Baby afghans and caps

These are some baby hats I made this summer for the NICU babies.

The blankets are also for the NICU babies I crochet for.  There are about 30 little blankets.  Most of them I made with leftover yarn.

These are tiny blankets mostly for premature babies.

Prayer Shawls

These are two prayer shawls I made this fall for the prayer shawl ministry I give to.

They are both made with Homespun. A pretty green and russet.

The green shawl is a rectangle shape and the russet shawl is an oblong shape.

Veterans Day 2013

To honor our vets, past and present.
Thank you all for your service.

My post from last year, it lists my family that have served.
http://pj-countryroads.blogspot.com/2012/11/veterans-day-2012.html

Knitting

This isn't a very good picture, but it's the best I have right now. About three weeks ago, we drove by a yarn shop. My husband pointed it out, and stopped so my daughter and I could look around.

We ended up talking to one of the ladies working there and signed up for a beginner knitting class. The class was today and it was just my daughter and me taking the class. We loved it. My daughter a little more than me, but overall it was a great experience.

The picture above is the beginning of my scarf. The teacher said we did very well, and the other people working in the shop said the same thing. I think we will take more lessons there!!

I'm pretty sure knitting will never replace my crochetting, but it is fun to learn!

School update and stuff

I am taking one class this semester, Linguistics. It's pretty interesting. And, I am taking it online. I am not sure if I like the online stuff. On the one hand, it's convenient for me to be able to do the classroom stuff at my leisure. And I don't have to drive anywhere, which is very nice. On the other hand, it's a lot of time on the computer and I'm not sure I like that. Plus, I don't really get to know my classmates or teacher. It's very non personal taking an online class.  But, I needed to try it for a variety of reasons. One being that my husband is working some long hours this fall. So, it's good I don't have to drive to school.

My boy and daughter are doing well. A few issues with the boy in school, but I am confident they will be worked out. Mostly some social issues. He does very well academically, for which I am thankful.

The daughter is doing well too. Likes her job etc. We went shopping the other day and she served as my personal shopper, which is great for me because she is honest about what clothing works well for me and what doesn't.  I had a list of what I needed/wanted and we got it all done within about 2 and a half hours, including lunch.

Mom is doing well too. Getting older and more fragile. I still talk to her every day and clean her house twice a month. She stays busy with her card clubs and friends. She goes to a movie and lunch once a month with a group of friends.

My niece recently had a baby girl! The first next generation. And the niece is the first of that generation! I saw the baby the other day. It was a treat to hold a newborn baby. And the baby is just beautiful.

That's about all for now. Not much new going on. Continuing with school and just living.  I'm still crocheting and have a bunch of stuff to post about. I will try to get to that soon.

My Grandma

This is my Grandma and my baby boy. This picture was taken in July of 2004 when we went to Maryland to see my grandma.  She was 95.  She died in January of 2005.

I still miss her. She was my special Grandma. She had a nickname for me that only she used and she would address my birthday cards with that name. We were always very close and I miss her.

Today, she would have been 105 years old. She lived til she was almost 97. At the end of her life, she was still healthy, but she had dementia and Alzheimers.  I still miss her and think of her often.

Blog Anniversary

Today is the seventh anniversary of this blog. I never thought that seven years ago when I started this blog that I would continue with it for so long. But, I am glad I did, because it evolved into something other than what it started out as.

I mostly just post about my crochet stuff now, and once in a while throw in an update about school, mine and my little guys school.  And occasionally the odd blog entry about something I find interesting.

My blog has had some bumps along the way. At one point I thought about deleted some of the entries then I decided that I was not going to do that. This blog is what it is and I will keep it in it's original form.

The first post I made is here:  http://pj-countryroads.blogspot.com/2006/08/seven-things.html  

The second post I made was about my log house. And one shortly after that is one I posted about my dear Grandma.  I thought of her today because in two days is her birthday. She would have been 105 years old.  I think about her often. She was that special, special Grandma. She had a special nickname for me that only she used, and she addressed my birthday cards with that name.  Today I received a box of papers and pictures from my cousin, that were my Grandma's. I found her birth certificate in there, and I learned one new fact about my family history!!

So, another year has gone by, and my blog continues. I imagine I will be updating again in a similar fashion to this one in another year!

I hope you all have a good year, and thanks for reading my blog! :)

Baby afghans...........

 This pink baby blanket I made for my Niece who is expecting a little girl in October. It's the first great-grandchild for my mom and the first great niece for me and my brothers and their families. I am excited to meet this baby!  This blanket is made with Bernat Baby coordinates.

 This is a yellow baby blanket I made for my niece but I don't like it so much. It is heavy and too thick. 

These are 100% cotton washcloths for the new baby! They were so fun to make. I hope my niece likes them.

I also made another baby blanket for a friend. It is the same color as this afghan, and she sent me a note saying they all liked it!

Yarn candles

I bought these candles because they are made to look like yarn! I think they are unique and pretty.

