Saturday, May 30, 2009

Knitted Baby Blanket

I worked a long time on this blanket and am so excited that it is done!


The birdie just completes the blanket.



This little birdie was made by a friend of mine who sells her items on Etsy. Please check out her site (she's moving right now, but check back with her). She's got the most precious felted items-plus you'd be supporting a wonderful woman and stay at home mom!

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

What's going on

I feel like it's been forever since I've written. I caught an awful cold last week and am still feeling the effects of it-- 10 days later. It kind've killed any energy I had for blogging or anything else semi-productive for that matter (I did finally watch Slumdog Millionaire though).

While trying to stay "busy" at work this past week (yeah, I worked despite my cold), I came across some lovely sewing fabric by Amy Butler. Her stuff is fantastic. It got me inspired. It doesn't take much. And I started wandering the web for neat fabric and ways to use it. So, I ordered a book from the library- should be in soon. Found local fabric stores. Discovered the joys of charm packs (5 inch squares of coordinating material). And started my first two quilts. Maybe, I have been more productive than I thought.

I'll post some pics of the beginning of my two quilts and also a finished knitted blanket with the most adorable felted birdie (custom made for me by a friend).

Until next time.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Water, Water Everywhere

I adore water. It really is about the only thing I drink around here. Well, except peach green tea, but that is basically water too.

Growing up, soda was always a treat- you had to earn it and the request had to go through dad. Pepsi was the soda of choice. I remember getting it on special occasions and Rhea and I would make sure that we each had the same amount of Pepsi in each cup. To the millimeter. I'm sure no other sibling did that! Soda was never an option when we went out to eat and I just can't remember it being offered all that often. So, naturally, I grew to be disinterested in soda. I realize I could have gone the other way (like the rest of my soda-loving siblings did), but I just don't care that much for it.

And I'm glad I turned out the way I did. See these "fun" facts that I got in an e-mail. Now, I have no idea if any one of them is accurate and quite frankly, I don't have the energy to research any of it, but even if one fact is true, then it's worth knowing! Have fun. Have a glass of water handy when you read this.

WATER

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated. (Likely applies to half the world population.)

2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so weak that it is mistaken for hunger.
3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's metabolism as 3%.

4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a University of Washington study.

5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue.

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.

7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on a printed page.

8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less likely to develop bladder cancer.

COKE

1. In many states the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the trunk to remove blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of Coke and it will be gone in two days.

3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into the toilet bowl and let the 'real thing' sit for one hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke removes stains from vitreous china.

4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.

5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals: Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble away the corrosion.

6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Apply a cloth soaked in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.

7. To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and bake. Thirty minutes before ham is finished, remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.

8. To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of Coke into the load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help loosen grease stains. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION

1. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid. It will dissolve a nail in about four days. Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase of osteoporosis.

2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the commercial trucks must use a hazardous material place card reserved for highly corrosive materials.

3. The distributors of Coke have been using it to clean engines of the trucks for about 20 years!

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Krispy Kreme and other things

So, this weekend was INSANE. Insane (say in a sing-song voice).

The Peace College alum weekend was this weekend. I had a great time with my First Finley girls and some of their husbands. The fun began Friday night at 18 Seaboard. Great restaurant. Great food.

Then we all met up at Peace on Saturday morning for breakfast. This would be the point that I start to lose all sense of healthfulness. You want to know something about me-- do you? Okay, here it is. As you can tell from my blog, I am a lover of good, healthy food. I easily turn down junk food at the store and just eat pretty healthfully at home. But the minute you give me "free" food- I can't stop myself. It's a compulsion to eat as much food as I can. Because it's free you see and even if it destroys your body and makes you feel like crap, it's okay, because it's free. I do this every time. I eat like crap every single time. This weekend was no exception.

There was chocolate fondue (went back for seconds), wine, cheese, crackers, white bread, croissants, ribs, soda, scones, cookies, cake balls (made by me . . . ME), Starbucks iced coffee, etc. The list goes on. I ate everything and stuffed some away for later! AHHHH. I can't be stopped. Oh and to add insult to injury there was krispy kreme thrown in there too- I limited myself to one. I have some scruples left.

