Monday, December 22, 2008
Did I Mention This?
Oh well, I need to go and hide some presents and then I can go to bed. Yea!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Spreading the Holiday Cheer
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Twilight
In other news, is anyone else really annoyed that Harry Potter is not coming out until July now?!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Are ya kidding me?
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Life's annoyances
On the other hand, don't thieves usually put superglue on their fingertips so that they don't leave prints? This could have possibilities...
Sunday, November 9, 2008
My New Weight Loss Plan
I figure that the Baltimore Running festival is a year away, so if I can keep this up for a year, I can lose 50 lbs while training for the (half) marathon. So there you have it. All I need to do is keep losing 1 lb. I found that it is actually quite motivating. I can still have the occasional treat, but it does keep me thinking, if I eat this, is this what will push me over my 1 lb weight loss. If I don't run today, will it keep me from losing the weight. I'm hoping that I'm still 10 lbs away from plateauing, but in all reality, I am only 4 lbs away from the point that I always have trouble going under, and that motivates me even more. The last 10 lbs came on quickly and recently, so those will the the first to come off, but the next 40 lbs have been there for many years, so I'm really going to have to work on those. We'll see. Hopefully by having this goal in mind I will keep things in check this holiday season.
Speaking of Holiday Season, and weight loss, the only nice thing about Christmas coming right after Halloween is over is that the Christmas candies are already out. Yesterday I went to the grocery store, and they had candy cane Hershey's Kisses out. Those are the best Hershey's Kisses in creation, followed closely by the coconut ones that come out at Easter. It was bliss to find them. I can start nice and early this year.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Technology
For instance, they will not be able to comprehend having to have actual discs to listen to music or watch movies. They will not know the heartache of having to learn to refold a map. (and read it on your own.) I think mostly thought, it's going to be television that will be different. They will not know about having to wait patiently for your favorite show to be on, and then actually being in front of the tv at that specific time. I think that "on demand" is the future of television, and it's going to change how we watch tv, and what we watch. I think that out of all of the advances in television, the most life changing one has been the invention of the DVR, or TiVo if you will. It's one of those things that once you have it, you do not know how you ever lived without it. Nate has had this luxury his entire television viewing life. He doesn't really understand when I tell him that he has to watch a certain thing at a certain time. Or when he wants to watch an episode of Curious George that was on yesterday, but we didn't record it, it's hard for him to understand that he can't watch it again. It changes the way that you view things too. I think that it is turning us into a very inattentive society. Think about it, how many times have you been listening to the radio, or watching a movie in the theater, and you missed something, and wanted to rewind? It happens to me all of the time. That is because I can rewind live tv.
Well, it is because I COULD rewind live tv. This morning I was sadly informed that my dvr has died. Apparently there is no hope for it. Now, fortunately for me, since it is a dvr, and owned by Dish Network, and the such, they will just ship me out a new one free of charge. BUT IT WILL TAKE 3-5 DAYS!!! Oh, the humanity of it all. How will I survive? Mostly it's sad because Nate has been asking to watch a movie that was recorded on the dvr, and now he'll never have that movie again. (Ok, so that is maybe a little dramatic, but you get the picture.)
So there is my sad story. Mostly it'll be a pain because Nate will continue to ask to watch things again and I'll have to say no. (Ok, so it's only a pain because of the whining, I guess it does have it's upsides.)
ps. Before you send me your condolences, and the such, I guess I should mention that I do still have the ability to watch live tv. It's just the dvr features that are broken.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
I voted
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Project Recap
Another project was this pinata. This was also a papier mache project. It was a huge hit. Nate helped make the face, and that is why the nose is on top of the eyes. We made this for a party at Nate's friends house. It was actually a great party and pretty much all of Nate's friends were there, and more importantly, pretty much all of my friends were there. Now that most of the kids are in preschool it has been really hard to get a large group of us together. The kids loved to hit the pinata, but I made it a little bit too strong, and it took forever to break it. I guess that's better that it breaking on the first hit though. I've never made one before though, so I had no idea how thick to make it.
This is the wall hanging that I managed to finish. Jana gave me the pattern and the star hanger for my birthday this year, and I finally managed to get it done a few days before Halloween. She also gave me a pattern for Thanksgiving and one for Christmas, we'll see how fast those get done.
