WIPs and why I'm not a knitter...

Well, most people visiting this blog will be those who already know me in some way or another.  What you probably know about me is that I have 3 kids, we homeschool and live in Texas.  What you may not know is that I do not finish crafty projects.  I’m a slacker.  I get that satisfaction of seeing that a project WILL turn out correctly and then I’m fine with never making the rest of it.  My kids have 1 mitten, 1 slipper and so on.  If there are 2 to be made, I make 1 and feel okay with it.  I made a stuffed panda for my youngest daughter and when my oldest daughter asked for one, I suggested they just share.  Yes.  Share.  This is no good so I thought that maybe if I started a blog to keep me motivated, I might actually finish the things I start.  In time, I hope to add another blogger or 2 so we can all keep this going.
My crocheting background goes back a long ways.  I started when I was about 12-ish.  I knew how to but I didn’t have a need to make anything until I got pregnant with my first baby.  That’s really when I learned the harder stitches and techniques.  My grandma taught me the basics and I went from there.  I hold my crochet hook like a pencil rather than the other grip that most people use so if I ever have any tutorials, that might be odd for the viewer.  We’ll see.  Anyway, I’ve always loved the look of knit but as I’ve found out recently, I’m no good at it.  I made one hat once and that turned out well.  Since then, I haven’t been able to capture the magic again.  Meh…  I’ll post the proof of that soon. 
I have a couple of friends who knit and they try so hard to help me and it just doesn’t work out.  I start out okay and then something weird happens…  For example, I went to make a pair of slippers and they started out well!  I didn’t know how that rectangle was going to make a slipper but I figured it would all work out in the end.  They didn’t!  I don’t know what went wrong but they’re not pretty (see below).   I can pretty much read a crochet pattern and know how it’ll work out.  Knit patterns are a big, fat question mark to me.  I don’t get them.

Knit/Crochet

Here is a perfect example of my terrible knitting vs. my fabulous crocheting.  On the left is my knitting.  Wow.  That’s really terrible.  It looks like I scooped the inside out of a blue baked potato and put it on my daughter’s foot!  Really bad.  On the right is my super cute little crocheted slipper that I worked with virtually no pattern!  See how well it fits?  She wasn’t even with me when I made it!  The second slipper (not finished, of course) fits just as well and I couldn’t even remember how I made the first one and they totally match each other.  See?  I should just be happy with crochet!
My other WIPs (works-in-progress):

Wee Bootie

More wee booties...

Wool Shorties

I finished a hat for my 9 month old last month that turned out really, really cute!  Did he wear it?  No.  He pitched it and we ended up having to pick it up off the ground a hundred times before we just put it away.

Hammy in his hat!

It turned out a little girlier than I had planned on it but whatever.  He needed a hat to keep his head from burning and he kept it on just long enough.  I also have some washies made out of cotton that I’ll share later on.  No biggie but pretty anyway.
I would love to start something really intricate like lace but my tastes are more modern and I’m afraid they would just go to waste.  We’ll see.  Well, there ya have it.  My first post in my new blog.  TA-DAAAAAA.

I have plans, ya know!

I really do plan on getting back on track with my shop. I've had too many blog posts here saying I am and to watch for new stuff. Then I get off the computer and forget or I end up cuddling with my kiddos and it's just not my priority. My very wonderful cousin sent me some cute, CUTE fabric today and I'm planning on making some dresses or shirts with them. I'm going to offer some new styles, too! I'm so excited to get sewing! I need a long weekend where my computer and TV spontaneously stop working (just for the weekend though! OMG, can you imagine? HAHA) and I do nothing but sew. Maybe I could get the hubs to take the DVR and my DSL modem with him while he takes the kids out for an adventure! HAHA I'm seriously addicted to TV. It's pretty sick. I have every episode of Project Runway recorded but I haven't watched any of them because I'm so far behind on my TV watching. I had to totally drop Days of Our Lives because there just wasn't that extra hour in my day to watch it. Oh, wait... Etsy... That's what I'm supposed to be talking about.

So, anyway, I'm going to take Friday night and Saturday and just sew like crazy.

Oh, hey! Guess what I made tonight!!! You know the cheese rangoons from Panda Express? I made my own and they were A-MAZING!

1 packages cream cheese, softened
6 green onions, minced
1 tsp sugar....yes, sugar!
1 tsp salt
couple grinds of pepper (or dashes, whatever)
Wonton wrappers!

Peanut oil
water

Keep your stack of wonton wrappers under a damp paper towel while you roll the other ones.

