it still takes my breath away. Thinking we were finished and going to move on to the sales floor for a sales pitch (now that we saw how the glass is made we were prepared for the prices) we were surprised with one final demonstration. Pure glass blowing ... the glass master took a hot piece of glass and blew it so thin and big ~ like blowing bubbles and getting to see the largest most delicate bubble for your efforts~ then just as suddenly he let it hit the ground and the sound that exploded out of that thin bubble of glass was astounding.

May 2009 treat you well

2009-01-01T08:47:00.003-05:00

Yes today is the very first day of a brand new year. With the snowfall yesterday, I can look out my back window & see my back yard blanketed in white snow~ looking like a blank sheet of paper just ready for someone to make their mark on it. That is how today sort of feels. Like the first day of the rest of my life.

As I write & re-write and re-write yet again (isn't the delete key a work of genius?) in order to express myself in as concise a manner as possible (yes I do know I tend to be verbose most of the time). Today, I can accomplish anything ,within this year.

I see my house the way I want it to look. And it is really possible. Now that the grand daughters are really at an age of play when they come over they should not be left with only one option for sitting down and no place to move because my stuff is all over the living room (literally) and the kitchen table is the catch all with no place to sit & enjoy a meal. That must change. It will change. But not in the manner of the past. Where it is cleaned off, and within 2 weeks or a month (if we are lucky) and all of a sudden it is the catch all again.

I don't know what type of resolutions you may have in mind for 2009 but for me & my house this is the year I take charge & put my play things in order. This is the year I will show my husband I really do have the right to claim to be a 'homemaker' on our income tax forms. LOL
You know I always sign homemaker but since I don't do anything with my home I feel like I've lied but there isn't any way to put homebound bum and feel good about it either.

So may the year 2009 treat you well and more importantly may you treat yourself well in 2009!
May all your projects be frog free!!!

Murano Glass & other thoughts

2008-12-29T19:59:00.005-05:00

So as this year quickly comes to a close I am enjoying memories of my trip to Italy this past Sept. I'm getting closer to finishing Adriana's afghan. I've got a pattern in mind that I wanted to share with everyone but just because Caron has a contest going I thought about expanding the scarf pattern into a baby afghan. Once I have the stitch count settled I think I'll work it up for January's charity challenge. (I belong to an online crochet group and we have charity challenges from Jan. through Oct. & have expanded to an unofficial Nov. cc.)
Anyway as I deal with my crocheting and my reading (currently into JoAnna Carl's Chocoholic mysteries) and attempting to stay on top of things has been fun.

We had arrived in Venice and had our time to ourselves to settle in & get ready for dinner after a wonderful dinner we had a good night before our next day ... we were told what time to meet following breakfast and we all gathered together in time to get on a boat (you either travel by water taxi's or you walk over bridges lots of stairs & lots of walking around Venice) but to get to Murano Isle you must take a boat. When we arrived our guide met us and brought us through to explain how the furnace's were dealt with before the availability of gas furnaces. How the wood was brought and stored and handled. Then he explained that the whole family was involved. When he was a child of 10 yrs his job was to ck on the furnace & make sure it was burning hot enough. We saw some piles of rejects (yes they too have items that they tried and either did not have the design work or something else caused them to reject it) so an area where there was lots of broken glass. While he was explaining things to us we were standing outside in a courtyard and there were beautiful mosaics hanging on the outside walls. This first picture was hanging inside just as we left the building to enter the courtyard. The next 4 pictures were taken outside and the last picture you see our guide.

So after this we had a great time inside another area where one of the glass masters put on a demonstration for us. More pictures to follow later this week.

