1-24-2015 Cabin Fever

As the Iowa Winter sets in

and all our friends head to

Florida, Texas, Arizona and Europe for several months,

cabin fever takes hold and DH & I need to get out of Dodge!

So, after spending a day shopping in Des Moines

and visiting the art galleries there,

we headed to the Honey Creek Resort

for a change of scenery!

We arrived after dark.

Beautiful lobby at the Lodge...

Spacious accommodations...

The next morning we drove around... slowly...

(the roads were full of deer!)

and enjoyed the lake views.

1-23-2015 Shopping in Des Moines

Saw this display at the Bass Pro Shop...kind of cool...

bought a new jacket for myself!

Perused this yarn store

and surprisingly

bought nothing!

Fish Bowl...

go ahead...

I dare you to take the bowling ball

out of my mouth!!!

1-22-2015 Jamberry

Dear Daughter became a Jamberry nails rep...

she just loves their product!!!

I will have to get with the times

and give the a try!

1-21-2015 Smiles

Check out my new haircut...

And I'm up on all fours trying to crawl now!!!

Sharing ice cream with baby sister.

1-20-2015 Topsy-Turvy Doll

Mike K.

and Sully

...from Monsters Inc.

1-19-2015 End Zone Socks

Started some Green Bay Packers socks tonight

while watching the game...

using some yarn I got at the 

Wisconsin Wool and Fiber Festival last summer.

Was so sad to see the Packers lose

their 16 point lead.

:-(

Oh well,

there's always next year!

1-18-2015 UFOs

In the knitting community

UFO

stands for Un-Finished Object.

Here are some projects I started recently

and the progress I am making on my UFOs...

1) the reversible cables scarf online KAL

(Knit-A-Long)

2) a blanket for my granddaughters using leftover scraps 

from other projects I've made

3) a FINISHED coffee cup cozy

for a birthday gift later this week

to a knitting friend

who loves purple as much as I do!

Purple is one of those "very difficult to photograph

with digital photography" colors...

so you will have to imagine this heart as 

the primary purple it truly is.

1-17-2015 Cabin Fever

Cabin fever is setting in...

time to go outside for a walk...

 (from top ^ of 90' waterfall)

 (and ^ from the bottom of the waterfall)

1-16-2015 Moonflower Cactus

A dear knitting/crocheting friend of mine in Australia

sent me this photo of her lovely

Moonflowers.

I've never seen this flower before...

isn't it just beautiful!!!

She said that it only blooms once a year

and only during the night.

Thanks so much, MA, for sharing this photo with me!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

And Happy Birthday to my sister...

where ever she may be.

1-15-2015 The 1898 Seamen's Hat

 Finished the headband for this 1898 Seamen's Hat today

using some yummy llama yarn!!!

Now it's on to the crown!

1-14-2015 Love-Hate Relationship with Bare Escentuals Mineral Makeup

First of all,

let me state that I LOVE Bare Escentuals mineral powder makeup!

I have used it for over 20 years

and would not consider using anything else on my face...

until now.

Back in the day, 

the jars did not have 'indented' bottoms

or 'sifters' in the top.

They were FULL of product

from the very bottom up to the lid.

Today I went to replace several products

(well rested, clear radiance, and a blush)

and found they all had indented jar bottoms,

very deep sifters that take up more than half the space in the jar

and the tiny 1/16"-1/8" space that remains at the bottom for the minerals...

...well, it is only  half full.

 Not only that, but what LITTLE product there is

I could not get to without using a pliers to remove the 'tab'

and then unsuccessfully tried to remove the indented sifter

so had to end up smashing the sifter with the pliers

to get at the product!!!

One of the many things I loved about Bare Escentuals mineral makeup

was that you could mix different products together to make custom blends

that were just right for your complexion and coloring,

but they have pretty much made that impossible anymore.

So, even tho I love the Bare Escentuals mineral makeup,

I hate that they have decreased the amount of product drastically...

I hate that they have increased the price...

I hate that I am not getting my money's worth like I used to...

I hate the packaging that no longer allows you 

to get at and use the product.

I hate that I have to give up a makeup that I love

and look for a new one.

Argh!

I gave up on their loose mineral eyeshadows years ago

for the same reasons.

So sad.

1-13-2015 Fun Fun

Came away with a clean bill of health

from my annual dental check up and cleaning.

Whew!