I bought them http://shop.bar-maids.com/  and with my order they sent me a sample of the body bar. I also have to say that the customer service was absolutely excellent.  I had one issue and they called me immediately after I sent  a message and corrected my issue. Not to mention that my candles shipped in a couple days!! Nicely boxed and wrapped and they used all recyclable packaging!

Birthday!!!

Today is my Mom's 85th Birthday.  I took my mom, my boy and my girl out to Red Lobster for lunch for Mom's birthday (hubby had to work). Red Lobster was her choice and we all enjoyed our lunch.

I tried to find Star Gazer Lilies for her, but didn't have any luck. So, I bought her some beautiful red Roses. She liked them, and one of my brothers and his wife found her a beautiful bouquet of Lilies!

Mom is continues to do well.  Her hip feels great a year later!  She is settled into her new home and likes it, she said it finally feels like home.  However, she needs a new shoulder. It's not a rotator cuff, but a shoulder replacement. A few years ago she feel in a mall parking lot and hurt her shoulder. Now, it needs to be fixed, and she's thinking of having it done soon.

Washington DC part 2

So, I returned home from my trip. It's always nice to go away, but it's nice to come home too. I was gone May 16-21.  About a week later, I told my husband that I would like to take the boy to DC sometime. He said why don't you go now?!  He looked up flights for the boy and myself and they were double what I paid to fly out there, so he suggested I drive! I mulled it over, cancelled two appointments and started packing for the boy and myself. A couple of times I wondered if I should go, after all, it would just be me driving and would the boy do well on a long roadtrip? It would be almost two days of driving and an overnight in the hotel each way.  He did just fine!

I brought my daughter to DC when she was the same age. I have to say that I think my daughter enjoyed DC more than my son and she was certainly better behaved!

So we made the trip on June 9 and returned home June 17.  We stayed with my cousins again, though we didn't see much of either of them.

The first day we went into DC, we took a bus tour of the city, which I had never done before in all the times I had been there. I am super glad we took the bus tour because I saw things in DC that I had never seen before.  The nice thing about this tour was that you could stop at any of the stops and hop back on another bus an hour later if you wanted too. The first day we spent on the bus almost the whole day. We got off and visited the Lincoln Memorial, along with the VietNam wall, and the Korean war Memorial. It was well worth the price for the tour and it helped me and my son plan the next two days.

We also stopped at the National Museum of Natural History. This was a favorite and we went back each day to this Museum. And we were briefly at the Air and Space Museum. I thought my boy would like this more than he did!

We also saw all the monuments in DC, the embassy's, the Watergate hotel (which I had never seen before), and a ton of other buildings I never knew about.

Each day we drove about 30 minutes to a parking area and grabbed the metro. Both of us got to learn the metro very well!

The second day we went in we started at the National Museum of Natural History. It was fascinating. We saw dinosaurs, skeletons, minerals, the hope diamond, and so much more.  This is the day we went to the Holocaust Museum, because I brought my DD214 with me. We got in right away and it took about 3 hours to get through the Museum. It was sad, and humbling all at the same time. In 1999 I took a trip to Israel with my husband and we went to Yad Vashem. Yad Vashem has a childrens museum and I just weeped the whole time we were in it. So very sad.

We also went to the National Museum of American History. Again the boy was not as interested in this as I thought he would be. I couldn't help comparing my two children and the contrasts in each visit. My daughter seemed more interested in the monuments and the American History Museum and my boy seemed more interested in feeding the birds and dinosaurs! And my boy is not much of a walker, whereas my cousin and I don't recall the girl complaining about walking!

The third day we spent at the Spy Museum. My son enjoyed that. And,w e saw the lady from May that let me and my cousins in! I told her I was back with my boy and that we actually paid to get in!! We both laughed about that and I told her again how thankful we were for her generosity.  We visited the National Museum of Natural History again and this time we went through the Butterfly exhibit.  Then we went up to the Zoo and saw Panda bears!!  That was the end of our three days in DC and it was fabulous. And the weather was near perfect for us, compared to June or July!

I know I am missing a ton of what we did, but we had three 10 hour days in Washington DC and it was great. Overall my boy tells me he had a good time!

Next time I go, I want to go to the National Geographic Museum and the Newseum. We didn't have time for either of these and I didn't even know there was a National Geographic Museum!

We left my cousins house and had a good drive home. There was some rain starting out but then the rest of the day was clear. We made it to Rockford Illinois the first night, then it was just about a five hour drive home the next day!

So glad we made the trip out there!

Washington DC

Each year for the past 6 years or so, I have been flying out to Maryland to visit my cousin. She grew up in New Jersey and I was always very close to her and my aunt.  My aunt had moved to Maryland also, and my grandma had moved in with her. Before I had my little boy I would fly out there three times a year to visit with my grandma and aunt. Then my aunt died, and a year later my grandma died. Then I had my boy, and a few years ago I started visiting my cousin.

