My Crazy Life in Small Town Kansas

Summer Heat

2011-08-03T12:12:00.000-06:00

As with most of the nation, we have been in the middle of quite a battle with Mother Nature over whether it is appropriate to turn on the heater in the middle of summer. As we are finding out, she has control of that thermostat.

It is baking here.

Temps hit over 110*F yesterday and I can officially say I am tired of summer. All the heat has put a damper on my plans to get to the studio every day to paint in oils. but I have decided that on the days that I don't make the 45 minute drive to the studio, I will spend my time working on watercolor paintings and drawings. Those supplies and paintings I can keep/do at home since the cats do not seem to be attracted to them.

I have been spending a little more time than is probably financially feasible at used books stores lately and have found quite a few out of print art book gems at crazy low prices as opposed to their secondary market value on Amazon. Score! After reading through my cache of goodies, one of thing has caught my eye and has really started to sink in. All of the artists in the books I bought emphasize doing detailed sketchbook value and composition drawings before ever putting the brush to the canvas. I usually just dive right in and work it out as I go along, which does not always turn out well. So in the future, I will keep my sketchbooks at hand and follow the advice of the other artists and make value sketches and comp sketches first. It seems so simple, not sure why this has not been a habit for me.

Also on the art subject, I have decided to add pastels to my "stuff that I do". It seems like a cross between painting and drawing and I have been intensely attracted to the velvety richness of the pastel paintings that I have seen, so I decided to give it a whirl. Given the fact that it is a medium notorious for producing dust and all kinds of pigment stains, this is definitely something that I will be doing at the studio. I ordered a 90 color set from ASW along with some clear Artspectrum pastel primer and a spray fixative, so as soon as the crazy business of this week is over, I plan to hit the studio to experiment. I was a little concerned about buying aerosol fixative in these temps--can you imagine how much fun that would have been if that package had been left on my unshaded doorstep for the day?! Luckily we were home when it got here. The cans were really hot even with just being in the truck. A friend of mine works for 911 dispatch and she said that this heat has been causing propane tanks to explode--I had visions of having a flaming box on my front porch.

School starts up in a couple weeks and I have to say I am really looking forward to it. The summer has been nice, but I am looking forward to the routine of getting up and being with people in a classroom every day. Since I am transferring to Wichita State University to finish up a BFA, I will have an art history and a foundational design class and lab. Lots of reading, I am sure. Unfortunately, only one art related class at Butler Community College will fit into my schedule. I will be taking jewelry design 2 since I was pretty sure I would not have time to get from one campus to the other in time to take any other classes. I do have to say I am excited about transferring to WSU. We toured their art department and it seems like it is going to be a great atmosphere for learning and growing.

On the home front, we are gearing up for the start of the school year for the twins. They are going to be seniors next year, which just doesn't seem possible. Where did the time go? It seems like yesterday I was the room mom in an elementary school classroom. Both boys decided they want to go military after school. Mark has gone with the Marines and Jeremy has gone Navy. Both boys are early entry, which mean they have signed and sworn in now, but won't go until after they graduate from high school next year. It just doesn't seem possible that they are that age...That means next year this time, my nest will be empty. Not even sure how I am going to handle that. I'm sure it will be interesting to enter this new season of life.

No pics today. My computer and Blogger don't seem to want to talk to each other today.

AND here we are again....

2011-07-25T19:48:00.000-06:00

I'm not even gonna say it....oh heck, yes I am: Has it really been this long since I've posted?

Yep! So here is the rundown on what has been happening at Casa Crazylife I went back to school to finish an art degree. It is something I have wanted to do since before the kids were born, but life just got in the way. I have been taking classes at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kansas but it is time to move on to a 4 year college. I am really going to miss it there. I can't even begin to explain how much I have learned from the art professors there! However, I am at a point where there really are no more art classes that I can take so I have to get my rear over to Wichita State University to finish the degree. I will be working on a BFA (Bachelors of Fine Art) in Studio, with an emphasis in painting. It will be nice to have less of a drive, but I do still have a studio in El Dorado that I am hanging onto. It took FOREVER for a space to open up and I am LOVING the fact that I have a place to work now. When I took possession of the studio, the wall with the windows on it and the wall next to it were a dark pumpkin color. Pretty, but they were too dark for a painting studio. The built in desk had been used as a palette at some point and was quite dismal looking. All the walls were dingy, so after a couple coats of light taupe paint, the walls really look great. My husband stripped the desk and stained it a cherry color and it looks FABULOUS! He does such awesome work!

My two windows...On now has an air conditioner in it since we discovered that it is impossible to be up there in 100 degree and higher temps without getting really overcome by the heat. Cute Man aka. husband is stripping the counter top and the desktop in front. Love them sexy orange gloves!!!

More stripper action..I mean, wood stripping ...of course...

Now for the another funny quirk we discovered. When I got the studio, this carpet was already there. The director of the museum that owns the building said if i didn't want the carpet, just roll it up and leave it in the common area that is shared with the other artists. so, I lifted it and...

WHAT>?!!! Seriously. There are no tiles in the exact shape of the carpet..LOL...I'll throw down some inexpensive tiles and get rid of the carpet....

I haven't been up there as much as I would like up to this point, but I only moved into the studio in June, so I am still getting a schedule worked out. It is really wonderful to finally have a place to create! I will start posting paintings as I get them done. School starts back up in the latter part of August, so I am getting a schedule figured out and will start getting down to work!

To end--a couple things I did last semester. There were a lot more, I'll post more later.

Just a little of what has been going on at Casa Crazylife. Hope you have been having a great year so far too!

2011 Already?!!

2011-01-07T08:57:00.000-06:00

2010 was an interesting and challenging year.

My family added 2 people when my oldest and his girlfriend moved back home in order to find a job here (he had previously lived 7 hours away), school kept me crazy busy but super satisfied, and I have had to come to terms with having a parent who is ill. My Dad underwent chemotherapy and radiation for cancer in several areas of his body at the beginning of this Fall semester, so it has been a really bumpy ride here at Casa CrazyLife. When you are younger, it seems like your parents are invincible and are going to be strong forever. Then life happens and you realize that they are just as human as the rest of us, which is a hard pill to swallow. Dad is still fighting the good fight. I'm not sure where this chapter of my life is going to end up, but I am also having to come to terms with the fact that we are not always the author of our life story. There is a bigger story being written and we do not always know the plot..

That said, I have been on a quest to simplify a lot of the areas of my life where there has been to much excess and lack of focus. I went back to school to work on an art degree. When I was younger, that is what I had originally wanted to do, then the reality of having kids moved in and I changed majors. My advice to the younger set is to keep with the original dream. You can always find ways to make a living and you will be more fulfilled in the long run and not have to backtrack. I have started taking classes at a junior college where the instructors absolutely ROCK! LOL...I have had a lot of learning and growing pains, but I am really excited about the progress and direction I've gained under their guidance. Eventually I will move on to the 4 year college here in town, but in the meantime I am going part time and focusing on growing and learning as much as I can from my instructors. It is interesting going back to school when you are the closer to the age of your fellow students parents--and in some cases, a lot older than their parents...But I will say that as much as I hear people complain about young kids in college, I've seen much more from this age group than bad. It is interesting to see someone just starting out and how their view of the world is untainted by the realities of life. I think our views and attitudes do change once we have a little dust under our saddle, but it is refreshing to see younger points of view. I am working on putting together a portfolio and trying to take some workshops this year with other artists. That will mean more travel in 2011, which I am excited about. I love to travel!

Other than that, life goes on at Casa CrazyLife at dizzying speeds. I'm sure it is the same at your home too! Happy 2011! May we all prosper and grow in the New Year!

And So Goes Life....

2010-11-28T11:57:00.000-06:00

I was reminded the other day that life is very busy and it seems to be passing by at the speed of light. And then I checked this blog and realized I have not posted since AUGUST!!!! Yikes. I won't even make excuses or promises to be better. Instead I will tell you what has been happening at Casa Crazylife in the passing months..

School: I am back in school taking art related courses right now. At this point I am going back to what I had hoped to do before my oldest was born. The semester is winding down, but it has been a mad dash to get everything done. I am taking a 2D design class, a life drawing class and a second jewelry class. I've loved them all but it seems the 2D class has swallowed a huge portion of my time this semester. It has been VERY labor intensive, but I think it has made me take a look at several design principles that will help me in the fine art area. My life drawing class has been fantastic too. I am going to do a project class next semester in the life drawing mode, so I am looking forward to seeing where this takes me. The jewelry class has been interesting in that I have been learning some basic lapidary skills that I have REALLY enjoyed in addition to the silversmithing.

On the home front, the twins have been REALLY busy this semester with football, which just ended. From there we go straight into wrestling season. Only one of the boys is wrestling this year. School and other stuff keeps both of them really busy, and us too!

My oldest and his girlfriend are living with us temporarily while they look for jobs and a place of their own. It has been a big adjustment for all of us, but it really is nice to have him closer to home. That said, I do miss going up to Iowa. I really loved it in Iowa City. I might have to road trip there next year if I can find time in between my other planned trips to Washington, Texas and New Mexico.

I had hoped to accomplish so much more over the summer in regards to getting the house in order and finally decorated, but that lagged a lot. After the rush of the holidays are over, I am going to regroup and get some projects lined out to start the process. Painting was #1 on the list, but that is going to have to go to the end of the line. So instead I will focus on cosmetic stuff and organizing. We've been in this house for 2 years and still have a garage full of STUFF. Time to unload and lighten up a bit!

So there you have it--in a nutshell! I will make an effort to keep updated over the next couple months and not be such a bad blogger! LOL.

Cuban Bread...BIG YUM!

2010-08-20T16:06:00.002-06:00

While my son and I were in Kansas City for a handmade pasta class at the Culinary Center of Kansas City, I went to Whole Foods Market and picked up an August copy of Tastebud magazine. It is a free magazine distributed in Kansas City and it is always packed with interesting recipes and shopping ideas that revolve around food. This month, there is a recipe for "Cuban bread" that caught my attention (since you know what a bona fide carb and baking freak I am) and haunted me. So last night I had to just give in to the temptation and bake that bread!

OMG!! It was fabulous!

Here is the recipe-it was a reprint from a Jan/Feb 1996 issue of a Cook's magazine column by Jane and Michael Stern. Darn it--now I am going to have to hunt down a back issue of that magazine! However, here is the recipe. Try it, I promise it's slightly sourdough tang will hook you on the first bite that you take . As for me, I'm making more this weekend, I want to teach the kids how to bake a good loaf of bread and this one fits the bill. Do remember to mist the oven--it does make a difference in the crust. This crust is simply divine!!

Cuban Bread

1 pkg yeast ( I used 1Tblsp. bulk yeast)

2 Tblsp. sugar

1 1/3 cups warm water (110-112 degrees)

4 to 4 1/2 cups flour (I used bread flour)

2 tsp salt (I used sea salt)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and the sugar in 2/3 cup warm water. when foamy, whisk in 1 cup of the flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 4 hours in a warm place. (I let mine sit for about 6 since I had errands to run)

Stir in the remaining 2/3 cup water. Combine 3 cups of the flour with the salt and beat into the yeast mixture. Add veggie oil and beat until dough just holds together. (I let the dough hook on my KitchenAide mixer do the job for about 5 minutes). Turn the dough onto a floured surface and let rest while you clean and oil the bowl.

Knead the dough until it becomes smooth and elastic, 5-6 minutes, adding only enough flour to make the dough workable and soft. (again, I let my dough hook do that job..I love my KitchenAide!), Return the dough to the oiled bowl and turn the dough once to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 2 hours. (I started this whole process late at night, so I covered the dough and sat it in the fridge overnight to slow rise. In the morning I set the covered bowl on the counter to come to room temp and rise more--it does add a lot to the flavor)

Lightly oil a french bread pan (I used a cookie sheet since I don't have a french bread pan) and punch down dough. Divide into 2 parts and roll each part into a 16-18 inch rope. Put in the prepared pan and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Slash each loaf with a very sharp knife 2-3 times along the top and mist the loaves with water (I also misted the heck out of the oven. My hair is permanently frizzed) .

Bake in a preheated oven until the loaves are light and golden--20 to 25 minutes, misting them again when they have been in the oven for 7 minutes (again, I can't follow instructions, so I misted mine a couple more times, just to buck the system. I know-I'm such a rebel...)

Spread with butter, gorge yourself until you can't move and grin like the cat that ate the canary. THIS IS SERIOUSLY GOOD STUFF!!!

Where Did the Summer Go..Again...

2010-08-11T16:53:00.000-06:00

I can't believe school starts for both the boys and I in the next couple weeks. Where did summer go? It seems like time flew by so quickly that I really didn't have time to do a lot of anything, but the reality is that is didn't really "fly", I just didn't get a whole heck of a lot done this summer. I guess I need to step up and review my list before the cold weather sets in. Some things MUST get done, like pulling the old wallpaper off the family room, sanding the walls smooth, then priming and painting...along with some of the furniture refinishing projects I have laying around the house....plus I am hoping to get a measure of redecorating done.

I have three art classes this semester and I'm really looking forward to all of them. My life drawing is the one class that is making me nervous since I tend to be a perfectionist and want to draw things "right"..having a model to draw from is going to be exciting, but I get caught up in the little things like wanting to get it all correct the first time around. I am going to work on not getting frustrated and being OK with imperfection while I get the process down....I guess that is going to be a challenge, but I think I'm going to really enjoy the opportunity to practice this. I also have another jewelry class and a 2 dimensional design class, which will be fun. I feel fortunate that all the instructors are people that I am really comfortable with. I really wish this was a 4 yr college, I would definitely stay, even with the 50 minute daily commute! I have to work on putting together a portfolio of work in the coming semesters so that I can transfer over to Wichita State University's art department. I want to transfer over to either the printmaking or the painting department. Printmaking (relief or intaglio) is my love, but lately I am finding that I like oil painting too. I'm nowhere near mastering it or even being proficient in it yet, but I really enjoy it. We'll just have to see where the path leads, I guess. I would love to have studio space where I could just spread my stuff out and not have to worry about getting paint and charcoal on my light carpeting..hopefully that comes into fruition this semester.

On my reading shelf this month is "The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken..." I bought this book several months back when I got interested in making my own ravioli and pastas. In a week, my oldest and I are going to Kansas City to learn how to make homemade pasta at the Culinary Center of Kansas City--the same place I went earlier this summer with one of the twins to learn how to make sushi (which we have become sushi making fools around here!)...There are SO many classes that they are offering this Fall that I'd love to take, but alas, the drive in combination with school and home schedules make it impossible to take the really cool classes they offer during the week. A lot of their classes are taught by KC professional chefs, so they are the least busy during the week since Friday-Sat is the big time for restaurants..KCCC does have a couple classes on the weekends that I might take though. I guess I'll have to wait until summers for now. What I like about this book so far is it details not only her quest for the techniques and the recipes that she is craving, it also highlights the fundamental hunger of connections to family. In her case, as in many families, those connections are strained. So far I am only halfway through the book, but am finding that I completely understand where she came from, is coming from and hoping to get back to. I should be finishing the book this week and will give a more in depth review. So far, it's a keeper.

Inspiration and Perspiration

2010-08-02T21:24:00.000-06:00

It hit 107*F today.

I knew it was coming, it always does this time of year, but for some reason I was clinging to the denial part pretty heavy. The chickens have NOT been happy about the heat and have been pretty verbal about letting me know they are going on strike until the coop has air conditioning. Yep. It's getting pretty ugly here at Casa Crazylife.

I am just hanging out in the house waiting for the heat to pass and looking forward to school starting in less than a month. I have 3 classes this semester and they are all art classes, so this is going to be a great semester for creativity.

A series of paintings I am working on of my morning coffee cup. I read of an artist that took the same object and painted it 100 times in different colors and settings. Not sure if I can stay with it for 100 paintings, but I'm having fun with it right now.

I did get to learn a few new things while I've been off for summer break--I took an oil painting class at Wichita Center for the Arts and got to play with oils. I have worked with acrylics and watercolors before, but never oils. I love it!! I have amassed a ton of oil paints and canvas/gessoed boards to paint on and have been trying to do a little painting every day to get myself more familiar with the medium. I have also started collecting a few books to help me along on the subject, which I will introduce over the coming posts. One book that I absolutely adore, but is out of print is "60 Minutes to Better Painting" by Craig Nelson. He has a DVD out which looks to be a really good version of the book also. I bought the book on secondary market and then was shocked to see it skyrocket in price. Hopefully the publisher will reprint the book since it is a great reference. I like the idea of doing LOTS of 60 minute paintings to get proficient and learn what to edit and what to keep.

At the beginning of the summer Cute Man and the boys got 2 really great raised bed built for me and we discovered that they eat of a huge amount of soil. I think each one took close to 30 bags of peat hummus and top soil to get filled! Finally after we filled them, I went wild planting seeds.

That is where I ran into trouble.

In all the excitement of getting my seeds in the ground, ONE OF US (that'd be ME) didn't mark what was planted there. Did you know that there are a lot of plants that appear to be weeds? Yep. After pulling what turned out to be stuff I planted, I have decided that next year the planting beds will be clearly marked and I won't put so much in them. Cucumbers and melons become monstrosities in no time at all. Plus--when you plant Brandywine or Cherokee Purple tomatoes--PUT CAGES AROUND THEM EARLY!! They grow to be huge and flop over if not supported.

Lessons learned.

The hard way.

Plans for the Summer

2010-07-05T12:18:00.002-06:00

Hope everyone's July 4th celebrations went off with a bang!