Wishing you all frog free projects :)

Less than a week to a Brand New Year

2008-12-27T07:24:00.003-05:00

Are you frantically wrapping up this year of 2008? Are you looking ahead to all the possibilities of 2009? Can you believe how fast the year flew by? Seems to me that as a child I always thought the year dragged by until finally Christmas arrived in all of it's glory. As a young adult I noticed how it seemed to speed up a bit but now (and for a while the truth be told) I believe you can blink a couple of times & have the entire year fly by... why you merely get started and before you know it spring time rolls around with all the "spring cleaning" (which I might actually do this year! LOL) As you take the few minutes to admire the flowers just beginning to bloom you'll notice that Summer arrived unfortunately Summer doesn't seem to stay as long as we want it to and it isn't always as warm as it has been in the past. Makes using the swimming pool a bit hit or miss depending on the actual warmth of the day. Just as you decide summer really did show up & might stay a while Autumn rolls on in with a bit of cooler air making using the swimming pool more of an adventure than it should be and the cooler air has you already thinking of all the landscape work that needs to be done in order to prepare the yard for winter. Don't want to be caught unprepared! Next thing you know Winter shows up with force. Colder temperatures makes clothing choices for you and you begin to dream of Christmas with all it's wonderful traditions.

For me Christmas became way too commericalized years ago. I stopped decorating. I stopped caring about all the hoopla that was associated with Christmas and began thinking only in terms of this is more about the Birth of the Savior of the World and less about what someone gives me or I give someone else. Don't get me wrong I still see the beauty of giving a gift to someone and sharing the love of God with others in this manner but I don't think every toy that makes the top ten list needs to be under the tree for the kids nor does every new gadget that comes out just in time for Christmas need to be under the tree for the teens/ or even the adults.

With our youngest son's birthday January 1st I always look forward to the beginning of the new year. His only request was that we don't do anything fancy this year ~ he'd rather rest if possible. He's always busy with something and he'd like a really low key kind of day for his birthday. And I agree with him he should have the kind of day he really wants.

Well I just rec'd a text message requesting I do something so that requires me to actually get my day underway. I'll post some pictures Monday and tell you about my visit to Murano Glass in Venice then.
Meanwhile I hope you enjoy your post Christmas bargain shopping & all your projects should be frog free so you can get more accomplished.

Merry Christmas Yay that's today!!!

2008-12-25T07:43:00.002-05:00

Before we leave to go see Adriana open her gifts and then head over to see Kyla & Kami open theirs. I thought I would wish you all a wonderful day. A day full of love & joy. With the economy the way it is I understand many will be having a day with less gifts or perhaps with no gifts to open. But if the true meaning of this day were being celebrated then it won't matter about the gifts or no gifts what will really matter is being able to spend time with someone we love. It is more about how we treat one another with thoughtfulness, kindness and yes common courtesy. All to often we allow the holiday season (whether we celebrate Christmas or not) to be an excuse to be frazzled and exhausted and all out of sorts with our own emotions that we strike out at our loved ones and then feel like the day has been ruined. Which it can be simply because everyone gets overly tired and all we should do is take a deep breath and relax. Let everyone else off the hook for rude behavior and forgive them for being overly rushed & exhausted, forgive ourselves for being that way too and then look beyond all of that to give ourselves the chance to enjoy the time being spent together.

In spite of all the rushing around and the "pressure" building up yesterday I managed to get the laundry done, along with 6 pies before leaving to watch the girls. While there I did manage to fall asleep almost every time I worked on the afghan. Last night I had gotten the afghan to the size I had planned on making it all I needed to do was trim it and be finished. But to be honest with you I found it lacking. Yes it was the size I had planned on but I just felt it was too skinny. I wanted it larger. So I made the decision to continue working on it until it is a more acceptable size. I finished the scarf for Kyla and packed my tote bag with the afghan & extra yarn. So out of all the things needed to be done yesterday I finished all but 2. I still need to work on the afghan for Adrians until I like it's size. And I need to finish her new snuggle square. That I can probably finish today.
Tomorrow I will pull out the pictures and share with you about our visit to Murano Isle. That was so much fun!!!
For now I wish you all a very Merry Christmas & a relaxing day spent with loved ones.
(and of course frog free projects LOL)

Christmas Eve Morning....

2008-12-24T07:10:00.004-05:00

Do you feel the pressure? Last night instead of finishing up my crochet projects I went to my son's house to deliver the ham & turkey my hubby purchased for our Christmas day meal (which my son will prepare and we will all enjoy at his house)... but once we arrived there we were invited to go with them to see the "Festival of Lights" (light display done in Albany, NY for charity) ... we've done this with them the last 2 years so this makes our third venture to "see the lights" and of course how could I say no to Kyla & Kami who both asked us to go with them???

