Well, Hola Amigos! Hope you're having a wonderful year so far. - Ok, so we're a little over a week into the new year, but a girl can be optimistic, right?!
I've been trying to come down off of the holiday high. You know, the world draped in lights and the smell of scotch tape; Christmas trees and endless baked goods. We all got sick after Christmas, so that hasn't been a whole lot of fun. All the coughing , runny noses, tissues blanketing every available surface ... makes me wonder why we even got flu shots! At least I now have that cool lounge singer sexy voice. Look out, Kathleen Turner!
December 31st, we did have to take a trip to the emergency room because we thought one of the boys broke his foot. Ended up being a bad sprain. He wore a plaster splint for a little less than a week. He's fine now. Wouldn't know a thing is wrong with him. Kids are crazy resilient. I would still be milking that injury.
So, I know resolutions are cliche, and a lot of people think "What's the point?", but I'm going to make a few anyway.
This year, these are just some of the things I would like to accomplish:
publish at least one original pattern.
Become more organized
De-Clutter my house
Finish projects I start - or have started in the past that need completing.
be more optimistic
make and post items in my Etsy shop
Whew ! Just tying that out took a lot out of me. Lol -- Also, I want to get my lato fixed because I have no working letter "p" on my keyboard and the top row with all my numbers and symbols don't work , so I constantly have to copy and paste everything - or wait for spell check to catch it. That can get very annoying, very fast.
What are your thoughts on resolutions? Did you make any?
Leave it to me to be the queen of inconsistent blogging. Hooray !
Even harder for me now because my backspace doesn't work and no working letter 'p' on my keyboard . So I have to copy and paste it, or wait for my spell check to catch it and fix it for me. Oh! and my numbers and symbols above all the letters don't work either >.< Thank goodness for 10 key or I wouldn't have any numbers at all. Even then, the four isn't working and I don't feel like copy and pasting that right now lol
Hope you have been well. Life has been getting weird here at my house. The boys are a few weeks away from turning 5, and I have no clue where the last 5 years have gone. They're these constantly changing little people and sometimes it is really hard to wrap my brain around all this.
Working on a lot of things right now. Christmas knitting/crocheting/sewing is in full swing, and I am determined to get things done early this year. Have product for my Etsy shop that needs to be listed - stitch markers -Yay!
Speaking of my Etsy shop, several months ago - I started making Blythe doll clothes. Now, I am by no means a professional seamstress - in fact, I've only been sewing for the last four years or so. I think the clothes are pretty cute. Need to list a new dress soon :D Check them out here if you get a chance [even if you aren't a doll person, chances are you know someone who is ;) ]
Well, I must be heading off. Lots of crafting to do. Time to make the coffee.
Well, this post is certainly long overdue. I was doing good at being a somewhat regular blogger for awhile. Ha! That didn't seem to last. I know it's the new year, and people are trying to keep their word with their resolutions. I need to get back into regularly blogging. This is by no means a resolution -- just simply something that must be done.
I keep forgetting that blogging is word based. I'm always fixed on the mentality of "if I don't have pictures, I can't post". Well, that's lame. Sure, I can post! I could post an entire how-to blog without a single picture. That's been accomplished for years in cookbooks.
One of my big resolutions (aside from the cliche 'I'm going to loose weight' ) is to make time for myself. Being a stay-at-home Mom is exhausting. I'm maid, cook, nanny, police officer, referee, shoulder to cry on, playground to climb, drive-up box to scream at, sewage treatment employee, doctor, nurse, groomer... The list is endless. Once the day is over, my house looks like it was hit by a category 5 tornado.
I seem to struggle with finding time for myself -- Even for little things... painting my nails, doing my hair, taking long showers, enjoying my food. When I do have time to myself, I end up zoning out on the couch, scarfing down food. Probably why I'm at the heaviest weight I've ever been. People say kids change your life, and they do. Dramatically. People also forget to tell you to make sure you have your wits about you, so your individuality doesn't get sucked out. I need to remember who I am as a person -- as Stephanie. She constantly gets brushed aside. I don't think there is anything wrong with trying to maintain a sense of self. I'm a funny person, damnit. Most of the time I forget to BE funny, because I'm so busy being Mom.
This year is going to be a grand journey. It will be a refresher course in being spontaneous, being outrageous, being fun, lighthearted, getting excited about the simple things... and a chance to change and stop worrying all the time.
I read a quote once on tumblr (which I'm now on - btw :D) ... and it's stuck with me. It's my grand resolution for this year, and all years to come:
Looks like I've been doing pretty well keeping up with the August Break. Although, I'd like for my readership to go up, but - I'm complaining. I blog, and if you're reading this, cool beans & a big thank you!!
Let's see... What have I been up to? Been busy babysitting my friends' daughter, being chauffeur since we're back to being a one-car family. Not fun having to constantly pile the boys in and out of the car, but they like the drive. It would probably be better if my iPod hadn't recently decided to die. Don't have $125 lying around to get it fixed. Oh well. C'est la vie.
