Wordless (nablopomo)

What can I say (nablopomo)

What can I say? 

I'm pretty much out of ideas for posting, but yet here I am, writing nonsense so I can hit "publish" and not miss a day.

I guess I will just type what's on my mind.

This blogging everyday is really hard! 

I have a feeling I'll be having a lot of "cheater" posts coming up.

I want to get started on my gift knitting, and sewing (I'm waiting for my thread to come in).

I need to make my yearly ornaments for my kids...ugh, cookie baking, what kind of pie am I making for Thanksgiving? 

Life is too fast!

I need to really clean the house. I've done some quick cleaning, but I need to move stuff around.

I need to organize my pattern books and go through my yarn.

I should make a list of what I need from the craft store and not go empty handed.

Omg. Is eating hot dogs once a week too much? I'm talking full on who knows what's in here hot dog, not a tofu, soy dog. A nitrate filled oblong balloon.

Kids asked if we can have hot dogs every Wednesday. 

Speaking of Wednesday, that's changing bedding day.

Which means tomorrow I will wash all the bedding and sleep like a baby. 

 Today I'll just find something else to do.

Ding-ding-ding! It's a winnah!

~ And the winner is ~

Britnee

                                  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you to all who entered and especially those who left comments!

100 years. (nablopomo)

Today, I get to attend a birthday party for someone who's turning 100.

Yes, 100!!

It's amazing, and scary, and crazy all at the same time. If you think about what you've seen in your own lifetime, imagine all the things that have happened in 100 years!

Wishing that you have no big regrets, (fingers crossed so far so good for me).

And that you keep up or rekindle your relationships, because we all know when life takes over, 

sometimes it's people that get pushed aside.

Happy Birthday!!

(100 years ago today.)

Quick Bag (nablopomo)

I wanted to make a clear bag to bring to work. 

One that I didn't really care much about for my water, lunch, etc.

I had enough scrap vinyl, saved from comforter and sheet packaging. 

Even from the packaging of a car seat!

So I randomly found some fabric, and started putting the bag together.

I traced the pattern to the vinyl with a sharpie marker. Even the dart.

 (Later, I will kick myself in the butt for doing that.)

See that? Purple sharpie?

Anyway, I used the outside fabric in double layers so that you would see the back of the fabric

from the inside.

How cute is that for my lunch? I had to bias trim all the edges, and I loved using the red fabric.

Makes it kind of nautical, and cheery, and very me.

Inside seams are serged.

This is the back, so when I walk around I can put this to the outside and no one sees my 

stuff:

Fun right?

Being home (nablopomo)

I was able to get a seasonal job at a craft store and I'm super excited about it! It's been, let's see...about 7 years that I've been lucky to be home with family.

Yea, I'm saying lucky. 

I never wanted to stay home. 

It took long talks about babysitters, and being too far from free babysitters, and really my job was not the bread winning job was it? 

I was sore about being home for a long time. I really didn't like being "on the clock" 24 hours a day without a bathroom break. I didn't like being mentally tested day in and day out without a bonus or commission, or a "hey, numbers look great today, great job", by adorable fleshy blobs who knew when to smile when I was at my limit.

I say lucking because I was there for everything. 

Class parties, field trips, sick days, and fun days.

I had all the time to hang out and play blocks, or park days or watch the same g-d Dora for the hundredth time.

Lucky because I had time to teach myself skills I've always wanted to learn.

Knitting, crochet, hand embroidery, SEWING!!  I probably would not of learned any of those things had I not been at home.

Lucky because not everyone gets thats chance. 

I'm glad I was able to have that chance, 

even if it wasn't my first choice.

Treasures (nablopomo)

Simple treasures.

I found this ceramic hippo at an outdoor, dirt floor flea market.

It was a 70's brown. Solid brown. It looked so gross, and dusty. I made the mistake of squealing when I saw it. The squeal of "I know the potential of this! I can make this so cool!"  They wanted $20 for some old brown ceramic hippo cookie jar.

I had no poker face. No haggling. They saw it in my eyes. I was going to pay.

I was going to pay, because I already saw she was going to have red lipstick and blue eyeshadow.

Those flowers were already on her. Brown, textured flowers.

I had already envisioned her kitchen yellow and red nails.

Her cookies in her mouth were going to be creme filled.

Oh I paid that $20. Maybe it was my boyfriend, now husband who paid. Paid with a grimace that meant, you didn't even haggle! You have to haggle at these kinds of places!

So she's one of my first re-conditioned treasures. 

She stands in the middle of our cookbooks, with a sly smile, and a mouth filled with cookies.

Wordless Wednesday (nablopomo)

Engagement Ring (nablopomo)

I thought about a wedding, since traditionally that's what you're suppose to do too.

 We bought our first house, instead of buying a day of celebration.

We opted to elope instead with a pancake brunch after.

I never had an engagement ring.

I thought about one, since traditionally that's what you're suppose to do, but decided, ultimately, that's not what I wanted. That's not me either.

Instead, 12 years ago, I picked him:

Now that's totally me.

Binge TV ( nablopomo)

The TV doesn't tempt me. I can keep it off, because honestly I don't really care about your home improvements, or your cooking, or who's bikini ready, or your stories.