And lastly, this is the quilt that we made for Colleen. This is just the top, Jana is going to quilt it on her mega quilter. Something like this ought to take her like half an hour. Colleen had a little baby boy a few weeks ago, and in the tradition of my quilting group, we made the baby a quilt. I sure hope that right now is not when Colleen decides to start reading my blog.
So on top of all of those things, I have done a little baking for the Witch's Tea Party that Jana had on Halloween Night. It was a lot of fun to just sit there and invite people up for a nice little treat.
Next month I have some holiday sewing to do, both as gifts and I got this kit to make this really cool Christmas Tree hanging. But no proton packs to make, so that makes life a lot easier.
Friday, October 24, 2008
I missed it!
I have been quite busy this week. I have been working on many different projects, and it has been keeping me quite busy. The main one that I have been working on this week is making a proton pack for Jesse's Ghostbuster Halloween costume. I've actually put a lot of work into it. I think I may be almost finished. I just have to figure out how to make it into a backpack. I may make an opening and place a backpack inside of the structure. I still have lots of spray painting to do.
I also have been working on a pumpkin pinata. We have a Halloween party to go to for Nate's playgroup, and I am going to bring a pinata. How fun. I saw one at the party store, but then I thought that I could make one for cheaper. (And so far all I've spent is less than a buck on orange crepe paper, everything else I've had at the house.) I still need to let the top dry and then figure out how to connect it securely to the top, and more importantly get some strings in it that will not break when you make it hold the full pinata.
I also have a quilted Halloween banner that I want to make. My friend Jana gave me the pattern and cute hanger for my birthday, and I have the fabric, I just have to make it.
I also want to make a ghost costume for Nate. He picked out a race car driver costume earlier this week, but now, it true Nate fashion will have nothing to do with it. Some kids you can't get them to take their costumes off. I can't get my kid in anything that is not normal clothes. Oh well.
I have already finished a Halloween pillowcase. I made it for Nate, but in true Nate fashion, he will have nothing to do with it since it is not his normal Thomas pillowcase. Oh well, it's on my bed now. Fortunately we have an odd number of pillows on our bed.
So that's what we've been up to. As soon as I'm done with it all, and have a second to breathe, I'll post pictures of all of the finished products. I have to be done with the proton pack and ghost costume by Tuesday night, and I have to be finished with the pinata by Wednesday afternoon. The other banner, well, that's just a wish, but the later it gets, the less time I'll have to hang it up.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Crazy Mrs Louise
But anyway, on to my story. So when we first moved in, we were warned about Louise. She is harmless, but into everyone's business. I was warned about her looking into your windows. Well, it took her 10 months, but she finally got around to looking into our windows. Mostly she comes up onto our deck and looks into the sliding glass window. She likes to see if Nate is there. Every time she does it, it scares the snot out of me. One time I was putting Graham down, and I came downstairs and she was at the door. All I saw out of the corner of my eye was someone on my deck at our door. She does it all the time now, like, at least once a day, and every time- scares me. When she did it on Saturday it scared Jesse. I am thinking that I need to leave the blinds closed, but then she may ring the doorbell. She has done that before, just to see if we are home.
Oh well, we may move soon anyway. The landlady is raising the rent, and we're still deciding if we want to pay that much. On to the eternal search for a place to rent. We'd move next to Jesse's work, but then we'd have to register our cars in Virginia, and we don't think that either car would pass inspection, so that may be more expensive than it's worth. OH well. We'll keep you posted.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
How did I miss this?!
In other news, Jesse was canoeing with the scouts yesterday, so I was all alone last night, so Jana came over and we watched Made of Honor. It was a cute movie, and only just a little unrealistic that Patrick Dempsey was supposed to be in his early thirties.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Problem Solved
So come with me on the journey to Costco last night. I noticed that right next to the Halloween costume aisle they had the Christmas chocolates out. It is my favorite time of the year, so I walked down the aisle and checked out what they had to offer this year. And then I see it, a large tube of Harry and David truffles- Harry and David MINT truffles. The whole tube is dark and milk mint truffles. It was as if my unwritten letter to Harry and David themselves had been magically read. What a glorious discovery it was.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
I Did It!

Thursday, September 4, 2008
Plus....