This year I went in May, after my school was out for the semester and before my boy was done with school. I usually go in August.  I have wanted to go see the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC, so my cousin, her partner, and I went. But we couldn't get in. All the daily tickets were given out by the time we got there, and the online tickets were sold out until late June.  But we did learn that vets could get in anytime by showing their DD214. BINGO!! Lisa (my cousin) and I are vets, but neither one of us carry our DD214 with us. No one that I know of carries it with them.  So instead, we went to the Spy Museum.  When we got there, we looked at the prices for entry and I said out loud, but quietly, that it was more than I wanted to pay to get in. My cousin and her partner agreed. At that moment the lady who lets you in line to get into the museum after you pay walked over to us and agreed that it was a lot to pay and to follow her. She let us in the museum for FREE!!  Later on toward the end of the museum we saw her and thanked her for letting us in because we really enjoyed the museum!

Along the walk to the Soy Museum, I saw buildings that I have not ever seen in DC and it was a fascinating walk.

We didn't do much else during my visit, but that is ok. I enjoy being there with them and we always have fun. I go to work with them three of the nights I am there. They own a cleaning company and clean office buildings in the evening.

I'll write about my second trip to DC in the next post.

A Reason, Season or Lifetime.............

This puts into perspective what I've always thought. Friends come into our lives for a reason, season or a lifetime.

Reason, Season, or Lifetime Friends

When someone is in your life for a reason, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. S/he has come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually.

S/he is there to meet a need. Then  without any wrongdoing  on your part or at an inconvenient time, s/he will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes s/he dies. Sometimes s/he walks away. Sometimes s/he acts  up or out and forces you to take a stand. What we must realize  is that the need has been met.

When a person comes into your life for a season, it is  because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. S/he may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. S/he may teach you something you have never done. S/he usually gives you  an unbelievable amount of joy.

Lifetime relationships teach you lifetime lessons. Those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. You must accept the lesson, love  the person/people anyway, and put what you have learned  to use in all other relationships  and areas of your life.

Source: Anonymous

Shawl

I made this shawl around February for the Prayer Shawl ministry. As I was looking at it, my husband said it was huge. I tend to make the prayer shawls big, but I had a conversation with the church secretary where I donate the shawls. She said her mom received a prayer shawl but didn't like it because it was too heavy!! I never thought of that. An older person might not like such a huge and heavy prayer shawl. So, I have decided to make my shawls smaller in the future. I have one about half way done and it won't be so big, it's also a rectangular shaped shawl.
This one is made with Homespun Mixed Berries.

Crocheting

The top is a baby blanket I made for a woman having a baby girl. It is made with Homespun Tulip and the three washcloths on top are 100% cotton.                     

The bottom two are covers I made for my mom for her antique couch. The bottom lighter one is made with Homespun Parfait and the top one is Mixed Berries. I made them both and she chose the lighter one and it's almost a perfect match! The other one I gave to my daughter.

Recycling

These are some items we recently recycled. The boys stroller and the dog cage went to the curb and were gone within about an hour! I love curbside recycling.

The bowling game, tiny moccasins and blouse were brought to my city's family services. Glad to get a couple items out of the house and garage!

School update

I was busy again with school this semester. I took Research Writing and History II.  They were fun classes, but lots of work. Research writing was interesting and I learned a lot about writing and research writing. I received an A- in that class.
History II was interesting and boring at the same time. I learned a lot in this class too. I did my oral report and paper on Child Labor laws. I also received a 97!! on my final. I was shocked that I got a 97.  My grade for History is an A.

Now that I am done with school til August, I have a lot more free time. It's weird having so much free time now.  I have a lot to do around the house to keep me busy though, and I still continue to crochet.

My boy just has a few more weeks left of school, then he will be off for the summer as well. 

A shawl

This is a Prayer Shawl I recently finished. It is made from Lion Brand Homespun yarn and the color is "Seafoam."  It measures 115 inches across and 50 inches from neck to tip. It's huge, but this is how large I make all my prayer shawls!

I purchased this yarn on a huge sale. I think it's pretty. It's a variegated green color and looks nice. My model didn't really do a good job of modeling, he said his arms hurt to hold it up.

I will be delivering it tomorrow to the church where I donate the shawls.

Baby blankets..........

This blanket is made with Homespun. The washcloths are 100% cotton. This blanket is made for my cousin, she is having a baby boy!

These two blankets are made with Red Heart yarn. Each of the blankets are a large Granny Square Green/white on the bottom and Red/white on the top. I made these in December but I didn't get them sent in time. I'll add them to the box I send this year for the NICU babies.

This blanket I finished earlier this month. I made most of it last year and ran out of yarn and I set it aside. It's made with two strands. One is Bernat baby yarn and the other is just plain white yarn. It's a regular sized baby blanket and not a small NICU blanket.

One positive comment a day

I'm going to try this for a year. I don't know how to keep this post at the top, so I may have to dig for it later.

January 1, 2013
*we took down the Christmas decorations today

A New Year..