I'm too busy with other things (and partly because there is no TV in the sewing room!)

I used to watch Sex in the City from the beginning. When the show was new and testing to see what and who were going to work. Those were the days of disposable income when  I could pay for cable just to keep watching the show. Young, pre-kids when I had to find things to worried about.

My next show was Fringe. I remember this show starting at 9pm, and my youngest was a couple of months old. Like clockwork, she would wake up at 9:50pm. You know when they recap the whole show, and you find out all the answers? Being she was nursed, I was the only one who could go.

I missed out on a lot of endings that way.

I've been without a show to watch for awhile and that's okay.
When I fold laundry, that's usually my tv time. It takes me longer to choose a program than it does for me to fold the clothes.
Thanks to Netflix, I can catch up on movies I missed (we don't go to the movies anymore).
As I was searching for something to watch, they kept recommending the show, Walking Dead.
Eh, zombie apocalypse, survivor drama. Our best guess for Deb five stars.
Well I watched the first episode. Then the second. Before I knew it I was done with season 1, and watching season 2.
Straight. No folding laundry. No nothing. Just watching.  I tried sewing hexies together, but that took my eyes away from the show too long. There are no commercial breaks on Netflix you know.
It will automatically start another episode for you. You don't even need the remote by you.
Well, when you're kids are asking you for lunch, or snack, or when they're banished to the upstairs because there's a grown-up on and they sneak down for fresh air, you might need the remote by you.
I am in a daze.
 I've been binge watching The Walking Dead .
 I just finished season 3.
I had to stop myself from starting season 4.
It's too fast. I don't want to burn out.

I also figured out that I can single crochet dish sponges, so I'm not being totally unproductive.

Wish list (NaBloPoMo)

Spur of the moment wish list?
Any Amazon peeps out there?
If you shop on amazon, you might be familiar with making some wish lists of your own.
I usually make lists for presents, comparison, and for things I might want in the future.
My current list only has 4 items, and since I'm struggling for a topic today, I'm going to share them.

Brother 2340CV Cover Stitch  This is the first item. It's on for comparison. Cover stitch machines are made for sewing knits,  like t-shirt material. If you have a store bought t-shirt and look on the hem of the sleeves, or possibly the neck band, more than likely it was sewn with a coverstitch machine.

Janome CoverPro 900CPX Cover Hem Machine Here's my other coverstitch for comparison. I'm not sold on either of them, and frankly lost my interest in any coverstitch machine. Go figure. Thank goodness I'm not such a "spur of the moment" buyer, otherwise I'd be out $400 smack-a-roos.

Envelope Punch Board-6.75"X10.5" Here's an item I still want! With holidays approaching, and the amount of cards ( I usually make my own ) This seems like a useful tool to actually buy. You are able to make your own envelopes in various sizes. Any person into paper crafting, or even just occasional card making, could find this very useful. This is probably the only thing I'd buy right now.

PlayStation 3 DualShock 3 wireless controller - Metallic Gold Here's a game controller I wanted because it's gold. In a weird way it reminds me of Elvis Presley's golden glasses . I love Elvis, but the price is something I can't justify. 

I wish I had more fun things to share, these seem kind of lame. But I did get to do a post today!

And when you're participating in NaBloPoMo, that's what matters most!

Recycled Denim Things (NaBloPoMo)

I'm one of those people that likes to save usable fabric, even if that means saving multiple pairs of pants and shirts and no space to keep them.

Right now I'm working on these for the shop:

They're pretty fun to make! 

I've put together some links to other ideas for reusing denim, but I'm sure you could substitute any fabric instead. They are small projects requiring glue and some hand sewing. 

Denim Flowers - Just rolling tubes and glueing.

Hair Bows - Or brooches or pins even (sewing)

Floral hairband - Small scraps and glueing 

Except for this one. My favorite. I want to try making this floor mat:

If you've worked with denim or even heavy canvas, you probably feel the same way I do when I say that sewing through all those hems and cuffs makes my teeth hurt.

What items do you reuse?

Friday (NaBloPoMo)

Friday-Friday. Weekend plans.

I'm going to finish knitting a square for a blanket.  It's just one square to be part of a blanket for a friend who lost someone they love. As a person who makes things, when we want to comfort someone, we do what we know. We make.

I could of just knitted any old square, but for some reason I wanted it to have more meaning. Even if that meaning behind all the stitches was just for me to know.

I decided to go with the pattern called Heavy Rain. It's a simple repeat worked on the purl side, and easy to remember. I added rows of plain stockinette to break up the "drops".

back

Its suppose to symbolize rain drops, or in my case, tears. It's just beautiful to think about the process of when you are grieving, you are crying. You're crying so much, and then you get a break. Whether it's from a friend's comfort or a funny memory, and then it's back to crying again.
 It's a long cycle that lasts days, years even, sometimes it seems never ending.

I hope that the person getting this blanket will have long breaks between the crying, filled with loving thoughts from someone who is no longer here.

front 

Watch your mouth. (NaBloPoMo)

sit still 12/2013

The other day while the kids were just being their excited selves, running around and teasing each other, I'm pretty sure I overheard the 6 year old say,

"Stop being a facist."