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Bad timing
In other news, last Saturday Jesse ran 10 miles. So he's well on his way to doing the half marathon. Good for him.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
I'm committed
Monday, August 11, 2008
No More Pain
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Oh, the pain
BUT... I am not done. I am going to take it easy, perhaps ice my knee every night or something, I don't really know the rules for this stuff. I just know that I cannot give up this early in the game, I just need to change the game a little bit. In case it is not painfully obvious to the rest of you, pretty much after the first week I decided that I will never be ready for the half marathon in October, so I'll have plenty of time to get into shape so that I can train for that. Who knows, maybe I'll go all out and do the marathon next year.
Of course, Jesse plans to do the half marathon this year, and then wants to do a spring marathon, and then do the JFK 50 in the fall. But that's ok, Colleen said that she would try not to get pregnant again, and she would run it with me next year. What a good friend she is.
So there you have it, I can hardly walk up and down the stairs, but I am not deterred. I still plan to have regular exercise in my life.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Keep on Running
New Quilts
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Demoralizing
But I did 3 miles today! In addition to the 2 miles I walked yesterday I'm already up to 5 miles! Tomorrow is a well deserved day off.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
One week down
I think I can keep going next week. I'm still a little motivated. Next week I want to run in the double digits. I've decided that even though I am slow and I need to walk, that I can call myself a runner because when I want to stop, I keep on going; when I feel like I cannot go any farther, I push myself to do it anyway.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Getting a little more sore
Thursday, July 24, 2008
I did it!
Today my biggest complaint is that my back hurts, but I think I'm going to have to deal with that for a while longer. I have a lot of extra weight that I am carting around and that strains a back. I'll have to sit in the massage chair every day for a bit.
Also, for those of you runners, or ex-runners or wanna be runners, or people who just like to read a motivational sports story, the thing that gave me the desire to push through and run the whole way was reading the book, Ultra Marathon Man by Dean Karnazes. It's a pretty good book, and you should check it out. It really makes you think about the limits of your body and perhaps that you are being a little bit wimpy.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
An Altercation
The problem was that this kid had like, hung on the arm of our dish, and had broken it, so the whole thing is going to have to be replaced, and I was thinking of what that was going to cost me. So I went in and called the police so that I could file a report. I didn't even know who this girl was. But she had been talking to my neighbors behind me, so I talked to them, and apologized for being such an obnoxious brat in public, and they were talking to me about how she is a bit of a bad parent, and on and on, and how I didn't need to apologize to them.
The thing is that my friends were here for quilting, so Colleen got in her car and followed her home, so that we could find out where she lived, and then I got more info from my neighbors. Then when I was out there taking a picture she came back and we had a civilized conversation where I apologized profusely for the completely inappropriate way in which I had acted. Anyway, it kind of ended better, but I had already called the police, so yeah. They came, and took a report. This way in case I needed to take an action later on, it would be ok.
Of course, the moron that I am, we don't have renter's insurance. It has always been on my to-do list, but never got done. You can be assured that tomorrow I'll be on the phone with State Farm. I called Dish, and they were going to send someone out, and it was going to cost me upwards of $300. And $99 of that was just for the visit. So I called these other people, who Dish contracts out to anyway, and had come out to fix our reception a few other times, and they were going to do the whole thing, visit and equipment, for $100. Plus, they were going to be here earlier.
Anyway, it's the first time I've ever done that, and I feel bad about it, and totally embarrassed. On the other hand, it made for quite an exciting quilting night. Jesse is at a movie today, so he's going to be excited when he gets home and sees that. I sent him a pic message. THe movie should be getting out any minute now...
Monday, July 21, 2008
Running for Non-Runners
When I graduated from college some 6 years ago I was a nice size 7. It was great. I really enjoyed looking at my flat stomach in the mirror, and well, I was happy about my body. 5 years of marriage and 2 babies later, I am tipping the scales at a tidy size 14. Yikes! How did I ever let it get this bad? (Well, the answer to that is that I am a world champion at being lazy.) I always think, I need to start a diet and start exercising. I even joined the YMCA for a while a few years ago. But money gets tight and so a family gym membership is not in the budget this year, so what is a mother of 2 supposed to do? Graham is still quite needy and has not mastered the art of self entertainment for more than a few minutes at a time. I got the jogging stroller, but then Graham started waking up early and taking an early nap, and Nate started waking up late. So these days Nate is just waking up when Graham is ready for his nap. I know, all weak excuses.
