A good day!

Today was so nice. I went to Walmart this morning to do some shopping, and Brooke didn't throw a fit. This is a minor miracle. After I came home, I put away the groceries and worked on some more schoolwork. I got my Medical Language reading out of the way before leaving to get Bella from school. Pasha got into the van with only a little prodding for our trip to Petsmart. She behaved so well inside Petsmart, walking right beside me as I pushed the girls in the cart. Then when we loaded back into the van, she hopped right in! Yaaaay! It's been about 6 weeks since we adopted her, and this was the first time she's hopped right in. Success!! After we dropped her off at home, the girls and I went to Burger King to eat and play. The girls ate well, played well, and didn't put up a fuss when it was time to go. Then when we got home, I checked my email and my assignment was waiting for me. I did sooo much better this time! The mistakes I made were minor and my instructor complimented me. :) Oh! We also got our tax refund today, so I got to pay off some debt. That will make Joe very happy! Days like today are what make the rest bearable. Don't forget to thank a vet!

It's here!

My Lion Brand Cotton-Ease showed up today, 2 days earlier than Joann.com said it would. Oh how I love it when stuff comes early! I'm a bit surprised at how small the skeins seem. According to the pattern, it will be enough. We'll see how it goes! :) Here's a picture of my new yarn:



Sorry about the crappy picture. By the time I finished my schoolwork for tonight, it was already after dark. Not like we had much sunlight today. Anyway, don't you think this is going to make the cutest baby blanket for a baby girl?! I like the taupe trim on the berry blanket. Add the little hat and socks and it'll be way too precious. I just hope that between school, the kids, Joe coming home, and block leave, I can get it done before we either PCS or the school year is over. Craziness! Don't forget to thank a vet!

Man, oh man.

What a busy few days! I have had NO time to knit, which means my stress levels are through the ROOF! My dog has a tick, and I can't hold her down and get it off her at the same time. (She's a 100lb Anatolian Shepherd, in case you are wondering.) I'm worried about her getting Lyme disease, which adds to the stress. Plus, what if the tick, like, comes off and attaches to one of the kids?! I'd be sooo pissed.

On another note, I am a total procrastinator. It's finally catching up with me. I enrolled in M-Tec, a fantastic school that teaches medical transcription. The program costs over $3000, which I didn't have at the time of enrollment. Another terrific organization, Operation Life Transformed, arranged for someone to pay for my schooling. Well, that was almost a year ago...and I have yet to really start. So here I am, wasting some very generous man's money. That's not going to happen. He trusted me to give this program everything, and that's what I plan on doing. So now I have about 6 months to complete a very difficult course that some people don't even finish in 18 months. Wish me luck - I'll need it!

Cookie Factory

OMG, how many cookies am I going to make today? Lets back up. A week or so ago, I pledged to make about 10 dozen cookies for our brigade cookie drive. Last night I found out that numbers were low and some battalions weren't participating. Only the battalions who gave cookies would have cookies sent to their soldiers. Totally fair! After asking how our battalion was doing (not so great), I decided it was time for cookie overload. Today has been nothing but cookies, except for a fantastic conversation with the hubby. So far I've baked 26 dozen cookies. There are some waiting to be bagged up, and two batches left to mix up and bake. *whew* Who knew this would be so crazy?! LOL I'm happy to be helping though. Our soldiers deserve every little bit of home we can send. Don't forget to thank a vet! :)

An ugh kind of day.

Today is one of 'those' days. Everything started out great. Joe and I got to talk for a few minutes online, which is huge these days. Bella got to school on time, even with a last minute stop at Walmart to buy snack for her class. That's when it all went downhill somehow. When we got home, Brooke just went nuts. She's throwing tantrums, screaming, trying to stop me from doing things I need to do...just driving me insane. I put Kaelyn down for her nap early so that I could focus on Brooke. Thankfully she's somewhat calmed down now, but I'm still all pissed off. To top it off, my external hard drive is still being freaking stupid. I also want to make an appointment to talk to my doctor about some stuff, but I know they won't take me seriously. I already know what they will say and it just pisses me off even more. So...that's my day so far. Blah.

Super Bowl XLIII, here we come!

Great game, Steelers! You had me on the edge of my seat for some of the game, but you pulled through. Good luck in Tampa! WOOHOO!!!

Hats galore!