Happy New Year! I hope you all have a wonderful 2013.

This year I would like to:
*read more
*learn to book bind
*crochet more
*work on taming my tongue--it's that gossip thing
*read the bible in a year
*continue with my college
*post something positive each day
*pray more

I didn't write a list last year, so we will see how this year goes with this list!

Prayer Shawls

These aren't the typical prayer shawls I usually make. They are called pocket prayer shawls. I make them with cotton yarn and they are about 3x3 inches or 4x4 inches big.

The idea of pocket shawls are for people to be able to carry them. I originally made a batch for the troops at the request of the church I donate the prayer shawls to.

This batch I made for my church.

Dishcloths

These are dishcloths I recently made. The two on the left are made with regular cotton yarn. The four on the right are made with cotton thread. They were interesting to make. I made these dishcloths for a woman at church.

Baby blankets

 This is a baby blanket I made this past summer. It's made with Bernat baby yarn. It reminds me of a creamsicle.

 These baby blankets I made for two friends that know people having babies. The top one is blue/white and it's made with Red Heart yarn. The bottom one is actually pink.

This blanket I made for my boy because he liked the yarn.

Shawls

 This pretty blue shawl is the exact same color as my moms. I made it for a friend of my daughters mom. The mom has a tumor in her brain that is inoperable. I can't do much for her besides pray and make a prayer shawl for her. I made it in early December.

 This beautiful prayer shawl (it's folded here) is made with "Claret". It's so pretty. It's made with a new Homespun yarn called "thick and quick". It's a little thicker than the regular Homespun yarn I normally use. I like it well enough. I originally made this to give the church prayer shawl ministry, but I found another need for it. A friend of mines son died in October and I gave the mom this prayer shawl.

This prayer shawl I made for my sister in law. I asked her what color she liked and she told me yellow. I made this one in September.

Getting caught up

It's been a busy season for me. Christmas is over and I finally downloaded all my pictures from all the crochet I've done.  I'll make new posts for that though.

I also registered for two classes this semester. History and Writing ll.  I am looking forward to taking these two classes and I know I will excel in both classes.

My boy is doing well. He sold 4,500 dollars this fall for the boy scout popcorn fundraiser. He earned 200 dollars in gift cards for WalMart, and a lot of other fun stuff. He gets to go to a Basketball game, museums, amusement parks and a couple other things I can't think of at the moment.

My husband has been working a lot. We miss him and hopefully he will be able to take a week off from work right after the new year.

My daughter continues to do well. And so does my mom!  Mom is getting new granite counter tops in her kitchen next week and is excited about that!  I can't wait to see her new kitchen.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and I hope you all have a wonderful New Year!!

Seven years..............

I love that huge NO SMOKING sign.

Today marks SEVEN YEARS that I have been a non smoker!!

Hard to believe it's really been seven years. I occasionally still miss smoking, much to my chagrin.  But, I simply cannot ever go back to smoking. If I take one puff, I know I will be right back smoking full time.

There have been plenty of health benefits for me too. I can actually breathe.  I don't huff and puff anymore just walking up stairs. I feel better. I am losing weight again too.  I actually can run and not be winded now.

And that old wives tale--that food will taste better?? That hasn't happened for me. But, I think most all food is tasteless anymore anyway.

Maybe I'll take up running for real in the coming year.

World Vision

http://donate.worldvision.org/OA_HTML/xxwv2ibeCCtpSctDspRte.jsp?lpos=top_drp_WaysToGive&go=catalog&

Each year my husband receives a bonus from work and each year we each receive a piece of the bonus to give to a charity.  Most years I choose World Vision.

Each year when I make the phone call, I make a fool of myself and start crying. I cry because it makes me desperately sad that I even have to give to this charity to begin with. But I give with a cheerful heart.

There are many different items that can be donated. Most years I give animals. This year I gave a goat and chickens, then another portion for where ever the need is greatest.

Last year I donated fruit trees.

It is very humbling to me to give to this organization. I am thankful I can give.

Veterans Day 2012

 Today is Veterans day. There are a lot of Vets in my family including me. You never know when you sign up in the volunteer Army, Navy, Air Force or Marines whether there will be a war. And when you are drafted, you know, of course, that it is war time.
Here is a list of my family members that are Vets:
John- Great Great Grandpa- Army- Civil war
Leonard-Dad-Army-WW2
George-Father in Law-Air Force-Korea
Bill-Uncle-Air Force-Korea
Mark-brother-Air Force-Viet Nam era
Bill-cousin-Army- Viet Nam  era
Bob-cousin-Army- Viet Nam era
Steve-cousin-Navy Viet nam era
Bill-cousin-Army- peacetime
Lisa-cousin-Army-Viet Nam era (last of the WACS)
Mike-brother in law-Air Force-peacetime
John-husband- Navy (Naval Academy)Desert Storm
Pam-Army-peacetime
Nick-nephew-Air Force-serving NOW
I am proud of my family members, and everyone else that serves in the Armed Forces, and I am thankful for each and every one of them that served. I am thankful for the men and women that serve in the Armed Forces today too.