But then Jesse and I decided that we were going to run together when he gets home from work. It is by far not an ideal situation, but it's just about our only option.
The only problem is that I am what I would call a non-runner. It's not that I have never been a runner before, but I don't know that even when I was a "runner," I was actually a "runner." I ran cross country and track in High School, and that was ok. I wasn't really any good at it. Then when I was a freshman in college I had a great roommate who was always up for a run. Mary and I would go running regularly at 11pm or later. But then by Sophomore year we only got together a few times to run, even though we only lived 3 doors apart. And then I just kind of stopped running. I was still active, I would walk to and from campus a few times a day, and stuff like that, but that was the end of my running career.
Then I had Nate and well, running was just not an option for me, my body had forgotten it, and rebelled. I was officially a non-runner. When we joined the Y, I did the bike and the elliptical, not the treadmill. And that brings us to today.
So today was day 1. I was supposed to have quilting tonight, but it got moved to tomorrow night, so we moved our first day up to today from Wednesday. I was a little worried. I told Jesse that he had to run with me, no matter how many times I needed to stop and walk. On my previous attempts I came nowhere close to running a mile. I walked most of the way. Today, however, was different. I had found what I lacked before, a running partner. Just having someone there to witness me being a wimp was enough to motivate me. Today went much better than I had anticipated. We kept a slow easy pace, and I was able to run for much longer and farther than I had ever done before. We did well enough that Jesse talked about signing up for the half marathon this fall. The initial goal is to be in good enough shape to run the Baltimore half marathon next October. Maybe if thing go really well to run the marathon. I mean, what better way is there to get into shape than by training for a marathon? So I don't know about this year, I guess we'll have to see how long it is before I can do a mile without stopping.
So here I am, thrown into a sport I used to semi-enjoy, because let's face it, the only reason I did CC and Track was because it was a family tradition, and no one got cut from the team. We'll see where this takes me. Perhaps it will be easier than I think, and I'll be able to run a half marathon in 3 months. Crazier things have happened. At the very least, I can hope to get into a healthier lifestyle, and maybe lose a few pounds.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Correction
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Neighbors Revisited
First of all, our neighbors right next door to us are moving by the end of the summer. We are quite sad about that since they have been great neighbors.
Second, the people here really are quite nice to each other. For instance, on Saturday I was draining Nate's pool, which is like a 50 gallon thing. So there was a lot of water, and it was draining for at least an hour. During that time, our neighbors behind us (the ones who like to party and have a foul mouth,) and the neighbors next to us (the ones who are moving) both came over to let us know that we had water running from our deck. So how considerate.
Also, we went camping this past weekend, and me, being the space cadet that I am, forgot to close the door. I didn't forget to lock the door, but I did forget to close it. I wasn't sure that Jesse had his keys, so I didn't close it, and then we drove off without looking back. (Which is of course weird, because as we got into the car to pull out we were looking right at the open door, but just didn't notice it.) Anyway, when we got back on Saturday afternoon we found a note inside of our door saying that our neighbors were concerned that we had left our door open, so the police came by and locked it. It was probably Mrs. Louise, the old lady who lives to the other side of us, and is kind of a neighborhood watch. She I'm sure noticed that we were packing up, and then noticed that my car was gone, and then as she repeatedly went out to make sure that he car was locked, noticed our wide open door. She is observant like that. When I'm gone for the morning she always asks me where I have been, and when I leave she asks me where I'm going. She's nice, but in the early stages of Alzheimer's I believe. So we do have neighbors who are concerned for our well being.
Of course, there is always the other side. Mrs. Louise, whereas she is very nice and friendly, is a bit of a crazy driver. I guess there have been incidences. Well, we had one of those on Friday as we were packing up our car.
Yes, she knocked over the first section of our fence. I didn't see it, but Jesse was looking out the door as it happened. Apparently, she hit it, and paused for a second, and then just kept on driving. I haven't seen her since it happened, so we'll see what she says next time we see her. I'm just glad that I don't have to deal with it. I called my landlady, and she kind of laughed about it. She used to live in this house, so she is familiar with Mrs. Louise and all of her crazy antics.