OK, mix up all of your ingredients except the wontons, obviously. Take a wonton wrapper and wet 2 sides. Put about a teaspoon of cheese mixture inside and then bring the wonton together, corner to corner to form a triangle. Then, bring the 2 end points (assuming your triangle is pointing up) to the middle. Secure with a little water and pinch closed. Try to work all of the air out while closing up your wontons and pinch the edges so that they're really secure. I had some poppers and man, that cheese burns SUPER fast! OK, drop them VERY CAREFULLY into your hot peanut oil. You're deep-frying here so don't be chinsy on the oil! Make sure you have a place to put them when you take them out of the oil, too! Don't be like me with all the panic and the OMG's and the PHIL GET ME A PLATE!!!! I totally burned my fingers. That's not part of the recipe, btw. I think you get the idea. These rangoons are best paired with Panda's mandarin sauce. I'm going to attempt to make that this weekend. I'll let you know about that one. ;)

I'm not dead!

I'm just still taking a crafting break. Of course, I sold a few things once I stop trying. LOL I'm here though! I have to go start school but I just wanted to pop on and say hi! :D

I can't decide!!!

It's 12:30 in the morning and since I'm not crafting anything at the moment, and I'm just sitting around waiting for The Hubs to get home, I'm stuck deciding what to do. Listen to music or read a book or watch a movie! I've discovered this guy's music that I adore but I also have a really good book going! Dag! ('Dag' is not a word, kids.)

I'm in the mood where I just want to turn up my Ipod, get the ear buds as close to my ear drums as possible and LIVE the music, ya know? I'm one of 'those' people who get creepishly close to their music and I want to eat it and make it a part of myself. Man, I'm weird but it's true. Ever since I can remember, I would find the headphones and deafen myself for hours at a time, sitting behind the recliner in the living room just experiencing my music. Too bad it wasn't very good music, but I've learned since then.

Of course I have the unexplained, lame-crap that I'll listen to that's mainly just fluff and nonsense that I couldn't care less about. When I met my husband, he was playing in this band that was nothing but angry-sounding (our oldest daughter's words) music and I think everyone figured this was one of those music picks of mine that was unexplainable but for some reason, the music did that thing where it carries you away from reality for a while. I couldn't understand the words and when they put their album out and I read the lyrics, I was like, 'Um... Sense? Where is it cause this is crap,' but the MUSIC was what did it for me. I loved it even before I met The Hubs.

One day, I want to get someone to watch my kids so I can just listen to music for a whole day like that again. I always have to keep an ear open for the kids because they're not the best sleepers sometimes and our youngest is ALWAYS getting too hot at night (thanks, Nana! HAHA) and gets upset. Anyway... What? Oh yeah, I'm typing here... To the public...

Onnnnnnnnnnnn the other hand... I have a book to read. I did read 'The Other Boleyn Girl' and it was fab, BUT I'm also starting to read more realistic accounts of Anne Boleyn and King Henry and all the horrific and tragic mess that surrounded them. This is what happens to your senses when you marry a history buff. I would never, in a zillion years, have found this junk to be interesting and yet, here I am...

I've decided against the TV. I have 2 perfectly wonderful options in front of me that I could choose from and neither of them involve letting my brain turn to dookie.

Ok, see? I have a child on Benadryl for allergies and she has bad dreams on it and now she's up. Grrrrrreat!

Behold! A window is born!

This is my oldest daughter. She's 5 and she just lost her first tooth! She pulled it herself and then flipped out over the tooth fairy taking her tooth, that SHE grew, away. She was SO not down with that idea. After a lot of trying to talk her into the whole idea, she was just terrified of the tooth fairy and so I made the heartbreaking decision to just tell her the truth about the tooth fairy. It wasn't easy and it wasn't fun but she slept peacefully that night and still got some cash out of it. Poor thing! She thinks way too literally for a 5 year old kid and was afraid of this stranger who would be flying around her room stealing things from under her pillow and hovering close to her.

In other news, she read the word 'requirements' this morning. THAT is pretty amazing! We're expecting her first grade curriculum in the mail today and I'm hoping that the language arts isn't too easy for her. She's soooo bored with kindergarten curriculum and needs a challenge! But when your child reads 'Costco is not responsible for damage caused by unattended carts' at barely 5 years old, you worry. HA!

YAY!

Earring success!

I listed 2 more pairs of earrings in my shop and I'm in love with them. I really mean it. If I could, I would totally keep every pair.

These are what I called my 'Vanilla Dangle Earrings'. Why vanilla? I don't know. The color of the beads just look like vanilla to me. Maybe it's just me, but the color is totally soothing. :D

Go to my shop and check out my new earrings and let me know what you think!

OK, anyhow...