So today's agenda includes all of the crocheting that I had planned on finishing lastnight along with the pies I planned on making for tomorrow, laundry, and now I have an idea for the Caron Naturally Baby contest ... the one I just read about which was supposed to be over but they extended the deadline so now I have until January 31, 2009 to purchase & make a baby blanket to help support Project Linus & possibly win the contest. Ummm well maybe the scarf pattern won't be available for a while. I do see potential in turning this simple scarf pattern into a larger project, say ... ummm, like a baby afghan.

Maybe I'll escape all the pressure (oh did I fail to say we have to go babysit for a part of the day and still accomplish everything listed above??) with some memories of Venice. Ahh yes I remember it well. We landed in Venice & were met at the airport, where we waited while our entire group was gathered together, with our large piece of luggage taken care of we were responsible for our carry on luggage. We walked (about 10 minutes) to the dock and caught a boat to our hotel. About 30 minutes later we arrived at our hotel ... very nice digs by the way! The only complaint is that I'm really out of shape and therefore much heavier in weight, body shape than I should be and the shower was a teeny tiny corner thing that I just (and I mean JUST) fit into and out of with a bit of care. We had the rest of the day to relax go explore as we wished until dinner when we would have an orientation meeting and then walk to a restuarant nearby. Everything was delightful. And the information was very interesting in that it was a way to get to understand most of the paper work we were sent in advance & most people read but did not really "read" ~ you know how your excitement can keep you from really processing the information you are looking at ~ like you know what they were telling you but oh did you know that? Was that in the paperwork?? Really? Oh I guess I didn't see that when I was reading it all earlier.

Anyway I loved it all and enjoyed it all and would do it all again in heartbeat. Well with a few minor adjustments of course but I'd still do it all again.

Here is a quick view of one side "street" canal of Venice & below that is a picture taken just outside the local restaurant we ate at for our first dinner in Venice as a group. The food was yummy.

I'll leave you with this as I go and prepare pies before the day gets away from me!!! Oh wait I'll throw in a wash load first then prepare pies. (Thank God they are easy pies!!) Pumpkin (the canned pumpkin where you add two ingredients mix together & bake in an unbaked pie shell and the other is a bit more time consuming but easy none the less ... Chocolate pudding pie. Cooked pudding is the only kind for me so I will be stirring a lot for about half an hour!!! But it is so worth it in the end.

Wishing you all a great day (oh rats I just remembered not a single gift is wrapped yet.... the list keeps growing!!!) and of course a very Merry Christmas tomorrow, Frog free projects too!!!

Progress update & random thoughts

2008-12-23T08:19:00.003-05:00

Adriana's small afghan is almost done ... meaning I have a couple more color bands to work before trimming (about 3 hours work? left??) ... I like it more as it grows so I may have to revisit this pattern for some of the baby gifts I need to make.

I want to share about my trip to Italy. First off I managed to sleep on the plane on the way there which is really unusal for me. For the first time I traveled & did not suffer from jet lag. We (meaning my mom) had booked our trip through a travel agent and through their discussions it became clear that the trip my mom wanted could be provided by Gate One. Most of our fellow travelers had booked through Gate One directly online. I found our trip to be excellent from beginning to end. And yes there were the usual bumps along the way but they were not happening to me. One couple had problems with their luggage being destroyed enroute which required them to deal with replacing one large piece of luggage before we left Venice. They said that their clothes were fine just the luggage was ruined & could not be used for the rest of the trip. Then as we progressed he was fighting a cold. I felt terrible for them.

But enough about someone else's trip!!LOL

Venice was just as beautiful as I remembered. It was so nice to sit in the lobby of the hotel and look out at the water, and boats. Ahh I can almost picture myself sitting there once again. I really enjoyed everything. (I did manage to avoid the smells that can accompany living so close to all that water!!!)

Above is one view of the lobby ... those are fresh flowers in the glass vase. And below is one view looking out of the lobby.

