Weekend Random

I wish I had something terribly fun and exciting to report on my weekend activities.  The truth is it was full of chores, appointments, and housework.

Yes, I can hear you yawning with me.  But the taxes have been sent in and there is a small refund coming my way.  Sadly, I already have it spent. 

I finally did get the winter clothes put away and the summer gear all washed.  I know I have been saying I was going to do that since Easter, but now it's really done.  I lost track of the number of loads of laundry I did today. 

There has been no hooking all weekend and I still have a few rugs waiting to be bound.  My etsy store needs a few more updated items so I will put that on the list for later this week.

In between everything I have been knitting instead.  I found a different pattern for those little dish/wash cloths.  I like making them. They are quick and actually quite useful around the house.

If anyone wants some, let me know. 

So, I bid goodbye to another weekend and brace myself for tomorrow and the round of meetings on my schedule.  I hope the evening meeting doesn't drag on too late.  Can't miss Dancing With The Stars!!

Flowers for Leontien

Hugs and prayers for Leontien as she continues her fight to crush cancer.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

At last

So, things are better today.  At last, I did get our tax stuff delivered to the accountant.  It should be ready tomorrow and then e-filed. 

Then I went to the post office and got both packages sent.  Holy cow, postage rates are expensive.  One box was less than half a gram overweight and the price difference was $5.60    Less than a gram........ and it was a small box.  But the clerk was kind so I got the lesser rate.  Still over $10 but way better than $15.  Yay!

 Work settled down some today too.  A co-worker popped in today.  He laughed about yesterday.  He said he looked in my office and the look on my face said "Do Not Ask Me For Anything".  (He was right - I was rather close to the edge yesterday)

At last, my tulips in front of the house are starting to open.  This photo is from last year, because by the time I am writing this it is too dark to show you tonight.   And I see some green leaves sprouting on the orange bush.  The lilac tree is struggling but I think in a few days I might see some leaves.   SPRING!!

And in the the final, most amazing "at last".......Today I discovered the best thing.  A little exciting, an idea whose time has come, a bit dangerous for me.......

How many times have you been looking for the perfect pair of shoes?  You might find a cute pair, but the wrong color.  Or the right color but the wrong heel.   Well, brace your self ladies.......   I found a website where you can DESIGN YOUR OWN SHOES.

Yes, at last!   Why did it take so long for me to discover this?   Why didn't someone think of it sooner?   You have to go to this site - Milk and Honey Shoes    You pick your own style, a huge selection of materials and colors,  select your heel type and height, add some fancy embellishments and then they make them and send them to you.

It's like I died and went to shoe heaven!!!   Have any of you ever used this site??  And if so......why did you keep it a secret from me??   I have been playing with it all evening.  The possibilities are endless.  Too many choices, but so much fun!    I get a little giddy just thinking of it.

A nasty trifecta

Not your usual trifecta - not the triple threat you might hope for.  This particular

trifecta shakes down like this - a trio of D's

Delusional

I'm too busy.  Work is out of control and any thoughts I had of getting caught up

- simply Delusional. 

Delayed

This is the status of my life.  Do you know that I have not even had our taxes done yet?? 

Monday is the deadline.  I forced myself tonight to get our crap together

and I WILL deliver it to the accountant tomorrow.  I also have 2 packages sitting here

waiting to be mailed.  Maybe tomorrow.  I hope the recipients are forgiving.

Dishevelled

I'm a mess.  My hair needs to be done.  I have had 2 appointments booked

and had to cancel for last minute work committments. 

Today I worked through lunch (un-planned) to finish a last

minute emergency.  On my way home I ran my fingers through my hair.

I felt something.   I had a Post-it flag stuck in my hair......

For most of the afternoon, I'm guessing.

And no one told me.......Nice!

So the triple D trifecta makes me a triple threat.

And not in a good way.

Friday.......where are you??



Weekend update



The weekends seem to fly by so quickly.  This photo pretty much sums up what I'm feeling tonight.  Lol

I did survive the rest of the week after my little pie-hole incident.  Sorry Michelle, its not a story I dare blog about.  (but email me and I'll tell you :)  The neighborhood has temporarily calmed down.  And the piles of garbage were picked up on Friday so things are slowly settling down.

Saturday I went to a large indoor yard sale in support of the local Relay for Life teams.  The place was packed and it was nice to see so many people out in support of such a great cause.  Just another example of how our small town turns out to support each other.   And I came home with lots of goodies like homemade fudge and donuts. 

Next stop Saturday was a visit to Flow Lifestyle Boutique for an Eco-Fashion Show.  It was a combination of new clothes and vintage, pre-loved clothing.  But I wasn't there long when I started to feel bad.  It was a migraine starting and by 4pm I was miserable.   Thankfully I woke up this morning feeling much better.

It has been at least a week, if not two, since I picked up my hook.  Today I got back to the frame and managed to get a few little lavender sachets hooked.  I will get them assembled and delivered later this week.