Oh well, so this one goes out to all of the neighbors. Thanks for the concern, and keep on being crazy. It gives me something to blog about.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Project time
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Potty talk
So this morning we went to go and see the new Indiana Jones movie. Which BTW, is pretty good. The only complaint that I really have, aside from ***SPOILER ALERT**** the whole alien thing ***END SPOILER ALERT*** is that the entire second half of the movie has water noises in it. This is unfortunate if you happen to have to use the bathroom.
So that brings me to the end of the movie. I went to use the restroom after the movie was over, and there were lids on the toilets. Which, in a normal restroom you would not expect any of the lids to ever be down. However, these were automatic flushing toilets. So the sensor will only go off if you close the lid. I immediately saw this as being the best idea to ever come to the public restroom. There are several problems that I can see are eliminated by employing this idea. First of all, the toilet will not flush until you are ready for it to. Always a plus. Also, those auto flushers are pretty powerful, so there is always a considerable amount of spray, and that is also eliminated. I feel pretty strongly about putting the lid down when you flush in any situation. When you flush the toilet it sprays teeny tiny little toilet waters all over the place- think about that the next time you brush your teeth. Anyway, here is a public restroom where I do not have to feel like I was covered in poo water by the time I exited the stall. So yeah, that only leaves the problem of the jerks who do not close the lid and cannot figure out why the toilet is not flushing.
Anyway, sorry of the nature of this post. But, it's my blog, so that's my right.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
TV time
"I am polymerized tree sap, and you are an inorganic adhesive. So whatever projectile you launch in my direction is reflected off of me, returns on its original trajectory and adheres to you."
- Sheldon on "The Big Bang Theory"
Thursday, April 24, 2008
More complaining
So there have been several times as we have been outside or as we have had the door open that we can hear them talking. One day, and I don't think I'll forget this one in a while, I was inside and I heard one of my neighbors cleaning out her car, and her 5 year old was with her, and she started yelling at her kid, and she said at one point, "you'd better watch your (and at this point she inserted an unpleasant word) mouth." So it's a big case of do as I say, not as I do over there.
Anyway, as we were playing tonight, our neighbor had a visitor, and she and he were sitting on their porch talking, and talking rather loudly (They are of the talk loud enough so that everyone within a mile radius can hear you variety.) Anyway, so she is using some very unpleasant language, like really bad stuff, and using a lot of it. To give you an idea, within just a few minutes, I was thrown straight into an R rated movie. Now, I don't want to hear that stuff, but I especially don't want my 3 year old to hear that stuff. He repeats just about everything. Anyway. I just am sad that common courtesy has exited from society these days. So I guess that's just one of the fun things about living in this neighborhood. Oh well. Life goes on.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Chaps my hide
Today I found out what that "good cause" was.
Was it a new fire truck which literally costs a million dollars? Was it new gear for the fighters, which costs $100,000 per fighter? Was it new tools? Was it for training for the fighters?
Close.
It was for a new sign in the front entrance. You know, with those television screens like you see in sports arenas- on both sides! This sign is probably the nicest one in the city now. It has the one at the mall beat by a zillion miles.
So seriously- this is what you are going to use my money for?
Now, I like giving to charity. It makes me feel good. I wish I had more money so that I could do more. However, I also feel like I want to stipulate where my money goes to. Has anyone seen Stranger than Fiction. Where the Maggie Gyllenhaal character only wants to pay taxes if they go to the things she agrees with? I kind of feel that same way, except that I pay all of my taxes. But I don't want to give to BYU these days because I want all of my money to go to scholarships, not to building new sports plexes. Ok, they could use my money to make the buildings up to the new earthquake codes too. But not new sports buildings that affect the people who only see college as a segue to professional sports.
So I guess that makes me only a sort of good person. I'll give, but only if I can be judgemental about the things that they do with my money. BUt isn't that kind of my right? If I had stock in a company I would get a say in what they did with the company wouldn't I? (Once again, I am getting this information from a movie- Mr Deeds. I'm in a movie mood today aren't I?)
So that's it. I just wanted to complain about how the fire station used my money, and say that next year we will not be buying our Christmas tree from them.