And yes it was beautiful weather while we were there. The one thing is that it was a whirlwind of activity and exhaustion. LOL well from my way of thinking. I'm out of shape and there is no getting around that. So for me all that walking was fine as long as I didn't have to stand around too long inbetween all the moving. And more importantly as long as I was able to rest afterwards with my feet elevated. (allows me a fighting chance against the edema)

More to follow. Pictures too. I had so many to chose from it is difficult to put them all here. :)

2008-12-22T07:27:00.004-05:00

I thought I'd spruce up the old blog page yet again trying to find what works. The first attempt at making my blog stand out got to me, the second attempt took longer to get to me but all the colors was just too busy. I'm going to give this simple straight forward look a chance & see what happens.

Again I'm looking for readers so if you're out there please let me know. Still not one comment ... I've ck'd and everyone should be able to leave comments I hope you haven't had any problems.

I'm happy to report that Kami's scarf is finished, Kyla's is underway, Adriana's snuggle square & very small afghan are both underway as well. With all the snow we've had today will be another day of cozy snuggling in my chair with my crochet projects ... need to finish the girls things before Christmas morning.!!!! The pattern I wanted for Adriana's afghan is missing in my piles so I opted for the granny ripple. Every other time I attempted to work this pattern something didn't work out correctly (my errors of course) and I never got past the first two rows. Which is strange because once you work the first two rows the pattern is established & you repeat the second row until the aghan is finished. Then you trim all around. So currently since this will be a very small afghan (about 44 length x 28 width) for a toddler bed it will be finished on time.

Again the free pattern will only be posted if I get 5 or more comments so please take a few seconds to speak up & let me know you are out there.
Wishing you all frog free projects.

Comments = pattern

2008-12-19T08:29:00.002-05:00

So far not one person has left a comment so I guess no one wants a free scarf pattern. Or because it is so close to Christmas everyone is preparing for the holidays so they couldn't leave a quick comment.
I will post a free pattern for the scarf I'm making for my granddaughters (which could easily be worked for an adult simply by making it the length you want) if I have 5 to 10 comments (yes from different people not 5 from one person!!!)
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year ... if you don't celebrate Christmas then I wish you well for this Holiday season.

Creative thoughts flowing freely ...

2008-12-16T22:07:00.002-05:00

So I've finished Kathleen's beret & two scarves with flowers. Lost the little booklet that has the pattern I planned on using for Adriana's afghan. Picked up (from my stash) the yarn to make a scarf for Kyla... and all of a sudden had a wonderful idea on how it should look. Will take pictures and possibly share the pattern. If you want me to share the pattern leave a comment. If I get between 5 & 10 comments asking for the pattern I will share it with all of you.
I love how it looks right now and since it is for a 4 yr. old it only needs to be about 44 inches long. Even though she wanted "red" I had to go with what would work with her coat (red not really a factor) so I plan on using some red in the fringe.
Anyway leave me some comments & I promise to post the pattern for this cool scarf.

16 days to the New Year....

2008-12-15T12:44:00.002-05:00

and what do you have to accomplish before that? Well around here we have Christmas shopping & crocheting to finish up. And some how some way we need to get our priorities set so that everything that is really important is taken care of before time gets away from us.

Lost my mind trying to understand some things but found my mind when certain things were brought into proper perspective. Lost my mind around the hustle & bustle but found my mind again when the hustle & bustle belonged to someone other than myself.

Christmas is not about the gifts we give or about the gifts we receive ~ at least it should not be about them. Christmas is about the ultimate gift that our loving heavenly Father gave to a lost & dying world. Christ was sent from heaven above to live the life of a human man from birth to adulthood to know what we go through and to set the example that we can live a Holy life if we chose to follow Him. We need to decide what is this "holiday" season all about and how will we handle it for our own lives & families. Now as for gift giving I'm not saying don't give gifts ~ after all our example came from God Himself who gave His only begotten Son that we may chose to believe and have eternal life & not perish. Since God has given all of us the ultimate gift we can show our love for others by giving thoughtful gifts to those around us. Christmas isn't anything with out Christ! Gifts don't need to be expensive to be "good" ... they can be simple gifts from the heart. Last year my granddaughter made me a "book" ... she drew the pictures and told her mom the story, her mom had her write one word on each page. It is one of my favorite gifts that I have ever received. It came straight from her heart and was such a delightful gift to read. I hope she thinks of me that way again. With the economy so low and everyone hurting moneywise I think we need to get back to simpler ways of celebrating. Baking and sharing our baked goods can be very thoughtful gifts along with basic needs being met through our gift giving. Practical gifts that meet a need in someone's life is a great way to go ...after all that is the example of our Loving Father ~ He gave the world His only Begotten Son ~ nothing more practical than a way to be forgiven of our sins so that we can spend eternity with our creator.