This is a picture of me in Basic Training (Fort McClellan AL), I think. It might have been AIT in San Antonio TX.

Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.

Baby blankets

These are the baby afghans I made for the NICU babies this year. It wasn't near as many as I usually make.  Hopefully I'll make up for that in the coming year.

A fellow crocheter on my crochet board collects blankets for the NICU at a hospital near her where her baby stayed.  I make them because I like to make them and my daughter spent time in the NICU when she was born too.

It gives me pleasure to give these blankets to a NICU unit knowing that the babies and parents will appreciate them!!

Disappointed...........

I, like a lot of other people in the nation are disappointed with the election results.

That's ok!! The world keeps spinning and we keep moving on.

I was reminded this morning twice that GOD IS IN CONTROL!! Still. Sometimes I forget that but it was nice to be reminded amidst my disappointment.

Romans 8:27-28

New King James Version (NKJV)

²⁷ Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

I voted

Went at lunch time. Took 15 minutes. I was number 471 of 1500 expected in my precinct.

Now, we just sit and wait and see the results tonight. I am very excited for the results.

Lots of praying for the nation and for this election this year. It's a big one. I know that is said each year, but this year it really does seem to be a big one.

I hope you all got out and voted!!

Seven things...........

I have a Seven things project update.

We periodically put things out to the curb. Most recently it was fish tanks and air conditioners. I love curbside recycling.

Also, I cleaned out my shoes. I desperately needed to do this as the shoes in my closet were piled high on the shoe racks. That's never good. It ruins the shoes and it indicates that a person has too many shoes.

I finally went through them and put them in a large garbage bag. There were about 14 pair of various shoes in very good condition. I will be dropping them off at our local family services. I like this place better than Salvation Army or Goodwill. I feel it serves the local people better.

October

It's been a rough month.  There have been several young deaths in our community. I know two of the families of the young men that died. It's just heartbreaking that this has happened. As parents, we need to be involved in our kids lives, to know where they are and what they are doing. Who their friends are etc. We need to keep the lines of communication open with our young people. At any age. At all ages. We need to pay attention, even if the child is not yours.

I'm currently taking a Statistics class, that I am not doing very well in. It's very humbling to not excel at a class. I received a mid-term e mail from my professor. While I am currently passing the class (barely), I am not confident that I can actually pass the class. I just don't understand the concepts of Statistics. If possible, it is even worse than last semesters Algebra class. I have chosen to with draw from the class. I feel like a loser for doing this, but, I don't think I can pass the class and the last seven weeks have been very stressful for me. Give me a biology, or microbiology class any day and I will get an A in that class! My mind is just not geared for Stats it seems.

On the other hand, my daughter is doing well with her job and life. She seems happy with what she is doing and since she moved back to Minnesota, we all see her more.

My little guy is doing well too. He just finished selling popcorn for boy scouts and did very well! He is still liking school too, which is always good.

My mom is doing very well too. She says her place finally feels like home now. And she has her pictures hung up now! I know that can make a huge difference. She is also getting new counter tops in her kitchen. She is happy about that too.

We'll all make it through the rough times, and be all the stronger for it.

Psalm 118:24
This is the day that the Lord has made;
    let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Twenty years ago

This is my baby girl. Grandpa is holding her. I never let anyone hold her but grandpa.

Twenty years ago on this night my baby girl was diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes.  She was very ill for a long time. I had brought her to the doctor three times and they missed this diagnosis. It wasn't until after we had gone out for Halloween and were home that it became apparent that she wasn't doing well.

I was awoken with a very audible voice, that I believe was God, telling me to get her to the hospital NOW. I sat bolt upright in bed, got my daughter bundled up and carried her out to the car. It was 2 am and I sped down the freeway to Children's Hospital.  I parked my car right by the emergency entrance. They took her immediately and started working on her.

After they finally got an IV in and got blood from her, the doctor told me she was very sick. And that she had diabetes. She was in ketoacidosis and not doing well at all. She had lost about 11 pounds too. I asked if she would be ok and the doctor wouldn't answer with a yes. He wouldn't even tell me if she would make it through the night.

It was terrifying. I stayed at the hospital all day and night while she was there. If my mom or dad were there with her, I would run home and get fresh clothes etc. I knew very little about diabetes. My daughter and I learned together. And we finally found a good doctor that we went to for 10 yrs.

She recovered and has done reasonably well since her diagnosis. The pump has made life for a diabetic much easier to manage with fewer sticks with a needle.

I am thankful each day that I listened to that voice and that my daughter is still here.

Proverbs 3:5-6

New King James Version

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

Anniversary

Eighteen years ago today I married my husband!!

It was sort of a whirlwind romance. We met in October, starting dating in January, he proposed in May and we were married in September. Not as quickly as some people meet and marry, but sometimes you just know that you know that you know.

