Goodbye January

The sound of the wind woke me in the early morning hours… “Good”  I thought, “blow this month outta here!”

I am done with January – how about you?  I can’t say that it’s because it’s been too cold or snowy because it hasn’t.  It’s just been too dark, gloomy and dull… I need me some sunshine and we haven’t had nearly enough of that.

Over the years there have been many times I’ve looked back on a month and wondered what happened – where did all my days go?… but not January 2013!  Good bye…

The only thing saving January 2013 from ending up in the Total Waste of Time column is that I’ve been knitting during these dark gloomy days.

Last Year…

This morning I looked back at January of 2012 – I had forgotten that I had headed to Texas mid-month… and didn’t return until March.

I was reminded in looking back of a resolution I had made last year – to not talk on the phone while driving nor talk to others who are driving.  I’ve done pretty well with that and will continue to make this a habit that sticks.

I’m glad I looked back – I’ve been finding it hard to motivate myself to get up early and get to the gym… and I’ve been beating myself up mentally because I didn’t remember having this problem last year.  Well - that would be because I wasn’t going to the gym last year at this time… see – I’m not a terrible slacker!

My daughter in SC gets her household goods delivered this week… I know she’s excited about that.  They closed on the new house last week and have pretty much been ‘camping out’ in an empty house.  She said they were going to make a big sleeping pallet up each night in a different room and all sleep together… give them all a chance to settle in and get use to all the rooms together – then when beds arrive they will all go sleep in their own rooms… hopefully… LOL

I need to finish sorting thru my paperwork so I can give The Engineer the receipts he needs for his Tax appointment in early February.  I need to make a greater effort to give him this stuff through out the year rather than holding on to it… it’s not like I need it for anything myself!

On The Needles…

Judy Laquidara from Patchwork Times hosts an “On The Needles” post each week… Please go and check out what others are knitting this week!

What mine should be titled is “What’s BACK on the Needles”.

Earlier this week I had posted a picture of this cowl finished… but I wasn’t entirely happy with it.  The pattern is in Creative Knitting Magazine – Keep it Casual Cowl on page 52.

 

I decided I wanted a little more up around the neck – so I undid the bind off and picked up all the stitches.

This went along a lot better than I expected – there was no screaming or crying involved… and no panicked trip to the yarn shop for help either… (which I’ve done a couple times this past month) LOL

I had picked up an additional ball of yarn this morning whilst out for my knee appt. and errands so Edna (yarn shop owner) knew she might be seeing me again before too long if things didn’t go well.

I also came home with a couple more little projects… (sigh…)

Procrastination…

I seem to be all about that right now.  If it doesn’t have to be done RIGHT NOW – I’ll just be doing it later thank you very much. 

It might be easier if the sun would at least shine some… on dark cloudy days (i.e. winter!) I could stay inside and not go anywhere until Spring.  I went out on Monday and dropped some stuff off at the UPS store… OK - I wanted to go to the yarn shop so I stopped by UPS on my way.  Everything else I have had to do this week will get done tomorrow (Friday) when I go out for my appointment (which I had already moved from Wed. to Fri.). 

I have however not been slacking on getting back on track with more healthy eating and exercise.  Although I haven’t gotten back to the gym I have been using a new exercise video I got from ADVOCARE.  I have to say I’m liking it a lot.  The video is set up in different sections – Melt, Sculpt, Shred and Core Stretch.  It’s set up for you to work 5 days with 2 days (optional) off.  You alternate the Melt, Sculpt, and Shred exercises with the Core Stretch.  The cool part is that it’s a 24 minute workout - there are 3 instructors working at different levels for different amounts of time.  You work along with the level you are capable of doing.  I am pretty much working at the lower level but continue thru the time for the upper levels.

I will get back to the pool next week… I miss that warm water workout!

My sewing room became a catch all while my daughter and grandkids were here… I’ve been sorting through stuff, putting things away and hope to reach the fabric layer soon.

Well – I guess I’ve fiddled around enough today…

This and That…

New Tree:  My old “Christmas Forest” (a lighted set of 3 varied height trees) bit the dust a couple years ago.  We had one other 3 ft. tree we’ve used a few years but with the grandkids here for the holidays I thought it was time to invest in a new tree.  I knew I did not want a bulky full sized tree so I was very happy to find a 7.5 ft. SLIM tree.  Perfect… simply perfect!  What a hoot it was with the baby helping us decorate.  He could not run fast enough back and forth between me (with the box of decorations) and his mother (hanging them).  Over the next couple weeks many of the lower ornaments got hung higher has he persisted in playing with them – but for the most part it was fun to watch him walk up and look at the ornaments.  The kids had a grand time! The baby really is in a clean shirt… he was working on a new molar so it didn’t take him long to get drool all over it even on Christmas morning!