They will look much better when they are sewn and stuffed.  I'll take another picture when they are finished.  These are fun to hook, but I drag my feet on the assembly.    I had another etsy sale today. Yay!  The summer fields rug will be headed to its new home this week. 

This post is getting a little random.  Sorry.  I just wanted you all to know I am still here and haven't been run out of the neighborhood. 

Have a great week.

She's on her broom

It has been awhile since I have had a good old fashioned rant.  I feel one bubbling up to the surface.

Ladies and Gentlemen, fasten your seat belts, she's gonna blow!!

Every year at the this time the Town offers a special garbage pick-up.  Almost anything goes - furniture, appliances, broken crap from your basement - whatever.  It is a great service BUT.....

The specific pick-up week is well promoted.  Yet people still start piling up their crap 2 - 3 weeks early.  The entire town looks like one big ugly junk yard for weeks.  

But the worst part is the looters, the garbage pickers, the scavengers.  Drives me nuts.  (I know, its a short trip on a good day)

Its not just the scavenging that annoys me, its the fact that these "people" rummage through your neat pile in the night and toss it all over the friggin yard.  Just tossing stuff willy nilly looking for crap.   It's crap and it's MY crap.  First, I don't want to have to re-pile the crap every morning.   And second, it's MY crap.  If I wanted strangers rummaging through my stuff I'd leave my doors unlocked.

Stay off my property and out of my crap.    Sheesh!!

There was another, different incident last night.  Something I probably shouldn't blog about in any detail.  It involves a neighborhood issue.  It involves me opening my giant pie-hole, in public,  and using the analogy "Lipstick on a Pig".   My finest hour??  Perhaps not.

I think I'd better park my broom for a few days.

Unexpected blessings

This is not the post I had in mind for today.  However here it is.  I could never have imagined how this crazy world of blogging would impact me and the relationships that would develop.  I remember stressing for months trying to get the nerve to start a blog.  Pushing the publish button on that very first post was terrifying.  What would I say? Who will read it?  How much will I share?  What if no one reads it?  And probably a hundred other concerns. 

However, the last thing I considered was the multitude of positive things that would be introduced into my life.   I follow a variety of different types of blogs, including a few related to caregiving for Alzheimers. Sometimes you just make a connection you cannot explain.  One blog in particular sparked with me.  A daughter as primary caregiver to her Mom.  Her Mom reminded me of mine.  We shared experiences occasionally.  Maybe 3 or 4 emails a year but we seemed to be able to relate to each other's experiences.

Today I received an email letting me know her Mom passed away this weekend and she attached the obituary to the message.   As I was reading it I noticed my face was wet - a few tears rolling down my face.  Dorothy's fiesty nature reminded me of Mom, I realized I had developed a bit of an attachment to her.  And more than that, I was so taken back that in her daughter's fresh grief, she thought of me, a virtual stranger, thousands of miles away.

I guess the point of this post is that you just never know how you will impact other people.  Which post or line or comment will make a difference to someone.  Who will you make a connection with and why?  

Dorothy's daughter and I shared a common experience and we occasionally shared our thoughts and opinions. We understood each other's issues.  We asked each other the same questions.

Please say a little prayer for Dorothy's family tonight.

Let your hair down

Everyone needs to let their hair down every once in awhile.  Getting together with friends, old and new, is good for the soul.  Letting go of all the stresses of life for a few hours and just having fun.

The monthly Friday Night Ladies Dinner Club was last night.  An assortment of different women, different backgrounds and lifestyles, various ages, all having bonded over the winter.

There is no shortage of laughter, fellowship or great food which is thoughtfully presented.

Conversation spans from the serious to the downright silly.  None of us take ourselves too seriously.   We are not a high-falutin group.  A discussion of books and book clubs quickly declines into giggles about being a member of a book club where you are expected to actually read the whole book.   (Can you imagine!!  Lol)

We are honest.  We are real.  We are sometimes silly.   We are fun.

Find a group of people you enjoy spending time with, and let your hair down. I highly recommend it.

Where am I......

Where have I been lately? 

Well it is Budget time at work.

Say a little prayer

And deliver me large cups of strong coffee
if you are in the neighborhood  :)

Revisiting the past

I had a really nice afternoon with some family members, revisiting lots of old memories.

As some of you know, I lost my Dad last Fall.  Today's visit was with 4 of his first cousin's at the old family homestead in the country. 

I spent a great deal of time at this old country house as a child.  As soon as I walked in the door there were so many memories.  The home has not changed much at all over the years.  Each room I explored brought back a story or memory. 

Then we started looking at the hundreds of old photos.  Old pics of my Dad's parents who had both died before I was born and some baby pictures of my Dad which I had never seen before. 