I see the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 as a way to stop & reflect on this year and to decide how I would like to see myself living in the new year. What changes will you make to see your dreams come true?
Wishing you all a very thoughtful day full of joy & happiness.

Ice Storm Hits close to home...

2008-12-12T13:27:00.003-05:00

Thank God we are very fortunate! All last night we heard the sound of cracking branches & trees as they came crashing down all around us. At one point my husband (who tends to be a light sleeper) jumped up & said he couldn't see if the tree that just crashed down hit his car (oh woe to have only a one car garage for a two car family). Of course it's so dark outside you can see that something had fallen & it was so close to the car that it certainly could have landed on the car & you wouldn't know until daylight.
As dawn arrived and the sky started to lighten up so we could see more out of our windows (mind you still no incentive to clean my windows) and there seems to be lots of branches down all over. Not just in our yard but in some of our neighbors yards as well.
So of course that is not all one sees when looking out at the yard. Everything is coated in ice. Even the grass blades are ice coated. The tree branches look so different when coated in ice.
Everything shines and glimmers and yet in spite of how pretty it may seem the danger is very real. Now that things are calming down the aftermath is still being dealt with. Downed power lines, downed trees and branches and those that are falling still due to wind or finally the weight of the ice topped with snow taking it's toll.

We were very fortunate. Our power did go off but came back on fairly quickly considering how many people are still without their power. And although branches and a tree have fallen they have managed not to damage our property (so far & God willing it will remain that way)... I express my prayers for those who ended up with property damage due to this storm.

On to crocheting so of my day away. Wishing you all everything you have need of and may you find this time of year full of joy, peace & goodwill towards all men!

hello is anyone out there?

2008-12-10T07:20:00.002-05:00

I'm seriously wondering how to encourage people to leave comments. Especially with questions in them regarding crocheting.
I guess the dynamic of my blog has completely changed since it had to move from Lion Brand's site. Perhaps I have ventured to far into what is/has been happening in my life aside from the crochet projects?

Currently I have finished the beret and one scarf for Kathleen working on the second scarf then will make the flowers that adorn the scarves.
I donated 3 baby sweaters for the community outreach and still intend to make at least 2 chemo caps since they (the caps) are the primary focus of the outreach this year.

Last week I went into NYC and met with two online friends ... had a bite of lunch and hit the Smiley's Yarn Sale (held in the Holiday Inn on W57th Street in Manhatten)... only intended to purchase some much needed baby yarn but went a little overboard and then saw the ribbon yarn in a lovely purple which made me think of my sister in law so I purchased that as well with thoughts of making her a simple wrap. The time spent with friends was the absolute best! Meeting Connie in person for the first time felt so strange since I already felt that we knew each other so well from all the online communication & phone calls. I had the honor of meeting her beautiful daughter and wonderful husband briefly before we ventured off for our day together.
Of course Maria was with us ... really loved seeing Maria again as I had met her a couple years ago (& not for the yarn sale) when I had brought my mom & one of my sister in law's to the city for some shopping in the diamond district. Maria was able to meet up with us at John's (great pizza place!) So with Maria as our guide off we went. I'm still working out the kinks my body took on itself while I lugged my great buy until we stopped & I purchased a small shopping cart to put all the yarn in then dragged that behind me. As I told my husband when I got home the cart was a necessary purchase or did he prefer they found my body dead on the streets of Manhatten? LOL Seriously if I didn't have Connie & Maria with me I would not have been able to manage. They were super company and I look forward to when we can meet again. Maybe next time we'll arrange to meet at the Lion Brand Yarn Studio? Who knows???

Current wim's for Christmas still ... small afghan for Adriana (alot of the yarn I purchased was for her afghan & snuggle squares) and a new snuggle square ... one of hers is slowly being loved to pieces. An afghan for Kamryn who turns 2 this Feb. (she is already being potty trained and doing an excellent job of it!!!!) Sweaters or some other baby item for the new babies expected this spring. (My niece and several friends all due in or around March).

