My Silly Cats

I don't know why, but Sophie loves to watch the birds shadows on the wall. Every morning she waits patiently on the bed for me to come in and open the blinds for her. The sun casts a shadow of the bird feeder on the wall and she jumps down and sits and watches the birds shadows. Why? Why not catch the live show out the window? I don't understand it, but she sure is cute.

(trying to get the bird)

(waiting for the birds to return. Dimitri knows that he can catch the live show and jumped up in the window and scared them all away)

Please Help!

I need help, and bad. I am not good at math, whatsoever and I have failed once again at my attempt to "wing it". I need a cozy for my Zune, like an Ipod cozy. I found a few that I like online like this one, this one, and this one. Tonight I attempted to make one. This one in particular. I wanted to add a few things to it, like a pocket (for my earphones) and I didn't particularly like the elastic so I didn't put that part on. Well, this is my first attempt.

No so good, since it is too small and my Zune won't even fit into it.

This is my second attempt. It was definitely bigger. Too big in fact. So I thought, well I'll just sew down the side to make it more snug. Nope, doesn't work and on top of that, it looks horrible.


I need help! Please, anyone! Please help me! This is what I am looking for. Something that my Zune will fit snugly into. I'd like to have a lining on it to help prevent scratches. My Zune measures 61.1mm x 108.2mm x 12.9 mm (w x h x d). Or from measurements it is 4 1/4 tall by 2 3/8 wide. Does this make sense to anyone? I just need to know what sizes to cut the fabric and lining including the seam allowances of 1/4 inch. I can still follow the tutorial of this pattern but I need to know what sizes to cut it. Can someone please help me? Pretty please?

Slow progress

I don't think that this afghan should be called Jacob's Ladder but it should be named "the longest, easiest, most time consuming afghan you will ever make, but it will be beautiful". Okay, maybe it is a little long, but it describes it wonderfully. This pattern is super simple and easy. A good beginner pattern. However, it takes a long time. You must be patient in making this and be willing to accept inches instead of feet at a time for progress. All I can say is "thank goodness for color changes." If I was doing this pattern out of one color instead of three, I think I really would go crazy. It is taking longer than I anticipated ( I guess I thought it would only take me a few weeks, but it hasn't). It will be large enough to fit our bed though, so it will be worth it. I started it because I had extra yarn I wanted to use up. But now, I need to go buy more because it is going to take a lot more than I had. It is coming along nicely though. If I stopped working on it today, it would be big enough to cover my shoulders down to my belly button. I don't think that will work, so I must be content with the slow progress I am making on it. (I have been braiding it as I go, maybe that is what is taking up all the time. Do you think?)

My motivation for finishing this afghan is this afghan. I just love it! I love the colors, the pattern, the shapes, the front and the back. Everything! I oh and awe over this photo weekly. (Is that considered stalking?) I just love it. Have I mentioned that I love it yet?

Okay. Enough said. Who knows if I will ever get around to making one, but I do love to stare at this one on flicker. I have bought yarn for me. Me! For the purpose of making a project for me! I can't decide between something like this or the wool eater. I love them both. But I think I will only have yarn enough for the ripple. Time will tell, I must finish my "the longest, easiest, most time consuming afghan you will ever make, but it will be beautiful" afghan first, before I start one more project. I just like to look.

You'll Never buy Manwich Again...

Yes Mom, I'm still alive! She gets worried if I don't post so I must reassure her that I am okay. I have been pretty sick lately, well for the past week. Tell you what, I am so tired of being sick. I had a pretty miserable cold, cough, sinus pressure, the whole deal. I even lost my voice. I have been stuck at home and mostly in bed for the past five days. The worst part, I haven't been able to do any crafting. Just not in the mood when you have to cough up a lung every five minutes. So no new projects to show. But I did actually make dinner tonight for the first time in 8 days. And it was tasty. Sloppy Joe's! I am not a fan of Manwich but I do love my homemade Sloppy Joe's. I don't even remember where I got the recipe or what it calls for specifically, but here is how I make them.

Brown 1 lb of ground beef. Drain and return to large skillet. Add 1 can of tomato soup (sometimes I use about 3/4th of a can if I have less meat) and 1/2 can (16oz can) of salsa. I use mild because I hate spicy stuff. I like the Don Julio brand (I don't know if that is a national brand or not) but something that isn't very watery. And I like the Don Julio because it has black beans and small corn in it. Mix all together and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes just until it thickens up. Spoon over toasted hamburger buns. I add cheese, because, well, cheese makes everything taste yummy. That's it! Super easy and you will never want to buy Manwich brand again. Enjoy. I know I sure did (after a week of chicken noodle soup and toast, everything tastes fantastic!)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Two of my favorite things... Valentine's Day and CUPCAKES! There is nothing better than a full day set aside for people to say "I love you!" I hope everyone has a wonderful Valentines and gets to say "I love you" all day long. And I hope somewhere in there, you have time for a yummy cupcake.


*Note~ I didn't make these cupcakes, I found this picutre on flicker!

My Friend Ashley...

is the greatest! She is in my ward and is one of the girls that started coming to the crochet group that I started. She loved it and was such a fast learner. She has taken off! She finishes more projects than anyone that I know. She came over last night with a birthday gift for me ~ a cute washcloth and a hot pad that looks like a chicken. They are so adorable.


She also made me this crochet hook holder. I love it! It holds all my hooks and then they don't get lost and the cats don't get to them (yes, Sophie did acutally chew on one of my metal hooks. Now there are teeth marks all over it and it scraps my hand when I use it). So thanks Ashley! You are amazing!

Happy Birthday Dimitri!

I am totally one of those people who celebrates birthday's for thier pets. And today is Dimitri's B-Day! He is now four (in human years) as far as we can guess. We still love him just as much.

MIA. . .

Sorry for my absence. I have taken a few days (a week) off work to study for an exam that I had to take. My past week has been spent studying and not much else. Now I'm back and working on more projects - Suprise, Suprise! During my week off, I managed to turn 26! Yikes, I know! To tell you the truth, I don't feel much older, which I guess is a good thing. Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes. This is what my DH got me and I have been trying to get it working. I love it! So much space with such a big screen!I also got some new earrings (Thanks mom) and a gift certificate to the fabric store around the corner from my house (thanks Buchanans). I think I will buy some fabric to finish the cross stitch quilt blocks. Not sure though, I might find something else that I just have to have.

I also finished another receiving blanket. I just love making these, I don't know why. Maybe because they are fast. Or that they are made of flannel. Or maybe the fun prints. I just love them.

Hopefully there will be more to show in the next few weeks.