It was quite noisy around our little town last night with all the fireworks exploding around us. Cute man and the twins got in on the action by stocking up on some of the good stuff too. The dogs and chickens did not seem to share the excitement of the celebration though. The dogs were firmly planted in the house and the chickens took to the coop as soon as the first bang!
Summer has been slowly moving along this year. So far, the biggest highlight has been the sushi making class one of my son's and I took in Kansas City at the Culinary Center of Kansas City. It was a 3 hour drive, but it was worth EVERY mile. Their classes always are! In August, my oldest son and I have signed up for a handmade pasta class. One of the things we always do when we are up there is hit the Asian grocery stores and the Whole Foods Market. If we had one of these in Wichita, I would be in absolute heaven!! I always stock up on their 365 brand stuff and their bulk foods when I hit Kansas City. Last time I was in town, I noticed they had ground bison. YUM! Thinking a couple pounds (or 10) will have to come back with us when I go in August! I did see an article in the Wichita newspaper recently that mention Whole Foods might consider coming to Wichita--that would make this city HEAVEN! We have a nice city, not as big as Kansas City, but definitely a very easy place to live, and having a Whole Foods where I could get to would make it complete. I would probably do the bulk of my shopping there and at Dillon's since I tend to try to stay away from Wal-Mart most of the time.

In addition to the pasta class, I am teaching a canning class in El Dorado this September. I love to can and was approached by a lady about teaching a class to beginners. Since I love sharing the "gospel of the canning jar" to everyone, of course I said yes! LOL. We'll be doing jams and probably some salsa. Hopefully my garden gets it together and starts spitting out tomatoes in time! If not, I'll figure out a plan B and hit the Farmer's market.

Summer!

2010-06-04T06:59:00.003-06:00

This is going to be a busy summer! My 4 year old grand nephew is going to spend a large portion of the summer with us. The twins are now 16 years old, so it has been a while since we've had a little one in the house.

Things that have fallen by the wayside:
1. Sleeping in : little man wakes up no later than 6:30 a.m.....and there is no going back to bed after that.

2. the ability to go into the restroom and have a moment of peace and quiet...you guys with kids remember this, I'm sure!

3. Housecleaning....I had hoped to catch up with this during the summer. Might have to be creative with this one. The house needs to have a really good Spring cleaning!

We are having to work with little man on amusing himself and not getting into stuff he knows he is not supposed to get into. We've also had to work quite a bit on not talking back to adults, spitting and other things he gets away with at his house. He is here because niece says she can't handle him, but once he gets a strict and firm routine, he settles down. At some point this summer I am going to go to my niece's house to teach her how to be a Mom. She didn't have a role model since her Mom was (and still is) pretty non functional in that area. It does make me realize the importance of role models for our kids. If kids do not have a good role model, it is often hard for them to succeed in public and at home. When you are raising your kids, you are also shaping the world your grand kids will live in. It is not a task to be taken lightly!

On the flip side, I did get our blackberry bushes and grapes planted, along with 2 raised beds. One of those beds has rhubarb, asparagus, and a variety of lettuce and tomatoes. I had put in strawberries, but the dogs dug them up. So we finally got smart and surrounded the raised beds with chicken wire to keep both the dogs and cats out. The other beds have tomatoes, cucumbers, Thai melons and marigolds. After the seeds sprout, I will thin them and transplant to a couple other raised beds so that we have more. I am looking forward to canning our own salsa and tomato sauces this summer. I need to put some bell peppers in the ground this week, but after that I am pretty much done for the planting season. One of the things that surprised me is the amount of soil it took to fill the raised beds! The next ones will not be as deep or as wide!

Another activity this season is an oil painting class at the Wichita Center for the Arts. I have been wanting to take an oil class for a while and decided that this is the right time...This was before we found out we were getting my grand nephew for the summer, but I decided that we will work around that and I stayed in the class. However, finding the place to paint without having little man's hands on the canvas might be a challenge.

The one thing I have NOT been able to do is get any knitting done. I have a pair of socks that have been on the needles FOREVER! I want to get them done soon. I also miss my two favorite yarn shops: Twist in Wichita and The Newton Beadery in Newton. Have to figure out how to make time to knit!

HE DID IT!

2010-05-19T13:54:00.002-06:00

My beautiful, smart husband graduated with his Master's degree in aerospace engineering this past week. I'm so proud of him! He has worked really hard. The day before my cute man's graduation, our friend Cindy graduated with her Ph.D in Human Factors engineering. GREAT JOB ERIC AND CINDY!

A little time away?

2010-04-18T17:40:00.002-06:00

Yep--it has been quite a while since I have actually sat down and blogged. Bad blogger, I know. I had good intentions and high aspirations, but you can see how that turned out. So, here is an update on everything at Casa CrazyLife:

1: I went back to school to work on an art degree. This is the degree I had originally wanted to complete before I had my oldest son. At 45 years old, I am going back and working on this. Right now I am enrolled in a drawing 1 class and a Jewelry 1 class and loving it. That is part time--6 hours, but it fits well with the fact I am still a full time taxi for 2 teenagers who are very involved in sports and other school activities. Since they have their licenses and will be sharing a car next semester, it will free my schedule up a bit. I plan to take a life drawing, a 2d design class and jewelry 2....My school is a junior college and I am completely in love with it, but after I finish up some other classes I will have to transfer to the four year university here. The studio classes will probably not transfer, but they have been really beneficial to me. I have learned so much this semester that has helped my drawing! And I have conquered my fear of acetylene torches in my jewelry class...it has been a learning semester for me. When I transfer to the university, I will go in under the printmaking department. I love printmaking--relief printing and drypoint in particular, along with etching, but I will be glad to learn it all.

2: Hubby graduates with his master's degree (in engineering) this May. It will be nice to have him home on Tuesday and Thursday nights..LOL. I'm sure he is really ready to graduate also, but for different reason. Thinking the Tuesday and Thursday nights were quiet times for him.

3. Oldest son moved from Tipton, Iowa. He is only 3 hours away right now. However, we haven't had time to visit him yet. After the school season ends, we will hopefully have more time.

That is a brief rundown -- there has been a lot more going on to keep me busy and away from blogging...time to get back and start blogging regularly again.

Proud of the Kids!

2009-12-05T08:13:00.003-06:00

As I sit here in the warmth of my house, my husband and sons are on Ft. Smith, Arkansas competing in the regional high school robotics competition.. All the kids worked hard for this and I'm really proud of them. At the beginning of the year, all the competing schools in the state meet at the same time and get the kits and specifications for the robots they are to build. The kids modify and create a robot that has to complete certain tasks during the competition. There is also a separate written and oral presentation that figures into the scoring process. Our kids did well enough to be one of 5 teams from our state to get to Regional finals. YAY CAMPUS COLTS! The final round of the competition is today--I'm sending positive thoughts their way!!

On the home side, the girls are growing in leaps and bounds--I'll post pictures next week. Hopefully we will have the coop out in the yard soon. If you are going to get chickens, I highly recommend having EVERYTHING in place--coop, fenced enclosure if you have dogs like we do, and every possible thing you need--before you bring those cute LITTLE chicks home. As I have discovered, chickens morph into really big chicken in practically no time. We have them in cages right now until the coop is completed, but a wise woman would have had this before the whole process started. Daily cage changing is a pain!!! And you REALLY have to change the pans daily or you end up with sick chickens. You have to keep the outside pens clean with daily maintenance anyway, but it is a little easier when they have the room to roam. That is the lesson for the day! Learn it well!

Growing Up

2009-11-18T22:28:00.002-06:00

Remember the girls we bought at Atwoods a couple weeks ago? Remember how cute and small they were? Well, my little girls have grown up....Originally we planned to have them in the coop by now, but I'm concerned they may not do too well in the winter cold since they are still pretty young, so we are setting them up in the garage for the winter and they will go into a coop enclosure when it warms up in the Spring.

They are sooo much fun to watch!

Once A Month Cooking Spaghetti Sauce

2009-10-29T19:18:00.003-06:00

Last night we had lasagna for dinner with sauce prepared from page 20 of the Once a Month Cooking book. This is my new go to sauce for spaghetti and lasagna. I did change the recipe a bit and added 1 pound of ground beef in addition to the pound of bulk Italian sausage since we like meaty sauces--and it was excellent. I also browned the meat, drained it and put all the ingredients in my slow cooker to simmer overnight, which made it even easier and added a slow simmered flavor.

With the sauce prepared, I put one cup of sauce on the bottom of a generously buttered 9"x13" baking pan and covered that with a layer of dried lasagna noodles.

Why dry? Doesn't the package say boil until tender? Well, yes it does, but let me let you in on a secret. First, boiling the noodles is a pain and a step I don't have the patience for. I always tear the soft noodles. Since the noodles are going to be covered with sauce, then cooked in a covered pan, they will be tender when it is time to pull the dish out and not soggy. The dried noodles will absorb any excess liquids during the cooking process, which cuts down on the possibility for a soggy entree. Second, you might have to break up the noodles to cover any bare spots. One thing I discovered was the corners of my pans were rounded, which made a 1/4 " gap if I tried to lay the noodles in it. So I snapped of a little of the corner of the noodles at the edge and they tucked into the rounded corners perfectly. Play with it to make it work for you,

Next, put a layer of sauce over the noodles. Mix together 2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1 cup of small curd cottage cheese (trust me on this--it is good). layer it on top the sauce, then put a layer of dried noodles over that, with another layer of sauce. repeat this to make the lasagna as thick as the pan. Make sure the last layer of noodles are completely covered with sauce, then cover and put in a 350 degree oven for approx 45 minutes. Test noodles to see if they are done by putting a knife into a noodle. If it offers no resistance, the dish is done. Take it out and let it sit for 15 minutes so it is easier to slice and serve.

Serve with french bread, salad and fruit. YUM!

Baked Jambalya From "Once a Month Cooking"

2009-10-29T19:00:00.003-06:00

In my previous post, I had tried the 12 Boy Curry from The Once A Month Cooking book by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Langerborg. Tuesday I decided to try the Baked Jambalaya on page 22. I love jambalaya and had high hopes for this dish.

I prepared the sauce and it smell outrageously good. Then I added the rice, covered it and baked it. Unfortunately the rice was a bit soggy and mushy when it came out of the oven. Maybe I overcooked it, however the taste of the rest of it was spectacular and the prep work was not too intense. Actually it was downright easy, so I am glad I prepared a double batch (the rice is not frozen with the sauce, it is added before baking) and froze one for later.

As I said, the actual taste of the jambalaya was great, the mushy rice was not, so next time I will prepare the rice separately from the sauce, simmer the sauce in the crockpot and then add the cooked rice right before I serve it to keep the rice from getting mushy or pour the heated sauce over the cooked rice in bowls. Normally I shy away from recipes that don't turn out the first time, but I was please with the taste of the sauce, so I am going to try it again with minor changes. Prepared this way, the sauce can simmer all day in a crockpot on low and be ladled over the rice that is prepared right before serving.

Once A Month Cooking Manual 12 Boy Curry

2009-10-22T17:25:00.006-06:00

I am trying my hand at cooking at home more in order to save a little hard earned cash that is normally used to eat out. My eventual goal is to buy a small chest freezer so I can start doing "freezer cooking" or "once a month cooking". That is where you spend an afternoon once a month or every two weeks making enough entrees for 15 or 30 meals that will be frozen for future meals. When I heard about it initially, I thought it sounded like a lot of work and perhaps a bit odd.

But one evening as I was pulling a prepackaged commercially prepared Lasagna out of the freezer, I thought "DUH! What am I doing paying $10 for a meal I could have made and frozen myself for a lot less. "

Not to mention I would be avoiding preservatives and other stuff common in frozen foods. I had attended a workshop session many years ago in Tulsa by the authors of "30 Day Gourmet" and even went as far as to purchase their book. To give you an idea, I have a copy of the first and second edition, they are currently on the 10th or 11th edition. I have to admit that I haven't tried any recipes out of it, however the worksheets and the instructions are worth their weight in gold if you haven't done this kind of mass food prep before. I started collecting a couple other books like this with the intention of cooking from them.

Recently I dusted them all off and decided to try recipes from these books.

I decided I will take 2 books and work through them for a period of 3-4 months. This month I will be working through the Once A Month Cooking Manual by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg and More Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer by Sue Martinez, Vanda Howell and Bonnie Garcia. Both of these books are easily available through Amazon.com.

Tonight I made the 12 Boy Curry From the Once a Month Cooking Manual.

The prep work was pretty darn easy. Sauteing the chicken in butter, removing then sauteing the chopped onion celery and garlic in additional butter. Combining the dry ingredients, adding to the cooking veggies, adding the liquids and then the cooked chicken. Since our family is not big on celery, I was tempted to leave it out, but decided to go ahead and do the recipe as printed this time. I'm glad I did. The celery is not noticeable by itself, but is definitely a key player in the fabulous flavor of this dish. My only departure from the recipe is that I used the beef soup base I have in the cabinet instead of the canned beef broth, but that is splitting hairs since it is all the same stuff. I just used what I had on hand. I did add a little hot curry powder (1/2 tsp) since our family likes things pretty spicy, but I would advise caution on that. I ALMOST overdid that. Nobody in my family will get cold tonight! LOL!

The prep work on this dish was pretty minimal, it went together fast and tastes unbelievable! If I didn't know I had prepared it, I would say it competes head to head with my favorite Indian eatery.

This one is a definite keeper! When spooned over Jasmine (That was all I had on hand) or Basmati rice, which would have been the most appropriate rice, it is unbelievable.

Since it is night and the light from the overhead light would give the picture a weird orange/yellow glow, I will wait to post pictures of the dish until next time I make it. AND I WILL BE MAKING IT AGAIN SOON! It is fabulous.

I am looking forward to trying other dishes from this book.

Is this CUTE or what?

2009-10-09T16:43:00.004-06:00

I had thought about getting chickens for quite some time. This week, I finally acted on it.

Actually, I think it was more like divine intervention. Not sure husband agrees, but that's the story I'm sticking to.

I had originally gone into Atwoods looking for an apple peeler to peel a large amount of apples to make an apple crisp. While they didn't have the kind of apple peeler that will work for me, I wandered into the feed section and found the Fall chicks. I knew they had chicks and other animals for sale in the Spring, but never thought about them selling in the Fall. I guess that makes sense. By the time Spring rolls around, it will be time for them to start laying eggs. I am looking forward to just having to go to my own back yard for fresh eggs! We only have a couple, which will be fine for our sized family and the size lot we have. It is also easier for me to keep a couple chickens clean. They are all pullets (females) since roosters aren't allowed in our city for obvious reasons.

The girls are currently housed in a large cage in our guest bedroom until the coop is in place and they are old enough to go outside. The kids and I love to watch the girls' antics. They are so funny to watch and I can tell they have interesting personalities already.

The reasons for keeping chickens becomes glaringly obvious the first time you have a fresh egg. Not the kind you buy at the grocery store, but a real egg from chickens that are fed real food and allowed room to move around. When we homeschooled the boys many years ago, we went to the home of another homeschooler that had chickens. She sent everyone home with a dozen fresh eggs. The boys and I were amazed at how orange the yolks were and how high the yolks set in the whites. It was amazing! And the taste was incomparable! Ever since then, we have thought about getting chickens. While the cost of keeping chickens does not make it cheaper than store bought when you figure in the cost of food and other things, the benefits are obvious.

And now we have chickens...

Why YES--it is High School football season...

2009-09-09T14:18:00.004-06:00

This is Mark. Obviously entrenched in an interesting conversation with one of his team mates.

In the picture above, that's our other twin son, Jeremy--sandwiched between #53 and #77, with his helmet off.

And here he is again, not looking too happy...

We are in full swing here at Casa Davis. Football season has started and both boys are playing again this year. Since they are on the JV team and backup for the varsity team, that means we have not one, but TWO football games each week. Yep. It is keeping us busy and the boys are exhausted every night. Mark usually ends up falling asleep right after dinner. It will only be like this for a couple more months, so in the meantime we are just trying to plug right along.

I'm Still Here!

2009-08-14T11:06:00.002-06:00

It has been a while since I've posted, but I am still here! This summer has turned out to be much busier than I'd anticipated, so unfortunately blogging has fallen a bit behind. I'll return this weekend with pictures of some of the knitting I've been working on, posts on good eats and just general mayhem that is my life!

Soapmaking at The Flying Pig in Wichita

2009-07-20T17:53:00.004-06:00

Robin (in the picture) and I took a cold process soapmaking class a couple weeks ago at The Flying Pig here in Wichita. Dani, the owner has a REALLY good smoothie bar in the back so that while you are shopping or taking a class, you can be enjoying one of the best smoothies in Wichita.

Her shop is packed with just about any kind of special touch that you can imagine. She has one of a kind jewelry, pottery, paintings etc by local artists, wonderful candles and bath products for yourself or someone else, and a lot of little treasures. Except the butterfly hooks in the above picture. Those had to come home with me. She can probably order some for you, but these babies had my name on them.

OK, so my hand was not completely still. Sorry! But I did get a picture of the owner, Dani, on the left and my friend Robin on the right. All the bottles are the makings for soap. The class was FANTASTIC. Robin and I made the same kind of soap (Cocoa/vanilla) with all kinds of wonderful oils and goats milk. It really got my creative juices flowing. I've made cold process soap in the past, but put it aside because the kids were so small. Now that I have brushed up on the basics again, I really want to start making soap again.

Dani is very sweet and shares a wealth of information, so I came away really inspired. She offers soapmaking classes at a really great price, so contact her and let her show you how to make something special of your own. Or you can buy some handcrafted soap made by her right there at the shop. She has several varieties.

Once you use real handcrafted soap that nourishes your skin instead of stripping the life out of it, you will not go back to the supermarket stuff. And by the way, look at the labels of the "soap" you are using. Notice it says stuff like deodorant bar, complexion bar and a variety of other labels--anything but SOAP. That's because it is not real soap.

And here is Robin. Watch it, she is a handful of trouble! LOL.