Now, check THIS out! I got so excited when my cousin sent me this fabric...Oh, I should say the link to this fabric. I haven't bought it but I WILL. Because I LOVE IT SO!!!! If you love it like I do, you can buy the fabric from my super adorable cousins in Cali and support an Etsy seller! This fabric comes in 2 other colors and I'm dying for them all!

Today is my 9th wedding anniversary! YAY! The hubs and I have gone through a lot of really rough things, especially when we were first starting out. One of which was his mother's passing. We've endured a lot and came out stronger for it. Yes, I'm totally sappy about my anniversary. It can't be helped because I love the guy. He's pretty amazing. So, happy anniversary to me and the Dawg. :D

The Goofy Tooth is gone...

So, to be honest about The Goofy Tooth.... To tell the REAL story.... Well, it starts with my sister...

I have to start out by saying that I simply ADORE my sister. She's my hero, my best friend. She's beautiful and independent, smart, funny, clever, adorable, etc... I seriously love the lady!

Well, she had this one wonky tooth on the bottom that grew behind the row of teeth. It kind of just hung out in the back like the rebel it was. She always called it her 'goofy tooth' and it was always so funny to us! It was 'The Goofy Tooth'. So, when I started making my tooth fairy pillows, I joked and told her that I was going to name them after her tooth and open a shop and name it The Goofy Tooth and everything about it would be goofy! So, that's exactly what I did!

The only problem is that I don't like running 2 shops on Etsy. So, I moved my goofy teeth to my Magoo shop again.

And to finish this lovely story, it should be known that today, my sister had The Goofy Tooth pulled. She says she has a lisp now and that it's really really weird. I feel kinda sad for that goofy tooth and I feel bad that my sister will likely be in pain because of it. But as she said, if it hadn't been such a rogue tooth, she wouldn't have had to get mean with it! HA!

My sister is awesome!

Taking a break

I have a couple of sick little kids and I'll be devoting all of my time to cuddling them and dosing out their cough medicine so I doubt I'll get anything made this week. The hubs is on vacation and we were supposed to get out of town or do SOMETHING but I don't know now. I don't want to be too far away from their doctor.

Oh and GudonyaToo has that conditioner for sale now! I ordered my bottle tonight! I LOVE IT. :D

K, I'm tired and I have a bit of a cough sneaking up on me. Ugh. I hope I don't get sick, but if I have to, I just pray I don't get sick until after they're well. Having the crud along with them is miserable. :(

I've got the blues...

I got caught up on Days of Our Lives today. I'm a horrible DOOL junkie. It's so cheesy and stupid but I can't stop watching. In fact, I'm watching today's episode for the second time today. I'm sick.

Well, to top it all off, I listed this item on Etsy today:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8249386

It started out as one of the hub's drawings. He went for whimsy here. I put it on the computer and digitally colored it in and shaded it. Then I printed it out on fabric. It's soooo cute in person! I love it and I really wish I had a baby who could wear this!

I really think that right now, I need to concentrate on the creative side of life. So, that's what I'm going to do. Hubs is going to start drawing and selling his art on Etsy soon. He's really really good and does portraits a lot. I'm just so happy I could work on something with him. :D

Ok, I have to go. Hearts to you all!

XOXO

Paging Dr. Crazy!

Today I'm going to go out with my Mom to the place she had her eyes checked and glasses and all that... I will start by saying that my mother is a SAINT. She's an adorable woman with the best sense of humor I've ever met on a person. She laughs constantly. She's one of those people who just emits joy and happiness! Why this crazy eye doctor chose HER to unload his disgusting brain on is beyond me. He must be one of those who likes to crush happy people. He dropped the F-bomb several times during her exam and blamed all the problems of the world on 'those crazy conservative Christians'. Now, whatever your views on Christianity or politics may be, you have no right to drop your opinions on your customers just because you currently hold their money hostage and they're not likely to sock you in the jaw and run away... That was one thing... The next horrible-horridness is that the man screwed up her prescription so bad that she had to move her glasses AWAY from her face to read anything! Huh? Wha??? You mean, that's not how glasses work? WHO KNEW? My Mom may not have the best vision, but it ain't THAT hard to make the whole 'seeing' thing work out...

We're going today to get her money back. I say 'we' because I'll be tagging along. I probably won't do anything but keep my kids under control while she goes and talks to them, but I'm there for moral support and to be a witness that this guy is a lunatic. He's been fired, thank God, so she knows she won't have to see him again. Pray that they cough up the money.

In other news...

Oh how I love thee, Art Garfunkel cats!



http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=7600586

This cat... Dear God, this cat! CRACKS ME UP!!! This is the face of 'burfle'. It's a word I made up for people/animals/whatever, that just has an adorably dumb face. Like they look like they're a little dingaling-ish but really really really cute. I love this guy! I must have this guy!

Once again, people, you amaze me!