Current wip's that have been on hold : my shrug which should not take forever to finish, Angie's sweater that really needs some serious attention paid to it!!

Wishing you all frog free projects.

Crochet plans & other delusions ....

2008-12-02T09:23:00.002-05:00

So yesterday I did not go shopping with my mom ... that would mean I would accomplish more with my crocheting right? Not! I did begin the beret and did manage to get to the tenth round.

I just need to be more realistic in my plans and as in all things not procrastinate. Well then there you have my major delusion. Me not procrastinate? Not likely.

Anyway today my plan "& I state that loosely" is to spend the day crocheting. Until someone calls & says I need you can you do .... whatever fill in the blank accordingly.

A true procrastinator does not need the phone to ring in order to find any excuse to put off a project. Hence my house looks like a it should be demolished & rebuilt ... I need to really just throw away all that junk mail & other garbage that has been allowed to take up residence in my home because I've been too busy to deal with it just yet ... but then again I never know when I'm going to need that for some odd reason or other?...

Delusions of accomplishment or deadlines I'm not sure which but I do know I will manage to finish my most important projects because I will work on them and get them done. (that is easy to state because they are easy enough projects and not some major afghan sized project!!!)

Second day of the last day of 2008 ... make the most of it won'tcha ya?

Wishing you all frog free projects and still waiting for those ?'s or comments.

The Last Month of 2008

2008-12-01T07:23:00.002-05:00

December first what shall we accomplish on this first day of the last month of the year? Well I don't know about you but my plans are to help my mom with her purchase of a new VCR or getting a DVR from the cable company & installing whichever one she selects. Anyway that is the morning's activity plan.
This afternoon I fully intend to settle into crocheting I have 3 things I need to make for Kathleen & today I will begin those items and possibly finish two of them if I'm left to myself.
I hope my "plans" remain my plans without the usual interruptions but what good is having a plan if it can't be changed around as life dictates?

I hope you all have a great 1st day of the last month of the year! Accomplish something wonderful with your day. Make the most of each day we have left to 2008 ~ 2009 will be here all too soon.

Wishing you frog free projects :)

Thanksgiving behind us & Christmas ahead ....

2008-11-28T19:23:00.002-05:00

I hope if you celebrated Thanksgiving that you were with those you love & enjoyed a wonderful meal together. I know we have been blessed. Our son has hosted the holiday meals for a few years now. Our daughter in love is a blessing to our family. They certainly have the gift of hospitality.

It is a time for reflection and thought. Some times this reflective thought process can be pretty decent other times it can be distressing. Today I was thinking about how we communicate with one another. How the words we speak may be heard & yet misunderstood. They can be spoken and yet go unheard. They can be meant with love and full of good intentions & yet received as judgement or belittling or out right criticism. A lot of communication is unspoken so you need to tune into the body language as well as the spoken words. But when someone is screaming at you and you know that they are expressing themselves with a lot of anger how do you respond in the least harmful way? How do you get your true intentions across to them and restore peace? Or can you restore peace?

What if you decide you don't want to restore peace? What if you are tired of the miscommunication and the nonsense that goes with it? What if you just are too tired to be bothered with making the effort to restore peace with those you love and yet can let them be in their own world until the day they wake up realizing that they let you go when they should have been making peace with you instead? I've had these kinds of conversations ... the ones where ugly, angry words are spoken in haste and some that weren't so hasty but were just as ugly & angry. I don't care for these conversations. In fact I really find them disappointing. Especially my part in them when I have been the one misunderstood. But still there comes a time in life when you just get tired of the pain they cause.

I recall vividly the time I had this type of conversation with my dad, (God Bless him may he rest in peace) it was sad ~ really, horribly sad. We did make up of course. But too many families go through times like this. Where someone feels like they aren't being heard and then the holidays arrive with all the "warmth & good cheer" messages and some people handle them well while others scream to be heard for a change. Is that how you feel? Do you know someone who feels this way? Any suggestions for improving your communication skills? I know that some people recognize their problems and work on fixing them. I also know some people just remain quiet while they seethe inside. (not healthy at all) And I know that some people will respond if they were yelled at and still others may start the fight just so they can 'break the tension'.
So what does all this have to do with crocheting or happy holidays? What will all this "reflective" thinking do for anyone?
Most likely nothing at all. In the off chance it helps you drop me a comment to let me know. My hope is that we all learn how to be heard and understood at the same time. Especially when we are communicating with our loved ones. If you think before you speak & realize that what you are about to speak will cause more harm than good by all means "bite your tongue" and keep those ugly thoughts to yourself!!!