Back to making jewelry for the time being. Got this amazing craft book recently. There's an entire section on jewelry making, and I saw something I wanted to try.
This is attempt #3
Not too shabby, right? I'm pretty happy with it. I need to work on getting the spirals down, but I enjoy these early stages of learning how to do new stuff.
My apologies for this being such a short blog post, but I must be off to make some earrings.
Looks like the universe is trying to tell me something.
"BURNED BISCUITS"
Author Unknown
When I was a kid, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then.
I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work.
On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad.
I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed, yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school.
I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that biscuit and eat every bite.
When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits, and I'll never forget what he said.
He smiled at her and said, "Honey, I love burned biscuits."
Later that night, I went to kiss my dad good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned.
He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Your mom put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides, a little burnt biscuit never hurt anyone."
Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else, but what I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each others faults, and choosing to celebrate each others differences, is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.
And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God, because in the end, He's the only one who will be able to give you a relationship where a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker.
We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship.
Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket; keep it in your own.
God bless you today and always.
So, pass me a biscuit, and yes, the burnt one will do just fine.
"Give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others. "
We're 11 days into August. Found out about The August Break a couple days ago. I've been meaning to get around to it.
Day 11 picture isn't something recent,
but I did unearth it recently while at my parent's house this past weekend...
Uelita crocheting a dress for my sister
This is a picture of my Great-Grandma. I called her Uelita, which is short for "Abuelita" (meaning Grandma in Spanish.) I was about 8 when this picture was taken. She didn't teach me how to crochet; that - I ended teaching myself 20 years later. She was a beautiful woman. Always put together, no matter the occasion. Plus, she was one hell of a cook. I was very young when she passed away, but I have beautiful memories of her.
It's been far too long since I've posted anything.
My apologies! Been a little busy.
And...I'm slacking in the crafty arena.
What have I been up to?
Hello, Arizona!
Ka-chaow
Recently took a trip with Keith (without the boys) to lovely Arizona. Friends of ours were getting married, and Keith was the best man. It was good times. Spent 4 days out there -- without the boys. They stayed home. Not by themselves - of course! We had family taking care of them. :D
"Radiator Springs"
The boys are obsessed the Pixar movie 'Cars'. Really... they love anything by Pixar, but the drive out made me think -- "Those animators sure did capture the NM/AZ feel!" It's amazing how much of the terrain looks so much like Carburetor County. Awesome stuff, man.
The drive was loads of fun. The rental we were in had a jack for my iPod. Score! We we happy travelers :D
Daytime Owl
Stopped off at this lovelyscenic lookout. Even though the air was a little hazy from the Wallow fire, it was a beautiful afternoon. Now, Let me explain the owl. I bought this sweet little moleskine notebook from PuNk rAwK pUrL a few months back. It has a constant home in my wallet -- you know, for emergency note taking. I'd written down our driving directions in it, and when we got out of the car - I felt compelled to take a picture. I knew she would get a kick out of it :D
Cute hotel patio
Now, I'm not going to show you pics of the room, even if it deliciously lovely -- Just like I'm never going to show you pictures of my bedroom at home. Some things need to remain a mystery, yes? :) I will, however, show you the sweet little patio we had. Got to spend some time with my legs in the sun, and did a bit of knitting. Good times
Stephanie + Jason = ♥
The Wedding?
So unbelievably beautiful!
They got married in a gazebo -- at sunset.
Can you say romantic?!
I was a weeping mess. I'm surprised I have tears after that.
Next day: Where else would we go?!
Oooooh, yeah. Happiness.
Double-Double Animal Style, Baby!
*Sigh*
It seemed like minutes later, we were packing up and on our way back home. It was a great trip, but we had to come back to reality sometime, right?
On the road:
Super bizzar. I saw this truck passing us on the highway.
Kim Kardashian... On the side of a Big Rig...
...In an add promoting her perfume?
O_o
Uh....Ok?
Hello Kim K.'s giant truck boobs
I'm so confused
Looks like a bad storm, but that's ALL smoke from the fire
Drove through what felt like a wall of smoke. I thought it would let up, but not far out of Albuquerque it started to ligten up. Since we've been back home (and that was Saturday June 5th) a giant chunk of central New Mexico has been covered in a smoke & ash cloud from the Wallow fire. It's gross, and everything smells like campfire -- and not in a good way.
I'm praying for rain. LOTS AND LOTS of rain.
Home Sweet Home
Back home now. They day after we got home, I couldn't stop crying and felt really sad. My friend Jason (who also happened to be the Groom in the wedding) told me it sounded like it was the effects of a Wedding High. Kind of like a sugar/caffeine high, but coming down from it is a lot more extreme. I figured he was right, because since then -- I've felt like I'm back to normal.
Craft News: My sisters' college graduation party is coming up at the end of this month. Found some kick ass DIY decoration projects I need to get started on so I will have them in time. I've been trying to knit and crochet, but it's been too sunny for that. I think I'm turning out to be someone who only knits/crochets during the fall & winter. hahahah
So... I know I said I was going to take a break from crafting. Well, I lied. I can't do it. I just can't. Since I decided to "give it up", I've been frickin' miserable. I can actually feel my hands ache from not making anything.