If you have time, stop in Dani's shop. It is a locally owned, female owned small business, so your money stays local and supports our local artists and shops. We need locally owned businesses to thrive in Wichita!!

For Chris

2009-07-05T18:42:00.001-06:00

Ok Christine-- Is it wrong that I saw this list and thought of you?

LOL!!

50 THINGS YOU WOULD LOVE TO SAY OUT LOUD AT WORK

1. I can see your point, but I still think you're full of shit.
2. I don't know what your problem is, but I'll bet it's hard to pronounce.
3. How about never? Is never good for you?
4. I see you've set aside this special time to humiliate yourself in public.
5. I'm really easy to get along with once you people learn to see it my way.
6. Who lit the fuse on your tampon?
7. I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message.
8. I don't work here. I'm a consultant.
9. It sounds like English, but I can't understand a word you're saying.
10. Ahhhh. I see the screw-up fairy has visited us again.
11. I like you. You remind me of myself when I was young and stupid.
12 You are validating my inherent mistrust of strangers.
13. I have plenty of talent and vision; I just don't give a shit.
14. I'm already visualizing the duct tape over your mouth.
15. I will always cherish the initial misconceptions I had about you.
16. Thank you. We're all refreshed and challenged by your unique point of view.
17. The fact that no one understands you doesn't mean you're an artist.
18. Any resemblance between your reality and mine are purely coincidental.
19. What am I? Flypaper for freaks?!
20. I'm not being rude. You're just insignificant.
21. It's a thankless job, but I've got a lot of Karma to burn off.
22. Yes, I am an agent of Satan, but my duties are largely ceremonial.
23. And your cry-baby whiny-assed opinion would be?
24. Do I look like a people person to you?
25. This isn't an office. It's Hell with fluorescent lighting.
26. I started out with nothing and I still have most of it left.
27. Sarcasm is just one more service we offer.
28. If I throw a stick, will you leave?
29. Errors have been made. Others will be blamed..
30. Whatever kind of look you were aiming for, you missed.
31. Oh I get it. Like humor, but different.........
32. An office is just a mental institute without the padded walls.
33. Can I swap this job for what's behind door..........Number 1?
34. Too many freaks, not enough circuses.
35. Nice perfume (or aftershave). Must you marinate in it?
36. Chaos, panic, and disorder. My work here is done.
37. How do I set a laser printer to stun?
38. I thought I wanted a career; it turns out I just needed the money.
39. I'll try being nicer if you'll try being more intelligent.
40. Wait a minute - I'm trying to imagine you with a personality.
41. Aren't you a black hole of need?
42. I'd like to help you out, which way did you come in?
43. Did you eat an extra bowl of stupid this morning?
44. Why don't you slip into something more comfortable? Like a coma.
45. If you have something to say raise your hand... then place it over your mouth.
46. I'm too busy, can I ignore you some other time?
47. Don't let your mind wander, it's too small to be let out on its own.
48. Have a nice day, somewhere else.
49. You're not yourself today, I noticed the improvement straight away.
50. Do you hear that? That's the sound of no-one caring.

LOL!!!!

2009-07-04T10:55:00.003-06:00

Another funny one from Christine. Actually there were a whole bunch like this, I'll post them bit by bit. However, this one I LOVED the most..

I guess I should sign off and take a hormone pill, huh?

Awwww...Cute..

2009-07-02T17:19:00.003-06:00

The dogs in this house are not spoiled. Especially by the my teenagers, who TOTALLY ignore them as you can see.

Amsterdam...

2009-07-01T08:51:00.004-06:00

Yep, more Amsterdam photos...I loved the tulips so much while I was there that I actually ended up buying a couple dozen kinds of tulips that I haven't seen here in the states. They ship them in October, so I'm going to get the beds ready so that I just pop them in when they get here. I might even end up buying another 200 bulbs from them before the season begins. I saw a lot of the really bright ones in their email the other day. As you can tell, I'm not a mute/demure color kind of gal.

This apartment building was just so darn pretty! It looked like something from a painting, which is probably something that I will be doing. Getting to go to really great world class museums (and there were hundreds more in Holland) and seeing the sights really got my creative mojo going again. I have started to paint again, which I had put down since life got so crazy busy.

These are gorgeous! This is about as muted and pale as I go...However, we'll see. I might have a gaggle of pales in a special planting this Spring because there were some really pretty tulips and other plants at the public gardens in Amsterdam.

Amazing!!

And so inspiring.

I can understand why people go to Europe to get inspiration. I can't describe it, but you can't help but get inspired amid all the sights. The history is amazing. I was so in awe that I was amid building built in the 1600's and before...and the art...you just have to go. I can't even start to explain it. Yes, there were some seedy areas, as there are in all metro cities, but not too bad.

Next time I go back, I want to stay closer to the city center. I enjoyed taking the train -- I love trains--but it would have been great to just be able to wake up and tumble into the streets. However, the hotel we were at had this tub that literally came up to my neck, which was heaven for taking a long soak. I wish I could find one like that here in the states!! I'd even remodel a bathroom for that! However, I can tell you that it did not have a safety on the hot water. The water can out at what felt like boiling! I had to be careful to monitor that.

Well, goodbye for now.

Can never have too many Amsterdam Flower Pics, right?

2009-06-18T19:42:00.003-06:00

More Flowers!

2009-06-18T19:36:00.001-06:00

Amsterdam..flowers

2009-06-18T19:15:00.004-06:00

More flowers--you can never have too many flowers! And the public gardens had more than enough! Since you can't bring bulbs into the country yourself (they have to be certified and inspected by the U.S), you can order certain bulbs there to be sent later. I bought some blue tulips and a couple other bulbs that I haven't been able to find here. They are supposed to come in October--I can't wait! They will be a wonderful rememberance of this trip.

The color combinations were absolutely stunning!! I could have spent an entire week there just looking at the tulips, but there was also an orchid exhibit going on in one of the show halls that totally captured my heart! I love orchids!!

Funny

2009-06-07T22:13:00.003-06:00

My friend Christine sends me funny posters from time to time and this one got us all laughing.

Thanks Christine! I needed the giggles.

More Amsterdam

2009-06-04T19:22:00.013-06:00

A bakery window. The stuff inside looked awesome. And yes, the guy with the orange hat was celebrating Queens Day as was the bakery clerk.. Holy Smokes the stuff inside looked so good! We had already eaten or I would have collapsed face first into the window display (from the inside, mind you, since glass with my pastry didn't seem as appealing.)

I loved the canals! The homes along the canals were so pretty. I would love to have a home like this. However, I'm told real estate in city central is pretty pricey. Look at all the tiny cars. They are all over Holland, but I did see some Ford vans and a couple American style (large) cars while there. However, they are not common. With gas prices at almost $3 a LITER (WOW!!), driving a gas guzzler is really not practical. On the first day we were there, my friend had a business meeting so the company sent a driver to pick us up at the airport and to drive us home after the meeting and lunch. The driver on the way back to the hotel was very friendly and we talked quite a bit about the differences in America and Amsterdam. At lunch I got quite a bit more insight into life in Amsterdam. Everyone pays a large percentage of taxes, but most don't complain since these taxes go into services like medical and housing. I ask one of the men how they felt about such high taxes and he said in Amsterdam, people look out for the common good , which is different than America where we tend to be more independent and think everyone needs to attend to themselves.

More of the intersecting canals. This is during Queens Day, which explains the packed boat. This canal was less crowded than the most of the other canals, which were packed with boats of celebrants. See all the boats tied up along the canal? I could soooo get used to living here! I loved being on the boats that we took around the city.

Did I mention that I really loved visiting there and can't wait to get back?

The only thing I didn't find in Amsterdam was a yarn shop. However, next time I will be more determined to find a shop and knit in public.I was unsure of how hard it would be to bring my knitting on the plane, so I left all my knitting at home. I regretted that. It would have been good to be able to knit both on the plane and while we were at the hotel. Being without something to knit was an odd feeling.

In Honor of George Tiller

2009-05-31T16:45:00.009-06:00

Dr. George Tiller was murdered by a cowardly terrorist today while serving in his church.

He was a hero for women's choice and will be missed. I am sending a donation to a Pro Choice organization in honor of Dr. Tiller and encourage you to do the same.

I hope the President takes notice of this and takes action to keep these acts of terrorism from happening here in America. If this is not dealt with quickly and harshly, we are paving the way for Taliban-like groups that kill and intimidate others that don't believe as they do.

More Amsterdam Architecture.

2009-05-29T15:53:00.002-06:00

Just look at the ornamentation on these buildings.

Amsterdam Photos..

2009-05-29T15:21:00.006-06:00

The guy with the crazy wig had the best seat in the house to observe Queen's Day.

I was told that building at one time were taxed according to their footage on the street. This is a reason lots of the buildings are skinny but tall. This building really plays that to the hilt. It really is leaning inward a bit and angled oddly(but possibly less than it appears in the picture since the camera may be a little slanted too. But you get the idea). Hence less taxes..Clever, and eye catching solution to property taxation, don't you think?

All the orange hats were part of the Queen's Day celebration. Everyone got one as they entered the city.

I was a little dismayed at all the people who were throwing them on the ground, but I'm sure they realize they pay for them one way or another. Who do you think pays for the city to clean them up? I did see an awful lot of litter, broken bottles and trash around the city, but I'm hoping it was just because of Queen's Day and not a normal situation in the city.

All in all, the city is absolutely charming with unbelievable architecture and charm. It felt really odd to go past building with date of the mid 1600's on their gables.

I really fell in love with this place--absolutely and completely!! I can't wait to get back.

Most of the streets intersect with canals. Just look at the ornate footings on the bridge. Works of art!!!

These are just a couple of my pictures. Since I have a card reader, I'll start posting bit by bit and telling you more.

Hiccups

2009-05-24T11:05:00.002-06:00

I know I said I was going to post pictures from Amsterdam "the next day" --but then I discovered that the new computer does not have an SD chip slot. I guess we got so used to seeing them standard on even the low end computers that we assumed the Dell replacement we got would automatically have one.

It doesn't.

So Cute Man is going to get a portable SD card reader so I can get my pictures on this blog.

That said, I was really inspired by the gardens that I saw in Amsterdam and have decided that I am going to do more container gardening this summer. I'm sure I'll have to be a little more careful about the plants I pick since the weather here is much hotter than there, but there are plenty of flowers that take the heat well, so I am going to take a trip to the garden center today to start planning. I want to paint the pots in colorful designs, so that is what I will be doing this afternoon. I figure the pots will take about a week to completely dry, so I'll spend the rest of the week planning. I did buy some plastic pots for the deck though. I want to grow herbs right outside my kitchen so I will plant those this week. I am hoping little man (my grand nephew) cooperates and goes through the greenhouses with me on Monday. I am looking for peppermint to plant in my garden and around the yard where the soil is having problems washing away. Peppermint can be invasive, which is what I want in these areas. I considered bamboo, but that is REALLY invasive, which is what I don't want. Once you plant bamboo, you can't eradicate it. It's the cockroach of the plant world. Plus let's face it--putting bamboo in the grasps of males in inviting trouble. Can't you just imagine the fun they'll have cutting stalks off to cane each other....just the little things you have to consider when anything with testosterone resides in your home...LOL.

We have had my 2 1/2 year old nephew here for the past week, so not a lot has gotten done around the house. There is a possibility that he'll be with us for the summer, so I'm going to have to figure out how to work my schedule. Unfortunately it has meant that I've been unable to get to the yarn shops that I love so much--Twist in Wichita and The Newton Beadery in Newton--but I'm going to be figuring out how to work that out. Both are places that allow me to decompress and relieve stress.

Interesting....

2009-05-20T19:08:00.003-06:00

Turn off the music player at the bottom of the page and listen to a pretty interesting discussion on schools and creativity...

Whiz kids...

2009-05-15T22:46:00.005-06:00

While I was in Amsterdam, I took in all the sights, took pictures and compared things there to what I am accustomed to in the United States. There were many things I really loved, some were a bit surprising to me, such as the men's urinals on street corners.

While we were walking the streets, I kept seeing little partitioned structures on street corners with little basins on them. Not seeing anyone near at first, I reasoned that they must be some sort of hand washing structure. Thankfully I did not try that out since a couple minutes later a guy sauntered up, unzipped and relieved himself.

Yep.

It was a very public urinal right there on the street corner.

Since I was a wee bit shocked, I missed taking pictures of these structures -- nothing spotlights you as a tourist more than taking a picture of a public whiz spot. But the concept of whizzing in public was thankfully limited to men. Women had to go hunt down the very limited bathrooms---if you were lucky, the cafe let you use their bathrooms as in the case of the Esprit cafe near Spui. They were very gracious about it since I was probably sounding like a really desperate American.

As I said, I didn't get pictures, but this blog has a great example of one. See? IT IS NOT ENCLOSED!!

However, I guess it is better to have these since I'm sure that the men who have the gumption to whiz at these would just as easily relieve themselves in the canals, on buildings etc.... much like college bars on a Friday night in America, come to think of it.

When my husband was in college, he lived in a little apartment near the alley of a very popular bar. We were forever looking out the bathroom window and seeing some guy relieving himself on our wall. Ever so often I would chuck a pitcher of ice water out that window to defend the wall's honor. I'm sure some of those guys were so snockered they thought the wall whizzed back at them.

I'm Back!

2009-05-15T00:01:00.003-06:00

Ok--so it has been a while since I've posted. A lot of things have happened and it will take more than one post to get everything caught up, so here is a brief rundown. I will post more detailed posts starting tomorrow.

1. Went to Amsterdam. LOVED IT! Can't wait to go back next year, but I think I'll plan it either before or after Queen's Day, not during. While it was interesting to see the huge crowds of people celebrating, the streets were so packed that in several areas, my friend and I felt like we were being squashed in the crowds. We did get to do quite a bit of walking, ride the canal taxi,visit the Van Gogh museum and the public tulip gardens, so the trip was really awe inspiring.

I'll post pictures tomorrow with a longer explanation.

2. Learned to knit lace. I have taken 3 lace knitting classes in the past couple weeks and am currently working on a triangular lace shawl for the last class in the series. Lace 1 was a very basic class that introduced us to the concepts by having the class work a scarf in the feather and fan pattern and a scarf in the horseshoe lace pattern. I am actually still working on the horseshoe lace scarf because I made it quite a bit longer than the class sample. The second class expanded on the concepts and taught us how to read the chart and knit the "Branching Out" scarf. I've started that one, but it is currently waiting it's turn in line. That said, I am working on the triangular lace shawl from lace 3 and will hopefully be able to get it completed by next month. It requires quite a bit of concentration, so needless to say I only knit it when the house is quiet. That is going to be a challenge very soon since.....

3. My grand nephew is coming to spend either part or all of the summer with us. He is a 2 1/2 year old bundle of pure energy. Yep, this is going to be an interesting summer to say the least.

As I said, this is just a brief catch up post--I'll take each category and beef up the details over the next couple days to catch up.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!

2009-04-14T22:28:00.008-06:00

Above: The finished scarf from my rigid heddle weaving class. A little shorter than I'd hoped, but Hubby said it is a good length for him to tuck under his coat collar. This scarf was made for him in the colors of his alma mater (Oklahoma State University) which is also our hometown (Stillwater, Oklahoma). Since this is my first scarf EVER, I was experimenting with the striping. I do have to work a little more on weaving in the ends--the instructor taught us a trick, but I might have to go back to have her show me again. This weekend I'm going to do a longer scarf for him in the same colors but with different striping sequences. And here is a picture of the scarf pretty close to the beginning. I took a beginning rigid heddle weaving class at The Yarn Barn in Lawrence, Kansas this past Saturday. It was a wonderful class and the instructor was fantastic. To show what a small world it is, the instructor of my rigid heddle class grew up in the town next to mine, and her Dad teaches art at my kid's high school!

I love going to Lawrence to take classes at the Yarn Barn and to visit their wonderful shops and restaurants. It is a very vibrant and eclectic college town with a bustling downtown. Each time I've taken classes at The Yarn Barn hubby has driven the almost 3 hour drive with me and wandered around downtown while I'm in class. He's such a sweetheart! This time the class was from 10 a.m until 5:00, so he was definitely on his own for an extended period. We like to spend a little time sitting on one of the many benches and just watch people and their dogs. A lot of people walk their dogs downtown, so it is always a great place to just sit and look.

No trip to Lawrence would be complete without eating at my favorite Indian restaurant (India Palace)which is located right around the corner from the yarn shop. Convenient, huh?

Usually we head over to Half Price Books afterwards, but to tell you the truth, I was pretty darn tired. Since we had to travel to Stillwater the next day for Easter and we opted to just head home. It was a really good day though.

I was REALLY happy that I took the class. The instructor was great and I actually bought the 16" loom my scarf was on. This allowed me to take the scarf home on the loom and continue where I left off. I do have a 24" loom that I bought a month ago, but the 16" will be a good size for something thinner like scarves. I am going to warp both of them this week so I can do another scarf for Cute Man and a shawl for me. I love the look of woven shawls, which is why I took the class, but I don't think I'd have the patience to warp a large floor loom. The rigid heddle is perfect for me. Plus, it is portable. I really like that I can take it with me if I go to the lake. My 24" folds and has a carrying bag, which is great for travel also. The 16" doesn't fold, but I can sew a carrying bag myself if I decide to take it out a lot.

I'm not abandoning knitting, just learning a new fiber addiction!

And You Think YOUR job sucks?!

2009-04-07T14:44:00.008-06:00

Exactly how do you get to be the guy who goes in to see if it's REALLY a bomb? Do they draw straws or is it decided by who makes the boss mad that day?

Notice the cop following him in, craning his neck...AND THEN HE'S GONE. Like totally nowhere in sight... Yeah, thanks for the backup there buddy..