It's been a wonderful eighteen years so far and I look forward to, at the very least, eighteen more years!!

Every year I post this on his Facebook wall. This year he posted it on my wall!!

It's Fall!!!!

My favorite time of year!  Today marks the autumnal equinox.  Which just means it's fall.

I waited til late September to get married because I wanted to be married in the fall. I had a beautiful sunny wedding day.

We went to Boston and Maine for our Honeymoon and it was fabulous.

I love this time of year for many reasons. I love the smell of burning leaves, and the beautiful colors of the leaves on the trees.  I love the crisp cool air, and the bright sunny days.  It's the perfect time of year!

I held a Hummingbird

On Monday, my boy and I heard a thud at our bay window. The boy looked out and told me a hummingbird was on the patio floor.  I looked, and the bird looked dead. It was laying there belly up with it's wings splayed out. So, after a few minutes, the boy went out there to look at the bird. He told me it was moving. I think he meant it was breathing. I went out and picked up the hummingbird. I set it in the palm of my hand and it sat up. I could definitely tell it was stunned. It just sat there and I pet it a few times and told the bird he would be ok.

Turns out it is a juvenile male. No damage to his beak from hitting the window or his wings from the fall. He sat on my hand for about 3 minutes. I asked my boy to run into the house to grab my phone so I could take these pictures.

The top picture is of the juvenile resting on a hook after he flew off, he rested there for a few minutes too.  When he first flew away, he flew back to the window, then to my head, then my shoulder. He landed on this hook.

The second and third pictures are of him just resting in my hand.

This was a once in a life time experience. The only thing that came close to this was when we visited Madera Canyon in Arizona and the hummingbirds were accustomed to humans and flew very closely to us.  Before today I had never held a hummingbird. I am thankful this beautiful creature survived the window crash.

A mid summer update

It's mid summer. Another birthday has passed as well as my daughter celebrating another birthday on the same day.  We went out to Red Lobster to eat. It was good.

Unpacking at my mom's is going ok. Not as quickly as I had hoped it would go, but it's coming along. I can only do so much on the days I am there and then something else always comes up that needs doing.  But all the rooms are set up, and boxes are getting unpacked. In between unpacking, I clean her house. It's bigger than her other one, so it will take longer.

Mom is doing very very well. The ortho doctor does not need to see her for a YEAR!! I was shocked to hear that. She will have life long restrictions, mostly of the bending variety. But over all, she is doing very well.

The boy is taking swim lessons and playing baseball. He likes both activities, but is not a prolific swimmer at all. I refer to him as an aqua-rock. But he tries, and he can swim.  His summer has kind of been a bummer because we go to my moms house every other day to help her get settled. That's not a lot of fun for him but I explained that grandma can't do it all herself and we need to help. I think he understands.

My daughter recently had surgery to remove some steel plates and screws from her arms. She was in an accident a few years ago and she required plates and screws to repair her arms. She is glad they are out now and I hope she has less pain now.

I am going to Maryland in August! I can't wait. I thought I wouldn't be able to go this year with my moms surgery,  and school, but I am able to go and I am happy about that!  I signed up for one class this fall, Statistics. I am thinking about going to nursing school, but am still undecided. I am taking classes that are required for the nursing program and are general classes I would need for a degree anyway, so by doing that, I have time to make a decision. It would be a two year RN program. Two years full time.

The husband is working and taking some vacation time this month and next month, which will be nice too. And he is painting our laundry room and putting a new floor beneath the washer and dryer. We recently purchased a new washer/dryer set and thought it was a good time to repaint and refloor that area.

I continue to crochet during the summer. I have several projects I need to finish. I am making my sister in law a prayer shawl. She liked my moms so I thought I would make her one. I also have several baby blankets to make and the mornings my boy has swim lessons I make washcloths for the troops. I can almost finish one during his lesson time.

I think that's it. Hope you all are having a wonderful summer!! It's going by way too fast though~!!

Washcloths

These are six washcloths for the troops. My husband chose the yarn. It's 100% cotton yarn.  I found this charity through my crochet board.

The washcloths are easy and quick to make too. My boy is taking swim lessons this summer and I can work on these easily while he is taking his lessons.

Crochet stuff.............

I made this prayer shawl for my mom. She is always cold. She asked me about one and I told her I would make it for her. She really likes it!

I don't know why I didn't think of making her a shawl earlier, I'm just glad she said something!!

This one is Russet colored. Mom had a room mate in rehab. She was 94 years old and had a hip replacement too. I gave this shawl to her and she loved it!!

July 1 2012

Today my mom is 84 years old. She is doing well after her hip replacement surgery.

She also moved into a new condo. One with no stairs!!  We are still trying to get her settled after the carpet incident. Her brand new carpet came with a flaw and had to be re ordered.

Time for another word cloud.....

Decoration day...

It's what Memorial Day used to be called.

I'm shocked by how many people celebrate this day off from work, but don't know why they are celebrating.