A Love Story
So anyway, we went up to the outlets this past weekend, and stopped by good old H&D, and picked up a few bags of truffles. (One of them did make it into the freezer this time.) And there you have it, my love affair continues. They stay upstairs, because I'll be honest, these days I feel like stress eating all day long. Mint ones are my favorite, and I am always saddened by the fact that they do not sell bags of just mint ones, however, the mixed bag that has mint in it makes all of them taste a little minty. So that is nice.
So your homework assignment is to go and procure yourself a Harry and David Truffle if you have never had one. It always leads to good times.
Lizzie
Monday, April 14, 2008
Duckie curtains
I have decided the curtains are not fun to make at all. They turned out ok, and looking at them from a distance they are fine. It's only when you look closely that you notice that one panel is longer than the other, the side hemming is a little crooked, etc. etc.
But I was proud of myself. I had never attempted curtains before, and lined ones was a pretty ambitious way to start.
So that was a while ago. I just now got the pictures up.
In other news, Nate has been falling out of bed lately. It's unfortunate because we just moved his bed to the other side of the room, so the side of the bed where he is used to having a wall now is just empty. It's a good thing it's not a long fall. So now we either need to turn his bed around, or we need to put a rail up. I'll let you know how things pan out.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Just so you know
On a happier note- Nate has not started singing along to the heavy metal music that goes along with Jesse's video game that Nate likes to play. Yea.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
sisters
That is a girl who does not need a little sister.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Memory Lane
Freshman year we had a lot of good times. We were 6 strangers put together by chance, but stayed together by choice. (Ok, we didn't actually stay together as roommates- but we did stay friends.) One of the best things that we did freshman year, aside from pull down our pants in front of missionaries, was the walk by. I don't remember how it started or why we thought of doing it, so you who will remember will have to help me out on the details that I am foggy on. But it was a Sunday afternoon, and there was nothing else to do, so we thought we would start calling random numbers in the BYU directory and see who we found. We only called numbers that we knew were in boys dorms. I guess we wanted to see these guys without actually having to meet them, so we asked them to walk by our window. Our big kitchen window looked out onto one of the main roads, and there was a grassy spot by it, so it was pretty perfect. So we called probably half a dozen guys and scheduled them to walk by. And that's it, we just wanted them to walk by our window.
Some of them came prepared with songs and what not. I guess when we were done with them we called out the window and dismissed them. We sat with the lights out in our kitchen peeking through the blinds at those people who had showed up. One group was singing to us while the rest of our ward started walking by headed to ward prayer. So of course, the whole ward, even the bishopric knew that we were the home of the walk by.
Anyway, this does no justice. It's hard to tell a good story when your kids are distracting you.
So one more story for this time. This came junior year. We hung out all of the time with this one apartment of boys, and they were kind of our standing weekend plans. One day however, they decided that they wanted to take dates out. So they were all gone one night, leaving us high and dry. So we decided it was prank time. We got someone who worked in the office to let us into their apartment. We went to the laundry room and got some lost and found clothes and we stuffed them with newspaper and made people. They had blown up rubber gloves for hands, balloons with glued on yarn for hair. We then positioned them so that they were making out on the couches in the boys apartment. We had I think 2 couples. We put on some great disco make out music, and put up a bunch of decorations. I think we even had a disco ball up and streamers. We put up a sign that said welcome to the love shack. We were really hoping that the guys would bring their dates back to the apartment. I don't know if they ever did though.
We did get caught though. One of the guys did not go on the dates with them, and he came home while we were in his apartment decorating. He thought it was funny though, so he kept quiet for us. The guys of course knew that it was us that had done it and it was all fun and games. But that is certainly one Friday night out of my life that was not wasted.
So there are some memories. I figure that these blogs are an imprint in the world, and a pretty easy way to record what my life has been like. I always liked hearing the crazy things that my mom did while she was in college, because it reminds me that she did silly things that you would never do if you were not in college, just like I did. So maybe in the years to come (especially if I ever have a girl) I can share some of my favorite memories that will remind her that she has a legacy of doing stupid silly things while in college. So it's just a little diversion from the norm, but you get what you pay for.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Past projects
So here I am nursing again, and the jokes have started again. So Amy makes a comment that she is sure that I am going to make some quilted valentines while I am nursing. And that got me thinking, wouldn't it be hilarious if I actually showed up with quilted valentines? It wouldn't be so hard to do, just fold some fabric in half, I can quilt on my machine, and I even have a free motion foot, so I could do more than just straight lines. I cut some hearts out with my sizzix die cutter, and voila! Quilted valentines.