The thing I hate about holiday trees is that you then have to take them apart and store them… so I got a Tree Keeper storage bag!  

The bag arrived last Friday and on Sunday The Engineer and I pulled the tree off it’s stand long enough to attach the bag and about 10 minutes later the tree is standing in the basement taking up a whole lot less room than it would in it’s box… and I won’t have to spend an hour or two re-fluffing the branches next year!

How cool is that?!!

I’ve been knitting in the evenings…

This wraps nicely around my shoulders or I could double wrap it around my neck… but I mostly use it to keep my shoulders and arms warm while watching TV.  It’s Baby Alpaca so it’s soft and oh so warm.  I wish I had made it a bit wider so… here is plan B.

I saw this cowl in the September issue of my Creative Knitting Magazine.   Although it’s done – I’m thinking about picking the stitches back up and giving it another round or two at the top to snug it up a bit more around my neck.  I’ll have to try it on another time or two and decide… but I love it that it covers my shoulders and arms down to my elbows and since it’s nice and stretchy I have full use of my hands and arms.  It’s superwash merino wool.

Late last summer I had lost 10 lbs (woot woot!) but between spraining my knee in early Oct. (resulting in a lower activity level) and the carb fest we call the holidays I found 3 of them (boooo!).  All the yummy goodies are gone and I’m back to focusing on getting some daily exercise.  Ow… some of those muscles forgot how to work hard.

Speaking of exercise… enough sitting for me this morning…

There’s Always Tomorrow…

I’ve had in my mind (scary place for sure – wait… maybe that is the problem?) anyway… I’ve had in my mind the idea that Wednesday Jan. 2nd I’d get back to my life.  I’ve been working on a list of things to tackle once the house cleared out.  Little did I know that I’d not fall asleep until 4 AM and therefore not get up until after 8:30 AM… so my morning is shot already and I’m tired before I’ve even glanced at my list.  So… there is always tomorrow…

My daughter and grandkids left this past Friday morning and my husband and I have spent the days since doing vegetable impressions in the living room.  Not because we were devastated that they were gone after 7 months - we just both gave up fighting the colds that had been nagging at us over Christmas.

Their leaving has it’s good and bad points…

• The dog will loose weight as there are no longer scraps of food on the floor…
• …but I will have to start mopping the kitchen floor as the dog will no longer be interested in licking it clean
• I will be able to find things in the refrigerator…
• …after I clean it out
• I won’t have to spend all my time cooking and cleaning in the kitchen…
• …but I will miss sharing meals with the kiddos
• I can get in my car and go anytime I want to…
• …there are no longer sweet little faces to greet me when I get home – or watch as they play - or kiss goodnight

OK… that’s enough of that list…

Except to say that I’ll also get to spend some time sewing again… after I put the toy boxes and Christmas stuff back into the attic storage and clear out my sewing room… again.  It seems like I’m always cleaning out or rearranging my sewing room… I need to fix that.

I hope everyone had a Wonderful Christmas and I wish for you all the Most Happy of New Years!

I’ll be back… after I tackle a thing or two on my list… and maybe get in a nap or two.

Quickly…

First - Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends out there!  I hope you enjoy your day/days/weekend with your family and friends!

Why ‘Quickly’ you may wonder…

Well it’s because the little boy (16 mo. old grandson) may just wake up from his nap… which is what he does every time I try to do something… anything… everything… which is why my house is a wreck… LOL

But he has redeeming qualities… after he woke at 4:30 this morning for a dry diaper – he didn’t want to go back to his bed so I scooped him up and he snuggled in with me and fell back to sleep.  I felt him stir about 6:30 am – he raised himself up and looked around and then leaned over and kissed my head… LOL!  He’s just too sweet!

His Momma is in Hawaii with the other 2 kids (far left in picture below) to meet Daddy’s ship returning from a 9 month deployment.  She has had their belongings shipped to SC where they will be moving.  Shortly they will return here to spend the holidays with us.  Please keep our military families in your thoughts and prayers.  Several ships that were just days away from returning to their home ports were sent back out to the Middle East because of the Israeli – Palestinian goings on. 

The days/weeks/months have flown by… I enjoyed my two visits up north in MA for the shop hop and in NH for the Quilt Show.  I’ll have to do a post at some point about the show… it’s always fun!

I returned from the show on Sunday and my daughter left on Monday for Hawaii… and it’s been a whirlwind of days here keeping up with this child. 

I’ve had a couple PT and Orthopedic appointments to contend with for my sprained knee… always fun with a little one tied up belted into his stroller.  My knee is much, much better and will certainly be at it’s best again when I can get back to the gym on a regular basis.

I hear some stirrings in the other room…. not sure when I’ll return… but I do so hope everyone enjoys their Holidays!

Wake Up!