I guess we watch too much History channel?

It reminded me of when one of them was in preschool, probably around 3 or 4 years old, and they would watch Sponge Bob (which I thought that was a "fresh" speaking show for them, but once you have an older sibling, sometimes certain rules go out the window)
I guess there is an episode where someone says something along the lines of  "ship-paste". Whatever. No biggie until the 3 year old says it in all the wrong contexts, and anytime there is a gap in conversation.  Ship-paste when said by a 3 year old who didn't have the best annunciation, sounds very much like "shit-faced".
So yea, listen teacher, I know what you think they're saying, but they're not. I don't even drink!

What are your funny stories about hearing things the wrong way?

I've been thinking... (NaBloPoMo)

I've been thinking how fun it would be to have more giveaways.

I'm going to try to work on having one every 2 months?

That's reasonable, I think. 

I mean, it's not like my life's plate is too full or anything.

Have you entered mine? It's still going on here.
I really like learning about who's visiting this space of mine. Even if it's just for a second.
Speaking of that, one of the ways to enter was to leave a comment about what you'd like to bring awareness too. Those comments brought to light a lot of illness that I've never heard of, or you hear so much about it numbs you to the actual disease and  the person/people who are affected.
 Here's the most recent list:

• CVID (Common variable immune deficiency)
• Huntington Disease   
• PTSD (post tramatic stress disorder)
• Bipolar Disorder
• Luekemia and all cancers really.
• Hemophelia
• Heart Disease
• Anxiety Disorders
• Eating Disorders
• MS (Multiple sclerosis)
• Schizophrenia and all mental illness.
• Diabetes of course!

Awareness about any cause or concern, is the first step to change. 

Thank you for taking the time to read about these diseases! 

Insect Eggs (NaBloPoMo)

This past Sunday was a beautiful, chilly day to be outside prepping the yard for winter.
Ugh, yes winter. It was lots of hedge trimming, garden work, and putting toys away.
Cover holes so little critters can't make their home under our porch.

I was cleaning and reflecting on future yard projects. Mulch. I really hope we can mulch the edges of the yard next year. I think this would really help keep the yard looking neat.
I also want to start seedlings inside. I always seem to miss this, or rather, are usually too lazy with the winter blues to think about what seeds to plant.
I want to have our pool ready!! I missed our pool desperately and didn't get a chance to replace the cracked filter. Other life choices got in the way, and I hope to be swimming in our yard next year.

Cleaning up, I came across some mantis eggs. I found some of these pods or sacks last year, only 2. This year however I found at least 10.




I'll keep them safe over the winter, and place them back on the hedges in Spring.

Doctor Drill and Fill (NaBloPoMo)

Play doh Dr. Drill and Fill. 

I've always wanted this toy. Well, always wished I had it. 

A couple years ago, my kids bought it for me as a gift. Birthday? Christmas? I don't remember which.

I just remember them asking, why would a grown-up want a kid's toy?

We all fought over the drill, and the sparkly cavity play doh was gone in a second.

The funny part about this, is that I am grossed out by loose teeth.

Any baby tooth that needed pulling, or testing to see how loose it is, I freak out.

I don't handle it. 

There was this one time my daughter's tooth, all bloody, fell out during a meal. 

She was left to sort through her plate to find it.

Mundane Item (NaBloPoMo)

Mundane. 

It means lacking interest or excitement; dull. 

Today I'm going to try and look at things with a new eye.

Everyday things that I pay no attention too, like a cereal bowl.

Do I have something to fill it? Will I use to eat today?

Did someone make this? How long did it take to design this bowl?

Who picked the color out? If it wasn't here, would I be upset?

Can I replace it? Do I need it?

Do I want it?

Halloween Costume 2014 (NaBloPoMo)

 This Halloween I made a big announcement that I was not buying anymore costumes. 

 "Good luck coming up with an idea, because I'm not buying anything."

Ah-ha kid! You'll have to use your imagination and come up with a costume! You'll have to be creative and use you're supplies from home! What fun!

No. No fun. Two out of the three, nonchalantly (to my dismay), replied that they're going to use last year's costumes.  The other...oh the other child.
Well, a long shouting session, brain farting, money discussions, and ideas later, she wants to be a rag doll.
 Well, I was going to have to make her one.

I took the collar off another shirt, and sewed, (very badly) patches all over the purple flannel.

What's different about this dress, is that I kept 2 slits on the waist for tubing (She wears a diabetes pump.) to come through.

We're pretty new to this pump thing, and what do you do when you're wearing a gown, or a dress?

Do you have a little pocket on the inside? A leg strap? What? Tell me.

For those not familiar with a diabetes pump, (short answer) it delivers insulin via a port in your body. So there is tubing that connects from the pump, to your port. 

This dress has 2 pockets, and above the pockets are 2 slits that the tubing can travel through. So she can still access the pump via the pocket, and not have her tubing running on the outside.

She loved it.

Today also starts Diabetes Awareness Month, so if you haven't already, please check out my giveaway here it ends on the 15th.