Friday, February 22, 2008
I've been tagged
Here are the instructions:
1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages).
2. Open the book to page 123.
3.Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next five sentences.
5. Tag five people
The last book that I read was Harry Potter #7, and that was pretty close.
Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at one another.
"A surprise apparently! You were not aware then that Dumbledore had left you anything?"
"A-all of us?" said Ron. "Me and Hermione too?"
As for who I tag, I don't know about 5, but I do tag Jana, cause she always has some sort of fun book that she is reading.
Plus, she introduced me to a very funny blog today: stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com
Check it out. It's hilarious. it's free, so you get more than you pay for.
More on my neighbors
My neighbors also are unusually active for it being the middle of the day, and there are always people coming and going. These are the ones that I'm pretty sure do drugs in their shed, yet must be ok people due to the decorations that sometimes appear at their front door.
So today I was watching out my window and these two skinny white kids show up. It seemed like they were expected, but they seemed awfully out of place. They were wearing pseudo-suits, and carying books. They seriously looked like impostor missionaries. Anyway, as they show up and were trying to get in the door I had a movie moment. It was one of those moments where you want to scream to the screen- Don't go in there! They did go in (and I have to say, they kind of looked surprised that they got in.) and I suppose they are ok. I never saw them exit, but it's more of a hobby than a full time job, so I wasn't really paying that much attention to watch for them to leave.
Anyway, it all just felt a little Rear Window-ish. But now it's time to go and put the crazy one to bed, so it's a little scary today, but you get what you pay for.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Happy Shrove Tuesday
Jesse and I were planning on going to his parents house that day, and we were leaving town sometime mid-afternoon, and we saw a large plume of dark smoke from down the street. It was such that we knew at once that a large building was on fire, and it looked like it was coming from this little shopping center that had several stores that we had gone to. As we were leaving town we commented that we hoped that it was not that particular shopping center.
That night on the news we saw that it was indeed the shopping center down the street from us. It was the place where we went to Quizno's and most importantly, it was the place that we went to Dunkin' Donuts.
The Dunkin' Donuts had burned down.
It was the saddest day ever.
And so here I was today, faced with the desire to obtain some Dunkin' Donuts, and instead of going 1/4 mile down the road (I can see the empty burned out shell of the shopping center from our new house.) I had to go half-way through town to get some. It wasn't so much the drive that was bad, it was just the sorrow of losing something like a good friend that got to me.
So there you have it, a bittersweet day for us. We are excited for the day that they rebuild the shopping center. It has been almost a year, and it is still just a frame. Oh well, I guess I'll survive until then, and it's probably nice not to have the temptation that close. So that's it, it's not the key to universal happiness but you get what you pay for.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Update
On a completely different subject. Lizzie is not a cat to come and sit on your lap. In fact, she has not done that in over a year. Right now, as I have a computer on my lap, she decided that it would be a good time to come and start being a lap cat. Silly cat. Oh well, you get what you pay for. (And we didn't pay for her.)
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Am I a Freak?
So I was lying on the floor with Graham one day, and he was lying on one of his quilts. As I get down to take some pictures of him I see this stray thread on his quilt, and my first thought was- how cool, that thread is a perfect ampersand. My second thought was- if I take a picture of that, I can write about it in my blog. So there you have it. You probably have to click on the photo in order to see it big enough to actually see the thread, but well, what can I say, the ampersand is my favorite symbol. So I know, it's a bit random, but you get what you pay for.
Oops, I did it again
The last two falls have occured on my basement steps. I believe they may steeper than a normal flight of steps, but for sure the carpet on them is slippery. My foot slips while walking down them on a regular basis. I am quite excited that we finally got a railing installed, but all the same, when I am carring the laundry basket downstairs, a railing does me no good.
Anyway, I just a little battered today, and I hope it doesn't hang around. I took some of my left over post-partum pain meds, so we'll see how well those work. So that's it, it's not world hunger, but you get what you pay for.