Actually, going to the DDS

brings back memories of the good ol' days

when I was the one doing the cleaning,

working as a dental hygienist putting my hubby thru school.

The KENZIE yarn I ordered online for the Endgame KAL

finally arrived in last night's mail.

Woo-hoo!!!

I managed the new-to-me tubular cast on

and have completed the first three inches of 2x2 ribbing.

Now it is on to the chart and cables!

1-12-2015 New Things

GD discovered the new chest of drawers

immediately upon entering the basement

and had fun checking out and filling each and every drawer!

GD checking out her new pigtails in the bathroom mirror...

they stayed in about 20 seconds.

GD eating stars for dinner

(cut up star fruit)...

"Yum!" she said as she ate the whole thing!

1-11-2015 HitchHiker Shawl

Finished knitting my Hitchhiker Shawl last night

and wore it to church this morning...

got LOTS of compliments on it!

You can't see it in the photo,

but there is a shiny gold thread

running throughout

so it has a bit of bling!

1-10-2015 The First Hat I've Designed

Finished this hat at last night's "Sit & Knit" session at my LYS.

I made up the pattern as I went along 

to go with the Last Minute Cowl

I had made (and LOVE!!!) last winter:

(see Last Minute Cowl blog post here)

1-9-2015 Photo Albums

Spent today

perusing 1000s of photos from 2009>present day,

selecting my favorites,

having them printed,

labeling the back of each photo

with a date and names,

and placing them in chronological order

in an archival, acid-free photo album.

Call me old fashioned...

a dinosaur!

I love photo albums!

Mem'ries

Light the corners of my mind

Misty water-colored memories

Of the way we were

Scattered pictures

of the smiles we left behind

Smiles we gave to one another

For the way we were

Can it be that it was all so simple then?

Or has time re-written every line?

If we had a chance to do it all again

Tell me, would we? could we?

Mem'ries

May be beautiful and yet

What's too painful to remember

We simple choose to forget

So it's the laughter

we will remember

Whenever we remember

The way we were...

Although I love digital photos,

I like having hard copies of my favorites too.

After all, who is going to want to go through

all my digital photos backed up on dvds 

when I pass?

I'm guessing that the dvds will be tossed in the trash

when the time comes.

1-8-2015 A Departure

Today's fun was a departure

from my yarn and knitting...

to fabric!

Time to make a denim teddy bear

(from a pair of her daddy's old jeans)

for GD#2's first birthday

later this month!

It will be the 66th teddy bear I have made

using this McCalls Pattern.

I'd say I've gotten my money's worth

from this $1.00 pattern!

1-7-2015 How cute is this?!?!?

 How cute is this little chest of drawers?!?!?

Kind of reminds me of this new yarn I bought today, yes?!?!?
And yes, it came home with us!

1-6-2015 Double Trouble

Looks like the grandsons are staying inside too

during this frigid weather!

Cabin fever = double trouble!!!

1-5-2015 First of Seven

 The girls went out to play

in the first of seven inches of snow we got...

didn't stay out for long as it was 0*F and windy.

Baby sister stayed inside and snuggled with her blankie!

1-4-2015 Happy Birthday to my Son!

Today is my son's birthday

so DH & I drove to Chicago

to celebrate his birthday and help finish up 

wiring the lights in his basement.

He has done such a great job

framing, dry-walling, painting 

and installing a dropped ceiling

in his first basement.

All he has left is a bit of trim work

and it's done!

He has created a wonderful, carpeted 

play space for the boys!

Good job, son!!!

So proud of you.

I also baked some poppyseed bread 

for his "birthday cake."

1-3-2015 Hitchhiker

 Could not resist this green and purple Berrocco BRIO yarn

at last night's "Sit & Knit" at my LYS...

the lady sitting next to me was making something with it

and I just loved how it was knitting up...

and everyone knows that my fave color is purple!!!

Some of my knitting friends have made several

"Hitchhiker Shawls"

which I just love,

so thought I would use this yarn

and try my hand at making one for myself!

So far, so good!

1-2-2015 Haven't Seen This Low in Decades!!!

Filled up the gas tank in my car today...

1-1-2015 Happy New Year's Day!

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

so DH & I decided to do something indoors...

we went to the movies!

We went to see "Into the Woods"

and may I just say,

Johnny Depp just killed it 

as the big, bad wolf!!!

Can't wait until his next movie,

"Mortdecai"

comes out later this month!!!