That's what I would like to yell right now.... LOL

But my friends are still sleeping and they wouldn't appreciate it I'm sure!

"A Quilters Gathering" begins today here in Manchester, NH. I drove up from PA yesterday with little reminders along the way of the destruction Sandy wrecked in her trek thru earlier this week.

At home we had nothing more than some rain and steady high winds with a gust here and there. Some how we got missed by the really bad stuff.

I did pass a semi hauling what I decided was large pumps headed for NY City... It was the gigantic hoses coiled on the front end that cinched it for me... Those would carry some serious water out of subway tunnels!

Last year when I headed up to NH for this show New England was still reeling from that freak snow storm that had tromped thru just days before. Back then I passed several convoys of tree trucks headed in to help in the clean up. This year in addition to the pumps headed to the city - there was a large group of dump trucks going on that direction and again several convoys of tree trucks headed in. One company was from MI and another from up state NY.

Mother Nature has been reshaping the coastlines for millions of years - I don't think she much cares if we get in her way. High winds and fast water ALWAYS WINS!

Still haven't heard from my Jersey friends May and Elaine. I've got my fingers crossed that a power outage is their only issue...

Ok I've rambled enough... Time to rattle some beds and head down to registration. More later...

I Suppose It Is A Matter of Perspective…

Whenever there is a news story about “Record Earnings” for the Lottery or Casinos… I can’t help but think that it would be a whole different story if the Headline was “Customers Lost a Record Amount of Money Gambling”.

Just something to ponder…

Alive and Kicking...

At least I think so...

My daughter has made 2 trips without the kids and one again this past weekend with just the older 2 leaving the baby with me.  This latest trip was certainly the best as the baby was getting over his latest bout of being sick and was on an antibiotic and starting to feel better.  Sure feel sorry for the little fella when he's sick - he's usually very happy and energetic and this last go around he was miserable with a double ear infection and I believe a sinus infection too.

I hope her traveling is over... this Granny is tired!

Anyway here I am on a new computer... which at the very start has already had a brain transplant!  How is it that a new computer needs a new Hard Disk?  I had barely finished the set up (which these days is fairly minimal) and a prompt had suggested a diagnosis be run on the system... so I did... and got a 'targeted read error'... so after an hour and a half on the phone with the company they sent a technician out to replace the hard disk.

So do I look any younger... any brighter, more shiny... maybe a bit faster?  I didn't think you'd notice but let me tell you that this one is so much better than the 2006 model I was using as my main computer.  Doing anything on that was such an exercise in patience... I do need exercise but not that kind.  Since I rarely used it when I did turn it on it spent all it's time running updates for Windows and the Virus software... uuugh such a pain!

I do have a little 'net book' - a Christmas gift a year or two ago that is great for sitting on the couch with and reading blogs and checking emails - but without a DVD/CD drive and a tiny screen it wasn't any use for my Electric Quilt Software or any real sit at the computer for a long time kind of work. 

I have no pictures on this system so you'll just have to take my word that my grand kids are the cutest thing going... really!

Quilting... hummm that word sounds familiar - has something to do with fabric doesn't it?  I went to the Hershey show a month or so ago... nothing much really stood out to me on the new and exciting front.  I did get a Yo-Yo maker thinking my granddaughter might be interested and picked up an embroidery pattern for her to make little holiday stockings and a snowman kit for me.  We haven't gotten very far as there never seems to be time to go up stairs and work on anything.  I had hoped that when the kids started school things would settle down... but I was wrong... apparently...

I am again planning to go work the Massachusetts Shop Hop at Southampton Quilts later in October.  I do so love going and it's a great opportunity for me to see all my old quilty friends from MA.  A couple weeks later I'll head up to A Quilters Gathering which is moving this year to Manchester, NH.  It's always been a great weekend that involves a lot of sewing, lots of shopping and even more fellowship with wonderful friends.  I've even signed up for a class or two... can't remember which ones or how many but I'm sure I'll have fun with them.

The garden has gone to hell in a hand basket these past couple of weeks... truely it's sad... and it's even sadder that I frankly don't care!  I am so over tomatoes...  There are grapes out there but I may just bury The Engineer out back in the garden if he picks them and brings them inside... I don't have time!  Looks like my apple tree will be ready in a couple weeks.  So apple sauce in my my future and although I'd rather can it - I'll freeze it if I don't have the time to stand in the kitchen.

I will be working on some pictures to explain how I did the Russian Rubix quilt... maybe next week if I can find my camera.  I can't find anything around here these days.  I've been looking for over a week for my checkbook - I don't use it very often so it's never in my purse - and I've rearranged everything in my house a half dozen times recently.  I found it today as I went methodically through each room - I do not remember putting it in that particular place but that seems to be par for the course for me these days.

Maybe I should take up golf...