Monday, January 14, 2008
My Christmas Projects
This Christmas I found a pattern by Art to Heart called Glad Tidings I think. Anyway, I was attracted to it because it had a pattern for an Advent calendar. I didn't have an advent calendar, and I really wanted one. This one was really cute, and it was a nativity scene to boot. So I was pretty happy about that. I think it turned out pretty cute.
In this pattern book there was also a pattern for a wall hanging called a button up quilt. Obviously because there were buttons and stuff. Anyway, I was totally ambitious this winter, and in addition to having a baby at the start of December, I decided that I was going to make this for myself, and as a Christmas present to my sister in law Heather, since we had her family for Christmas this year, and also one for my mom. I think that they turned out pretty good. (Of course I am going to say that though, since I will probably not post the results of something that I totally messed up on.)
The last thing that I made was a little tiny quilt. I put it on the table, and it was just a tiny nativity quilt.
Anyway, they were actually pretty easy to make, it was all iron-on transfer stuff, so that was nice. Plus, when you make a bunch at once, it really is not that much more effort than making one. So there is my latest project that I have worked on. I think that I may start working on a stocking for Graham. I need to order 2 more so that I can make new ones for Jesse and I so that we can all have matching stockings. I could easily do that by next Christmas. Anyway, when I finish that, I'll let you know. So that's it. My blog has officially taken a turn, and is perhaps more of what I intended it to be, and as always you get what you pay for.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
A Memorial Quilt
So in my quilting group, we started to make quilts for everyone who is having a baby. It started a year ago, when Debbie had her baby. That one was a surprise. She didn't know we were doing it. Since then most of the rest of us have had babies (all of us in the quilting group) and we have made quilts for each one.
So about 2 months ago tragedy hit our little play group. Our friend Rebecca delivered a still born at 37 weeks. We had already started a quilt for her, and we didn't know quite what to do with it. We didn't know if she would want to have the reminder or if it would be like a slap in the face: here is a quilt for the baby you will not have. But we thought about her and how she was handeling things, and we decided that she would like to have the quilt. So we finished it, and today we were able to give it to her.
When she hugged me when we gave her the quilt, I don't remember a time when I have been hugged so tightly. I'm just really glad that we gave her this quilt. I think that it is something nice to help her remember how much she loved this little girl that she was never able to have. I feel like I was able to do something extra nice for a friend today, and that made it a really good day. It was sad, yes, but at the same time, it was a moment that I am glad happened.
Monday, January 7, 2008
My new stroller
So I got a gift card from Target, and I found one that they had. I had to drive all the way out to Hagerstown to get it since the Target in town didn't have it in stock. But, I went and it was on sale, so I ended up only paying about $45 for this double stroller. It is small when it folds up, so it fits into my small car, and basically I love it. I mean, it's a double stroller, so it's big, but I took it for a test run around the block before naps today, and it worked out just fine.
So there is the latest addition to my family. I'm pretty excited that I got it on such a great deal. So it's not much, but this time I got way more than I payed for.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
"I'm busy!"
So then Jesse tried to get him to repeat this feat on video and as soon as the video was rolling when told to come, Nate came. When the video was off and Jesse told him what to say, he would say it. Then the camera ran out of battery life, and Jesse walks downstairs and one last time tells Nate to come, and once again the "I'm busy!" comes out. So it was pretty funny. Our little 2 year old is growing up more every day.
In other news, we had Macaroni Grill for dinner. Yum!! I will be killing myself for getting the cheese stuffed pasta and eating ice cream in a few hours when Graham is up screaming with gas all night, but it sure was good while it lasted. So that's it. It's not brain surgery, (It's not even cross stitch) but you get what you pay for.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Happy New Year
So yeah, in the next week I'll start cooking again. Since we will be on diets, we will be having a lot of chicken and rice, so I'll get to use my new tongs on the grill pan that I have. Yea!
Graham has decided that he will be awake a bit more, and he really prefers to be held while he is awake. Can you blame him? It is his survival mechinism to make sure he is not forgotten or left behind. He also has decided that he would like to cry most of the evening. So blog time will be a bit more sparce these days.
I do have plans to start a family blog. It will not be searchable from the public, so I will post photos and have more personal stuff on it. So look for that in the next month. If I have your email address, then you should get an email about it when I finally set it up.
Anyway, wanted to let all of my fans know that I am still here and surviving being a mommy to 2. Not much going on here, but you get what you pay for.