I love the "too cool to run" walk they're doing in this video. Don't know about you, but if I see the bomb squad rollin' in, my happy arse is SOOO OUT OF THERE! None of this cool "Miami Strut" like in the video. I'd be running like...well, let's just say I'd be running and leave it at that, shall we?!

So, on days when things just suck at the office and your boss is really making you mad, remember: A day that sucks is still good, but a day in "the pretty suit" could really blow.

Another thing: Is it just me, or does that suit look like a costume mix from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? Like a mix of Shredder's face gear and a Turtle's body sans the shell.

Yep, one of us definitely has spent too much time watching cartoons with kids.

OK. I'm done.

I'll get back in my box now.

We knew this already, didn't we?

2009-04-05T13:40:00.000-06:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

Hard to be a Gangsta' in Yo Mama's Ride

2009-04-02T14:53:00.002-06:00

My teenage son, Mark and I were waiting outside the school this afternoon for his twin brother when a white mini van pulled up beside our car. Actually, we could hear it from half a block away because it was vibrating bass so loudly that our attention was captured quickly. In the front seat of the mini van was a kid wearing his baseball cap sideways and bobbing his head to the rhythm of the already overloaded speakers.

Apparently he thought he was THE BIG MAN sitting there in THE MINI VAN.

Mark And I looked at each other and grinned.

Mark said "Yo,Yo, Dog-- don't make me hit you with my extra cupholders" with such a straight face that I busted out laughing. Then he said "Don't make me shank you with my soda can".

Both of us were laughing so hard at this point that people were looking at us. To which Mark adds "Yo, I'd fight ya, but I have to pick kids up from soccer practice"--again with a straight face. By the time Jeremy got to the car, I was laughing so hard that I couldn't drive.

So--word up to all you wanna be "GANGSTAS": Ya just can't be a pimp daddy in your mama's ride.

Holy Smokes! Great Pizza Dough!!

2009-03-28T19:18:00.002-06:00

I have a copy of the book "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" and have seriously considered making a couple of the recipes from it for quite some time. As a matter of fact, I bought a couple 6 quart lidded containers to keep dough on hand in my fridge, but had not made it until a couple days ago. I had made the dough and put it in the fridge but hadn't used any of it until tonight.

What took me so long? This stuff is fabulous!! Tonight the boys wanted homemade pizza and I was getting ready to make dough from my regular recipe, then I remembered the dough in the fridge. Pizza dough is basically thin bread dough, so I thought, "What the heck, let's give it a try."

This dough is different from most dough in that you really need to use it from the fridge when it is cold, or it gets sticky. I worked it from the center, stretching it thin, then put it on parchment paper to thin the edges out. I stretched the second pizza dough until you could almost see through it and it turned out to be the one we liked the best. This dough does rise more during the baking process, which is great for bread rounds, but thinner is better for pizza. After I got it thinned out to the point I liked, I topped it with pizza sauce ( 1 can tomato sauce, 1 small can tomato paste, 1 or 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning--brought to a simmer then allowed to cool..I also add a teaspoon of red pepper flakes, but you can dress it up the way you like...) and added toppings like drained canned mushrooms and chopped black olives, pepperoni and whatever else we feel like at the time.

Holy Smokes, this is good stuff. I think this is going to be my standard pizza dough recipe from here on out. I love that it is ready in the fridge whenever we get the hankering for pizza (and we can use the dough for boule bread loaves when we need it for dinner) and it save a ton of money, not to mention time.

Try it and let me know what you think. As I said, I bought the book, but the New York Times has one recipe from the book here. This is the one I used, although I did have a pizza stone in the oven, I spread my dough out on baking parchment paper and didn't do the broiler pan with water since I was doing pizza, not bread loaves. I'm going to try to find a pizza peel though so I can try the recipe the way it was written. I'll report back on that later this month.

Down time

2009-03-28T16:59:00.003-06:00

Let's see...This week I finished the first scarf from my lace I class and started on the second one. The brown one is a feather and fan stitch pattern done in Rowan yarn and so is the Horseshoe lace pattern scarf below. I finally learned how to read a charted lace pattern. Luckily this pattern is pretty easy and doesn't require an insane amount of concentration. The week after I had this class, I took the lace II class and started on the Branching Out scarf. That one is going to take my full concentration, so I am working it slowly. The Lace III class actually makes a triangular piece so that will be interesting. While it calls for lace weight yarn, I can tell you already that I will be using fingerling weight yarn. I've already had a run in with lace weight yarn and really don't want to go back there again!

Neither of these have been blocked, so this is not their final look. Blocking will open up the pattern and give the stitches the proper definition. I'm hoping to get the horseshoe lace scarf completed this week so I can wear it. Since our weather has been pretty darn warm lately, I thought I would be working on the scarves for next season, but look what we got yesterday:

SNOW. A LOT OF SNOW...and ice.

This is not a good picture to show just how much, but I think more snow got dumped on us last night than we've had all season. It started out raining ice -- Karen described it on Twitter as raining snowcones...good description! And as it pelted you, it felt like little needles...ouch.

The bad thing was that I had gotten up yesterday with the intention of going to the grocery store before the storm hit. On the way to the store, I stopped in our old neighborhood to see if our old neighbor (that the kids adopted as "Grandma" when we moved in) needed anything. We ended up visiting long enough that the storm had moved in by the time I left. I ended up going to our local Homeland store, which I generally avoid because they are notorious for having frozen food that has been thawed and refrozen.. I didn't buy anything frozen, but I did join half of the town in trying to get provisions.

The sad thing is that I fully realized the storm was not going to be lasting more than a day or two, but I stocked up on canned goods like I was expecting Armageddon! What's with that?!

It was nice to be forced to shut down and stay home knitting all night though.

I had anticipated it snowing and icing all day today, but the sun is out and it is melting...there goes my excuse to putter all day..But I am still hanging out knitting and baking cookies. Hubby wanted peanut butter cookies, so I made a batch this morning. Tonight I will make homemade pizza and look at chicken coop plans. Next weekend we are going to build the enclosure for the chickens that we are going to get. I haven't decided on a chicken coop design, but I'll probably just show hubby what I want and let him do his magic. He's pretty good at that.

Back From Iowa

2009-03-22T10:43:00.005-06:00

Not a very clear picture, but trust me, these were SOOO good. Probably not a single bit of nutrition in these but they contain the Southern trinity (FLOUR, SUGAR, FAT) so you know they've gotta be good!

I kept seeing these at various bakeries so I think they are a regional thing. They are basically fried doughnut crescent with an outrageous pastry icing inside and hit with a dusting of powdered sugar. One of these and you were done!! I only had one this trip since that seemed to be all I could handle without needing an insulin adjustment at the hospital--and I'm not even diabetic...

While in Iowa, the boys and I headed down the street to West Branch,Iowa-- birthplace of Herbert Hoover and the sight of his presidential library. It was really pretty interesting. There is a small section of the town that was preserved that contains his birth home. Above is a picture of his birth home. Probably no more than a couple hundred feet of living space at the most!!

There is a statue of Isis on the grounds of the presidential museum that was presented to President Hoover by the children of Belgium for his relief and humanitarian efforts. We toured the museum and came away with a whole new perspective of President Hoover. He is often the scapegoat of the Depression era. But in reality, he had been warning of the fall long before it happened and nobody listened. There was a short film of some of the European citizens that were children at the time of the war that detailed how thankful they were to get "Hoover Rolls" and food in general after starving for so long.

There was also a traveling exhibit about Abraham Linclon at the presidential library so we got to see it too. Very interesting..

We got back to Kansas on Wednesday, but after driving that many hours, I have been pretty much down for the count. Instead of driving straight from my son's house in Iowa back to Haysville, I did a little detour to pick up a rigid heddle loom from a wonderful lady in Lawrence, Kansas, so the trip back home was extended a bit. More on that detour in a future post.

We spent a lot of the time in Iowa running around Iowa City/Coralville and Cedar Rapids. Of course I had to hit the Half Price books in Cedar Rapids since they seem to always have the best stash of knitting books. I hit gold again. I found copies of "Creative Weaving" AND " Creative Spinning" for $7 each, 2 WONDERFUL Jo Sharp pattern books for $7 (they are normally $27 each according to the publishers price, so I was really happy) and a couple other goodies. While I didn't stop at the Half Price Books in Clive, Iowa and Overland Park, KS like I usually do, I did make a stop at the Penzy's Spice store in Clive to pick up a couple of their cooking magazines and some spices. It gave Jeremy and I an opportunity to get out of the car to stretch our legs and take a mental break from the road.

We also spent an hour walking around Bass Pro Shops. Next time we are going to sidetrack to Cabella's also since the boys love both places. Since Kansas City is only 3 hours from us, we might have to ride up there sometime to just check them out. I bought a Garmin GPS for this trip and it was a life saver. There were only a couple quirks to it, but these can be dealt with since overall it was a really accurate tool.

This season promises to have a lot of travel and learning opportunities for our family.

Giggles

2009-03-11T20:32:00.007-06:00

Don't you just hate all those commercials for "male assistance" drugs that you get hammered with when trying to simply watch a little TV? Well tonight that's just what happened, but...

One of my teenage sons was watching TV with me when one of those commercials came on. The obligatory disclaimer that states "seek medical attention for an erection lasting longer that 36 hours"came on.. Teenage son got quiet then said "How do you break that one to your doctor?"

Of course I just about fell out of my chair laughing....kiddo got up and went to his room to watch TV.

I'm probably going to have to leave it up to his father to have "THE TALK". There aren't enough therapists in this town to cover him if it's left up to me!

LOL!

Later note to the above: Son has corrected my post information--apparently the ad says "for erections lasting longer than 4 hours..."That makes sense to me.

If anything is still "functioning" after 36 hours, that means the county medical examiner is examining you--for "rigomortus"..

I guess that's pretty important...

Busy-ness

2009-03-08T13:51:00.003-06:00

March and April are shaping up to be really busy months here at Casa Crazylife.

What is going on? Well, here is the brief shakedown:

1.Lace knitting:
Lace knitting classes are being taught at Twist this month and next, so I jumped in and enrolled in all three (Lace I,II and III).

2.Iowa travel plans:
Spring break is right around the corner, so I am planning to hit the highway and go to Iowa again. I probably won't be heading that direction for another couple months since April is going to be crazy busy also. We will be running around Iowa City more. Last time I was there, we drove through Iowa City and I was smitten with the energy of the city. It is a college town, so the vibe is very young and full of energy.

Love it!

The university is among the best in the nation for writing, so there are a lot of bookstores and activities going on at all times.

3. More lace knitting, travel and weaving class:
April will include more of the lace knitting classes and a trip to Lawrence, Kansas the second weekend so that I can take the rigid heddle weaving class offered at The Yarn Barn. While we're there, hubby and I fully intend to completely pig out on Indian food. India Palace has an awesome buffet! We go every time we are in Lawrence.

4. Overseas travel!!!
At some point in April, I am taking an overseas trip with a friend that loves to travel. With the rate we are going to get for airfare, it would be crazy NOT to go. We are discussing either Italy (she wants to wander around the Coliseum, I'd love to go to Vatican City and tour it, or go to an art museum), Greece, Amsterdam (I REALLY want to see the Van Gogh museum), New Zealand, or a couple different spots. We are keeping it loose so we can see what destination has the best options right before we book. Amsterdam sounds like it would be the easiest to cover in the limited amount of time that we have....I'll know in the next couple weeks, I guess. I am pretty excited about it though.

5. We are getting a couple chickens.
Yep, I said chickens. We can only have a small number here in our city limits, so I will have probably 4 or 5. These will be for fresh eggs and as pets. I had a pet chicken when we moved to Kansas and I really enjoyed her. As silly as this sounds, she had a very lively personality. I'll be getting everything in place before we actually get the girls, so it will be after I get back from overseas. This will also prevent cute man from having to take care of chicks while I'm gone. He's a great guy, but I figure asking him to chicken sit might tip the scale. Once they are older and in a coop, they take less monitoring, but chicks require a lot of tending. I am looking forward to having fresh eggs, although it will be at least 6 months-possibly longer-- before the chickens are at laying age. That will give me time to tame them and make them pets. Luckily I have found someone who wants to split an order of chicks (that will be the subject of tomorrow's post-the story highlights what a small world it is), so I can pull out/pay for a few and we share shipping. It's a win-win for everyone!

6. Gardens, built and planted:

I am planning raised beds this year to help with the condition of the soil and to cut out some of the digging. I am going to raise lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes (of course!) and a couple different kinds of melons. At some point I might pick up seed potatoes at the farm store, but I'm not sure when. I saw someone who planted them in bags of soil by sitting the plastic 50 lb bags upright, cutting drainage in the bags, cutting the top and putting their plant in that. Supposedly it is a great way to grow melons too. I'll report back as I try this. It can't hurt to give it a go. I am also planting squash and some other things that are notorious for beetle issues. That's where I'm hoping the chickens help out...we don't kill tomato worms though, because they are the larva for the Sphinx moth. When we homeschooled the boys, we had a garden. One day we found what we thought was tomato worm eating the tomato plants. Instead of killing it, we did some research and found out that the worm we had was a tobacco worm (they look similar, but the spikes at the end of their tails are certain colors) and that the huge moths that come from these are actually in decline and are quite beautiful. so we had one plant dedicated as a safe haven and a relocation place for these creatures.

So there you have it. BUSY but exciting!!

Amber Alert--please look

2009-03-06T15:35:00.005-06:00

Amber Alert issued for missing girl

Kansas City police are investigating the death of a 27-year-old woman and the disappearance of her 4-year-old daughter.Officers were called about 9:15 a.m. Friday to a home on the city's east side where the woman's body had been found. Police say they are treating the death as a possible homicide. They say the woman's daughter, Allyson Corales, is missing from the home. An Amber Alert has been issued for the child. The family vehicle, a red Kia Sportage with a Missouri license plate, also is missing. Anyone with information about Allyson is asked to call the TIPS hotline at 816-474-8477.

news link: http://news.kfdi.com/News/Story/tabid/5154/story/30545/Default.aspx

Riddle Me This....

2009-03-05T06:42:00.005-06:00

Q: What do you call the little sports car that weaves in and out of traffic, cutting other drivers off at a REALLY FAST rate of speed?

A: Cop Jerky

'cause when a cop catches that little twit, he is going to chew his salty little hide!

I was driving on I235 today and saw an idiot almost run multiple drivers off the road and himself to boot. OK, if he had ended up in the ditch it would have been no great loss. Just don't take an innocent person along!

It really made me realize that you can be the most careful driver in the world and all it takes is some little twit to wreck your world. DRIVE NICE PEOPLE!!

OK, I'm done with the Mom lecture. You can roll your eyes now...

Can't Sleep At Night --another good Lisa Lavie song

2009-02-26T20:42:00.001-06:00

She really has an amazing voice, just had to share another one of her videos...

Invisible Rope 2

2009-02-25T20:05:00.001-06:00

50% chance my car is bigger than their invisible rope....Think I could swerve and hit one so that I'd miss the invisible boulder in the road?

To be truthful, even if they did have a rope, I'd make sure they realized "reality is the best teacher".....

More Fiber in My Diet

2009-02-12T20:39:00.007-06:00

Look at the guy above and below.

Now look at this one:

And this one....

Can you spot the sheep?

Hmmmm...Had to look again?

Soooo--do you suppose that if I got the "dog" in the second picture that my neighbors would believe it was a sheep dog? While I'm sure I would have to explain the weird "bark" and the fact that it doesn't chase cats,pant, ram it's head in your crotch as a greeting or play ball, I'm thinkin' I could get away with having one of these beauties in my back yard.

What do you think?

Hubby already nixed the "it's not a llama, it's a spitting dog with a neck issue" scenario, so Larry the llama is out.

But I think this one might just work.....

Back From Iowa

2009-02-11T14:02:00.007-06:00

Last Friday I did the 9 hour (one way) trek to visit my son in Iowa.

I am slowly surrendering to the fact that no matter what time I actually plan to leave, it's my destiny to hit downtown Kansas City sometime smack dab in the middle of either the morning rush hour or the evening rush hour. And I must say,their rush hour is NOTHING like the rush hour we experience in our city! On the way to Iowa, I though I had it timed to hit downtown Kansas City at 7 a.m.--my imagined "before rush hour" time.

Guess what?

I am apparently in harmony with at least a quarter of a million people who have the same delusion. Brilliant minds think alike? At least that's what I was thinking while coming to a complete standstill on I-35... Ok, in reality I was thinking "HOLY CRAP!!!" and "What the 'ell did I get my self into". Oh, and morning rush hour seems to be the time to meet the "Imperialist drivers". You know, the ones that want to conquer the same space you occupy as well as their lane...

A couple other thoughts came to mind too, but I'll spare you those.

However, as you can see, I lived to tell the tale. I think I've come to the conclusion that every hour is rush hour there, just some hours are worse. On the way back I hit downtown at 6:30p.m. and (no surprise) same story--except no lane conquerers this time thankfully. I'm sure eventually I will just get used to it and it won't phase me. HOPE..HOPE>>HOPE>> HOPE. This is the point where my relatives in Baltimore, Maryland would laugh and call me a wuss...

The trip to Iowa was beautiful this time. No mutant fog, no ice and no silly business on the roads. While I was there, I got to visit Muscatine, Coralville, Iowa City and Cedar Rapids.

Love them all.

Apparently at the turn the century, Muscatine was the nation's leading producer of clam shell buttons. The clams were pulled from the Mississippi River that literally runs on the doorstep of the downtown. Every so often, I'm told the mighty Mississippi River throws a temper tantrum and tries to annex the land, which wreaks all kinds of havoc for the downtown, I'm sure.