I am, however, going to cool it down a bit. Try to not throw myself completely into every project that comes my way. I do need to get back in the swing of things.
My friend Leslie just moved back to Delaware, and needed to de-clutter her belongings before her depature.
This was her parting gift to me:
A tub full of thread!
Totally overjoyed with happiness, my eyes glazed over staring at my tub of new thready friends. Why let this thing sit around, and go to waste? That would be wrong. I have a few pillows for my pillow project that need to be made [One for March and another for April].
Over the next few days, I'm going to get supplies together to make some of these:
I was talking to @apockylypse on the Twitter machine. She posted a pic of the flowers she's making for her wedding bouquet, and I totally loved 'em.. Me, being a fan of flowers that don't die and DIY stuff, I inquired about the flowers. Genius. Simple, and totally adorbale. Now, I'm not getting married - these will just sit in a vase/jar/ glass cylinder - so they would be everyday nifty! Although, I'm going to a friend's wedding in June. I might even make a bouquet out of the wedding colors, and give the bride the bouquet as a gift! (Thank goodness the bride or groom doesn't read my blog. hahaha!)
[big, painful sigh] Besides, I have a glue gun I've owned for the last 5 years that has never been opened/never been used. Shame, right? [Hangs head]
As much as I love knitting, crocheting, sewing, making stitch markers, I have to put it on hiatus -or at least, pull back the reigns.
There are things going on at home, details I won't bore you with. I think with my obsession with creating things with my hands, Other areas of my life have suffered because of it. This won't be easy for me.Unfortunately, It even involves shutting down my Etsy shop [Ok - notsomuch shutting it down, Just putting it on Vacation for an unknown period of time]
This really makes me sad. Very sad, in fact. However, I haven't found the balance between my personal life and my creative life. When one thrives, the other one suffers. It's heartbreaking, really - but sadly, it's my creative side that needs to be turned off for awhile.
So, Spread the word around that my shop will be on Vacation starting Monday, April 11, and that as of right now - everything in the shop has been marked down 25%.
Anyhoo, Here a few pictures from our Halloween evening.
(Note: There are no pics of the Hubz. He doesn't care for being in photos. I feel like such a dummy. I forgot to bring my camera that night, so all of our Halloween pics are on her camera. These are the few I shot on my phone)
We have Young Frankenstein here. He had been playing with the glow sticks, and just got busted!
You're not as innocent as you look, Kiddo ;-)
Where does Captain America feel the safest? Apparently, It's Nana's lap that is the place. He
flat-out-refused to wear his mask. I guess he felt the need to reveal his true, messy head identity.
I was sitting down on the floor, talking to my sister when she took this pic of me. I was just
clowning around that night. I wish the shot was a little higher so you could see the tiny red bowler I crocheted.
This is the really cool pumpkin my sister carved,
Recognize him :oD
This is the pumpkin I carved. Gross, Isn't it?! I love it!!! The Hubz found a picture of one of these
last year right after Halloween. Wishing we had seen it earlier, he said "Let's remember to do this
next year." Thankfully, He reminded me before I hacked it to bits.
I like mac-n-cheese, but this post isn't about food. At least, it shouldn't be. I guess I can't guarantee that since, knowing me, all roads lead to food.
This is the first year that I've made an attempt to get a head start on all my handmade Christmas presents for my family and friends. The last two years, I waited until last minute (the eternal procrastinator, that's me :D) , mainly because I was still new and inexperienced. Also, I'm crap when it comes to doing things ahead of time. I'm getting better, mostly because I have to be a step ahead when dealing with the boys.
I've had a bit of the blues, lately. I think it's just because I've been feeling overwhelmed with the impending doom of Christmas, weighing down on me like a fat kid on a wicker chair. I try making checklists of things I need to work on, deadlines I have.
Is it working? A little.
Also, there's my very first craft fair. It's at the end of November, and I am SO nervous. It's at my church, so there's not a lot of pressure, but still...I'm a great ball of nerves.
I think my biggest problem is that I get trapped in my own head. I've never been to therapy, but I realized last year that I am able to work out and let go of a lot of my problems when I knit and crochet. It's like, when a project is finished, a part of me that was broken is now healed. That is definitely something I wasn't expecting. I wonder if it's the same way for other people.
Is it that way for you? Does your art help you heal?
Of course, I had a blog on wordpress, but I was feeling limited by it. Time to start anew, I suppose. Of course, the other blog had 3 entries, 2 of which occoured right before and after my Grandfather's passing. Not the most joyous time in a person's life to start a blog. Right?
Hopefully, this will be a place I can talk(write) about the things I'm working on, and of course life in general. It seems that most blogs start out trying to foucus on certain topics, but never maintain that focus. Hey, That's alright with me. I tend to have a limited attention span. :D