Well, I finally learned Magic Loop! It was really easy and certainly a handy technique to know. My first attempt resulted in a hat that was too small for any of the kids. I guess that's what I get for not checking my gauge! It did give me some experience though, so it wasn't all that bad. Plus, I have a hat already made for a baby present! :) Here's the hat:



Yes, that is the same yarn I'm using for Joe's Lover's Knot Afghan. (You'll need to be registered with Lion Brand's website to see their free patterns.) The Cascade Eco Wool is just fabulous. The pattern was really easy, and a super quick knit. You can find it here: Simplest Cap of All. After the tiny one, I made another for Joe out of Lion Brand Wool-Ease Chunky. He loved it and even took it back with him after R&R! My mom has requested a hat also, so I'm going to use the same Wool-Ease Chunky. It's warm, but also machine washable. She requested a cream color, so I'm going to use wheat:



Not everything I knit is in muted colors, I promise! It just seems that everyone is requesting creams and tans right now. Joe's hat was green, but I forgot to snap a picture before he took it back with him. KnitPicks recently came out with their new Felici colors, and I'm hoping to get some to tackle my first pair of socks. I'm looking forward to the challenge!

Yay for babies!

I love knitting for kids! There's just something about making something in a miniature size that is just so - I dunno - cute! Plus, they make for quick and satisfying projects. Since my girls are out of the baby stage and into the toddler and up stage, I have to wait for others to have babies so I can make itty bitty baby stuff. Now I have someone to knit for! Woohoo! Bella's teacher is pregnant and just found out she's having a little girl. :) Having 3 girls myself, I LOVE pink. So here's what I have in mind for her baby present:



Isn't it just too freaking adorable?! The above photo was taken from share32006's Flickr photostream. I found this photo on Ravelry and just had to do the same project. I love how she made a matching hat and teensie little socks. After sending her a quick message, she was fantastic enough to point me in the direction of the hat & sock patterns she used. Since I'm going to be knitting for a baby girl, I think I'm going to do mine in Berry (a dark pink color) and Taupe (the brownish color above). I really like the pink and brown combo, and I'm sure Bella's teacher will be getting plenty of light pink and white presents! In case you are wanting the patterns, here you are! All are available for free on Ravelry. If you aren't a member of Ravelry, I don't think you'll be able to see the patterns. You just need to join Ravelry anyway! It's awesome!! Here are the links: Hoodie Baby Blanket, TLL Basic Knit Hat Pattern, and North Country Cotton Baby Socks.

If you don't have a baby to knit for, consider making some of the above items for local hospitals. If you do, please remember to use a soft, 100% acrylic yarn, such as Caron Simply Soft. Acrylic is hypoallergenic and able to be used in NICUs. Check your local hospital to see if they accept donations. If they don't, there are plenty of websites collecting hats for various charities. Peace!

Facebook

I'm finally getting around to updating my Facebook with pictures and actually adding people as friends. I'm starting to like it more than Myspace, and will probably be making the transition towards using just Facebook soon. As I'm going through and adding people, it occurs to me that these people probably have no freaking clue who I am. LOL There's no trace of my maiden name anywhere on my profile, since I dropped that as soon as I could once Joe and I got married. My profile picture is actually a professional one where I'm wearing makeup...something that is not an every day occurrence, by any stretch of the imagination. It's just weird. Then going through and seeing what others are up to is just crazy. One of my friends from high school is in South Korea now...and isn't even affiliated with the military (that I know of). Not many of them seem to have kids yet, which makes me feel old. *sigh* My life is so different. We had our kids early. I have to wait until they are older before I can really start my professional life. Do I even want a professional life anymore? Hell, I'd be perfectly happy just being able to get a job right now. Damn you, daycare and your high prices! LOL On the other hand, Kaelyn should be out of the house by the time I'm 40. Woohoo! That's when we'll start living. Joe should be retiring around that time, so we can go travel and do everything we want to do then. I just hate waiting. :( It'll be worth it in the long run!

Hi! Hey! How are you?

So, you've found my little slice of the web! Hopefully you'll find something that catches your interest. It's hard to tell what you might find, actually. This is a place for me to collect my thoughts, vent, and just share what I enjoy. Mostly, you'll hear me ramble on about my wonderful husband, how my kids are driving me crazy, what projects I'm knitting on or want to start, and just life in general. Laugh with me, laugh at me, whatever. Enjoy!