Muscatine is full of HUGE Victorian homes, which I take as a testament to the once prosperous nature of the town. A lot of the homes have been lovingly restored, but there are also a lot of large homes begging for someone to take them and restored them to their former glory. I'll post a couple pictures in my next post. Since I love architecture and history, I was totally enraptured with this town. They have a really cute downtown with lots of historic buildings also. I had my oldest son with me, so you can guess how thrilled he was when I told him we were going to visit a yarn shop...Actually he was a good sport. Like my husband, the men in my family know resistance is futile when it comes to my yarn conquests. Any whining just makes the whole process longer.

MUCH longer.

In all, he was a good sport and we actually found yarn colors he liked at Crazy Cirl yarn shop for a pair of handknit socks. My oldest likes art, so he does appreciate the value of handwork. When the kids were young, I made sure they got their hands in a variety of arts and crafts so that they could have an outlet for self expression. Brandon really enjoys creating. While I was there I bought him supplies to make a mask for his wall and he created a really neat work of art that hangs in his dining area. I am planning to paint some Japanese Kanji paintings for his walls to bring with me on my next trip in March. He has a really cute apartment above one of the businesses in his little town that is perfect for one person. It made me happy to see that he is settled and has a safe place to live.

I think that is the hard part about parenting.

I know some people are able to just let them fly the nest and not give it a second thought, but I find that hard. I always worry that he has enough to eat (he does) and warm clothes (he does) and is safe (he is). That's just a Mom thing I guess. I think the hardest think about being a Mom is learning to step back and let them fly on their own. You want to be able to soften the blows and make life easy, but the reality is that if they don't figure out the hard landings by themselves, they can't grow and become adults.

It doesn't make it easier on me, but I'm working on that.

I made a pie!

2009-01-25T15:39:00.003-06:00

Blogger decided to print these reverse order, so...

I MADE A PIE--completely from scratch, crust and filling! I've never made a pie crust from scratch, so I was really not sure what the heck I was doing, but the crust turned out really flaky and the whole pie is pretty darn tasty if I don't say so myself!

Pay no attention to the weird golden glow--I think our lights made the camera a little jaundiced. The first picture is closer to the real thing. Although the gold does make it look nice...Since I was attempting a lattice crust and the dough was not cooperating, I basically salvaged what I could by cutting the dough into squares and lining the sides, then used some of the strips that didn't fall apart on the top. The strips that fell apart were shredded into little pieces and put on the top of the pie. I kind of like the way it came out.

I can honestly say that I am going to make some more pies in the upcoming months so I can perfect the pie crust thing.

Last month I bought a bag of mixed blueberries. blackberries and raspberries that I had intended to use in smoothies. However the berries were so painfully tart that there was no way to use them without having to sugar down the smoothie, so the bag has been sitting in the freezer. I really hate the thought of not using these berries, so when I found a cookbook at the thrift store that was full of old style recipes from a restaurant in Ohio, I bought it with the hopes of using the pie crust recipe and the pie filling recipes. This book also has recipes for all kinds of stuff like homemade noodles, breads, etc. Lots of home cooking! I am REALLY glad I picked this up! The berry filling was great. There wasn't an overload of sugar in the recipe so my pie filling tastes sweet, but there is still a little tang from the tart berries.

I have to say, I'm pretty darn happy I was able to use up the berries and not waste them and the results were pretty great for my first pie!

Actual Knitting Content...

2009-01-20T07:54:00.004-06:00

OK-- so this blog started out as a knitting blog--then morphed into an anything blog with very little knitting content. So today I decided to get back to the roots and show you my latest project. Notice I didn't say my ONLY project..That would infer that I have the ability to work on one project at a time and only move on to the next one when one is finished. Ummm, that's so never going to happen. I've made peace with that. I'm just not a monogamous knitter.

ANYWAY...the project above is a garter rib sock for my cute man that I pulled from "Sensational Socks". I've had this book for a long time and decided it is time that I actually knit something out of it. I like that you can take almost any needle and make a sock based on your gauge, not have to play around to get the gauge the pattern insists on. The markers are there to mark every 10 rows--a trick I learned from Cindy.

It is a totally customizable pattern book--it even lets you customize whether you are using 4 or 5 dpns, 2 circs etc. If you use magic loop, the patterns are easily adapted for that too. I am using Patons Kroy sock yarn and I really like the way it feels and the rich color that you get for the price. This will be perfect for my cute man. I do want to do a solid colored sock in this patten also. As much as I love the texture of the sock and the subtle way the colors play into the pattern, I want to do cute man a sock in some grey alpaca that I have in my stash with this same pattern so that the pattern actually is able to be the star of the show. I can tell more socks from this book are going to follow.

After I make a significant dent in my UFO's, which is a goal for the next 3 months, I want to start a vest from "Folk Vests". I've never done a vest before so I thought this would be a good book to start with since the patterns range from fairly easy to "WHOA! THAT'S ADVANCED!"There is a cabled vest inspired by Ireland in this book that is calling my name. I think Cindy and I are going to do a knit along on one of the vests from this book. Since I love cables and don't really seem to get the chance to do them all that often, the Ireland vest might be just the ticket.

I had the STRANGEST dream last night. If anyone out there interprets dreams, give this one a shot:

Apparently there was an air show scheduled to be in Wichita (there is one at McConnel Air force base every year, so that's not unusual) and there was a stealth jet practicing OVER OUR HOUSE. In the dream, I complained to my hubby about how low the plane was flying and he quoted the regs on how low they can fly and that they couldn't possibly be flying that low. I described what the pilot looked like and what he was wearing and that he was skimming just above our fence between our house and the neighbors (and it seems I was the only one in the neighborhood alarmed about this--again, this is a strange dream). About that time I hear a boom, look up in the sky at a ball of smoke and guess what? The plane slides nose first--gracefully might I add for such a honking huge piece of metal--right through our backyard, knocking down the fence. OK--so I'm not crazy about the current fence--that part might be a no brainer...And the kicker is that hubby is completely unfazed. OK, maybe this part doesn't surprise me--it takes a LOT to make my husband freak out--me, not much...I run upstairs to call 911-- and can't get through. Seems I kept dialing 119, not 911. Oh, and did I mention the guy pilot in the dream morphs into a girl pilot dressed in jeans and a t-shirt? I know the air force has casual day, but I'm quite sure jeans and a t-shirt are not part of the accepted dress code when flying a stealth.

Again--WTF? Other than the fact that the just fence is destroyed in the dream (YEAH), the fact is that this dream was just too weird on SOOOO many levels! Have you ever seen a stealth? When my oldest was young, we went to the OKC airshow and they had a stealth on display. IT will not fit neatly beside my house and the neighbors without ripping up both houses. Actually it would have completely taken out both houses to say the least!

I guess I could dissect the dream and try to figure it out, but maybe I should just mark it down to having a bowl of spicy chili before bed. I did wake up pissed off though, which is kind of humorous.

So I've shared knitting and strange dreams --- what more can I add.

How about a cute picture of an exceptionally spoiled blonde dachsund? That'd be our Sugar Baby, trying her hardest to relax amid all the chaos.

It's so hard to be a Princess..

Well, Isn't THAT Special!

2009-01-12T00:07:00.002-06:00

I had been sitting at the computer several minutes thinking how blissful my life was, and then....

Out of the blue, one of the cats walked to the landing at the top of the stairs, looked at me, puked on the carpet, AND THEN WALKED AWAY.

Yep, WALKED AWAY.

Didn't even offer to clean up.

That's just typical life here at Casa Crazylife, home of the "binge and purge" feline sanctuary. I am detecting a serious respect issue with these little four legged creatures. I was going to title this post "How to Gain the Respect and Admiration of Your Cats", but apparently I have a little more work to do in that area.

Guess what I get to do now? I know, you're soooo jealous!

Isn't it great what some people share in their blogs?!

More Iowa Pictures

2009-01-03T12:44:00.004-06:00

The buildings in the downtown where my oldest lives are so flippin' cute! There are several stores in the downtown, but there are many empty store fronts. I can't even tell you how cute this place is. Several of the buildings have dates on them from the late 1800's, so this town has been around for a while.

My son did say a gallery and gelato place is moving in, so that will be a nice addition. This town would be just right for an artist colony, like Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Actually, downtown Newton Kansas has a lot of the old buildings like this and the downtown is full of really neat shops that people actually shop at. I hope this happens for his little town too.

There is so much charm and the residents are pretty friendly. It is definitely a gem waiting to be revived.

I love the bump out windows on the building above. It is right next to the old bank building in the picture below.

I want to buy this building.

Wouldn't it make a cute shop of some sort? According to the sale ad in the paper, the walls are marble and it has quite a bit of space inside. This town needs a yarn shop...I wonder if Shelly (Twist) or Julie (The Newton Beadery) want to open up a second shop? Really the 9 hour commute would not be THAT bad.....

Above is the one screen movie theatre in downtown. We didn't take in a movie while we were there, but I'll have to see what is playing next time I'm in town.

Another shot from the corner of my son's street. As you can see, he literally lives steps from downtown.

The town bakery is on this block. We went there each morning we were in town. Their glazed doughnuts put Krispy Kreme to shame. I have to admit, I had several different kinds of their doughnuts while I was there...and they were all delicious. I love places like this.

We also went into a gift/card shop "Daisy's On the Square" that was a great place to shop, and the town thrift store. I love independently owned stores. They just seem to have more heart and personality.

I have more pictures of the downtown to post since it does extend several blocks, but blogger might throw a tantrum if I put them all in at once.

On the way back to Iowa after Christmas, we did encounter some rain outside of Des Moines, which was really not that big of a deal--until the fog set in. This was no ordinary fog. I can honestly say I have never seen fog this dense! It was probably the scariest drive I have ever done. It was dark and I could only drive by following the white line in the road directly in front of the headlight. I could not see more than one car length. The really bad thing is that the semi trucks were barrelling down the highway and people were following behind them, using their lights as a guide. Pretty darn dangerous. That's a recipe for a hellacious pile up. We ended up navigating our way off the highway and found a Super 8 motel that was gracious enough to let us stay even though we had my son's cat with us. There was a hotel at the top of the interstate ramp, but you literally could not see through the fog to find their entrance. Super 8 had a well lit one, so that is where we went. I was in near tears by the time I walked in the lobby. It was that nerve wracking! By the next morning the fog had cleared and I was surprised at how much was in that area that we could not see the night before. The car was covered in ice, but after a little bit, we got it melted and went on our way. Luckily the road crews had been out early and the roads were clear. Let me tell you, I really don't want to repeat that experience again!!

I'm looking forward to going back and exploring the area around my son's town, but I'm thinking late Spring and Summer are good times to go. I did not realize he is as close to the Illinois border..We went to the Wal-Mart in Muscatine, Iowa--literally right on the Missisippi River. Apparently Muscatine used to lead the nation in pearl button production at the beginning of the century. Button production caesed in the late 1960's. I am going to have to explore the downtown when I go back. There is a yarn store in downtown that sounds awesome!! When I'm there again, it won't be snowing and icing, which is more friendly to exploring.

Plus I will have a GPS.

Anyone who has driven long distances with me knows that I need one...badly.

Pictures From Iowa

2008-12-31T09:01:00.004-06:00

Just look at the details on this Victorian house. The boys and I walked around my son's new hometown this weekend snapping photos of the wonderful houses they have there. The amazing thing is that the ones you will see over the next couple days are just a smidgen of the houses like this that are all over the little town. It is so amazing! I'm sure the residents are used to people snapping pictures of their homes, but if not, the police surely got a report of some lady taking pictures all over town. For the most part I snapped from across the street so as not to really freak the owners out. The next couple posts will be house related, then I'll move on to the downtown.

The house above is right across the street from my son, AND it is for sale for around $144,000. I took quite a few pictures of this house, but unfortunately my camera did not capture the paint colors or accents. It's really a pretty house! However, hubby quashed the 9 hour commute to work...Darn!

Another confection. I must have held the camera at a slight angle since most of my pictures look a little tilted. Trust me, they are not sitting at this odd angle...I was. But then everyone who knows me knows I am slightly off center.

I can understand why my son fell in love with this town! It is cute and the people are friendly. It is about 40 minutes to Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, or Muscatine. There are yarn shops in Muscatine and Cedar Rapids, but I didn't get to explore them this time. Instead, the boys and I did a massive book buying tour of the Half Price Books stores from Kansas to Iowa. I found some completely outrageous finds in both jewelry and knitting books. I will take a picture of some of the stash and post later after my 2 yr old nephew is laying down for his nap. We have him for a couple weeks, so I am learning to do what needs to be done when he is napping. It has been a while since the boys were babies. I don't have both my niece's babies, just the 2 year old. Having both the 2 yr old and the 5 month old was just too much for this old lady. And this way, Auralius gets individual attention.

Speaking of Auralius, he just disappeared up the stairs, so I'd better go chase him.

In the next post, I'll tell you about the adventure we had getting to Iowa and why we had to stay at a hotel 90 miles from my son's home because of fog...It was "interesting" to say the least!

Good coffee and Great Friends to you and yours!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-24T18:49:00.003-06:00

Can you believe tomorrow is Christmas?

Me neither.

Did you get everything done on your TO DO list?

Me neither.

However, I'm alright with that. I didn't get all the baking done that I wanted, but I am waiting for a cheesecake to come out of the oven that is destined for Stillwater tomorrow after we pick up the rental car. We are planning to have Christmas breakfast here in Kansas, then head to Oklahoma in the evening. Friday morning bright and early I am driving oldest son back to Iowa. I rented from Dollar car rental this time. I did call the customer service to add days to the rental and got really good service. I was very happy with the professional attitude. I figure we'll have some wiggle room built in just in case the weather gets really bad and we have to stay a day longer.

I am planning to spend the weekend in his little town, so I'll get pictures of all the wonderful Victorian homes there. The town has hundreds of them and an absolutely adorable downtown. I intend to hit the quilt shop while I'm there. On the way to my son's little town, we are planning to stop in Des Moines and hit the Half-Price bookstore chain there. I go to this used bookstore chain in Kansas City every time I go. LOVE THEM! However, stopping in Des Moines depends on what the weather is doing.

At this point the kids and I are planning to leave at 6 a.m Friday. This way we avoid rush hour in Kansas City. I got to Kansas City last time right in the middle of rush hour. While I didn't have any trouble, it was a bit unnerving. I haven't seen anything like that before--let's just say I am motivated to work my arrival time not to coincide with rush hour.

Before we head off to Stillwater tomorrow, we are making a big batch of homemade instant hot cocoa mix for everyone.

Homemade Hot Cocoa

2 cups nonfat dry milk powder

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup Hershey's cocoa

3/4 cup powdered non-dairy creamer

1 dash salt

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and blend well. Store in a tightly covered container.

For a single serving:

Combine 1/4 cup cocoa mix and 3/4 cup boiling water in a cup or mug. Stir to blend. Add marshmallows to hot cocoa if desired. And we all desire marshmallows don't we?!

I add a little more mix to my cup, but that's just me...I hope you enjoy this easy recipe.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Cinnamon Pecans Recipe

2008-12-22T18:40:00.003-06:00

I make these for gifts every year so I thought I'd share with you:

1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
3 cups pecan halves
2 Tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Combine all ingredients except pecans. Place over medium heat, stirring until all sugar is dissolved. Add pecans and continue to cook-stirring until pecans are completely sugared with no syrup left in the saucepan. Spread on waxed paper and let cool.

These are really GOOD!!!

New Note to the Thrifty Car rental story

2008-12-20T21:05:00.005-06:00

I decided to blog about my experience that I had when I turned the car in today since I think it adds a positive angle to my last post. As mad as I was when I talked to customer service, I try to present positive points when they arise to anything I blast. I won't remove the first post since it is valid for that day, but there is another part to the story.

I was pretty darn mad about the experience I got after calling customer service for Thrifty the other night-if you couldn't tell. However, when I checked the car in a day early at 4:40 p.m, I had to let you know that I was really pleased and surprised with the agent at the counter. I really wish I had retained her name since she really made me think that I might consider Thrifty again at some point. I talked with her about the problems I had with not getting the GPS and the "customer service" issues. After she and I talked, I thought "That is a person who needs to do the customer service training for Thrifty". She completely walked through all the complaints I had and didn't interrupt at any point, or play down the issues I brought up. She explained why the GPS reservation did not transfer, laughed about the GPS story and basically delivered superior customer service. Since I turned the car in a day early, the discount I got for weekend rates would not apply. After we talked, I was OK with that since I understood why and that it was not a "penalty" as the customer service rep had barked at me when I called them Thursday. As I said, I entered the building with a not too positive background and left thinking "OK, I may just give them a second chance". I may have to hunt down her name--Thrifty needs this girl. They should give her kudos for turning things around.

As I said, I try to be fair when something changes. Since I blogged about the REALLY bad experience, I wanted to add the REALLY good experience.

Crappy service from Thrifty Car Rental

2008-12-18T18:38:00.005-06:00

I am preparing to go to Iowa tomorrow to pick my son up, so I thought I'd rent a car from Thrifty car rental. I rented a compact and decided that I needed the GPS system just to help me navigate.

When I got to the rental stall they told me the car I was renting did not have cruise control. I upgraded and ASSUMED the cost would include the GPS since I asked for it to be included in the first place. I realized on the way home that there was no GPS. Crap! I'm going to Iowa-I need a GPS. When I called Thrifty, guess what--the cost of the upgrade (to get something BASIC on a vehicle like CRUISE CONTROL) did not include the cost of the GPS..but of course for an additional reaming, I can drive BACK to the airport and pick one up FOR AN ADDITIONAL CHARGE.

Um...NO.

Oh, and if I return the car early, there is a $15 penalty. Well, let's just ream it in a little deeper. Yep. Got to LOVE this BAD experience.

Not only am I NOT renting from them again, their crappy customer service has definitely made me want to warn everyone I know not to rent from them to save them from this type of experience!

I never got this kind of service from Avis or Dollar. That is who I should have gone with. My fault for not going with a proven winner. After all, who did I think they were? Avis?!