This photo is my Dad as a little boy.  I cropped the photo, but the original includes his brother and 2 cousins.  Dad and his brother were both wearing these little sailor suits made by their Mom.  I laughed and laughed, but they were so darn cute.

They also had an envelope of snapshots of me when I was a teeny one at the homestead.

OK, Seriously.....How friggin cute was I?   Lol

Easter Bunny Humor?

An Easter Bunny with a sense of humor?  But somehow when I woke up this morning to discover the blanket of white snow left behind, I was not amused.

I thought the Easter Bunny would leave me a pile of chocolate goodies - NOT a chore to shovel. 

When I was a little girl it was tradition to get a new skipping rope along with the other goodies.  I think I looked forward to the new skipping rope almost as much as the chocolate and candy eggs.  (Well, almost)  You could hardly wait to get home from Church and change out of your fancy Easter clothes so you could go outside and play with the neighbor kids.  That skipping rope would have been a big disappointment this year.

OK, enough weather whining.  I did get some chocolate.  The bunny now has no ears.  Now it looks like a gopher.  In fact, I picked away at junk food all day.  When it was finally time for the big easter dinner, I wasn't hungry.  Nobody was.  Sigh......what a waste of several hours of preparation.

These are the eggs Mom painted and dipped at Alzheimers Day Care this week.  They always find the cutest little crafts for them to complete.

Now  I am ready to reveal the little projects I was making from the scrap basket.  I did actually manage to hook a bit today, in between snacking.  They are small lavender sachet pillows.

I shared all your birthday greetings with Millie.  I think she was quite pleased!  She got lots of extra treats and loving yesterday.  Well, she gets lots of loving everyday.  I don't know if you have noticed, but she is kind of spoiled :)

I hope you  all had a lovely Easter weekend.  I still have one more day of vacation tomorrow.  Yippee!

Still Relaxin'

So, it has been more of the same around here.  And by that I mean lovely, relaxing vacation days.  On Day 2 (Thursday) I dropped Mom off at the Alzheimers Day Care and Auntie and I went to a nearby City shopping.  We had a nice lunch together and we did buy a few little things - mostly new clothes for Mom.   We had a great day - just like old times.  We laughed and giggled as opposed to the caregivers stress fights we have been having lately.

Yesterday I made our traditional Good Friday brunch of Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon.  It is so good I didn't even care about the calorie or cholesterol count.  I could just eat that Hollandaise sauce with a spoon :)  Then the day was capped off with a little gathering of friends.  There were lots of laughs, a few inappropriate stories and a few beverages.  Perfect!

I am working on a few little projects using the bag of leftover wool strips.  It seems that bag of wool strips never goes down.  The strips multiply like rabbits (or Easter bunnies??)

The last thing I am going to share with you today is another milestone.  Miss Millie turns 10 years old today.  It seems like just yesterday she was a new puppy.

Happy Birthday Sweet Baby!



Flip flops and frostbite

Ahhh, the sweet smell of vacation days!  I'm happy to report Day 1 was a great success (and that even includes having to go into the office for an hour to deal with something) 

I had booked myself an appointment at the Spa for a pedicure.  That meant wearing flip flops because as you know, the polish is never dry when you leave.  And who wants a smudge?

One little problem was that the warm temperatures of last week were gone and today it was a not so balmy 3 degrees above freezing.  But I would not be deterred.   I dug out those flip flops, rolled up my fabulous new yoga jeans and headed for the Spa. 

And instead of my usual safe choice of pale pink or nude..........Racy Red!

When I left the Spa I decided to stop and visit Stephanie at Flow Lifestyle Boutique for a coffee while my toes dried.  I'm sure I was a real hot sight strutting down the street in a wool winter coat, flip flops and jeans rolled up to my calves.   (any wonder why I'm single??)  Lol   But after a few minutes and the cold wind made my toes half numb, it wasn't too bad! 

There were a few other visits with friends and now I am relaxing with a coffee and a bar of chocolate with sea salt.  I never would have imagined that combo would work but Mmmmmmm

Can't wait to find out how Day 2 will compare.

Ta Dah

My motivation eventually kicked in today and I just pulled the last loop on my rug about an hour ago.    

I  then spent the last hour looking for the specific piece of material I needed to start the new project.  Did I find it?   No

Did a little April Fool elf hide it on me?  Possibly.  Hopefully it will turn up tomorrow.  It is material I have been hoarding because you can't get it anymore.  

So I suppose I will resort to knitting a little dish cloth tonight instead.    Here is the rug - not bound yet.  That part can wait.

Not the best quality photo.  Just snapped it quick on my iPad.  Once it is bound I will take a proper photo.   This is last of my "friends" rugs.  I'm getting bored with that one.  Time to move on. 

Did I mention I am only working 2 days this week?  Yippee.  After 4:30pm on Tuesday I am on vacation for a few days.  Lets hope Monday and Tuesday fly by quickly and uneventful.

Have a great week :)