What bothers me even more is the kids that don't know why we celebrate this day.
I know my boy didn't know why and I had to explain it to him.  I'll have to talk to my daughter and get her viewpoint on this too.

I just want to thank all the service men and women for serving our great country, and the men and women that continue to serve our nation to maintain our freedom.

But most of all, I want to thank the men and women that served our nation and sacrificed their very lives for all of us. And the families that they left behind. Because that is what this day is all about after all!

Hummingbirds

They are here!! They are three days late this year and we are shocked. We all thought with the warm weather we had that they would be early. We are glad they are here!!

Blankets.....

These are two baby sized blankets I made recently for a raffle for Battens disease. Look it up.

They are made with Red Heart yarn. One variegated and one solid color.

I also have made two other baby blankets and about 20 tiny preemie blankets. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of those, but I might be able to get one from the person I sent them too. If I get a picture of them, I will post it.  They are my annual contribution to the NICU babies.

I finished a shawl that I started some time ago. I'll post that later.

There hasn't been much time to crochet, but in the last four months I managed to make the preemie blankets.  And I made some cotton 4x4 squares for the troops. A local church had this project and I contributed to that. This summer I will continue with more preemie blankets and I am making a shawl for my mom.  She is having hip replacement surgery at the end of the month. I may need to fore go my trip to Maryland this year.

Update...........

This semester is finally over! I am so glad to be done. It was a tough four months and I still don't "get" algebra.  BUT, I passed! In fact I received a B in my Algebra class and an A- in the writing class. I am shocked with the B. I never ever could have done it without the help of my  tutor-my husband! He was so patient with me most of the time.

I will be taking Statistics in the fall. Only one class. And I decided not to take any summer courses for various reasons.

The boy is doing well in school this year and he is playing soccer right now with baseball following. Six weeks of each.  Then he will be taking his normal three sessions of swimming this summer. We also purchased a season pass again to a local water park. He will have a moderately busy summer. I also foresee some fishing going on as well.

The girl is doing well. So glad to be seeing more of her.

My mom is doing well, sort of. She is moving to a new place in about two weeks. She is also having hip replacement surgery! Just found out about that this week. So glad I am not taking a summer class, especially now. Mom is moving into a lower level unit so that she doesn't have stairs. With her knees, and now her hips, it will be much easier on her.

My husband has been busy with work, that business will end shortly.  He won't be having the crazy schedule soon, and I will be happy and so will the boy.

A note on the seven things project. I continue to rid my home of "stuff."  Most of it is clothing that the boy has out grown. Just recently I gave two pair of winter boots to a friend. Glad to be rid of them too!!

There's so much around here that I haven't had the time to do in the last four months so now I am kind of catching up.  I baked banana bread yesterday,  and burned it!  But I have been hungry for home made baked goods.  I need to make chocolate chip cookies too. YUM.  I have stuff to put away and organize, and I hope to get to the stuff eventually. It's kind of nice not having to run off to school or spend most of my free time studying and writing papers!

That's it for now.  Hopefully I'll be able to update more.

Spring!!!!

It's Spring today!! Though we have had some unseasonably warm weather all month.  Like in the 70's type of warm weather. Which is very unusual for us.  But, our ground is still frozen.

I haven't posted much lately because I have been busy with my college classes. The Algebra and Writing have taken over my life. I had a spring break but it wasn't even at the same time as my boy had his break.  And, I still had homework to do the week I was off school!!

I can't believe I haven't posted in two months!! That's a long time for me to not post.

My boy had another birthday in early March. He had his usual Dinosaur cake, and he brought dinosaur cupcakes to school. This year we also made a goodie bag for the kids in his class. Fun stuff, no candy. The kids seemed to like them.

The picture in this post is of a Barred Owl that visited us earlier this month in our yard. The boy spotted it and we all ran to the window to watch. It stuck around for about 45 minutes and moved from tree to tree a couple of times. It was fascinating! And Owls are really weird animals. It turned it's head. It was really weird.

My daughter is doing well, along with her cats!  Sometimes I miss cats, but with our one Jack Russell, it would never work.

I know I have more to add, but can't think of anything at the moment.  I'll try to keep up better with the blog.

School this semester....

If you think of it, you could pray for me for this semesters class.

I am taking a basic college math course and it is giving me fits. Even with my husband helping me.

I feel very defeated and I don't want to feel this way at all.

My brain needs to understand this stuff because I need this class. I need to take this class and pass it.

I'm also taking a writing class which I foresee being a cake walk compared to the math class.

Thank you!!

A round ripple

This isn't a great picture, but it's a picture of a round ripple I made.

It's made for a woman having her third baby boy and I wanted to make something different for her. So, I made this out of cotton, and it's a round ripple. I liked it a lot when I was done with it.

I also made some cotton wash cloths for her baby.   She like it all!  I'm happy she like the blanket and wash cloths.

December 31, 2011

Another year has come to an end.  We had lots of new stuff in our lives.