One funny tidbit--the second woman that I talked to interrupted me while I was speaking to let me know that Thrifty does NOT use GPS--they use the Garmin system..Hmm--apparently there is not a translation for GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM in their neck of the globe. Can anyone guess what GPS stands for? Hint-it's not a brand name like Garmin, but don't tell her--she was pretty proud of herself.

Snow...

2008-12-09T20:54:00.003-06:00

I know it's DECEMBER...I know this is KANSAS...But that doesn't mean I was ready for it!

Neither was our contractor. The ladder that you see at the corner of the picture is his. It rests against the skeleton of our deck. Darn! I was hoping we'd get it completed before any snow hit. Mind you, a couple days ago it was 60+ degrees. I didn't even have a jacket on when I was at the yarn shop on Sunday....But it IS December and this IS Kansas...

I stayed in the house the whole day today except when I had to go pick one of the boys up after school. Let me tell you, there are people who can't drive ON A GOOD day that were out trying to drive in this junk. Surprisingly, the high school parking lot, which is usually just plain craziness, was moving very slowly and carefully. It was a pleasant surprise since I was a geared up to witness multiple accidents.

The accidents and idiots that I witnessed today were adult drivers that should have known better.

Hubby knows that I am not particularly confident in driving in these conditions and was an angel by picking the other son up from wrestling practice so I wouldn't have to venture out again. One little detail I had forgotten was to get gas on Sunday, or even Monday so I would not have to be standing out in the wind and pelting snow. But since I neglected to plan ahead, guess what I was doing in 20 degree weather? Yep! Getting gas. That won't happen again, I promise! I'll make sure to send hubby to gas the car up...only kidding.

I have been feeling pretty under the weather for the past couple weeks, so I actually spent most of the day sleeping. I put a brisket in the crockpot before I went to bed, so this evening when hubby and son walked in the door I was able to have a hot dinner waiting on them with very little effort on my part.

I LOVE my crockpot.

This weekend I am going to make a couple crockpot stews so that we can freeze portions for dinner and extras so cute man has something to take to work with him. Part of our economizing this season is that we are trying to cut down significantly on eating out and concentrate more on cooking at home. Apparently in this economy, a lot of people are doing exactly the same thing. A report on CNN last week said that as the economy continues to fall, people who normally have never seen the inside of their kitchens are opting to learn to cook meals at home. Sales of cookbooks are skyrocketing along with cooking sets that are being bought by people who don't usually cook and are having to stock their kitchen. I tend to be really bad about eating lunches out, so I have been making a little more of an effort to lower that. One day a week, I sit down with the grocery store ads for the week and make a menu based on what's on sale and what we have in the fridge. I am looking at buying a chest freezer in January so that I can start taking one day to do "once a month cooking". This will eliminate the "What's for dinner" brain freeze I sometimes get. Menu planning helps, but on days when what is on the menu doesn't sound good, having extra meals on hand would be great!

Have you tried any once a month cooking? How did it work out for you. I have done sessions at Simple Suppers and Super Suppers here in town and really enjoyed the fact you don't have to clean up, but the cost is what keeps me from doing it a lot. I bought a couple once a month cooking books and plan to work from them so we can save a little extra.

Goldfish Funeral

2008-12-09T18:55:00.001-06:00

not that a kid dropping the F-bomb is funny, but I couldn't help laugh...

Pumpkin Cinnamon rolls--yum!

2008-12-05T11:50:00.010-06:00

I am in the middle of a baking spree here at Casa Crazylife. Cute man and I signed up to take cookies to sell at our high school wrestling invitational tomorrow so I am making many dozens.

While waiting for the butter and eggs to come to room temperature, I was perusing some of my favorite blogs, checking out the links they provided, and I found a recipe for pumpkin cinnamon rolls from Amanda's Cookin'. We LOVE pumpkin here at Casa Crazylife (and cinnamon rolls) so this is a match made in Heaven! I was going to do a step by step tutorial, but forgot...so here is the stage I'm at right now. All the dough ingredients have been mixed together (I love my KitchenAid 6 qt mixing bowl and mixer--my mom in law spoils me!). I am waiting for the dough to rise. I will report back on how these turn out and provide the recipe link.

Once they are done, there is a caramel icing that gets drizzled on them. Good grief! They sound good just talking about them! A little later I am going to make a cherry eggnog quick bread that I have been eyeing for quite some time. It is an easy recipe and looks like it will freeze well. As you can tell, I am in a baking mood. I am trying a lot of different recipes out so I can decide on some new ones for Christmas morning brunch. I also found an awesome recipe for pudding pie surprise at The Beehive Cottage. I love this recipe. I've had it several times in the past, but this is the first time I've found a recipe for it so you know I HAD to print it out for later next week!

Rain, Sleet and Snow

2008-11-30T21:21:00.005-06:00

That's what today has looked like as far as weather. I hate to admit it, but as I get older, the cold weather is getting much harder for me to bear. I end up wanting to stay in the house and venture out only when I have to.

The cold didn't stop me from getting out and doing a little shopping though. I was on a conquest for card making supplies so that I can make Christmas cards tomorrow while the boys are in school. When they come home, I am going to have them help with some of cards. I'll do all the embossing and any messy work, then turn it over to them.

One thing that is clear to me is the fact that I need to get an organized area to keep all my craft supplies in one place. I know I have some really pretty Christmas stamps, but I can't find them at the moment. I do have a half a dozen that will get me through this season, but I really would have liked to have had the other ones too. I'll continue the hunt in the morning. I used to rubber stamp a lot but then stopped for some reason. I had forgotten how fun rubber stamping is. I definitely intend to rubber stamp and emboss cards for other occasions too.

We went to my mom and dad in law's house for Thanksgiving. The boys got to do some shooting with their Grandpa and I was able to see our adorable niece and nephew who were down with my sister in law from Texas. The kids get cuter every year!

The game plan tomorrow is to bake pumpkin bread, knit a bit and clean house. The cleaning house part definitely needs to happen above the other activities. With kids and the menagerie of animals that we have, I have to keep up or it gets out of control pretty darn fast! I can put a batch of pumpkin bread in the oven and get a little cleaning done at the same time. I might even get around to pulling out my "Artisian bread in 5 minutes" book and making a batch of dough to go in the fridge for the upcoming weeks. Homemade pizza is on the menu plan this week and it would be nice to have the dough sitting in the fridge and waiting for me. With the cold weather coming up, baking is one thing I do a lot of. Having the oven on warms the kitchen, plus something good gets made, so it is a win/win situation.

The blip above was written on Sunday and I waited to post since it sounded so blah to me. It still sounds BLAH, but I thought I'd post anyway and add a little for today (Monday)..so here it is:

I REALLY should stay off the holiday recipe sight for Better Homes and Gardens magazine. I subscribe to their email feed and today they had a couple leftover turkey recipes that caught my attention. The recipe for turkey tortilla soup really sounds good. That got printed, but the turkey nachos sounded so good that I am abandoning the planned meal for tonight in favor of this one. Turkey, sour cream, salsa, nacho chips--what's not to like? Gotta LOVE this sight!!! However, once I finished there, I noticed a "food gifts" section. Slippery slope that it was-- I fell right in. My printer will never be the same. Let's see...easy chocolate shortbread, chocolate raisin and oatmeal cookie gift mix, soft honey nougat (YUM!!!), buttermilk pralines, hazelnut mocha sauce,honey and macadamia nut fudge, mocha truffle tartlets, cherry and golden raisin bread..and those are just the ones I printed. I might have to quiz everyone on my gift list to see whether their blood sugar can take a "12 days of sugar" blitz for the Epiphany!

No Rest for the weary!

2008-11-22T17:13:00.010-06:00

This past week, I lost my mind and apparently forgot that it has been a while since we've had youngsters in the house.

So when I went to Stillwater to pick my 2 year old great nephew up to spend a week with us, I also accepted his Mom's request(begging) that I take my 5 month old great niece.

See where this is going?

Having Auralius is not that hard--but my niece didn't tell me that Anna was both teething and in the middle of being treated for an ear infection, so let me tell you---that was definitely interesting.

I had forgotten all the little things involved with kids, like ear splitting crying from a teething child, the stubbornness of a two year old and the fun of trying to get everyone in the car to pick my older kids up from school. Holy Smokes! Now I know why you should have kids when you are younger!

So here is a little of what I wanted to get accomplished this past week:

1. Do a once a month cooking session to stock the freezer.

2. Shop for a compact freezer unit to keep from overloading the refrigerator freezer.

3. Finish the shop hat for Twist and the shop scarf for The Newton Beadery.

4. Get Christmas card supplies in one spot and make Christmas cards.

5. Clean house.

This is what I got accomplished:

NOTHING

Yep, not a darn thing, except the priceless hands on experience that my sons had with the reality of having kids.

You know the experiment some schools do where they have the kids carry around a doll or an egg for a week and pretend to experience the reality of a baby?

I think that is a lame experience.

After listening to a teething kid scream at decibels that could shatter glass and knock pictures off the wall, my boys have firmly proclaimed they are serious about not having children. Actually in the middle of one of Anna's voice lessons, one of my boys declared he would remain celibate for life...LOL.

And that was even before she blew the back end out of her diaper with poo.

Did I mention the diaper was not manly enough to handle the job so some of it escaped?

Yep, I thought I was going to lose two teenagers right there!

Let me tell you, if the screaming didn't do it, the diaper sealed the deal.

Priceless.

Kids...

2008-11-11T19:00:00.003-06:00

Today I had a meeting at the high school to review one of the twins school progress. It went very well.

I was sitting in the high school office thinking "Wow, my last batch of babies are in high school". I have to admit, it did make me a little sad. Those who know me know that I totally love being a Mom. Sitting there, I started thinking about some "Mom memories", some of them funny, others were a little exasperating. But then, that's what raising kids is all about. Just when you think you have the answers, God decides to shake it up a bit. For example:

Before I had kids, I always said "MY kid will NEVER scream in the grocery store". God took note of that one obviously, because I got humbled BIG TIME. When my oldest son was about 3 years old, he decided to throw a REALLY big hissy in the grocery store, but he didn't stop there. We were standing in the middle of the personal hygiene aisle of the grocery store when a college boy(who obviously didn't want to be on THAT aisle) came walking by with his girlfriend. My son promptly and tightly attached himself to that poor guy's leg and started screaming DADDY to the top of his lungs. Yep, it was a golden moment.The look on the guys face was almost as priceless as his girlfriend's face--even after I:

A. told her that I honestly have never met her boyfriend....
and
B. Offered to send my son home with them-just in case they thought they MIGHT want kids..they declined. Go figure.

Before I had kids, I always thought that there was a perfectly good reason for any incident. So how did one of the twins end up with stitches in his head after playing croquet with his twin brother? Isn't the idea of that game to move the balls with the mallet still AT GROUND LEVEL ?

But having kids also gives you absolutely golden moments of humor. Like the time we were going through "What sound does this animal make" with the twins.

Me: Jeremy, what sound does a cow make?
Jeremy: Moo.

Me: What sound does a dog make?
J: Woof

and so on, until:

Me: What sound does a kitty cat make?
Jeremy : (sticks out his fingers like claws) HISSSSSSSSSSS!

Well alrighty then...

Giggles

2008-11-01T23:36:00.000-06:00

Happy Halloween (HINT: Watch the chair!!)

2008-10-31T14:22:00.004-06:00

More Yoga

2008-10-30T17:21:00.002-06:00

OK, the last two pics in the Caleb yoga saga...

Right after this, he looked up and saw the crazy lady with the camera.

But just look at the concentration on that face!

Future Yoga Master alert

2008-10-30T16:43:00.004-06:00

Shelly's son, Caleb, was feeling a little under the weather this morning, so she had him at Twist. It's always fun to have Caleb and Ainsley around, but today was particularly amusing. While playing his game, Caleb was completely engaged in the moment. As a result, he struck several very interesting yoga poses. I have to say, I had forgotten that the human body could contort in these positions. He definitely has a future as a yoga master....

...Or a chiropractor.

This would be the "T pose"--as in totally absorbed.

I know somewhere, there is a chiropractor going "WHOA"!

OK, this one just hurts to look at.

That one makes me go "WHOA!!"

Can you me imagine explaining that to the paramedics if I tried that? Actually, let's get real. I can't even START to get in that position. That would entail the whole "being able to grab the ankles from behind thing" which I can tell you for sure: I do not have it goin' on in that arena. I have a motto that I try to follow :

Never do anything that you can't clearly explain to a paramedic or police officer.

If I tried anything like the poses above, let's face it: There would be NO GOOD EXPLANATIONS.

There are a couple more that I'll post tonight. Blogger is being stingy with photo space.

Wilde Weekend !

2008-10-27T11:49:00.013-06:00

Sorry for the blurry picture! I was having problems actually holding the camera still while she talked. Here she is talking about the book and the fact that all the models in the book are actually friends of hers, not professional models. She shared a wonderful story about one of the models who is a Harley riding ethnic drumming woman! Loved the stories! If you have a chance to hear Gina speak or take one of her workshops, DO IT! I drove 3 hours each way to see her and I have to say, I think it was worth every second!

On Friday night I drove to Tulsa, Oklahoma to see the owner of Alchemy yarns give a talk at Loops yarn shop. Warning: This is where I am going to sound like a fiber freak...suck it up and get ready:

Holy Smokes! It was flippin' fabulous!!

Both going to Loops and getting to meet Gina Wilde. I was afraid I wouldn't get to Loops in time for the presentation since I've never really timed how long it would take me to get there, so I left early. I won't admit to HOW EARLY, but I walked into Loops at 3:45 for the 5:30 presentation. You do the math...

It did give me plenty of time to talk to Shelly (the owner), her great staff and the other customers that were there knitting. I found several really great patterns (hint: the single copies of the patterns are in the room with the long table--I didn't realize this until Shelly showed me--they have a huge inventory of patterns!!!) and probably touched every single skein of yarn in that store! I did get the pattern for a really great looking 3 way wrap that Loops designed. I bought one ball of the suggested yarn and will have to go back later when I am actually ready to knit the pattern. It is a Karabella yarn, which I haven't seen anywhere else. It really provides a nice drape and sheen to the finished wrap, so I will pick up more when I actually cast on. I have a mohair shawl on the needles right now, along with a hat , so I really am trying to make myself get these done BEFORE I move on to the next project...I digress...Shelly has designers come to the shop and give presentations often. Get on her mailing list so you can be notified when she has one of these events. That's exactly how I found out about Gina. She has had several other designers such as Louisa Harding. When she sends out the emails it is first come- first serve, so you have to email immediately if you want a spot.

For those of you unfamiliar with Alchemy yarns, the designer and owner is Gina Wilde. The minute she came in the door, I knew every mile of the drive to and from Wichita was going to be worth it! She talked about how the company was started, about the yarns themselves and her dyeing process. Alchemy yarns is a higher price point yarn--I now realize the reason for this. Gina and her small staff hand paint and dye EVERY skein that is sent out. There are no machines.The yarns are steamed in large steamers outside to set the dyes. I was amazed at the amount of labor that goes into these yarns. So when you buy Alchemy yarns, you really are getting an original piece of art to work with. There were several shop models at Loops in the yarns and some shop samples from Gina's book Shibori Knits, which I highly recommend. Gina explained the process of felting and the accidental felting that brought about this book. I got to talk a bit to Gina and her husband--both of them are very warm and interesting people. Gina is a cancer survivor, so she does get my admiration on that point too. I know, I'm babbling--get the book and buy Alchemy yarns! For those of you in the Central Kansas area who are unable to get to Oklahoma to buy Alchemy, Julie at the Newton Beadery is going to be carrying the Alchemy yarns. Either way, it is fabulous yarn that is worth every cent. One of my favorite yarns looks like raffia in the skein. When I fisrt touched it, I thought "meh..". However once you work with it, the fibers soften up. Once it is washed and blocked, it is sinful!! I am going back to Loops to pick up some of this for a shawl next time I'm in Tulsa.

While in Tulsa, I got to stop by Whole Foods and do a little shopping. I would LOVE to have a Whole Foods in Wichita. I love their store brand (365 brand) and buy a ton of stuff when I am in Kansas City or Tulsa, where the only close Whole Food chains are.However, that said, it might not be the best thing for our Mom and Pop natural food stores, so I will be satisfied to make it a destination when I'm in KC or T town. Hubby and I lived in Tulsa for a while (the twins were born there) and I love going back to visit. There really is something magical about Tulsa. It is a very sophisticated and cosmopolitan town, but the people are very warm and friendly.

I had forgotten how narrow some portions of Lewis, Utica and Peoria street were though.

I used to run up and down Peoria when we lived there and the narrowness didn't phase me. It did catch me off guard this time. Mainly because the SUV in the other lane kept trying to migrate over into my lane.

Frequently.

If you have to take up 4 inches of the lane next to you in order to just drive a straight line, maybe you should try driving something smaller. I'm sure your insurance company would be thankful. I was thankful I was in the Neon. If I had been in my mini van, he would have run right into me. I was polite, I didn't give him any "visual suggestions" after the 4th time he almost hit me. If I hadn't been in a long line of traffic, I would have slowed down to get away from the side of him, or sped up to get in front of him. I must say, I had also forgotten how congested some of the areas can get in Tulsa. That said, it really is a magical place.

I probably should go. As I am typing this, two of my dogs disappeared upstairs. One just came to the landing and is watching me. Something tells me he is the lookout and I am NOT going to be amused at the delinquent canine activity going on upstairs as I sit here and type.

Click on both Loops links. One is to the blog and the other is the official store sight. Great info on both.

A little later I will post about the Central Kansas yarn shop hop, which I went on with Cindy on Sunday. Since I was originally supposed to be in Tulsa all weekend, I hadn't planned on going. We didn't hit all the shops, but I'll report on the ones that we did. The two we didn't visit are on my list to go to in the next month.