Okay, add all that junk food with little water intake, little sleep, a dead car, two dance "recitals" and rain and it made for a CRAZY weekend. However, seeing all my Peace girls, having a great dance performance on Sunday and getting a free healthy meal from Susan (thanks Susan) made up (a little) for my gluttonous ways.

I'll get some pics up of our weekend soon. I'm the one with the krispy kreme in her hand.

Right now, I'm going to take a spoonful of coconut oil and wash it down with a huge glass of water. It's no atonement for what I've done to myself, but it's a start.

Maybe next time I'll read this blog before I go to an event with free food.

Maybe . . .

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Right Now I am . . .

drinking : peach green tea. i love this stuff. i must have a cup after i eat lunch-- for some reason my mind thinks it helps with digestion (although i have no scientific proof of this).

feeling : bored to be honest. not a lot going on at work and i'm just trying to make my day go by faster. woop-a-di-woop it is 3:00- only 2.5 hours left!

listening : to the construction workers working on the parking deck outside. the drilling/saws were making some low strange sounds awhile ago and i went all over the office looking for the person who was playing the "music." it then dawned on me that it was the worker's outside. hmm. clearly i have great taste in music!

watching : my computer screen.

loving : the fact that it is may! i'm kind've ready for my life to relax a little and this is the month were most of my commitments will end!

hoping : that i can get things done in time for my big weekend. peace college alum weekend with some of my favorite girls in the world- eating, talking, dancing, and hanging out will be had! in the midst of alum weekend, i have a dance "recital" where i will be showing three pieces on sat. and sun.

wishing : for a lot of things, but also grateful and appreciative of the things God has given me in my life right now.

Monday, May 11, 2009

The Mother Hen


Did you know that one of the characteristics of Jesus is to be the Mother Hen? I never thought about it this way until I heard yesterday's sermon at church. There were two parts of the sermon that I just loved.

Jesus as the Mother Hen-- He longs to gather people in His arms and nurture, protect, instruct, comfort and feed them. That's His desire if we let Him. Matthew 23:37-39; John 10:11-18, 18:1-9, 19:25-27.

Earthly mother's reflect small parts of Jesus- It's most mother's desire to be the Mother Hen to their children. They care for, nurture, protect, instruct, comfort and feed their children. The everyday things (which often go unnoticed) are direct reflections of Jesus' characteristics. It's no surprise that women are innately "programed" to do these things. No surprise at all.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. Rejoice in knowing that you are embodying some of the same characteristics of Christ- even when you are sweeping the floor, washing those vegetables and scrubbing the toilets!

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Mother's Day Cards

In an effort to be frugal and creative, I thought I would make a card set for Mother's Day. 'Cause you know, moms love whatever you make them (it's part of their job).

I just got a new stamp set and these are the cards I came up with.






Let me know what you think.

Monday, May 4, 2009

My weekend

I had such a busy weekend. Which is great because I don't need to be sitting around watching a weekend's worth of Deadly Catch marathons. I don't even like seafood.

I headed out bright and early Saturday morning to my church's yard sale and was able to stock up on some great half-priced items. Then went straight to dance rehearsal. Worked up a nice sweat. Did you know that my hair curls even more when I work out. Strange. By the end of the rehearsal my hair was way curlier then when I began?! But I digress.

My dancing friends and I then hopped into a car and had lunch at Sweet Tomatoes. We then mosied on over to our other dancing friend's baby shower. Too much fun. Ever played the rice and safety pin game- amazingly difficult. Or how about the "what did daddy feed the baby" game. umm hmmm. Fun times. The cheesecake almost did me in though.


Then I went home and started cleaning.

Sunday started bright and early too. I had to be at church at 7:30 to begin warm up and dance rehearsal on the stage. Services were at 9:15 and 11:00. Then I went home and cleaned even more. Non-stop cleaning until 5:00. Then my dancing friends and I decided to go to a free modern dance concert at Cary Academy. I knew several of the people dancing and let me tell you it was fabulous. If I could only dance like that!!!! Maybe one day. Or am I running out of time?! I don't know, but it's fun to dream. Got home at 9:40 and finished putting away laundry and then off to bed.

Fun good times. I was with the same people almost all weekend and I kind've miss them today. Hey guys! See you Wednesday for another dancing date!