The little guy tried snowboarding this winter, and of course he loves it!! No surprise there, he also loves skateboarding and they are similar. Second grade has been good for him too! Had the fall conference and learned some good new things about my boy!!  He continues to thrive in school.

I also started school. It was huge for me to step out of my comfort zone and actually go to school. It was even harder for me to stand up in front of 30 people and give an oral report, but I did it and I am glad I did!! I am taking two classes starting January 9.

My husband continues to do well at work. He is active with the boy scouts, and I volunteered to be popcorn mom next year! I'm sure he'll help me. Hubby and the boy are still trying to go up north ice fishing at his brothers house, but, surprisingly, it's not been a cold even winter yet to get any safe ice.  Maybe in January or February.

My daughter is doing well, though I wish she were closer. She comes to visit when she can though.

My mom continues to do well too.  She is getting older and stairs are a bit hard for her with her knees, but she's doing well. I continue to go at least twice a month to clean her house. Sometimes we run errands too. We always go out to eat lunch on cleaning days.

As I reflect back on 2011, it's really been a good year for us.  We are all healthy and well.  Trying new things and just going on with life.  I think of friends from my past, as I always do, and wonder how they are doing.  Hoping all is well with them and their families.

I hope 2012 is good for all of us!! Enjoy the new year!!

Merry Christmas!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas! 

We went to the candlelight service last night and it was beautiful.

Yesterday we had my family over to celebrate and today my mother in law was over.

The little guy had fun!!

Winter Solstice

It's that time of year again. Today is the shortest day of daylight of the year.

From now on til June, the days get longer.

We have no snow here in Minnesota and none in the forecast through the new year.  The last time we had a brown Christmas was 2006.  I'm ok with that since I know we will not go through the whole winter without snow.

School update

I finally received my grade for my History class. I got a 93 on the final and an A for the class. I am very happy with that grade.  It was a great first class to take to get back into the swing of school.

I registered for the Math and Writing classes and bought the books. Unfortunately they were not rentable. What a scam college book prices are!! 

So, I start school in January two days a week.

Six years and counting!!

Today marks SIX years that I have been a non smoker!!!

I got a new toy this week......

Oops, I mean a new phone!! In my life, I think the greatest invention has been the iPod. And now, the iPhone!

When I was a teenager, there was no such thing as a cell phone. I listened to a transistor radio, later an 8-track and tapes, and finally  stereo instead of mono records!

To have this thing called a cell phone, that isn't just a cell phone is wonderful. It has all my music on it, games, GPS, and it has texting! Oh, and it's a phone too. I can finally text people now and I am thrilled with it.  It may seem silly to some, but to me, it's just great.

And I do love my iPhone as much, if not more than my iPod!!

Thanksgiving

I'm here with a belated Thanksgiving update.  We had a quiet Thanksgiving this year, just our moms were here with us. Hubby smoked the turkey and I made all the fixings.  It was yummy.  Made a homemade pumpkin pie again this year and it was so easy and tasty.  We will be hosting about 20 for Christmas dinner and gift opening.

School is almost over for me. I received my final test last night and I will turn it in next Wednesday. I am glad I have a week to complete it.  I also signed up for Spring semester classes, two of them this time. I signed up for a basic Math class and a basic Writing class. I need to take more than one class at a time if I am ever going to finish.  But I am glad I started with History. It was a fun, easy class and I actually learned a lot.

Our new windows are all in and they all have new coverings!! We especially love the bay window, it really opens up our house!

For the second time in about a year, my mom was thinking of moving. Mostly because the stairs up to her condo are becoming an issue. So, we looked at another place that she really liked. Until she figured out her finances and decided she didn't really want to move. I don't care what she decides, I just want her to be happy!!  So we have been looking at Stair Aids. It is a chair thingy that attaches to her stairs and it brings her up the stairs. Her building management allows these in the buildings and it isn't that expensive. I think it will be the perfect solution for her.

I got my hair cut a few months ago, a little shorter, then I went and got it cut even shorter. I wasn't sure at first, but I really like it shorter. I think I'll keep it this way. And, in May, I quit dying it, so everyone can see my gray now!

I also went for my 5 month dental hygiene appointment and I need another root canal. The dentist fixed the tooth a year ago and was skeptical that it would work. It didn't and I now need a root canal. The silver lining is that the tooth already has a crown! Yay me. So, I now will have NINE crowns and FIVE root canals in my mouth. The dentist told me some of this is genetics (thanks dad).  Because I do brush and floss every day.  Meh...............

My little guy is doing well in school. He likes school a lot and is a quick learner. Thankfully he loves to read too!  He keeps busy with boy scouts and Awana during the week. He's busy, but not too busy, which is perfect.

Husband is doing well too. He has done a lot of Christmas shopping and between the two of us we are done. I just need to wrap, and I will have my little helper helping me!!

The daughter is doing well too. Keeping busy with her job and cats and going to school.

I think that's about it. I've been crocheting, though not as much lately. I have a few things to post and I'll get to that soon.

Have a happy December!!