How To Discourage People from Asking for a RIDE

2008-10-21T12:41:00.002-06:00

Excuse #1 : I'd love to give you a ride, but the last time someone sat in the back, they disappeared.
#2: Gosh--looks like I'm plumb full on my load capacity. Besides, the rats might get a little jealous.
#3. If I give you a ride, we'll have to cuddle up real close. AWW Heck, you can just sit on my lap...

I guess that's one way to get rid of the "new car" smell. Nothing beats "new car"smell like "old decay". Yummmmmm.

Holy Smokes people! This must be kin to the van person I posted a little while back.

This one was in Newton, and since it was parked right next to me, I had to get a shot. Obviously this is someone who doesn't just ride with the windows down. And what would happen if your car broke down and had to be worked on? It would take a week before you could get to the seats--if they haven't decayed.

I am at a loss to explain this phenomenon. I seem to finding these cars pretty frequently lately. Since all the stuff is trash like empty bags and containers, I'm pretty sure these are not people living in their cars.

What do you think?

Boys and Mud

2008-10-16T05:25:00.005-06:00

In the past couple days, we have received a pretty fair amount of rain in my little town. Enough to make any patch of ground into on soggy mud puddle. So this is the scene that met my eyes yesterday as I was pulling into the football practice field.

Boys+mud= bleach.

A LOT OF BLEACH. And that didn't even get it all out. So right now, I am basting the practice pants in Spray and Wash.

Notice in these pictures that the uniforms are supposed to be WHITE. The fact that some of the uniforms are completely BROWN is not because of a shadow, or any other light trick. Those boys are completely covered in MUD. Let me say it again:

MUD...COMPLETELY COVERED.

And did I mention they don't pop in the showers before they get in the car? They do change out of their top gear and usually their pants, but they are still caked in MUD. Luckily that is not my kid in the picture above. I was watching for my son's number and couldn't find it, which was making me pretty nervous since I couldn't see the numbers on the most mud encrusted players.

My poor car interior. Last week one of the kids had a bleeding knuckle after practice and yes, I now have some of that on my seat too. Hopefully I never have to have CSI comb my car....This weekend I am going to Sam's and buying another gallon of Spray and Wash!!

That said, they did have an awful lot of fun sliding around in the mud. All the boys came off the field muddy, sweaty, tired AND GRINNING FROM EAR TO EAR.

Boys....gotta love 'em.

Things to be done.....or not

2008-10-13T12:48:00.003-06:00

Today has been misty and rainy.

Figures.

I had called the contractor about starting our deck remodel. I really think I should go to Atlanta for a weekend so they catch up on their rainfall deficit. I have the power to invoke a monsoon simply by planning a major outside renovation. ARGGG....

So instead, I spent most of the day being productive. Ok--that's not true at all. I was lazy and didn't get a darn thing done. However, once I pick up one of the boys from school, I am planning to come home and get caught up. I'll let you know how that goes...

Apparently not all of us were being lazy today.

I opened the patio door and almost ran (face first) into this web. I'm sure the spider constructed it last night after the last dog was let in since there were no screams from someone with a web on their face...I give the owner of this web credit for being resourceful. The web would have caught a large number of the bugs that fly into the patio door towards the light that is cast from inside. I REALLY don't like spiders, but I will have a truce if they are outside. I like the spiders OUTSIDE because they keep the bugs in check in my gardens and on my plants. I do not kill them if they are outside (except black widows and brown recluses--we do not want them breeding since they tend to try to come inside), but if they are inside--they are suddenly rendered one dimensional with the aid of a shoe or any other flat heavy object (no books please!!). So for now the web will stay.

It does have a certain kind of artistry to it...as long as the owner stays out of sight...

This weekend I got to try my hand at monoprinting. I take a drawing class at the Wichita Center for the Arts on Saturdays and I have really enjoyed the fact that the instructor tries to give us hands on experience with a variety of materials. I think we are trying pastels next weekend, which I am looking forward to. Monoprinting is something that I think I can actually find a space to do--it doesn't take a ton of materials and the space can be as big or as small as I want. It isn't a technique that allows for a huge amount of fine detail, but I am finding that I actually like the impressionistic style that is typical of monoprints. I tend to put a lot of detail in my drawings and this forces me to make decisions about how to render the image in a way that is going to convey the feeling I want with the minimum amount of detail...The prints we did in class were in black and white, but you can introduce colors as you see fit, which is what I am going to be doing. I'll post the picture of the print this week. Be nice, it is my first attempt at printing so it is not perfect....

Natalie Grant - I Will Not Be Moved - Official Music Video

2008-10-12T19:32:00.001-06:00

I really like this song, so I thought I'd share it with you.

End of Week Post

2008-10-12T18:15:00.006-06:00

Is it SUNDAY already? Where did the week go?!

Every Sunday I start making lists for all the things that will be going on throughout the week--then I formulate a game plan. How well does that work?

I'll let you know when I get it to work...

Actually, we put a big calendar on the wall in the kitchen that everyone is supposed to write their "important dates" on. The boys are getting better about writing it in, but last week there were still several bumps. I had planned to go to Twist on Friday and actually sit and knit--but the boys informed me on Thursday night that they got out of school at 1:20. Since one of them had to march in the homecoming parade, I also had to be creative getting him to the proper place because the parade traffic was getting heavy. Parades are a big deal in our little town.

So much for a slow day to myself.

My goal for this week is to get my living room and our library in decent condition. I have a ton of books that need to be culled through, along with more junk from the garage. It would be great to have a week where everything got organized, wouldn't it? Actually I would be thrilled if half the house got organized. I have a brother in law that will be coming to spend a week with us in November, so I need to get going!!!

I am trying very hard to cultivate a love for doing chores. Actually, I'll be happy if I can at least cultivate a tolerance for chores!! I am going to actually work from the check sheet I downloaded off SimpleMom for this week. LOVE THIS BLOG!! This one and SmallNotebook are my favorite go-to sights. Check them out!

I have been working on getting a budget started, getting organized and decorating my house on the cheap. I'll post the before and after shots all at once. Mainly because I think you might be shocked if you see the before shot without the comfort of an AFTER shot. Right now the whole house is in the BEFORE stage. Scary. But how do you eat an elephant?

ONE BITE AT A TIME.

And that is what I am going after.

one..bite..at..a..time.....

How do you get motivated to finish chores-- big and small?

Robin Macy concert at Botanica

2008-10-10T20:52:00.005-06:00

Thursday night, a friend and I went to Botanica to see Robin Macy perform songs from her new album. It was really fun and the evening weather was perfect. For those of you who have not heard of Robin, she was one of the founding members of the Dixie Chicks. She parted ways with them before they went mainstream.

Part of the show included Robin and 2 friends performing as "The Cherokee Maidens". They sang a lot of songs in the traditional style of Bob Will. Very interesting.

Other than that, not a lot of things happening around here except knitting. I am looking forward to the end of the week when cute man, a friend and I fly to the Brown Sheep wool factory for a tour and to do a little shopping at their store. It should be really fun. Except for the "wheels up by 5 a.m. part"...I intend to sleep on the way down there!

American Carol--A hellacious sour note

2008-10-04T23:12:00.008-06:00

I just got back from seeing "American Carol" at the theatre.

I'm not really sure which made me angrier: the fact that I paid money to see such a poorly made piece of junk or the fact that I sat through the whole movie hoping it would get better.

It only got worse.

It was basically a string of poorly written jabs at Michael Moore that ended up backfiring. While I think Michael Moore is a pretty big freak, I have to say, if given the choice between working for Michael Moore forever or watching this movie again, I'd send Michael my resume. And I REALLY dislike Michael Moore.

The movie is that bad.

Actually the movie is so bad, I don't think there is a scale...

Cute man is a staunch Republican and even he said that it was the worse movie he has seen. It was that bad!!

There was a poorly constructed plot that didn't even stay consistent. If you saw the trailer for the movie, you saw the only funny parts, and even they were not funny when put with the full scenes in the movie. Yes, it did have big name stars, but I'm sure this will count as their role they would like to forget. Obviously none of them read the whole script or they are just getting desperate. I was sad to see Dennis Hopper in this. I like him.

Do yourself a favor--do not waste your money.

Thought for the Day

2008-09-30T08:06:00.004-06:00

I'm reading "Simple Prosperity" by David Wann and found this funny quote by Sally Feldman:

"Currently, more money is being spent on breast implants and Viagra than on Alzheimer's research. So in the very near future there should be a large elderly population with impressive breasts and magnificent erections, but no recollection of what to do with them."

Hmmmm.

Nothing I can say could top that little ditty, so I'll just shut up....

Look closely..OMG

2008-09-28T20:01:00.008-06:00

A week ago, one of the boys was home sick. We needed to run to Wal-Mart to pick up some medicine and saw this van. Needless to say, we were stunned.

If you look really closely, you will see that the trash in the van is not just completely covering the dash area, it is totally filling the passengers side AND THE ENTIRE BACK UP TO THE CEILING!!!! My son was trying to get me to take the picture at a closer distance, but I figured with my luck the owner would walk out about the time I start taking pictures. And the owner would no doubt be someone who was in a bad mood.

We don't need any more doctor visits here at Casa Crazylife, so I snapped from one row over.

Exactly how does this person see out the windows? At first I thought maybe it was someone who lived out of their car, but the reality is that all the stuff in the van were papers, old buckets, paper cups (a lot of them!), food wrappers...I can ignore a little paper in my car, but whoa...

I had come across a small car in much the same condition when I was in Newton last week. I wonder if these people are related.

On a "lighter" note, this was a busy week.

Shelly was out of town on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so Jackie, Mimi and I kept the shop. I was soooooo thankful they were there! I really don't see how Shelly does it. There were several times when I was winding multiple skeins of yarn, Mimi was ringing someone up and Jackie was assisting a customer with a question and vice versa. Thank God (literally!) there were three of us. I am sure there are lots of times that happens to Shelly when she is the only one in the shop....

On the knitting front, I am just about finished with a really neat hat that is destined to be a shop model. I was going to have it finished this weekend, but I was pretty tired and didn't get much knitting done. It also didn't help that hubby kept trying to engage me in conversation while I was trying to do the stranded colorwork on the hat and I ended up losing track of the proper pattern repeats. I had to rip back 4 rows, which really made me cranky. I will work some more on the hat while everyone is at school and work tomorrow. I would really like to get this felted so we can block it. I'll post pictures once it is felted and blocked. I was also working on a second pair of basic mittens but I frogged them today. I really should not knit when I am tired. BAAAAAAAAD things happen. I think I am going to put them aside so I can finish my fiddleheads and cast on a pair of socks. I am really trying to only have a couple projects on the needles instead of a lot of projects and getting none of them completed. It really feels good to wear something you've created.

On the house front, I am going to take an hour tomorrow and do a purging of papers and other stuff that is sitting around not being used. I will start working the chore sheets that I downloaded off SimpleMom's blog. They are really good resources to keep you on track. I am trying to get a system in place before the winter sets in. I am using the picture of the van above to motivate me into getting the clutter under control.

And I am going to clean out my car....

Sunday posting...

2008-09-21T19:14:00.002-06:00

What a busy day!

I opened the yarn shop this morning and ran it for the day. Since we didn't have to call the police or fire department, and we ended the day with a functional computer/cash register, I am assuming I did it half right in the very least. There was a pretty good amount of people in the shop today, which was nice. This is the first time I have run the shop without Shelly being somewhere around the corner, so it was a bit intimidating, but it did turn out to be not a big deal. At least I hope...

Now I just have to learn to run the register at the Beadery so Julie can leave when she needs a break from the shop on Wednesdays. I am pretty darn blessed to be able to help out at Twist in Wichita and The Beadery in Newton. Both shops are run by really talented women. There is a lot of creativity flowing out of both shops. I love it! I always leave inspired to try new techniques and yarns/tools. I am going to have to take a couple classes on lace knitting though. That is an area I am weak and I have noticed more knitters are looking for answers in that area. I'd like to be able to give them information instead of a blank look....

This had been a very busy weekend and I didn't get much actually done around the house this weekend, as I had hoped. Hubby and I did just finish planting some shrubs that have been languishing in their pots since I bought them a couple weeks ago. They were at the "plant me or I am going to croak" stage. I did get them on sale, but it would have been a shame to waste the money. Plus one was a northern snowball bush, which I was thrilled to find. It is going on the side of the house that is a little out of the way. I want to have a "secret garden" on that side, complete with a little table and chairs to escape. It does have a weird slant to that part of the yard, but I intend to build it up a bit.

Saturday night, Hubby and I went to Best Buy and "just looked". I probably should not do that. Now I REALLY think we NEED a 40" LCD TV with surround sound...We do need a new TV --our current TV is 21 years old and is just starting to act like it is going to retire itself. I was shocked at the new TV's. Very nice! I do help the old set lasts until after Christmas since we really shouldn't make that big a purchase until after Christmas.

And how was your weekend?

Dear Wichita

2008-09-12T23:11:00.004-06:00

As some of you may know, we are experiencing quite a little deluge of water in areas right outside my little town, namely in the big city of Wichita (note: If you do not live here, it is pronounced wi-chit-ta, NOT wah-chee-tah like one of the national news shows kept saying when they finally caught BTK, but I digress). So here goes:

Dear Wichita,

Due to the recent floods and rains of epic proportions, I feel that an apology is in order.

After a full year of living in this house, we decided it was finally time to give it up and get the deck rebuilt. For some reason, the idea of taking the fast track to the downstairs via a hole no longer seemed be an attractive proposition. That tort law class I took in college just made me a total killjoy...

As some of you also know, it rains every time we change residences. Since this was only going to be a home improvement project and not an actual move, I thought that we were safe from anything falling from the sky, except for maybe volcanic ash, small planes and large birds...but that is another story altogether.

I was wrong.

So, from here on out, whenever we are going to do anything that involves a solid plan and beautification for the purpose of safety and liability laws, I will warn you. This will allow you, dear Wichita, ample time to stock up on the basics like inner tubes, oars, waist high wading pants, lumber and schematics for large boats...

And to have ample time to start assembling two of every animal on earth.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Crazylife

When Cats Pray

2008-09-12T15:41:00.001-06:00

I found this on Mrs. Fussypants blog. It was just too funny not to share. You really should go check out her blog. Lots of funny and sarcastic little tidbits.

Project updates.....

2008-09-08T21:50:00.010-06:00

Here are the fiddlehead mittens (a work in progress) that I have been raving about. The yellow isn't showing up true--it is a really nice shade that sets off the other colors around it. I have completed the first one, with the exception of the lining and thumb. I cast on the mate this weekend and will complete the thumbs and linings at the same time.

I love this pattern!!!!

It has not been all knitting at Casa Crazy Life. I love to make sterling jewelry--below is a little sampling of some of the earrings I made this summer. I did decide that I will be buying half hard sterling wire, not the full hard that I bought. Bending the shapes of the ear wires--especially on the blue and green dangling pair, was a little bit of a challenge. I did most of these at The Beadery in Newton on one of the Wednesdays that I hang out there. Julie, the owner, made a really neat set of the dangle ones...I love going there on Wednesdays. If there isn't nobody with yarn questions/issues, Julie and I create jewelry...You ought to come by and create something too. Newton is just 20 minutes from Wichita--it takes me a full 30 minutes from Haysville, which is not much of a drive at all. It takes me almost as long to get to the other side of Wichita. There are a ton of really neat shops in Newton, in addition to Julie's. Email me if you want the scoop!

Yes, the mate to the butterfly seems to have flown off. That means I will be searching under the nightstand for it's mate. I seem to have a cat the likes bling too. I have smacked a paw that was reaching toward these earrings more than once!
I find that I wear this pair the most. It is comprised of sterling silver wire, sterling beads and carnelian beads...it is a little modern, but not so modern that it looks out of place. Very clean and classic lines. The inspiration for these came from the book " Perfect Match". They aren't exactly like the pair in the book, but the one in the book was the springboard for the design. It's an awesome resource for handmade earrings.

This has been a really rough start to the week for me. I have had repeated dreams where I am missing buses--the only bus to a particular destination--trains, classes, picking people up, and any odd assortment of possible ways to miss something important. If it is a no show possibility, I did it in at least one of my dreams.

What's up? I am not really sure.

Our schedule has been pretty wild lately, which may have an awful lot to do with it. I really need to find a way to get some sort of organization to this parade because these dreams keep me off kilter all day and I wake up upset. I walk around with this nagging feeling I've missed something important, or forgot to pick someone up.

Not good....

Poll Reveals 430 New Demographics That Will Decide Election

2008-09-01T18:07:00.001-06:00

From the Onion---too funny!!!

Completely AWESOME HOUSE alert!

2008-09-01T16:38:00.002-06:00

I lurk on Judy Wise's blog often. It is the ultimate creativity blog that just gets me totally inspired. I am going to have to go to one of her workshops to just soak in the creativity mojo!

While looking (and looking...and looking) on her site today, I came across the MOST AWESOME HOUSE EVER on the July 12, 2008 post. GO...NOW..Does it take serious creative balls to paint your house purple, or what?! And it looks great! Hubby, being a little less adventurous than I, might disagree, but my hat is completely off to this homeowner!!

There is a purple house here in Wichita, near Lincoln and Broadway--however, I think it would benefit from the white picket fence, white trim and tons of flowers that the other house has. Isn't it funny how just a few detail can make such a huge difference?

Damn. I want a purple house...

Yeah!

2008-09-01T15:20:00.010-06:00

I got an email from Loops yarn shop in Tulsa detailing a trunk show, presentation and meet n greet for Gina Wilde of Alchemy Yarns. She is going to talk about her new book "Shibori Knits" on October 24th. I zinged off a request and got one of the 30 available slots.