Okay so I'm going to relax and crochet a while. See where my thoughts take me tonight. I hope everyone had a wonderful & very happy thanksgiving yesterday, anyone shopping on "black Friday" I hope you got all the best sales for what you needed/ wanted to purchase.
May you all have a great weekend with frog free projects! Stay warm if it's cold where you live and stay cool if it's hot where you live :)

What a difference a day makes & sad news...

2008-11-25T05:52:00.003-05:00

So I have no updates on my crocheting. Yes I am still busy with many projects but nothing to report on for this post. My last post came before my heart breaking news. When I returned from my most enjoyable time with my friend (we had lunch & then crocheted the afternoon away at the library) I had spoken with my daughter. She was telling me how she had not felt the baby move so she had gone to the doctor. They could not find the baby's heartbeat, and the ultrasound confirmed that the baby was "gone". The shock and anger and denial was strong and furious feelings... emotions I didn't know I had ran through me and all I could think of was if I felt like this how in the world did my daughter & son in love feel? Needless to say we were all greatly distressed by this news. On Friday Sarah was induced and the baby was delivered, they were able to hold him and kiss him and tell him they loved him and say their goodbyes. They gave him a name. Joshua Paul. He was already 1lb. 6 ounces & 12 & 1/2 inches long. (She was 23 weeks along.) He will never be forgotten. They took photos, we don't have to wonder what he looked like because we can see how incredibly precious he truly was. His hands & feet, all 10 fingers & toes. He is safe with Jesus and will never feel any pain or know any distress or sorrow, and he'll be there when we arrive. The emotions are not as raw right now and so I can share this news with you.

I went to a beginners quilting class on Sat. morning at my church and I am making my first quilting project. It will be a memorial wall hanging. I have my 9 patch square ready for embroidery. Now I need to design & layout my embroidery portion of this project. I believe I want his name in the center sq. with the date & weight & inches. (if it will all fit nicely there) then the four corners will have something embroidered on them. I just have to make the final decision as to what I want where & then get to stitching. Once that is done I can then add the lightweight batting and the back (which will be a solid piece of fabric matching one in the square) and then I am supposed to "quilt it" which is the fun part I guess. I will learn what to do when I'm done with my stitching.

What a difference a day makes. And all the life & love & emotions that are wrapped up in each day is a gift we should not take for granted. We should make the best & the most out of each day we have since we have not been promised tomorrow.
Wishing you all frog free projects.

I'm still alive & well... just crazy busy

2008-11-19T09:24:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone ~ I hope you are still reading this blog. Anyway my mom called me last week and had to share about the free custom photo book Oprah's viewers had the chance to order from Snapfish... which meant I had to really focus on getting some photo's worthy of a custom photo book gathered together & uploaded so I could then "create" my photo book. Well my mom wanted to get a free book also which meant I had to create her account upload photos for her and create her free book as well. Thankfully there was such a great demand that they ended up extending the deadline for creating the book (not for getting in on the deal) ... whew I just finished my photo book ... my mom's I finished first ... I figured she deserved it more since she told me about the deal in the first place. Thanks Mom!

Crochet wise I still have a million & one things to do ... okay so I don't have a "million" but I do have an awful lot to get busy with. Status of blue newborn sweater ... it is still waiting for the second sleeve to be worked. Status of the hexagon newborn sweater in sport weight white & yellow assembled & waiting for trim edging to be worked.
Chemo caps for charity outreach at my local public library ... two started but I really don't care for the pattern at all so may have to frog & begin yet again.
By the way I'm also reading for the book discussion group and one book just for pleasure & one other for research ... yeah I'm a little busy.

Today I will go out for lunch with a fellow crocheter (and she is my friend's mom) then to the library so we can settle in for some crochet time. Hopefully that means something gets accomplished.
Wishing you all well ... and frog free days.
I wish you knew how important comments really are to a blogger!!!