Yeah!

It looks like it is going to be a really interesting event. I love felting! And not coincidentally, the Friday before the presentation my friend Cindy, my hubby and I are flying to Mitchell, Nebraska to tour the factory and sale room of Brown Sheep yarns, which is my ultimate favorite felting yarn. Cindy and Cute Man are the pilot and co-pilot--I'm just along for the yarn. Just how much yarn can you shove into a Cessna 182? Well, if all else fails, they do ship...

YEAH BABY!!

Sunday Post

2008-08-31T15:55:00.003-06:00

Hi There!

And how was your week?

Did you get everything on your to-do list done? Hmmm. Me?

Ummm..Not so much.

My list this weekend consisted of planting a grouping of shrubs that I picked up for a song a couple weeks ago and actually putting landscape cloth around them so we don't have to deal with weeds. I have a couple rose bushes that are fighting a losing battle with weeds, they will get the landscape cloth treatment too. Has that happened?

Umm...Not so much.

So tomorrow I will get up early and get a jump on it before the heat of the day sets in. Since we are at the end of the summer season, the pots of shrubs must get planted this week in order to give them some time to establish roots. The end of the week is pay day, so I will be making a trip to the nursery for a dwarf pear tree (a request from one of my sons) and a dwarf peach tree. I really want to have the ability to just walk out back and get the fruit we like, in season and not irradiated. We don't have a huge yard, but we can easily accommodate dwarf fruit trees and still have room for a garden. When we moved in, we knew the deck would have to be rebuilt, so everything has been on hold until then. Work on the deck is supposed to start this month, so I am going to get some of the "bones" put in and then work the frou-frou after the construction. It will be so nice to have the deck completed and to have the backyard completed. The boys are volleying to have a hot tub next year and I am beginning to see that it would be nice to have a small one on the patio. Both boys are very active in sports, and it would be good to have a place to soak sore muscles...We'll do a little research this winter to see what will be required and the general logistics of it.

Can you believe it is September already? It seems like this year has just flown by! But I think that tends to be the rule as I get older. Even though I am no longer working outside the home, I have found that I have so many activities going, that I am rarely home. As a result, we have been in this new house for a full year and we are still in a state of disorganization.

I think it is time to start getting the focus back to the house. I get overwhelmed so easily though! That's why we have almost 2,000 square feet of decorating chaos....ARGGGGGG!!

Along with the backyard, I am looking to get the family room finished--or at least heading in the right direction. I know we are going to take down the wallpaper that is currently on the walls, but that may be too big of a project for right now, so we'll do everything but that and save the wallpaper removal for later, unless I get a wild hair... I did get really lucky and found some incredible pictures at thrift shops lately. I even found a picture that I REALLY liked and when I looked a little closer, I realized it is a low print number of a limited edition print that is even signed by the artist! And the frame is incredible! SCORE!!! I also found some other paintings that work really well, and some mass produced but well framed prints that will work wonderfully. In addition I am going to do some drawings and paintings myself. Can you say redecorate on a dime? That's what I'm looking for. When the weather gets cold and we are inside all the time, I want it to be a good thing.

On the knitting front, I am about to close the top of my first fiddlehead mitten. All that is left is the actual thumb. However, I am casting on the second mitten tonight. I may wait to get the thumb finished until I have the second one completed, I haven't decided. It might be better to just have a full mitten finished for motivation. I'm sure this one will go much faster since I am over the learning curve. I love this pattern so much I will be doing more. I do have enough of various shades of the Cascade 220 yarn that I like so much, so I will be doing a lot more.

I know, mind barf....Sorry.

Cluster, Cluster......

2008-08-26T20:52:00.006-06:00

This weekend a friend and I went to Lee's Summit, Missouri (Kansas City for all practical purposes..) . All along Interstate 35, before our exit, there was construction that turned 4 lanes of traffic into one.

Not good.

Bumper to bumper on a weekend? I would absolutely hate to see it during rush hour on a weekday. On the way there, we were able to exit before becoming too entangled in the mess. Glad I didn't say something cheeky like " Later, Suckers!"

Oh wait, I think I did.

Damn!

On the way back, guess what? Yep! A clusterflip of massive proportions. I could have sworn I heard someone whisper "Who's the sucker now?" Probably Casper, the smartass ghost.

The picture above is from our vantage point on the ramp. What you are not seeing is that there is a second ramp next to ours, just as bottle necked, that merges into our lane before all of us have to merge into the single line traffic of I35.Luckily, Kansas City drivers are remarkably courteous, so the drivers on I35 were making room for the feed off lanes to enter a few cars at a time. Luckily Staci was driving for this neck of the adventure, so were were at least facing the right direction!

I'm not used to this kind of traffic but I think if I had to drive in it, Kansas City is where I would rather be. Their drivers were really patient and courteous, even when they were behind me and I was trying to figure out where the heck I was. I really don't have the greatest sense of direction, so let's just say I'm sure some of them were thinking I was drunk! Bless them for not flipping me off, honking, running up on my rear or any other assmblege of possible antics.

Rob Thomas - Little Wonders

2008-08-24T22:27:00.001-06:00

From an animated film, but the message of the song is good....

GEE-ography lesson

2008-08-21T19:51:00.012-06:00

My mother called me this morning with a story so hilarious, I had to share it.

My nephew runs around with this really large guy (think Hoss from the western show Bonanza --for those of you too young to remember Bonanza--Google it) who is just a few bricks short of being able to hold up his cognitive retaining wall...anyway, my nephew and the guys were hanging out, like we Okies are so fond of doing, and chewing the fat..This guy, David, says "Can you believe the Russians have invaded the U.S ?! " and the conversation gets lively between David and one of the other guys. My nephew is sitting there trying to figure out what the heck he is talking about when it suddenly hits him that this guy thinks the Russians have invaded the STATE OF GEORGIA.

I kid you not!

So John has to explain that the Russians are in the COUNTRY of Georgia--not the state. This guy is a little dumbfounded ( I added "founded" on the end of that last word to be nice). Then John had to explain where the COUNTRY of Georgia is.

Can you imagine this guy gittin' in his pickup truck (Rednecks don't "get" in their truck, they "git") to go fight the red threat in Atlanta? I absolutely rolled...

Then I made sure my kids knew where the heck Georgia (the COUNTRY) was..

I kid you not.

Disclaimer::: the "win 100.00 here sticker" on the European map is theirs, not mine. If I had an extra $100 to give out, I'd buy this guy a globe. One that talks...

Consumer Finance (Orlando, Florida)

2008-08-18T15:12:00.006-06:00

Today I got not one, but 3 recorded messages from a telemarketing company. On the third one, I picked it up (since the previous messages do not leave a call back #) and got a trainee. I asked him to remove our number, since we are on the no call list, and he said he would try, but we probably would receive more calls since there are a lot of branches of the company he calls " Consumer Financial Services" out of Orlando, Florida..I asked to speak to a customer service supervisor who then told me that by having a Visa, Mastercard, or American Express, I am giving them the right to telemarket me.

BULLSHIT!

Then Tim (not his real name I'm sure) hung up on me.

Say it with me folks "OH NO YOU DIDN'T!!!!"

Let me give you a hint, DO NOT HANG UP ON ME IF YOU ARE A SCUMBAG TELEMARKETER.

So I am doing a little research and am out to scorch some ass. Yep, I'm pissed. I can be nice, but if I get hung up on, the transformation to complete bitch occurs instantly. It's just one of my little quirks....

And how was your day?!

I want one of these!

2008-08-17T17:18:00.005-06:00

Click on this link--We need one of these in Wichita! Maybe right next to Twist..what do you think fellow Twisters?

Suzanne's blog (that I found by lurking on the comments of a fellow knitter's blog) also had this quiz. I came out 83% Dixie...Yep Y'all, I did!

I guess all that living in Georgia and Mississippi "done me some good" when I was a kid...

Funnel Cakes

2008-08-17T16:57:00.007-06:00

Hopefully they aren't doing a cholesterol check tomorrow when I go for my CT scan!

One website that I love to lurk on is A Baker's Dozen. The owner of this blog has 13 (yes, 13!) kids and has the best ideas for doing things with kids and just general home life management in general. She posted a recipe for funnel cakes today and I just had to try them. They were EXCELLENT.

1. Heat three cups of vegetable oil over medium high heat until it reaches 350-375 degrees.
2. Whisk together 4 cups of flour, 1/3 cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt. Make a well, then add 2 1/2 cups milk 3 large eggs. Whisk until smooth.
3. Put batter in gallon sized bag. Remove excess air, and seal. Cut 1/4 inch wide hole in bag. Carefully squeeze 1 cup of batter back and forth into oil making a free form lacy web. Cook until golden on bottom, about 2 minutes. Using tongs, turn the cake over and cook until golden brown on other side, about 1 more minute. Transfer funnel cake to paper towels to drain.
4. Dust funnel cakes with powdered sugar and serve warm.

Tip: Cut the hole for the bag small--although it might be a bit thick, the batter rises in the pan and thin funnel cakes are really better. The batter makes a LOT of funnel cakes, so either half it (use 2 eggs in the batter instead of the three for the full batch) or wait until you have a group hanging out. Sprinkled with powdered sugar, they are wonderful hot!

Jag Är En Gummibjörn - Full Swedish Version

2008-08-15T20:53:00.001-06:00

If you aren't sick of this song by now, try it in Swedish!
One of my boys pointed out that he seems to like to grab himself a little--kinda like Michael Jackson. I guess that would explain the playground scenes...I know, boo hiss....

Mercy Me - Bring The Rain (Live)

2008-08-15T20:03:00.001-06:00

Another song from one of my favorite bands. Enjoy.

Another great song by Lisa Lavie

2008-08-13T21:08:00.002-06:00

The End Of Summer...

2008-08-12T22:25:00.002-06:00

As of tomorrow, summer is officially over for my boys.

They start 9th grade--I now have high schoolers again. It feels weird that as of tomorrow I only have 4 years before these guys are off to college. It seems like yesterday I was having a hard time coping because Jeremy told me they were kindergartners now and he didn't want me to walk them to their class. I wonder if that still applies..

It just feels weird.

I am still up at 11:30 doing laundry that realistically should have been done earlier. Not that I haven't done anything today. I actually stayed home today to supervise the kids since a friend came in from out of state and was hanging out all day at the house. It's probably a good thing I stayed home since I had to break up a football toss (in the house) and a wrestling match (again, IN THE HOUSE!) . Boys....

I did manage to get some things cleaned through though, so it wasn't all "fun and games"...

I have made pretty good progress on the fiddlehead mittens, although I have hit a part where I don't understand the instructions. Considering everyone else has sailed through the pattern, I'm sure I am over thinking it. I will be hunting down Jen at some point this week for clarification so I can get the first mitten completed. Maybe HelloYarn should let me test knit some of her patterns so she can be completely sure it is DUMMY proof! Other than this, I am totally in love with this pattern. It is very relaxing to knit and pretty addictive. After I finish this pair, I am actually going to cast on another pair in similar colors.

I rented "Indian Summer" from the video store this weekend and finally got to watch it. I read some reviews people loved it. I just couldn't seem to get into it. It seemed like something was missing from the start and it never quite filled in the blanks. The concept was great and there was no absence of serious stars, but...I guess I should have known when the reviews were playing it up as being in the spirit of "The Big Chill".

We have seriously blown the budget this week. School fees and just general school stuff nickled and dimed us--but that should not have come as a surprise. If I'd been smart, we would have saved a little at a time into a school fund. I'll seriously have to think about that before next year rolls around.

I noticed an article on the website of Wichita channel 3 that was talking about a convenience store at 21st and Webb road having WATER in their gas. Apparently there have been several people that have had problems after filling up or getting gas there. One person took their car to a mechanic and they found the gas was 75% WATER!!!!! A little could be looked on as an accident of some sort--but 75%?! That's running a con! I'm sure they are going to get zapped by whoever polices this sort of stuff--they need to lose their ability to sell gas! Steer clear of this place! We're paying enough already-we don't need a harder screw!!

Goals this week:

1. Finish fiddlehead mitten #1 and cast on #2
2. Get all boxes out of library.

That's all the goals--believe me, if I do that, it will be good! I am working on getting my oldest son's room changed into a studio/guest room so I can have all my art/yarn/fabric in one place. It has just been sitting empty and is wasted space.

Well, the laundry seems to be almost done and it is now after midnight, so sweet dreams!

Rainy Day post...

2008-08-09T18:14:00.005-06:00

Not the kind of weather we are having today, but the picture was pretty... I took this picture at Botanica earlier this summer.

I know, I'm not being very creative with the post titles lately.

Cute man and one son is sitting at Lawrence Dumont Stadium in Wichita as I type this. They go to the 52 hour round the clock baseball tournament each year, and this year is no different.....Except that is has been raining cats and dogs all day.

No, they haven't thrown in the towel, but I'm sure they would have liked an umbrella....

Cute man ended up with a nail in his tire somehow, so he has my car for this marathon. Meaning I have been hanging at home with the other son. Have I gotten anything cleaned/organized? Mmmm, not so much. Have I made significant progress on fiddlehead mitten #1? Yep. I will be at the part where I need to put the thumb gusset on waste yarn in preparation for knitting the rest of the mitten in just a little while. I'm not feeling too confident about that, so it may have to hold until Tuesday, when I get to the shop for some guidance. I am REALLY loving this pattern. Hello Yarn has a pattern in the book "Knit Alongs" and I am really thinking about doing that once I finish a couple more pairs of the fiddleheads for gifts. I am doing my mittens in worsted weight Cascade (love the colors!!) with an alpaca lining. I will have enough yarn left over and in my stash to complete several more pairs. These are going to be really warm mittens, which will be perfect for the cold winters in Iowa. I will be starting a couple pairs for oldest son and his girlfriend right after I complete this pair since the cold Iowa winters demand good toasty hand coverings.

As I type this I have the patio door open and am listening to the rain falling outside. While I am sure they are not appreciating it as much at the tournament, I am loving the sound of the falling rain. When they start working on the deck, I am going to have them fix an area where I can sit outside during the rain and not get wet--a little covered porch with screens to keep out the bugs.

My aunts in Lincolnton, Georgia had a screened in back porch that was used for sleeping in the summer since they did not have air conditioning. Isn't that a cool idea? It actually is pretty common in the old South, and they would have laughed that I thought it was anything special, but it was. There is a lot about the South that still pulls at my heart. Southern entertaining is magical. Southerners also tell the best stories. I think that is where I learned to weave stories into everything. Even in Oklahoma we had a lot of time as kids to sit around and entertain each other with stories. Stories are a southern thing. Just walk into any small town southern cafe and listen to the conversations. If you sit there long enough, you will be invited to be part of the audience...trust me.

Good coffee and great friends to you and yours!

Friday night fever....

2008-08-08T21:29:00.004-06:00

Sounds like a movie title, huh?

It's been an interesting week.

Night before last, ex-sister in law calls after getting nephew all worked up and tries to pull me into the web. I think she was attempting--actually I know she was attempting-- to make us think twice about backing out of the kinship adoption process. After much consideration, hubby and I decided that it is better if Skylar stays with the foster parents and they adopt him. They have had him for 15 months, and it just didn't make sense to pull him from that even if he is "family". After the ICPC papers arrived from Kansas, we sat down and talked about the fact it would take a month more to get him here and by that time he would be almost 17 months old. Nephew and I talked about it and he agrees, but I get the feeling he is afraid of making his mother mad. So hubby and I will play the bad guys and back out, which will make the process smoother for the foster parents. We have been assured that they really do intend to go through with it if we step back and if anything changes about their intentions, we will start the papers again. We will be calling Kansas SRS to let them know we are not going to follow through.
I am in the process of compiling a complete medical history of the our side of the family so the new parents can have this for future reference since we have some genetic issues that run in the family like lupus. I am pretty sure my sister in law is going to refuse any information--which is childish and stupid--so unfortunately he will only know our side.

My twins start high school Wednesday. It seems impossible to even fathom! In 4 more years, they will be starting college! One of the boys has decided he want to spend at least one year in a foreign exchange program. He is the "adventurer" of the two. The other just wants to stay home. Literally. We went out to dinner tonight and I tried to tempt him into going to the bookstore afterwards, but he wanted to go home and hang out. He is so much like his Dad. Cute man loves to stay home and read--luckily he is open to being dragged all around the city by his "can't stay home to save her life" wife.

Both the boys are in football again this year so Monday nights I will be sitting in the bleachers with a knitting project, trying to understand why a bunch of guys hurl themselves at an object, risking bodily injury while trying to inflict the same, for a $15 ball you can buy at Wal-Mart....Hmmmmm. Bet testosterone is responsible for this...

We got both boys formally enrolled today and I forget each year how expensive public school is. The first time we got "school fee shock" was when we enrolled the oldest after we moved from Oklahoma, where the only thing you paid for was school supplies...It was over $200 today to get the boys enrolled, plus I have to take them for sports physicals Monday. Luckily we planned in advance an put money into the health savings plan. Hubby's employer has a health saving plan that rolls over, luckily, so we have a pretty good buffer. A couple people I know, and the old office I worked at, had a health saving plan that you lost at the end of the year if you didn't use it all. Needless to say, I avoided that one like the plague! It seems safer to put money into an emergency savings account than risk losing it. I know the advantage is that it is pre-tax, but that is not a good enough reason. Having the accumulation of a rollover saved our bacon when I ended up in the emergency room while in Atlanta! I have a biopsy on Tuesday and we will be using that to pay anything insurance doesn't. I am so thankful we have really good insurance! This has been an interesting year health wise at Casa Crazylife!

On the knitting front, I am really plugging right along on the Fiddlehead mittens. I LOVE this pattern!! I will take pictures tomorrow. My colors are not shy, mellow colors, of course!